IMPROVE- MENTS IN MOULDING OR SHAPING METALS BY PRESSURE, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in
the County of Middlesex, and of 166, Buchanan Street, in the City of
Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MOULDING OR SHAPING METALS BY PRESSURE, AND IN THE MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN."-A communication from abroad by
Levi Dodge, of the United States of America.
111 ԱՆ
Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MOULDING OR SHAPING METALS BY PRESSURE, AND IN THE MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN."-A communication from abroad by
Levi Dodge, of the United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
8th July 1859.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, and of 166, Buchanan Street, in the City of Glasgow, North
Britain, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MOULDING OR SHAPING METALS BY PRESSURE, AND IN THE
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication from abroad
by Levi Dodge, of the United States of America, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the moulding or shaping articles in metal by means
of dies or pressure shapers operating on several or on all sides of the metal
under treatment at once or simultaneously. This system of manufacture is

page_text: applicable for the production of a great variety of metallic articles, but the
mode of working it out may be properly illustrated by considering it with
reference to the manufacture of cutting axes or hatchets. In the ordinary
manufacture of these tools, a bar of iron is first passed between swaging dies
attached to partially rotatory shafts one above the other. This action shapes
the bar into a thin plate, differentially curved, slightly thickened and recessed
at the centre, and bevilled off at the two ends. This piece of metal is then
hammered, folded up, and welded, so that the thickened central portion forms
the head of the axe. The space between the thickened portion and the com-
mencement of the bevil forms the eye of the axe, and the two thick portions
at the begining of the bevils, when welded, form the bit of the axe, to which
the actual edge cutting piece of steel is to be welded. After the bar comes
from the swage dies, it is forged by the trip hammer into the required shape,
as it has hitherto been found impracticable to operato upon more than two
sides by means of dies. Now, in the present Invention, a great saving is
effected by causing the dies to shape the edges of the bar to the required form
at one operation, and prior, of course, to the folding of the bar. In doing this
two side frames are prepared, set up one on each side of the swaging dies, and
into these are inserted dies of various lengths, easily moveable back and
forward. The lengths of these dies vary according to the shape to be given to
the axe "poll" or other article to be formed so that if the outer ends of the
dies be bevilled, their inner ends would present the configuration of the edges
of the finished article, or a pattern of the same. The frames are supported on
a carriage, and so geared with the shafts driving the swage dies, as to move in
conjunction with these dies by the well known contrivance of a double rack
and segmental wheels. Upon the shafts are strong flanges, against the
shoulders of which the back ends of the dies pass as the frames move between
these shoulders, thus keeping the moveable dies up to their work as the bar of
iron or metal passes between them. These dies are so arranged as to come
into action immediately at the point or line of greatest pressure upon the
metal by the swaging dies, or so little in advance of that line, that for all
practical purposes their action is considered as simultaneous, and according to
the projection of the moveable dies will be the lateral impression upon the
metal, and thus the impression is retained by the continued pressure of the
dies as far as necessary, so that all sides of the axe are operated upon at once,
and any required configuration is given to it by the operation of the moveable
dies in conjunction with the swage dies. In this arrangement the dies have a
reciprocating motion, as operating only upon a short piece of metal, but they
may be arranged so as to repeat the operation by continuous motion upon a

page_text: long piece or bar of metal for forming these and various kinds of articles, and
it is not necessary to the result, or their operation, that these dies should be
operated by the flanges berein-before mentioned, as various well known
mechanical means may be substituted therefor without changing their operation.
A succession of moveable dies may not be necessary to the successful applica-
tion of this principle of operation, and single moveable dies of appropriate
shapes may in some cases be sufficient for the purpose, preserving the essential
characteristics of the Invention, namely, the mode of operating by dies on
several or all sides of the piece of metal at once, so as to complete the forms
of variously shaped articles by simultaneous die pressure on several or all sides,
thereby dispensing with after forging or other means of working into shape.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 7th January 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex, and
of 166, Buchanan Street, in the City of Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I, the said John
Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, or 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 "Im-
PROVEMENTS IN MOULDING OR SHAPING METALS BY PRESSURE, AND IN THE
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication from abroad
by Levi Dodge, of the United States of America, upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said John Henry Johnson, 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

page_text: calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Henry Johnson, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:-
The said Invention relates to the moulding or shaping of articles in metal
by means of dies or pressure shapers operating on several or on all sides of the
article simultaneously. This system of manufacture is applicable to the
production of a great variety of metallic artioles, but I propose to illustrate
the mode of working it out by considering it with reference to the manufacture
of cutting axes or hatchets.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall
refer to the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts throughout all the
corresponding Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings represents a horizontal section of the improved
moulding or shaping machine; Figure 2 is a plan of the same; Figure 8 is a
vertical section of the machine; Figure 4 is a detail of the same; and
In the
Figure 5 shews a piece of iron partly manufactured into an axe.
ordinary manufacture of axes, a bar of iron is first passed between swaging
dies, and is thereby brought into the shape shewn at Figure 5. This piece of
metal is then hammered, folded up, and welded, so that the thickened part a
forms the head of the axe; the space between a and b forms the eye of the
axe, and the two thick portions c, c, when welded together, form the bit of the
axe, to which the steel cutting edge is to be welded. After the bar comes
from the dies, it is forged into the required shape, it having been found
impracticable by any known means to form or operate upon more than
two sides by means of dies. Now, according to this Invention, a great saving
is effected by causing the dies to shape the edges of the bar to the required
form at one operation, and prior, of course, to the folding of the bar. To
accomplish this object, two side frames A, A', (Figures 1, 2, and 3,) are set
up, one on each side of the swaging blocks B, B', and into these frames are
inserted dies a, a', of various lengths, easily moveable back and forward. The
lengths of these dies vary according to the shape to be given to the axe or
other article to be formed, so that if the outer ends of the dies be bevilled
their inner ends would present the configuration of the edges of the finished

page_text: article, or a pattern of the same. The frames A, A', are supported on a
carriage, and so geared with the shafts C, C', carrying the swaging blocks B, B¹,
as to move in conjunction with these blocks by the well known contrivance of
a double rack D, D', and segmental wheels E (Figures 3 and 4). Upon the
shafts C, C', are formed strong flanges c, c', against the shoulders of which
press the backs of the dies a, a', as the frames A, A', move to and fro, thus
keeping the moveable dies up to their work during the passage of the bar'
between them. These dies a, a', are so arranged as to come into action
immediately at the point or line of greatest pressure of the swaging
blocks B, B', or so little in advance of that line, that for all practical purposes
their action is considered as simultaneous, and according to the projection of
the moveable dies, so will be the lateral impression upon the metal, and thus
the impression is retained by the continued pressure of the dies as far as
necessary, whereby all sides of the metal blank are operated upon at once, and
any required configuration is given to it by the operation of the moveable dies
in conjunction with the swage blocks. In the arrangement herein-before
described the moveable dies have a reciprocating motion, as operating only
upon a short piece of metal, but they may be arranged so as to repeat the
operation by continuous motion upon a long piece or bar of metal for forming
various kinds of articles, and it is not necessary to the result of their operation
that they should be acted upon by the flanges herein-before mentioned, as
various well known mechanical means may be substituted therefor without
changing their operation. A succession of moveable dies may not be necessary
to the successful application of this principle of operation, and single moveable
dies, of appropriate shapes, may in some cases be sufficient for the purpose,
preserving at the same time the essential characteristics of the Invention,
namely, the mode of operating by dies on several or all sides of the piece of
metal at once, so as to complete the forms of variously shaped articles by
simultaneous die pressure on several or all sides thereof, thereby dispensing
with after forging or other means of working into shape.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and
original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent, is,―
First, the general construction and arrangement of machinery or apparatus
for moulding or shaping metals by pressure, as herein-before described, and
illustrated by my Drawings.
Second, the application and use to and in the forming of articles of iron or

page_text: other metal, when such articles are to be shaped by the simultaneous action or
pressure of dies on several or all sides thereof, of the moveable dies a, a', as
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixth day of January, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.s.)