IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING MACHINES
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Mackenzie, of Edinburgh, North Britain,
Accountant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING
MACHINES."
Sealed the 22nd March 1870, and dated the 23rd September 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Mackenzie at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 23rd September 1869.
I, JAMES MACKENZIE, of Edinburgh, North Britain, Accountant,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
WEIGHING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of an apparatus by means of which railway
wagons and other stock and ordinary wagons and other vehicles or
heavy articles may be weighed, and the weight so ascertained may be
indicated upon a diagram or sheet provided for the purpose.

page_text: A rod, chain, or metallic or other strap is attached to the extremity
or any other part of the lever of the weighing machine, the other end
of the rod or other appliance being connected with a lever or bell crank
or segment, to the further extremity of which another rod or other
appliance is affixed, the other end of the latter being adapted to act
on and raise a series of accumulating weights or on a balance spring.
The weights or spring may be connected in any other manner appro-
priate to the class of machine to which the Invention may be applied.
To the last point of attachment or any other appropriate point is
jointed a metallic or other rod carrying at its upper extremity a pencil
or pointed style either of the nature of an ordinary lead, chalk, or other
pencil or a steel point or chemically prepared marking instrument or
perforating points or a style of any kind acting upon ordinary or
chemically prepared paper or other surface as may be adopted by the
parties using the Invention. This style or other appliance is made to
impinge upon or is at the proper time thrust upon a revolving cylinder
or a sliding board or other surface, upon which is placed a sheet or
diagram bearing the degrees of weight in tons and fractions of tons or
otherwise, as may be thought proper. The weighing machine lever
is controlled by a cross handle or other contrivance, which is worked
by the person in charge, the lever being allowed to rise when the wagon
or other article is in the correct position for being weighed. The same
cross handle actuates the cylinder or board above-mentioned so as to
oppose a fresh portion of the surface upon the weighing of each article,
but the wagons or other articles may by suitable rods and connections
be caused to give the required movement to the pencil and cylinder
or other appliance. Any other method however of effecting this may
be adopted.
It may be sometimes found convenient to make the apparatus self-
acting. This may be done by setting in motion the drum or barrel
which carries the paper on which the pencil marks the weight. Then
the wagons as they pass over the platform will depress it and by the
arrangement of levers will bring the pencil against the paper, and will

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Mackenzie in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 23rd March 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
MACKENZIE, of Edinburgh, North Britain, Accountant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors give and grant unto me, the said James Mackenzie, Her special
licence that I, the said James Mackenzie, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said James Mackenzie, my exe-
cutors, 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 WEIGHING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said James Mackenzie, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment 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 James Mackenzie, 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, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):-
My Invention of Improvements in Weighing Machines." consists
of an apparatus by means of which a spring balance or an accumulating
weight is substituted for the sliding and other weights ordinarily applied
to machines for weighing railway waggons and other stock and ordinary
waggons and other vehicles or heavy articles. The weight so ascertained
may also be indicated upon a diagram or sheet provided for the purpose.

page_text: In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 is a front view of the machine,
Fig 2 is a side elevation, and Fig 3 is a plan view of the same.
Instead of this spring
A rod, chain, or metallic or other strap a is attached to the extremity
or any other part of the lever b of the weighing machine. The other
end of the rod or other appliance a is connected with a lever or bell
crank or segment c, to the further extremity of which another rod, chain,
strap, or other analogous appliance d is affixed. The other end of this
rod or strap d is attached to the spring balance e.
a set of accumulating weights may be used, but the spring or weight
may be connected in any other appropriate manner, according to the
class of machine to which the Invention may be applied. The spring e
may be of the ordinary form known as "Salter's spring balance," the
strength being calculated according to the dimensions or requirements
of the present apparatus to which it is to be applied. The weight may
be either a vibrating weight upon the principle of the ordinary "bent
lever balance," or it may be a weight floating in mercury or other fluid.
To the point of attachment of the spring or any other appropriate point
is jointed a metallic or other rod f which carries at its upper extremity
a pencil or pointed style g, either of the nature of an ordinary lead,
chalk, or other pencil. A. steel point or chemically prepared marking
instrument or perforating points or a style of any kind acting upon
ordinary or chemically prepared paper or other surface may be used,
if preferred. This style or other appliance g is made to rest or bear
upon, or is at the proper time thrust upon a revolving cylinder h; or
a sliding board or other surface may be used. Upon this cylinder or
board is placed a sheet or diagram marked with lines indicating the
degrees of weight in tons and fractions of tons or otherwise, as may be
thought proper. The weighing machine lever is controlled by a cross
handle i or other contrivance which is worked by the person in charge,
the lever 6 being allowed to rise when the waggon or other article is
in the correct position for being weighed. By the same cross handle
or other contrivance the cylinder or board with the graduated paper
thereon, is caused to advance so as to oppose to the style g or other
appliance before mentioned a fresh portion of the surface upon the
weighing of each article. On the side of the controlling handle is a
stud or projection k, which depresses a sneck or catch / so as to draw
back the hammer m in order to strike the upper end of the rod f, and

page_text: thus cause the style g to perforate the diagram paper. n is a stud upon
the projecting part of the controlling handle i; o is a pall (governed
by a spiral spring) and is drawn back over one tooth of the ratchet p
at the base of the cylinder by the stud n at each movement of the
controlling handle. Upon the controlling handle i being thrust in the
spring causes the cylinder / to advance or rotate one tooth's length
by the action of the ratchet p.
For weighing long trains of waggons it may sometimes be found
convenient to make the apparatus self-acting. This may be done by
setting in motion the drum, cylinder, or other analogous device which
carries the graduated paper on which the pencil or style makes the
marks whereby the weight is indicated. The waggons as they pass over
the platform of the weighing machine will depress it, and by the
arrangement of levers and other mechanical devices above described,
the pencil or style will be brought against the moving graduated paper
or surface, and will make the required marks thereon.
The operation of the machine is as follows:-The person in charge
keeps the controlling handle i in until he sees that the waggon to bo
weighed is in the correct position upon the weighbridge. He then
draws the handle toward him and thereby releases the weighing
machine lever b. The pointer g then rises till it stands opposite the
weight of the waggon as indicated on the diagram. The last inch of
motion of the handle i then lifts the hammer m and lets it fall, and
the pointer g by this stroke perforates the diagram at the line which
will indicate the weight of the waggon, and upon the controlling handle i
being thrust back the cylinder h moves or rotates a tooth's length
forward. The operation is repeated for the next waggon, and so on
till the whole train has been weighed.
Having now described my Invention of "Improvements in Weighing
Machines," and having explained the manner of carrying the same into
effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent as
aforesaid,―
First. The adaptation to platform weighing machines of an automatic
or self-registering apparatus to indicate and register (as herein set forth)
the weights that are brought in succession on the platform.
Second. The combination with the weighing mechanism of a platform
weighing machine of a graduated diagram or surface on which the

page_text: depression of the platform of the weighing machine will cause marks
to be made, so as to indicate and register the weight on the weighing
platform, as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Mackenzie, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-third day of March, in the 5
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.