IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF DRIVING STRAPS OR BELTING, AND OF TUBES OF VULCANIZED INDIA-RUBBER, AND ALSO IN THE MANU. FACTURE OF THE HELICAL COLLS OF WIRE COMMONLY INSERTED IN VULCANIZED INDIA-RUBBER TUBES, ALSO IN DESULPHURIZING ARTICLES OF VULCANIZED INDIA- RUBBER
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
15th September 1864.
I, MANUEL LEOPOLD JONAS LAVATER, of Bath Street, Newgate Street, in
the City of London, India-rubber Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature
of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF DRIVING STRAPS
OR BELTING, AND OF TUBES OF VULCANIZED INDIA-RUBBER, AND ALSO IN THE MANU.
FACTURE OF THE HELICAL COLLS OF WIRE COMMONLY INSERTED IN VULCANIZED
INDIA-RUBBER TUBES, ALSO IN DESULPHURIZING ARTICLES OF VULCANIZED INDIA-
RUBBER," to be as follows:-
In constructing driving straps or belting according to this Invention, I take
a given number of cords or threads from bobbins, and pass them through the
teeth of reeds in order to keep them parallel. These parallel cords or threads
are drawn through the rollers of calenders on a leading cloth, and receive at
same time a coating of india-rubber dough, which embeds them on one side,
forming thus a sheet, which is wound upon a drum on the other side of the
calendar. This sheet is then passed again through rollers, in order to receive
a coating of dough on the other side of the cords or threads. This is done
by stripping off the leading cloth at the moment when the sheet is to pass
through the rollers, and introducing at the same moment another leading cloth
on the first coated surface, so that there is always a leading cloth whilst the
sheet passes through the calendar; but for this leading cloth. the threads
would not remain parallel to each other under the pressure; both leading

page_text: cloths may be left if preferred. The whole is then tightly wound on a metal
cylinder, and may be vulcanized in a chamber by steam; but dry heat is
preferred. Or lengths of the sheet may be vulcanized in the steam press; in
this case the leading cloth is stripped off before vulcanizing. The sheet being
vulcanized, the edges of rubber that project beyond the sides of the cords or
threads are cut off at right angles near the chain by means of rotatory knives.
Several sets of parallel cords or threads, each of the width required for
forming a belt, may be simultaneously treated at one time, in like manner
to that above described, care being taken to leave sufficient spaces between
the sets to allow of their being afterwards separated from each other by means
of rotary knives, cach strip so cut off will form a strap or belt.
If it is intended that a strap made up in the manner above described
should be covered with canvas, this is done by cutting the straps before vul-
canizing, then a strip of coated canvas is overlapped on the strap, and the
whole is vulcanized as before, or an unvulcanized strap cut at right angles,
as above, may be braided over in lieu of the overlapped strip of canvas, then
the braid is covered with india-rubber cement and vulcanized. In vulcanizing
these belts in the steam press, they should be placed and pressed one against
the other, being before this well powdered over with French chalk. The
pressure of the two steam tables will thus produce square edges.
In place of employing a number of parallel cords or threads as the centre
or core of the belt as above described, a core of a braided fabric may be
employed, as this kind of fabric has no weft, all the threads being longitu-
dinal. When using a braided fabric no lending cloth should be used at the
first coating, and no longitudinal strain placed upon the fabric, so that the
dough may well penetrate through the lateral openings of the braid; but at
the second coating a leading cloth is used, and the braid should be strongly
stretched as it passes this time in the rollers, so as to produce the maximum
longitudinal strain upon it.
In the manufacture of tubing or hose of vulcanized india-rubber, it has
been heretofore proposed to form the tube that is to be subsequently vul-
canized by winding a strip of india-rubber compound spirally around a
mandril. The strip has also been formed with a bevil edge at each of its
sides, and in winding the strip around the mandril these bevel edges have been
caused to overlap each other, and the overlapping bevilled edges have been
pressed together by hand.
Now according to my Invention I form a tube from a strip of india-rubber
compound having bevilled edges at its sides in the following manner :-Flie
mandril to be conted is caused to pass through a hollow axis, on the exterior

page_text: of which is an arm carrying the axis of a bobbin, around which is wound the
strip of india-rubber compound, the bobbin can thus be caused to revolve
around the mandril, and so wind around it the strip of india-rubber com
pound. As the bobbin is carried round the mandril is moved longwise through'
the hollow axis at such a speed as to cause the bevilled edges of the strip to
overlap each other. When the tube so coated is to be braided over externally,
I apply the arrangements just described to a braiding machine, so that after
the mandril has been coated with a strip of india-rubber compound it may be
braided over with yarn by the braiding machine; this will press together the
overlapping bevilled edges of the strip, or if the tube is not to be braided
over then the overlapping bevilled edges of the strip are pressed together by
means of a set of 4 or other number of rollers covered with an elastic
covering, the coated mandril being passed between the rollers; after the
mandril has thus been passed between one set of röllers it may be passed
between a second set, the axes of the rollers of the second sét being at an
angle to the axes of the rollers of the first set; by this means all parts of the
tubes will be pressed on by the rollers. When the tube or hose is to have a
coil of wire within it, then the coil of wire will form the mandril, upon which
the bevilled strip is wound, or if a coil of wire is not tised; then a tubular
flexible matidril may be employed, the tubular maundril being inflated whilst
being coated with the strip of vulcanized india-rubber compound, such a
maundril could readily be withdrawn from the tube before or after it has been
vulcanized, by permitting the air or other fluid with which the mandril was
inflated to first escape from it. Hose or tubing braided over as above.
described can again be coated with a strip of india-rubber compound, and
again braided over, and so any desired thickness of tube can be attained:
Before the strip of india-rubber compound is wound on to the mandril the
bevilled edges of the strip are coated with a solvent, as is usual; this is done
after that the strip has been wound on the bobbin.
.
In order to manufacture the internal core of wire that' is how often con-
tained in the interior of vulcanized india-rubber tubing or biose, it is' now usual
first to form a close coil of wire, and then to elongate such coil by separating
the successive circles or rings of wire one from the other; this has heretofore
been accomplished by means of what is called an opener, which generally
consisted of a short length of wire, which either had a bend in it in the form
of a T, or had a piece projecting from it of the width that it was desired to
obtain between the successive rings of wire. The wire was inserted into the
interior of one end of the coil, and the projection upon it was passed between
the first ring of the coil and the ring next to it; the projecting piece from the

page_text: wire had a weight attached to it, so that after the projecting piece or bend on
the wire had been inserted between the first and second ring of the coil, a-
workman, by swinging the weigh around the coil, could cause the opener to
travel from one end of the coil to the other by reason of the coil acting as a
screw, the whole length of the coil could thus be opened out. In place of
opening out a coil of wire in this manner by causing the opener to revolve
around the coil, I cause the coil itself to revolve by attaching one end of it
to the axis of a wheel driven at any suitable speed; this by means, as the
opener is prevented from revolving by the weight attached to it or otherwise,
the opener will be caused to travel from end to end of the coil, aud in this
way may coils of wire be opened out to great lengths at a greater speed than
was heretofore practicable. The opposite end of the coil to that which has
motion imparted to it may either be connected by a swivil joint to a cord, by
means of which the slack coil can be taken up as the coil becomes elongated
or the coil of wire may lie in a split tube, the projecting piece of the opener
may then pass through the slit, and thus be prevented turning with the coil.
By this arrangement as the coil is elongated it will gradually move forward
along the split tube, and will always be supported by it.
In order to remove any free sulphur from tubing and other articles of
vulcanized india-rubber, it has heretofore been usual to immerse the articles
in solutions suitable for removing the free sulphur by chemical means from
the articles.
Now according to my Invention, in order to remove any free sulphur from.
articles of vulcanized india-rubber, I subject them, whilst moistened with or
immersed in water, to the action of beaters or rubbers, so as by mechanical
means to free, the articles from the sulphur, and the water with which the
articles are covered will, carry off the sulphur so removed from them; the
articles may either be subjected at one operation to the action of the stampers
or rubbers for a sufficient time to remove all the free sulphur, or after having
been once operated on they may be allowed to remain for a few days before
being again washed.