AN IMPROVED MODE OF MANUFACTURING SEMOLINA AND FLOUR, AND
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Gustav Adolph Buchholz, of Montague Place,
Clapham Road, in the County of Surrey, Engineer, for the Invention
of "AN IMPROVED MODE OF MANUFACTURING SEMOLINA AND FLOUR, AND IN
Sealed the 28th April 1863, and dated the 19th November 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th November 1862.
I, GUSTAV ADOLPH BUCHHOLZ, of Montague Place, Clapham Road, in the
County of Surrey, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "AN IMPROVED MODE OF MANUFACTURING SEMOLINA AND FLOUR, AND IN
APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED IN SUCH MANUFACTURES," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to obtain a larger per-centage of semolina
from a given quantity of corn than is capable of being produced by the
ordinary process. To this end I first hull the wheat intended to be converted
into semolina in a novel construction of apparatus in which a peculiar arrange-
ment of metal blades is used for giving the required friction to the grain to
remove the outer skin or the greater portion thereof; when the grain has
passed through the hulling machine I separate the bran or hull therefrom by
means of brushes, and afterwards submit the grain to the action of a novel
construction of crushing roller mill, whereby a large portion will be reduced

page_text: to semolina fit for the market; this I separate by means of sieves from those
portions which still retain bran upon their surfaces, and the yet unbranned
portions I submit to the action of stones so set that they will impart only so
much friction to the particles of crushed corn as will serve to destroy the
adhesion of the bran thereto. This being effected, I next by means of a
dressing machine separate the small portion of flour formed during the
crushing and grinding processes, and by subjecting the semolina to blasts of air
I discharge the remaining bran therefrom. The hulling machine may be
described as consisting of a series of wheels (say three) mounted one above
another on the same vertical shaft, and armed at their peripheries, and at a
portion of their under sides, with blades formed of sheet iron or steel, and set
radially around the wheels. The blades of each wheel are all of the same
size, and they are spaced out by filling pieces in order to present their cutting
edges to the grain. The wheels thus fitted are enclosed in separate cylindrical
chambers which communicate with each other to allow of the grain passing
down from one chamber to the other, the openings made for that purpose
being regulated by slides or valves. The periphery of the lowest chamber is
furnished with gratings for the discharge of bran from the chamber, and the
chambers may be fitted with friction surfaces. The hulling machine I provide
with driving gear so arranged that the direction of rotation of the wheels may
be reversed at pleasure. The object of reversing their rotation is to maintain
the sharpness of the metal blades. The rollers of the crushing mill I form
with pointed cutting teeth produced by making lines of deeper cuts in their
periphery, which lines cut not only the axis of the roller, but also lines
radiating therefrom, and to one roller I give a greater surface speed than the
other.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 19th May 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GUSTAV 30
ADOLPH BUCHHOLZ, of Montague Place, Clapham Road, in the County of
Surrey, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her. Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of 35
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto:

page_text: me, the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz, Her special license, that I, the
said Gustav Adolph Buchholz, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz, 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 "AN IMPROVED MODE OF MANUFACTURING
SEMOLINA AND FLOUR, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED IN SUCH MANUFACTURE,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Gustav Adolph Buchholz, 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 Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The chief object of this Invention is to obtain a larger per-centage of
semolina or of flour from a given quantity of corn than is capable of being
produced by the ordinary process of manufacture.. To this end I first hull
the wheat intended to be converted into semolina in a novel construction of
apparatus, the acting surfaces of which are formed of a peculiar arrangement
of metal blades, which when the apparatus is set in motion give to the grain
the friction requisite for removing the outer skin or the greater portion
thereof. When the grain has passed through this hulling machine, I separate
the bran or hull therefrom by means of brushes, and afterwards submit the
grain to the action of a novel construction of crushing roller mill, whereby a
large portion will be reduced to semolina fit for the market. This I separate
by means of sieves from those portions which still retain bran upon their
surfaces, and the yet unbranned portions I submit to the action of millstones
so set that they will impart only so much friction to the particles of crushed
corn as will serve to destroy the adhesion of the bran thereto. This being
effected, I next by means of a dressing machine separate the small portion of
flour and semolina formed during the crushing and grinding processes, and by
subjecting the semolina to blasts of air I discharge the remaining bran there-
from.

page_text: In Sheet I. of the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1 is a front elevation of
the improved hulling machine, the upper part being in cross section to show
the construction of the operating parts; and Fig. 2 is a side elevation, the
operating parts being slightly modified, as will be hereafter explained.
The hulling machine may be described as consisting of a series of drums or
wheels a, a, (three being the number which I prefer,) mounted one above
another on the vertical shaft b, and armed at their peripheries, and at a portion
of their under sides, with blades 1 and 2, formed of sheet iron or steel, set
radially around the drums or wheels a. These drums are enclosed in separate
cylindrical chambers c, c, c, which are set one above the other, and com-
municate each with the one immediately below it, to allow of the grain passing
down from one chamber to the other, the openings made for that purpose
being regulated by slides or valves. The peripheries of all the chambers are
furnished with gratings, for the discharge through them of bran from those
chambers, and are fitted with friction surfaces. The shaft b, to which the
drums a are keyed, rests in a foot step b¹ carried by a beam d, which is itself
supported by two of four pillars e, e. The other pillars are cast with sockets
to receive bearings for the driving shaft f. This shaft is fitted with two pairs
of pullies g and 9', each of which receives a driving strap from any prime
mover, the one strap being crossed to reverse (when brought into use) the
direction of rotation of the driving shaft. A bevil wheel f¹ keyed on the
shaft gears into a pinion 63 keyed on the shaft b, and thereby conveys rotary
motion to the drums. The shaft b rotates in bearings carried by the
cruciform castings h, h¹, the lower one of which is bolted to the pillars e, e, and
the upper one to standards i, i, which are secured by bolts to the lower
casting. These standards i, i, serve also to carry the chambers c, c, c, the
bottoms of which are severally composed of a circular plate k, open at the
centre to allow of the shaft 6 passing upwards through them. These plates
(see the cross section, Fig. 3,) are formed with an annular recess to receive a
series of blades 3, which are arranged radially in the recess immediately below
the blades 1 and 2 of the drums a, a, a, (see Fig. 1). The plates k of the
upper chambers are also formed with two radial openings, (see the plan view,
Fig. 4,) which openings are capable of being closed by means of slides or
valves k', for regulating the discharge of the grain under operation; but the
lowermost plate has but one radial opening, as shewn in the plan view,
Fig. 5. There are also concentric slots 1, 1, formed in the plates, for allowing
the bran to pass down out of the chambers into a shute l' (Fig. 1), whence it
is conveyed to any suitable receptacle; m, m, are cylinders forming the
peripheries of the chambers c, which are concentric with the drums a. These

page_text: cylinders (shewn detached at Figs. 9) are furnished at their inner periphery
with wire gauze, for ventilating the chambers, and to allow of the discharge of
bran therefrom. Where the gauze does not occur they may be fitted with
blades. The blades of the drums and cylinders are formed of sheet iron or
steel, with square, edges, and they are spaced out by the interposition between
every two blades of pasteboard or other filling of about double the thickness of
the blades. For securing the blades in position, I form them with a "notch"
in their working edges, and insert therein a metal band or binder, which may,
if thought desirable, be rivetted to the drum or plate, as the case may be.
This mode of fixing the blades, and also the details of construction of the
drums, will be readily seen by reference to Figs. 6, 7, and 8, which represent
the drum in top view, edge view, and cross section.
The modification shewn at Fig. 2 is furnished with a means of setting up
the blades as they wear away, so as to maintain the drums at a given diameter.
This means (see also detached views, Figs. 10,) consists of a conical ring n,
which is inserted between the drum and the blades, and, by reason of its
wedge-shaped section, it will, when driven down, thrust forward the blades;
o is a fan mounted on the shaft b, immediately below the lowest chamber c,
and surrounded by a case o¹, and by its rotation air will be drawn through the
perforated sides m of the mill, and between the rubbing surfaces of the
drums b, b, b, and plates k, k, k, and thereby all tendency to heating the grain
during the process of hulling will be avoided. The top chamber c is closed
by a cover c', which is held down in its place by means of clamping screws c³
(Fig. 1). The grain to be operated upon is fed into the top chamber from a
hopper p (Fig. 2), the feed being regulated by a cup roller mounted in the
hopper, and driven by a band from the shaft b. Rotary motion being given
to the shaft b, as above described, the drums will carry round the corn, and
roll it over and over between the friction surfaces, thereby disengaging more
or less of the skin or hull therefrom. The amount of friction to which the
corn is to be exposed will be determined by the position of the slides k', by
which the openings in the plates k may be covered as much as is necessary to
arrive at the desired result. When the grains of corn have been detained a
sufficient time in the first chamber they will fall into the second chamber, and
be there similarly acted upon; when they will escape from this chamber and
fall into the third, to be in like manner rubbed by the friction surfaces. As
the bran is disengaged from the corn, it will to a certain extent pass through
the gratings before mentioned in the periphery of the chambers, and passing
down outside the chambers be discharged into the shute 1. The hulled grain
will fall through the single opening in the bottom plate of the lowest chamber

page_text: into a shute q, and be discharged thence out of the machine. When the
machine has been driven for a given time in any one direction, it may, by
means of the double set of driving pullies, be reversed at pleasure. The object
of thus reversing the rotation of the drums is to maintain the sharpness of the
metal blades simply by the use of the machine. The grain as it leaves the
hulling machine will be mixed with a considerable quantity of bran. This I
separate by subjecting the grain to the action of a dressing machine of the
ordinary construction.
The hulled grain I now submit to a novel construction of crushing mill,
shewn at Sheet II., for reducing it to semolina.
Fig. 1 is a cross section of the crushing mill; Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly
in section; and Fig. 3 a longitudinal section, taken in the line 1, 2, of Fig. 2.
a, a', are a pair of rollers mounted in bearings carried by a strong frame b.
The roller a turns in adjustable bearings, and the roller a' in fixed bearings.
The adjustable roller is kept up to its work by coiled springs, and a transverse
bar c formed with inclined faces, which bear against inclined shoulders of the
framing, and serve to adjust the pressure of the springs. The bar is moved
end wise by the rotation of a transverse screw shaft d, to which is keyed a
disc e.
This disc is embraced by a forked piece projecting from the bar.
When therefore the screw shaft moves endwise, it will draw the bar along
with it, and cause the compression of the coiled springs. The disc is notched
to receive a catch f that is jointed to the bar c, and is intended to ensure the
bar maintaining its position. The rollers of the crushing mill I form with
cutting teeth, produced by making lines of deep cuts on their periphery, which
lines cut not only the axis of the roller, but also lines radiating therefrom, as
shewn in plan at Fig. 4, and in section at Fig. 5. These rollers I gear
together, as shewn in the Drawing, by large and small spur wheels, by which
means I give to one roller a greater surface speed than to the other. The hulled
grain is delivered to the crushing rollers by means of the hopper g, and in
passing between them it is to a great extent reduced to semolina, which may
be ground into flour, or may be made fit for the market by being subjected to
the operation of winnowing. The remainder contains a small portion of fine
flour, and portions of crushed grain still retaining bran. These several
products I separate by means of sieves, and then operate upon the unbranned
portions by means of millstones of from 20 to 30 inches diameter, as already
explained. The whole of the semolina obtained by the several processes is to
be submitted to the operation of a blast in the ordinary manner, the more
perfectly to clear it of fine bran.
I would remark that by my Invention I am not only enabled to produce a

page_text: much larger per-centage of semolina than has heretofore been obtained from a
given quantity of wheat, but I can from an inferior wheat obtain flour of a
very superior quality.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of an improved mode of
manufacturing semolina and flour, and in apparatus to be applied to such
manufacture, and having explained the manner of carrying the same into
effect, I wish it to be understood that, under the above in part recited Letters
Patent, I claim the mode of treating corn as above described, for the pro-
duction of semolina and fine flour, and also the peculiar construction of
apparatus above described with reference to the Drawings, and the manner
of operating the same, for the purpose of hulling and crushing the corn.
In witness whereof, I, the said Gustav Adolph Buchholz, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
5
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
GUSTAV ADOLPH BUCHHOLZ. (L.S.)