AN IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN TO WALK
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Herbert John Allison at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 12th May 1880. A communication from
abroad by Jean Baptiste Crouzet, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
HERBERT JOHN ALLISON, of the Firm of Allison Brothers, Patent Agents, of
41, Southampton Buildings, Holborn, in the County of Middlesex.
"AN
IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN TO WALK." A communication
from abroad by Jean Baptiste Crouzet, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
This apparatus is composed principally of, 1st, an annular base frame about two
feet in diameter; 2nd, a circular table with a central hole to receive the child;
3rd, three jointed supports uniting the base frame with the table; 4th, a frame to
carry toys, which is adapted to the table; 5th, a waistband fixed to the table;
6th, a movable seat attached to the table by two straps.
'
The base frame is supported on four casters, movable in any direction, and is
made of half round iron, hollow and bent in the direction of its height, the hollow
side being inward.
The circular table with the central hole has a portion of its circumference
movable on a pivot on one side and fixed at the other by a pin when the table is
entirely closed. In order to place the child in the hole of the table the pin is
withdrawn, and the movable portion is turned on its pivot, leaving an opening
sufficient to pass the child. In the fixed part of the table the two extremities, both
above and below, are furnished with a thin plate of sheet iron, forming a projecting
recess in which the ends of the movable part are encased when closed.
The three supports connect the base frame to the table by means of an upper rod
which slides easily in a sleeve piece in the middle of the support, which piece is
furnished with a set screw so as to stop the sliding motion of the upper rod as
desired; the tightening of the screw on the rod operates directly, and so as to
render it still more certain the rod on the side where the screw binds is provided
with small holes placed very close together.
These three supports by their construction serve to approach or separate'in the
direction of the height the base frame and the table by a distance of about seven
inches, so as to be able to adapt the carriage or apparatus to any size, and allow
when it is not in use the lowering of the table to the level of the base frame.
By this means the whole of the apparatus does not occupy a space more than two
feet in diameter by two feet in height.

page_text: In order to effect this each of the supports is composed of three pieces, the first
being the upper rod which slides in the sleeve piece, and which is jointed at its
upper end to the table by a pivotted joint, and the two other pieces consisting of
rods are pivotted at two different points to the base frame at about five inches apart.
These two latter pieces extend upwards to the sleeve piece to which they are
pivotted, their ends extending a short distance beyond the sleeve piece.
The table is joined to the base frame by passing the ends of the upper rods
through the sleeve pieces and tightening the screws.
So as to obtain perfect rigidity of the supports when the three parts of which
they are composed are in a straight line, a movable ring placed on the upper rod
when lowered to the sleeve piece unites the upper rod to the top ends of the lower
rods, and prevents any bending, even when the screw is not sufficiently tightened.
It will be easily understood that by raising this ring and unscrewing the screw, in
order to allow the bending of the three jointed pieces at their joints, the sleeve
piece will be caused to act so as to increase or diminish the length of the carriage
or to lower it completely.
The frame to carry toys consists of a rectangular frame made of round iron rod
adapted to the extremities of two rods with sockets fixed to the table. The toys
to amuse the child are suspended to this frame.
The waistband consists of a very fine steel spring 4 of an inch wide and two feet
long, bent in the form of a crescent, which has a suitable padding. The ends of
the spring are provided with pieces of leather, one of which has a buckle attached
thereto, and the other has holes to receive the tongue of the buckle.
The waistband is attached to the table at three points. It is passed under the
arms of the child and suitably adjusted; the child is then placed in the carriage
and the waistband is fastened to the three fixed points in the table.
The movable seat is suspended from each side of the central opening of the
table by straps. When the child is standing the seat is hooked to the table so as
not to incommode the movements of the child.
The complete apparatus may be entirely folded up in a few seconds, to effect
which the rings above the sleeve joints are raised and the screws slightly loosened,
when the whole of the upper part falls level with and within the base frame.