IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING MACHINES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Brinsmead, of Ipswich, in the County
of Suffolk, Machinist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THRASHING MACHINES."
Sealed the 23rd December 1875, and dated the 25th October 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Brinsmead at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 25th October 1875.
I, HENRY BRINSMEAD, of Ipswich, in the County of Suffolk,
3 Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in thrashing machines,
and relates to improvements in that part of a thrashing machine
called the straw shaker.
The well-known "box" straw shaker is constructed with two parallel
cranked axes similar the one to the other, and each having several
throws. The crank throws of the two axes are connected in pairs by
the "boxes," on to which the straw is delivered from the drum of the

page_text: thrashing machine. The axes being thus coupled together by the boxes,
when one is driven the other revolves also, and the boxes whilst
remaining parallel receive longitudinal and vertical motions.
Now according to my Inventions in order more effectually to agitate
the straw I divide the boxes, or some of them, between the two axes
in place of making them continuous from end to end of the straw
shaker, as heretofore, and I control the portions by connecting one
end of each by a link to the frame, leaving the other end free. Some
(one or more) of the divided shaker boxes have their free ends
between the cranked axes, whilst the others have their free ends at the
extremities.
I usually prefer to employ the five-throw crank spindles, which are
mounted upon the frame of the machine parallel to each other, and
at a distance apart equal to about half the total length of the shaker.
To the outside cranks of the spindles I attach shaker bars or boxes of
the ordinary kind, and these cranks I form on each spindle at right
angles to each other, or thereabout, so that either crank spindle will
drive the other when motion is communicated to one of them. The
three intermediate cranks on each spindle are disposed in the same
plane and are similar in both crank spindles. To these intermediate
cranks I attach divided bars or boxes or bars or boxes of only half the
length of the outside ones. The point of connection with the crank is
in each case somewhere near the middle of the length. One end of
each of the short bars or boxes is attached to a rocking pillar, while
the opposite end is left free, and will have a motion nearly double that
of the throw of the crank. Some of the short bars or boxes, say, the
centre one (although it is not necessarily so), have their rocking pillars
at the ends which lie between the two crank spindles (or near the centre
of the length of the shaker), and the rest have their rocking pillars
near the ends of the shaker. The free ends of all the short shaker bars
or boxes having a motion greater than the throw of their respective
cranks, will rise above and sink below the highest and lowest positions
of the long side bars or boxes, and as this takes place at both ends as
well as near the middle of the length of the shaker, there will be a very
effective shaking of the straw throughout.
I have stated above that I employ two five-throw crank spindles, but
it is obvious that I can employ any other number of throws in the

page_text: crank spindles to suit any required number of shaker bars or boxes
without departing from the nature of my Invention.
Also it is not essential that the boxes should be divided in the centre,
they may be divided into unequal portions.
I can dispense also with the long shaker bars or boxes at the sides,
and form my improved straw shaker entirely of bars or boxes of onc
half the full length of the shaker, or otherwise, divided at some point
between the two crank spindles mounted and and actuated as above
described, in which cases I employ two connecting rods attached to
cranks at right angles to each other, or thereabout, to connect the two
crank spindles.
In other cases I employ three of the long shaker bars or boxes (one
nt cach side and one in the middle) with short bars or boxes between
them.
Sometimes also in place of forming the crank throws which carry
the short bars or boxes all in the same plane, I form them in
different planes, or symmetrically distributed round the axis of tho
crank spindle.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Brinsmead in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 25th April 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
BRINSMEAD, of Ipswich, in the County of Suffolk, Machinist, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of October, 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 successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Henry Brinsmead, Her special license,
that I, the said Henry Brinsmead, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Henry Brinsmead, my 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

page_text: therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, tho
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for “ImproVEMENTS IN
THRASHING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Henry Brinsmead, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, 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 Scal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henry Brinsmead, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in thrashing
machines, and relates to improvements in that part of a thrashing
machine called the straw shaker.
The well-known "box" straw shaker is constructed with two parallel
cranked axes, similar the one to the other; and each having several
throws. The crank throws of the two axes are connected in pairs by
the "boxes," on to which the straw is delivered from the drum of the
thrashing machine. The axes being thus coupled together by the boxes,
when one is driven the other revolves also, and the boxes whilst
remaining parallel receive longitudinal and vertical motions.
Now, according to my Invention, in order more effectually to agitate
the straw, I divide the boxes, or some of them, between the two axes
in place of making them continuous from end to end of the straw
shaker as heretofore, and I control the portions by connecting one end
of each by a link to the frame, leaving the other end free. Some
(one or more) of the divided shaker boxes have their free ends
between the cranked axes, whilst the others have their free ends at the
extremities.
I usually prefer to employ two five-throw crank spindles, which are
mounted upon the frame of the machine parallel to each other and at
a distance apart equal to about half the total length of the shaker.
To the outside cranks of the spindles I attach shaker bars or boxes of

page_text: the ordinary kind, and these cranks I form on each spindle at right
angles to each other, or thereabout, so that either crank spindle will
drive the other when motion is communicated to one of them. The
three intermediate cranks on each spindle are disposed in the same
plane, and are similar in both crank spindles. To these intermediato
cranks I attach divided bars or boxes or bars or boxes of only half the
length of the outside ones. The point of connection with the crank is
in each case somewhere near the middle of the length. One end of
each of the short bars or boxes is attached to a rocking pillar, while the
opposite end is left free and will have a motion nearly double that of
the throw of the crank. Some of the short bars or boxes, say, the
centre one (although it is not necessarily so) have their rocking pillars
at the ends which lie between the two crank spindles (or near the centre
of the length of the shaker), and the rest have their rocking pillars
near the ends of the shaker. The free ends of all the short shaker bars
or boxes having a motion greater than the throw of their respective
cranks, will rise above and sink below the highest and lowest positions
of the long side bars or boxes, and as this takes place at both ends as
well as near the middle of the length of the shaker, there will be a very
effective shaking of the straw throughout.
I have stated above that I employ two five-throw crank spindles, but
it is obvious that I can employ any other number of throws in the
crank spindles to suit any required number of shaker bars or boxes
without departing from the nature of my Invention.
Also it is not essential that the boxes should be divided in the centre,
they may be divided into unequal portions.
I can dispense also with the long shaker bars or boxes at the sides,
and form my improved straw shaker entirely of bars or boxes of one
half the full length of the shaker, or otherwise divided at some point
between the two crank spindles mounted and actuated as above
described, in which cases I employ two connecting rods attached to
cranks at right angles to each other, or thereabout, to connect the two
crank spindles.

page_text: Sometimes also in place of forming the crank throws which carry
the short bars or boxes all in the same plane I form them in different
planes or symmetrically distributed round the axis of the crank
spindle.
In order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and 5
readily carried into effect I will proceed to describe the Drawings
hereunto annexed.
The Drawings, Sheets 1, 2, and 3, show threo straw shakers, all con-
structed according to my Invention, but differing in some respects the
one from the other.
On Sheet 1, Figure 1 is a plan, and Figure 2 is a sectional elevation
of an arrangement in which the cranked axes a and b have each five
throws. The outer throws of each cranked axis are at right angles,
and the axes carry between them upon these throws two long shaker
boxes c, c, which also so connect the axes together, that one of them
being driven the other rotates necessarily in unison with it. The inter-
mediate throws of cach cranked axis are all in one plane, and they
actuate three divided shaker boxes d, d, d, each throw serving with the
aid of a rocking pillar e to control the motions of one half or portion of
a shaker box. The divided shaker box which is in the middle of the
set bas its two rocking pillars (one to each half or portion) between the
axes a and b, whilst the divided shaker boxes on either side of it have
their pillars e, e, at their outer ends, and the axes a and bare between
them.
On Sheet 2, Figure 3 is a plan, and Figure 4 is a sectional elevation
of an arrangement differing from that shown on Sheet 1, only in
that the intermediate throws of the crank are not all in the same
plane.
On Sheet 3, Figure 5 is a plan, and Figure 6 is a sectional elevation
of an arrangement in which the central shaker box is not divided. The
three long shaker boxes in this case are carried by the axes a and b on
throws which are 120 degrees apart and differ in length, whilst
the crank throws of the two divided shaker boxes are diametrically
opposite to each other. The rocking pillars e of both the divided shaker
boxes are at the outer ends. On this Sheet, Figure 7 is an end view

page_text: partly in section and drawn to a larger scale; it shows more fully the
construction and arrangement of the rocking pillars e.
Figure 8 is a transverse section taken in the vicinity of one of the
cranked axles, which it clearly shows, together with the connections
with the shaker boxes.
The thrashing drum is indicated at fon all the Sheets. 9, 9, are
blades of metal fixed to the free ends of the divided shaker boxes
where they occur in the middle of the straw shaker. The blades g
overlap each other, as the Drawings clearly show, and their upper edges
support the straw and carry it over the divisions of the boxes.
y*, g*, arc blades longer than the rest; these blades are fixed to the
sides of the portions of the divided boxes on to which the straw first
passes; they aid in agitating the straw and carrying it along past the
centre of the straw shaker.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention and the
manner of performing the same, I would have it understood that I do
not confine myself to the exact details herein described and shown by
the Drawings, but I claim my improvements in the straw shakers of
thrashing machines, substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I the said Henry Brinsmead, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.