A Machine for Aerating Wine, Beer, and other Fermented and Unfermented Liquids.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Feb., 1897-Accepted, 26th June, 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A Machine for Aerating Wine, Beer, and other Fermented and
Unfermented Liquids.
I, CAMILLE AMEYE of Isegham in the Kingdom of Belgium, Merchant, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
My invention has for its object to provide a machine for aerating wine, beer, and
fermented and unfermented bottled liquids in general.
In order that my invention may be clearly understood I will describe the same
with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :-
Figure I is a front view of the machine.
Figure II is a plan thereof with parts removed.
Figure III is a front view drawn to an increased scale of the bottle holders and
Figure IV is a side view thereof.
In the several figures like parts are indicated by similar letters of reference.
The apparatus represented in the drawings is designed for the reception of
sixteen bottles, but its system of construction admits of the shaft being lengthened
so as to largely increase the number of bottle holders.
The machine is formed with a frame A on the uprights or standards of which are
provided bearings a surmounted by lubricators a¹.
The bearings a support a hollow shaft B preferably of steel which effects the
distribution of the carbonic acid gas.
Outside and against the right hand bearing a is placed a bronze hollow box C
fitting with slight friction in a stuffing box carried by the bearing a.
One of the extremities of the hollow shaft B or rather the box C is connected
with a pipe provided with a cock G which controls the admission of carbonic acid
gas. The other extremity of the shaft B is furnished with a driving pulley D
which is driven from any suitable source of power.
d is a meter of revolutions provided with an alarm bell.
A pipe H for the escape of air surmounted by a cock is connected with the
hollow shaft B.
Along its entire length the shaft B carries the double apparatuses I which serve
as supports for the bottles or receivers containing the liquids to be aerated; by the
side of each support are placed the joints F of the pipes for distributing the gas
into the bottles.
All the foregoing refers to the machine as a whole but I will now describe in
detail the different parts of the bottle carriers I.
The double bottle supports are fornied by arms or brackets I of brass or other
suitable material constructed in two pieces the central parts i of which fit the
shaft B and are there fixed by screws bolts and nuts or by any other well known
means.
The lower extremities of the brackets I terminate in projections or bosses i¹
whilst at about their mid length are also provided projections or bosses ?².
The concave circular plates or trays K receiving the bottles are fixed on the
rods L which slide in guide holes in the bosses i¹.
The coiled springs M at one end connected with rings or hooks fixed with the
trays K and at the other end connected to similar rings or hooks carried by the
projections ³, assure the closing of the bottles.

page_text: The concave circular plates or trays K are provided with round cushions or
shields k of india-rubber on which the bottles stand.
On the bosses are pivotally mounted at the actuating_cranked levers N to
which are pin jointed at n' the lower extremities of the rods L.
The operation of these levers which are destined to lower the bottle carrying
trays K in order to receive the bottles, will be easily understood by reference to
the drawings.
The upper extremities of the brackets I are bent round in such manner as
to receive on one part the cocks O for admitting the gas into the bottles, also,
hollow stoppers P of india-rubber which enter the mouths of and ensure the
hermetic sealing of the bottles.
R. R. are tubes of serpentine or coiled form which constitute safety tubes
through which the gas passes and S S are gas distributing pipes communicating
with the hollow shaft B and the bottles.
In order to ensure a greater rapidity in the working or manipulation of the
apparatus I connect together the handles of the cocks O which control the
admission of gas to the bottles by means of rods or horizontal arms O¹ jointed
at 02
To O are also jointed vertical rods O³ connected to a longitudinal bar or
rod 04.
By this arrangement of parts upon bearing at any point on and depressing the
bar or rod the latter draws with it in its descending movement the rods 03
which actuate in their turn the rods O¹ jointed at O2 and which act directly on the
handles of the cocks O, and all the cocks are thereby opened at the same time.
The opposite movement that is to say the releasing of the bar 04 and the
replacing it in its normal position brings about the automatic closing of the
cocks O.
The cocks O are connected by ways X X' with the coiled tubes R.
Having described in detail the different parts of my apparatus, I will now
describe its action.
After having placed the bottles, the contents of which are to be aerated on the
trays K by actuating the levers N, and having introduced into the necks of the
bottles the stoppers P, the pipe leading to the cock G is connected by india-rubber
tubing with a reservoir or gas container, preferably with a bottle of liquid carbonic
acid provided with a pressure regulator.
At a variable pressure according to the liquids under treatment, say three to six
atmospheres, the gas is allowed to enter the apparatus by the cock G ; the gas
flows into the hollow shaft B and from there into the distributing tubes S connected
therewith at F and lastly it is admitted into all the bottles by a single movement
of the bar O, which opens all the cocks at the same time.
By means of the driving pulley D motion is given to the entire apparatus.
The apparatus is first turned for say twenty-five revolutions indicated by the bell
of the revolution counter d after which it is stopped by shifting the driving band or
strap from the fast to the loose pulley.
The gas supply cock G is now closed and the air, driven out by the carbonic gas
which is heavier than air is released by the tube h.
The cock G is again opened and the machine is put in motion as before till the
saturation of the liquids is completed which is effected in from fifty to one hundred
and fifty revolutions, the duration of this treatment varying with the nature of
the liquid.
The cock G is then closed, the aerated bottles removed to the corking machine
and the operation is repeated with another set of bottles.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. An apparatus for ærating wine beer and other fermented and unfermented

page_text: liquids comprising a frame supporting a hollow rotative shaft which serves as a
general conduit for the distribution of the carbonic acid gas, an inlet cock,
distributing pipes connecting with the shaft for conducting the gas into the bottles
and a tube fixed with the hollow shaft for permitting the discharge of air
substantially as herein shown and described.
2. In an apparatus of the character referred to in Claim 1, the double and
vertically moveable plates or trays adapted to receive the bottles and carried by a
double frame or support fixed on the hollow shaft and levers for actuating the trays
to receive the bottles the bottles being maintained in place by tension springs
substantially as herein shown and described.
3. The peculiar construction combination and arrangement of parts constituting
an ærating machine substantially as herein shown and described.
Dated this 23rd day of February 1897.
WHITE & WOODINGTON,
27 Southampton Buildings, London, Agents.