In- PROVEMENTS IN IMPLEMENTS FOR CULTIVATING THE SOIL
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Brooman, of 166, Fleet Street,
in the City of London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "In-
PROVEMENTS IN IMPLEMENTS FOR CULTIVATING THE SOIL."-A commu-
nication from abroad by Victor Amedée de Gabriac, of Marseilles,
France.
Sealed the 6th March 1868, and dated the 11th September 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald
Brooman at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 11th September 1862.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN IMPLEMENTS FOR CULTIVATING THE SOIL," (communi-
cated to me from abroad by Victor Amedée de Gabriac, of Marseilles, France,)
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to steam tillage, and consists of an implement com-
posed of two main parts, the first intended to cut out the earth vertically, is in
the form of a rectangular box without any bottom, three of its sides are
cutting for the purpose of penetrating, on pressure being applied, into the
soil to the depth required.

page_text: The second main part consists of one or more screws set to bore down into
the soil within the spaco encompassed by the box, on being raised the screws
turn over the soil and transfer it into a furrow at the back of the box, the
implement advances, the box is inserted into fresh ground, the screws descend,
and on ascending take up soil and turn it over into the furrow last formed by
them, and so on.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 11th March 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Richard Archibald Brooman, Her special licence that I, the said Richard
Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors, adminis-
trators, 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 IMPLEMENTS FOR CULTIVATING THE
SOIL," (communicated to me from abrond by Victor Amedée de Gabriac, of
Marseilles, France,) upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Inven-
tion, 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 calen-
dar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is

page_text: to be performed, 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 :-
This Invention relates to steam tillage, and consists of an implement com-
posed of two main parts, the first intended to cut out the earth vertically is in
the form of a rectangular box without any bottom, three of its sides are cutting
for the purpose of penetrating, on pressure being applied, into the soil to the
depth required.
The second main part consists of one or more screws set to bore down
into the soil within the space encompassed by the box, on being raised
the screws turn over the soil and transfer it into a furrow at the back
of the box, the implement advances, the box is inserted into fresh ground,
the serews descend, and on ascending take up soil and turn it over into the
furrow last formed by them, and so on.
The accompanying Drawings illustrate the manner in which this Invention
is performed. Figure 1 is a vertical section, and Figure 2 a longitudinal
view of the implement. The frame a is arranged to carry a small steam
engine, if desired, or the implement may be worked through the agency of the
pulleys c, c, supported by the driving shaft b. The driving shaft 6 is bent near
each extremity to receive cranks d, d, jointed to the rods f. f, which support the
box e. The rods f, f, slide vertically in two guides 9, 9, cast with the frame a.
The tools for boring into and turning over the soil are arranged as follows:-A
vertical rod carries at bottom a screw i, the pitch of which is equal to one-
third of the depth of the furrow, four such tools are represented in, the
Drawings; near the middle of the rod h is an enlargement having three-spiral
grooves thereon which cross each other at the middle and join at each end;
a pivoted stud k takes into the groove to communicate upward and downward
motion to the rod h. It follows from this arrangement of three spiral grooves
on the enlargement j, that three turns of the rod h determine the depth to
which the screws bore into the earth, but if desired the pitch of the spiral
grooves can be increased or diminished, and the screw i lengthened or shortened
(see Figures 3 and 4) in order to produce the downward or upward course at
one, two, three, or any greater number of turns.. The stud k is supported by
a strong bar cast or solidly bolted to the frame. The rod h is continued
cylindrically above the grooved part j, and bears a feather which engages in a
groove formed on the interior of the bevel toothed wheel m which is held by a
support n, in such manner that it cannot ascend or descend except as here-
after described. Rotary motion is communicated to the bevel wheel m by an

page_text: movements.
endless screw o in gear with a pinion p, which receives motion from a toothed
wheel q, the axis of which carries a pinion r which is driven by the toothed wheel s
on the driving shaft b. As it is necessary that tho box e and the screws i work
alternately, that is to say, that the box descends to the bottom and the screws
afterwards, then that the screws ascend again, and lastly that the box be
disengaged, I adopt the following arrangement to produce these four distinct
The wheels is toothed on one half only of its circumference,
the pinion r therefore acts only during half the revolution of the wheels. The
pinion is in the relation of 1 to 4 to the wheel 9, as well as with the
wheel 8, but the wheel 9 governs the pinion p which is itself in the relation
of 1 to 4 to it, consequently the endless screw o will make eight turns
for each course of the toothed part of the wheel s, and will remain
motionless during the remainder of its revolution. The bevel toothed
wheels m on the rods h are arranged to make an entiro revolution for eight
turns of the screw o and will take with them the rods h by means of the
feathers thereon. As before stated the wheels mare maintained in a vertical
position by the support n, but in consequence of the double spiral groove on
the part of the rod and of the stud on the bar 2, the rods h moved relatively
by the wheels m are caused to ascend or to descend according as the right
or the left groove on the part j is presented. The descending and ascending
motions thus take place successively without interruption, while the box c is at
the bottom of its course and the rods remain motionless while the box rises
and again descends. The pitch of the screw i being the same as that of the
triple groove on the enlargement j, the screw penetrates the soil at each turn
to the extent of one-third of the entire descent of the rod h; three revolutions
are therefore necessary to form the furrow of the required depth, on being
raised the screws turn over the soil and transfer it into the furrow previously
formed. The screw i (see Figures 3 and 4) can however be longer or shorter
and have one or several spirals. The same remark applies to the grooves on
the enlargement j. In this implement the motive power is in front, tho
implement moves on a patch of virgin soil, all the work takes place at tho
rear, and to set the implement to work it is only nocessary to dig the first
furrow. The forward movement of the implement and tho working of the box
and screws may take place automatically by arranging on the principal shaft
of the implement two partly toothed segments gearing alternately into toothed
wheels to cause the forward movement of the implement after each penetration
of the soil. Movable rakes may be fitted above the screws to remove any
soil that may stick to them. If the soil to be tilled is very stony, the stones may

page_text: be collected by employing an implement analogous to that herein-before
described having the threads of the screws formed of skeleton or openwork.
The stones may be collected in heaps or otherwise.
The implement berein-before described may be modified by imparting to
the screw blades rotary and advancing motions in the soil without ascending
and descending motions.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim, the construc-
tion of implements for cultivating or tilling the soil composed of two main
parts, the first in the form of a rectangular box without any bottom
which cuts out the soil vertically, the second consisting of one or more
screws set to bore down into the soil within the space encompassed by the
box, all constructed and acting substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of March, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.