Improvements in the Manufacture of Metallic Bedsteads, Couches, Chairs, and other Articles of Metallic Furniture.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Oct., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 16th July, 1890-Accepted, 16th Aug., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Metallic Bedsteads, Couches,
Chairs, and other Articles of Metallic Furniture.
I EDWARD JAMES SMITH of the firm of Hoyland and Smith of Soho Works
Heath Street South Spring Hill Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturers
do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as follows:-
In the manufacture of metallic bedsteads couches chairs and other articles of
metallic furniture made mainly of iron it is usual to give an ornamental character
to the corner blocks by which the horizontal or angle bars of the framing are
connected to the pillars as well as to other junction pieces or chill castings by covering
the exposed parts of the said corner blocks and other junction pieces with a casing
of brass. In corner blocks and other junction pieces of bedsteads having what are
called French ends and in like parts of other articles of furniture the doing of this
presents a difficulty which it is the object of my invention to obviate. And my said
invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described whereby the required
brass coating of the exposed parts of the corner blocks and other junction pieces of
metallic furniture may be readily and economically effected.
I will describe my invention in connection with the corner block of a French end
bedstead.
In making the corner block I cast it in two pieces or parts which when put together
form a corner block of the ordinary shape. One of the said parts is of the same
general configuration as an ordinary corner block excepting that the semi cylindrical
exposed part of the block is of somewhat less radius than that of an ordinary corner
block. The other part has a semi tubular figure and when fitted upon, the semi
cylindrical part of the first named part completes the corner block which when
completed has the size and shape of an ordinary corner block. In order to connect
the two parts together I form in the first named part of the block one or more holes
in its semi-cylindrical face and at right angles thereto. 1 prefer to make the said
hole or holes by introducing short lengths of wrought iron tubing in the chill mould
in which the corner block is cast and thereby fixing the said tubes in position in the
block by the casting process. In the inner or concave side of the semi-tubular part
of the block I fix one or more pins or pegs of a size shape and position proper to
take into the hole or holes in the first named part of the corner block. These pins
or pegs are furnished with tubular springs which are compressed when the pegs are
being pushed in the holes. But when the semi tubular part has been fully pushed
home the said springs having passed the ends of the tubes in the other part they
expand and fix the tubular part in position.
By thus making the corner block in two parts as described the semi tubular part
can be put in place at any desired stage of the manufacture of the bedstead or after
all other stages of the manufacture bave been effected. Before fixing the said semi
tubular part in position I coat or cover it with a film or layer of brass by the process
known as electro deposition so that when the corner block has been completed by
the fixing of the electro-brassed semi tubular piece it has the required appearance
that is is brass coated or covered.
The method described of forming the corner block in two parts permits of the
ornamenting of the corner blocks in various ways in addition to the covering of it
with an electro-deposit of brass.
I do not limit myself to the method described of fixing the two parts of the divided
block together.
The annlication of my invention to the junction vieces of articles of metallic

page_text: furniture other than corner blocks differs in no essential respect from its application
to the manufacture of the corner block of a metallic bedstead as hereinbefore
described.
Dated this 26th day of Antoba 1980
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Metallic Bedsteads, Couches,
Chairs, and other Articles of Metallic Furniture.
I EDWARD JAMES SMITH of the Firm of Hoyland and Smith of Soho Works
Heath Street South, Spring Hill, Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manu-
facturers do hereby declare the nature of my invention and the manner in which
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
In the manufacture of metallic bedsteads, couches, chairs, and other articles of
metallic furniture made mainly of iron it is usual to give an ornamental character to
the corner blocks by which the horizontal or angle bars of the framing are connected
to the pillars as well as to other junction pieces or chill castings by covering the
exposed parts of the said corner blocks and other junction pieces with a casing of
brass. In corner blocks and other junction pieces of bedsteads having what are
called French ends and in like parts of other articles of furniture the doing of this
presents a difficulty which it is the object of my invention to obviate. And my said
invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described whereby the required
brass coating of the exposed parts of the corner blocks and other junction pieces of
metallic furniture may be readily and economically effected.
I will describe my invention in connection with the corner block of a French end
bedstead.
In making the corner block I cast it in two pieces or parts which when put together
form a corner block of the ordinary shape. One of the said parts is of the same
general configuration as an ordinary corner block excepting that the semi-cylindrical
exposed part of the block is of somewhat less radius than that of an ordinary corner
block. The other part has a semi-tubular figure and when fitted upon the semi-
cylindrical part of the first named part completes the corner block which when
completed has the size and shape of an ordinary corner block. In order to connect
the two parts together I form in the first named part of the block one or more
holes in its semi-cylindrical face and at right angles thereto. I prefer to make
the said hole or holes by introducing short lengths of wrought iron tubing in the
chill mould in which the corner block is cast and thereby fixing the said tubes in
position in the block by the casting process. In the inner or concave side of the semi-
tubular part of the block I fix one or more pins or pegs of a size shape and position
proper to take into the hole or holes in the first named part of the corner block.
These pins or pegs are furnished with tubular springs which are compressed when
the pegs are being pushed in the holes. But when the semi-tubular part has been
fully pushed home the said springs having passed the ends of the tubes in the other
part they expand and fix the tubular part in position.
I do not limit myself to the method described of fixing the two parts of the divided
block together.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing the
manner in which my invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation and Figure 2 in plan, the corner block of
a French end bedstead made according to my invention; Figure 3 represents in
vertical and Figure 4 in horizontal section the semi-tubular part of the block detached
and Figure 5 the part of the block cast on the pillar, the semi-tubular part of the

page_text: block being removed; Figure 6 represents in horizontal section the two parts of the
block fixed together.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of the
Drawing.
с
183
a, a is the part of the corner block cast upon the pillar f the said part a a² having
cast in it the end angle bar band the dovetail joint at c for connecting the side angle
bard thereto. The front semi-cylindrical exposed part of the block a is marked a² and
is of somewhat less radius than that of the ordinary corner block; a³ is the semi-tubular
or coating part of the block which is fitted upon and made closely to bear against the
cylindrical face a² of the block a so as to complete the corner block, the inclined
edges of the said tubular part a³ fitting upon the inclined sides of the part a as seen in
Figure 6. The two parts a, a² and a³ of the block are connected together by the
tubular spring g on the pin or peg h carried by the part a³ engaging with the inner
end of the tubing i cast in the part. a, a² of the block. The tubular spring g is a split
spring which can expand and contract the said spring in its expanded state having a
diameter a little greater than the internal diameter of the tubing i. When the peg
on the block part a³ is introduced into the tubing i on the block part a a² the
spring g is contracted and when the peg has been pushed home and the spring has
a²
passed the end of the tubing i the said spring expands and fixes the two parts a,
and a3 of the block together as illustrated in Figure 6. Two or more of the spring
carrying pegs h and tubes i may be used in the same block.
h
Instead of fixing the two parts of the corner block together by the arrangement
described and represented a taper dovetail rib on the inner or concave face of the
semi-tubular part may take into a corresponding dovetail recess or seat in the
convex face a of the semi-cylindrical part of the block.
This arrangement is represented in Figures 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11; Figure 7 represents
The
the corner block in side elevation and Figure 8 represents a plan of the same.
semi-tubular part a³ is represented detached in back elevation, vertical section and
horizontal section in Figure 9; the part a, a of the block cast on the pillar fis
represented in vertical section and front elevation in Figure 10 and the two parts of
the block connected together are represented in horizontal section in Figure 11.
kis the taper dovetail rib on the concave face of the semi-tubular part a³ of the
block and is the correspondingly shaped seat or recess in the convex face a² of the
part a of the block. By introducing by a vertical movement the dovetail ribk on
the part a3 into the dovetail seat in the part a, a² and forcibly driving home the
said rib the two parts of the block are locked or connected together. Although I
have only described and represented two methods of connecting the two parts of the
corner block together yet I do not limit myself thereto as various other ways of
connecting the two parts together may be adopted with the same or nearly the same
effect.
By thus making the corner block in two parts as described and illustrated the semi-
tubular part a³ can be put in place at any desired stage of the manufacture of the
bedstead or after all other stages of the manufacture have been effected.
Before fixing the said semi-tubular part a³ in position 1 coat or cover it with a
film or layer of brass by the process known as electro deposition so that when the
corner block has been completed by the fixing of the electro-brassed semi-tubular
piece it has the required appearance; that is is brass coated or covered. Or the said
part a may be of less substance of metal than that represented and be made of brass
or other metal instead of iron electro-brassed.
The method described of forming the corner block in two parts permits of the
ornamenting of the corner blocks in various ways in addition to the covering of it
with an electro deposit of brass.
The application of my invention to the junction pieces of articles of metallic
furniture other than corner blocks differs in no essential respect from its application
to the manufacture of the corner block of a metallic bedstead as herein before described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing.

page_text: The junction pieces or chill castings of metallic furniture besides corner blocks to
which my invention is particularly applicable are the chill castings forming the feci
and top mounts respectively on the tubular pillars and the chill blocks forming the
junction pieces which connect the tubes and rods together of the end rails of
bedsteads.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that 1 claim as
my invention of "Improvements in the manufacture of metallic bedsteads couches
chairs and other articles of metallic furniture" :-.
Making the corner blocks of French end and other bedsteads and other articles of
metallic furniture and other junction pieces or chill castings of the said bedsteads and
furniture in two parts substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing for the purpose of brass coating or otherwise ornamenting the
exposed parts of the said corner blocks and junction pieces or chill castings the said
two parts of the corner blocks and junction pieces or chill castings being connected
together substantially in the ways hereinbefore described and illustrated or in other
equivalent ways.
Dated the 15th day of July 1890.
EDWARD JAMES SMITH.