US818733A - Handle for burial-caskets, coffins, and the like. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTED APR. '24, 1906.

APPLICATION FILED JULY22,1905.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES BLESCH, OF NEIVPORT, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR TO THE CRANE &

BREED MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO, A COR-PO- RATION OF OHIO.

Specification of Letters Patent.

PatentedApril 24, 1906.

Application filed July 22,1905. Serial No. 270,823.

To It whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES BLESOH, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Newport, in the county of Camp bell and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Handles for Burial-Caskets, Coffins, and the Like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in handles such as are especially adapted for use on caskets, coffins, and the like, and has for its object to provide a handle of this general character of a simple, light, and inexpensive nature, having reinforcing means of an improved and simplified construction by reason of which the strength of the handle is greatly increased for obviating accidental breakage, the construction and arrangement of the several parts of the improved handle being such that the increased strength is attained without making the handle clumsy or unsightly in proportion and without unnecessary increase in cost of manufacture.

The invention consists in certain novel features of the construction, combination, and arrangement of the several parts of the improved casket or coffin handle, whereby cer tain important advantages are attained, and the device is made simpler, cheaper, and otherwise better adapted and more convenient for use than various other forms of handle heretofore devised, all as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, which serve to illustrate my invention, Figure 1 is a face view of a casket or coffin handle embodying my improvements, and Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken vertically and centrally through the handle, as shown in Fig. 1, and showing the device attached to the side wall of a casket or coffin in position for use. Fig. 3 is a partial front elevation of the lug or escutchcon-plate, drawn to an enlarged scale, the cap and ring member being omitted. Fig. 4c is an under side view of the cap,which is fitted on the lug or escutcheomplate outside of the pivotal part of the ring member. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the hardmetal reinforce of the escutcheon-plate detached. Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken vertically through the lug or escutcheon-plate and showing the means for holding the cap in position thereon. Fig. 7 is a view of the ring member detached from the lug or escutcheon-plate, said ring member being in circular form, and Fig. 8 is a view of the ring member detached from the lug or escutcheon-plate, but shown in stirrup or semicircular form.

In the views, 1 indicates as a whole the body portion of the escutcheon-plate, which is provided above and below its central part with openings for the passage of screws 2, by means of which the device is adapted to be attached to the side of a casket or coffin, the wall of the casket or coffin being indicated by ain Fig. 2. The body portion of the plate 1 will be formed from soft metal to permit of being readily cast in any desired form and of being afterward plated so as to permit an ornamental and finished appearance, and for the sake of lightness the rear part of plate 1 is cored or hollowed out in casting, as indicated at 3 in the drawings. I

At the openings through which the screws 2 are passed the rear face of the plate 1 is provided with bosses 4, through which the openings are extended and which are designed to fit flush on the side of the casket or coffin to prevent crushing of the soft-metal plate when the screws are turned.

The central portion of the plate 1 is provided with an integral outwardly-extended and thickened lug or hearing portion 5, the outer surface of which is provided with a transverse semicircular groove or half-bearing 6 and is also provided above and below said half-bearing with transversely-extended projections 7 7, adapted to conform to and lit flush upon correspondingly formed surfaces at the top and bottom of the rear face of the cap 8, which, as will be hereinafter ex: plained, is securely held to the outer end of the lug or bearing portion and has a central transverse half-bearing 9, corresponding with the half-bearing 6 in said lug or bearing portion 5, and in the bearing thus produced between the portion 5 and cap 8 by the sur faces 6 and 9 is held the pivotal portion 10 of the ring member 11, which latter is of either circular or stirrup form, Figs. 7 and 8, respectively, and of a size adapted to permit of being conveniently grasped by the hand for lifting and bearing the casket or coffin.

As herein shown, the ring member (when made circular) is hexagonal in cross-section; but .this conformation is of course immaterial to my invention, and said ring member is produced by casting from soft metal such as is capable of being readily plated and has embedded within it an annulus or ring 10, of hard metalsuch as steel, for example which is extended around the ring member and forms a core or reinforce for imparting the desired strength thereto. The stirrupshaped ring member seen in Fig. 8 has a like hard-metal embedded reinforce 10 extending around it to form a strengthening-core. At the bearing portion of the ring member the soft-metal covering is cored out or cut away, so as to leave the hard-metal core or reinforce 10 exposed at that point, as indicated at Figs. 7 and 8, and said core or reinforce is of a diameter or cross-section to fit and turn snugly within the bearing between lug 5 and cap 8, so as to serve for the pivotal attachment of the ring member to the escutcheonplate. The cut-away part of the ring member is so proportioned that the ends of the cast-metal covering fit closely adjacent to the opposite sides of lug 5, as indicated in Fig. 1. The core or reinforce 10 may be in the form of an unbroken ring or for simplicity in manufacture may be produced from steel-wire bent in rounded form with its ends adjacent, but unconnected.

In the escutcheon-plate 1 within and beneath the lu or bearing portion 5 is embedded a hard-meta reinforce 12 of the form seen in Figs. 2- and 5, and this reinforce may be produced from sheet-steel or the like and has a straight rear edge surface 13, adapted for flush engagement upon the side wall x of the casket or coffin, the upper and lower parts of the reinforce having twisted projections 14 14, perforated for the passage of the screws 2 2, by means of which the handle is attached to the casket or coffin and embedded in the bosses 4 above referred to. The central body portion of the reinforce 12 is arranged to extend at right angles from the wall of the casket or coffin when the handle is in position, and the perforated projections 14 are twisted or bent, so as to stand at right angles to the plane in which said central portion extends in order that the screws 2 may be passed through the perforations of said projections.

The projecting central portion of the escutcheon-reinforce 12 is extended out and embedded within the lug or bearing portion 5 and is of such a length that its outer extremity projects beyond the front face of said lug or bearing portion, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, and is adapted to fit within a vertically-extended kerf or channel 15, centrally produced in cap 8 in position to receive said projecting end of the reinforce. The outer extremity of the said reinforce 12 is also provided with an upwardly and r'earwardly directed slot or opening 16, the upper rear end of which coincides with the half-bearing 6 of the lug 5 and is adapted to receive the exposed pivotal portion 10 of the reinforce of the ring member of the handle, the upper part 17 of the projecting extremity of the re inforce being caused to overhang or extend down in front of said part 10 after the fash ion of. a hook when the ring member is connected with the escutcheon-plate.

For the attachment of the cap 8 to the lug or bearing portion 5 of the handle I provide screws 18, which are passed through openings 19 at opposite sides of the lug or bearing portion 5, their heads being upon the recessed rear face of the escutcheon-plate, their threaded extremities being engaged in openings 20, produced in the rear face of the cap, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6. These screws form an effective attachment for holding the cap to the bearing portion 5 and are not exposed upon the face of the device.

In assembling the parts of the handlethe exposed pivotal portion 10 of the reinforce of the ring member is first engaged within the slotted opening 16 at the projecting extremity of the escutcheon-reinforce 12. The lateral parts of said exposed portion 10 thereupon rest in the half-bearing 6. The cap 8 is then applied over the exposed part 10 of the reinforce of the ring member, its half-bearing 9 fitting on the lateral parts of the exposed portion 10, its central kerf or channel 15 receiving the projecting extremity of the escutcheon-reinforce. The screws 18 are then applied from the under side of the escutcheonplate and serve to hold the parts securely in relation.

In the use of the improved handle when applied to a casket or cofiin it will be seen that as ring member is grasped by the hand and raised, as will be done in lifting and bearing the casket or coffin, the strain thereby exerted on the parts will be transmitted from the exposed reinforce portion 10 of the ring member to the overhanging hook-like part 17 of the escutcheon-reinforce and will be thence transmitted direct to the casket or cofiin by way of the screws and also of the central engaging surface of the esoutcheonreinforce, which is, as above stated, engaged flush upon the casket or coflin wall. In this .way it will be seen that no appreciable strain is imposed upon the soft cast-metal portion of the device, and any crushing or breakage of the parts is thereby obviated.

The improved handle constructed as above described is of an extremely simple and inexpensive nature and is possessed of'sufficient strength to render it well adapted for use without liability of breakage. The reinforcing means are also of such a nature as to permit the handle to be manufactured by means of a comparatively simple arrangement of molds, so that a very considerable economy in manufacture results. g

I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A handle for caskets or coffins and the like comprising an escutcheon-plate of soft cast metal having an embedded hardmetal reinforce the vertical rear central portion or edge of which is adapted for resting contact or engagement on the casket or coffin wall and the opposite ends of which are extended at right angles thereto and provided with perforations adapted for the passage of attaching means, said reinforce having a bifur cated forwardly-extended portion and a member pivotally held to the escutcheonplate and having engagement with the bifurcated forwardly-extended portion of the escutcheon-reinforce.

2. A handle for caskets or coffins and the like comprising an escutcheon-plate of soft cast metal having an embedded hard-metal reinforce the rear vertical edge of which is adapted for engagement on a casket or coffin wall, said escutcheon-plate having an integral forwaidly-extended lug or bearing portion in which the forwardly-extended portion of the reinforce is embedded and a pivotal member having a pivot-pin engaged with the lug of the escutcheon-plate, the forwardly-extended portion of the escutcheonreinforce having a downwardly-directed hooklike part engaged over said pivotpin.

3. A handle for caskets or coffins and the like comprising an escutcheon-plate of soft cast metal having an embedded hard-metal reinforce the rear part of which is adapted for engagement on a casket or coffin wall,

said reinforce having a forwardly-extended portion and the escutcheon-platc having a forwardly-extended lug in which the extended portion of the reinforce is embedded and from which said reinforce projects at its forward extremity, a cap held to the lug of the escutcheon-plate and extended over the projecting extremity of said reinforce and a piv otal member having a pivot-pin held between said cap and the lug of the cscutcheonplate and engaged with the projecting extremity of the escutcheon reinforce.

4. A handle for caskets or coffins and the like comprising an escutcheon-plate of soft cast metal having an embedded hard-metal reinforce the roar part of which is adapted for engagement on a casket or coffin wall, said reinforce having a forwardly-directed portion provided with a downwardly-extcnded hook-like part at its extremity and the escutcheon-platc having a forwardly-extended lug in which the extended portion of the reinforce is embedded and from which the hooklike forward extremity of said reinforce projects, a cap applied to the lug of the escutcheon-plate outside of and extended over said hook-like part of the escutcheon-rcinforce, screws passed through the escutchconplate into the cap for holding the cap in position and a pivotal part having a pivot-pin held between said cap and the lug of the escutcheon-plate and engaged beneath the hook-like extremity of the escutcheon-reinforcc.

Signed at Cincinnati, Ohio, this 18th day of July, 1905.

CHARLES BLESCH. Vitnesses:

M. I. PARRY, JOHN ELIAS Jones.

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