IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CHEESE
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Henry Pugh, of Uttoxeter, in the County of
Stafford, Ironmonger's Assistant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CHEESE."
Sealed the 13th December 1864, and dated the 22nd June 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION feft by the said Charles Henry Pugh at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd June 1864.
I, CHARLES HENRY PUGH, of Uttoxeter, in the County of Stafford, Iron-
monger's Assistant, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CHEESE," to be as
follows:-
My said Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in
apparatus for compressing the curd, so as to separate the whey therefrom, and
in afterwards compressing the said curd into the cheese vat, thus performing
with one apparatus the whole process of cheese making. The vessel in which the
milk is treated for the separation therefrom of the curd, and the curd afterwards
separated from the whey, is supported on a frame consisting of two uprights,

page_text: each of the said uprights being provided with a cross foot furnished with castors,
upon which the vessel can be moved. The said uprights are connected by a
cross piece at top. The said vessel turns upon centres at or near the bottom of
the uprights, and by means of wedges can be readily fixed in an inclined or in a
horizontal position. The perforated pressing plate, by which the curd is pressed
is connected to the vertical rod by which it is forced down by means of a joint,
which permits the said pressing plate to be fixed in a plane at right angles to
the rod, or turned into a plane parallel with the rod. This is effected by means
of two palls on the bottom of the rod engaging with teeth on the pressing
plate. By means of the said palls and teeth the pressing plate may be fixed
in either of the positions described. The vertical rod of the pressing plate may
have a joint near its middle, so as to permit the upper part to be turned down
when the apparatus is used in a room too low to allow the rod to rise to the
necessary height. The rod of the pressing plate passes through the cross
piece or beam at the top of the uprights. A system of compound levers on
the said cross piece is made to give pressure to a pin fixed in a hole in the
said rod, a series of holes being provided in the rod, into any of which the
said pin may be placed to receive the pressure of the levers. A hanging weight
supported by a chain gives pressure to the system of compound levers
described, and through the said levers and rod to the pressing plate. A second
weight and chain connected with the pressing plate raise the pressing plate
when the pressure of the compound levers is removed. Instead of trans-
mitting the pressure of the compound levers to the rod of the pressing plate
by means of the pin passed through a hole in the said rod, a rack or racks
may be made on the said rod, and a pall or palls on the lever be made to
engage with the said rack or racks. The vessel is provided with a false
bottom, below which a valve tap is situated for drawing off the whey. The
screw of the valve is connected with the valve spindle by means of pins in
the former taking into a groove in the latter. This arrangement allows the
valve to fit more accurately on its seat than when the valve and screw are
rigidly connected. The vessel is also provided with other valves or cocks
above the false bottom. The apparatus may be used for pressing the curd
into the vat in the following manner :-The perforated pressing plate being
removed, another and smaller plate or block is substituted. A frame, ordi-
narily called a "ladder," is placed horizontally on the top of the vessel, and
upon this the vat or vessel containing the curd to be pressed is placed. The
pressing plate or block is made to press the curd in the said vat or vessel in
the manner described with reference the pressing of the curd for the sepa-
ration of the whey therefrom. Or the curd placed in the vat or vessel may

page_text: be pressed without removing the pressing plate by placing upon the said curd
a circular piece of wood commonly called a "shooter," and causing the pressing
plate to descend upon it in the manner herein-before described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Henry Pugh in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 17th December 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
HENRY PUGH, of Uttoxeter, in the County of Stafford, Ironmonger's Assistant,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Charles Henry Pugh, Her special licence that I, the said,,Charles
Henry Pugh, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Charles Henry Pugh, 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CHEESE," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles Henry Pugh, 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 Charles Henry Pugh, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the fol-
lowing statement thereof, that is to say:-
My said Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in
apparatus for compressing the curd, so as to separate the whey therefrom,
and in afterwards compressing the said curd into the cheese vat, thus per-
forming with one apparatus the whole process of cheese making. The vessel

page_text: in which the milk is treated for the separation therefrom of the curd, and the
curd afterwards separated from the whey, is supported on a frame consisting of
two uprights, each of the said uprights being provided with a cross foot
furnished with castors, upon which the vessel can be moved. The said
uprights are connected by a cross piece at top. The said vessel turns upon
centres at or near the bottom of the uprights, and by means of studs and
wedges can be readily fixed in an inclined or in a horizontal position. The
perforated pressing plate by which the curd is pressed is connected to the.
vertical rod, by which it is forced down by means of a joint, which permits
the said pressing plate to be fixed in a plane at right angles to the rod, or
turned into a plane parallel with the rod. This is effected by means of two
palls on the bottom of the rod engaging with teeth on the pressing plate. By
means of the said palls and teeth the pressing plate may be fixed in either of
the positions described. The vertical rod of the pressing plate may have a
joint near its middle, so as to permit the upper part to be turned down when
the apparatus is used in a room too low to allow the rod to rise to the
necessary height. The rod of the pressing plate passes through the cross
piece or beam at the top of the uprights. A compound lever on the said cross
piece is made to give pressure to a pin fixed in a hole in the said rod, a series
of holes being provided in the rod, into any of which the said pin may be
placed to receive the pressure of the said lever. A hanging weight supported
by a chain gives pressure to the compound lever described, and through the
said lever and rod to the pressing plate. A second weight and chain con-
nected with the pressing plate raise the pressing plate when the pressure of
the compound lever is removed. Instead of transmitting the pressure of the
compound lever to the rod of the pressing plate by means of a pin passed
through a hole in the said rod, a rack or racks may be made on the said rod,
and a pall or palls on the lever be made to engage with the said rack or racks.
The vessel is provided with a false bottom, below which a valve tap is
situated for drawing off the water used in the said false bottom. The screw
of the valve is connected with the valve spindle by means of pins in the former
taking into a groove in the latter. This arrangement allows the valve to fit
more accurately on its seat than when the valve and screw are rigidly con-
nected. The vessel is also provided with other valves or cocks above the
false bottom for drawing off the whey. The apparatus may be used for
pressing the curd into the vat in the following manner:-The perforated
pressing plate being removed another and smaller plate or block is substituted.
A frame ordinarily called a "ladder" is placed horizontally on the top of the
vessel, and upon this the vat or vessel containing the curd to be pressed is

page_text: placed. The pressing plate or block is made to press the curd in the said vat
or vessel in the manner described with reference to the pressing of the curd
for the separation of the whey therefrom. Or the curd placed in the vat or
vessel may be pressed without removing the pressing plate by placing upon
the said curd a circular piece of wood commonly called a "shooter," and
causing the pressing plate to descend upon it in the manner herein-before
described.
Having explained the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to describe
with reference to the accompanying Drawing the manner in which the same
is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in perspective an apparatus constructed according to
my Invention, the perforated pressing plate of the said apparatus being
represented removed from the vessel, and turned into a vertical plane; and
Figures 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 represent portions of my Invention on a larger
scale, as herein-after particularly explained. The same letters of reference
indicate the same parts in the several Figures of the Drawing.
a, Figure 1, is the cylindrical pan or vessel in which the milk is treated for
the separation therefrom of the curd, and the curd afterwards separated from
the whey. The said pan or vessel is supported on a frame consisting of two
uprights b, b, each upright being provided with a cross foot c furnished with
castors, upon which the vessel can be moved. One of these cross feet is
represented on a larger scale in side elevation in Figure 2. The uprights b, b,
are connected at top by a cross piece or beam d. The vessel a turns ou
centres (one of which, marked e, is represented in Figure 2,) at or near the
bottom of the uprights, the said centres working in the cross feet c of the
apparatus. The vessel a carries at opposite sides two studs f, which work in
inclined slots g in the cross feet c. By means of these studs and slots the
vessel can be tilted or fixed in an inclined or in a horizontal position. The
vessel is fixed in either of the positions described means of the wedge h³,
which is made to fill up one or other of the slots 9, and thereby fix the said
studs f in their places; his the vertical rod working through the beam d, to
the lower end of which rod the perforated pressing plate i is connected by a
joint of the construction best seen on a larger scale in side elevation in
Figure 3, and front elevation in Figure 4. By the arrangement of joint
represented in Figures 3 and 4 the pressing plate is made capable of
rotating upon the vertical rod h, and also of being placed and fixed in a plane
at right angles to the rod, or turned into a plane nearly parallel with the said
rod, or midway between these positions. The said joint is constructed as
follows:-k is a cast-iron centre piece, in the lower face of which bars of

page_text: angle iron are fixed by the casting process; to these bars the perforated
pressing plate i is rivetted. Surmounting the part of the centre piece k is
a toothed ratchet 1 of the form best seen in Figure 3. The lower part of the
ratchet carries a head or block /* (indicated in dotted lines) having a groove (³
in its periphery. The part is capable of turning upon the block 12, the said
parts,, being connected together by screws m passed through the former
engaging in the grooves in the latter. The pressing plate i on the centre
piece is thus capable of rotating on the rod h. The lower end of the vertical
rod h is made into a fork or staple h2, between which the ratchet / is situated
(see Figure 4). The forked bottom h³ of the rod h is connected to the
ratchet by the pin n passed through the said parts. Upon the lower end h
of the bar h two palls o, o, are placed, which engage with the teeth of the
ratchet as represented in Figure 3. When the apparatus is in use the
palls o, a, engage with the ratchet 1 on both sides thereof, as represented, and
maintain the pressing plate i securely at right angles to the vertical rod h, but
when the apparatus in not in use the pressing plate i is turned aside into a
plane nearly parallel to the rod h, as represented in Figure 1, or inclined to
the said rod. In order to effect this, after the said pressing plate i has been
removed from the vessel a, in the manner herein-after explained, one of the
palls o is lifted from the ratchet 1, and the pressing plate i turned aside. By.
this motion the pall which is engaged with the ratchet works over a tooth or
teeth of the said ratchet, and engages with one of the upper teeth of the said
ratchet, and thus fixes the pressing plate in the position represented in
Figure 1, or in an inclined position. Instead of making the pressing plate i
turn on a joint of the construction herein just described, the arrangement of
parts represented in side elevation in Figure 6 A, and front elevation in
Figure 6 B, may be adopted for sliding the said pressing plate from over the
vessel a. I attach to the angle iron k to which the pressing plate i is rivetted
two brackets or bars 22, 1, and I make in the expanded bottom d³ of the
vertical rod d two slots or openings d', d', in which the bars i slide. A hole
at 3 is made in the bottom d³ of the rod d, and holes are also made in the
middle of the bars i², i². When the parts are in the position represented in
Figures 6A and 6 B, a pin i is passed through the holes in the rod d³ and
bars, and the said parts thereby fixed together. The pressing plate i is then
ready for use. When the pressing plate is required to be moved away from
the vessel a the pin it is withdrawn, when the pressing plate can be moved in
either direction from the rod d, and the said plate thus removed by a sliding
motion from over the vessel a. The vertical rod h has a joint h* near its
middle, so as to permit the upper part to be turned down when the apparatus

page_text: is used in a room too low to allow the rod to rise to the necessary height.
The vertical rod h works through the beam d, in which beam is situated a
series of friction pulleys, between which the said rod h slides. This part of
my Invention is represented on a larger scale in Figures 5 and 6, Figure 5
representing a plan of a portion of the beam and the pulleys, the vertical rod
being in section, and Figure 6 a side elevation of the same. The friction
pulleys are marked p in the said Figures 5 and 6. The pressing plate i is
forced down by the rod h in the following manner:-On the cross piece or
beam d is a compound lever q, r, the said levers turning on centres on the
said beam. The levers are connected together by a pin s passing through one
of the holes in the lever q, and engaging with a slot in the lever r. By means
of the series of holes in the lever q the compound lever can be fixed at the
required height from the beam, and the pressure upon the rod h varied at
pleasure. Near the joined end of the lever r is a pall t, which engages with
notches, or with a rack u on the rod h. A second pall under the beam d
also engages with the rack of the rod h. A hanging weight w, supported by
a chain passing over the pulleys y, y, gives pressure to the compound
lever q. r, and by the engagement of the pall t with the rack or teeth u causes
the rod and pressing plate i to descend. When the compound lever q, r,
has been pressed down to its fullest extent the tail t of the pall t strikes
against a fixed pin 2 on the beam d, and disengages the said pall from the
rack u.
The bar is thereby at liberty to slide freely when the pall v has
been liberated from the rack, the said pall v preventing the rebounding of the
pressing plate i when the rod h is liberated in the manner described. After
the pressing plate i has done its work (the pressure of the compound levers
being removed) it is raised out of the vessel a by means of the hanging
weight 3, the chain of which passes over the pulley 4, and over one of the
friction pulleys p, and is connected to the rod h. Instead of the arrangement
described and represented of the pall and rack for transmitting the pressure to
the rod of the pressing plate, the compound lever may give pressure to a pin
fixed in a hole in the vertical rod h. The vessel a is provided with a false
bottom at 5, between which false bottom and the true bottom of the vessel hot
or cold water may be introduced for regulating the temperature of the milk
under treatment. The water in the false bottom is drawn off by means of the
valve tap 6, and above the false bottom are other taps 7, 8, for drawing off
the whey from the vessel a. I construct the valve taps 6, 7, 8, in the manner
represented on a larger scale in Figure 7, where 10 is the conical valve of the
tap fitting on the valve seat 11, and 12 is the screw of the tap. In the valve
spindle 13 a circular groove 14 is made, and on the bottom of the screw 12

page_text: two pins 15 are situated, the said pins engaging with the groove 14, and
thereby connecting the two spindles together. By this arrangement the valve
is made more accurately to fit upon its seat than when the valve and screw are
rigidly connected. I break down the curd by means of a series of inclined
knives 16, represented in the vessel a, Figure 1. The said knives are
arranged in a helical or screw-like direction upon a vertical axis 17, the said
knives and axis being carried by a frame; by giving the axis 17 motion in
opposite directions the knives 16 are made to cut the curd more effectually
than by the ordinary means.
The action of the apparatus is as follows:-The milk in the vessel a having
been curded in the ordinary way, the series of helical or screw-like knives 16
is introduced into the vessel a and rotated in opposite directions, and the curd
thus broken down; the series of knives is then removed, and the pressing
plate i introduced into the vessel, and pressed down by means of the compound
lever q, r, and weight w in the manner before described, the whey is thereby
separated from the curd, the said whey being drawn off by the valve taps 7, 8.
In order to press the curd into the vat the pressing plate i is removed from
the vessel a and rod h, and another and smaller plate or block is substituted
therefor. A frame, ordinarily called a "ladder" (represented in Figure 8), is
placed horizontally on the top of the vessel, and upon this ladder the vat or
vessel containing the curd to be pressed is placed. The pressing plate or
block is made to descend by the motion of the vertical rod h, as herein-before
described, and the said plate or block made to press the curd in the said vat
or vessel. Or the curd placed in the vat or vessel may be pressed without
removing the pressing plate i represented in the Drawing, by placing upon the
said curd a circular piece of wood commonly called a shooter, and causing the
pressing plate i to descend upon it in the manner before explained. The
apparatus can thus be used for performing the whole process of cheese
making.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not
confine myself to the precise details herein described and illustrated in the
Drawing, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature of
my Invention; but I claim as my Invention,-
Firstly, the general arrangement or combination of the parts of the
apparatus herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
and 6 of the accompanying Drawing, used for the manufacture of cheese,
whereby the whole of the process of making cheese may be conducted by the
use of the said apparatus.

page_text: Secondly, the improvement herein-before described and illustrated in
Figure 2 of the accompanying Drawing, for tilting and for maintaining in
an inclined or horizontal position the pan or vessel of apparatus used for
the manufacture of cheese.
Thirdly, the arrangement of parts herein-before described and illustrated in
Figures 1, 3, and 4 of the accompanying Drawing, for connecting the vertical
rod of apparatus used for making cheese to the pressing plate of the said
apparatus, by which the curd is compressed, the said arrangement permitting
the said pressing plate to have rotatory motion upon the said rod, and to be
fixed at right angles or inclined, or nearly parallel to the said rod. Also the
arrangement of parts for sliding the pressing plate away from the vessel,
herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 6A and 6 B of the
accompanying Drawing.
Fourthly, the compound lever and parts connected therewith, herein-before
described and illustrated in Figures 1 and 6 of the accompanying Drawing,
for transmitting the pressure of a hanging weight to the vertical rod and
pressing plate of apparatus used for making cheese. Also the arrangement
of parts for counterbalancing and raising the pressing plate and vertical
rod, herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 1, 4, and 5 of the
accompanying Drawing.
Fifthly, the 'mprovement in the valve taps, herein-before described and
illustrated in Figure 7 of the accompanying Drawing, used with apparatus
for making cheese.
In witness whereof, 1, the said Charles Henry Pugh, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of December, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
Witness,
FRANK JONES,
Uttoxeter.
CHARLES HENRY PUGH. (L.S.)