THE APPLI- CATION OF BATTERING RAM TO THE PURPOSE OF WORKING COALS IN MINES
Year: 1830

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
WOOD, of Summer Hill, in the County of Northumberland, near Newcastle-
upon-Tyne, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain; bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-third day of December, in the first year of His
reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Wood, His especial licence that I, the said William Wood, my
exors, adiiors, and assigns, and such others as I, the said William Wood, my
exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times during the term of years. therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "THE APPLI-
CATION OF BATTERING RAM TO THE PURPOSE OF WORKING COALS IN MINES;" in
which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said William
Wood, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly
to describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in His said
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within four calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Wood, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention to consist

page_text: in the application of what I term a battering ram, acting upon the end of a
long wedge passed through a guide tube or frame, to the purposes of working
coal in coal mines.
And in further compliance with the said proviso, I, the said William Wood,
do hereby describe the manner in which my said Invention is to be performed
by the following description thereof, reference being had to the Drawing
annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say :-
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
No. 1 represents a sido elovation of my said Invention; h is the wooden
frame or bed on which c (which is the battering ram) traverses or slides;
i, i, k, aro legs or supports to this bed, and rest on boards which are raised on
beds of small coals, as at J, to the required height, it being remembered that
this means of giving the elevation required is always at hand in the workings
of the mine. It will be observed that the front leg or support k is furnished
with a hinge r and t, x, so that when the jud or block of coal falls down or
comes away the front leg may give way and not break, as shewn at No. 3;
n, c, is the long wedge passing through a guide box V, and supported in a
level position by the small wooden sliding guides W, W, which moves forward
at each stroke of the battering ram; Y is a box of equal height with the guido
box to preserve the level of the bed frame; and 1, 1, are two wedges to keep
the frame steady; and it will be seen that the guide box V and the box Y
are furnished with spikes, which go into the top or roof of the working for the
same purpose; is a mere guage board, shown in plan at No. 15, and merely
slipped on to the side of the guide box to regulate the distance of the machine
from the block of coal at starting. Within the guide box is a metal tube or
bushing, held in its place by the two forclocks or pins m, m, this bushing will
bo more particularly described hereafter. When the block of coal 9 has been
prepared by curving as at t, and by nicking as at t, t, in No. 2, the machine is
fixed as here shown, and the battering ram set to work by two men taking
hold of the handles of the batiering ram e, one at each side, and sliding it
with forco up against the end of the wedge, which should be stoel-pointed,
repeating this action till the wedge has advanced sufliciently far into the block
of coal to cause its separation from the mass, and consequent fall, as shewn at
No. 3; and it may be well here to observe, that as the action of the wedge and
battering ram is apt to cause the front surface of the block to split off before
it enters many inches into the coal, it has been found expedient to drill a hole
for the first entrance of the wedge with a drill as hereafter shown, the drill
being also worked with the battering ran. No. 2 is a plan of two of the said.

page_text: machines, the wedge being shown as entered in the holes previously drilled for
them as before mentioned; a here represents a jud or block of coal, three
feet thick and six feet deep, and twelve feet wide; d, d, are the grooves in
which the battering rams e, e, slide, with steel sides or rails for the bearings of
the battering ram to rest and move upon. It may be as well here to observe
that the rails should be bars of smooth steel, well oiled when used, and that'
the face and bearings of the battering ram should be case-hardened. The
guide box V and box Y are here shown in section, for better elucidation
of the Figure. No. 3 shows the position which the machine assumes when
the block of coal falls. No. 4 is a view of the under side of the battering
ram, showing the four bearings which bear upon the steel rails or sides of the
groove in the bed frame; and No. 5 is a plan of the striking end of the
battering ram. Nos. 6 and 7 are views of the metal bushing of the guide box.
No. 6 is an end view, showing that the hole or passage for the long wedge
is made wider than the shank of the wedge, so that when a broad wedge is
used it may pass through, and then the two keys W, W, shewn in No. 6, are
used to fill up to the shank. No. 7 is a side view in section of the said
bushing; and S, S, shows the flange or groove which receives the two forelocks
or pins marked m, m, in No. 1, and herein-before mentioned. No. 8 is a
view of the drill, which it will be seen has a long shank passing through the
guide box and bushing, and keyed into the tube of the latter by the guide
crutch here shewn, which allows the drill to be turned partly round at every
stroke of the battering ram. No. 9 is an end view of the crutch for the drill.
No. 10 is a plan of the support boards, which have been before described as
resting on the heap of small coals. No. 11 represents the various kinds of
long wedges used, and the forelocks m, m. No. 12 represents a block of coal
with a long wedge driven in the whole extent required, shewing also the hole
drilled for its first entrance, which should be about six inches deep, or as much
more or less as the nature of the coal may require. No. 13 is a plan of
a battering ram with long handles to adunit of more than one man of a side
working it when necessary. No. 14, side view of swing board used for raising
the battering ram level with the frame. a, perpendicular rest; e, battering
ram resting on the swing board, elevated from a perpendicular to a horizontal
position ready for delivery on the frame; it is then put into the slide and
worked; when the coal is fallen, the battering ram is taken down by the
same means as it was raised; b, line of curvature formed by swing board;
c, prop for swing board to rest upon; d, end view of wooden frame and
supports.
Now, whereas I claim as my Invention, the application of a battering ram,
J

page_text: supported on a bed frame and rail as aforesaid, and acting on a long wodgo
passing through a guido box as aforesaid, for the purposes of working coal in
coal mines, as herein-before described; and such my Invention being to the
best of my knowledge and belief entirely new, and never before used within
that part of His said Majesty's United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
called England, His said Dominion of Wales, or Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, I do hereby declare this to be my Specification of the same, and that
I do verily believo this my said Specification doth comply in all respects fully
and without reserve or disguise with the proviso in the said hiercin-before in
part recited Letters Patent contained; wherefore, I do hereby declare to
maintain exclusive right and privilege of my said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Wood, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty-one.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the within-
named William Wood, in the presence of
ROBERT MUNRO ALLAN,
WILLIAM (L.8.) WOOD..
Clerk to Mr. John Fenwick,
Inrolled the Twenty-third day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-one.