IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR HARDEN- ING AND TEMPERING STEEL WIRE
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
We GEORGE ASHWORTH and ELIJAH ASHWORTH of the Moss Brook Works,
Collyhurst, Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Engineers, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR HARDEN-
ING AND TEMPERING STEEL WIRE" to be as follows:-
Our Invention relates to the hardening and tempering of steel wire for use in
the making of wire cards and for other uses. In a former invention for which
Letters Patent bearing date September the 5th of the year 1878 and numbered 3513
have been granted to us we drew wire through a flame to heat the wire thence
through a liquid to harden the wire and finally through a second flame to temper
the wire. When commencing the operation we have threaded the wire through the
machine then started the machine and lighted the gas or have started the machine.
immediately after lighting the gas but in any case a length of wire is spoiled as the
operation does not proceed with regularity until the gas has been lit for some time.>
To reduce the loss of wire to a minimum is the principal object of our present.
invention and this we accomplish by so carrying the guides and parts which convey
or lead the wires as that they can be quickly moved into and out of the positions
which they occupy when guiding the wires through the flames so that the guides
can be threaded and be moved into position to guide the wires through tho flames
at any time after the gas has been lit. In the arrangement which we prefer wo
attach the guides to or form them in arms which are fixed to a shaft which can be
caused to rock in its bearings so as to lift the guides out of and a suitable distance
away from the flames. The end pullies and any guide posts or parts which help to
guide the wire when passing from end to end of the machine and through the
flames and hardening Buid are also carried by the same shaft so that all the parts
move together when the shaft is turned. When the wires have been threaded
through the guides and when the flames are burning with regularity the shaft is
turned to bring the wires into the flames and liquid and at about the same time
the machine is started and the hardening and tempering proceed in the ordinary
manner according to our former invention. We can connect together the levers or
parts which move the wires into the flames and the parts which start the machine.
To produce the flames we discharge gas through jets having bores of such a size as
we find to pass the required amount of gas. These jets discharge upwards into the

page_text: open mouths of tubes which deliver the gas mixed with air in the burner which
consists of a metal tube or chamber having a flat top in which are formed fine slots
or rows of perforations through which the mixed gasses issue so as to form a
straight and regular flame of a width suitable to the number of wires to be passed
through together and of a length suitable to the obtainment of the requisite heat.
Dated thin and day of AAD 1004
We GEORGE ASHWORTH and ELIJAH ASHWORTH of the Moss Brook Works
Collyhurst, Manchester in the County of Lancaster, Engineers, do hereby declaro
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR HARDEN-
-ING AND TEMPERING STEEL WIRE" and in what manner the same is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement and
accompanying drawings:-
Our Invention relates to the hardening and tempering of steel wire for use in
the making of wire cards and for other uses. In a former invention for which
Letters Patent bearing date September the 5th of the year 1878 and numbered 3513
have been granted to us we drew wire through a flame to heat the wire thence
through a liquid to harden the wire and finally through a second flame to temper
the wire. When commencing the operation we have threaded the wire through the
machine, then started the machine and lighted the gas or have started the machine
immediately after lighting the gas but in any case a length of wire has been spoiled
as the operation has not proceeded with regularity until the gas has been lighted
for some time. To reduce the loss of wire to a minimum is the principal object of
our present invention and this we accomplish by so carrying the guides and parts
which convey or lead the wires as that they can be quickly moved into and out of
the positions which they occupy when guiding the wires through the flames so that
the guides can be threaded and be moved into position to guide the wires through
the flames at any time after the gas has been lighted. To produce the flames we
discharge gas through nozzles having bores of such a size as we find to pass the
required amount of gas. These nozzles discharge upwards into the open mouths of
tubes which deliver the gas mixed with air into the burner which consists of a
metal tube or chamber having a flat top in which are formed fine slots or rows of
perforations through which the mixed gases issue so as to form a straight and
regular flame of a width suitable to the number of wires to be passed through
together and of a length suitable to the obtainment of the requisite heat.
In order that the nature of our Invention may be fully understood we will in
our description refer to the accompanying sheet of drawings wherein Fig: 1. repre-
sents a Front Elevation Fig: 2 a Plan view and Fig: 3. an End Elevation of our
improved hardening and tempering machine the said Figs: being drawn to a scale
of about one and a half inches to the foot. In the said Figs: the various parts

page_text: are indicated by the same marks as the corresponding parts in the drawings
tached to the Specification of our said former invention. The wires c. c. are
drawn from the reels B. B. and passing partly around an end pulley d proceed
in straight lines through the hardening flames, the quenching fluid in the
cistern H, and through the tempering flame to a second end pulley e. whence they,
are led round a pulley e¹ to the drums I. upon which the finished wires are
wound. In addition to these parts which correspond to similar parts in our
machine as previously described we mount a shaft a to turn in bearings in
brackets which are fixed to the framing of the machine. Attached to this
shaft are arms 69 63 which carry the guide pulleys d and e. and also the
perforated or slotted guides k. k. which support the wires and guide them in
straight and parallel lines through the flames. The end arms b in addition
to the pulleys carry stumps or fixed pins which separate the wires into four
lines a suitable distance apart in the way which will be readily understood from
an inspection of the drawing. The shaft a¹ is provided with a hand lever c
whereby the shaft can be turned in its bearings so as to raise the guides and guido
pulleys. In Fig: 4 which is drawn to a larger scale the said shaft is represented in
cross section and one of the arms 63 to which is secured one of tho guides k. is
represented in two positions tho full lines indicating the position assumed when
the wires are being hardened and tempered and the dotted lines the position when
the hand lever has been acted upon to turn the shaft. It will be seen that when the
shaft is so turned all the guides k. and the guide pulleys d and e. will be raised
whereby the whole of the wires will be lifted out of the flames and the hardening
and tempering operations will cease. The wires pass close to the upper edges of
the cistern H. so as to pass through the fluid which in overflowing rises above the
said upper edges so that there is nothing to impede the upward movement of the
wire. We may connect together the parts which move the wires into and out of
the flames and the parts which start and stop the machines as for example we may
make the hand lever c¹ act also as a starting and stopping lever by connecting it or
the shaft on which it is fixed with the strap guide or the clutch or brake which
governs the movements of the machine In operating with this improved machine
we thread the wires through the guides and prepare for starting. This can be
done when the guides are in their raised position The gas having been lighted we
keep the wires out of the flames and the drums I. at rest until we consider that
the flames are in a satisfactory condition At a suitable time the wires are lowered
into the flames and at about the same time the machine is started. Whenever it is
necessary for any reason to stop the machine the wires can be raised out of the
flames. Our improved burner is represented in section in Fig: 4 and a portion of
the burner in plan by Fig: 5 The gas is delivered upward through nozzles d¹ d'
which are seen in Fig: 1. The discharge orifices in these nozzles are drilled of
such a size as will deliver a suitable quantity of gas so that separate regulating
cocks which would break the current and reduce the velocity of the issuing gas
are not required The size of the discharge orifice in each nozzle will depend upon
the number of nozzles and upon the pressure of gas. In practice we have found
about one-sixteenth of an inch to give good results. The jets of gas issue upward
into the open mouths of tubes c'e' and induce inflowing air currents which mingle
with the gas the mixture passing upward into the burner F. or G. as the case inay
be. It will be seen that the top of the burner is flat, this being the form we
prefer but we do not confine ourselves to the exact formation. In the top of the
burner we cut or form slots as seen in Figs: 2 and 5. These slots are of such a
width as that the mixture of gases will issue freely without the flame flashing back
as for example the slots may be from one-sixteenth to one-eighth of an inch wide.
It will be seen that the wires pass through the flames on the same level instead of
one above another this furnishing more regular results. When the passages through
the nozzles and through the tubes e' are well proportioned we obtain a very hot
flame and the gas is consumed under the most economical conditions,

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is:
1. The combination of the new and old parts forming the apparatus for use in
the hardening and tempering of steel wire substantially as set forth and indicated
herein before and in and by the accompanying drawings.
2. In apparatus for hardening and tempering steel wire mounting, fixing, or
forming the parts which guide the wires through the hardening and tempering
flames upon arms which are carried by a shaft which can be turned upon its axis
to quickly move the wire into or out of the flames.
3. In apparatus for hardening and tempering steel wire, guiding the wire through
the flames by means of pulleys or guides which are carried by parts which can be
acted upon to move the said pulleys or guides toward or from the flames for the
purposes set forth.
4. In apparatus for hardening and tempering wire the combination of the gas
nozzles with the burner the whole constructed and arranged substantially as set
forth and indicated.