CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SEPARATING CERTAIN FIBROUS SUBSTANCES FROM SEED AND OTHER EXTRANEOUS MATTERS
Year: 1846

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDMUND
MOREWOOD, of Steel Yard, Upper Thames Street, in the City of London,
Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent, under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Second day of October,
in the tenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Edmund Morewood, my exors, adiñors, and
assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said Edmund Morewood, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Edmund Morewood, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during
the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, and in the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and
Man, and in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad,
the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SEPARATING
CERTAIN FIBROUS SUBSTANCES FROM SEED AND OTHER EXTRANEOUS MATTERS,"
communicated to me from a certain Foreigner residing abroad; in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Edmund Morewood,
should cause a particular description of the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, by an Instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: profitably in large quantities in many parts of the extensive and diversified
possessions of British India, to whose soil it is indigenous, and where its
growth formerly excelled. The primitive mode of disengaging this kind of
cotton from its seed was by the slow and tedious process of the fingers. The
common way practised afterwards and hitherto for ginning the long staple
cotton, and the only way in which it can be done by machinery without material
injury to the fibre, is by the use of rollers which draw the fibres and separate
them from the seeds. These rollers have been made of various substances, such
as metal, wood, cork, &c., with their surfaces smooth, fluted, indented, &c., but
all these have failed in giving satisfactory results. Those made of wood have so
far been the most successful, but in a very short time they heat and become
rough, injuring the staple, and have therefore to be frequently renewed. The
metal rollers, in consequence of the smoothness of metal surfaces, have to be
fluted or otherwise channelled, that they may take sufficient hold of the fibres
to draw them through; and as those thus formed tend to draw in too much
cotton, together with the seeds, the two rollers must be pressed together by
extra force, such as weights or springs, which additional pressure tends to heat
the rollers and injure the staple. Rollers made of other substances have, for
like and other causes not necessary to enumerate, failed to produce the desired
results. Moreover, in the use of all rollers for separating the cotton and seeds,
the cotton tends to lap around them, as it is termed, that is, the fibres adhere
to and are wound around the rollers, forcing the rollers apart, drawing in and
mashing the seeds between them, thus staining and otherwise injuring the
cotton and retarding the process. This obstacle has heretofore been insur-
mountable, the methods in common use to prevent this great evil being to have
the rollers subject to intense pressure with the aid of brushes of bristles and
other insufficient aids to prevent the lapping. Rollers made smooth draw the
cotton between them under pressure very slow, and sometimes not at all.
Rollers fluted or indented, to draw the cotton exposed to their action between
them, require to be subject to intense pressure, and soon have their surfaces
destroyed or the flutes break down. These defects in the operation of roller
gins arise from the circumstance of the rollers not having been constructed or
formed in such a manner as to keep their surfaces from injuring each other,
and to prevent the rollers from becoming heated from pressure, and from
pressing and crushing the fibre. The object of my improvements is to avoid
all these defects, and they consist in the following devices :-
In the employment of ginning rollers, which are made slightly fluted or
grooved in lines parallel with their axes, the better to catch and hold the fibres,
but to prevent the hurtful tendency which has been experienced in the use of

page_text: fluted metallic rollers, the flutes or grooves do not extend their whole length,
the ends of the rollers being left perfectly smooth for a short distance, so that
the edges of the flutes of the one shall not enter the recesses of the other, or
catch and cut the fibres, this being prevented by the smooth surfaces at the
ends which roll on each other. The tendency to cut and tear the fibres from
the cause enumerated, as well as to injure them by the heating of the rollers,
is also avoided by dispensing with the great pressure heretofore used. So long
as the proper quantity of cotton is presented to the action of the rollers, and
they do not draw in too much, there is no pressure upon them, but when
this does take place, then their bearings, or the sliding boxes in which they
work, are brought in contact with springs properly adjusted to exert a pressure
sufficient to keep the rollers from being separated so as to allow the seeds to
pass through; the rollers, however, are relieved from pressure the moment
that the overcharge of cotton ceases. In my machine a bar spring of steel
is placed on the top of the frame over the ginning rollers, and running length-
wise with the rollers; it is fastened by its centre to the frame, and beneath
the ends are screws passing up through the frame for adjusting the spring so
as to relieve the sliding boxes from pressure except when the rollers become
overcharged with cotton. The cotton is prevented from lapping around the
rollers by the following contrivance :-A plate of metal, about eight inches wide
and as long as the rollers, has upon the upper edge at each end of it pieces
projecting out perpendicularly to the face of the plate, about three inches.
Through the ends of these pieces are holes which coincide with holes in the
frame of the ginning machine, and the plate is connected to the machine by
bolts being passed through these holes in the frame and pieces. Through
the plate lengthwise is cut a slot or opening about an inch wide, and extending
to within about an inch of each end of the plate. On the inner side of the
slotted plate, or side next the rollers, are blades or plates, bevelled, of steel,
with toothed edges, the lower teeth pointing upward, and the upper tooth
downwards; the blades are adjusted so that the teeth are on a line with the
sides of the slot, and, consequently, when in position to clear the rollers they
are respectively a little above and a little below the horizontal centres of the
rollers. The plate is placed on the back side of the rollers, or side opposite to
that at which the cotton is fed, and when in action it hangs vertically or
nearly so. Its operation is as follows:-If the cotton, after having passed
through the rollers, has a tendency to adhere to them, or follow round in the
direction in which they are moving, as it is caught upon the toothed edges
and prevented from doing so when any quantity has accumulated upon the
teeth, it is forced through the slot in the plate and falls on the other side.

page_text: When the machine is driven by steam or horse power, in order to reduce the
labor of attendance, a contrivance is affixed which supplies the place of the
human hand in loosening the bolls and feeding the cotton uniformly to the
rollers. This consists of a metallic plate, about eight inches wide, and nearly
as long as the rollers. Through the centre of this plate lengthwise is a slot
about two inches wide, and extending nearly to the ends. From each side of
the slot a row of pins or teeth project nearly half way across the opening,
and they are so placed that the teeth of one side point between those of the
other side. The teeth are half an inch or so apart, and are cut upon the
edge of steel blades, which are screwed against the side of the metal plate
above and below the slot. The four corners of the plate are provided with
rods which extend through the frame of the machine, and to one of these
rods is connected an arrangement of cranks, levers, and arms, by which a
lateral motion is given to the plate, which motion, together with the alternate
teeth over the slot, loosen the bolls and distribute the cotton uniformly to the
rollers. The position of the plate is in front of the rollers, or between them
and the feeding table, with the centre line of the slot opposite the line between
the rollers.
In the accompanying Drawings, A is a frame upon which the rollers and
various parts of the gin are supported. B, a board upon which the operator
rests his arms while feeding the cotton to the ginning rollers. When the
machine is driven by horse or steam power this board becomes a feeding table
upon which the cotton is laid to be taken up by the rollers; it is made per-
fectly smooth, and should then be placed in an inclined position that the cotton
may slide down by its own weight. A space is left between the rollers and
the board for the seeds to fall through. C, C, the ginning rollers, or rollers
between which the cotton is passed to be separated from its seeds. They are
channelled or grooved lengthwise except for a short distance from each end,
which is left plain, and may be of a hair's breadth greater diameter, so that if
the rollers come together while revolving the plain parts receive the pres
sure and keep the channelled surfaces from wearing each other and from
injuring the fibre or staple of the cotton, but it is obvious that if made of the
same diameter a like effect will be produced. The upper roller rests in move-
able bearings in order that it may rise and fall as the quantity of cotton
passing through is greater or less, and its bearings are in sliding boxes which
move in guides in the frame. From these boxes there extend upward steel
pins which come in contact with a spring, hereafter to be described, for con-
trolling, the motion of the roller. The direction in which the rollers respectively
revolve is indicated by arrows. Motion is communicated to the lower roller

page_text: from the main shaft, and the upper roller derives motion from the lower one
by means of toothed wheels carried by the ends of the rollers and gearing
into each other. c, bearings of the lower ginning roller. a¹, boxes in which
the journals of the upper ginning roller work; they are placed between guides
on the frame, and are free to move vertically as before stated. c, steel pins
which extend from the boxes c¹ to the top of the frame. D, a bar spring which
lies along the top rail of the frame; it is secured in the centre, and the ends
rest upon the steel pins rising from the moveable boxes c¹; beneath each end
is also a screw d, which passes through the top rail, and the use of which is to
adjust the spring so that it shall nearly rest upon but not press the steel pin c
when the ginning rollers are in contact. E..an apparatus for preventing the
cotton from lapping; it consists of an iron plate, having two pieces e on the
upper edge projecting perpendicularly from the face of the plate; through the
plate lengthwise is cut a slot, about an inch wide, and extending nearly to the
ends; on the inside of the plate, or side next the rollers, are placed two blades
of steel e³, as long as the slot, and having serrated edges; the position of the
blades is such that the toothed edges are on a line with the sides of the slot,
the teeth of the upper blade pointing downward, and those of the lower blade
pointing upward. The apparatus is secured to the gin by bolts e", which pass
through the sides of the frame A, and through the projecting pieces e; it is also
free to turn upon the bolts as pivots; and for the purpose of adjusting the teeth
to the proper distance from the rollers, there are catches, or detainers, or
guages F, against the inside of the frame, according to the position of which
the plate is thrown further from or allowed to fall nearer to the rollers. G, a
contrivance for feeding the rollers when the gin is driven by steam or horse
power; it consists of a plate, through the centre of which, lengthwise, is a slot
about two inches wide, and extending nearly to the ends; from each side of the
slot a row of pins or teeth g project; these teeth are cut upon the edge of steel
plates g¹, which are secured against the side of the plate; from the corners of
the plate there extend rods g¹¹, passing through the frame, to one of which is
connected an arrangement of arms, cranks, and levers z, y, x, by which a
lateral motion is given to it. H, main shaft of gin, to which power is applied:
When the gin is worked by foot, motion is communicated to the shaft by means
of a treadle h, and pitman rod h'; when it is driven by steam or horse power,
the main shaft is provided with a pulley, through which motion is communi
cated. I, pulley on the main shaft, from which motion is communicated to
the lower ginning roller. J, a fly wheel placed on the main shaft when the
gin worked by foot. K, an inclined plane down which the cotton falls after it
has passed through the slot of the clearing apparatus.

page_text: Having described the several parts of the gin, their construction, arrange-
ment, and the method of adjusting them, it remains only to describe its opera-
tion, which is as follows, videlicet:-The gin being worked by foot, the
operator presents the cotton to the ginning rollers, which sieze it and force out
the seeds, these falling back while the cotton passes through the slotted plate E,
and falls down the incline plane K. Should the cotton have a tendency to lap
around the rollers, it is prevented from doing so by the serrated plates e¹, upon
the teeth of which it is caught and remains until successive portions force it
through the slot; or in the event of its accumulating between the plate E and
the rollers, the plate, being free to turn upon the pivots which connect it to the
frame, rises or is raised by the operator, and the cotton falls down upon the
inclined plane as before.
When the machine is driven by steam or horse power it has affixed
to it the apparatus G. The board B is then converted into an inclined
plane, and the cotton being laid upon it, slides down until it comes against the
teeth 9. I when these, by their alternate position and lateral motion, loosen the
cotton and distribute it to the rollers. Instead of placing the ginning rollers
one above the other, and depending upon the weight of the upper roller for
separating the fibres from the seeds, they may be placed one forward of the
other, with springs of sufficient force to equal or nearly so the weight of the
upper roller when arranged one above the other, and whence the force of these
is overcome, to bring into play additional force to prevent the introduction of
seeds or too much cotton, although the arrangement described above is deemed
the best. The construction and arrangement of the parts above indicated I
deem the best and most effective, and therefore have made them the most
prominent, but do not wish to confine myself thereto, but to point out and
secure the principle or character of the improvements which I have invented ;
and therefore what I claim as the Invention, and desire to secure by Letters
Patent, is, making the ends of the fluted, grooved, or ridged ginning rollers
without the flutes, grooves, or ridges, so that they shall run on each other,
and thus prevent the injurious action of the parts fluted, grooved, or ridged,
operating on each other and the fibres of the cotton, as described.
I also claim as an improvement the moveable slotted plate, with toothed
blades or plates attached, for the purpose of preventing the cotton from lapping
or winding around the rollers. And also the toothed plates, either moveable
or stationary, for preventing the cotton from lapping, as before stated.
I also claim the catches, detainers, or gauges, at the bottom of the plate for
preventing it from rubbing or pressing against the rollers.
I also claim the toothed plate in front of the rollers, made to vibrate either

page_text: horizontally or vertically, for the purpose of loosening the cotton as it passes to
the grinding rollers, or any other way substantially the same.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edmund Morewood, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this First day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-seven.