IMPROVED MEANS AND MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF EARTHENWARE AND OTHER ARTICLES MADE PROM PLASTIC MATERIATO
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Atterbury, of Castleford, and Sydney
Woolf, of Knottingley, in the County of York, for the Invention of
"IMPROVED MEANS AND MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF EARTHENWARE
AND OTHER ARTICLES MADE PROM PLASTIC MATERIATO "
Sealed the 24th May 1867, and dated the 27th November 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Atterbury,
and Sydney Woolf at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 27th November 1866.
We, JOHN HENRY ATTERBURY, of Castleford, and SYDNEY WOOLF, of:
Knottingley, in the County of York, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVED MEANS AND MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
EARTHENWARE AND OTHER ARTICLES MADE FROM PLASTIC MATERIALS," to be as.
follows:-
•
The object of our Invention is to facilitate the production of articles of
earthenware or like articles of other plastic material. For this purpose to:
one end of a suitable foundation plate we secure a pugging mill in a vertical
position, having its pugging shaft actuated by suitable gearing from the main
driving shaft this latter is supported by brackets at the upper end of the mill,
and runs horizontally over the same. From a convenient part of the side of

page_text: the pugging mill we project a bracket, the outer end of which is adapted to
receive a vertical spindle free to move in a vertical direction. To the upper
end of this spindle we connect a lever of the first order having its fulcrum
from the carrying bracket. Between the end of the lever and its fulcrum we
place a loose grooved pulley which is impinged upon by an eccentric keyed
upon the driving shaft immediately over it. The effect of such impinging is
to depress the vertical spindle, and cause an adjustable die affixed to its lower
end to descend and impress the clay or other plastic material under operation
(which has been previously placed underneath the die). The pressure of the
before-named eccentric upon the pulley placed upon the lever being removed,
balance weights on the shorter arm or arms restore the vertical spindle to its
previous position. A roller covered with flannel and placed in proximity to
the die receiving a horizontal motion by means of levers and eccentric from
the main shaft is now brought into play and passed over the face of the die to
remove impurities. In front of the die spindle there is a shaft geared from
the main shaft, and having on its lower extremity an arm so arranged as
to strike the mould away when the die ascends, a "loosing" or vertical motion
being simultaneously applied to the bottom of the mould.
A prominent feature in this Invention is the heating of the metal die,
for which purpose gas may be used, issuing from any desired number of jets,
the result being that the die leaves the clay or other plastic material more
readily.
Our arrangement for feeding and traversing the moulds from the pugging
mill to the die forms an important feature of our Invention. We effect this
by a species of turntable, having its centre equidistant from the pugging mill
and the die; this turntable is adapted to receive four moulds (by preference)
one at each quarter of its periphery, and is actuated by suitable lever and
ratchet apparatus underneath the foundation plate, being so arranged that it
revolves one-fourth of a circle at each stroke, so that whilst the material for
operation is being discharged from the pugging mill to the mould under it
another is under the die receiving the impress, one intermediate waiting for
impress, and one waiting for a fresh mould. A wire knife actuated by bell
crank and levers from the main shaft passes reciprocally under the pugging mill
and cuts off the required amount of clay or other plastic material, which is
forced through dies (round or other required shape) secured to the bottom of
the pugging mill. The above machinery may be actuated by hand or other
motive power than steam if desired.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Henry Atterbury and Sydney Woolf in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 27th May 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
HENRY ATTERBURY, of Castleford, and SYDNEY WOOLF, of Knottingly, in the
County of York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said John Henry Atterbury and Sydney Woolf, Her special licence that we,
the said John Henry Atterbury and Sydney Woolf, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John Henry Atterbury and
Sydney Woolf, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVED MEANS AND MACHINERY
FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF EARTHENWARE AND OTHER ARTICLES MADE FROM PLASTIC
MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John Henry
Atterbury and Sydney Woolf, our executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Henry Atterbury, on behalf of
myself and the said Sydney Woolf, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is
to say:-
The object of our Invention is to facilitate the production of articles of
earthenware or other articles made of plastic material. For this purpose to
one end of a suitable foundation plate or table we secure a pugging mill in a
vertical position having its pugging shaft actuated by suitable gearing from the
main driving shaft; this latter is supported by brackets at the upper end of

page_text: the mill and runs borizontally over the same. From a convenient part of the
side of the pugging mill we project a bracket, the outer end of which is
adapted to receive a vertical spindle free to move in a vertical direction. To
the upper end of this spindle we connect a lever of the first order having its
fulcrum from the carrying bracket. Between the end of the lever and its
fulcrum we place a loose grooved pulley, which is impinged upon by an
eccentric keyed upon the driving shaft immediately over it. The effect of such
impinging is to depress the vertical spindle, and cause an adjustable die affixed
to its lower end to descend and impress the clay or other plastic material
under operation (which has been previously placed underneath the die). The
pressure of the before-named eccentric upon the pulley placed upon the lever
being removed, balance weights on the shorter arm or arms restore the vertical
spindle to its previous position. A roller covered with flannel and placed in
proximity to the die, receiving a horizontal motion by means of levers and
eccentric from the main shaft, is now brought into play and passed over the
face of the die to remove impurities. In front of the die spindle there is a
shaft geared from the main shaft, and having on its lower extremity an arm,
so arranged as to strike the mould away when the die ascends a "loosing" or
vertical motion being simultaneously applied to the bottom of the mould.
A prominent feature in this Invention is the heating of the metal die, for
which purpose gas may be used issuing from any desired number of jets,
the result being that the die leaves the clay or other plastic material more
readily.
.
:
Our arrangement for feeding and traversing the moulds from the pugging
mill to the die forms an important feature of our Invention. We effect this
by a species of turntable, having its centre equidistant from the pugging mill
and the die. This turntable is adapted to receive four moulds (by preference)
one at each quarter of its periphery, and is actuated by suitable lever and
ratchet apparatus underneath the foundation plate or table, being so arranged
that it revolves one-fourth of a circle at each stroke, so that whilst the material
for operation is being discharged from the pugging mill to the mould under it,
another is under the die receiving the impress, one intermediate waiting for
impress and one waiting for a fresh mould. A wire knife actuated by bell
crank and levers from the main shaft passes reciprocally under the pugging
mill, and cuts off the required amount of clay or other plastic material, which
is forced through dies (round or other required shape) secured to the bottom
of the pugging mill. The above machinery may be actuated by hand or other
motive power than steam, if desired.

page_text: The pug mill we may here mention is, of ordinary construction, and in
consequence of the nature of the plastic material to be pugged we prefer to
obtain the requisite power by means of intermediate gearing and cones, such
as are in use on lathes. In preference also to the previously-named method for
actuating the spindle to which the stamping die is secured, we affix a plate of
iron baving a grooved cam on either side near to the spindle end of the over-
head shaft, and by means of a pin or stud working in the groove of one of the
cams, and secured to the spindle (which we make square) raise and depress
the stamping die, such spindle being capable of adjustment in length by means
of slots, and guided by cross heads working in slide bars secured to brackets
projecting from the pug mill. The stamping dies it must be observed may be
shaped either for the back or the front of the articles to be stamped in the
moulds charged with plastic material and placed beneath them. The object
of the second cam (above-named) is by means of a pin working in its groove,
connected by a horizontal arm with a vertical spindle, which passes below the
foundation plate or table, and is attached to a bell-crank lever, to actuate the
table carrying the moulds by the ratchet motion before mentioned. We also
cut in the edge of the turntable which carries the moulds four "stop" holes
(when only four moulds are used) and cause a horizontal trigger placed just
above the foundation plate or table to shoot into such holes successively as the
turntable makes a quarter of a revolution just as the die is descending in
order to steady the same and prevent recoil. This motion is effected by means
of a tappet affixed to the cam plate and intermediate levers, which withdraw
the trigger, at the proper moment, a spring on the spindle of the trigger
causing it to enter the various holes as they come round. The motion for
lifting up the shanks of the moulds out of the table after the impress has been
given to the plastic material is also obtained through another tappet on the
cam shaft, whilst the motion for knocking off the mould (after being raised)
from the turntable to the foundation plate or table, is obtained by means of
gearing from the overhead shaft, and a vertical spindle having on its lower
extremity an arm, which at each revolution strikes the mould wbich has just
been operated upon. In this arrangement we place the die spindle nearer to
the mill than in the previous one to ensure greater firmness, and therefore the
centre of the turntable is not equidistant from the centres of the mill and
stamping die respectively, but with those points forms an acute angle, conse-
quently one of the receptacles for moulds will always be empty one-fourth of
the circle of traverse or rotation. Another grooved cam is also affixed on the
overhead shaft near the driving or opposite end to that on which the before-

page_text: named cams were affixed, for the purpose of imparting a horizontal recipro-
cating motion to the wire-cutting frame placed underneath the pug mill to cut
off the requisite amount of plastic material as it emerges from the mill; and
we may here mention that the die affixed to the bottom of the mill varies in
shape accordingly as the shape of article to be made varies, being sometimes
round, at other times oval or elliptical, in fact, of a variety of shapes.
Adjustable plates (secured by screws) of various shapes are also used in the
turntable itself dependent upon the shape of the article to be made. We
sometimes also place a layer of cork or other compressible material within the
raised parts of the turntable upon which the moulds rest, and which surround
the adjustable plates alluded to.
But in order that our Invention may be the better understood reference is
made to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings and to the letters and figures
-marked thereon, similar letters representing similar parts, that is to say :-
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of our machine; Figure 2 a front
elevation; Figure 8 a back elevation, and Figure 4 a plan of the turntable.
Letters A represent the foundation plate or table supported by legs B.
Letters C show the pug mill supported on brackets c bolted to the table A.
c', c, are brackets secured to the mill C, and carry the overhead shaft D. dis
the pulley which receives motion from the driving power and actuates the
shaft D to which it is keyed, d' being a loose pulley. A belt from the pulley
d on the same shaft imparts motion to the fast and loose pulleys f, and thus to
the cone g on the same shaft f¹; this cone in like manner transmits motion to
the cone h, and thus through the gearing h¹ to the spur wheel i and the
bevilled wheels j, j', which latter is secured to the pug mill shaft E. F is the
plate furnished with the grooved cams k and 7, the former actuating the die
spindle G through the pin g', and the latter the turntable ratchet motion H
and I through the pin , spindle, and bell crank and lever . The shank
of the turntable it will be observed rests upon a centre x, secured to a stay x',
passing underneath the frame the main weight of the turntable J (the under
side of which is faced near the edge) being borne however by the table A
which has a slight "lip" on its surface of the diameter of the turntable, and
is faced to receive the same, and thus allow free action. Letters K show
the slide bars secured to the brackets m which project from the mill C.
Letters L show the crossheads working between the slide bars and secured to
the spindle G. M is the die secured also to the spindle, and having a groove,

page_text: within which is placed a perforated gas pipe n for the purpose of heating it,
such pipe being connected to a flexible tube, and rising or falling with the die,
being "stayed" to the same. The spindle o is actuated from the shaft D by
the gearing o', and by means of the arm o² on its lower extremity knocks the
mould from the turntable J on to the table A after the stamping has been
effected by the die, the mould having first been raised out of the turntable
by means of a vertical lift motion applied to its shank and derived through.
the lever p, spindle p¹, and tappet p² on the cam plate F, shown in Figure 2.
The spindle q is similarly operated upon by a tappet q. on the cam plate, and
its lower end being connected to the bell crank q, the latter operates upon the
trigger q and withdraws it from the "stop" holes in the turntable periphery,
the spring q urging the trigger back as soon as the pressure is withdrawn.
Letter r shows the spindle, which receives motion through the pin or stud at
the top from the cam r', and is connected to the bell crank, the latter being
connected to the wire cutting frame 3 which simply consists of two rods (sup-
ported by brackets) having a wire stretched between them. The flannel roller
which is passed over the surface of the stamping die as it ascends is not shown,
as this operation may be performed by hand if desired. We may here
mention that in some cases we prefer to actuate the stamping die by means of
a crank motion from the shaft D instead of a cam motion that necessitates
modification of the details of other portions of the machine and general
arrangement; the arrangement shown is, however, the one we prefer in
most cases. The stamping die may also be heated otherwise than by gas,
though we consider gas as the most economical and convenient manner of
heating it.
Figure 4 shows simply a plan of the turntable J with the adjustable plates s
in position; Figures 5 and 6 show specimens of saucer dies for back and
front as desired, the moulds being made accordingly; Figures 7 and 8 show
a dish die back and front, and Figure 9 an inside cup die.
Having now fully described and ascertained the nature of our Invention,
and in what manner the same may be performed, we wish it to be understood
that without confining ourselves to the precise mechanical details shewn or
described, what we claim as and of our Invention is,-
Firstly, the principle of manufacturing articles composed of plastic material
or materials (where the nature of such articles will admit of the process of
stamping) by the means and apparatus essentially as shown and described, or
the mechanical equivalent thereof.
Secondly, the use of a heated die in the process of stamping.

page_text: And, thirdly, the entire combination of means and apparatus for effecting
the above result.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Atterbury, have hereunto'
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of May, in the year of our
Lord, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
JOHN HENRY ATTERBURY. (L.S.)
Witness,
PHILIP H. SHARP,
Patent Agent,
18, East Parade,
Leeds.
May 25th, 1867.