IMPROVE- MENTS IN LAWN-MOWING MACHINES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Baynes, of Downshire Hill, Hampstead, in
the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN LAWN-MOWING MACHINES."
Sealed the 19th April 1861, and dated the 23rd October 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Baynes at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
23rd October 1860.
I, ROBERT BAYNES, of Downshire Hill, Hampstead, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAWN-MOWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
Lawn-mowing machines, it is well understood, have rotating cutters operating
in combination with a stationary cutting blade or blades, the rotating motion
of the cutters being derived from the roller or wheels on which the machine
is carried, that, therefore, the rate of motion of the cutter is dependant on the
travelling motion of the machine. Now, my Invention consists in arranging
these machines in such manner that the rotating motion of the cutter shall be
altogether independent of the travelling motion, whereby I am enabled to
impart a rapid rotating motion to the cutters, while the machine has only a
slow travelling motion, or it may be stationary at the time, & on the contrary,
the travelling motion of the machine may be quick while the rotating motion
of the cutter is slow, or even at rest. For this purpose I arrange the apparatus
so as to drive the rotating cutter by means of a winch handle & shaft arranged
at the upper part of the machine at a convenient height for driving, & com-

page_text: municating the motion to the rotating cutter by means of an endless band or
strap passing over suitable pullies; or it may be by spur or bevil gearing, &
shafts, or by cranks, or otherwise. By this means the operator propels the
machine by one hand & drives the cutters with the other.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Baynes in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
23rd April 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
BAYNES, of Downshire Hill, Hampstead, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Robert Baynes, Her special licence that I, the said Robert Baynes, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Robert
Baynes, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAWN-
MOWING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Robert Baynes, 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 Baynes, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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 Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
Lawn-mowing machines, it is well understood, have rotary cutters operating
in combination with a stationary cutting blade or blades, the rotary motion of
the cutters being derived from the roller or wheels on which the machine is

page_text: carried that, therefore, the rate of motion of the cutter is dependent on the
travelling motion of the machine and the combination of the gear by which
they are connected. Now, my Invention consists in arranging these machines
in such manner that the rotary motion of the cutter shall be altogether
independent of the travelling motion of the machine, whereby I am enabled to
impart a rapid rotating motion to the cutters while the machine has only a
slow travelling motion, or it may be altogether stationary at the time, & on
the contrary, the travelling motion of the machine may be quick, while the
rotatory motion of the cutter is slow, or even at rest. For this purpose I
arrange the apparatus so as to drive the rotary cutter by means of a winch
handle communicating motion to a pulley or shaft arranged at the upper part
of the machine at a convenient height for driving and communicating the
motion to the rotary cutter by means of an endless band or strap passing over
suitable pullies, or it may be by spur or bevil gearing and shafts, or by cranks,
or otherwise. By this means the operator propels the machine by one hand
& drives the cutters with the other, at same time regulating the rate of
travelling to the rate at which he may be driving the cutter.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS. .
Fig. 1 of the Sheet of Drawings annexed represents a perspective view of
a machine arranged according to my Invention. I have represented this
machine as being mounted on three wheels, but a roller of greater or less
breadth may be substituted for the two hind wheels, which renders it more
suitable for cutting borders, or with the cutters partially overhanging the edge
of the grass. This roller is separately represented at Fig. 2, and may be
changed at pleasure.
a, a, is the rotary helical cutter, and 6 the straight one, which are precisely
as in ordinary machines, and, therefore, require no, description; they are fitted
in iron side frames c, c, mounted on the wheels d, d, as before mentioned,
which frames are braced together by suitable stretchers or intermediate
bracings, the one in front being bent downwards, and carrying a boss in the
middle to receive an upright stem e of the leading wheel; the stem e slides
through the boss, and is readily fixed by a binding screw, the distance of the
cutters a & 6 from the ground is thus readily adjusted to any required height
according to the length of the grass. I connect the rear of the frame c, c, by
a wooden stretcher, which forms a hand-hold whereby to propel the machine,
which must be done with one hand, the other being employed in giving motion
to the rotary cutter. For this purpose I mount a band pulley g on the axis
of the rotary cutter, and also another band pulley h on a stud i fixed to the

page_text: side frame c. The pulley h is made of larger diameter than g, in proportion
to the rate of speed at which it is desired to drive the cutter, and I com-
municate the motion from h to ġ by means of a gutta percha or other suitable
band k. The stud i fixes by means of a screw &. thumb nut in a slot in the
frame c, so that it may be approached towards or removed farther from the
pulley g, in order to tighten the band k when required. According to this
arrangement of machine it will be seen that the rotary cutter a is entirely
independent of the travelling motion of the machine, and that the rotary
cutter may be rotated rapidly while the machine is propelled slowly over the
ground, which is readily performed, and the machine guided by the one hand
while the cutter a is driven by the other, as described, and, therefore, grass
plats, lawns, &c., are easily and effectually mown. I is a box to receive the
cut grass, as now ordinarily adopted in lawn-mowing machines. Instead of
driving the cutter a by a band, the stud wheel h may be a bevil wheel gearing
with a pinion fixed on a shaft extending to the axis of the rotary cutter a,
with which it communicates by means of bevil pinions, as will be readily
understood; or, instead of bevil gear, the motion may be communicated by
cranks and connecting rods, for which purpose I carry the hand driving shaft
across the frames c, c, and apply a crank at each end set at right angles to
each other, which communicate with the rotary cutter by connecting rods and
cranks thereon similarly disposed.
Having described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, I declare that what I claim as my Invention to be protected by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, communicating motion to the
rotary cutters of lawn-mowing machines in manner distinct and independent
of the travelling motion of those machines over the ground, for the purpose
and as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Baynes, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Witness,
W. CLARK, Patent Agent,
53, Chancery Lane, London.
ROBT. BAYNES. (L.S.)