IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR LARD REFINING, COOLING AND FILLING
Year: 1884

page_text: We, CHARLES FILLAN HODGES of Summerland Road in the County of Water-
ford, Superintendent Bacon Curing, Lard refining &c and WAKEFIELD CHRISTY, of
35 Gracechurch Street, in the City of London, Hat manufacturer do hereby declare
the nature of our invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR LARD REFINING,
COOLING AND FILLING, to be as follows:-
In a revolving screw blade or blades fixed on an upright shaft and working in
a steam jacketed or fire pan or other suitable vessel, motion is transmitted by a
pair of bevel or other wheels by power or otherwise and a set of knives and
pointed rods or rake adjustable in a suitable position in pan or other vessel which
serves to cut and reduce to pulp the revolving lard and thence to a completely
melted state.
2 In a tank or other suitable vessel into which the melted lard is placed and
kept thoroughly stirred and beaten whilst cooling by a series of dashes fixed to a
shaft or frame and working in a roller or other bearings outside of tank or other
vessel motion to be reciprocating or rotary according to shape of the containing
vessel. A series of pipes run under and around tank or other vessel through which
hot or cold water or steam can be passed to regulate the temperature of the tank or
other vessel in which the lard is contained. A pipe for a similar purpose is wound
round the exit tubes which are placed at or near the bottom of tank or other
vessel. These tubes have at their extremity a series of cocks or valves (around
which the steam and hot and cold water pipes are also placed) which serve for the
exit of the cooled and properly tempered lard into bladders or other vessels which
are held in position by a series of weighted or spring clips acted on by a lever
fastened to a cord or chain working through pulleys, the levers being worked by
feet of attendant.
The tank and pipes are enclosed wholly or in part by a wooden casing lined
with hair, felt or other non-conducting material to, prevent radiation of heat.
When it is required to fill the lard into large vessels with large opening the steam
and hot water can be dispensed with and a special large valve or valves fitted in
tank or vessel.

page_text: We, CHARLES FILLAN HODGES, of Summerland Rond, in the County of Water-
ford, Ireland, Superintendent of Bacon curing, lard refining, etc, and WAKEFIELD
CHRISTY, of N° 35 Gracechurch Street, in the City of London, Hat Manufacturer,
do hereby declare the nature of our invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS
FOR LARD REFINING COOLING AND FILLING" and in what manner the same is to
be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
Our invention relates to apparatus for carrying out the refining, cooling, and
filling of lard, in a prompt, cheap and expeditions manner, and at the same time
producing a product which is of a better quality and colour than has hitherto been
produced by the ordinary manual process.
In order that our invention may be the better understood, we now proceed to
describe the same, reference being had to the drawings hereto attached, and to the-
letters and figures marked thereon.
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the lard refining pan.
Figure 2 is a plan of the same.
Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of the cooling tank.
Figure 4 is a plan of the same with filling apparatus attached.
Figure 5 is a detached plan on an enlarged scale of the said filling apparatus.
Figure 6 is a front elevation of the saine.
The refining apparatus consists of a steam jacketed or fire pan A, in which the
lard is brought to a melted condition, and in which a vertical shaft B ia mounted
and rotated by the bevel wheels C and the driving strap and pulleys D, or from
any other suitable source of power. Upon this vertical shaft B are mounted screw
blades E E which serve to lift the lard continually from the base of the vessel,
and thus automatically prevent it from burning, without other attention.
To the fixed cross frame F are attached a series of knives f, and pointed rods or
rake 1, which are adjustable vertically on the said frame, and which serve to cut
and reduce to pulp the lard contained in the said refining vessel, which at the same
time is being lifted and stirred about by the revolving screw blades E E.
After being thus refined, the melted lard is passed into the cooling tank, figures 3
and 4, where it is kept thorouglily stirred and beaten, by the dashes G mounted
upon the beam g, which is caused to reciprocate backwards and forwards upon the
rollers H, by means of tho.counter shaft and diso plates K and the connecting
rod. A series of, pipes L L L run under and around the tank or other vessel,
through which hot or cold water or steam can be passed, to regulate the temperature
of the tank in which the lard is contained. While allowed to cool, the constant
stirring of the lard by the dashes G prevents the component parts of the lard
.
1.91

page_text: from separating, and also by the admission of the air, the normal, rather heavy,
odour of the lard is removed, the resulting product being of a pure white colour,
perfectly homogeneous and odourless.
By the old processes, where the lard is allowed to cool without agitation, it
becomes very coarse and of a greyish colour and improper consistency, owing to the
separation of the margarine, olein and stearine.
In our improved apparatus, cooling is hastened by the circulation of cold water
through the pipes L, under and around the tank, and when properly cooled we
maintain the lard at the necessary consistency and temperature for filling, by
passing steam or hot water through the surrounding pipes, the alternative flow of
hot or cold water being regulated by suitable cocks in the said pipes. The pipes
surrounding the cooling tank are conveniently enclosed in the external casing
lined with hair, felt, or any other suitable material, non-conductive to heat, which
thus serves to protect the workman from the hot pipes, and to maintain the lard
conveniently, with little. expenditure of heat, for a long time, and at a uniform
temperature.
To the bottom of this tank are fitted exit tubes M M, which are surrounded
with a hot water pipe to keep their contents at a suitable consistency for filling.
These tubes have, at their extremities, a series of cocks or valves N, around which
the steam and hot and cold water pipes are also placed, and which serve for the
exit of the cooled and properly tempered lard into bladders or other vessels, which
are held in position thereon by the filling apparatus, figures 5 and 6.
This consists of a bench P, upon which the fillers sit, the foot of the filler being
placed upon the pedal p jointed under the seat. To the other end of the pedal
are attached two cords, passed over pulleys Q in the filling frame, and attached to
the ends of hinged clips R. These clips R terminate in a pair of jaws r, which
embrace the neck of the bladder upon the nozzles N, thus holding them in place
whilst being filled. Such jaws are kept normally closed upon the nozzles by the
balance weights S S, and are released when the bladders have to be attached to,
or removed from, the said nozzles, by the pressure of the foot of the filler upon the
pedals p.
As this apparatus carries the weight of the bladder of lard whilst filling, partly
by the support of water in the tank underneath and partly by the neck, boys are
easily enabled to carry out the work by this means very expeditiously, the tying
being easily effected by the filler, as the bladder is securely and mechanically held
for him in position.
When it is required to fill the lard into large vessels with a large opening, the
circulation of the steam and hot water can be dispensed with, and a special large
valve or valves can be fitted into the tank or vessel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is
1st The construction of a lard refining or boiling tank, in the form of a steam
jacketed or fire pan, containing a set of stirrers formed of screw blades, constantly
rotated by any suitable external power and provided with stationary, adjustable,
knives and rakes, to effect the cutting, pulping and melting of lard, substantially
as described.
2nd The construction of a cooling apparatus, consisting of a tank or suitable
vessel, provided with dashes or stirrers, constantly agitated by a reciprocating or
other convenient movement, during the period of cooling, and provided with
circulating pipes for hot or cold water or steam, to effect the rapid cooling and
subsequent maintenance of any desired temperature, and constant agitation of the
lard during such process, substantially as described.
3rd The construction of a filling apparatus, consisting of a series of clips suited
for holding the bladders of lard upon the filling nozzles, the said clips being

page_text: operated mechanically by pedals pressed by the foet of the fillers, substantially as
described.
4th The combination of the above claimed refining pan, cooling tank, and filling
apparatus, to mechanically effect tlio refining, cooling, and filling of lard into
bladders, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
"