IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WROUGHT-IRON WHEELS
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Smith, of Smethwick, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WROUGHT-IRON WHEELS."
Sealed the 13th February 1855, and dated the 14th August 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Smith at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th
August 1854.
I, HENRY SMITH, of Smethwick, do hereby declare the nature of the
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WROUGHT-IRON WHEELS
to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in forming the naves and
parts of wheels connected therewith out of masses of heated iron, by driving
or forcing the masses into suitable moulds.
For this purpose a cast-iron mould is used, formed to produce the nave and
parts in connection therewith of the shape or figure desired. The mould is
closed in at all parts excepting at the centre of the top side of the mould,
where a strong receiver or cylinder is formed, into which the mass of heated
iron is placed, and by means of a ram or forcer (moved as quickly as may be)
the highly heated mass is forced into the mould, and caused to take the
desired form of the nave, and to branch out into spokes, and to fill the
mould.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henry Smith in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 14th
February 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
SMITH, of Smethwick, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the. eighteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Henry Smith, Her special license that I, the said Henry
Smith, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Henry Smith, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WROUGHT-IRON WHEELS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Henry Smith, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and
cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henry Smith, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
thereof (that is to say):
This Invention has for its object improvements in forming the naves and
parts of wheels connected therewith out of masses of heated iron, by driving
or forcing the masses into suitable moulds. For this purpose a cast-iron
mould is used, formed to produce the nave and parts in connection therewith
of the shape or figure desired. The mould is closed in at all parts excepting
at the centre of the top side of the mould, where a strong receiver or cylinder
is formed, into which the mass of beated iron is placed, and by means of a ram
or forcer (moved as quickly as may be) the highly heated mass is forced into
the mould, and caused to take the desired form of the nave, and to branch out
into spokes, and to fill the mould.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, I will proceed to
describe the manner of performing the same.

page_text: It is well known that in making wheels for railways, known as "solid
wrought-iron wheels," much skill is required to make them sound and perfect,
particularly the union of the nave with the spokes. Now, the object of this
my Invention is to form the nave and the spokes out of one mass of metal, by
extrusion of portions of the metal to form spokes, thus rendering available the
plastic property of wrought iron when brought to a high degree of heat. For
this purpose I place a mass of wrought iron properly heated into a strong
cylinder or receiver of a mould capable of bearing great pressure, and I cause
the plastic iron to be squeezed out into definite sectional areas, corresponding
with the orifices in the mould, and thereby form the nave and spokes or
portions of the spokes. The Drawing annexed shows a vertical section of a
mould suitable for carrying out out my Invention. The mould is formed of two
parts, a, a, and b, b, which are combined together by several bolts and cotters,
two of which bolts only are shown. The upper part of the mould has formed
in it a cylinder or receiver c, into which the mass of highly heated iron is
placed. The lower part of the mould is formed with grooves or recesses
branching out from the centre, each suitable for producing a spoke or part of
a spoke in connection with the nave. The forms and number of the spokes
to a wheel may be varied, and will be according to the forms of the grooves in
the moulds. In the Drawing, the grooves e, c, two of which only are shown,
are made in the lower part a, a, of the mould, and they radiate from the
centre outwards; but this may be varied, and the grooves for forming the
spokes may be wholly in the upper part of the mould, or partly in the upper
part b, b, of the mould, and partly in the under part of the mould a, a; and
the arrangement is to be such, that the cylinder or receiver c shall contain a
mass of iron suitable for composing the naves and the spokes or the parts of
the spokes intended to be made. The two parts of the mould are to be made
to come correctly together, and so that the iron, in being extruded from the
cylinder or receiver c, shall have no means of escape, except into and through
the grooves which are intended to form the spokes. The central part of the
lower mould a, a, and the under surface of the ram or forcer are recessed, to form
the two sides of the nave. By these means it will be understood that the two
parts of the mould being firmly united together, yet so as to be readily parted
when required, a mass of hot iron is to be dropped into the cylinder and the
ram or forcer quickly brought to bear upon it, when the mould will be com-
pletely filled, and any overplus metal will be forced out as a continuation of
the spokes. The ram or forcer is then to be withdrawn, and the parts of the
mould separated, and the nave with its spokes taken out. If only a portion of
any spoke has been formed, it will be easy to weld on a sufficient quantity

page_text: of iron to complete it; but whatever length of spoke may be formed when the
process has been properly conducted, the junction of the nave and each spoke
will be soundly formed, and the defects incident to former modes of making
the union of spokes and nave avoided. It will not be necessary to describe
the completion of the wheel, as that is well understood by persons conversant
with the manufacture of wrought-iron wheels. If it should be considered
desirable to form a hole in the centre of the nave to facilitate boring, a pin f
shown by dotted lines, may be placed in the lower mould, projecting upwards,
as shown, and a little lower than the limit of the range of the ran. The
mass of iron for producing the nave and spokes may be made in any way that
may be found most convenient and best adapted to the quality of the iron,
such as by coiling a bar helically, either with or without a central hole, or by
rolling a bar or plate, like a roll of ribbon, either with or without a central
hole, or by a well amalgamated mass of scrap iron, or by a pile of discs of plate
or bar iron, or by a well-worked puddle ball, or in other ways well understood
by persons conversant with the working of iron. The requisite pressure may
be obtained in various ways, but I find it convenient to use the power of an
hydraulic press, and in order to insure ample power, I employ a press capable
of exerting when required sixteen hundred tons on the ram or forcer.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself
to precise details, as the arrangement of the parts is susceptible of consider-
ablo. variation; and I would state that I am aware that it is not new to
compress wrought iron in moulds, nor is it new to compress wrought iron into
shapes intended for composing the nave and spokes of railway wheels by
welding them together; but what I claim is, the manufacture of the central
portion of a wrought-iron wheel out of a mass, by extrusion of the plastic
iron from a cylinder or receiver into a mould combined therewith, as above
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Smith, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
S. CARPMAEL.
HENRY SMITII.