Improvements in or connected with Combing and Threshing Machinery or Apparatus for Treating Wheat, Long Oats, and the like.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Mar., 1896-Accepted, 23rd May, 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Combing and Threshing
Machinery or Apparatus for Treating Wheat, Long Oats, and
the like.
We, WILLIAM JOHNS, Steam Machine Proprietor and Farmer, and RICHARD
HANCOCK, Machinist, both of Braunton near Barnstaple, in the County of Devon,
do hereby declare the nature of this 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 refers to improvements in or connected with combing and
threshing machinery or apparatus particularly adapted for combing the reeds of
wheat sheaves or long oats and the like, which reeds are afterwards employed for
such purposes as thatching houses and ricks of coru, &c. This machinery or
apparatus is also adapted for receiving the short straw and corn which is thereby
conducted automatically to suitable threshing machinery of ordinary construction
which may conveniently be arranged within the same framework.
According to our invention the reeds to be combed, as for example wheat
sheaves, upon being passed into the machine, are gripped at one end, say the ear
ends, by a carrying device and while thus held the bottom or butt ends of the
sheaf are combed by a revolving spiked combing drum. The butt ends of the
reeds having been sufficiently acted upon, the wheat is automatically transferred
by a carrying roller into the grip of a second carrying device, which grips the
reeds by the butt ends while a second revolving spiked drum combs the ear ends
and also threshes the same clean of corn. The reeds having thus been subjected
to the combing action are finally delivered on to a shoot at one end of the
apparatus. The corn and short straw combed out by the revolving drums fall on
a wide carrying belt or apron and are thereby conveyed to a suitable. threshing
apparatus of ordinary construction within the frame of the combing machine so
that the apparatus is self-contained.
In order that our invention may be readily understood we will describe saine
with reference to the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of so much of a combined combing and
threshing machine as will be necessary to enable those skilled in the art to carry
our invention into effect;
J1
Figure 2 is a transverse sectional elevation of the apparatus shewn at
Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a diagram plan view to shew some of the driving connections, and":
Figure 4 is a sectional elevation on a larger scale than the previous figures
shewing the manner of gripping the reeds.
Similar letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.
1
In a suitable framework. A, we mount two combing drums B and C, upon
horizontal shafts D. and E, extending lengthways of the machine, each drum
shaft D and E, being at a suitable distance upon opposite sides of the centre of
the framework. Both the drums B and C are formed with convex surfaces to
carry the combing teeth B' C'.
Upon one side of the first drum B we mount what we may call a "traveller"
being auring or annulus F, carried internally upon friction rollers F¹ so as to be
capable of rotation in a plane, at right angles to the direction of rotation of the

page_text: combing drum. The convex surface of the combing drum B, corresponds with
the radius of the periphery of the traveller riug F, and the periphery of the said
combing drum B projects somewhat within the ring F, so that the combing
teeth B thereon, pass the interior edge of the ring; the exterior surface of the
traveller ring F has a circumferential and nearly central projecting beading F.
A traveller ring G of like construction is provided adjacent to the spiked revolving
drum C, being supported by rollers G', and located laterally on the opposite side
of the machine to the ring F. Mounted on shafts extending across the upper part
of the framework are three similar rollers H. J. K; the front feed roller H is
connected to the central or transfer roller J, by a leather or other endless driving
band L, the lower side of which passes over a portion of the circumference of the
first traveller ring F, on the inner side of the beading F thereof, while a
detachable chain L' also passes round the same two rollers, H and J, parallel to
the band L and runs over the traveller ring F on the other side of the projecting
bead F¹ thereon; thus the first traveller ring F receives rotary motion from the
feed and transfer rollers H J, the transfer roller J being driven by belt or any
⚫ other equivalent means, not shewn on the drawings. The three rollers H J
and K are provided with teeth, (see Fig. 1) at each end to assist in passing the
reeds forward. The first combing drum shaft D is driven by belt connection D',
Fig. 1 from the driving shaft D².
"
The second combing drum C is similar in all respects to the first (except in its
relative position in the machine as illustrated by Figs. 2 and 3) and acts in con-
junction with the second traveller ring G, precisely as does the first combing
drum B, the second traveller ring G being driven by belt L' and chain L³,
passing over the delivery roller K, round a straining roller M, Fig. 1, over the
ring G, and round that end of the transfer roller opposite to the passage of the
first band and chain; the relative positions of the drums, rings, rollers, and belts,
will be understood by reference to Fig. 3. The shaft of the second combing
drum C is driven in an opposite direction to the first drum B, by suitable gearing
so that the upper surfaces of the drums always travel in a direction away from
their respective traveller rings.
In the drawing as will be observed by reference to Figs. 1 and 3 the drum B
is driven by belt D', and the shaft of drum B carries a spur wheel B2, gearing
with a wheel N on a countershaft N¹ Fig. 3, from which by pulleys and belt N³,
the shaft E of drum C, is driven in the reverse direction to the drum B. P is
the carrying belt or apron Figs. 1 and 2, located below the drums and on to
which the short straw and corn falls, or is conducted by any suitable inclined
casing, not shewn in the drawings, because as will be well understood the apparatus
is encased in a closed wood work or other casing as is common in such apparatus.
The said short straw and corn is thus carried to the right hand end of the machine
shewn at Fig. 1 and is delivered by say a shoot Q to suitable threshing machinery
of ordinary construction mounted on a continuation of the framework A, and
which is unnecessary to illustrate in the accompanying drawings.
The reeds to be combed are passed in by a shoot R at the front of the machine,
carried by the teeth of the feed roller H, so that the ear ends of the reeds are
gripped between the band and chain L L', and the beaded periphery of the
traveller ring F, and while being carried over the upper surface of the ring F,
are combed by the first combing drum B. At the point where the feed roller
bands L L begin to leave the traveller ring F, the teeth of the transfer roller J
aids the freeing of the reeds, and the latter are (guided by a shoot S Fig. 1)
transferred on to the second traveller ring G, which on account of its opposite
lateral position, seizes the reeds at their butt or combed ends while the second
combing drum C acts upon the ear or uncombed ends; finally the reeds on
being freed
from the second traveller ring G, are delivered on to a shoot T by the aid of the
teeth of the delivery roller K.
The machine is mounted on four wheels for facilitating transport from place to
place.

page_text: 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 combing and threshing machinery or apparatus for treating wheat, long
oats, and the like, a revolving combing drum formed with a convex periphery
fitted with combing teeth, in combination with a carrying device for gripping the
reeds at or near one end, consisting of a ring or annulus free to revolve, arranged
adjacent to and revolvable in, a plane at right angles to the direction of revolution
of the drum, together with rollers which carry bands, in contact with the annulus,.
to hold the reeds thereto during a part of the revolution substantially as and for
the purpose set forth.
2. A combing drum on one side of the centre of the machine, an annular carrier,
belts and rollers for same as claimed by Claim 1, in combination with a similar
combing drum arranged on the opposite side of the machine and revolving in an
opposite direction to the first drum, and an annular carrier for same, together
with gripping belts all substantially as and for the purposes described.
3. The general arrangement and combination of parts composing our improve-
ments in machinery or apparatus for combing and threshing wheat, long oats and
the like essentially composed of the gripping, carrying, combing, and threshing
apparatus as claimed by Claims 1 and 2 together with the carrying belt or apron,
for conveying short straw and corn to an ordinary threshing apparatus contained
within the framework of the apparatus, all substantially as and for the purposes
herein before described.
Dated this 02nd 100C
BREWER & SON,
London and Leeds, Agents for the Applicants.