Improvements in the Process of Purifying and Classifying Granulous Goods, as Coffee. Beans, and Apparatus used therein.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Aug., 1895-Acceoted, 14th Sept., 1895
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of Purifying and Classifying Granulous
Goods, as Coffee. Beans, and Apparatus used therein.
1, PETER BATSCHE, of Düsseldorf, Rhenish Prussia, Germany, Merchant, 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 process invented and the apparatus used by me, for classifying and purifying
and washing such gianulous goods as coffee, beans and the like, to separate from
them dirt, dust, stones, metal chips, foreign substances, generally different in specific
weight from the bulk of goods of this class, have the advantage of giving best
results with least expense and loss of time.
I proceed in such way, that the material to be treated is filled in to a certain height
in a cylindrical open topped vessel with a sieve-bottom; the sieve or bottom is
detachable from the vessel, and it has quite a low rim; the vessel being slipped
over it and joined thereto bayonet-socket like, or by side clamps, fixed externally
to the low rim of the sieve." This cylindrical vessel, provided with suitable
handles, is immersed several times in quick dips into a water tank and lifted ont
again. The water entering from below underneath the sieve bottom with force,
rushes upwards through the mass in the vessel, separating dirt, dust, chips, sand and
generally impurities from the beans; and after several repetitions of immersions,
the goods are sorted by specific weight when settling, the lighter beans or
granulous goods having been carried up higher than the specifically heavy dirt and
sandy matter or metal, and the quite fine earthy or sandy matter having been
washed through the sieve, sunk into the water tank, but the coarser and
specifically heavy parts have been retained on the sieve, and the clean goods above
them.
After this operation the vessel is lifted out of the water and put on a table
provided with a countersunk seat for the sieve of the vessel, in form of a ring or of
arms projecting from the sides of a round hole in the table, under which is arranged
a suitable funnel for the water dropping from the sieve-bottom, when the vessel is
put on the ring in the countersunk hole. Then the side-clamps or the bayonet-joint
of the sieve-bottom being unlocked, the upper cylinder with the goods in it, is
shifted sideways on the table over another hole in the same, but of less diameter
than the vessel, under which hole is a funnel with hooks outside, allowing a sack to
be hung thereon, to receive the sorted and washed goods falling from the vessel.
The sieve having been left standing on the support of the first hole in the table,'
contains the heavy parts of coarse impurities and a small amount of washed goods
left between them. After several washings having taken place, and enough of such
stuff having been collected, this may be treated in a similar manner as normal goods
are treated, in order to separate still a certain quantity of valuable goods from the
impurities.
This process described is carried out in practice by using one or other of the
apparatus represented in the accompanying drawings, where
Fig. 1 is a complete apparatus in vertical section.
Fig. 2 is a plan.
Figs. 3 show side views of part of the vessel, the one with side clamps, the other
with the bayonet-socket joint.
Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the vessel with the bayonet-socket joint.

page_text: Fig. 6 shows in detail, in section and in side-view, the bayonet joint in an enlarged
scale.
Fig. 7 is a view of the tank with immersed vessel with side-clamp lock, in a
smaller scale.
In Figs. 1 and 2 A is a table with round holes B and C therein, and funnel shaped
pieces D and E underneath the table, where are also fixed the supports P for
.supporting the lower-sieve bottom-ring F. In this ring is fixed the sieve G, and
when put in place on its supports P the upper line of its rim stands flush with the
table. The cylindrical vessel H is put on the sieve so that its lower edge rests on
a rolled border at the outer surface of the sieve-rim and then it is clasped to it by
the side clamps J and wedges K; or it is shipped over the lower sieve and fixed to
it by the bayonet-joint Jas represented in Fig. 6, and in this case it is to be
observed, that in order to be able to turu round the cylindrical vessel H on the
sieve-rim, the latter is kept from turning round on its support in the hole B by little
studs F' fitted into the foot ring of the sieve, see Fig. 6, these studs being caught
by the sides of the supports P₁.
The cylindrical vessel H, as described, is filled to about three quarters of its
height with the granulous ware to be sorted and cleaned, then it is brought to the
tank as shown Fig. 7, where it is immersed to a certain depth in water and moved
up and down several times in quick dips and lifts; the water entering the vessel
from underneath through the sieve rushing through and carrying up with it the
contents and sorting them by their specific weight, at the same time washing them
from dirt, sand and earth; the fine-grained impurities falling through the sieve into
the tank and the coarse-grained ones being retained by the sieve, are laid above it
in strata according to specific weight, the purified and classified goods, as specifically
lighter, remain above in the high vessel H. Then the vessel H with sieve-bottom
is lifted out of the tank and put on the table in the countersunk hole B, resting
on the supports P as seen Fig. 1; the side-clamps are unlocked, or the top-vessel H
is turned to unlock the bayonet-joint, and the vessel is shifted sideways over the
hole C, as seen in dotted and dashed lines Fig. 1, where a sack or bag is fixed
underneath the funnel or a box put under it to receive the falling out, clcaned and
washed goods.
In Figs. 8 to 12 a modified design of an apparatus for carrying out my process of
cleaning coffee and similar light materials is shown. This apparatus differs from
the proceeding one by the arrangement of a separate sieve above the principal sieve
which separates the purified goods from the stones and impurities gathering on the
principal sieve. The other sieve moreover is made to act like a valve opening and
closing when the vessel containing the goods is dipped into.the water or raised out
of it. The working of this apparatus will be understood by the following description
and by means of the figures shown on Sheet Two of the drawing.
The apparatus consists again of two parts, the upper one H₁ forming the
receptacle for the goods, the lower one containing the sieve G¹.
case to make the vessel of rectangular section. Both parts are joined together by
I prefer in this
similar means as in the first case, that is by a clamp J and wedge K. Near the
lower edge of the vessel H¹, I put in the same a sieve composed of flap valves, A³, 4
which by a special device can be opened and closed as desired. Each
valve 1, 2, 3, 4, being hinged on a spindle or pin O' and suspended by little
chains R' to a strap D' which can be raised and lowered and by its movement
opens or closes the valves A'. The vertical stays of the straps D₁ are connected
to the arms S¹ of bell-crank levers fixed on spindles C' and connected together by 5
a bar S. To the ends of one of these levers, outside of casing of the vessel H',
are fixed separate levers B' the ends of which are provided with a rod, T, each,
the end of which reaches up to the handles U of the vessel H', so that the knob
at the ends of the rods T can be grasped at the same time when the vessel is held
by its handles U.
The apparatus described is used in the following manner: The valves A¹ are
closed (Fig. 8) the upper and lower part of the vessel are joined together and the
5

page_text: upper part is then filled with coffee to about two thirds or three quarters of its
height. It is then plunged into a water tank several times, as it was described
with the first apparatus. When going down into the water, this rushes through
the principal sieve G' and also through the valve sieve A¹ driving up the light
material upon the same and also the impurities, little stones, sand, and the like
contained in the coffee; those however, being of greater specific weight, will rise
slower and will soon begin to fall down again, thus separating themselves from the
lighter goods. Now at the same time the valves A₁ are opened by a push of the
hand on the rods T so as to allow the sinking stones to pass by the valves and
gather on the sieve G', the valves A' then closing rapidly so that when the coffee
begins its downward way again it will be caught up by the valves A'. By this
means a good separation of the cleaned coffee and the stones and other impurities,
contained therein formerly and now separated from it, will be realised.
Fig. 12 shows a sectional view of another modification of an apparatus based on
the same working principle. Here the upper sieve consists only of two flap
valves A which are actuated in the same manner by a rod D³ and levers S' on a
spindle C². For certain comparatively light goods this apparatus may recommend
itself in preference to the other one on account of its greater simplicity.
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 process of washing granulous goods as coffee beans and such like and
separating from them stones and other impurities by filling the material into a
vessel having a perforated bottom which can be separated from the upper part and
dipping the vessel with the goods contained therein, in repeated dips into a water
tank, thus causing the water to rush violently through the sieve upwards and carrying
away the light goods with it, stones and other heavy impurities thereby separating
themselves from the good material and sinking downwards and gathering on the
perforated bottom so, that when the upper part is shifted sideways from the lower
part, the impurities on the sieve bottom are completely separated from the good
material.
2). An apparatus for carrying out the process as claimed under 1), consisting of
a vessel, composed of a bottom part containing a sieve or perforated bottom G and
a removable upper part H joined to the lower part in an easily detachable way by
side-clamps J or bayonet-lock J, and of a table with openings therein, the one, B,
having cross-supports P for supporting the sieve-bottom G at such a depth, that
the upper edge of the lower part is flush with the table surface, thus allowing to
shift sideways the upper part H of the vessel after unlocking the same from the
bottom, whereby the impurities on the bottom sieve are separated from the clean
goods, and to put it over a hole C in the table, causing the cleaned goods to fall
through C into sacks or bags put underneath, all substantially as described and
specified and for the purpose set forth.
3). A mcdified construction of an apparatus for carrying out the process described
under 1) for purifying and classifying granulous goods, consisting of a vessel,
having a bottom part containing a sieve or perforated bottom G¹ and an upper
part joined to the lower part, the upper part having also a sieve bottom formed of
Hlap valves A which are hinged to pins O¹ and connected by little chains R' to a
strap D¹ which can be raised and lowered by bell-crauk levers S', said levers being
actuated simultaneously by a lever B₁ and a rod T going up to the handle Ü
outside of the upper part of the vessel H'.
Dated this 7th day of August 1895
PETER BATSCHE,
Per Karl J. Mayer,
Agent.