Improvements in Machines for use in the Manufacture of Confectionery.
Year: 1891

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for use in the Manufacture of
Confectionery.
We, ALFRED WILSON PARIS, of 29 North Second Street Minneapolis, in the
County of Hennepin, State of Minnesota, United States of America, and NEIL
ANDREW CLACHTER, residing at 204 Dearborn Street Chicago, in the County of
Cooke, State of Illinois, United States of America, Gentlemen, 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, reference
being had to the accompanying drawings :-
This invention relates to the manufacture of confectionery and comprises a novel
apparatus for doing a large body of work hitherto done by hand, thereby effecting
a great saving in time and labor and correspondingly reducing the cost of
production.
As is well known to persons familiar with the art, confectionery is molded in a
body of starch or equivalent finely divided dry molding material. Trays of con-
venient size for handling are filled by hand with the starch; patterns of any desired
kind are imprinted or impressed therein; the molds are filled with the liquid or
pasty confection material; the trays are stacked away in a suitable drying room
until the confections are sufficiently hardened; from the drying room, the trays are
taken one at a time and dumped into hand sieves over a starch box; and the sieves
are shaken by hand to separate the confections and the starch. The confections
are then ready for sugaring or other further treatment. The starch is used over
and over again. Many of the broken confections or scraps of candy will pass with
the starch through the sieves-requiring the whole mass to be rescreened every now
and then, in finer meshed sieves to avoid waste of the scrap and fit the starch for
further use.
In practice, though not absolutely necessary, it is the custom to
recharge the trays with starch through a finer meshed sieve.
At each and every step in the process described the trays are brought to a
position of rest, having to be set down and again picked up by the workman.
This work has hitherto been done by hand-a very tedious slow process; and,
on account of the dust from the flying starch, is a very disagreeable kind of work,
which is more or less injurious to the health. In order to manufacture in any con-
siderable quantities, a very large amount of floor space is required for the necessary
starch rooms, required by the multitude of workinen. The workmen are usually
boys who, in the trade, are called "Starch Bucks."
By this invention, we remove all these limitations, emptying the trays of their
contents, completely separating the confections and scraps from the starch and
recharging the trays while in motion by a rapid continuous action in very simple
and compactly arranged apparatus.
As the machine supplants the boys-it is called "An Automatic or Mechanical
Starch Muck."
The salient features of the machine are a suitable receptacle or receiver, provided
with separating devices and an outflow opening, adapted to receive the contents
from the molds and separate the confections from the molding material adapting
the latter for recharging the molding trays; an infeed tray conducting device
adapted to conduct the filled trays to a dumping position over the receptacle; .a
dumping or emptying device adapted to empty the trays into the receptacle; an
outfeed tray conducting device adapted to direct the empty trays under the outflow
of said receptacle for recharging the same with the molding material and an
elevating conveyor adapted to catch the waste from the charging point and

page_text: redeliver the same to the top of the receptacle. The receptacle and its immediately
connected parts are all preferably enclosed within a suitable case or chamber pro-
vided with lateral openings in its walls for the infeed of the trays and the outfeed
of the same.
The infeed and the outfeed device for the trays and the emptying or
dumping device may be of any suitable form. We prefer, however, a positive feed
of the endless belt kind; and between the infeed and outfeed carriers, we place
reversely incline guides adapted to cause the trays to turn bottom-side-up over the
receptacle for emptying and again right-side-up by gravity before delivery to the
outfeed for recharging.
At the outflow from the charging receptacle, a striker is provided for leveling off
the charge in the trays. The striker is preferably held under spring tension so
that it will yield to adapt itself to the trays. The separating device in the
receptacle may be single or compound, preferably the latter, in the form of rod and
wire-cloth screens to which a vibratory motion may be given in any suitable way.
The inlet and outlet openings in the closed chamber for the inward and outward
passage of the trays are preferably covered by trap doors to prevent the escape of
the dust; and at the lower end of the inclined guides is preferably placed a buffer
spring to cushion the fall of the empty trays. The feed carriers and the elevator
may be driven in any suitable way.
In the accompanying drawings, wherein like letters refer to like parts
throughout,
Figure 1 is a vertical section of the entire apparatus from front to rear, the left-
hand side of the figure being taken as the front.
Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section on the line X X' of Figure 1, looking
toward the front.
A B is the closed case or chamber; of which A. is the main body and Ba
vestibule extension at the front. ab are the inlet and outlet openings for passage
of the trays and feed devices. a² and are the flap doors for the same.
is the hopper-like receptacle, of which C C are the separated compartments con-
stituting its two part top and C" is its common bottom or hopper having an outlet
opening D, rendered adjustable by a pivoted wall d, controlled from eccentric hand-
lever . E is the upper or rod screen and E' the lower or net-like screen, con-
stituting the compound separator located within the compartments C of the
receptacle, inclined downward and extending outward through an opening in the
left-side of the case.
F is the endless carrier infeed device passing from a drum, not shown, outside
the case around a drum f, located above the receptacle. G is the outfeed endless
carrier passing from a drum outside the case, not shown, around the drum located
below the receptacle. H H are inclined guides or ways in the form of laterally
extended ledges projecting inward from the sides of the case and extending from a
point approximately in line with the infeed device downward and rearward adjacent
to the rear wall, terminating at a point below its center. These guides are curved
upon themselves into concave form at their upper ends and into convex form at
their lower ends, leaving a clear space between their lower extremities and the rear
wall of the case.
KK are similar inclined curved guides extending from the rear wall of the case
at a point approximately in line with the terminus of the guides H to a point
directly over the outfeed carrier G. These lower guides K are curved into concave
form throughout their entire length.
L is the buffer spring attached to the rear wall to cushion the trays, as they
come from the upper guides. M are the trays. N represents the unseparated
contents as they fall into the receptacles from the trays. N represents the separated
molding material. P is the waste trough at the bottom of the case, under the out-
flow from the receptacle. Q is the elevating conveyor mounted on the drums g for
taking the material from the waste trough and redelivering it to the top of the
receptacle in compartment C¹.
R is the belt for driving the feed-carriers, and S is a belt for driving the

page_text: elevator. These are driven either from a common or different sources, not shown,
whichever may be convenient.
T is an eccentric rod driven from an eccentric on the lower left-hand elevator
driving drum Q and connected through bell-crank or equivalent device T' to the
separating device E E' for vibrating the same. U is the striker located just below
the receptacle for leveling the charge in the trays. This striker is in the form of
a pivoted blade and is provided with a projection V working through a keeper VI
against a resistance spring V".
The feed carriers are preferably provided with upwardly projecting lugs, or
strips properly spaced to propel the trays and are driven by sprocket wheels on
the rollers.
The operation is evident from the description already given.
The trays are placed on the infeed carrier F by an attendant on the exterior
of the case, whence it passes inside and, in falling from the end of the carrier on
the inclined guides H, is turned up-side-down by gravity dumping its contents into
the receptacle; thence it slides down the guides striking the buffer springs L,
where it is again turned right-side-up, in passing to the guides K; whence it falls
on to the outfeed carrier G, by which it is carried under the outflow D, receiving
its fresh charge of molding material leveled off by the striker U and passed out
to the exterior of the case.
The lower carrier G. is open so that the waste from the receptacle falls freely
into the waste trough P. The outflow opening D is left constantly open,
affording a continuous feed or discharge from the receptacle which prevents the
molding material from packing and clogging in the bottom of the receptacle. The
elevating conveyor has sufficient capacity to reconvey all the discharge, even from a
full feed, back to the top of the receptacle.
By this apparatus, we are enabled to do more work in a given time than could
be done by the old hand plan with eight persons, and at the same time effect a
saving in the molding material.
It will be readily understood that many modifications might be made in the
apparatus without departing from the principles of this construction.
The nature of the said inventions and the manner in which the same are to be
performed having been particularly described and ascertained, what is claimed and
desired to be secured by Patent, is as follows:-
1. A mechanical device or devices arranged to empty molding trays of their
contents.
2. A mechanical device or devices arranged to charge molding trays with molding
material.
3. An organization of mechanical devices arranged to empty molding trays of
their contents, separate the confections from the molding material and recharge the
trays with the separated molding material.
4. The combination with a charging receptacle having an outlet to permit the
flow of molding material therefrom, of a feeding device for conducting empty trays
thereto to receive their charge of molding material.
5. The combination with a charging receptacle having an outflow opening, of a
feed device adapted to direct the empty trays under said outflow to receive their
charge, and a striker for leveling the charge in the trays.
6. The combination with a charging receptacle having an outflow opening of a
tray feeding device adapted to direct the empty trays to the charging position under
said outflow, and an elevating conveyor for catching the waste from the outflow and
restoring the same to the top of the receptacle.
7. In an apparatus for use in the manufacture of confectionery, the combination
with a receiver for receiving the contents of molding trays, of a tray emptying
device for emptying the trays into the said receiver.
8. The combination with a receiver of a tray feeding device adapted to deliver
the trays above the receiver, and a reversely arranged inclined guide under the

page_text: feed device, adapted to catch the trays and cause them to turn bottom-side-up over
the receiver.
9. In an apparatus of the class described reversely arranged inclined guides for
the trays, whereby the same are made to first dump their contents and then right
themselves by gravity.
10. The combination with the inclined guide tray reversing device, of a buffer
spring for cushioning the fall of the trays, substantially as described.
11. The combination with a receiver of devices for directing molding trays thereto
and emptying the same of their contents, and a separator for dividing the confections
from the molding material.
12. An apparatus for use in manufacturing confectionery comprising a receptacle
provided with a separator and having an outflow for the separated molding material,
an infeed device for conducting the trays to their emptying position over. said
receptacle, an outfeed device for conducting the empty trays to their charging
position under said outflow, a reversing device between the two feed devices for
dumping the trays and righting them again, a striker for leveling the charge in the
trays, and an elevating conveyor for catching the waste from said outflow and
redelivering the same to the top of the receptacle substantially as described.
Dated, at Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A., this 11th day of March 1891
Dated this 7th day of April 1891.
ALFRED WILSON PARIS.
NEIL ANDREW. CLACHER.
Abel & Imray,
Agents for the Applicants.