IMPROVEMENTS IN THRESHING MACHINES, AND IN DRIVING MECHANISM FOR THE SAME AND FOR OTHER MACHINERY
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International
Patent Office," Southampton Buildings, London, Consulting
Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THRESHING MACHINES,
AND IN DRIVING MECHANISM FOR THE SAME AND FOR OTHER MACHINERY."—
A communication from abroad by George B. Hamlin, of Willimantic,
Connecticut, United States of America.
Sealed the 16th August 1870, and dated the 9th March 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 9th March 1870.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office,"
Southampton Buildings, London, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THRESHING MACHINES,
AND IN DRIVING MECHANISM FOR THE SAME AND FOR OTHER MACHINERY," to be as
follows:-
This Invention has for its main object to improve the construction of
threshing machines to make them more efficient in use and less liable
to get out of order or to be broken than the machines constructed in the
ordinary manner, and it consists in the construction and combination

page_text: of various parts of the machine as herein-after described, and in a novel
arrangement of driving gearing, which although chiefly designed for
this machine is also applicable to other machines for various purposes.
The said machine is constructed with a suitable casing or frame-
work to support the threshing cylinder, the shaft of which revolves
in slots in the frame, or in slotted bearings attached to the said
frame. The said cylinder is formed by attaching a drum or shell to
two wheels or disks attached to the shafts, the said wheels or disks
being made heavy to act as fly wheels. The drum is provided with
teeth which pass in through slots in the drum and have cross heads
formed upon their inner ends, by means of which the inner ends of the
said teeth are pivoted to lugs formed upon or attached to the inner
surface of the said drum or shell. Outside of the drum is a concave
piece, which corresponds in curvature to the curve of the drum of the
cylinder. This piece is also slotted and the upper ends of teeth project
through the slots, which teeth are pivoted to lugs formed upon or
attached to the lower or convex surface of the concave piece. The lower
ends of these teeth are weighted or made heavy to counterbalance their
upper ends sufficiently to support any loose heads of grain that may be
passing down the concave, but not sufficiently to hold the said heads
against the action of the first-mentioned teeth. The machine is provided
with a rack by which the straw is guided as it passes out of the thresher,
and through which the grain falls to a vibrating spout. Through a hole
in the lower end of the said spout the grain falls upon screens which are
attached to the spout and connected with and agitated by a cam upon
the journal of one of the driving wheels by means of a system of con-
necting rods and levers. To one end of the cylinder shaft are attached
the fans of a fan blower, the blast from which is discharged through a
pipe upon the grain as it passes through the machine. To the other end
of the shaft is attached a friction pulley which works between the
peripheries of wheels whose journals revolve in bearings in the framework
of the machine. The journals of one of the said wheels should revolve
in slotted bearings so that it may be held in contact with the friction
pulley by its own weight or by the tension of a belt which passes around
the wheels.
The power by which the machine is driven is applied to the projecting
end of the journal of one of the wheels by any suitable or well known

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 31st August 1870.
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TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the International Patent Office," Southampton
Buildings, London, Consulting Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence
that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THRESHING MACHINES, AND IN DRIVING MECHANISM FOR THE SAME
AND FOR OTHER MACHINERY," a communication to me from abroad by George
B. Hamlin, of Willimantic, Connecticut, United States of America, upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Robert Lake,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my,
or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the
Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawing forming a part of this Specification:-
This Invention has for its main object an improved construction of
threshing machines to make them more efficient in use and less liable
to get out of order) or to be broken than the machines constructed in
the ordinary manner, and it consists in the construction and combi-

page_text: nation of various parts of the machine as herein-after more fully
described, and in a novel arrangement of driving gearing, which although
chiefly designed for this machine is also applicable to other machines
for various purnoeg
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 is a side view of the said improved machine, part being
broken away to show the construction more clearly; Figure 2 is a
vertical longitudinal section of the same. Like letters indicate corre-
sponding parts throughout the Drawing.
same.
A represents the casing or framework of the machine; B is the
threshing cylinder, the shaft of which revolves in the frame A or in
slotted bearings attached to the said frame. The cylinder B is formed
by attaching a drum or shell 62 to two wheels or discs attached to the
shafts &', the said wheels or discs being made heavy to act as fly wheels.
C are teeth which pass in through slots in the drum or shell 62 of the
cylinder B, and have cross heads formed upon their inner ends, by
means of which the inner ends of the said teeth are pivotted to lugs
formed upon or attached to the inner surface of the said drum or
shell . D is a concave piece which corresponds in form to the curve
of the drum of the cylinder B. E are teeth the upper ends of which
project through slots in the concave piece D, and which are pivotted to
lugs formed upon or attached to the lower or convex surface of the
The lower ends of the teeth E are weighted or made heavy to
counterbalance their upper ends sufficiently to support any loose heads
of grain that may be passing down the concave piece but not suffi-
ciently to hold the said heads against the action of the teeth C. F
is the rack by which the straw is guided as it passes out of the thresher
and through which the grain falls to the vibrating spout G. Through
a hole in the lower end of the spout G the grain falls upon the screens
H, which are rigidly connected with the spout G and which are connected
with and agitated by a cam upon the journal of one of the driving
wheels by means of a system of connecting rods and levers h², h², h³. To
one end of the cylinder shaft b¹ are attached the fans of a fan blower,
the blast from which is discharged through the pipe I upon the grain as
it passes through the machine. To the other end of the shaft b' is
attached a friction pulley J, which works between the faces of the
wheels K and L. The journals of the wheels K and L revolve in
bearings in the framework of the machine. The journals of one of the

page_text: wheels L should revolve in slotted bearings, so that it may be held in
contact with the friction pulley J by its own weight or by the tension
of the belt M. The belt M passes around the wheels K and L, as shown
in Figure 1. The power by which the machine is driven is applied to
the projecting end of the journal of the wheel L by any of the well
known means for such purposes. By this construction and arrange-
ment of the driving gearing there will be no more strain upon the
shafts when the machine is working than there is when said machine is
running free.
Having thus described the said Invention as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent I claim,-
First. The combination of pivotted teeth with the drum of the
threshing cylinder of a threshing machine, substantially as herein
described for the purpose set forth.
Second. The combination of pivotted and weighted teeth with the
concave piece of a threshing machine, substantially as herein described
and for the purpose set forth.
Third. An improved driving gearing formed by the combination of
the friction pulley J (attached to the shaft to be driven), the wheels
K and L, and belt M, substantially as herein shewn and described and
for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of August,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy.
Witness,
E. C. JACKSON.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.S.)