Improved Machine for Pulverising or Scraping Ice.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Aug., 1899-Accepted, 2nd June, 1900
[Communicated from abroad by ADOLFO CHIOSSONE, of No. 9, Via Duc Macelli,
Rome, Italy, Gentleman.]
Improved Machine for Pulverising or Scraping Ice.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 322, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, 6, Lord Street,
Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, and
Lower Temple Street, Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Civil Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
The present invention has for its object a machine for the artificial production
of snow or powdered ice consisting essentially of a cylinder provided with a series
of saws having the form of toothed discs which being mounted obliquely and
parallel to each other produce in action a substantially spiral effect of sawing
and having for their object to reduce naturally or artificially ice to the condition
of powder (snow).
In the accompanying drawings;
Figure 1 represents a general view of the machine
Figure 2 is a side elevation and
Figure 3 illustrates a detail of the endless chain.
The machine as may be seen from the drawings is composed of three principal
parts as follows:-
1. A kind of delivery channel or rectangular carrier a preferably of sheet
iron in which are placed the blocks of ice which are to be reduced to powder,
or submitted to the action of the saw of the screw cylinder b.
2. A cylinder provided with disc saws mounted obliquely on shaft and
separated by rings i.
3. Gearing for the actuation of the cylinder and of the carrier.
As soon as the blocks or pieces of ice have been placed upon the carrier they
are compelled to maintain contact with the cylinder 6 by means of the chain
having teeth or projections placed beneath the plane c.
The said chain possesses a regular motion communicated to it by the above-
mentioned gearing.
It therefore follows that in setting the machine in motion, whether the cylinder
be driven by means of a motor of any kind, or by means of the handle b", the
tooth chain d will share in this motion which has for its object, as already stated,
to bring the blocks of ice into contact with the cylinder and with the saw which
will reduce them to powder. This powder or snow may fall into a vessel, iron
box, or other convenient apparatus, or it may simply fall upon the floor e
from which by means of a shovel it is thrown into another vessel where it can
be compressed and squeezed into moulds by means of a compressing device of
any convenient kind.
The chain d with teeth is actuated by means of the shaft d' (Figure 1) which

page_text: is in turn driven by means of a belt passing around the pulley b¹ keyed upon
the shaft of the cylinder.
The cylinder bis driven by means of the pulley which receives its motion
by means of suitable intermediate gearing from a fixed steam or electrical engine,
or by means of the handle b¹¹.
The cylinder is composed of a series of cast iron rings of rhomboidal form
as to the longitudinal section on the shaft, but of circular form as to the sections
which are at right angles to the shaft so as to compress uniformly and con-
centrically the discs which constitute the saws.
In order to render repairs both of the saw k and of the rings i of the cylinder
more easy, the said rings are arranged so that they can be removed from the
central shaft by unscrewing the terminal rings shaped like a wedge which are
bolted into place.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated
to me by my foreign correspondent I declare that what I claim is:-
1. A machine for the artificial production of powdered ice or snow, characterized
by the combination of a cylinder supported revolubly in a frame and of a carrier
for containing blocks of ice for the purpose of being reduced to powder, sub-
stantially as described, and shewn in the drawings.
2. In a machine such as set forth in Claim 1, an endless chain provided with
points or teeth driven by a transmission system and serving to propel blocks
of ice placed in the carrier thereof and to hold them in contact with the screw
cylinder, substantially as described.
3. In the machine such as set forth in Claim 1, the combination of saw plates k
and cast iron rings of rhomboidal section separating the said saw plates, sub-
stantially as described and shewn in the drawings.
Dated the 21st day of August 1899.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
322, High Holborn, London, W.C.,
Patent Agents for the Applicant.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
322, High Holborn, London, W.C.,
Patent Agents for the Applicant.