IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR CLEANING KNIVES AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES." PROAL SPATION
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Elkan Adler, of the City of New York, in the United
States of America, now residing at 133, High Holborn, Middlesex, and
Francis Barber Howell, of the City of Lebanon, in the State of Ohio, in
in the United States of America, now residing at 36, High Holborn,
Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR CLEANING
KNIVES AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Elkan Adler and Francis
Barber Howell at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 4th April 1857.
We, ELKAN ADLER, of the City of New York, in the United States of
America, now residing at 133, High Holborn, Middlesex, and FRANCIS
BARBER HOWELL, of the City of Lebanon, in the State of Ohio, in the United
States of America, now residing at 36, High Holborn, Middlesex, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR
CLEANING KNIVES AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
These improvements consist of two parts.-First, in fixing the knives or
other similar articles to be cleaned or sharpened by the blades in preference
to the handles. Second, in substituting for the usual rotary or rectilinear
reciprocating motion a to-and-fro motion in the arc of a circle.
The method we use for fixing the knives by their blades is to have loops

page_text: or staples, or their equivalents, projecting from the face of the platform on
which the knives are placed, which loops or staples, or other equivalents, may
be pressed on the blades of the knives by means of levers and wedges, or
other suitable apparatus. This method of fixing the knives may be used in
conjunction with any means at present in use for moving the brush, or leather,
or other suitable rubber over the blades of the knives, so as to clean or sharpen
them.
In this machine the knives are only cleaned on one side at a time.
The knives are shifted to another place before being taken from the
machine, so as to avoid the staple marking the blade, and to sharpen the part
of the knives covered by the staples.
The brush used by preference for this machine moves over a sectorial
platform from a centre, so as to describe an arc of a circle concentric with
the platform.
It is, however, to be understood that we do not confine ourselves to using
this arrangement exclusively in combination with the above or any other
method of fixing the knives.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Elkan Adler and Francis Barber Howell in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 3rd October 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ELKAN
ADLER, of the City of New York, in the United States of America, now
residing at 133, High Holborn, Middlesex, and FRANCIS BARBER HOWELL, of
the City of Lebanon, in the State of Ohio, in the United States of America,
now residing at 36, High Holborn, Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said Elkan Adler and Francis Barber Howell, Her special licence
that we, the said Elkan Adler and Francis Barber Howell, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as the said Elkan Adler
and Francis Barber Howell, our 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

page_text: ".
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR CLEANING KNIVES AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Elkan Adler and
Francis Barber Howell, our executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 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 we, the said Elkan Adler and Francis Barber
Howell, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Our Invention consists, first, in securing to a platform one or more knives
to be cleaned or polished by the blades in preference to the handles; and,
secondly, in substituting for the usual rotary or rectilinear reciprocating
motion a to-and-fro motion in the arc of a circle.
Having thus stated the nature of our said Invention, we will proceed more
fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a front elevation of the machine; Figure 2, a side
elevation; Figure 3, the plan; Figure 4 exhibits the under side thereof;
Figure 5, position of staples when securing the knife to the platform;
Figure 6, position of staples when released from the platform. A of the
accompanying Drawings represents a platform upon which the knives are
secured while undergoing the operation of scouring or polishing; B repre-
sents a piece of metal in the form of an arc of a circle, and which is attached
to the under side of the plate by a hinge (6); to this piece B are secured the
staples or loops E by small nuts, under which any elastic substance may be
placed for the purpose of allowing the staples to accommodate themselves to
any unevenness in the blade of the knives, and thereby more securely holding
them to the plate A. C is a cam, connected with the piece B by a rivet, and
by depressing the cam by its handle, and with it the staples or loops, are
drawn down in close contact with the plate A, thereby firmly securing the
knife blades to the said plate; D is a strong spring, one end of which is
made permanent to the under side of the plate A, and the other end pressing
upon the circular piece B, so that when the cam is released the spring
immediately acts thereon, raising the piece B and with it the staples,

page_text: releasing the blades from their confined position upon the plate A; E, the
loop or staples under which the blades of the knives are placed.
Fig. 5 exhibits the staple securing the blade e to the plate, the cam C being
depressed; and Fig. 6, the blade released from the plate. F is a lever, secured
to a stud or fulcrum H, having a brush G or other suitable rubber secured to
the outer end, this being moved to-and-fro over the platform A, upon which
the knives e are secured, so as to describe an arc of a circle concentric with
the platform; I, I, are legs, for the purpose of securing the machine to a
table or other convenient place.
Having thus fully described our improvements, what we claim is,-
First, securing one or more knives to a platform A by means of loops or
staples E in combination with the circular piece of iron B and cam C.
Secondly, the brush G or any suitable rubber secured to a lever having its
attachment to a fulcrum H, for the purpose herein described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Elkan Adler and Francis Barber 1
Howell, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Third day of
October, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-seven.
ELKAN ADLER.
(L.S.)
FRANCIS BARBER HOWELL. (L.S.)