IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF HORSE Rakes
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Howard, of Bedford, in the County of
Bedford, Agricultural Engineer, and Edward Tenney Bousfield, of
the same Place, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE CONSTRUCTION OF HORSE Rakes.”
Sealed the 14th September 1875, and dated the 29th June 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Howard and
Edward Tenney Bousfield at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 29th June 1875.
We, JAMES HOWARD, of Bedford, in the County of Bedford, Agri-
cultural Engineer, and EDWARD TENNEY BOUSFIELD, of the same Place,
Engincer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF HORSE RAKES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, firstly, to a mode of adjusting the pitch of the
tines of horse rakes so as to adapt the implement to the varying con-
ditions of the soil and kinds and conditions of crop to be gathered in;
and, secondly, to means for setting the tines to enable them to work
clear of the ground.
Our improvements apply more especially to that class of horse rakes

page_text: No. 3437, in which the tines are carried by a rocking frame or cradle,
which has for its fulcrum the axle of the carrying wheels, and which by
its rocking lowers the tines, or raises them out of action as may be
desired.
Instead of hanging the tines on a fixed rod carried by the cradle, as 5
heretofore, we propose to fit the rod in excentrics. By turning these
excentrics the tine rod will be raised or lowered in the cradle, and thus
the pitch of the tines will be varied. For giving the excentrics an axial
motion we prefer to cast one of them with teeth to receive a worm, the
spindle of which will have its bearings in lugs on the rocking frame or 1
cradle, and carry a handle at its rear end. By turning this worm
spindle to the right or left the pitch of the tines may be so varied as to
depress their points, or to make the tines skid over the ground.
Another mode of giving the excentrics an axial motion is by a lever
fitted to one of the excentrics, and retaining it in any desired position 1
by a pin or bolt, a series of holes being made in a quadrant for this
purpose.
As a modification of this part of our Invention we propose to joint
the cradle, and by means of quadrants or scrows, or their equivalents,
the fore and hind parts of the cradle may be brought nearer together, 1
or set farther apart, thereby effecting the adjustments of the tines, as
above mentioned.
In order to keep the tines clear of the ground, and yet retain them in
a working position, which adjustment is desirable when working upon
soft or upon stony ground, we provide on the fixed quadrant, which
limits the drop of the rear end of the cradle, an adjustable stop piece for
the cradle to bear against. By shifting therefore this stop piece on the
fixed quadrant the range of motion of the rocking frame or cradle will
be limited, and thus the tines may be retained in a working position
clear of the ground.
We may remark that the like results may be obtained by mounting
the cradle on excentrics, or by mounting the carrying wheels of the
implement on excentrics. The effect of turning these excentrics will be
to raise or lower the tines in relation to the ground, while the cradle is
resting against the quadrant as against a fixed stop.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Howard and Edward Tenney Bousfield in
the Great Seal Patent Office on the 29th December 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
HOWARD, of Bedford, in the County of Bedford, Agricultural Engineer,
and EDWARD TENNEY BOUSFIELD, of the same Place, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto us, the said James Howard and Edward
Tenney Bousfield, Her special licence that us, the said James
Howard and Edward Tenney Bousfield, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said James Howard and Edward
Tenney Bousfield, 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
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an In-
vention for “IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF HORSE RAKES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said James Howard and Edward
Tenney Bousfield, our executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should
particularly 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 I, the said Edward Tenney Bousfield, on
behalf of myself and of the said James Howard, 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, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say) :-

page_text: This Invention relates, firstly, to a mode of adjusting the pitch of the
tines of horse rakes, so as to adapt the implement to the varying con-
ditions of the soil and kinds and conditions of crop to be gathered in; and,
secondly, to means for setting the tines to enable them to work clear
of the ground.
Our improvements apply more especially to that class of horse
rakes for which we obtained a Patent, bearing date Twenty-seventh
November One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, No. 3437, in
which the tines are carried by a rocking frame or cradle, which has for
its fulcrum the axle of the carrying wheels, and which by its rocking
lowers the tines or raises them out of action, as may be desired.
.
In Sheet I. of the accompanying Drawings Fig. 1 shows in sectional
side elevation a horse rake with a rocking frame or cradle, so modified as
to secure the result designed to be attained by the first head of the
Invention. In this Figure A is the cradle mounted on the axle B of
the carrying wheels, and fitted to the rod C for carrying the tines D. In
this Figure, instead of the tines being hung upon a fixed rod C carried
by the cradle, as heretofore, they are shown as hanging upon a rod,
which is fitted in excentrics E that are carried by and are free to turn in
bearings in the cradle. By turning these excentrics the tine rod will be
raised or lowered, and thus the pitch of the tines will be varied. For
giving the excentrics an axial motion we prefer to cast one of them
with teeth F to receive a worm G, the spindle G¹ of which has its
bearings in lugs on the rocking frame or cradle A, and carries a winch
handle H at its rear end. It will now be understood that by turning
this worm spindle to the right or left the pitch of the tines may be so
varied as to depress their points or to make the tines skid over the
ground.
Extreme positions of adjustment of the tines are shown in Fig. 1, the
better to explain the action of the parts.
Another mode of giving the excentrics an axial motion is by a lever
fitted to one of the excentrics, and retaining it in any desired position
by a pin or bolt, a series of holes being made in a sector head for this
purpose. We have not thought it necessary to illustrate this modifi-
cation by a Drawing, as the manner of carrying it out will be obvious
to any practical mechanic.

page_text: As a modification of the first head of our Invention we propose to
form a compound rocking frame or cradle, and by means of sector heads
and screws or equivalent means, to bring the fore and hind parts of the
cradle nearer together or set them farther apart, thereby effecting the
5 adjustment of the tines, as above mentioned..
In Sheet II. of the accompanying Drawings Fig. 2 shews in side
section so much of a horse rake as will serve to explain the construction
and action of the compound jointed cradle, and Fig. 3 is a partial plan
view of the cradle detached. This cradle consists of two parts A and A'
the former of which rocks on the axle B, while the latter A is made
fast to A by bolts and nuts a, which pass through holes in the sector
head of the part A¹. The tine rod C is carried by the part A¹ of the
cradle at its forward end, and the rod is raised or lowered (to effect the
adjustment of the tines) by shifting the bolts a from a higher to a lower
hole in the sector head, or vice versa. In Fig. 2 the tines are shown in
their extreme positions of adjustment.
f 1
Another mode of increasing the distance between the opposite ends of
the compound cradle, or drawing their ends nearer together, in order to
adjust the height of the tine rod, and consequently the pitch' of the
‣ tines, is shown at Fig. 4.
In this arrangement both parts A and A' of the cradle are loose upon
the axle B, and they are connected together by screw rods and nuts I
one at each end of the frame or cradle. These rods are formed with
eyes to fit on the tine rod C, and their screwed ends are passed through
lugs cast on the part A of the cradle, and they receive clamping nuts i
for giving them a longitudinal adjustment.
Fig. 5, Sheet I., shows in sectional side elevation so much of a horse
rake as will serve to explain the second head of our Invention, the
object of which is to keep the tines clear of the ground, and yet retain
them in a working position, such adjustment being desirable when
working upon soft or upon stony ground. To attain this end we provide
on the fixed quadrant K, which limits the drop of the rear end of
the cradle and at either end of the machine, an adjustable stop
piece L for the cradle A to bear against. This stop piece is secured by
a clamping screw and nut to the quadrant, and by shifting it higher or
lower on the fixed quadrant the range of motion of the rocking frame

page_text: EDWARD TENNEY BOUSFIELD. (L.S.)