IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBINED THRASHING MACHINES
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Tasker, the younger, of the firm of William
Tasker and Sons, of Waterloo Iron Works, near Andover, in the County
of Hants, Engineers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBINED
THRASHING MACHINES"
Sealed the 14th January 1859, and dated the 19th July 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Tasker at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th July 1858.
I, WILLIAM TASKER, the younger, of the firm of William Tasker and Sons,
of Waterloo Iron Works, near Andover; in the County of Elants, Engineers,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
COMBINED THRASHING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to that portion of combined thrashing machines
which effects the cleaning of the grain, and consists in fixing a riddle on the
upper part or top end of the caving board, for the purpose of facilitating the
separation of the grain from the husks and other extraneous matter. Thegrain
after passing through this riddle and through the caving board enters a set
of riddles fixed immediately under and attached to the caving board, beneath
which last-mentioned riddles a blower is fixed, and so constructed as to direct
a blast of air through the grain as it falls, and also, if found desirable, to
direct a second blast through or beneath the first-mentioned riddle on the
top end of the caving board.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Tasker in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
14th January 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
TASKER, the younger, of the firm of William Tasker and Sons, of Waterloo
Iron Works, near Andover, in the County of Hants, Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-second year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said William Tasker, Her special license that I, the said
William Tasker, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said William Tasker, 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBINED THRASHING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Tasker, 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 William Tasker, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the 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 relates to that portion of combined thrashing machines
which effects the cleaning of the grain, and consists in fixing a riddle near
the upper part or top end of the caving board, for the purpose of facilitating
the separation of the grain from the husks and other extraneous matter. The
grain, after passing through this riddle and through the caving board, enters
a set of riddles fiixed immediately under and attached to the caving board,
beneath which last-mentioned riddles a blower is fixed, and so constructed as
to direct a blast of air through the grain as it falls, and also, if found

page_text: desirable, to direct a second blast through or beneath the first-mentioned
riddle on the top end of the caving board.
And in order that my said Invention may be properly understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I
shall refer to the illustrative Figure on the annexed Sheet of Drawings,
which represents in longitudinal vertical section that portion of a combined
thrashing machine to which my present improvements are applicable.
A, A, is the ordinary framing and casing of the machine, and B, B, the
caving board with my improvements attached thereto. These improvements
consist in fitting a riddle C into the bottom of the caving board at or near
the upper end thereof, beneath which riddle are disposed two other inclined
riddles D and E, which effectually screen the grain from all small seeds and
grits. The inclinations of these latter riddles are made adjustable by set
screws passing through the curved slots a, a, and secured to each side of each
riddle. F and G are fan blowers for winnowing the grain as it falls through
the several riddles. The action of this screening and winnowing apparatus is
as follows: The corn, chaff, &c., when thrashed and separated from the
straw, is passed through riddles fixed before, and comes in contact with, the
first blower F, as in most other steam power combined thrashing machines,
aud falls into the barley horner H or otherwise, such horner when employed
being fixed underneath the blower. On leaving the horuer the corn is
elevated by an ordinary elevator to the top of the machine, and discharged
into the inclined spout or shoot I, which opens into the upper part of the
caving board B, such board receiving its shaking or vibratory motion from
the crank K and connecting rod L. The corn is now shaken gradually down
the caving board and made to traverse over the riddle C fitted therein, which
effectually separates the husseys or tops of the ears from the corn, a and passes
them over the riddle and down the caving board to the first blowing appa-
ratus F to be sifted and blown again. The corn or grain after passing
through the riddle falls on to and traverses over the inclined plate M,
whence it falls on to the riddle D, against the under side of which a
blast of air is directed by the blower F, which also supplies the requisite
blast for the first winnowing or blowing apparatus. The refuse, or that
which passes over the edge of the riddle D, falls into a transverse inclined
spout N, fitted with a wire bottom, which spout directs such refuse into
a sack, and any corn that may be with such refuse falls through the wire
bottom and on to the riddle E to be again submitted to the blowing
apparatus. The grain which falls through the riddle D is caught by

page_text: the second iron plate O, and is winnowed as it falls by the blast from the
blower F, the chaff being carried off at P. An adjustable slide Q prevents
the grain from being carried over with the chaff. From the plate O the
grain falls on to the third riddle E, which will remove the remainder of the
foreign matter which is shaken over the edge of the riddle into the inclined
transverse spout R, and is thereby directed into a sack placed under the
machine for that purpose. The grain which falls through the riddle E is
again winnowed by the blower G, and after passing down the plate S, is
shaken into the transverse inclined spout T also fitted with a wire bottom, for
the purpose of removing the small seeds from the grain before it into
the elevator box U. From this box the grain is elevated to the top of the
machine and delivered into a cylindrical screen outside the machine, which
The refuse matter
separates the grain into different samples for market.
passes
separated by the several riddles, with any seeds or grain which it may contain,
is again passed through the machine with the newly thrashed corn, chaff,&c.,
the whole passing down the iron plate V on the caving board, which plate
carries them over the riddle C, and keeps them separate from the grain, which
enters the caving board by the spout I, until they have first passed through
the horner and first blowing apparatus, after which they are elevated and
passed through the several riddles herein-before referred to. The whole of
the apparatus herein-before described, with the exception of the blowers,
is attached to the caving or receiving board, and is of a cheap and simple
construction, facility being afforded for adjusting, receiving, and changing
the riddles, whilst the different parts of the machine are so arranged as to
enable it to be drawn from place to place without detaching any portion of
it, or removing a single strap.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict
myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion to
describe or refer to, as variations may be made therefrom without deviating
from the principles or main features of my said Invention; but what I con-
sider to be 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 construction, arrangement, and combination of apparatus
to be applied to combined thrashing machines for effecting the cleansing and
winnowing of grain, as herein-before described.
Second, the application and use of a riddle or riddles placed at or near the

page_text: upper end of the caving or receiving boards of combined thrashing machines,
and used in combination or not with one or more cross blasts of air, as herein-
before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Tasker, junior, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of January, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-nine.
WILLIAM TASKER, JUNIOR. (L.S.)