Improvements in Steels or Stiffeners for Wearing Apparel.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application (in United Kingdom), 27th June, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 27th June, 1894-Accepted, 20th Oct., 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steels or Stiffeners for Wearing Apparel.
We, REINHOLD Theiler, of Löwenstrasse 3, Lucerne, Switzerland, and
JOHANN GEORG SCHNEELI, of Hirschmattstrasse 10, Lucerne, Switzerland,
trading in partnership as Theiler and Schneeli, Manufacturers, 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 :-
The stiffeners for stiffening and giving shape to ladies' garments and which are
generally of steel covered with textile fabric, are, as usually made, unable to
permanently resist the abrupt bending stresses to which they are subjected by the
movements of the wearer, and very often break, when the sharp edges of the
fracture cause considerable inconvenience and are liable to cause injury.
Now this invention has for object to obviate or mitigate this disadvantage to
which end we greatly increase the flexibility or capacity of the steel or stiffener to
resist bending stresses by employing, in place of one thick steel strip, two or more
thinner strips laid one upon another, and the thickness of each of which should not
exceed say 0-25 of a millimetre.
By thus combining a number of thin strips to form one steel or stiffener, the
latter acquires the requisite stiffness, whilst the bending stresses to which it is
subjected as a whole, fall very far short of the limit to which each separate
component strip could by reason of its thinness be bent without being damaged.
In this manner, breakage of a steel or stiffener built up as aforesaid, is rendered
much less probable under ordinary conditions than with such articles as heretofore
made.
In the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is an elevation of the broad or flat side, and
Fig. 2 an elevation of the narrow side or edge of a steel or stiffener constructed
according to our invention the said steel or stiffener being enclosed in a sheath or
envelope which is represented as partly stripped away in order to show the built-up
nature of the steel or stiffener inserted therein.
a are the thin metal strips the exposed ends of which are shown spread apart in
Fig. 2 for the sake of greater clearness. Two, three or even more of such thin
strips, according to the desired stiffness of the combined or compound steel or
stiffener as a whole, are enclosed in a common sheath or envelope b of textile
material. As shown in the figures the thin strips which are of equal lengths or
approximately so, may in addition be wrapped with paper c or other suitable
material, either collectively or singly, before being inserted in the sheath b. The
strips may also be varnished. They are fastened in the sheath by stitches passed
through the sheath and through holes formed in the ends of the strips, in the
ordinary manner. Fig. 1 illustrates this mode of fastening, the stitches being sewn

page_text: radiating in a semi-circle. Caps or other protective devices may be easily applied
to the ends of the steel or stiffener as in the case of ordinary steels or stiffeners.
The steels or stiffeners may also be formed with eyes or eyelet holes.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. A steel or stiffener for wearing apparel composed of two or more thin metal
strips of equal or approximately equal length, placed one against another flatwise,
and collectively inserted into a sheath or envelope of textile material, the said
strips and the sheath or envelope being fastened together at their ends substantially
as herein described for the purpose specified.
2. The improved steel or stiffener for wearing apparel shewn in and described
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
.[l'. 65lנמ
1001
For the Applicants,
W. LLOYD WISE,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.