IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING AND DECORTICATING GRAIN
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Wilson Ager, of the City of New York, in the United
States of America, but at present residing at the European Coffee House,
in the City of London, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Wilson Ager at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 18th
January 1865.
I, WILSON AGER, of the City of New York, in the United States of
America, but at present residing at the European Coffee House, in the City
of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING AND DECORTICATING
GRAIN," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a peculiar combination of machinery or apparatus
for cleaning and decorticating rice and other grain, and consists in the
employment of one or more stones revolving inside a perforated horizontal
cylindrical screen, which is caused to revolve in the same direction but at a

page_text: lower rate of speed than the stone or stones, and is provided internally with a
series of ledges for carrying up a portion of the grain to be cleaned and
decorticated and allowing it to descend again. The grain is fed into this
screen by a supply spout which opens into the centre at one end thereof, and
this supply spout also contains an air or blast pipe which directs a current of
air through the grain as it falls from the ledges and carries off the dust there-
from through the openings in the revolving screen. In order to regulate the
weight or quantity of grain at any one time in the screen it is proposed to
make a number of apertures in one end of the screen, such apertures being
partly closed by sliding doors. By regulating the height of these doors, or the
distance between the top of the doors and the periphery of the screen, it is
obvious that the quantity of grain in the screen will also be regulated, as the
grain passes off continuously through the openings left above the doors during
the revolutions of the screen. The revolving cylindrical screen is enclosed
within an outer casing, into which the air and dust enter after passing through
the perforations in the screen, the dust and dirt passing thence by a spout to
any convenient receptacle. It will thus be seen that the process is continuous,
the cylinder or screen having a constant passage of grain through it, but at
the same time it always retains a certain regulated quantity of grain according
to the position of the regulating discharge doors. This property of regulating
the quantity or height of the grain inside the screen'enables the work to be
varied, as the higher the level of the grain the larger will be the rubbing
surface of the stone or stones in action thereon, and vice versa, thus
admitting of the rubbing action being varied to suit the particular grain
under treatment.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Wilson Ager, in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 13th
July 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILSON
AGER, of the City of New York, in the United States of America, but at s
present residing at the European Coffee House, in the City of London,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the 28th year of Her 3
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,

page_text: the said Wilson Ager, Her special license that I, the said Wilson Ager,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Wilson Ager, my executors, administrators, or 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
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING AND DECORTICATING GRAIN," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Wilson Ager, my executors or
administrators, 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 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 Wilson Ager, do bereby 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,
reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the letters and
figures marked thereon, that is to say:-
My said Invention relates to a peculiar combination of machinery or
apparatus for cleaning and decorticating rice and other grain, and consists in
the employment of one or more stones revolving inside a perforated horizontal
cylindrical screen, which is caused to revolve in the same direction but at a
lower rate of speed than the stone or stones, and is provided internally with a
series of ledges for carrying up a portion of the grain to be cleaned and
decorticated and allowing it to descend again. The grain is fed into this
screen by a supply spout which opens into the centre at one or both ends
thereof, and one or both these supply spouts may also contain an air or blast
pipo which directs a current of air through the grain as it falls from the
ledges and carries off the dust therefrom through the openings in the revolving
screen. In order to regulate the weight or quantity of grain at any one time
in the screen it is proposed to make one or more apertures in one or both
ends of the screen, such apertures being partly closed by sliding doors. By
regulating the height of these doors, or the distanco between the top of the
doors and the periphery of the screen, it is obvious that the quantity of grain
in the screen will also be regulated, as the grain passes off continuously
through the openings left above the doors during the revolutions of the screen.
The revolving cylindrical screen is enclosed within an outer casing into which
the air and dust enter after passing through the perforations in the screen, the

page_text: dust and dirt passing thence by a spout to any convenient receptacle. It will
thus be seen that the process is continuous, the cylinder or screen having a
constant passage of grain through it, but at the same time it always retains a
certain regulated quantity of grain according to the position of the regulating
discharge doors. This property of regulating the quantity or height of the
grain inside the screen enables the work to be varied, as the higher the level
of the grain the larger will be the rubbing surface of the stone or stones in
action thereon, and vice versa, thus admitting of the rubbing action being
varied to suit the particular grain under treatment.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall
refer to the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Fig. 1 of my Drawings represents a longitudinal vertical section of my
improved rice-cleaning machine, which is equally applicable to the cleaning
and decorticating of other grain. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same, and
Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section of the machine taken through the
longitudinal centre thereof. A, A, represents a pair of stones fast on the
horizontal shaft B, which is driven at a considerable velocity by means of a
driving belt passing over the driving pulley C, keyed on to one end of the
shaft. This shaft is supported in bearings D, D, bolted to the rectangular
framing E of the machine, which framing is bolted down upon a rectangular
base plate F, as shown clearly in Fig. 1. The stones A, A, are enclosed by
and revolve within a rotatory cylindrical screen G, the circumference of which
is composed of wire gauze or of perforated metal plate whilst its two ends G¹, G¹,
are made solid. In the end farthest from the grain inlet one or more
openings H (one of which is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3) are formed,
such opening or openings being closed more or less according to the amount
of grain to be contained at one time in the screen by the adjustable doors I
working on pivots or centres a in the end disc of the screen.
As the only
means of exit of the cleaned rice from the cylindrical screen is through the
end apertures H it follows that by raising or lowering the adjustable doors I
more or less a greater or less quantity or depth of rice in the screen will be
obtained, as the level of the rice will never be higher than the upper edge of
the door or doors I. The higher the level of the rice in the screen the greater
will be the rubbing action of the stones thereon, as a larger area of the stones
will be immersed in the rice or grain, and vice versa. It will thus be seen
that by the simple adjustment of the height of the doors I over the openings
H the amount of rubbing action on the grain may be varied according to

page_text: requirement, some grain requiring more rubbing than others. The doors I
may be fixed in their proper positions when adjusted by pinching or set screws
or otherwise. The screen is caused to revolve slowly in the same direction as
the stones during the revolution of the lathe, for which purpose spur teeth 6
are formed on the peripheries of the end plates or discs G', into which gear
the spur pinions K fast on the shaft L driven by a band from the small
pulley M on the main shaft B. N, N, are a series of curved ledges fitted
longitudinally to the interior circumference of the screen for the purpose of
elevating the rice or grain as the screen revolves, and allowing it to fall again
with a view to the better removal therefrom of the dust and loose extraneous
matter rubbed off by the stones and by the mutual attrition of the grains
against each other, such dust and dirt being carried off through the perfora-
tions in the screen by a current or currents of air introduced into the interior
of the screen by the air pipe O, in connection with a fan or other convenient
blowing apparatus, whilst the cleaned and decorticated or partially cleaned
and decorticated grain is discharged through the adjustable end opening or
openings H, and is received into a suitable spout or hopper which conducts
it to any desired locality or to one or more successive cleaning and decortica-
ting machines of a similar construction. Q is the feed pipe or inlet for
admitting the grain into the interior of the screen; it is situate at one end
thereof whilst the air or blast pipe O is situate either at the opposite end of
the screen (which I prefer) or placed in the interior of the feed pipe itself, as
shown in red lines in Fig. 1. The screen revolves loosely upon the inner ends
of the pipes O and Q, as shown in Fig. 1, so as to leave a free annular opening
into each end of the screen round the main shaft B. The revolving screen is
enclosed in a wooden or other casing R of a semi-cylindrical form resting
upon the rectangular framing E. The dust and dirt blown through the screen
is carried off through the hopper or duct S to any desired locality.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and
original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First, the combination in machinery or apparatus for cleaning and decorti-
cating rice and other grain of one or more revolving stones contained within a
revolving cylindrical screen which is provided at its inner circumference with
longitudinal curved ledges and at its end or ends with adjustable discharge
doors, and is supplied with a blast or blasts of air substantially in the manner
and for the purpose herein-before described.

page_text: Second, the combination of the adjustable doors I, cylindrical screen G,
blast pipe O, and feed pipe Q, substantially as and for the purpose herein-
before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Wilson Ager, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the 12th day of July, One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-five.