IMPROVEMENTS IN CORKSCREWS
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Hipkins, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Steel Toy Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN CORKSCREWS"
Sealed the 27th January 1880, and dated the 6th August 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Hipkins
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 6th August 1879.
WILLIAM EDWARD HIPKINS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Steel
Toy Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN CORKSCREWS."
My Invention consists of the construction and arrangement of parts herein after
described for effecting the lifting of the worm of the corkscrew for withdrawing the
cork.
By my Invention the parts are made very simple in construction, compact, and
efficient in use.
To the head of the stem of the worm of the corkscrew I connect a vertical bar,
the edge of which is formed into rack teeth. This rack bar is capable of a rising
and falling motion in the frame or body of the corkscrew, the said rack bar being
guided in its motion by the head of the worm working between the side bars of
the corkscrew frame. The cross head of the frame is hollow or forked, and in the
said forked head a pinion is situated, the teeth of the said pinion gearing with the
teeth of the rack bar described. To the said pinion a lever is connected; by means
of the said lever the pinion may be turned through a semi-circle, and the rack bar
and the worm carried by it raised or lowered. The said lever is made in two parts,
jointed together by a joint, which permits the said lever to be folded around two
sides of the corkscrew frame. That part of the lever connected directly with the
pinion has a figure and length proper to pass between and lie in the forked head of
the corkscrew frame, while the other and handle part of the lever has a length and
form proper to fold nearly in contact with the side of the corkscrew frame. The
joint of the two parts of the lever permits the handle part to fold upon the frame,
but when the said handle part has been raised into a line with the other part of
the lever the further motion of the said handle part is arrested by the stop. of the

page_text: joint, and the two parts of the lever now move together to effect the raising and
lowering of the rack bar and worm. The lever is arrested by a stop on one of the
side bars of the frame when it has moved through a semi-circle, and the back motion
when it has reached its lowest position, is arrested by a stop in the forked head
of the frame.
The said jointed lever, when folded about the frame, as described, does not
interfere with the gripping of the frame of the corkscrew for driving the worm into
the cork.
In using the corkscrew the frame or body is gripped by the hand, and rotated,
and the worm driven into the cork in the usual way. After the worm has been
driven home into the cork the handle part of the lever is lifted vertically on its
joint so as to bring it into a line with the part connected with the pinion. On
the further lifting of the handle end of the lever the two parts move together, and
give rotation to the pinion, and the latter raises the rack bar and the worm
connected with it, and the cork is withdrawn with great ease.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Edward Hipkins in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
27th January 1880.
WILLIAM EDWARD HIPKINS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Steel
Toy Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN CORKSCREWS."
My Invention consists of the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter
described 'for effecting the lifting of the worm of the corkscrew for withdrawing
the cork.
By my Invention the parts are made very simple in construction, compact, and
efficient in use.
To the head of the stem of the worm of the corkscrew I connect a vertical bar,
the edge of which is formed into rack teeth. This rack bar is capable of a rising
and falling motion in the frame or body of the corkscrew, the said rack bar being
guided in its motion by the head of the worm working between the side bars of the
corkscrew frame. The cross head of the frame is hollow or forked, and in the said
forked head a pinion is situated, the teeth of the said pinion gearing with the
teeth of the rack bar described. To the said pinion a lever is connected; by means
of the said lever the pinion may be turned through a semi-circle, and the rack bar
and the worm carried by it raised or lowered. The said lever is made in two
parts, jointed together by a joint, which permits the said lever to be folded around
two sides of the corkscrew frame. That part of the lever connected directly with
the pinion bas a figure and length proper to pass between and lie in the forked

page_text: head of the corkscrew frame, while the other and handle part of the lever has a
length and form proper to fold nearly in contact with the side of the corkscrew
frame. The joint of the two parts of the lever permits the handle part to fold
upon the frame, but when the said handle part has been raised into a line with
the other part of the lever the further notion of the said handle part is arrested by
the stop of the joint, and the two parts of the lever now move together to effect the
raising of the rack bar and worm. The lever is arrested by a stop on one of
the side bars of the frame when it has moved through a semi-circle, and the back
motion of the said lever, when it has reached its lowest position, is arrested by a
stop in the forked head of the frame.
The said jointed lever, when folded about the frame as described, does not
interfere with the gripping of the frame of the corkscrew for driving the worm
into the cork.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing
the manner in which my Invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation, and Figure 2 in plan, a corkscrew con-
structed according to my Invention; Figures 3 and 4 are vertical sections of the
same taken at right angles to one another; and Figure 5 is a horizontal section of
the same taken on the line a, a, of Figure 3.
In Figures and 4 the worm of the corkscrew is represented in its lowest
position, and the jointed lever folded about the frame of the corkscrew ready for
driving the worm into the cork; in Figure 2 the handle end of the jointed lever is
represented raised into a line with the other part preparatory to the drawing of the
cork, and in Figure 3 the worm is represented partly raised, the lever having
been turned through nearly a semi-circle, and the cork partly drawn.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of
the Drawing.
b is the worm of the corkscrew, and c the head of the said worm; d is the sliding
rack bar fixed to the head c of the worm. The frame of the corkscrew is flat, and
consists of the hollow or forked cross head e and the side bars f. f. On the bottoms
of the side bars f,f, is the usual socket or collar g for passing over the mouth of the
bottle. The inner faces of the side bars f, f, of the frame are concave, and the rack
bar d is guided in its motion by the circular head c of the worm, working between
the said side bars f, f. The cross head e and the side bars f, f, are flat for con-
venience in grasping the corkscrew for use. h is the pinion turning on the centre h²,
and working in the recess i, in the hollow cross head e, the said pinion gearing
with the teeth of the rack bar d, as best seen in Figure 3. k, k², is the lever, by
which motion through a semi-circle may be given to the pinion h for raising or
lowering the rack bar d and the worm b. The lever is made in two parts, marked
respectively k, k², jointed together by the joint at ks. The said joint at k³ permits
the said lever to be folded around two sides of the corkscrew frame, as represented
in Figure 1. The inner part k of the lever is made, by preference, in one piece
with the pinion h, and the said part k has a figure proper to pass between and lie
in the forked cross head e of the corkscrew frame (see Figures 1 and 4), and the
handle end of the said lever has a length and form proper to fold nearly in
contact with the side bar of the corkscrew frame, as seen in Figure 1. The joint /³
of the lever k, k², permits of the handle part k² to fold upon the frame, as seen in
the said Figure 1, but when the handle part has been raised into a line with
the other part of the lever, as seen in Figure 2, the further motion of the said
handle part is arrested by the stop k (Figure 1) of the joint, and the two parts k, k²,
of the lever now move together to effect the raising of the rack bar d and the
worm b. The lever is arrested when it has moved through a semi-circle to lift the
cork by the stop l on one of the side bars of the frame, and when the said lever is
turned in the opposite direction to lower the worm and fold the said lever about
the frame, the inner part k is arrested by coming against the stop m at the bottom
of the forked head e of the frame. When the jointed lever k, k², is folded, as

page_text: represented in Figure 1, the said lever does not interfere with the gripping of the
flat frame e, f, f, for driving the worm into the cork.
In using the corkscrew the frame or body e, f, f, and the handle end 2 of the
lever are gripped by the hand and rotated, and the worm b driven into the cork in
the usual way. After the worm 6 has been driven home into the cork the handle
part of the lever is lifted vertically on its joint so as to bring it into a line with
the part, connected with the pinion h, as seen in Figure 2. On the further
lifting of the handle end 2 of the lever the two parts k, k², move together, and give
motion through a semi-circle to the pinion h, and the latter raises the rack bar d
and the worm b connected with it, as represented in Figure 3, and the cork is
withdrawn with great ease.
After the cork has been withdrawn the motion of the
lever is reversed when the part I passes into the forked head e of the frame, and
the handle end 2 folds on the side of the frame, and the corkscrew is again ready
for use, as represented in Figure 1.
k
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my
Invention of "Improvements in Corkscrews,"-
First. Actuating the pinion of the corkscrew by means of a jointed lever capable
of folding about the frame of the corkscrew, the said jointed lever being constructed
and operating substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing.
Secondly. The construction hereinbefore described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing of the hollow or forked head e and side bars f, f, con-
stituting the flat frame of the corkscrew, the said hollow or forked head containing
the pinion and the inner part, when folded, of the jointed actuating lever, and the
said side bars guiding the rack bar, substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Hipkins, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
WILLIAM EDWARD HIPKINS. (L.S.)