Improvements in Straw-trussing Machines.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Oct., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Mar., 1893-Accepted, 29th Apr., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Straw-trussing Machines.
We, JAMES HAROLD HOWARD, GEOFFREY HOWARD and GEORGE GIBBS,
all of Britannia Iron Works, Bedford in the County of Bedford, Engineers, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to improvements in straw-trussing machines, applicable to
machines of the class described in the Specification of Letters Patent No. 462
granted to J. Howard and E. T. Bousfield and dated January 27th 1883 and has
for its objects the construction of improved means for conveying straw, for example,
from a thrashing machine to the packing and binding mechanism, of a device for
controlling the said conveyor so as to prevent the crowding of the straw upon the
back of the needles during the operation of binding, and of a device for very
readily putting the conveyors, the packers and the binding mechanism simul-
taneously into or out of gear without stopping the thrashing machine or the engine
which drives it.
To carry out the first named object of our said invention we provide a hopper to
receive the straw from the thrashing machine, and instead of using canvas aprons
to convey the straw therefrom we provide a series of prongs or arms, connected by
links to pivots provided on suitable parts of the machine. The said prongs or arms
are connected at intermediate points of their length, to cranks placed upon a shaft
outside the hoppers and operated by suitable gearing. The hopper is provided
with slots, through which as the cranks rotate the free ends of the arms or prongs
enter and move in such a manner as to feed the straw down to the packers of the
binding mechanism. A clutch is provided at one end of the crank shaft by which
the said prongs or arms are operated and is actuated in the manner hereinafter
described to stop the action of the prongs or arms by disconnecting the crank-
shaft from its motive mechanism while the needles are above the binding table, in
order that the unbound straw may not press upon the said needles.
To control the conveyor in such a manner as to prevent the crowding of the
straw upon the backs of the needles during binding, we provide a loose chain or
sprocket wheel upon the shaft by which the aforesaid prongs or arms, endless
travelling aprons, revolving forks, prongs, or other mechanical appliances for con-
veying the straw to the binding mechanism are driven, instead of a chain or
sprocket wheel fixed on the shaft, such, for instance as is described in the Specifi-
cation of the aforesaid prior Letters Patent, as being employed for the purpose of
driving the rollers on which the aprons run. Upon the said loose chain or sprocket
wheel we provide suitable clutch mechanism, connected to and operated by any
suitable part of the binding mechanism in such a manner that as aforesaid, when
the binding mechanism is started the apparatus by which the straw is conveyed is
stopped, and vice versa.
The said improvement is not only applicable to new machines, but also to existing
machines. For example when the said improvement is applied to machines of the
kind described in the Specification of the aforesaid prior Letters Patent we fix
upon the end of the knotter driving shaft a cam, and we pivot a lever to the
framing, so that one end of the lever engages with the said cain and the other end
with the aforesaid clutch mechanism. The said cam is constructed and arranged
so as to operate the lever to actuate the clutch and stop the conveyor mechanism
during the time the needles are above the table in the operation of binding.
To carry out the third object of our said invention, that is to say, to control
simultaneously the conveying, packing and binding mechanism, we fix a suitable
pivot or stud upon the machine, and upon this stud we place a cam adapted to

page_text: be operated by a handle and so formed that by turning the said handle the cam
operates a lever, which also is pivoted upon the machine and which when thus
operated actuates a clutch upon the packer shaft. This device is advantageously
applicable for instance to the operation of the clutch upon the packer shaft of the
machine described in the Specification of prior Letters Patent No. 5023 granted to
James Howard and dated October 22nd 1883. We provide also a projection or lug
upon the said handle for the purpose of operating the lever which, as hereinbefore
described operates the conveyor clutch and thus, by turning the said handle the
packer clutch and the conveyor clutch can both be thrown out of gear at the same
moment so as to stop simultaneously the whole of the conveying packing and
binding mechanism.
Dated this 21st day of October 1892.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Straw-trussing Machines.
We, JAMES HAROLD HOWARD, GEOFFREY HOWARD, and GEORGE GIBBS,
all of Britannia Iron Works, Bedford, in the County of Bedford, Engineers, 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:-
Our invention relates to improvements in straw-trussing machines, and is
applicable for example to machines of the class described in the Specification of
British Letters Patent No. 462 granted to J. Howard and E. T. Bousfield, and
dated January 27th 1883. It has for its objects the construction of improved
means for conveying straw from a thrashing machine to the packing and binding
mechanism, whereby the employment of canvas aprons for a like purpose is obviated;
of a device for controlling the said means for conveying the straw so as to prevent
the crowding of the straw upon the back of the needle or needles during the
operation of binding; and of a device for very readily putting the said means, or
equivalent means for conveying the straw, the packers, and the binding mechanism,
simultaneously into or out of gear without stopping the thrashing machine or the
engine which drives it.
In order that our said invention may be clearly understood we will now proceed
to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which
Figure is a side elevation of a straw-trussing machine provided with
improvements constructed and arranged according to our invention.
Figure 2 is an elevation, at right angles to Figure 1, of one half of a straw-
trussing machine which comprises the improved apparatus shown in the latter
figure.
Figures 3 to 7 are views of details of Figures 1 and 2, and will be hereinafter
more particularly referred to.
In the said figures, A is a hopper which receives the straw as it falls from the
thrashing machine. BB are prongs or arms connected by links C to pivots D upon
the hopper. The said prongs or arms are connected at B B to cranks E on the
shaft E which is supported in suitable bearings upon the frame of the machine and
is operated by the chain wheel F. The chain wheel F is arranged so that it can
turn freely upon the shaft E' and so that by means of the clutch G, hereinafter
fully explained, the said chain wheel, can at any moment be connected with the
said shaft to turn the same. The hopper A is provided with slots A' A' through
which, as the cranks E turn, the free ends B2 of the prongs or arms Benter.
I is a
lever pivoted at 1' to the hopper A and furnished at one end with a projection 13;
at its opposite end the said lever carries an anti-friction roller 13 which, by the

page_text: action of the spring I* connected with the lever I and with the frame, is kept in
engagement with a cam K on the knotter driving-shaft L shown separately in
Figure 7. The projection I is so shaped that it is adapted to engage with and effect
the operation of a part of the clutch G as hereinafter explained. The cam K is
so formed and so placed upon the knotter driving shaft. L that when the said shaft
is in its normal resting-position the roller 13 is received in a depression in the
periphery of the cam and the lever I occupies the position in which it is indicated
in full lines in Figure 1. When the knotter driving shaft assumes any other
position the cam K operates upon the roller I³ and thereby moves the lever I into
the position indicated in dotted lines in the said figure. N is a stud secured upon
the side of the machine. Upon the said stud is mounted a cam-N adapted to turn
thereon, and provided with a handle N2 by which it may be turned. The said cam
is shown separately in two views, Figures 3 and 4, taken at right angles to each
other.
The operation of the apparatus will now be described.
When the shaft E' is rotated the cranks E turn, and the free ends B³ of the
arms B are actuated thereby and caused to rise alternately through the slots A' to
move downward to feed the straw to the packers, and are then moved out of the
slots and upward to re-commence a similar movement.
The said cam is provided with a lug N adapted to engage with and operate the
lever I, and it is provided with a helical portion N' which is arranged so that it
engages with and operates the lever O, hereinafter referred to, simultaneously with
the operation of the lever I by the lug N³. O is a lever pivoted at O¹ to the frame
of the machine. One end of the said lever engages with and is operated by the
cam N1; the other end is provided with a fork which engages with a sliding
clutch Pupon the hub of the chain wheel P¹ on the packer-shaft, which is driven
by a chain Q which operates also the chain wheel F. The said chain is driven by
any suitable means. The construction of the clutch G will now be described :-It
is shown separately in clevation and plan in Figures 5 and 6 respectively. In the
said clutch, G is a disc secured to the crank shaft E. Upon a stud G2 carried by
the said disc, a tumbler G³ is pivoted which is capable of receiving a limited move-
ment of oscillation upon its pivot and is provided with projections G and G and
with a spring G. Upon the chain wheel F two rollers F F are provided, at
opposite sides of the centre. The spring G tends always to maintain the tumbler G³
in such position upon the stud G2 that the projection Gcarried round on the tumbler
will lie in the path of the rollers F as they move with the wheel, so that, except
at such times as the tumbler is moved out of the position in which it is shown in
Figure 5, the wheel F when rotated, turns the shaft E by the action of one or
other of the rollers F on the tumbler G, which, as aforesaid, is secured to the
disc G and therefore turns the disc and the shaft.
When the shaft. L commences to revolve and thereby to bring the needles M
(Figures 1 & 2) up above the table T for the purpose of binding a truss, the end
of the lever I is raised by the cam K which revolves with the said shaft. Conse-
quently, as the lever is turned upon the pivot I, the projection I* is depressed
into the path of the projection G on the tumbler G³ carried round with the wheel E,
and comes in contact with it, so that the tumbler is turned in the direction of the
arrow (Figure 5), the spring G is compressed, and the projection G is moved out
of the path of the rollers F. The chain wheel F is thus released from its connec-
tion with the clutch and revolves free upon the crank shaft E, which ceases to
turn until, the shaft L having completed its revolution, the roller 13 drops into the
depression in the cam K, thereby permitting the projection 12 on the end of the
lever to rise and release the projection G in the tumbler G, and allowing
the spring G to move the tumbler in a direction opposite to that indicated by
the arrow in Figure 5, so that the projection G is again placed in the path of the
rollers F; when engagement of either of the rollers F, and the said projection G
occurs, the wheel F, disc G', and shaft E' will again turn in company.
By means of this intermittently-operated mechanism we. secure an efficient

page_text: -conveyor for bringing the straw to the binding-mechanism, and also prevent the
straw from being forced or crowded against the needles during the time they are
above the tables, in the operation of binding, for at such times the knotter driving
shaft is not at rest, and the lever I occupies a position in which, as aforesaid, it
effects the release of the conveyor-shaft E' from the motive mechanism of the
.apparatus.
:
The handle N when turned from the position in which it is indicated in full
lines in Figure 1 into the position in which it is indicated in dotted lines in the
same figure, turns the cam N¹, and the portion N₁ of the said cam moves the
lever O to operate the clutch on the chain wheel P¹ so that the said wheel is
-disconnected from the shaft on which it turns. Simultaneously, the projection or
lug N³ upon the said cam N' lifts the end of the lever I to disconnect, as herein-
before explained, the wheel F from the shaft E. Thus, by one operation, the
packer and conveyor shafts are allowed to stop while the wheels F and P¹ continue
to rotate, and the whole of the conveying and trussing mechanism is released
without the delay or hindrance consequent upon stopping the thrashing machine
-and the engine which drives it.
Our present invention can with advantage be applied to existing machines, for
example, of the kind described in the Specification of the hereinbefore mentioned
British Letters Patent, by substituting the loose chain wheel F with its rollers and
clutch mechanism above described, for the fixed chain wheel which in the said
Specification is described as driving the rollers on which the canvas aprons run,
and by providing a lever I and cam K as hereinbefore described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
- claim is :-
-
.
1. A straw-trussing machine, provided with reciprocating prongs or arms, for
conveying the straw to the packers, which prongs or arms are operated intermittently
by automatic mechanism.
2. In a straw-trussing machine, the arms B pivoted to radius-rods C, and actuated
by cranks E, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.
3. In a straw-trussing machine, means operated by any suitable part of the
packing or binding mechanism to render the conveyor mechanism inoperative
during the time that the binding mechanism is operative, for the purpose specified.
4. A. straw-trussing machine provided with binding mechanism, and with means
for conveying the straw thereto, said binding-mechanism and conveyor being so
connected that they cannot both operate at the same time, for the purpose
→ specified.
.
5. In a straw-trussing machine, the combination, with the knotter-shaft L, of
means for controlling the conveyor mechanism for the purpose specified.
6. In a straw-trussing machine, the combination of the clutch-mechanism on the
conveyor crank shaft, a lever pivoted to the machine, and a cam upon the knotter-
shaft for controlling said clutch-mechanism through said lever, substantially as
hereinbefore described, for the purpose specified.
7. In a straw-trussing machine, the combination, with the cam N', of levers
controlling the clutch-mechanisms of the packer shaft and conveyor crank shaft,
substantially as hereinbefore described, for the purpose specified.
8. A straw-trussing machine provided with the improvements substantially as
herein before described with reference to the accompanying drawings, for the
purposes specified.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicants...