US650457A - Shipping-cover for vehicle-shafts. - Google Patents

Description

No. 650,457. Patented May 29, 1900.

C. EHLEN.

SHIPPING COVER FOR VEHICLE SHAFTS.

(Application filed Apr. 30, 1897.)

UNITED STATEs-PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES EHLEN, or CINCINNATI, onto.

SHIPPING-COVER FOR VEHlC LE-SHAF TS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 650,457, dated May 29, 1900.

Application filed Aprl130,1897.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES EHLEN, a citi= zen of the United States, and a resident of Cincinnati, Hamilton county, State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Shipping-Cover for Vehicle-Shafts; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, attention being called to the accompanying drawings, with the-reference-numerals marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to provide means to protect shafts of vehicles-such as buggies,surreys, phaetons, &c.against dust, rain, defacement, and other injurious influences to which they are exposed and subjected during transportation when shipped from the factories to buyers. At present these shafts where they are protected at all are covered by a strip of paper wrapped spirally around-them and held by twine, asshown in Figure 11 of the drawings. Shafts are often shipped before the varnish has completely set, and when wrapped in the aforesaid manner the paper which tightly incloses them leaves marks in the soft varnish and frequently adheres to the shaft. It also requires considerable time to wrap shafts in this manner, and much paper and twine are unnecessarily wasted by reason of the strip continually overlapping itself as it proceeds around the shafts. My aim is therefore to provide a wrapper which requires no more material than absolutely necessary to cover actual shaft-surfaces and of the most inexpensive material obtainable, thereby attaining the desirable feature of cheapness, which is quite an item considering the short useful life of such covers and the great numbers required, since they are not intended to be preserved or returned. Muslin and so=called cheeseclot-h, also cheap materials, have sometimes been used in place of paper; but since any such materials adhere much more freely than paper they are altogether objectionable, and therefore I retain paper as to material, since it is cheaper and also devoid of the lastnamed objection. Next to cheapness I have attained capacity of quickly placing the cov Serial No. 631 56l- (N0 inodelil ering, which as compared with the present method of wrapping requires but an instant.

In the following specification and particularlypointed out in the claims is found a full description of the invention, its manner of use, parts, and construction, which latter is also illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which' Figs. 1 and 2 show two covers, one slightly modified as to construction. Fig. 3 shows a side elevation of a suitable vehicle shaft with a cover stripped on, but not finally secured. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a pair of shafts, the upper one being the one shown in the preceding figure, but with the placing of the covering completed, the lower one showingin dotted lines a modified manner of inclosing the same by sectional covers. Fig. 5 shows the blank sheet out of which a cover is constructed. Fig. 6 shows a sheet of paper out of which two such blanks are formed without any waste of material. Figs. 7 and 8 show in cross-sections of the covers shown in Figs. 1 and 2, respectively, different ways of forming the joint. Fig. 9 shows asectional cover. Fig. 10 shows a wrapping-sheet to cover the cross-bar 18, and Fig. 11 shows a piece of shaft and the present method of wrapping the same.

In Fig. 6 a sheet of paper is shown of a size to form two blanks, one of which is shown in Fig. 5, and from which two covers may be constructed. Roll-paper of proper width may beused to advantage, from which these sheets 6 are cut in required lengths. They are next divided on an inclined line, (indicated at 14,) thus forming two blanks 15, as shown in Fig. 5. Such a blank is next folded on a line 16, so as to bring the outer longitudinal edges 17 together, which are joined and form then a tubular tapering cover, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Figs. 1 and 7 and 2 and 8 show different methods of joining. In the first case the edges overlap each other and in the other case they lie simply against each other.

One of the dimc'ulties to be contended with in the packing of shafts is the cross-bar 18,

which connects them near their rear ends.

This difficulty I overcome in two ways, of which one is to leave the covers partly open from their wider end, as shown at 19 inFigs.

' cured with twine.

other way is by forming them in two sections, one for the longer part in front of the crossbar l8 and one for the shorter part back of the same. formed by cutting a longer one in two, as on a line 20, (shown in Fig. 2,) with the exception, however, that the side seam of the shorter part is completely closed, as shown in Fig. 9. To prevent the covers from tearing at the inner end of this open part 19, a gusset 21 may be provided thereat. 4

The application is readily understood. The covers are stripped on over the thin end of the shafts, as shown in Fig. 3, and finally secured with twine, as shown in Fig. 4, whereby also the open part is closed around. the shaft. If the sectional covers are used, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4, one section is stripped on from one end of the shaft and the other from the other end. The placing of the covers in this manner requires but an instant as compared with the old method of wrapping. Cross-bar 18 is readily covered with a short rectangular sheet of paper 22, as shown in Fig. 10, wrapped around it and se- It will be observed that in this manner of packing the covers do not lie as close against the shafts as if wrapped under the old method shown in Fig. 11, and therefore marring and defacing of finished Such acover would be'simply 1 and 2 and as applied in Figs. 3 and 4. The surfaces by the coverand adherence thereto are prevented, while their efficiency as to protection is in no way diminished.

As to the material, various grades of paper may be selected from, such selections to be solely governed by the limits of expense it is desirable to incur. Paper more or less waterproof may be found preferable in' most cases. For shipping and storage the length of these covers may be reduced by folding to any suitable degree, thereby permitting them to be packed in bundles of convenient size.

Having described my invention, I claim as llew- 1. The tubular shipping-cover for vehicleshafts constructed of paper andformed of a size to readily admit the shafts when stripped over them and lengthwise partly open from one end, as shown at 19 for the purpose described. I

2. A shippingoover for vehicle-shafts, in form of a tapering paper tube of a size to readily admit the shafts when stripped over them and lengthwise partly open from its wider end asshown at 19 for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES EHLEN.

\Vitnesscs:

O. SPENGEL, ARTHUR KLINE.

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