IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING INDIGO OR OTHER SUBSTANCES."
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Olpherts, of Ardee House, Ardee, in the
County of Louth, Ireland, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PRESSES FOR PRESSING INDIGO OR OTHER SUBSTANCES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Olpherts
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 22nd May 1871.
I, RICHARD OLPHERTS, of Ardee House, Ardee, in the County of
Louth, Ireland, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING INDIGO, OR OTHER SUBSTANCES," to be
as follows:-
Heretofore in the manufacture of indigo, in order to express moisture
therefrom to form the indigo into solid cakes, it has been usual to place
the indigo from which as much water as possible has been run off, or
has been separated by filtration, into a press lined with cloth. The sides
of the case or box of the press have been made up of two rectangular
frames of wood, the lower one about eight inches in depth, the upper one

page_text: about four inches. The bottom, sides, and top of the press have been
perforated to allow the escape of the expressed water. The perforated
top which is the follower or ram of the press has been forced down
usually by screws and nuts with the aid of a spanner about twelve feet
long, each end being screwed alternately, and the operation has required
the united strength of twelve men. The press beam through which
the screws pass has been a block of hard wood about 5 feet long, one
foot broad, and one foot deep. The platform for the press to rest
upon has usually been made of two or three balks of timber. The
screws pass up through this platform and have generally been retained
in their places by forged heads and by side wedges.
Now the force required to press indigo is so great as to often cause
the whole arrangement to yield, and loss in various ways results. When
the press beam or the platform yields much the centre of the block of
indigo is left much thicker than the outer parts, and is not sufficiently
pressed. In such cases it becomes practically impossible to press the
centre sufficiently; unsoundness is thus caused. The blocks of indigo
are sometimes broken by the rebound of the press beam or of the
platform when released from the strain; and they are sometimes broken
when they are turned over upon the cutting board. The cubes into
which they are cut also sometimes break or crumble in the usual process
of stamping.
In lieu of wooden frames as herein-before mentioned, I proposed in the
Specification of a former Patent dated 19th June 1869, No. 1892, to
employ iron frames, but with these loss occasionally arises by the cutting
of the sheets or cloths, when owing to the shifting of the upper frame
from its place on the lower one the sheet is nipped or grated between
the edge of the follower and that of the lower frame, or when the
follower does not accurately fill the press and the sheet bulges up
between the follower and the sides of the press. It has also been found
that the additional and moveable side sheets described in my said
Specification are torn by the strain upon them (if a roller is used to keep
them in place) when the follower descends, as it must do, below the level
of the bottom of the upper frame before it can be raised to re-adjust the
sheet for final pressure.
Where iron gratings have been used (as also described in my said
Specification) as false bottoms for the presses, the press has sometimes
been displaced from its bed when it had to be shifted under the press

page_text: beam, or in the arranging of the sheet as a lining to the press. The bars
forming the grating resting on cross bar supports often get displaced,
impede the drainage, and make great unevenness in the block of indigo.
When iron followers have been used fitting sufficiently close to the
sides of the press, great difficulty has been experienced in placing them
in position, for being made in one piece they are very heavy, and are
broken across should the press beam bend; and when the follower gets
jammed in the press it is very difficult to release it because the power
of the screws or of the beam cannot be employed in raising it owing to
their being worked unevenly as herein-before mentioned, nor can the
prising bar used for the purpose in wooden presses be employed.
Now the object of my Invention is to overcome the defects and get rid
of the inconveniences herein-before enumerated, and to effect economy
in labor, time, produce, and plant.
My improvements are as follows:-In screw presses which are worked
by nuts actuated on the screw and tangent principle, I prevent the end.
strain or thrust of the tangent screw shaft being discharged on the.
brackets or bearings which carry it; for this purpose where two or more
screws are employed, I make the tangent screws and nuts alternately.
right and left, so that the strain will be borne by the cross section of
the shaft or spindle on which the tangent screws are forged or fixed.
I make the press beam of wrought or cast iron, or of the two combined,
and I attach the motive power just described thereto, and work it by a.
wheel or winch, or otherwise; by this means I ensure a perfectly even
pressure and accomplish the work by one or two men. I make the
platform in the form of a "sandwich" beam, the centre of which is
made up of cast iron beams fitted with pockets through which the screws
are fastened by cotters. Two or more of these beams are placed between
two balks of timber and bound together by bands of iron fastened with
nuts and screws, or otherwise. I make the press lid or follower of iron
in two parts bevelled where they join in the centre. The follower is
strongly webbed or ribbed and perforated; the compartments formed by
the webs or ribs retain the expressed water instead of its dripping back
again along the sides of the indigo when not continually wiped off as
expressed. Cotters are fixed in the webbing of the follower by which it
is alung from the beam, raised, and held as required during the process;
hand holes are also formed in the webbing. The bottom or face of the
follower is embossed in each square with the maker's name and other

page_text: information required to be stamped on each cake or cube of indigo.
The joining of the parts of the follower by bevelled edges greatly
facilitates the placing of them in position, for by slightly elevating the
bevelled side of the half follower by a temporary support or otherwise
when it is partly in its place, the other half coming against it drives all
home with very little pressure. To prevent the edge of the second half
getting foul of the sheet as this half is placed in the press on the indigo,
slightly overlapping the other half a narrow plate of zinc bent at right
angles may be used as a guard on which the depressed end of the follower
will slide into its place. The press blocks bear upon the webs or ribs
of the follower. I make the press in two tiers, the upper one preferably
about seven, and the lower about six inches deep. In order to firmly
attach the upper to the lower tier and to keep them truly in their places,
and so prevent the injury to the sheets as herein-before mentioned, I
make the centre short side strengthening bar answer as the support for
the upper part of the lower as well as for the lower part of the upper
tier by letting it into slots cut half in each tier and by double heading
the bar, so that it overlocks the upper strengthening bar of the lower tier
and underlocks the lower strengthening bar of the upper tier. Or the
sides of the press may be made in one piece instead of in tiers, and
the frame or press may be joined at the corners by angle pieces; the
strengthening bars may be supported on brackets, pegs, or otherwise,
the bars interlocking each other. I make the false bottom or grating
of the exact size of the area of the press. The bars forming the grating
are of the same depth as the frame of the grating itself, and this is
provided with small projections which fit within the press at the corners
to prevent it being displaced.
I do not employ rollers for the short sides of the sheet, and I entirely
dispense with rollers to the additional and movable parts of the linings,
by allowing them to project beyond and overhang the sides, the weight of
the upper part of the press being sufficient to retain them, at the same
time admitting of their being drawn in by the follower.
The improvements herein-before described have been specially designed
for indigo presses, but some of them as will be readily understood are
applicable to presses for pressing or compressing other substances, oil
from seed for example.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Richard Olpherts in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 21st November 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
OLPHERTS, of Ardee House, Ardee, in the County of Louth, Ireland,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Richard Olpherts, Her special licence that
I, the said Richard Olpherts, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Richard Olpherts, my executors, admini-
strators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein ex-
pressed, 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 PRESSES FOR PRESSING
INDIGO, OR OTHER SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Richard Olpherts, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, should particularly 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 Richard Olpherts, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, that is to say :-
Heretofore in the manufacture of indigo, in order to express moisture
therefrom to form the indigo into solid cakes, it has been usual to place
the indigo, from which as much water as possible has been run off, or
has been separated by filtration, into a press box lined with cloth. The
sides of this box have been made up of two rectangular frames of wood,
the lower one about eight inches in depth, the upper one about five

page_text: inches.
The bottom, top, and sides of the press box have been per-
forated to allow the escape of the expressed water. The perforated top,
which is the follower or ram of the press, has been forced down usually
by two screws and nuts, with the aid of a spanner about 12 feet long,
the two ends being screwed alternately, and the operation has required
the united strength of 12 men. The press beam through which the
screws pass has been a block of hard wood; about 5 feet long, one foot
broad, and one foot deep. In some cases a third or central screw has
been employed between two press boxes or tiers, and this has increased
the inconvenience of the screwing operation. The platform for the press
box to rest upon has usually been made of two or three balks of timber.
The screws pass up through this platform, and have generally been
retained in their places by forged heads and by side wedges.
Now the force required to press indigo is so great as to often cause
this whole arrangement to yield, and loss in various ways results. When
the press beam or the platform yields much, the centre of the block
of indigo is left much thicker than the outer parts, and is not sufficiently
pressed. In such cases it becomes practically impossible to press the
centre sufficiently; unsoundness is thus caused. The blocks of indigo
are sometimes broken by the rebound of the press beam, or of the
platform when released from the strain; and as their surface is uneven
they are sometimes broken when they are turned over upon the cutting
board. The cubes into which they are cut also sometimes break or
crumble in the usual process of stamping, particularly when the block
itself has been broken.
In lieu of wooden frames as herein-before mentioned, I proposed in
the Specification of a former Patent, dated 19th June 1869, No. 1892,
to employ iron frames, but with these loss occasionally arises by the
cutting of the sheets or cloths, when owing to the shifting of the upper
frame from its place on the lower one, the sheet is nipped or grated
between the edge of the follower and that of the lower frame; or when
the follower does not accurately fill the press box, and the sheet bulges
up between the follower and the sides of the press.
It has also been found that the additional and movable side sheets,
described in my said Specification, are torn by the strain upon them
(if a roller is used to keep them in place) when the follower descends,
as it must do, below the level of the bottom of the upper frame, before
it can be conveniently raised to re-adjust the sheet for final pressure.

page_text: Where iron gratings have been used (as also described in my said
Specification) as false bottoms for the presses, the press box has some-
times been displaced from its bed when it had to be shifted under the
press beam or in the arranging of the sheet as a lining to the box. The
bars forming the grating, resting on cross bar supports, often get
displaced, impede the drainage, and make great unevenness in the block
of indigo.
When iron followers have been used, fitting sufficiently close to the
sides of the press, great difficulty has been experienced in placing them
in position, for being made in one piece they are very heavy, and are
broken across should the press beam bend; and when the follower gets
jammed in the press it is very difficult to release it, because the power
of the screws or of the beam cannot be employed in raising it, owing
to their being worked unevenly as herein-before mentioned, nor can
the prising bar used for the purpose in wooden presses be employed
safely.
Now the object of my Invention is to overcome the defects and get
rid of the inconveniences herein-before enumerated, and to effect
economy in labour, time, produce, plant, and space.
My improvements are as follows:-In screw presses which are worked
by nuts actuated on the screw and tangent principle, I prevent the end
strain or thrust of the tangent screw shaft being discharged on the
brackets or bearings which carry it; for this purpose where two or more
screws are employed I make the tangent screws and nuts alternately
right handed and left handed, so that the strain will be borne by the
cross section of the shaft or spindle on which the tangent screws are
forged or fixed. I make the press beam of wrought iron and I attach
the motive power just described thereto and work it by a wheel or
winch, or otherwise; by this means I ensure a perfectly even pressure
and accomplish the work by one or two men.
This part of my Invention will be understood on reference to Figures 1
and 2 of the accompanying Drawings. Figure 1 being a side elevation,
partly in section, of an indigo press, and Figure 2 a transverse section
on the line A, A, of Figure 1.
a is the tangent screw shaft which is carried in brackets or bearings b, b,
and is formed with two screws c, c, one of which is right handed and
the other left handed. These screws gear respectively with corresponding
tangent wheels d, d, one of which is left handed and the other right

page_text: handed. The wheels d, d, are screw threaded internally, so as to form
nuts to work upon corresponding upright screw shafts e, e, which pass
through apertures in the press beam f and through apertures or pockets
in the platform g and are secured by cotters h, or otherwise. The screw
shaft a is provided with one or more hand wheels i for working it,
bars k, k, may be secured as shewn in suitable recesses in these wheels
so as to give greater leverage. The tangent wheels or nuts d, d,
are connected to the upper part of the press beam f. This beam
bears upon the press block 1, 1, and these in their turn bear upon
the lid or follower m. The press blocks may be attached to the press
beam as shewn or not. I make the platform g in the form of a
sandwich beam, the centre of which is made up of cast or wrought
iron beams fitted with pockets through which the screws e, e, are
fastened as above stated. Two or more of these beams are placed
between two balks of timber as shewn, and bound together by bands
of iron fastened with nuts and screws, or otherwise. I make the press
lid or follower m of iron in two parts bevelled where they join in the
centre, as seen at n, Fig. 1. The follower is strongly webbed or ribbed
and perforated, the compartments o formed by the webs or ribs retain
the expressed water instead of its dripping back again along the sides
of the indigo when not continually wiped off as expressed. Cotters
are fixed in the webbing of the follower by which it is slung from the
beam for from the upper beam p, raised and held as required during
the process. Hand holes are also formed in the webbing as seen at q.
The bottom or face of the follower is embossed in each square with
the maker's name or other information required to be stamped on each
cake or cube of indigo. The joining of the parts of the follower by
bevelled edges greatly facilitates the placing of them in position, for
by slightly elevating the bevelled side of the half follower by a temporary
support or otherwise when it is partly in its place, the other half coming
against it drives all home with very little pressure. To prevent the
edge of the second half getting foul of the sheet, as this half is placed
in the box on the indigo, slightly overlapping the other half, a narrow
plate of zinc bent at right angles may be used as a guard on which
the depressed end of the follower will slide into its place. I make the
press box in two tiers r, s, the upper one preferably about 7 and the
lower about 6 inches deep. In order to firmly attach the upper to
the lower tier and to keep them truly in their places and so prevent
the injury to the sheets as herein-before mentioned, I make the

page_text: centre short side strengthening bar t answer as the support for the
upper part of the lower as well as for the lower part of the upper tier
by letting it into slots cut half in each tier and by double heading the
bar as shewn so that it overlocks the upper strengthening bar of the
lower tier and underlocks the lower strengthening bar of the upper tier.
Or the sides of the press may be made in one piece instead of in tiers,
and the frame or press may be joined at the corners by angle pieces.
The strengthening bars may be supported on brackets, pegs, or otherwise,
the bars interlocking each other.
I make the false bottom or grating u of the exact size of the area of
the box. The bars forming the grating are of the same depth as the
frame of the grating itself, and this is provided with small projections'
which fit within the box at the corners to prevent it being displaced.
I do not necessarily employ rollers for the short sides of the sheet,
and I entirely dispense with rollers to the additional and movable parts
of the linings by allowing them to project beyond and overhang the
sides, the weight of the upper part of the box being sufficient to retain
them, at the same time admitting of their being drawn in by the
follower. The rollers at the long side of the box are seen at v, v,
Figure 2.
In some cases where only two screws are employed, I place the
tangent screw shaft a diagonally across the beam f as shewn in plan
in Figure 3 and thus balance the parts, the vertical screws e, e, must
then be both right handed or both left handed, the tangent screws c, c,
being the one right handed, and the other left handed, the same as in
Figures 1 and 2. This arrangement has the advantage that it can be
applied to the screws now in use.
The improvements herein-before described have been specially designed
for indigo presses, but some of them, as will be readily understood, are
applicable to presses for pressing or compressing other substances, oil
from seed for example.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim as
follows:-
:-
First. In screw presses which are worked by nuts actuated on the
screw and tangent principle and where two or more screws are employed,
I claim constructing such presses with the tangent screws alternately

page_text: right handed and left handed, as and for the purpose herein-before
described and shewn in the Drawings.
Secondly. In presses in which the lid or follower is required to be of
considerable strength I claim constructing the said lid or follower in
two parts bevelled where they join in the centre as herein-before
described and shewn in the Drawings.
Thirdly. In presses in which the press box is made in tiers, I claim
the employment of double headed strengthening bars for firmly attaching
the tiers together, as herein-before described, and shewn in the Drawings.
Fourthly. I claim the general arrangement or combination of parts
of indigo presses herein-before described and shewn in the Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Olpherts, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of November, One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
RICHARD OLPHERTS. (1.8.)