IMPROVEMENTS IN HARVESTING MACHINES."
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William George Manwaring, of Banbury, in the County
of Oxford, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN HARVESTING
MACHINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William George Manwaring
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd December 1878.
WILLIAM GEORGE MANWARING, of Banbury, in the County of Oxford, Engineer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN HARVESTING MACHINES."
These improvements relate to that class of harvesting machines in which the
crop is brought towards the cutting apparatus and after being cut is delivered from
one side of a quadrantal platform by means of arms radiating from an upright
shaft placed at the side of the platform, the said arms being guided by cam ways
so constructed that by means of a switch or its equivalent the path of the arms
may be varied so that they may either simply bring the crop towards the platform
and pass over it after it is cut, or else deliver it from the platform.
My Invention consists in mechanism for operating the switch by which the path
of the arms is controlled.
The switch is operated by a rocking arm or its equivalent, the bowle of which
arm is brought into contact with a rotating cam or cams or revolving tappets.
One arrangement of my Invention consists in mounting on the upright shaft a
bevil wheel which turns with the shaft and gears into another bevil wheel, to the
back of which latter is cast or attached a disc, having two or more sets of tappets
arranged concentrically on its face, the outermost set containing the greater
number of tappets. In front of the tappet disc is mounted a rocking arm in con-
nection with the switch to be shifted. This rocking arm is capable of being raised
and lowered so as to bring it within the circuit of either set of tappets, and by
bringing it under the action of these tappets it will give motion to the switch a
greater or less number of times for every rotation of the rake shaft.

page_text: In the second arrangement a spur wheel is mounted on the upright shaft and
drives one of a series of wheels of different diameters placed below each other and
all connected so as to form a cone of wheels. These wheels are geared into corres-
ponding wheels running loose on a shaft, therefore these latter wheels rotate
independently of each other and at different speeds. To each of these latter wheels
a disc cam is cast or attached to operate upon the bowle of a rocking arm which is
in connection with the switch and is capable of being shifted to bring it in line
with either of the cams. Inasmuch as the rotation of each arm relatively to the
rake shaft varies so I am enabled to vary the number of times that the switch is
operated relatively to the number of rotations of that shaft.
In the third arrangement I have also a spur wheel on the rake shaft, but it gives
motion to a pinion. Attached to this pinion is a cone of wheels, as in the last
described arrangement. I have further an extended toothed or barrel wheel to
which a disc cam is attached for giving motion to the rocking arm in connection
with the switch, and I cause the speed of rotation of the cam to vary by driving it
from a larger or smaller wheel of the cone by means of an intermediate pinion
which is so arranged as to be capable of being brought into gear with any one of
the wheels comprised in the cone.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William George Manwaring in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 31st May 1879.
"
WILLIAM GEORGE MANWARING, of Banbury, in the County of Oxford, Engineer.
IMPROVEMENTS IN HARVESTING MACHINES."
These improvements relate to that class of harvesting machines in which the
crop is brought toward the cutting apparatus, and after being cut is delivered from
one side of a quadrantal platform by means of arms radiating from an upright
shaft placed at the side of the platform, the said arms being guided by camways so
constructed that by means of a switch or its equivalent the path of the arms may be
varied so that they may either simply bring the crop towards the platform and pass
over it after it is cut or else deliver it from the platform. My Invention consists in
mechanism for automatically operating the switch by which the path of the arms is
controlled, such automatic action beinging capable of variation according to the
judgment of the attendant.
In the several arrangements of mechanism which I am about to describe the
switch is operated by a rocking arm or its equivalent, the bowle of which arm is
brought into contact with a rotating cam or cams or revolving tappets.
In one arrangement of my Invention I mount upon the rake shaft a bevil wheel
which turns with the shafts and gears into another bevil wheel, to the back of
which latter is cast or attached a dise having two or more sets of tappets arranged
concentrically on its face, the outermost set containing the greater number of
tappets.

page_text: 1
In front of the tappet disc is mounted a rocking arm in connection with the
switch to be shifted. This rocking arm is capable of being raised and lowered on
its spindle so as to bring it within the circuit of either set of tappets, and by.
bringing it under the action of these tappets it will give motion to the switch a
greater or less number of times for every rotation of the rake shaft.
Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4, Sheet I., shew one arrangement of automatic mechanism,
Fig. 1 being a front elevation of the rake shaft of a reaping machine with rake
head, arms, and apparatus for controlling the switch as hereinafter to be described;
Fig. 2 is a plan of the same; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a portion of the cam path,
with switch, together with lever used for lifting the switch; Fig. 4 is an elevation
of the rocking arm or revolving tappets and the parts which transmit the tappet
motion to the switch.
In Fig. 1, A is the rake shaft of a reaping machine; B is the rake head, to which
are attached the arms B'; C, C, are the rollers of the rake arms B', which rollers
run on the cam C¹ when it is desired to sweep the cut crop from the platform, and
are caused to travel up to and over the bridge piece C2 when the rake arms are
intended to act only as gatherers.
To enable the rollers to reach the bridge piece a switch S¹ is provided, which
when in position forms a path for the rollers from the cam to the bridge piece. In
order to-lift the switch out of action and thereby to allow_of_the_rake sweeping off
the cut crop the following contrivance is adopted :-
D is a bevil wheel fixed to the rake shaft A, and into it gears another bevil
wheel D¹; this latter rotates on the pin P fixed to part of the body of the machine,
in this instance to the rake shaft bracket.
:
The back of the wheel D¹ carries two concentric rings of tappets T, T. E is an
arm carrying an antifriction bowle and fitted on a vertical square rocking spindle
E. This arm is made adjustable on its spindle for the purpose of bringing it
under the action of one or other of the rings of tappets T; T', and thereby of rocking
the spindle El.
Fitted to the lower end of the spindle E' is a toothed quadrant F, which gears
into and drives another toothed quadrant F', fixed to a vertical spindle G, carried
by a bracket H. To the lower end of the spindle G is connected a forked lever J
which operates upon a bell crank lever K pivotted to the cam C.
S is a spring fixed to the bell crank lever K, and serving to transmit motion.
from the rock lever K to the switch S', thereby raising the switch out of action.
In Fig. 2 and subsequent plan views the bevil wheels and other gear wheels are
shewn by their pitch circles only.
.
An obvious modification of the above described arrangement is to obtain the
variable motions of the rake arms by driving a single tappet at varying speeds and
causing that tappet to act through a rock lever on the cam switch. An arrange-
ment of this character is shewn in Sheet II., Fig. 5 being a sectional front elevation
and Fig. 6 a plan view of the switch controlling apparatus.
In this case the back of the wheel D', instead of being cast with rings of tappets,
is formed with concentric rings of teeth, as shewn in the detached view, Fig. 7.
Into these rings of teeth gears a pinion P', mounted on a stud pin P², which
spindle is capable of being shifted in its bearing on the bracket H to allow of the
pinion being put into gear with any one of the rings of teeth according to the number
of shifts of the switch desired for one rotation of the rake shaft. Fitted to this
pinion P' is a bowle or tappet R, which comes into contact with the rocking arm or
lever E at each rotation of the pinion P¹, and thereby causes it to rock the bell
crank lever K, and by rocking that lever lift the switch out of action, as before
explained, once for each rotation of the pinion. Instead of driving the concentric
rings of tappets or cams by gearing from the rake shaft I may fit upon that shaft a
disc furnished with the tappets or cams for actuating the rock lever.
This arrangement is shewn in Sheet III., Fig. 8 being a sectional elevation, and
Fig. 9 a plan view of the same.
In this modification it will be seen that the principle of action is identical with.

page_text: that embodied in the arrangement shewn in Sheet L., the automatic lifting of the
switch being effected by the rotating rings of tappets acting upon a bowle brought
within their circuit, the position of such bowle being determined according to the
greater or less number of times the switch is required to be lifted for one rotation of
the rake shaft.
Mounted on the rake shaft A and secured thereto by a clutch is a disc D', having
on its under surface one or more concentric cams W, W; each cam has a different
number of tappets U, U¹.
E is a rock lever which oscillates upon the centre E'; R is a bowle fitted to and
capable of sliding upon one end of the rock lever E for the purpose of being brought
into contact with one or other of the rings of tappets, as desired.
The opposite end of this lever acts upon the bell crank lever K, as before, to lift
the switch out of action.
A second arrangement of mechanism for operating the switch automatically by
means of rotating cams or tappets is illustrated in several views in Sheet IV.
These Figures shew a spur wheel mounted on the rake shaft and driving one of
a series of wheels of diameters placed below each other, and all connected so as to
form a cone of wheels. These wheels are geared into corresponding wheels running
loose on a shaft, therefore these latter wheels rotate independently of each other,
and at different speeds; to each of these latter wheels a disc cam is cast or attached
to operate upon the bowle of a rocking arm which is in connection with the switch,
and is capable of being shifted to bring it in line with either of the cams.
Inasmuch as the rotation of each cam relatively to the rake shaft varies, so I am
enabled to vary the number of times that the switch is operated relatively to
number of rotations of that shaft.
Fig. 10 is a front elevation of this arrangement of apparatus; Fig. 11 is a
plan view of the same, and Fig. 12 is an elevation of the rocking cone and
tappet wheels.
A' is the rake shaft to which is fitted a spur clutch wheel L¹ for transmitting
motion through the cone of wheels L to the cone of tappet wheels M, M³, M²,
which are free to rotate independently on their spindle N¹, carried by the
bracket H.
To the wheels M, M', M2, are attached disc cams 0, 01, 02, respectively, for operating
upon the bowle R of the arm E, which is keyed to the vertical rock shaft E¹, and is
made adjustable thereon to bring its bowle in line with either of the disc cams, as
desired.
Jointed to this rock shaft is an arm J, which connects with a bell crank lever K
that operates through an elastic coupling piece S the switch S¹ and raises the same
clear of the cam C¹, so as to allow the bowles of the rake arms to pass below the
bridge C, as before explained.
It will now be understood that by shifting the arm E which carries the bowle R
into line with the faster or slower rotating cam the action of the rake arms in
gathering in or raking off the corn may be controlled at pleasure.
I will now describe my third arrangement of mechanism for operating the
switch automatically by means of rotating cams or tappets, which arrangement is
shewn in Sheet V.
In this case I have also a spur wheel on the rake shaft which gears into a
pinion L² made fast to the cone of spur wheels, similar to that of the last
described arrangement.
The motion of these cone wheels I transmit through a shifting intermediate wheel
to a barrel wheel, to one end of which a disc cam is attached for giving motion to
the rocking arm in connection with the switch.
.
Fig. 13 is a sectional elevation, and Fig. 14 is a plan view of this arrangement
for operating on the switch.
.
The arm E which carries the bowle R is fixed to its spindle E¹, no vertical adjust-
ment thereof being required, as it is acted upon by one disc cam only which receives
a variable speed of rotation.

page_text: L is a cone of wheels rotating on the fixed spindle N, which stands up from the
bracket H. These cone wheels are driven through the pinion L² from the clutch
wheel L on the rake shaft.
N' is a second fixed spindle standing up from the bracket H, and on it rotates an
extended toothed or barrel wheel Q, carrying at its upper end a disc cam Q¹, for
giving motion to the rocking arm E; V is a radial arm capable of vertical adjust-
ment on the spindle N¹, and carrying a stud pin on which is mounted an
intermediate wheel X, which gearing into the barrel wheel and into one or other of
the cone wheels L will, according to the position to which it is adjusted, impart a
variable speed of rotation to the disc cam Q', and thereby cause the switch to
rise from its cam the desired number of times for each rotation of the rake
shaft.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improvements in Har-
vesting Machines," and explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish
it to be understood that under the above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,―
The application to harvesting machines furnished with a rake or gatherer which
is controlled by a cam of a rocking arm or its equivalent, acted on by rotating cams
or tappets, the said rocking arm or its equivalent actuating the cam switch, as and
for the purpose above described.
-
- In--witness-whereof; I, -the-said-William-George Manwaring, have-hereunto-
set my hand and seal, the Twenty ninth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy nine.
Witness,
J. P. HARDY,
Banbury,
Accountant.
W. G. MANWARING. (L.S.)