IMPROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS
Year: 1839

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPHINE
JULIE BESNIER DE BLIGNY, of the Rue de Condé, in the City of Paris, in the
Kingdom of France, but now residing at the Commercial Hotel, Leicester
Square, in the County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Third day of June, in the 'second year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Josephine
Julie Besnier de Bligny, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Josephine Julie Besnier de Bligny, my exors,
admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Josephine Julie Besnier de
Bligny, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS;" in which said Letters Patent is
contained a proviso, that I, the said Josephine Julie Besnier de Bligny, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's '
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the sanie,
reference being thereunto had, will more' fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Josephine Julie Besnier de Bligny, do hereby declare the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference
being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon, that is to say :-
The Invention relates to certain modes of arranging the upper parts of the
sticks of umbrellas and parasols, whereby the umbrella or parasol can stand
off at an angle to the lower part of the stick.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shews an umbrella, the stick being in section, showing the different
parts; Figure 2 represents the stick of the umbrella separately, but shut up,
containing the mechanism. A is the spring catch, upon which the sliding ring
or runner rests when the umbrella is open; a, the spring catch, which fixes
the sliding ring or runner when the umbrella is shut. The ring B is affixed
by means of a screw or stud 6 to the inner sliding piece C, which is shewn at
Figure 8; G is another rod, which is attached by a pin or rule joint to the
rod C, and the rod G is also attached to the upper part of the stick, as shewn
at h, by a pin joint. The handle or stick is composed of a brass tube, and
there is a slit cut therein to allow of the ring B to slide, and there are two
openings for the spring catch a to pass through to retain the umbrella and
stick in the position required. The rod G, when it departs from the perpen-
dicular to an angular position, passes through a slit or opening cut or formed
in the lower part of the stick from 1 to 2, and the rod G also passes through
a slit formed in the under part of the portion of the stick marked 3, such
opening being from the point 4 to the point 5, and the rod G also passes
through another slit formed in the upper part marked 3, such slit being from
the point 6 to 7, and the part 3 of the stick is attached to the upper part of
the stick by a rule joint, and to a sliding piece 8 by another rule joint, and the
sliding piece 8 slides within the lower part of the stick, and it has a spring
catch 9 affixed thereto, which, passing through an opening at the upper part
of the lower portion of the stick, retains the rod G in a proper position when
once properly placed in position for use. By this arrangement of mechanism
the umbrella can be used either as an ordinary one where the stick is in the
centre, or the umbrella may stand off from the centre of the stick, and the
person using the same may have the centre of the umbrella directly over
the head; supposing the umbrella to be closed and it is desired to open it, the
runner or ring is slided up to the spring catch A in the same manner as with

page_text: Aud, secondly, I claim the mode of constructing umbrellas and parasols as
described in respect of Figure 4.
In witness whereof, I, the said Josephine Julie Besnier de Bligny, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of November,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty-nine.
JOSEPHINE JULIE BESNIER (L.8.) DE BLIGNY.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-eighth day of November,
in the year of our Lord 1839, the aforesaid Josephine Julie Besnier de Bligny
came before our said Lady the Quee in Her Chancery, and, acknowledged
the Specification aforesaid, and all, and every thing, therein contained and
specified, in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid, was
stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Second day of December, in the year of our, Lord One!
thousand eight hundred and thirty-nine...

page_text: an ordinary umbrella, and in this condition of the parts the umbrella may be
employed as an ordinary umbrella, but if it be desired to have the umbrella to,
stand off from the centre of the lower part of the stick, then the ring or slide
B is forced upwards, first pressing in the catch a; this will force the part 3 out,
and the catch 9 passes. into the opening for that purpose, and will retain the
parts from returning. The ring or slide B is then to be drawn back below
the catch a, by which means the rod G will take the angular position shewn
in Figure 1; I have thus far spoken of umbrellas only; but it is evident that
what is said of umbrellas is equally applicable to parasols, and it should be
stated that with the exception of the mode of arranging the apparatus or
mechanism of the stick, as herein explained, for the purpose of securely holding
the umbrella or parasol off from the centre of the lower part of the stick, the
umbrellas and parasols are to be of the ordinary construction. In closing the
umbrella or parasol the ring or slide B is to be slided upwards till the whole
length of stick is vertical, and the catch 9 is to be pressed in and the part 3 of
the stick is to be forced into the lower. part of the stick, relieving the catch a,
in order to the slide B being permitted to pass when the umbrella will be.
similar to an ordinary umbrella, and it is to be treated as such in closing it.
g
Figure 4 shews a parasol or umbrella capable of standing off at any desirable
angle or inclination, and the various inclinations are given to this parasol by
means of the interior rod a, which is put into action by turning the handle b,
to which is affixed a tube having a screw nut affixed within it, through which
a screw fixed to the inner rod or tube a passes, will cause that rod to be raised
or lowered. The rod a is attached to rod y by means of a pin joint, and such
rod g is also attached to the upper portions of the stick at c, the upper and
lower portions of the stick being joined together by a pin or rule joined at d,
and in the upper and lower portions of the stick there are openings or slits
into which the rod G passes when the umbrella or parasol is closed, and there
lies concealed, and when the parts are in that condition the umbrella or parasol
may be used as one of the ordinary construction.
I would remark that there may be various means for raising or lowering
and varying the angle or inclination of the umbrella or parasol in respect to
its stick other than by means of a screw, provided the parts of the stick are
suitably combined together for that purpose; I would therefore wish it to be
understood, that I do not confine myself to the means shewn so long as the
modes of connecting and combining the various parts be retained; but what
I claim is,-
First, the mode of constructing umbrellas and parasols as described in
respect to Figures 1, 2, and 3.