Caverly v. Deere

• Decision Date: 23 February 1895
• Docket Number: 112.
• Citation: 66 F. 305
• Parties: CAVERLY v. DEERE et al. [1]
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

66 F. 305

CAVERLY v. DEERE et al. ^[1]

No. 112.

United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.

February 23, 1895

Suit for damages, and to enjoin infringement of letters patent No 303,116, issued August 5, 1884, to Sarah Caverly, assignee of Amos K. Caverly, for a machine for rounding bent handles, of which the four claims are as follows:

'(1) A cutter head consisting of a cylinder with a groove in the center of its periphery, and recesses from either side terminating in narrow openings on such groove, for the adjustment of the cutter knives.

'(2) A cutter head constructed of two cylindrical disks, each with such a concave on its inner face, extending from beyond the diameter to the periphery, that when secured with their curved faces together the concaves form a groove on the periphery of the head corresponding to the shape and size of the dressed work, with one or more recesses extending from the outer face of each disk, diminishing in width as they progress, and terminating in a narrow opening in the curve, forming beds for the cutters and spouts for the discharge of chips, with knives secured in the openings.

'(3) A cutter head constructed of two cylindrical disks, each with such a concave on its inner face, extending from beyond the diameter to the periphery, that when secured with their curved faces together the concaves form a groove on the periphery of the head corresponding to the shape and size of the dressed work, with one or more recesses extending from the outer face of each disk, diminishing in width as they progress, terminating in a narrow opening in the curve, forming beds for the cutters and spouts for the discharge of chips, with slotted knives secured in the openings, and adjustable longitudinally therein by set screws.

'(4) The combination of the frame, the cutter head with groove in its periphery, and one or more openings from each side, terminating in a narrow slit on the groove, one or more knives so curved that the bevel on their cutting ends presents a flat surface, and gearing by which the head is actuated.'

The following extracts from the brief will illustrate the argument of counsel for the appellant:

'With respect to the general features of rotary planing devices for rounding bent handles: (1) The corpus of such a device, as to form, is cylindrical, and having its external sides of the form of a plane circular disk, and bounded by the peripheral circle. (2) Such plane circular disk, when geometrically described, constitutes the plane of the peripheral circle, and which possesses the following geometrical properties: (a) Diametrical and radius or radial lines; (b) divisibility of the arc of the peripheral circle into quadrants and degrees; (c) sine lines of the arc of the peripheral circle, denoting the degrees of any given arc upon the quadrant. (3) The peripheral groove also is bounded by a complex curved surface, wherein the lines of the vertical curvature cross the lines of the longitudinal curvature at right angles; and also wherein the longitudinal curvature is the greatest at the central portions of the groove, and become diminished along the ascending line of the vertical curvature; such diminution of curvature being in the inverse ratio of the increase of the distance extending from the center of the groove along the ascending line of the vertical curvature. Such are the general characteristics of the corpus of rotary cylindrical planing devices having a peripheral groove with planing knives adjusted thereto. The task of adjusting a planing knife to such complex features of curvature, with any hope of accomplishing anything like perfection in operative work, is most manifestly attended with great difficulty. It will at once be perceived that the problem to be solved by the invention under consideration was not simply the construction of a common carpenter's plane, designed only to dress plane parallel surfaces; nor was it simply to discover at what particular degree of angularity the bit or knife of such carpenter's plane would produce the most perfect planing work; nor, again, was it simply the task of varying the diagonal pitch or angle of the cutting edges of the planing bit of such carpenter's plane in search of the best planing angularity. But the task constituted another and different problem. It was to discover a plan of organic mechanical construction, embodying a rotary cylindrical body possessing a curved peripheral groove, whereby the formidable difficulties above explained, arising from the complex and varied features of curvature, could be overcome, and that by and through such plan of construction it would be rendered possible and easily practicable to adjust the plane of the cutting edges of the cutter knives to the plane of such complex and varied features of the curved surface of the groove in such a manner, and in such a position, and with such a uniform angularity as would practically accomplish such operative work as would be indicative of superior excellence and utility. Such was the problem which the invention under consideration was designed to solve. The old devices for rounding bent handles by means of a rotary cylindrical body having a peripheral groove, and knives adjusted thereto, were, by reason of the radical defects and imperfections of their organic construction and mode of operation, practical failures as planing devices, and have passed out of use. * * * The geometrical properties above enumerated of the

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