IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR BREAKING AND DRESSING FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Maitland Stapley, of Lawrence Lane,
in the City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR BREAKING AND DRESSING FLAX AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIALS," A communication.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Maitland
Stapley, at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 9th March 1853.
I, EDWARD MAITLAND STAPLEY, of Lawrence Lane, in the City of
London, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR BREAKING AND DRESSING FLAX AND
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of a combination of mechanical parts into a
machine by which the flax, hemp, or other fibrous material, being fed on
to an endless apron, is received by fluted feeding rollers, and thence
passes into a box or chamber by a narrow opening, which can be regu-
lated in width. Within this box or chamber a heater works, such heater

page_text: being at its exterior of a cylindrical form; and it has a long slit or
opening through it, into and through which opening the flax or fibrous
material passes; and by reason of a quick vibratory motion given to the
heater on its axes, the fibre is shinken and beaten against the rests or
entrance into the box or heating chamber.
A blower is connected with the heating box or chamber, by which
currents of air are driven in, which carry off the detached matters from
the box or chamber. From this beater the fibres pass between two
rollers, and are received on to an endless apron, from which the flax is
taken in handsfull and subjected to the scutching process; and I prefer
for this purpose to have a scutching wheel combined with the machine
above described
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Edward Maitland Stapley, in the Great Seal
Patent Office, on the 9th September 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, 1.
EDWARD MAITLAND STAPLEY, of Lawrence Lane, in the City of London.
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Iler
Letters Patent bearing date the Ninth day of March, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the sixteenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself. IIer heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Edward Maitland Stapley, Her special licence
that I, the said Edward Maitland Stapley, iny executors, administrators.
and assigns, or such others as 1. the said Edward Maitland Stapley,
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 BREAKING AND DRESSING FLAX AND
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," communicated to me from abroad, upon the
condition (amongst others) that I. the said Edward Maitland Stapley.

page_text: by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the saine 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 Edward Maitland Stapley, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof (that is to say):
This Invention consists of a combination of mechanical parts into a
machine by which the flax, hemp, or other fibrous materials, being fed
on to an endless apron, is received by fluted feeding rollers, and thence
passes into a box or chamber by a narrow opening, which can be
regulated in width. Within this box or chamber a beater works,
such beater being at its exterior of a cylindrical form; and it has a long
slit or opening through it, into and through which opening the flax
or fibrous material passes; and, by reason of a quick vibratory motion
given to the heater on its axes. the fibre is shaken and beaten against the
rests or entrance into the box or heating chamber. A blower is
connected with the beating box or chamber, by which currents of air
are driven in, which carry off the detached matters from the box or
chamber. From this beater the fibres pass between two rollers, and are
received on to an endless apron, from which the flax is taken in hands-
full, and subjected to the scutching process; and I prefer for this
purpose to have a scutching wheel combined with the machine above
described. And in order that the said Invention may be most fully
understood and readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe
the means pursued by the Inventor.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1, is a side elevation; (Figure (2,) a longitudinal vertical
section; and Figure (3,) a perspective view of the machine; the same
etters indicating like parts in all the Figures. In my improved

page_text: supplied to the bite of one or more pairs of feed rollers, which pass it
into a space between two rests, and thenco to a space between the two
opposite faces of a vibratory beater, which vibrates on an axis in the
line midway between the two faces. From this the substance passes
out upon a discharging apron, and is removed by band to be finished
upon a skuteling wheel or otherwise.
In the accompanying drawings, (a.) represents a frame adapted to
the purpose, but which may be varied at pleasure; and (b) an endless
apron, which passes around two rollers (c) (c) in the usual manner of
mounting and working feed aprons. Upon this apron, at the inner
end, is a roller (d) which, by the cog wheel (e,) upon its axis, and
gearing into a corresponding wheel upon the axis of the apron roller
below, it is made to revolve with the movement of the apron.
The flax or other substance to be broken and dressed is placed by
an attendant upon this apron, which, by its motion, and aided by that
of the roller (d) gradually presents it to the bite of two pairs of feed
rollers ()() and '(9) (9) which are slightly and finely fluted to
secure a positivo feed motion to the substance they are intended to carry
forward. The upper one of each of these pairs of feed rollers is kept
down by the weighted levers (h,) (h) which bear upon the middle of
the yokes (i) (i) the ends of which rest upon caps over the journals of
the upper feed rollers. Each pair of feed rollers is geared together by
toothed wheels () () on the ends of their axes; and the two pairs
of rollers are themselves geared together by the intermedinte wheel (k,)
which is supported on a stud pin, and works into the toothed wheels on
the lower rollers of the two pairs. At the opposite end the axis of the
lower feed roller of the first pair (f) (f.) extends outside the fraine of
the machine, where it receives the cog wheel (;) which gears with the
pinion (,) fastened on the hub of the wheel (,) which is supported in
position by a stud pin on the stand (o,) and receives motion from the
pinion (2) which is fastened to the pulley (9); which last is supported
by a stud pin and stand, similar to (0,) and receives motion by a band
(2) from the pulley (s,) on the driving shaft (t).
On the axis of the lower feed roller (f.) und inside of the attachment
of the wheel (4) is fastened a small toothed wheel (.) which gears

page_text: with an intermediate cog wheel (v,) which is supported on a stud pin,
and gears into a cog wheel on the axis of the apron roller (c,) which
has been described; as also gearing into the wheel (e,). on the axis of
the roller (d.) At the end of the machine, opposite from the feed
apparatus just described, is the discharging apron (w,) which is mounted
on feed rollers, like the feed apron, and has resting upon it the discharg-
ing roller (a) which is kept down by set screws (y) (y,) in plates
fastened on the tops of the roller stands (z,) (2). These set screws
bear upon cushions of india-rubber, which lie upon the caps over the
journals of the apron roller. This inner roller of the discharging apron
is geared with the pressure roller above it, by the cog wheels (a',) (a',)
on the axis of each. Further out on the axis of the inner roller of
the discharging apron is the large cog wheel (6',), which is supported
in a vertical plane, outside that of the wheel (1) before described; also
gears with the pinion (m.) which, for the purpose of driving both
the wheels (1) and (b) has its teeth of double breadth. The wheel
(6',) is of twice the diameter of the wheel (,) and the diameter of the
driving rollers of both the feed apron and the discharging apron are of
twice the diameter of the feed rollers. By this combination of gearing
the driving shaft (t,) communicates a slow and equal motion to the
surfaces of the feed rollers, and both the feed and discharging aprons.
As the feed rollers carry forward the flax or hemp, it passes through a
space (c',) between two rests (d') (d'). These rests are so shaped,
that from the part of each, when the substance to be dressed passes
between and, in contact with them, they extend backward with the
opposite surfaces on the inside, forming irregular arches above and
below. Between these arched surfaces of the two rests is placed a
beater (e) (e) composed of two flat opposite faces, with a space
between them somewhat greater than the space between the approxi-
mate parts of the two rests when the flax enters. This compound
beater may be described as a cylinder with a long slot through it in
its middle part. It is provided with journals at each end, so placed
that its axis is in a line niidway between the two flat faces of the slot,
and also midway between the anterior and posterior edges of the
flat surfaces. By this means it is balanced as it rests on its jour-
nals, which have their bearings at either end in the boxes (f') ('):

page_text: One of the journals of this beater projects out far enough to have
an arm (9') project horizontally froin it. This arm has a slot, in which
is secured, by a nut on the inside, the joint pin (,) of the connecting
rol (,) that takes hold of a crank pin () on a balance wheel (4)
on the end of the shaft (,) which receives a rapid rotary motion
from the driving shaft (,) by means of the band (m.) From the
connections above described it will be seen that a guide vibratory
motion will be given to the double-faced beater; and that the extent
of the vibration may be increased or diminished at pleasure, by shifting
the joint pin (.) in the slot of the arm (g). To give durability to the
anterior or working edges of this beater. they are faced with thin plates
of steel, as represented at (n) () which are secured by rivits.
The rests are secured in their position by bolting their ends to the
stands () () containing the boxes supporting the journals of the
beater. The lower rest has its ends lying upon the seats of these
stands, as shown at (o'); and the vertical bolts which fasten these stand
seats to the frame pass through the ends of the lower rest, and secure
it in position. The upper rest has its ends lying upon short pillars.
two of which project upward from the cap of each beater journal
box; and the bolts which secure this rest pass downward through the
pillars on the caps into the lower part of the boxes.
By these arrangements the rests can be readily adjusted at any
required distance from the working edges of the beater. In working
flax the edges of the beater should vibrate within about one thirty-
second of an inch distant from the edges of the rests; in working hemp
something more than this distance; and the extent of the vibration
should be such that each edge of the heater shall just pass the opposite
edge of the rest, or not to exceed the distance of one sixteenth of an
incl.
The rapid vibration of the double-faced beater on its axis causes its
edges, near the edges of the rests, to act alternately on opposite sides
of the flax or hemp, breaking the woody parts of the stalk into short
fragments, which are effectually loosened and separated by the biting
and whipping action of the beater, due to the alternate opposite action,
and the vibration on an axis parallel to its beating clges.
The appearance of the results of this action leads to the inference

page_text: that the beating edges break off the woody portion of the stalk succes-
sively in short fragments, and force them from their sheathing of fibrous
bark or hare, which last often comes from the machine in long flattened
ribbons of fibre, indicating that the short shoves had been thrown out
laterally from between them.
The efficiency of the action of this beater is further shown in the
fact that unretted flax straw can be worked by the machine as well as
that which has been retted, and with little comparative injury to the
fibre. The feed motion of the machine is so proportioned to that of the
crank shaft, in working flax, that the stalks of the material are presented.
to the action of the beater, the extent of about one thirty-second of an
inch to each blow of the beating edges.
At p', is a fan blower of the usual construction, which receives
motion by the band (2',) from a pulley (¹) on the crank shaft (l'). A
conducting pipe (s',) extends from the blower and terminates in two
branches; one of which (t,) enters an opening through the stand of the
beater box, below the box; and the other branch (,) enters an open-
ing above the box, between the pillars described as extending up from
the caps of the beater boxes, and upon which the ends of the upper rest
are secured. The current of air from the lower branch of the blower
pipe, passing through the beater stand on the corresponding side of the
machine, as described, enters into the space (v',) between the lower side
of the beater and the trough-shaped upper surface of the body of the
lower rest, and escapes outward through a corresponding opening in the
lower part of the beater stand on the other side of the machine, as
shown in the elevation at (w¹.) In like manner, the current of air from
the upper branch of the pipe enters into the space (1) between the upper
side of the beater and the arched lower surface of the upper rest, and
escapes outward on the other side of the machine, through the opening
(v) over the cap of the beater box. The object of these currents of air
is to remove the woody particles of the stalks of flax or hemp, as fast as
they are thrown in the spaces (,) and (y',) by the action of the beater.
In addition to the feed motion, the peculiar form of the flat beating
surfaces, in connection with the peculiar motion of the beater, caused
by its vibrating on an axis midway between its beating surfaces, and

page_text: also midway between their edges, causes the flax or hemp to move
through the space between their beating faces, and in its progress it is
violently shaken, and whipped up and down, and in opposite directions,
in rospect to the portions on opposite sides of the axis of the beater.
As it passes back from between the beating faces their rear edges throw
it up and down against the curveil edges of the rests, which approxi-
mate on that side; and from thence the fibre, nearly cleaned of shoves
by the breaking, whipping. and shaking action of the benter, as
described, is scized in the bite of the discharging apron (w,) and its
pressure roller (,) and conveyed away in successive layers.
Near the outer end of the discharging apron, and outside the frame
of the machine, n skutching wheel (1) is hung at one end of the shaft
(a) which is supported across the frame under the discharging apron.
and has motion by a wheel (6") which gears into a cog wheel (c")
made fast to the driving shaft (t) on the inside of the 'driving pulley
(",) and its corresponding loose pulley ("). The skutching board (")
is supported at its foot by an extension of the frame of the machine, or
otherwise, as is most convenient. Both the skutching board and wheel
are of the usual construction. As the fibre of flax or hemp is conveyed
away from the beater by the discharging apron, the successive layers
are grasped by an attendant, and submitted to the action of the skutching
wheel, which readily removes any loose shoves still remaining entangled
in the fibres, and finishes the process of dressing.
The machine above described is adapted to cleaning Spanish moss
and other similar substances, by dispensing with the rests described,
though the beater is still covered above and below. The feed rollers
and discharging rollers are placed close to the corresponding edges of
the boating surfaces, and thus in some measure become equivalents to
the edges of the rests above described; while the currents of air from
the fan, passing between the beater and the casing by which it is en-
closed above and below, remove the refuse particles as they are thrown
out upward and lownward by the vibration of the beater, as before
described. Furthermore, to impart a rubbing action to the substance
operated upon, the rollers are all finely grooved on those surfaces at
right angles to their axes, and the upper roller of each set, in addition

page_text: to its rotary motion, has a vibratory motion in the direction of its axes
imparted to it in the mode similar rollers are vibrated in felting
machines, &c.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Maitland Stapley, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of July, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
E. M. STAPLEY. (L.S.)
Witness, S. CARPMAEL.