IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING MACHINES
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Edward Newton of the Office for Patents
66 Chancery Lane in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for an
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING MACHINES." Communicated to
him from abroad by Edme Augustin Chameroy of Paris in the Republic of
France
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 26th June 1882.
HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of the Office for Patents 66 Chancery Lane in the
County of Middlesex Civil Engineer "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING MACHINES."
[Communicated to him from abroad by Edme Augustin Chameroy of Paris in the
Republic of France.]
This invention relates more particularly to weighing machines or apparatus in
which a steelyard is employed and consists in an arrangement of parts whereby
the small weight on the steelyard can be worked by mechanical means instead of
by hand but the invention is also applicable to other weighing apparatus where
it is important that the operation of weighing shall be effected irrespective of the
will of the attendant.
To this end the steelyard which is provided with knife edges and is suitably
mounted in a convenient frame is formed at its shorter arm with a sleeve or socket
to receive a short vertical shaft.
On the upper end of this vertical shaft is mounted a bevel wheel with a spur
pinion below it. In gear with the bevel wheel is a second bevel wheel which is
mounted on one end of a horizontal axle lying parallel with the steelyard.
On the other end of this axle is a dial on which numbers say from 0 to 200 lbs.
are marked. The steelyard is provided with a pointer which when the beam is in
equilibrium will denote on the dial the weight of the goods placed on the platform.
The weight on the steelyard is connected with a rack in gear with the spur
pinion and by turning the dial which will actuate the gearing the weight can be
shifted in the direction required to bring the steelyard into equilibrium.
The bevil gearing must be so arranged that the point of contact shall be on
the line of the axis of oscillation of the steelyard.

page_text: Although bevel gear is herein mentioned it will be evident that other means may
be employed for communicating the motion of the dial to the weight on the steel-
yard.
If it be desired to print tickets with the amount of the weight the dial may be
formed with figures on the edge against which the tickets are pressed by any
convenient means
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Henry Edward Newton in the Great Soal Patent Office on the
23rd December 1882.
HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of the Office for Patents 66 Chancery Lane in the
County of Middlesex Civil Engineer "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEIGHING MACHINES"
Being a communication to me from Abroad by Edme Augustin Chameroy of Paris
in the Republic of France.
In weighing machines constructed according to the "system Dujour" the weight
of the Goods is automatically indicated on a special dial This form of apparatus
has the disadvantages of not being very sensitive and of giving only approximately
the weight of the goods.
In these machines the transmission of the movement is dependent upon
cylindrical axles which cause considerable friction and consequently false
indications of the weight
It has been thought that machines of this system would be more accurato if the
displacement of the weight on the steel yard was effected mechanically so that
equilibrium should be effected (irrespective of the will of the attendant) at the
precise instant when the indication of the weight of the goods should take place.
To arrive at this result the machine may be constructed in either of the forms
represented in the accompanying drawing in which fig 1 is an elevation of an
automatic steelyard machine constructed according to the present Invention
Fig 2 is a plan fig 3 is a front view showing the dial and fig 4 a view of the
back of the machine-Fig 5 represents in a diagram the theory of the system of
the axes of oscillation and rotation The remaining figures shew modifications in
the arrangement of the machine. A is the frame of the machine which supports a
horizontal axle C to one end of which is secured a dial B divided into kilos or
other units of measure On the opposite end of the axle C is mounted a mitre
wheel D which gears with a horizontal mitre wheel E mounted on a vertical
axle F carried in a socket formed in the short arm of the steel yard H which rocks
on the centre I-Below the mitre wheel E and on the same axle F is mounted a
gear wheel G with which gears a rack L to be hereafter more particularly referred
to The point of contact of the wheels ED must be exactly in line with the axis
of oscillation I of the steelyard as clearly indicated in the diagram fig: 5

page_text: The weigbing platform is hung from a bar J which is supported on knife edges
working in bearings in the shorter arm of the steelyard H in the usual manner
Mounted on the steelyard H is a sliding weight K to which is attached one end of
the rack L The weight. K is slidden backwards and forwards on the steelyard by
means of the rack L which is worked by the gear wheels D E F when the
attendant rotates the disc B.
M is a pointer which is secured to the extremity of the steelyard H and is
intended to indicate on the dial B the weight of the goods placed on the platform.
N N are two screens which are placed in front of the dial B and are secured
to the frame A in any convenient manner. When the steel yard is in equilibrium
the pointer will be midway between the two screens, but otherwise it is hidden
under either one or the other
Suppose it is desired to weigh goods the dial is brought to zero or a central
point between the two screens N N and the goods are placed on the platform
The steelyard H under the influence of the weight of these goods will rise and
the pointer will be hidden behind the screen N say at the point X Tol obtain the
equilibrium of the steelyard and an indication of the weight of the goods the dial B
must be turned by hand which will actuate the wheel D and through it the gear
wheels E G and rack L
By this means the weight K will be worked along the steelyard H and at the
precise moment at which the weight arrives at the proper point to cause equilibrium
the steelyard H will descend and the pointer M will appear between the two
screens N N¹ and indicate the weight on the dial. If however the weight K has
been moved through carlessness, too far the pointer will disappear behind the
screen N' that is to say fall to the point Y in which case the dial must be turned”
slowly back until equilibrium is obtained.
The exact weight of the goods will be indicated on the dial by the figures before
which the pointer stops As soon as the goods are removed from the platform the
pointer will again disappear as the steel yard will be no longer in equilibrium
As before stated the point of contact of the two weeels DE must be exactly on
the axis of oscillation I so that the force transmitted by the dial B to displace the
weight K shall have no effect on the equilibrium of the steel yard If the point of
contact is above this line the force transmitted would have the effect of raising the
steelyard and if below the line would lower the steelyard.
In the modifications shewn in the remaining figures the gear wheels D E are
suppressed.
Fig: 6 is a side elevation of one modification in the form of machine Fig 7 is a
front elevation and fig. 8 represents the details of the steelyard.
B is the dial which is mounted on one end of the axle C the other end carrying
the wheel or pulley O-P P are two parallel pieces or bars which are connected
together by cross pieces to form the steel yard and are provided with knife edges I I
which rest in suitable bearings in the frame A. & K' are two weights which
slide on the steel yard P and are connected rigidly together
These weights are also connected by means of chains or bands of steel Q Q to
the wheel O one end of each chain or band being secured to the wheel by a screw V.
or in any other convenient manner so that any motion given to the wheel O from
the dial B will be communicated through the chains or bands to the weights K K'
The pointer M which is conveniently secured at its lower end to the centre of the
steel yard indicates on the dial the weight of the goods N N' are screens which
are carried by the frame A in any convenient manner and serve the same purpose
as those referred to above.
B. is a connecting rod by which the platform is secured to the hook J carried by
the steelyard-The frame A which carries the whole of the apparatus is supported
by the column S
X Y and X¹. Y represent the different positions of the steelyard during its
Oscillations on the axis I-Z Z' represent the extent of swing of the pointer M..
To obtain on the dial B the indication of the weight of goods placed on the

page_text: platform it is only necessary to turn the dial which will cause the weights K K'
to advance on the steelyard P and at the moment when the said weights arrive at
the point of equilibrium the steel yard which up till then was in the position
indicated by X' Y¹ will assume a horizontal position and the pointer M will
appear centrally between the two screens and indicate the weight on the dial
When the goods are removed from the platform the steelyard will assume the
position XY and the pointer will be hidden under the screen N at the point Z'.
In this modification the axes of oscillation II of the steelyard, the tangent of
the wheel O to the point at which the steel bands QQ leave the wheel, and the
direction of the two steel bands QQ are in the same line and consequently the
rotation of the wheel O will have no influence on the regularity of the weighing-
As in the former arrangement there is no need to touch the weights their movement
being effected by the movement of the dial All the working parts may if desired
be enclosed in a case.
In adapting the improved weighing machine for service on railway stations
where it is desirable that the reading of the weight can be effected from both
sides of the machine, certain parts are duplicated as shewn in side view at
fig: 9 in which it will be seen a second dial is employed as well as a
second pointer and duplicate screens N N' The action is the same as in the
former case
In certain cases it is desirable that the indication of the weight should be made
on two concentric dials-Such an arrangement is shown at fig: 10
A dial B will represent for example by units of 1000 kilos the range of
a weigh bridge of 10000 kilos and a dial B' will represent the subdivisions of
10,000 kilos
The dials B B are respectively connected in any convenient manner with
the wheels O O' and give independent motion to the two pairs of sliding
weights K K and K K³ the first pair K K¹ producing the indication of the
weight in 1000 kilos and the pair K³ K³ the subdivision of 10,000 kilos indicated
on the dial B₁
The working of the two dials is exactly the same as that described above for the
apparatus with one dial
For the proper working of this latter form of apparatus it is necessary to take
the precaution always to bring the indication of the 1000 kilos of the dial B to
the upper part where the pointer M ought to appear then to complete the weighing
by moving the dial B' which alone puts the steelyard in equilibrium and works
the second pointer
In order to complete the utility of this arrangement of steelyard a series
of projecting figures may be arranged round the circumference of the dial which
will allow of printing on tickets the indication of the weight in the manner
described in the Specification of a Patent dated the 6th March 1875 No. 828.
The arrangement of automatic steelyards described above may be applied to
ordinary weighing machines to weigh bridges of all powers and to balances of all
kinds and in fact to all weighing apparatus where it is important that the
operation of weighing should be carried out irrespective of the will of the Attendant
and in spite of him.
Having now set forth the nature of this Invention for Improvements in
weighing machines as communicated to me from Abroad and explained the
manner of carrying the same into effect I wish it to be understood that
I claim
First In weighing machines in which a weight or weights sliding on a
steel-yard or beam is or are employed actuating the sliding weight or weights by
mechanical means such means being arranged so as to avoid any interference with
the proper oscillation of the steelyard or beam as herein set forth.
Second The means for working the sliding weight as herein described and
shown with reference to Figures 1 to 5 of the drawing.

page_text: Third The means for working the sliding weights as herein described and
shewn with reference to figures 6 to 10 of the drawing
Fourth The various forms of weighing machines and the arrangements of
the parts constituting the same substantially as herein described and shewn in the
drawings
In witness whereof I the said Henry Edward Newton have hereunto set
my hand and seal the 22nd day of December in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty two.