IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MINCING MEAT AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick John Gardner, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Machinist, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR MINCING MEAT AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick John Gardner
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 3rd September 1881.
FREDERICK JOHN GARDNER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Machinist. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MINCING MEAT AND OTHER
SUBSTANCES."
My Invention consists of the improvements in the said machinery herein after
described, whereby the said machinery is rendered very efficient in action and
convenient in use.
In mincing machinery made according to my Invention the essential parts are
constructed and arranged in the following manner :-'
-The bowl containing the meat
under operation is of the usual kind, and has rotary motion given to it by a worm
and worm wheel. I make the worm capable of sliding on its shaft so that it may
be readily ungeared from the worm wheel; the bowl may thereby be readily
cleaned.
The vertical shaft on which the bowl is supported and turns works in a socket
carried by the fixed framing of the machine, in which it can be adjusted with
great nicety by means of screw nuts and lock nuts.
I dispense with the ordinary table carrying the knife spindles and partly
covering the bowl, and I make the bearings of the knife spindles on front and back
parts of the framing of the machine. The upper portion of the front part of the
framing stands back from the lower portion, thereby leaving the part of the bowl
at the front of the machine quite accessible. The vertical front and back parts of
the framing are connected at top and near their lower ends by cross bars passing
from front to back of the machine. The upper cross bars carry knife guards, that
is, plates having slits in them, through which slits the knives work in mincing the
meat or other substance.

page_text: The shafts carrying the knives are geared together and rotate in opposite
directions, taking their motion from the principal or worm shaft of the machine.
The upper parts of the knives are covered and protected by an arched case or
covering made of tin plate or other light material. This case or cover rests on the
knife guards. I prefer to employ wooden teeth in the toothed wheels gearing the
knife spindles together in order to make them work noiselessly or nearly
noiselessly, but I do not limit myself to any particular kinds of gearing.
The knives I employ are double acting, that is, each knife has a figure somewhat
resembling the letter S; the spindle passes through the middle of the double knife,
each curved part on opposite sides of the spindle constituting a knife. The double
knife is connected to its spindle by a slot at the middle of the knife; the said slot
is open at one end so that the knife can be put on its spindle by passing the open
end of the slot onto a square part of the spindle. By means of a fixed bush and a
screw nut on the spindle between which the knife is situated, or by means of two
screw nuts, it can be readily fixed to the spindle and removed therefrom without
ungearing the spindles.
On one of the knife spindles is a sleeve which carries a slightly conical disc.
This disc has rotary motion given to it by gearing on its sleeve, which gears it to
the principal or worm shaft of the machine. The periphery of this disc has the
same or nearly the same curvature as the part of the bowl against which it
works, and as the rotary bowl brings the meat under operation against the
- concave side of this rotating disc, the said meat is detached from the bowl and
turned over towards the middle of the bowl, by which means its more effectual
treatment by the knives is secured. The adjustment and fixing of this disc on
the sleeve is effected by lock nuts.
In order to prevent the meat under operation from rising above and falling over
the edge of the bowl, I fix to the front cross bar an inclined plate or deflector,
which projects a short distance into the bowl near its side. If the meat under
operation as it passes under this plate is above the level of the lower edge of the
plate, it is pressed down and prevented from overflowing the bowl.
In order the more uniformly to distribute the seasoning in the meat under
treatment, I supply the seasoning by means of a hopper carried by the framing of
the machine or by the knife cover. This hopper has an adjustable slide by which
the seasoning can be permitted_to_fall at the desired rate upon the meat passing
under it.
In order to remove the minced meat from the bowl I employ a deflector or
inclined plate situated at front of the machine. This deflector dips into the
bowl, and as the minced meat is brought against it by the rotation of the bowl
it is raised and turned out of the bowl into a receptacle. The deflector may be
hinged so as to be capable of being turned out of the way when desirable.
Where the mincing machine is driven by a steam engine having only to drive
the said machine, I prefer to fix the steam engine and mincing machine on the same
base plate; the steam engine may in this case be much simplified, the principal
shaft and fly wheel of the mincing machine taking the place of the principal shaft
and fly wheel of the steam engine. Besides this simplification the band and
pulleys or other gearing for connecting the mincing machine with the steam engine
are dispensed with.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Frederick John Gardner in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 23rd February 1882.
FREDERICK JOHN GARDNER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Machinist. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MINCING MEAT AND OTHER
SUBSTANCES."
My Invention consists of the improvements in the said machinery hereinafter
described, whereby the said machinery is rendered very efficient in action and
convenient in use.
In mincing machinery made according to my Invention the essential parts are
constructed and arranged in the following manner:-The bowl containing the
ineat under operation is of the usual kind, and has rotary motion given to it by a
worm and worm wheel. I make the worm capable of sliding on its shaft so that
it may be readily ungeared from the worm wheel; the bowl may thereby be readily
cleaned.
The vertical shaft on which the bowl is supported and turns works in a socket
carried by the fixed framing of the machine, in which it can be adjusted with great
nicety by means of screw nuts and lock nuts.
I dispense with the ordinary table carrying the knife spindles and partly covering
the bowl, and I make the bearings of the knife spindles on the front and back
parts of the framing of the machine. The upper portion of the front part of the
framing stands back from the lower portion, thereby leaving the part of the bowl
at the front of the machine quite accessible.
The
The vertical front and back parts of the framing are connected at top and near
their lower ends by cross bars passing from front to back of the machine.
upper crossbars carry knife guards, that is, plates having slits in them, through
which slits the knives work in mincing the meat or other substance. Or the
said crossbars may be dispensed with and the knife guards supported as herein
after described.
The shafts carrying the knives are geared together and rotate in opposite
directions, taking their motion from the principal or worm shaft of the machine.
The upper parts of the knives are covered and protected by an arched case or
covering made of tin plate or other light material. This case or cover rests on the
knife guards. I prefer to employ wooden teeth in the toothed wheels gearing the
knife spindles together in order to make them work noiselessly, or nearly noiselessly,
but I do not limit myself to any particular kinds of gearing.
The knives I employ are double acting, that is, each knife has a figure somewhat
resembling the letter S ; the spindle passes through the middle of the double knife,
each curved part on opposite sides of the spindle constituting a knife. The double
knife is connected to its spindle by a slot at the middle of the knife; the said slot
is open at one end so that the knife can be put on its spindle by passing the open
end of the slot on to a square part of the spindle. By means of a fixed bush and
a screw nut on the spindle between which the knife is situated, or by means of
two screw nuts, it can be readily fixed to the spindle and removed therefrom
without ungearing the spindles.
In order to prevent the meat under operation from rising above and falling over
the edge of the bowl I employ an inclined plate or deflector, which projects a short
distance into the bowl near its side, as herein after explained. The neat under
operation as it passes under this plate is pressed down and prevented from
overflowing the bowl.
In order the more uniformly to distribute the seasoning in the meat under

page_text: treatment I supply the seasoning by means of a hopper carried by the framing of
the machine, or by the knife cover. This hopper has an adjustable slide by which
the seasoning can be permitted to fall at the desired rate upon the meat passing
under it.
Where the mincing machine is driven by a steam engine having only to drive
the said machine, I prefer to fix the steam engine and mincing machine on the
same base plate; the steam engine may in this case be much simplified, the
principal shaft and flywheel of the mincing machine taking the place of the principal
shaft and flywheel of the steam engine. Besides this simplification the band
and pulleys or other gearing for connecting the mincing machine with the steam
engine are dispensed with.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings
the manner in which my Invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in plan and Figure 2 in vertical section machinery con-
structed according to my Invention for mincing meat and other substances;
Figures 3, 4, 5, and 6 are parts and details of the machinery as herein after
explained.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of
the Drawings.
a is the bowl in which the meat or material to be minced is contained. The
said bowl turns on the vertical axis b, and has a slow rotatory motion given to it
by means of the worm gearing with the worm wheel d, the said wheel d being
fixed by the key at e to the underside of the said bowl a, as seen in Figure 2. The
worm c is fixed to the shaft f which is driven by a band passing over the fast
pulley of the fast and loose pulleys g, h. The said shaft f turns in bearings at i, i,
fixed on the bed plate k of the machine. I make the worm c capable of sliding on
its shaft so that it may be readily ungeared from the worm wheel d; I effect this
by fixing in the shaft a a key or feather f upon which the boss of the worm can
slide.
By moving the said worm in one or other direction on the key or feather fº its
teeth may be disengaged from the teeth of the worm wheel d; the bowl a can then
be readily cleaned.
The vertical shaft b on which the rotating bowl a is supported and turns is
-capable-of-being-adjusted vertically-by-the-arrangement-of-parts-represented-in
Figure 2. Around the lower part of the shaft b is a screw bush b which works in
the socket b³ in the bed plate k. The top of the screw bush be carries a flange or
head on which the bowl rests. On the said screw-bush band under the head b
is a screw nut b³, and near the bottom of the said screw bush and taking a bearing
against the underside of the bed plate is a second screw nut 6. By turning the
screw nut 6 the screw bush b' may be raised or lowered, and the shaft b raised or
lowered with it, and its height adjusted with great nicety. After the adjustment
of the shaft has been effected it is locked in that position by screwing the locknut bº
to its seat on the under side of the bed plate.
1, 1, are the rotating knives of the machine. One of the said knives is shown
separately in Figure 3. The said knives are double acting, each knife having a
figure somewhat resembling the letter S, as shown in the Drawings. m is the
knife spindle which passes through the middle of the double knife, each curved
part on opposite sides of the spindle constituting a knife. Each double knife is
connected to its spindle in the following way-Each knife has a slot at its
middle, the slot being open at one end, and in the spindle m at the parts where the
two double knives are to be fixed slots are cut at opposite sides so as to make the
spindle square or oblong at those parts. Figure 4 represents in plan, and Figure 5
in cross section a portion of the knife spindle m slotted, as described, n being the
slotted part of the spindle for receiving the back knife, and p being the slotted
part of the spindle for receiving the front knife, the said slotted parts being made
at right angles to one another. The said knives are connected to their spindle m
by passing the open ends of the slots in them onto the square or angular parts

page_text: at n, p, of the spindle, the said knives are then fixed in their places in the manner
best seen in Figure 1. On the spindle m is a fixed bush or collar m2 against
which the back knife bears, and between the two knives a distance piece q is
placed. is a moveable collar sliding on the spindle m, and on the screwed part m³
of the spindle m is a screw nut s. By making the nuts take against the collar r
the back knife is gripped between the fixed collar m³ and the distance piece q, and
the front knife is gripped between the distance piece q and the moveable collar r,
as seen in Figure 1. By this arrangement the knives may be readily removed
from and replaced on their spindle.
.
The knife spindle f turns in the bearings at m' and m³. The standard carrying
the front bearing m is a short one, but the standard t carrying the back bearing m
crosses the bed plate k in the manner represented. The knife spindle m is driven
by a band passing over the large pulley m on the driving or worm shaft f, and
over the small pulley m on the said spindle m (see Figure 1). In order that the
lubricating oil escaping from the bearing at m shall not fall into the bowl a, I
make in the standard t and under the bearing a rectangular tray or oil catch u.
The said oil catch is shown in the plan, Figure 1, and cross sections taken at right
angles to one another in Figure G.
w, w, are the fixed knife guards between which the rotating knives / pass for
cutting up the meat or material to be minced, the meat or material being carried
by the rotation of the said knives in the direction of the arrows, Figure 2, between
the said guards w.
These guards are made in one piece, and the compound guard is supported
on the top of the bowl a, and connected to the standard t in the following
manner-On one end of the compound knife guard w is a knuckle w, and in the
standard t is a slot . Through the said knuckle w² and slot t² a screw pin x is
passed and fixed by a screw nut. In the flange w³ of the compound guard w is a
hole, and in the standard t is a curved slot through which a pin w³ is passed
which is fastened by a screw nut; by this arrangement the height of the guard w
can be made to follow the adjustment of the height of the bowl a by the arrange-
ment before described. A set screw won the flange w³ of the guard bearing on
the standard t is used to determine with great nicety the position of the said
guard.
In the bowl a, a plough or fixed stirring plate (see Figure 1) of the usual
kind dips. On the opposite side of the bowl and under the part marked w is a
nearly similar but smaller plate to keep down the meat below the level of the top
of the bowl.
Instead of using a single set of knives 1, 1, in the bowl a, two sets of knives
arranged on parallel spindles and geared together may be employed, that is to say,
the cutting parts represented in Figure 2 on one side of the vertical axis b of the
bowl are duplicated on the opposite side of the said axis.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my Invention
of "Improvements in Machinery for Mincing Meat and other Substances,"-
First. The construction of the double acting knives of the said machinery herein
before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
Secondly. The arrangement or combination of parts herein before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawings for connecting the double acting knives
to their spindle or spindles.
Thirdly. The arrangement or combination of parts herein before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawings for adjusting the height of the rotating
bowl of the machinery.
Fourthly. The construction of the knife guards, and the arrangement or com-
bination of parts for supporting and adjusting the position of the knife guards
of the machinery herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.
Lastly. The general arrangement or combination of the parts of machinery for

page_text: mincing meat and other substances herein before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick John Gardner, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty second day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty two.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
37, Temple Street,
Birmingham.
FREDERICK JOHN GARDNER. (L.S.)