Improvements in Apparatus for Picking, Opening, and Mixing Cotton and other Fibrous Material.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 30th July, 1895-Accepted, 19th Oct., 1895
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Picking, Opening, and Mixing
Cotton and other Fibrous Material.
We, WARREN ANDREW PATTERSON, General Manager of the Bessonette
Cotton Compress Manufacturing Company of Waco, Texas, of Parrot Avenue,
Provident Heights, Waco, and LOUIS WILBUR CAMPBELL, Lawyer, of 803
South Third Street, Waco, Texas, United States of America, both citizens of the
United States 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 is designed to provide improved means for picking or stripping
apart, unrolling, unwinding and mixing, after being unwound, lint cotton, or similar
fibrous material pressed or compressed into cylindrical bales in order to restore
the cotton or similar material in such bales to the loose condition requisite for the
usual processes of manufacture in mills, and to mix different grades of cotton or
like fibrous material when desired, as will be hereinafter fully described.
Reference is had to the accompanying drawings wherein the same parts are
indicated by the same letters throughout the several views.
Fig. 1 represents a side elevation, parts being broken away, of a complete
machine for unwinding or stipping the layers of cotton from a cylindrical bale, and
for picking the layer so unwound.
Fig. 2 represents a plan view of the machine shewn in Fig. 1, parts being
broken away.
Fig. 3 represents an end view of the machine shewn in Fig: 1, as seen from the
left of the said figure and parts being broken away.
Fig. 4 is a detailed view shewing one means of doffing the fibre from the
stripping rod.
Fig. 5 represents a modified form of stripping roller in operation on a bale.
Fig. 6 represents a modification in which the bat from three bales is unwound
ou a plurality of carrier' bands, the bales resting on the said bands by their own
weight.
Fig. 7 represents a plan view of the device shewn in Fig. 6, with the bales
removed, aud
Fig. 8 represents a plan view of a device similar to that shewn in Fig. 7, except.
that one continuous apron of leather walrus hide, or the like; is used, and an
indefinite number of bales may be supported thereon.
A represents the frame in which the machine is mounted.
In the construction shewn in Figs. 1 to 3 the said frame is provided with a
hopper A having sloping ends a and a terminating in the circular chamber A
above the spout A'.
Journalled across the frame A is a driving shaft B having fast and loose
pulleys B', which are driven by a belt from the driving engine, which is not shewn.
Gear wheels may be used instead of the said pulleys, if desired.
This driving shaft B passes through the circular chamber A', and carries a drum B²
provided with picking teeth 6 for picking and stretching the cotton bats. The
driving shaft B also carries a pulley B' which is connected by the belt C to the

page_text: pulley D on the shaft D, which carries the stripping roller D, which is provided
with teeth d adapted to engage in the cotton bat.
The pulleys D and B are so arranged that the stripping roller D2 will move
considerably slower than the picking and stretching voller B2, and, therefore, the
cotton bat will be partly picked and stretched out by the lower and faster moving
roller B².
The shaft D also carries a sprocket wheel D³ gearing into the sprocket chain H,
which drives, by means of the sprocket wheel F, the shaft F, on which is mounted
the drum F2 Over the drum F2 and the stripping roller D, an endless apron E
passes, which apron is provided with a plurality of holes e, adapted to admit the
teeth of the stripping roller D. The function of this perforated apron is to doff
the fibre from the stripping teeth d.
The shaft D also carries a pulley D' which drives the belt I passing over the
pulley K on the shaft K. This shaft K carries a second pulley K2 which drives
the crossed belt L and the pulley M', which latter is mounted on the short shaft M
journaled in the bearing block R. This shaft also carries a gear wheel M² which
meshes in the gear wheel P on the journal P on which the bale Q revolves.
opposite journal P of the bale is similar to the journal P except that the gear
wheel P is omitted.
The
Each of the said journals is flanged as at p to fit snugly against the ends of the
bale, and is provided with an angular holding tang which is driven into the
core of the bale as shewn in Fig. 3, thus rigidly attaching the bale to the said
journal.
These two journals P and Po drop into bearings r and in the bearing blocks R
and R', which slide along the ribs on the top of the sloping frames A', which
frames are secured on the top of the frame A.
These bearing blocks R and R' are bent downwards as at 72 and terminate in
arms having racks attached to or integral therewith.
These racks gear into a cogged wheel S fast on the shaft S which is journalled
in the frame A. This shaft is turned by the hand crank S² or may be operated
by any suitable mechanism. The rack is held against the cogged wheel S' by
means of a stirrup S³.
It will be seen that by turning the cogged wheel St, the rack may be moved
in either direction, and, therefore, the bearing blocks R and R', and consequently the
bale Q, may be moved toward or away from the stripping roller D2, as may be a
desired.
In order to obtain uniformity of action at both ends of the bale, there are two
of these racks, one on either side of the bale, and two of the cogged wheels S', as
shewn most clearly in Fig. 3.
The rib a prevents lateral motion of the bearing blocks R and R', while the
distance between the centers of the shafts K and M is sufficient to render unim-
portant the slight chauge in the tantness or slackness of the belt L.
With this form of machine the downward slant of the frame H enables the
bale Q to press, by its own weight, on the stripper roller D, while the pressure, or
the rate of feed may be varied by means of the cogged wheel S', and the hand crank
or other means for operating the same.
The cotton bat is stripped off by the teeth of the stripper roller D², and hanging
down into the hopper A³, is caught by the more rapidly revolving picker teeth by
means of which it is stretched out and partly picked, and is pushed down the
chute A", whence it is carried by any suitable means to the desired point.
It will thus be seen that the layers of cotton are removed from the cylindrical
bale, and that the compressed cotton is loosened so as to be readily handled by
machines of the construction ordinarily found in cotton mills.
5
In the form of device shewn in Fig. 4, the perforated endless band E, and the
means for driving the same are omitted, the fibre being doffed from the roller D 5
by means of a revolving brush E¹.

page_text: In the form of device shewn in Fig. 5, a roller D' corrugated as at d is used
instead of the toothed stripping roller D, the points of the said corrugations
pressing into the cotton, and causing the bale to revolve, and at the same time
drawing off the cotton.
In the form of device shewn in Fig. 6 the frame A is providel with a plurality
of upright pieces A which terminate in the vertical arms a slotted as at aº, in which
slots the journals of the bale are free to revolve.
Beneath each bale is a roller D' on which are stretched a plurality of bands U
connecting the said roller with the adjacent roller, as shewn in Fig. 7.
Between these bands on the rollers, teeth may be placed if desired, but the
simple friction of the bands on the bottom of the bale will ordinarily be sufficient
for the purpose of revolving the bale and unwinding the bat therefrom. The
various rollers are revolved by means of the pulley D', the sprocket wheels D³,
and the chains T, or in any other suitable way.
While I have shewn three bales, and three stripping rollers beneath the same,
it will be evident that the number of each may be varied indefinitely.
In the device shewn in Fig. 8 the divided bands U are replaced by a single
endless apron U which passes over all the rollers, and beneath all the bales. This
endless apron should preferably be driven at either end as by the pulley D' and the
sprocket chain D, but it may be driven at one end only, as by the omission of the
said sprocket chain D, or all of the rollers may be positively driven as shewn in
Fig. 7.
In the constructions shewn in Figs. 6 to 8 the various bands and bales move in
the direction shewn by the arrows, and the cotton is fed to the chute A3 over the
sloping board a³ in a plurality of layers, the thickness of which depends upon the
number of bales from which the various bats are unwound.
After leaving the chute A³ the cotton may be stretched, if desired, and picked
by one or more devices similar to the picking roller B already described with
reference to Figs. 1 to 3.
It will thus be seen that the devices described with reference to Figs. 6 to 8 will
not only simultaneously unwind the cotton from several bales, but will also mix the
said cotton from the said bales.
The bands U shewn in Fig. 7 may be of leather or walrus hide, or may be chains,
if desired.
The endless apron U' shewn in Fig. 8 should be of rough leather or walrus hide,
but the same may be otherwise roughened in any well-known way, if desired.
While the hereindescribed apparatus has been described particularly in con-
nection with the cylindrical cotton bale now manufactured, it will be obvious
that it is applicable, with or without minor changes, to cylindrical bales of
fibrous material of any description.
It will also be evident that various modifications of the hereindescribed
apparatus might be made which could be used without departing from the spirit
of the invention.
Having thus particularly ascertained and described the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. The construction, combination and arrangement of parts, substantially as
hereindescribed and shewn in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings hereunto annexed.
2. The construction, combination, and arrangement of parts shewn in Figs. 6
and 7 of the drawings hereunto annexed.
3. The method of simultaneously unwinding and mixing the bat from a plurality
of cylindrical bales of cotton, substantially as hereindescribed.
4. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material, and means for revolving
said bale, of a stripper adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same,

page_text: and a picker adapted to pick and stretch the layer so unwound, substantially as
described.
5. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material, and means for revolving
said bale, of a stripper adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same, and
a dentated picker moving at a higher surface speed than said bale, and adapted to
pick and stretch the layer so unwound, substantially as described.
6. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material, and means for revolving
said bale, of a stripper moving beneath said bale and support the same, the said
stripper being adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same, substantially
as and for the purposes described.
7. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material, and means for revolving
said bale, of a stripper moving beneath said bale and supporting the same, the
said stripper being adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same,
and a picker adapted to pick and stretch the layer so unwound, substantially as
described.
8. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material, and means for revolving said
bale, of a stripper moving beneath said bale and supporting the same, the said
stripper being adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same, and a
dentated picker moving at a higher surface speed than said bale, and adapted to
pick and stretch the layer so unwound, substantially as described.
9. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material; of journals driven into said
bale; hearings for said journals; means for revolving said journals in said bearings;
and a stripper adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same, substantially
as and for the purposes described.
10. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material; of journals driven into said
bale, bearings for said journals; means for revolving said journals in said bearings;
a stripper adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same, and means for
pressing said bale on said stripper, substantially as described.
11. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a cylindrical bale of fibrous material; of journals driven into
said bale; bearings for said journals; means for revolving said journals in said
bearings; a stripper adapted to engage the outer layer and unwind the same,
and means for moving the centers of said journals towards said stripper,
substantially as described.
12. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical bales of fibrous material, and means for
revolving said bales, of a stripper moving beneath each of said bales and supporting
the same, the said stripper being adapted to engage the outer layer of each of said
bales and unwind the same, substantially as and for the purposes described.
13. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical bales of fibrous material, and means for
revolving said bales, of a stripper moving beneath each of said bales and supporting
the same, the said stripper being adapted to engage the outer layer of each of said
bales, and unwind the same; and a picker adapted to pick, stretch and mix the
layers so unwound, substantially as described.
14. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support
adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical bales of superimposed layers of fibrous
material, and means for revolving said bales; of a stripper moving beneath
each of said bales and support the same, the said stripper being adapted to
engage the outer layer of each of said bales and unwind the same; and a

page_text: dentated picker moving at a higher surface speed than said bales, and adapted
to pick, stretch, and mix the layers so unwound, substantially as described.
Dated this 30th day of July 1895.
TONGUE & BIRKBECK,
Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicants.