Improvements in Apparatus for Compressing Coffee in Tablets, and Wrapping or Putting Up the same for Sale.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Sept., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 1st July, 1892-Accepted, 27th Aug., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Compressing Coffee in Tablets, and
Wrapping or Putting Up the same for Sale.
I ABRAHAM MARTIN of 192 Birchfield Road, Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention relates to a machine for compressing freshly roasted coffee berries
or ground coffee into the form of tablets and enveloping or wrapping them in
paper wrappers or boxes and waterproofing the latter whereby the compressed
coffee tablets are protected from injury by handling and the aroma of the coffee
is preserved.
The machine comprises a rotating mould table having a circular series of mould
cavities in combination with a compressing plunger and a feed hopper, whereby
the coffee supplied to the mould cavities in succession is compressed by powerful
pressure into the form of discs or tablets, the mould table receiving a step by step
revolving motion alternately with each complete stroke of the plunger and remaining
stationary during the greater part of the up and down movements of the latter.
It further comprises the combination with the above mentioned mould table of
a second mould table revolving concurrently with and partly beneath the first so
that a mould cavity of the one coincides with a mould cavity of the other when
both are stationary and of plungers operated simultaneously with the main plunger
by one of which a tablet is transferred from a cavity of the first mould table in which
it is compressed to a cavity of the other mould table in which it is wrapped as
hereafter described at the same time that the other plunger expels a previously
wrapped tablet from another cavity.
It further comprises folding devices whereby the wrapper is folded down over
the tablet during the interval between the reception and expulsion of the tablet
from the second mould table.
The main compressing plunger works in vertical guides in the standards of the
frame and is operated through a rock lever and connecting rod from a crank shaft.
The first mould table receives its step by step rotary motion by a ratchet propel-
ment corresponding in the number and position of teeth to the mould cavities of
the mould table, the pawl being operated by a cam on the crank shaft, the spindles
of the two mould tables being geared directly together. The cavities of the two
mould tables are open at bottom, that one of the first mould table which is for the
time being under the compressing plunger being closed at bottom by a part of the
frame over which the mould table rotates.
The plungers for transferring and ejecting the tablets as above described are
pivoted to a lever pivoted to the frame and operated by the slide block of the
main compressing plunger and are held in their normal position by springs which
permit of the plungers remaining vertical during the angular motion of the said
lever.
This lever also has an arm carrying a plunger terminating in two pivoted folders
so arranged at opposite sides of the mould cavity in the second table that when
they come down upon the latter they cause the edges of the envelope which project
up
from the mould table to be folded down over the tablet in the mould, these folds
afterwards being pressed by the ejector plunger in ejecting the wrapped tablet
from the mould table.
A gumming device is also applied to gum the overlapping portions of the
wrapper thus folded.
Tha mauition in the mould table more ha of circular or other form according to

page_text: the desired form of the tablets and in the cavities of the second table, the partially
closed wrappers or boxes are placed in readiness to receive the tablets as they are
transferred thereto from the first mould table.
On being ejected from the second table the wrapped tablets fall into a travelling
apron in a bath of paraffin the tablets being immediately conveyed away by the
apron to permit the wax to cool and harden and so form a coating impermeable to
air and moisture.
•
Dated this lat dor of Sonte
A. MARTIN,
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Patent Agents.
i
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Compressing Coffee in Tablets, and
Wrapping or Putting Up the same for Sale.
I, ABRAHAM MARTIN of 192, Birchfield Road, Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Engineer, 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 :-
My invention relates to a machine for compressing freshly-roasted coffee berries
or ground coffee into the form of tablets and enveloping or wrapping them in
paper wrappers or boxes whereby the compressed coffee tablets are protected from
injury by handling and the aroma of the coffee is preserved.
The machine is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, wherein
Figures 1 and 2 are side and end elevations, Figure 1 being partly in section,
and Figure 3 is a plan of the machine.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
The machine comprises a rotary mould table A having a circular series of mould
cavities a¹ to as in combination with a compressing plunger B whereby the coffee
supplied to the mould cavities in succession by a feed hopper C (with which one
of said cavities coincides when another previously filled coincides with plunger B)
is compressed into the form of discs or tablets, the mould table A receiving a step
by step revolving motion alternately with each complete stroke of the plunger B
and remaining stationary during the greater part of the up and down movements of
the latter.
It further comprises the combination, with the above mentioned mould table A,
of a second table D also having cavities to and revolving partly beneath the
table A. so that a cavity of the table D will coincide with a mould cavity of the
table A in order to receive a compressed tablet therefrom, and of plungers E, I,
operated simultaneously with the main plunger B the plunger E serving to transfer
a tablet which has been compressed in a cavity of the mould table A from the
latter to a cavity of the table D in which a paper box or wrapper G has been
placed to receive it as hereafter described at the same time that the other plunger
completes the closing of the wrapper of a previously partly-wrapped tablet and
expels the completely-wrapped tablet from another cavity of the table D.
It further comprises a plunger H carrying folding devices whereby the projecting
upper edges of the box or wrapper are folded down over the tablet during the
interval between the reception and expulsion of the tablet from the table D.
The main compressing plunger B is carried by a slide block B¹ working in
vertical guides B2 carried by the standards of the frame I and is operated through
a rock lever J and connecting rod K from a crank shaft L driven by spur gear
from a first motion shaft M. The mould table A receives its step by step rotary
motion by a ratchet propelment, consisting of a ratchet wheel N keyed on the
shaft A' of table A and corresponding in the number and position of its teeth to

page_text: the mould cavities of the table A and of a pawl n pressed by a spring into engage
ment with the teeth of the ratchet wheel and operated by a cam O on the crank
shaft L, the spindles of the two mould tables being geared directly together either
by equal spur wheels on their respective shafts AP D' or by a wheel on shaft A¹
having one or more teeth gearing with a notched or Maltese Cross wheel on the
shaft D' the number of the teeth of the first wheel varying inversely with the
number of tablets to be deposited in a single wrapper contained in a cavity of
the table D. The cavities of both tables A and D are open at bottom, but those
of the table A are closed at bottom by a fixed plate P carried by the frame I with
the exception of the cavity which for the time being coincides with an aperture
in said plate and with a cavity of the second table D. Similarly, the table
revolves over a table Q having an aperture 9 through which the completely
wrapped tablet or package of tablets is ejected. The plunger E for transferring
and the plunger F for completing the wrapping and ejecting the tablets as above
described are carried by an arm R carried by the slide block B' of the main com-
pressing plunger and move up and down therewith so that if more than one tablet
is to be deposited in the same wrapper G contained in a cavity of the table D
certain of their strokes will be performed idly. The plunger H is carried by an
arm R¹ projecting from arm R said plunger terminating in two pivoted folders h
held in the oppositely inclined position shewn by springs, so that when they come
down upon the edges of the paper box or wrapper G which project up from the
table D they press the latter inwards from opposite sides and then by the yielding
of their springs they assume a horizontal position and cause the wrapper to be
folded down over the tablet or tablets in the cavity of table D which is for the
time being beneath plunger H the edges of the wrapper which still remain
projecting being afterwards similarly pressed inwards and folded down by similar
inclines on the ejector plunger F in ejecting the wrapped tablet from the table D.
A suitable gumming device may also be applied to gum these last mentioned over-
lapping portions of the wrapper previous to their being thus folded as will be
readily understood.
The cavities in the table A may be of circular or other form according to the
desired form of the tablets and in the cavities of the table D the paper wrappers
or boxes closed at bottom but open at top are placed by hand in the interval
during their return from beneath plunger F to plunger E in readiness to receive
the tablets as they are transferred thereto by the plunger E from the mould
table A. If it be desired that wrappers enclosing the tablets or packets of
tablets be waterproofed, the packets on being ejected from the table D fall on to
a travelling apron in a bath of paraffin wax, the packets being immediately
conveyed away by the apron to permit the wax to cool and harden and so form a
coating impermeable to air and moisture.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is: :-
A. machine for compressing coffee in tablets and wrapping the tablets or packets
of tablets, consisting essentially of a rotating mould table having mould cavities as
described, with a compressing plunger and feed hopper arranged to work in com-
bination, as described, and in the combination therewith of a second receiving
table having cavities similar to and arranged to work in conjunction with and to
receive the compressed tablets from the first, and of transferring and ejecting
plungers operating as described and of folding devices acting on the paper wrappers
placed in the cavities of the second table, all substantially as specified.
Dated this 1st day of July 1892.
Dated this 1st day of July 1892.
A. MARTIN,
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.