US Patent: 14,405
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Method of bending wood
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Patentee:
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John C. Morris (exact or similar names) - Cincinnati, OH |
Manufacturer: |
Not known to have been produced |
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Patent Dates:
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Granted: |
Mar. 11, 1856 |
Reissue Information: |
Reissued as RE1,312 (May 27, 1862) |
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Jeff Joslin
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Description: |
This patent was litigated in "John C. Morris v. Silas M. Barrett and Jabez M. Waters" in the Southern District of Ohio court, March 1859. The court heard that Morris' invention covered a machine consisting of a stationary form around which timber was bent; force was applied by a pair of pivoted levers. The timber to be bent was placed on a metal strap with clamps or stops on each end of the strap that constrained the wood and prevented its fibers from stretching and breaking while being bent. These clamps slide on the levers as the wood was bent around the form. The defendants' machine substituted radial arms with rollers to hold the wood, and used clamps that "permitted partial relaxation or stretching of the fibers, at the commencement of the bending operation." The patent separately covered the use of "1. the clamps to prevent end-expansion; and 2. The levers working upon fixed fulcrums to prevent the wood from twisting." The machine used by the defendants was designed and built by Orville Mathers, who testified that its principles of operation were different from that of Morris' patent. Other, less biased, experts testified variously for both sides. The jury found in favor of Morris and assessed damages of $125. |
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