AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR MAKING BRICKS, TILES, QUARRIES, AND CORNICE ORNAMENTS
Year: 1846

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
HASTINGS, of Havie, in the Kingdom of France, Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS He present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Gicat Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Thirtieth day of June, in the tenth year of Hei reign, did,
for Herself, Hei heirs and successors, give and giant unto me, the said James
Hastings, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said James Hastings, my executors, administrators, and assigns, and such
others as I, the said James Hastings, my executors, administrators, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein mentioned, should and lawfully might
"make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and Plantations
abroad, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man,
my Invention of "AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR MAKING BRICKS, TILES, QUARRIES,
AND CORNICE ORNAMENTS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso
obliging me, the said James Hastings, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause
the same to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery withm
two calendar months next and immediately after the date. of the said in
pait recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being the cunto
had, will more fully and at large appear

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
James Hastings, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being had
to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figuies marked
thercon (that is to say) :-
My Invention consists of an improved arrangement of moulding machunc,
wheem an endless travelling table is made to carry a series of moulds under a
vertical hopper, from which they are filled with clay or other plastic matter,
and when so filled they are, by the continued rotation of the table, cannel
forward to an attendant, who lifts them off from the machine. By means of
this improved arrangement I am enabled to mould bricks, tiles, quarries,
and other similar articles with greater facility and expedition than when
employing the ordinary construction of moulding machines.
In the accompanying Drawing I have shewn my improved machine in various
views, Figure 1 being a plan of the machine complete; Figure 2, a vertical
section of the same taken in the line 1, 2, of Figure 1, and Figure 3, a cros
section taken in the line 3 ..4, of Figure 2. A, A, is the main fiaming of
machine; B, B', arc shafts having their bearings in adjustable plummer boxes
attached respectively to the ends of the framing A Upon each of these-shafts
two hexagonal wheels C are mounted, at a distance of nearly the whole width
of the machine apait, and on their peripheries they are provided with semi-
encular recesses, to receive the joints of an endless chain D (one on each side
of the machine). These chains cany a series of plates, which form a kind of
endless table or bottom for the moulds, as will be hereafter more particularly
descubed. E is an iron cylinder forming the pug mill, which is supported
by bracings from the framing A. In the centre of this cylinder is a shaft F,
which rests upon a collar supported by arms cast on or attached to the intenor
of the cylinder The upper end of this shaft has its bearing in the crosshead
G, which forms the upper part of the main fiaming. The interior of the
cylinder E is provided with a number of inclined blades (see the detached
view Figure 4) of the form of a cross, which blades are secured to the cylindeı
by screws and nuts. In the centre of these blades a circular opening is made
to allow of the rotation of the shaft F, which is also provided with blades (of
the form shewn at Figure 5), for tempering the clay or other plastic material
intended to be used for forming bucks, tiles, and other simular articles. These
blades are so arranged that between each of the blades a, which are attached
to the cylinder of the pug mill, one of the cross-shaped blades b. carried by the
shaft F, is placed. Beneath this series of blades a and b are blades c, c, attached

page_text: to the vertical shaft, and placed at a more acute angle with the shaft than the
blades Immediately above the series of blades a and b the shaft Fis
furnished with arms d, to which inclined plates H (shewn in plan view at
Fig 6) are bolted, for the purpose to be hereafter described. I is the main
driving shaft of the machine, which receives its motion from horse or other
power, and upon one end of this shaft is a small pinion K. L is a large
wheel mounted on a shaft M, which turns in adjustable bearings on the
fiaming. N is an endless chain, which passes round the wheel L and the
pinion K, for the purpose of communicating motion from the main diving
shaft I to the shaft M. This shaft M also carries a pinion O, which as it
1otates gives motion to the wheel p on the shaft B', by means of the belt or
chain Q. On the main diving shaft 1 a bevilled pinion R is keyed, which
bevilled pinion gears into a bevilled wheel S, affixed to the top of the vertical
shaft of the pug mill. It will now be clearly understood that when motion
is given to the driving shaft I it will, by means of the wheels and pinions
above mentioned, cause the blades on the shaft F to 1otate, and tempel the
clay in the pug mill, and at the same time by causing the shaft B¹ to rotate,
and with it the hexagonal wheels C, the chams D will be drawn forward in
the duection of the allow, and pass the moulds (which stand on the plates
attached to those chains) in regular succession under the pug mill.
The clay or other plastic material, being supplied to the pug mill (together
with a stream of water) in any suitable manner, is forced down between
the blades a, b, and c, by the rotation of the inclined plates I, which
must be so adjusted as to cause a proper discharge of the clay at a suitable
In order to resist the
pressure to the moulds beneath the pug mill
downward pressure of the clay into the moulds, a number of rolleis T, T,
are placed beneath the pug mill, and serve to keep the chains and travelling
table at that part from depression, while the moulds are being filled with clay
These rollers T are supported in bearings affixed to a moveable fiaming U,
which is sustained by weighted levers V. Mounted on studs in the framing e, e,
are sciews for raising or lowering the brasses in the bearings of the rollers T,
so as to regulate the height of those rollers with more precision On one
side of the pug mill a plate W is bolted (its lower face being in a line with
the bottom of the pug null), for the purpose of keeping the clay down in the
moulds while passing from under the pug mill, as the clay would otherwise
have a tendency to use by the descending clay pressing upon the moulded
bricks when partly disengaged from the pug mill In the Diawing I have
shewn the moulds as capable of contaming two bucks each, but it is obvious
that by w dening the machine moulds may be used capable of holding thes

page_text: or more bucks. The moulds I form with only one side, as shewn in the
detached view, Figure 7, for the better releasing of the bricks. As the moulds
are brought close together when being filled with clay, it will be readily under-
stood that the side of one mould completes the area for the brick in the next
adjoining mould, and so on with the whole senes. The plates which form the
bottom of the moulds are permanently attached to the chains D, and need not
be removed with the moulds, which are delivered out of the machine with their
side downwards The soft bricks being thus supported on then edge may be
handled without risk of injury X is a perforated cylinder or circulai sand
box turning in bearings in the side of the fiaming, and is intended to distribute
fine sand over the bottom plates of the moulds. This cylinder is so mnounted
as to roll over the moulds while they are passing forward to the pug mill, and
thus the sand is dusted on to the bottom plates of the moulds Y, Y, ale
carrying wheels mounted on studs projecting from the side framing, and are
intended to facilitate the transport of the machine from one place to another.
Having now described the various parts of which my improved moulding
machine.is.composed, I will proceed to describe the mode of working the sanie.
Supposing the machine to be diven with horse power. such motion is com-
municated to the main diving shaft I, and thence through the pinion K,
chain N, and wheel L, to the shaft M Thus shaft, having, as before stated, a
pinion keyed upon it, which drives a band or chain Q passing round that
pimon and the wheel P, will by its 10tation convey a similar rotating motion
to the shaft B', which carnes the hexagonal wheel C, and these wheels
receiving into the semicucular recesses the projections or hinges in the nei
face of the endless chams D will cause them to move forward in the ducction
of the arrow At the same time that these movements are bemg eflected the
bevilled pinion R on the shaft I will dive round the bevilled wheel S, and
give 1otary motion to the shaft F and blades b and c It will now be obvious
that if clay or other plastic material is supplied to the pug mull, the inclined
plates H will as they rotate force down the plastic matter which comes in
contact with then under sui face, and such plastic matter in passing between
the blades a and b will by them be divided into thin layers of a regular and
equal thickness, and thus, when discharged from the pug mill by the sweeping
blades c, will be properly tempered, and fit for producing bucks of the best
quality. By the employment of stationary blades, together with the rotating
blades, as above descubed, a considerable amount of power is saved, one half
only of the number of blades employed for finely dividing and tempering the
clay beng requued to rotate. On the left-hand side of the machine a work-
man is in attendance to place empty moulds (which have been previously

page_text: sanded) on to the plates forming the eudless table, before those plates pass
under the rotating sand-box X. These moulds are held in then places by
projecting pieces on the outer face of the chains D, which projecting pieces
are intended to abut agamst the end of the several moulds. Rotary motion
being given, as before stated, to the chains D, the moulds will be brought
successively under the pug mill, where, by the rotation of the pressing plates II
and the blades b and c, they will be filled with clay. The continuous motion
of the chain will then bring them' under the edge of the pug mill, and cause
the superfluous clay to be removed from the moulds. I have already stated
the use of the plate W, which in fact is a shield to the bricks as they suc-
cessively escape from the pug mill. When the moulds, now filled with clay,
have arrived at the other end of the machine, the attendant removes them
from the endless table. In the foregoing explanation I have described the
machine as applied to the manufacture of bucks When tiles are required to
be made, the buck moulds are removed, and moulds of a suitable capacity for
forming tiles are placed on the revolving table The shafts B and B are then
1aised by means of their adjustable bearings until the upper edge of the
moulds are brought up on a level with the bottom edge of the pug mill This
change of position will require the elevation of the rollers T, and for this
purpose the stuls of the weighted levers V are made to slide in vertical slotted
brackets attached to the framing, so that by turning a screw 9 (the upper
end of which presses against the under side of the stud) the lever V may
be raised to any equned height The four weighted levers V, which
sustain the fiame U, being all sinularly mounted, the mode of raising the
frame U, and with it the rollers T, to the proper height for resisting the down-
waid pressure of the clay in the pug mill, will be clearly understood It will
now be necessary to remove the pressing plates H from the arms d of the
vertical shaft F, and in place of them to bolt on plates with a smaller pressing
surface, by which means the supply of clay to the moulds (which, for tiles, are
of a much smaller capacity) will be dimushed. The precise amount of
sui face, and the best angle at which to fix these plates, will be easily ascertained
by any experienced workman; for if the pressure on the moulds is too great
they will not so readily pass from under the pug mill as might be desned
These adjustments having been made in the machine, the working may proceed
in precisely the same manner as explained for manufacturing bi.cks In order
to produce ornamental tiles, quanies, and cornice ornaments, I remove the flat
plates (forming the bottom of the moulds) from the chains D, and in place of
them I attach to the chains cast-on plates having a raised on sunken oina-
mental surface, a counterpart of which will be given to the clay when forced

page_text: into the moulds which are placed over the plates, as above explained. It may
perhaps be desirable, before taking the shallow tile and quarry moulds off the
the table, to lay a board over them, which will receive the flat upper surface of
the tile, quarry, or other ornamental article, and prevent its being bent out of
shape while being carried to the drying ground.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that what I claim as the
Invention intended to be secured by the said Letters Patent is, the combination
and arrangements of parts for moulding, unmoulding, and discharging bricks,
tiles, quarries, and coinice ornaments, as above described and referred to.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Hastings, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of August, in the year of
our Loid One thousand eight hundred and forty-six.
JAMES (LS) HASTINGS
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the same Twenty-eighth day of
August, in the year above mentioned, the aforesaid James Hastings came
before our Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained, in form above
written And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute in that case made and provided.