IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO WINDOW FRAMES FOR RAISING OR LOWERING SASHES AND SHUTTERS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Johnson, of Chandos Chambers, Adelphi,
in the City of Westminster, Architect and Surveyor, for the Inven-
tion of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO WINDOW FRAMES FOR
RAISING OR LOWERING SASHES AND SHUTTERS."
Sealed the 23rd April 1869, and dated the 27th October 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Johnson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
27th October 1868.
I, JOHN JOHNSON, of Chandos Chambers, Adelphi, in the City of
Westminster, Architect and Surveyor, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO WINDOW
FRAMES FOR BAISING OR LOWERING SASHES AND SHUTTERS," to be as follows:-
Various means have been suggested for balancing and raising or
lowering window sashes, and among other devices for this purpose it
has been proposed to cause the sash lines which carry the balance
weights, after passing over the necessary guide pullics, to pass around or
partially around drums or barrels and thence over other guide pullies
to the balance weights so that by applying a winch handle to the axes

page_text: of the drums or barrels the latter might be turned and the sashes raised
or lowered as required. But my Invention is designed to be readily
applied to most descriptions of existing window frames and sashes or
shutters at a small cost, and consists in passing suitable cords, ropes,
bands, or chains from the sashes or shutters over guide pullies to a
barrel or drum, or barrels or drums, situated above the head of the window
frame behind the lining. The barrels or drums are caused to rotate by
cords or bands running through suitable guides and passing down the
window frames in the manner of ordinary roller blind cords, such cords
or bands being secured to and passing around large pullies or wheels
attached to the barrels or drums for giving a certain amount of leverage,
so that by pulling the cords or bands at the sides of the frames, and
thereby causing the large pullies, and with them the barrels or drums,
to rotate, the cords, ropes, bands, or chains attached to the sashes or
shutters will be wound around the barrels or drums and the sashes or
shutters consequently raised, while on the barrels or drums being caused
to rotate in a contrary direction, so as to unwind the cords, ropes, bands,
or chains, the sashes or shutters being released will descend by reason
of their own preponderance over the sash weights, which latter are for
this purpose made so as only partially to counteract the descending
tendency of the sashes or shutters. The cords or bands by which the
barrels or drums are actuated may be kept tightly drawn .down the sides
or linings of the window frames by adjustable pullies or buttons held in
position by spring catches capable of being slightly depressed when
requisite so as to somewhat slacken the cords or bands, and thus permit
the sashes or shutters to descend by their own weight until the adjustable
pullies or buttons are again released, when the action of the spring catches
will cause the cords or bands to be again drawn tight, and, thus to
instantly arrest the downward progress of the sashes or shutters. Appa-
ratus according to my Invention may be readily applied to existing
window frames by temporarily removing the linings of the frame heads,
and in some cases cutting away small portions of the frame heads and
lintels to make room for the large wheels or pullies of the barrels or
drums. The portions cut away however are not of such extent as to
materially weaken the frame heads or lintels. When applying my
Invention to large sashes or shutters I prefer to employ antifriction
rollers. so that the sashes or shutters may travel more casily.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th April 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
JOHNSON, of Chandos Chambers, Adelphi, in the City of Westminster,
Architect and Surveyor, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Johnson, Her special licence that
I, the said John Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said John Johnson, 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 Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE
TO WINDOW FRAMES FOR RAISING OR LOWERING SASHES AND SHUTTERS," upou
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Johnson, my
exccutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 John Johnson, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof (that is to say) :-
:-
Various means have been suggested for balancing and raising or
lowering window sashes, and among other devices for this purpose it
has been proposed to cause the sash lines which carry the balance
weights, after passing over the necessary guide pullies, to pass around
or partially around drums or barrels and thence over other guide pullies

page_text: to the balance weights, so that by applying a winch handle to the axes
of the drums or barrels the latter might be turned and the sashes raised
or lowered as required. But my Invention is designed to be readily
applied to most descriptions of existing window frames and sashes or
shutters at a small cost, and consists in passing suitable cords, ropes,
bands, or chains from the sashes or shutters over guide pullies to a barrel
or drum, or barrels or drums, situated above the head of the window
frame behind the lining. The barrels or drums are caused to rotate by
cords, bands, or lines running through suitable guides and passing down
the window frames in the manner of ordinary roller blind cords, such
cords, bands, or lines being secured to and passing around large pullies
or wheels attached to the barrels or drums for giving a certain amount
of leverage, so that by pulling the cords, bands, or lines at the sides of
the frames, and thereby causing, the large pullies and with them the
barrels or drums to rotate, the cords, ropes, bands, or chains attached to
the sashes or shutters will be wound around the barrels or drums and
the sashes or shutters consequently raised, while on the barrels or drums
being caused to rotate in a contrary direction, so as to unwind the cords,
ropes, bands, or chains, the sashes or shutters being released will descend
by reason of their own preponderance over the sash weights, which latter
are for this purpose made so as only partially to counteract the descending
tendency of the sashes or shutters. The cords, bands, or lines by which
the barrels or drums are actuated may be kept tightly drawn down the
sides or linings of the window frames by adjustable pullies or buttons
hold in position by spring catches capable of being slightly raised or
depressed when requisite so as to somewhat slacken the cords, hands, or
lines, and thus permit the sashes or shutters to descend by their own
weight until the adjustable pullies or buttons are again released, when
the action of the spring catches will cause the cords, bands, or lines to
be again drawn tight, and thus to instantly arrest the downward progress
of the sashes or shutters. Apparatus according to my Invention may be
readily applied to existing window frames by temporarily removing the
linings of the frame heads, and in some cases cutting away small portions
of the frame heads and lintels to make room for the large wheels or
pullies of the barrels or drums. The portions cut away however are not
of such extent as to materially weaken the frame heads or lintels. When
applying my Invention to large sashes or shutters I prefer to employ
antifriction rollers, so that the sashes or shutters may travel more
easily

page_text: In the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, which forms a part of this
Specification, I have illustrated the application of my Invention to a
window frame for raising and lowering the sashes, and have used the
same letters of reference to denote corresponding parts in all the views.
Fig. 1 is a vertical section of a window frame with its upper sasli
partly open, and shewing the positions of the guide pullies over which
the cords from the two sashes on that side of the window pass to the
barrels or drums; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a window frame with the
internal linings removed, and showing the barrels, pullies, cords, and
sash lines in position; Fig. 3 is a plan showing the large pullies, drums,
or barrels, guide pullies, and cords arranged within the head boxing of
the window frame; Fig. 4 is a vertical section of a window frame with
the sashes removed, and shewing one of the large pullies with its drum
or barrel in position in the head boxing; Fig. 5 is an elevation of a
window frame with sashes closed, shewing the large pullies and cords
for actuating the drums or barrels by which the sashes are raised or
lowered. In that part of the view which is at the left of the line A, B,
the internal lining is removed, but on the other side of the said line the
lining is in position, and the spring catch for holding the actuating cord
or line of the one sash is shown fixed on the beads of the framing.
Fig. 6 is a view of the under part of the head framing looking upwards,
and shows the shifting soffit board of the head framing; Figs. 7 and 8
are full size views of an arrangement of pulley with spring catch which
may be conveniently used for holding the actuating cords or lines
down the sides or linings of the window frames, but I do not confine
myself to this precise arrangement.
a is the window framing; a', its head boxing; the upper sash; and
6', the lower sash; care the sash lines, each of which is connected at one
end to the sash, and passing over a pulley c¹ is attached at its other end
to an ordinary sash weight, so that the two weights of each sash by
preference nearly, but not quite counterbalance the weight of their
sash; d is the cord to the upper sash, to which it is attached at each
end. This cord, as also the cord of the lower sash, must be long enough
(when not wound around its drum) to allow the bottom of the sash to
rest upon the bottom of the window frame, and it passes over the guido.
pullies e, and (as shewn in Fig. 3) diagonally through the body of the
rotating drum or barrel f, whose pivots rest in bearings in the head.
boxing; is a large pulley or wheel which is on the same axis as the

page_text: drum or barrel fand causes it to rotate. This pulley or wheel is actuated
by a colored catgut line i, both ends of which are attached to it. In
securing this gut line in position I first drill a hole through from the
periphery to the side of the large pulley or wheel g in a slanting direc
tion, I then pass one end of the gut line through the hole and make a
knot at the end of it. After doing this I in the present instance (as also
in the case of the wheel g¹ of the lower sash) wind around the wheel so
much of the gut line as when unwound by the rotation of the wheel will
allow the sash to move down to the bottom of the window frame, and
subsequently I pass the loose end of the gut line over one of the guide
pullics down the side of the window frame (like a blind cord) under
the holding pulley 7, then up the side of the frame and over the other
of the two guide pullies, back to the large pulley or wheel g, where
I secure the second end of the gut line in the same way as herein-before
described with reference to its outer end, but on the opposite side of the
pulley. The arrangement of the spring catch for holding down the small
pulley by which the gut line is retained in position will be readily
understood on reference to Figs. 7 and 8. is a forked rod the lower
end of which is formed with a screw thread. This rod passes down
through the casing 12, which contains a spiral spring 13. By turning the
nut upon the screwed part of the rod the forked end and pulley may
be raised or lowered so as to properly adjust the gut line down the
side of the window. By applying the finger to the projecting part 15
of the forked rod the pulley may be slightly raised so as to somewhat
slacken the gut line, and thus permit the sash to descend by its own
weight until the finger is removed, when the spring will cause the pulley
to resume its former position and to draw the gut line tight again, so as
to arrest the downward progress of the sash; but the sash can also be
lowered by the gut line as herein-before mentioned, in which case if
preferred an ordinary blind rack may be substituted for the spring catch.
The cords and pullies of the lower sash b' are similarly arranged to those
of the upper sash, d¹ being the cord of the lower sash which passes over
guide pullies e¹ and diagonally through the body of the rotating drum or
barrel f, whose pivots (like those of the corresponding barrel f) rest in
bearings in the head boxing. ' is the large pulley or wheel of the lower
sash and is on the same axis as its drum or barrel, and causes it to
rotate. This wheel g' is actuated by a colored catgut line i¹, which is
attached to and wound round it, and whose slack is held by a spring
catch, as already described with reference to the gut line i of the upper

page_text: sash at the opposite side of the window frame. m is the shifting soffit
board of the window head, it is formed with a portion removed at m¹ to
allow room for the large pullics of the drums; but as will be seen in
Fig. 4 these pullies do not project below the beading of the frame head.
The soffit board is held in position by two small sliding bolts m. It will
be readily understood that by pulling either of the gut lines the corre-
sponding barrel or drum will be caused to rotate so as to wind up or
unwind the cords and thereby to raise or lower the corresponding sash,
as the case may be.
Although I have only illustrated my Invention as applied to sashes,
its application to the ordinary window shutters which slide up and down
in the window framing, as is well understood in the trade, will be obvious
to any competent workman.
It will be observed that by the use of my Invention I am enabled to
raise and lower window sashes or shutters by actuating simple hand
lines without the aid of winch handles, pauls, ratchets, or any com
plicated arrangement of springs for winding up or unwinding the cords
or lines.
And having now fully described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare
that I lay no claim to the separate parts of the apparatus, but that what
I do claim is, the peculiar combination of devices arranged and operating
substantially as described and illustrated for the purposes specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Johnson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of April, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.