AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR AGITATING AND MIXING SUBSTANCES
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Davies, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn,
in the County of Middlesex, and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the City
of Glasgow, Civil Engineer and Patent Agent, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR AGITATING AND MIXING SUBSTANCES."-A
communication from abroad by James Holmes Harper and James
Harper Peabody, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of
America.
Sealed the 11th September 1863, and dated the 28th April 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Davies at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 28th
April 1868.
I, GEORGE DAVIES, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of
Middlesex, and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the City of Glasgow, Civil
Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR AGITATING AND MIXING SUBSTANCES," (a
communication to me from abroad by James Holmes Harper and James
Harper Peabody, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of
America,) to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of two or more spiral or twisted rods or bars
contained in a vessel of suitable form, one spiral rod being left-handed and
the other right-handed, or the rods being otherwise so formed and arranged
and caused to so revolve as to produco separato currents in and a thorough

page_text: agitation and adinixture of the contents of the vessel. The fluid or semi-
fluid having been deposited in the vessel and a rotary motion being imparted
to the spiral rods, one rod must have a tendency to force the fluid in one
direction and the other rod to force the fluid in a contrary direction; hence
there are two currents of the fluid constantly circulating in the vessel in con-
trary directions to each other. The two currents, however, are not uniform
undisturbed streams, for the angles presented by the spiral rods are such that
the fluid must necessarily be forced by the bars in an angular direction,
thereby producing minor currents and more or less interrupting and disturbing
the first-mentioned currents.
Instead of using a left-handed and a right-handed spiral rod and causing
the two to revolve in the same direction, two left-handed or two right-handed
spiral rods revolving in contrary directions to each other may be used, but
the agitation and mixing produced by the latter arrangement will not be so
effective and thorough as that above described, for the reason that there will
not be such a constant change in the relative position of the two rods as they
revolve.
The above-described machine may be used effectively for beating eggs,
mixing batter, and for mixing the many substances required in the preparation
of articles of diet. The machine may be also used, on a larger scale, as a
churn, and when thus used a third and even a fourth spiral rod may be used,
and vanes or beaters may be attached to the rods in order that a more
thorough agitation of the cream may be produced.
A machine on a still larger scale, and involving the principles described
above, may be made for mixing clay and other heavy substances; in fact the
machine may be used for treating any substances or compounds which have to
be thoroughly agitated and mixed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Davies in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
28th October 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
DAVIES, of No. 1, Serlc Stroct, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of Middlesex,
and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the City of Glasgow, Civil Engineer and
Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 8
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of April, in the year of our Lord

page_text: One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said George Davies, IIer special license that I, the said George Davies, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George
Davies, my executors, administrators, or 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 MACHINE
FOR AGITATING AND MIXING SUBSTANCES," (a communication to me from abroad
by James Holmes Harper and James Harper Peabody, both of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said George Davies, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Davies, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement in writing, and on reference to the accompanying Drawings, that is
to say :-
This Invention consists of two or more spiral or twisted rods or bars
contained in a vessel of suitable form, one spiral rod being left-handed and the
other right-handed, or the rods being otherwise so formed and arranged and
caused to so revolve as to produce separate currents in and a thorough
agitation and admixture of the contents of the vessel.
Such being the nature and object of the said Invention for "An Improved
Machine for Agitating and Mixing Substances," I will now proceed to describe
more in detail the manner in which the same is to be or may bo performed or
carried into practical effect. And in order that the same may be distinctly
understood, I have annexed hereunto a Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof,
and have marked the same with figures and letters of reference corresponding
with those in the following explanation thereof, that is to say :-
Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine for agitating and mixing substances;
Figure 2, a transverse vertical section of the machine; and Figure 3, an end
view. Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.
A represents the vessel for receiving the substance to bo agitated and

page_text: mixed, and within this vessel are the two spiral rods or bars B and B¹, the
ends a, a, of which turn in recesses formed in one end of the vessel, the
opposite ends b, b, which are square, fitting into square recesses in spindles
D, D, which project through and turn in the end A¹ of the vessel. Each
spindle D is furnished with a pinion E, into the teeth of which gear those of
the driving wheel F, which is furnished with a suitable handle E, the wheel
turning on a central pin f secured to the side A' of the vessel. On turning
the driving wheel both spiral rods or bars will revolve in the same directions,
the dotted lines a, a, representing their centres of rotation, and each spiral
rod representing the thread of a screw. It should be understood that one
spiral rod should represent the thread of a right-handed screw, while the other
spiral rod represents the thread of a left-handed screw. It is desirable that
the rods should be as near to the bottom of the vessel as possible without
being in actual contact therewith, and that the lower portion of the vessel
should conform or nearly conform in shape to the circumference described by
the revolving rods, as seen in Figure 2. The fluid or semi-fluid having been
deposited in the vessel and a rotary motion being imparted to the spiral rods,
one rod must have a tendency to force the fluid in one direction, and the other
rod to force the fluid in a contrary direction, hence there are two currents of
the fluid constantly circulating in the vessel in contrary directions to each
other. The two currents, however, are not uniform undisturbed streams, for
the angles presented by the spiral rods are such that the fluid must necessarily
be forced by the bars in an angular direction, thereby producing minor
currents and more or less interrupting and disturbing the first-mentioned
currents.
Figure 1 illustrates one of the positions which the spiral rods will assume
in respect to each other as they revolve. When we take into account, how-
ever, the constant change taking place from one position to another, and the
changes of relative positions from that illustrated, it will be evident that a
most thorough agitation and intimate admixture of the contents of the vessels
must ensue.
Instead of using a left-handed and a right-handed spiral rod and causing
the two to revolve in the same direction, two left-handed or two right-handed
spiral rods revolving in contrary directions to each other may be used, but the
agitation and mixing produced by the latter arrangement will not be so
effective and thorough as that above described for the reason that there will
not be such a constant change in the relative position of the two rods as they
revolve.

page_text: mixing batter, and for mixing the many substances required in the preparation
of articles of diet. The machine may be also used, on a larger scale, as a
churn, and when thus used a third and even a fourth spiral rod may be used,
and vanes or beaters may be attached to the rods in order that a more
thorough agitation of the cream may be produced.
A machine on a still larger scale, and involving the principles described
above, may be made for mixing clay and other heavy substances; in fact the
machine may be used for treating any substances or compounds which have to
be thoroughly agitated and mixed.
The method described of connecting the spiral rods or bars to the revolving
spindles D has been adopted in all cases where the machine is used as a churn
or for beating eggs or mixing articles of diet, for the reason that the spiral
rods can be readily detached from their bearings after simply compressing
them and as readily replaced, thus affording facilities for the ready cleansing
of the machine.
The Invention does not demand any specific form of vessel for containing
the substances to be mixed, nor is any specific system of gearing necessary for
driving the spiral rods.
Having now described the nature and object of the said Invention for "An
Improved Machine for Agitating and Mixing Substances," together with the
manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or carried into prac-
tical effect, I would remark, in conclusion, that I claim as the Invention
communicated to me by the above-named James Holmes Harper and James
Harper Peabody, two or more spiral rods or bars contained in a vessel of
suitable form, one spiral rod being left-handed and the other right-handed, or
the rods being otherwise so arranged and caused to so revolve as to produce
separate currents in and a thorough agitation and admixture of the contents
of the vessel in the manner specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Davies, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
GEORGE DAVIES. (L.S.)