IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING AND POLISHING GLASS, STONE, METAL, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman,
for the Invention of "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING AND POLISHING
GLASS, STONE, METAL, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."-A communication.
Sealed the 2nd August 1858, and dated the 25th February 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton-
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the.
25th February 1858.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
5 in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING AND
POLISHING GLASS, STONE, METAL, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a certain method of producing a compound rotary
motion, either of the grinding and polishing surface or surfaces, or of the
surface or surfaces being ground or polished through the agency of friction,
and a simple rotary motion that is imparted to the opposed surface or surfaces,
whereby an almost infinite permutation is produced between the different
points of the contact surfaces, and hence the grinding or polishing is enabled
to be performed with a high degree of perfection.
The means preferred by the Inventor for attaining this object may be thus

page_text: described-A horizontal table, mounted on a central shaft (connected by
gearing to suitable motive power mechanism), is used to receive the plates or
slabs to be ground, and transmit by friction of contact rotary motion to the
grinding or polishing surfaces. Above the table a stationary cruciform frame
is mounted, it being supported at its extremities by standards, two of which
form supports for two adjustable slotted bars. The slotted ends of these bars
receive binding nuts, which pass through slots in the cruciform frame, and
hold them fast thereto. Each adjustable bar is provided with a pendent fixed
spindle, which carries a swivel frame or disc furnished with three such spindles
set at equal distances apart. Upon these spindles are loosely mounted the
grinding or polishing surfaces, which are free to oscillate slightly, and are
capable of very nice adjustment to bring them up to their work. The under
side of these polishers may be formed so that only an annular portion is
brought into action, thus diminishing the friction, but retaining the efficiency
of their action. By this arrangement a nearly infinite permutation is obtained
between the points of contact of the polishing surfaces and the surfaces sub-
jected to their action.
SPECIFICATION-in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 25th August 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight -hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Alfred Vincent Newton, Her special license that I, the said Alfred
Vincent Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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
IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING AND POLISHING GLASS, STONE, METAL,
AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," being a communication from abroad, upon the

page_text: condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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 Sea!
Patent Office, within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-
This Invention, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, relates
to a certain method of producing a compound rotary motion either of the
grinding and polishing surface or surfaces, or of the surface or surfaces being
ground or polished through the agency of friction, and a simple rotary motion
that is imparted to the opposed surface or surfaces, whereby an almost infinite
permutation is produced between the different points of the surfaces that are
brought into contact, and hence the grinding or polishing is enabled to be
performed with a high degree of perfection.
The Invention is illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, in which Fig. 1
is a central vertical section of a grinding and polishing machine constructed
according to the Invention; Fig. 2 is a plan of the same; Fig. 3 is a vertical
section of a portion of the same; and Figures 4 and 5 are face views of a
grinder and polisher. Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in the several Figures.
A, H, I, J, indicate the framing of the machine of timber or metal containing
bearings for the central upright shaft B which supports the horizontal table C.
This table, which may be of wood or metal, carries the plates, slabs, or other
articles to be polished indicated by a, a, in Figures 1, the same being set in a
bed of plaster of Paris. The shaft B receives motion through bevil wheels
D, E, from a horizontal driving shaft F, which is fitted to suitable bearings in
the lower part of the framing, and receives rotary motion from any suitable
motive agency.
G is a strong beam of timber or iron arranged to swing horizontally on one
of the corner posts H, H, of the framing, and formed with a longitudinal
vertical slot b, through which passes a screw bolt c, which also passes through
a slot d, in the top part I of the framing. The slots b and d permit a con-
siderable swinging motion of the beam G, and the screw bolt c, which is
provided with a head and nut, serves to secure the beam in any desired

page_text: position to the top part I of the framing; K. is an upright spindle having a
screw thread on its upper part. This spindle passes through the beam G, and
is provided with a nut e above, and another f below the beam, for the purpose of
securing it thereto, and adjusting it higher or lower. The lower end of the
spindle is made with a strong shoulder all round it, as shewn at n, n, in Fig. 3,
to support a circular plate L, which is bored out centrally to fit loosely to the
spindle K, so that it may be capable of rotating easily on the spindle as well
as of rocking to some extent. The circular plate L has rigidly secured to it
at equal distances apart, and at equal distances from its own centre, three pins
9.9.9, which are constructed with shoulders 6, 6, at the bottom, as shown in
Fig. 3, and which constitute axles for three discs M, M, M, which are made
wholly of metal or with metal centres, and are bored out centrally to fit loosely
on the pins in such a way as to turn easily thereon, as well as to rock to some
extent. These discs M, M, which are the grinders or polishers, rest upon the
surface of the material a, a, to be ground or polished. The whole circular
areas of the under sides of these discs may be employed as grinding or polishing
surfaces; but it is found preferable to construct the discs with annular grinding
or polishing surfaces, as shewn in Fig. 4, and indicated by h, h, in that Figure
and in Fig. 3; such surfaces projecting below the marginal portions of the
dises; or instead of annular surfaces, surfaces like that shewn at Fig. 5,
indicated by i, i, or of any other form, may be used. The machine may be
constructed with one or more sets of grinders or polishers, each set fitted to
axles secured in a circular plate L suspended from a beam K. Instead,
however, of employing circular plates L, skeleton frames L', like those shewn
in Figures 1 and 2 attached to the beam G¹, which is a counterpart of G and
árranged and secured in a similar manner to G, may be employed; such frames
consisting each of a hub and arms, the hub being bored out to fit a spindle
K secured by nuts e¹ and f¹, in the beam G', and the arms carrying pins 9', 9',
like those g, g, in the plates L, serving for the axles of grinders or polishers
M', M', like M, M. Each plate L, or frame L', may have attached to it any
number of grinders or polishers, and the machine may have any number of
plates L, or frames L', suspended each from a separate beam arranged like
G or G¹. The grinders or polishers may be composed of or have their
faces composed of such substances as are commonly used for grinding or
polishing surfaces according to the nature of the substance to be ground or
polished, and the nature of the grinding or polishing substance to be used.
The operation of the machine above described is as follows:-Rotary
motion being imparted to the driving shaft F, the same is transmitted by the
bevil gearing D, E, to the shaft B and table C; and the plates, or slabs, or

page_text: other articles a, a, to be ground or polished; and the friction between the
surfaces of these latter, and the surfaces of the grinders or polishers, causes
the latter to rotate upon their axes 9, 9, or g¹, g¹, and also causes the plates or
frames L or L' to rotate on the spindles K, K', thus imparting to the grinders
or polishers the compound rotary motion known as the "sun and planet"
motion, which motion, combined with the rotary motion of the table C, causes
a more nearly infinite permutation between the grinding or polishing surfaces
and those to be ground or polished than has ever before been produced in any
grinding or polishing machinery, and therefore produces a more uniformly
smooth or polished surface. In operating with this machine any of the known
grinding or polishing materials may be used, such as sand, emery, rouge;
Venetian pink, &c., and these may be supplied between the surfaces of the
grinders or polishers and the surfaces to be ground or polished by any known
or suitable means. The permutation may be still further increased by substi-
tuting plates like L, or frames like L', for the grinders or polishers represented;
and by fitting these plates or frames with axles like g', g', for the grinders or
polishers to rotate upon; by which arrangement, a triple rotary motion, that
may be termed a "sun, planet, and satellite" motion of the grinders or
polishers is produced.
This Invention is capable of the following modification, to wit:-A grinder
or polisher may be arranged and operated like the table A represented, and
the articles to be polished have the arrangement described for the grinders or
polishers, by which modification the same relative motions of the grinding
and polishing surface and the surface to be ground or polished are obtained.
The arrangement first described and represented in the Drawing will however
be found the best, more especially for polishing, as by the slight rocking motion
that is permitted to the polishers by the looseness of the fitting of the spindles
K, K', to the plates or frames L, L', and of the axles g, g¹, to the polishers;
the machine is enabled easily to polish surfaces which are not quite level, as,
for example, the surfaces of what is known as German plate glass.
Having now set forth the nature of the Invention of "Improved Machinery
for Grinding and Polishing Glass, Stone, Metal, and other Substances," as
communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, I wish it to be understood
that I do not claim producing a simple rotary motion of grinders or polishers,
or of the surfaces to be ground or polished by the friction produced by the
rotation of the opposed surface or surfaces; but what I claim under the above
in part recited Letters Patent, is, the arrangement of the grinders or polishers
substantially as herein specified, whereby they are caused to derive a com-
pound rotary motion, such as is herein specified, by the friction produced upon

page_text: them by the rotary motion of the surface or surfaces to be ground or polished,
or what is equivalent, the reverse arrangement, by which the surface or surfaces
to be ground or polished are caused to derive a similar compound rotary
motion by the friction produced by a rotary motion of the grinding or polishing
surface.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Twenty-fifth day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.S.)