IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SKIMMING BEER OR OTHER FERMENTED LIQUORS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Ebenezer Savill, of the Firm of Savill Brothers,
of Stratford, in the County of Essex, Brewers, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SKIMMING BEER OR OTHER FERMENTED
LIQUORS."
.
Sealed the 19th November 1875, and dated the 24th May 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Ebenezer Savill at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 24th May 1875.
I, EBENEZER SAVILL, of the Firm of Savill Brothers, of Stratford, in
the County of Essex, Browers, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SKIMMING BEER OR OTHER'
FERMENTED LIQUORS," to be as follows:-
"
or
The skimming of the barm or yeast which rises to the surface of
beer or other liquors in the fermenting "squares
"backs" has
At some
hitherto been effected by skimmers operated by hand.

page_text: convenient part of the square there is a sort of funnel, usually called
the "parachute," from which a pipe is carried down through a stuffing
box in the bottom of the square; the height of this parachute being
adjustable so that its upper edge may always be placed on a level with
the surface of the liquor in the square. The barm or yeast is skimmed
off into the parachute and passes down through the pipe into a vessel
below.
Now the object of my Invention is to effect the skimming, or the
greater portion of it, mechanically, whereby not only are time and
labor saved but also the process is performed more efficiently, that is 1
to say, less of the beer is skimmed off with the barm or yeast than when
hand skimmers are employed..
In carrying out my Invention I employ a strong beam or frame,
which is provided with wheels or rollers to run on rails or guides on the
square." This beam extends the whole length of the square, or 1
nearly so, and has a traversing movement from the back to the front,
which may be imparted to it by cords or chains worked by a winch or
otherwise. On the beam are guides for vertical bars, to the lower ends
of which the skimmer is attached; this skimmer extends from and to
end of the square, and is composed of a board or plate, which may, if 2
thought desirable, be formed with a number of small holes to allow beer
or liquor but not the barm to pass through. The position to which
the skimmer is allowed to descend is regulated (by pins or otherwise)
according to the height of the liquor in the square. Two of the vertical
bars before named are connected by a horizontal rod, which rests on 2
arms in connection with a hand lever on the beam in such manner that
when the hand lover is pulled down the horizontal rod and with it the
skimmer are lifted; in this raised position the skimmer is retained by
one or more catches.
The “parachute” is situated by proference at one of the front corners 3

page_text: the beam and skimmer gradually towards the near side. In this move-
ment the skimmer brings the barm or yeast with it, and when it has
reached a point, about say 10 or 12 inches from the near side, the winch is
stopped, and the barm which has been drawn into this space of 10 or
12 inches may then be casily removed by a hand skinner into the para-
chute at the corner; but if preferred the parachute may extend along
the entire front of the square, so that the barm may be skimmed directly
into it by the mechanical skimmer. The skimmer is then lifted by
means of the band lever clear of the liquor, and held up by the catches
before.described. The winch is now turned in the reverse direction, so
as to return the beam and skimmer to the back of the square, on
arriving at which the catches aro released by means of inclines or fixed
abutments, and the skimmer being thus liberated falls to position ready
for the next skimming operation.
It will be well to partly counterbalance the skimmer, so as to allow.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Ebenezer Savill in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 24th November 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EBENEZER
SAVILL, of the Firm of Savill Brothers, of Stratford, in the County of
Essex, Brewers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourthi day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Ebenezer Savill, Her special. licence,
that I, the said Ebenezer Savill, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Ebenezer Savill, 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

page_text: vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR SKIMMING BEER OR OTHER FERMENTED LIQUORS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Ebenezer Savill, my exe-
cutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Ebenezer Savill, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement thereof, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawings, that is to say :-
.
1
The skimming of the barm or yeast which rises to the surface of beer
or other liquors in the fermenting "squares" or backs has hitherto
been effected by skimmers operated by hand. At some convenient part
of the square there is a sort of funnel, usually called the " 'parachute,"
from which a pipe is carried down through a stuffing box in the bottom 2
of the square, the height of this parachute being adjustable so that its
upper edge may always be placed on a level with the surface of the
liquor in the square. The barm or yeast is skimmed off into the para-
chute and passes down through the pipe into a vessel below.
Now the object of my Invention is to effect the skimming, or the 2
greater portion of it, mechanically, whereby not only are time and
labor saved but also the process is performed more efficiently, that is
to say, less of the beer is skimmed off with the barm or yeast than when
hand skimmers are employed.
In carrying out my Invention I employ a strong beam or frame, 3
which is provided with wheels or rollers to run on rails or guides on the
66 square." This beam extends the whole length of the square, or nearly
so, and has a traversing movement from the back to the front, which
may be imparted to it by cords or chains worked by a winch, or other-
wise. On the beam are guides for vertical bars, to the lower ends of 3

page_text: which the skimmer is attached; this skimmer extends from end to end
of the square, and is composed of a board or plate, which may, if thought
desirable, be formed with a number of small holes to allow beer or
liquor, but not the barm, to pass through. The position to which the
skimmer is allowed to descend is regulated (by pins or otherwise)
according to the height of the liquor in the square. Two of the vertical
bars before named are connected by a horizontal rod, which rests on
arms (or instead of a horizontal rod the bars may carry rollers which
rest on the said arms) in connection with a hand lever on the beam in
such manner that when the hand lever is pulled down the horizontal
rod, and with it the skimmer, are lifted; in this raised position the
skimmer is retained by one or more catches.
'
The "parachute" is situated by preference at one of the front corners
of the square.
The operation is as follows:-The parachute and the skimmer having
been properly regulated as to height, according to the level of the liquor
in the square, and the beam with the skimmer being at the further side
of the square, the winch is put into action, so as to move the beam and
škimmer gradually towards the near side. In this movement the skimmer
brings the barm or yeast with it, and when it has reached a point about,
say 10 or 12 inches from the near side, the winch is stopped, and the
barm which has been drawn into this space of 10 or 12 inches may then
be easily removed by a hand skimmer into the parachute at the corner;
but if preferred the parachute may extend along the entire front of the
square, so that the barm may be skimmed directly into it by the
mechanical skimmer. The skimmer is then lifted by means of the hand
lever clear of the liquor, and held up by the catches before described.
The winch is now turned in the reverse direction, so as to return the
beam and skimmer to the back of the square, on arriving at which the
catches are released by means of inclines or fixed abutments, and the
skimmer being thus liberated falls to position ready for the next
skimming operation.
It will be well to partly counterbalance the skimmer, so as to allow
of its falling without shock.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a longitudinal section.

page_text: a is the square or back; 6 is a strong beam or frame extending the
whole length of the square, and provided with wheels or, rollers c, c, to
run on rails d, d, on the ends of the square; e is the skimmer, which
likewise extends from end to end of the square; it is composed of a
board or plate carried at the lower ends of vertical bars f,f, which work
through guides on the beam; the two outermost bars f, f, carry blocks 9,
which by coming against the beam prevent the bars, and therefore the
skimmer, descending beyond a given distance, which is regulated
according to the height of the liquor in the square by adjusting the
position of the blocks g on their bars by means of pins. The two inner
vertical bars f,f, have at or near their upper ends rollers h, h, (or a rod
connecting the two bars may be substituted for the rollers), which rest
on curved arms i, i, carried by a horizontal rod k, this horizontal rod
is free to turn in bearings on the beam 6, and is connected by a bell
crank to a lever m pivoted to the beam b, as shewn, so that when this
lever is pulled down the curved arms i, i, are raised, and thereby lift
the vertical arms f,f, together with the skimmer. In this raised position
catches n, n, moved forward owing to the greater weight of the levers n¹
to which they are connected (see the detached views, Figures 4 and 5),
enter notches o in the vertical bars f, f, and temporarily prevent the
skimmer again falling; but when the beam is returned to the back
of the square the rollers n² on the levers n¹, n¹, come against fixed
inclines p, which by raising these levers release the catches n, n, from
the notches o, so that the skimmer again falls; q, q, are counterweights
connected by cords r, r, to the skimmer to partly counterbalance it, and
thereby allow of its falling without shock; and in order to diminish
noise at the time of the fall pads of india-rubber, or other suitable
material may be fixed to the under side of the blocks g. The forward
movement of the skimmer is produced by means of a winch 8, around
which cords t, attached to the beam and led over pulleys u, are passed;
other cords v, from which counterweights w are suspended, are attached
to the back of the beam and return the skimmer to the back of the
square, when the cords t are unwound from the drum of the windlass;
x is the parachute, situated at one of the front corners of the square,
its height is regulated as required by means of the screw y, which is
raised or lowered by turning the nut z.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and .in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,
•

page_text: constructing apparatus for skimming beer or other fermented liquors,
substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Ebenezer Savill, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of November, One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.