US59280A - Improved spittoon for railroad-cars - Google Patents

Description

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcEn J. H. SEYMOUR, OF HAGERSTOVN, MARYLAND.

i IIVIPROVED SPITTOON FOR RAILROAD-CARS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 59,280, dated October 30, 1866.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J. H. SEYMOUR, of Hagerstown, in the county of Washington and State of Maryland, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Spittoons for use in Railroad-Cars and other Vehicles, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, and in which- Figure l represents a plan of my improved spittoon with its lid closed, also showing in red lines the lid open 5 Fig. 2, a vertical section of the same as arranged in a car floor or bottom, and showing, by black and red lines, the lid, valve, and connecting devices in open and closed conditions of the spittoon.

Like letters refer to like parts in both tigures.

The nature of my invention consists in a novel construction of stationary spittoons designed to be applied to the floors of railroadcars and other vehicles, each spittoon being provided with a lid or cover and dischargingvalve, and made capable of easy operation by the foot or hand in such a manner as that when its lid commences to open, and while opening andremaining open, the valve of the spittoon is closed 5 but when the lid is closed the valve is open to permit of the escape of the saliva and other substances thrown into it, and so tha-t the admission of drafts of air is prevented in both the open and closed conditions of the spittoon-lid, and the parts so constructed and arranged as to give the requisite facility for cleaning the spittoon.

To enable others skilled in such matters to make and use my improvement, I will now proceed to describe it with reference to the drawings.

A is the body of the spittoon, which may be of taper or bowl shape, with a supportingflange at top that may be let in ush with the upper surface of the car-floor, and with a straight or other shaped neck at its bottom. B is a sliding lid pivoted by a vertical pin, a, to the liange of the spittoon at its top, and so that when pushed or pressed open horizontally it may occupy the position shown for it by red lines in Figs. l and 2. It may have a knob projection, b, fitting, when the lid is closed, into a catch or stop, c.

C is the valve at the bottom of the spittoon, opening outward. This valve is hinged at its rear by an arm, d, to a projection, c, on one side of the neck or bottom of the spittoon. To the outer end of this arm l is jointed a rod, f, that, inclining upward, projects, when the lid is closed, through a slot, g, where it presents or forms a bevel or sloping foot, h, above the plane of travel of the under side or inner face of the lid B. The valve is made to overbalance the arm d and rodf, so that when not closed by the opening of the lid it remains open. It is or may be checked, however, to prevent its opening too far, by the rod f striking a projection, fi, on the body of the spittoon 5 or the valve-arm may be provided with a lug to effect the saine object.

. From this description it will be apparent that on opening the lid B to its" position shown in red lines, almost as soon as it oommences to open, and before the body of the spittoon is exposed for use, the valve C is closed bythe inner face ot' the lid B sliding over and gradually but speedily forcing inward and down the foot h, which depresses the rod f, that, acting ou the arm d, closes the valve, the further movement of the lid in opening keeping down the foot h and retaining the valve shut. Asimilar but reverse action takes place in closing the lid B by its not, till nearly A closing, releasing the foot h, to Work backward and upward, and with it the rod f, to open the valve C by the weight of the latter.

This construction and arrangement of the parts, it will be seen, differs from that described in Letters Patent No. 54,613 of the United States, granted to me, in which the opening of the valve for discharge of the saliva and other substances was not controlled by the lid, and in which, when the spittoon-lid was permitted to remain open, the valve allowed of a draft of cold air to enter the car each time it discharged the matter ejected into the spittoon, only the closing of the lidI securing against this.

In the present improvement, however, the valve is not only closed automatically as the lid commences to open, but is kept closed till the lid is nearly shut, thus restraining the ingress of cold air or dust, the partially or fully open condition of the lid keeping the valve closed irrespective of the amount of matter thrown from time to time into it, and

Awhen the lid is shut the valve remaining open to drain or clear the spitton of saliva or other substances, every facility, however, for additionally cleaning it being afforded by the arrangement of the valve and its rod, acting independently though under the control of the lid.

The valve being kept shut in a positive manner when the lid is open, money or other valuables accidentally dropped into the spittoon will not pass out till the lid be closed, and so may be recovered, which was not the casein the spittoon of previous construction and patented to me, as herein referred to.

It is immaterial in this my Vimprovement whether thelid B of the spittoon be swung horizontally, as shown in the drawings, or, ly-

ing at its top iush with the Hoor, lift or throw back vertically to (as it falls suddenly or quickly backward) close the valve C by pressing on and inward the shoe l1l of the rodf, that is connected with and closes thevalve-pendant of its own weight.

What I claim as new and useful, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The arrangement, in combination, substantially as herein described, of the bowl A, lid or cover B, with the valve C and rod j', when operated automatically by the opening ot the lid, essentially as and for the purpose or purposes herein set forth.

J H. SEYMOUR. Witnesses:

F. J. PosnY, E. M. Posn Y.

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