Improvements in Disintegrating Machines for Leather and the like.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Nov., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Aug., 1895-Accepted, 28th Sept., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Disintegrating Machines for Leather and the like.
I, CARL FRIEDRICH WURMBACH, of Musen near Dahlbruch, Manufacturer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :—
My invention relates to improvements in disintegrating machines for leather and
the like, and has for its object a disintegrating machine or devil for the leather
strips or pieces which constitute the raw material for the manufacture of size.
This raw material consists of skin parings, refuse or waste but not that proceeling
from the tanned parts of the said skin, which parings etc., when wet are very
tender and elastic and of varying thicknesses.
In order to obtain as good and as uniform a product as possible, the leather for
the size must be disintegrated or devilled before being boiled in its wet state and
this operation forms the object of this invention.
This invention has thus for its object the production of a raw material of the
greatest possible uniformity, and hence having the form of fibres. The great
advantage offered by such a disintegrating machine is not only to allow the manu-
facture of size from raw material to take place in a quicker, safer and more
productive manner but also to produce a cleaner and more valuable size.
According to the processes hitherto used whereby uneven and dissimilar leather
scrapings and the like constituted the raw material treated it was not possible to
obtain a regular and uniform treatment and the resulting product was inferior in
quality and in value.
Great difficulties bave always been encountered in the disintegration of leather
and all endeavours made in this direction have hitherto yielded no positive result.
To remedy all these defects and to obtain the technical results above set forth is
the aim of this invention.
In carrying my invention into practice I provide a drum formed of crossed
saw bands arranged at suitable intervals upon an axis and fixed thereon by means
of a boss and screws.
The formation of the teeth is the characteristic feature of
this drum, these teeth are all obliquely sharpened and are made alternately straight
and crossed towards the right, then crossed to the left in order to become straight
again and so on. The teeth which are slantly sharpened form points and cutting edges
the latter following alternately two on the same side; two right slant edges alternate
likewise with two left slant edges and so on. The drum is set in rotation by
a pulley and is driven at a comparatively high speed.
This disintegrating drum is surrounded over a quarter of its periphery or there-
abouts with a casing. The material supplied by the feeding hopper passes between
the drum and its casing and is therein disintegrated or torn into fibres. For this
purpose the casing is provided with teeth on its inner periphery, in which three
recesses alternate with four toothed surfaces; two central surfaces on the contrary
are provided with angular teeth, and this arrangement of alternate recesses, parallel
and angular teeth has a very great importance on the technical effect to be obtained
therefrom the angular teeth serving to push the leather towards the centre.
This drum may be brought more or less into close proximity to the casing by
ineans of the screws and of a hand wheel and when the diameter of the saw bands
becomes smaller by wear, the casing can be moved forward by a pressure screw,
this casing being movable upon the axis.

page_text: The upper part of the casing has the form of a pocket the peculiar form of which
is of importance on the result sought for. In this pocket turns a fluted roller which
is arranged in such a manner, that Between the same and the pocket is formed
a gap or cleft becoming narrower towards the drum. This fluted roller has for
its object to convey over into the pocket and away from the drum, the leather
supplied by the feeding hopper whether it be thick or thin, so that it may be firmly
held at one end in the narrowest part of the rift where the fluted roller and the
pocket come into contact, while the front part is already subject to treatment by
the teeth of the disintegrating drum. The axis of the fluted rollers is movable and
is pressed by weights placed on a lever against the pocket. This pressure can be
released by a hand wheel and can be regulated by a ratchet wheel so as to be
applied wherever required. Material of different size can pass between the fluted
rollers and the pocket. Motion is imparted by means of two pairs of bevil wheels
and by shafts driven by pulleys.
The pocket receives the material from a roughly driven grinding roller which is
smooth. This roller is adjustable longitudinally is rotated by the fluted roller and
has for its object to seize the leather dropping from the feeding hopper to distribute
the same and to convey it to the entrance to the said pocket. At the same time
this roller presses the raw material against the fluted rollers and acts thus
simultaneously as conveyer and distributer while preventing stoppages at the
entrance to the pocket resulting from an undue pressure of the raw material
against the fluted rollers. This machine operates as follows. The leather is
thrown as regularly as possible into a feeding hopper whence it reaches a grinding
roller which distributes it uniformly and conveys it to the entrance of the pocket
where it is seized by a fluted roller and passed on to the disintegrating drum.
The teeth from the latter tear off fibres from the leather, while the same is firmly
held by the fluted roller. The shape of the teeth cause the pointed parts thereof
to enter first the pieces of the skin while the lateral edges cut off the fibres. The
pieces remaining after this treatment are further operated upon in the space
between the drum and its casing, the teeth of the casing holding the pieces while
the saw teeth carry on their tearing action.
But if the teeth were uniform over the whole of the inner periphery of the casing
the pieces of leather would be forced through the saw teeth and pass untouched
through the drum. It is for this reason that the recesses have been designed, in
which recesses the pieces are thrown or slung through by reason of the great power
developed by the centrifugal force.
The angular form of the teeth of the central part of the casing guide and collect
the leather pieces towards the axis of the machine. As my improvements are
capable of some modification without departing from the principle thereof I do not
restrict myself to the precise form and placement of the several parts thereof.
Dated this 22nd day of November 1894.
J. B. FLEURET,
5 Hatton Garden, London, Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Disintegrating Machines for Leather and the like.
I CARL FRIEDRICH WURMBACH of Musen near Dahlbruch in the Empire of
Germany, Manufacturer 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:-
My invention relates to a machine for disintegrating or tearing up spetches or
parings of hides which constitute the raw material for the manufacture of size.
Improvements in Disintegrating Machines for Leather and the like.
I CARL FRIEDRICH WURMBACH of Musen near Dahlbruch in the Empire of
Germany, Manufacturer 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:-
My invention relates to a machine for disintegrating or tearing up spetches or
parings of hides which constitute the raw material for the manufacture of size.

page_text: This raw material spetches consists of waste of raw hide, that is to say untanned
parts of the hide which in the moist state are very tough and elastic and differ
considerably in thickness. In order to obtain however, as uniform a product as
practicable, the spetches previous to the boiling must be torn to pieces in the moist
state this being the object of the present invention.
Accordingly my machine is to produce a raw material which bodily shall be in as
uniform a condition as possible and in the form of fibres. The great advantage
which is then afforded by the use of such a tearing or disintegrating machine lies
not only in the fact that the subsequent process of obtaining size from the raw
product will be more rapid, certain and productive, but that also a purer and more
valuable final product will be gained.
In the customary process using spetches which were bodily in quite an irregular
condition as a raw material, a regular and uniform working was impossible and the
yield and quality of the final product were small and bad.
Great difficulties have always been opposed to the tearing up of the spetches,
and all the experiments made in this respect have not brought about a final
result.
In order to obviate all these inconveniences and to realize at the same time
the before mentioned technical results, I have devised the machine hereinafter set
forth.
In the accompanying drawings in which like letters of reference indicate corre-
sponding parts
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section on the line B B in Figure 2 of the machine.
Figure 2 is a horizontal section on the line A A in Figure 1; and
Figures 3 show a development and transverse section of part of the casing on the
line C C.
Figure 4 is a modification of the tearing or disintegrating machine and
Figure 5 is a section on the line a-y in Fig. 4.
The saw drum a is formed of circular saw blades which separated by intermediate
discs, are secured upon the axis by means of a screw c and projection c¹. Of
particular importance as regards the saw drum are the teeth. These teeth are all
sharpened obliquely and are alternately now straight, then set to the right, then set
to the left, and then again straight and so forth in order to achieve the desired
effect. The obliquely sharpened teeth here constitute points and cutting surfaces
and the latter succeed each other alternately two and two on the same side, that is
to say two obliquely sharpened parts on the right alternate with two obliquely
sharpened parts on the left and so on.
By the belt pulley q a comparatively great number of revolutions per minute is
imparted to the cutting drum.
This saw drum a is surrounded for about one-quarter of its circumference by a
casing, the so called mouth d.
The material coming from the feed funnel or hopper a passes between the drum a
and mouth d and is on this way torn to form fibres.
For this purpose the mouth is provided on its inner periphery with teeth, the
arrangement of which is shewn in Fig. 3. It will be seen that three recesses e e e
alternate with four toothed surfaces, the two extreme ones y y being furnished with
parallel teeth, and the two middle surfaces ff with angular teeth and it is just this
alternation of recesses, parallel and angular teeth which is of special importance for
the technical effect to be produced, and the angular teeth serve for forcing the
spetches more towards the middle.
The mouth consists in this case of a block of cast steel, in which the teeth ƒƒ
and yy and also the recesses e e e may be formed by planing. By the screws g and
hand wheel the saw drum a may be placed more or less near to the mouth d and
when the diameter of the saw blades has become smaller by wear, the mouth may
be re-adjusted by the pressing screw i, the said mouth being at the same time adapte l
to turn about the axis k.
The upper part of the month is shaped so as to constitute a trough the peculiar

page_text: shape of which is of importance. A grooved roller m is arranged to turn in this
trough and is so supported that a slit which becomes narrower towards the drum a
will be produced between the trough and the grooved roller. This grooved roller
has for its object to conduct the spetches coming through the feed funnel or
hopper, whether it be thick or thin, over the trough to the drum. Under these
circumstances the raw material is held by one end at the narrowest point of the
said slit, where the grooved roller and the trough come in contact with each other,
while the front end is already subjected to the treatment by the teeth of the saw
drum. The axis n of the grooved roller is movably supported and is pressed against
the trough by weights, which are arranged on the lever r. By a hand wheels the
weight may be raised and may be fixed in any desired position by a ratchet wheel t.
Therefore material of any desired dimensions can pass between the grooved roller
and the trough.
The driving takes place by two pairs of bevel wheels and the axes o and u which
are actuated by the belt pulleys v v.
The material is conducted to the trough by a roughly turned feed roller p the
so called smooth roller. This roller is adjustably supported, is driven by the
grooved roller and has for its object to seize the spetches introduced through
the feed funnel a, to distribute the same and to conduct it to the inlet of
the trough. This roller presses the raw material at the same time against the
grooved roller, acts as a conveyer and distributer and by pressing the raw material
against the grooved roller obviates choking in the inlet of the mouth.
The mode of operation of the machine is as follows;-
The spetches are thrown as regularly as practicable into the feed funnel. From
this they are pushed to the feed roller which distributes them equally and moves
them towards the inlet of the trough; there the grooved roller seizes them and
surrenders them to the saw drum. By the teeth of the latter fibres are torn from
the spetches, while this is still held by the grooved roller. By reason of the form
of the teeth the points of these teeth penetrate into the pieces of hide while the lateral
sharpened parts cut out the fibres.
The remaining pieces are subjected in the space between the saw drum and the
mouth to a further treatment, inasmuch as the teeth of the mouth hold the pieces
while the saw teeth effect the tearing. If in this case the teeth were quite equally
distributed over the whole interior circumference of the mouth, the spetches or
parings would be pressed between the saw teeth and pass through without being
treated. For this reason I have provided the recesses in which the spetches are
thrown by the very considerable centrifugal force and thus fly from the teeth of
the drum saw.
The before mentioned form of angular tooth at the middle part of the mouth
causes the pieces of spetches to be conducted towards the centre line of the
machine.
In the modification represented in Fig. 4. of such a machine for tearing up
spetches I provide in lieu of the feed funnel x shown in Figure 1. a hopper 1 with
a tearing and cutting roller 2 arranged underneath, which roller preliminarily tears
the spetches and conducts the same through the channel 3 to the grooved roller m.
A further difference of this modification from the machine represented in Figures 1
to 3 lies in the cutters or teeth 4 shown in section Figure 5 of the tearing drum a,
which seize the spetches and tear them to pieces in appropriate notched recesses 5
of the mouth d.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion I declare that what I claim is ;-
-
1. A machine for tearing up spetches or parings of hides for the manufacture of
size, characterized by a rapidly rotating saw drum a formed of circular saw blades,
and a mouth d situated in front and provided with parallel teeth y y and angular
teeth ff, and between which are arranged recesses e e e for the purpose of tearing
the raw material spetches to fibres between the saw drum and the mouth in such

page_text: a manner that a raw product which is bodily in as uniform a condition as
possible will be obtained substantially as described and shown and for the purpose
specified.
2. In the saw drum of the machine specified in the first claim the employment
of teeth which are alternately straight, set to the left and set to the right and
provided with points and obliquely sharpened cutting sufaces, two and two or more
of such cutting surfaces being alternately on the right or left substantially as
described and shown and for the purpose specified.
3. In the machine specified in the first claim the feed mechanism characterized by
a movably supported grooved roller m, a smooth feed roller p and a trough the
roller p distributing the raw material equally, and the latter being seized by the
grooved roller drawn into the trough, clamped between the trough and the grooved
roller and torn up by the saw drum to form fibres substantially as described and
shown and for the purpose specified.
4. A modification represented in Figures 4 & 5 in which the spetches or
parings introduced through the hopper 1 are preliminarily torn by a tearing and
cutting roller, turned spirally and conducted through the channel 3 to the grooved
roller m, whence they are conveyed to the notched shaped recesses 5 of the mouth d
and are here seized by the cutters 4 of the tearing drum and torn up substantially
as described and shown and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 22nd day of August 1895.
J. B. FLEURET,
5 Hatton Garden, London, Agent for the Applicant.