Improvements in Fur Drying Ovens.
Year: 1887

page_text: Improvements in Fur Drying Ovens.
I, HERBERT JOHN ALLISON, of the firm of Allison Brothers, of 52 Chancery Lane,
London, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agents, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention, which has been communicated to me from abroad by Joseph J. Asch,
of 64 White Street, in the City, County and State of New York, United States of
America, Manufacturer, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to improvements in Fur Drying ovens for Hatter's Furs
applicable also to other uses, and it consists in the construction and arrangement of
parts which will be hereinafter more fully described and set forth in the claims.
In the drawings the same reference letters indicate the same parts in all the
figures.
Figure 1. Illustrates an elevation of the invention, a part of the walls of the oven
being removed to disclose the interior thereof.
Figure 2. Illustrates a top view of the carriage.
Figure 3. Illustrates a vertical cross section of the carriage on the line c. x. of
Figure 2.
A is the oven, it may be made of plank or metal, but preferably of brick work, and
it may be of any desired shape, but preferably square, oblong or otherwise, as desired.
The top may be flat as shown, or dome shaped, or of other conformation. B is an opening
in the top of the oven to allow the fumes of the substance used in the treatment of the
skins or fur, and also the moisture to escape; C is a damper or valve in the opening B
to regulate the escape of the fumes and moisture and to adjust the temperature of the
oven; it may be operated by a cord, as shown, or otherwise; D, D, are steam beating
pipes arranged at or near the bottom of the oven; they are provided with cocks and
an exhaust as usual in such cases. Other means of heating may be used,
but I prefer the steam pipes where obtainable, because the temperature
is more uniform when they are employed. E, E, are two shutters, preferably
arranged to open downwardly, and provided with fastening devices F. These
shutters are only just large enough to allow the carriage H and its load of skins to pass
through, so that there shall be as little escape of the fumes and heat as possible when
the carriage is reversed, as hereinafter stated. A vapor collecting space T is provided
in the oven casing above the narrow shutters. The vapors collect in this space during
the drying operation and when either of the narrow doors is opened and the valve in

page_text: the chimney is also opened an upward draught will be created to cause the vapors to
escape into the chimney and not pass out through the open door. This upward draft
is due to the fact that the narrow door opening is at the base of the vapor collecting
space and consequently the external air entering through said space will cause said
vapors to go out through the chimney. If any vapors escape into the work room where
the furnace is located it will only be in small quantities not liable to injuriously affect
the workmen. G, G, are two rails which are fastened to the walls of the oven,
preferably near the upper part of the shutters E. Their ends project beyond the sides
of the oven a distance substantially equal to their length within the oven. They may
be supported and braced in any desired manner. If stiff enough they will require no
bracing, being as shown in the drawings. These rails may be made of iron, timber
or other material as desired. H is the carriage; it consists of a frame provided with
cross beams or stringers I, the ends of which fit in shouldered recesses in the frame Hin
order that they may be readily removed if desired. They may likewise be made of
metal, wood or such other material as desired; they are provided with hooks J upon
which the skins are hung to be dried; K are rollers placed on the underside of the
frame H, upon which it rolls over the tracks. If the frame be small it may simply
slide on the rails, not requiring the rollers; L is a vertically arranged diaphragm
rigidly attached to the carriage midway thereof lengthwise, its dimensions are such as
just to close the opening formed by letting down the shutters E. M is a shutter at the
lower part of the oven by means of which the bottom thereof may be cleaned. From
the foregoing it will be seen that the shutters E occupy but a small part of the sides of
the oven, and that the size of the diaphragm L is only just sufficient to cover the
opening made by letting the shutters down.
The operation is as follows: One of the shutters E is opened and the carriage is
pulled out through it to half its length, or in other words until the diaphragm L on
the inside of the oven rests against the opening made by letting down the shutter E,
thus preventing the escape of heat and fumes through the opening an operative then
hangs the skins to be dried on the hooks of the stringers I on that half of the carriage,
which is accessible to him outside of the oven. When he has it full he opens the
shutter E on the opposite side of the furnace and then pushes the carriage back again
through the furnace and closes the shutter e which was previously open; the damper
in the chimney may, if desired, be operated during this reversal of the carriage and
its diaphragm, in order that the fumes may pass out of the chimney and not through
the shutter openings. By this operation the skins are carried within the oven and the
diaphragm L is shifted to the other side thereof and closes the space made by opening
the second shutter E, and also the other end of the carriage which has no skins on it, is
projected beyond the side of the oven and is easily accessible. The operative now,
while the first charge of skins are drying, fills up the other exposed half of the carriage
with undried skins. The operation is then repeated, the second charge of skins being
carried into the oven and are there dried while the operative is removing the dried
ones, and replacing them with those that are undried. This alternating operation is
continuously repeated. It will be seen during the movement of the carriage from one
side of the oven to the other, that although a small part of the hot air and fumes
within the oven necessarily escape through the open shutters, that comparatively very
little will do so, because the shutters occupy a small part only of the sides of the oven
and the diaphragm being only just large enough to close the opening made by letting
down the shutters acts very slightly, if at all, to expel the heat and fumes, because
there is so much space above and below the diaphragm that the air within the oven
as the diaphragm moves through it, passes from the front to the rear side thereof,
over and under its upper and lower edges, and the noxious fumes owing to their
being of less specific gravity than the air, gather in the upper part of the oven and
are mostly, if not entirely, above the line of the shutters and there escape through the
vent B. Thus the operatives are not subjected, excepting to a slight degree, to the
unhealthful influences of these fumes and very much less than they were by the old
methods.
I have ascertained by practical use of my invention that the time required to dry the

page_text: skins, is just about sufficient to allow the operative to carefully remove the dried skins and
replace them with undried ones, thus there is no loss of time, and also the drying of
the skins is more uniform, producing better results than by any other apparatus or
process known to me. I prefer to set the ends of the stringers I into removable
sockets N (see Figure 2), which may be readily replaced when worn out; they may
be made of metal or wood.
A lever or equivalent device (not shown) may, if desired, be connected with each of
the shutters E extending to the opposite sides of the oven, so that the operative can
open the opposite shutter from the side of the oven at which he is handling
the skins, if desired.
In the drawings I show three stringers I only in each half of the carriage; as a
matter of fact there are as many stringers and as many hooks as can conveniently
be used, I show three stringers only so that the drawings may be plain and easily
understood.
I am aware that tobacco steaming chests have been patented provided with a frame
substantially twice the width of the steam chest, the frame having attached to it three
vertical partitions which formed the entire ends of the steam chest upon the
alternations of the carriage, and I do not claim the same. Such con-
struction would be entirely unsuited to my purpose, because at each reversal of
the frame carrying the partitions, all the air and noxious fumes contained in the oven
would be ejected into the room where the operatives are at work, thus one of the
most essential features of my invention i.e. protection to the operatives, is wanting.
There is also a great loss of heat at each reversal of the frame.
1 do not limit myself to the details of construction shown, since many alterations may
be made therein without departing from my invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
First: The combination in a Fur or Skin Drying oven enclosed on all sides of
narrow shutters in opposite sides thereof, as described, a fume collecting chamber
above the shutters and a skin supporting carriage, substantially twice the width of the
oven constructed and arranged to move through the oven in reverse directions,
substantially as set forth.
Second-The combination in a Fur or Skin Drying oven enclosed on all sides of
narrow openings in opposite sides thereof, as, described, provided with shutters to
close the same; a fume collecting chamber above the shutters; a skin supporting
carriage, in length substantially twice the width of the oven adapted to be moved
through the oven in reverse directions, and having a diaphragm located substantially
midway of the carriage, constructed and arranged to close the space made by the
opening of the shutters, substantially as set forth.
Third-In a Fur or Skin Drying oven the combination of the oven casing enclosed
on all sides and top and bottom and having narrow openings and shutters in opposite
sides thereof, the vapor collecting space provided between the tops of said shutters,
and the top of the oven casing and the vapor discharge chimney, with the horizontal
track arranged inside the oven casing and extending beyond the sides thereof, having
the narrow shutters and a skin supporting carriage substantially twice the width of
the oven casing, having the diaphragm L and supporting devices for the skins or furs,
as and for the object set forth.