IMPROVEMENTS IN COTTON GINS
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International Patent
Office," No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
COTTON GINS."A communication from abroad by Charles Spofford and
Charles Henry Hersey, both of Boston, Massachusetts, United States of
America.
Sealed the 18th August 1867, and dated the 26th June 1867.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration on the 26th June 1867, pursuant to the 9th Section of the
Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in po-session of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
COTTON GINS," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto me, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the same,
and have made solemn declaration that it has been communicated to me from
abroad by Charles Spofford and Charles Henry Hersey, both of Boston,
Massachusetts, United States of America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal,
fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in what

page_text: manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, forming a part
of this Specification:
:-
Cotton gins wherein a longitudinal bar or plate is employed in connection
with a single roller are objectionable for the following reasons:--It is necessary
that the plate should be held up forcibly against the roller in order that the
cotton may be drawn in and fed forward between the said plate and roller
while the seeds are being removed by the comb or stripper; the friction thus
produced beats the roller, and frequently softens it to such a degree that
the fibres of the cotton adhere to and are wound around the said roller,
thus interrupting the uniform feed of the cotton and rendering it liable to
take fire.
To obviate these difficulties is the object of the first part of this Invention,
which consists in the employment of a pair of rollers in connection with a
longitudinal bar or breast beam of such form that when pressed up against
the rollers no more of the surfaces of the bar and rollers come in contact than
what is just sufficient to hold the cotton while the comb is acting upon the
seed, the contact of the two rollers chiefly serving to feed the cotton forward;
by this means nearly double the amount of work is performed than by the
employment of cotton gins of the ordinary construction. Furthermore in the
cotton gins now in use a revolving fan or a revolving or stationary brush has
been employed for removing the cotton after it has been gained from the feed
rolls; this brush is objectionable for the reason that it soon becomes clogged
and requires constant cleaning, while the fan occasions much dust, and both
the revolving brush and fan occupy considerable room and toss the cotton
about so as to mix it in a confused mass, necessitating considerable labor to
again straighten its fibres.
To remove the above-mentioned difficulties and to provide a feed roll which
sball possess greater durability than those now in use is the object of the
second portion of the said Invention, which consists in a pair of clearing plates
or "clearers" provided with teeth or projections, and so connected with the
stripping plate as to insure their simultaneous operation. The stripping plate
is braced to the upper "clearer" to stiffen the former and prevent its being
pressed away from the upper feed roll by the crowding of the cotton; by this
incans the liability of the seed being broken and carried through with the
cotton is avoided.
The said Invention also consists in incorporating within the material of the
upper feed roll emery or other suitable gritty substance, or in employing wire
or other metal strips in connection with the material of the said roll, whereby

page_text: 188 18
against the upper feed roll.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved cotton gin; Figure 2 is a
longitudinal contral section of the same; Figure 3 is a transverse section on
the line X,X, Figure 2; Figures 4 and 5 represent detached portions of the
said gin. Like letters indicate the same parts in each of the Figures.
A is the framework, which is provided with suitable bearings for the driving
shaft B; one end of the said shaft carries a drum C, over which
passes the
endless belt D for driving the wheel E secured to one end of a shaft F, which
has its bearings in boxes a resting within recesses b cut in the top of the
framework A. The shaft F is covered with a roll G of rubber or other suit-
ablo elastic material, upon which rests another roll H of corresponding size
and of any suitable material having a gritty substance, such as emery or sand
incorporated and vulcanized therewith. The object of employing such a feed
roll is twofold, viz., it presents a roughened surface, which is better adapted for
taking hold of the cotton, and is also more durable as it is of a nature better
adapted to stand constant wear than the ordinary smooth rubber roll. The
shaft I of the roll II has its bearings in boxes c which slide up and down
within the recesses 6 of the framework A; over the top of these recesses bare
fastened the plates K, through which pass screws d whose lower ends bear
upon the boxes c; by this means the pressure of the roll H upon the roll G is
regulated as required, and the two rolls being in contact with each other
the motion of the former is cominunicated to the latter. L is a bar or breast
beam of a triangular form, as seen in section, Figure 3, which bar extends
longitudinally in front of the rolls G, H, and is kept in contact with each of
their surfaces only at the point 6 to insure the fibres being seized and held
between the bar and roll while the comb or stripper (hereafter described) is
brought down upon the portion of the cotton containing the seed. This
arrangement prevents unnecessary friction and consequent heating of the rolls
incident to machines in which the whole of the inner surface of the breast
beam comes in contact with the peripheries of the rolls.
"
The mechanism employed for regulating the pressure of the "breast beam
against the feed rolls will now be explained. An apron M for conducting

page_text: and guiding the seed or other impurities out of the machine is riveted at e to
the lower end of the breast beam L, which is provided with a groove or
channel frunning longitudinally along its centre; within this groove and in
contact with the "breast beam " L is placed one end of a row of horizontal
pins or bars 7 at suitable intervals apart; the said bars form a screen or
grating N through which the seed and other substances are allowed to fall
upon the apron
M;
the other ends of these pins 7 composing the grating N
are secured within a horizontal bar O which extends longitudinally across the
framework and rests upon a projecting portion of the same; the bar O is
confined in place thereon by screws 9 passing through slots, shewn in <lotted
lines, Figure 3, in the said bar, by which arrangement the same may be moved
forward a little in the direction of the arrow 8 by operating the screws h; the
breast beam is thus caused to bear on the rolls at the point 6 with the degree
of pressure required. On each side of the framework at i are secured metal
strips or guide plates P, within which the bifurcations k, l, of a yoke Q are
made to travel up and down by means of rods R, the upper ends of which are
connected by studs or pius m to the lower end of the yoke, the lower ends of
the said rods being connected to cranks S on the driving shaft B. To the
upper ends of the bifurcations k is secured a flat plate which serves as a comb
or stripper T, and is so adjusted that when vibrating up and down in common
with the yoke it is kept within a short distance of the outer face of the
breast beam L in order to properly perform the operation of removing the
seed. U, V, are serrated or toothed plates termed "clearers," which are
screwed at o, p, to the bifurcations 1, and are caused to vibrate up and down
with the yoke close to the surfaces of the rolls G, H, for the purpose of
removing the ginned cotton therefrom, which office is ordinarily performed
by the revolving fan or brush. As the stripper T and clearers U, V, are all
connected to the yoke Q they are operated simultaneously. The teeth of the
upper clearer U when going down, and those of the lower clearer V when
coming up, engage with and remove the cotton from the rolls, while both
clearers U, V, when caused to vibrate in the directions contrary to those above
mentioned pass freely by the rolls without coming in contact with them. The
ends of the braco are rivetted to the stripper T at s, while its centre is
secured to the upper clearer U by a screw bolt and nuts u, the opposite end
of the bolt being secured by nuts w to the stripper T; the latter is thus
stiffened and kept in place to prevent the entrance of seed and other substance,
which would otherwise happen if the stripper were sprung, back by the
crowding of the cotton.. Where great strength and durability are required
yue or other metal strips may be employed instead of emery or sand in the

page_text: construction of tho upper rolls G. In Figure 4 the shaft W is shewn provided
with a groove extending spirally around it, in which groove is soldered or
otherwise secured the back of a strip y composed of short pieces of wire or
metal, which are thus arranged radially on the shaft. In Figure 5 circular
sections of wire gauze or netting X are secured to the shaft Y at suitable
intervals apart, and the rubber or other elastic material iş afterward filled
between and around them, and vulcanized in a well-known manner. The
clearers U, V, may if desired be made in one piece instead of as herein shewn
and described; and the method of bracing the stripper may be changed
without departing from the spirit of our Invention. It is evident that where
one feed roll only is employed but one clearer is required.
The receptacle containing the cotton to be ginned being properly connected
with the apparatus power is applied to the driving shaft B, and the rolls G, H,
stripper T, and clearers U, V, are set in motion. The stripper being raised
the fibres of the cotton are taken down by the revolution of the feed roll H
and seized between its roughened surface and the portion 6 of the triangular
breast benin L in contact therewith; the stripper now descending pushes the
seed and dirt down from the upper edge of the breast beam L upon the
grating N, through which they fall on to the apron M, the fibres thus sepa-
rated being conducted through the rolls, whence they are removed by the
clearers U, V, whose vibrations are performed simultaneously with those of
the stripper T.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondents, and shown how the same may be conveniently and
advantageously carried into practice, I claim,―
The employment of the triangular-shaped bar or breast beam L in com-
bination with the rolls G, H, and stripper T, operating substantially as and for
the purpose set forth.
I also claim the "clearers" U, V, substantially as and for the purpose
described.
I also claim the yoke or equivalent devico for conuecting the clearers
U, V, and stripper T to secure their simultaneous action, substantially as set
forth.
'
I also claim bracing the stripper T to the upper clearer U to stiffen and
retain the former in place, substantially as and for the purpose specified.
I also claim the breast beam L with its groove f and apron M, in com-
bination with the grating N, with slotted bar O, and pins 7, operated by
screws h or otherwise, for regulating the pressure of the breast beam against
the periphery of the upper feed roll H, substantially as described.

page_text: I also claim the employment of emery, sand, or other gritty substance in
the construction of the feed roll H for the purpose set forth.
I also claim a feed roll II in which wire, wire netting, or metal strips are
employed, as and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set 5
my hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.s.)