Patents of Interest to Builders.

Progress, Volume XIV, Issue 7, 1 March 1919, Page 461

Patents of Interest to Builders.

Bedstead Bracket.—A patent, No. 40,029, has been taken out by John Joseph Cunniffe, Upper Hutt, Wellington, for a bracket for bedsteads. It comprises a vertical member extending over the end of the bedstead, and a horizontal member extending upon the

top-of the said rail, an inverted keyhole slot near the top of the vertical member, a slot at the bottom of the vertical member, and coach-screws having their heads projecting from the bedpost and adapted to Ire engaged by the said keyhole and slot. Panel.A patent, No. 40.844, has been taken out by the Kauri Timber C0.,Ltd.,.0f Auckland. A panel or board made according to this invention comprises a wooden frame united at its corners by short strips of veneer let into slots, or by dowels, nails, wires, metallic staples, adhesive matter, or other ordinary means of joining ; strips of veneering forming partitions, and having their ends let into slots made in the inner edges of the frame at right angles or any other angle or angles to the plane of the frame, and of such

breadth that when in position their edges will be flush or approximately flush with the surface of the frame; and sheets of veneer fixed by adhesive matter, such as glue, to each side of the frame and to the edges of the partitions. By the construction a plurality of air-cells are formed, bounded by the partitions and the sheets of veneer. The partitions having their edges fixed to the sheets of veneer provide adequate strength to the said sheets, and the frame has ample thickness for receiving nails when the panels arc brought together to form a box or the like. Wall Construction. —A patent, No. 40,908, has been taken out by

P. Heath, architect, of Tacona, U.S.A. A building-wall composed of hollow tiles laid horizontally in courses one above another, each

course including tiles having three longitudinal voids and laid with relation to similar tiles in the next course as described, so that the central void in one tile is always directly opposite the space or joint between the tiles in adjacent courses, and the webs in one course are in vertical alignment with webs in the next course. Other features are contained in invention. Building Block and Mould. —A patent, No. 40,020, has been taken out by E. V. Allison. St. Albans, Christchurch. Upon the intermediate portion of slab is formed, integral therewith, a single stud 2 of full width —that is to say, the said stud projects from the slab for a distance equal or approximating to the interval between the inner faces of the two opposing slabs when in the required position to form a hollow wall of minimum width. The

mould comprises to side members, 4 and 5, corresponding in shape with the inner and outer faces of the block respectively, and a pair of end members, 6 and 7, which are hingeably connected with the lateral extremities of the side, 5, and are adapted to embrace the ends of the side, 4. To permit of the thickness of the block being varied, the side, 4, may be adjusted to various positsons upon the end members, 6 and 7. and suitable means are employed for securing such parts together when the mould is in use. Windows, etc., Fastener and Retainer. —A patent, No. 40,951, has been taken out by T. P. Eustage, Hataitai, Wellington. According to this invention, on the window or doorpost is mounted a slotted rocking shaft in which one end of the stay is suitably mounted, the other end being pivoted to a rocking-shaft on the window-sash or door. The stay may be in a single part or in two or more exten-

sible parts; A locking-latch may be mounted upon the pin by which the stay is attached to the rocking-shaft upon the sash. Com venient means are provided by which the stay can be maintained at any desired position on the slotted rocking-shaft, thereby enabling the windows to be retained at any desired position. A countersunk hole is provided on the slotted rocking-shaft by which the stay may be made detachable, and other countersunk holes may he provided at certain set positions to be an additional security against slipping.

Building Sheet or Slab Manufacture. —A patent, No. 40,937, has been taken out by John Arthur Harrison, of Hornsby, N.S.W. This invention relates to the manufacture of building sheets or slabs from plaster-of-paris or other cementitious material, such slabs are usually reinforced by a fibrous subtstauce such as hemp disposed in an intermediate layer between two layers of the plastic material during the moulding of the sheet. According to 1 the in-

vention, a considerable number or sheets arc simultaneously formed in a series of travelling moulds, which are carried along- the operating table in uninterrupted succession; the two layers of plastic material and the intermediate layer of fibre being applied by mechanical means during the transit of the moulds. The plastic material instead of being mixed by hand is mechanically prepared in a series of mixing receptacles, into which the liquid and dry material is fed and thoroughly intermixed to the required consistency. After being thus mixed together the ingredients are maintained in a thoroughly agitated state and at the proper degree of plasticity until the material is distributed on to the moving mould. After the first or lower layer of the plastic material has been deposited in the moulds it passes beneath a tamping-device which packs the material

down closely on to the surface of the mould against which the outei smooth face of the sheet is formed. After the tamping of the lower plastic layer the fibrous reinforcement is mechanically applied by a distributor or depositor, the fibre being fed from the bulk storeroom or the like to this distributing-appliance, preferably by an air-blast through a closed conduit so that the flimsy material is strewn about the workroom to cause inconvenience and waste. The next operation is to apply the second or upper layer of plastic material, which is mixed and applied in the same manner as the first or lower layer, but in a direction opposed to the travel of the moulds. The sheets are next subjected to the action of a roller which reciprocates longitudinally backwards and forwards over the moulds, causing each sheet to be flattened out and compressed to a perfectly even thickness. The final operation consists in smoothing off the upper face of the sheet by a straight-edge or bar which reciprocates laterally across the table in a direction at right angles to the travel of the moulds. The sheets are now ready for drying or seasoning, and as each mould reaches the discharge end of the operating-table it is removed with the sheet thereon to the drying-room without interruption of moulding operations.

Log-Sawing Means. —A patent. No. 39,734. lias been taken out by Peter J. Higgins, of Foxhill, Nelson, farmer, for sawing logs.

It consists broadly, in a circular saw mounted on a swinging-frame positioned at one end of a rail-track. The said saw is so mounted as to bo swung down across the track at the will of the operator, and upon the track arc means whereby the logs to be sawn may bo fed length by length up to the line of the saw’s movement so as to be sawn up into sections of the desired lengths. Provision is also made for regulating the lengths into which the logs are to lie sawn. Sliding Door. —A patent, No. 40,035 for a sliding door has been taken out by L. Janse, of Netherlands, which consists of a sliding door which is guided in its opening and closing movements by guide-

rails or the like which are arranged at a right angle or anv other desired angle relatively to one another, as shown in the accompanying illustration.