Improvements in the Method of and Apparatus or Appliance for Drying or otherwise Treating Stockings, Gloves, Drawers, Under- jackets, Knitted Goods, and other Articles.
Year: 1891

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Method of and Apparatus or Appliance for
Drying or otherwise Treating Stockings, Gloves, Drawers, Under-
jackets, Knitted Goods, and other Articles.
J, AEMILIUS EDWIN WUNDERLICH, of 9, Emilienstrasse, Chemnitz, Germany,
Chemist, 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 :-
Heretofore to dry quantities of stockings gloves, drawers, under jackets knitted
goods or other articles, so that not only the various single articles but also all
parts of each separate article may be in the same state of dryness throughout the
drying process, it has been customary to stretch the articles upon frames to be
hung in a drying stove.
By my invention as hereafter described I am enabled to considerably expedite
and simplify such drying process and to effect same more perfectly and at less cost,
while maintaining elegance of appearance and smoothness of threads without
spoiling and disarranging the latter.
According to my invention I place the goods to be treated inside a revolving
horizontal drum so constructed and acting that fresh parts of each separate article
are always exposed to the influence of air, gas or steam, all as hereafter described.
In order that my said invention may be better understood and readily carried
into effect will describe same with reference to the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 showing an end view, and Figure 2 a side elevation of so much of a
machine or apparatus as will be necessary to describe my invention.
C
a is a horizontal or nearly so, drum carried in bearings by a pivot bor by a main
or continuous shaft by which the drum is put in motion and carried in a suitable
frame. In case a main or continuous shaft is employed it is preferable that this
should be cased with boards in the shape of a three sided prism as is shown upon
the left in Figure 2. The casing of the drum is perforated and may be formed of
laths and covered in the inside with wire webbing or perforated metal plate or
plates. From the inside of the casing, webs or paddles c project into the interior
of the drum extending lengthways therethrough, parallel with the axis of the same,
the planes of the paddles c forming with the drum periphery a sharp angle di
Figure 1 in the direction of the revolution of the drum. These paddles & may be
perforated, or, without material disadvantage for certain cases and with more rapid
revolution of the drum may retain only the outer and the inner longitudinal flanges
or edges. The ends d of the drum are preferably of closed material; the end
which is opposite to the driving apparatus being for the convenience of charging
the drum provided with a suitable opening capable of being closed by a door or lid;
it is desirable to make this opening so large as to occupy nearly one half of the end
of the drum to be closed by means of a plate, Figure 1, provided with handles on
the outside, the closing plate, being held fast to the end wall of the drum by
movable clamps or equivalent devices. All the surfaces in the interior must be
carefully polished or smoothly finished.
After the drum has been filled, through the said opening, with the articles to be
dried, for example, stockings, and the opening is closed, the drum is turned slowly.
The stockings lying in the under part of the drum are then prevented from rolling
downwards by the paddles, and fall first only about so far downwards in pro-
portion as the paddles deviate from the direction of the radius, and therefore in
proportion to the smallness of the angle d¹ Figure 1 and also in proportion to
the breadth of the paddles.
The stockings are now in a state of constant motion thereby effecting a uniform
drving, and this without the articles when completed showing any trace of

page_text: injury. The duration of the treatment may be according to circumstances from 2
to 24 hours.
Instead of the paddles supporting, carrying, and to some extent holding the
stockings, centrifugal action may also be used, thus instead of the drum being moved
slowly it may be made to rotate so quickly that the centrifugal force becomes equal
-to the weight of the articles and the tendency to falling downwards of the stockings
when at top half of the drum case is obviated. So long as there is no alteration of
the speed of revolution no new distribution of the stockings or other articles takes
place, but if the revolution is interrupted the stockings fall together in the inside of
the drum, and upon renewal of the motion they are distributed afresh. The change
of position or the extent of same may be varied according to the amount by which
the speed of rotation is changed. The variation of the speed of rotation of the
.drum may be effected by periodically coupling or uncoupling the driving mechanism,
the speed slackening when uncoupled and again maintained when coupled.
Whether in a machine in motion the stockings fall from the upper to the lower
part or not may be ascertained by the sudden stoppage of the driving power. In
the first case the machine stands still; in the latter it turns further until it has made
such a number of revolutions that the fall of the articles ensues, whereupon the
drum soon comes to a stand. One can thus easily test the number of turns which
indicate the condition in which the tendency of the articles to fall from the top to
the bottom begins to operate, and when only a slackening without any reciprocal
shifting takes place.
The whole apparatus may be enclosed in a casing which may be put in connection
with suction and pressure valves, in order according to requirement to ventilate or
_to otherwise treat the articles with, for example, air, gas, or steam.
By my invention I am enabled to dispense with the necessity for much troublesome
work, which now exists in connection with for example, the aniline black process,
such work as is not only troublesome as aforesaid, but also injurious to the health of
the workmen and costly, such as for example the daily stretching of many
thousand dozen stockings or other articles separately upon forms and hanging up in
chambers.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what I
claim is :-
:
First The method of uniformly drying stockings, gloves, drawers, under-jackets,
knitted goods and other articles and for the uniform treatment of the same with air,
gas or steam, consisting in the placing of the articles, inside a horizontal or nearly
horizontal drum which is provided with paddles or bands, and which is either
turned slowly or by the uncoupling and coupling of the driver the speed of
revolution is so varied that at one time the centrifugal force overcomes the gravity
and at another time the latter prevails, or finally, is moved round so rapidly that
the centrifugal force is equal to the gravity, and only after long intervals a
thoroughly new distribution of the articles is effected by the stoppage of the machine
all substantially as herein described.
Second For the carrying out of the method described in Claim 1, a revolving
drum a fixed horizontally or nearly so, and enclosed in a case if desired, the cover
or periphery of the drum being perforated and fitted inside with paddles or bands c,
which forming an acute angle in the direction of the revolution, all substantially as
and for the purposes herein set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 25th day of February 1891.
A. E. WUNDERLICH.
By Brewer & Son,
Agents.