IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SAWING STONE
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of, the Firm of Haseltine,
Lake, & Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SAWING STONE."
-A communication from abroad by Hugh Young, of Stamford,
Connecticut, and James Learmouth Young, of the City and State
of New York, both in the United States of America.
Sealed the 9th February 1872, and dated the 1st December 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 1st December 1871.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co.,
5 Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SAWING
STONE," a communication, to be as follows:-

page_text: cutters.
The reciprocating blade is guided in its rectilinear motion by sliding in
brasses or boxes, the blade itself being the guiding medium. In one
arrangement of the said Invention the blade has given to it, besides its
reciprocating rectilinear motion, a positive motion away from and toward
the stone. In another arrangement the guiding blade has only a rectilinear
reciprocating motion in the line of the cut, and the platform is provided
with a moveable top or table to carry the stone, which receives, besides
its feed motion towards the cutter or cutters, a motion away from and
towards the said cutter or cutters to accomplish the same result as is
obtained by the lifting and lowering of the blade.
The cutters or diamond-armed tools are made of any known or
improved form, and may consist simply of a diamond or other hard
stone, or of a cluster of diamonds or other hard stones either mounted
and set in the blade or in a block of metal fastened to the blade.
The frame of the machine must be built in a substantial manner to.
prevent any undue vibration or irregular action of the working parts
mounted therein. The platform is guided by blocks upon the slides in
such a manner as to move only in a line at or nearly at right angles with
the line of motion of the reciprocating blade. The screws of the feed
motion are arranged to insure concert of action and a parallel motion of
the platform toward or away from the blade. The feed motion will be
controlled by the reciprocating motion of the blade.
In the first arrangement above described the blocks in which the
blade slides have an up-and-down-motion, and they rest upon a system
of knuckle joints having its lower fulcrum on the frame.
The knuckle joints are connected to levers, so that if one of the said
levers is moved both systems of knuckle joints will be acted upon, and
the blocks will rise and fall simultaneously.
Stops are fastened to the blade at such a point near the two ends
thereof, that when the said blade arrives at the end of its stroke in
either direction one of the stops will engage one of the levers, and cause
the systems of knuckle joints to be either bent to bring down the blocks
and the blade, or to be straightened and raise the blocks and blade.

page_text: In the second arrangement of my said Invention, in which the blade
moves in a rectilinear direction only, and in which the stone is moved
away from the cutter or cutters or toward the cutter or cutters, the table
is arranged between guides and so supported upon the knuckle or toggle
joints as to be alternately forced away from and brought nearer to the
platform by the action of a bar connecting the toggle joints.
A finger or tappet fastened to the blade and playing freely in a slot of
the said bar will by moving the latter close or open the toggle joint,
thereby pressing the part of the stone to be cut against the cutters of
the rectilinear moving blade or drawing away the said stone.
1
-
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 31st May 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the First day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fifth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence
that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, my
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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SAWING STONE," a communication to me
from abroad by Hugh Young, of Stamford, Connecticut, and James
Learmouth Young, of the City and State of New York, both in the
United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said William Robert Lake, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and

page_text: Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, 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.
1
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, 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, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawing forming a part of this Specification:-
This Invention relates to that class of stone-cutting machines in which
reciprocating blades armed with or protected by diamonds are used for
cutting or dividing stones into slabs, and which are known as diamond
gang saws; and the said improvements consist first in operating the
said reciprocating blades in relation to the stone to be cut, thereby in
such a manner that the diamonds are kept in contact with the part of
the stone to be cut only when the blades carrying the said diamonds are
moving in one direction, whilst when the said blades are moving in the
opposite direction the diamonds are kept away from the part of the
stone to be cut either by the blade or blades carrying them having been
brought away from the stone, or the stone itself having been withdrawn
from the blade or blades.
The diamonds may be set to have their best cutting edge turned to the
work, and they will plough their way and cut a channel in the stone
whilst moving in one direction only, and when they are moving in the
opposite direction the said diamonds, being entirely free from all contact
with the part of the stone to be cut, are effectually protected from
pressure or friction from behind, which would have a tendency to injure
them or their setting. This improved mode of operating the diamond
armed reciprocating saws has moreover the advantage of clearing the
cuts perfectly, as the shifting of the debris back and forth within the cuts
is entirely avoided.
The second part of the said Invention consists in having only one or
two cutters armed with diamonds fastened to each reciprocating blade
instead of arming the said blade with diamonds throughout its entire
length. This improvement allows me, according to the relative length

page_text: of the stone to be cut and of the stroke of the reciprocating blade or
blades, to have either one diamond armed cutter pass entirely out of
the cut at both ends of the stone at each full stroke of the blade or
blades or when I use two cutters to have each cutter pass entirely out
of the cut at one end of the stone, also at each full or complete stroke of
the blade or blades. An opportunity is thus afforded for inspecting the
diamonds or the setting thereof, and for repairing or replacing the same
at any time without having to raise the saw or blade out of the cut in

page_text: Figure 1 is a sectional elevation through the centre of a single blade
stone-cutting machine illustrating this Invention. In this machine the
blade has besides its reciprocating rectilinear motion a positive motion
away from and toward the stone.
Figure 2 is also a sectional elevation through the centre of a single
blade stone-cutting machine, but in this case the guiding blade has only
a rectilinear reciprocating motion in the line of the cut, and the platform
is provided with a movable top or table to carry the stone, which
receives besides its feed motion towards the cutter or cutters of the recip-
rocating blade a motion away from and towards the said cutter or
cutters to accomplish the same result as is obtained by the lifting and
lowering of the blade in the machine illustrated in Figure 1.
Figures 3 and 4 are Diagrams illustrating more plainly the principle of
this Invention, and are intended to represent a diamond-armed cutter in
its divers positions in relation to the stone to be cut, the said stone being
represented in sectional elevation through the longitudinal centre of the
cut, and the dotted lines indicating the path or track of the cutting edge
of the cutter.
A is a blade or sheet of metal guided by suitable brasses in the blocks
J in Figure 1, and in the frame F in Figure 2, so as to have a rectilinear
reciprocating motion indicated by the arrows 1, 2, in the line of the cut
to be made in the stone S or S¹. t is a cutter or diamond armed tool;
it may be made of any known or improved form or construction, and
may consist simply of a diamond or other hard stone, or of a cluster of
diamonds or other hard stones, either mounted and set in the blade A or
in a block of metal fastened to the said blade; the diamonds or stones
must be sufficient for cutting the required channel, and when a cluster
is used the two or more diamonds or stones forming the said cluster
must be in such proximity and bear such relation to each other as to
form essentially one tool for ploughing a channel into a stone of the
proper width for clearing the guiding blade working in the said channel
or cut. The cutter or cutters t may be fastened upon the blade A in any
desired manner, and must be located thereon according to the work to
bo done as herein-after stated. F is the frame of the machine, built
in a substantial manner to prevent any undue vibration or irregular

page_text: action of the working parts mounted therein.
B and B indicate a
platform guided by blocks P upon the slides T in such a manner as to be
capable of moving only in a line at or nearly at a right angle with the
line of motion of the reciprocating blade A. N, N, are screws which
serve as a feed motion for the platform B or B¹.
It is of course understood that there must be a sufficient number of
these screws, and they must be connected together in any suitable
manner to insure their joint action, and a parallel motion of the platform
B or B toward or away from the blade A. Any other suitable feed
arrangement may be employed, and any suitable connection may be made
between the power moving the blade A (supposed to be applied at V¹)
and the power moving the feed arrangement, so that the feed motion,
whether it is continuous or intermittent, will be controlled by and act in
concert with the reciprocating motion of the blade A. J, J, are blocks
in which the blade A slides; these blocks are mounted in suitable slides
d in the frame F, and have an up-and-down motion in the said frame F,
they rest upon a system of knuckle joints g, having its lower fulcrum
K on the frame F. The said knuckle joints 9 are connected by links r;
levers V (having their fulcrums at W) and the bar L pivotted at i to the
levers V, so that if one of the said levers is moved both systems of
knuckle joints g will be acted upon, and the blocks J will rise and fall
simultaneously. M, M¹, are stops fastened to the blade A at such a
point near the two ends thereof, that when the blade A arrives at the end
of its stroke in either direction, one of the stops M or M³ will act upon
and engage one of the levers V, and cause the systems of knuckle joints
g to be either bent to bring down the blocks J and the blade A, or to be
straightened and raise the said blocks J and blade A.
In the machine illustrated in Figure 2 the blade A moves in a
rectilinear direction only, being guided in stationary brasses D in the
frame F, and it is the stone which is moved away from or towards the
cutter or cutters. C is a table arranged between the guides E, and sup-
ported upon the knuckle or toggle joints m so as to be alternately forced
away from and brought nearer to the platform B¹ by the action of the
bar G connecting the said toggle joints m. H is a finger or tappet
fastened to the blade A, and playing freely in a slot a, a', in the bar G,
the distance from a to a¹ being somewhat less than the length of the
stroke of the blade A. When the said blade A arrives at the end of its
stroke in either direction, the finger H will engage the bar G either

page_text: at a or at a, and by moving the
111
UDC
arrows 14 or 15 will close or open the toggle joint m, thereby pressing
the part S of the stone to be cut against the cutters of the rectilinear
moving blade A, or drawing away the said stone for the purpose already
explained.
In Figure 4 I have represented in an exaggerated manner the
operation of a cutter in relation to the stone to be cut to illustrate more
plainly the principles involved in this Invention. The cutter t is sup-
posed to have already cut its way through a portion of the stone S
(which is shown in sectional elevation through the centre of the cut
therein), and I have drawn the cutter & in its four principal positions,
and indicated by arrows and a dotted line the characteristic motion of
the said cutter t in relation to the stone S¹¹¹, that is to say, the arrow 9
indicates the direction of the motion of the cutter t whilst ploughing or
cutting a channel in the stone from one end to the other, passing out of
the cut at the end of the stone at f. The arrow 10 indicates the motion
of the cutter t away from the bottom of the cut. The arrow 11 indicates
the back motion of the said cutter t (the cutting edge thereof being kept
away from the stone) until it passes out of the cut at the end of the
stone at h; and the arrow 12 indicates the motion of the said cutter
toward the stone to return into the position for ploughing a new cut in
the bottom of the channel in its next motion from 12 to f.
I have indicated the action of the cutter or cutters & upon the stone
as being in a horizontal direction. It is preferably inclined from the
horizontal line, or it may be in some cases vertical or nearly so without
changing the characteristic of this Invention.
I have so far described only the guiding blade or blades as working in
a rectilinear direction or line so as to produce a straight line for the
bottom of the channel, but in Figure 3 I show a cutter t supposed to be
O controlled by a guiding blade acting with a pendulum motion, and the
bottom of the cut forms a sector of a circle whose centre is the centre
whence the pendulum motion of the cutter t is guided. The action of
the cutter t on the stone is essentially the same here as in Figure 4.
The arrow 5 shows the direction of cutting; arrow 6, that of rising;
arrow 7, that of the back stroke; and arrow 8, the falling or returning
to work of the cutter t.

page_text: It is intended that water shall be used upon the cutters, and suitable
strainers are provided to receive the debris from the machine, in order to 35
prevent the loss of diamonds which may become loose or broken.

page_text: Having thus fully described the said Invention for "Improvements in
Machinery for Sawing Stone," as communicated to me by my foreign
correspondents, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it under-
stood that I claim the said improvements as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of May, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
two.
0 Witness,
"
CHAS. J. GOOCH.
WM. ROBT. LAKE. (L.S.)