IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CUTTING WOOD AND IN APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH, PART OF WHICH MAY BE APPLIED TO OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1841

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, J, WILLIAM
HICKLING BURNETT, of Ravensbourne Wood Mills, Deptford Creek, in the
County of Kent, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Ninth day of September, in the fifth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Hickling Burnett, Her especial license that I, the said William
Hickling Burnett, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said William Hickling Burnett, my exors, adññiors, or assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed,
and also in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and
in all Her Majesty's Colonics and Plantations abroad, my Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CUTTING WOOD AND IN APPARATUS CONNECTED
THEREWITH, PART OF WHICH MAY BE APPLIED TO OTHER PURPOSES;" in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said William Hickling
Burnett, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to
describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in Her said
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in
and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large
appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Hickling Burnett, do hereby declare that the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
thereof, reference being had to the various Sheets of Drawings annexed, and
to the letters or figures of indication marked thereon, which letters or figures
in the description and different views of each distinct object, whensoever they
occur, are used to designate like parts; but it is to be observed, that as there
are several distinct objects, so there are several such series of letters or figures.
My Invention consists as follows:-First, in an improved machine for
planing and moulding woodwork, and running out portions of window sashes,
skirting, and other articles, and in some of the tools connected therewith;
second, in certain improvements in timber frames; and, thirdly, in an
improved apparatus for regulating the advance of wood to circular and other
saws, which improved apparatus is also applicable to other purposes.
I shall now describe, in order, the various objects which compose my
Invention, beginning with the improved machine for planing and moulding
woodwork, and some of the tools connected therewith.
Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4, Sheet 1, represent the improved machine. 'Figure 1
is a longitudinal section through the machine; Figure 2, a transverse section
at a, a; Figure 3, a top view; Figure 4, a transverso section at b, b.
A, in the different views, indicates the general framework of the machine,
which is tied together from side to side by the screwed bolts and nuts b. The
wood W intended to be planed or moulded is introduced between the pair
of rollers c, c¹, which rotate in opposite directions, as shown by the arrows,
and which draw the wood into the machine; the second pair of rollers d, d',
also acts upon it when it has advanced sufficiently to be laid hold of by
them. Two pairs of rollers are shown, but more may be used if thought
requisite, while in some cases one pair may be considered sufficient; for
general purposes I think two pair sufficient. I will now describe the
manner in which these rollers act, in order that the mode of advancing
the wood to the cutters, which I shall hereafter describe, and which I con-
sider the best, may be understood; but at the same time I do not confine
myself to this particular method of carrying forward the wood, inasmuch as
weighted rollers may be used, or a rack, or chain, or other means may be
substituted for the means horeafter suggested for advancing the wood. The
lower rollers c and d revolve in fixed bearings c and d², and the upper rollers
c and d revolve in bearings c and d³, which slide in the framework A. This
portion of the machine is best seen in Figures 1 and 2. The upper rollers are

page_text: made to rise and fall and press upon the top surface of the wood by the
following contrivance, which not only serves to adjust them to boards of
different thicknesses, but also to compress the wood firmly and cause the rollers
to drive it. e are pieces of metal, the form of which is best seen in Figure 2,
at e; they are formed into bearings which clip the shaft of the top rollers on
either side; are rods firmly fixed to them, and screwed at their upper ends.
When these pieces e are raised and depressed, they must carry the rollers and
their sliding bearings with them, and their movement is caused by turning the
handle wheels f, and which are attached to the hollow screws f¹; by turning
these screws, which work in female screws in the pieces of cross framing a',
they ascend and descend. It will be perceived by consulting the Drawings that
the rods attached to the pieces e pass through these hollow screws f¹, and
that beneath these hollow screws they also pass through washers f and spiral
springs g. By turning the capstan-headed nuts g' in the right direction the
piece e will be drawn upwards, and consequently the spiral spring g will be
compressed, and thus charged or have its power increased to any requisito
degree. If, now, a board of the thickness intended to be worked upon be intro-
duced between the upper and lower rollers, and the upper ones be made to
descend upon it, by turning down the hollow screws f¹ any required degree of
pressure may be given, and at the same time an elasticity will exist through
the springs to compensate for any uneveness which the board may have. The
action of these parts will be evident by consulting the Drawings; and it will
equally be seen, by turning the hollow screws in the other direction, they will
ascend and press against the nuts g, lifting the pieces e, and with them the
upper rollers.
Having described the manner in which the rollers are made to lay hold of the
wood and propel it into the machine, it is necessary that I should point out how
they are driven. h is a fixed, and h¹ a loose pulley on the shaft h³. When a
strap from any first mover is on h', the pulley alone revolves in the usual way
of fast and loose pulley; and when thrown on to the fixed pulley h, the rollers
are set in motion by the power being communicated from the pinion i to the
wheel (which wheel and pinion may be shifted for others of different rela-
tive diameter when any alteration in the speed of the rollers is required).
The wheel is on the shaft 7, on which is also fixed the small bevil wheel ³,
which gives motion to the bevil wheel ". These bevil wheels ³, through their
respective shafts and the bevil wheels k, drive the bevil wheels k¹, and their
vertical shafts . 'On ³ are fixed bevil wheels 7, which work into corre-
sponding bevil wheels attached to the ends of the lower rollers, shafts, and
other bevil wheels, which are carried up and down the shaft k by the fork ³,

page_text: attached to the bearing blocks of the upper rollers, and which work into
corresponding bevil wheels fixed in the ends of the upper rollers' shafts; the
bevil wheels are made to turn with the shaft by means of feathered grooves.
All these motions are clearly shown in the various Drawings. I have not thought
it necessary to show the teeth of the bevil wheels and pinions, just described, but
only their pitch lines, having omitted them in order not to confuse the Drawings.
The wood being driven forward, comes in contact, in the first place, with the two
planes, which operate one upon the top and the other on the bottom surface o
the wood, and afterwards with the tools, which plane, or mould, or tongue, and
groove the edges, as the case may be. These planes I shall now describe; they
are shown at m and m', fitted with five irons each, m being the lower and m' the
upper plane. In consulting the different Figures the form of the planes will be
seen. In the Drawing they are shown as distinct pieces, which may be removed
bodily and be replaced by others; but instead of this arrangement they may
be a part of the machine and the irons only be removed. I shall describe
them as they are shown on the Drawing. The parts best seen in Figure 1,
and marked m², m³, are bars, that extend from side to side of the planes, upon
which the cutting irons n are fixed by micans of the pressure screws n², which
pass through the picces o, which also extend from side to side of the planes.
By slacking the screws ¹ the irons may be removed and changed; single or
double irons may be used at pleasure; the latter are here shown. It will be
perceived that five cutters or plane irons are shown at the top and as many at
the bottom, but I do not restrict myself to any number. The plane irons
should be wider than the wood intended to be planed; they must be so adjusted
that each cutter will take off a shaving after the wood shall have been
operated upon by the one preceding it; but as the boards may not come of an
uniform thickness from the saw, an arrangement is shown to obviate the in-
convenience which might arise therefrom. This contrivance is shown at p
Figure 1. It is a piece of metal, fixed to the top plane by means of powerful
springs p', and so adjusted, that as the wood enters between the planes it will
ascend, but at the same time press so firmly on the wood as to form an eye to
the first plane iron, and enable it to take off a very thick shaving, if necessary,
without much ripping; the irons which follow will complete the work. In
order to adjust the planes to different thicknesses of wood, the carriage of the
upper one will be moveable, the lower one being fixed with its face nearly
ranging with the tops of the lower rollers, but rather higher at the back edge.
These planes can be removed at pleasure by lifting away the top one first and
then the bottom, as the space between the sliding brackets in which the top
plane rests is sufficiently large to allow the bottom plane to be lowered into its

page_text: place, the lower plane m is supported in its place by being held down by
screws or other convenient means to the brackets g, which are bolted to tho
main framing a, and the upper plane m¹ is supported in like manner by the
sliding brackets q'; a portion at the back of each of these sliding brackets is
accurately fitted in a slot a² in the main framing a, and as a sliding piece q³ is
screwed to these portions at the outside of a, the whole is made to slide up and
down without any twist or shake. A rebate is formed on the upper edge of
these brackets within the machine, into which a corresponding projection
in the plane m² falls, and to which it is bolted. By this means the upper
plane m' is fixed to the sliding brackets, which are so adjusted, that when m² is
in place its lower or cutting face should be parallel to the face of m but for
the small differeuce which must exist in the distance between their back
and front edges, on account of the diminution in the thickness of the board by
the removal of the shavings. It will be obvious, to a person consulting the
Drawings, that when the plane m¹ is so fastened to the sliding brackets, if
these brackets be then simultaneously lifted the planes will be correctly fitted
to plane boards of thicknesses varying as the distance between the planes is
made to vary. These brackets may be simultaneously raised and depressed as
follows:-q3 are bosses attached to and inside of the slots a²; through these
bosses pass screws r, formed with threads of the same pitch, so that if turned
equal quantities the sliding brackets will rise or fall in equal degrees. To
the top portion of the screwed rod r bevil wheels are firmly attached. The
necks of these bevil wheels are accurately fitted in holes bored in the caps or
pieces of cross framing a above the slots a³, and, being held in place by
washers screwed on their lower faces, can be made to turn with the screws?
without end shake of any sort, and thus lift the brackets. To the ends of the cross
shaft, which is supported in bearings on the pieces of cross framing a³, are fixed
handle wheels. By turning either of these handle wheels the workman can
thus adjust the top plane to any distance from the bottom one, and thus plane
any required thickness of wood. When it is intended to run out the moulded
face of a sash rail, for instance, or any similar article of wood, by replacing the
planes shown by moulded ones of the character shown in the various Figures
in Sheet 2, these articles may be run out instead of plain work. As the wood
continues to advance, it comes in contact with the side planes, which I have
herein-before called tools, connected with the machine, and which not only are
intended to shoot the edges, but also to tongue and groove them, if required,
or even to stick beads and other mouldings, if needed.
These planes may be constructed in various manners, and also may be
attached to the machine in different ways, but I have shown that method

page_text: which I consider the best; and in order to render the description more clear,
have drawn them with that part of the machine to which they are attached to
an enlarged scale in Sheet 2. Similar letters will be used to denote similar
parts in both Sheets for greater facility of reference. s, s', is a piece of framing
bolted between the main frames, the parts s¹ of which form beds, upon which
sliding heads & travel. The form of the beds, and of the heads with their
sliding slips s³, is best seen in Sheet 2, Figure 2, and the mode of moving the
heads on the slides, in Figure 4 of the same Sheet. The object of these sliding
heads is to form moveable carriages, between which any side planes or tools
may be fixed, and through the power of motion which they possess be adjusted
to their proper place. The arrangement here shown for adjusting the side
planes and for guiding the wood to be operated upon by them is as follows.
But as I do not limit myself to any particular method of moving the planes,
since many other means might be adopted with equal effect, I do not claim
this arrangement as any part of my Invention, but simply show it in the
Drawing as one mode of adjustment. The picce of framing 8, s, and the
sliding heads s have been already indicated, and I shall now chiefly direct
attention to Figures 2, 3, and 4, Sheet 2, in order that the method of adjust-
ment may be understood. It will be perceived that there are two pairs of
heads s, and that in each pair one head is fixed and the other moveable.
Figure 4, Sheet 2, is a section through one pair; 1, s being the fixed head,
and 2, s, the moveable one. It will be perceived by consulting this Drawing
that the parts s¹ of the framing s, s', are hollow troughs in which is the
machinery for adjustment; 3 is a boss fixed to the bottom side of the sliding
heads. Through this boss is screwed a screw 4. This screw has a collar
turned upon it, which is seen at 5, and is secured to the frame s¹ by the cap 6,
which enables it to turn freely, but without end shake. It will be perceived
that a bevil wheel is fixed on the outer end of 4 and is seen at 7. This being
turned, the screw 4 revolves, and, by means of the screwed boss on the head s³,
causes that head to slide forward on the bed. In the same Drawing will be
seen the bevil wheel 8, which communicates motion to 7, and behind it on the
same cross shaft, the handle wheel 9. As there are two sliding heads moved
forward simultaneously on the framed beds, already described, the handle wheel
and cross shaft are made by similar pairs of bevil wheels and screws to give
equal motion to both. Their arrangement is perfectly seen at Figuro 3,
Sheet 1, of 9, 8, 7. It will be further perceived that a precisely similar hand
wheel, cross shaft, and pairs of bevil wheels is placed on the opposite side of the
framing and sliding beds, which give simultaneous motion to shafts 10 under
the fixed heads. The object of those shafts is to adjust pressure pieces 11,

page_text: which serve to keep the wood from twisting about or springing whilst being cut
by the side planes. They effect this purpose through bevil wheels 12 and 13,
which gear with other bevil wheels 14 and 15, keyed on the ends of screws 16.
The bevil wheel 12 is keyed on the shaft 10, but the bevil wheel 13 is caused
to turn with that shaft by feathers and grooves, but has liberty to be moved
along it, and is moved by the fork 18, attached to the sliding heads, when-
soever those sliding heads move. The screws 16 pass through female screws in
pieces 17, which slide up and down in vertical slots formed for the purpose in
the sliding heads. The clipping pieces 11, already mentioned, are screwed to
these sliding blocks 17; thus, when the screws are turned, as all motion in
the direction of their length is prevented by collars, seen in the Drawing, the
clipping pieces will rise or fall, according to the direction in which the handle
wheel is turned, and will be brought down on or raised from the wood at the
pleasure of the workman.
I must now call attention chiefly to Sheet 2, where these side planes are
shown in several of the Figures. They may be either formed with simple
cutters only for shooting the edges, or with tonguing and grooving irons, as
shown in the Drawings, or with moulding irons, or, in fact, they may be changed
and varied at pleasure; and by these changes of the irons and of the form of
the plane, the board passed through may either be rebated or moulded, as for
skirtings, small architraves, &c., or tongued and groved, or be merely
smoothed on the edges.. In Figure 8, Sheet 2, a grooving plane is shown, t,
and a tonguing plane at u. In Figuro 2 on the same Sheet a back view of t
is shown, and at Figure 1 a longitudinal section through that plane on the line
a, a. Figure 8 on the same Sheet shows a section through d, d, at Figure. 5,
which is a back view of the tonguing plane. u, Figure 7, is a section at c, c,
in Figure 8, of the same plane. I shall first describe the grooving planet. It
will be perceived, on consulting Figure 1, Sheet 2, the longitudinal section of
this plane, that a portion of it is intended to smooth the edge of the board, and
the remaining portion to groove it. If the irons for grooving be removed the
board will simply be shot at the edge by the irons, shown at t in Figures 1
and 3. These irons are slipped into place by hand, and set forward to
any required degree of rankness, and are then secured by clipping pieces t*,
shown in dotted lines at Figure 3, which go through one side of the
planes, and by binding the edges of the irons hold them fast in the place
to which they have been adjusted. This portion of the plane is, as may
be seen by the Drawing, very similar to an ordinary carpenter's plane,
excepting in the mode of fastening the irons and their number. In order
to obviate inconvenience from any small inequality in the width of the board

page_text: which might possibly exist, although to prevent it, it is my intention, previous
to passing them through the planing machine, to have them cut to parallel and
equal widths by circular or other saws; a provision similar to that described
for the top planes has been made, and is shown at Figure 3, where is a
flat powerful spring, as wide as the planc, fixed on one of the guide heads
where the wood enters. This spring not only serves to keep the wood firmly
pressed against the opposite heads, but also at the end nearest the first plane
iron forms an adjusting eye, through which a coarse shaving may pass if the
board is full, or no shaving at all should the board be somewhat narrower than
others, intended to be reduced to the same width. When the wood has
passed these irons, if intended to be grooved it will next come in contact with
the grooving irons shown at t. The peculiarity of these irons consists in their
being so close to each other, that the back edge of one will form with the cutting
edge of the next following the eye through which the shaving will pass. The
Drawings will show this better than any more elaborate description could. It
is intended to take off a very rank shaving by these irons, even amounting in
some cases to one-sixteenth of an inch in thickness, and thus by a following
scries of such shavings to plough out the groove as the board passes along. In
order to prevent ripping, the first cutting iron in this series may be preceded
by a scribe, which is shown in Figures 1 and 3; of course the rankness of these
shavings will vary with the number of irons and the depth of the intended
grooves. In order to enable the same plane to form grooves of different
widths, the top side of this portion of the plane can be removed and set to
any required distance from the bottom side by interposed washers t the thick-
ness of the irons intended to be used. This top side is fastened to the lower
side by the screwed bolts and nuts; thus, if a groove half an inch wide and
a quarter of an inch deep is required, the washers t' and the irons t¹ must be
half an inch wide, and the last iron in the series must be one-fourth of an inch
from the face of the plane, and the others at a less distance, in regular series.
The inner faces of these plane boxes have ribs and tongues cut upon them, and
as similar grooves will be formed down the sides of these irons, it will be easy
to slip them into place and retain them by means of binding screws to. These
irons may be replaced by moulding irons on the same principle if needed, or
may in some cases be used for rebating, by raising them to the edge instead of
putting them in the centre of the board. This is effected by means of the capstan
headed screws v¹. In consulting the Drawings, it will be perceived that the
heads & have grooves or slots st, shown distinctly in the top view, Figure 3, and
dotted in the back view, Figure 2. Into these slots or grooves corresponding por-
tions of the plane t are accurately fitted, so that when the plane is placed within

page_text: them it becomes united as it were with the sliding heads s³, and is moved back-
wards and forwards with them; but in order to adjust the planes as to height
and to regulate the position of the required groove or rebate, it is necessary
to have recourse to the capstan-headed screws v', already mentioned; by turning
these it will be perceived that the plane t can be made to rise or fall to any
desired level, and can be perfectly adjusted to the direction of motion of the board
operated on. It is obvious that if the board has to be grooved on both sides
similar planes can be used on both sides, but if one side requires to be tongued
I prefer the tool shown at u, Figures 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8, Sheet 2. This plane,
like the one last described, has its first portion contrived for shooting the edges
of the board, and as it is precisely similar in construction, needs no further
mention beyond a reference to the Drawings. The other portion of it is shown
in several views for the purpose of making it thoroughly intelligible, and I
shall now describe it. All the irons hitherto shown in these side planes are so
placed as to act upon the edge of the boards. Those I am about to describe
act upon the top and bottom faces, and cut away the wood in that direction, as
may be seen at Figure 7, where W is the wood being tongued. There are,
consequently, in all cases where wood has to be removed from the top and
bottom faces, two planes in operation, one above and one below. The quantity
of wood in depth removed by each plane will be regulated, as in the case of
grooving, by the rankness or projection of the irons from the face of the plane.
The quantity removed from the width of the board will be guided by the
width of the irons and the space they may be set forward into the machine, and
the distance between the planes will be regulated by a washer placed between
them for that purpose. On looking carefully at the Drawings it will be per-
ceived that neither the lower nor the upper of these planes is a portion of the
main plane u, but that u', the lower plane, and ³, the upper plane, are
fastened together by screwed bolts u with an intermediate washer u³. It will
also be perceived that this double plane is accurately fitted to and made to
slide obliquely between portions of u. A slot, shown in dotted lines at
Figure 8, and in the section, Figure 7, is formed in 2, through which passes a
piece of metal, which has flanges and screws to hold the double plane firmly
upon u, but at the same time to allow it to slide for the purpose of adjust-
ment. Upon is a nut a¹, which by means of the capstan-headed screw ³,
is made to travel, carrying with it the double plane. As already stated with
regard to the plane t, the treple plane u, u, u², is raised or lowered in the
sliding heads by capstan headed screws v. The position of the tongue on the
edge of the board is thus arranged:-The thickness of the tongue is regulated
by the washer u, and the rankness of the irons u³, u", of the lower and upper

page_text: planes, and the depth of the tongue is regulated partly by the width of the
irons, and partly by the setting forward motion. caused by the screw a³, just
described.
It now only remains to show how irons of different widths are used in the
planes u, u. Having already described a similar arrangement in the grooving
cutters, a few words will suffice. One side of the plane, as shown at Figure 6,
may be removed at pleasure and fixed at any distance.from the other side by
screwed bolts and an interposed washer; in this case, as in the former, the
washer and irons will correspond in thickness. It will be perceived that in the
Drawings the cutting edge of the irons is placed in a direction oblique to the line
of motion of the wood, but it may, if requisite, be placed at right angles. I rather
prefer the arrangement shown. When a bead or a light moulding is required
to be stuck, the common irons above shown may be replaced by moulded ones;
and in most cases, when a light moulding was required at the edges of the
board, I should prefer doing it with these side planes; but for heavy articles,
moulding planes in the place of those first described are preferable, but upon
the principles here shown, viz, of a numerous series of irons placed one behind
the other, and taking off for the rougher portions at any rate very rank shavings.
In cases of heavy mouldings, it will be sometimes desirable to remove part
of the wood with the circular saw, when it can conveniently be done, or even
occasionally, in order not to put too much strain on the machine, to run the
work through twice.
I shall now proceed to describe my improvements in timber frames; they
consist, 1st, in the addition of a running-forward motion to the running-
back and feeding motion of timber frames, and in the application of friction
cones for that purpose. 2nd, in the use of spring pressure rollers to the racks
near the working frame, to prevent them being jumped off their bed when many
saws are in use, as now frequently happens. 3rd, in the use of a tilting table
instead of transoms for carrying the wood, and in the apparatus connected
therewith. 4th, in the union of a circular saw with an ordinary timber frame.
The object of these improvements is to increase the quantity of work per-
formed by timber frames. By the addition of a running-forward motion, as will
be seen in the Drawings, Sheet 3, Figures 1, 2, and 3, the workman has it in
his power, by fastening the timber to the rack and throwing up the palls of his
ratchet wheel, to pull the log he intends to cut with great dispatch up to the
saws, and then, by racking back, to have very soon all ready for cutting; more-
over, on many occasions it is found necessary to rack forwards, as for instance,
when it is required to change a saw whilst in the middle of a log; this can
only be done without this addition by a tedious hand operation, or the still

page_text: slower motion adapted to feed the saws. In Sheet 3, Figure 1 is a vertical
section, through the timber frame, on the line a, a; Figure 2, a vertical sec-
tion on the line b, 6; and Figure 3, a vertical sectional plan at c, c. The various
portions in Figures 1, 2, 3, marked a, are the parts of an ordinary timber
frame, and as such need no description, and the only object I have in showing
them is to point out their connections with my improvements. The parts
marked bare portions of the buildings to which the machinery is attached; all
these of course will vary according to the circumstances of the mill in which
they are used; but the description I shall give will enable any competent
workman to adapt my improvement to the particular locality. The Draw-
ings will show the connection between the old and my improved parts,
which I shall now describe. care plummer blocks, which support a sniall
shaft, on which are the pulleys d, d', which have each a hollow conical por-
tion attached to them and the solid cones e, e¹; both these pulleys d, d', turn
freely on the shaft, and are driven by straps from the main shaft; but one
of the straps is straight, and the other crossed, consequently the pulleys
revolve in opposite directions. The solid cones e, e', on the contrary, are not
able to turn, excepting with the shaft being connected to it with grooves and
feathers, but with sufficient freedom to allow of their being moved endwise
along the shaft. f is a powerful lever, the handle of which is near where
the workman stands; and it will be perceived, by consulting Figure 2, that the
workman can at pleasure force the solid cone e into the hollow cone of the
pulley d, or the solid cone e¹ into the hollow cone of the pulley d'. The latter
pair is shown in gear. When the solid cones are midway between the two
pulleys, it is evident that the pulleys will rotate freely on the shaft in opposite
directions and the shaft remain stationary; but when either solid cone is
forcibly pressed into a hollow cone, the friction generated thereby will cause
the particular pulley acted upon to drive the shaft in the direction in which
it is running. Upon this shaft is a wheel g, which gives motion through
an endless chain or band to the wheel h and the shaft h³, and through
this shaft, and an intermediate train of wheels, to the racks of the timber
frame. Now, it is obvious, that inasmuch as the pulleys revolve in opposite
directions, if the cones be thrown alternately in gear with one and the other,
the rack will be.alternately driven backwards and forwards at the will of the
workman. A very main advantage of this system of driving the racks beyond
these already named is, that in case of an impediment anywhere, the friction
of the cones will be insufficient to drive, and nothing will be broken, as would
be the case with a solid clutch. In timber frames already provided with the
usual running-back motion, which is merely the pair of chain wheels g, h, an

page_text: arrangement may be made, which is somewhat simpler and less expensive,
although in other respects not so good; but as it may, from its chicapness in
adaptation, be used sometimes with advantage, I shall now describe it. On
the shaft of the wheel g there will be only one pulley d or d¹ required, which
pulley, however, will be keyed on the shaft, so that it will be constantly running;
but as the chain between 9 and his left quite slack, the motion of the shaft
will not be communicated to the racks except when the chain is made tense by
means of a pressure lever. This is the usual mode of running back the rack
in timber frames. My improvement consists in having another wheel i, shown
on blue lines, not to interfere with the parts before described, fixed on the
small shaft by the side of 9, and another wheel j, similar to h, on the shaft h¹.
The chain in one pair of these wheels is straight and in the other pair crossed,
but both are ordinarily slack, and therefore do not communicate motion but by
means of pressure levers; the workman has the power, however, by this
means of tightening either chain at pleasure, and thus of driving the racks
either backwards or forwards.
The spring pressure rollers, which form my next improvement, are shown
at k, Figure 2. It will be perceived that blocks 1, 1, are fixed to the upright
of the timber frame, through the upper one of which are screwed hollow
screws m¹; a rod from the bearing of the roller passes up this screw, and on
this rod is a spiral spring; by turning down the hollow screws m¹ the rollers
are pressed through the medium of springs upon the racks. Having already
described a similar movement in the pressure rollers of the planing machine;
this improvement will easily be understood by referring to the Drawings.
My next improvement consists in the use of a tilting table instead of
transoms for carrying the wood, and in the apparatus connected therewith.
The objects of this improvement are, first, to have a solid bed for the wood
throughout the greater part of its length, which bed can be so adjusted that
one side of the wood can be set truo to the line of action of the saws with
great facility, how much soever the bottom may be out of square with this
side; second, to enable the workman to rack back several times if necessary
whilst cutting his log, without disturbing it in the least, and without running
the risk of forming crooks in his cut. A log of any length may be cut in a
frame of this construction without risk of disturbance from this cause. The
various portions of this improvement are shown in blue lines on the Drawings
of the timber frames in Sheet 3. O shows the tilting table, which moves
upon a joint, similar to a rule joint, on a piece of timber or metal p, which is
fastened to the floor between the racks. The arrangement is best seen in
sections in. Figure 2, where it will be perceived that there are two other

page_text: pieces of wood or metal p¹ running parallel to p; by driving wedges under
either side of the table O that table will be tilted out of square, so that
if the piece of timber intended to be cut is not properly squared, as is shown
at W, it can be so adjusted by the wedges as to bring one of the sides
parallel to the saw. The timber in this arrangement will slide upon the
table, being attached to and carried forward by the racks. As no transoms
can be used in this arrangement I have invented a mode of holding the
wood, which is shown at 9, 7'. 9 is a bridge piece, screwed to the racks on
either side, and when the wood is pulled up to the saws it is drawn under
this bridge piece, through the sides of which are screws with handles r.
By these screws the wood is firmly held sidewise whilst being dragged forward
by the rack. q' is also a bridge piece, which can be fixed on any part of the
racks, and it also has screws to hold the wood sidewise; as many of them may
be used as the workman considers necessary, only they must be removed as
with the advance of the wood they are brought up to the working frame. In
the different views the whole arrangement is clearly shown, but of course the
length of the table and of the racks depends upon the convenience of the par-
ticular mill where it is used. I have now only to describe the union of the
circular saw with the ordinary timber frames. In mills where room is valuable,
and in all cases to prevent useless expense and gain dispatch in work, this
improvement is useful; for in breaking cuts in timber as much time is
required with the up and down saw as if there were many saws in the frame.
I am therefore enabled by this union to put in a circular saw at pleasure,
using the running-forward motion of the timber frame for the purpose, and to
break down the wood, and then by removing the circular saw and putting in
the required number of upright saws to cut it into joists or other scantlings
The circular saw is shown at s; t, t¹ are the pulleys, så being the spindle; t is
the fast and t¹ the loose pulley; u is the table where the saw can be packed,
and which is below the tilting table, which in this part is cut away for it. The
wood is fixed and adjusted by the side screws in the bridge pieces, and then
brought up to the saw by the advance of the racks.
I shall now describe the improved apparatus for regulating the advance of
wood to circular and other saws, which improved apparatus is also applicable
to other purposes. As a circular saw dulls, it is not capable of cutting wood
at the same rate of feed as when sharp, and if inclined to buckle when cutting,
that tendency may be destroyed by diminishing the feed, until the saw has
cooled, or can be replaced by another. It was to enable the workman to vary
his feed at pleasure, or even to run back his work, or to stop it by the same
incans, that this apparatus was contrived; and as with cranes and many other

page_text: machines it is equally desirable for the workman to have the power of increas-
ing or diminishing his speed, according to his resistance, and many other
circumstances, the Invention is also applicable to them. In Figure 4, Sheet 3,
a is a shaft driven at a very high speed from some first mover by a strap over
the fixed pulley b; is a loose pulley on which the strap may be thrown.
This shaft a is supported on proper bearings, and at the opposite end to that on
which are the pulleys is a large disk wheel c. This disk wheel c gives motion
to a small whcel d on the shaft d¹ in the following manner :-The periphery of
this wheel & is kept tightly pressed against some part of the face of c, and is
therefore driven by it at a speed varying as its distance from the centre of the
disk is increased or diminished; moreover, it is driven in opposite directions
when above or below the centre. On the end of this shaft d' is a bevil wheel e,
which gives motion to a corresponding bevil wheel ƒ on the shaft f. From
this shaft the motion is communicated through a train of wheels (by which the
speed is reduced and the power increased) to any thing that may require this
sort of action, as, for instance, to a rack for a rack bench, as shown at g; or to
the barrel of a crane, as shown at h; or to a capstan, as shown at i, or to a
turning lathe. I have thought it useless to show the bearings of these shafts,
or to be more precise, as the particular arrangement of the shafts must depend
upon the place and circumstances to which the contrivance is applied. In
order that the shaft d' may always be properly driven, it is necessary that the
edge of the wheel & should always be firmly pressing on the face of the disk.
This is effected as follows:-k is an upright, of wood or metal, bolted to the
floor and ceiling, and are the bearings of the vertical shaft d'; these bear-
ings have the power of motion in slots in the floor above and below towards
and from the disk; if, therefore, they are pressed in the direction of the face
of the disk constantly, the wheel & in all positions will be kept up to its work.
This is effected by hollow capstan-headed screws m, screwed through the
upright k, and which being turned press upon the bearings through powerful
spiral springs. The arrangement is similar to that shown in the planing
machine for pressing the rollers on the wood. In order to enable the workman
to shift the pulley d to any part of the face of the disk c, a throat is cut on the
boss of d, in which is a fork n. This fork is connected with a rack o, which is
worked by a pinion p. This pinion being turned by the handle 7 works the
rack up and down, carrying with it the pulley d, so that when the disk is
running the workman can very quickly shift. the position of d, thus increasing
or decreasing the velocity of the shaft or preventing it from turning by putting
it to the centre of the disk, or altering the direction of its motion by putting
it below the centre.

page_text: Having now given a detailed description of the different parts of the said
"Improvements in Machinery for Cutting Wood, and in Apparatus connected
therewith, Part of which may be applied to other Purposes," I hereby declare
that I do not confine myself to the particular forms or dimensions of the
various parts, as in the framing and many other portions they may be greatly
varied without affecting the principles of the different contrivances shown; but
I claim generally as my Invention the arrangement and combinations of
machinery described and shown in the annexed Drawings as my improve-
ments for the purpose of producing the result herein-before set forth; and
particularly I claim,―
First, as shown in Sheets Nos. 1 and 2, the use of two, three, four, or more
fixed planes acting simultaneously, and without the addition of revolving
cutters, on the different faces of boards or strips of wood driven against them
by rollers or other means.
Secondly, I claim the methods shown of sticking mouldings by forcing the
wood against a series of fixed moulding irons without being previously acted
upon by circular cutters.
Thirdly, I claim the tools shown in Sheet 2.
Fourthly, I claim the methods shown of adding a running-forward motion
to the usual motions of timber frames.
Fifthly, I claim the adaptation of pressure spring rollers to keep down the
racks.
Sixthly, I claim the tilting table as applied to timber frames and the appa-
ratus connected therewith.
Seventhly, I claim the application of a circular saw to an ordinary timber
frame so as to use it or the vertical saws at pleasure.
Eighthly, and lastly, I claim the use of the speed-regulating disk wheel and
moveable shifting driving pulley actuated thereby, shown in Figure 4, Sheet 3,
which said last-mentioned apparatus may be applied to cranes, capstans,
turning lathes, and other machinery.
And such my Invention being, to the best of my knowledge and belief,
entirely new, and never before used within that part of Her said Majesty's
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, and Her
Dominion of Wales, or Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, or in the Islands of
Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, or in any of Her Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, I hereby declare this to be my Specifi-
cation of the same, and that I do verily believe this my said Specification
doth comply in all respects fully and without reserve or disguise with the
proviso in the said herein-before in part recited Letters Patent contained;-

page_text: wherefore I do hereby claim to maintain exclusive right and privilege to my
said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Hickling Burnett, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Ninth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-two.
.D.)
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Ninth day of March, in the
year of our Lord 1842, the aforesaid William Hickling Burnett came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand