Improvements in Crutches.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 16th June, 1896-Accepted, 18th July, 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by DAVID JOSEPH KENNELLY, of the City of
Los Angeles, in the State of California, United States of America.]
Improvements in Crutches.
I, JOHN LIDDLE, of 154, St. Vincent Street, in the County of the City of
Glasgow, North Britain, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being made to
the accompanying drawing in which :-
Figure 1 is a detail view of top of crutch showing movement of oscillating
arm-rest.
Figure 2 is a vertical section taken on line 11, 11 Figure 1.
Figure 3 represents the crutch in elevation.
Figure 4 is a detail view of one of the standards showing one end of the
adjustable hand-rest secured thereto.
Figure 5 represents the opposite standard with the opposite end of hand-rest
secured thereto.
Figure VI is a section taken on line VI, VI Fig. IV.
Figure VII is a detail view of bottom of crutch showing reversible foot piece
with elastic plug and spur.
Figure VIII is a bottom view of crutch.
Figure IX is a detail showing reversible foot piece.
Referring to the drawings:
1 represents the standards forming the body of the crutch. The standards join
each other at the bottom and are secured in the socket of a ferrule 2.
3 represents the hand-rest interposed between the two members of the standards,
and 4 a metal bracket having ferrules 5 on its ends in which the upper ends of the
standards are secured.
The bracket 4 is formed on its upper side into a flattened cone-shaped
extension 6 which fits into a corresponding recess 7 on the under side of the
arm-rest 8, the arm-rest being secured to the extension by a central screw or
pin 9. The recess 7 is made somewhat larger than the extension so as to permit
of a rocking or oscillating movement of the arm-rest as shown in dotted lines
Fig. 1, so that as the crutch swings the arm-rest remains stationary in its contact
with the arm.
The oscillating movement of the arm-rest, or rather of the body of the crutch, is
limited at the proper point by the arin-rest coming in contact with elastic plugs 10
secured in the ferrules 5, the movement being thus arrested without jar to the user
of the crutch.
The arm-rest, which has the proper curvature on its upper side to fit the arm,
is provided with a pneumatic cushion 11 having a tube 12 extending through a
portion of the arm-rest, through which the cushion may be inflated. The arm-rest is
hollowed out into pockets 13 at each of its ends for the reception of the ends of the
cushion, the cushion being thus held in its place on the arm-rest, the inflating of the
cushion fixing it more firmly in the pockets.
As the pneumatic cushion gradually looses the air forced out under the pressure,
and thus the length of the crutch is slightly altered, I have found it desirable to

page_text: provide a hand-rest that is adjustable vertically, the construction of which I will
now describe.
14 represents sleeves placed on the standards of the crutch and which are adapted
to move vertically on the standards (speaking of the crutch being in an upright
position). 15 represents collars on the inside of the sleeves, said collars being
provided on their inner sides with sockets having right and left screw-threads.
The central portion of the hand-rest 3 is formed of cork or other suitable
material to form a good grasp for the hand, the hand-piece having metallic caps 16
mounted upon its ends, said caps having central circular cones formed of an outer
ring 17 having its side walls extending parallel with the length of the hand-rest,
the ring being closed on its inner end by a section 18. 19 represents right and left
threaded bolts extending outwardly from the section 18, said bolts extending a
short distance beyond the ends of the caps 16, there being an annular recess 20
between the bolts 19 and the inside of the ring 17. The sleeves 14 are provided
on their outer sides with integral plates 21, and on their inside with movable
plates 22, said plates extending lengthwise of the standards 1, thus forming an
elongated bearing distributed over considerable surface.
23 represents an elastic disk placed within the collars 15 to form an elastic
bearing between the movable plate 22 and the inner ends of the bolts 19.
In securing the hand-rest 'to the standards 1, the movable plates 22 are first
inserted in the sleeves 14 and the sleeves are passed over the ends of the standards
and slid along to their proper position, the hand-rest being then secured to the
collars 15 by screwing the right and left threaded bolts 19 into the internal
threaded collars 15, the free ends of the collars extending into the annular
recess 20 and the ends of the bolts coming into contact with the elastic disks 23,
the movable plates 22 being forced against the inner sides of the standards and the
outer integral plates and the outer portion of the sleeves themselves being drawn
tightly against the outer sides of the standards, thus effectually clamping the
standards and holding the hand-rest at any desired position. The position of the
band-rest is quickly changed at will by unscrewing the same a sufficient distance to
loosen the plates and the sleeves, adjusting them to suit, and then screwing the
band-rest up again.
By locating the bolts 19 in a recess in the caps, I am enabled to form an
adjustable hand-rest that leaves no sharp corners or parts exposed that might chafe
or injure the hand.
The movable plates 22 are made slightly wider, as shown at 24, than the inner
diameter of the sleeves 14, so that sait plates cannot slip out of their position in the
sleeves whilst the sleeves remain on the standards.
The ferrule 2 at the lower end of the crutch is provided with legs 25, leaving a
central aperture 26. 27 represents a reversible foot-piece having an elastic plug 28
at one of its ends and a spur 29 at its opposite end. The foot-piece 27 is pivoted
to the legs 25 by a pin or screw 30. 31 represents a locking lever having a lug 32
at one of its ends, said lug engaging either one desired of two notches 33 in the
foot-piece 27. Thus either the elastic plug or the spur may be quickly set in
position to use at the will of the user, according to the surface over which he may
be walking. The locking lever 31 is pivoted to one of the legs 25 as shown at 34.
35 represents a pin on the opposite end of the locking lever, said pin extending
through the leg, and is provided with an enlarged outer end 36 forming a
thumb piece.
37 represents a coil spring surrounding the pin 35, said spring being located in a
recess 38 in the leg and having its outer end in contact with the thumb piece 36,
the locking lever being thus normally held in engagement with the foot-piece.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In a crutch the standards connected at their upper ends by a bracket having

page_text: a flat cone-shaped extension, in combination with an arm-rest having a recess into
which the extension on the bracket extends, said extension having pivotal connection
near its apex with the arm-rest, substantially as set forth.
2. In a crutch the combination of the standards, the movable sleeves on the
standards, screw-threaded collars on the sleeves, movable clamping plates, a hand-
rest, caps on the ends of the hand-rest, cores set within the ends of the caps, right
and left threaded bolts on said cores adapted to engage the threaded collars and
annular recesses surrounding the bolts into which the collars extend, substantially
as set forth.
3. In a crutch the combination, of the body of the crutch, a ferrule on the lower
end, a reversible foot-piece journaled to the ferrule, notches in the foot-piece, and
a locking lever adapted to engage said notches and lock the foot-piece, substantially
as set forth.
4. In a crutch the combination of the body of the crutch, a ferrule on the lower
end of the body, legs on the ferrule, a foot-piece pivoted to the legs and adapted to
turn between the same, notches on the foot-piece, a locking lever fulcrumed to one
of the legs, a lug on the lever adapted to engage the notches, a pin on the opposite
end of the lever, a thumb-piece on the outer end of the pin and a spring adapted
to hold the lever in engagement with the reversible foot-piece, substantially as set
forth.
Dated this 15th day of June 1896.
BOTTOMLEY & LIDDLE,
154, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Applicant's Agents.