IMPROVE- MENTS IN ELEVATORS FOR RAISING AND STACKING HAY, STRAW, AND OTHER SIMILAR SUBSTANCES
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Arthur Wallis and Charles James Steevens, both
of Basingstoke, in the County of Southampton, Engineers and
Agricultural Implement Makers, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN ELEVATORS FOR RAISING AND STACKING HAY, STRAW, AND OTHER
SIMILAR SUBSTANCES."
Sealed the 12th September 1871, and dated the 16th March 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Arthur Wallis and
Charles James Steevens at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 16th March 1871.
We, ARTHUR WALLIS and CHARLES JAMES STEEVENS, both of
Basingstoke, in the County of Southampton, Engineers and Agricultural
Implement Makers, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
Patents, with their Petition, on the 16th March 1871.
We, ARTHUR WALLIS and CHARLES JAMES STEEVENS, both of
Basingstoke, in the County of Southampton, Engineers and Agricultural
Implement Makers, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention

page_text: for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ELEVATORS FOR RAISING AND STACKING HAY, STRAW, AND
OTHER SIMILAR SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
Our Invention has reference to that construction of elevators wherein
the trough is formed with a hinged joint in the middle of its length, so
that it can be folded together for convenience of transport and housing
when not in use. All such elevators as constructed heretofore have been
arranged to fold or unfold by lowering or raising the outer end of the
upper part of the trough, the lower part of the trough together with the
hinge or joint on which the upper parts turns remaining stationary
while the upper part is being folded or unfolded.
Now according to our present Invention we cause the upper part of
the trough to fold down underneath the lower part by raising the lower
part with the hinge or joint, while at the same time the upper part
of the trough is connected towards its outer end to the main framing
of the elevator (during the operation of folding and unfolding) by two
removeable radius rods, one on each side of the clevator, one end of the
said radius rods being made to turn on a centre fixed to the main
framing of the elevator, and the other end on a centre fixed to the
upper or outer part of the trough. Thus as the part of the trough
where the hinge is placed is raised the radius rods cause the upper part
of the trough to fold down under the lower part, and as the part of the
trough where the hinge is placed is lowered the radius rods raise up the
upper part of the trough so as to bring it in a line with the lower part,
in whichi position the joint of the trough is secured by any suitable
known fastening. The radius rods are then disconnected from the
trough, and this is raised to the required angle by curved racks and
pinions as heretofore, or by any any other suitable known means, which
also serve to raise and lower the lower part of the trough as before
described during the operation of folding or unfolding.
In place of arranging the radius rods as before described with one end
jointed to the main framing of the elevator, we sometimes arrange two
rods or poles one on each side of the elevator, the upper ends of which
are connected to the upper part of the trough as before, while the lower
ends have a bearing upon the ground, on which they turn as centres, the
effect being precisely the same as in the first described arrangement.
In fact the same method of action may be carried out by variously
modified arrangements of the radius rods or poles, the one end thereof
.

page_text: being always made to turn on joints or centres on the upper part of the
trough, while the other end is connected to and turns upon some fixed
point as a centre, but we prefer to employ the two arrangements above
described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Arthur Wallis and Charles James Steevens in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 15th September 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, ARTHUR
WALLIS and CHARLES JAMES STEEVENS, both of Basingstoke, in the
County of Southampton, Engineers and Agricultural Implement Makers,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of March, in the year of
our Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Arthur Wallis and Charles James
Steevens, Her special licence that we, the said Arthur Wallis and
Charles James Steevens, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said Arthur Wallis and Charles James Steevens,
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 “Im-
PROVEMENTS IN ELEVATORS FOR RAISING AND STACKING HAY, STRAW, AND OTHER
SIMILAR SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said Arthur Wallis and Charles James Steevens, our executors or
administrators, by an instrument 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 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Arthur Wallis and Charles
James Steevens, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention,

page_text: and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof,
reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, and to
the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say:
Our Invention has reference to that construction of elevators wherein
the trough is formed with a hinged joint in the middle of its length, so
that it can be folded together for convenience of transport and housing
when not in use. All such elevators as constructed heretofore have
been arranged to fold or unfold by lowering or raising the outer end of
the upper part of the trough, the lower part of the trough together with
the hinge or joint on which the upper part turns remaining stationary
.while the upper part is being folded or unfolded.
Now according to our present Invention we cause the upper part of
the trough to fold down underneath the lower part by raising the lower
part with the hinge or joint, while at the same time the upper part of
the trough is connected towards its outer end to the main framing of
the elevator (during the operation of folding and unfolding) by two
removeable radius rods one on each side of the elevator, one end of the
said radius rods being made to turn on a centre fixed to the main
framing of the elevator, and the other end on a centre fixed to the upper
or outer part of the trough. Thus as the part of the trough where the
hinge is placed is raised the radius rods cause the upper part of the
trough to fold down under the lower part, and as the part of the trough
where the hinge is placed is lowered the radius rods raise up the upper
part of the trough so as to bring it in a line with the lower part, in
which position the joint of the trough is secured by any suitable known
fastening. The radius rods are then disconnected from the trough, and
this is raised to the required angle by curved racks and pinions as
heretofore or by any other suitable known means, which also serve to
raise and lower the lower part of the trough as before described during
the operation of folding or unfolding.
In place of arranging the radius rods as before described with one end
jointed to the main framing of the elevator we sometimes arrange two
rods or poles one on each side of the elevator, the upper ends of which
are connected to the upper part of the trough as before, while the lower
ends have a bearing upon the ground, on which they turn as centres,

page_text: the effect being precisely the same as in the first described arrangement.
In fact the same method of action may be carried out by variously
modified arrangements of the radius rods or poles, the one end thereof
being always made to turn on joints or centres on the upper part of the
trough, while the other end is connected to and turns upon some fixed
point as a centre, but we prefer to employ the two arrangements above
described.
On the accompanying Drawing is shown the construction of those
parts of an elevator relating to our before-described improvements.
The Drawing shows a side elevation of the elevator. The trough A, A¹,
is divided in its length at a, the two parts being connected together by
hinges B, one pair on each side of the trough, so that the upper or outer
part A of the trough can be folded or turned down underneath the
lower part A into the position shewn by the dotted lines at M. When
the trough is opened out to its full length the two parts of the trough
are secured and held in that position by the copses or links C, or by any
other suitable fastenings. The trough turns as usual upon a fixed
axis D at its lower end, and is raised or lowered into any desired
position by means of the racks E one on each side of the elevator and
pinions F or by any other suitable means; G is an iron bar attached to
the outside of the framing of the elevator; H is a suspension bar acting
as a truss or support to the outer end of the bar G so as to obtain a
fixed point, centre, or axis at the outer end I of the bar G on which
the radius rod J turns. There is a precisely similar arrangement of bar,
suspension bar, and radius rod on the opposite side of the elevator, and
each of the radius rods is at its upper end attached to and turns upon
centres K fixed to the upper or outer part of the trough one on each
side. The arrangement of iron or other framing for the purpose of
obtaining the fixed point I may be varied to suit the circumstances, but
the above is found by us in practice to be the best form. The bars G and
suspension bars H are jointed to the framing of the elevator in such a
way that when not in use they can be folded back on each side of the
clevator out of the way. It will be seen that by raising the lower part
of the trough by the racks and pinions or other suitable means to the
position shewn at N by the dotted lines (the fastenings C by which the
parts of the trough are maintained in a straight line with each other
being previously disengaged) the radius rods turning on the fixed points

page_text: or centres I, and also at their other ends on the centres K, will cause the
outer part of the trough to fold or turn down into the position shown by
the dotted lines at L. When this position is attained the upper ends
of the radius rods are uncoupled from the centres K and the trough is
lowered by the rack and pinions or other suitable means until the outer'
part of the trough can be fastened back to the axle case or framing of
the elevator in the position shewn by the dotted lines at M by chains or
other suitable fastenings. The poles O one on each side of the clevator
between which the trough works as it rises are then removed from their
sockets, the bars, suspension bars, and radius rods are folded back out
of the way, and the elevator is then rendered very compact for transport
or putting under cover when not in use. To open the trough out again
the operation will of course be exactly reversed, the trough being raised
till the centres K are high enough to allow of the upper ends of the
radius rods being coupled to them, and then lowered till the radius rods
again bring the upper and lower parts of the trough into a straight line
with each other. The trough is then secured in this position by the
fastenings C, the radius rods uncoupled from the centres K, and the
whole trough raised to any desired inclination by the racks and pinions
or other suitable means.
In place of the arrangement of radius rods J and supporting bars G
and H, may be used poles P, shewn in blue lines, hinged at the upper
ends to the trough and resting with the lower ends on the ground,
which poles will evidently operate in precisely the same manner as the
radius rods before described.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we
do not limit ourselves to the precise combination and arrangement of
parts as shewn on the accompanying Drawing, as these are capable of
being varied to suit different circumstances without departing from the
nature of our Invention; but what we claim is, the construction and
use of elevators whercin the upper or outer part of the hinged or
jointed trough is caused to fold down underneath the lower part by an
arrangement of radius rods or poles turning on a fixed point or centre
at their lower ends, and connected at their upper ends to points or
centres on the upper or outer part of the trough, the folding or unfolding
of the trough being thus effected by raising or lowering that part thereof

page_text: where the hinges which connect the two parts of the trough together
are placed.
In witness whereof, we, the said Arthur Wallis and Charles James
Steevens, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twelfth
day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and seventy-one.
ARTHUR WALLIS.
(L.S.)
ness,
MORRIS ASHLEY, Jn'.
CHARLES JAMES STEEVENS. (L.S.)