US348965A

US348965A - John c

Info

Publication number: US348965A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1886-09-14
Anticipated expiration: 1903-09-14

Description

(No Model.)

J. C. GUNN.

MAIL BAG.

Patented Sept. 14, 1886.

N. PETERS. mwmhmph. wuhingum. :LcV

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

JOHN C. GUNN, OF KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE, ASSGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO THOMAS EGAN, OF SAME PLAGE.

MAIL-BAG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 348,965, dated September 14, 1836,

Application filed May 24, 1886.

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, JOHN C. GUNN, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at Knoxville, in the county of Knox and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Mail-Bags, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in mail bags or pouches; and it consists 0f the peculiar combination and novel construction and arrangement of the various parts for service, substantially as hereinafter fully set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The object of my present invention is to provide a mailbag with improved means for effectually excluding water, dirt, and other foreign matter from the bag when the mouth'of the latter is closed, to provide means whereby one or more locks may be employed to effectually secure the mouth of the bag together and prevent any ill-disposed person from surreptitiously forcing the bag open, and to improve the bag in minor details of construction so that it will be simple and strong, as well as durable, easily and readily operated, and comparatively cheap of manufacture.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a mail bag or pouch embodying my invention, Figure l is a perspective view ofthe device in its closed position. Fig. 2 is a like view of the device in its open position. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through the mouth ofthe bag or pouch on line v a'of Fig. l. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view of two of the hinged plates for the mouth of the bag; and Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view through the plates shown in Fig. 4, fitted or connected together.

Referring to the drawings, in which like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the igures, A designates the bag or pouch, which is of the ordinary well-known class, and B the hinged plates, which are arranged at the open end or mouth of the bag and are adapted to be fitted snugly together to effectually close the mouth of the pouch and prevent the admission of water, dirt, and other foreign matter thereto.

In the accompanying drawings,lhave shown 5o a series of four plates, which are numbered from l Ito 4, inclusive; but it will be un- Serial No. 203,139. (No model.)

derstood that I do not confine myself to the use of any particular number, as they can be varied to suit bags of different sizes.

The plates num bercd l and 2 are arranged on one side ot' the bag, and the remaining plates, 3 and 4, are located on theopposite sides of the bag, and when the mouth of the bag is closed the

plates

1 and 3 and 2 and 4 come or abut together to securely close the mouth of the bag. The plates l and 2 are each provided on their upper edges with inwardlyextending ribs or flanges C, which are formed integral or in one piece therewith, and the plates 3 and 4 are also provided with inwardlyprojecting iianges D, which are similar to the ianges C, but are arranged at the lower edges of the plates 3 and 4, by which they are carried as clearly shown in the detail views Figs. 4 and 5. Vhen the plates come together in the manner above described, the flanges C t or project over the upper free edges of the plates 3 and 4, and the ilanges D project beneath the lower edges of the plates l and 2, and by this peculiar construction and arrangement of the various parts all water and dirt are effectually excluded from the bag when the latter is closed, and a compartment .or space, E, is provided between the plates B, as is obvious. The upper edges of open mouth ofthe bag A are fitted against the outer faces of the plates B, and the plates are permanently attached to the bag or pouch by means of rivets or other like suitable fastening devices,F. The

inner surfaces of the plates B are further provided with an elastic packing, G, which is suitably secured thereto by means of the same rivets that secure the plates B and the upper edges ot' the bag or pouch together. This packing maybe of rubber, leather, or other like suitable material, and when the mouth of the bag is closed the plates are litted together, and the resilient packing entirely fills and closes the space E between said plates, and thereby aids in excluding water and dirt from the main compartment'of the pouch, as will be very readily understood.

The

sections

1 and 3 and 2 and 4 are hinged or pivotally connected together, so that the mouth of the bag or pouch can easily and readily collapse or close together, and the other ends of the said plates are hinged or ICO pivoted to plates II and I, which are arranged opposite to each other and rigidly secured to the upper' ends of the bag by rivets or other like means. rPhe plate II has the ends ofthe sections or plates l and 2 pivotally connected thereto, and the plate I has the ends of the sections 3 and 4 connected therewith in like manner. The plate II is provided at its upper edge with an integral rib or ilange, J, which extends therefrom at right angles, and fits or lies over the upper edge of the plate I when the bag is closed together; and the plate H is further provided with an inwardlyprojecting lug or staple, K, which is provided with an opening, 7.', and a notch in its upper edge, which provides a shoulder, 7i", into which fits a bolt of a lock, L, that is carried by the plate I. The lock is ol' the ordinary or any preferred form, and it is concealed within or by the plate I, and the said plate is provided with a slot, Z, through which the staple passes, the eye of the staple or lug projecting or extending beyond the outer face of the plate I, so as to permita padlock, M, of any preferred form to be connected therewith and afford greater security against robbery. The lock L and the padlock M may be opened by one and the saine key, or they may be opened by different keys, as is obvious.

The operation of my invention will be readily understood from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings.

It will be seen that I provide simple and durable means for effectually excluding water and other matter from the open month of the bag; that the free edges ofthe plates are pro teeted from injury; that greater security is insured by the use of the two locks, which are arranged in a very convenient and compact manner, and that the various parts are very strong and cheap.

Slight changes in the form and proportion of parts may be made without departing from the principle of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isu

1. The combination, with a mail bag or pouch, of the pivoted or hinged plates l and 2, provided with the inwardly-extended llanges C at their upper edges, and the plates 3 and 4, arranged opposite the plates l and 2, and provided at their lower edges with the inwardly projecting flanges D, said ilanges G D fitting over and beneath the free edges of the pivoted or hinged plates, to form a closed space or chamber intermediate of the plates, substantially as. described.

2. The combi nation,with a mail bag or pouch, of the hinged plates provided with the extended ilanges C I), arranged, as described, to fit over and beneath the free edges of the plates, and the packing secured to the plates,' within the flanges thereof, to completely fill the space or chamber formed by the plates, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the plates or sections B, flexibly connected together and having the