A Hat-Tipper, Double Bicycle and Fire Escape Suit: Patents Reveal The Wacky Inventions Of 20th Century America
By Tom Gillespie @TomGillespie1
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The imaginative designs, from the US Patent and Trademark office, show elaborate blueprints for everything from 'human wings' to ‘sexual armour’.
The patents, granted between 1871 and 1933, cater to every strain of 20th century society, from a self-tipping hat for the discerning gent to a harness support for a greyhound-riding monkey.
One eyebrow-raising design is that of American nurse Ellen E. Perkins, who patented a cloth suit complete with metal crotch to keep the genitals of mental health patients under lock and key, at a time when masturbation was cited as the cause for 'insanity'.
The pre-cautious inventors designed many death-cheating structures, including a fire-escape device which had a parachute attached to the head and rubber soled shoes for smooth landings.
And in case death was mistakenly declared and a person was buried alive, a patent was put forward for a ‘life-indicator’ coffin, where the buried person could rotate a set of handles to move a dial above ground.
The inventors also had hygiene at the forefront of their minds, with one design showing a high-power jet for spraying women’s breasts.
Some of the other peculiar patents, which were obtained by the Science Photo Library, show eyeglasses for chickens to prevent them pecking out each other’s eyes, and swinging bathtubs for hydrotherapy.
A 'double-bicycle' was dreamed-up for loop-the-loop circus performances, and a goat-riding simulator was used in initiation ceremonies by fraternity houses.
