IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR MAKING CLAY BATS
Year: 1885

page_text: I, ALEXANDER COCHRAN of 136 Glebe Street, Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
North Britain of the firm of Robert Cochran & Company, Potters, of the above
address do hereby declare the nature of the said invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR MAKING CLAY BATS to be as follows:-
This Invention, which relates to improvements in machinery or apparatus for
making clay bats, has for its object the cutting of the clay in regular and even
bats or slices from a mass of clay as required for making plates and other similar
articles.
The machine consists of a cylindrical or other shaped receptacle or box to hold
a lump of clay from which regular thicknesses are to be cut off, the said box being
mounted upon a stand at a convenient height to allow of the bats of clay being
taken off by the potter. The box has a moveable bottom or plate capable of
being raised and lowered by apparatus underneath. The apparatus for this
purpose may consist of any well-known mechanical contrivance such for example
as the following:-To the underpart of the moveable plate is a tubular shaft
within which is a screw shaft operated by gearing from a handle or band pulley
at the side of the machine. Attached by a hinge or other means to the lower
part of the hollow shaft is a half nut or equivalent device so arranged that when
it is required to raise the bottom plate of the clay box to feed the clay, the nut
portion comes in gear with the screwed shaft and when the bottom plate has
arrived at the top of the box, by the employment of a catch or trigger upon the
nut and which strikes against the bottom of the receptacle or against other fixed
portion, the said nut is caused to be disengaged from the screw shaft and the
bottom plate with its hollow shaft falls with its own weight to the bottom of
the clay box, ready for a fresh feed of clay. Over the top of the clay box is
stretched horizontally the wire for cutting off the bats as the clay is fed up. The
said wire is mounted upon an arm which is caused to rotate by gearing in con-
nection with the handle or band pulley for feeding up the clay. The spindle
of the revolving arm carrying the wire is preferably arranged vertically at the
side of the machine, and is preferably the same spindle that carries the gear for

page_text: operating the screw shaft so that upon operating the handle or band pulley of the
machine the wire is caused to revolve and to slice off bats of clay as the clay
is simultaneously fed up.
In order to prevent the supporting plate in the clay box falling with a shock
the said plate may be so fitted within the box as to give a cushion of air beneath
the plate and so allow the plate to descend gradually; or a weight and pulley may
be employed at each side of the machine and so arranged as to tend to take the
weight of the clay off the feeding gear and to act as a brake to the plate as it falls
to the bottom of the box.

page_text: :
Improvements in Machinery or Apparatus for Making
Clay Bats.
.I, ALEXANDER COCHRAN of 136 Glebe Street, Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
North Britain, of the firm of Robert Cochran & Company, Potters of the above
address do hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR MAKING CLAY BATS and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
My Invention, which relates to improvements in machinery or apparatus for
making clay bats has for its object the cutting of the lump of clay into regular
and even bats or slices as required for the Potters' wheel for making plates and
other similar articles and to effect the operation more rapidly and with less labour
than heretofore.
The machine consists of a cylindrical or other shaped receptacle or box to hold
a lump of clay from which regular thicknesses are to be cut off, the said box being
imounted upon a stand of a convenient height to allow of the bats of clay being
taken off by the potter. The box is provided with a plate or piston capable of
being raised and lowered within it. The said plate is supported upon a tubular
shaft within which is a screw shaft capable of being rotated by gearing from a
handle or band pulley at the side of the machine. Attached by a hinge or other
equivalent means to the lower part of the hollow shaft is a half nut or a pair of
half uuts or equivalent device and so arranged that when it is required to raise
the piston or supporting plate to feed the clay upwards the nut portion in brought
into gear with the screwed shaft and when the plate has arrived at the top of the
box, by the employment of a catch or trigger upon the nut or nuts and which
strikes against the bottom of the clay box the said nut or nuts is or are caused to
be disengaged from the screw shaft and the plate or piston with its hollow shaft
falls by its own weight to the bottom of the clay box, ready for a fresh lump of
clay. Over the top of the clay box is stretched horizontally a wire or string for
cutting off the bats as the clay is fed up. The said wire or string is mounted upon
an arm which is caused to rotate by gearing in connection with the handle or band
pulley for feeding up the clay. The spindle of the revolving arm carrying the
wire is mounted vertically at the side of the machine and is preferably the same
spindle as that which carries the gear for operating the screw shaft so that upon
operating the handle or band pulley of the machine the wire is caused to revolve
and to slice off bats of clay as the clay is simultaneously fed up out of its box or
cylinder.
In order that my said Invention may be properly understood and readily carried ·
into effect I will now proceed to describe the drawings hereunto annexed.
Figure 1, of the accompanying sheet of Drawings is a sectional elevation of the
machine constructed in accordance with my said Invention.
Figure 2, is a sectional plan of the same.
Th
1
:

page_text: Figure 5, is an elevation partly in section or a moⱭication of my said invention
and Figure 6 is a plan of the same.
The box or cylinder A, to hold the lump of clay is mounted upon the stand or
hollow casting B being secured thereon by the clamps a, Figure 3, or by other
suitable means. The stand B, is preferably formed with a base plate or foot b,
and is preferably mounted upon wheels C, to enable the apparatus to be con-
veniently moved about. The screwed shaft D, has keyed upon it at its foot the
toothed wheel E, Figures 1 and 2, which gears with a similar wheel F, keyed upon
the spindle F-Upon the top of the said spindle is keyed the toothed wheel G,
which gears by means of the pinion H, with the toothed wheel I, keyed upon the
lower extremity of the spindle J, the said spindle at its upper part being formed
with an arm j, across which the cutting wire K, is stretched. The spindle J,
rotates through and is supported by the casting L, which is bolted upon the
bracket, of the stand B, of the machine. Upon the spindle J, is keyed the
bevilled wheel M, gearing with the bevilled pinion N, which is operated by the
shaft n, to which the handle n¹, is keyed.
The hollow shaft P, supports or has attached to it the bottom plate or piston a,
of the clay box A, and its lower extremity has hinged or attached to it at the inner
side thereof a pair of half nuts or their equivalents, which are brought into and
out of gear with the screwed shaft D, when it is required to raise or lower the
plate a, by operating the trigger or projection p, of the forked lever p¹. The said
lever is pivoted upon the studs p², and is formed with eccentric slots p³, which
actuate the studs p, the said studs being formed upon the half nuts to be engaged
and disengaged with the screw shaft D.
In starting the machine the plate or piston a, is at the bottom of the box as seen
in figure 1, and a lump of clay of about the depth of the box A, is placed in the
said box.
Upon rotating the handle n¹, the spindle J, is caused to revolve and simul-
taneously the spindle f, and the screwed shaft D, the effect being that the wire K,
is caused to revolve and to travel over the open top of the box A, and the nuts of
the lever pl, having been put into gear with the shaft D by pulling upwards the
trigger p, the plate or piston a, is gradually raised upwards and the lump of clay
gradually fed out from the top of the box, the rotating wire K, cutting through the
clay at a depth in accordance with the amount of feed upwards given by the
screwed shaft D,-As soon as the wire has cleared the clay the bat or slice that has
been cut through may be removed by the potter or the bats may not be removed
until a number of them are cut or until the whole lump of clay is so cut.
As soon as the plate or piston a, has reached the top of the clay box the trigger p
of the forked lever p³, comes in contact with any fixed part b', of the box or stand
of the machine and the nuts or engaging portions of the hollow shaft P, are thus
withdrawn from the said shaft and the plate a, falls to the bottom of the box A,
ready to receive a fresh lump of clay.
To reduce the shock of the falling plate or piston a, the foot of the hollow plate p,
is preferably caused to fall upon a bed x, of soft material laid upon the supporting
plate or web x¹, but it is preferable to fit the plate closely within the cylinder or
box A, so that there is always a cushion of air beneath the plate the air escaping
as the plate descends through any small aperture at the lower part of the box or
cylinder.
In order to further assist the plate to fall gradually and also to balance the
weight of clay, weights Q, Figure 3, may be suspended on pulleys 9, mounted upon
the brackets q¹, of the stand of the machine, the chains or cords of the said weight
being secured to the lower part of the shaft P.
In order to give various thicknesses of cuts through the clay the speed of the
scrow shaft D, may be altered as required by the use of larger or smaller pinions
or gear wheels. In figures 1 and 2, the axis of the wheel I, is shewn provided
with a lever i, the one arm of which supports the pinion H, the opposite arm being
formed with a quadrantal slot i, to receive a pin and set screw, the effect of this

page_text: arrangement being that the pinion H, can be withdrawn when it is required to
replace it by a larger or smaller pinion or wheel.
In lieu of operating the machine by hand it may be operated by power and
for this purpose fast and loose pulleys P, R, Figures 5 and 6, may be mounted
upon the shaft r, upon which is keyed the pinion r¹, gearing with the two bevilled
wheels 2, 3, and in order to reverse the motion of the feed screw D, for lowering
the piston a, without the employment of engaging and disengaging mechanism as
described with reference to figures 1 and 2, the friction clutch 5, may be brought
into gear with either of the bevilled wheels 8, ³, by operating the hand lever t, or
the reversing of the motions for this, or other purposes may be effected by other
equivalent means.
It is also to be understood that the machine in lieu of being mounted vertically
as described might be mounted horizontally or at other angles, if found more
convenient, the cutting wire of a horizontal machine thus rotating upon a hori-
zontal axis.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is :-
First In machinery or apparatus for making clay bats, the employment of the
box or cylinder A, feeding plate or piston a, screw shaft D, and its attachınents or
the mechanical equivalent of the said parts, all in combination with the rotating
wire or other cutter K, substantially as hereinbefore described.
Second The arrangement and construction of the piston a, in combination with
the cylinder A, in order to provide a cushion of air beneath the said piston all
substantially as and for the purposes hercin before described.
Third The employment of half nuts or equivalent engaging or disengaging
mechanism actuated by the lever p¹, Figures 1 and 2, substantially as and for the
purposes hereinbefore described.
Fourth-The balancing weights and pulleys Q, 7, in combination with the plate
or piston a, and its attachments substantially as and for the purposes herein before
described.