Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Jan., 1888
Specification Accepted, 9th Mar., 1888
I CHARLES HENRY SMITH of Lonsdale Street, South Geelong in the Colony of
Victoria Fellmonger 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 :-
This invention consists of an improved wool scouring or washing machine in which
the wool is carried along through the liquor in the bowl or washing cistern by rakes
or prongs attached to two endless chain belts supported on suitable hexagonal sheaves,
such chains passing through suitable guides attached to the sides of the cistern. The
pair of sheaves at the squeezing rollers end have the necessary motion imparted to
them. The rakes or prongs on the endless chains engage with the wool at the creeper
end of the bowl or cistern and take it down under the comb or immersion bars and
into the liquor, then they drag it along to the other end and deliver it against the
squeezing rollers as by my invention the rakes or prongs are arranged to rise per-
pendicularly as they approach close to such rollers so as to make sure that the wool
shall pass between them. These rakes when clear of the rollers are canted over and
carried horizontally along the top idle side of the chain belts until nearing the sheaves
at the creeper end when they are again "righted" or brought to a position at right-
angles to their supporting link of the chain so as to be in readiness to again engage
with the wool supplied by the creeper.
The drawing hereto attached illustrates my said invention.
Figure 1 shewing a plan of a complete machine.
Figure 2 a sectional elevation at the centre line a, a in Figure 1, while
Figure 2 is a detail shewing the spring and arm contrivance for keeping the rakes
against the squeezing rollers.
Figure 3 is a transverse sectional elevation-looking towards the roller end from the
line b. in Figure 2.
Figure 4 is an enlarged view of the devices for causing the rakes or prongs to rise
perpendicularly at the roller, end and shewing them when the rake arm is released by
the spring.

page_text: Figures
its attachments.
are top and end Views respectively o the pron
Figure 6 is a side view shewing the sheave E the spring device G G¹ and the
means adopted for securing the latter by spring feathers to adjustable collars on
the shaft E².
Figure 6 is a transverse section shewing one of the adjustable collars to which the
spring feathers are attached.
A is the bowl or cistern constructed preferably of sheet metal bolted or rivetted
together and A¹ is its perforated false bottom constructed either of cast iron or brass
and arranged to be removable for cleaning purposes. A is an angle iron frame or
bow secured to the squeezing roller end of the cistern. A³ is the comb or immersion
bars B is the creeper and C the squeezing rolls both of which are of ordinary con-
struction. D D are two endless chains arranged one at each side of the bowl or
cistern and supported on the hexagonal sheaves E and E' respectively. These chains
are constructed either of iron, cast steel or brass and the links are single and double
alternately pinned together as shewn: Sheaves E are secured on shaft E² supported
in bearings attached to the bow frame A2 and sheaves E¹ are secured on shaft E³
supported in bearings E' seated on the upper flange of the cistern A and these latter
bearings are arranged to be longitudinally adjustable so as to enable their position to
be altered to retain the endless chains sufficiently taut. F are the rakes or forks the
supporting bars of which are arranged between the double links of the chains D and
these fork bars have tail pieces F¹ secured on their both ends and arranged between
the cheeks of the double links while at their centre each fork bar has an arm F2
(see Figures 4 and 5) on it which is furnished with the small roller F³. G is a casting
arranged at the centre of the shaft E and to this casting the springs G₁ are secured
while the casting G itself is held in position on the shaft E by its being secured at
the longitudinal centre of three spring feathers G2 the ends of which are secured to
adjustable collars G³ held at the desired position on the shaft E2 by set screws G* as
shown in Figures 6 and 6. The sheaves E and E¹ have ribs E' formed on them on
each alternate face so as to act as guides into which the single links of the chain pass.
The plain faces of the sheave E are furnished with slots E to admit of the tail pieces f
passing thereinto while the rake or fork is rising above the squeezing roller and these
tail pieces have a forward projection F on them which abuts against the end of its
adjacent single link when the forks are passing around the sheaves E¹ at the creeper
end of the machine. When the forks are passing through the cistern the chains D D
are guided between the angle irons D' and D2 secured to its sides and these angle
irons form a guide to keep the rakes the requisite distance from the bottom and also
to lock the tail pieces F¹ in position between the links so as to retain the forks at right
angles to them. D³ are striking bars arranged as shewn to contact with the tail
pieces F. H is a set of bevel gearing for communicating motion between the shaft E³
and the creeper B. The spindle E2 of the sheaves E has a spur wheel J on it which
is driven by the pair of pinions J³ and J the spindles of which are supported in
bearings attached to frame A². On the spindle Jx of pinion J is a pulley .J' to
which motion is communicated by a belt J from the pulley J¹ on shaft J. Shaft J
communicates motion by spur gearing K with the main spindle of the set of squeezing
rollers C. Kare the driving pulleys on said shaft J. The spur wheel J on shaft E
is furnished with a clutch J' to enable the travelling rake to be stopped without having
to stop the whole of the mechanism.
The mode of operation is as follows: When the moving parts of the machine are
set in motion the wool is fed by the creeper B under the immersion bars A³ where it
is caught by the rakes or prongs F and conveyed down into the liquor in the cistern A
and then dragged along to the other upwardly inclined end of the machine where it
is delivered close against the rollers C and thereat the roller F3 at the end of the
central arm F2 of the rake bar contacts with one of the springs G¹ which latter causes
the rakes F to be pressed upon the wool and ensure of it being delivered to between
the rollers. The prongs or rakes then ascend with the sheaves as they rotate and fall
to a position parallel with the chain until they approach near to the sheaves E¹ at the

page_text: other end of the machine when the tail pieces F1 contact with the striking bars D³
and thus compel the rakes or prongs to rise to their working position in readiness to
pass over the sheaves.
While passing over such sheaves and down through the
immersion bars the rakes or prongs are prevented from leaving their position at about
right angles to the links by reason of the finger F4 of the tail pieces abutting against
the rounded end of the adjacent single link of the chain, the tail pieces F1 retaining
the prongs or bars in their proper position while passing through the cistern by their
being held parallel and flush with the links by the angle iron guides through which
the chain passes.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In my improved wool scouring or washing machine the combination of two
endless link chains supported on suitable sheaves and passing through guides attached
to the side of the cistern with the prongs or rakes which they support and convey
through the cistern substantially as herein described and explained and as illustrated
in my drawings.
2. The combination with the prongs or rakes supported by the endless link chains
of the tail pieces at the end of their supporting bars and the arm at their centre and
with the sheaves having suitable slots in them and the spring device substantially as
and for the purposes herein described and explained and as illustrated in my
drawings.
3. The combination with the endless link chain and its prongs or rakes having tail
pieces on them of the striking bar arranged at the back of the sheaves nearest the
creeper end of the machine substantially as herein described and explained and
as illustrated in my drawings.
4. The general combination and arrangement of the endless chains with their
supporting sheaves and prongs or rakes and their appurtenances with a suitable bowl
or cistern having immersion bars at its feed end substantially as herein described and
explained and as illustrated in my drawings.
Dated this Seventeenth day of December One thousand eight hundred and
eighty-seven.