IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED WHEN GETTING COAL AND OTHER MINERALS."
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Edmond Donisthorpe, of Leeds, in the County
of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED WHEN
GETTING COAL AND OTHER MINERALS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Edmond Donisthorpe
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th October 1863.
I, GEORGE EDMOND DONISTHORPE, of Leeds, in the County of York, do
hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS
USED WHEN GETTING COAL AND OTHER MINERALS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus used when
getting coal and other minerals. For this purpose carriages running on rail
or tramways, and having picks or cutting tools worked by power, are now
sometimes employed. Now according to my Invention, in order to steady such
carriages on the rails whilst the picks or cutting tools are in action, I employ
wedges on the sides of the rails, such wedges entering between the rail and
the frame of the carriage, or a projection therefrom. The wedges are drawn
in by means of springs, each tending constantly to draw its wedge up into
the space between the side of the rail and the frame of the carriage, or the
projection thereon. In this way the carriage is firmly secured to the rails so

page_text: as to prevent any lateral motion. The wedges do not, however, interfere with
the forward motion of the carriage, the smaller ends of the wedges being
towards the front of the carriage, consequently the carriage in advancing
immediately clears itself from them.
Another part of my Invention consists in employing in apparatus for getting
coal and other minerals, a clearer in combination with the pick, the clearer
being so arranged that at each stroke of the pick it enters with it into the
groove cut in the coal or mineral, and as the pick returns the clearer retires
with it, raking out as it does so the "small" behind the pick. The point of
the clearer in entering is some distance behind the point of the pick, but when
the latter comes to the end of its forward motion the point of the clearer
comes up to the point of the pick, and the two enclose the small coal or
mineral between them. In retiring, the clearer and pick remain with their
points close together, and they carry with them out of the groove in the work
the small previously enclosed. To effect this I joint the clearer to the pick
at a distance from their points, and apply a spring, which tends to keep the
points apart; also behind the joint, or further from the points of the instruments,
a wedge is placed, between the stem of the cutter and the stem of the clearer.
The parts being thus arranged, when the pick moves forward to make a cut (with
the point of the clearer, then back out of the way) as soon as the progress of the
pick is suddenly stopped by the mineral, the wedge before mentioned springs
forward by its momentum (it having before moved with the pick), and by acting
on the stem of the clearer it brings its points up to the point of the cutter and
there it holds it during the return of the cutter and clearer, until in turn this
return motion is checked, and then the wedge continues by its momentum to
travel further back, thus freeing the clearer and allowing the spring again to
move back its point. The momentum of the clearer itself, when the cutter
is checked at either end of its course, will tend also to cause it to work in the
manner above described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, 30
filed by the said George Edmond Donisthorpe in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 28th April 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
EDMOND DONISTHORPE, of Leeds, in the County of York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 35
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord

page_text: One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Edmond Donisthorpe, Her special licence that I, the said
George Edmond Donisthorpe, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as 1, the said George Edmond Donisthorpe, 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 APPARATUS USED WHEN GETTING COAL AND
OTHER MINERALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George
Edmond Donisthorpe, 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 George Edmond Donisthorpe, 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, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus used when
getting coal and other minerals. For this purpose carriages running on rail
or tramways, and having picks or cutting tools worked by power, are some-
times now employed. Now according to my Invention, in order to steady
such carriages on the rails whilst the picks or cutting tools are in action, I
employ wedges on the sides of the rails, such wedges entering between the
rail and the frame of the carriage, or a projection therefrom. The wedges are
drawn in by means of springs, each tending constantly to draw its wedges
into the space between the side of the rail and the frame of the carriage, or
the projection thereon. In this way the carriage is firmly secured to the rails
so as to prevent any lateral motion. The wedges do not, however, interfero
with the forward motion of the carriage, the smaller ends of the wedges being
towards the front of the carriage, consequently the carriage in advancing
immediately clears itself from them.
And in order that my Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into practice, I will proceed to. describe the accompanying
Drawings.

page_text: Figure 1 shows a plan of so much of the framing or carriage of a machine
or apparatus for getting coal and other minerals, having the first part of my
Invention applied, as will, aided by the following description, render the same
perfectly clear and intelligible. In order to steady the carriage carrying the
apparatus employed for getting coal and other minerals, whilst the picks or
cutting tools are in action, wedges a, a, and b, b, are employed. These wedges
enter between the rails c, c, and inclined projections d', d', from the frame or
carriage d. The wedges a, a, and b, b, rest upon and are supported by the
projecting parts d', d', of the framing d. The wedges a, a, are at their
hinder ends connected by links f,f, which serve to connect them with springs e, e,
the other ends of the springs e, e, being attached at d³, d, to the carriage or
framing d, so it will be seen that when the carriage is caused to move forward
the wedges a, a, and b, b, will be drawn forward also, the springs e, e, each
tending to draw its wedges into the spaces between the sides of the rail c, c,
and the inclines formed on the projections d', d', of the framing d' of the
carriage. By these means the carriage will be firmly secured to the rails or
tramway so as to prevent lateral motion. The wedges do not interfere in any
degree to retard the carriage in its forward movement, as the smaller ends of
the wedges a, a, and b, b, are towards the front of the carriage, so that as the
carriage moves forward it clears itself from them. Sometimes the rods a¹, b',
which connect the wedges a, a, with the wedges b, b, are made, as the Drawing
indicates, so as to move the one within the other, there being springs b³, be,
inclosed within the tubular part of the rod b', which act in a manner to press
the wedges b, b, away from the wedges a, a.
Another part of my Invention consists in employing in apparatus for
getting coal and other minerals, a clearer in combination with the pick, the
clearer being so arranged that at each stroke of the pick it enters with it into
the groove' cut in the coal or mineral, and as the pick returns the clearer
retires with it, raking out as it does so the small behind the pick. The point
'of the clearer in entering is some distance behind the point of the pick, but
when the latter comes to the end of its forward motion the point of the clearer
comes up to the point of the pick, and the two enclose the small coal or
mineral between them. In retiring, the clearer and pick remain with their
points close together, and they carry with them out of the groove in the work
the small previously enclosed. To effect this I joint the clearer to the pick
at a distance from their points, and apply a spring, which tends to keep the

page_text: which the picks or cutting tools a, a, are. bolted, or they may be fixed as
shewn, their shanks or bosses 6¹ being jointed by pins at 6, and working
thereon in the recesses c³. Other recesses are formed in the thickness of the
bosses b' of the clearers b, b, in which springs are inserted, which, by acting
upon studs b', also.in the same recesses with the springs 6, press the heads of
the studs against the walls or divisions between the recesses c¹, c', of the bed
or table c, in such manner as to cause the points of the clearers b, b, to move
backwards or away from the points of the picks or cutting tools a, a. Wedges
ff, are placed in the grooves or recesses &², c, formed in the travelling table
or bed c. These wedges f,f, and the other parts are so arranged that when
the picks or cutting tools a, a, move forwards to make a cut, the points of the
clearers b, b, will be back out of the way, as indicated by the red lines in
Figure 2, but as soon as the forward movement is suddenly checked by
coming against the coal or mineral, the wedges f, f, will be caused to fly
forward a slight distance by their own momentum, they having been moved
forward by the table c and picks a, a. For this purpose the wedges f. f, are
formed with long stems f¹, f', which are capable of sliding a short distance
backwards and forwards independently of the picks or cutting tools a, a, and
clearers b, b, and table c, and they are formed with weights at f, f2, and there
are projections or stops f³ upon their under sides, which work in openings or
slots c³, c³, formed for that purpose in the table or bed c. The forward ends
of the wedges f, f, are kept correctly in position by means of the covering
plates c, c, these plates also. enclose and secure the bosses b', 6', of the
clearers b, b. The springs f, f, fixed to the plates c³, c', serve to regulate
the force of the wedges f, f. They are provided with screws f³, ƒ³, to increase
or reduce the pressure of the springs f*, f, upon the upper surfaces of the
stems of the wedges f, f, and consequently to diminish, when requisite, the
force of blow or momentum caused by the sudden check given to the forward
action of the picks or cutting tools a, a. The wedges f, f, and the wedges
formed at the hinder parts of the bosses b¹ of the clearers b, b, are so formed
that when they are caused to come together (by momentum when the picks
or tools a, a, move forwards) they overcome the resistance of the springs 6³,
and thus lock or hold the parts so until they become released by the check at
the finish of the backward or return movement of the table or bed c, when
the wedges will by their momentum be driven back, the springs b³ will be
allowed, to act, and cause the clearers b, b, to move. back again or away from
the points. of the picks a, a, ready to act again to move forwards when a fresh
blow of the picks is made.

page_text: Having us described the
performing the same, I would have it understood that I make no claim to any
of the mechanical parts separately; but what I claim is,—
First, the application of wedges to secure or hold the carriage to the rails.
And, secondly, I claim the application of clearers or clearing instruments
herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Edmond Donisthorpe, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
G. E. DONISTHORPE. (L.S.)