Improvements in Insulating or Coating Wires and Conductors for Telegraphic and other Purposes.
Year: 1885

page_text: Improvements in Insulating or Coating Wires and Conductors
for Telegraphic and other Purposes.
I FREDERICK WALTON of Heatham House Twickenham in the County of
Middlesex Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN INSULATING OR COATING WIRES AND CONDUCTORS FOR
TELEGRAPHIC AND OTHER PURPOSES to be as follows:-
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(1
"
This Invention has for its object improvements in insulating or coating wires
and conductors for telegraphic and other purposes.
I employ an oxidized oil compound having the requisite electrical and mechanical
properties, that is to say, which is a good insulator, is not liable to spontaneous
decomposition, is elastic tough and hard, and is at ordinary temperatures non-
plastic but by heat can be rendered sufficiently plastic to be applied to the wire or
conductor by means of a covering machine and a die or orifice through which the
compound is forced by pressure.
The compound consists of linseed or drying oil oxidized and rendered solid and
dry by exposure to air, Kaurie guin prepared as hereinafter described and india
rubber of good quality. I combine these materials as rapidly as possible in a steam
heated roller mixing machine adding a small quantity of magnesia and oxide of
zinc. I pass the compound' at once into the covering machine which I prefer to
close completely and I exhaust the air to prevent the formation of vesicles in the
covering as it is produced by the die.
The way in which I prepare the kaurie gum is as follows. The gum is dissolved
in castor oil at a high temperature and then the more volatile constituents of the
oil are distilled off preferably in a vacuum still. Or I first distil off the volatile
constituents from the castor oil and then incorporate the residue with the gum.
I prefer to cover the wire or conductor with a thin hard coating of shellac and
oxidized oil before putting on the india rubber and oxidized oil compound.
In those cases in which great toughness is not essential to the coating I can
omit the india rubber from the compound above named. I receive the covered
wire or conductor on to a grooved drum of large dimensions. where it remains
whilst the covering sets and bere the covering may if desired be treated with
vapours or liquids.
In place of kaurie gum I can employ copal and similar gums treated in like
manner with castor oil from which the volatile constituents are removed.
100
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in Insulating or Coating Wires and Conductors
for Telegraphic and other Purposes.
I, FREDERICK WALTON of Heatham House Twickenham in the County. of
Middlesex Manufacturer 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 has for. its, object. improvements in insulating or coating, wires
and conductors for telegraphic, and other purposes.
I employ an oxidised oil compound having the requisite electrical and mechanical
properties that is to say, which is a good insulator, is, not liable to spontaneous
decomposition, is elastic, tough and hard, and is at ordinary temperatures non-
plastic but by beat can be rendered sufficiently plastic to be applied to the wire or
conductor by means of a covering machine and a die or orifice through which the
compound is forced by pressure.
The compound consists of linseed or drying oil oxidised and rendered solid and
dry by exposure to air, Kaurie Gum castor oil and India rubber of good quality.
I oxidise the oil preferably on sheets and plates as described in the specification
of my patent No 8250 in the year 1885 by which I obtain oxidised oil free from
fibre. I prefer to expose the oxidised oil so made and after it is crushed to a still
higher temperature than is necessary to oxidise it in the ordinary way-say at a
temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit for 5 or 6 hours. I then compound it with
India rubber of good quality preferably Para and Kaurie Gum-but as these
two substances alone have little or no plastic quality and considerable elasticity
I combine with the Kaurie Gum just sufficient castor oil to make it slightly plastic
and only sufficient to enable the compound to flow or mould in the covering
machine.
The proportion I prefer is 16 lbs of Kaurie. to 3 lbs of castor oil. These are
melted together until the two form a perfect combination.
The compound which I prefer to make as follows:-
I take 10 lbs of the above compound of gum and castor oil and I add 10 lbs of
oxidised linseed oil, 5 lbs of Para rubber (pure) and 2 lbs of vegetable black.
I combine these materials with a pair of masticating rollers such as are used
for the mixing of rubber compounds-the rollers being beated by steam.
The ordinary cylinder covering machine as used for covering wires with gutta
percha can be used to apply the above described compound to wires or conductors
but I employ also a machine such as is used for making india rubber tubing-the
material being forced out by a screw and the die being fixed at the end of the
machine.
In order to prevent air vesicles being formed in the covering I close the hopper
of the covering machine and fix to it a pipe which is attached to an air pump so as
to partially exhaust the chamber which contains the compound. Sometimes
I dispense with the india rubber in cases where a cheaper and softer compound
suffices and I add vegetable black, charcoal powder, powdered glass, silica &° to give

page_text: body as well as insulating quality for instance I take oxidized oil 12 lbs gum and
castor oil as previously described 8 lbs and one to two lbs of vegetable black
according to the hardness of the covering required.
In some cases I distil off the more volatile constituents of the castor oil before
I mix it with the Kaurie-by which means I make it semi-solid.
Copal may be used in place of Kaurie and shellac can be combined with the gum
and castor oil-about one part of shellac to two parts of the compound of castor oil
and Kaurie being a good mixture.
I pass the wire from the covering machine on to a large grooved cylinder, as
described in my former Specification No 825085. The cylinder has a traverse
motion given to it by means of a screw and it is kept running in exact time with
the covering machine.
This cylinder may be about 12 feet long by 6 feet in diameter. It can be
surrounded by a casing so that hot air may be blown into it or cold air for cooling
if necessary. To produce oxidation of the covering a heat of one hundred to one
hundred and twenty degrees Fahrenheit will be necessary and it may be kept up
for from one to five or ten hours according to the amount of oxidation required.
A vapour of chloride of sulphur and bisulphide of carbon mixed in the proportion
of one of the latter to three of the former can be used to hasten the oxidation or
change or this can be applied in a liquid form as in the sulphuring of rubber.
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:-
(1.) Insulating or coating wires or conductors for telegraphic and other purposes
by applying to the same by the aid of a covering machine and a die or orifice,
a composition consisting of oxidised oil, Kaurie or other gum, castor oil with or
without india rubber and other materials substantially as described.
(2.) Insulating or coating wires or conductors for telegraphic and other purposes
with compounds substantially as described.