Improvements in Machines for Blacking and Polishing Boots and Shoes.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Mar., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 27th Dec., 1894-Accepted, 16th Feb., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for Blacking and Polishing Boots
and Shoes.
1, EMERY OSGOOD BICKNELL, of No. 30 Court Street, in the City of Boston,
and State of Massachusetts, United States of America, Attorney-at-Law, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has relation to automatic boot and shoe blacking and polishing
machines which are adapted to be set in operation by the dropping of a coin into a
receptacle, or by other appliances.
It is the object of the invention to provide a machine for the purposes mentioned,
which shall be practical and efficient, and which shall, at the same time, be simple
in construction and so organized as that it may be effectively used even by the
most inexperienced.
To these ends, the invention consists of a suitable frame-work for the support of
the parts, the operative elements of which are adapted to be driven by an electric
or other suitable motor. The frame-work supports a suitable foot-rest for use in
polishing the sides and toe of the boot or shoe. The polishing of the sides of the
boot or shoe is effected by means of revolving brushing devices arranged at each
side of the foot-rest, each brushing device consisting of one or more quadrantal. or
approximately quadrautal or segmental brushes constructed and arranged to yield
substantially at all points in response to the pressure of the boot or shoe being
acted upon. The face of each of the said brushes is preferably bevelled or made
uneven; so that in its operation the brush may strike the boot or shoe on an angle,
and so the better perform its polishing functions.
The toe brush is hollowed so as to act upon the instep and toe of the boot or
shoe, and a special rest is provided for the heel, so that the toe brush may also
serve as a heel blacking and polishing means.
There is contained in the frame of the machine a receptacle for a blacking or
polishing substance or ingredient with movable stones or slabs arranged in the said
substance in such manner that by moving a "pull" or lever the stones or slabs.
may, through the medium of suitable connecting devices, be moved into contact
with the brushes and supply the same with the blacking or polishing substance or
When
ingredient, which is then transferred to the boot or shoe under treatment.
the "pull" or lever is released, the stones or slabs return by gravity to normal
position, and the same brushes after applying the blacking act to polish the boot
or shoe.
Any suitable means may be employed, whereby the machine may be set in
operation by the dropping of a coin into a receptacle therein, though I prefer,.
when employing a coin, a device by which the deposit of the coin will set the
device in motion and which device will continue in operation until by hand and by
the movement of a lever, arm, or other suitable device, the machine may be stopped,
though other means than a coin and lever may be employed to start and stop the:
machine.
Over the entire mechanism, excepting that adapted to operate upon the boot or
shoe, there is placed a removable case made either of wood or metal, so as to.
protect the mechanism against damage by accident, and so as to prevent any
possible harm to the clothing or person of the user. To this casing some of the
parts are in some instances attached.

page_text: The operative parts are constructed, to a large extent, of pulleys and belting, so
as to render the machine practically noiseless in its use.
Dated this 27th day of March 1894.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C, Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Machines for Blacking and Polishing Boots
and Shoes.
I, EMERY OSGOOD BICKNELL, of No. 30 Court Street, Boston, in the County
of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, United States of America, Attorney-at-Law,
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:-
My invention has relation to boot and shoe polishing machines of the kind
adapted to be set in operation by the dropping of a coin into a receptacle for the
release of the locking mechanism.
It is the object of my invention to provide such improvements as will greatly
simplify the mechanism of automatic boot and shoe polishing contrivances and
render the same practical in a high degree.
It is also the object of my invention to so organize machines of the kind
mentioned as that they may be made to operate upon a boot or shoe for as long a
time and upon such parts as the necessities of particular cases may demand, or
may be desired.
It is also the object of my invention to provide other improvements of greater
or less importance, as will more fully appear from the description given and claims
made bereafter.
Reference is to be had to the annexed drawing and to the letters marked thereon,
forming a part of this Specification, the same letters designating the same parts or
features, as the case may be, wherever they occur.
Of the drawings,-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved boot and shoe polishing machine,
complete.
Figure 2 is a top plan view of the same.
Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view, taken through the centre of one of the
groups of polishing devices.
Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view of the same.
In the drawings,-
a designates the frame of the machine, which may be of iron or any other
material suited to support the various parts. 6 designates an electric motor of
suitable character on the driving-shaft of which there is secured a pinion c which
meshes with and operates a gear d on the main-shaft e. ff are gears on the main-
shaft which engage and drive gears 9 g secured to shafts which carry the toe-
brushes h h, and is a gear also secured to the main-shaft, which meshes with a
like gear which is secured to the shaft which carries the cloth slicking or
polishing roll k.
One of the gears fupon one side of the machine meshes with an idler l, which
in turn engages a gear m upon one of the side-brush shafts n, the other side-
brush shaft being driven through the medium of an idle pinion o engaging a gear m¹
similar to the gear m, the gear m¹ being fast upon the rear side-brush shaft.
p is an idle gear engaged by the gear m' and meshing with and driving the gear q
fast on the shaft which carries the heel-brushes r r.

page_text: ss are platforms or rests upon which the booted foot of the user of the device
may be placed in order to secure the blacking and polishing of the boots or shoes
to be acted upon.
In the construction of my machine, I have contemplated the use of a carriage
upon which the foot may rest while the boot or shoe thereon is undergoing the
operation of polishing, which carriage may be automatically operated, or moved in
accordance with the volition of the user of the machine. As the invention is
herein shown, however, it is designed that the booted foot shall be moved back and
forth at will on the rest s, which may be polished or made quite smooth for that
purpose.
The letters t designate the side-brushes; that is, the brushes designed to polish.
the sides of the boot or shoe, there being two brushes for this purpose on each side
of each foot-rest s. Each brush t with its supporting-frame u is of quadrantal or
nearly quadrantal form, and each frame u, which is of V shape, is secured to one
of the shafts n. Extending between the arms of each V-shaped frame is a rod v
the ends of which are connected with the said frame, and mounted upon the said
rods so as to turn thereon are the said brushes t, springs we connected with the said
rods bearing upon the brushes on both sides of their supports, in order that the
brushes may be yieldingly pressed inward toward the foot-rests or supports 8, in
order to accommodate the said brushes to the various curvatures or unevennesses
of the boot or shoe being operated upon. Other means for yieldingly supporting
the brushes for the purpose mentioned may, however, be provided, without departing
from the spirit or scope of my invention.
The dotted lines in Figure 3 indicate the circle described by the outer edges
of the brushes t, and the point lettered a' indicates the line at which the paths of
movement of the two brushes on each side of each foot-rest intersect in their
operation upon a boot, which line is in practice about two inches above the upper
surface of the foot-rests, and so the brushes are just sufficiently high to act upon
the vamps and quarters at the sides of the boot or shoe without reaching the
leather forming the instep-portion of the shoe or the elastic gore at the sides.
This operation will be readily understood upon referring to Figure 1, and supposing
that the pinion o is revolving to the right, therefore causing the two brushes t t to
move to the left simultaneously. The left-hand brush moves to the left and
downwardly, and so away from interference with the left and downward movement
of the right-hand brush. The same removal of one brush from the position where
it might interfere with the other occurs when both brushes are in their lowermost
positions.
.
By making the side-brushest in the form of a substantial quadrant, they may
be operated in a rotary manner, and yet with the effect of hand-polishing; that is,
they may be made to act intermittingly upen a particular surface.
The toe-brushes h and heel-brushes r are hollowed at their centres, as shown, in
order that they inay conform to the surfaces to be acted upon.
z designates a spring-seat upon which it is designed the person whose boots or
shoes are to be treated shall sit. The spring character of the support for the seat
may be an air-cushion a' so contrived and arranged as that when a coin is dropped
iu a slot (shown in dotted lines in Figure 2), said coin may release the locking
mechanism, set the motor in operation, and allow the seat to gradually settle as
the air slowly escapes from the cushion a¹. As the seat is depressed, it slowly
lowers the rod c connected therewith, and gradually moves the lever d¹ of
resistance-box, thus gradually turning the power on the machine.
the
e el designate troughs containing the blacking or polish for the side-brushes t,
in which blacking are immersed the stones or similar devices f hung upon the
inner ends of levers g', which levers are fulcrumned at ' and are connected at their
outer ends with a cross-rod i connected at its middle with the lower end of the
vertical rod c', so that as the latter is depressed it will operate the levers g¹ to raise
the stones f' and thus supply blacking or polish to the brushes t.
jj designate blacking troughs inclinedly arranged at the forward part of the

page_text: machine adjacent to the toe-brushes h, in which troughs, immersed in blacking or
polish therein, are the stones k¹ k hung on the inner ends of levers l'l'connected
at their outer ends with the outer ends of levers n'¹ n¹, the inner ends of which are
connected with the inner ends of the levers g', so that the stones will be moved
out of their troughs to supply blacking to the toe-brushes simultaneously with the 5
raising of the stones f', as before described.
oo designate cylindrical stones arranged below the heel-brushes r and designed
to supply blacking or polish thereto from the troughs pl p' in which they rest with
On the outer ends of the
their upper surfaces in contact with said brushes r.
shafts of the stones o¹ o¹ are ratchet-wheels q' 9' which are adapted to be operated 1
upon by pawls connected with the upper ends of the vertical rods r r the lower
ends of which are pivotally connected with the levers g', so that when the outer
ends of said levers are depressed, a substantially one-half turn may be imparted to
the stones o¹.
The operation of my machine may be briefly described as follows: The person
whose shoes are to be polished may sit down upon the seat 2, placing his feet upon
the rests s, and dropping a coin into the slot b¹; which will effect a release of the
locking mechanism and allow the said seat to be slowly depressed, gradually
starting the machine, and in like manner raising the blacking stones to supply
blacking or polish to the brushes, the stones being coated with blacking or polish
of suitable consistency, which is wiped or licked off by the brushes and by the
latter applied to the boots or shoes. The person upon the seat may now move his
feet to and fro, according to will, and as the brushes t revolve they will first clean
and supply blacking to the boot, and after the stones have become freed from the
blacking liquid, polish the same; then, thrusting the toe under the toe-brush, the
forward end and top or instep of the boot may be blacked and polished in like
manner. The heel of each boot or shoe may next be drawn back up the incline s
(see Figure 3) into contact with the brush r, and in this way the rear of the heel
may be likewise blacked and polished.
The boot may finally be placed on the rest t¹, and the forward part thrust under
the cloth polishing or slicking roll and burnished.
It will be understood that while I have shown means whereby the boots or shoes
on both feet may be polished at the same time, I may employ a single boot
polishing means, and I may also dispense with the slicking or burnishing roll
without departing from the nature or spirit of the invention.
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. The machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction an
electric motor, movable blacking and polishing brushes operated by the said motor,
a lever for turning on the electric current, a gradually yielding seat connection
between the latter and the seat lever for gradually starting the machine in
operation and movable blacking carriers connected with said lever for conveying
blacking from the source of supply to the brushes, for the purpose set forth.
2. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction moving
polishing brushes, polishing or blacking receptacles, movable stones in said
receptacles adapted to be raised to supply polishing substance to the brushes, and
a yielding seat and connections between the same and the said stones, whereby
when the seat is depressed the stones may be raised, as set forth.
3. A machine for polishing boots and shoes, comprising in its construction a foot
rest or support and rotary brushes mounted to revolve at the sides of the support,
each brush consisting of a flat segmental support projecting from one side of the
shaft and provided with brushing material on the inner sides thereof, substantially
as described.
4. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction a foot
rest or support, a plurality of rotary brushes and frames mounted to revolve upon

page_text: both sides of the support, each brush consisting of a flat segmental support
projecting from one side of the shaft and provided with brushing material on the
inner side thereof, each support being hingedly and yieldingly supported in the
rotary frame, substantially as described.
5. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction a
smooth foot rest, the movable side toe and heel brushes, and the inclined heel
support, s', as set forth.
6. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction
movable brushes for effecting the polishing, mechanism for moving the brushes,
and a yielding seat connected with said mechanism, the construction and
arrangement being such that the depression of the seat will set in operation the
said mechanism, as set forth.
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HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.