US2338035A

US2338035A - Cap panel for caskets

Info

Publication number: US2338035A
Authority: US
Inventors: Gerold Lawrence
Original assignee: CRANE AND BREED CASKET CO
Current assignee: CRANE AND BREED CASKET CO
Priority date: 1942-03-31
Filing date: 1942-03-31
Publication date: 1943-12-28
Anticipated expiration: 1960-12-28

Description

Dec. 28, 1943. GERQLD 2,338,035

CAP PANEL FOR GASKETS Filed March 51, 1942 i I! I I I XIII/III] 7 Patented Dec. 28, 1943 GAP PANEL FOR GASKETS Lawrence Gerold, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Crane & Breed Casket Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application March 31, 1942, Serial No. 437,062

(Cl. 2'7---l l) 2 Claims.

This invention relates to the manufacture of cap panels for burial caskets.

An object of the invention is to produce a cap panel which is durable, serviceable and attractive in appearance, though fabricated of a non-metallic substance.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cap panel of the character stated, which is nonmetallic throughout, yet highly resistant to deterioration in the'presence of water and the Various other elements of nature to which such articles are subjected in use.

The foregoing and other objects are attained by the means described herein and disclosed in the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a cap panel for burial caskets, embodying the present invention.

Fig, 2 is a cross-sectional View taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmental cross-sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the blank in flat form, used in producing the Fig. 1 cap panel.

Fig. 5 is a fragmental cross-sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is an elevational view of a set of dies such as might be employed in imparting the desired shape to the cap panel.

It has been common practice in the past, to fabricate burial caskets and cap panels therefor of sheet metal, either ferrous or non-ferrous, in order to preserve the contents of the casket. With the present shortage of metal, it has become necessary to devise ways and means of producing cap panels and other parts of burial equipment, from materials other than metal. The production of casket cap panels has been attended with much difficulty in the effort to employ materials other than metal, due to the requirements of serviceability, durability, rigidity, and resistance to the deteriorating effects of the elements of nature, as prescribed for articles of the character with which the invention is concerned. In addition to the requirements above mentioned, it is necessary that the cap panel be so constructed and finished as to present an ac-- ceptable finish and a neat appearance, with all joints tightly and permanently closed so as to render them invisible under careful inspection.

In accordance with the present invention, the cap panel is fabricated from a single flat sheet of pressed board material, the constituents of which are fibrous and incapable of withstanding forces such as might be imposed by pressing dies under the conditions attending the pressing of metallic cap panels. With the use of metal as the cap panel material, it has been possible to subject a plain metallic sheet to the pressing dies, with the assurance that the metallic blank would readily take the desired form or contour because of the characteristics of stretchability and compressibility inherent in the metal. The same pressing operation, however, has been found inapplicable to the fabrication of cap panels blanked from pressed board material, due to the fact that such material will not withstand stretching and compressing forces without disintegrating or cracking where the compressional and tortional stresses are imparted thereto by the dies.

While various types of pressed board material might with equal facility lend itself to the treatment herein to be described, it has been found highly satisfactory to utilize in the manufacture of the cap panel, a tempered or hardened pressed board having at least one of its faces highly finished and hardened, and of which an example is the commercially known product called Masonite. This product ordinarily comprises a wood fiber mixed with a binder and subjected to high temperature and compressive forces sufficient to produce a homogeneous sheet of considerable density having the properties of rigidity, hardness, and a, high degree of impermeability. Due to the structural peculiarities of the material, it is susceptible to cracking and separating, rather than bending to any appreciable extent.

In order that the desired material above mentioned might be utilized in the construction of cap panels for burial caskets, the following special treatment has been devised.

With reference 'to the accompanying drawing, the character I? indicates a finished cap panel having longitudinal side edges I3li, and end edges l5li-$. From one longitudinal side edge to the other, the sheet constituting the panel is arched as is most clearly illustrated by Fig. 2,

and in the preferred form of the invention, the curvature of the arch is maintained by one or more struts it of wood or other suitable material to which the sheet of pressed board may be tacked or otherwise secured. The strut or struts it subtend the longitudinal side rails H and it of a rectangular frame to which all of the edge margins of the cap panel are fixed, either by means of an adhesive or by small nails or other fasteners. The characters It and 2c indicate the end rails of the rectangular frame, which frame may conveniently be constructed of wooden strips.

All the ends of the cap panel, end sections 2| I and 22 are provided, and these must necessarily curve transversely of the curvature of the main intermediate portion of the cap panel, in order to produce a pleasing appearance and to complete the cup shape of the structure. In working with metal, the end sections are merely pressed to the proper curvature at the time of pressing the intermediate body portion of the cap panel. With pressed board material, however, such treatment is not possible for the reasons stated previously herein. To overcome the difficulties presented to the forming of the cap panel from pressed board material, the cap panel is pressed from a blank having the characteristics illustrated by Fig. 4.

With reference to Fig. 4, which shows the blank in flat form, it will be observed that the

end sections

21 and 22, while integral with the intermediate section it, at the locations 23, have their side edges 2 and 25 cut with a curvature such that each end section simulates substantially one end of an ellipse, or, perhaps more properly, a truncated cone with its sides bulged outwardly, rather than straight. In this connection, note that the edges 2d and of the end sections are slightly curved, rather than straight. At the termini 2iii2 or" the cuts, the curved edges 22 i and 725 of the end sections terminate at spaced points which are equidistant from the outer edge 15 of the end section, and equidistant also from the major axis of the blank i2.

Flanking the curved edges i i and 25 of the end sections, are the reversely curved end edges and 28 of the intermediate section l2 of the blank. These edges 2'3 and it extend from the termini 26% of the cuts to the side edges i3 and it, respectively of the intermediate section iii. In the flat blank form as illustrated by Fig. 4:, the apices 2s and of the acute angles formed where the end edges ill and 2% meet the respective side edges i3 and i i of the intermediate section, are spaced from the apices iii and 32 of the base angles of the end sections, the latter being outwardly extended at a greater distance from the center point of the blank, than are the apices at 2% and 3b. The wedge shaped portions of material re moved from the blank to form the spaced but gradually meeting edges such as 25 and 28, may be described as cuneiform in character, rather than of regular straight-sided triangular formation.

In addition to the curvatures of the edges such as and 28, said edges and the others corresponding thereto, are chamfered as indicated at 33 and 3d of 5 so that the spaces bounded thereby are greater at the underface of the blank, than at the upper or outer face thereof exposed to View in Fig. 4. By so chamfering the edges of the cuts at each of the four corners of the blank, a well fitting butt joint is effected when the blank is subjected to the forming action of the pressing dies which impart the configuration of Fig. l to the cap panel. It will be understood that the blank of Fig. l, when undergoing the pressing operation, will be arched by bending the margins l3 and it, and the

end sections

25 and 22, in a direction away from the observer, so that the ultimate form or the cap panel will be as illustrated by Fig. l. The arching of these sections transversely of one another obviously will produce strains at the locations Flt-23, where the sections are integral. These areas of strain may be conveniently referred to as areas of merging strains.

The pressing operation may be performed in a set of dies suitably constructed for the purpose, an example of which is illustrated by Fig. 6. In this figure, the character 35 indicates the dished female part of the die, the interior of which is formed to the shape illustrated by Fig. 1, while the reverse of such shape is incorporated in the male die part 3t that includes the plug 3'! similarly shaped but made slightly smaller in dimensions so as to leave a space between the working surfaces of the dies sufficient to accommodate the thickness of the pressed board blank. One or both die parts may be heated in any suitable manner known in the art. For purpose of illustration, the various characters 38 indicate openings in the die parts for the ingress and egress of steam or other hot fluid suitable for heating the die parts. From the foregoing it should readily be understood that the blank of Fig. 4 shall be subjected to heat and pressure within the dies, in order to permanently form the cap panel to the Fig. 1 configuration.

After having been formed as stated, it may be desirable to reinforce the joints occurring between the end sections and the intermediate section of the cap panel in order to preclude the possibility of separation at the joints. While reinforcement may not in all cases be required at these locations, a satisfactory reinforcement may be accomplished by the application of a strong and coarse textile strip, as indicated at 39, these strips being adhesively applied over the joints interiorly of the cap panel. Adhesives or cements of various kinds are practicable for this purpose. Either before or after application of the textile strip material, the wood frame hereinbefore described may be fitted within the formed cap panel, and attached thereto in any suitable manner such as by means of small nails, brads, or other acceptable fastening devices.

After .ie cap panel has been completed as described, the joints at the four corners may be trimmed and puttied, if necessary, whereupon the entire panel may be subjected to a painting or other coating treatment for imparting any desired color or finish to the completed cap panel. From a comparison of Figs. 2 and 3, it will be observed that the main body portion IQ of the cap panel is arched transversely of the side edges, whereas the end sections 2i and 22 are arched in the opposite direction, the arches meeting along the closed joints occurring as curved ridges between the corners of the cap panel. and the spaced uppermost termini of the edges defining the end sections 2i and 22.

A cap panel constructed in accordance with the teaching herein furnishes a durable and attractive light weight cover for a casket, possessed of the various advantages enumerated at the beginning of the specification. The corner joints when properly finished are practically indistinguishable from a pressed metal dividing line between the end sections and the main body portion of the cap panel. The fact that the end sections are integral parts of the main body portion i2 not only enhances and facilitates the pressing of the blank to its ultimate form, but in addition, provides a neat and simple earth load supporting region of great strength.

It is to be understood that various modifications and changes in the framework for the cap panel may be resorted to, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from 1e spirit of the invention. The term pressed board material, or similar terms used in the claims, should be understood to include the many different types of sheet material presently manufactured from pulp or fibers mixed with a binder and treated in various ways to produce slabs or sheets suitable for the purposes of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A cap panel for burial caskets, comprising a sheet of substantially brittle pressed board material susceptible to fracture upon shaping with compound curvatures, said sheet being constituted of arched end sections, and a transversely arched intermediate section having straight longitudinal side edges, the latter section being joined to said end sections, along a curved ridge at each joint, theend sections each being substantially triangular, and integral with an end of the intermediate section near the major axis of said intermediate section, to provide areas of merging strains produced incident to arching of the end sections transversely of the arch of the intermediate section.

2. A substantially rectangular four-cornered cap panel for burial caskets, comprising a sheet of substantially brittle pressed board material susceptible to fracture upon shaping with compound curvatures, said sheet being constituted of a pair of opposed substantially triangular end sections arched downwardly and terminating in straight parallel edges, a longitudinal intermediate section having opposite straight side edges meeting the edges of the arched end sections at the corners of the cap panel, said intermediate section being arched transversely to the arches of the end sections and meeting said end sections along curved ridges beginning at the corners of the cap panel and extending inwardly thereof toward the major axis of the intermediate section, the end sections being integral with the intermediate section near the major axis of the latter section, to provide areas of merging strains produced incident to arching of the end sections transversely of the arch of the intermediate section, the aforesaid curved ridges at the corner joints being terminated in said areas of merging strains.

LAWRENCE GEROLD.