IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TOBACCO
Year: 1851

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
ALEXANDER ARCHER, of the Broadway, Westminster, Tobacco Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Eleventh day of January,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, in the fourteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Alexander Archer, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial
licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said John Alex-
ander Archer, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
John Alexander Archer, my exors, adññiors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term
of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TOBACCO;" in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said John Alexander
Archer, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her Majesty's Hight
Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after.

page_text: drum without giving motion to the shaft f; and such drum i, by a strap,
gives motion to the drum j on the axis k by a band or strap. On the axis or
shaft is fixed a worm or screw which takes into and drives a screw wheel
on the upright shaft or axis m, on which are fixed the worms or screws m¹, m³,
which take into the screw or worm wheels m³, m³, on the axis of the rollers c,
which carry and move the endless chains a, a, and from the axis of one of
these rollers is a cog wheel n which takes into and drives the intermediate
pinion n', which takes into and drives one of the cog wheels n on the axes
of the pressing rollers o, o, which press the chains a, a, towards each other,
and at the same time aid in their movement forwards; and in addition to these
rollers o, o, the chains a, a, are kept to their work by a series of friction rollers
o, o¹, as shown. p is the mouthpiece through which the tobacco is forced in
a compressed state by the movement of the endless chains a, a. The upper
and under surfaces p¹, p', are of steel, and are elastic, and are affixed to the
troughs q, into which steam is admitted, and between which and the plates p'
the steam passes to the surfaces of the tobacco, and slightly moistens them.
The plates are also kept heated thereby, which facilitates the passage of the
tobacco through the mouthpiece, and steam is applied to the tobacco by a per-
forated piper as the tobacco is carried along and progressively compressed
between the endless chains, and the sides of the machine are hollow to admit
steam, so as to heat such sides. When the tobacco is advanced to the mouth-
piece, then the rotatory knife or cutter axis is to be put into action, as before
mentioned, and the drum h, which gives motion to the chains a, is to be made fast
to the axis, and the machinery will go on working and cutting the tobacco, and
the quantity cut off' may be varied from time to time by changing the drum on
the driving or other shaft by which the chains a, a, a, are put in motion. The
knives or cutters shewn are those which I prefer, but the same may be varied;
and they are kept clean by lubrication, when at work in a good condition, by
means of water constantly supplied to the back by means of an endless strap s,
which has affixed to its surface sponge or other porous matters on to which
water flows by the pipe t. The endless strap s is carried by guide rollers, and
motion is given thereto in the following manner :-On the axis of the upper
guide roller u there is a pulley fixed, around which an endless band is placed,
as shewn by dotted lines passing over the guide rollers v, v, to the pulley w
fixed on the axis w¹.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I would remark that I do not confine myself to the details
as herein described, so long as the peculiar character of my Invention, be
retained. And I would state that I am aware that rotating cutters acting

page_text: with different means of bringing up the tobacco thereto have before been used.
I do not, therefore, claim the use of rotating cutters for such purposes. What
I claim is the combination of machinery herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Alexander Archer, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one.