MEANS FOR HOLDING DOORS OPEN
Year: 1885

page_text: 66
I, HENRY BROWN DRY, of 124, New John Street, Birmingham, Warwickshire,
IMPROVED
Brass Founder, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
MEANS FOR HOLDING DOORS OPEN IN ANY POSITION to be as follows:-
:-
My Invention has reference to improved means for holding doors or gates open
in any required position.
"
Door-porters," (the means ordinarily employed for such purpose) consisting of
a weight placed on the floor or ground against a door or gate act only to prevent
such door or gate being closed and as they are separate from the door or gate they
are often an obstruction and inconvenient.
The objects of my Invention are to provide an apparatus which shall be attached
to and carried by the door or gate and shall be equally effective against a pressure
tending to open as against a pressure tending to close the door or gate.
According to ono arrangement of carrying out my Invention I provide a bolt
preferably of metal free to be moved up or down in a guide or casing attached to
the door or gate near the bottom thereof. The said bolt is partly open at the upper
end and partly within it and projecting from the said upper end I provide a rod of
convenient length which I call a pressure rod. Between the bottom end of the said
pressure rod and the said bolt I provide a coiled metallic spring or a flat spring or
an india-rubber or other spring may be used so that when the said pressure rod is
pushed downwards such downward pressure will be transmitted from the pressure
rod through the spring or springs to the bolt. To the said pressure rod and
preferably near the top thereof I attach a knob which projects through a double
bayonet slot in a casing supporting the said top part.
The action of iny Invention is as follows: The door or gate with the apparatus
attached as above described having been placed open as may be required the
pressure rod is pushed downwards by means of the knob so carrying the bolt with
it until the downward motion of the latter is arrested by the floor or ground.
When the pressure rod has been pushed down until it is arrested by a stop, thus
compressing the spring or springs and pressing the bolt against the floor or ground,
the knob is turned partly round so as to catch in the bottom of the bayonet slot
and so prevent the bolt rising. The pressure of the bolt on the floor or ground
maintains the door or gate open as required, the pressure of the spring allowing
the bolt to adapt itself to inequalities of the floor or ground. When it is required
to release the door or gate the pressure rod is raised to its uppermost position and

page_text: the bolt is lifted off the floor or ground by means of a projecting part of the rod
catching against a projecting part of the bolt and it is maintained in that position
by turning the knob into the top of the bayonet slot.
I sometimes affix leather or india-rubber on to the bottom of the bolt so as to
increase its bold on the floor.
According to my Invention various devices may be adopted for maintaining the
pressure rod and bolt in their top and bottom positions respectively instead of
the knob and double bayonet slot above described. For instance the top of the
pressure rod may have a slot at right angles thereto and in the slot may be
provided a pin carried eccentrically by a short shaft which may be partly revolved.
When the said pin is on its top centre the pressure rod and bolt are raised and they
are depressed by turning the pin on to its bottom centre. I prefer to let the pin
pass a little beyond its top centre and then to come in contact with a stop.
Dated thin 4th day of Tune 1885

page_text: I, HENRY BROWN DRY, of 124, New John Street, Birmingham, Warwickshire,
Brass Founder, 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:-
My Invention has reference to improved means for holding doors or gates open
in any required position.
"
'Door-porters" (the means ordinarily employed for such purpose) consisting of
a weight placed on the floor or ground against a door or gate act only to prevent
such door or gate being closed and, as they are separate from the door or gate, they
are often an obstruction and inconvenient.
The objects of my Invention are to provide an apparatus which shall be attached
to and carried by the door or gate and shall be equally effective against a pressure
tending to open as against a pressure tending to close the door or gate.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawing is a perspective view of a door open with
my improved apparatus for maintaining it in that position attached; Figs. 2, 3
and 4 show the apparatus illustrated by Fig. 1 on an enlarged scale partly in
section the parts being in various positions so as to illustrate their action as
hereinafter described.
a is a bolt preferably of metal free to be moved up or down in the guide or
casing attached to the door c near the bottom thereof. The bolt a is partly open
at the upper end (being provided with a cap d) and partly within it and projecting
from the upper end I provide a rod e of any convenient length which I call a
pressure rod. Between the bottom end f of the pressure rod e and the bottom of
the bolt a I provide a coiled metallic spring or springs g so that when the pressure
rode is pushed downwards (see Fig. 3) such downward pressure will be transmitted
from the pressure rode through the spring or springs g to the bolt a. -A knob h
is attached to the pressure rod e and arranged to project through a double bayonet
slot in a casing supporting the top part of the rod e.
The action of the apparatus as above described is as follows:-The door c with
the said apparatus attached as above described having been placed open as may be
required (see Fig. 1) the pressure rod e is pushed downwards by means of the knob h
so carrying the bolt with it until the downward motion of the latter is arrested by
the floor or ground k (see Fig. 2). When the pressure rod has been pushed down
until it reaches the bottom of the bayonet slot i (see Fig. 3) thus compressing the
spring or springs g and pressing the bolt a against the floor or ground k, the knob h
is turned partly round so as to catch in the bottom of the bayonet slot ȧ and so
prevent the bolt a rising (this is clearly shewn in Fig. 3). The pressure of the
bolt a on the floor or ground maintains the door c open as required, the pressure of
the spring g allowing the bolt a to adapt itself to inequalities of the floor or
ground. When it is required to release the door c the pressure rod e is raised to
its uppermost position (see Fig. 4) and the bolt a is lifted off the floor or ground l
by means of a projecting or enlarged part of the rod e catching against a
projecting part or cap d of the bolt a and it is maintained in that position by
turning the knob k into the top of the bayonet slot as shewn in Fig. 4.

page_text: A leather or india-rubber pad m may be affixed to the bottom of the bolt a so as
to increase its hold on the floor.
It will be evident that various arrangements of a spring bolt and devices for
maintaining it in its top and bottom positions respectively may be employed
without departing from the spirit of my Invention instead of the apparatus above
described and illustrated by Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 which is intended only as an
example.
For instance the bolt may be operated by the mechanism illustrated in front
elevation partly in section by Fig. 5 and in side elevation by Fig. 6. In this
example the top of the pressure rod c is provided with a slot n at right angles
thereto and in the slot n is a pin o carried eccentrically by a short shaft and
lever p which may be partly revolved. When the said pin is on its top centre the
pressure rode and bolt attached thereto are raised and they are depressed by
turning the pin on to its bottom centre as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 6.
The pin o may either pass a little beyond its top. centre and then come in contact
with a stop or the slot n may be notched upwards as shewn in Fig. 5.
It will be evident that an india-rubber or flat metal spring may be employed
instead of the coiled metal spring g and that the apparatus is applicable to gates
similarly as above described and illustrate as applying to doors.
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:
1. The improved means for holding doors or gates open in any position herein-
before described with reference to the accompanying drawing and consisting
essentially of a spring bolt and pressure rod carried by the door or gate and so
arranged as to be capable of maintaining a constant pressure on the floor or of
being withdrawn off the floor, for the purposes and substantially as described.
2. The improved apparatus for holding doors or gates open in any position
hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, that is to say,.
an apparatus for the purposes described consisting essentially of a spring bolt a
and pressure rod e carried by the door or gate in combination with means substan-
tially as described and illustrated for maintaining the pressure rod e in its upper
or lower positions respectively the parts being arranged to operate substantially as
described and illustrated.
I
. היבו
11h 1000