IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING PACKING FOR PISTONS AND OTHER PARTS OF MACHINERY
Year: 1860

page_text: ETTERS PATENT to Alfred.Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughts-
man, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS
FOR MANUFACTURING PACKING FOR PISTONS AND OTHER PARTS OF MACHINERY:"
A communication from abroad by John Haven Cheever, of New York,
in the United States of America.
PROVISIONAL, SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, ou the
13th August 1860.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office. for Patents, 66, Chancery Lanë;
in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND
APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING PACKING FOR PISTONS AND OTHER PARTS OF
MACHINERY," to be as follows:-.
In manufacturing elastic cord or piston packing, which consists of a core of
vulcanized india-rubber, or other elastic gum encased in a roll of strong
woven fabric, it is proposed, in place of producing the sume by lund, to apply
mechanical travelling pressure. The arrangement preferred is a pressing roll,
fluted or not, and mounted in a kind of trough; the bottom of which is curved

page_text: and made slightly yielding, it being for that purpose sustained by stiff springs.
The length of the trough and roller will be equal to the length of the roll of
packing desired to be made. The woven fabric being coated on both sides
with rubber cement, is laid in the trough, and one edge lapped around the
core by hand. The core is then brought within the bite of the pressing roller
at the edge of the trough; rotary motion being now applied to the roller, it
will roll up the cemented cloth on to itself, and impart a suitable pressure to
the coil to ensure the requisite solidity, the bottom of the trough yielding to
allow for the increasing diameter of the coil. By this means elastic cord
packing suitable for pistons may be expeditiously produced.
Another mode of producing packing for pistons is to coat the woven fabric
with vulcanizable cement on both sides, and to cut up the fabric diagonally,
and pile it layer upon layer until a sufficient thickness is obtained, and butting
the ends of the cut pieces together to form any required length of sheet.
The whole is then vulcanized under pressure. When cured, it is to be cut
up into strips of the required width for use as packing, and applied so as to
present the severed ends of the threads of the fabric to the surface against
which the piston works.
In producing sheet packing with smooth surfaces. which are deemed
essential in many cases for ensuring steam-tight joints, the sheet to be cured
is dusted over with soapstone powder, or black lead, and sheets of vulcanized
india-rubber cured at a high temperature are placed in contact therewith, and
the whole is then tightly rolled together, and submitted to stove or steam
heat, or the sheet packing may be cured between plates of glass or meta
under pressure.
When heated sufficiently long to become cured, the sheet packing will be
found to possess smooth surfaces, or the like effect is produced by applying
sheets of paper or cloth coated with a mixture of size and pipe clay or
whiting, or other analogous material to the sheet of packing to be cured, and
subjecting the same to the curing process while in a compressed state.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 12th February 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her reign
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Alfred Vincent Newton, Her special license that I, the said Alfred Vincent
Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Alfred Vincent Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland; the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING PACKING
FOR PISTONS AND OTHER PARTS OF MACHINERY," being a communication from
abroad, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alfred Vincent
Newton by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed
in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement (that is to say):-
In manufacturing elastic cord or piston packing, which consists of a core of
vulcanized india-rubber or other elastic gum encased in a roll of strong woven
fabric, it has been customary hitherto to produce the same by hand. Now
the object of the first part of this Invention is to facilitate the manufacture by
applying mechanical travelling pressure to the rolling up of the elastic core
within the woven fabric. The mechanical arrangement preferred is a pressing
roll, fluted or not, and mounted in a kind of trough, the bottom of which is
curved and made slightly yielding, it being for that purpose sustained by stiff
springs. The length of the trough and roller will be equal to the length of
which the rolls of packing are desired to be made. The woven fabric used
for covering the elastic core is coated on both sides with india-rubber cement,
the same having been effected by any well known construction of spreading
machine. A suitable length of this fabric dependent on the diameter required
for the packing cord is laid in the trough, and one edge is lapped around the
elastic core by hand. The core is then brought within the bite of the pressing
roller at the edge of the trough; a travelling rotary motion being now applied

page_text: to the roller, it will roll up the cemented cloth on to itself, and impart a
suitable pressure to the coil to ensure a perfect adhosion of the coils and
the requisite solidity in the coiled fabric. During this operation the bottom
of the trough will yield to allow for the increasing diameter of the coil. By
this means elastic cord packing suitable for pistons may be expeditiously
produced.
The second part of this Invention relates to the production of packing for
pistons by taking woven fabric coated with vulcanizable cement composed
of india-rubber or other vulcanizable gum on both sides, and applying it in
the following manner:-The fabric is cut up diagonally, and piled layer upon
layer until a sufficient thickness is obtained, and the ends of the cut pieces are
brought together to make butt joints, and by this means any required length
of sheet is produced; the whole is then to be vulcanized or submitted to the
curing action of heat under pressure. When cured, it is to be cut up into
strips of the required width for use as packing, and applied so as to present
the severed ends of the threads of the woven fabric employed in the manu-
facture of the packing to the surface against which the piston works.
In order to produce sheet packing with smooth surfaces which are deemed
essential in many cases for ensuring steam-tight joints, the following means
for curing the same (which constitute the third head of the Invention) are
employed. The sheet packing produced in any well known or approved
manner preparatory to being submitted to the curing process is dusted over
with soapstone powder, or black lead, and sheets of vulcanized india-rubber,
cured previously at a high temperature, are placed in contact therewith; the
whole is thon tightly rolled together, and submitted to stove or steam heat,
or the sheet packing may be cured between plates of glass or metal under
pressure. When heated sufficiently long to become cured, the sheet packing
will be found to possess smooth surfaces; or the like effect may be produced
by applying sheets of paper or cloth coated with a mixture of size and pipe-
clay or whiting, or other analogous material to the sheet of packing to be
cured, and subjecting the same to the curing process while in a compact
or compressed state.
Having now set forth the nature of the Invention of "Improvements in
the Mode of and Apparatus for Manufacturing Packing for Pistons and other
Parts of Machinery," as communicated to me from abroad, and explained the
manner of carrying the sume into effect, I wish it to be understood that,
under the above in part recited Letters Patent, I claim,-
First, the means above described for manufacturing elastic cord or piston

page_text: And, secondly, the improvements in the mode of manufacturing sheet
packing, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twelfth day of February, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.B.)