IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES AND MACHI- NERY FOR ROLLING BENDING AND CIRCLING PLATES AND SHEETS OF METAL
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Todd, of Greenwich, in the County of Kent,
Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES AND MACHI-
NERY FOR ROLLING BENDING AND CIRCLING PLATES AND SHEETS OF METAL
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Todd at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 24th
September 1864.
I, JOHN TODD, of Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS. IN MACHINES AND
MACHINERY FOR ROLLING, BENDING, AND CIRCLING PLATES AND SHEETS OF METAL,"
to be as follows:-
My Invention has for its object the rolling, bending, and circling of plates
and sheets of iron and other metal, either of uniform thickness throughout or
with thicker and thinner edges; and I accomplish this object by supplying
greater facilities in regulating and working the top pressing of the said
machines and machinery by the application of additional gearing with pullies
and strap, whereby the top roll by means of the top cross shaft is made self-

page_text: acting by steam power within or by the machine itself; also by means of an
additional lever and wheel acting upon the top cross shaft the workman is
enabled to lift or force down the top pressing rolls by hand at either end of the
machine, independently as well as simultaneously; also by the application of
moveable antifriction bushes fitted into the large sliding bolsters which sus-
pend and carry the top pressing roll, wrought-iron spindles can be fitted and
fixed into the said top rolls, and have journals turned thereon to revolve in the
centres of the antifriction bushes, which are to be made larger in diameter than
the top pressing roll, which will admit of the top roll and antifriction bushes
-being withdrawn at either end of the machine through the suspending bolsters
and through a suitable opening or apertures in the two spur wheels, one at
each end of the machine, which-drive the bottom rolls.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Todd in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd
March 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
TODD, of Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said John Todd, Her special license that I, the said John Todd,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
John Todd, my executors, administrators, and 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 MA-
CHINES AND MACHINERY POR ROLLING, BENDING, AND CIRCLING PLATES AND SHEETS
OF METAL," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John
Todd, by an instrument.in writing under my hand and seal; should par-
ticularly 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Todd, do hereby declare tho
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked.thereon, (that is to say) :-
My Invention of "Improvements in Machines and Machinery for Rolling,
Bending, and Circling Plates and Sheets of Metal" has for its object the rolling,
bending, and circling of plates and sheets of iron and other, metals, either of
uniform thickness throughout or with thicker and thinner edges,, into seg-
´ments or complete circles, or even to overlap. sufficiently for being soldered,
welded, or rivetted into tubes, pipes, circular boilers, boiler, flues, funnels,
steel or iron masts, yards, or other similar articles, by using top rolls, of
different diameters and either parallel or tapered;, and I accomplish this
object by supplying greater facilities in working and regulating the top pressing
rolls of the said machines and machinery by the application of additional
gearing with pulleys and strap, whereby the top roll by means of the top shaft
is elevated or depressed at either end separately or at. both ends simultaneously.
as required by steam power within or by the machine itself, or by using
hand wheels on the top shaft the same operation. may be performed when
that is more convenient than by using the pulleys and strap. The said top.
rolls may be made of cast or wrought iron or steel of different diameters and
parallel or tapered as required. By the application of moveable antifriction
bearings fitted into the principal sliding bolsters which suspend and, carry the
top pressing roll, wrought-iron shafts can be fixed into the said top rolls (when
made of cast iron), and in either case have journals to revolve, in brass bushes.
fixed in the antifriction bearings, the latter being made, larger, in, diameter
than the top pressing roll, which will allow the top roll to be withdrawn at
either end of the machine through the principal sliding bolsters, and through.
a suitable opening or apertures in either of the two spur wheels (one at each
end of the machine) which drive the bottom rolls when driving spur wheels
of the diameter shewn in the Drawings are used. The top roll and antifriction
bearings are kept in their places by: a. lever at each end of the said roll, and
by raising either of the two levers the antifriction bearing or the top roll can
be withdrawn at that end of the machine at which the lever is raised.
Having thus stated the nature of the said Invention, I will proceed to
describe more particularly in what manner the same is to be performed by
reference to the accompanying Drawings, in which the said improvements are
represented as applied to machines and machinery for the purposes stated.

page_text: Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the machine; Fig. 2 is an end elevation shewing
the driving gear, and Fig. 3 an elevation of the other end; Fig. 4. is a plan
of the machine; Fig. 5 represents detached an end view of the top roll in its
bearings; Fig. 6 shews one end of the top roll with its bearings in vertical
section, and Fig. 7 shews the other end of the same with its bearings in hori-
zontal section. In these several Figures the same letters of reference indicaté
corresponding parts.
A is the top pressing roll mounted in bearings which are suspended in the
machine frame in such-a manner as to admit of their being elevated and de-
pressed as required by the screws B, B, the lower ends of which are connected
to the suspending bearings of the roll, as shewn in Figures 5 and 6. C is the
top-shaft extending beyond the outer frame at each end of the machine; on
this shaft are two bevil wheels D,. D, which are capable of sliding along a
feather inserted in the shaft so as to admit of their being put into and out of
gear as required with two similar bevil wheels E, E, one at each end of the
machine, revolving on studs fixed in brackets bolted to the upper part of the
machine frame. Under each of these wheels E, E, there is a spur pinion
gearing into a spur wheel F, which actuates the long vertical pinion G gearing
into the spur wheel H, fixed on the top of each of the elevating screws. And at
the driving end of the top shaft C are mounted pulleys I, I, I, which are driven
by straps J, J, in either direction required by shifting the straps accordingly,
the said straps being driven by the pulley or drum K on the first motion shaft L,
by which motion will be communicated from the first motion shaft L through
these straps and pulleys to the top shaft C in either direction and to the bevil
wheels D, D, which are both in gear with the bevil wheel E, E, to elevate
or depress both ends of the top roll simultaneously. The top roll may also
be elevated or depressed as required at either or both ends of the machine by
turning one or both of the hand wheels M, M, fixed on the top shaft C, and
thereby giving motion to this shaft, and acting upon the screws B, B, through
the intermediate gearing in the manner just described. And when the top
roll is required to be elevated or depressed at either end only, it is necessary to
throw out of gear one or other of the sliding bevil wheels D, D, by either of
the levers N', N¹, by which the motion of the top shaft C will be communi-
cated to that end of the roll requiring to be elevated or depressed separately, 3
and during which the other end of the roll remains stationary. P, P, are
moveable antifriction bearings fitted into the principal sliding bolsters which

page_text: suspend and carry the top roll A, these bearings are shewn most clearly in the
detached Figures 5, 6, and 7, on reference to which it will be seen that the
diameter of these bearings is uniformly larger than the diameter of the top roll,
so as to admit of the latter being drawn out freely at either end of the machine
by means of ring bolts Q, Q, inserted in the journals of the top roll. These
bearings P, P, are prevented from turning round in the sliding bolsters by
keys fixed into them, but moving freely in grooves cut into the sliding bolsters.
The levers R, R. (see Fig. 5) keep the antifriction bearings P, P, and the
top roll A in their right places for working, and when the levers R, R, are
lifted up the antifriction bearings P, P, may be withdrawn by the ring bolts
Q, Q, to allow of tubes not exceeding in diameter the antifriction bearings
P, P, being removed from the machine without withdrawing the top roll. And
when tubes of larger diameter than the antifriction bearings are formed in the
machine, then the antifriction bearings P, P, and the top roll. A may be with-
drawn together by the ring bolts Q, Q, to allow the larger tubes to be taken off
at the side of the machine.
I would here remark that the Drawings represent a machine for rolling,
bending; and circling with my improvements applied thereto as described, all
other parts of the machine are common, and may be well understood by the
Drawing.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I hereby declare that I do not claim as of my
Invention any of the parts of machines or machinery represented and described
otherwise than as herein-after stated; but what I do claim as of my Inven-
tion is,
First, the communication of motion to the top shaft by strap and pulleys
from the driving shaft of the machine for the purpose of elevating and depress-
ing the top roll, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the application of two hand wheels to the top shaft for the
purpose of elevating and depressing either one or both ends of the top roll
separately or simultaneously by hand when that is more convenient than by
the means last referred to.
Thirdly, the application of two sliding bevil wheels, one on each end of the
top shaft for the purpose of elevating or depressing either end of the top roll
separately, as herein-before described.
Fourthly, the Invention and application of the moveable antifriction
bushes, which are capable of being withdrawn by ring bolts either with or
without the top roll, as herein-before described.
And, lastly, the application of two spur wheels for driving the lower rolls

page_text: as shewn (one at each end of the machine), with one or more suitable openings
to admit of the antifriction bearings, the top roll or the rolled tube being
withdrawn through them, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Todd, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Twenty-third day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred sixty-five.
Witness,
WILLIAM SPENCE;
8, Quality Court,
Chancery Lane
JOHN TODD. (L.S.)