Improvements in the Process of and Means for Dyeing Hides.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 16th May, 1889
Complete Specification Left, 15th Feb., 1890-Accepted, 22nd Mar., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of and Means for Dyeing Hides.
I, JOSEF KRISTEN of Brünn in the Province of Moravia, Austrian Empire, Leather
dyer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the dyeing of dressed hides, such for instance as glove-
leather by means of centrifugal force and to apparatus or. machinery therefor tho
object being to enable the dyeing operation to be performed by mechanical means
instead of by the method hitherto usually adopted which consisted in applying the
colour by hand by means of a brush.
According to my invention, the hide to be dyed is stretched over a horizontal
support, to which a rapid rotary movement can be imparted, and upon the centre of
the hide the dyeing liquid is allowed to flow, when it will be uniformly distributed
over the hide by centrifugal force.
In the machine devised for carrying this process into practice, a vertical shaft
carries a table intended to have the hide attached to it, this table being arranged
within a trough, wherein the dyeing liquid thrown over the edge of the table is
collected.
In order to afford facility for removing the dyed hides and placing fresh ones upon
the table, the latter is not rigidly connected to its shaft but is adapted to slide along
a plate or frame attached to the shaft, whereby the table can be brought near to the
front side of the trough. That portion of the circular table which then abuts against
the said front side of the trough is by preference truncated so as to be rectilinear
and a spring catch is provided which fixes the table to its supporting plate in both
positions.
The dyeing liquid collected in the trough is allowed to flow down into a vessel
whence it is pumped into the dyeing liquid reservoir by a pump driven from the
driving shaft of the machine.
The pipe through which the dyeing liquid flows onto the hide is adapted to be
swung aside when desired to move it out of the way, and it may be adapted to close
automatically as soon as it is turned aside.
As a rule, a common driving shaft is provided for a certain number of these
centrifugal dyeing machines and the vertical shafts are adapted to be lifted in order
to put their conical wheel out of gear with the corresponding wheel of the driving
shaft. Thus any table can be stopped without interfering with the others.
Dated the 16th day of May 1889.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of and Means for Dyeing Hides.
I, JOSEF KRISTEN, of Brünn, in the Province of Moravia, Austrian Empire,
Leather Dyer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention 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 process of dyeing dressed hides, such for example, as
glove-leather, by means of centrifugal force, and to apparatus or machinery therefor,
the object being to enable the dyeing operation to be performed by mechanical means
instead of by the method, hitherto usually adopted, which consisted in applying the
dyeing liquid by hand by means of a brush.
·
According to my invention, the hide to be dyed is stretched over a horizontal

page_text: support, to which a rapid rotary movement can be imparted and at the centre of
rotation the dyeing liquid is allowed to flow onto the hide, over which it is uniformly
distributed by centrifugal force.
In the machine devised for carrying this process into practice, a vertical shaft
carries a table intended to have the hide attached to it, this table being arranged
within a tank, wherein the liquid thrown by the centrifugal force over the edge of
the table is collected.
In order to enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe how it can
be carried into practice by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which-
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a machine, which I have found to be suitable
for dyeing hides according to my invention.
Figure 2 is a plan of the table and the tank surrounding it.
The table A, which can be of circular, polygonal or other suitable form, and on
which the hide to be dyed is stretched, is provided with a protruding rim fixed round
its edge for preventing the liquid from being thrown off horizontally, and rests on a
plate a, which is supported by a vertical shaft a journalled in a bearing a³, which is
fixed to the frame of the machine, and in a foot step bearing not shewn, in-the
drawing. A bevel wheel a³ mounted on the shaft a' and in gear with a bevel wheel a
upon a horizontal driving shaft a³ enables the vertical shaft to be rotated. As soon as
the hide to be dyed has been stretched over the table A and primed with a mordant,
usually consisting of a solution of an alkaline salt contained in the vessel B provided
for this purpose, the table A is sot in motion in the manner hereinafter described.
The mouth of a pipe c having a narrow or wide outlet, aperture is placed above the
middle of the table; the horizontal portion of this pipe may be provided on its
bottom side with perforations, and the pipe is adapted to be turned out of the way
when required; or several of such pipes may be similarly employed. The flow of
the liquid can be regulated by means of stop cocks c¹ or otherwise.
The centrifugal force created by the rotation of the table causes the dyeing liquid
to be thrown from the centre in all directions toward the circumference of the table,
whereby the liquid is uniformly distributed over the surface of the leather.
In this manner the dyeing liquid is allowed to act upon the leather during a certain
time, whereupon the flow of the liquid and the machine are stopped simultaneously
for draining the hide, and the machine is then again started. The described operation
is repeated until the hide is saturated with colouring matter, and it is then removed
from the table and replaced by a fresh one. The dyeing liquid thrown beyond the
edge of the table, is received in the tank D surrounding the table A, and by means of
a pipe d this liquid is conveyed into a vessel E from which it is forced back into the
colour reservoir C by means of a pump F, which is suitably geared with the driving
shaft a³, the force pipe f of the pump opening into the colour reservoir C.
Instead of the pump F any other suitable contrivance may be employed for
effecting the return of the liquid into the reservoir C.
The dyeing liquid, instead of being forced back into reservoir C, may be poured.
directly upon the hide.
For the purpose of stopping the table A a lever g is provided, by means of which
the said table can be raised sufficiently bigh to put the bevel wheel a out of gear
with the bevel wheel at on the driving shaft as, the lever being then locked in position
by convenient means provided for this purpose.
Instead of the lever g any other suitable appliance may be employed.
In order to allow of the hides being easily placed upon the table A, the latter is
truncated at one point of its circumference, and perpendicularly to the rectilinear
edge a thus formed, the table is adapted to slide upon its supporting plate a. The
rectilinear edge as can by this means be moved, towards the vertical front side'd' of
the tank D.
The table A is, automatically locked in its central and eccentric positions by a
spring-catch a secured to the supporting plate a, and taking into recesses, in the
under surface of the table. As it is desirable that the workman attending the
machine should be continuously occupied, it is advantageous to combine a series of

page_text: Several
machines of the described construction with a common driving shaft.
pumps F may be provided in such combination for conveying the dyeing liquid back
into the vessels C, each of which may be provided with conveniently arranged
outlet pipes & for several tables. When the pumps F are substituted by other analogous
contrivances, a suitable number of the latter may also be combined in order to obtain
a continuous action of the machine.
When it is desired to deepen the colours after the dyeing operation, which is usually
done by treating the dyed hiles with a solution of sulphate of iron or of copper,
another machine of similar construction is by preference used for this purpose. In
this case, the hides are attached to a plate (made by preference of copper) which
allows of their being easily removed from the table of the dyeing machine and
transferred to the other machine.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. The herein described process of dyeing hides, consisting substantially in
stretching the hides over a horizontal support, adapted to be rapidly rotated round a
vertical axis, and causing the dyeing liquid to flow during a certain time upon the
centre of rotation of the hides.
2. A machine for dyeing hides consisting of a horizontal table A, adapted to be
rapidly rotated, a pipe c with its outlet situated over the centre of rotation of the
table and conducting the dyeing liquid from a reservoir and a tank D surrounding
the table. A, and serving to receive the dyeing liquid thrown over the edge of the
table, substantially as set forth.
3. In a machine for dyeing hides a table A, sliding on a plate a which is mounted
on a vertical shaft, the said table being truncated at one point of its circumference,
and provided with means for locking it in central and eccentric positions, substantially
as set forth.
4. In a machine for dyeing hides a pump, geared with the driving shaft, and
conveying the liquid, thrown over the edge of the table, back into the reservoir C,
substantially as described.
5. The combination of a series of machines for dyeing hides and of the described
construction provided with a common driving shaft, substantially as set forth.
6. In a machine for dyeing hides and of the described construction, outlet pipes c,
adapted to be turned aside, when necessary, substantially as set forth.
7. In a machine for dyeing hides, means for raising and lowering the shaft a¹
supporting the table A in order to allow, when a number of machines are combined
together with one driving shaft, any one or more of the machines to be put out of
gear without stopping the others, substantially as described.
Dated the 15th day of February 1890.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.