Improvements in and relating to Apparatus for Pulverizing or Disintegrating Grain and other Dry Substances.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Feb., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 13th Apr., 1892-Accepted, 14th May, 1892
TRUVIDIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Apparatus for Pulverizing or
Disintegrating Grain and other Dry Substances.
1, SIDNEY STRAKER, of 32 Graham Street, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:--
This invention relates to apparatus for pulverizing or disintegrating, grain and
other dry substances.
The said invention is chiefly designed to improve the construction and increase
the efficiency of apparatus of the kind or class wherein two beaters or fans rotating
in opposite directions are employed.
The present improvements are, however, partly applicable to other pulverizing
or disintegrating machines.
An important feature of this invention relates to the construction of the central
uptake in which the beaters are situated. I make the upper portion or collecting
chamber of the said uptake of larger diameter or sectional area than the lower
portion or pulverizing chamber, and I form the said chambers with vertical side.
walls. The intermediate part of the uptake I form with inclined sides. By this
construction the air currents in the wider part of the uptake or collecting chamber
are of much less intensity than those in the pulverizing chamber. The said
difference of intensity is so regulated according to the character of the substances
being operated upon, that the movement of the coarser or heavier pieces of the
material carried upward by the air currents, arrested when they arrive at or
near the entrance of the collecting chamber, and the said pieces then fall upon the
inclined surface of the intermediate portion of the uptake, and roll or slide down
the same and fall again into the pulverizing chamber in which they are further
reduced. The fine particles, however, are carried into the said collecting chamber
by the air currents forced through the uptake.
According to another part of this invention, I combine with the fans or beaters
an impinging plate or bar which is preferably annular, semi-annular or arc shaped,
and which is secured in such a position that it will form an obstruction against
which the pieces projected from the fans or beaters along intersecting paths will
impinge; the said plate or bar will, therefore, intercept the whole or the greater
number of the pieces of material thrown from the surface of the fans or beaters,
and will reduce or disintegrate them. The output of the machine will thus be
considerably increased. This bar is preferably situated in the wider portion of
the uptake so as not to unduly contract the area. It is moreover preferably hinged
to the uptake so that it can be raised to permit of access to the grinding fans or
beaters when required. Suitable feed gear is provided in the uptake for controlling
the supply of materials to the pulverizing chamber.
Another important feature of the present invention is the construction of the
beaters. Each beater is constructed with two, three or more blades, set at an
angle of from thirty to sixty degrees to the axis. Each beater is made with a boss
or hub having attached thereto suitable arms provided with removable and if
desired reversible wearing blades formed of or faced with steel, chilled iron or
other suitable material; these blades are firmly secured to the said arms by means
of bolts and nuts, anchor bolts or wedges, or in any other convenient manner.
The said blades are made either plain, file-cut, corrugated, dished, or edge-ribbed
as may be found most desirable. One very convenient mode of attaching the
blades to the arms is as follows:-A square lug is cast on the back of the plate or
blade, and a corresponding recess is formed in the end of the arm to receive the

page_text: said lug. The plate is then bolted to the arm by a conical headed bolt which
fits in a coned recess in the plate and passes through a slot in the arm.
said
The
square boss on the plate is somewhat smaller than the recess in the arm to
allow for adjustment for balancing purposes. If desired a boss or lug is provided
on both sides the plate or blade so that it can be reversed and thus made to do
increased duty.
Another feature of the present invention is a novel construction and arrange-
ment of the air inlets. Instead of admitting air through comparatively small
holes situated near the spindles of the rotating beaters as has been heretofore
done, I make annular openings which surround the said spindles and which admit
air in such a manner that the said fans produce an air current sufficiently strong
for conveying the material through the uptake or shaft to the collecting chamber.
I am thus enabled to dispense with a separate blower. These air passages pass out
through the bed of the machine into an underground pit. By such construction
I prevent to a large extent the objectionable noise so prevalent in high speed
attrition mills. I also prevent the possibility of any foreign body being dropped
into the air openings and so causing damage to the beaters. A suitable equilibrium
or other valve is provided to control the air openings as required.
I also provide for filtering the air before it is admitted to the pulverizing
chamber, in order to intercept or arrest any impurities that may be suspended in
the air and thus prevent the entrance of such impurities into the pulverizing
chamber and the consequent admixture thereof with the pulverized material.
For this purpose I prefer to arrange in combination with the air admission ports,
air-filters consisting of wadding or similar material interposed between pieces or
layers of wire gauze or the like.
I provide the casing of the machine with a suitable door to permit access to the
interior thereof. This door is preferably arranged to swing about a pivot and
may be fastened by means of a cross-bar provided with a screw to bear against the
centre of the said door.
I provide very long pedestal bearings for the beater shafts, and I arrange the
driving pulley preferably between two bearings. The ends of the bearings are
formed to act as oil catchers, and into these oil catchers the boss of the driving pulley
projects. I employ a sight-feed lubricator for lubricating the said shafts. The
said lubricator is of the following construction, that is to say, it comprises a
reservoir, and a smaller sight-feed chamber underneath. Between the said two
chambers is a valve for controlling the flow of the oil. This valve is attached to
a spindle that projects through the top plate of the lubricator. On the said spindle
is mounted an adjustable disc, or ring nut having two projections on its lower face.
The said nut or disc rests upon a part of the top cover in which are formed two
sets of notches, one set being deeper than the other set. By so turning the nut
to cause the projections on its lower face to drop into the shallow notches
aforesaid, the valve is supported in the working position, and the oil is fed at
the desired speed, which speed may be regulated by adjusting the position of the
nut on the spindle.
To stop the feed, all that is necessary to do is to lift the spindle and then
turn the nut and allow the projections on the same to drop into the deep notches
aforesaid. In this position the valve is closed. A spring is provided on the spindle
to prevent disengagement of the projections from the notches and to preserve
regularity of feed.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co., .
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Apparatus for Pulverizing or
Disintegrating Grain and other Dry Substances.
I, SIDNEY STRAKER of 32 Graham Street in the County of Middlesex 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 :-
This invention relates to apparatus for pulverizing or disintegrating grain and
other dry substances.
The said invention is chiefly designed to improve the construction and increase
the efficiency of apparatus of the kind or class wherein two beaters or fans rotating
in opposite directions are employed for the purpose above set forth. The present
improvements are, however partly applicable to other pulverizing or disintegrating
machines.
With reference to the central uptake of the machine, in which the beaters are
situate, it is an important feature of this invention that the upper portion or
collecting chamber of the said uptake should be of larger diameter or cross
sectional area than the lower portion or pulverizing chamber and that the said
chambers should have vertical walls preferably connected by inclined surfaces so
that no lodgement of material can occur.
Another important feature of this invention is the combination with the said
fans or beaters, of a plate or bar so placed in the uptake that disintegrated
material thrown from the fans or beaters will impinge upon it and suffer further
disintegration. In order that the said invention may be clearly understood, the
hereinbefore mentioned features thereof, and other improvements comprised in the
said invention and relating to the beater blades the arrangements for the supply of
air to the apparatus, and to a lubricator suited for lubricating certain of the parts,
will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which,
Figure 1 is a front view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical section, of a
pulverizer or disintegrator constructed according to this invention.
Figure 2 is a plan, partly in horizontal section, of Figure 1, the upper part of
the machine being removed from the top right-hand portion of the drawing in
order to show the form of the bed-plate more clearly.
Figure 3 is an end elevation of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is an elevation of a fan or beater.
Figure 5 is a view of the said fan or beater at right angles to the view given in
Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a view of the rear face of one of the beater arms, with the blade
attached thereto.
Figure 7 is a section on the line a, a of Figure 6.
Figure 8 is a rear view of a beater arm with an alternative form of blade, which
is reversible.
Figure 9 is a section on the line y, y of Figure 8.
Figure 10 is an elevation of a sight-feed lubricator constructed according to this
invention.
Figure 11 is a vertical central section of Figure 10.
Figure 12 is a cross-section on the line z, z, of Figure 10, and
Figures 13, 14 and 15 are views of a detail of the lubricator, and will be herein-
after more particularly referred to.
Like reference letters indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
With reference first to Figures 1, 2 and 3, A is the bed plate of the pulverizer.
B is the uptake firmly bolted thereto. The part B¹ of the uptake constitutes the
pulverizing chamber, and the part B forms a collecting chamber of greater cross-
sectional area than the chamber B'. The end walls of the pulverizing chamber

page_text: are connected to the cud walls of the wider collecting-chamber by inclined
portions B³.
Access to the interior of the uptake is obtained by the door C. The said door
turns upon the pin C, which is passed through lugs Cupon the door and lugs C³ C₁
upon the uptake. Upon the pin C', and between the lugs C4 the bar D is hinged
to swing with the door. The said bar is connected to the lugs C³ upon the centre
portion of the door by a bolt D¹, and at its free end D2 is forked to receive a
screw bolt D³, which is hinged at D₁ to the uptake. Upon the said bolt is a nut D³
with crank handle D', and, if the door be closed and the hinged bolt D³ be brought
into the opening of the forked end of the bar, the nut D may be screwed down to
bear on the bar and cause it to force the door close up against the face of the
uptake.
On the side walls of the uptake and below the inclined portions B³ are the two
air spaces E in each of which is an annular web E¹, a semi-annular web E² with
extensions E³, and the straight webs E and E³, all of which extend across the air-
space from the outer to the inner wall thereof. Each air-space E communicates
with the pulverizing chamber by the two semi-annular air passages F, F, instead
of by comparatively small holes such as have been heretofore employed.
At the bottom of each air space is an air inlet G, in which is placed a valve G',
controlled by a handle G2 upon the valve spindle G³. Upon the bed plate A are
bolted segments H to which the handles G may be temporarily secured in different
positions by the well-known arrangement of locking nut and bolt, to enable the
valves to be retained in the positions to which they may be adjusted.
The air inlets G are extended down through the bed-plate as shown, and draw
the supply of air for the machine from an underground pit, or other enclosure.
By this construction the noise arising from the working of the machine is minimized
and the possibility of any foreign body being passed into the apparatus so as to
cause damage to the fans or blades in the uptake is prevented. Air-filters,
consisting, for example of wadding or similar material interposed between layers
of wire gauze or the like are preferably provided in combination with the air
inlets G, in order to arrest any impurities that may be suspended in the air, and
thus prevent the entrance of such impurities into the pulverizing chamber and the
consequent admixture thereof with the pulverized material.
At the top of the uptake is a feed hopper I in which the material to be pulverized
or disintegrated is placed. From the said hopper, which is provided with suitable
feed gear operated by the pulley I', and with regulating gear controlled by the
hand-wheel 12, the material is delivered to the interior of the uptake so that it may
fall into the pulverizing chamber B¹.
Upon each side of the uptake B, very long pedestal bearings J are placed, in
which the shafts K rotate, a driving pulley K being secured upon each shaft
between the bearings. The noses of the said shafts project into the pulverizing
chamber, and to the end of each a fan or beater L is secured. In the example
shown, the end of each shaft is screw-threaded, and the bosses L' of the fans or
beaters are correspondingly threaded so that they may be screwed on to the shafts.
11 are the arms of the fans, and M, M, are the blades secured thereto, preferably
at an angle of forty five degrees to the axis of the beater, which blades may be
arranged either radially or inclined to the radius. The blades are formed of or
are faced with steel, chilled iron, or other suitable material, either plain, corrugated,
file-cut, dished or edge-ribbed, as may be found most desirable; they may also be
reversible, and have their front and back surfaces similar. The said blades, and
the means adopted for securing them to the beater arms will be hereinafter more
particularly described.
The ends J¹ of the bearings J are formed to act as oil-catchers, into which the
projecting discs on the ends of the bosses of the pulleys K₁ extend; the oil caught
therein is delivered by the passages J² to the chambers J³ into the oil reservoir in
the pedestals J whence it may be withdrawn by the cocks J'.
A curved plate or bar N, T or V-shaped in cross-section is placed in the uptake

page_text: near the point where the pulverizing chamber widens out into the collecting
chamber. The said bar is hinged to the back wall of the said uptake at N' and
additionally secured thereto by bolts N³. The combination of the said bar or its
equivalent, with the beaters L, is particularly advantageous for reasons which will
be hereinafter explained. By withdrawing the bolts N³ from engagement with the
plate or bar N its free end can be raised vertically to permit of easy access to the
beaters.
With reference now to Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7 which illustrate one of the forms
of beater constructed according to this invention, L is a set screw which assists in
retaining the boss L' of the beater in place upon the shaft K, and each of the
blades M are shown as being concave upon their faces and formed with a square
lug M on the backs thereof. Each arm L is provided with a corresponding
recess L³, to receive the said lug. When the blade is placed upon the arm the
lug engages with the recess and the said blade is secured in place by a conical-
headed bolt O and the nut P. The coned head of the bolt fits into a coned recess
in the plate and the split pin O' is passed through the end of the bolt to retain the
nut in place. The said square recess is of somewhat greater width, in one direction
than the lug M' in order that each blade may be adjusted radially upon the arm so
that the arms of the beater may balance each other. For the same reason the
hole O2 in each arm through which the bolt is passed, is elongated. Any spaces
between the lug on the blade and the recess in the arm such as the spaces at M²,
are filled by sheet metal or other packing.
When any blade becomes worn upon its outermost edge, for example, as is
commonly the case in practice, the said blade may be lifted to bring the lug out of
the recess, turned round to bring one of its other edges into the position formerly
occupied by the worn edge and again secured in place and so on until each of the
four edges has done its share of duty.
The alternative form of blade illustrated in Figures 8 and 9 is reversible. It is
secured upon the arm L2 by means similar to those employed in the example
illustrated in Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7 but is provided with a lug M¹ on both faces, a
countersunk recess M³ being provided in each lug, thus when the four edges of one
face are worn the blade can be turned over and the four edges of its opposite face
exposed to wear in turn, so that eight edges of the blade are made available, and
the blade is available for a long term of service.
Figures 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 relate to the improved sight feed lubricator
hereinbefore referred to which is applicable for the lubrication of the shafts K for
example.
In the said lubricator, the reservoir Q for lubricant is formed within a frame
consisting of a bottom cover Q', ribs Q2 and a top ring Q. The said frame
supports a glass tube Q closed at its upper end by the top cover Q which screws
on to the ring. Suitable packing rings R are interposed between the glass tube Q
and the frame as shown. The tube and the top and bottom covers form the
reservoir for the lubricant which is introduced through a filling orifice provided with
a suitable cover. The lubricant is visible from the exterior through the parts of
the tube which appear between the ribs Q². The smaller frame S containing a
glass sight feed tube T, is screwed on to the bottom cover and is furnished with a
screwed neck S' by which it may be attached to the bearing for example, to which
the lubricant is to be applied. A coned orifice S2 is provided in the bottom cover
to afford communication between the reservoir Q and the interior of the tube T and
an orifice S³ affords an exit for lubricant through the neck S'. Q' is a long boss
formed upon the top cover. U is a spindle having its lower end U₁ coned, to fit
the orifice of the bottom cover. Just above the coned portion is a collar U2 and
between the said collar and the lower face of the boss Q a spiral spring U³ is
placed surrounding the spindle U. The upper end of the said spindle is extended
through the boss Q in which it is free to slide and is provided with a screwed
portion U upon which a circular nut V is secured, above which is a ring nut which
serves as a locking device. Separate elevations of the nut V at right angles to

page_text: each other are given in Figures 13 and 14 and it is shown in plan in Figure 15.
From these views it will be seen that holes V₁ are provided in the circular nut into
which holes a key or spanner may be inserted to screw or unscrew the same upon
the spindle U and it is also provided with a pair of projections V2 upon its underside.
Upon the top cover Q5 are two pairs of notches Q7 and Q respectively_the
notches Q being deeper than the notches Q'. The said notches are employed in
conjunction with the projections V2 upon the nut V in a manner hereinafter
explained.
The operation of the apparatus hereinbefore described is as follows:→
The material to be pulverized or disintegrated is fed into the hopper I whence if
the serrated roller upon the shaft or the pulley I be rotated by suitable belt gear,
it is delivered into the upper part of the uptake B so as to fall into the chamber B¹
in which the beaters are kept in rapid rotation in opposite directions by means of
belt gearing arranged to drive the pulleys K'.
The material in the pulverizing chamber is acted upon by the beaters, and
disintegrated or pulverized, and the whole or a considerable proportion thereof is
projected against the bar N and by impact thereon is further disintegrated or
pulverized, so that the output of the machine is greater than if beaters were employed
alone. The rapid rotation of the beaters draws air through the inlets GĠ thus
and causes
rendering the employment of an independent fan or blower unnecessary,
it to take the course indicated by the arrows in Figures 1 and 3, so as to pass into
the pulverizing chamber B' by the passages F whence it ascends the uptake B.
Owing to the widening of the uptake in the portion B2 thereof which forms the
collecting chamber the air-current in that chamber is of less intensity than in the
pulverizing chamber, the difference of intensity is determined by suitably pro-
portioning the two chambers in accordance with the nature of the materials upon
which the apparatus is intended to operate. The result of such difference is that
the movement of the coarser or heavier particles of the material carried up by the
air-current is arrested when they arrive at or near the lower portion of the collecting
chamber and they drop back or roll down the slopes B³ into the pulverizing chamber
where they are further reduced. The finer particles however are carried by the
air-current into the collecting chamber and thence to any suitable receptacle.
In the lubricator hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 10, 11 12 13
14 and 15 the projections V from the nut V rest in the recesses Q8 when the
lubricant is not required to feed and the coned portion UI of the spindle U closes
the orifice S2. To start the discharge of lubricant the spindle U by means of the
handle W is raised and turned to cause the projections on the nut V to rest in the
shallow recesses Q7 so that the nuts and spindle are raised and retained up in
the working position. The lubricant then drops out at the orifice S2 and through the
sight feed tube T at the required speed, which may be regulated by adjusting the
position of the nuts V on the spindle, by means of a spanner or key inserted in
the holes V. To stop the feed it is only necessary to lift and turn the spindle U
again, so as to bring the projections V2 over the deep recesses Q8 when the spindle
bottoms on the cone U₁ and closes the orifice S².
The spring Us acts to maintain a constant downward pressure upon the spindle U
which will prevent any accidental movement of the said spindle and retain the
projections in engagement with either pair of notches Q', Q in which they may
have been placed.
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 pulverizing and disintegrating apparatus, an uptake with its upper portion
of greater dimension or cross sectional area than its lower portion, the walls of the
two portions being vertical and joined on two sides by means of intermediate sloped
surfaces, substantially as herein before described, and for the purpose specified.
2. In pulverizing and disintegrating apparatus beater blades secured to the

page_text: beater arms in such a manner that the said blades may be turned to present in
succession the several edges of one face to be worn, substantially as hereinbefore
described.
3. In pulverizing and disintegrating apparatus reversible beater blades secured
to the beater arms in such a manner that the said blades may be turned to present
in succession the several edges of both their faces to be worn substantially as
hereinbefore described.
4. A beater having its blades secured upon the beater arms in a manner sub-
stantially as herein before described, with reference to Figures 4 to 9 of the
accompanying drawings.
5. In pulverizing and disintegrating apparatus air passages through which air is
drawn by the pulverizing or disintegrating mechanism and which pass through the
bed plate of the machine or are otherwise arranged so that air is drawn into them
in an upward direction and discharged into the pulverizing chamber through large
annular or other orifices surrounding the shafts to which the fans or beaters are
secured substantially as herein before described and for the purpose specified.
6. The sight feed lubricator provided with a valve spindle U nut V upon the
spindle said nut having projections V2 thereupon notches Q7 Q8 upon a stationary
portion of the lubricator and the spring Ù³ substantially as described for the
purpose specified.
7. A pulverizing or disintegrating machine constructed and arranged substantially
as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying
drawings.
Dated this 11th dose of Anil 1900
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.