A Writing Instrument or Pen (Fountain).
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 10th Sept., 1892-Accepted, 26th Nov., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A Writing Instrument or Pen (Fountain).
I, EDWARD LAMBERT Surveyor of Taxes Huddersfield do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:
The substitution of a pellet or small ball for the nib or needle used in fountain
and stylographic pens such pellet or ball resting in a groove or cup leaving part of
the circumference of the ball exposed (the ball being kept in position by a small
spring or other contrivance).
Note: The contact of the paper or other writing material with the exposed
portion of the ball causes the latter to revolve and the ink to flow.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A Writing Instrument or Pen (Fountain).
I EDWARD LAMBERT of Huddersfield in the County of York 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 :—
My invention relates to an improved writing instrument or pen of the fountain or
reservoir class and consists essentially in the substitution of a freely-revolving
sphere or ball for the nib or needle used in fountain and stylographic pens, such
sphere or ball being confined within a cap having an aperture through which a
part of the ball is exposed and from which it protrudes sufficiently to come in
contact with the surface to be written upon; the ball being kept in position by a
spring-pressed bearing or abutment within the cap or casing, the contact of the paper
or other material to be written upon with the exposed portion of the ball causing
the ball to revolve and the ink to flow and become deposited upon the writing surface
in the track of the ball. By the use of a freely-revolving ball, the instrument is
rendered suitable for writing not only upon paper and other smooth surfaces, but is
adapted when made of proportionally larger size for writing upon extremely
rough surfaces, such as canvas or wood for the purpose of addressing parcels and
the like.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, wherein Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a part of a fountain pen
embodying my invention, and Figure 2 is an external view, on a smaller scale, partly
in section, to shew the air tube which may be used if required as in stylographic
pens. The same letters of reference denote like parts in both figures.
The instrument, as represented in Figure 1, is drawn of about three times the size
which would be suitable for marking or addressing large parcels or bales of
merchandize, and is therefore greatly exaggerated for ordinary writing purposes,
for which the instrument would be made about one-twelfth the dimensions of the
instrument shewn in Figure 1. The dimensions here referred to are merely
approximate as it will be obvious that the invention is in no way limited as regards
dimensions. a is the ball or sphere made of metal not corrodible by the ink. A
convenient way of making the ball of the small size required for ordinary writing
is to take a hollow sphere of gold as commonly made by jewellers for the purpose
of ornamenting brooches, ear-rings, and the like, and to fill it up with a base
metal, say tin or lead, and close the orifice by gold solder and turn the surface to a
true sphere if necessary. Or the ball may be made solid, say of silver or German

page_text: silver or other alloy and after being turned and polished it may be gilt in the
ordinary way of gold plating such objects. Or the ball might be made of
vulcanite or of platinum, or other non-corrodible metal. bis the cap or casing in
which the ball is held. This is of tubular form with the end contracted to form a
lip whereby to retain the ball and leave an aperture through which the ball
protrudes sufficiently to enable the cap to clear the paper or other surface when the
instrument is held at a convenient angle for writing. In order the better to adapt
the instrument for writing when held in a very inclined position, the aperture
through which the ball protrudes may be in a plane which is inclined to the
longitudinal axis of the instrument as shown in Figure 2 instead of being at right
angles thereto. The cap is screwed or otherwise affixed ink-tight to the body of
the holder and the ball is pressed to its seat in the cap by a spring d through the
intervention of a spherically-cupped bearing e, carried by a central stem working
freely in a guide socket fixed at the lower end of the body c such guide also forming
an abutment for the spiral spring d which is coiled about the stem. The spring,
stem, bearing, and cap, would all be made of, or plated with, non-corrodible metal,
or the cap might be made of vulcanite tipped if necessary with an annular metal
seat for the ball to work against. The stem may be tubular, as shewn, to allow
the ink to flow through it as well as around it to the ball or the stem may be left
solid according to the size of the pen. The admission of air to replace the ink as it
flows out may be provided for by the ordinary air tube and regulating cap has
usual in stylographic pens.
I would observe that my invention is not limited to the details of construction
shewn, as it will be obvious that the cupped bearing e might be carried directly by
the spring, or form part thereof, the guide stein being omitted or that the abutment
for the spring might be otherwise formed, for instance the air tube g might be
lengthened sufficiently to act as the abutment for the spring as shown in Figure 3
and which may also as a guide socket for the stem if used. My invention resides
essentially in the use of the freely-revolving ball as the medium for transferring the
ink to the writing surface.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is―
In a reservoir or fountain pen or writing instrument, the employment of a spring-
pressed revolving ball partially enclosed in a cap or casing in communication with
the ink reservoir, the ball protruding from said casing sufficiently to come in contact
with the writing surface by which it is caused to revolve as specified.
Dated this 8th day of September 1892.
E. LAMBERT.