Untitled record

Application filed'May 2.9! 1896. Serial Ko, 593,539. (Ko model.l·

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Arthur R. Clarke, of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful 5 Improvements in Milk-Cabinets, of which the following is a specification. .

This invention relates to a novel wall-cabinet for domestic purposes, and refers more specifically to a locking-cabinet designed for io the use of milkmen in delivering the daily supply of milk to families.

The object of the invention is to provide a safe, weatherproof, and convenient receptacle adapted to be placed upon the outside of 15 the house, where it will be accessible to the milkman without disturbing the inmates of the house, and which receptacle m ay be opened only by an authorized person.

A further object is to produce a device of 20 extremely simple and economical construction.

To the above ends the invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the appended 25 claims.

The invention maybe more readily understood byreference to the accompanying drawings, in which—

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the device, 30 showing the cabinet open. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same with the cabinet closed. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 2 and looking downwardly. Fig. 4 is a detail of a simple form of lock adapt35 ed for use with such a cabinet. Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1, showing a modification. Fig. 6 is a front elevation of a double cabinet closed, parts of the front wall being broken away to expose the interior arrange40 ment. .

First describing the device shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, the cabinet (designated as a whole by A) is herein shown as constructed of sheet metal, preferably of tin, and consists 45 of a back-wall· portion A', adapted to be secured against any suitable wall or support, conveniently by means of screws a a, a horizontal bottom wall A², which is secured so as to project from the backwall A', and a cabi50 net or case A³, hinged atone side to the back wall A' by means of suitable hinges a', so as to swing in a horizontal plane and adapted to form in conjunction with said back and bottom walls a closed receptacle.

The back wall A' is pointed or gable-shaped 55 at. its upper end, and the outer margins of said wall are turned outwardly at right angles to form flange portions ά², a³, and a⁴, which surround said back wall at its top and sides. The flange a⁴ forms a part of the in- 60 closing wall of the cabinet, the swinging casing A³ being secured directly to the outer edge of said flange by means of the hinges a', hereinbefore referred to. The top flanges a² a²and side flanges a³ are, however, arranged to 65 overlap or lie outside of the casing A⁸ when the latter is in closed position, as indicated clearly in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings.

The bottom wall A² is arranged to project horizontally outward from the lower end of 70 the backwall A' and may be formed integrally therewith or secured rigidly thereto, as desired. In the present instance the casing A³is made of somewhat semicircular form in horizontal cross-section, and the bottom wall 75 is co rrespondingly shaped, as indicated clearly in Fig. 3, said bottom wall being made slightly larger than the lower end of the casing A³, so as to project at its margins outside of the latter. 80

In order to provide a close joint between ) the lower end of the casing and the bottom wall, the latter is preferably provided with a vertical flange a⁵, against which said lower end of the casing fits when the latter is in 85 closed position, thereby preventing access of dust, water, or snow, and at the'same time forming a support which prevents the casing from becoming distorted.

. The lower wall A² is herein shown as pro- 90 vided at one side with an upturned bracketflange a⁶, soldered or otherwise secured at its rear end to the back wall A', said bracketflange thus serving as a support to assist in holding the bottom rigid and at the same time 95 forming a guide which serves to direct the edge of the swinging casing accurately into closed position. In order to afford additional rigidity in said bottom wall, the latter is herein shown as provided with a reinforcement con- 100

589,934 sisting of a concaved sheet of metal A⁴, arranged to underlie the rear portion of said bottom and soldered or otherwise suitably secured at its margins to the under surface of 5 the latter.

The casing A³ consists of an approximately semicylindric lower portion A⁵—in this instance made open at its lower end and provided at its upper end with a parti-conical io covering A⁶—which is suitably conformed at its rear margins cd to fit closely within the flanges cd cd of the gable-shaped upper end of the back wall A'. Preferably and as shown in this instance the casing A^s will be rein15 forced around its rear and lower end margins by means of a wire a⁸, over which the margins of the metal will be turned in a wellunderstood manner.

In order to hold the casing A³ in closed po20 sition, a suitable lock will be provided, by means of which the unhinged rear margins of the casing may be secured to the back wall A'. An extremely simple and economical construction in the lock adapted for this pur25 pose is herein shown. Said lock consists simply of a latch B, provided at one end with a suitably-beveled catch & and at its opposite end with a right-angled outturned portion which is arranged to extend outwardly 30 through a suitable aperture cd in the casing and to thereby form a pivotal support for said latch. The extreme end b³ of the outturned portion b', which projects outside of the casing, is squared or otherwise suitably con35 formed to receive a key whereby the latch B can be lifted, said projecting end b² -being surrounded by a suitable guard adapted to prevent its manipulation except by a proper key. The main portion of the latch B is in40 closed within a suitable casing C, secured against the inner face of the casing A³, said casing C being provided with an aperture c opposite the free end of the catch to permit the entrance of a catch-stud B', which is rig45 idly mounted upon the back Avail A' in position to register with the opening c of the casing C. The catch-stud B'is provided with an oblique end &³, beveled oppositely to that of the latch B, and is adapted to coact with 50 the latter to lift the latch and slide into engagement with its notch when the casing A³is swung into closed position. In order to hold said latch B yieldingly in engagement with the. catch-stud B', a suitable V-shaped 55 spring D is interposed between the upper side of said latch and the opposing wall of the casing C. The lock-casing C will be secured against the inner surface of the cabinet by means of soldering or otherwise, as desired.

In Fig. 0 I have shown a modification in which the bottom wall A⁷ is secured to and forms the lower end of the swinging part A⁸of the casing instead of being mounted upon or connected with the back wall A⁹. The 65 said back Avail is in this instance also proA'ided Avith overlapping marginal flanges and in other respects is constructed substantially like that hereinbefore described in connection Avith Figs. 1 to 3.

In Fig. G I have shoAvn still another modi- 70 flcation in Avliich the cabinet is of double construction or provided with two compartments, each of Avhich has an independent door to afford access thereto. In this instance the back Avail A¹⁰ and the bottom wall A¹¹ are 75 constructed and arranged substantially like that shoAvn in Fig. 1. The conical top casing A¹³ is, however, in this instance attached rigidly to the back Avail A¹¹.

A¹³ designates a vertical partition which So rises from the bottom to the height of the loAver end or base-line of the conical top A¹³, thereby dividing the interior of the cabinet into two compartments, and A¹⁴ designates a horizontal partition which extends from the 85 top margin of the vertical partition A¹⁸ laterally over one of the compartments only and separates the latter from the rest of the interior of the cabinet.

The curved front wall of the casing is com- 90 posed of two portions arranged to meet at the center on the line of the vertical partition A¹², each of said sections A¹⁴ A¹⁵ being hinged at its rear margin to lateral flanges a¹⁰ a¹⁰, formed upon or secured to the back wall A¹⁰ 95 in a manner substantially similar to the flange A⁴ shown in Fig. 3. The front edge of the vertical partition A¹³ is provided with a suitable supporting-strip a”, against Avhich the front edges of the doors A¹⁴ A¹⁵ are adapted 100 to rest, said supporting-strip carrying catchstuds for the engagement of locking-latches mounted upon the meeting edges of the doors -and similar to that hereinbefore described.

The utility of a device embodying my in- 105 vention will be obvious. The milkman and the customer each being provided Avith duplicate keys and the cabinet having been properly secured in place the houseAvife or servant will place the milk-can or other receptacle no within the cabinet, together with the money or tickets to be given in exchange for the milk, and close and lock the cabinet. When the milkman arrives, he Avill insert his key, unlock the cabinet, take the money or tickets 115 and exchange therefor the proper alloAvance of milk, after Avhich he Avill again close the cabinet, the latter automatically locking itself. The contents will thus be kept perfectly safe and free from dust, dirt, and the 120 weather until removed by the customer.

Where the double form of cabinet shown in Fig. 6 is used, the locks of the tAvo compartments may have different keys and one side of the cabinet may be used by the milkman, 125 while the other is used by the grocer, butcher, baker, or otherwise. In the latter construction the horizontal partition above the milkreceptacle forms a shelf upon Avhich rolls or the like may be deposited in the upper cone- 130 shaped part of the cabinet, while the lower part may be used to contain groceries or the like.

The construction of the cabinet is such that

589,934 it is practically dust and weatherproof, while at the same time it is extremely simple and economical of manufacture.

While I have herein shown what I deem to 5 be the most practical and-preferred embodiments of my invention, yet I do not wish to be limited to the precise details illustrated.