Improvements in Apparatus for Use in Ironing or Calendering Linen and other Articles.
Year: 1887

page_text: _Date of Application, 24th Oct., 1887
Complete Specification Left, 24th July, 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 24th Aug., 1888
Improvements in Apparatus for Use in Ironing or Calendering
Linen and other Articles.
I CHARLES STELL CRABTREE of 260 York Road Kings Cross in the County of
Middlesex, Mechanical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:
These improvements have reference to apparatus for use in drying and dressing
linen and other articles in laundries or such places.
According to my invention 1 mount in suitable supporting framing and bearings
and on axes driven by suitable gearing a hollow drum internally heated through its
axes and on this drum is applied a suitable encasing felt or blanketting and partly
around this drum and over guiding and distending rollers passes a felt, fine wire-work
or other porous sheet or band having its ends joined into a continuous web and this
web travels around with the cylinder by reason of its frictional contact therewith.
The drum with its enwrapping belt or band is surrounded by a hollow bed of corre-
sponding contour for a greater or less portion of its circumference its inner face being
polished and its interior steam heated or heated by other suitable means.
A moveable weighted or spring lip or part is provided operable by a treadle or lever
for the insertion of goods between the drum and the dressing or polishing bed.
The drum is by weight spring or other pressure borne to the polished bed with
sufficient pressure to dress the goods.
Suitable platforms or aprons or both are provided to facilitate supply and delivery of
articles.
The number of drums or rollers may be increased and the heating thereof, or of
some may be dispensed with, or the bed instead of being concave and the drum fitting
thereto a number of drums and bands may coöperate with a bed of convex or straight
form suitable transmitting gearing connecting the rotating parts.
A very convenient arrangement of this latter modification is attainable by providing
a framing carrying the polished bed along which under pressure the goods are traversed
and this pressure is obtained from a series of rollers or callenderers pressed upon by

page_text: .
adjustable spring pressure applied to their axes through their hearings which are
mounted in guides and supported by brackets attached to the framing. The driving
may be by toothed gear from fast and loose pullies and shaft driven by belt from a
suitable motor.
Around suitable adjustable distending and guide rollers carried in bearings and
supported by guideways on projecting framing passes the band or bands which then
travels endless under the pressing rollers and on the goods on the polished surface.
According to another modification embodying the same principle of construction I
make the flexible travelling belt or band, then supported distended on suitable adjust-
able and guiding rollers, the one surface and the cylinder the other surface, the
cylinder either remaining stationary, moving slower than or faster than the belt so
long as the required pressure between the two and the frictional action on the goods is
attained.
25
1+
The feed is effected by a roller or like part operated by treadle or lever to press the
articles to the travelling band.
The steam to heat the polished bed or the heating medium of the kind adopted is
provided by side pipes or as may be convenient.
1
1000

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Use in Ironing or Calendering
Linen and other Articles.
I CHARLES STELL CRABTREE of 260 York Road Kings Cross in the County of
Middlesex, Mechanical Engineer, 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 :-
-
These improvements have reference to apparatus for use in drying and dressing
linen and other articles in laundries or such places.
According to my invention I mount in suitable supporting framing and bearings
and on axes driven by suitable gearing a hollow drum internally heated through its
axes and on this drum is applied a suitable encasing felt or blanketting and partly
around this drum and other guiding and distending rollers passes a felt, fine wire-
work or other porous sheet or band having its ends joined into a continuous web and
this web travels around with the cylinder by reason of its frictional contact
therewith.
The drum with its enwrapping belt or band is surrounded by a hollow bed of
corresponding contour for a greater or less portion of its circumference its inner face
being polished and its interior steam heated, or heated by other suitable means.
A moveable weighted or spring lip or part is provided operable by a treadle or lever
for the insertion of goods between the drum and the dressing or polishing bed.
The drum is by weight spring or other pressure borne to the polished bed with
sufficient pressure to dress the goods.
Suitable platforms or aprons or both are provided to facilitate supply and delivery
of articles.
The number of drums or rollers may be increased and the heating thereof, or of
some may be dispensed with, or the bed instead of being concave or describing in the
contour of its working surface more or less of a circle, and the drum or drums
fitting thereto a number of drums and bands may cooperate with a bed of convex,
partly circular, circular or straight form, suitable transmitting gearing connecting the
rotating parts.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a view of the back of the machine partly external and partly in section
showing an ironing or calendering machine in which my invention is embodied in a

page_text: line A B shows by section the internal arrangement of the parts and the part to the
right of that line the external appearance.
Figure 2 is a cross section of the same on the line A. B. Figure 1.
This constitutes a very convenient arrangement of this latter modification.
The framing & carries the polished bed along which, under pressure, the goods
are traversed and this pressure is obtained from the series of rollers or calenderers a, a³,
a², a, a, pressed down upon by adjustable spring pressure, here shown as rubber pad
springs pulling the rods attached to the rollers a-a¹ the part d¹ of the framing
serving as an abutment, applied to the axes a³ of the rollers a, a³, a³, a³, a², through
their hearings a which are mounted in guides a and supported by the brackets a
and framing d. The driving is here shown as being effected by means of a belt e
from a suitable motor driving the pulley which is mounted on the same axis g with
the worm g which gears into and drives the worm wheel 2 which is mounted on the
hollow axis on which is also mounted the toothed wheel which gears with and
drives each of five toothed pinions a mounted one each on the ends of the axes a³ of
the rollers a, a, a³, a³, a².
c is an endless band which passes around the series of rollers a-a and over the
.convex surface of the bed band partakes of the motion of those rollers in the
direction of the arrow.
In addition to passing around rollers a-a this apron e may pass around suitable
adjustable distending and guide rollers carried in bearings and supported by guideways
on projecting framing the band or bands then travels endless under the pressing
rollers and on the goods on the polished surface as in the example shown.
According to another modification embodying the same principle of construction
I make the flexible travelling belt or band, then supported distended on suitable
adjustable and guiding rollers, the one surface-and I make the cylinder the other
surface, the cylinder either remaining stationary, moving slower than or faster than
the belt so long as the required pressure between the two and the frictional action on
the goods is attained by the difference of surface speed.
The feed of goods to be dressed or ironed is effected by a roller or like part
operated by treadle or lever to press the articles to the travelling band, but I find a
hollowed presser bar k, one surface of which is hollowed to the surface of the first
roller a, to be convenient. This bar kis depressed by the pedal end of the lever
being drawn down and this being linked by arm 12 to the bar k and centred at 13 to
the framing d draws the bar k away from the roller a and the apron thereon leaving
space for the linen to enter between the rollers a-a and the bed b. The lever / is at
its opposite end 1 counterweighted to cause it to replace the bar k against the
roller a as soon as the foot is removed from the pedal P.
m is a box to hold goods to be dressed, and these are passed in a distended state
over the surface m to the nip at the bark between the roller a and the bed b. n is
the delivery board on which the goods fall on their exit dressed.
In the simple arrangement here shown only the bed b is steam heated by steam held
in the hollow chamber conveyed thereto through the pipe o which passes from a
generator, not shown, by way of the axis and the support p which holds up the
bed and this pipe o distributes the steam throughout the hollow chamber b' of the
bed b by junction pipes o¹ and the steam leaves by the pipe o².
The rollers aa may readily be steam heated in a similar manner if desired.
9, 9 are tie rods to connect opposite ends of the framing.
Where it is desirable to secure very thorough finish in ironing or calendering the
linen I find it convenient especially in dealing with large quantities of such goods to
form the hollow bed as a complete circle and to drive it either faster or slower than
the apron for the production of the frictional action. This form admits also of
greater heat being developed on the linen.
The feeding and delivery may also be arranged to be effected from the same side of
the machine.
The steam to heat the polished bed or the heating medium of the kind adopted may
be provided by other arrangements of side pipes or as may be convenient,

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In apparatus for use in ironing or calendering linen and other articles the
arrangement or combination and use of a pressure roller or drum or rollers or drums,
heated or not, and an endless apron or continuous shect cooperating with a polished
bed heated by steam or other heating means so as to produce the requisite frictional
action on the goods passing between them substantially as herein set forth and
illustrated by the drawings.
2. The general construction adaptation or combination of parts forming apparatus
for use in ironing or calendering linen and other articles as set forth.
Dated the 22nd dose of I..1.. 1000
WM. BROOKES & SON,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Agents for the Applicant.