United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

National Meter Co. v. Yonkers Water Comm'rs, 149 U.S. 48 (1893)

National Meter Company v. Yonkers Water Commissioners

No. 192

Argued March 29, 1893

Decided April 17, 1893

149 U.S. 48

Syllabus

Claims 3, 4, 5 and 6 of reissued letters patent No. 10,806, granted February 8, 1887, to the National Meter Company as assignee of Lewis Hallock Nash, for improvements in water meters, on the surrender of original letters patent No. 211,582, granted to said Nash, January 21, 1879, are not infringed by water meters constructed according to letters patent reissued to the Hersey Meter Company, No. 10,778, November 2, 1886, as assignees of James A. Tilden, and to letters patent No. 357, 159, granted to James A. Tilden, February 1, 1887, and to letters patent granted to said company, as assignee of said Tilden, No. 385,910, July 10, 1888.

The Nash piston has a side-rocking movement across the center of the cylinder, upon successive bearing points made by the contact of a projection on the piston with the recess in the cylinder, or conversely, and the piston rotates upon its own axis, so that each projection comes successively into each recess of the cylinder. But in the defendant's structure, there is no side-rocking, nor any rotary motion, and each projection in the piston always operates in connection with one particular corresponding recess in the cylinder, and never leaves that recess.

In equity. The case is stated in the opinion.