and other Grain.
Year: 1885

page_text: Malt and other Grain.
I, GEORGE DOWNING, of 8 Quality Court, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD OF, AND IN APPARATUS FOR, CLEANING MALT
AND OTHER GRAIN," a communication from Friedrich Johann Sommer, of Landshut,
in the Empire of Germany, Engineer, to be as follows: —
The principal object of my invention is to clean kiln-dried malt, and remove
therefrom the cooms or chives adhering to the same, for brewing. But my inven-
tion is equally applicable to the removal of cooms and sproutings and smutted
parts of other kinds of corn; and generally to the cleaning of corn from dust,
sproutings, and loose husks, and for cleansing and polishing all kinds of corn, seeds,
and analogous articles and operations.
In carrying out my invention, I mount a cylindrical casing on suitable supports.
This casing is constructed with certain openings for the admission of the grain to
the centre, and the emission of the cleansed grain from the periphery.
An inner perforated drum or cylinder is fitted, the upper half of which is
cylindrical, and the lower half cylindrical and corrugated.
Inside this drum I mount, on a horizontal axle, a fan constructed in the same
manner as a turbine, with curved. buckets, and having a central opening in one of
its discs, for the entrance of the grain to be operated upon. One end of the axle
is fitted with a driving pulley, and the usual bearings and lubricators are fitted
thereto.
At one end of the casing a hopper is fitted, into which the grain is placed
for cleansing. At the lower part of this hopper, a regulating cover is fitted to
the opening, whereby the speed of the entrance of the grain can be regulated,
at will.
An opening at the upper side of the case is provided with a rectangular case
fixed to the inner cylinder, and having a regulating door on one side to regulate
the pressure of the grain.

page_text: When malt or other grain is inserted in the hopper, and the regulators opened,
it gains access to the interior of the turbine. On the turbine being caused to
revolve, at a suitable speed, the grain is driven outwards by centrifugal force
against the inner face of the perforated cylinder, by which means and operation
the grains receive sufficient friction and motion among themselves and against
the perforated cylinder to remove the cooms, chives, and sproutings, and other
objectionable matters therefrom; and the grain may be also polished, if desired.
The mutual friction between the grains in motion, and between such grains and
the perforated cylinder, can be increased or diminished, by adjustment of the
speed of rotation and the several openings for admission and emission before
referred to.
Malt and other Grain..
I, GEORGE DOWNING, of 8 Quality Court, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Patent' Agent, do hereby declare the nature of my said invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :
¢
3
3
The principal object of my invention is to clean kiln-dried malt, and remove
therefrom the cooms or chives adhering to the same, for brewing. But my inven-
tion is equally applicable to the removal of cooms and sproutings and smutted
parts of other kinds of corn; and generally to the cleaning of corn from dust,
sproutings, and loose husks, and for cleansing and polishing all kinds of corn, seeds,
and analogous articles and operations.
..
In carrying out my invention, I mount a cylindrical casing on suitable supports.
This casing is constructed' with certain openings for the admission of the grain to
the centre, and the emission of the cleansed grain from the periphery.
An inner perforated drum or cylinder is fitted, the upper half of which is
cylindrical, and the lower half cylindrical and corrugated.
i
Inside this drum I'mount, on a horizontal axle, a fan constructed in the same
manner, as a turbine, with curved buckets, and having a central, opening in one of
its discs, for the entrance of the grain to be operated upon. One end of the axle
is fitted with a driving pulley, and the usual bearings and lubricators are fitted
thereto.

page_text: At one end of the casing a hopper is fitted, into which the grain is placed for
cleansing. At the lower part of this hopper, a regulating cover is fitted to the
opening, whereby the speed of the entrance of the grain can be regulated,
at will.
An opening at the upper side of the case is provided with a rectangular case
fixed to the inner cylinder, and having a regulating door on one side to regulaté
the pressure of the grain.
When malt or other grain is inserted in the hopper, and the regulators opened,
it gains access to the interior of the turbine. On the turbine being caused to
revolve, at a suitable speed, the grain is driven outwards by centrifugal force
against the inner face of the perforated cylinder, by which means and operation
the grains receive. sufficient friction and motion among themselves and against
the perforated cylinder to remove the cooms, chives, and sproutings, and other
objectionable matters therefrom; and the grain may be also polished, if desired.
The mutual friction between the grains in motion, and between such grains and
the perforated cylinder, can be increased or diminished, by adjustment of the
speed of rotation and the several openings for admission and emission before
referred to.
And in order that my said invention may be particularly described and
ascertained, reference is hereby made to the accompanying drawings, in which
similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.
Fig. 1 is an external elevation of the invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation
on the line y y. Fig. 3 is a plan view, and Fig. 4 is a section on the line 'of
Fig. 3.
3
:
a is the case mounted upon brackets or otherwise; as shown. bis a driving
pulley fitted to the shaft c. This shaft carries the disc d which is fixed to the
shaft c by a boss and set screw e, as shewn. fis an annular disc having an opening
in the centre for admitting the grain. S S are curved fan blades, uniting the two
discs and all capable of rotating with the shaft. zz is a drum formed in halves:
The lower half is formed of corrugated and perforated metal, and the upper half of
plain perforated metal; but wire gauze or other suitable material may be used.
E is the hopper fitted to the side of the apparatus, into which the grain is poured,
and from which it passes into the fan by the regulated central opening, which may
be closed, opened and regulated by the plate R, governed by the handle r. u is the
opening to the drum, up which the cleaned grain ascends by the action of the fan
blades S. This opening is fitted with an adjustable slide i, whereby the exit of the
grain to the passage w, outside the drum, is regulated. The cleaned grain afterwards
descends by the passage w in the direction shewn by the arrows.
The rotation of the fan is so adjusted that the material is driven outwards by
centrifugal force, but such force must not be so strong as to cause comminution of
the material, as (for example) is the case with the well known forms of rotating
triturating apparatus; but the action of the invention is as follows:-
The drum is only open at the top, and provided with the adjustable slide i, at
the discharging opening u, for the purpose of regulating the height of the overflow
and the working pressure between the fan blades and the drum, the space between
the fan blades and drum z is filled with grain. The material is thereby caused to
rotate with the fan, but in consequence of the friction of the different particles
among themselves and against the walls of the drum the movement of the grains
become gradually slower, and the consequence is that there arises a certain amount
of friction among the particles, which is communicated from one grain to another
whereby a partial cleaning of the material is effected.
The grains further undergo a cleaning by friction among such particles, the
speed of rotation becoming less towards the inner side of the drum (as indicated
by the arrows in Fig. 2) and which causes a continuous friction, rubbing, and
3 grinding of the grains, and which effect is augmented by the resistance offered by
the corrugated and perforated drum,

page_text: (
:
The perforations in the drum are for the purpose of allowing the released
sproutings, husks, dust, &c, to escape; which process is augmented by the entrance
of a constant current of air through the centre at R, and which air may be led
into the fan by any suitable arrangement.
The above mentioned discharge of the cleaned material above the axle is effected
in the following manner: By the working of the apparatus there will always be a
rising of the grain in u, a certain pressure being caused upon the rotating material
which is regulated by the height of the discharging opening. This opening being
regulated by means of the slide i the pressure may be augmented or diminished
and consequently also the friction and the amount of work. On the other hand
the entering material thrown outwards cannot leave the apparatus before passing
gradually outwards and arriving at the inner wall of the drum and thereby become
cleaned.
"J
The material rising up the discharging aperture, prevents the currents of air
passing away by the discharging opening u.
By the use of the above described apparatus a thorough removal is effected of
the cooms and sproutings, and cleaning and grinding of the grains, without the
use of sharp tools, which become quickly worn, added to effective working and
great simplicity.
• !
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
The manufacture and use of apparatus for cleaning malt and other. grain,
constructed; arranged and operating substantially as herein before described and
shewn on the drawings.