CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU- FACTURE OF NAILS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS TO BE USED FOR SUCH PURPOSES
Year: 1845

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ELISHA
HAYDON COLLIER, of Goldsworthy Terrace, Rotherhithe, in the County of
Surrey, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Eleventh day of September, One thousand eight hundred
and forty-five, in the ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs
and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Elisha Haydon Collier, my
exors, admors, and assigns, Her special licence, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that I, the said Elisha Haydon Collier, my exors, adiñors, and
assigns, and such others as I, the said Elisha Haydon Collier, my exors,
admors, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time and at all times thereafter during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in the Islands of Jersey,
Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and
Plantations abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF NAILS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS TO BE USED FOR SUCH
PURPOSES;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me,
the said Elisha Haydon Collier, to particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, and cause the same

page_text: to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereto had, will more fully
and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Elisha Haydon Collier, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed and carried into practical
effect, to be as the same are described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the illustrative Drawing hereunto
annexed, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon, that is to
say:
My Invention of Certain Improvements in the Manufacture of Nails, and
in the Machinery or Apparatus to be used for such Purposes, consists in the
application to the manufacture of nails of certain new mechanical combinations
and arrangements of parts, constituting machines or apparatus whereby perfect
nails of any size can be made by one and the same apparatus, without the
necessity of passing the metal of which the nails are to be formed through
several distinct and separate machines and processes, as heretofore practiced;
whereby also certain finishing processes in the manufacture of nails may be
performed with great convenience.
My Invention also consists in an improvement in the manufacture of nails
by passing the plates of metal out of which the nails are to be made, the grain
thereof being parallel to the axis of the rollers, or transverse to the direction in
which the plate of metal is passed, and by using for the above purpose plates
of metal composed of bars, laid side by side, and welded together.
And in order that the improvement lastly referred to may be properly under-
stood I would remark that, in rolling plates of metal of which nails have to be
formed it has hitherto been customary to pass the metal in a heated state
through and between drawing rollers capable of adjustment in a vertical direc-
tion, in accordance with the required thickness of the plate, the grain of the
metal being in the direction of the length of the plate, and the nails being
formed crosswise of the grain, in consequence whereof the nails are liable to
break in clenching or turning the points thereof; now to remedy this objection
I propose two modes of treating the plate of metal.
First, I take the plate of metal, after it has been rolled in the ordinary
manner to the required thickness, and I place it, in a heated state, according to
the nature and quality of the metal, between rollers peculiarly formed, as here-
after fully described and represented, taking care that the grain of the metal is
in the direction of the axes of the drawing rollers.

page_text: weld together bars of metal placed side by side, and afterwards
form them into a plate by rolling, in such manner that the grain of the metal
extends crosswise of the plate instead of lengthwise. And I employ metal
plates so made in the manufacture of nails.
5 And in order to explain my said Invention as completely as possible, I will
proceed to describe the mechanical combinations and arrangements of parts
which I consider best calculated for carrying my said Invention into practical
effect.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
The Figure 1 represents a top plan view of a machine or apparatus for
producing nails in a finished state from a plate of metal. Figure 2 is a
side elevation of the machine. Figure 3 is an end elevation; and Figure 3*,
line D, E, at Figure 3, of one of the pairs of
rollers herein-after mentioned and referred to.
a vertical section through the
Figure 4 is an end view, and Figure 5 a side view, of a pair of slitting
rollers, hereafter referred to.
Figure 6 is an elevation of the gearing or wheelwork shewn in plan view at
Figure 1.
Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, exhibit several views of a vertical reciprocating cutter
for separating one nail from another after it has been formed. Figure 7 is a
top plan view, and Figure 8 an end elevation, at A. Figure 9 is a side eleva-
tion of the cutter. Figure 10, an end elevation, at B.
The Figures 11, 12, 13, exhibit three views of a heading machine.
Figure 11 is a transverse and vertical section taken through the line C, D, at
Figure 12. Figure 12 is a top plan view of the machine. Figure 13 is a
longitudinal and vertical section of the machine, taken through the line A, B,.
at Figure 12.
The Figures 14 and 15 exhibit two views of a pair of rollers, having grooves
formed around their peripheries. Figure 14 is a side elevation, and Figure 15
an end elevation, of the said rollers.
Figure 15 exhibits a Diagram illustrative of the mode of cross piling, or
arranging the bars of metal of which the plate has to be formed.
The Figure 16 exhibits a top plan view, and Figure 17 a side elevation, of
a feeding apparatus.
The Figure 18 exhibits a side elevation of a rotary cutter attached to the
eeding apparatus. Figure 19 is an end view of the cutter.
The Figure 20 exhibits a side elevation of a pair of shears or cutters of
eculiar construction, as herein-after mentioned.

page_text: Similar letters of reference are placed upon and denote corresponding parts,
in so far as such parts appear or can be seen at each of the Figures
respectively.
At the Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, A, A, marks a piece of timber or foundation
plate, to which are fixed the standards B, B, B, which are constructed with
suitable bearings to receive the axes of the rollers C, D, E, and C¹, D¹, E',
which revolve freely therein; the upper rollers C, D, E, are adjusted to the
required distance from the lower rollers C, D, E, by screws and nutts F, F, F.
G, H, I, mark three spur wheels of corresponding diameters gearing into each
other, and mounted upon one end of each of the axes of the rollers C¹ D, E',
as shewn at Figures 1 and 6, for the purpose of imparting motion to the said
rollers by means of a band passing over a pulley K keyed upon the same axis
as the wheel D, motion being imparted to the said band by any suitable prime
mover. The drawing rollers C, C', are turned perfectly cylindrical and of
equal diameters, and their surfaces smooth. The rollers D, D', are likewise
formed equal in size, and have grooves a, a, cut across their surfaces, as
shewn at Figures 1, 2, and 3; and in order that these grooves should be
coincident during the revolutions of these rollers, I fix spur wheels L, L', upon
the ends of the axes of these rollers, as shewn at Figures 1, 3, 6. E marks a
cylindrical roller having grooves or recesses b, b, turned in its periphery, as
shewn at Figure 4, into which the series of annular cutters M, M, fit; these
cutters are arranged or disposed upon the axis of the roller E¹, in the usual
manner of arranging rotary cutters employed for other purposes. N marks a
table upon which the heated piece of metal to be operated upon is placed, and
by which it is directed in its proper course through and between the
rollers C, C, D, D', and E, E¹. O marks a fly-wheel mounted upon one end
of the axis of the roller D for equalizing the motion of the machine or
apparatus.
The operations of this machine are as follow:-Upon motion being given to
the spur wheel H by the agency of the pulley K and band passing around
it, this wheel will impart motion to the spur wheels G and I, and thereby
produce rotary motion of the rollers C, D, D¹, E', in the direction denoted by
the arrows at Figure 2. Now it will appear evident, that, if the edge of th
piece of metal P, which is to be rolled into a plate of the required thickness t
form the nail, be placed on the table N and forced against the drawing
rollers C, C¹, it will be wedged between them and rolled to the required thick
ness, the motion of the rollers advancing it at the same time towards an
between the grooved heading and pointing rollers D, D', in the direction
the arrows, by which the head and point of the nail are produced; and th

page_text: rotation of these rollers, as also the rollers C, C¹, will advance the plate of metal
thus operated upon towards and between the splitting rollers or cutters E, E, 1,
whereby the plate of metal will be divided or split in the direction of its length,
and complete the shape of the nail; and by dividing the peripheries of the
grooved heading and pointing rollers D, D¹, at equal distances asunder it will
appear evident that the point c of the rollers D, D¹ shewn at Figure 3*, which
forms the top of the head of one nail, or row of nails, will likewise form the
point or points of the next nail or row of nails, and thus, as the several rollers
continue to revolve will be produced a succession of rows of perfect nails,
which may be readily separated from each other by a pair of shears or other
convenient means. I would remark, that the distances which the grooves a, a,
upon the rollers D, D', are asunder, as also the size of the rollers, will depend
upon the size of the nails to be formed, and must be constructed accordingly.
At the Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, A, A, marks a piece of timber or foundation plate
to which are fixed the standards or framing B, B. C marks a lever of the
first order, having its fulcrum upon a pin D passed through the framing B₁, as
shewn; to one end of this lever a piece of metal E is attached by a pin F
passed through it and the lever C, and to the lower end of the piece E there
is fixed a steel cutter G, serrated or notched, shewn at d, d, Figure 8; and in
a vertical line with this cutter there is another and similar cutter G', fixed
to the piece 9, placed transverse of the foundation plate A, such cutter being
capable of adjustment as regards the cutter G by means of screws and nutts H.
I marks a three-throw crank or cam, whose fulcrum is upon an axis 7; this
crank or cam is furnished with antifriction rollers 1, 2, 3, mounted upon
pins 4, 5, 6, which are the fulcra thereof. K, K, mark pieces of metal
screwed or otherwise fixed against the front A of the standard or framing B¹,
which is constructed with recesses L, L, shewn at Figure 7, for preserving the
vertical movement of the cutter G. M marks a table, upon which is to be
placed the metal to be operated upon. N is a fly-wheel for equalizing
the motion of the machine, and O marks a pulley fixed upon the axis 7, over
which pulley passes a band for imparting motion thereto by any suitable prime
mover.
The operations of this machine are as follow:-Suppose the plate of metal
which has been rolled and pressed into the shape shewn at Figure (1), to
be placed upon the table M, with the heads and points of the nails laid trans-
verse of the table and between the cutters G, G', and the crank or cam to be in
the position shewn at Figure 9; motion being imparted to the said crank or
cam through the agency of the pulley O and band, will cause one or other
of the antifriction rollers 1, 2, 3, to be brought into contact with the projec-

page_text: tion 8 formed upon the under side of the lever C, whereby this end will be
raised, and the opposite end, together with the cutter G, which is connected
thereto, will be depressed, and thereby cut off a strip of metal equal, or nearly
so, to the thickness of the plate, which thickness will be determined by adjust-
ing screws or stops attached at the points 1, 2, at Figure 7 and 9, to the
part E which carries the cutter G. And I would remark, that the peculiar
feature in this machine is the constructing or forming of the edges of the
cutters serrated or notched, whereby the head of the nail is not injured, as is
the case with the shears commonly used for that purpose. At the Figures 11,
12, 13, A, A, marks a piece of wood or foundation plate upon which is fixed
the standards B, B, for supporting the framing C, C. D, D, marks a shaft
placed crosswise of the framing, which is constructed with suitable bearings to
receive it. Upon one end of the shaft D there is fixed a pulley D³, shewn at
Figure 12, over which a band passes for imparting motion thereto; upon the
opposite end of the said shaft there is keyed a fly-wheel E, for equalizing
the motion of the machine. And upon another part of this same shaft there is
fixed a notch wheel or cam F, having projections G, G, G, formed upon
and around its periphery. H, H, marks a square slide of metal working
through guide holes formed in the pieces H, which are fixed to the inner
sides of the framing, as shewn at Figure 12. At one end of the slide H there
is an antifriction roller K, and at the other end there is inserted a punch or
matrix L. At Figure 11, M marks a piece of metal, into which are inserted
dies 1, 2, which have an angular groove formed in each to embrace the angles
of the nails which they are destined to hold, as hereafter described. N marks
a notched wheel or cam similar to that shewn at F, fixed upon a shaft O,
mounted and working in bearings in the frame C; and the cam N, as it rotates,
presses against the antifriction roller P placed in the piece M, as shewn at
Figure 11. Q marks a pully fixed upon the shaft O, over which a band
passes for imparting motion to the same by any suitable prime mover. R
marks a C-shape spring, one part of which takes its abutment against the
guide piece (I), and the other part against the projection 3 upon the slide H.
S marks a spring attached to the framing, as shewn, which spring is for the
purpose of opening the dies 1, 2, as shewn at Figure 11. The operations of
this heading machine are as follow:-Motion being imparted to the pulley Q
through the agency of the bund and prime mover, will cause rotation of the
notched wheel or cam N, which presses against the piece M containing the
die 2, such die at the commencement of the operation being forced from the
die 1 by the spring S, as shewn at Figure 11; the blank or wedge-shaped
piece of metal previously rolled into this form being introduced by any con-

page_text: venient means into a V-shaped recess or guide formed in a piece of metal
placed in front of the dies, will be conducted between the dies 1 and 2, and as
the cam wheel N rotates, the die 2 will squeeze or clip the blank; at the same
time the rotation of the cam F acting against the antifriction roller K, will
cause the slide H, together with the punch or matrix L, to be forced forwards
in the direction of the arrow shewn at Figure 12, which will have the effect of
upsetting as much of that portion of the blank as projects beyond that face of
the dies 1, 2, between them and the punch or matrix L, whereby the head
of the nail will be formed; and this mode of proceeding will be repeated for
each fresh blank introduced to be headed. At the Figures 14 and 15 it will
be seen that the rollers employed for forming the nail have the grooves or
channels marked a, a, for producing the head and point of the nail formed
around the rollers D, D¹, instead of crosswise, as shewn at Figures 1, 2, 8; and
instead of the rollers being parallel throughout their length, they are turned
taper between the points 1, 2, as shewn at Figure 14, so that when the larger
diameters are in close contact, they will produce a perfect nail of the shape
shewn. It should be observed that the plate of metal from which the nails
have to be formed is first rolled to the required thickness in the ordinary
manner; and in order that the grain of the metal should be lengthwise of the
nail, the plate must either be rolled across the width of the plate, as denoted
by the red lines 1 at Figure 15*, or the bars of metal of which the plate is to
be formed must be cross piled, or laid with the grain in the direction of the red
lines 1 at Figure 15*; and the plate of metal thus treated or produced is
placed between the rollers D, D¹, with the grain of the metal in the direction
of the length of the rollers, which, as they are caused to revolve by the agency
of a band or strap passing over the pulley K for imparting motion to it, will
advance the plate through and between the rollers, and press it into the form
shewn at 3, 3, Figure 14, after which it is divided into strips by either of the
machines shewn at the Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, which com-
pletes the nail, a very slight effort being required to separate the nails from
each other.
At the Figures 16, 17, 18, 19, A, A, marks a piece of wood or foundation
plate, upon which are fixed the standards B, B', the upper parts of which are
constructed with bearings, in which the axes C of the rollers D, D, and the
ends of the shaft E revolve. F, F, mark endless chains passing over the
rollers D, D, the said chains being connected together by cross bars 1, 2.
G, G, marks a broad wheel mounted upon the shaft E; and across and about
the periphery of this wheel cutters H, H, are arranged or disposed, and con-
nected thereto by bolts and nutts, as shewn. I, I, marks a fixed cutter placed

page_text: in the upright K, such cutter being capable of adjustment so as to allow the
cutters H, H, to clear it. L marks a fly-wheel fixed upon one end of the
shaft E for equalizing the motion of the machine; upon the other end of the
shaft E there are fixed pullies M, M, over which a band or strap 4 passes,
keyed upon the axes C¹ of the roller D, and over the pulley 5, for imparting
motion to them. N marks a table to support that end of the plate which has
to be operated upon. O is a guide plate. P, P, marks springs fixed to a cross
piece Q, which are attached to the chains F, F, as shewn. The operations of
this machine are as follow:-Suppose the plate of metal which has to be
operated upon to be placed upon the chains F, F, with the heads and points
of the nails crosswise thereof, as shewn by the dart at Figure 16, and one end
of the plate to be in contact with the spring P, it will appear evident that
upon motion being imparted to the pullies M and 5, they will advance the
plate towards and between the cutters H and I, and the other end of the plate
pressing against the periphery R of the wheel G will arrest it, when the
rotation of the wheel will bring the cutters successively into contact with the
metal plate, and thereby divide it into strips. It should be observed that
the spring P is for the purpose of pressing the plate against the periphery R
of the wheel G, and at the same time it allows the chain F to be advanced
during the time of the cutter II being in action, without advancing the plate.
And I would further remark that I form the edges. of these cutters serrated
or notched, as shewn at Figure 8, and for the purpose there described.
At the Figure 20, A, A, marks a piece of wood or foundation plate, upon
which are fixed the standards B and table B¹. C marks a lever of the third
order, one end of which has its fulcrum upon a pin D; to the other end of the
said lever there is attached one end of a connecting rod or arm E, the other
end of the said rod or arm being attached to and adjustable upon the wheel F
keyed upon one end of the axis G; and upon the other end of this axis there
is fixed a pulley H, over which a band or strap passes for imparting motion
thereto by any suitable prime mover. I, I, mark cutters, the edges of which
are serrated or notched, as shewn at Figure 8 and 19, and for the purpose
there described. And in order to determine the width of the strip of metal
which has to be cut off the plate, I employ adjustable stops fixed to any con-
venient part of the machine, which stops arrest the plate when pushed between
the cutters I, I.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed and carried into practical effect, I desire
it to be distinctly understood that I do not claim the exclusive use of any of
the separate parts above mentioned and referred to, except in so far as the

page_text: same may be employed in combination and for the purposes of my said Inven-
tion, which I hereby declare to consist in, and I claim,-
Firstly, the combinations and arrangements of parts above described and
referred to in respect of Figures 1, 2, 3, 3*, 4, 5, 6, as constituting an
improved machine or apparatus for the manufacture of nails, by which the
several operations of rolling the metal plate to the required thickness, the
heading and pointing of the nail, and the dividing or slitting of the plate into
strips, may be performed simultaneously in one and the same machine or
apparatus.
Secondly, I claim the improvement in the manufacture of nails by causing
the metal out of which the nails are to be made to pass in a heated state
crosswise of the grain, that is, with the grain parellel instead of transverse to
the axis of the pressure or drawing rollers, as described and referred to in
respect of Figure 15*.
Thirdly, I claim the improvement in the manufacture of nails by making
them out of plates of metal formed by welding together bars of metal placed
side by side, and passing the plate so formed through pressure or drawing
rollers, the grain of the metal being parellel to the axis of the rollers, as
described and referred to in respect of Figure 15*.
Fourthly, I claim the application to the manufacture of nails of the com-
binations and arrangements of parts described and referred to in respect of
Figures 11, 12, 13.
Lastly, I claim the forming of the edges of cutters serrated or notched, and
the application thereof to the manufacture of nails, as described and referred
to in respect of Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20.
And such my Invention being, to the best of my knowledge and belief,
eutirely new and never before used in that part of Her said Majesty's United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her said Dominion of
Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in the Islands of Guernsey,
Jerrsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and
Plantations abroad, I do hereby declare this to be my Specification of the
same, and that I do verily believe this my said Specification doth comply in
all respects, fully and without reserve or disguise, with the proviso in the said
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent contained; wherefore I hereby
5 claim to maintain exclusive right and privilege to my said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said Elisha Haydon Collier, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-six.
E. H. (LS.) COLLIER.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eleventh day of March, in
the year of our Lord 1846, the aforesaid Elisha Haydon Collier came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Eleventh day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-six.