Curran v. Burdsall

• Citation: 20 F. 835
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois
• Decision Date: 16 July 1883
• Parties: CURRAN and others v. BURDSALL.

20 F. 835

CURRAN and others v. BURDSALL.

United States District Court, N.D. Illinois.

July 16, 1883

G. L Chapin and Elbridge Hanecy, for complainant.

West &amp Bond, for defendant.

BLODGETT J.

This is a bill to restrain the alleged infringement by defendant of letters patent No. 76,661, dated July 7, 1868, issued to Richard P. Johnson and Eli J. Sumner, for an improvement in lumber-driers, which it is claimed has been assigned to complainants.

The bill also charges the infringement of three other patents claimed to be owned by complainants, but as no proof in regard to them has been put into the record no further notice will be taken of them. No question is made as to complainants' title to the Johnson and Sumner patent.

The main matter of defense relied upon by defendant is that two patents,-- one numbered 161,490, dated March 30, 1875, which is reissued as No. 8,846, and the other numbered 189,432, dated April 10, 1877, which is reissued as No. 8,840,--were duly issued to complainant John J. Curran for improvements in lumber-driers, and that the right, title, and interest in and to said patents in and for the state of Wisconsin has been duly assigned and transferred to and vested in defendant, and that all the lumber-driers built by defendant in the state of Wisconsin have been constructed in accordance with said two letters patent so as aforesaid issued to complainant Curran.

Defendant further insists that all of complainants' interest in the patents set out in the bill of complaint has been acquired since the issue of said two patents to Curran, and since Curran assigned his interest in his said two patents in and for the state of Wisconsin, and that defendant acquired and holds his title to said two patents under assignments from complainant Curran and one Wilcox, who was interested with Curran as owner thereof.

One element of the Johnson and Sumner patent, No. 79,661, was a series of curtains suspended from the stanchions of the car on which the lumber was held in the drying-room, the function of these curtains being to arrest and turn down the flow of the hot-air current, so as to compel the passage of the hot air upon and about the lumber on the cars, while it passes through from the rear to the front of the kiln; and the second claim is:

'(2) The providing the cars with curtains, or like device, in the manner and for the purposes set forth.'

The Curran patent, No. 189,432, being reissue No. 8,840, the right of which, for Wisconsin, is held by defendant, contains, as one of its elements or features, provision for curtains to be suspended from the ceiling of the drying-room, the description of which in the specification is as follows:

'I also place curtains, h h, of canvas, or equivalent material, at intervals along the ceiling of the drying chamber, to hang loosely down about eighteen inches, to rest upon the top of the cars of lumber, thus preventing the hot air from rushing along the ceiling, and forcing it downward to pass through the lumber and under the same.'

The curtain or sliding door, N, at the front end of the kiln and extending down, as described, to form the lower draught causes the air in its passage through the kiln to move along the floor and through the lower courses of the lumber. To further facilitate this movement, the smaller curtains, h, are also hung from the ceiling at intervals of about 12 feet, extending about 18 inches down to and resting upon the cars or lumber, thus preventing the hot air from rushing along the ceiling and out the chimney, and forcing it, by a lower draught, to pass through and underneath the lumber. Nearly over the inner edge of the opening, e, by which the hot air is admitted to the kiln, the longer curtain, h1, is suspended, hanging free from, but near, the adjacent lumber-pile, as shown in the drawings. This curtain receives the hot air and directs it...