AN IMPROVED METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR BENDING STAVES FOR CASKS OR BARRELS
Year: 1884

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE of the firm of Haseltine Lake & Co Patent Agents
Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex do hereby declare the nature
of said Invention for "AN IMPROVED METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR BENDING
STAVES FOR CASKS OR BARRELS," and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:—
This Invention relates to the the bending of staves for.barrels and the like and
to apparatns therefor.
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In bending staves for beer, ale, or other similar barrels or casks the great difficulty
heretofore experienced is that a large per centage of the staves break during t
operation of bending.
The object of this Invention is to obviate this objection by applying the bending
pressure at the ends of the staves and sustaining the back of the same as hereinafter
described.
In the accompanying Drawing
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine constructed according to this Invention.
Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line X X Figure 3.
Figure 3 is an end view of the machine and
Figure 4 is a vertical section on the line Z Z Figure 2.
A indicates the frame of the machine constructed of cast iron or other suitable
material and a¹ endwise pressing arms, one being arranged at each end of tho
machine so as to swing on trunnions a². The upper portions or pressing jaws of
the said arms are provided with pushing blocks a³ which are secured to the arms a
by bars b, having a series of perforations 61 so that they can be adjusted forward
or backward to suit staves of different lengths. The said bars screw into the
pushing blocks as shown and are secured to the pressing jaws or arms a¹ (one on
each side of each of the arms a¹) by bolts b' which act as pivots upon which they
can swing or turn slightly. On each side of the pushing blocks a³ is a journal or
pivot b on which is pivoted an arm or bar c having its lower end "pivoted 'to a
cross bar c (see Figure 4) which passes across the under part of the stationary or
fixed bed c.

page_text: "
The bed c² is made in two parts and secured by bolts and trunnions c³ to each
side of the frame of the machine.
The cross bar c¹ is capable of being adjusted backward or forward as the
bars b, c, aro adjusted and of being fastened at any point desired on the bed c² by
means of the bolt d and a cross bar d¹ see Figure 4. Near each end of the bed c
are two arms d³ pivoted to the sides of the bed by bolts, d³.
To the upper ends of the arms d² is secured the yielding bed e. This bed e is
made of spring steel or other suitable elastic material and is sufficiently thick and
strong to prevent the staves from breaking and forcing it out of shape or out of the
required bend or curve and may have an upper layer or covering of leather or other
suitable material if desired.
The lower ends of the arms d' are secured by rods e' which run between them
and through cross plates e* and then through india rubber or other equivalent
springs e³ see Figure 2. The tension of the spring or yielding bed e is adjusted by
means of the springs e³ and screw nuts f, see Figure 2.
F, indicate two eccentrics made in the usual way and rigidly secured to the
driving shaft, f; they are connected to the lower ends of the arms a' by rods g g¹
and bolts g³.
To the shaft f is fastened a spur wheel g³, which gears with a pinion i on the
shaft of the driving pulley .
J indicates a transverse pressing bar secured by bolts to the upper ends of the
arms a¹-The hole through one end of the bar J is enlarged or lengthened so as to
allow for the forward movements of the arms a¹. This bar J may in some cases
be dispensed with if desired, but for some purposes or some kinds of staves it may
be used with advantage.
For some kinds of work the pushing blocks may be cast in one piece with, or bo
rigidly fastened to, the arms a¹, in which case the arms or bars bc could be dispensed
with, but I prefer the arrangement above described.
There are many other equivalent ways for giving the movements to the arms a¹
besides the eccentrics described and shewn, for instance by a toggle joint connected
by an arm to a crank on the driving shaft; or they may be operated by a steam
cylinder connected thereto in any well known way.
I do not therefore wish to be confined strictly to the device shown and described
for giving the reciprocating movements to the said arms.
The operation of the machine is as follows that is to say -A stave, K. being put
into the machine as shown in Figure 1, the movement of the excentrics when at
or near the limit of their outer movements brings the endwise pressing arms a¹ and
pushing blocks a³ into the position shown by the dotted lines in Figure 2 and
thereby bends or brings the stave and the yielding bed below it into the position
shown by the dotted lines 1, Figure 2. As the machine continues its movements
the stave is released and removed, another being put in its place.
In Figure 2 I have shown in the transverse pressing bar J, a device for giving
a heavy spring pressure to the stave while bending it, the object being to give an
elastic or yielding pressure at that point and also to allow for the different
thicknesses of the staves to be bent.
In this device indicates the pressing iron and ³ an upright bar having an
enlargement, near the bottom upon which the spring r passes. This rod passes
up through a hole at the top and is kept in place by a nut which also regulates
the distance to which the pressing iron shall move downwards. The spring r
presses against the bottom and against the top of the frame as shown. For
some kinds of staves this arrangement would bo necessary. The spring r should
be very strong so that the foot will require a hard pressure to move it.
It will be readily seen from this construction that the stave is bent solely by
the pressure against the ends of the same and that, as it bends, it is forced against
a strong yielding spring bed. The stave being thus bent is compressed in the
direction of its length so that while the inner side is compressed in length the outer

page_text: side of the bend is not increased in length consequently there is no danger of
separating the fibres or breaking the stave.
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 :
First. The mode of bending staves consisting in applying the pressure at the
ends of a stave in the direction of its length and partly downward in the direction
of the bend while the back or outside of the stave is supported on a yielding bed
substantially as described.'
"
Second. In a machine for bending staves, the arms or levers for giving the end
pressure, and their operating mechanism substantially as described, the pushing
blocks a secured by pivots to the arms b and rendered adjustable by bolts 6³, in
combination with the arm c having their lower ends pivotted to a cross bar,
substantially as, and for the purposes, specified.
Third. The end pressing arms provided with pushing blocks and operating
mechanism substantially as described, and a yielding bed secured to the pivotted
arms d³ in combination with the rod e' and springs e³ for the purposes specified.
Fourth. The end pressing arms or levers, the adjustable pushing blocks secured
to the pivotted arms cas specified, a yielding spring bed secured to the pivotted
arms d, and the rod e¹ and springs e³, in combination with the eccentrics F¹ ƒ³ the
arms g g' and their operating mechanism substantially as described.
Fifth. The combination of the spring or yielding bed, the arms d³ pivotted to
the bed c³, rod e', the springs e³, and the screw nuts f for the purpose of regulating
the tension of the yielding spring bed, substantially as described.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
For the Applicant.