MENTS IN BUILDINGS, BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS, & BUILDING MATERIALS, INCLUDING GLASS AND WALKING SURFACES, AND IN MODES, MEANS, AND PROCESSES CONNECTED THEREWITH & IN THE USE AND APPLICATION THEREOF, THE SAME IN PART REFERRING TO ILLUMINATION, VENTILATION, AND TO ORNA- MENTATION, PARTLY APPLICABLE TO MOVABLE OR LOCOMOTIVE STRUCTURES."
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thaddeus Hyatt, of 66, Gloucester Gardens, Hyde Park,
London, in the County of Middlesex, Inventor, for the Invention of "IMPROVE
MENTS IN BUILDINGS, BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS, & BUILDING MATERIALS,
INCLUDING GLASS AND WALKING SURFACES, AND IN MODES, MEANS, AND
PROCESSES CONNECTED THEREWITH & IN THE USE AND APPLICATION THEREOF,
THE SAME IN PART REFERRING TO ILLUMINATION, VENTILATION, AND TO ORNA-
MENTATION, PARTLY APPLICABLE TO MOVABLE OR LOCOMOTIVE STRUCTURES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thaddeus Hyatt at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd January 1877.
THADDEUS HYATT, of 66, Gloucester Gardens, Hyde Park, London, in the County
of Middlesex, Inventor. " IMPROVEMENTS IN BUILDINGS, BUILDING CONSTRUC-
TIONS, & BUILDING MATERIALS, INCLUDING GLASS AND WALKING SURFACES,
AND IN MODES, MEANS, AND PROCESSES CONNECTED THEREWITH & IN THE USE
AND APPLICATION THEREOF, THE SAME IN PART REFERRING TO ILLUMINATION,
VENTILATION, AND TO ORNAMENTATION, PARTLY APPLICABLE TO MOVABLE OR
LOCOMOTIVE STRUCTURES."
Artificial Stones and Concretes.-According to one part of my Invention my
improvement consists in manufacturing blocks and slabs from Portland or equivalent
cement, pure or mixed with stone chippings, as a new manufacture, such artificial
stone being moulded into all forms, and sometimes inlaid; and then in order to
perfect its hardness and quality in the shortest time the material, whether in brick,
tile, slab, or block form, is left for weeks or months soaking in water, suitable baths
being made at the works for this purpose. In this manufacture I propose to imitate
Portland and other stones by the admixture of Keene or other cement with the
Portland. This process I term the hydraulic in opposition to the more expensive or
chemical process of manufacturing paving slabs, tanks, and other objects from stone
materials. By the hydraulic process I propose to manufacture Portland cement
into stone upon metal cores for a variety of useful purposes connected with buildings,
D
1071

page_text: as cisterns, shelves, paving slabs, stairways, and landings, a part of the Invention
consisting in making dry walking and safe walking surfaces by so combining stone
chippings of proper shape for the purpose with the cement as to produce a rusticated
face to the slab, the sharp angles of which being ground down forms a flat surface
to be walked upon, while still leaving indents or channels in every direction as
water carriers, and to give good foot hold. Such surfaces made of agate, colored
marbles, and other colored stones I also propose to make in block form for building
in lieu of stone and brick of common kind. A part of the Invention consisting in
the process of forming such colored concretes, viz., by first making a heavy or thick
grouting of Portland cement, confining this in a suitable vessel, and then crowding
into it as large a quantity of the colored stones, mixed or not with glass fragments,
as will combine with it. When thoroughly set and hardened the surface is to be
ground down, and in some cases polished. Such stone I propose to make as a new
manufacture for application to manufacturing mantles, table tops, and other uses
like natural stone.
According to another part of my Invention my improvement consists in the
manufacture, use, and application of cement beams, made by moulding, or by
moulding and pressure, the cement being of preference Portland cement, and
employed preferably pure, though it may be used in concrete form, the said beams
being moulded either in one piece or in sections of two, three, or more, the sections
sometimes being in the form of bricks, blocks, or tiles. When moulded in one piece
I prefer to form it upon the model of the T beam, the flange being downwards
when in position and forming the bottom of the beam. These beams are moulded
and formed upon a metal core or skeleton of wrought metal, which may have the
form of a simple tie, formed with stops at intervals from one end to the other;
where the tie is a flat bar of metal the stops may be bolts run upwards through
holes in the tie and furnished at top with a washer and nut, which being near the
top of the cement or concrete beam when made thus holds the tie firmly to the
stone when under strain; or the rods, that is, vertical bolts, may be fastened at top
to another flat bar of iron similar to the bottom one, and then washers will not be
needed. This top bar may be in some cases a light cast-iron arch piece in place of
a straight bar. Such a metal construction when imbedded in concrete or cement
and the latter turned to stone gets the support of a perfect strut in all directions, so
that the tensile power of the metal has full play. These beams I propose to harden
by the hydraulic process described.
In applying these beams to the construction of floors, roofs, and walking surfaces
I prefer to use them with broad bottom flanges, and place them in contact so
that the flanges form a ceiling to the space beneath. The intervals between the
ribs I fill with concrete, except that to lighten the construction in some cases I put
the concrete above the center of the beam in the region of compressive strains,
leaving hollows beneath. This may be effected in several ways, a good one being
to use a layer of flat or curved tiles, which may be chiefly moulded out of concrete,
as the center upon which to put the bed of concrete, the tiles remaining as a part
of the construction.
When I make the beams in sections I mould each piece to fit its fellow, each being
formed with a longitudinal channel or gutter on the under side of the bottom flange,
so that when all are in position a suitable recess exists to receive the tie, the vertical
rods or holding bolts being all contained within the body of the sections, from the
bottom of which the screwed or threaded ends protrude far enough to go through
the holes in the tie, where they are then fastened by nuts, and then the recess is
filled with cement to hide, protect, and cover in the tie. These sectional beam
blocks, bricks, or tiles I propose to make as a new manufacture, the same being
preferably hardened by the hydraulic process aforesaid.
The beams and blocks thus described may be constructed for combination with
either bent, curved, or flat ties, the essential principle of construction being the
same in all, viz., the metal being employed chiefly for its tensile strength and to act
in connection with the stony material which resists the compressive forces, the

page_text: Invention of fixed stops upon the tie being the means used to prevent the tie from
slipping or losing its grip on the concrete in the direction of its length when the
beam or floor is loaded, and the extension of the stock into the upper part of the
beam with its washer or head being designed to prevent the tie from bursting
the concrete beneath by loosening its hold upon the main body.
According to another part of my Invention my improvement consists in the use
and application of metal ties and stops in bent, curved, or straight form, and
connected or not to a top flange, rail, or strut, as already described, to the making
of roofs, floors, and walking surfaces in situ, the ties or skeletons being placed in.
position upon the walls, or otherwise, above a suitable center or platform, and the
cement or concrete being then filled in upon and around them after the usual manner
of making concrete floors, except that as herein-above described I of preference
make use of curved or other tiles to form hollow longitudinal spaces above the
ceiling between the ties in the lower half of the construction.
According to another part of my Invention my improvement consists in making
an exceedingly light but strong grating construction as the skeleton core or basis for
an enclosing body of Portland or equivalent cement or concrete in forming walls,
partitions, roofs, floors, and walking surfaces of a fireproof character. The metal
made use of may be iron, but I prefer steel in the form of thin blades, and of
preference rolled with top and bottom flanges, the web being for some uses not
more than one-eighth of an inch in thickness. These blades are "halved" into
each other much as sash bars are halved into one another, and form apertures from
one inch upwards, the depth of the bars being proportioned to the apertures. For
solid work these gratings are completely buried in the cement or concrete, a part of
the Invention consisting in some cases in the use of ornamental blocks of colored
glass or stone as closures to the apertures, the same being inserted to a level and
then made secure by a grouting or cement filling around them and the metal, inlays
being in some cases made use of between the closures on one only or both faces,
illuminating surfaces being made by using translucent glass closures.
A part of the Invention in this construction consists in the use and application
of closures of glass or other material of a cubical character, the depth of the closures
being such that when the cement sets and hardens around them and the metal the
closures are as firmly held in place by mere side adhesion or "bond" as courses of
bricks are in walls.
Another part of the Invention consists in a method of constructing the gratings
from blades of different depth, thickness, and strength, the largest and strongest
becoming the final carriers or beams, the greatest ultimate strength with the use of
the least amount and weight of metal being thus obtained, a part of the Invention
consisting in the use and application of such metal skeletons or gratings to the con-
struction of domes and other curved structures, the filling of closures, cement or
concrete being thinnest at the points where the blades of least depth are placed,
and thickest at the points of greatest depth of metal. By such a distribution of
material I propose to make domes practically monolithic in construction and of
great strength and lightness.
A part of the Invention also consists in the use and application of this method of
construction to the making of doors and windows of an ornamental, illuminating, .
and fireproof character.
According to another part of my Invention, the purpose of which is to make fire-
proof roofs, floors, and walking surfaces of wood, my improvement consists,―
First. In interleaving boards, planks, or beams with flitches or vertical layers of
cement or concrete made in a degree self-supporting, that is to say, not liable to
fall asunder if cracked, by being well bonded by an intermixture of cocoa-nut or
other suitable fibre, such as silicated coton," asbestos, hair, or vegetable fibre
made from wood by the blowing steam or other process such fibrous intermixture
also making the cement or concrete porous to a sufficient degree to prevent the
timber from decaying by "dry rot," and also making it convenient as a kind of felt
to be nailed or attached to the face of the timber.
i

page_text: Second. In a mode of construction whereby earth or loose sand, instead of
concrete, may be used between the boards, planks, or beams, to prevent burning,
such material being sufficiently porous in itself, in addition to its cheapness, to
prevent dry rot. In this construction my improvement consists in the use and
application of a fire-proof hanging ceiling below the beams formed of cement or
concrete upon a suitable sustaining core of wire cloth, watling, or other retaining
skeleton, the same being held by stays of metal taking their hold, preferably, above
the center of the timber; such ceiling being solid and strong will support the sand
filling between the timbers.
Third. In a mode of converting each board, plank, or beam, into a kind of T beam
reversed, the flange being at the bottom, and made either by angle irons fastened to
the wood or by wood strips fastened to the wood, so that the cement or concrete
being formed up between the beams, as well as underneath, to make a fire-
proof ceiling, shall take its hold upon such flanges, the vertical spaces between
the boards, planks, or beams, being then filled in with sand or concrete, as above
described.
•Fourth. In a mode of constructing solid or all-beam wood roofs, floors, and
walking surfaces, with reference to ceiling the under surface. with cement, plaster,
or equivalent plastic fire-proof material, my improvement consisting, according to
one mode of construction, in putting the boards together in a pack, so that every
other one projects an inch or two below its fellow, and then lathing across such
projecting edges, or running wires through them, and upon such mesh putting the
concrete, plaster, or cement facing, to form the fire-proof ceiling.
By another mode I use tapering boards or planks, so that when put together in a
pack, every other one, as above said, projecting down below its fellow, wedge-shape
grooves or channels are formed thereby, to serve as retaining crevices for supporting
the ceiling.
By another mode I employ sheet-metal strips on edge, formed either with per-
forations or flanges, the same being nailed or otherwise fastened to the face of each
board or plank, and extending sufficiently below to give the requisite hold to the
ceiling material.
By another mode I-employ thin sheet-metal ribbons, corrugated crrosswise, which
when fastened to the under face of the solid wood construction, forms retaining cells
to hold the ceiling material.
According to another mode I make a solid or all-beam construction of wood, of
less depth than the preceeding, where both tensile and compressive strains are met
wholly by the wood, my improvement consisting in using the wood to resist only
compressive strains, the entire solid. of wood in mass being trussed on its under side
by a number of light metal ties, at convenient distances apart, but preferably near
enough together to serve as the main support and strengthener or skeleton to a solid
or porous ceiling of cement or concrete, the ties being either bent, curved, or
straight, and attached to the wood in any well known manner, or as herein-before
already described with respect to cement and concrete beams made upon metal
skeletons.
By a modification of this construction I omit every other board, plank, or wood
strut, and bring up the cement or concrete in place thereof to the level of the
remaining wood struts, so that one half of the surface, and more than one half of
the entire solid of the construction, is composed of cement or concrete.
According to another part of my Invention, having reference to concrete walls,
and preventing the same from "sweating," my improvement consists in making the
inner or room face of the wall of cement or concrete well mixed with sawdust,
cocoanut fibre, or other cheap non-conducting material, as much of the same being
mixed with the cement or concrete as it will properly hold. I propose to put this
facing material into the mould at the time the concrete is filled in, a thin metal
sheet or division plate being used to keep it in position until the concrete backing
is in place, when the division plate is withdrawn, and the two substances unite in a
proper bond.

page_text: According to another part of my Invention, having reference to means and modes
of constructing metal sashes or gratings to be used as a core or skeleton for a
clothing of closures, and cement for illuminating and other purposes, my improve-
ment consists in the use and application of iron or steel rolled into exceedingly
light web and flange blades or bars, the web for some purposes being only a sixteenth
of an inch in thickness. These bars may be put together with cross ties and
thimbles, or be "halved" into each other like common wood sash bars, the mode of
uniting them, however, producing apertures or meshes preferably as deep as the
diameters of the openings, so that the material which is used to close the apertures
has great hold upon the metal by side adhesion, as already set forth herein with
reference to other constructions. This grating construction of light web and flange
blades of metal I apply to the making of roofs, floors, walls, partitions, doors,
windows, and other parts of buildings, and for walking surfaces set and covered
substantially in manner as already.herein-before described.
According to another part of my Invention my improvement consists in a mode
or means of lighting and making more healthy the atmosphere of buildings,
especially that of basements and underground apartments or spaces under tho.
footways of public streets.
By the mode of using glass in footways, as hitherto practised, such surfaces have
been considered dangerous to pedestrians, and the employment of the same has
been limited by municipal regulations to a very narrow space adjoining the building
or premises lighted thereby; but by my improved methods of proportioning and
combining the glass with other materials, in connection with their character and
formation, I am enabled to make illuminating surfaces that are as safe for being
walked upon as common flag stones, my Invention accordingly consisting not only
in the making of these improved lighting surfaces, but in their application as a
means of converting the footways of strects into illuminating roofs to the spaces
underneath them, and which may thus be used as a means of not only extending
the area of the basement proper, but of also increasing its light, the chamber under
the footway having the advantage of a large mass of perpendicular light, a portion
of which may be reflected from its walls and otherwise into the basement.
The points of improvement in these safe-walking surfaces are as follows:-The
use and application of wood (preferably set end wise like street "wood paving")
in the form of "slips" and "dots," in imitation of the encaustic and colored tiles,
slips, and dots in common use, such wood inlays being inserted between the glasses,
and being of such widths as to produce practically a wood walking surface, a part
of the Invention consisting in the employment of colored woods to produce ornamental
surfaces, and a part of the Invention consisting in making a flat raised surface with
beveled edges, to form drainage or water ways between the inlays and the glasses,
the latter being formed in similar manner on their surfaces; but I do not confine
myself to wood inlays, as I propose to use any others that may be suitable, whether
asphalt or made from natural or artificial stone or baked brick, either common or
ornamental, a part of my Invention consisting in forming such inlays with raised
flat faces and waterways, as above described in respect to wood inlays.
Another point in my Invention that tends to make the herein-described walking
surfaces safe is the size of the glasses employed, as compared with the surrounding
inlays and the thickness of such glasses in comparison to their diameter, the glasses
being in effect cubes, or nearly so, and preferably not over one inch or one inch and
a half in diameter. Such safe walking illuminating surfaces as I have herein-
before described may be made upon a basis or foundation of cast-iron gratings
supported upon suitable beams or joists, or upon gratings constructed of thin blades
of rolled metal, as herein-before set forth.
According to another part of my Invention, having reference to the construction
of the footways of streets, when designed to also serve as roofs to underground
partments, my improvement has reference to head room and spread of light, and
lso increasing the light surface of the area nearest the building. By the present
node of construction brick arches are employed to vault the roof of the space

page_text: beneath the flag stones of the footway, then sand, then flag stones, making a depth
of some 18 to 20 inches at the thinnest part and two feet or more at the thickest;
but by my improvement the construction need be no more than six inches thick,
and uniform all over, my plan being to make a footway roof for streets by means of
light metal joists set about a foot apart, and crossed by leaves of thin metal notched
at the ends to slip on to the bottom flanges of the beams, and placed apart about as
far as they are inches deep, a concrete filling being then put in and finished off at
top in pure cement, which is then of preference asphalted upon for the walking
surface, the joists resting upon a girder placed parallel with the face of the building,
the area light space being increased by dispensing with the stone coping usually
employed, and using the web of the girder as the riser to the platform covering the
area, a part of the Invention consisting in the use and application of L girders
in this combination, and a part of the Invention consisting in the insertion of
glasses in the web of the beam, where it serves as a riser to the platform resting
upon it, the girder when of cast iron being cast with openings to receive such
glasses.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to improvements in
walking surfaces, my Invention is designed to obviate the objection to concrete, or
cement and glass, and tiled floors, on account of their coldness to the feet. To
secure fireproof constructions of concrete and still have the beauty of encaustic and
colored tiles without their coldness, I make tiles, slips, and dots of glass, baked clays,
or of cements, and veneer them with colored woods, using marine glue or other
suitable adhesive material for the purpose of fastening the veneers to their backing.
Other soft, elastic, and warm materials in place of wood may be used also, such
as india-rubber, carpet stuff or colored felts. By this method and partially covering
the tiles, glazed surfaces in bright colors may be walked upon without injury, the
carpet, or felt, india-rubber, or wood veneers giving protection to the tiles or glass
surface. In other cases I make slabs, tiles, and walking surfaces with indents, and
inlay them with ornamental veneers of wood, carpet, felt, india-rubber, or other
warm and pleasant material to the feet.
According to another part of my Invention my improvement, which has reference
to the entrances to halls and stores where mats are laid for the feet, consists in
combining glass with the mats in a way which allows the floor under the mat
to transmit light, the glasses being set so as to partially project through the mat
holes, and the bars of the mat being shaped to sink into the channels between the
glasses.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to the mode of
hanging window sashes, my improvement consists in forming the sides of the sashes
with cog teeth, or letting a rack into the wood to take into a pinion fixed in the
window frame, such pinion again taking into a loaded rack concealed within the
window frame, and which serves as a weight or counterbalance to the sash, a part of
the Invention consisting in making the weight of cement or concrete upon a metal
rack as a core. This Invention dispenses with cords and pullies.
A farther part of the Invention consists in the use of a stop or catch located in
the window frame to lock or bolt the rack of the sash in lieu of the ordinary "sash
fastener," the same being applicable to railway and other carriages.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to ventilation, my
improvement consists in making recesses or pockets at the top and bottom of the
window frame for the sashes to be slid into, and in making the sashes of an extra
length conformable thereto. By this means the raising or lowering of one or both
sashes without actually opening either admits an upward current of air between the
glasses of the two.
By a modification of this plan, and to adapt it to windows already in use, I form
a pocket in the sill immediately under the sash, or nearly so, to hold a supernu-
merary sash or guard for closing the opening when the sash is raised.
By a modification of this plan the sash or guard is in the form of a hinged flap
attached to the window sill, a part of the Invention consisting in some cases in com-

page_text: bining with the aforesaid ventilating windows the herein-before described method
of hanging them by means of racks and pinions.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to ornamental
window construction, my improvement consists,
First. In substituting stiff self-supporting blades of hard metal for the fillets of
soft lead generally used for such work. These blades may be made of wrought or
cast metal. When of wrought metal I prefer perforated ribbons of steel or brass
sufficiently pliable and tough to be easily bent to any curve or angle required for
producing such designs as ordinarily appear in church and other ornamental
windows.
'
Second. In substituting Portland cement for putty in the setting of the glasses in
such hard metal ornamental sashes.
Third. In ornamental windows made by combining glasses of irregular shape and
size, the use and application of pressed glasses formed with deep edges to give a
retaining hold upon the hard metal blades.
Fourth. In making such glasses in some cases without seats.
Fifth. In forming ornamental sashes with thin metal duplex bars between the
main glasses as a substitute for the ordinary thick bars usually employed in wood
sashes, the chase or frame of the same being either wood or metal.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to quarry glasses
formed with a lens upon the face of the quarry, my improvement consists in forming
the quarry with a ground face, leaving the lens transparent. In other cases I color
the quarry, leaving the lens transparent. By another method I color the lens,
leaving the quarry either translucent or transparent. Ornamental glasses of this
description I apply to the making of illuminating surfaces for all purposes to which
they are suited as substitutes for the colored glasses in common use.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to glass made with a
reflecting back formed by deep indents so shaped as to produce the appearance of a
silver face, my improvement consists in the use and application of such glass by
making it in geometrical forms, and combining them with encaustic, colored, and
glazed tiles, slips and dots to form roofs, floors, and walking surfaces, and wall
surfaces and ceilings, a part of the Invention consisting in forming, shaping, and
applying such glass to the making of skirtings for walls and stairways, and to the
making of newels, balusters, and other parts of buildings; a part of the Invention
consisting in making such glass in large sheets by rolling, and pressure as a new
manufacture for useful purposes by means of either a scored, engraved, or indented
design roller or table; a part of the Invention consisting in making the glass with
indents of special and peculiar depth in order to produce glass plates capable of
serving the double purpose of transmitting and of reflecting light at one and the
same time, to serve as daylight reflectors without being daylight intercepters, the
shape of the indents for such purposes being so made when desired as to produce
the effect and appearance of silvered corrugated glass; a part of my Invention con-
sisting in making illuminating gratings with glasses of "prismatic" form, the sloping
reflecting sides of which I form, as above described, with deep indents shaped and
arranged to produce a reflecting interior face upon such sloping sides.
Another part of my Invention consists in the use and application of "prismatic"
glasses as aforesaid, in some cases hollow and in others solid, and in some cases
formed to produce ventilation to the walls of buildings, as windows or otherwise,
the reflecting sloping sides of which serve as daylight reflectors, the entire glass
being at the same time equal to ordinary glass for admitting light by direct trans-
mission, such glasses being set in gratings in the common way of making
illuminating gratings or otherwise, and the window or wall being formed of such
gratings.
Another part of my Invention having reference to reflected light consists in
making a daylight reflector in the form of slats or strips reflecting upon both sides,
and set at such distances as to permit a portion of the perpendicular rays to illu-
minate the space directly beneath the reflectors, the reflecting slats themselves as a

page_text: whole being arranged at an angle the reverse of what would be the case were the
whole in a single sheet, as commonly made, the consequence of this arrangement
being that while the front faces of the reflectors send the light forward, the rear
faces direct other rays to the portion of the room or space behind them, in this way
reflecting light in two opposite directions at the same time. ·
Another part of my Invention having reference to illuminating gratings consists
in facing the under surface of the iron with a coating of protecting cement in place
of paint, the same being in some cases more effectually secured to the surface by
forming it with a roughened or keying face, or by means of the glasses in such case
made to project below the iron, a part of the Invention also consisting in the mode
of applying the cement, viz., by a wash or coating of Portland cement first, and
then a layer of Keene, or Parian, or both combined over this, or other white cement,
such as crystal cement, the Portland serving as a protector to prevent the white
cements from being discolored by the iron.
According to another part of my Invention having reference to ventilation and
chimney drafts, the purpose of which in part is to adorn instead of disfiguring the
roofs of houses, my improvement consists in forming the chimney with a partly
closed top, the smoke passing into a double chambered reservoir somewhat in the
nature of two concentric cylinders, the interior one of which is furnished near the
bottom with a number of outlets or pipes, preferably not less than eight, which
pipes cross the annular smoke flue between the cylinders, and terminate in the outer
one, there opening to the outer air, the outer and inner cylinder being of preference
somewhat cone-shaped and largest at bottom, a funnel-shaped mouth or opening at
top, the bottom edge of which runs below the upper edge of the interior cylinder,
causing any down currents of air to be discharged through the outlets or pipes afore-
said, drawing the smoke with them in their course, and allowing free exit for the
smoke at other times in an upward direction, side currents from whatever quarter
blowing of necessity through the aforesaid pipes, and so producing a constant
upward current of the chimney.
Another part of my Invention having reference to glass made with a reflecting
back by the peculiar formation of indents thereupon, as herein-before set forth, con-
sists in overlaying such reflecting back with another layer of glass welded to it at
the time of manufacture, and finished with a smooth face, the reflecting indents
being thus imbedded within the body of the glass, and forming an interior reflecting
surface, the object of this improvement being to obviate the difficulty of keeping
such an indented face always clean, such kind of glass being manufactured by first
operating upon one half the molten glass or "metal," as it is technically called, and
when that is impressed with the reflecting indents or figures, by the roller if plate
glass, or by the plunger if pressed glass, then by adding the remaining half, and
rolling or pressing it down upon the first, the two welding into one solid piece by
their own heat, a part of my Invention consisting in the use and application of
such glass to form illuminating and ornamental constructions for roofs, floors, and
walking surfaces, and as a decorative material for walls, partitions, and other parts
of buildings, the same being rolled or pressed into sheets, plates, or other forms,
, according to the nature of the application thereof. Ornamental glass of this descrip-
tion may be also applied to the making of furniture and table-ware.
Another part of my Invention consists in making ceilings of glass and inlays set
in a cement or concrete backing supported upon a metal grating or bars resting upon
the lower flanges of iron joists, and then forming an illuminating floor of glass above
the ceiling upon a foundation resting upon the tops of the joists, the glass faces of
the ceiling glasses looking downwards, and the glass faces of the floor glasses looking
upwards.
Another part of my Invention consists in the use and application of "cellulose"
as an ornamental building material for inlays and panels for walls and ceilings, and
for handrails to stairways and other parts of buildings, the same being moulded and
applied substantially as "papier.maché" is in the ornamentation of buildings.
Another part of my Invention consists in making a light iron grating as a cement

page_text: holder around the bottom flanges of iron beams in a form convenient for ready
adjustment, and when desired to lend additional strength to the concrete. The
mode in which I prefer to make the flange protecting grating forms in effect an
arch within the concrete, and consists of two flat gratings, each half the width of
the beam flange; these gratings are held under the flanges by clips that clasp the
edges of the flanges, an arched bar or rib projecting. from each grating and meeting
at the center of the space between the beams, where they may be connected by a
bolt, or merely abut against one another. In some cases the arched bar is a con-
tinuation of the grating instead of being a bar or rib merely.
Another part of my Invention, having reference to glass roofs for conservatories,
picture galleries, and other places requiring a tempered light, consists in making the
glass with a ground fluted surface as a new manufacture, which I propose to effect
as the readiest and cheapest method by means of the sand blast, of preference pro-
ducing the ground face upon the fluted side of the glass; but it may be made upon
the opposite face when desired. This process I apply to my diagonally fluted glass
as a new manufacture.
Another part of my Invention consists in making sheet and plate glass with
lenses upon one face, and then producing a ground surface upon the other, of pre-
ference leaving the lenses clear and transparent, and those portions of the flat
surface opposite to them on the other face of the glass also unground and trans-
parent.
Another part of my Invention consists in the mode or process of forming illumi-
nating inlaid constructions by laying the glasses and inlays in the mould with the
metal frame or core, and then putting in the cement.
Another part of my Invention having reference to ventilating windows consists
in making the vertical bars of the lower sash hollow, or by inserting metal tubes in
them, so that each bar so constructed becomes a vertical shaft for admitting the
external air; these openings of preference I extend from the top of the top rail to
the bottom of the bottom rail, so that by merely raising the sash a quarter of an
inch an inflow of air through all the pipes will be secured, and by simply shutting
down the sash the openings will be closed, a modification of this plan and part of
my Invention consisting in making the glass of the sash double, and connecting the
space between the panes with the external air by means of a slit or number of holes
made in the bottom rail for the influx of air, and making other and similar openings
in the top rail for the egress of the same, the window sash when shut down closing
the holes and shutting out the air, and the double layer of glass making a better
non-conductor than single sheets of glass.
Another part of my Invention having reference to cubical glasses consists in
forming the hollow sides as reflectors by means of reflecting indents on the back of
the same, which serve the purpose also of giving increased hold upon the cement in
which the glasses are set.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by the
said Thaddeus Hyatt in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd July 1877.
THADDEUS HYATT, of 66, Gloucester Gardens, Hyde Park, London, in the County
of Middlesex, Inventor. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BUILDINGS, BUILDING CONSTRUC-
TIONS, AND BUILDING MATERIALS, INCLUDING GLASS AND WALKING SURFACES,
AND IN MODES, MEANS, AND PROCESSES CONNECTED THEREWITH, AND IN THE USE
AND APPLICATION THEREOF, THE SAME IN PART REFERRING TO ILLUMINATION,
VENTILATION, AND TO ORNAMENTATION, PARTLY APPLICABLE TO MOVABLE OR
LOCOMOTIVE STRUCTURES."
According to one part of my Invention my improvement consists in manu-
facturing cement or concrete beams upon a concealed core, or metal skeleton which

page_text: gives it tensile strength, the combination being made in such a way as to get the
value of ordinary rolled beams with less than half the iron required to make such
metal beams.
I have found by experiment that a single tie imbedded in a concrete beam is apt
to slip when the bean is under strain unless special precautions are taken to make
the ends perfectly secure. In order therefore to obtain perfect security I unite the
tie to the concrete with the same care that is employed in the making of plate
girders where the bottom tie is fastened to the web by rivets at from three to six
inches apart, which purpose I effect by forming the tie with stops at intervals
of a few inches throughout its length, the stops making a connection between
the concrete and the tie similar to the riveting of the plate beam as aforesaid.
For making my improved beams I prefer Portland to any other hydraulic cement
or lime; it may be employed "neat," or in combination with suitable aggregates to
form "beton" or concrete; the beams also may be made in entire lengths, or in
pieces in the form of bricks, blocks or sections, and then put together, and the floors.
or other surfaces made from them may be moulded in situ, a number of the
cores or metal skeletons being first placed in position above a suitable center or
platform, the concrete being then filled in upon and around them and well rammed,
or such floors or other surfaces may be made of beams previously formed by mould-
ing, or by moulding and pressure, and allowed first to harden, and then applied by
placing them in contact, side by side, on the all-beam principle.
Figure 1, Sheet one, represents in cross section the form I prefer; a, being the
web of the beam; b, the bottom flange; and c, the tie or metal skeleton.
Figure 2 shews the manner of making a floor or other surface by means of any
number of such beams placed side by side, the concrete d bonding the beams into
one. In order to lighten such constructions I sometimes make them with longi-
tudinal spaces or flues e, above the bottom flanges; these flues may be formed by
several methods, viz.-by placing a curved tile f, Fig. 2, upon the flanges of two
adjoining beams, and filling in the concrete upon it as represented; or by the use of
flat tiles f, Fig. 3, the webs of the beams being formed to receive them as shewn ;
or by moulding the webs of the beams with middle flanges f, f, Fig. 4; the metal
core or skeleton tie formed with stops may be made in either of several different
ways as represented by Figures 5 to 15 inclusive. The stops g, g, Fig. 5, are bolts
fastened to the tie c, which is a flat bar of iron; the bolts extend upward into the
concrete (indicated by the dotted lines), each bolt being furnished at top with a
washer hand a nut i to confine it to the bolt. The object of the washer is to
produce a good bearing surface upon and within the concrete body in the upper or
compressive portion of the beam; in this way the tic, when the beam is under
strain, is held firmly to the earthy or stony mass and prevented from bursting away
from it. The dotted lines indicate the body of concrete within which the metal tie
or skeleton is enclosed.
Figure represents the washers h, h, in continuous form, thus giving more
character to the construction and making the skeleton handier for use.
Figure 7 represents a tie with but two stops, one at each end, the ends being at
the same time turned upwards and bent inwards to get an effectual hold upon the
concrete and thus act as heel plates.
Figures 8, 9, 10, 11, are plan views of flat ties, the stops g, g, in Fig. 8 being
formed by notches made in the sides of the tie; in 9 and 10 the stops are holes
made in the middle of the ties; in Fig. 11, by spaces between ties.
Figures 12, 13, 14, represent in effect the same tie illustrated by Figures 5 and
6, the washers 1, 1, being continuous, and in Figure 12 represented as an arch or
bow, in 13 arching slightly, in 14 parallel with the tie, the ends being bent down-
wards to meet the ends of the tie which are bent upwards, one overlapping the
other and riveted together. The continuous washer has the appearance of a top
flange, and may be made so in fact by the addition of sufficient metal to balance
that of the tie, in which case the surrounding concrete may be regarded as a mere
clothing or protector against fire instead of being the compressive member of the

page_text: beam; or the two may serve to guarantee each other, the concrete warding off the
heat during a definite period of time, and then when finally the metal becomes
weakened by heat, the concrete to that degree takes its place as a source of strength
to prevent collapse. In the constructions illustrated and described the concrete
forms both top flange and web, the bolts g, g, acting as vertical ties within the body
of the concrete web or strut.
A part of my Invention consists in manufacturing and putting metal cores or
skeletons (made substantially as herein-above described) upon the market in mer-
chantable and convenient forms for sale, transportation and use, as a means to
encourage the erection of fireproof buildings, the employment of iron or steel in
such forms and according to the principles of construction herein above set forth
effecting a saving of nearly or quite 50 per cent. of the metal usually expended in
making ordinary fireproof buildings.
Figure 15 represents the tie c, c, in bent or curved form, the continuous washer
h, h being straight, the vertical bolts or stops g, g, being two in number for a
curved tie a greater number of stops would be employed); in this form of beam the
concrete on becoming set and hard serves as a perfect strut to the bent tie. The
dotted lines indicate the outlines of the concrete beam.
With reference to making cement and concrete beams in parts or sections, that is
to say, in brick or block form, one part of my Invention, where flat ties are
employed, consists in forming each brick or block at bottom with a slot, wedge-
shaped or otherwise, so that when a number of them are cemented together a longi-
tudinal recess shaped to fit the tie will be made thereby, each brick or block being
also formed with a vertical hole in which to insert a threaded bolt when the tie is
in place; or the threaded bolt may be incorporated within the body of the brick
at the time it is made.
Figure 16 represents a beam A, A, made of such bricks, a portion of the
bricks being cut away to exhibit the tie C in position. A, Fig. 17, is a face view of
one of the bricks shewing the slot B and the bolt 9 incorporated within the body
of the brick at the time of its manufacture.
In making beams the bricks are cemented together, as represented in Fig. 16, and
when the bolts form a part of the brick as represented, the tie is then slipped up
into the slot and over the threaded ends of the bolts, suitable holes in the tie having
been made for this purpose; the nuts are then put on and tightened up, and the
recess B is afterwards filled up with cement or concrete, thus burying the tie within
the body of the beam. One of the objections to concrete floors, particularly where
the concrete is relied on as the compressive. member of the beam, is the time
required before the centers can be removed, as the mass must become thoroughly
solidified and well dried out and hard in order to be safe. But by first forming
the concrete into dried out and hardened beams, preferably as already said, in brick
or block form, to be readily handled and transported without danger of being
broken or injured, and applying such beams to the making of floors and other load-
bearing surfaces, such constructions are ready for use the moment the parts are put
together, allowing merely the time necessary for the cement in the joints to set and
harden, which is a small matter compared to the time required for the hardening
of a whole floor made from new concrete. Moreover, for such as prefer fire-bricks
or other baked bricks, the beams may be equally well made from them, though not
so cheaply. The bolts in the case of baked bricks are inserted after the bricks are
made, a vertical hole, as herein-above mentioned, being formed in each brick for
this purpose at the time of their manufacture. I propose, therefore, as a part of
my Invention, to make and put the aforesaid beam bricks or blocks upon the market
as a new manufacture in order to cheapen and facilitate, and thus encourage the
making of fireproof buildings.
'
Having found by experiment that a metal skeleton grating when enclosed in
another made of cement or concrete (the apertures being blocked. with glasses)
becomes nearly or quite doubled in strength, it became apparent that much thinner
:

page_text: and lighter bars of metal might be employed upon this plan of manufacture than
by the common method, a great saving in the expense of material being effected,
and the iron at the same time being secured against rusting; a part of my Invention
therefore consists in making an exceedingly light but strong grating construction
as the skeleton core or basis for an enclosing body of Portland or equivalent cement
or concrete in forming walls, partitions, roofs, floors, and walking surfaces of a fire-
proof character.
For solid work these gratings or skeletons are completely buried in the cement or
concrete, that is to say, no openings are left in the cement or concrete, the construc-
tion when finished not appearing externally as a grating, but in other cases the
enclosing body itself forms a grating in appearance, a part of my Invention in such
case consisting in the use of ornamental blocks of colored or other glass, or of stone,
or other ornamenting or illuminating material, as closures to the apertures, the same
being inserted to a level within the openings left for the purpose in the body of
cement or concrete, and then made secure by a grouting or cement filling around
them, except that in some cases I place the closures in position within the meshes
of the metal grating or skeleton before filling in the cement or concrete around the
same, and then the grouting or cement filling to fix the closures becomes one opera-
tion with the concrete filling around and between them and the metal. These stone
gratings may be used also for the openings in partitions and walls as windows
and doors, and the closures, whether of glass for illuminating purposes or other
ornamenting material, may be inlaid between by tiles or other colored work in the
manner of my illuminating encaustic tiles. The metal used for such constructions
may be of iron, but I prefer steel, as I contemplate using it as thin as one-eighth or
one-sixteenth of an inch in thickness, and preferably with flanges, particularly at
bottom, and although such thin blades may be threaded upon wires and held apart
by "distance pieces" or thimbles until the enclosing cement or concrete is put
around and between them, I nevertheless prefer to "halve" the same together after
the manner of making window sashes, in order to make the construction more
secure against accidental injury by concussion or otherwise, except where such
grating is enclosed within a solid body of cement or concrete, when the cheaper
. method of threading the bars or blades on rods or wires may be resorted to with
advantage.
A part of the Invention consists in the employment of the aforesaid blades of
metal in combination with stronger ones in a system of layers of gratings, the
lightest, thinnest, and smallest holed ones with their closures forming the weather
or walking surface, that is to say, the top or exterior of the construction, and the
stronger and heavier ones forming the base or under side thereof. In this method
any number of layers may be employed, the heaviest and strongest metals becoming
wholly or in part the final carriers.
A part of the Invention also consists in the application of this method to the con-
struction of fire-proof domes and curved surfaces; and a part of the Invention also
consists in thus making translucent domes of extraordinary beauty, lightness, and
strength, an inner dome of stained glass being employed when desired as a substi-
tute for frescoes and mosaics.
Figures 1 and 2, Sheet Two, represent the methods of construction herein-above
described, A representing the grating of light thin bars of metal, which may be
steel only one-sixteenth of an inch thick; and A', Fig. 2, representing a lower layer
of heavier metals. B, B, represents the solid construction, where the skeleton or
grating is completely imbedded within concrete; and C, C, represents the metal
skeleton enclosed in a cement or concrete grating, the openings of which are closed
with glasses a, a; these glasses are hollow tubes (as will be herein-after explained.
at Figures 9 and 10). C¹, C¹, represents the lower layer of concrete in connection
with the heavier metal blades A¹, A¹.
Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, represent improvements in wood constructions, and are
designed to prevent the wood from the decay of dry rot, whilst also protecting it

page_text: against fire, and consist in methods of combining concrete with the timber, and
partly in the employment of porous materials to surround or partly surround the
wood, so as to not entirely exclude the air.
Figure 3 represents timbers D and spaces E, the spaces being filled with fiberized
or porous concrete or dry sand F. The flooring may be porous concrete or wood
planks. G, G, represents a fire-proof concrete ceiling, upheld and sustained by the
angle irons b, b, or, in place of these, perforated blades similar to b, b, Fig. 6,
may be employed, the same being crossed by rods or wires; or the timbers at
bottom may be lathed across by strips of wood, or by hoop iron, making a sort of
watling to hold the concrete ceiling, but I give the preference to the angle irons
nailed to the sides of the wood, the nails then taking the weight of the ceiling
crosswise instead of in their length, and therefore not liable to draw out. The
rods d, d, passed through the body of the timbers, are designed to clamp them
laterally, threads and nuts at the ends being provided for this purpose.
Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, represent a solid or all-beam floor made of planks, wedge
shaped, in Fig. 4, to form dovetailed recesses e, e, for holding the concrete ceiling
G, G. In Fig. 5 the planks are straight, but break joints, the holding spaces e, e,
being crossed by rods or wires f, f, to give the required hold to the concrete, or light
hoop iron may be used in place of wire, the same being nailed or otherwise fastened
to the timbers.
Fig. 6 represents a method of holding the ceiling by means of thin perforated
metal strips b, b, nailed to the sides of the planks before they are put together,
rods or wires being passed through the holes to give increased hold to the
cement.
Fig. 7 illustrates a method of giving holding power to the ceiling by the employ-
ment of festoons of light hoop iron fastened to the wood; the strips of metal are
convoluted or corrugated crosswise, and one strip is made to break joints with the
other, a perfect and strong mesh being thereby produced for holding the ceiling
The dotted lines indicate concrete.
'
Figure 8 represents a solid timber floor H, H, of less depth than usual, because
trussed by the bent ties J, J. These ties not only strengthen the floor, but serve
also to hold up the ceiling of concrete i, i, in which they are imbedded, and
which protects them against fire. The dotted lines indicate the ceiling of
concrete.
Figure 9, Sheet two, illustrates my improvement in making illuminating foot-
ways for the public streets.
Hitherto illumination to subterranean spaces has been limited to small coal plates
made of iron and glass, and to very narrow area lights of glass and iron, in some
cases not over eighteen inches in width, amounting almost to an interdiction of
daylight, because of the danger of glass and iron as walking surfaces. My improve-
ment consists in making illuminating foot surfaces safe to be walked upon, and in
applying the same to the extension of basements under the footways of the public
streets, such surfaces or footways forming in fact the roofs to such extended base-
ments.
The first part of my improvement has reference to making the foot surfaces of
glass and wood, or of glass and stone, using the term stone to signify either natural
stone, or any suitable kind of artificial stone, concrete, asphalt, brick, tiles, or other
good foot-holding materials in contradistinction to metal.
The second part of my Invention has reference to so proportioning the foot area
of non-illuminating surface to that of the glass as to insure perfect safety when
walked upon.
The third part of my improvement has reference to increasing the safety of such'
illuminating foot surfaces by means of channels formed between the glasses and the
material or inlays around the glasses by beveling the edges of the same in com-
bination with flat faces thereupon, K, K, Fig. 9, Sheet two, are hollow cube glasses
similar to those shewn in Figures 1 and 2, and may be combined with concrete and

page_text: light blades of metal, as illustrated by those Figures, to form the illuminating foot
surfaces or roofs to basement extensions herein-above mentioned; or they may be
set upon cast-iron foundations or gratings. 1, 1, are the wood inlays or material
surrounding the glasses; m, m, are channels between the same, and formed as
herein-above described. In using wood inlays I prefer to employ grain wood as in
wood paving.
Figure 10 represents one of the hollow cube glasses full size; n, n, being flutes
or indents made in the sides of the glasses to give increased holding power. This
form of glass, cube, preferably hollow, and with roughened sides of preference, being
a device for getting the greatest amount of side adhesion upon the glass so as to do
away with the necessity for seats in the grating, and constitutes a part of my
Invention. The face of the glass I prefer to score or indent by lines to increase the
foot-holding power of the same.
Figures 1 and 2, Sheet three, represent a basement extension where the girder A
is placed parallel with the building; B being the basement; and B¹, B¹, the
extension of the basement under the footway C, C.
My improvement in this method of extension where the web of the girder A is
the front support and riser of the illuminating platform D, D, in place of stone coping
consists in setting such a riser with glasses a, a, a, to give light, as shewn in Fig. 1 ;
E, E, are the bearers of the platform D, D, and carry the illuminating gratings
F, F, or platform lights; G, G, are iron joists resting at one end upon the girder A
and at the other upon the street wall H; and my improvement consists in the use
and application of the ceiling holders b, b, which are thin blades of metal or hoop
iron notched to be slipped on to the bottom flanges of the joists G, G, the concrete
I, I, being put upon and between such metal blades and forming a layer of about
six inches deep. Such a construction forms a strong water-tight foot surface of
itself when asphalted and need be no more than from six to eight inches thick ;
the Drawing however shews a layer of sand or earth J and flagstones K laid upon
that, making a side walk of about one foot in thickness, which is the construction'
preferred by some.
Another part of my Invention consists in substituting the safe foot walking sur-
face shewn by Fig. 9, Sheet two, constructed as illustrated by Figures 1 and 2 on
same Sheet, in place of the joists, ceiling-holders, sand, and flagstones, shewn as
herein above described by Figures 1 and 2, Sheet three.
Another part of my Invention refers to glass quarries formed with one or more
lenses upon the flat face of the quarry, and my improvement, consists in obscuring
the flat portion of the glass by tinting or by putting a ground surface on the same
in order to give more effect to the action of the lenses; these lenses for special
purposes being sometimes tinted also, a part of the Invention also consisting in
applying this process to rolled glass plates or sheets formed with a lens surface and
to rolled fluted glass, the same being made as a new manufacture.
Another part of my Invention refers to the internal reflection of glass, and consists
in making and applying glasses of geometrical shapes as mural ornaments and floor
and other ornamental tiling when made with impressed backs of ornamental design,
the indents being of such character as to produce the lustre of silver on the face of
the glass by the character of the light reflected by reason of the indents, a part of
the Invention consisting in making such glass sheets or plates by the ordinary
rolling process, the table or, roller being properly engraved to produce the work,
and in the use and application of the same as translucent daylight reflectors, a
further part of the Invention consisting in making such imprinted glass with a
smooth back by. welding upon it in the hot state during its manufacture another
sheet, the object being to preserve the imprints from becoming soiled and also to
make the glass easy to be cleaned.
Figure 1, Sheet four, represents a mode of obtaining both direct and reflected
light through walls of buildings, A, A, being the wall, and B, B, glasses inserted in
the same, formed with sloping reflecting backs b, b. C being the apartment lighted,
the rays of light which enter the glasses through the tops a, a, will, according to

page_text: their angles, fall more or less upon the inner sloping faces b, b, and be thus reflected
into the apartment C. B' is a hollow glass, and if desired, the top a may be loose
and hinged like a cover and made to open for ventilation.
Figure 2 represents a method of lighting the basements of buildings from the
area lights by reflection by means of blind reflectors that permit a portion of the
light to pass through the slats to also lighten the area and any space behind it
without interfering or lessening the amount reflected into the basement. E, E, is
the front of the building; F, the basement to be lighted; F, F¹, the area; and
G, G, the area lights.
Figure 3 is a vertical, and Figure 4 a plan view of my improvement in chimney
tops; K, K, is the chimney; and L, L, the flues; these flues discharge into the
collecting box M, M, which box forms the base of the cap; on this base stands
a hollow cylinder N, N, closed at top by the inverted cone or funnel O, O, the open
mouth o', o, of which extends downwards to within 3 to 6 inches of the top m, m,
of the box M. Between the funnel O, and the cylinder N, N, there is a
cylindrical partition P, P, which thus forms an annular smoke passage n, n, into
which the smoke rises in the direction of the arrows, and from thence passes over
the top of the partition P, downwards in the direction of the bent arrows to the
open mouth o, o₁, of the funnel O, through which it ascends upward in the
direction of the arrows to the outer air. p, p, are horizontal tubular passages
leading from the space inclosed by P, to the outer air also. The effect of this
arrangement is to compell an upward draft in the chimney flues in whatever manner
or from whatever quarter the winds may blow.,
Figure 5 illustrates a mode of hanging windows without the use of cords, and a
mode of ventilation by upward currents by means of hollow sash-bars. Q, Q, is the
window frame; R, R₁, the sashes; the mechanism being shewn in connection with
the lower sash R¹. r, r, is a toothed rack on the sash R¹; 8, a pinion, into which it
takes; and S, the weight formed with cog-teeth like a rack, the pinion also taking
into it. This weight rises and falls, moving in ways with the raising and lowering
of the sash; t is a stop to lock the pinion and prevent the sash from being opened
from without; T, T, are vertical bars of the sash R', and are made hollow; the
sash being slightly raised, as seen at u, the air enters the pipes or hollow sash bars,
as shewn by the arrows, and discharges at top in an upward current towards the
ceiling; the shutting down of the sash again excludes the air.
THADDEUS HVATT
THADDEUS HVATT