IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFAC- TURING WHEAT AND OTHER GRAIN INTO MEAL AND FLOUR
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
HINTON BOVILL, of Abchurch Lane, in the City of London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Fifteenth day of July,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in the sixteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
George Hinton Bovill, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial licence, full
power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said George Hinton Bovill, my
exors, adors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George Hinton
Bovill, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and
no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of years
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend,
within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in the Islands
of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her said Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFAC-
TURING WHEAT AND OTHER GRAIN INTO MEAL AND FLOUR;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said George Hinton Bovill, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my

page_text: hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in
part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto
had, will more fully and at large appear..
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with, the said proviso, I, the said
George Hinton Bovill, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked
thereon; that is to say,-
The first part of my Invention consists in driving mill stones by straps or
bands from a central horizontal shaft acting on drums or riggers on the stone
spindles placed on either side of such horizontal shaft.
Second, drying flour and meal by steam, or hot-air cylinders or apparatus,
instead of the old method of kiln-drying the corn.
Third, subjecting flour to the operation of steam, to restore or
given up in grinding or otherwise.
Fourth, washing and then drying corn by currents of air.
give moisture
Fifth, the application of exhausting or blowing machinery, either separately
or in combination, to mill stones, when such mill stones are made with open-
ings covered with wire gauze, to take out the flour from between the grinding
surfaces in the process of grinding.
Sixth, the application of exhausting apparatus to mill stones, when
ventilating horns or such like instruments are used revolving with the stones.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood, and readily carried
into effect, I will proceed to describe the Drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Sheet A, Figure 1, shews my improved method of driving mill stones by
means of half crossed straps acting from a central horizontal shaft between the
ranges of mill stones to be driven. A represents the driving shaft. B, the
driving riggers on ditto giving motion to the straps C. C, the straps, which
are guided by tightening pullies D, D, and which give motion to the stone
spindle E, E, by means of pullies F, F, on ditto. G, G, are loose pullies on
which the straps C, C, work when the stones are out of gear. H, H, the bed
stones.
I am aware that mill stones have before been driven by straps from a hori-
zontal to a vertical stone spindle, but such applications have been on one side
of the horizontal shaft only, causing great friction and wear on the bearings, I.

page_text: only claim, therefore, the arrangement herein described of driving the stones
on both sides of a central horizontal shaft.
Figure 2 represents my improved method of drying flour by means of steami
and hot-air cylinders. A, A, represents a double-cased revolving cylinder,
lying at a slight inclination, and supported on a hollow spindle B, which by
means of a pipe C, which is supplied at its upper end through a stuffing box D
with steam or hot air (as shewn by the arrows), which is conducted by hollow
arms E, E, into the space between the double sides of the cylinder A first
mentioned. When steam is used the water produced from the condensation
of the steam is taken out at the lower end of the cylinder by means of small
cups or buckets F, F, in the space between the double sides of the cylinder,
which, by means of other hollow arms G, G, deliver it into a pipe H work-
ing in a stuffing box I. J, J, is a fixed cylinder on the outside of the
double-cased cylinder A first mentioned, and is supplied with air from a blow-
ing machine by means of an air pipe K. This air is prevented from escaping'
at the ends of the cylinder by stuffing boxes L, L, L, L; it is, therefore, com-
pelled to fill the space between this stationary cylinder J and the cylinder A,
and thus to become heated by its contact with the outer case of the cylinder A;
it then passes by means of large hollow arms M, M, into a hollow spindle N, from
which, by means of small holes 0, 0, 0, &c., it escapes into the interior of the
double-cased cylinder A. P, P, are stops in the hollow spindle to prevent the
communication between the steam and heater air. Qis a driving rigger, with
various speeds in it, so as to cause the cylinder A to revolve with more or less
rapidity, according to the amount of moisture in the flour or meal to be dried.
R represents a hopper, through which the flour to be dried is fed into the
interior of the double-cased cylinder A, where, by the revolution of the
cylinder, all the particles of the flour are successively presented to the heated
surface of the cylinder and to the hot air which enters into it through the
holes O. S represents the shoot through which the dried flour escapes. The
arrows indicate the direction of the steam, hot air, and water from condensa-
tion. This machine may be used with the double-cased cylinder A alone, with
the arrangement for blowing hot air into the interior; or it may be used with
the hot air applied to the outer case only, without the internal case of double'
cylinder A. The air would be heated by some of the well-known processes for
that purpose.
Figure 3 represents my improved method of giving moisture to flour, of which
it may have been deprived in the process of grinding or otherwise.
A is a
revolving cylinder lying at a slight inclination, carried on a hollow spindle B, B,

page_text: which, by means of a pipe C with a regulating cock, can be fed with any
required amount of steam, which, by small holes D, D, &c., escapes into the
cylinder A first mentioned. E is a driving rigger, with various speeds on it,
so as to cause the cylinder A to revolve with more or less rapidity, according
to the amount of moisture which it may be desired to impart to the flour. F
represents a hopper, through which the flour to be damped is fed into the
interior of the cylinder A, where, by the revolution of the cylinder, all the par-
ticles of the flour are successively brought into contact with the steam escaping
from the holes D, D. G represents the shoot through which the damped flour
escapes. The arrows indicate the course of the current of the steam.
Figures 4 and 5 represent my improved method of cleaning wheat.
Figure 4 shews a machine which I call a washer. A is a fixed vertical
cylinder, of cast iron, or other suitable material, closed at bottom and open at
top, and provided with a step B carrying a vertical spindle C, to which motion
can be given by a bevil pinion D which is supposed to be driven by a wheel,
or the spindle may be made to revolve in any other suitable manner. E, E, E,
&c., arms or blades attached to the spindle, which pass very closely to F, F, F,
&c., also arms or blades, but fixed to the stationary cylinder A. G is a circular
tank round the top of cylinder A, provided with a wire grating H. I, I,
outlet pipes. A proper amount of wheat is introduced into the interior of the
cylinder A, and water is then let in so as to fill the cylinder until it overflows
on the annular grating H. The light grains and impurities contained in the
wheat are separated from it by the agitation caused by the rapid revolution
of the spindle C with its blades E, E, and rising to the surface flow over the
edge of the cylinder A, pass the grating H, which only retains any portions of
grain that may have got mixed with them, and thus escape by the waste water
pipes I, I. As soon as the wheat is judged to be sufficiently clean, J, a slide
at bottom of the cylinder A, is opened, and the wheat and water escape
together by a shoot K into a screen L, through which the water passes, leaving
the washed wheat to fall into the machine, Figure 5, which I call a dryer.
A, a cylinder, formed of open framework, covered with woven wire or perfo-
rated plate, containing a spindle B driven at great velocity by any ordinary
means, supported on which are fan blades C, C, C, a sieve D, and escapes; as
the damp corn enters the top of the cylinder, it is set in rapid motion by the
fan blades revolving at considerable velocity, which, driving a powerful current
of air through the perforated cylinder, evaporates the moisture remaining on
the corn by the time it has passed to the bottom of the cylinder, which may
either may be made fixed or to revolve.

page_text: Figures 1 and 2, Sheet B, represent the application of the exhausting appa-
ratus in elevation and plan applied to mill stones when pieces of perforated
plate or woven wire in the bed stone are employed to take out the flour from
between the stones in the process of grinding. The same letters refer to the
same parts in both Figures. A, the running stone. B, the stone case. C,
the spindle. D, the bed stone, with pieces of woven wire or perforated
plate E, E, E, inserted over cavities F, F, in the bed stone. G, a hopper of
iron or other suitable material attached to the under side of the bed stone,
and covering the whole of the apertures F. H, an outlet from G, leading to
an exhaust apparatus; and I, an outlet for meal or flour. The entrance of air
may be prevented by a balance throttle valve or other suitable means.
Wire gauze or perforated plates covering openings in mill stones for relieving
the grinding surfaces of the flour I am aware has before been used, but such
gauze or perforated plates have hitherto been found to clog or choke;
and I would have it understood that this part of my Invention consists in the
application of currents of air produced either by blowing or exhausting
machinery, and, either separately or in combination, made to pass between the
grinding surfaces of the mill stones and down through the perforations E, E, E,
by which means the flour is cooled and dried, and easily dressed out through
such perforations, assisted by the current of air.
I do not claim the application of gauze wire or perforated plates to mill
stones, except in combination with currents of air.
It is unnecessary to shew in Drawings the ventilating horns on the mill
stones, to which the sixth part of my Invention relates, as they are well known
to all millers and millwrights.
And I would have it understood that I am aware exhaustion has before
been applied to mill stones in various ways, and also in combination with a
blast of air, as previously patented by me.
And, in order that this part of my Invention may be fully understood, I only
claim the application of exhausting machinery to the mill stones when the
ventilating horns or such like instruments are employed revolving with the
stones, and by which combination considerable advantage is gained.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the means for
carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood that I do not
confine myself to the precise details so long as the general principles be
retained.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Hinton Bovill, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
GEORGE HINTON (L.s.) BOVILL.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fifteenth day of January, in
the year of our Lord 1853, the aforesaid George Hinton Bovill came before.
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in
form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
T