Improvements in Horse Collars and in the Manufacture of the same.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Jan., 1898-Accepted, 5th Mar., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Horse Collars and in the Manufacture of the same.
I, JAMES MCDOUGALL, of Hope Patent Tube Works Wednesbury, in the County
of Stafford, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of my said 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 has for its object improvements in horse collars and in the manu-
facture of the same which are constructed so as to enable the collar to be easily
and quickly placed around the horse's neck without having to first pass it over the
head which in some cases is often a very difficult matter and is specially applicable
to (or an improvement upon) Letters Patent No. 24327 of 1895 granted to
F. Warner.
In order that my invention may be more clearly understood and easily carried
into practical effect I have appended hereunto a double sized sheet of drawings
upon which I have illustrated examples of my improvements.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a horse collar made according to my invention
partially open.
Figure 2 is a similar view to Figure 1 shewing the collar closed.
Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the hinge or joint H.
Figures 4 and 5 shew modified forms of hinged joints.
the
In carrying my invention into practice I form the collar A made up with the
metal fore-wale B. This metal fore-wale is made in two parts hinged together at
its lower ends b' and by the hinge I) as shewn at Figure 2 which hinge is formed
so that when it is opened a certain distance the lower ends butt against one another
thus preventing it from opening too wide. By forming the metal fore-wale
in two parts I reduce the cost of construction as the process of bending the metal
tube when in one piece, from which the fore-wale is, manufactured, is very difficult,
The hinge D is made with the reduced end and as shewn at Figure 3 which
fit into the lower ends of the fore-wale and are held therein by the rivets
two parts which form the hinge being pivoted together at d. The top ends b²
and 3 of the fore-wale are flattened out and bent upwards so as to come flush
together and the thumb piece 64 or screw or equivalent is pivoted to the inner
face of one of these flattened ends and a slot is formed in the other
flattened end through which the thumb piece or its equivalent passes,
when by turning this thumb piece at right angles the end of the fore-wale
and the collar are held together and afterwards secured by the strap and buckle E
and E. It will readily be seen that when placing the collar on the horse's neck
the upper ends of the collar can be opened sufficiently wide so as to allow the collar
to pass over and then the ends are closed and the thumb piece is turned thus
holding the collar in position until properly secured by the strap and buckle.
At Figure 4 I have shewn a modified form of my hinge. In this case I form one
portion of the hinge F with the T-shaped end f¹ which fits into the T-shaped
slot fa formed in the other portion of the hinge. This T-shaped slot is only cut
partially through so that the end f¹ rests upon the bottom, and this bottom
portion prevents the hinge from being opened too wide at it butts against the lower

page_text: edges of the other portion of the hinge. At Figure 5 I have shewn the two portiona
of the hinge H joined together by the spring S which is rivetted at s¹ between them.
It will thus be seen that by using a spring hinge as shewn the upper or open
ends of the collar will have a tendency to spring together which in many cases
will be found of great service especially in the case of a large horse as when the
collar is once placed around the neck it will remain in that position without
being held until the strap thumb piece or its equivalent and the strap and buckle
has been secured which is rather awkward when only one hand is at liberty.
The spring S may be formed in one piece with the hinge or it may be rivetted
thereto and it may be made in a variety of forms so long as its normal tendency
is to close the top ends of the collar. Other forms of hinges may also be used for
connecting the lower ends of the fore-wale so long as they are provided with
means for preventing them from opening beyond a certain limit.
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:
i
CLAIMS.
First The improvements in horse collars and in the manufacture of the same
consisting essentially in hinging or pivoting the lower ends of the metal fore-wale
such as B the upper ends of which are provided with a thumb piece such as b
or its equivalent in the manner and for the purpose substantially as hereinbefore
described and as shewn in the accompanying sheet of-drawings, at Figures 1
& 2.
1.
Second: In horse collars as claimed in the first claim so constructing the lower
ends of the metal fore-wale with a such like spring as is shewn at Figure 5 which
has the normal tendency to close and keep close the upper ends of the collar in
the manner and for the purpose substantially as herein set forth.
Third: In horse collars which open at the top and which have internal metal
fore-wales making the said fore-wale in two parts then uniting the two parts
flexibly or pivotedly at the bottom by forging or blocks such as D Figure
and F Figure and H Figure 5 and as herein set forth.
Dated this 10th of Tanum 1909
JAMES MCDOUGALL,
By George Barker,
Agent for Applicant, 77, Colmore Row, Birmingham.