IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM TILLING MACHINERY AND APPARATUSES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Collinson Hall, of Navestock, in the County of
Essex, Agriculturalist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM
TILLING MACHINERY AND APPARATUSES."
Sealed the 31st July 1860, and dated the 7th February 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Collinson Hall at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 7th
February 1860.
I; COLLINSON HALL, of Navestock, in the County of Essex, Agriculturalist,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STEAM TILLING MACHINERY AND APPARATUSES," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, first, in new means of securing a resisting power at
the headlands or ends of a portion of ground to be ploughed or otherwise
tilled, together with what I term an automatic sheave, round which the rope
passes to the implement, and a method of joining wire ropes to enable them
readily to pass round the sheaves and to prevent their twisting or kinking.
I first take a number of what I term screw anchors, that is, shafts with a

page_text: screw formed on their lower part; I screw these at intervals into the soil at
the end of the field, and stretch by screw power or other like suitable means a
stout wire rope over or at the back of these anchors, and having stretched the
wire tight and secured it at both ends, I clamp it at intervals to some of the
anchors. On the rope I string strong boiler tubes, say in lengths of ten feet,
and I fix the rope at an incline according to the direction in which the
implement is to be shifted. I fix a similar resisting power in the shape of a
stout wire rope stretched over screw anchors. At the opposite end of the
field one of my automatic sheaves is connected to each of the wire ropes, and
travels on the tubes before described. The sheave proper is carried in a
frame; the end beam which carries the axis of the sheave is furnished at each
end with rollers, to keep it at any required distance off the ground. Two arms
project from the back of the sheave beam, and are united to another beam
with a groove along the face thereof; two or more rollers or friction pulleys
are fixed in the groove, and in this groove, extending the whole length thereof,
the wire rope and tube are placed. The thrust of the plough laterally or a
pull upon the plough rope will cause the sheave to travel along the headland
resisting wire. As soon as the sheave approaches a point where the rope is
clamped to one of the anchors the clamp is released, to allow the sheave to
pass, and is again fixed after its passage. In some cases a resisting power
at one headland will suffice according to the manner of working the engine.
To prevent wire ropes kinking, to unite the ends thereof, and to guard
against their breaking from passing round pulleys, I employ swivel joints,
consisting of two sockets united at their bases by a pin or stud burred
up on the inside of the sockets. I braze or solder over the ends of the rope
I screw
to be inserted one in each socket, and form a screw thread thereon;
them into a thread on the inside of the sockets, and secure them by a stud
passed through the sides of the socket and the rope, and if necessary braze
the whole; in some cases I jam the ends of the rope in the sockets.
My Invention further consists in the construction of a sectional drum, that
is, a drum in which several segments are employed, and which on being
brought and fixed nearer to or further from the centre make the circumference
more or less, whereby more or less speed may be attained, according to the
particular implement the engine has to drive.
My Invention also consists in the construction and employment in steam
tilling of rope porters, single or double ended, or apparatuses for carrying the
rope and keeping it off the ground between the headlands or engine and
headlands. These porters are so made that on the implement touching

page_text: them they turn aside, give passage to it, resume their former position, and
carry the rope in sheaves or friction rollers provided for the purpose.
My Invention consists, lastly, in a means of attaching an implement to the
traction rope employed to draw the implements in tilling by steam.
I first take a cast of a certain portion of the rope, say six inches, I cut the
cast through its centre and obtain a casting in iron or other suitable metal
from both halves, but rather smaller than the original. I secure one half of
the casting to the implement and the other half to a lever or screw, I bring
the implement up to the rope and engage it in the casting, bring down the
lever thereon, and fix it to the implement.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Collinson Hall in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
7th August 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, COLLINSON
HALL, of Navestock, in the County of Essex, Agriculturalist, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-third year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Collinson Hall, Her special licence that I, the said Collinson Hall, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Collinson
Hall, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM TILLING
MACHINERY AND APPARATUSES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Collinson Hall, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to
be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Collinson Hall,, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
that is to say:-
My Invention consists, first, in new means of securing a resisting power
at the headlands or ends of a portion of ground to be ploughed or otherwise
tilled, together with what I term an automatic sheave, round which the rope
passes to the implement, and a method of joining wire ropes to enable them
readily to pass round the sheaves and to prevent their twisting or kinking.
I first take a number of what I term screw anchors, that is, shafts with a
screw formed on their lower part; I screw these at intervals into the soil.
At the end of the field, I stretch by screw power or other like suitable means,
a stout wire rope, and having stretched the wire tight and secured it at both
I
ends to the anchors, I clamp it at intervals to other anchors. On the rope
string strong tubes, say in length of ten feet; I fix a similar resisting power in
the shape of a stout wire rope stretched over screw anchors at the opposite end
of the field. One of my automatic sheaves is connected to each of the wire
ropes, and travels on the tubes before described. The sheave proper is carried
in a frame; the end beam which carries the axis of the sheave is furnished at
each end with rollers to keep it at any required distance off the ground. Two
arms project from the back of the sheave beam, and are united to another
beam with a groove along the face thereof, two or more rollers or friction
pulleys are fixed in the groove, and in this groove, extending the whole length
thereof, the wire rope and tube are placed.
To prevent wire ropes kinking, to unite the ends thereof, and to guard
against their breaking from passing round pulleys, I employ swivel joints, con-
sisting of two sockets united at their bases by a pin or stud burred up on the
inside of the sockets. I braze or solder over the ends of the rope to be inserted
one in each socket, and form a screw thread thereon. I screw them into a
thread on the inside of the sockets, and secure them by a stud passed through
the sides of the socket and the rope, and if necessary braze the whole. In
some cases I jam the ends of the rope in the sockets.
My Invention further consists in the construction of a sectional drum, that
is, a drum in which several segments are employed, and which, on being
brought and fixed nearer to or further from the centre, make the circumference
more or less, whereby more or less speed may be obtained, according to the
particular implement the engine has to drive.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a view of a "screw anchor" con-
structed according to my Invention, the screwed part being tapered as shown,

page_text: to enable it to enter the soil readily. In the upper part of this anchor, which
forms the shank, an eye or ring is made for the insertion of a rod or bar to act
as a lover for or screwing the anchor into or out of the ground. One of these
anchors is screwed into the ground at each end of the field, and the ends of a
stout wire rope (previously stretched) are attached to them. Between these
terminal anchors, and at certain distances apart, I drive into the ground
similar screw anchors, against the shanks of which I attach clamps, as shown
in Figures 2 and 3, for clamping the rope which is passed through them, and
thereby "bellying" or looping of the rope is prevented. In addition to the
clamps I use the lengths of metal tube A, strung on the rope; the tubes are
intended to prevent the rope bellying between any two of the anchors, and
to carry the anchor, drum, or sheave hereafter described, whereby the rope is
kept from unnecessary chafing. The clamps are composed of two flat pieces
of cast metal a, b, with a spiral or plain groove in the face of each; when the
two faces are brought together, the grooves form a circle of rather less diameter
than that of the rope. There are corresponding holes d, d, formed in each
piece of metal a, b, through which a screw staple e is passed, the bend of the
staple embraces the shank of the screw anchor, as shown in Figure 4, and by
means of the nuts f, f, the clamp, rope, and anchor are securely clamped or
held together.
Figure 5 is a plan of my anchor drum or sheave and frame, shown in
position for working. g is the sheave, around which the draft rope passes, it is
supported upon an axis between framing h, h, of a triangular form. The pro-
jecting forward leg of the frame carries a land wheel i, and projections carry
two other land wheels j and k; l, m, are small grooved pulleys or rollers for
running along the tubes A, these tubes, which I prefer to be of an oval shape,
are of such a length as to allow of one up-and-down travel or more of the
plough or other implement without shifting the clamps. The method of shifting
is as follows:-The tubes are strung on the wire rope between every two
clamps, and as soon as the anchor drum or sheave reaches the next clamp and
anchor in succession the clamp is released, and the rope is freed from it to
allow of the sheave frame passing on to the tubing on the further side of the
anchor; as soon as the sheave frame has passed the clamp is refixed, and so
I prefer to fit the anchors, ropes, tubes, clamps, and anchor drum ór
sheave at both sides of a field, and to cause the propelling engine to work
along the central line of the field, as shown in the diagram, Figure 6, and to
use the spiral drum described in the Specification of my Patent dated 28th
February 1859, No. 581, as thereby many important advantages are secured:
on.

page_text: Figures 7 and 7* are views of my improved swivel joint, which I employ
for connecting the two ends of a wire rope; n and o are sockets, into which a
pin p is secured by having the ends burred over, as shown; the ends of the
rope may either be secured by studs passing through the forked ends of the
sockets, or the ends of the sockets may be circular, or of any other shape, and
the ends of the wire rope may be secured therein by brazing, soldering, or
tapping. These swivels may also be inserted at intervals in the length of the
wire rope, as they prevent the draft rope from twisting, and consequently
remove all liability to break from that cause.
Figure 8 is a view shewing another means for securing the ends of wire
ropes in sockets. Here the sockets are shewn united by hook and eye, instead
of by a swivel, but the means of securing the ends now about to be described
as to the hook and eye joint. The inside of the socket is formed conical, and
a thread is cast or formed therein, into which the rope is screwed; after it is
screwed well up, a pin is forced through the holes q, q, the effect of which is
to spread out wires forming the rope, and force them into a space provided in
the socket; holes r,, are formed in the head of the sockets, into which tin or
other metal in a molton state is run, whereby the ends of the ropes are securely
fixed and prevented from being drawn out of their respective sockets.
Figure 9 is an end view of my sectional drum, which I employ for varying
the speed of different apparatuses used for tilling the ground; it consists of
several segments a, a, a, held together by bolts and nuts to the side frames b, b,
one of which only is shown in the Drawing. By shifting the bolts in the
slots c, c, the segments are removed further from or set nearer to the centre,
whereby the circumference of the drum is increased or diminished.
Figure 10 is a view of one of the segments detached.
Although I have described the stretched rope as covered by lengths of
tubing, I do not limit myself to the use of ropes so covered, as they may be
used without the covering.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim as my improve-
ments in steam tilling machinery and apparatuses,-
First, the employment of a screw anchor of the particular form shown and
described, and having a shank out of the ground for the purpose of holding a
stretched rope and clamps, as herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
Second, the method of and apparatus for clamping ropes used in steam
tilling, herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.

page_text: Third, the anchor drum or sheave held in a frame having two points of
bearing on the stretched rope or tubing covering the same, as herein-before
described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth, connecting the ends of wire ropes by sockets and joints by means
and in manner herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.
Fifth, the construction and employment of a segmental drum in manner and
for the purpose herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Collinson Hall, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventh day of August, One thousand eight hundred
and sixty.
COLLINSON HALL, SEN³. (L.S.)
COLLINSON HALL, SEN. (L.S.)