IMPROVEMENTS IN SCUTCHING FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES, AND IN THE MACHINERY OF APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR
Year: 1870

page_text: PELLER TAIENT to Christopher nouson, or the Town and County of
Longford, Ireland, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SCUTCHING
FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES, AND IN THE MACHINERY OF APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREFOR."
Sealed the 21st February 1871, and dated the 25th August 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Christopher Robson at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 25th August 1870.
I, CHRISTOPHER ROBSON, of the Town and County of Longford,
Ireland, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for “Im-
PROVEMENTS IN SCUTCHING FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES, AND IN THE
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR," to be as follows, that is to
say:
This Invention has for its object the scutching of flax and other
fibrous substances in a more rapid, efficient, and economical manner
than hitherto practised, and it consists of an arrangement or con-
struction of mechanism wherein grooved or fluted endless belts passing

page_text: over carrying rollers are employed to hold a portion of the flax or other
fibrous substance, whilst the portion which is not held between the said
belts is undergoing the scutching action, as herein-after set forth.
The grooved or fluted belts herein-before referred to are arranged in
pairs, so that the projecting ridges of one belt enter into the hollows or
flutes of the other belt. The unscutched flax or other fibrous substances
to be operated upon is pressed in between one pair of the said grooved or
fluted rollers from a feeding table, and as it passes in between them one-
half or thereabouts of the flax projects at one side of the belt, and hangs
down over a guide, in proximity to which revolving beaters are situated,
and these beat or scutch the fibrous substance as it is traversed by the
said grooved or fluted belts. On arriving at the end of the first pair of
belts the scutched portion of the fibrous substance is raised by means of
a belt travelling at right angles to them, and the scutched portions are
thereby lifted and caught between the several pair of grooved or fluted
belts, so that the unscutched portion hangs down over a guide similar to
that herein-before referred to, and is acted upon in a similar manner by
beaters. The beaters are arranged with separators, consisting of thin.
metallic blades which pass through and separate the fibrous substance
before it is struck by the edge of the beater proper.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Christopher Robson in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 23rd February 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHRISTOPHER
ROBSON, of the Town and County of Longford, Ireland, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the
34th year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Christopher Robson, Her special license
that I, the said Christopher Robson, my executors, administrators,: and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Christopher Robson, 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
:

page_text: vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SCUTCHING FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR
APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Christopher Robson, 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 Christopher Robson, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner thie same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to
say:
My said Invention has for its object the scutching of flax and other
fibrous substances in a more rapid, efficient, and economical manner
than hitherto practised, and it consists of an arrangement or con-
struction of mechanism wherein grooved or fluted endless belts passing
over carrying rollers are employed to hold a portion of the flax or other
fibrous substance, whilst the portion which is not held between the said
belts is undergoing the scutching action, as herein-after set forth.
The grooved or fluted belts herein-before referred to are arranged in
pairs, so that the projecting ridges of one belt enter into the hollows or
flutes of the other belt. The unscutched flax or other fibrous substances
to be operated upon is pressed in between one pair of the said grooved or
fluted belts from a feeding table, and as it passes in between them, one
half or thereabouts of the flax projects at one side of the belt and hangs
down over a guide, in proximity to which revolving beaters are situated,
and these beat or scutch the fibrous substance as it is traversed by the
said grooved or fluted belts. On arriving at the end of the first pair of
belts, the scutched portion of the fibrous substance is raised by means of
a belt travelling at right angles to them, and the scutched portions are
thereby lifted and caught between the several pairs of grooved or fluted
belts, so that the unscutched portion hangs down over a guide similar
.to that herein-before referred to, and is acted upon in a similar manner
by beaters. The beaters are arranged with separators, consisting of thin

page_text: metallic blades which pass. through and separate the fibrous substance
before it is struck by the edge of the beater proper.
And in order that my said Invention may be properly understood, I
now proceed more particularly to set forth the system, mode, or manner
in or under which the same is or may be used or practically carried into
effect, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:
-
On the Sheet of Drawings hereunto appended Figure 1 is a side
elevation of the improved machine or apparatus for scutching flax and
other fibrous substances which constitutes my said Invention; Figure 2
is an end elevation thereof, and Figure 3 a plan of the same. On these
different Figures corresponding parts are indicated by the same letters
of reference._
.
The apparatus consists of a framing A divided into three compart-
ments or divisions within which the greater portion of the mechanism is
enclosed, and in order to more clearly illustrate the positions of these
enclosed portions, the side. of the framing is removed at Figure 1. To
each end of the framing A brackets B, B', are attached, in which the
axes of a number of carrying rollers C, C', are supported as shewn. On
the axis of each of the carrying rollers C one end of other framings D
and E are fixed, as more particularly seen at Figures 1 and 3, and the
other ends of each of these framings are respectively supported by the
beams F and G, placed transversely through the framing A. At those
ends of the framings D and E, which are supported by the beams F and
G, slots a are placed, as shewn at Figure 1, in each of which one of the
ends of the shafts H, H', are carried, and the other ends of these shafts
are supported in suitable bearings placed for that purpose at the front
and rear of the framing A. At or near those ends of the shafts H,
supported by the framings D and E, carrying rollers I, I, are fixed, as
shewn more particularly in dotted lines in plan at Figure 3, and over
these carrying rollers I, I', and the carrying rollers C, herein-before
referred to, endless traversing belts J and K are placed, as shewn.
Underneath each of the carrying rollers I, similar carrying rollers J¹, J³,
are situated and supported on shafts K³, one end of each of which is
supported in bearings placed respectively in the front and rear of the
framing A, and the other ends of each of the shafts K' are carried in
bearings placed in standards L, as shewn at Figure 1. Over the rollers J',
and similar carrying roller C' herein-before referred to, other endless

page_text: traversing belts M and N respectively are placed as shewn more par-
ticularly at Figure 1, and the said belts are also conducted under and
round guide rollers b, situated at the lower part of the machine or
apparatus, as shewn at Figure 1. The endless traversing belts J, K,
M, and N, are formed with grooves or flutes, as shewn in transverse
section by the enlarged detail view Figure 4, and they are so arranged
that the projecting ridges of the belts J and K, enter into the hollows or
flutes of the belts M and N respectively, and vice versa. It is preferred
to construct the ridges of the various belts J, K, M, and N, of india-
rubber or other elastic material and the flat portions of leather or other
similarly suitable material.
The different belts are traversed in the manner now about to be set
forth. On the end of the shaft H, opposite to that on which the carrying
roller I is fixed, a spur wheel O is situated, as more particularly seen in
plan at Figure 3, and geared with a corresponding spur wheel P situated
ou the end of another shaft Q. Motion is transmitted to the shaft Q
and spur wheel P from any prime mover which may be employed to
actuate the machine, by a belt passed round the driving pulley R fixed
on the end of the shaft Q, as shewn, and from the spur wheel P the
motion is communicated to the wheel O thereby rotating the shaft H,
and consequently traversing the fluted belt J. The other fluted belt M
of the same set is traversed by the spur wheel S situated on one end of
the axis of the carrying roller J', and geared with the spur wheel O, as
shewn at Figures 1 and 2. On the end of the shaft Q, opposite to that
whereon the spur wheel P is fixed, a similar spur wheel T is situated and
geared with a corresponding spur wheel U on the axis of the carrying
roller I. The spur wheel U in its turn is geared with a spur wheel V
fixed on the corresponding end of the axis of the carrying roller J³, as
more particularly seen in dotted at Figure 2, and by this means the
second pair of fluted belts K and N are traversed. The fluted belts J
and K of each set are kept in tension by a number of stenting rollers c,
the axis of each of which is supported in the frames D and E respectively,
as shewn at Figure 1, and underneath each pair of fluted belts a guide W
is situated, over the edge of which the ends of the stalks of flax or other
fibrous material being operated upon hang during their passage through
the machine. The apparatus is also provided with two sets of revolving
beaters X and Y fixed on parallel shafts Z, Z', which extend from one
end of the framing A to the other, and by these beaters the flax or other

page_text: fibrous material is scutched. The beaters X and Y are arranged with
separating blades or "gills" x of the form shewn at Figures 1, 2, and 3;
or they may be provided with separators similar to those shewn at x,
Figure 5. These gills or separators consist of thin pieces of metal bolted,
rivetted, or otherwise fixed to the under surfaces of the beaters. The
separators as the beaters revolve pass through and separate the fibrous
substance before it is struck by the edges of the beaters. The shaft Z
whereon one set of beaters is fixed is rotated from the driving shaft Q by
the arrangement of gearing shewn at Figures 1 and 3; this consists in
providing the shaft Z with a spur. wheel d, as shewn at Figure 1, and 1
gearing it with a corresponding spur wheel e fixed on an intermediate
shaft, the outer end of which is furnished with a mitre wheel gearing
into a corresponding mitre wheel / fixed on the shaft K¹, as more
particularly seen in plan at Figure 3, and which shaft is rotated by the
spur gearing O and P, as herein-before described. The rear end of the 1
shaft Z is furnished with a spur wheel k, which gears with a similar spur
wheel on the corresponding end of the shaft Z', which together with
the beaters situated thereon is thereby similarly rotated.
Having thus described in detail the principal parts of mechanism
which conjointly constitute my said improved machine for scutching
flax and other fibrous substances, I now proceed to set forth more
particularly the system or mode of operation of the same.
The flax or other fibrous substance to be operated upon is delivered
from a feeding table to the first set of traversing fluted belts J and M,
and being caught between the ridges of the one belt and the grooves of
the other as these belts move, the said flax or other fibrous substance is
drawn into the machine through an opening in the end of the framing,
similar to that shewn at n in end elevation at Figure 2. The flax or
other fibrous substance is so delivered to the belts J and M that one half
of it, or thereabouts, projects at one side of the belts, and hangs down
over the guide W in proximity to the revolving beaters X and Y, which
as they revolve beat or scutch the said hanging portions as they are
traversed by the belts. That portion of the flax or other fibrous sub-
stance which does not hang down, and is therefore not operated upon
during its passage through the first chamber of the apparatus moves
horizontally along a table p situated in front of the guide W, as shewn
in plan at Figure 3, until arriving at the end of the first pair of belts
the scutched portion of the fibrous substance is raised by means of the

page_text: belt travelling at right angles to the grooved or fluted belts J and M
being passed round a carrying roller situated on the shaft Z, and also
around another roller fixed on a shaft s, as shewn. The scutched
portions of flax or other fibrous substance thus raised by the belt rare
caught between the second pair of fluted belts K and N, so that the
unscutched portions hang down, and these are operated upon in a similar
manner as they are traversed by the fluted belts K and N by the second
pair of revolving beaters X and Y, whilst the previously scutched.
portions travel along the table p', shewn in plan at Figure 3, until
arriving at the slot or opening n in the end of the framing A, shewn,
at Figure 2, where the flax or other substance scutched throughout the
whole length of the fibre is delivered from the machine. In order to
loosen the fibre of the flax or other substance before it is acted upon
by the beaters two or more revolving fluted rollers (not shewn on the
Drawings) may be placed at the feeding end of each pair of grooved or
fluted belts J, M, and K, N, and the flax or other substance made to
pass between them as they rotate. The revolving parts of the apparatus
may be driven at different degrees of speed, according to the nature of
the flax or other fibrous substance being operated upon, by placing a
cone or step pulley on the end of the shaft Q, and passing the driving
belt around it, or the speed may be regulated by any other suitable
arrangement of mechanism, and in lieu of rotating the beaters X and Y
from the shaft Q by means of spur and mitre gearing, as herein-before
described and shewn on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the said beaters
X and Y may be rotated by a belt passed round a pulley on the axis of
one or other of them, and the motion communicated to the beater,
whereon the pulley is not fixed by the spur wheels k and m.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the
system, mode, or manner in or under which the same is or may be used
or practically carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion, that
what I consider novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention
secured to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First. The general arrangement or combination of parts constituting
the scutching machine, herein-before described and shewn on the
accompanying Sheet of Drawings, or any mere modification thereof.
Second. The grooved or fluted belts, herein-before described and
shewn in enlarged transverse section at Figure 4 of the annexed

page_text: Drawings, and the employment thereof as and for the purpose set
forth.
Third. The special arrangements of gills or separators, shewn at
Figures 1, 2, 3, and 5 of the Drawings, and the employment thereof for
separating the fibre, both before and after it has been struck by the a
edges of the beaters.
Fourth. The application of the belt », or its equivalent, for raising the
flax or other fibrous substance to the second pair of grooved or fluted
belts, as herein-before described and shewn at Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the
appended Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher Robson, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of February One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-one._