IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CUTTING AND PREPARING STRAW, HAY, AND OTHER VEGETABLE MATTERS
Year: 1840

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
MAY, of Ipswich, in the County of Suffolk, Engineer, of the firm of
J. R. and A. Ransom and Company, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain bearing date at
Westminster, the Sixth day of July, in the fourth year of Her reign, did
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Charles May, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Charles May, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Charles May, my exors, adiñors, or assigns, should at any time.
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed,
my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CUTTING AND PREPARING
STRAW, HAY, AND OTHER VEGETABLE MATTERS;" in which said Letters Patent
is contained a proviso, that I, the said Charles May, shall cause a par-
ticular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court
of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Charles May, do hereby declare that the nature of my Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to
the Drawings hereunto annexed and to the figures and letters marked thereon,
that is to say)-
My Invention relates, first, to a mode of giving a change motion to such
descriptions of chaff cutting machines as work by means of two feed rollers
driven by a screw shaft, whereby I am enabled to construct such machines
more readily capable of changing the quantity of surface movement of the
rollers in respect to the revolution of the cutting knives than heretofore.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a machine; Figure 2 is a front
elevation; and Figure 3 is a plan of a machine having my improvements
applied thereto; a is the ordinary fly wheel, to which the cutting knives
are applied. is the shaft of such fly wheel, which does not, as heretofore,
carry the driving worm but is a separate shaft to the worm shaft, and the
worm shaft receives its motion from the shaft b; by this arrangement it will
be seen that the motion of the feed rollers may be changed relatively to the fly
wheel shaft in place of at all times remaining at the same relative speed, and
by such means I am enabled to cut various lengths of the vegetable matters
placed in the machine. On the shaft b are applied as many wheels c, c, c, as
I desire to have changes in the relative speed of the cutting knives and the
feeding rollers, taking care that there is room between the wheels c to prevent
two pairs being geared at one time. d is the worm shaft which gives motion
to the two feed rollers e in the same manner as the fly wheel and worm shaft
of ordinary chaff cutters now work, and as is clearly shewn in the Drawings.
On the shaft & are applied as many wheels c¹, c³, c', as there are wheels con
the axis or shaft b, and as the wheels c, c, c, are all cast together, and such
being the case in respect to the wheels c', in sliding them along their
respective shafts, when two wheels c, c', are in gear the others will be all out
of gear. g, g, are set screws passing through the naves or bosses c and c¹, by
which, when the proper wheels are geared, the bosses are made fast to their
respective shafts. The framing and bearings of the two shafts b and d being
clearly shown no further description will be necessary, and I have only further
to remark, in respect to this part of my Invention, that although I have been
particular, in the Drawings and descriptions thereof, to point out what I believe
to be the best means of carrying out the improvements, I do confine myself
thereto so long as the general character be retained.

page_text: I will now proceed to describe the second part of my Invention which
relates to a mode of carding out or combing the vegetable materials to be cut
in a chaff engine, and thus to cause such vegetable matters to be laid longi-
tudinally and evenly when they arrive at the cutting knives. This chaff
engine or machine is similar to that already described, having the second part
of my Invention applied thereto, and there is also another improvement, shown
applied in the Drawing about to be described, which constitutes the third part
of my Invention and consists of giving a capability of movement to the presser
plate independent of the movement of the upper feed roller.
Figure 4 is a plan; Figure 5 is a side elevation in section; Figure 6 is a
front elevation of some of the parts; and Figure 7 shews the manner of
applying springs.
In these Figures the same letters are used for the parts which are similar to
those above described, and the explanation above given will apply to the present
Drawing. In this Drawing there are four pair of rollers, seven of which
rollers have projecting spikes, and the eighth is a plain roller, and this, together
with the other plain roller shown in the Drawing, carries the endless cloth z,
on to which the vegetable matter is to be laid; but it does not require that
such care should be observed in drawing out the same lengthwise as when
placing the vegetable matter into an ordinary chaff engine, as it will be found
that the spiked surfaces employed will accomplish that part of the work; the
vegetable matters are, therefore, simply to be placed on the upper surface of
the endless cloth in equal quantities all over the surface, and when they enter
between the first pair of rollers y, y, the one being a spiked roller, the vege-
table matters will be pinched between such rollers, and be drawn into the
machine and forced forward by the rollers y, y, towards the rollers a, a, which
are both spiked rollers, and move with a surface speed somewhat greater than
the surface speed of the rollers y, y, consequently the vegetable matters will
be drawn out, and at the same time combed or carded by the spikes; and the
next pair of rollers w, w, travel with a surface speed somewhat greater than
the rollers x, x, the vegetable matter will therefore be drawn out still more,
and at the same time carded or combed by the teeth; and the next pair of
rollers u, u, move with a surface speed somewhat greater than that of the
rollers w, w, and the vegetable matters will be still further drawn out and
combed or carded, and laid longitudinally and smooth; and the feed rollers
moving with a surface speed somewhat faster than the rollers u, u, the vegetable
matters to be cut will be continued smooth and laid longitudinal, and in the
best condition for the cut to take place, as the same is protruded from the
mouth piece and cutters. v, v, v, are guide plates fixed across the machine to

page_text: support the moving vegetable matters.
It will be seen that the teeth of the
lower rollers are interspaced between those of the neighbouring rollers, and, in
revolving, work between them, and such is the case in respect to the upper
rollers; but the teeth of the upper and under rollers do not pass between each
other, but just clear one another at the points; as is clearly shown by this
arrangement, the straw, hay, and other vegetable matters fed into the machine
are drawn out and laid equally and longitudinally for the cutting knives, thus
saving that care and skill of drawing t and charging of the engine by hand
heretofore necessary. The difference of the speed given to the rollers y, x, w, u,
and the feed rollers is accomplished by having worms of different angles on the
worm or screw shaft working into screw wheels on the axis of the upper and
under rollers in a similar manner to the working of the feed rollers, as is.
clearly shown in the Drawing. A I would remark that, although I prefer
the arrangement, above described, to lay longitudinally and draw out the vege-
table matters fed into a chaff engine, I do not confine myself thereto, so long
as the mode of working with spiked moving surfaces be retained.
The third part of my Inventio, which is also shewn in the above-mentioned
Figures, and, as above stated, it relates to a mode of applying the presser plate
of chaff engines, and consists of giving it movement independent of the upper
feed roller in place of rising and falling exactly to the extent of such upper
feed roller, as heretofore practised, by which improvement the "wad" of
vegetable matter pressed between the roller will be better held for the cut and
the varying thickness of the "wad" passing between the feed rollers will thus
remain more equally pressed. t, t, is the frame or bridge by which the
weighted lever causes the upper feed roller to press on to the lower feed roller,
as heretofore, but in place of the presser plate s being affixed immoveably to
the upper bar or bridge of the frame t, as heretofore, the presser plate is
affixed to the bridge or bar r, which has movement on the axes or necks of the
upper feed roller, as is shown in the Drawing; and by means of the springs 9, 9,
the bridge r has, at all times, a tendency downwards by the springs; by this
means, in addition to the movement up and down of the upper feed roller, the
presser plate will at all times be pressed downward, thus producing greater
uniformity of the state of closeness of the straw, hay, and other vegetable
matters, under the varying circumstances of the different quantities or thick-
ness of "wad" passing at times between the rollers, which will be found very
advantageous in working chaff engines.
The fourth part of my Invention relates to that description of chaff cutting
engine wherein blades are fixed spirally on a cylindrical frame, and is known
as the Doncaster chaff engine, such engine having been the subject of Letters

page_text: Patent, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred four, granted to
Thomas Pasmore, of Doncaster. And in such engine the bevel of the cutting
edges of the knives or spiral blades was inwards, consequently there was and
is found considerable difficulty in sharpening the same. Now, according to
this part of my Invention, the spiral blades or knives may be sharpened with
much greater facility, owing to the forming the bevel of the cutting edges on
the outter surface. Figure 8 shows a plan; Figure 9 a side elevation in
section; Figure 10 shows a diagram of the mode of grinding, with the parts
full size; Figures 11 and 12 show the nature of the cutting knives or blades
and manner of fixing them to the cylinder, the parts being full size. The
chaff machine or engine shown by these Figures are similar, with the exception
to the cutting knife cylinder to the machines, already described as the first and
third parts of my Invention, and are marked with the same letters of reference
already used; and the only parts to which attention will be required to be
called is the circumstance of the cutting knives A having the bevel on the upper
surface; and the mode of sharpening which I am thereby enabled to introduce
to such machines or engines will be found of considerable advantage. B is a
sliding plate, with steel face applied at the front of the machine or engine, and
is capable, by screws and slots, to be set up to the revolving cylinder, having
the spiral cutting knives fixed thereon, and by spreading emery, or by applying
other suitable sharpening material, and causing the revolution of the cylinder.
to be reversed, the cutting edges may be sharpened; and further, when I want
to grind the blades or cutting knives A, I take the cylinder out of the machine,
and place it in the frame or machine B, B, where there is a stone. Figure 13
is an end view, and Figure 14 is a side view, of the machine for grinding the
spiral knives or blades A; on examining this Drawing it will be seen that the
axis of the cylinder to which the knives are affixed is placed in bearings C, C,
by which it can revolve in a diagonal position. Dis the stone for grinding the
blades; this stone, in addition to its revolution, is capable of moving from side
to side of the machine by means of the lever handle E; and the workman, in
using this machine, moves the cylinder with the knives A slowly round, and at
the same time, by the lever handle, causes the stone to traverse slowly from side to
side of the machine, commencing at one end of a spiral blade and ending at the
other, and then bringing the next blade round to be operated on, till the whole
are ground. By this mode of applying spiral knives, and grinding and sharpen-
ing them, I am enabled more advantageously to use this description of chaff
engine or machine; and although I believe the arrangements of parts shewn
and described are the best for carrying out this part of my Invention, I do not

page_text: confine myself thereto, so long as the mode of applying the spiral blades and
of sharpening and grinding be retained.
I will now proceed to describe the fifth part of my Invention, which relates
to a mode of preparing gorse, by pounding and grinding, in order to render it
fit for food for cattle. Figure 15 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a
machine constructed according to this part of my Invention. Figure 16 is
a plan thereof. The other Figures of the same Drawing shewing some parts
separately. a is the framing, the nature of which is clearly shewn in the
Drawing; it is to be fixed securely to the floor or ground; 6 is the main shaft,
to which rotatory motion is to be communicated by means of a horse or other
power by the lever or arm c, or otherwise, as is well understood by machinists.
On to the lower end of this shaft is affixed the circular trough d, and the lower
end of the shaft 6 enters into a cup bearing, as is shewn, and moves in a
suitable bearing at the upper end, as will readily be understood on examining
the Drawing now under description; e, e, are a series of inclined planes,
formed on the plate e', which is keyed or otherwise affixed on the shaft b;
these inclined planes act under the plates f, formed on the stamper rods g, and
cause such rods and their stamper to be raised up and let fall successively as
the shaft revolves, and it will be found that in raising such rods g by the
inclined planes, those rods will be caused to turn round as they rise; and in
order to take advantage of such turning of the rods I apply a cord to each
rod 9, such cord being connected at the other end to a spring h, and by this
means the cord will be wound on the rod g; and when the end of an inclined
plane passes from either of the rods g, in addition to the pounding or stamping
action produced by the fall of the stampers, the stampers will revolve and
produce a grinding action, and thus, in addition to the rotatory movement of
the circular trough carrying round the gorse to be operated on successively by
the series of stampers, there will be the grinding action produced by the
rotation of such grinders. The rods g slide freely up and down, and turn in
bearings i, i, as is shewn in the Drawing. In preparing gorse by this machine
I prefer that it should be first cut small in a chaff machine, or otherwise, and
then submitted to the action of the machine above described, when it will be
fit for food.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I would have it understood that what I claim as
the first part of my Invention is the mode of constructing chaff engines, which
work by two feed rollers, driven by a worm, by applying thereto change motions,
as herein described.

page_text: Secondly, I claim the mode of laying the straw, hay, and other vegetable
matters in chaff engines longitudinal, and even by means of drawing out and
combing, as herein described.
Thirdly, I claim the mode of applying the presser plate of chaff engines by
giving a movement independent of the upper feed roller, as above described.
Fourthly, I claim the mode of applying spiral blades to chaff engines or
machines, and of sharpening and grinding, as above described; and,
Fifthly, I claim the mode of preparing gorse by a machine, as herein des-
cribed, by means of a circular trough and stampers.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles May, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of January, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-one.