NEW MACHINERY FOR CUTTING AT ONE OPERATION DOVETAIL AND MITRE JOINTS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Henry Leese, of the City and State of New
York, in the United States of America, but now residing at Bruges,
W. Flanders, Belgium, for the Invention of "NEW MACHINERY FOR CUTTING
AT ONE OPERATION DOVETAIL AND MITRE JOINTS."-A communication from
John Mesier Nichols, residing at New York, in the State of New York,
in the United States of America.
Sealed the 21st March 1865, and dated the 29th December 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Henry Leese at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
29th December 1864.
I, ROBERT HENRY LEESE, of the City and State of New York, in the
United States of America, but now residing at Bruges, W. Flanders, Belgium,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "NEW MACHINERY
FOR CUTTING AT ONE OPERATION DOVETAIL AND MITRE JOINTS," to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to the forming of dovetail grooves and tongues
running along the mitred edges of two pieces of wood or other material to be
joined together, and consists in the construction of machinery for this
purpose so arranged that the mitre edges of the two pieces of wood or other
material, and the dovetail groove in the one edge and the dovetail tongue
upon the other edge, are all formed at one and the same operation by a series
of cutting tools made to act consecutively upon the wood, without its being
requisite for that purpose to shift either the piece or pieces of wood or other
material acted upon or the cutting tools.
For this purpose the piece or pieces of wood are held securely in a suitable
frame, whilst a slide beneath or above the same, carried by the said frame, is

page_text: made to travel by any suitable means, such as a screw motion or a rack and
pinion, in the direction in which the mitre edges are to be formed. Upon
this slide are secured, firstly, one or more V-cutters, which cut the mitre edges
simultaneously to the two parts of wood to be joined together; secondly, there
are three cutters, of which two cut away a certain portion from the outer or
acute edge of the one mitre surface, whilst the third cuts away a certain portion
from the inner or obtuse edge of the same surface. Furthermore, the slide
carries three other cutters, of which one cuts the one side of the dovetail
groove in the second mitre surface, another cuts the centre part of such
groove, and the third cuts the other side of the groove. The tools are capable
of adjustment upon the slide so as to cut wider or narrower tongues and grooves,
according to the thickness of the wood, and by making the direction of their
motions parallel with lines drawn through the respective angles of the bottoms
of the grooves and tongues of the various sizes to be cut, one and the same
adjustment of the cutters will cause them to cut both wider or narrower and
proportionately deeper or shallower grooves and tongues. Instead of fixing the
before-mentioned tools upon the slide they may be mounted upon discs
running upon spindles carried by the slide so as to act as rotary cutters, the
said spindles receiving rotary motion by any suitable means. It is preferred
to cut the two mitre surfaces and tongues and grooves out of one and the
same piece of wood, the action of the cutters separating the same into the two
parts required, but two separate pieces of wood with straight butt'edges may
also be employed. The various cutters are, by preference, formed as an arc of
a circle, so as to allow of their following each other more closely than would
otherwise be possible.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Henry Leese in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st June 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
HENRY LEESE, of the City and State of New York, in the United States of
America, but now residing at Bruges, West Flanders, Belgium, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said Robert Henry Leese, Her special licence that I, the said
Robert Henry Leese, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such

page_text: others as I, the said Robert Henry Leese, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to timė
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 "NEW MACHINERY FOR CUTTING AT ONE OPERATION DOVETAIL
AND MITRE JOINTS," a communication to me by John Mesier Nichols,
a person resident at New York, in the State of New York, in the
United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Robert Henry Leese, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 Robert Henry Leese, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings,
and to the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say :-
This Invention relates to the forming of dovetail grooves and tongues
running along the mitred edges of two pieces of wood to be joined together,
and consists in the construction of machinery for this purpose so arranged
that the mitre edges of the two pieces of wood or other material, and the
dovetail groove in the one edge and the dovetail tongue upon the other edge
are all formed at one and the same operation by a series of cutting tools
made to act consecutively upon the wood, without its being requisite for that
purpose to shift either the piece or pieces of wood acted upon, or the cutting
tools.
The Invention also consists in separating the wood, if in one piece, by the
act of forming the dovetail mitres, thereby rendering it unnecessary to saw
asunder previously the pieces of wood on which the dovetail mitres are to be
formed, and consequently avoiding the time and cost of such sawing.
On Sheet 1 of the accompanying Drawings is shewn the arrangement of
the machine employed by preference for carrying this Invention into practice.
Figure 1 shews the dovetail and mitre joint which is to be formed thereby,
namely, the mitre surfaces on the pieces of wood A and B, the dovetail
tongue C, and the dovetail groove D, all cut at one operation; Figure 2
shows a side elevation of the machine; Figure 3 shews an end elevation of

page_text: the same; and Figure 4 shows a plan; Figures 5 to 11 shew in detail
enlarged front views of the various cutters; and Figures 12 and 13 shew
corresponding side views of the same. The same letters and figures of
reference refer to the same parts in each of the Figures.
The framing E is so arranged that the board F to be operated upon can be
slid in from the side between the fixed rails G, G, and the loose bars H, H.
When the wood is in proper position (which is determined by the adjustable
stop I upon the bar J, against which it is pushed), it is nipped firmly between
the rails G and bars H, by the latter being drawn up against its under
surface, which is effected by the lever K pressing with cam surfaces against
the rails G, and with studs L against the under surfaces of two loose rails M, M,
which are connected to the bars H by means of screw bolts N, N, made
adjustable to allow for different thicknesses of wood. Beneath the board F
is a sliding table O, running in grooves formed in the framing E, and receiving
a to-and-fro motion in a manner to be hereafter described. Upon this table
are fixed, in an adjustable manner, the various cutters figured 1 to 14, for
performing the before described operation, which cutters, acting in succession
with a drawing cut when the table is moving in the direction of the arrow,
operate in the following manner :-Cutter No. 1 (colored red), of which
enlarged front and side views are shewn at Figures 5, 12, and 13, is a pre-
paratory V-cutter, for cutting a V-groove in the board, so as to clear the way
somewhat for the V-cutter No. 2 (colored red), shewn at Figure 6. This
cutter, which is by preference formed of two separate blades placed at an angle
and meeting at the apex, separates the board, if in one, into two pieces A and B,
and at the same time forms two bevilled surfaces, of which a is the mitre
surface required for the piece A, in which the dovetail groove D, Figure 1,
has to be cut, whilst so much of the piece B has to be cut away from the
upper and lower edge as will leave only the corresponding dovetail tongue C,
Figure 1, standing, and will at the same time form the mitre surface of that
piece. This last-named operation is now performed by the cutters 3, 4, and 5,
shown at Figure 7, the cutter 3 (colored yellow) operating first as shewn at
Figures 12 and 13, and making an incision corresponding with the one side
surface of the dovetail C, whilst the cutter 4 (coloured blue) cuts one portion
of the mitre surface b, and at the same time clears out the part thereby cut
away. The V-cutter 5 (colored red) at the same time cuts the other side
surface of the tongue C, and the other portion of the mitre surface b. The
cutters 3 and 4 may be made at once to finish off the surfaces upon which
they act, in the same manner as the cutter 5 does, but it is preferred to make
them act as preparatory cutters, and to finish off the surfaces by means of a

page_text: second set of precisely similar cutters 6 and 7, at Figure 8. The groove D is
now formed by the successive action of the cutters 8, 9, and 10, at Figure 9,
the cutter 8 (colored yellow) cutting the one side of the groove, whilst 9
(also colored yellow) cuts the other side, and 10 (colored blue) cuts the
bottom of the groove. In this case, also, it is preferred to make the cutters
8, 9, and 10 act as preparatory cutters, in order conveniently to clear the part.
cut away out of the groove, the finishing cuts upon the three surfaces being
performed by the cutters shewn at Figures 10 and 11, of which the cutter 11
(colored yellow) finishes the one side surface, the cutters 12 and 14 (colored
blue) finish the bottom surface, and the cutter 18 finishes the other side_surface.
In order to make the shavings clear readily out of the groove, it is,
preferred to make the edges of the cutters acting upon the side surfaces
pass beyond the cuts made by the cutter acting upon the bottom surface,.
and vice versa. It will be observed that all the following cutters, 4, 7, 10, 12,
and 14, are curved forward, so that their action may follow closely upon that
of the cutters 3, 6, 9, 11, and 13. The cutters are all held by stocks, which
are adjustable upon the sliding table O, the bolt holes being formed slotted for
that purpose, as shown, so as to allow of the cutters being shifted to cut wider
or narrower grooves and tongues, according as the boards to be acted upon
are thick or thin; and if it is required to make the grooves and tongues at
the same time deeper or shallower; the angle of the surfaces of the table upon
which the respective stocks slide must be constructed as shewn at Figure 14,
where in order to enable the cutter X (shown in red) to cut both the narrow
and shallow groove y in the board Y, and the wide and deep groove z in the
board Z, the surface of the table upon which it slides must be parallel .to
the line a³, passing through the respective angles of the grooves upon which
the cutter acts, and in like manner the surface w upon which the cutter W
slides must be parallel to the line w', passing through the other angles of the
grooves.
The mechanism by which the to-and-fro motion of the table O is obtained
is as follows:-The driving pulley P and shaft Q, carried by the framing E, are
made to revolve continuously in the direction of the arrow. Upon the shaft Q
are two bevil pinions R, R', running loose upon the same, but capable of being
alternately made to revolve with it by means of the .sliding clutches S, S¹,
actuated by the lever T, links U, U', and rocking lever V, in a manner herein-
after described. The pinions R, R', are in gear with the bevil wheel & upon
the shaft e, upon the other end of which is a spur pinion fin gear with a spur
wheel 93 and upon the same shaft h with this are two pinions i, i, in gear with
two racks j, j, fixed to the under side of the sliding table O. From this

page_text: arrangement it will be seen that when the bevil pinion R is made to revolve
with the shaft Q, as shown on the Drawing, it will cause the bevil wheel d to
rotate in the direction of the arrow, and will consequently cause the table O
also to travel in the direction in which the cutters operate on the board F,
whilst if the pinion R' is made to revolve with the shaft Q, the wheel & will
revolve in the reverse direction, and the table O will be drawn back pre-
paratory to another operation. As the return motion of the table may take
place at a quicker speed than the forward motion, the pinion R¹ is made of
larger diameter than the pinion R. To render the machine self-acting as far
as regards the reciprocating motion of the table, two studs k, k, are fixed upon
the same, so as to act in contrary directions upon the clutch lever T when the
table is arriving at end forward or end return motion, and thereby to throw
the clutch S or the clutch S' out of gear, and the other one in gear. Thus, in
Figures 2 and 4, the table is shown just arriving at end forward motion, and
the stud k is just about to cause the lever T to throw the clutch S out of gear,
and the clutch S' in gear. In order to obtain a rapid and precise motion of
the clutches, and to cause them to be held securely in and out of gear, the
links U, U', are provided with loops, in which work two studs 1, 1, upon the
rocking lever V; this lever rocks upon a fulcrum at v, and its upper end is
so attached by means of a link m to a spring n, that if a slight motion is
imparted to it in the one direction or the other, the action of the spring at
once throws it over to the extreme position on the one side or the other, and
will keep it there until it is pushed over in the contrary direction. Thus, in
the present case, the lever T in pushing the clutch S¹ in gear will cause the
link U' to throw the lever V over into the opposite position to that indicated,
whereby the stud 7 of the latter will move the link U and throw the clutch S
out of gear; is a catch for holding the lever V in a vertical position, so as
to keep both clutches S, S', out of gear when the machine is not at work.
It will be evident that various other contrivances may be adopted for
imparting the requisite to-and-fro motion to the table O. Thus, instead of the
rack and pinion, a revolving screw may be employed, or any of the various
arrangements may be adopted that are employed for imparting the re-
ciprocating motion to the beds of planing machinery, and other, machinery
of a similar description.
The arrangement, form, and mode of action of the cutters before described
may also be variously modified without departing from the nature of this
Invention. Thus, instead of forming and arranging the cutters so as to cut
the right angle mitre joint shown at Figure 1, it will be evident that the
angle at which they act upon the wood may be increased or reduced, so as to

page_text: cut an obtuse or an acute angled mitre joint, as the case may require. Also,
instead of arranging them as fixed cutters acting with a drawing cut, as
before described, they may, when employed for large work, be arranged as
rotary cutters. Such an arrangement of the cutters is shewn on Sheet II. of
the accompanying Drawings.
Figure 15 shews a side elevation of the machine; Figure 16 shews a
transverse section; Figures 17, 18, and 19 shew enlarged detached views of
the cutter disc A; Figures 20 and 21 shew an enlarged plan and side eleva-
tion of the cutter disc B; and Figures 22 and 23 shew an enlarged plan and
side elevation of the cutter disc C; and Figure 24 shews a Diagram of the
paths in which the various cutters act. The detached views of the cutter
discs B and C are enlarged to twice the scale of cutter disc A, in order to
shew their form more distinctly.
The arrangement of the framing E, mode of securing the board F, and the
mechanism for imparting motion to the sliding table O are the same as
described with reference to the first arrangement, they are, therefore, partly
omitted for the sake of clearness, and need not be further described. The to-
and-fro motion of the table O may, as herein-before stated with reference to
the first arrangement, be obtained by a revolving screw, or by other known
means, instead of by racks and pinions. The rotary cutters act as in the fixed
cutter arrangement, when the table O is travelling in the direction of the
arrow.
Their arrangement and mode of action will be readily understood on
reference to the Diagram, Figure 24, and the detail views of the cutters at
Figures 17 to 23. The cutter disc A carries four pairs of cutters a, b, c, d, of
which a and b revolve in the paths colored respectively red and yellow in
Figure 24, (the cutters upon the disc being colored in a corresponding
manner, whilst the cutting edges have a darker tint,) and are made to cut the
mitre surfaces a¹, 61, on the board, and correspond in their action with the
V-cutter 2 in the preceding arrangement. The cutter c (colored green) cuts
the mitre surface c² and the side c³ of the tongue, whilst the cutter d (colored
blue) cuts the side d¹ of the groove and a portion of its bottom surface.
The cutter disc B carries a pair of cutters (colored brown) having each
two cutting edges e and f, which cut respectively the mitre surface e¹ and the
other side f¹ of the tongue.
Lastly, the cutter disc C has a pair of cutters (colored black) having
cutting edges g and h, which cut the other side h¹ of the groove and the
remaining portion of the bottom surface. If required there may be in this
arrangement, as in the foregoing one, a duplicate set of all the cutters, the

page_text: one set being preparatory cutters and the other finishing cutters. The requi-
site rapid rotary motion in the direction of the arrows is imparted to the
cutter discs whilst the table O is performing its forward motion in the fol-
lowing manner :-Upon the end of the driving shaft Q is a bevil wheel 1,
which imparts motion in the direction of the arrow to the small bevil pinion 2.
Upon the same spindle with this is the spur wheel 3, which is in gear with
the spur pinion 4, and upon the same spindle with the latter is the grooved
pulley 5, which consequently revolves in the direction of the arrow. An
endless gut or band 6 passes first round this pulley, then round another one 7
at. the other end of the machine, and in returning is wrapped round the
grooved pulley 8 on the spindle 9 of the cutter disc A, to which consequently
a high speed in the direction of the arrow is imparted.
The motion for the cutter discs B and C are obtained from the spindle of
the disc A by means of guts 10 and 11 passing round a double grooved pulley
17 on the spindle 9, and round pulleys 12 and 13 on the spindles 14, 15, to
these discs, a guide pulley 16 being provided to the gut 11 on account of the
oblique position of the pulley 13. The rotary motion of the disc A may also
be obtained by means of a revolving shaft carrying a bevil pinion travelling
with the table, and in gear with another pinion on the spindle 9.
Although it is preferred so to arrange the cutters in both the before-
described machines that at the same time that they cut the mitre surfaces
they also separate the board into the two parts required, thereby avoiding the
necessity of previously sawing the board in two, yet it will be evident that
the same operation may be performed upon two separate pieces of wood. The
cutters are, in that case, arranged either to operate in the same manner as
above described, or the edges of the wood to be acted upon, and consequently
also the respective cutters, may be placed some distance apart instead of close
together..
It will also be evident that two or more sets of cutters, as before described,
may be arranged side by side upon one and the same sliding table, so as to
cut two or more such before-described mitre and dovetail joints at one
operation.
Having now described the nature of this Invention, and the manner in
which it is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit
myself to the precise details, form, and arrangement of the framing, cutters,
and mechanism for imparting motion thereto, as herein-before described with
reference to the accompanying Drawings, as these may obviously be modified
in various ways without departing from the nature of the Invention; nor do I
claim any of the various details, when considered separate and apart from the

page_text: combination thereof for the purposes described, as forming any part of the
Invention claimed by me under the herein-before mentioned Letters Patent,
nor do I claim generally forming longitudinal dovetail grooves and tongues
upon the mitred edges of two pieces of wood to be joined together, as I am
well aware that such longitudinal grooves and tongues have already been
formed by separate operations upon two pieces of wood to be joined together;
nor do I claim generally the arrangement of machinery for forming at one
and the same operation dovetail tennons and mortices on two pieces of wood
to be joined together, as I am aware that such an arrangement has been
described in the Specification to certain Letters Patent granted to H. W.
Wimshurst, bearing date the 21st November 1855, No. 2628; but what I
claim is,
First, constructing and using machinery for cutting dovetail and mitre
joints, in which the two mitre surfaces and the dovetail tongue upon one
such surface, and the dovetail groove in the other such surface, are all formed
at one operation by a series of cutters acting either with a drawing cut or as
rotary cutters.
Second, so arranging machinery for cutting dovetail and mitre joints that
at one and the same operation the wood is separated into two parts, and a
mitre surface with a dovetail groove running along it is formed upon the one
part, and a mitre surface with a dovetail tongue running along it is formed
upon the other part.
Third, the general arrangement of machinery for cutting mitre and dovetail
joints herein-before described with reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth, so arranging the cutters in an adjustable manner, as indicated in
Figure 14 of the accompanying Drawings, that they may be made to cut
either narrow and shallow grooves and tongues, or wide and deep grooves and
tongues, according to the thickness of the wood to be acted upon.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Henry Leese, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
ROBERT HENRY LEESE (1.0)
ROBERT HENRY LEESE (TO)