An Improved Machine for Cleaning Table and other Knives.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Apr., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 3rd Jan., 1890-Accepted 8th Feb., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Cleaning Table and other Knives.
I. SAMUEL WATKINS HISCOCKS, Proprietor of the Royal Hotel Deal, in the County
of Kent do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of my invention is to clean Table and other Knives in such a manner
that by obtaining an equal pressure over the whole blade during the operation, to
prevent the blades from becoming thin and worn out at the points as is the case when
cleaned upon the ordinary Knife Boards by hand.
In carrying out my invention I provide a frame of wood or metal, of the necessary
dimensions, according to the length and number of Knives to be cleaned at once.
This frame is fitted with rollers upon which the bottom Knife Board travels, and has
an upper frame so constructed that the supports act as guides to the Knife Boards.
In this upper frame provision is made for giving any desired pressure upon the Knife
Boards, by a metal or wooden arm fitted with rollers, acted upon by a suitable spring
or springs, and regulated by a nut or screw.
I provide two Knife Boards of suitable dimensions, one side of each being covered
with kamptulicon or other preferred material. These Knife Boards are placed in
position with the covered sides together, and pass freely between the supports of the
upper frame. The bottom Knife Board running upon the rollers in frame, and the
top Knife Board being perforated to permit the emery or other powder to be distributed
between the Knife Boards.
For cleaning, the Knives are inserted between the Knife Boards and are held in
position upon a suitable handle frame, by a spring clamp or other means securing the
handles. To obtain the motion required for the Knife Boards, I provide a lever
working upon a pivot fitted to the frame, to which the Knife Boards are attached by
arms of metal or wood, the arm connected to the top Knife Board being attached to
the lever on one side of the pivot, and the arm connected to the bottom Knife Board
being attached to the lever on the opposite side of the pivot, in such position that
upon moving the lever to and fro', the Knife Boards are propelled or drawn in
opposite directions, simultaneously, thus preventing undue strain being put upon the
handles of the Knives when held in position by the spring clamps or other means in
the handle frame.
Should a more rapid motion of the Knife Boards be desired, this would be
produced by connecting the lever to a single throw crank with a pinion wheel geared
to a larger cog wheel, either separate from or connected to a fly wheel with handle.
Dated this 3rd day of April 1889
SAMUEL WATKINS HISCOCKS.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Cleaning Table and other Knives.
I, SAMUEL WATKINS HISCOOKS, Proprietor of the Royal Hotel, Deal, in the County
of Kent, 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 :-
The object of my invention is to clean table and other knives in such a manner
that by obtaining an equal pressure over the whole blade during the cleaning opera-
tion, the blades are prevented from becoming thin and worn out at the points as is
the case when they are cleaned upon the ordinary knife boards by hand.
In carrying out my invention I provide a frame of wood or metal of the necessary
dimensions, according to the length and number of knives to be cleaned at once.

page_text: This frame is fitted with rollers upon which the bottom knife board travels and has
secured to it an upper frame so constructed as to form guides for the knifeboards.
In this upper frame provision is made for giving any desired pressure upon the
knife boards. For this purpose metal or wooden arms or brackets may be used each
fitted with a roller acted upon by a suitable spring or springs and regulated by a nut
or scrow. I provide two knife boards of suitable dimensions, one side of each
being covered with kamptulicon or other suitable material. These knife boards are
placed in position with the covered sides together, so that they can pass freely between
the supports of the upper frame. The bottom knife board is arranged to run upon
the rollers in the lower frame, and the top knife board is perforated to permit the emery
or other powder employed to be distributed between the knife boards. For cleaning,
the knives are inserted between the knife boards and are held in position upon a
suitable handle frame, by a spring clamp or other suitable holding device capable of
holding the knife handles. To reciprocate the knife boards there is provided a lever.
working upon a pivot fitted to the lower frame. This lever is connected to the knife
boards in such a manner that when the lever is moved to and fro the knife boards
will be caused to move simultaneously in opposite directions thus preventing undue
strain being put upon the handles of the knives when held in position by the spring
clamp or clamps or other holding device.
In the accompanying drawings
Figs. 1 and 2 are elevations at right angles to each other; and
Fig. 3 is a plan of a knife cleaning machine according to this invention.
1 is the lower frame or base upon which are secured standards 2 in which are
mounted, so as to be capable of rotation, rollers 3. 4 is the upper frame secured to
the lower frame and serving to guide the two knife boards 5 and 6 which are
arranged with their covered surfaces face to face. The upper knife board is pressed
against the lower one by rollers 7 each carried in a bracket 8 acted upon by a
spring 9 placed between it and one of the bridge-like parts 10 of the upper frame.
Each bracket 8 has a screw threaded shauk 11 provided with a nut 12 so that the
pressure of the spring 9 can be regulated. The rollers 7 are flanged and bear upon
a batten or rail 13 attached to the upper side of the knife board 5. This knifeboard 5
is formed with slots 5 through which emery or other suitable abrasive powder can be
introduced between the knife boards from hoppers 5b carried by the upper knife
board. 14 is a lever for reciprocating the knife boards. It is pivotted at 14ª and
has its two arms connected to the knife boards 5 and 6 by links or rods. 15 and
16 respectively. By this arrangement when the lever is worked to and fro each knife
board will be moved in an opposite direction to the other thus preventing undue
strain being thrown upon the knife handles when held. The machine is provided at
opposite sides with holding devices. These are shewn constructed as follows:-
17, 17ª are bent plates arranged upon the upper frame 4 in pairs to serve as clamps
to hold the handles of knives to be cleaned. The plates 17 of each pair are movable
and are each provided with a lug or projection 17 secured to a longitudinally
movable shaft 18. The plates 17ª are fixed to the upper frame 4 and are also each
provided with a lug or projection 17° that serves as a bearing for the shaft which
passes through them. 19 is a fixed collar upon the shaft 18 which extends through
a plate 18 fixed to the frame 4. This collar can be adjustably mounted on the shaft
for which purpose it may be in the form of a screw threaded nut adapted to work on
a correspondingly screw threaded part of the shaft 18 as shewn.
Upon the shaft 18 and between the lug 17 of the movable plate 17 of each pair
of plates and the lug 17° of the fixed plate of the adjacent pair of plates is a spiral
spring 20 that tends to force the movable plate 17 against which it bears towards its
corresponding fixed plate 17ª, and to move the shaft 18 end ways. 20" is a similar
coiled spring placed upon the shaft 18 between the collar 19 and the lug 17 of the
adjacent movable plate 17. This spring 20ª is caused by the action of the springs 20
through the shaft 18 and collar 19, to force the plate 17 against which it bears,
towards the adjacent fixed plate 17. By the construction described each pair of
plates forms a spring clamp that will firmly hold a knife handle placed between its

page_text: two plates. The springs 20 and 20ª normally act to force all the plates 17 towards
their corresponding fixed plates 17". To move the plate 17 of each pair away from
the corresponding fixed plate 17" to allow of the insertion and removal of a knife
handle the shaft 18 is moved end ways against the action of the springs 20.
20 20 are springs each arranged between the lugs 17, 17 of the fixed and
movable plates constituting a pair, and serving to prevent these plates being forced
in contact with each other by the springs 20 and 20º.
Should a more rapid motion of the knife boards be desired than can be obtained
by working the lever directly by hand, the lever might be connected to a single
throw crank driven by a pinion in gear with a larger toothed wheel, either with or
without a fly wheel with handle; or each knife board might be connected to one of
two oppositely arranged cranks or eccentrics on a shaft that might be rotated in any
known or suitable way thus imparting the same motions to the knife boards as in the
arrangement illustrated.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A machine for cleaning table and other knives constructed with knife boards
arranged face to face so as to receive between them and act upon the blades of the
knife or knives to be cleaned, means for iniparting motion to the said knife boards
simultaneously in opposite directions, and a holding device adapted to hold a knife
or knives with its blade or blades between the cleaning faces of the reciprocating
knife boards as described.
2. The machine hereinabove described and shewn in the drawings annexed for
cleaning table and other knives.
Dated this 30th day of December 1889