IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR OPENING AND PREPARING COTTON
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Haseltine, of the "International Patent
Office," Southampton Buildings, Loudon, Doctor of Laws, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR OPENING AND PREPARING
COTTON." A communication from abroad by Richard Kitson, of
Lowell, Massachusetts, United States of America.
Sealed the 31st August 1875, and dated the 5th July 1875.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said George Haseltine at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 5th July 1875, pursuant to the 9th Section of
the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
HASELTINE, of the "International Patent Office," Southampton Build-
ings, London, Doctor of Laws, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINES FOR OPENING AND PREPARING COTTON," and have petitioned
Her Majesty to grant unto me, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the same, and have mado

page_text: solema Declaration LIL It mas Deen
Communicated
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abroad by Richard Kitson, of Lowell, Massachusetts, United States of
America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Haseltine, do hereby
declare that the following Complete Specification, under my hand
and seal, fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said In-
vention, and in what manner the same is to be performed in and by
the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings forming a part of this Specification:-
The first part of said Invention consists in certain improvements
in machines for opening cotton and other fibrous substances, which
relate,―
First. To a novel method of hanging beater discs so as to avoid strain
upon their shaft bearings and cause them to be balanced by cach
other, thereby effecting a great saving in the power required to drive
them.
Second. To the combination, with a single delivery spout for the
opened cotton, of two sets of discs, whereby I am enabled to make the
sets of dises lighter, and thus diminish the expense of constructing them as
well as the wear and tear of the machine and its liability to breakages,
which are more than doubled by doubling the size of the discs, the
object of this part of my Invention being to avoid these difficulties,
while keeping the full capacity and production of the machine.
Third. To tho combination of each set of discs of the machine with
a revolving screen cylinder for forming the lap by means of a laterally
expanding passage-way to distribute the cotton over a wider space upon
the screen cylinder than that through which it escapes from the beater
discs, without which it is difficult to form a lap from this beater.
Fourth. To the combination with each set of beater discs of a
movable apron for delivering the cotton to the beaters through an
inclined receiver or hopper, whereby the cotton is delivered in a
continuous and uniform sheet or quantity to the beaters, which insures
the formation of a lap upon the receiving screen cylinder without break
or fault.
My improved machine opens the cotton without injuring the fibre,

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a top plan view of my improved machine with the bonnets
removed from the beater discs and screen cylinder.
Figure 2 is a vertical section through the line a, a¹, Figure 1, with
the bonnets on, showing the relative position of the feed apron, one sido
of the hopper and the delivery to the screen cylinder.
Figure 3 is a vertical section though the line b, b¹, Figure 1, with
the bonnets on, showing the relative position of one pair of the beater
discs, and one side of the escape passage for the beaten cotton and the
screen cylinder.
Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of my machine showing the manner
in which each cotton escape passago expands horizontally from the
beater towards the screen cylinder, and how the two escape passages
unite in one before reaching the screen cylinder to enable the two pairs
of beater discs to deliver the cotton to the cylinder as if they were one
pair.
Figure 5 is a vertical section through the line c, c', Figure 1, with the
bonnets on, showing the mode of hanging the beater discs upon their
shafts, and of securing the latter in their boxes, and also showing the
relative positions of the feed apron, the hoppers, the openings to the
beater disc chambers, and the beater discs and arms.
Figure 6 is a plan view of my improved beaters cut away on the upper
half so as to show the interior of one arm and part of the shaft, and a
section of about one half of the beater on a plane passing through the
centre of the shaft and the longest diameter of the arm; Figure 7 is a
cross section of the same on the line ", "; Figure 8 is a cross section
of the same on the line 8, 81.
Figures 9 and 12 are plan views of my improved beater with part of
the upper half removed in a section through the centre of the shaft and
arms at their intersection, showing the manner in which the shaft, arm,
and blade are secured together; Figure 10 is a section of Figure 9
through the line v, v¹; Figure 11 is a section of Figure 9 through the
line w, wo'; Figure 13 is a section of Figure 12 through the line x, x¹.

page_text: A, A, is the frame of the machine; upon this frame are placed two
boxes d, d¹, in which revolves a shaft e which is revolved by means of a
pulley fixed upon one end of it, and upon which, just inside the
frame A and next to the boxes d, d¹, are fixed two discs B, B¹, which aro
the larger of each pair of discs in the machine. Around the shaft e is
placed the hollow shaft 9 which is revolved in the boxes h, h¹, by means
of the pulley ; the boxes h, h¹, being secured to the inner girts of the
framo A, so that the shaft 9 shall not come in contact with the shaft c.
On the ends of the shaft g, and just within and close to the discs B, B',
are secured two other discs C, O', which are parallel with and smaller
than the former, and revolve close to them, and which are the smaller of
each pair of discs in the machine. From the inner faces of the discs
B, B', project beater arms x, x, and from the inner faces of the discs
O, C¹, project beater arms x1, x¹, and the cotton is opened by revolving
these beater discs in opposite directions.
I
It will be seen that by using a hollow shaft g upon which to hang the
discs C, C, and passing the shaft e through it, I am enabled to hang
each beater disc B, B', within the bearings of their shaft on the frame,
thus preventing the excessive strain upon the shaft which is produced
by hanging these larger discs upon the projecting ends of the shaft as
heretofore. I also balance the smaller disc C upon one end of tho
hollow shaft by the disc C₁ upon the other end, and the two are driven
nearly as easily as one alone. The cotton to be opened is placed upon
the feed apron D, D¹, and is carried forward on the apron revolved by
means of the shaft m beneath the feed roller K, and falls into receivers
or hoppers H, II', one of which is provided for each pair of dises. From
these hoppers the cotton is drawn by suction of the air created by rota-
tion of the beaters through openings in the bonnets into the chambers
M, M, in which the discs revolve, and after being thoroughly opened is
thence driven through the expanding passages L, L', uniting into one
before reaching the cylinder E, and is blown in a sheet as wide as the
length of the cylinder E against it, which revolving forms the lap. The
hoppers H, II, are made in two equal corresponding parts to divide the
cotton equally as it falls from the feed apron K, K', and each has an
inclined bottom p sloping toward the corresponding opening in the bonnet,
and has perforations n, n, in the sides and bottom to allow the passage of
air through them created by the suction of the beaters and prevent the
cotton from adhering to their inside surfaces in its passage into the beaters.

page_text: Instead of hanging the smaller discs C, C¹, upon the hollow shaft g, as
shown in the Drawings, the larger discs B, B', may be hung upon it and
the smaller discs be hung upon the shaft e and the discs will balance
cach other as before, and the objects of this part of my Invention be
secured. In this arrangement however the beaters upon the faces of the
discs will project from the opposite faces to their present arrangement,
and the hoppers H, H', will be placed with the feed table D, D', so as to
deliver the cotton through the opposite of the bonnets from their present
position. While these changes will accomplish in great measure the
same results as the arrangement I have given, I prefer the latter.
The second part of said Invention relates to the beaters used in
machines for opening and beating or preparing cotton and other fibrous
substances, and the objects of this part arc,-
First. To make the shaft and arms of the beater lighter in weight
while retaining their proper strength and firmness, so that the blades of
the beater may be made correspondingly heavier, and at the same time
be run with less power and greater efficiency. This object I accomplish
by making the shaft and arms of my beater of hollow or tubular steel
or other metal, instead of solid as they have heretofore been made,
thus removing much of the weight about the centre without diminishing
the strength, and I then make the blade thicker and heavier in
proportion so that it shall strike the cotton with greater force. This
brings the weight where it should be for effect, and requires less.
power and less strain of the machinery.
Second. To prevent the cotton from clinging to and clogging the arm of
the beater under the blade in accumulations which cause the beater to be
out of balance, and crcate too much wind for the suction fan to carry off,
and which when the beater stops drop down in bunches under the beater,
and on its being started again are driven forward upon the screens, and
pass into the lap which is being formed. This object I accomplish by
placing a loose collar on each arm of the beater between the shaft and
the blade. N is the shaft which is turned in its bearings in boxes, one
at each end, in the usual way, and which is hollow or tubular in form,
and is provided with perforations through which pass the arms O, 01;
these arms are also hollow or tubular, and carry at their ends tho
blades P, P, as shown in Figure 6.

page_text: The shaft may be made with or without the tight collars or
thimbles t, t, for bracing the arms and strengthening the shaft, and the
blades may be secured to the arms by riveting or in any suitable manner.
I prefer to first insert a plug of solid metal into the end of the arm, secure
it therein by means of a pin through both, and then secure the end of the
arm and the blade together firmly by riveting or heading in the ordinary
manner. It will be seen that by this method I obviate a practical
difficulty in the ordinary construction of beaters, namely, that the greater
part of the metal lies along the axis of rotation, so that with respect to
either arm of the beater the blow is struck with the lighter end, so that
by this improvement while the centre of gravity of the beater is in the
axis of rotation, and the balance is perfect and no greater aggregate
weight of material is demanded, yet the centre of gravity of each half of
the beater lying on one side of a plane through the axis of rotation and
at right angles to the arms, is carried outward from the shaft toward the
blade, and the blow is struck with the heavier end of the arm, and with
the greater momentum come increased and better effect, and saving of
power. u, u, are loose collars on the arms O, O, (only shown upon two
arms but which are used on all of them) completely encircling the arm,
and movable thereon, and placed between the blade and the shaft.
These collars being smoothly finished by their free motion allow the
tufts and accumulations of cotton, which in ordinary machines cling.
beneath the blade and against the arms, to work off and be thoroughly
beaten by the blades of the beater, thus obviating the difficulties caused
by such accumulations, namely, disturbed balance of the beater, too
much wind for the suction fan to carry off, and imperfect lap.
The third part of said Invention also relates to be beater used in
machines for opening and preparing cotton or other fibrous substances,
and consists in the wire arm R in combination with the shaft and blades
of a cotton beater, and also in the means by which the arm R is securely
attached to the shaft and blades; S is the shaft of the beater revolving
in suitable boxes at the ends, and propelled by the usual machinery in
such machines and in the usual way, and which may be provided, as
shown in Figures 9 and 10, with perforations to receive the arms R, R¹,
and with close boxes or thimbles a, a, for strengthening the shaft and
bracing the arms, or simply with small perforations for pins y, y, as
shown in Figure 12; R, R', R", R, are double arms constructed of
several strands of tempered steel or other clastic or resilient metal

page_text: twisted together, and formed in such a manner as to contain the
loops,, at the extremities, and also when they pass around the shaft
with the loop T at the middle to enable them to be attached securely to
the shaft and blades as herein-after described. These arms are shown in
Figure 9 as passing directly through perforations in the shaft S, and so
held in boxes x, x, having the interstices filled with "Babbit" or other
metal; and the whole may be fastened further by a pin passing
transversely through the shaft and the arm at the centre of their
intersection. The arms R", R, are also shown in Figures 12 and 13,
as attached to the shaft in a manner which I prefer as at once simpler
and more secure, having the strands of the arm R divided at the
proper point, forming the loop T, tight by enclosing the shaft S, so that
half the strands pass around on one side and half on the other, and also
having the pin y inserted through each segment of the loop T and the
shaft S, thus completely preventing the arm from turning on the
shaft. By this construction the centre of the beater is made much
lighter than in any other way, and the saved weight may be carried to
the blades so as to increase the effectiveness and save power.
The blades U, U', are provided with thimbles or lugs V, V₁, which
may be either inserted in the blade or formed in solid picce thereon,
through which are larger perforations to receive the extremitics of the
arms, and smaller perforations to receive the pins W, W, as shown in
Figures 12 and 13.
Into the lugs V, VI, are inserted the extremites of the arm R™ having
the loops ¹,, within the lugs, the interstices are then filled with Babbit
or other metal, and the pins W, W, are inserted in the smaller perfora-
tions in the lugs V, V¹, and through the loops, ', the whole forming
a perfectly firm and secure juncture of the arm and blade.
I am aware that beater arms have heretofore been made of a solid
piece of steel tempered so as to form a yielding spring, but the difficulties
of this method are that the solid spring beater arm is of necessity com-
paratively heavier toward and about the shaft than the arm of twisted
wires, and also that it is very difficult or almost impossible to temper
the solid spring arm made of proper size so as to give it the requisite
clasticity and preserve its tenacity so that it will not break when in
operation and destroy the machine and endanger the lives of the
operators.

page_text: Witness,
JA, EDWARDS,
8, Southampton Buildings,
London.
GEORGE HASELTINE. (L.S.)