An Improved Machine for Breaking Pig Iron Moulds.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Sept., 1892
Complete Specification Left. 19th June. 1393-Accepted, 22nd July, 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Breaking Pig Iron Moulds.
We, JOHN WILLIAM ARMSTRONG, of 17, Victoria Road, Middlesbrough-on-
Tees, Mechanical Draughtsman, and THOMAS JAMES, of 24, Station Road, South
Bank, Iron Works Engineer, both in the County of York, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the construction of a machine to be used for breaking
up into convenient lengths or sections the moulds of cast iron, known as pig iron
moulds, which are cast in the open sand, moulds or pig beds in front of blast
furnaces, and usually consist of what is termed a SOW with several pigs adhering
thereto, grid-iron fashion.
66
""
The object of our invention is to construct a machine to be driven by a steam
engine or other high speed motor which shall be capable of receiving a continuous
supply of pig iron moulds and of breaking them up into the lengths or sections
required which is usually done by manual labour.
Our invention consists in improved combinations and arrangements of mechanism
by which to effect this purpose, but with the various parts constituting the machine
so designed and connected together that the machine is operated in all its parts
from one driving shaft without requiring other attention than placing the pig iron
moulds on a table or platform from which they are conveyed under breaking rams
and broken as required.
In the upper part of a machine constructed according to our invention are placed
the driving shaft geared by an intermediate shaft into what may be termed the
main operating shaft, which again gears into a third motion shaft which operates
the "sow" breaking ram, whilst the main shaft controls and operates more or less
directly the feeding mechanism; the pig breaking ram and the holding down
mechanism by which each pig iron mould is secured in position to take the pressure
of the breaking rams. The combination of parts by which these several operations
are performed consist as follows:-A crank pin extending from one end of the
main operating shaft operates and controls the pig breaking ram, which moves up
and down between suitable guides with the rotation of the main shaft.. Suitably
placed with one end immediately under the line of action of the pig breaking ram is
the table or platform on which the pig iron moulds are placed so as to bridge over
a space between the walls or sides thereof on which the moulds are supported at
their ends only, so that as the said moulds come under the breaking rams they are
free to break in the manner required. The pig iron moulds are conveyed along the
table by the action of a feeding carriage which is supported on rocking bars fitted
into the sides of the table so as to occupy the space within the table and below the
moulds which are placed on it; this feeding carriage is operated by levers from the
main shaft, the combined action of which is to lift the feeding carriage up until it.
takes the weight of the pig iron, when it is urged forward and afterwards lowered and
pushed back, leaving the pig iron moulds resting on the table as before but one
stage nearer to the breaking rams; this movement of the feeding carriage is
continuous whilst the machine is at work. The pig iron moulds are held down upon;
the table to take the stroke of the rams by the combined action of a bolding down
block and wedge worked by a system of levers from the main shaft so adjusted that
the holding down ram can adapt its grip to variations of thickness in the pig iron
mould.
Without restricting our invention to any particular system of levers by which to
obtain the requisite combined movement of the holding down block and wedge, a

page_text: suitable system consists as follows:-The holding down block is connected to the
arm of a bell crank lever with which it is lifted up and lowered by a cam link or
bridle worked from a cam on the main shaft; another suitably shaped cam on the
main shaft gives the requisite in and out motion to the end of a lever which controls
the wedge; but in order to adjust the stroke of the wedge to the position of the
holding down block, the fulcrum on which this lever rocks is linked to the other
arm of the bell crank lever of the holding down block, which thereby controls the
position of the said fulcrum and so adjusts the stroke of the wedge in the manner
required.
The grip of the holding down block is preferably applied to that part of the pig
iron mould called the "sow," which is held rigidly against the table flange, whilst
the pig-breaking ram breaks the pigs in or about the middle of their lengths and
from the "sow." "
As the end of the " SOW projects beyond the table flange it
comes under the stroke of the " sow breaking ram and the unsupported part is
broken off from the rest of the pig iron mould.
"
Dated this 17th day of September 1892.
"
G. J. CLARKSON,
Stockton-on-Tees, Agent for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Breaking Pig Iron Moulds.
We, JOHN WILLIAM ARMSTRONG, of 17, Victoria Road, Middlesbrough-on-
Tees, Mechanical Draughtsman and THOMAS JAMES of 24, Station Road, South
Bank, Iron Works Engineer, both in the County of York 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 relates to the construction of a machine to be used for breaking
up into convenient lengths or sections the moulds of cast iron known as pig iron
moulds, which are cast in the open sand pig beds in front of blast furnaces and
usually consist of what is termed a SOW with several "pigs" adhering thereto
grid iron fashion.
<
The object of our invention is to construct a machine to be driven by a steam
engine or other high speed motor or the like arrangement which shall be capable
of receiving a continuous supply of pig iron moulds and of breaking them up into
the lengths
or sections required which is usually done by manual labour.
Our invention consists in improved or special combinations and arrangements of
mechanism by which to effect this purpose, but with the various parts constituting
the machine so designed and connected together that the machine may be operated
in all its parts from one driving or high speed shaft geared suitably to one or more
operating shafts the machine as a whole requiring no other attention than placing
the pig iron moulds on the table or platform along which they are conveyed under
the breaking rams and broken as required except that the feeding mechanism can
be put in and out of gear without stopping the whole machine.
We attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying
drawings in connection with which we will now describe the essential features of
our invention and in what manner the same is carried into effect.
In the drawings
Figure 1 is the breaking ram end view of the machine with the platform or table
and its operating mechanism attached thereto in the working position except that
in order to bring both ends of the said platform or table into one view an
intermediate part is removed as if broken away.
.
Figure 2 is a corresponding view in plan of the same machine.
Figure 3 is a sectional view taken transversely on lines xx, x²x², x²x², of.
Figures 1 and 2.
The above figures which all correspond illustrate the machine with its working

page_text: parts in their relative positions at the point of the stroke at which the pig breaking
ram is about to apply the breaking strain to the "pig" in position.
tr
In the upper part of a machine constructed according to our invention and
illustrated in the drawings are placed the driving shaft a, which may be driven
direct from a steam cylinder as shown, or otherwise as by a belt; this driving
shaft a, is geared by an intermediate shaft b into what may be termed the main
operating shaft c which again gears into a third motion shaft d which operates the
sow" breaking ram whilst the main shaft c controls and operates more or less
directly the feeding mechanism, the " pig" breaking ram and the holding down
block by which each pig iron mould is clamped in position to take the strain of
the breaking rams. The "pig" breaking ram e is operated and controlled from
the main shaft c by means of the crank pin e¹ connecting rod e² and motion block e
working between suitable guides in the manner shown and to which a vertical
movement with great power in the downward stroke is imparted by the rotation of
the shaft c, fis the "sow" breaking ram which is similarly operated and controlled
from the third motion shaft d by means of the crank pin connecting rod f² and
motion block f³.
"
The movements of the breaking rams e and f can readily be adjusted relatively
to each other in any manner required that is to say that the breaking ram ƒ can
be set to fracture the " SOW in advance of the breaking ram e fracturing the
"pig" or both rams can be set to act simultaneously, but in practice we prefer to
set the "pig" breaking rame in advance of the " sow breaking ram and the
machine is so illustrated in the drawings and designed and arranged accordingly.
The pig iron moulds are held down upon the table to take the stroke of the
rams by the holding down block and wedge o, the combined action of which is
so controlled from cams on the main shaft c through a specially arranged system of
links and levers that the said block adjusts itself to the irregularities of thickness
incidental to the " SOW in applying and releasing its grip at the proper times.
"
23
This system of links and levers in combination with the mode of operating them
constitutes an essential feature of our invention and consists as follows;- is a
cam keyed to the shaft c a sectional detail of which is shown in Figure 4 from
which it will be seen that it is designed to impart a vertical lifting movement
through its bridle and the arm of the bell crank lever kk to the holding
down block which it lets down again onto the "sow," m is a cam also keyed to
the shaft ca sectional detail of which is shown in Figure 5, from which it will be
seen that it is designed to impart a sideward movement to the short arm n' of the
lever n n by which the longer arm n² imparts a still greater sideward or in and
out movement to the wedge block o. By suitably setting the two cams / and m
on the main shaft e the movements imparted by their rotation to the holding down
block and wedge block o are so adjusted that as the block comes in contact
with the " SOW in its down stroke the wedge block o completes its in stroke and
wedges the block against the "sow" in the manner required; to be followed at
the proper time by the withdrawal of the wedge block o and the lifting up of the
holding down block clear of "sow." But in order to regulate the instroke of
the wedge block o to suit the position of the holding down block as this varies
with the thickness of the "sow we connect the lever n' n² to the arm k³ of the
bell crank lever kk by means of a second bell crank lever pl p³ rocking about
its own fixed pin p and about the same moveable fulcrum n as the lever n n², the
object in view being to adjust the position of the fulcrum n to that of the holding
down block to the extent required to vary the instroke of the wedge block o to
what the said holding down block exactly requires to wedge it tight against the
BOW " and it will be readily understood on reference to the drawing in what way
the above described arrangement of links and levers can be made to effect this
purpose in response to the rotation of the cams.
66
We will now proceed to describe that part of our invention which constitutes our
specially designed feeding mechanism and in what way the same is combined with

page_text: our pig breaking mechanism so as to be driven from the same motor or driving
shaft. Suitably placed with its end immediately under the line of action of the pig
breaking ram is the table or platform g on which the pig iron moulds are placed so
as to bridge over a space between the walls or sides thereof on which the moulds
are supported at their ends only so that as the said moulds come under the breaking
ram they are free to break in the manner required. The pig iron mouids are
conveyed along the table q by the action of the feeding carriage which is
supported on a series of rocking bars ss fitted into the sides of the table g and
takes the form of an open frame occupying the space within the sides of the table
and below the moulds which are placed on it. This feeding carriage is operated
by levers from the main shaft, the combined action of which is to lift the feeding
carriage up until it carries the pig iron moulds clear of the sides of the table, it is
then urged forward and afterwards lowered and pushed back leaving the pig iron
moulds resting on the table as before but in a new position one stage nearer to the
breaking ram aud this movement of the feeding carriage is continuous whilst the
machine is at work, except that a clutch arrangement is preferably provided for
putting the feeding mechanism in or out of gear independently of the other parts of
the machine.
is
Referring to the drawings it will be observed that the rocking bars ss are
furnished with arms s² carrying friction rollers or pulleys which engage with the
sides of the feeding carriage by means of slots or the like openings provided to
receive them, it will also be observed that the rocking bars s' are all coupled to the
first rocking bars so that whatever movement is imparted to this particular bar
extends to the other bars. This bars is connected to and worked from the main
shaft c by means of the eccentric t, eccentric rod t and arm t² so arranged and
adjusted relatively to the arms s² that the rotation of the eccentric rocks the bar s
and consequently the bars s' in such a manner that the feeding carriage
continuously lifted and lowered by the throw of the arms and pullies in the
manner required. To obtain the requisite lateral movement by which the feeding
carriage is urged forward as well as lifted, a shaft u is provided which is connected
to. the feeding carriage by the arm u¹ and link u² hinged together at us and to the
feeding carriage at u. This bar is connected to and rocked from the main shaft c
by means of the eccentric v, eccentric rod v¹ and arm v² which forms with the arm u
a bell crank lever so that as the rotation of the eccentric v imparts a rocking
motion to the shaft u, the arm u' and link u impart a lateral motion through the
pin to the feeding carriage the said lateral motion accomodating itself by means
of the hinged joint u³ to the lifting and lowering motion imparted by the rocking
bars sands so that by suitably setting the eccentrics t and the lifting of the
feeding carriage will be assisted at the proper time with a thrust forward by which
the pig iron moulds are advanced stage by stage along the table or platform q until
disposed of under the breaking rams. A clutch w, is preferably provided on the
shafts to put the lifting mechanism out of gear with the operating shaft c at any
time. By making a section g' of the table opposite the breaking ram e removeable
the support to the free ends of the "pigs can be withdrawn and in this way the
machine can be used to break the "
pigs" from the SOW without otherwise
fracturing them.
"
"
Having now described the essential features of our invention and in what
manner the same is carried into effect, we would have it understood that we do not
confine ourselves to the precise arrangement of parts constituting the machine as
shown in the drawings inasmuch as the feeding mechanism can be used in com-
bination with other mechanism for driving the same and with other arrangements
of breaking mechanism, and conversely the breaking mechanism can be used in
combination with other feeding mechanism or by itself. And we would further
remark that the arrangement of mechanism for wedging the holding down block
can be operated from a shaft of its own in cases in which the general construction
will admit of this, and is not limited to be operated from the same shaft which

page_text: operates the "pig" breaking ram providing the two shafts revolve uniformly and
in combination, but what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is :-
"
Firstly-A machine for breaking into convenient lengths or sections the moulds
of cast iron of the form in which they are usually run into the pig bed, the said
machine comprising a combination of breaking rams by which the several "pigs
and the SOW to which they are attached are fractured, a wedge for clamping
the mould in position for breaking, the said wedge being operated in combination
with a
holding down block by a special system of links and levers operated
from cams with or without a table or platform and its feeding mechanism all
combined, arranged, and operating together, substantially as hereinbefore described
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Secondly-The mechanism for clamping the sow in position on the table or
platform consisting of the system of links and levers operated by the rotation of
cams whether mounted on the main shaft as shown in the drawings or some
other shaft rotating uniformly therewith by which the sideward or in and out
travel of the wedge block adapts itself to every variation in the position of the
holding down block due to the thickness of the " SOW substantially as herein-
before described and illustrated more particularly in Figure 3.
"
Thirdly-The mechanism for feeding the pig iron moulds into position for
taking the strain of the breaking rams the said mechanism consisting of the
arrangement and construction of parts in which a feeding carriage is continuously
lifted and lowered in combination with a lateral to and fro movement by which
the pig iron moulds are carried forward from stage to stage all combined and
operated from the main shaft or its substitute substantially in the manner and
for the purpose as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
"
Fourthly The general arrangement and construction of parts constituting
machinery of apparatus for breaking into convenient lengths or sections the
moulds of cast iron of the form in which they are usually run into the "pig
bed all combined and operating together substantially as hereinbefore described
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dated thin 17th dow of Tune 1902
G. J. CLARKSON,
Chartered Patent Agent,
Stockton-on-Tees, Agent for the Applicants.