Improvements in Biscuit Making Machines.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Oct., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 16th Apr., 1894-Accepted, 16th June, 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Biscuit Making Machines.
I, WILLIAM CHRISTIE, of Duke and Frederick Streets, in the City of Toronto,
in the County of York, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, Manufacturer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to an improved attachment for biscuit making machines
for delivering fruit upon a sheet of dough previous to its being covered by the top
sheet, to form what are known as sultana, raisin, currant or other dried fruit
biscuits, and the object of the invention is, first, to provide means whereby the
fruit may be adjusted upon the sheet of dough, so that the fruit will lie perfectly
close together without over-lapping and present a flat surface to be covered by the
top sheet of dough; secondly, to provide means for moistening the fruit before
the top sheet of dough is laid upon it; and thirdly, to provide means whereby a
constant supply of fruit may be obtained for delivery upon the sheet of dough.
My invention consists essentially first of two shaker-boards having interposed
between them flattening rollers through which the fruit passes from the top board
to the lower board, which has attached to it a flexible lip which rests upon the
sheet of dough, suitable mechanism being provided for giving a vibratory movement
to the shaker boards as hereinafter described; secondly, of a perforated pipe which
extends across the sheet of dough above the fruit and is supported on the end of a
steam pipe by which it is supplied with moisture; and thirdly, of a fruit supply
box from which the fruit is elevated by buckets on an endless chain to a hopper
provided with a spout from which the fruit falls upon the upper end of the top
shaker board.
The dough is delivered by two sets of rollers onto a travelling apron which
carries it under the flexible lip of the lower shaker board which places the fruit
upon the lower sheet of dough. The feed hopper for the fruit is supported above
the rear end of the upper shaker board and the fruit supply box or bin has an arc-
shaped bottom.
The lower shaker board is supported on hangers and upon a laterally adjustable
cross-bar and receives the required laterally vibratory or shaking movement by
means of rods connected to the cross bar and shaker board at one end and at the
other end to cranks which are connected together by a rod and derive motion by
means of a pitman from a crank wheel.
The flattening rollers are provided with end guiding plates situated at the ends
of the space between the rollers for preventing the fruit from slipping out from
between the rollers.
The upper shaker board is supported on flexible spring hangers and upon a reach
pivotally attached to an arm forming part of the standard of the machine. The
board is connected by rods to a crank at the upper end of another rod having an
arm secured to its lower end such arm being connected by a rod to one of the
cranks connected by the pitman to the crank wheel and by this means the required
vibratory or shaking movement is imparted to the board.
Dated the 10th day of October 1893.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, Sout Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: improvements in Biscuit Making Machines.
I, WILLIAM CHRISTIE, of Duke and Frederick Streets, in the City of Toronto,
in the County of York, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, Manufacturer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
My invention relates to an improved attachment for biscuit making machines
for delivering fruit upon a sheet of dough previous to its being covered by the top
sheet, to form what are known as sultana, raisin, currant or other dried fruit
biscuits, and the object of the invention is-first-to provide means whereby the
fruit may be adjusted upon the sheet of dough, so that the fruit will lie perfectly
close together without overlapping and present a flat surface to be covered by the
top sheet of dough-secondly-to provide means for moistening the fruit before
the top sheet of dough is laid upon it and thirdly-to provide means whereby
the constant supply of fruit may be obtained for delivery upon the sheet of dough
and it consists essentially-first-of two shaker-boards having interposed between
them flattening rollers through which the fruit passes from the top board to the
lower board, which has attached to it a flexible lip which rests upon the sheet of
dough, suitable mechanism being provided for giving a vibratory movement to the
shaker boards as hereinafter more particularly explained-secondly-of a perforated
pipe which extends across the sheet of dough above the fruit and is supported on
the end of a steam pipe by which it is supplied with moisture and-thirdly-of a
fruit supply box from which the fruit is elevated by buckets on an endless chain
to a hopper provided with a spout from which the fruit falls upon the upper end of
the top shaker board as hereinafter more particularly explained.
Fig. 1, is a perspective view of my improved attachment to an ordinary biscuit
machine.
Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the principal parts of my attachment.
Fig. 3, is a longitudinal section through the entire attachment.
In the drawings like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each
figure.
A, is the main frame of the machine, B, the supply board and, C, the feed rollers
by which the bottom sheet of dough is fed onto the endless travelling apron D, which
passes over the table, E. F, is the supply board and, G, the feed rollers by which
the upper sheet of dough is laid upon the top of the fruit. The rollers, C, and, G,
are driven from suitable gearing and are suitably adjusted apart by suitable means
which it is not necessary to describe as they form no part of my invention.
H, is a slanting lower shaher board, which has turned up sides, h. I, I, are
rollers which are journalled at each end in the bearing blocks, J, and, J', supported
at each end in the standard, K. The rollers I, are adjustable by means of the
screw spindles, L, extending through the standard into the bearing blocks, J. The
rollers, 1, are located above the rear end of the slanting shaker board, H. M, is
the upper shaker board which slants from its upper end which is made in the form
of a box with open side down to the lower end to which is attached a guiding
hopper, m. The hopper, m, is situated immediately above the middle of the rollers
and is designed to guide the fruit between them. M', are guiding plates attached
to the standard, K, and designed to prevent the fruit from slipping out from between
the rollers, I, 1'.
The lower shaker board, H, has attached to its forward end a flexible lip, h',
made of leather, textile fabric or any other suitable flexible material. The lip, h',
rests upon the sheet of dough, 2. The shaker board, H, is supported upon the

page_text: flexible spring hangers, N, which are connected at the top to the brackets, o, on
the standards, O, and at the bottom to the sides, h, and upon the laterally adjustable
cross bar, P, which is attached to the bottom of the shaker board, H, and is
provided with rounded ends, p, which extend through holes in the standard, K.
The upper shaker board, M, is supported at its forward end on flexible spring
hangers, Q, attached at their upper end to the cross bar. Q', of the standard, Qu
which are situated on the top of the standard, K, and at its rear end upon the
reach, R, pivotally attached at, r, to the arm, s, forming part of the standard, S.
The shaker boards, H, and, M, derive their vibratory or shaking movement by
the following mechanism. T, is a crank pulley secured on the shaft, T', deriving
motion from the belt, t. U, is a pitman connected at one end to the crank pin, u,
on the crank wheel pulley, T, and at the other end to the pin, v, of the bell crank, V,
which is pivoted at, '. The short end of the bell-crank, V, is connected by the
rod, p', to the cross bar, P, attached to the shaker board, H. W, is a connecting
rod pivotally attached at one end to the long arm of the crank, V, and at the other
end to the long arm of the crank, X, which is pivoted at, x, as shown. The short
arm of the crank, X, is connected by the rod, Y, to a pin, y, secured at the bottom
of the shaker board, H. Z, is a connecting rod pivotally attached at one end to
the long arm of the crank, V, and at the other end to the arm, z, secured at the
bottom of the vertical rod, z', which is journalled in bearings, k, attached to or
forming part of the standard, K. 2", is a crank attached to or forming part of the
vertical rod, z, and connected by the rod, 23, to a pin, 2, secured at the bottom of
the shaker board, M. The shaker boards, H, and, M, are broken away in Fig. 2,
to clearly exhibit the connections above described.
It will now be seen that upon the rotation of the crank wheel, T, the shaker
boards, H, and, M, will through the cranks and connecting rods herein before described
derive a laterally vibratory or shaking movement, the movement of the upper board,
however, being more of a laterally swinging movement on account of its being
supported at the rear end by the reach, R, pivoted at, r. 3, is a sprocket wheel secured
at the opposite end of the shaft, T', and connected by the sprocket chain, 4, to the
sprocket wheel, 5, on the shaft, 6, (see Fig. 3). The opposite end of the shaft, 6,
has attached to it a gear wheel, 7, (see Fig. 1) which meshes with the gear wheel, 8,
which also meshes with the gear wheel, 9, secured on the end of the spindle, of
the roller, I, J, and, J³, are gears secured on the spindle of the rollers, I, and, I¹,
and meshing with each other. It will thus be seen that the rollers, I, and, I',
derive a rotary movement towards each other through the crank wheel, T, sprocket
wheel, 3, connected by a chain, 4, to the sprocket wheel, 5, and chain of gearing, 7,
8, 9, and, J, and j³.
10, is a hopper supported on the legs, 11, which are secured to any suitable
portion of the frame of the machine. 101, is a spout leading from the hopper into
the box shaped rear portion of the shaker board, M. 12, is a fruit supply bin.
The bin, 12, has a concaved bottom, 13. 14, is a sprocket wheel having bearings, 15,
on each side of the biu, 12, and, 16, is a board supported on the bearings, 15,
and extending obliquely upwardly forwardly therefrom into proximity with the top
of the hopper, 10. 161, is a side board attached to the board, 16. 17, is a sprocket
wheel having bearings, 18, secured in the upper end of the board, 16.
19, is an
endless sprocket chain connecting the sprocket wheels, 14, and, 17, and, 20, are
a series of buckets secured to the sprocket chain. The sprocket wheel, 14, is driven
from a sprocket wheel outside the bin and not shown in Fig. 1, which sprocket
wheel is driven through sprocket chain and wheels, 21, deriving motion from any
suitable source of power. 22, is a steam pipe leading slightly above the level of
the apron and having a branch pipe, 23, extending across and above the fruit on
the sheet of dough. 231, are perforations made in the branch pipe, 23, which
perforations preferably face the forward end of the machine and are designed to
throw jets of steam or moisture forwardly upon the fruit before the top layer of
dough is placed upon it.

page_text: Having now described the principal parts involved in my invention I shall
briefly describe the operation and the advantages arising from my attachment.
The fruit in the bin is carried by the buckets, 20, on the end of the sprocket
chain, 19, up to the top of the board, 16, from which it is deposited into the
hopper, 10, and by the spout, 10', into the shaker board M, which derives a
vibratory or shaking movement as specified. The fruit deposited upon the shaker
board M, is caused by such vibratory movement to spread over the shaker board
and the slant of the board causes the fruit to pass down the board to the forward
end where the hopper, m, guides the fruit thus spread so that it will pass between
the rollers, I, and, I. By these rollers the fruit is perfectly flattened and drops
in such flat state upon the shaker board, H, which also deriving a vibratory lateral
movement as specified causes the flat fruit to gather quite perfectly close together
and pass down and along such board entirely filling it from side to side. When it
reaches the lower end of the board the flexible lip, h', as it rests upon the sheet of
dough will allow of the fruit to pass upon the sheet of dough perfectly close
together in the same manner as they have gathered upon the shaking board, H.
In order to prevent the fruit from being thrown to either the one or the other
side of the sheet of dough as it passes off the shaker board I provide at each side
of the shaker board butters, 1, which are secured to and extend beyond the
ends, h. I also provide flat spring fingers, ³, at each side which extend slightly
over the sheet of dough and are also designed to guide the fruit as it passes from
the shaker board, H.
I find in practice that the vibratory movement of the board causes the fruit to
gather close together but will not cause portion of such fruit to override or get on
top of other portions. The forward end of the board, H, being extremely close to
the dough and the flexible lip, h', resting on the dough it will be seen that the
separation of the fruit is not at all likely to occur as it is gradually fed upon the
Jough from the shaker board, H. The manner in which the fruit passes upon
the dough will be understood on reference to Fig. 2, in which portion of the fruit
is shown.
It will of course be understood that the speed at which the fruit is fed from the
bin into the hopper and from the hopper upon the shaker board, M, will be
regulated according to the amount of fruit required to fill the board and pass from
such board through the rollers and by the lower shaker board, H, onto the sheet
of dough.
It will also be understood that the speed at which the endless apron travels will
also be regulated so that the passage of the fruit from off the end of the lip, h', of
the board, H, onto the sheet of dough will be at a uniform rate to that at which
the sheet of dough passes along beneath the board.
I am aware that heretofore endless aprons have been provided to feed the fruit
upon the sheet of dough as it passes such aprons but in such case the drop from
such endless apron would cause the fruit to lie upon the dough in strips separated
apart, frequently also portion of the fruit would be caused to drop upon other
portions and thus make an uneven layer of fruit. By my attachment however it
will be seen that by my vibratory or shaker boards that the fruit will be deposited
perfectly close together so that the biscuit when cut would contain a complete
layer of fruit and not leave portion of the biscuit when completed without fruit as
is frequently the case where other machines have been employed for the purpose of
depositing the fruit upon the dough.
Again by providing rollers interposed between the shaker boards, M, and, H, it
will be understood that the formation of a perfect biscuit will be ensured as there
will be no tendency, seeing the fruit is perfectly flat, of portion of such fruit
causing unevenness in the surface of the biscuit or forcing itself through the sheet
of dough.
Another advantage which I have provided for is the moistening of the fruit after
it has been deposited upon the bottom sheet of dough.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling
apron to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a slanting shaker board
suitably supported and having its forward end supported slightly above the sheet
of dough and means whereby the board is given a lateral vibratory movement as
and for the purpose specified.
2. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling
apron to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a slanting shaker board
suitably supported and having its forward end supported slightly above the sheet
of dough on the travelling apron, the forward end having attached to it a flexible
lip which rests and passes over the sheet of dough as it travels beneath it and
means whereby the shaker board is given a lateral vibratory movement as and for
the purpose specified.
3. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of slanting shaker boards arranged
and deriving a vibratory movement as specified, the upper board being designed to
receive the fruit from the feed hopper and carry it to the lower board, the forward'
and lower end of which extends down close to the sheet of dough as and for the
purpose specified.
4. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of the upper and lower shaker
boards, means for causing their lateral vibration, the forward end of the lower
shaker board extending into proximity with the sheet of dough upon the travelling
apron and having a flexible lip attached to it which rests upon the apron as and for
the purpose specified.
5. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of the upper shaker board and
means for giving it a vibratory lateral movement fruit flattening rollers located
beneath the forward end of the upper board, and the lower shaker board having its
rear and upper end extending beneath the rollers and its forward end supported
slightly above the travelling apron as and for the purpose specified.
6. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of the upper and lower shaker
boards, the feed hopper supported above the rear end of the upper shaker board,.
means for causing a vibratory lateral movement to the shaker boards, a fruit bin
having an arc-shaped bottom and an endless chain provided with buckets which are
constructed and arranged to carry the fruit from the bin to the feed hopper as and
for the purpose specified.
7. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers, travelling apron to
receive the sheets of dough from such rollers and a shaker board designed to carry
the fruit upon the bottom sheet of dough, of a moisture pire extending above the
travelling apron and having a perforated branch pipe extending from the top of it
over the fruit on the sheet of dough as and for the purpose specified.
8. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling
apron to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of the shaker board, H,
supported and deriving a vibratory movement as specified and the butters, ",
extending forwardly from the sides, h, of the shaker board, H, as and for the purpose
specified.
9. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of the shaker board, H, supported
and deriving a vibratory movement as specified, and the spring fingers,
extending inwardly over the sheet of dough as and for the purpose specified.
10. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a shaker board, H, supported on

page_text: hangers, N, and the laterally adjustable cross bar, P, and means for causing a
vibratory motion to the shaker board as and for the purpose specified.
11. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a shaker board, H, supported on
- hangers, N, and the laterally adjustable cross bar, P, rods, p¹, and, Y, connected
to the cross_bar, P. and shaker board, H, at one end and at the other end to
the cranks, X, and, V, which are connected together by the rod, W, and derive
motion by means of the pitman, U, from the crank wheel, T, as and for the purpose
specified.
12. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a shaker board, H, supported on
bangers, N, and the laterally adjustable cross bar, P, deriving motion as specified
and the flattening rollers, I, I', provided with end guiding plates, M' situated at the
end of the space between the rollers as and for the purpose specified.
13. The combination with two sets of dough delivery rollers and a travelling apron
to receive the sheets of dough from such rollers, of a shaker board, H, supported on
hangers and the laterally adjustable cross bar, P, rods, p', and, Y, connected to the
cross bar, P, and shaker board. H, at one end and at the other to the cranks, X, and, V,
which are connected together by the rod, W, the shaker board, M, supported on
hangers. Q, and by the reach, R, upon the arm, S, the rod, 3 connecting the shaker
board, M, to the crank, ", at the upper end of the rod, ', the arm, z, secured to the
lower end, 2, and connected by the rod, Z, to the crank, V, which is connected by
the pitman, U, to the crank wheel, T, as and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 16th dow of Anril 1901
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.