IMPROVEMENTS IN ELASTIC BANDS
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Rowley, Gentleman, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ELASTIC
BANDS."
Sealed the 15th February 1856, and dated the 16th August 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Rowley at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 16th
August 1855.
I, CHARLES ROWLEY, Gentleman, of Birmingham, in the County of War-
wick, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ELASTIC BANDS" to be as follows, that is to say :-
My improvements relate more particularly to the elastic bands patented by
Thomas Barnibas Daft and Stephen Perry, on the Seventeenth day of March,
One thousand eight hundred and forty-five, which consisted in making bands
of rings of vulcanized and non-vulcanized india-rubber, in the making of which
from sheet rubber by their process a great waste of rubber was unavoidable, as
they were made in continuous rings; to obviate which, as well as enabling
me to make elastic bands of the scrap rubber produced in large manufactories,

page_text: 1 make them of straight strips, suitably and firmly united at the ends, and as
this greatly economises the material, as well as the advantage of using up small
scraps and pieces, it entirely avoids the necessity of punches or other expensive
tools or machinery; and in some instances the said bands so made may be
ornamented at the part where they are united; or strings of india-rubber may
be strecthed, and while so strecthed they may be covered with silk, gold, or
other thread, and such india-rubber so covered may be afterward made into
bands, by being cut the required length and united together at the ends, a
result that could not be procured by the continuous ring band.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Rowley in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 16th
February 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
ROWLEY, Gentleman, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date. the Sixteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Charles Rowley, Her special license that I, the said Charles Rowley,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
Rowley, my executors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ELASTIC BANDS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I; the said Charles Rowley, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months.next and immediately after, the date of the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Rowley, do hereby declare the.
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say):-
My improvement in elastic bands more particularly refer to the description
of bands patented by Thomas Barnabas Daft and Stephen Perry, on the
Seventeenth day of March, One thousand eight hundred and forty-five, in
specifying of which they particularly describe their bands as being endless, and
exhibit two modes of making them; namely, first, by cutting them out with
circular punches from sheet rubber, varying the size and stoutness of such
band according to the thickness of the rubber and the sizes of the punches;
and, secondly, by making tubes of india-rubber, varying in size and stoutness
according to the diameter of the tube and thickness of the rubber used; and
from-the tube so formed they made their rings or bands, by cutting them off at.
right angles to the lengthway of the tubes, broad or narrow, as required. The
latter mode was not much used, on account of the difficulty in obtaining a
perfect union at the part where the rubber was united to form the tube; and
the former plan involved a heavy expense in tools, as also a great waste of
rubber; and another disadvantage in making elastic bands continuous or endless
is the impossibility of connecting labels or tickets to them, or combining them
with any other band or bands without tying such bands together; and in the
same way, if a label is required so must it be attached, as the continuity of
the band will not admit of its being conveniently fastened in any other way.
To obviate these objections and to economise the rubber have been the object
of my Patent, as will be seen by the following description; and reference to
the Drawing hereunto attached.
I take a sheet of india-rubber, (preferring that it should first have gone
through the well-known process of vulcanizing, as it imparts to the rubber the
quality of retaining its contracting power, viz., that of returning again to
the exact length after being freed from a strain; this is not the case with
non-vulcanized rubber,) and this sheet I cut into threads or strands by the
process well known in rubber or caoutchouc manufactories, varying the thick-
ness of the rubber and the size of the strand according to requirements. I.
next cut the strands into lengths, varying them according to the size the band
may be required, and each piece I make into a ring or band by securing the
ends, which may be done by tying them together, but for security I prefer the
following way I bring the ends together, and allow them to overlap each
other about a quarter of an inch; more or less, and inasmuch as the rubber will
elongate or stretch in the proportion of about six to one, so the quarter of an
inch-lap at the ends may be conveniently pulled out to three-fourths of an inch,

page_text: still retaining a sufficient quantity at the extreme ends to be held between the
finger and thumb of each hand; and whilst I have found that children's fingers
are particularly applicable for this kind of work, nevertheless the ends may be
held or retained between a suitable pair of jaws, which jaws may be made to
be moved asunder by the foot, and in this state the band is ready for securing
or tying together (at that part), for which purpose silk or other thread, or any
other suitable material, may be used; but I have found narrow ribbon (known
as china ribbon) to answer well for this purpose, the ribbon being served in
three or four rounds, and then tied in a knot, or knot and bow. This mode,
with the surplus ends of the narrow ribbon cut off, will form a neat and secure
fastening, as the band whilst in use will never be strained generally more
than it is at the place where it is tied, leaving the union perfectly secure,
having no tendency to pull or draw out whilst in use.
A band tied with a bow is exhibited in the Drawing at Figure 1, and
without the bow at Figure 2. Figure 3 represents a band made, say, of the
india-rubber strand exhibited at Figure 4, the end of which has been passed
through the eyelet hole of the label there exhibited, where it becomes permanent
by tying the ends in the manner before described. Figure 5 simply exhibits
the application of a circular label and band as made from the strand; Figure 6,
the end of the strand, having been passed through the label before tying;
Figure 7 is the same description of band as before described, but only made
of larger and broader rubber, as exhibited at Figure 8, using a larger label,
and keeping the front free for lettering, by passing the rubber of the band
behind it; and Figure 9 represents how two or more such bands may be
united by a label, as here exhibited; and, if found desirable, before such bands
are tied or united at the ends, an additional label may be used where the bands
cross each other on the reverse side.
I have not thought it necessary to further illustrate my Invention, but in my
Provisional Specification I have stated that such bands may be ornamented, if
thought desirable, by being covered or partially covered with different coloured
silks, gold or silver thread, or such like material, the same to be done by the
ordinary braiding or other machinery used for covering the strands of one
material with another.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same may be carried into effect, I wish it understood that I do not claim
as my Invention the making of elastic bands, as that has been done by Daft
and Perry, as herein-before described; but what I do claim as my Invention
is, the making of elastic bands by cutting india-rubber into strips or strands,

page_text: and dividing such strips or strands into suitable lengths, and uniting them
together at the ends, as before described, and exhibited in the Drawings, by
which I entirely avoid the making of any scrap or waste, also the use of
expensive tools, and at the same time to greatly increase the general utility
of the article.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Rowley, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witness,
J. S. COCKINGS, Patent Agent,
Birmingham.
CHARLES ROWLEY. (L.S.)