Iм- PROVED MEANS OF AND APPARATUS FOR LAYING ASPHALT, MASTIC, OR OTHER SIMILAR PAVEMENT
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Samuelson, of Number 27; Cornhill;
in the City of London, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of “Iм-
PROVED MEANS OF AND APPARATUS FOR LAYING ASPHALT, MASTIC, OR OTHER
SIMILAR PAVEMENT.”
Scaled the 20th June 1873, and dated the 23rd December 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Samuelson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 23rd December 1872.
I, ALEXANDER SAMUELSON, of Number 27, Cornhill, in the City of
London, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVED MEANS OF AND APPARATUS FOR LAYING ASPHALT, MASTIC, OR
OTHER SIMILAR PAVEMENT," to be as follows:-
·
My Invention relates especially to the laying of those kinds of asphalt
which are reduced to powder or small pieces before being laid, but it is
also applicable wholly or in part to the laying of other kinds of ashphalt,
mastic, or other similar materials.
It consists, firstly, in the employment of compression for consolidating
the powdered or other material instead of percussion, by the process of

page_text: "
pounding commonly known as "punning" now employed for that
purpose. In order to effect this I employ a compressing roller which
may be heated by means of an internal fire cradle or otherwise. I prefer
to construct this roller cylindrical for the major portion of its length,
but with one or both ends of a conical form, or otherwise gradually
diminishing in diameter. I pass the roller backwards and forwards over
the ashphalt, mastic, or other material to be consolidated, taking care to
retain the cylindrical portion thercof on that part of the pavement
which was last finished, the conical or diminishing part of the roller
being caused to act on the powdered or other material, compressing it
gradually, the roller being shifted sidewise more or less after cach
traverse back or forth so as to expose a fresh portion of material to the
action of the said diminishing part of the roller which I call the com-
pressor. The cylindrical or plain part of the roller besides completing
the compression serves to give the final smoothing effect to the surface,
or if required the usual heated smoothing irons may be employed after
the roller has passed.
I obtain a similar effect by suspending or supporting the above
described or any ordinary roller in such manner that it shall be brought
to bear on the material gradually. In either case the compressing roller
is moved sidewise after each traverse either by hand or by means of
screws, racks, and pinions, or other suitable mechanism, and to facilitate
this it may be raised on to sliding beds or rolling carriages, or suspended
in or attached to a frame arranged for that purpose.
Secondly. In order to secure an even thickness of the powdered or
other material I employ a gauge consisting of one or more thin blades
adjustable in length according to the thickness of the material required
to be laid. These blades are fixed to and project at right angles from a
straight edge, which being applied to level the surface before the above
mentioned roller is brought into action the blades penetrate the material
to the concrete or other foundation on which it rests so as to guage the
depth of the said material with a sufficient degree of accuracy.
I prefer in some cases to combine this gauge with the rake usually
employed to level the material, the back of the rake then forming the
straight edge before mentioned, but it may be used as a separate instrų-
ment if preferred.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alexander Samuelson in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 23rd June 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
SAMUELSON, of Number 27, Cornhill, in the City of London, Civil
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant into me, the said Alexander Samuelson, Her special
licence that I, the said Alexander Samuelson, my executors, administra-
tors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander Samuelson, or
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any timo 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
OF AND APPARATUS FOR LAYING ASPHALT, MASTIC, OR OTHER SIMILAR PAVEMENT,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alexander
Samuelson, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, 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 Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alexander Samuelson, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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 accompanying
Drawing:-
My Invention relates especially to the laying of those kinds of asphalt
which are reduced to powder or small pieces before being laid, but it is
also applicable wholly or in part to the laying of other kinds of asphalt,
mastic, or other similar materials.

page_text: It consists, firstly, in the employment of compression for consolidating
the powdered or other material, instead of percussion, by the process of
pounding, commonly known as "punning" now employed for that
purpose. In order to effect this I employ a compressing roller which
may be heated by means of an internal fire cradle or otherwise. I profer
to construct this roller cylindrical for the major portion of its length,
but with one or both ends of a conical form or otherwise gradually.
diminishing in diameter. I pass the roller backwards and forwards over
the asphalt, mastic, or other material to be consolidated, taking care to
retain the cylindrical portion thereof on that part of the pavement
which was last finished, the conical or diminishing part of the roller
being caused to act on the powdered or other material, compressing it
gradually, the roller being shifted sidewise more or less after each
traverse back or forth so as to expose a fresh portion of material to the
action of the said diminishing part of the roller, which I call the com-
pressor. The cylindrical or plain part of the roller, besides completing
the compression, serves to give the final smoothing effect to the surface,
or if required the usual heated smoothing irons may be employed after
the roller has passed.
I obtain a similar effect by suspending or supporting the above
described or any ordinary roller in such manner that it shall be brought
to bear on the material gradually. In either case the compressing roller
is moved sidewise after cach traverse either by hand or by means of
screws, racks, and pinions, or other suitable mechanism, and to facilitate
this it may be raised on to sliding beds or rolling carriages or suspended
in or attached to a frame arranged for that purpose.
Secondly. In order to secure an even thickness of the powdered or
other material I employ a guage consisting of one or more thin blades
adjustable in length according to the thickness of the material required
to be laid. These blades are fixed to and project at right angles from a
straight edge, which being applied to level the surface before the above
mentioned roller is brought into action the blades penetrate the material
to the concrete or other foundation on which it rests so as to guage the
depth of the said material with a sufficient degree of accuracy.
I prefer in some cases to combine this guage with the rake usually
employed to level the material, the back of the rake then forming the
straight edge before mentioned, but it may be used as a separate instru-
ment if preferred.

page_text: In the Drawing Figures 1 and 2 illustrate one method of carrying thic
first part of my Invention into effect. They represent respectively end
and slide elevations of a roller constructed with one end diminishing in
diameter so as to form a compressor as herein-before set forth. The
main body of the roller A is made cylindrical as usual, but the part B is
formed by preference of a curved outline, so that the material at C, in
Figure 2, receives first a comparatively slight compression by the action
of that part of the roller, and subsequently heavier pressure as the roller
is traversed sidewise in the direction of the arrow after each passage
forward or backward over the material until the cylindrical part of the
roller is brought to bear fully thereon as at D to complete the com-
pression. When required the roller may be gently heated by means of
the usual internal fire cradles E, E, or other suitable means.
Figures 3 and 4 illustrate another method by which a similar effect
may be obtained.
In this case the roller A may be made cylindrical
throughout its entire length (as shown in full lines) or diminishing at
the end (as shown in dotted lines) in the manner described with reference
to Figures 1 and 2. It is suspended in a frame F, supported on
wheels G, G, which run on rails and sleepers H, H³, one of which H is
shown as resting on the concrete foundation usually employed, the other
H' on the finished pavement D, the two being by preference connected
together by ties I so as to preserve them in "guage" or at a proper
distance apart. The axis of the roller A revolves in bearings J, sliding
vertically in the frame F. These bearings, and with them the roller,
are raised or lowered as desired by means of the screws K, K, whereby
the pressure on the material L can be regulated as desired. When the
material has been sufficiently consolidated the sleepers and rails with the
roller and frame are moved laterally by hand or otherwise so as to allow
the roller to operate upon another portion of the material to be depositeḍ
at M. When in this arrangement the initial pressure exerted on the
material by the roller is insufficient to cause the latter to revolve I
impart the requisite rotary motion to it from one or more of the bearing
wheels G, G, by any convenient means, such as by gearing indicated in
red lines at N, N, N, or by pitch chain or chains indicated in bluc lines
at O in Figure 2.
Figure 5 illustrates another method of applying the weight of a roller
gradually. In this case the roller A is traversed back and forth on

page_text: material, the sleeper H resting on the concrete foundation being of a
thickness equal to that of the finished pavement. The thin pieces H¹
placed upon the sleeper H are by preference equal in number and thick-
ness to those H placed on the finished pavement. L represents, as
before, the material to be compressed. After each passage of the roller
one of the pieces H¹ and H³ from each side is to be removed, thus
allowing the roller to exercise greater pressure until the last of the
pieces H, H², is removed and the material is consolidated to the same
extent as the finished pavement D. When this is accomplished the
sleepers and rollers are moved laterally as before described in reference
to Figures 3 and 4 to operate upon a further portion of material.
Figures 6 and 7 illustrate the second part of my Invention, namely,
that for securing an even thickness of the layer of material employed.
A is a short straight edge provided with a handle B. To the straight
edge are attached the blades C, C, adjustable thereon by means of screws
and slots, as shown, so as to be easily adapted to suit any required thick-
ness of material, or if preferred they may be fixed and of invariable
length. The uncompressed material having been laid down the straight
edge is applied to level it, and the blades passing through to the concrete
or other foundation gauge the thickness, whilst the straight edge produces
a comparatively level upper surface for the action of the rollers before
described or other compressing means employed. The blades and
straight edge are shown adapted to the rake in general use, but it may.
of course be made and used as a separate instrument.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention and the a
manner in which the same is to or may be carried into effect, I would
have it understood that I do not confine myself to the particular
apparatus shown and described, but what I do claim is,―
First. Consolidating asphalt, mastic, or other similar substances
forming pavements by the gradual application of pressure, substantially
as described.
Second. The application and use of a roller gradually diminishing in
diameter at one or both ends, and of such a roller or of an ordinary
roller so adapted, arranged, and operated that the pressure thereof is
brought to act upon the material in a gradual manner, substantially as a
described and illustrated.

page_text: Third. The application and use of the gauge for regulating the thick-
ness of the layer of material employed, constructed substantially as
described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Samuelson, have herc-
unto set my hand and scal, this Twenty-first day of June, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three.
ALEXANDER SAMUELSON. (L.S.)