1934 William H B Thornton Prototype Teasmade 3

On January 23rd 1934 William Hermann Brenner Thornton, (on this occasion calling himself William Harry Thornton), applied for a second patent, no 432207. It was from this prototype that Goblin’s first commercial automatic tea maker was derived.

Making of hot beverages
Application Number GB19340002287 19340123
Publication Number 432207 (A)
Application Date January 23, 1934
Publication Date July 23, 1935
Assignee William Harry Thornton
IPC A47J 31/44 A47J 31/52
Hot-beverage apparatus. THORNTON, W H, 32 Derwent Road, South Ealing, London. Jan 23 1934, No 2287. [Class 129]. An electrical apparatus for making tea &c at a predetermined time, the loss of weight in the boiler on transference of the hot water to the receiver is used to operate the means for cutting off the heat supply and sounding the alarm. The boiler 9 stands on a hinged flap 7 poised by a plunger 16 actuated by a counter-weighted lever 12. The lever 12 carries a three way mercury switch 18. When the boiler 9 is filled with water and the main switch operated by hand, the lever 12 is lifted against its weight 15 causing the mercury switch to make contact between the terminals 19, 19, in the heater circuit set for operation by the time switch in the clock 5 which closes the circuit at a given moment.; When the water boils, it is siphoned into the teapot 8 on the rigid platform 4. The boiler 9 loses weight and the weight 15 falls, causing the mercury switch 18 to make the contacts 19, 19 which breaks the heater circuit and completes a buzzer and lamp circuit. Specification 414,088 is referred to.