US441558A - Sleeping-car - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. P. HINDMAN. SLEEPING OAR.

No. 441,558. Patented Nov. 25, 1890.

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SLEEPING GAR.

No. 441,558. Patented Nov. 25, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES P. HINDMAN, OF OLATHE, KANSAS.

SLEEPING-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 441,558, dated November 25, 1890.

Application filed June 28, 1890. $erial No. 367,129. (No modeLl To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES P. HINDMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Olathe, in the county of Johnson and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Sleeping-Car, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to railway-cars, and more especially to that class thereof known as sleepers and the object of the same is to provide the sections of the sleeper each with a dressing-room.

To this end the invention consists in the construction hereinafter described, and illustrated in the drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a passenger-car embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same, looking from the aisle toward the side of the car, sh owing two sections, in one of which the berths are made up. Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4. is a perspective-view showing the sliding doors of the section as closed and the dressing-room door in dotted lines.

Referring to the said drawings, A is the aisle of a car, from which seats S extend to the outer side 0, which seats are adapted to be turned down to form the lower berth L, and each section being provided with an upper berth U and with a window W in a manner well known in the art. Along the inner sides of the seats is built a frame-work F, having preferably four grooves in its top horizontal longitudinal bar corresponding with four similar grooves G in the floor of the car, and in these grooves are arranged four sliding doors D,the combined width of which is equal to the distance between the backs of the two inwardly-facing seats S of any one section. When these doors are distended, it is obvious that the two seats and the space between them are completely out off from the aisle of the car, but when the doors are not employed for this purpose they maybe assembled one over the other and will occupy but about one-fourth of the length of the section.

In my improved carI provide each section with a small dressingroom R, located at the foot of the two berths instead of having the backs of the two adjacent seats of contiguous sections formed in one piece. The forward of such seats rises about half the height of the frame-work F, and has a vertically-sliding partition P, adapted to be raised in suitable guides to entirely shut off communication between the two contiguous sections. The rearward of such seats has a removable back B, and about two feet (more or less) in rear of this back is located the vertically-sliding partition P of the forward seat of the sec tion next to the rear. It will thus be seen that when the two partitions P are raised and the sliding doors D are distended a complete state-room will be formed, except that portion thereof which is in front of the small dressingroom R.

The berths of each section are upper and lower, as is usual in sleeping-cars 5 but they do not stand adjacent to the berths next in front and rear thereof, because each two compartments are separated by a dressing-room R. The door of this dressing-room is preferably a hinged door H, which ishinged to the framepost in which the vertically-sliding partition moves. When this door is closed, the dressing-room and the two berths form a stateroom which is completely inclosed. The sliding doors and partitions may be provided with any suitable locking means or devices, preferably operated from the interior of the state-room, and the door of the dressing-room preferably has a lock with a removable key, all of which I have not considered it necessary to illustrate. When the occupant of the state-room desires to retire or desires to go to a distant part of the train, the door may be locked with this key, like the front door of an ordinary dwelling, and all will be safe within.

The dressing-room R is of course useful for baggage during the day before the beds are made up, and at night the occupants of the state-room can enter this room, undress therein, and creep therefrom into either berth, the foot of the upper berth opening into the dressing-room and the foot of the lower berth being only closed by the movable back P, which can be removed with ease.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a passenger-car, the combination, with the seats arranged in pairs facing each other to form sections, the backs of the seats of contiguous sections being separated to form l a dressing-room, of a vertically-movable partition at the back of one seat of each section forming the side wall of the dressing-room, a door opening from the said dressing-room into the aisle, a frame-Work within the car, and sliding doors moving Within said framework, said doors when distended separating the section from the aisle and when assembled standing over the door of said dressingroom, substantially as described.

2. In a passenger-car, the combination, with the seats arranged in pairsto form sections, dressing-rooms between the sections,and doors opening therefrom into the aisle, of sliding doors each of nearly the Width of the dressing-room, said doors separating the section from the aisle when distended, substantially as described.

3. In a passenger-car, the combination, with the seats arranged in pairs facing each other to form sections, the backs of the seats of contiguous sections being separated to form a dressing-room, of a door opening from said dressing-room into the aisle, and sliding doors moving across the dressing-room opening, each of which doors being insuflicient in itself to close the opening to the seats, but adapted when all distended to form a closure, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES P. HINDMAN. Witnesses:

A. E. MoLL, R. M. ATCHISON.

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