IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING MACHINES
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frank Wirth, of the Firm of Wirth and Company, Patent
Solicitors, at Frankfort on the Main, in the Empire of Germany, for an
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING MACHINES." A communication
from Samuel Moser, Partner of the Firm of Philipp Mayfarth & Company,
of Frankfort on the Main, in the Empire of Germany.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frank Wirth at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th May 1881.
FRANK WIRTH, of the Firm of Wirth and Company, Patent Solicitors, at
Frankfort on the Main, in the Empire of Germany. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING
MACHINES." [A communication from Samuel Moser, Partner of the Firm of
Philipp Mayfarth & Company, of Frankfort on the Main, in the Empire of
Germany.]
This Invention relates to improvements in thrashing machines.
A machine embodying the said improvements offers the advantage that it
delivers the straw sidewise and in front straight and in good condition. The
main parts of this machine are an inclined feed-table, an inclined dust-flue, a double
fan or ventilator on the drum-shaft, a straw-guide, an adjustable straw-catcher, a
straw-extractor, and a curved bed, a screw or conveyor in a curved trough, an
elevator, a sorting-cylinder, and a separator.
In carrying my Invention into practice, I construct a thrashing machine as
follows, viz. —
The feed-table is inclined for the purpose of facilitating the feeding in of oats
and other cereals which are not stiff. An inclined dust-flue is placed in front of
the drum; in the lower aperture of said flue oblique flat pieces of iron are inserted
which cause the grain to be easily drawn in by the drum, and the dust is freely
discharged through the spaces between the said flat iron pieces. Two fans at the
right hand side and the left hand side of the drum-shaft attract the air through
apertures above the bearings, and drive the same through suitable tubes into the
I Price G

page_text: rotating cleaning or purifying apparatus, freeing the grain which falls into a curved
trough below from chaff, dust, and the like. The straw after having been thrashed
out by the thrashing-drum is guided in a straight line by the sides of a frame or
case surrounding it; it impinges against a straw-catcher, falls upon an inclined
board or plate, and thence upon the straw-extractor hereinafter described. At one
side over the inclined board or plate is placed an iron angle-plate which prevents
the straw from falling directly into the straw-extractor.
The straw-extractor is formed by two crosses mounted on a shaft; to the said
crosses are attached four boards which are excentric to the shaft, so that they may
be better able to throw the straw out. Two of said boards carry pins bent inward,
the two others serve partly for laying the straw straight, and they are adjustable
in such manner that they may be made nearly to touch the iron rods of the curved
bed below, so as to throw out the short portions or lengths of clover and the like.
The carved bed hereinabove, mentioned consists of iron rods placed lengthwise;
the first rods at the top are arranged obliquely, and are curved, and the exterior
ones are arranged to slant inward.
Through the said curved bed the grains fall into a trough whilst all the straw
is delivered sidewise and in good order.
In the said trough there is a screw or conveyor, this turns and pushes the corn iu
front of a fan which cleans the corn or grain, and blows all the chaff and the like
out at the rear. The screw is formed by oblique metal-sheets which are fixed on
two rods; the latter are firmly connected with a shaft by means of arins and naves,
the shaft having proper bearings front and rear, and being rotated by suitably
arranged pulleys. Behind the screw I place an adjustable sheet metal guard-plate
which prevents the corn falling off at the rear; a movable box behind the said
guard-plate catches the light grain. The cleaned grain falls in front of the fan or
fans into a lower box; it is raised by an elevator consisting of an endless chain of
buckets, and is discharged into an oblique channel. To the part at which the grain
leaves the elevator, a tube may lead from the fan so as to effect an ultimate
cleaning. From the said channel the grain passes into a sorting cylinder in which
all the large bodies are separated, thence the grain may be discharged into sacks, or
it may be passed into a separator in which the seeds from weeds are separated
from the grain.
The said machine receives motion from a portable engine or other suitable motor
by means of a pulley; another pulley by the side of the first one transınits the
power by a third pulley and suitable gearing to the shaft of the straw-extractor,
from which latter the cleaning-apparatus, the elevator, the sorting cylinder, and
separator are driven by suitably arranged pulleys.
In adapting my Invention to hand-thrashing machines, a hand-crank is placed
on the shaft of the elevator, and the drum with the ventilator, the straw-extractor,
and the rotating cleaning apparatus are driven therefrom, the sorting cylinder and
separator being omitted, and thus a hand-thrashing-machine is obtained, which
works as easily as an ordinary hand-thrashing machine without cleaning apparatus.
According to a modification of this Invention I construct a thrashing machine
which has instead of the screw in the trough an endless cloth or apron upon which
the grain falls; and in front of the fan the grain falls into the lower box through a
hopper or funnel which is free to rotate round pins, and may be so adjusted
according to the weight of the grain and the strength of the blast, that the grain of
the best quality falls into one box, the second quality into another box, and so on,
whilst chaff and dust are blown out at the rear. This machine is preferably driven
by horse-gear; the fan is mounted on the main shaft, having a bevel wheel, and
therefore requires no separate expenditure of power; from this shaft the thrashing-
drum and also the endless cloth or apron are set in motion.
Another form of my improved thrashing machine has, instead of the straw-
extractor, a straw-shaker, which also delivers the straw straight and in good order
by the side of the machine. This straw-shaker has a to-and-fro motion imparted
to it by a crank-shaft; it is freely and movably suspended by two rods on the

page_text: frame. The straw-shaker consists of a frame upon which triangular laths are
fixed, having spaces between them through which the grain can fall into the box
underneath, an iron wire-fabric or gauge, or a plate of iron perforated like a sieve,
may also be fixed on the frame.
Whilst other machines of this class deliver the straw cut up and entangled, this
construction furnishes fine straight straw which can easily be removed and utilized,
and as all the working parts of the machine rotate, steady working is ensured,
whilst by the cleaning apparatus and other devices comprised in said machine, all
requirements are most fully satisfied.
Instead of fans other suitable devices may be used for producing the blast
necessary for the purposes above set forth.

page_text: Figure 6 is a side elevation representing a modification of the said machine.
Figure 7 is a rear elevation of a second modification, and
Figure 8 is a side elevation of the same.
D represents the inclined feed-table of my improved machine, and K is an
inclined dust-flue; V is a double fan or ventilator on the drum-shaft; I is the
straw guide, and J an adjustable straw-catcher; C is the straw-extractor, and U is
the curved bed; S is a screw-conveyor in the trough; W is the elevator; Y, the
sorting-cylinder; and Z, the separator.
The feed-table is inclined to facilitate the feeding in of oats and other cereals
which are not stiff. The inclined dust-flue is placed in front of the drum; in the
lower aperture of the said flue oblique flat pieces of iron are inserted which cause
the grain to be easily drawn in by the drum, whilst at the same time the dust is
freely discharged through the spaces between the said flat pieces of iron.
The two fans V at the right and left hand side of the drum-shaft draw in the
air through apertures above the bearings, and drive this air through the
tubes O and O into the rotating, cleaning, or purifying apparatus, thus freeing
the grain which falls into the trough M from chaff, dust, and the like. The
straw, after having been thrashed by the thrashing drum, is guided in a straight
line by the sides I surrounding it, impinges against the straw-catcher, falls upon
the incline G and upon the straw-extractor C. At one side and over the incline G
is placed an angle iron_plate which prevents the straw from falling directly into
the straw-extractor. The said straw-extractor is formed by two crosses mounted on
the shaft ; to the said crosses are attached four boards which are arranged excentric
to the shaft to facilitate the throwing out of the straw. Two of the said boards
carry pins bent inward; the two others serve partly for laying the straw straight,
and they are adjustable in such a manner that they may be caused to nearly touch
the iron rods of the curved bed U, so as to throw out the short portions or lengths
of clover and the like.
The curved bed U consists of iron rods placed lengthwise, the first rods at the
top are arranged obliquely and are curved, those at the centre are straight, and the
exterior ones are arranged to slant inward. Through the said curved bed U the
grains falls into the trough M, whilst all the straw is delivered sidewise and in
good condition.
In the trough M the screw or conveyor S is arranged; this screw turns and

page_text: pushes the corn or grain in front of the fan V, which cleans the same and blows all
the chaff and the like out at the rear. This screw S is formed by oblique metal-
sheets & which are fixed upon two rods r, 7; the latter are firmly connected with
the shaft t by means of arms and naves, the said shaft having proper bearings in
front and rear, and being rotated by pulleys.
Behind the screw S I place an adjustable sheet metal guard-plate which prevents
the falling off of the corn at the rear, a movable box behind the said guard-plate
catches the light grain. The cleaned grain falls in front of the fan or fans into the
lower box; it is raised by the elevator W, and is discharged into an oblique
channel. To the part at which the grain leaves the elevator a tube may lead from
the fan so as to effect a further cleaning from the said channel, the grain passes
into the sorting cylinder Y, in which all the large bodies are separated; thence the
grain may be discharged into sacks, or it may be passed into the separator Z, in
which the seeds of weeds are separated from the grain.
The machine receives motion from a portable engine or other suitable motor by
means of this pulley A; the pulley B at the side of the pulley A transmits the
power through the pulley B¹, the shaft E, and the bevel wheels F and F' to the
shaft of the straw-extractor, from which extractor the cleaning-apparatus, the
elevator, the sorting cylinder, and the separator are driven by suitably arranged
pulleys.
In adapting my Invention to hand-thrashing machines, a hand-crank is placed
upon the shaft E, and the drum, with the ventilator, the straw-extractor, and the
rotating cleaning apparatus are driven therefrom, the sorting cylinder and separator
being omitted; thus a hand-thrashing-machine is obtained which works as easily
as an ordinary hand-thrashing-machine without cleaning apparatus.
According to the modification shewn in Figure 6, I employ instead of the screw S
in the trough M an endless cloth or apron H upon which the grain falls, and in
front of the fan the grain falls into the lower box through the hopper or funnel Q.
This funnel Q is free to rotate around the pins q and q', and is so adjusted according
to the weight of the grain and the strength of the blast, that the grain of the best
quality falls into the first box, the second quality into the second box, and so on,
whilst chaff and dust are blown out at the rear. This machine is preferably driven
by horse-gear, the fan is mounted on the main shaft, having a bevel wheel, and
therefore requires no separate expenditure of power; from this shaft the thrashing-
drum and also the endless cloth or apron are set in motion.
In the modification shewn in Figures 7 and 8 I employ instead of the straw-
extractor a straw-shaker, which also delivers the straw straight and in good
condition by the side of the machine. This straw shaker has a to-and-fro motion
imparted to it by the crank-shaft W; it is freely and movably suspended on the
frame by two rods P and P¹. The straw-shaker consists of a frame upon which
triangular laths are fixed, these laths have spaces between them through which
spaces the grain can fall into the box beneath an iron wire-fabric or gauze, or a
plate of iron perforated like a sieve may also be fixed on the frame.
Whilst other machines of this class deliver the straw in a cut up and entangled
state, my improved construction of macbine furnishes fine straight straw, which can
readily be removed and utilized for many purposes, and as all the working parts
of the machine rotate, steady working is ensured, whilst by the cleaning apparatus
and other devices comprised in said machine, all requirements are most fully
satisfied.
Instead of fans other suitable devices may be employed for producing the blast
necessary for the purposes above set forth.
Having thus fully described the said Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, I wish it understood that I claim,-
First. In a thrashing machine, the apparatus whereby the straw is delivered
sidewise, consisting of a sieve-shaped inclined plane U in connection with a
cross" C, which by its arms takes hold of the straw and throws it out of the
machine, as above set forth.
«

page_text: Second. In a thrashing machine, the screw-conveyor placed in a trough, and
arranged to convey the thrashed grain together with the chaff into a blast or
current of air produced by suitable blowing apparatus, whereby the separation of
the grain and chaff is effected, as above set forth.
Third. In a thrashing machine, the cross C and the inclined plane U for
effecting the sidewise delivery of the straw, in combination with the cleaning or
purifying apparatus, consisting of the screw-conveyor S and a blower, substantially
as above set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frank Wirth, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twelfth day of November, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
FRANK WIRTH. (L.S.)