Improvements relating to Curtain Rings and Poles, or other Fixings for Curtains and similar Articles.
Year: 1895

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 11 of the Patents, &c., Act, 1883), as required
by the decision of the Comptroller General of the 2nd day of April 1897.
Date of Application, 9th Dec., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 9th Oct., 1896-Accepted, 9th Dec., 1896
Improvements relating to Curtain Rings and Poles, or other Fixings
for Curtains and similar Articles.
I, GEORGE SMITH, of 8 Red Lion Square, Holborn, in the County of London,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is chiefly to improve the running of rings on curtain
poles, but the invention also applies to the decoration of both rings and poles, and
other fixings for curtains.
In carrying out my invention, I take a wide ring of wood or metal, and I adapt
on each side of the ring a concave runner, roller, or wheel.
I may proceed in various ways to adapt the runner to the ring, and I will now,
as an example, describe one of these ways; thus:-
I bore two holes in the edge of the ring to receive the ends of a piece of wire,
which I first thread through the runner, and then bend round, so as to form a kind
of staple. The runner will be so arranged that it will enter below the inner
face of the ring, and will thus rest on the pole, and form the running surface.
Or I may take an ordinary ring, and bore it right through from side to side,
pass wires through, and bend the ends, so as to enter the ends of the rollers placed
on each side of the ring.
Or I may have a single wire, the bent ends forming axles for a roller or ball.
Or I may have a metal plate secured by screws to the inside of the ring, and
having lugs or ears for the axles of the runners.
When using metal rings for the purposes of my invention, I prefer to form them
in two halves, with suitable lugs and eyes on the ends, by which the two halves
may be secured together in any convenient manner, other lugs on the edges serving
to receive the axles of the runners.
When I have a single runner on each side of the ring, I may form a shallow
groove in the pole, to form the track, and to prevent rattle and noise I may line the
groove, or place in the bottom of the groove, a strip of plush, leather, or other
suitable material.
This grooving of the pole will also lend itself to decoration, as I may make a
number of longitudinal grooves in the pole, lined with some decorative material, or
it may be gilt.
The groove may also be spiral, lined with the decorative material of any
kind, but in this ease the groove will serve no useful purpose, but will be
decorative only.
The rings may also be grooved peripherically, and a strip of plush or other
material let in the groove. When the rings are of metal, this will have a highly
decorative effect.
When I use a moulded grooved fixing in place of a pole adapted for receiving in
the groove curtain carriers, I may make the face of the fixing decorative, by
covering it with plush of one or more colours, leather, linerusta-Walton, or other

page_text: material, and I may attach, at suitable distances apart, a half ring of metal or
wood, plain or decorated, as before described. .
In this way, I may provide curtain poles or fixings, and rings, having a highly
decorative appearance, and which will serve to produce extremely beautiful
effects.
Dated this ath dan
Dasambon 100
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE DIECIFICATION (AMENDED).
Improvements relating to Curtain Rings and Poles, or other Fixings
for Curtains and similar Articles.
I GEORGE SMITH of 8 Red Lion Square, Holborn, in the County of London,
Manufacturer, 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:-
This invention consists in the means herinafter described for attaching anti-friction
rollers to curtain rings, and also in the special kind of decoration for both rings and
poles, and other fixings for curtains. My invention is applicable to wide or broad
rings of wood or metal, in which, on each side of the ring, a concave roller, or wheel
is employed, as well as to ordinary single rings.
In carrying out my invention, as applied to a wide or broad ring, I proceed as
follows:-
I bore two holes in the edge of the ring to receive the ends of a piece of wire,
which I first thread through the roller, and then bend round, so as to form a kind
of staple. The roller will be so arranged that it will extend slightly below the
inner face of the ring, and will thus rest on the pole, and form the running
surface.
In the case of an ordinary ring, I bore it right through from side to side,
pass wires through, and bend the ends so as to enter the ends of the rollers placed
on each side of the ring.
Or I may have a single wire, the bent ends forming axles for a roller or ball.
Or I may have a metal plate secured by screws to the inside of the ring, and
having lugs or ears for the axles of the rollers.
When using metal rings for the purposes of my invention, I prefer to form them
in two halves, with suitable lugs and eyes on the ends, by which the two halves may
be secured together in any convenient manner, other lugs on the edges serving to
receive the axles of the rollers.
When I have a single plain roller, or, it may be, a ball runner, on each side of
an ordinary ring, I may form a shallow groove or moulding in the pole, to serve as
a track for the runner; and to prevent rattle and noise I may line the groove,
or place in the bottom of the groove, a strip of plush, leather, or other suitable
material.
This grooving of the pole will also lend itself to decoration, as I may make a
number of longitudinal grooves in the pole, lined with some decorative material, or
it may be gilt. This longitudinal grooving of moulding of the pole, together with
half rings as above described, each half provided with rollers or runners, may be
employed for double curtains, the sets of half rings on the two sides carrying each
a separate curtain, say a lace and a stuff curtain.
The groove may also be spiral, lined with the decorative material of any kind,

page_text: but in this case the groove will serve no useful purpose, but will be decorative
only.
The rings may also be grooved peripherically or circumferentially, and a strip of
plush or other material let in the groove.
When the rings are of metal, this will have a highly decorative effect.
When I use a moulded fixing, in place of a pole, adapted for receiving, in a
groove on its under side, curtain carriers, I may make the face of the fixing
decorative, by covering it with plush of one or more colours, leather, lincrusta-
Walton, or other material, and I may attach, at suitable distances apart, a half
ring of metal or wood, plain or decorated, as before described, to give it the
appearance of an ordinary ringed pole.
In this way, I may provide curtain poles or fixings, and rings, having a highly
decorative appearance, and which will serve to produce extremely beautiful
effects.
In the accompanying drawings, I have shown various ways of carrying out my
invention; thus,
Fig. 1 shows, in plan view, the top of a broad curtain ring.
In the ring A, and on either side thereof, I form a recess B, to make room for
the insertion of a roller, as shown in the similar view Fig. 2.
The side walls of the recess are grooved transversely, as shown at C, Fig. 24,
which is a section of a ring. D is the roller, which is concave, and is mounted on
a piece of wire, the ends of which are bent at right angles, to form a kind of staple,
and the legs of this staple are inserted in the grooves C and pushed in, the ends
entering holes in the ring. Or the staples may be inserted into holes formed in
the side of the rings, as indicated on one side of Fig. 2, and without forming the
recesses B, as above described.
By making the hole in the roller double cone shaped, the roller will rock on its
axle, and thus be capable of going round bends in the pole. Rollers so prepared
are shown at Figs. 3 and 4 in two positions.
Fig. 5 shows a ring with a groove D¹ turned in the edge, which groove receives
the wire staple on which the roller is mounted. Instead of forming the staple as
shown at Figs. 1 to 4, I may lengthen the arms, and curve them so that they will
lie in the groove D¹. When the staple is in position, the groove is filled up with
nastic or other suitable material. In this arrangement, as in the first arrangement
of staple, I obtain a stronger and larger bearing surface than in the usual plan of
inserting a pin through the ring parallel with the grain of the wood.
Fig. 6 shows a short axle to the roller D; one end of this axle is inserted in a
hole in one wall of the recess B, while the other enters a notch D² in the other
wall, which notch is afterwards filled with mastic.
Fig. 7 shews an attachment, E, which is placed on the inside of the ring, the
lugs E of which enter the recesses B of the ring, and fit against the walls thereof,
and carry the rollers.
Fig. 8 is a modification of the last-named attachment. In this case, the attach-
ment, F, is fitted to the inside of the ring, as in the last-named arrangement, each
roller being carried by a separate frame F1, which is rivetted at F2 to the main
attachment F, so that it can swivel slightly.
This arrangement will allow of the ring passing round the bends in poles.
Fig. 9 shows in side view, and
Fig. 10 in plan view, an attachment for an ordinary ring. It consists of a
curved portion G, which fits inside the ring, with lateral lugs G¹ on either side, to
receive the axle of the roller.
Figs. 11 and 12 are similar views of a modification of this attachment adapted to
receive swivelling frames G2 carrying the rollers. In both these arrangements, the
attachment is formed with small pins G3 at the extreme ends, which are intended
to spring into small holes provided for them on the inside of the ring.
Fig. 13 shows another mode of securing the rollers on either side of an ordinary

page_text: ring, the wire being passed through one roller, then through the ring, from one side
to the other, next through the other roller, and back into the ring on the opposite
side, the two ends being secured in the ring.
Fig. 14 is a side view, and
The
Fig. 15 a plan view, of a slight modification in the form of the attachment.
In this case, the attachment consists of a rectangular frame formed from a strip of
flat metal, to carry the roller D, and to fit into the recess cut from the ring.
free ends of this frame are bent outwards to form short lugs or projections D*,
shaped to fit under the ends of the ring, and thus support the ring, to which the
lugs are secured in any convenient manner. These lugs D✶ will correspond to the
parts G in Figs. 9 to 12.
To produce the broad ring, I may use two ordinary rings fitted with the above
described attachments, and connect the attachments by a cross-bar H corresponding
to the part G¹ in the previous figures, which is rivetted thereto. Or the cross
bar H may be pivotted to each frame, so that the two rings can converge, when
going round a bend, as indicated in Fig. 15.
Fig. 16 shows in perspective view a method of producing a metal ring for
curtain poles.
The ring is formed in two halves, with lugs or projections, as shown. On certain
of the lugs of one half, burrs or projections J are punched up, which burrs or
projections are intended to enter holes in the corresponding lugs of the other half.
The burrs J are then rivetted or clinched, and the two halves of the ring are
thus held securely together.
The lugs K form the bearings for the roller axles, which are secured therein in
any convenient manner.
In some cases, I may adapt rollers and eyes to each half ring. This arrangement
may be used for supporting double curtains, say a lace curtain and a stuff curtain,
on one pole.
I have shown such an arrangement in plan view and cross section at Figs. 17
and 18.
The frame for receiving the roller is made in one piece with the half ring,
that is to say, the lugs K are made longer, and are bent so as to form a
rectangular frame, the free end of which descends into a longitudinal groove in
the pole, to prevent the rollers of the half rings from slipping off the track.
The rollers may run on the pole on each side of the groove, or, by means of
another longitudinal groove on each side of the central groove as before mentioned
a bead or track may be formed for the rollers, or the poles may be moulded to the
required shape.
The decoration of the poles and rings will be obvious from the description
already given, and it is therefore unnecessary to illustrate the mode of decorating
by drawings, or further describe it.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the saine is to be performed, I may here remark that I am
aware it has already been proposed to construct wide or broad curtain rings, or
runners, as they are sometimes termed with anti-friction rollers so arranged as
to provide a broad support for the runners, and I therefore make no claim for such
construction generally, but I declare that what I do claim is :-
1. Attaching rollers to curtain rings by means of wire staples, as herein shown
and described with reference to Figs. 1, 2, 24, 5, and 13 of the drawings.
2. The combination with curtain rings, or with roller attachments for curtain
rings, all as herein shown and described, of rollers coned out internally as illustrated
in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings, for the purpose set forth.
3. The attachments for carrying rollers to be secured to ordinary curtain rings,
as herein shown and described with reference to Figs. 7 to 12, 14, and 15.
4. The mode of producing a metal ring for curtain poles in two halves, as herein
described, and illustrated in Fig. 16 of the drawings.

page_text: 5. The modification in the mode of producing the half metal rings referred to in
the last claim, whereby the said half rings are adapted for supporting two curtains
one behind the other on the same pole.
6. Decorating curtain rings and poles, or fixtures, in the manner herein
described.