IMPROVEMENTS IN BOOKBINDING
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Nichol, of Edinburgh, Scotland, Bookseller,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOOKBINDING."
Sealed the 24th April 1855, and dated the 14th February 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Nichol at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
14th February 1855.
I, JAMES NICHOL, of Edinburgh, Scotland, Bookseller, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN BOOKBINDING"
to be as follows:-
My Invention has reference, in the first place, to the operation of
covering books with leather, cloth, paper, or other suitable material,
and consists in substituting for the ordinary mode of rubbing and
pressing the cover by hand, the passing of the book with its cover
between two pairs of rollers in succession. The first pair of rollers are
mounted under an opening in a table, and are held together by a spring
or elastic coupling. The second pair are mounted immediately under
the first pair, so as when set in motion to draw in the book between them
at the back as it is forced with its pasted cover through the space
between the first pair of parted rollers. This second pair of rollers
are also held together by a spring or elastic coupling, and are parted
by the passing of the covered book between them. The pressure given
by these latter rollers completes the covering of the book.

page_text: My Invention has reference, in the second place, to the operation of
'case making," and consists in the use of a rectangular frame of suitable
size, with sides, sloping inwards, in such a manner as to allow of the
two boards intended to form the case falling into their respective places.
At each corner of this frame is fixed a cutter, by which the corners of
the cover are cut off as the boards are pressed upon by a descending
block, the pressure of which also unites the boards to the cover, and
the edges are turned in by means of slides, flaps, or rollers. This whole
operation of case making" may either be performed by one machine,
or the boards may be placed in position and the corners of the cover
cut off in one machine, and the pressure by means of the descending
block given to the boards, and the edges of the cover turned in by
means of a second machine; or this process of turning in the edges of
the cover may be used apart from the other mechanism.
"
My Invention has reference, in the third place, to gilding the edges
of books, and consists in substituting for the ordinary manual pressure
on the burnisher the application of mechanical pressure by means of
a weight or a spring. The burnisher is made to rest in a socket, with
sufficient freedom for moving up and down within it. This socket is
connected to a rod, which moves on a joint fixed in a convenient
situation. The weight or the spring for imparting the required pressure
to the burnisher is applied to the upper part of the handle of the same,
and there is a cross handle at the lower part of the said handle, by
means of which the burnisher may be worked backwards & forwards on
the edge of the book. The burnisher may be worked either by manual
labour or by mechanical power. The operation of scraping the edges
can be performed by an adaptation of the same apparatus.
And my Invention has reference, in the last place, to the operation of
"backing," as described in the Specification of a Patent granted to me,
and bearing date the 7th day of May 1853, and consists in applying an
anti-friction roller to each of the bars therein mentioned, which roller
shall be made to operate on the back of the book in place of the rubbing
surface of the bar or bars, described in such Specification.
My Invention under this head also consists in the use of a fixed roller
or rollers instead of the bar or bars, described in the said Specification,
no yielding motion be applied to either the roller or rollers, or the cheeks
within which the book is held. I also employ a moveable bar or rest,
on which the book is placed when introduced between the packing
boards

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Nichol in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
14th August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
NICHOL, of Edinburgh, Scotland, Bookseller, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said James Nichol, Her special license that I, the said
James Nichol, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said James Nichol, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOOKBINDING," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said James Nichol, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
the said Invention and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Nichol, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the follow-
ing statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
My Invention of "Improvements in Bookbinding" has reference, in
the first place, to the operation of covering books with leather, cloth,
paper, or other suitable material, and consists in substituting for the
ordinary mode of rubbing and pressing the cover by hand, the passing
of the book with its cover between two pairs of rollers in succession.
The first pair of rollers are mounted under an opening in a table, and
are held together by a spring or elastic coupling. The second pair are
mounted immediately under the first pair, so as when set in motion to
draw in the book between them at the back as it is forced by hand with
its pasted cover through the space between the first pair of parted rollers.

page_text: This second pair of rollers are also held together by a spring or elastic
coupling, and are adjusted as to their distance apart, so as to allow
the book to pass between them, giving it the requisite pressure to fix
the cover on the sides of the book. The pressure given by these latter
rollers completes the covering of the book. The object of this part of my
Invention is to obviate the liability to injury of the covers of books by
the ordinary process of rubbing their surfaces, and also to save manual
labour.
"
My Invention has reference, in the second place, to the operation of
case making," and consists in the use of a rectangular frame of suit-
able size, with sides sloping inwards, in such a manner as to allow of
the two boards intended to form the case falling into their respective
places. At each corner of this frame is fixed a cutter, by which the corners
of the cover are cut off as the boards are pressed upon by the frame
descending, and the edges are turned in by means of slides, flaps, or
rollers, and pressure is applied to fix the cover firmly on the boards.
These several operations of "case making" may either be combined into
one machine, or the boards may be placed. in position and the corners
of the cover cut off in one machine, and the pressure by means of the
descending block given to the boards, and the edges of the cover turned
in by means of a second machine; or this process of turning in the edges
of the cover may be used apart from the other mechanism. The object
of this part of my Invention is to obviate the necessity for the ordinary
care in placing the boards accurately on the cover, and also to increase
the facility by which the whole operation of "case making" may be
carried on.
My Invention has reference, in the third place, to gilding the edges
of books, and consists in substituting for the ordinary manual pressure
on the burnisher the application of mechanical pressure by means of a
weight or a spring. The burnisher is made to rest in a socket, with
sufficient freedom for moving up and down within it. This socket is con-
nected to a rod, which moves on a joint fixed in a convenient situation.
The weight or the spring for imparting the required pressure to the
burnisher is applied to the upper part of the handle of the same, and
there is a cross handle at the lower part of the said handle, by means
of which the burnisher may be worked backwards and forwards on the
edge of the book. The burnisher may be worked either by manual
labour or by mechanical power. The object of this part of my Inven-
tion is to afford the means of applying increased power to the burnisher,
in order to increase the brilliancy of the gilding.
And my Invention has reference, in the last place, to the operation of
"baoking," as described in Letters Patent granted to me, and bearing

page_text: date the Seventh day of May, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-
three, and consists in applying an anti-friction roller to each of the bars
therein mentioned, which roller shall be made to operate on the back of
the book in place of rubbing surface of the bar or bars, described in such
Letters Patent. My Invention under this head also consists in the use
of a fixed roller or rollers instead of the bar or bars, described in the
said Letters Patent, no yielding motion being applied to either roller or
rollers, or the cheeks within which the book is held. I also employ a
moveable bar or rest, on which the book is placed when introduced
Inven-
between the backing boards. The main object of this part of my
tion is to improve the mechanism described in my former Patent, by
giving increased facility for the requisite adjustment of the essential
working parts.
In order, however, that my Invention may be fully understood and
readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the accompanying
Drawings, in which the points above referred to are represented.
Figs. 1 and 2 are front and side elevations of the machine for covering
books; Fig. 3 is a plan or horizontal view, and Fig. 4 an elevation of the
machine for cutting off the corners of the covers and placing the boards
in position in the operation of "case making;" Fig. 5 is a plan or hori-
zontal view, and Fig. 6 and Fig. 6* are vertical sections, of the machine
for completing the operation of "case making;" Fig. 7 represents the
mechanism for working the burnisher in the operation of gilding; Figs.
8, 9, and 10 represent, in longitudinal and transverse section and plan,
the improved form of bar for the backing machine; Fig. 11 is a vertical
section, and Fig. 12 an elevation, of the improved "backing machine."

page_text: the upper pairs of rollers B, B; this forces the cover on the back, and
the book is then laid hold of and carried forward between the two rollers
D, D, which firmly presses the cover on to the sides of the book and com-
pletes the covering, when the book drops into a suitable receptacle
placed below the rollers.
G (Figs. 3 and 4) is a table fixed on a frame or standards, as shewn;
H, H, H, H, are four blocks, to which are attached four scissors or
cutters I, I, I, I. These blocks with their respective cutters are
capable of being adjusted in their position to suit the size of cover. The
lower jaw of the scissors or cutter is fixed; the upper jaw is kept open by
a small weight K, attached to the shank of the cutter, a stop being
placed so as to limit the degree to which the jaw is kept open. L, L,
is a frame, the upright sides of which slope outwards from the bottom,
and which can also be adjusted to different sizes of covers, and is
capable of turning on a pivot or centre at M.
The operation of this machine is as follows:-The cover is pasted or
glued and laid on the table G, the corners being brought under the upper
jaw or open blade of the scissors or cutters I, I, I, I; the sloping
frame L is then brought down upon the cutters, and under part, coming
in contact with the open blade or upper jaw of the cutter, causes the
latter to close upon the lower jaw, and cut off the projecting corners of
the cover.
The boards are then placed in their proper positions by
being merely placed within the frame L, the sloping sides of which serve
to adjust them as required, the bottom of the frame being of the size
of the cover. The frame is then thrown back, and the case placed on
another table to receive the finishing operation.
The machine for this purpose is shewn in plan at Fig. 5, and in vertical
section at Fig. 6 and Fig. 6*. N, N, are two rollers worked by the
treadle O; and N*, N*, are two rollers worked by the treadle O*. By
means of the treadle O the two rollers N, N, are advanced, so as to turn
over the ends of the cover, and by a corresponding motion of the
treadle O* (the first two rollers being withdrawn), the two side rollers
N*, N*, are advanced, and the sides of the cover turned in; a plateau
or sole P (Fig. 6) is then brought down upon the case with sufficient
force by means of a wheel, screw, or lever, to make the cover adhere
firmly and smoothly to the board.
.I would here remark, that although I have shewn and described the
cutting off the corners of the covers and placing the boards in position
in one machine, and the turning in of the edges of the cover and press.

page_text: ing the latter upon the boards in another machine, I do not confine
myself to this arrangement, as the several operations may be carried on
separately, or they may be combined otherwise than as represented and
described.

page_text: the backing boards will be adapted to the increased or diminished
segment of the circle required to suit the particular thickness of the book
intended to be backed.
move.
The bar to which the roller b is fixed is capable of adjustment within
a slot in the rocking levers or arms i, i, having their centres of motion
at k, and being actuated by gearing, as shewn by dots in Fig. 11, by
means of the lever turning on a centre at m. The raising or lower-
ing of the centres k, k, will determine the curve given to the books, by
determining the radius of the arc through which the roller b is made to
In order to give the means of adjusting the required radius, the
whole apparatus for giving motion to the rocking levers i, i, is made
capable of being raised or lowered through the nuts and screws at n, n,
at the lower part of the machine. On the book being fixed within the
backing jaws, the roller b is brought down in the same manner as the
bars in my former Specification; the lever is then turned, which causes
the roller to revolve on the back of the book and press over the "sets
to form the required groove on one side; the lever is then reversed, and
the other side is acted upon in the same manner. o is a counter balanc-
ing weight on the centre of motion m of the lever 7; p is a rest on
which the book is allowed to drop before the backing jaws are tightened;
by means of this rest the book may be placed with great facility in its
required position. The rest may be raised or lowered as required by
means of the screw q.
"
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I would have it understood that I
do not intend to confine myself to the precise forms and arrangements
of the mechanism shewn and described, neither do I claim any of the
parts separately or otherwise than as used in combination for the pur-
poses described; but I do claim as of my Invention,―
First, with reference to the operation of covering books, the use of
rollers, instead of hand labour, as described.
Secondly, with reference to the operation of "case making," the means
of cutting off the corners of the covers simultaneously, adjusting the
boards on the cover mechanically, turning in the ends and sides of the
cover, and fixing the cover smoothly on the boards by pressure, as
described; these several operations being either performed separately,
or by combining more than one of them together.
Thirdly, with reference to the operation of gilding the edges of books,
the application of mechanical pressure to the burnisher instead of
manual pressure, as described.
And, lastly, with reference to the operation of "backing" books, the
particular form and construction of the bar, as represented at Figs. 7,

page_text: 8, and 9, when used in combination with the machinery described in my
former Patent, or other machinery suitable for the purpose; also the
fixed or unyielding roller (instead of the bar or bars), combined with the
means of adjusting the points of the "backing" boards or jaws (also
fixed or unyielding), by the cheeks moving on inclined planes; and also
the adjustment of the radius of the arc through which the roller is
required to move, so as to suit the particular thickness of the book to
be operated upon, by shifting the centre of motion which regulates the
arc described by the roller, as described; and also the moveable bar or
rest on which the book is placed when introduced between the "back-
ing" boards or jaws, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Nichol, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Eleventh day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
WILLIAM SPENCE,
50, Chancery Lane..
JAB NICHOL. (L.S.)