Scouring, or Washing. Wool and other Materials.
Year: 1888

page_text: Scouring, or Washing. Wool and other Materials.
We FRANK ERNEST ANDERSON Commission Merchant, of Elliott Place, East
Orange, New Jersey, United States of America, and SAMUEL HODGSON, Woollen
Manufacturer, of Village Main Street, Medway, Massachusetts, United States of
America, 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 a method of and apparatus for dyeing, scouring or washing
wool or other fibrous material, the main objects of the invention being to provide for
a uniform submersion of all of the wool or other fibre operated upon, and to provide
for a submersion of any desired length of time.
To the ends named the invention consists essentially of the method hereinafter set
forth, and an apparatus for carrying out the same.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
Specification in which figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of our improved scouring
and washing machine; the view being taken on the broken line x-x of figure 2;
figure 2 is a plan view of the machine; figure 3 is a sectional view on line of
figure 2; figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of one of the flushing tanks;
and figure 5 is a side view of the upper portion of the apparatus. Similar figures and
letters of reference serve for like parts in all the figures.
y-y
To carry out our invention we prefer to employ such a machine as is illustrated in
the drawings above referred to, wherein there is shown a tube or conduit 10, at one
end of which there is arranged a hopper 11, while the other end of the tube, which
is the discharge end, is raised so that the lower edge of the discharge opening a will
be above the level of the top of the main body of the tube.
Within the hopper 11 we mount a tilting Blushing tank 12; of which the trunnions
pass outward through curved slots that are formed in the side walls of the hopper 11
and rest upon levers 13, that are pivotally mounted at one side of the hopper. To
the end of one or both of the levers 13 we connect a cord 9 which passes up over a
9.

page_text: pulley carried by a shaft i, said shaft being provided with a ratchet k, that is
engaged by a spring pressed pawl 1, carried by the pulley h. To the end of the cord
we connect a weight g¹. The shaft i carries a toothed drum m, above which drum
there is a hopper 28, adapted to receive the staple to be operated on.
To one or both of the trunnions of the flushing tank 12 we rigidly connect a lever n,
that is provided with a counterbalancing weight 14, the weight being held to the lever
by a set-screw or in any other desired manner, so that it may be adjusted toward or
from the tank trunnions in order to regulate the amount of liquid delivered at each
tilting of the tank, as will be readily understood; and it will also be understood that
if special forms of tanks were provided, the lever n and its regulating weight might
be dispensed with.
Beneath and just beyond the delivery end of the tube 10, we arrange a perforated
receiving tray or pan 15, and in the construction illustrated in the drawings, it will
be seen that the tube 10 is bent at about right angles at the point c, the object of this
construction being to economize space, as by so turning the tube we provide for the
arrangement of the rinsing apparatus in a line parallel with that of the tube. At one
side of the tray 15, we mount a lever 16, the inner end of said lever carrying a presser
foot 17, while the outer end of the lever supports a counterbalancing weight 18. The
lever 16 is provided with an upwardly extending arm 19, to which there is connected
a cord 20, the function of which will be hereinafter disclosed.
Beneath the tray 15, there is a gathering trap 23, which discharges into a return
pipe 24, said pipe 24, leading to a tank 25, and in connection with this tank we
arrange a steam pulsometer 26, which acts to force a stream of liquid up through a
supply pipe 27 to a funnel 30, the arrangement being such that all liquid passing out
of the delivery end of the tube 10, will be returned to the tank 25, to be pumped
thenco through the tube 27 to the tilting flushing tank 12, a proper liquid heating
apparatus being arranged in connection with the tank 25.
.
After the staple has passed through the tube 10, it is rinsed in water, and this
rinsing may be brought about in any desired manner, but we greatly prefer that the
rinsing should be done by means of a series of flushing tanks such as those shown
at 40, 41, 42 and 43, said tanks being mounted upon trunnions which rest in
bearings 35, upon the side walls of a washing tray 36, the bottom of said tray being
sinuous, whereby there are formed basins 44, 45 and 46. Beneath these basins there
is arranged a drip tank 47.
The flushing tanks 40, 41, 42 and 43 are provided with counterbalancing weights 4
and with upwardly-extending lever arms 5, and to the lever arm 5 of the tank 43
there is pivotally connected a rearwardly extending rod 48, which is slotted at 6 to
receive a pin that is carried by the lever arm of the tank 42, and the lever arm of the
tank 42 is in turn pivotally connected to a slotted rod 49, which rod is connected to
the lever arm of the tank 41, and this method of connection is continued throughout
the series of tanks. In the drawings we have shown four flushing tanks, but we
desire it to be understood that any number of tanks could be employed.
The cord 20 which, as before stated, is connected to the lever 19 extends about a
sheave 51, to the lever 5 of the tank 43, so that as the lever 5 tilts forward it will act
to throw the presser foot 17 downward, thus compressing the staple within the tray or
pan 15.
We will suppose that the apparatus is to be used for the cleansing of wool, in which
case the wool to be operated upon is placed in the hopper 28, the tank 25 is heated,
and the pulsometer is set in operation so as to deliver a stream of alkaline liquid, with
which the tank is supplied, to the funnel 30, then as the tank 12 fills it will move
successively from the position indicated by dotted lines at o¹, to the position shown
at full lines o³, then to the position shown by dotted lines at o³, and will finally tilt to
the position shown at o; and as the tank so moves downward from the position
indicated by the lines o' to the position indicated by the lines o³, the sheave or pulley h
will be carried in the direction of its arrow, and its pawl engaging the ratchet k will
carry the toothed drum forward, whereby a quantity of the staple within the hopper 28
will be carried forward and into the line of the stream flowing from the funnel 30,

page_text: which stream will free the staple from the drum teeth and carry it into the tilting
flushing pan 12, so that as the pan tips, the staple will be delivered to the tube 10.
Immediately after the tank 12 has discharged, the weights g₁ and 14 will act to return
it to the position indicated by the lines o¹. In order that a continuous current may
be maintained within the tube 10, we provide the tank 12 with a discharge tube 32,
the flow from said tube being regulated by a stop cock, or a continuous current might
be supplied to the hopper 11 in any other desired way.
As each successive charge of liquid and staple is delivered to the tube 10, the pre-
ceding charges will be forced forward within the tube towards its delivery end, and
in order that there may be no danger of the jamming of the staple within the tube,
we greatly prefer that the tube should be made so as to gradually increase in diameter
from the hopper 11 to its delivery end, this gradual increase being shewn in the
drawings.
As the staple is forced out of the tube 10, it falls into the tray 15 above which tray
the presser foot 17 is placed, the tilting of the tank 43 being timed so as to draw down
the presser foot just at the moment the tank 12 tilts and as the tilting of the tank 40
follows almost immediately after the tilting of the tank 43, the contents of said
tank 40 will be delivered to the tray 15 just as the presser foot is rising, that is
just after the tank 12 has discharged its contents. The tanks 43, 42, and 41, are
timed so that the tank 43 in discharging will draw upon its rod 48 and ensure
the discharge of the tank 42 immediately after its own discharge, the discharge
of the tank 42 bringing about the discharge of the tank 41, and the tank 41 of the
tank 40, so that as each tank discharges, its contents will wash the staple subjected
to its flow into the next basin in advance.
As before stated, a continuous current or flow of liquid is maintained within the
tube 10 the liquid so delivered to the tube passing therefrom through a series of
apertures 3 formed in the under side of the upturned delivery end of the tube, or a
portion of the liquid may pass directly out of the end of the tube, the amount of liquid
passing through the perforations 3 being controlled by a slide 33.
The tanks 40 to 43 are fed from a supply pipe 52, each tank being provided with a -
feeding nozzle, the capacity of the nozzle exceeding that of the tank discharge
nozzles 7. The discharge nozzles 7 are provided in order that the staple in the basins 44,
45, and 46 may be continually agitated, the flow from said nozzles being governed
by stop cocks, if desired. In order that the staple, when subjected to the action of the
streams flowing from the nozzles 7 may tend to keep up a rotary motion we
provide each of the advance tanks with deflecting plates 53. Passing from the last
of the basins of the tray 36, the staple is forced over the end d of the tray and into
any proper receptacle at A.
From the construction above described it will be seen that by increasing the flow of
liquid from the supply-pipe 27, we increase the frequency of the tilting of the tank 12
or by cutting down the supply of liquid we decrease such tilting. It will also be seen
that by shifting the weight 14, we may regulate the amount of liquid delivered at
each tilting of the tank, whereby we are enabled to regulate with the greatest nicety
the length of time that the staple remains in the liquid delivered to the tube 10. The
desired regulation may also be brought about through the medium of the stop cock
arranged in connection with the discharge tube 32.
.
We have described this invention as one particularly adapted to the cleansing and
washing of wool, but we desire it to be distinctly understood that the machine could
be used in the cleansing and washing of any other material and that it could be used
in the dyeing, washing, or treatment in any way, of materials in processes where it
is desirable to submerge the material. We further desire it to be understood that in
this specification we have used the term "staple" in the sense of " unfinished material "
"material needing treatment."
or
Although we have stated that the pumping of the liquid from the tank 25 is brought
about by a pulsometer, still we desire it to be understood that any proper form of puinp
might be employed for this purpose.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. The combination, with a tube having upturned ends, of a tube-flushing mechanism,
as and for the purpose stated.
2. The combination, with a substantially horizontal tube that is normally filled
with liquid, of a staple-supplying mechanism and a tube-flushing mechanism, as
and for the purpose stated.
3. The combination, with a tube normally filled with liquid, of a tilting flushing-tank
as and for the purpose stated.
4. The combination, with a tube normally filled with liquid, of a means, substan-
tially as described, for delivering an intermittent supply of liquid to the tube, as and
for the purpose stated.
5. The combination with a tube normally filled with liquid, of a means for
delivering a constant supply of liquid to the tube and a means for delivering an
intermittent supply of liquid thereto.
6. The combination, with a tube provided with an upturned and perforated delivery-
end of a tube-flushing mechanism as and for the purpose stated.
7. The combination, with a tube having an upturned delivery end, of a receiving-
tray arranged in advance of said delivery end, a staple-compressing mechanism, and
a tube-flushing mechanism, substantially as described.
8. The combination, with a tube having an upturned delivery-end, of a receiving-
tray arranged in advance of said delivery end, a staple-compressing mechanism, a
flushing-tank, and a staple-washing mechanism, substantially as described.
9. The combination, with a tube having an upturned delivery-end, of a receiving-tray
arranged in advance of said delivery-end, a staple-compressing mechanism, a staple-
washing mechanism, and connections between said staple-washing mechanism and the
staple-compressing mechanism, substantially as described.
10. The combination, with a tube provided with an upturned delivery end and with
a receiving hopper, of a tilting flushing-tank mounted in said hopper, a staple-
receiving hopper, and a staple-delivery mechanism, substantially as described.
11. The combination, with a tube provided with a hopper and an upturned and
perforated delivery-end, of a tube-flushing attachment, and a slide, said slide being
arranged in connection with the perforated delivery-end, substantially as described..
12. The combination, with a hopper and a flushing-mechanism, of a tube connected
thereto and formed with an upturned delivery-end, the tube gradually increasing in
diameter from the hopper to its delivery-end, substantially as described.
13. The combination, with a tube or conduit having its main portion lying in a
plane below its inlet and outlet, of an intermittent staple-feeding mechanism, and an
intermittent flushing-mechanism, as and for the purpose stated.
14. The combination, with a series of basins, of a series of flushing-tanks, as and
for the purpose stated.
(..
15. The combination, with a series of basins, of a series of flushing-tanks and
connections between said tanks, as and for the purpose stated.
16. The combination, with a series of basins, of a series of tanks provided with
lever-arms and slotted arms pivotally connected to the tank lever arms and extending
to the rear to engage with pins carried by the lever arms of the tanks to the rear, said
pins passing through the rod-slots, substantially as described.
17. The combination, with a tube provided with a hopper and an upturned delivery-
end, of a staple-feeding mechanism, a tube-flushing mechanism, a staple compressing
mechanism, and a staple-washing mechanism, substantially as described.
18. The combination, with a tube or conduit normally filled with liquid, of a liquid-
supply attachment and a means for imparting an intermittent impulse to the liquid
within the tube, as and for the purpose stated.
19. The herein-described method of dyeing, scouring, or washing, which consists in

page_text: submerging the staple and in subjecting said staple and its surrounding liquid to inter-
mittent forward impulses, substantially as described.
20. The herein-described method of dyeing, scouring, or washing, which consists
in submerging the staple, and in then subjecting the staple and its surrounding liquid
to the intermittent action of a liquid supply.
21. The herein-described method of dyeing, scouring, or washing, which consists in
intermittingly feeding the staple to the operating liquid and in subjecting said liquid
and the staple to an intermittent forward impulse.
22. The combination with a tilting flushing-tank mounted on levers, of a receiving-
hopper, a toothed drum mounted therein, a ratchet carried by the drum, a pulley
loosely mounted on the drum shaft, and a weighted cord which is connected. to
one of the flushing tank levers and passed over the pulley, substantially as
described.