IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR STEAM PLOUGHING OR CULTIVATING
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to the Reverend Osborne Reynolds, of Debach,
Woodbridge, in the County of Suffolk, M.A., for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR STEAM PLOUGHING OR CULTIVATING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the Reverend Osborne Reynolds
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 30th May 1868.
I, the Reverend OSBORNE REYNOLDS, of Debach, Woodbridge, in the
County of Suffolk, M.A., do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR STEAM PLOUGHING OR CUL-
TIVATING," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for steam
ploughing or cultivating. When the implement is hauled to and fro
over the land by a rope which is wound up on winding drums mounted
on horizontal axes it is usual to pass the rope between two guide pulleys.
so that the winding and unwinding may not be deranged should the line.

page_text: however is very
of draft be in a somewhat oblique direction, the rope
liable to escape from or get jammed between these guide pulleys.
According to my Invention I form two flanges on one of the pulleys
so as to overlap the other pulley on either side, and thus the rope is
completely boxed in and cannot escape or become jammed.
Also according to my Invention where the rope as it is wound up has
to be distributed along the drum I mount two guides, between which the
rope is passed in a frame, which I cause to traverse to and fro in guides
by means of a screw.
Also according to my Invention I interpose a spring cable o! a con-
siderable amount of extension between the implement and the unwinding
rope in order to prevent the rope which is being unwound from being
affected by any irregularities in the movement of the implement, and so
that it may not from this cause be delivered irregularly as at present
occurs unless a powerful controlling brake is used to the great risk of
injury to the gear.
Also according to my Invention where a four-wheeled implement is
used I connect the hauling rope to it in rear of the leading wheels in
place of in front of them as heretofore, and thus the steerage of the
implement is much facilitated.
Also according to my Invention to prevent the rapid wear of the axles
of the implement which are costly to repair (which wear results from
grit working into the axle boxes) I make the ends of the axles of
polygonal or other convenient form and fit on to them socks or covers
of cast iron, by preference chilled; these socks or covers are cylindrical
or conical on the outside and the boxes of the wheels fit and turn
upon them. Such socks or covers will wear for a considerable time and
are readily renewed when worn out. The implements used in steam
ploughing or cultivating are commonly made to work with either end
forward. They are furnished with share legs having shares both at
the front and back; these share legs rapidly wear and are costly to
replace. According to my Invention I clothe them with socks or cases
of cast iron, by preference chilled, which can be readily and at small
expense renewed when they become worn.
Also according to my Invention I make the shares of such implements
with broad cutting edges, so that the whole breadth of the cutting part
of the share is at the extreme or lowest point, and I also apply pieces,

page_text: by preference of cast iron, between the shares in such manner as
to agitate the uplifted earth and at the same time cause it to slide
over the back share without any tendency to force that share from its
socket.
Also according to my Invention I apply broad hoops to the wheels
of the rope porters so that they may not sink into ploughed land, and
I make one of the wheels of the porter larger than the other so that
the porter may be less liable to be displaced laterally on the side of the
larger wheel, or I gain the same end by placing the pulley of the porter
nearer to one side than the other, or more effectually still by having two
pulleys carrying the rope on the same porter with an interval of greater
or less width between them.
It is frequently requisite during the operations of steam cultivating
to use the assistance of a horse in hauling the rope when it is not
convenient to apply the draught of the horse to the end of the rope,
and according to my Invention I use a clip for this purpose, which
clip consists of a block of wood or other material with a cross slot in
it large enough to admit of the rope lying in it and then press the rope
against one side of the said slot by means of a screw abutting on it on
the inside and ending on the outside in a hook or ring or other form
adapted to its being attached to the draught tree of the horse.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the Reverend Osborne Reynolds in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 30th November 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, OSBORNE
REYNOLDS, of Debach, Woodbridge, in the County of Suffolk, Master of
Arts, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-cight, in the thirty-
first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Osborne Reynolds, Her special licence that I,
the said Osborne Reynolds, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Osborne Reynolds, my executors, administrators,

page_text: 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 APPARATUS FOR STEAM
PLOUGHING OR CULVIVATING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Osborne Reynolds, my exccutors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 Osborne Reynolds, 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:-
This Invention relates to the system of steam cultivation called the
"roundabout" system, and consists of improvements in certain parts of
the apparatus or machinery used or employed therein.
The object of my first improvement is to prevent the tight or slack
rope leaping or passing over the rims or side flanges of the drum or
windlass, and doing mischief to the machinery. To effect this object
I attach guards of wood or iron to the frame of the combined engine and
windlass, which guards extend to the rims or flanges of the windlass and
drum on each side, scc Figs. 1 and 2 on the accompanying Drawing,
where a is the drum or windlass, and 6 the rope; c, the frame of the
engine and windlass, and d, d, the guards extending across the drum, as
shewn at Fig. 1, and partly round the periphery of the rims or flanges,
as shewn at Fig. 2, thus confining the rope in its place, and preventing
any coil (which by accident might become loose) from jumping over the
edge of the flange, and becoming entangled with the other part of the
machinery.
The object of my second improvement is similar to that above stated.
In this case I cause the rope to be passed between two pulleys, one of which
is flanged and the other plain; these pulleys run loose upon their respec-
tive shafts, which are parallel to each other, and are traversed by the

page_text: pulleys from end to end as the rope passes on to or off of the drum. The
distance between the shafts is such that the plain pulley rotates with its
periphery within the flanges of the other, and thus confines the rope
between them, see Fig. 3 on the accompany Drawing, where a is the
flanged pulley, and b, the plain one, a and b, being their respective
shafts; c, the frame, and d, the windlass or drum upon which the rope is
coiled. Stops are fixed at each end of the shafts a and b to regulate the
traverse of the pulleys to the distance between the flanges of the wind-
lass, and thus always keep the lead of the rope between them, and
prevent the possibility of its escape over them.
My third improvement has for its object to dispense with the hand
coiling instrument hitherto in use for guiding the rope on to the drum.
To effect this object I pass the rope between the pulleys formed as
described under the head of my second improvement, or between a pair
of rollers rotating in a horizontal position and geared so as to be driven
backwards and forwards by a screw.
The object of my fourth improvement is to increase the stability of the
rope porters, and for this purpose I fit them with two carrying pulleys
on the same level, and make the forward travelling wheels much larger
than the hinder ones, By this arrangement the porters will move
steadily forward according to the requirements of the rope and advancing
engine, and be less liable to upset.
The object of my next improvement is to provide a means whereby the
rope can be attached in any part of its length as well as at its end, or
instead of at its end only to a draught bar of a horse. To accomplish
this I form a snatch block with cheeks of wood or other substance
sufficiently hard to pinch and hold the rope between them.
Fig. 4 on the accompanying Drawing represents one of these blocks.
a is the rope; b and 6 the cheeks, one of which is fixed and the other
moveable, and in the opening or space between which the rope in any
part of its length is placed, and secured by turning the screw c, which
causes the cheek b to advance towards b', and bind and hold the rope
securely between them. Fig. 5 shews one of these blocks formed of a
piece of hard wood with a notch a cut therein for the rope, which is
fixed in the said notch by the end of the screw hook 6 being forced
against it. By unscrewing the hook the rope is instantly released.
Another of my improvements has for its object to render the steering
of the cultivating implement more easy and efficient, lessen its liability:

page_text: to injure the turntable at the end of the work, and prevent the irre-
gularities in the motion of the cultivator from affecting the speed of the
unwinding drum of the engine. For effecting this improvement instead
of attaching the rope directly to the ends of the frame, causing the point
of draught at each end to be in front of the wheels, I connect the rope
to the frame so as to get the points of draught behind the wheels, and
instead of attaching the rope directly to the frame I connect it thereto
by a spring coupling. By making the points of draught behind the
wheels the leverage of the steering mechanism is increased, so that
greater power is obtained in regulating and controlling the forward
motion and direction of the cultivator, while the spring coupling eases
the draught of the rope, and compensates the sudden irregularities in the
motion of the implement.
Fig. 6 is intended to illustrate the mode of carrying this improvement
into effect in practice. a is the centre rail of the cultivator frame; b, b,
the usual points of draught for the rope at each end of the implement;
c is a strong clasp, which may be fixed to the rail by rivets or screw bolts,
or made to slide and be fixed by a cotter and wedge, or otherwise, and
to which the rope d is connected; e is a tube, inside of which there is
a spiral coil spring, through the centre of which spring the rope d passes;
at the end e¹ of the tube e the spring abuts against a strongly fixed iron
ring. The rope is attached to the opposite and moveable end of the
spring, which moves backwards and forwards with the play of the rope,
and this prevents the irregularities in the motion of the cultivator from
injuriously affecting the speed of the unwinding drum of the engine.
I further propose to improve the cultivator by protecting the share
legs throughout their length by stockings on both sides, also by the
addition of cast-iron pieces of the requisite size and form projecting from
the share legs on each side, and forming a continuation and connection
of the two shares so that the following share may not be obstructed by
the furrow slice cut by the working share falling into its part.
Lastly. When the engine is made to advance along its headland
instead of using a single clip drum I propose to use 2 drums, with the
improvements thereto for confining and guiding the rope as herein-
before described, and instead of using a single disc anchor and one
turntable only on the headland opposite to the engine, I propose to
use two claw anchors and two turntables there, one set fixed and the
other set moved forward in the usual way by the anchor man; that

page_text: portion of the rope which runs between the advancing engine and fixed
pulley being supported by one or more of the improved porters herein-
before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Osborne Reynolds, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this Thirtieth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.