IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES.
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Tomlinson Bousfield, of Loughborough Park,
Brixton, in the County of Surrey, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PRESSES. A communication from abroad by George Chatterton, a person
residing at Providence, Rhode Island, United States of America..
1
Sealed the 8th August 1864, and dated the 19th April 1864.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said George Tomlinson Bousfield,
at the. Office of the Commissioners, of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 19th April 1864, pursuant to the 9th Section of the
Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, BE IT
KNOWN, that I, GEORGE TOMLINSON BOUSFIELD, of Loughborough Park,
Brixton, in the County of Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES," communicated to me from abroad
by George Chatterton, a person resident at Providence, Rhode Island, United'
States of, America, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
thereof, that is to say :-
Figure 1 is a front view; Figure 2 is a side view; Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6 are
detailed parts to be.referred to bereafter.
In the accompanying Drawings the drop weight or hammer A is fitted to
work in guides on a gallows frame B, B. It is raised by means of a straight
strap C of leather, sheet metal, or other material possessing the requisite
friction surface to enable the lifting pulley to .act. This strap, which may be of

page_text: any desired thickness and should possess no elasticity, passes between the faces
of the two drums D, D¹, (Figure 2), shewn in dotted lines. These drums are
provided with toothed gears which are of the same size, and fitted to engage
with each other, and are thereby driven in opposite directions by the belt
which passes over the driving pulley E, attached to the shaft to which the
drum D is secured. The drum D¹ revolves upon a shaft which with reference
to the bearing F (Figures 2 and 5) is set eccentrically so that by raising the
rod G, hinged to the arm F', which is keyed to the bearing F, the pulley D³,
will be moved away from the lifting strap; against which at other times it
presses. The rod G extends downwards to near the foot of the frame and is
provided with two adjustable sliding blocks a, b, the purpose of which will
presently be understood. Upon the side of the gallows frame opposite to that
where the rod G is placed there is a similar rod H, which is capable of turn-
ing axially in suitable bearings. It is provided with an adjustable block c,
and also with a coiled spring d, the latter being for the purpose of retaining
the rod with its attachments in the proper relative position. Projecting from
each side of the drop weight are the wedge-formed ears e and f, the office of
which is to operate the adjustable stops a, b, c, above referred to.
Suppose now the pulley E to be revolving, the operation of the drop will be
as follows: By the friction of the drums D and D¹ upon the strap C, the
weight A is carried upward until it reaches the point where the stop c is
placed. The inclined face off strikes against a corresponding inclination on
the lower face of the stop c, whereby the rod H is turned in its bearings far
enough to permit the ear to pass. The coiled spring d instantly returns the
rod to its former position so that the hammer upon its return will be sustained
by the base of the wedge f resting on the upper surface of the stop c. The
ear e on the opposite side should strike against the stop a as soon as the pro-
jecting ear has fairly passed the stop c and raise the rod G high enough to
act upon the arm F, and thereby move the drum D', so far from the drum D
as to destroy the friction upon the strap C. The weight A will then descend
until it is arrested as before stated by the stop c. When it is desired to trip
the weight the operator depresses with his foot the treadle I, which through
the chain J and lever K operates the rod H and removes: the support. to the
weight. In order to keep the drum D¹ from pressing against the lifting strap
until after the hammer has given its blow, and also to insure the ascent of the
hammer the instant that the blow has been struck, the following arrangement
has been employed. When the rod G is raised by the weight in ascending,
the spring g, Figure 2, acting on the link h pulls the foot of the rod G towards
the france, so that when it would otherwise be permitted to return it will rest

page_text: on a projecting shelf or short standard k. The drum.D is thus prevented
from acting on the strap C, and impeding the free descent of the hammer
whenever the foot treadle is depressed. As however the hammer reaches the
anvil the projecting ear e having its inclined face turned downwards comes in
contact with the inclined face of the stop 6, and pushes the foot of the rod G
from its supporting shelf, the drum D' is then brought again to act on the
strap C, and the hammer, is at once raised to its former elevation. Inasmuch
as the strap C would, if there were no means taken to prevent it, be liable to
hang slack when the hammer was down, and thus increase the probability that
the hammer would rebound upon the work, a friction block 1, Figure 3, is placed
against the strap C over the cross head of the gallows frame. The degree of
friction which these blocks should exert in order to keep the strap at all times
from bellying is regulated by the bell crank lever m, upon the long arm of
which is the weight n by which the degree of pressure can be easily regulated.
It is obvious that the strap C will be likely to become thinner from use.
In order to compensate for this, and to enable the faces of the drums to be
brought nearer together, the following means for making a new adjustment of
the parts is employed. The axle F of the drum D' has its bearing; in the
plate, Figure 6, the periphery of which is provided with holes. This plate has
a shoulder at right angles to the plane of its face, which is fitted to, the bearing
in the upright; the axis of the bearing for the axle F is not coincident with
the axis of the shoulder, but the two are parallel with each other so that the
outer surface of the one is eccentric, with reference to the inner surface of the
other. It is evident that as the plate with its shoulder is turned in its bear-
ing in the upright, the axle bearing of the drum D¹ will be brought near to
or farther from the axle of the other drum D so that as the strap becomes too
much worn to be fairly nipped by the drums a new adjustment can be readily
made which will compensate the change in thickness of the strap. The plate is
held in its position by a pin which passes through one of the holes near its peri-
phery, and enters a hole in the upright. If from this change in the relation
of the drums to each other any change is required to be made in the length
of the rod G, it can be effected by means of the slip joint connection shewn at
P (Figure 1).
It will be observed that the improvements described secure the following
advantages, which render this machine superior to all others of its class hereto-
fore known. The straight strap admits of any degree of strength which may
be required from the fact that a number of thicknesses of sole leather or strips
of leather and sheet metal combined may be used for the strap when made in
this form, while it would be impossible to use the same thickness of leather or

page_text: the same combination of materials in the form of a belt to be wound around a
pulley. The friction block 7 with its controlling lever m is a cheap and effec-
tual means for preventing the strap from becoming slack, while the adjustable
blocks a, b, c, admit of the ready adjustment of the height from which the
bammer is to fall, at the same time that they insure a free descent to the
hammer in falling, and an immediate ascent to its proper elevation the instant
that the blow has been struck. In the majority of the kinds of work for
which these presses are employed, it is desired to have the hammer fall from
a fixed point. In some instances however it may be advantageous to give a
succession of blows of varying force. A means for doing this is exhibited in
Figure 1 consisting of a lever L pivotted to the fulcrum standard M and so
arranged that when the treadle N is depressed the short arm of the lever will
raise the rod-G and permit the hammer to fall (unless it has passed the sup-
porting stop c) from the elevation at which it happens to be..
What is claimed as the Invention and is desired to be secured by Letters
Patent is,―
First, the combination of a strap C, either flexible or otherwise (as distin-
guished from a belt) or its equivalent in combination with a pair of friction
drums D, D¹, substantially as described for the purposes specified.
Second, the combination of a friction drag m, l, with the strap C or its
equivalent, substantially as described.
Third, the combination of the adjustable supporting stop c and the hammer
A, substantially as described.
Fourth, the combination and arrangement of the hammer A with both the
adjustable stops a and c, when the latter are combined with each other, to
arrest the further ascent of the hammer, and to sustain it at any given point
substantially as described.
Fifth, the use of an excentric bearing, Figure 6, for the drum D¹ or its
equivalent; for the purpose of altering the adjustment of the said drum D' with
reference to the drum D, substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of April in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.