AN IMPROVED MACHINE OR APPARATUS FOR PLANTING POTATOES AND OTHER ROOTS AND SEEDS
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Simon, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester,
in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED MACHINE
OR APPARATUS FOR PLANTING POTATOES AND OTHER ROOTS AND SEEDS."
A communication from abroad by Wilhelm Unterilp, of Dusseldorf, in the
German Empire.
Sealed the 4th May 1880, and dated the 20th November 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Simon at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th November 1879.
HENRY SIMON, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster. "AN IMPROVED MACHINE OR APPARATUS FOR PLANTING POTATOES
AND OTHER ROOTS AND SEEDS." [A communication from abroad by Wilhelm
Unterilp, of Dusseldorf, in the German Empire.]
This Invention relates to a machine or apparatus which, as it travels on wheels
along the ground, makes holes in the soil, drops a tuber or charge of seed in each
and covers it in. The machine for this purpose is mounted on travelling wheels,
from which are driven by gearing a crank shaft extending across the machine, and
a disc which revolves on an inclined axis and faces the sloping undersurface of a
trough. or receptacle containing the tubers or seed. The cranks on the crank shaft
give an up and down motion to a number of dibbles, which are thereby pressed into
the soil, making holes for the reception of the roots or seeds. Each of the dibbles
is guided by a radius rod mounted on a fulcrum in the lower part of the framing,
and each of these radius rods is extended beyond its fulcrum in the form of a blade or
shovel which, when the dibble ascends, is caused to scrape along the ground,
covering with soil the root or seed that has been dropped into the dibble hole.
Instead of cranks for working the dibbles eccentrics or cams with rocking levers
may be employed. The delivery of the separate tubers or separate portions of seed
is effected in the following manner:-The receptacle has an inclined double
bottom, and in the space between the two bottoms revolves the inclined disc above
mentioned. The upper bottom has a slit and the lower bottom has openings over
tubes that descend one at the side of and a little behind each dibble, each of these
tubes having an inclined bottom and a side opening closed by a slide which is
linked to the guide radius of the dibble. The inclined disc has a number of holes
Price B21

page_text: through it. As it revolves these holes coming successively under the slit receive
each from the receptacle a tuber or charge of seed, which is carried round by the
rotation of the disc till it drops into one of the descending tubes, at the bottom of
which it is retained until, by the ascent of the dibble, the slide is raised and the
tuber or seed is delivered into the dibble hole, being thereafter covered with soil by
the shovel blade at the end of the radius. To prevent tubers from sticking in the holes
of the disc a conical roller is caused to revolve in contact with it, having teeth or
pegs by which it is geared to the disc. On this roller there are rounded projections
which successively enter the holes of the disc, pushing down the tubers which they
contain. When the machine is used for planting seed the slide of each of the
descending supply tubes has attached to it a small cylinder fitted with a plunger
connected by toggle joints to the guide radius of the dibble. When the slide is up
the plunger is retracted, and the cylinder receives a charge of seed entering by its
end which is then open to the supply tube. When the slide descends the mouth
of the cylinder is brought below the bottom of the supply tube, and the plunger
makes a stroke propelling the seed out at the open mouth of the cylinder. In this
case the revolving inclined disc may be dispensed with, the seed receptacle being
arranged as a transverse trough having a slide with its cylinder and plunger for
each dibble.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Henry Simon in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 19th May
1880.
"
HENRY SIMON, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster. 'AN IMPROVED MACHINE OR APPARATUS FOR PLANTING POTATOES
AND OTHER ROOTS AND SEEDS." A communication from abroad by Wilhelm
Unterilp, of Dusseldorf, in the German Empire.
This Invention relates to a machine or apparatus which, as it travels on wheels
along the ground, makes holes in the soil, drops a tuber or charge of seed in each
and covers it in. The machine for this purpose is mounted on travelling wheels,
from which are driven by gearing a crank shaft extending across the machine, and
a disc which revolves on an inclined axis and faces the sloping undersurface of a
trough or receptacle containing the tubers or seed. The cranks on the crank shaft
give an up and down motion to a number of dibbles, which are thereby pressed into
the soil, making holes for the reception of the roots or seeds. Each of the dibbles
is guided by a radius rod mounted on a fulcrum in the lower part of the framing,
and each of these radius rods is extended beyond its fulcrum in the form of a blade
or shovel which, when the dibble ascends, is caused to scrape along the ground,
covering with soil the root or seed that has been dropped into the dibble hole.
Instead of cranks for working the dibbles eccentrics or cams with rocking levers
may be employed. The delivery of the separate tubers or separate portions of seed
is effected in the following manner :-The receptacle has an inclined double bottom,
and in the space between the two bottoms revolves the inclined disc above
mentioned. The upper bottom has a slit and the lower bottom has openings over
tubes that descend one at the side of and a little behind each dibble, each of these
tubes having an inclined bottom and a side opening closed by a slide which is
linked to the guide radius of the dibble. The inclined disc has a number of holes
through it. As it revolves these holes coming successively under the slit receive
each from the receptacle a tuber or charge of seed, which is carried round by the
rotation of the disc till it drops into one of the descending tubes, at the bottom of
which it is retained until, by the ascent of the dibble, the slide is raised and the
tuber or seed is delivered into the dibble hole, being thereafter covered with Boil
by the shovel blade at the end of the radius. To prevent tubers from sticking in
the boles of the disc a conical roller is caused to revolve in contact with it, having
teeth or pegs by which it is geared to the disc. On this roller there are rounded
projections which successively enter the holes of the disc, pushing down the tubers
which they contain. When the machine is used for planting seed the slide of each
of the descending supply tubes has attached to it a small cylinder fitted with &
When the
plunger connected by toggle joints to the guide radius of the dibble.
slide is up the plunger is retracted, and the cylinder receives a charge of seed
When the slide
entering by its end which is then open to the supply tube.
descends the mouth of the cylinder is brought below the bottom of the supply tube,
and the plunger makes a stroke propelling the seed out at the open mouth of the
cylinder. In this case the revolving inclined disc may be dispensed with, the seed
receptacle being arranged as a transverse trough having a slide with its cylinder

page_text: c¹, c, from the latter of which the tubers pass down an inclined bottom (as shown
in Fig. 2) into the former. In the compartment c¹ is the disc r revolving in an
inclined position against the inclined face of the compartment. This disc has a
number of holes ¹ formed through it, as shown at Figs. 3 and 5, a sloping channel
being formed on one side of each hole in order to cause a tuber to pass readily
from the compartment c¹ into each hole as the disc revolves. In the inclined front
face of the compartment c' are three apertures leading into three shoots t, t, t, and
the holes r¹ of the disc are arranged in three circles in positions corresponding to
those of the apertures of the shoots, so that as the disc revolves tubers are conveyed
upward in each circle of holes to the respective shoots, into which they are
discharged in succession. There is an equal number of holes in each circle, so that
an equal number of tubers will be delivered into each shoot at each revolution of
the disc. In order to insure that each tuber shall be delivered from its hole in the
disc into the respective shoot as it passes, a spring arm ẞ with a roller a is attached
to the hopper opposite the opening into each shoot, as shown at Figs. 1 and 5,
the roller being made to bear against the surface of the disc, so that as the holes
pass it the roller, in being made to spring forward into them, will throw the tuber
forward into the shoot.
The framing of the machine carries a cranked shaft g receiving rotary motion
from the axis of the road wheels by gearing f, h; on the cranks of this shaft
are mounted the rods i with dibbles i', that are caused by the up and down
motion imparted to them to form the holes in the ground for receiving the tubers.
The rods are guided in their motion by means of links k mounted loosely on a
spindle Z.
Instead of actuating the dibbles by a multiple crank shaft, there may be two
single crank shafts g, each worked by gearing f, h, from the road wheels, as at
Fig. 8, or the dibbles may be actuated by eccentrics, as at g¹, Fig. 9, or by levers k
worked from a crank k¹ by means of the arm k³ and link k³, as at Fig. 10.
The lower ends of the shoots t are closed by flap valves, which are held closed by
a weighted arm y so as to retain the tuber that has been delivered into the shoot by
the disc until the mouth of the shoot has by the forward motion of the machine
been brought over the hole made by the corresponding dibble. The opening of the
valve is then effected, so as to allow the tuber to drop into the hole, by the
upward motion of the dibble and its guide link k, the latter being connected to the
army by a chain, as shewn at Fig. 1. On the spindle are furthermore mounted
loosely arms with blades m¹, which are held up in the position shewn in Fig. 1 by
a tail on the links k having a stud m which passes underneath the arm of the
blade m³, but on the dibble and link k rising the stud m in descending also
allows the blade m¹ to descend on to the soil, so that by the forward motion of the
machine the blade drage sufficient soil with it to fill up the hole made by the dibble
after the tuber has been deposited therein. On the descent of the dibble the blade
is again raised by the tail m.
Rotary motion is imparted to the spindle from the crank shaft g. by means of
the pitch wheels n, p', and endless chain, and the axis of the disc r is driven from
the spindle by the bevil gearing 8 and pitch wheels u, v, and chain.
T
In order to prevent the tubers from clogging in the hopper as they descend to
the compartment c¹, they may be subjected to a shaking motion, either by the
arrangement shewn in Fig. 6, in which an endless chain or belt with projecting
fingers is caused to travel over pitch wheels Ŏ driven from the disc 8, bevil
wheels, and pitch wheel 82, receiving motion from the crankshaft or road wheel,
or the arrangement at Fig. 7 may be employed, wherein a bar e with projections
S receives a to and fro motion along the bottom of the hopper c from an eccentric d.
The bar is guided by the rollers r.
It will be evident that there may be two or more distributing discs r, and that
they may be arranged at the sides of the machine instead of in front.
By substituting for the dibble i an implement of the shape shewn at Fig. 11, or
àt Fig. 12, the machine may be used for digging up turnips.
4

page_text: Figs. 13 to 19 shew another modification of the machine. The hopper C with
the distributing disc r and shootst are constructed as in the preceding arrangement.
The shaft g, driven by pitch wheels and endless chain from the axis of the road
wheels, has fixed on it in front of every shoot t two curved arms with blades
(shewn in side elevation at Fig. 13, and in front view at Fig. 14) which, in
revolving in the direction of the arrow as the machine advances, make dibble holes
in the ground as indicated. A second spindle n receiving rotary motion by an
endless pitch chain, and gearing from the shaft g, carries tappets o¹, which as they
revolve lift the weighted tails t2 of the flap valves vl so as to open these and allow
the tuber to fall from the shoot into the hole, the flap being made to close again
when the tappet has passed, as indicated at Figs. 15 and 16. The shaft n also has
other tappets o with rollers which in rotating raise the arms m with the blades
that push the earth into the hole after the tuber has been introduced, these tappets
being so arranged that the raising of the arm and blade against the action of a
spring p from the position shewn in Figs. 13 and 17 into that shewn at Fig. 18 is
effected as soon as the blade reaches the hole. Instead of constructing the blade of
a hoe or shovel shape, as shewn, the instrument may consist of two blades diverging
at an angle from each side of the arm m, the lower edges being rounded off towards
the front so that the blades, when acting on loose soil, will drag with them
sufficient thereof to fill the dibble holes, but when they encounter stable manure,
their rounded edges will cause them to ride up and over it so as not to carry it
along with them.
Instead of imparting a continuous rotary motion to the shaft g and blades i¹,
they may receive a reciprocating rotary motion, so that the blade first descends
into the soil for making the dibble-hole and then ascends again, thus acting as it
were as a reciprocating plough share. Also by keeping the blades ¹ stationary
instead of revolving while the machine advances they may be made to cut furrows
in the ground instead of making dibble-holes. Also by imparting to them rotary
motion in the contrary direction to that indicated at Fig. 13, the machine may be
used for digging roots, in which case a pronged implement, such as shewn at Fig. 19,
may be substituted for the blade i¹. If a great number of the blades or prongs be
used they may also be employed for digging up the soil.
Having thus described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, I
claim,―
First. The use in tuber or seed planting machines of a revolving disc or wheel
having holes or pockets, and so arranged that by its rotation it takes up a tuber or
charge in each hole or pocket successively and then delivers it into the planting
shoot, substantially as herein described.
Second. The combination in tuber or seed planting machines of a revolving disc
having holes or pockets for delivering the tuber or seeds with a shoot having a
flap or slide for regulating the delivery of the tuber or seed therefrom, a dibble or
blade for making holes for the reception of the tuber or seed, and with a blade or
shovel for filling the holes with soil after the tuber or seed has been deposited
therein, arranged and operating substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Simon, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Eighteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand
night hand and and nights
HENRY SIMON. (LS.)