IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FIRE BRICKS
Year: 1855

page_text: Sealed the 20th April 1855, and dated the 21st February 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Noble at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 21st
February 1855.
I, GEORGE NOBLE, of Sunderland, do hereby declare the nature of the
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FIRE BRICKS" to be as
follows:-
This Invention consists of a combination of hydraulic machinery for pressing
clay in a pulverized state, without or with a slight addition of water. The
machine consists of a hopper or receiver, into which the pulverised clay is
conveyed by an endless web or apron from the mill where it is ground, and
the hopper conducts material into moulds for compression. The moulds are
attached to an iron plate or table, supported by an iron frame, upon which the
table and moulds are driven alternately by hydraulic power applied at each
end of the frame. There are two moulds, and to each mould there is a ram,
the top of which in cach case forms the bottom of the mould. The moulds
travel underneath the hopper to receive a sufficient quantity of clay, and then

page_text: pass on to a large hydraulic ram, by which the clay in the mould is compressed
into a brick. The large ram is in an upright position under the middle of
the frame, and on the frame are two binding or side plates, between which and
over the top is a piece of metal or keep plate to support the action of the
pressure exerted upon the brick, and to form alternately the top of both
moulds. At each side of this keep plate is a spout, from the hopper fitting
close to the table, and as the moulds pass alternately over the large ram, each
mould fills with clay from its respective spout. Near to the bottom of each
brick ram is a sheave, which as each mould moves out from the press ascends
an incline, and thus elevates the brick ram level with the table, and thereby
leaves the brick free from the mould. The brick moulds are made with loose
sides and ends, each having a bevel on the outsides, while they are square
inside. The outsides are supported by a metal frame or box, into which they
are fitted, so that when the sides and ends are drawn downward, they fall
back in proportion to their level. The two moulds are so connected, that
releasing the sides of the one is the means of replacing those of the other.
The pressure of the water is regulated by an upright hydraulic chamber, to
the ram of which is suspended sufficient weight according to its area in
proportion to the area of the large press, for consolidating the clay into a
brick.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Noble in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
21st August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
NOBLE, of Sunderland, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Noble, Her special licence that I, the said George Noble,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George
Noble, 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 THE MANUFACTURE

page_text: OF FIRE BRICKS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George
Noble, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 I, the said George Noble, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof (that is to say):-
:-
This Invention consists of a combination of hydraulic machinery for pressing
clay in a pulverized state, without or with a slight addition of water. The
machine consists of a hopper or receiver, into which the pulverized clay is
conveyed by an endless web or apron from the mill where it is ground, and
the hopper conducts material into moulds for compression. The moulds are
attached to an iron plate or table, supported by an iron frame, upon which the
table and moulds are driven alternately by hydraulic power applied to each
end of the frame. There are two moulds, and to each mould there is a ram,
the top of which in each case forms the bottom of the mould. The moulds
travel underneath the hopper to receive a sufficient quantity of clay, and then
pass on to a large hydraulic ram, by which the clay in the mould is compressed
into a brick. The large ram is in an upright position under the middle of the
frame, and on the frame are two binding or side plates, between which and
over the top is a piece of metal or keep plate to support the action of the
pressure exerted upon the brick, and to form alternately the top of both moulds.
At each side of this keep plate is a spout from the hopper, fitting close to the
table, and as the moulds pass alternately over the large ram, each mould fills
with clay from its respective spout. Near to the bottom of each brick ram
is a sheave, which as each mould moves out from the press ascends an incline,
and thus elevates the brick ram level with the table, and thereby leaves the
brick free from the mould. The brick moulds are made with loose sides and
ends, each having a bevel on the outsides, while they are square on the
inside. The outsides are supported by a metal frame or box, into which they
are fitted, so that when the sides and ends are drawn downward they fall back
in proportion to their bevel. The two moulds are so connected, that releasing
the sides of the one is the means of replacing those of the other. The pressure
of the water is regulated by an upright hydraulic chamber, to the ram of
which is suspended sufficient weight according to its area in proportion to the
area of the large press for consolidating the clay into a brick,

page_text: Having thus stated the nature of my Invention and the means by which
the same is performed, I will now proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto
annexed, and refer to the figures and letters marked thereon.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shows a side elevation partly in section; Figure 2, a plan of the
table and frame which carries it; Figure 3, a left-hand end view, and
Figure 4 is a transverse section at the dotted lines A, B, in Figure 1;
Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 show separate views of some of the parts
on a larger scale. In all the Figures the same letters indicate like parts
wheresoever they occur. a is the hopper or receiver, into which the clay is
conveyed from the mill, where it is ground, with two spouts a', a¹, for con-
ducting the clay into their respective moulds b, b, for compressing and forming
into bricks by the large hydraulic ram c¹, acting on the brick rams d, d, the
tops of which form the bottoms of the moulds b, b; e represents a keep plate,
which alternately forms the top of cach mould b, b, bound by two side or
binding plates ff, to the hydraulic chamber c, and also supports the action
exerted on the brick by the hydraulic ram c; 9 is an iron plate or table, to
which the moulds and brick rams are attached, and is driven to and fro by
horizontal hydraulic rams g', g', the chambers h, h, of which are attached to
each end of the frame i, which also carries the table g; k, k, represent a
sheave in each brick ram d, d, which ascend the inclines 1, 1, and thus clevate
alternately the tops of the brick rams d, d, through the moulds b, b, level with
the table g, to leave the bricks free from the moulds; y, y, are guides for
holding the brick rams d, d, in a perpendicular position.
The brick moulds are made with loose sides and ends, as shewn in the
Drawings at Figures 6 and 7, each being bevilled on the outside while they
are square inside; the outsides are supported partly by a metal frame or box b',
and partly by the table 9, and are retained there by means of grooves b³, in
the boxes b¹, into which they are fitted. The sides and ends of each mould b
are connected together by rectangular frames t with pins t', and these frames
are connected by rocking bars t, so. that forcing the sides and ends of one
mould upwards is the means of bringing those of the other mould downwards,
and this downward position of the sides and ends causes them to recede from
the brick on all sides, in proportion to the bevil on the outsides and the
distance they are drawn down; this also brings the bricks free from the keep
plate e, and below the edges of the hopper a. The rocking bars t2 are fastened
on to the spindle t, and the long end of one of the rocking bars is pressed
downwards by means of a small sheave w, and piece of metal a, attached

page_text: to the side of the ratchet wheel o (excentric fashion); the same is brought
upwards by springs t*, attached to each of the rocking bars and table g;
and 2, z, are guides attached to the frames t, t, for the purpose of
causing all the ends and sides to move together; m is an upright hydraulic
chamber for regulating the pressure on the bricks, to the ram of which is
suspended sufficient weight according to its area in proportion to the area of
the large chamber c, (I have found it convenient to exert a pressure of about
four hundred pounds to the square inch on the large chamber); and the
top of the ram m³ is so constructed as to embrace the lever q, and by rising
up to force it into a perpendicular position, causing the plug of the water-
cock n to make a quarter revolution through the medium of the ratchet o,
by the driver q', on the lever q, supported on the spindle p; this motion of the
ratchet o and plug of the water-cock n allows the springs to reverse tho
rocking bars t, and alter the position of the watercourse in the water-cock n,
in manner herein-after described. The water then drives the table g to the
other end of the frame i, and then forces the hydraulic ram m' up again,
causing another quarter revolution in the water-cock n, and opens the com-
munication with the large chamber c, in like manner after compressing the
brick by each successive quarter of a revolution in the water-cock alternately
changes the position of the table g after pressing the brick.
The arrangement of the waterways are shewn on a larger scale in Figure 11.
The back end view shows the continual communication with the feed pipe A,
and the front end view with waste pipe B, and also shewn in section at 1, 1,
their communication at A and B. A¹ and B' represent recessed rings in the
water-cock n, so that the holes B and the holes A2 are always open in the one
case to admit the water in, and in the other to let the water out, when tho
waterways in the plug are in communication with the waterways in the cock
n; C, in section 1, 1, shews the plug in communication with the large
chamber c, admitting the water from the feed-pipe A; and D' and D³, at section
in 2, 2, shew the connection with the waste B, which by receiving a quarter
of a revolution brings D into the same position as C¹, in section at 1, 1, and
thereby allows the water to return from the large chamber c into the waste
pipe B; E and E*, in section at 2, 2, are for conducting the water to the
horizontal chambers h, h, and through E it repasses into the waste, so that
when E (see section at 1, 1,) communicates with E*, (see section at 2, 2,) E
conducts the water through E, at section 1, 1, into the waste. The small
water-cock U is for the purpose of allowing the water to escape without
passing through the machine in case of accident to any of the parts.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of

page_text: performing the same, I would have it understood that I make no claim to
the separate mechanical parts herein described, nor do I confine myself to the
precise details herein explained, so long as the peculiar character of my
Invention be retained; but what I claim is, the combination herein described,
whereby hydraulic apparatus is employed for moving the moulds as well as
for affording the requisite pressure, and I also claim the constructing and
combining of the parts of the moulds as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Noble, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
FRED HARRIS.
GEORGE NOBLE.