Improvements in Apparatus for Shearing or Clipping Sheep or other Animals.
Year: 1892

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Shearing or Clipping Sheep or
other Animals.
We, CHARLES BURGON and HARRY BURGON, both of Malin Bridge, near
Sheffield in the County of York, England, Sheep Shear Manufacturers, do hereby
declare the nature of our invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR
SHEARING OR CLIPPING SHEEP OR OTHER ANIMALS" and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
This invention relates to improvements in the instruments for shearing or clipping
sheep or other animals, such as are described in the Specification of previous
Letters Patent dated the 25th day of March 1891, No. 5317 and it has for its
principal object to provide improved means of applying and adjusting the pressure
of the upper cutters upon the lower cutters and to relieve the axis of the vibrating
lever (by which the reciprocating motion is imparted to the upper cutters) as far as
possible of all bending strain and to provide a spring latch for retaining the axis of
the swivelling crosshead of said lever in its socket whilst permitting it to swivel
freely and allowing of its easy insertion and removal.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, in which
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section,
Figure 2 a cross section and
Figure 3 a plan (with the cover removed) of the machine, whilst
Figure 4 is a detail view.
The same letters of reference denote like parts in all the figures.
A is the lower stationary cutter plate having the usual comb-teeth a acting as
cutters in conjunction with the upper cutters 6 which are formed on the upper cutter
plate Band reciprocated over the lower cutter plate A by the vibrating lever (
which is pivoted on an axis D formed by a screw-stul fixed in a rocking base
plate E pivoted on a transverse axis in the main frame F, the lever C being
driven by a crank g engaging in the grooved cross-head C₁ of lever C and rotated
by a longitudinal shaft passing through the handle of the machine. The vibrating
lever C has a three-pronged crosshead c which bears on the upper cutter plate B,
the crosshead e having a cylindrical shank e' which is received in a longitudinal
socket formed in the lever C so that the crosshead can adjust itself as required to
maintain a uniformly-distributed pressure on the cutter plate B. It is secured i
this socket by a spring h engaging by its oppositely right-angled ends in holes
in the shank and socket respectively, the spring lying in a groove in the shank
which permits of its end 2 being forced inwards to disengage it from its hole in the
lever C. The crosshead e engages with the upper cutter plate B by lugs c² on the
former entering holes in the latter in the usual manner. The vibrating lever C is
preferably provided with a circle of balls & within the socket of its axis D to take
the upward pressure against the head of the stud, and a conical friction roller is
mounted at the underside of the lever C which rolls on a curved path on the tail
end of the rocking base plate E so as to transmit the upward pressure directly
from E to C.
The adjustment whereby the necessary pressure is applied through the vibrating
lever C to the cutter faces, consists of a steel plate or stiff spring & fixed beneath
the tail end of plate E and formed with a tubular crosshead connected by a cross-
pin with the arms of a fork bridging over the lever C and provided with a
screw shank receiving a thumb nut m whose neck works in a socket in the top
casing n on which the head of the nut takes a bearing. In the underside of the

page_text: head of the nut is a circle of holes m¹ in one of which engages the rounded end of
a pino carried by a spring p fixed within the casing n the pin projecting upwards
through the bearing of the nut head on the top of the casing. By placing the
adjusting nut on top of the casing and providing a neaus of locking it so that it
cannot become slack in working but can be readily turned by the finger and thumb,
the adjustment can be made by the same hand of the operator as that in which the
machine is held when in work so that it is not necessary to interrupt the shearing
operation to make such adjustment, which is a very great convenience to the
shearer whose other hand may be occupied in holding the animal being sheared.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. In the herein described shearing or clipping-machine, the combination, with
the vibrating-lever C and with the rocking base plate E carrying the lever axis D,
of spring plate k, forked adjusting screw, and nut m taking a bearing on the
top of casing for regulating the pressure of the cutters, substantially as.
specified.
2. In the herein described shearing or clipping-machine, the combination, with
the vibrating-lever C and with the rocking base plate E carrying the lever axis D,
of spring plate k, forked adjusting-screw, and nut m taking a bearing on the top
of casing n, and of the means for locking the adjusting nut consisting of the spring.
pin mounted in casing n and adapted to engage with a circle of holes m² in the
head of the nut m, as specified.
"
3. In the herein described shearing or clipping machine, the combination, with
the vibrating lever C and with the rocking base plate E carrying the lever axis D
and with the mechanism for adjusting the pressure of said lever as described, of the
conical friction roller i mounted in the tail end of lever C and bearing on the tail
end of plate for transferring the upward pressure directly from E to C without
causing a bending strain of the axis D, as specified.
4. In the herein described shearing or clipping machine, the combination, with
the socketted end of lever C and with the shank c' of crosshead, of the spring
having oppositely right-angled ends eutering holes in both, as specified.
Dated this 12th day of February 1899
CHARLES BURGON,
HARRY BURGON,
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.