Year: 1891

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 18 of the Patents, &c., Act, 1888), as allowed
by the decision of the Comptroller General of the 27th day of April 1897.
Date of Application, 24th Oot., 1891-Accepted, 28th Nov., 1891
We, JULES ALPHONSE THIERRY
and ALFRED LEON THIERRY, both of
No. 292 Regent Street in the County of London, Boot Makers, 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 eyelets employed for the lacing of boots, corsets and other articles of dress,
and also in various articles of stationery and ornament, being made of metal, have
to be varnished, japanned or otherwise coated so that the face of the eyelet may
present some desired colour or appearance; but such coating is apt to become rubbed
or broken off, so that the metal itself or part of it is presented often with a patchy
and objectionable appearance. The object of our invention is to provide a permanent
facing for the flange of an eyelet, this facing being of any desired colour and giving
a neat finish to the eyelet.
For this purpose, instead of varnishing or otherwise treating the surface of the
metal, we fix on the flange, which is the visible part of the eyelet, a casing of
celluloid or similar material such as xylonite which may be of any desired colour,
and which is moulded so as to present a neat rounded facing of the flange.
The accompanying drawing is a magnified section of an eyelet with its flange
encased with celluloid according to our invention. E is the tubular stem or body
of the eyelet, F its flange encased with celluloid C, which, as shewn in the drawing,
not only covers the face of the flange, but also extends round its edge and forms a
layer under it, so that it is firmly held upon the flange and cannot be separated
from it without actual fracture.
This encasing of the flange with the celluloid may be effected in various ways,
which we do not claim as of our invention, but which we may describe in order to
enable our invention to be carried out in practice.
One way is to prepare for each eyelet a cupped washer of celluloid, to soften this
by heat or by immersing it for some time in spirit, to insert the eyelet flange into
the cup, and then by means of a suitable die to turn inwards the upwardly pro-
jecting lip of the cup and fold it over the flange, moulding it by the pressure of
the die to the desired rounded form. Or the cup may be applied in an inverted
position, its projecting lip being turned inwards and under the flange.
According to another method, we employ two layers of sheet celluloid, the one
layer under and the other over the flange both somewhat wider than the flange.
Those surfaces of the two sheets which come next the flange being served with
cement or being partly dissolved by application of a solvent such as acetone or acetic
ether, the whole preferably while heated is subjected to pressure between suitable
dies, whereby the celluloid is caused to adhere to the flange on both sides of it and
го

page_text: the edges of the two pieces of celluloid beyond the flange to adhere together joining
as if they formed one piece. This operation may be performed on a number of
eyelets at a time. A lower die or block has drilled in it a number of holes fitting
the stems of the eyelets. On this die is placed the lower sheet of celluloid
perforated with holes, one over each hole of the die and having its upper surface
partly dissolved or served with cement. Eyelets being then placed in these holes,
the upper sheet of celluloid having its under surface prepared for cementing, is
placed over the whole and is pressed down by an upper die so as to cause firm
adhesion of the two sheets with the flanges of all the eyelets enclosed between
them. When the cement has set, the combined sheet consisting of the two sheets
and the eyelets, is removed from the dies and the celluloid casing of each eyelet is
separated from the sheet and has a hole made through it either by punching or
preferably by revolving cutters.
According to a third method, we employ a lower die or block having a number
of holes drilled in it and in each of these we place the stem of an eyelet the flange
of which, owing to its rounded junction to the stem, stands a little above the face of
the die. In each eyelet we also place a pin the flat top of which stands up to
about the level of the flange. On the die thus charged we place a sheet of celluloid
softened by heat or by its immersion in spirit, and above this a thick block of
vulcanised caoutchouc on the top of which bears the follower of a screw or other
suitable press. We enclose the block of caoutchouc within a casing to prevent it
from spreading out laterally, and applying pressure to it we cause the softened
celluloid under it to be squeezed not only on to the faces of the eyelet flanges but
also under the flanges so as to occupy the narrow space between these flanges and
the face of the die.
After the celluloid is set, we remove the sheet having the flanges of the eyelets
imbedded in its substance and we then, either by punching, or preferably by
revolving cutters, perforate the celluloid with holes one for each eyelet and separate
each encased flange from the sheet.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that we
make no general claim to the facing of eyelets with celluloid or like material but what
we claim is :-
A metal eyelet having its flange imbedded in celluloid or like material, forming
a facing layer over the flange and a fixing layer under the flange, substantially as
described.