IMPROVE. MENTS IN MACHINERY For Splaying and BeNDING HOOPS For Cases”
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Betts Bradshaw, of Clough Hill House,
Rotherham, in the County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVE.
MENTS IN MACHINERY For Splaying and BeNDING HOOPS For Cases”
MENTS IN MACHinery for Splaying and Bending Hoops for Cases”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Betts Bradshaw
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 30th January 1875.
I, JOSEPH BETTS BRADSHAW, of Clough Hill House, Rotherham, in
the County of York, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPLAYING AND BENDING HOOPS FOR
CASKS,"
"to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for
splaying and bending hops for casks. The machinery at present
employed for this purpose consists of a pair of cylindrical rollers
mounted one over the other. The lower roller is smooth on the face,
and the upper is grooved longitudinally with straight grooves. The

page_text: axis of the upper roller is set down closer to the lower roller at one end
than at the other, so that when the hoop iron is passed between them it
is nipped more heavily on one side than the other, and the unequal
elongation of the metal on the two sides gives the required splay or
coning to the hoop. The bending or curvature. of the hoop is controlled
by a third roller mounted in front of the pair of splaying rollers, so as
to direct the iron upwards as it is delivered by them. This roller is
adjusted to or from the pair of splaying rollers, according as a greater or
less curvature is required.
In working such machines as heretofore constructed it is necessary
that the workman should guide the metal by hand during the whole of
its passage through the machine, or else malformed and spiral hoops will
be produced, and from the way in which the upper splaying roller is
grooved the hoops are weakened and liable to split in use, especially if
there be any deficiency in the quality of the iron. Now in the machines
which I construct I overcome these difficulties, and I avoid the necessity
for guiding the metal by hand after it has been entered between the
splaying rollers.
I form the grooves in the upper splaying roller in a spiral direction,
so that the indentations produced in the hoop run in an oblique course
across it. The third or bending roller I make of a conical form in place
of cylindrical, and I mount it so that it can be inclined more or less,
according to the amount of splay which is being given to the hoop.-
The hoop then, when the roller is properly set, rests flat upon it from
side to side, and when thus supported it is not liable to deviate from its
true course between the splaying rollers, and no attention of the workman
is required to prevent the production of spiral hoops. I also place a
guard over the top of the splaying rollers, against which the hoop presses
as it returns over the top of the rollers. As soon as the metal is free
from the nip of the rollers the elasticity of the hoop throws it forward
out of the machine, and there is no risk of the hoop being caught a
second time by the rollers. These improvements result in a con-
siderable saving of labour, and better work is at the same time
obtained

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Joseph Betts Bradshaw in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 30th July 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPIĘ
BETTS BRADSHAW, of Clough Hill House, Rotherham, in the County of
York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Hér
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of January, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Joseph Betts Bradshaw, Her special ·
license that I, the said Joseph Betts Bradshaw, my exécutors, ad-
ministrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Joseph Betts.
Bradshaw, my executors, administrators, 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 MACHINERY FOR SPLAYING AND BENDING HOOPS FOR
CASKS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Joseph
Betts Bradshaw, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,.
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-
vention, 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
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Joseph-Betts Bradshaw, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery.for
splaying and bending hoops for casks. The machinery at present
employed for the purpose consists of a pair of cylindrical rollers
mounted one over the other. The lower roller is smooth on the face,
and the upper is grooved longitudinally with straight grooves.
1

page_text: axis of the upper roller is set down closer to the lower roller at one end
than at the other, so that when the hoop iron is passed between them¸ it:
is nipped more heavily on one side than the other, and the unequal
elongation of the metal on the two sides gives the required splay or
coning to the hoop. The bending or curvature of the hoop is controlled
by a third roller mounted in front of the pair of splaying rollers, so as to
direct the iron upwards as it is delivered by them. This roller is adjusted
to or from the pair of splaying rollers, according as a greater or less
curvature is required.
In working such machines as heretofore constructed it is necessary
that the workman should guide the metal by hand during the whole of
its passage through the machine, or else malformed and spiral hoops will
be produced, and from the way in which the upper splaying roller is
grooved the hoops are weakened and liable to split in use, especially if
there be any deficiency in the quality of the iron. Now in the machines
which I construct I overcome these difficulties, and I avoid the necessity
for guiding the metal by hand after it has been entered, between the
splaying rollers.
I form the grooves in the upper splaying roller in a spiral direction,
so that, the indentations produced in the hoop run in an oblique
course across it. The third or bending roller I make of a conical
form in place of cylindrical, and I mount it so that it can be inclined
more or less, according to the amount of splay which is being given to
the hoop. The hoop then, when the roller is properly set, rests flat
upon it from side to side, and when thus supported it is not liable to
deviate from its true course between the splaying rollers, and no attention
of the workman is required to prevent the production of spiral hoops.
I also place a guard on the top of the splaying rollers, against which the
hoop presses as it returns over the top of the rollers. As soon as the
metal is free from the nip of the rollers the elasticity of the hoop throws.
it forward out of the machine, and there is no risk of the hoop being
caught a second time by the rollers. These improvements result in a
considerable saving of labour, and better work is at the same time
obtained.
In order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect. I will proceed to describe the Drawings here-.

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a plan, and Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of a machine
for splaying and bending hoops for casks constructed according to my
Invention.
a is the lower frame supporting the table b, with which are formed
two standards 6', 6'. These standards receive the bearings for the
rollers c and d; between which the hoop iron is passed. e, e, are screws
for setting down the bearings of the upper roller to regulate the nip..
The upper roller d'is shown separately and full size in Figures 3;: the
nature of the spiral grooving upon it is here clearly represented.. The
lower roller c has upon its neck the spur wheel c', which gears with a
pinion f¹. This pinion is formed of a piece with the belt pulley f, and
revolves with it upon a stud axis fixed upon the lower frame a. g is a
slotted bar fixed to the standards 61. It serves as a guide, together with
the pegs g', g, which can be driven in the slot. wherever. required to:
regulate the presentation of the hoop iron to the rollers, the iron being
entered through the slot and between the two pegs. is an inclino
fixed immediately in front of the nip of the rollers to throw the end of
the hoop iron upwards. The piece of which this incline is formed is
held at its ends between the brasses in the standards b'. i is a conical
roller mounted on a pin or axis held by the bracket k, as is shown to a
larger scale (about half-size) by the Figures 4. The bracket / is carried
upon the slide 1: It can pivot around the stud 1, and when set in the
desired position it can be clamped by means of the screw stud 12 which
is also fixed in the slide 7. A slot is made in the bracket for the passage
of the screw stud 12, and the stud receives upon it the nut 1. m is a
nut, which is able to traverse along a guide groove formed for it in the
table b. It receives its motion from a screw n, on the stem of which is
the hand wheel n': The slide is also received into a recess formed
for it in the table, and in which it is able to slide, together with the
nut m, the nut being attached to the slide, as the Drawings clearly
show.
By the means above described, the position of the conical roller i can
be adjusted both to the curvature and the splay of the hoop which the
machine is required to make. 0 is a sheet iron guide fixed between the
two standards 6'. It is secured in its place by lugs o¹ fixed upon it,
These lugs are held beneath the nuts which retain the caps on the top

page_text: of the standards. p represents a hoop in its passage through the
machine, and shows its end about to come into contact with the guard o.
The guard prevents the possibility of a hoop being spoilt by passing a
second time between the rollers, and the constraint which the guard
places on the hoop causes it to spring out of the machine as soon as the
rollers release it.
Figure 5 represents the inner side of a portion of a hoop as it appears
after passing through the machine. The pressure of the roller d has
produced upon the hoop a series of indentations, which spread and
elongate the metal on one side, and so give the desired splay. These
indentations being inclined to the edge do not weaken the metal in the
way that it is weakened by indentations running in a direction directly
across the hoop, for with the inclined indentations which the Drawing
indicates a section taking along the line of the indentation will show a
larger area of metal than a section taken along the line of indentation
in a direct line across the hoop.
What I claim is, the construction of automatic machinery for splaying
and bending hoops for casks, substantially as described, and especially
the spirally-grooved upper roller d, the conical bending roller i, with its
pivotting bracket k, and the guard ọ.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Betts 'Bradshaw, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of July,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.
1.