Improvements in Leather-smoothing Machines.
Year: 1888

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Leather-smoothing Machines.
I, HERBERT JOHN HADDAN, of the firm of Herbert & Co., l'atent Agents, of
18, Buckingham Street, Strand, W.C., London, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, a communication to me
from abroad by Friedrich Miller and Allhard Andreae, Manufacturers, in care of
Messrs. Wirth and Company of Frankfurt a. Main, in the German Empire, Patent
Agents, to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the smoothing of leather and consists in a machine
comprising certain improvements hereinafter described.
The machine comprises a frame of suitable form bearing at the front a table and
extended upward at the rear to support a balance beam the front arm of which
extends over the said table. This arm carries two drums over which pass an endless
smoothing belt. The rear arm of the balance beam is drawn down by a spring and
rests upon an adjustable abutment, a counterweight is also arranged on this arm to
balance the beam. In the table is a feed drum slowly driven by worm and pinion
gear, the driving belt therefor being preferably passing over a graduated pulley so
that the speed may be adjusted. To the front arm of the balance beam is attached
an easily detachable lever or levers connected to a lever system terminating in a pedal
lever adapted to be depressed by the foot of the operator so that the front arm of the
balance beam may be drawn down thereby. A spring raises the pedal lever after
depression. The downward movement of the pedal lever may be determined by a
suitable adjustable abutment, so that the beam cannot be so far depressed as to injure
the feed drum in the table thereunder. To permit of the insertion or removal of the
smoothing belt or other belt necessary to be carried through the balance beam one
face or lateral frame of the latter is made in two parts, divided by a suitable space,
these two parts being held together by a removable cover plate preferably hinged to
one part and screwed to the other part. To permit of the stretching of the smoothing
belt, the bearings of one of the drums are made independently displaceable, and may
be moved nearer to or further from the other drum by suitable rods operated by screw
spindles terminating in hand wheels or equivalent devices for operating them.

page_text: By the independent movement of each bearing, obliquely joined belts may be
caused to run on the drums if necessary. The surfaces of the main outer belt bearing
drum (or of both drums) and of the feed drum are formed of a number of wedge like
ribs of rubber laid on a suitable floor or base, the interstices between these ribs being
filled with ribs of felt, the whole being covered with a layer of felt.
HERBERT & Co.,
Agents to Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Leather Smoothing Machines.
I, HERBERT JOHN HADDAN of the firm of Herbert & Co. Patent Agents of
18 Buckingham Street, Strand, W.C., London in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention, a communication to ine
from abroad by Friedrich Miller and Allbard Andreae, Manufacturers in care of
Messrs. Wirth & Co. of Frankfurt / Main in the Empire of Germany, Patent Agents
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 leather smoothing machines and consists in the improved
mechanism and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, reference
being made to the annexed drawing in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the
improved machine-Fig. 2 a sectional view of a part thereof, and Fig. 3 a front
elevation of the machine-Fig. 4 being a detail view illustrating the construction of
one of the drums carrying the smoothing belt.
A A' are two similar stands connected by cross bolts to form the frame of the
machine. These frames carry the table S projecting from the front of the machine
and continued downwards in the manner shown to receive the hides after smoothing-
The rear part of the frame projects upward to provide bearings for the shaft B of the
rocking beam CC which projects over the table S and carries the smoothing
mechanism, and the rear arm of which projects backwards for a sufficient distance to
conveniently place the counter weight E thereon so as to balance the beam and to
attach to said rear arm and to the frame the spring F the influence of which causes
the beam to be oscillated so as to lift its front arm to carry the smoothing mechanism
out of action, and usually holds the beam in such position-The adjustable abutment g
limits the downward movement of the rear arm of the beam-The front arm of the
beam CC carries the pulleys D.D' round which is stretched the endless smoothing
belt or belts The position of the bearings of the shaft of the outer pulley D is

page_text: stationary, but the bearings of the inner pulley are movable being guided so that the
distance between the said pulleys may be increased or diminished for the purpose of
providing means for taking up slack in the belt or for loosening the same for removal
or replacement The journal boxes or bearing blocks k of the pulley D' are connected
by the links h with threaded sleeves g engaging on the contrary screw threads on the
shafts and respectively-Hand" wheels or equivalent means are employed for
revolving said shafts ff by hand so as to cause the sleeves g to approach to or recede
from each other and so cause the travel of the blocks k in a line perpendicular to the
are both
shafts By moving the shafts ff simultaneously and equally, the blocks kk
equally moved, by moving only one of the shafts for fi the corresponding block k is
moved and the drum D₁ is carried more or less out of parallel with the drum D thus
enabling slantingly connected belts to be used or enabling slack to be taken up on
one side or the other if necessary-The drum D is driven by power in the manner
hereinafter shown, the drum D¹ is revolved by friction of surface with the belt-The
beam CC is formed of two parallel frames C¹ connected by cross bars e-One of
these frames C is in two parts separated by a short space placed in such a manner as
to permit removal of the belt from the drum D¹ without severing its continuity-The
two parts of the beam frame C are connected rigidly together by the plate Z hinged
at to the one part and fastened by screws a to the other part so that the two parts
form in the usual way one solid structure easily separated or disconnected for removal
of the belt.
To, operate the descent of the front arm of the beam C C¹ onto the hides etc. passing
on the table S-The pedal lever R is pivoted at O in the base of the machine and its
rear arm Q, carrying a counterweight for the lever system, is connected with the
longer arms of the levers P pivoted one each side on gudgeons N in the base of the
machine-The shorter arms of the levers P are connected through rods or frame M to
levers H, resting upon gudgeons 3 attached to the ends of the frames C C¹ and resting
under like gudgeons L so that said levers H are securely held and practically form
one part with the frames against the action of the rods M, but are nevertheless easily
detachable from said frames by a pull in the direction of the arrow Fig. 1, for the
purpose for instance of removal of the smoothing belt-The lever R is normally held
in its raised position by the spring -The rods M may be replaced by a frame of
parts M M² M³ as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3 if more space is necessary between
the rods M for the insertion of the hides-There may also be a limit to the downward
movement of the lever system and therefore of the front arm of the beam, contrived
by the arrangement of a screw spindle M to abut upon the floor and so restrain
further movement of the lever mechanism-A hand wheel M* may be arranged to
revolve said screw spindle for its adjustment.
To feed the hide to be smoothed, a drum T is journalled in the front of the frame
of the machine, to project slightly through a convenient opening made therefor in
the table S-The construction of this drum is hereinafter described; it is driven by
a worm gearing with worm wheel u on the shaft of the drum, said worm revolved
by belting from the main shaft by pulleys w w¹ w w³ ³, said main shaft being
preferably the shaft B at the axis of the beam CC, the drum D being also driven by
pulleys and belting from this shaft.
The construction of the drums D and T is as follows;-The surface of each drum
is formed by a number of wedge shaped strips of rubber n (Fig. 4) arranged as
shown, the interstices between them being filled up with felt o and the whole
covered with a layer of felt p, a suitable solid backing is made to support the rubber
strips.
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
clain is;
In leather smoothing machines-
1). A balanced beam C C in combination with two rotary drums D D¹ and an
endless smoothing band on said drums.

page_text: 2). A drum having a surface composed of a firm backing, rubber strips and felt
strips between said rubber strips, and a felt or equivalent casing substantially as set
forth and for the purpose described.
3). A balanced beam formed of two connected frames CC, one of which frames is
formed in two parts with a space between said parts and a removable or hinged cover
plate Z adapted to rigidly connect said parts substantially as and for the purpose set
forth.
4). The combination of two drums D D' with movable bearings to one of said
drums, screw threaded spindles ff sleeves g g engaging thereon and lever mechanism
connecting said bearings and sleeves for permitting of the independent or simul-
taneous movement of the said movable bearings by rotation of one or both of said
screw spindles substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
5). The combination with the balanced bean (C' of the lever system comprising
pedal lever RQ, lever P and connecting rods or frame M for the movement of said
beam substantially as set forth.
6). The combination with the balanced beam of the lever or levers H substantially
as set forth for permitting easy detachment of the frame or rods M from said beam,
said levers being connected to said frame or rods.
Dated this 35. of Nassombo 1800