IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES AND STOPPERS AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID BOTTLES, WHICH INVENTION COMPRISES IMPROVED FILLING AND STOPPERING MACHINERY AND AN IMPROVED BUSHING MATERIAL "
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Albert Jules Theodore Wild, of Arbuthnot Road Peckham,
in the County of Surrey for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES
AND STOPPERS AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
THE SAID BOTTLES, WHICH INVENTION COMPRISES IMPROVED FILLING AND
STOPPERING MACHINERY AND AN IMPROVED BUSHING MATERIAL "
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Albert Jules Theodore Wild
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th April 1883.
-
ALBERT JULES THEODORE WILD, of Arbuthnot Road, Peckham, in the County
of Surrey " IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES AND STOPPERS AND IN APPARATUS TO
BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID BOTTLES, WHICH INVENTION COMPRISES
IMPROVED FILLING AND STOPPERING MACHINERY AND AN IMPROVED BUSHING
MATERIAL
"
My invention relates partly to improved bottles and stoppers of that class in
which the stopper is designed to be screwed into the bottle neck, and this part of
my invention has for its object to provide improved means whereby the stopper
can be more readily and firmly secured in the bottle and more easily removed
therefrom than is practicable with bottles and stoppers as heretofore made.
My said invention further relates to an improved tool or apparatus whereby the
screw-thread can be formed in the bottle neck.
The said invention also comprises an improved compound or material for
bushings or linings to be fitted in the bottles or upon the stoppers, and improved
machinery for filling the said bottles and inserting the said stoppers therein.
In making bottles and stoppers according to my invention, I form the screw-
threads in a peculiar manner, that is to say, I make the lower part of the screw-
thread in the bottle neck at a right angle to the axis thereof and the upper part of
the screw-thread inclined. thereto, and I make the screw-thread on the stopper in
the reverse manner, that is to say, the upper part at a right angle to the axis

page_text: of the stopper and the lower part inclined thereto. By these means, if the bushing
is upon the stopper it is held very firmly thereon, and the stopper can be easily
inserted in the bottle neck without turning it, and must be turned to withdraw it;
if the bushing is in the bottle neck the screw-threads hold the same firmly therein
and the stopper can be inserted and can only be withdrawn as above described.
In order to form the screw-thread in the bottle neck I employ a pair of tongs
such as are ordinarily used for forming the necks of bottles, but I construct the
said tongs in the following manner, that is to say, I provide, upon that part of
the tongs which enters the bottle neck, a ring of brass or other suitable material
formed with an external screw-thread of the desired shape, and I provide means
whereby the said ring is normally prevented from rotating but is released so as to
be free to rotate when the tongs are closed upon the bottle neck; for this purpose
I fix a bent rod to each limb of the tongs and arrange it in such a manner that
when the tongs are open its extremity will enter an aperture or recess in the said
ring and prevent the same from rotating, so that after a bottle neck has been
formed the bottle can be unscrewed from the said ring.
I sometimes make internal stoppers with screw-threads as above described and
provide them with a square or other suitably shaped head which can be held by
forceps or similar devices to screw the stopper into the bottle neck.
My invention also comprises a stopper which acts as a syphon in combination.
with a seating of cork or other suitable material fixed in the neck of the bottle.
The stopper, in this case, is made with a central aperture or passage which is
closed by screwing the stopper down upon the said seating, and which may be
readily opened to permit the escape of a portion of the liquid in the bottle and
again closed.
With bottles and stoppers of the class above described I employ a bushing or
lining which may be of india-rubber, cork, or other suitable material, but which I
prefer to make of the material hereinafter described. This bushing or lining is
fitted either inside the bottle neck or upon the stopper and by reason of its elasticity
it expands into the screw-threads upon the said neck and stopper.
My improved bushing material is composed essentially of gelatine, glue or size
and skimmed milk, and a small quantity of tartaric or other appropriate acid is
added to soften the material. I sometimes add a small proportion of india-rubber
to this mixture. These ingredients are combined in about the following proportions
that is to say:
8 parts of gelatine, glue, or size, from 4 to 6 parts of india-rubber, 1 part of
tartaric acid, and from 1 to 3 parts of skimmed milk.
With this compound I, in some instances, coat or impregnate calico or other
suitable fabric and roll the same around a rod of the required size so as to form a
bushing or lining I sometimes employ the above described compound (the india
rubber, in this case being omitted therefrom) for coating cork or india-rubber to
form bushings or linings. The said compound also serves as a cement for securing
the bushings or linings in the bottle neck or upon the stopper.
I construct the machinery for filling and stoppering the bottles above described,
as follows, that is to say:-Instead of making the air-tight chamber of conical form
I make it cylindrical and I provide a lever which is pivotted to the frame of the
machine or to a bracket attached thereto; one end of this lever is provided with a
handle and the other end is coupled to a rod passing through a vertical bearing
and carrying a pair of forceps or other suitable device for grasping the head of the
stopper. As soon as the bottle is filled this lever is operated by band and caused
to first grasp the stopper and then rotate the same and thereby screw it into the
bottle neck. If desired, the said rod and bearing may be provided with screw-
threads corresponding in pitch to those upon the bottle and stopper.
According to another part of my invention I construct the machinery in such a
manner that a number of bottles can be filled and stoppered simultaneously. For
this purpose I provide a travelling belt or apron which passes over two pulleys and

page_text: is fitted with a number of plates or boards each having any suitable number of
recesses to receive bottles. I employ two tanks arranged in such a manner that
while the liquid is escaping from one of the tanks the other tank is being filled.
Each tank is connected with air-tight chambers corresponding in number with the
bottles in one row across the said belt, and a treadle lever is arranged for raising
all these bottles simultaneously up to the outlets of the said chambers. I also
provide a lever, similar to that above described, in combination with each of the
said chambers for inserting the stoppers in the bottle necks, and connect the said
levers in such a manner that they can all be operated simultaneously. By these
means the operations of filling and stoppering the bottles can be very rapidly
performed.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Albert Jules Theodore Wild in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 25th October 1883.
- ALBERT JULES THEODORE WILD, of Arbuthnot Road, Peckham, in the County
of Surrey, " IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES AND STOPPERS, AND IN APPARATUS TO
BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID BOTTLES, WHICH INVENTION COMPRISES
IMPROVED FILLING AND STOPPERING MACHINERY AND AN IMPROVED BUSHING
MATERIAL
"
My invention relates partly to improved bottles and stoppers of that class in
which the stopper is designed to be held in the bottle-neck by a screw-thread.
My said invention further relates to an improved tool or apparatus whereby the
screw-thread can be formed in the bottle-neck.
My said invention, moreover, comprises an improved compound or material for
bushings or linings to be fitted in the necks of bottles or upon the stoppers, or
the stoppers may be composed entirely of the said compound or material. And
my invention also comprises improved machinery for filling bottles and inserting
the stoppers therein.
My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a section of a bottle-neck formed with a peculiarly shaped screw-
thread to adapt it for use with a stopper or bushing made of my improved
compound as hereinafter set forth.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of a stopper formed with a similar shaped screw-
thread
Figure 3 is a plan, partly in horizontal section, of the improved tool or apparatus
for forming the screw-thread in the bottle-neck.
Figure 3 is a section on the line x, x, Figure 3.
Figure 4. is a sectional elevation shewing one mode of constructing bottles and
stoppers according to my invention.
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation shewing another mode of constructing the
вате
Figures 6 and 7 are sectional elevations shewing different modes of connecting
the stoppers with the bottles according to my invention.
Figure 8 is a side elevation of my improved machine for filling bottles and
inserting the stoppers therein
Figure 9 is an end elevation of the same.
Figure 10 is a side elevation of a modification thereof
Figure 11 is a plan of the casing for holding the bottles.
Figure 12 is a sectional elevation of another modification of my improved
machine.
Figure 13 is a side elevation of the same
Figure 14 is a section, drawn to an enlarged scale, of one of the chambers into
which the liquid is introduced
Figure 15 is a sectional elevation of a device for gripping the stoppers to insert
them in the bottles
Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the drawings
In making bottles for use with stoppers or bushings made of the improved
compound hereinafter described I prefer to form the screw-threads in the bottle-
neck in the peculiar manner shewn in Figure 1, that is to say, I make the lower
part a of the screw-thread at right angles to the axis of the bottle-neck and the
upper part a¹ of the screw-thread inclined as shewn. When a bushing of my

page_text: improved compound is employed, on the stopper or in the bottle neck, I make the
Screw-thread on the stopper in the reverse manner to that above described, that is
to say, I make the upper part b at right angles to the axis of the stopper, and the
lower part 6' inclined as shewn in Figure 2. By these means, if the bushing is
upon the stopper, it is held very firmly thereon; and when the stopper is formed
of the said compound it can be inserted in the bottle-neck with great facility
without being rotated, the stopper will then expand so as to fill up the screw-
thread in the bottle-neck and a corresponding screw-thread is thus formed upon
the stopper, which must be turned to withdraw it from the bottle; and if the
bushing is in the bottle-neck the screw-tbreads hold the same firmly therein and
the screw-threaded stopper can be inserted in the bushing without being rotated,
and will form a corresponding screw-thread on the interior of the same so that the
stopper must be turned to withdraw it.
In order to form the screw-thread in the bottle neck I employ a pair of tongs
such as are ordinarily used for forming the necks of bottles and in which a screw-
threaded piece of brass or other suitable material is arranged to enter the mouth
of the bottle. According to my invention provide the means hereinafter
described whereby the said screw-threaded piece is normally prevented from
rotating but is released so as to be free to rotate when the tongs are closed upon
the bottle-neck.
In Figure 3, c is the screw-threaded piece of brass or other material, d, d'are
bent rods or arms one of which is fixed to each side or limb e of the tongs. When
the tongs are closed, the piece o is free to rotate with the bottle and will form a
screw-thread in the neck thereof; but when the tongs are opened the extremity.
of each of the said rods enters a notch or recess f in the said screw-threaded piece
and prevents the same from rotating, so that after the bottle-neck has been formed,
the bottle can be unscrewed from the said piece c. I can, if desired, employ a
ratchet-wheel in combination with the piece instead of making the recesses
therein as above described.
The improved compound or material which I provide for making bushings or
linings, or for making the stoppers, is composed essentially of gelatine, glue or size
and skimmed milk, a small quantity of tartario or other appropriate acid being
sometimes added to soften the material. In some cases I add a small proportion
of india-rubber to this compound. I sometimes combine these ingredients in, or
about in, the following proportions, namely;-8 parts by weight of gelatine, glue
or size, from 4 to 6 parts by weight of india-rubber, 1 part by weight of tartaric
acid and from 1 to 3 parts by weight of skimmed milk. I can however, obtain a
very good result by mixing the gelatine, glue or size and the skimmed milk in
about equal proportions and adding sawdust, cork-waste or the like to the said
mixture to render the same elastic.
With the above described compound of gelatine, glue or size and skimmed milk,
I in some instances coat or impregnate calico or other suitable fabric and roll the
same around a rod of the required size so as to form a bushing or lining or I form
a stopper of the fabric thus treated. I sometimes employ the said compound for
coating cork or india-rubber to form bushings or linings. The said compound also
serves as a cement for securing the bushings or linings in the bottle-neck or upon
the stopper.
In Figure 4 I have shown a bottle and stopper so constructed that they may be
used in place of an ordinary syphon-bottle, that is to say, by constructing them in
this manner the bottle can be readily opened to permit the escape of a portion of
the liquid contained in the bottle and can be again closed to retain the remainder
of the liquid therein.
In this case I provide a plug g having a central aperture g¹ and an external
screw-thread which fits into a screw-thread in the neck of the bottle. The bottle-
neck is made with a circular recess i, and a ball j made of my improved compound
or of other suitable material is inserted therein. When the bottle is filled, the
plug gis srewed in so that it presses the ball j against the seating and prevents

page_text: .
the escape of the liquid. By turning the said plug so as to slightly withdraw the
same from the bottle the ball j is released and, when the bottle is held in a
horizontal position, the said ball drops into the recess i.
plug is thus opened to permit the escape of the liquid.
vertical position, the ball will roll on the seating
down thereon to close the bottle.
The aperture in the said
By holding the bottle in a
and the plug can be screwed
Instead of using the said ball I sometimes use a cylindrical piece of my improved
compound or other suitable material so placed that the end of the said plug will
bear upon one of the flat ends thereof.
.
Another mode of constructing the bottles and stoppers is shewn in Figure 5 in
which the bottle is provided internally with a projection or flange k upon which is
placed a ring or washer of cork or other suitable material. The plug g is
arranged to be screwed tightly down upon the said ring or washer after a marble
or ball has been placed in the bottle.
j
When the bottle is filled, the pressure of
the gas therein holds the ball against the ring 7 and prevents the escape of the
liquid. To open the bottle the plug g is turned to slightly withdraw it from the
bottle and thus permit the escape of some of the gas contained in the bottle. The
ball being then no longer supported falls from the aperture in the plug so that the
Hiquid can be poured through the same. The ball may, if desired, be then retained
by any suitable means in the neck of the bottle. If the plug g is made of my
improved compound, the projection or flange and the ring of cork or other material
may be dispensed with; the ball then partly enters the aperture in the plug and
presses the sides of the plug into the screw-thread in the bottle neck. I sometimes
use, instead of the ball, a spherical piece made with a number of flat surfaces so
that it will not be liable to roll like the ball.
"
I sometimes make a screw-threaded stopper as shewn at g³, Figure 6, and
provide the same with a ring h of cork or other suitable material. I screw 'this
stopper into a collar or ring m which I then secure to the neck of a bottle by the
wire n as shewn, so that the stopper can be screwed down to close the mouth of
the bottle, or unscrewed to open the same, but the stopper will always be
connected to the bottle and cannot, therefore, be lost.
Figure 7 shews. another form of stopper which is connected to the bottle as
hereinafter described, that is to say, the bottle-neck is made with a recess i¹ in
which is fitted a screw-threaded ring o of metal or other suitable material. A
strip or piece p of metal is placed between the ring o and the bottle-neck, and to
this metal piece the stopper is connected by the hinged pieces q so that the stopper
will not be removed from the bottle when it is withdrawn from the mouth of the
same. If the ring o is of metal I sometimes make the same with a projection to
serve the purpose of the strip or piece p.
The stopper is made with a screw-threaded portion g³ to which is fixed the
handle or knob r for turning the said screw-threaded portion. This handle or knob,
and the screw-threaded portion, turn independently of the plate s which serves for
the attachment of the stopper to the bottle. The stopper is provided with a ring
of cork or other suitable material. which fits into the mouth of the bottle and
prevents the escape of the liquid therefrom.
I construct the machines for filling bottles and inserting the stoppers therein, in
such a manner that the bottles can be successively brought into their proper
position relatively to the filling apparatus, by actuating a treadle-lever or similar
device, and in some cases so that two or more bottles can be filled simultaneously.
In Figures 8 and 9 I have illustrated one form or modification of my improved
machine.
A, A are travelling belts or aprons which pass over two pulleys or rollers B
carried in bearings in the frame C. These belts or aprons are provided with a
number of plates or boards D each having recesses to receive the bottles E.
F, F are two tanks connected with the chambers G in such a manner that, while
the liquid from one of the tanks is being admitted to the said chambers, the
communication between-the other tank and the said chambers is cut off and the

page_text: latter tank can be filled. The chambers G correspond in number with the bottles
in two rows across the said belt. The treadle-lever H is so arranged that when it
is depressed it raises all the bottles carried by one of the plates or boards D
simultaneously to the outlets of the said chambers.
The chambers. G are made in the manner shewn in Figure 14. I is a ring of
indiarubber or other suitable material retained in the outlet of the chamber by
the tubular nut K. The mouth of the bottle to be filled is pressed against the said
ring as, shewn. The stopper is inserted at the top of the chamber G and is forced
into the bottle by means of the screw-threaded rod L which passes through a
ratchet-wheel M. In the machine shewn in Figures 8 and 9 all the ratchet-
wheels M are held in a cross-head or bar M' which can be raised or lowered by
means of the screw M². The said ratchet-wheels can all be rotated simultaneously by
means of the lever N.
When screw-threaded stoppers are used any suitable gripping devices may be
provided in connection with the rods L to hold the said stoppers.
I sometimes modify this machine as shewn in Figures 10 and 11, in which Ơ is
the frame of the machine and O is a cylindrical casing fitted around part of the
game. Within this casing are arranged a series of plates P.attached to a central
cylinder or tube Q, to the lower end of which is fixed a ratchet-wheel R. The
plates P divide the casing into a series of compartments each of which is adapted
to receive one bottle. His the treadle-lever to which is connected the rod $ for
pressing the bottles up against the outlet of the chamber G as shewn in Figure 10.
T is a lever pivotted to the frame C. One arm of this lever is coupled to the rod S,
and the other arm thereof is bent and provided with a pawl T' which engages with
the ratchet-wheel R. By depressing the lever H one of the bottles is pressed
upward against the outlet of the chamber G and the pawl T¹ is moved a certain
distance around the ratchet-wheel R. The lever H is provided with a weight H¹
so that when the said lever is released the weight draws down the rod S and causes
the ratchet-wheel to partially rotate and thereby move the bottle in the succeeding
compartment under the said chamber G. The bottle that has been filled is also
thereby moved until it arrives above the aperture 01 in the casing O, through
which aperture it falls into the chute V, from the lower end of which it can be
received by an attendant. In this machine the rod L is fixed to the ratchet-
wheel M and passes through the nut M³ into the screw-rod M³, which is made
hollow for this purpose.
In some cases I arrange the compartments containing the bottles to rotate upon
a horizontal axis as shewn in Figures 12 and 13. In the machine shewn in these
Figures, the liquid is introduced through the axis W which is made hollow for this
purpose. And the pawl T' is attached directly to the rod S, a lever X, pivotted to
the frame C, being connected with the end of the said rod and with the piece Y
for pressing the bottles into the outlet of the chamber G.
The above described machines may be arranged to be operated by steam or other
power, if desired, instead of by a treadle-lever -
Figure 15 shews a device consisting of semicircular jaws 8 fixed to spring arms t
which are secured to the rod L. The milled bead of the stopper is inserted between
these jaws and when the latter enter the chamber G they are forced inward upon
the stopper and grip the same so that when the rod L is rotated the stopper will
be screwed into the bottle-neck
Having thus fully described my said invention and the manner of performing
the same I wish it understood that I claim :-
First. The improved compound or material consisting essentially of gelatine,
glue or size, and skimmed milk mixed in, or about in, the proportions named (with
or without the tartaric or other acid and with or without the cork, india-rubber, or
its equivalent) all substantially as, and for the purposes, specified.
Second. A stopper or bushing made of calico or other suitable fabric coated or
impregnated with a mixture of gelatine, glue or size and skimmed milk, as above ·
set forth.

page_text: Third. The combination of the screw-threaded plug having a central aperture,
the ball or other device, and the bottle-neck having the recess therein, substantially
as described with reference to Figure 4 of the drawings for the purpose specified.
Fourth. The combination of the screw-threaded plug having a central aperture,
the ball, and the bottle-neck, with or without the projection or flange and the ring
or washer of elastic material, substantially as described with reference to Figure 5
of the drawings for the purpose specified.
Fifth. The above described improvements relating to the connection of the
stoppers with the bottles, as described with reference to Figure 6 or to Figure 7 of
the drawings for the purpose specified.
Sixth. The improved tool or apparatus wherein the bent rods or arms are
arranged to enter recesses in the screw-threaded piece to prevent the same from
rotating, substantially as, and for the purpose, set forth.
Seventh. The improved machine for filling and stoppering bottles, in which
machine the bottles are successively or consecutively brought into the proper
position to be filled and stoppered, substantially as described with reference to
either of the modifications shewn in Figures 8 and 9, Figures 10 and 11 or
Figures 12 and 13 of the drawings for the purpose specified.
Eighth. The improved ratchet device for inserting the stopper in the bottle
(with or without the gripping device) all substantially as, and for the purposes, set
forth.
In witness whereof I the said Albert Jules Theodore Wild have hereunto set
my hand and seal this Twenty fifth day of October in the year of our Lord
one thousand eight hundred and eighty three