IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR PLOUGHING, HARROWING, OR CULTIVATING LAND
Year: 1870

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Taylor at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 7th February
1870.
I, JOHN TAYLOR, of Fakenham, in the County of Norfolk, Manager,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR PLOUGHING, HARROWING, OR CULTIVATING LAND," to bo as
follows:-
This Invention relates to improvements in apparatus for ploughing
and tilling land whereby greater simplicity of construction is attained,
and the travelling of the anchors at the headlands and the alternate
reversing action of the plough is rendered automatic, consequently less
motive power and manual labor is required during the operation.
The description of plough I propose to employ is the double-ended
tipping plough patented by A. F. Campbell, 20th June 1849, and to
give motion to the plough or other tilling instrument I employ a small
portable engine and windlass with two anchors travelling automatically
on the opposite headlands, which anchors are provided with a platform
to receive the plough as it reaches the headland and shift it to new
ground. The double-ended tipping plough is mounted as usual upon a

page_text: strong frame carried by four wheels and rocks upon a central pin or
axle. The arms of the plough extend upward and outward on both
ends, and are furnished at their extremities with guide pulleys over
which the wire rope passes. According to the direction of the plough one
or other of the arms of the plough will be depressed and rest upon an
adjustable bolster attached to the ends of the frame, the opposito arm
being elevated, thereby holding up the slack ropes high above the ground.
Mounted transversely in the frame is a central axle carrying the drum
around which the wire rope is lapped during the traverse of the plough;
the drum is locked on its axle by means of one of a pair of locking
plates carried by a longitudinal sliding frame or bar. These locking
plates act alternately upon the cam-like edges of the rims of the drums.
On the completion of the traverse the locking plate in action will be
thrown out of contact with the drum by the longitudinal sliding frame or
bar striking against a part of the anchor (and at the same time the other
locking plate will be thrown into such a position as to be ready to lock
the drum during the return traverse of the plough); the drum being now
free to revolve under the continued pull of the draught rope will (when
the plough has moved on to the platform) by means of a worm on its
axle impart an axial motion to a longitudinal shaft which carries at its
extremities pinions in gear with racks fitted to transverse slides, which
slides are secured respectively to the ends of the frame. These slides
carry the guide wheels of the plough, and are intended to shift their
respective wheels into such position that at the next traverse the fore
wheel will run in the last furrow and the hind wheel in that which is
to be next turned. On the direction of the motion of the wire rope
being reversed the drum will be again locked, and the plough will then
commence its return traverse.
The travelling anchors consist of a frame provided with four disc or
anchor wheels and a vertical axle carrying the guide pulley round which
the draught rope is passed from the windlass to the plough. On the shaft
of the pulley is a worm for the purpose of giving motion intermittingly
to a longitudinal shaft mounted in the frame of the anchor; the end of
this shaft is provided with a mitre wheel in gear with a pair of mitre
wheels running loose on the shaft of one of the carrying wheels.
Upon the bosses of the last-mentioned mitre wheels are ratchet teeth,
into which work pawles carried by discs keyed to the axle of the
carrying wheel, so that whatever direction of rotation is transmitted to

page_text: the axle of the carrying wheels the anchor will always be propelled in
the same direction. The platform for receiving the plough at the end
of each traverse are hinged to the anchor frames, and the gearing
as to move the anchor when the plough is on its platform the distance
of a furrow. The gearing is set in action by the sliding bar of the
plough striking against a lever hinged to the frame of the anchor; the
motion imparted to this lever serves to couple the horizontal shaft
with the vertical axle. The rotation of this axle therefore under the
pull of the draught rope will cause the gearing to traverse the anchor
(carrying the plough on its platform) the distance of one furrow; on the
motion of the hauling rope being reversed the plough will then commenco
its back traverse in new ground, and the anchor will be propelled forward
the breadth of another furrow so as to be in a suitable position to receivo
the plough on its return.
Where the land is hilly and not in good cultivation I dispense with
the platform of the anchors and employ an arrangement of tipping
plough mounted in a light frame, the ends of which are curved upwards
to serve as a bolster, the wire rope being attached thereto. The frame
of this plough is to be provided with a seat to carry an attendant. Tho
windlass consists of two vertical drums for containing the tight and
slack rope; keyed to their shafts are bevil wheels which gear with bevil
pinions running loose on a horizontal shaf to which motion is com-
municated by a belt from the engine, either of the pinions being thrown
into gear by means of a clutch. The axles of these drums also carry
cone pulleys connected together by a belt, which may be shifted
automatically or otherwise so as to give a slightly increased speed to the
slack rope drum. A guide for the rope attached to an endless screw or
belt may be adapted and operated in any well-known manner. The
operation of the windlass may be rendered automatic, the motion of the
drums being reversed in the completion of each traverse of the plough by
means of a falling bar and quadrant piece connected by chains to the
clutch or other apparatus employed for throwing the pinions into gear
alternately. The falling lever is raised to a vertical position by an
adjustable button attached to an endless chain mounted on chain wheels
and driven from one of the vertical shafts by worm gear.
In harrowing I prefer to place the engine on the end land and work
the harrows across the land, the anchors being so arranged that they
shall traverse half the width of the harrow at each return of the rope so

page_text: that the harrow (not being carried sideways) will traverse in a curved
line and go over the land twice. The frame of the harrow is mounted
on wheels having cranked axles capable of a slight endway motion.
The frame is provided with rocking levers attached at their upper ends
to the hauling chain or rope, and they are so placed as to clamp firmly
the hind axle of the carrying wheels when inclining in the direction of
the draught, leaving the axle of the front wheels free for the purpose of
steering. At the centre of the frame are standards for carrying each a
rocking lever, the upper end of which is attached to the hauling chain
or rope, and its lower end is jointed to connecting rods or chains from
standards forming part of two trailing or finishing harrows that aro
hinged to the frame of the main harrow according to the direction of
the draught; this lover will be pulled over, raising the forward and
lowering the hinder finishing harrow. Guy ropes extend from both
extremitics of the axle to the hauling rope and give to the harrow the
requisite amount of steerage. The guide pulleys or snatch blocks for
portability are made without a frame and carried upon a vertical axle or
pole, which is to be driven into the ground and supported by stay rods
spiked to the ground.
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