IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WEIGHING AND MIXING GRAIN AND OTHER SUBSTANCES
Year: 1884

page_text: I, JOHN DANIA TOMLINSON of the Soho Iron Works Rochdale in the County
of Lancaster, Engineer do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WEIGHING AND MIXING GRAIN AND OTHER
SUBSTANCES" to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to apparatus particularly adapted for use in the mixing of
different qualities of grain in required proportions. Previously to my Invention it
has been customary to measure the grain but owing to variations in the weights
and qualities this method has not been certain and satisfactory. To accomplish
the object in a more satisfactory manner I have devised an apparatus which
weighs each quality of grain and mixes the different qualities as they are being
discharged. I provide a number of tipping scale hoppers upon weighing levers or
frames and I convey the different qualities of grain separately to the said hoppers
or to as many of the hoppers as may be required. The shutes conveying the grain
are provided with valves which are kept open by means of levers which are con-
nected with locking catches. The framing of the machine supports a revolving
shaft which imparts movement to a rocking shaft on which are fingers which
vibrate to and fro. When any one of the hoppers has received the specified weight
of grain and descends its lever frame interposes a part between the corresponding
vibrating finger and the locking catch whereby the latter is knocked off or dis-
engaged the valve in the shute supplying the said hopper being then permitted to
close or being closed by the loaded lever. A tipping lever frame is arranged to act
simultaneously upon all the weighing hoppers and a hollow shaft or sleeve upon
the said revolving shaft or a second shaft carries cams or excentrics which are kept
out of action by suitable means until all the hoppers in use are charged when the
cam shaft is permitted to revolve and the cams acting on the tipping frame causes
the said frame to tip the hoppers simultaneously. In the arrangement I have
devised for the purpose the hollow cam shaft carries a detent which is held out of
action by a number of catches. corresponding to the number of weighing hoppers
Each catch is acted upon by one of the aforesaid locking catches or is
disengaged when the corresponding hopper descends when charged. The detent is
held until the whole of the catches are disengaged when the said detent turns and
engages with the teeth of a wheel upon the inner shaft when both shafts revolve
in use.

page_text: together and the cams or excentrics act upon the tipping frame. The said hollow
shaft carries a set of cams or excentrics which when the said shaft revolves act
upon the levers which control the valves in the shutes whereby the said valves are
opened and the aforesaid locking catches are set ready for another weighing
operation. The weighing and mixing thus proceed automatically the mixing
taking place as the grain descends the delivery shute or falls into the receptacle.
The apparatus or modifications thereof may be used in the weighing and mixing of
other substances. The details for controlling the action of the weighing hoppers
and of the tipping frame may be varied so long as the hoppers are caused to tip
their contents simultaneously.

page_text: "
I JOHN DANIA TOMLINSON of the Soho Iron Works Rochdale in the County
of Lancaster Engineer do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WEIGHING AND MIXING GRAIN AND OTHER
SUBSTANCES," and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement and accompanying
drawings:-
My Invention relates to apparatus particularly adapted for use in the mixing of
different qualities of grain in required proportions. Previously to my invention it
has been customary to measure the grain but owing to variations in the weights
and qualities this method has not been certain and satisfactory. To accomplish
the object in a more satisfactory manner I have devised an apparatus which
weighs each quality of grain and mixes the different qualities as they are being
discharged. I provide a number of scale hoppers upon weighing levers or frames
and I convey the different qualities of grain separately to the said hoppers or to as
many of the hoppers as may be required. When any one of the hoppers has
received the specified weight of grain and descends the valve in the shute
supplying the said hopper closes. The several sets of weighing apparatus are so
connected together as that the discharge of the hoppers only takes place when
every hopper in the series has received its load when all the hoppers discharge
their contents simultaneously. The weighing and mixing thus proceed auto-
matically the mixing taking place as the grain descends the delivery shute or falls
into the receptacle.
In order that my Invention may be fully understood I will describe the same
with reference to the accompanying drawings which are made for the most part to
a scale of about three inches to the foot. In the said drawings Fig: 1 represents
an end elevation and Fig: 2 a plan of one of the weighing machines-say for
example the end machine in a series of four-portions of the framing being left out
to show the interior mechanisim more distinctly. In the said Figs A. is the hopper
which is suspended from the forked weigh-beam b. which is pivoted at c. c. and is
loaded with weights d. which can be varied in amount as is usual. This part of.
the apparatus may be of any ordinary or suitable construction so long as the
hopper descends to some entent when it has received the required amount of grain.
The grain descends into the hopper through a shute e. which is provided with an
arc shaped swing valve f. which is carried by arms which are fixed to a rocking
shaft g. The valve is brought below the mouth of the shute to stop delivery of the
grain or is withdrawn to open the shute at the required times by turning the .
shaft g. by means of a connecting link h. which is jointed to a lever upon the said
shaft. The framing of the machine carries a driving shaft i. which extends
throughout the four weighing machines or otherwise the corresponding shafts in
the four machines are coupled together. Upon this shaft is fixed a pinion j. which
gears with a spur wheel . which is fixed upon a shaft m This latter shaft
revolves within a sleeve or hollow cam shaft k, upon which are fixed two cams n

page_text: and o. which are also separately represented. Upon the outer end of the hollow
shaft is formed or fixed a plate p. which carries a detent lever q. which is mounted
upon a stud fixed in the plate. The said detent lever is acted upon by a spiral
spring which tends to bring the detent into gear with a ratchet wheel which is
fixed upon the inner shaft m. but the said detent is sustained out of gear by means
of four catches r. . These catches are mounted to turn upon fulcra at s. and are
each formed at one end with a projection which holds back the detent and at the
other end are jointed each to one of four sliding bars or rods t. Of these four
bars t. one serves for the machine represented each of the other bars being extended
to one of the three other machines in the series. It will be seen that so long as
the detent is held by one of the four catches the hollow cam shaft k. remains at
rest. The connecting link his connected by its lower end with a lever u. which is
mounted upon a fulcrum at v. and is loaded so that it tends to close the valve f.
To this lever is hinged a prop 'a' which by resting upon a fixed bar or ledge
sustains the load so that the valve is kept open. A shaft x. receives motion by
means of a chain and chain wheels y. from the main driving shaft and is provided
with a wiper z. Upon the weigh beam is mounted a hinged arm b¹ which is
formed with a projecting head which when the said arm is raised by reason of the
descent of the hopper end of the weigh beam is interposed between the wiper z.
and the top of the prop a' and serves to receive the push of the wiper and to
transmit the same to the prop which is thus knocked off its support and the loaded
arm of the lever u. drops whereby the valve j. becomes closed. A link w. is
jointed to the lever u. and to one arm of a bell-crank lever c¹ so that when the
loaded arm of the said lever drops as aforesaid the lever c¹ turns upon its fulcrum
stud and thereby slides the bar t. with which the other arm of the lever is con-
nected as indicated in Fig: 3. This movement of the bar has the effect of
withdrawing the connected catch r. from its hold upon the detent q. In each of
the other three machines the corresponding bell crank lever is connected with a
different bar in the remaining three so that concerted action of the four machines
is obtained. When any one hopper has received its load and drops one of the four
catches in each machine is withdrawn and the machine then waits with its hopper
retaining its contents until the hoppers in the other three machines have received
their full load. When the hopper which may according to circumstances be the
last to receive its load drops the fourth or last catch in the four is withdrawn and
the detent q. is then free to yield to the pull of the spring and immediately turns
into gear with the ratchet wheel thereby connecting the hollow cam shaft k. with
the inner revolving shaft m. and the two revolve together. The bottom of
the hopper is hinged at d¹ and is held up by means of hooked catches which are
fixed upon a rocking shaft e¹ upon which is fixed an arm f¹. A bar g¹ is fitted to
slide in fixed ways or as in the example is mounted upon anti-friction wheels
which are carried by a bar h¹. To the said bar g' is connected the lower end of a
swing lever ¹ which is mounted upon a fulcrum at . When the cam shaft
revolves the cam n acts upon the lever so as to cause it to slide outward the
bar g¹ by a slow movement. The said bar at the commencement of its movement
strikes the arm f¹ and thereby knocks off the catches and the hinged bottom of
the hopper falls open to discharge the grain. Upon the hinge pin of the hopper
bottom is a lever m¹ which is provided with an anti-friction bowl. During the
forward movement of the bar g₁ the grain is discharged and by the time this is
effected a projecting piece n¹ on the said bar comes into contact with the bowl on
the lever m¹ and by the continued movement of the said bar the hopper bottom is
raised until it is again caught and held by the catches when the bar retires. In
consequence of the concerted action of the machines all the four hoppers discharge
simultaneously and their contents are conveyed into one shute and become mixed
together as they are conveyed into the bins or receptacles for the mixed grain. On
the closing of the hopper bottoms having been effected the cam o. comes into play
and by pressing upon a projection from the lever u. raises the loaded end of the
lever and thereby opens the valve again to admit grain into the hopper this

page_text: action taking place simultaneously in all the machines. This raising of the loaded
end of the lever u. raises the prop a¹ which again takes its bearing upon the
provided support so that the load on the lever is again sustained and by the same
movement of the lever the arm b¹ is drawn down out of the way of the wiper and
the bell crank lever is caused to slide back the bar t. so that the parts in all the
anachines are re-set for the next weighing operation. These operations of opening
and closing the hopper bottom and of opening the valve in the shute take place
during the one revolution of the cam shaft, and as it completes its revolution the
detent is brought up by the catches and as a consequence is disengaged from the
ratchet wheel and the hollow cam shaft rests until all the catches are again
withdrawn. It will thus be seen that the four machines by their concerted action
can be used to weigh charges of four different kinds of grain and that although the
charges may vary to any required extent so that one hopper may be charged much
sooner than others the hoppers all discharge at one time so that the different
charges come together and get mixed as they pass through the discharge shute.
This concerted action of a number of weighing machines and the waiting of the
charged hoppers so that they all discharge simultaneously is the most important
feature of my Invention. I may vary the details as for example I may arrange for
the hoppers to tip instead of for their bottoms to open and I may connect the cam
shafts in all the inachines so as to require only one detent apparatus or I may work
the hopper discharging and shute valve opening mechanisin from one machine in
the series so as to simplify the other machines. I do not confine myself to the
combining together of four or of any number of machines. The apparatus or
modifications thereof may be used in the weighing and mixing of other substances.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
1. The combination of parts constructed, arranged and acting substantially as
and for the purposes set forth and indicated hereinbefore and in and by the
accompanying drawings.
2. In machinery for mixing grain or other substances combining together a
series of weighing machines which are connected together to work in concert by
means of sliding bars or of equivalent parts which hold out of action detents or
parts which bring into operation the hopper discharging mechanisim until all the
hoppers in the series are charged substantially as set forth and indicated.
3. In machinery for mixing grain and other substances the combination of a
series of weighing machines having hoppers supplied by shutes which are provided
with valves each valve being closed on the corresponding hopper dropping by the
knocking off of a catch the knocking off being controlled by means of a part on the
weigh beam and the connecting together of the machines so that the hopper
discharge mechanisim is not put into action until all the hoppers in the series have
dropped substantially as set forth and indicated.
4. The employment in the mixing of grain of connected automatic weighing
machines which receive the various qualities of grain into hoppers in the required
proportion by weight and discharge them contents simultaneously substantially as
set forth and indicated.