Improvements in Machines for Cracking Palm and other Nuts.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Jan., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 15th Oct., 1894-Accepted, 12th Jan., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for Cracking Palm and other Nuts.
We, CHARLES JAMES LEATHER of North Grounds Villa Portsmouth in the
County of Hants Engineer and Contractor and EMIL HOLLANDERS of 3 Queen's
Buildings Osborne Road Southsea also in the County of Hants Watch and Clock
Maker do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in the machine for cracking palm and
other nuts described in the Specification of our Patent No. 9834 of 1891. The
object of the said improvements is to reduce the cost of manufacture by constructing
and connecting some of the parts in such manuer that they can be cast in malleable
and cast iron and will require little fitting.
In the machine which forms the subject of the present invention, the fixed
cracking jaw forms part of a vertical frame which is cast in one piece with the
foundation plate, on which are also cast the brackets for the pivots of the moveable
jaw and the travelling side piece for expelling the nut and broken shell. The
pivots of the said noveable jaw and the expelling side pieces are D shaped in
section, and the bearings are made to correspond so that when the pivots are
partially rotated, they can be lifted out of their bearings.
The moveable jaw is operated by means of a crank or eccentric shaft working in
a slot in the rear of said moveable jaw and carried in suitable brackets cast on the
aforesaid vertical frame. To one end of the crank or eccentric shaft is secured a
hand lever having a projection which when the hand lever is actuated, abuts
against a lever and carries the same against a stop on a counterweight secured to a
shaft which is connected by links to the expelling side piece whereby the latter
is caused to travel across the space intervening between the cracking jaws of the
machine. The hinged side piece or shutter is closed by a lever one end of which
lies in the path of the hand lever aforementioned, and by which it is actuated, the
other end engaging with a right angled projection on the back of the hinged side
piece or shutter. The expelling side piece is returned to its normal position by the
action of gravity on the counterweight, but to ensure certainty of action, a
projection is formed on its front surface against which, in the event of the
expelling side piece not having been returned to its normal position by the counter-
weight, the hinged side piece or shutter, as it is closed would abut and would force
the expelling side piece back. Suitable stops are cast on, or secured to the frame
to prevent the counterweighted parts from travelling beyond fixed limits.
Dated this 15th day of January 1894.

page_text: We CHARLES JAMES LEATHER of North Grounds Villa, Portsmouth, in the
County of Hants, Engineer and Contractor and EMIL HOLLANDERS of 3 Queen's
Buildings, Osborne Road, Southsea, also in the County of Hants, Watch and
Clock Maker do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
This invention relates to improvements in the machine for cracking palm and
other nuts described in the Specification of our Patent No. 9834 of 1891. The
object of the said improvements is to reduce the cost of manufacture by constructing
and connecting some of the parts in such manner that they can be cast in malleable
and cast iron and will require little fitting.
The accompanying drawings shew sufficient of the machine described in our
aforesaid Patent Specification to illustrate the improvements which form the
subject of the present invention. Figures 1 and 2 are respectively front and end
elevations and Figure 3 is a plan of Figure 2; Figures 4 to 12 are detached views
of some of the parts.
The same letters of reference where they occur are used to indicate the same or
corresponding parts in all the figures.
According to this invention the fixed cracking jaw forms part of a vertical
frame C¹ which is cast in one piece with the foundation plate C on which are also
cast the brackets A³ for the pivot A¹ of the moveable jaw A, and the brackets E
for the pivot E' of the travelling side piece E for expelling the nut and broken
shell. These pivots A and E' are D shaped in section and the bearings are made
to correspond, so that when the pivots are partially rotated they can be lifted out
of their bearings.
The moveable jaw A is operated by means of a cam or eccentric on the shaft B
which is carried in suitable brackets B* cast on the aforementioned vertical
frame C¹. A³ is a horn shaped projection cast or otherwise formed on the rear of
the moveable jaw A (see Figure 2) and the cam or eccentric aforesaid works in the
cavity between the horn A and the rear of the moveable jaw A. In place of the
cam or eccentric the shaft B may be cranked or linked to the rear of the moveable
jaw. Keyed on the end of the shaft B is a hand lever D having a projection D'
thereon, and in the path of said projection is the tail end of a lever F loose on
the shaft H'. The lever F and its connection is shewn detached from the other
parts of the machine in Figure 4 and in one extreme position, the other extreme
position being shewn in Figure 1. Figure 5 is a detached view of the lever F ;
Figures 6 and 7 shew side and end elevations of the shaft H' and Figure 8 is a
detached view of the counterweight G. The shaft H' is partly cylindrical and
partly square, as shewn in Figure 6, and at the extremity of its cylindrical part is
formed or secured an arm H whose other end is connected by the hook rod J to
the boss E on the rear of the expelling side piece E (see Figures 1 and 4). The
shaft His supported in suitable bearings in the vertical frame C¹. On the
cylindrical part of said shaft H' the lever F is fitted so as to revolve freely
thereover whilst the counterweight G is fitted on the square part and secured
thereon by the pin H2 (see Figures 2 and 3). The counterweight G is provided
with two stops G¹ and G. The action of this part of the machine is as follows:-
As the hand-lever D is raised, the cam or eccentric on the shaft B acting on the
horn Adraws back the moveable jaw A away from the fixed jaw, meanwhile the
projection D' has engaged the tail end of the lever F and turns the same loosely
on the shaft H' until the said lever F abuts against the stop G¹ on the counter-

page_text: b
weight G. Whereupon by the continued upward movement of the handle D the
lever F, the counterweight G and consequently the shaft H' and its fixed arm H
rotate together thereby actuating the link J and causing the expelling side piece Ę
to travel across the space intervening between the fixed and moveable cracking
jaws of the machine. The position of the parts is then as shewn in Figure 4. On
the further upward movement of the hand-lever D the projection D' passes away
from under the tail end of the lever F, which then falls under the action of gravity
on the counterweight G and the lever F and its connections return to the normal
position shewn in Figure 1. On the hand-lever D being carried up through the
remainder of its travel it abuts against the underside of the lever L which lies in
its path and is weighted at 6 turning said lever L on its pivot M and depressing the
nose L' of said lever L. Figures 9 and 10 shew the lever L in its normal and
raised positions respectively. Figure 11 is a part plan of Figure 9 and Figure 12
is a part plan of Figure 10. The nose L' of the lever L abuts against a right
angle projection or rib K' on the hinged side piece or shutter K and as the lever L
is depressed the said hinged side piece or shutter is turned on its hinges and closed
from the position shewn in Figure 11 to that shewn in Figure 12. It will be
observed that this closing is effected after the expelling side piece E has been
returned to the normal position by the counterweight, but to ensure certainty of
action a projection E is formed on the front of the expelling piece E against
which in the event of the counterweight not acting, the hinged side piece or
shutter K as it closed, would abut and would force the expelling side piece back.
The machine is then ready for another nut which falls in between the cracking
jaws.
S is a stop cast on or secured to the vertical frame C¹ to prevent the lever L
being depressed therebeyond and to stop the further upward travel of the hand-
lever D, and S' is a stop on the front of the foundation plate C against which the
extension D³ of the hand-lever D rests when the said hand-lever has travelled
through the necessary arc.
On the downward movement of the hand-lever D the moveable cracking jaw A
is pressed forward by the cam or eccentric on the shaft B and the projection D' on
the hand-lever D slides down over the tail end of the lever F which makes a slight
rotation over the cylindrical part of the shaft H¹. The fulcrum M of the lever L
serves as a stop to limit the upward movement of the lever F. O is a stop fixed to
or cast on the frame C to limit its downward movement. H3 and H4 are cuts in
the corners of the arm H which catch on the corners of the brackets B' and
prevent the arm H from being turned too far over.
It will be observed that the hand-lever D, is oscillated through a fixed angle
instead of being continuously rotated as in the Specification of our aforementioned
Patent No. 9834 of 1891, the means for accommodating the nut feeding
mechanism to this oscillating motion will be well understood without further
explanation.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :—
1. The improved arrangement of mechanism herein described for cracking palm
and other nuts combined and operating substantially as stated.
2. A machine for cracking palm and other nuts wherein the cracking and
ejecting of kernel and broken shell are performed by the oscillation of a hand or
other lever substantially as described.
3. In a machine for cracking nuts, the means herein described for actuating the
hinged cracking jaw consisting of a cam or eccentric on a transverse shaft engaging
with a recess or projection in or on the rear of the moveable cracking jaw whereby
the partial rotation of the transverse shaft causes the cracking jaw to advance
towards or retire from the fixed jaw substantially as set forth and illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.

page_text: 4. In a machine for cracking nuts, the arrangement of mechanism herein set
forth for actuating the expelling side piece substantially as described with
reference to Figures 1 and 4 to 8 of the accompanying drawings.
5. In a machine for cracking nuts, the arrangement of mechanism herein set
forth for closing the hinged side piece substantially as described with reference to 5
Figures 1 and 9 to 12 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 15th day of October 1894.
F. W. GOLBY,
36, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agent for the Applicants