IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING COTTON AND OTHER SUBSTANCES
Year: 1863

page_text: In the Matter of Letters Patent granted to MATTHEW HODGART, Of
Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain, Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING COTTON AND
OTHER SUBSTANCES."-A communication to him from abroad by John
Hodgart, residing at Colaba, Bombay, bearing date the 6th January
1868, No. 47.
DISCLAIMER AND MEMORANDUM OF ALTERATION proposed to be
filed by the Patentee, the said Matthew Hodgart, and with consent of
the said John Hodgart, in the Great Seal Patent Office, with the Specifi-
cation to which the same relates, according to the Statute in that case
made and provided.
WHEREAS since the date of the said Letters Patent, and of the filing of
the Specification thereof, it has been ascertained by practical trials of a press
made under the said Letters Patent, that a part of the arrangements described
and separately claimed in the said Specification is not so necessary nor of such
public utility as at the time of filing the said Specification the Inventor verily

page_text: believed it to be, for which reasons I desire to disclaim some parts of the
said Specification and to amend or alter the same consistently with such
disclaiming.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Matthew Hodgart, by and with the leave
of Her Majesty's Attorney-General, do hereby disclaim,―
66
Firstly, the words "thereby affording additional security should the safety
arrangement at the bottom of the press by any chance become deranged,"
contained in the said Specification in the sixteenth and seventeenth lines, page
six thereof, as printed by Her Majesty's Printers.
Secondly, the words and numeral "the arranging of safety apparatus in the
"bottom or opposite to the follower, substantially as herein-before described.
"And 4" contained in the said Specification, in the tenth, eleventh, and
twelfth lines, page seven thereof, as printed by Her Majesty's Printers.
6
And by and with the leave aforesaid I do hereby amend or alter the said
Specification by inserting between the thirty-first and thirty-second lines on
page five thereof, as printed by Her Majesty's Printers, the following words:―
"But no claim is made to the hydraulic safety valve in connection with the
bottom of the press, as, without diminishing the efficiency of the press, this
"valve and tlie hydraulic cylinder I, and piston J, by means of which it acts,
may be dispensed with, in which case the plate K, upon which the bale is
"made, will rest directly. on the base A of the press, the press being of course
shortened to correspond."
C
66
And I further insert the word "and" before the numeral "3" in the tenth
line, page 7, to render the sentence connected and complete after striking out
the words herein-before secondly disclaimed.
And in order that the effect of the present Disclaimer and Memorandum of
Alteration may be clearly shown and understood, I shall proceed to repeat
(omitting the preamble and testing clause) the said Specification as proposed
to be, hereby amended as follows:-
"The said Invention has for object to obtain increased efficiency and
"convenience in pressing cotton and other substances, and consists principally
"in the adaptation of arrangements for combining the action of one or more
"rams or cylinders with that of levers or equivalent mechanism bearing upon
"the pressing details in such a way that the leverage gradually increases as
the pressing proceeds. The rams or cylinders may be worked by means of
"water or of steam according to circumstances. The Invention also comprises
*. other improved details.
".
And in order that. the said Invention, and the manner of performing the

page_text: "
same may be properly understood, there is hereunto appended a Sheet of
"explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to, and representing two
" modifications of cotton presses as constructed with the improvements.
"
"6
"Figure 1 on the Sheet of Drawings is a plan, and Figure 2 is a side
"elevation of one modification of the improved press; Figures 3 and 4 are
" a plan and a side elevation of another modification; the lower part, however,
"of the press is the same in both modifications, and it is shown in section in
Figure 4, whilst it is shown in front elevation in Figure 5. In both
modifications the framework of the press consists of a strong cast-iron
"base A, and a top B, which are bound together by wrought-iron
"columns C. The box of the press is made of iron plates D, fastened
together by bolts and lined with wood. At the top of the box, which is
"about half the whole height of the press frame, there is an opening with a
"door E, which when open forms a kind of hopper, and by which the box is
"filled with cotton (or other goods to be pressed), and at the bottom there
" is a folding door F at the front, and another F¹ at the back to give
"access to lash the compressed cotton into a bale, and by which it is removed
" from the press. At one end or side of the lower part of the box, and on a
"level with the doors F, F, there is a loose plate G (Figure 4), indicated by
"dotted lines in Figure 5, which plate is fitted into a recess formed for it in
"the side frame plate, and this plate G is, by means of a pair of connected
"levers H, held in a proper position whilst a bale is being pressed and lashed,
"that is, with its inside face flush or continuous with the part of the side
"above it. When the bale is pressed and lashed the levers H are moved
"upwards or downwards, and the plate G is thereby set free to move inwards
"by the pressure of the bale, and the pressure on the ends of the bale is
"thereby relieved, so that the bale can be easily removed from the press.
"connection with the bottom of the press there is a hydraulic safety valve,
"acting by means of a hydraulic cylinder I, about eight or nine inches in
"depth. A piston J is fitted to the cylinder, and the bottom plate K, upon
"which the bales are pressed, rests upon the piston J. A communication is
formed between the cylinder I and a safety valve contained in a box L, and
"this safety valve is loaded to the pressure the press is intended to bear;
"and in the pipe by which the cylinder I is supplied with water there is a
In
valve which opens towards the cylinder. When there is no weight upon
"the piston J, excepting the plate K upon which the bale is to be made,
"water forced in by a pump at a very moderate pressure will open the valve
"referred to and force the piston J and plate K up two or three inches, when

page_text: 66
"their rising 'further will be prevented by the plate K coming up to stops
"formed by the termination of slight recesses for the ends of the plate K
" to work in in the side frame plates immediately below the level of the
"doors F, F. When the pressure exerted in making a bale acts on the
plate K. the inlet valve into the cylinder I will be closed; but immediately
"on the pressure exceeding that for which the safety valve at L is adjusted
"the valve will open and give relief, and the rising of the valve will be a
"convenient indication that the pressing is completed. A pump.worked at
a very low pressure will supply the hydraulic safety valve with water as
"there will be no backward pressure or load on the pump beyond that due to
"the weight of the piston J and plate K. But no claim is made to the
hydraulic safety valve in connection with the bottom of the press, as without
". diminishing the efficiency of the press this valve and the hydraulic cylinder I
"."and piston J, by means of which it acts, may be dispensed with, in which
"case the plate K upon which the bale is made will rest directly on the
"base A of the press, the press being of course shortened to correspond.
66
66
66
66.
66
"
"From the under side of the top B of the press frame there is a broad
jointed lever M suspended by a movable joint N, and to the end of this
"lever M there is jointed a second lever P, and the lower end of this lever P
" is jointed to the ram or follower indicated by dotted lines at Q, which
presses down upon the cotton in the box, being guided by the sides of
"the box. Opposite to and nearly on a level with the middle joint R of
" the levers M, P, when in the position they would assume when hanging
vertically, a hydraulic cylinder S is fixed horizontally upon a pair of strong
"frame pieces T which are bolted to a frame piece U extending between the
top of the box D and the under side of the press top B, and being formed
"with lugs or eyes through which the columns C pass. The frames T are
"further supported by pillars V, and their outer ends are stayed by rods t;
"the bottom or closed end of the cylinder S lies towards the press, and the
"piston or ram W works out in the opposite direction, a cross head X being
"fixed on the end of the piston and working in horizontal guides Y, whilst
"two rods Z jointed upon the cross head X connect it to the middle joint R
" of the levers M, P. These side rods Z are of such a length that when the
ram or piston is at the bottom of the cylinder S the levers M, P, stand out
so as to form an acute angle, as shown in Figure 2, the follower Q, which
" is suspended within the box D, being thereby lifted so as to permit of the
"cotton being introduced beneath it by the door E. The hydraulic cylinder S
*.is supplied with water by force pumps in the ordinary way, and a valve may
65
66

page_text: "be connected to the cylinder in such a way as to be opened by the cross
"head X when the pressing stroke is completed.
;
"The positions assumed by the levers M, P, and the side rods Z, when the
"pressing of the bale is about completed are indicated by red lines in
Figure 2, and as these positions are gradually approached by the parts
"whilst the downward movement of the follower Q becomes gradually less
"for each successive equal part of the movement of the hydraulic piston, the
pressure correspondingly becomes gradually greater just as the gradually-
increasing density of the cotton being pressed requires the greater com-
"pressing force. To assist the upward return of the levers M, P, and
"follower Q, one or more cords or chains connected to the lever P as at a,
"is or are passed over a pulley or pulleys to a counterweight.
36
"The cylinder S may be placed in a vertical; diagonal, or other position
"different from that in which it is shown in Figures 1 and 2, provided the
connections between it and the levers M, P, are modified to suit.
66
According to another modification and which is shown in Figures 3 and 4*
"the cylinder S is made to oscillate, being suspended by trunnions b, and its
"piston rod c, which passes out at the inner end, is connected directly to the
"middle joint R of the levers M, P. In some cases the cylinder may be
arranged to act on the levers M, P, through the intervention of chains.
66
It will be understood by the practical engineer that whether water or
"steam is used to work the cylinder the proportions and strengths of the
parts may be modified to suit the pressure to be employed and the pressing
"force required.
65
"Having thus particularly described the said Invention and the manner in
"which the same is or may be performed, I have to state that the Inventor
"does not restrict himself to the precise details herein-described or delineated,
"but that what is believed to be novel and original, and is claimed as the
"Invention secured by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,―
"1. The combining or arranging of the parts of presses substantially as
"herein-before described, and more particularly.
"2. The combining of a hydraulic or steam cylinder with levers sub-
stantially as herein-before described.
46
And 3. The applying of a movable plate to the part of the press box
"into which the bale is ultimately compressed substantially as herein-before
"described."
And I, the said Matthew Hodgart, do hereby further declare that the above
Disclaimer and Memorandum of Alteration are not nor is any part thereof

page_text: intended to extend the exclusive right granted by the said Letters Patent,
and that these Presents shall not extend the said exclusive right in any way
whatever.
In witness whereof, I, the said Matthew Hodgart, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Matthew Hodgart, of Paisley, in the County of
Renfrew, North Britain, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS.
IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING COTTON AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."-A communi-
cation from abroad by John Hodgart. residing at Colaba. Bombay.
Sealed the 30th June 1868, and dated the 6th January 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Matthew Hodgart at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th January 1863.
I, MATTHEW HODGART, of Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of "IMPROVE
MENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING. COTTON AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," communicated
to me from abroad by John Hodgart, residing at Colaba, Bombay, to be
as follows, that is to say:-
This Invention has for object to obtain increased efficiency and con-
venience in pressing cotton and other substances, and consists principally in the
adaptation of arrangements for combining the action of one or more hydraulic
rams or cylinders with that of levers or equivalent mechanism bearing upon
the pressing details in such a way that the leverage gradually increases as the
pressing proceeds.
The Invention also comprises other improved details..
In a modification of apparatus embodying the improvements, the framework.
consists principally of a strong cast-iron top and bottom, which are bound

page_text: together by wrought-iron columns. The box of the press is made of iron
plates, which are fastened together by bolts. At the top of the box, which is
about half the whole height of the press frame, there is a door or opening, by
which the box is filled with cotton or other goods to be pressed, and at the
bottom of the box there is a folding door on each side, where the pressed bales
are lashed and removed from the press. In one end of the box, on the same
level as the folding doors there is a loose plate about two feet high fitted into a
recess, and this plate is held in the proper position by a double lever, whilst a
bale is being pressed and lashed, and is made to move backward into the recess
(by moving the lever up or down) to ease the pressure from the ends of the
ball when it is ready to be removed from the press. In the bottom of the
press there is a bydraulic safety valve, this valve consisting of a hydraulic
cylinder about eight or nine inches in depth. A piston is fitted to the cylinder,
and the bottom plate upon which the bales are pressed rests upon the piston.
To the side or bottom of the cylinder a safety valve is attached, which is
loaded to the pressure the press is intended to bear, and in the pipe by which
the cylinder is supplied with water there is a valve, which opens towards the
cylinder. When there is no weight on the piston save the plate upon which
the bale is made, water forced in by a pump at a very moderate pressure will
open the valve and force the piston and plate up two or three inches, when
a stop will prevent their rising further, but when the pressure requisite to
make a bale bears on the press plate, the valve in the pipe will shut and pre-
vent the escape of the water until the safety valve rises and shows that the
operation is completed. A pump worked at a very low pressure will supply the
hydraulic safety valve with water, as there will be no backward pressure on
the pump, save that which is due to the weight of the piston and plate. From
the under side of the top of the press frame there is a broad jointed lever sus-
pended by a moveable joint, and to the end of this lever there. is jointed a second.
lever, and the lower end of this second, lever is connected to the ram, or follower
which presses upon the cotton in the box. Opposite to and nearly on a level
with the middle joint of the levers when in the. position they would assume if
hanging loose, a hydraulic cylinder is placed horizontally on, a strong frame,
which is bolted to the. side frames of the press. The bottom of the cylinder
lies towards the. press, and the piston or ram faces in, the opposite direction,. a
cross head being placed on the end of the piston, whilst from each side of the
cross head an arm extends through horizontal guides. Two side rods connect
the cross head on the piston to the middle joints of the levers, and they are of
such a length that when the piston is at the bottom of the cylinder the middle
joint of the levers stands out from the side of the press forming an acute angle

page_text: and lifting the follower (which is suspended in the box) above the top door,
through which the box is filled. A valve is placed on the hydraulic cylinder,
which when the pressing of a bale is finished is opened by the cross head of the
piston, being an additional security to the press in case the other safety valves
should become deranged. The hydraulic cylinder is supplied with water by
force pumps in the ordinary manner.
The essential features of novelty in this Invention are,―
Firstly, the combination of the lever and hydraulic press connected and acting
together in a press for pressing cotton and other goods.
Secondly, the mode of using a bydraulic safety valve applied to a leve
press.
And, thirdly, the mode described of removing the pressure from the ends of
the bale when the pressing operation is completed.
In the modification described, the hydraulic press cylinder by which the
levers are worked is placed horizontally and bolted to the frame, and the piston
of the cylinder is connected to the levers by a cross head and side rods, but the
cylinder may be fixed vertically or diagonally, or suspended on trunnions and
made to oscillate, and the piston may be connected to the levers by one con-
necting rod only, or by either rods or chains.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Matthew Hodgart in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th July 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, J, MATTHEW
HODGART, of Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of January, in the year of our Lord
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 Matthew Hodgart, Her special licence that I, the said Matthew
Hodgart, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Matthew Hodgart, 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

page_text: "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES FOR PRESSING COTTON AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," a com-
munication to me from abroad by John Hodgart, residing at Colaba, Bombay,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Matthew Hodgart, 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 per-
formed, 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 Matthew Hodgart, 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 in writing, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
The said Invention has for object to obtain increased efficiency and con-
venience in pressing cotton and other substances, and consists principally in
the adaptation of arrangements for combining the action of one or more rams
or cylinders with that of levers or equivalent mechanism bearing upon the
pressing details in such a way that the leverage gradually increases as the
pressing proceeds. The rams or cylinders may be worked by means of water
or of steam, according to circumstances. The Invention also comprises other
improved details.
And in order that the said Invention, and the manner of performing the
same may be properly understood, there is hereunto appended a Sheet of
explanatory Drawings, to be herein-after referred to, and representing two
modifications of cotton presses as constructed with the improvements.
Figure 1 on the Sheet of Drawings is a plan, and Figure 2 is a side
elevation, of one modification of the improved press. Figures 3 and 4 are a
plan and a side elevation of another modification; the lower part, however, of
the press is the same in both modifications, and it is shown in section in
Figure 4, whilst it is shown in front elevation in Figure 5. In both modi-
fications the framework of the press consists of a strong cast-iron base A and
a top B, which are bound together by wrought-iron columns C. The box of
the press is made of iron plates D, fastened together by bolts, and lined with
wood. At the top of the box, which is about half the whole height of the
press frame there is an opening with a door E, which when open forms a kind
of hopper, and by which the box is filled with cotton (or the other goods to
be pressed), and at the bottom there is a folding door F at the front, and
another, F', at the back, to give access to lash the compressed cotton into a

page_text: bale, and by which it is removed from the press.
At one end or side of the
lower part of the box, and on a level with the doors F, F', there is a loose
plate G (Figure 4) indicated by dotted lines in Figure 5, which plate is fitted
into a recess formed for it in the side frame plate, and this plate G is, by means
of a pair of connected levers H, held in a proper position whilst a bale is being
pressed and lashed, that is, with its inside face flush or continuous with the
part of the side above it. When the bale is pressed and lashed the levers H
are moved upwards or downwards, and the plate G is thereby set free to move
inwards by the pressure of the bale, and the pressure on the ends of the bale
is thereby relieved, so that the bale can be easily removed from the press. In
connection with the bottom of the press there is a bydraulic safety valve acting
by means of a hydraulic cylinder I, about eight or nine inches in depth. A
piston J is fitted to the cylinder, and the bottom plate K upon which the
bales are pressed rests upon the piston J. A communication is formed between
the cylinder I and a safety valve contained in a box L, and this safety valve
is loaded to the pressure the press is intended to bear; and in the pipe by
which the cylinder I is supplied with water there is a valve which opens
towards the cylinder. When there is no weight upon the piston J, excepting
the plate K, upon which the bale is to be made, water forced in by a pump'
at a very moderate pressure will open the valve referred to, and force the
piston J and plate K up two or three inches, when their rising further will be
prevented the plate K coming up to stops formed by the termination of
slight recesses for the ends of the plate K to work in in the side frame plates
immediately below the level of the doors F, F¹. When the pressure exerted
in making a bale acts on the plate K, the inlet valve into the cylinder I will
be closed; but immediately on the pressure exceeding that for which the
safety valve at L is adjusted, that valve will open and give relief, and the
rising of this valve will be a convenient indication that the pressing operation
is completed. A pump worked at a very low pressure will supply .the
hydraulic safety valve with water, as there will be no backward pressure or
load on the pump beyond that due to the weight of the piston J and plate K.
From the under side of the top B of the press frame there is a broad jointed
lever M, suspended by a movable joint N, and to the end of this lever M there
is jointed a second lever P, and the lower end of this second lever P is
jointed to the ram or follower indicated by dotted lines at Q, which presses
down upon the cotton in the box, being guided by the sides of the box.
Opposite to and nearly on a level with the middle joint R of the levers M, P,
when in the position they would assume when hanging vertically, a bydraulic
cylinder S is fixed horizontally upon a pair of strong frame pieces T, which are

page_text: bolted to a frame piece U extending between the top of the box D and the
under side of the press top B, and being formed with lugs or eyes through
which the columns C pass. The frames T are further supported by pillars V,
and their outer ends are stayed by rods t; the bottom or closed end of the
cylinder S lies towards the press, and the piston or ram W works out in the
opposite direction, a cross head X being fixed on the end of the piston, and
working in horizontal guides Y, whilst two side rods Z, jointed upon the cross
head X, connect it to the middle joint R of the levers M, P. These side
rods Z are of such a length, that when the ram or piston is at the bottom of
the cylinder S the levers M, P, stand out so as to form an acute angle, as
shown in Figure 2, the follower Q, which is suspended within the box D,
being thereby lifted so as to permit of the cotton being introduced beneath it
by the door E. The hydraulic cylinder S is supplied with water by force
pumps in the ordinary way, and a valve may be connected to the cylinder in
such a way as to be opened by the cross head X when the pressing stroke is
completed, thereby affording additional security should the safety arrangement
at the bottom of the press by any chance become deranged.
The positions assumed by the levers M, P, and the side rods Z, when the
pressing of the bale is about completed, are indicated by red lines in Figure 2.
and as these positions are gradually approached by the parts, whilst the down-
ward movement of the follower Q becomes gradually less for each successive
equal part of the movement of the hydraulic piston, the pressure correspond-
ingly becomes gradually greater just as the gradually increasing density of the
cotton being pressed requires the greater compressing force. To assist the
upward return of the levers M, P, and follower Q, one or two cords or chains
connected to the lever P, as at a, is or are passed over a pulley or pulleys to a
counterweight.
The cylinder S may be placed in a vertical, diagonal, or other position
different from that in which it is shown in Figures 1 and 2, provided the
connections between it and the levers M, P, are modified to suit.
According to another modification, and which is shown in Figures 3 and 4,
the cylinder S is made to oscillate, being suspended by trunnions b, and its
piston rod c, which passes out at the inner end, is connected directly to the
middle joint R of the levers M, P. In some cases the cylinder may be
arranged act on the levers M, P, through the intervention of chains.
It will be understood by the practical engineer, that whether water or
steam is used to work the cylinder, the proportions and strengths of the parts
may be modified to suit the pressure to be employed and the pressing force
required.

page_text: Having thus particularly described the said Invention, and the manner. in
which the same is or may be performed, I have to state that the Inventor
does not restrict himself to the precise details herein described or delineated ;
but that what is believed to be novel and original, and is claimed as the
Invention secured by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,―
1. The combining or arranging of the parts of presses, substantially as
herein-before described; and, more particularly,
2. The combining of a hydraulic or steam cylinder with levers, substantially
as herein-before described.
3. The arranging of safety apparatus in the bottom or opposite to the
follower, substantially such as herein-before described.
And 4. The applying of a movable plate to the part of the press box into
which the bale is ultimately compressed, substantially as herein-before
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Matthew Hodgart, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Third day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Witness,
0
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
28, St. Enoch Square,
Glasgow.
MATTHEW HODGART. (L.S.)