IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING AND MOWING MACHINES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Douglas and Alexander Douglas, both of
Stranraer, in tlie County of Wigtown, North Britain, for the Inven-
tion of "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING AND MOWING MACHINES."
Scaled the 15th December 1868, and dated the 23rd June 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Douglas and
Alexander Douglas at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,.
with their Petition, on the 23rd June 1868.
We, JOHN DOUGLAS and ALEXANDER DOUGLAS, both of Stranraer, in _
the County of Wigtown, North Britain, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING AND MOWING MACHINES,"
to be as follows, that is to say:-
This Invention relates to improvements in. reaping and mowing
machines, and consists in placing the cutting knives on a travelling.
band or chain carried on pitch wheels of convenient diameter. One of
the pitch wheels is placed at the outer end of the finger bar, and the
pitch wheel which actuates the travelling band and chain is placed on.
the lower end of a vertical shaft, which is rotated by toothed gearing or
other suitable means for obtaining rotatory motion. The advantago
obtained by attaching the cutting knives to a travelling band or. chain.

page_text: is, that the knives travel in one direction instead of having a recipro-
cating motion, as in the present machines driven by a crank, so that
there is much less strain upon the framing of the machine, and less tear
and wear upon the bearings and gearing. The fingers through which
the cutting knives pass may be fixed on cach side of the finger bar, so
that by reversing the motive power the machine may be made to cut
back up the other side, and no manual labour will be required in opening
a field. It is preferred to place the fingers much closer together than
as at present used.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Douglas and Alexander Douglas in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 22nd December 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JoшN
DOUGLAS and ALEXANDER DOUGLAS, both of Stranraer, in the County of
Wigtown, North Britain, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoría, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto us, the said John Douglas and Alexander Douglas, Her
special license that we, the said John Douglas and Alexander Douglas,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the
said John Douglas and Alexander Douglas, our executors, administrators,
or 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING AND MOWING
MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John
Douglas and Alexander Douglas, by an instrument in writing under our
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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said John Douglas and Alexander
Douglas, do hereby declare the nature of our 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 Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon,
that is to say:-
Our said Invention relates to improvements in reaping and mowing
machines, and consists in placing the cutting knives on a travelling
band or chain carried on pitch wheels of convenient diameter. One of
the pitch wheels is placed at the outer end of the finger bar, and the
pitch wheel which actuates the travelling band or chain is placed on
the lower end of a vertical shaft, which is rotated by toothed. gearing or
other suitable means for obtaining rotatory motion. The advantage
obtained by attaching the cutting knives to a travelling band or chain
is, that the knives travel in one direction instead of having a recipro-
cating motion, as in the present machines driven by a crank, so that
there is much less strain upon the framing of the machine, and less tear
and wear upon the bearings and gearing. The fingers through which
the cutting knives pass may be fixed on each side of the finger bar, so
that by reversing the motive power the machine may be made to cut
back up the other side, and no manual labour will be required in opening
a field. It is preferred to place the fingers much closer together than
at present used.
And in order that our said Invention may be properly understood we
shall now proceed more particularly to set forth the system, mode, or
manner in or under which the same is or may be used or practically
carried into effect, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a reaping machine showing an arrange-
ment of mechanism by which a continuous motion of the cutting knives
in one direction may be produced; Figure 2 is a plan showing the
method of mounting the cutting knives on the finger bar; Figure 3 is
an enlarged view showing the construction of the endless band or chain
to which the knives are attached; and Figure 4 is a longitudinal section
of the same. The endless band or chain a is carried upon two pitch
wheels, one of which, marked b, is fixed upon a vertical shaft c, Figure 1,
and the other wheel d is carried on the outer end of the finger bar e,
Figure 2. The pitch wheels b, d, are provided with cogs f, as shown in

page_text: Figure 3, which fit into holes or spaces f¹ in the endless chain a. The
endless chain is formed of one and two links alternately, as shown in
Figures 3 and 4. The cutting knives g are fixed to the parts of the
chain formed of single links g', the part formed of two links being
riveted on each side of the single links g', as shown at h. The rivets i
used in connecting the links together are of a particular form, the central
part of the rivet being made of a larger diameter than the ends, as shown
in Figure 5, which is a side view of one of the rivets.. By this means a
shoulder is formed, against which the outside links may be riveted
hard, while the centre links g¹ are permitted to turn easily upon the
rivet. The chain a is actuated by the pitch wheel b fixed on the
vertical shaft c, Figure 1, which is rotated by the bevel wheels k gearing
into the pinion 1, shown dotted on the shaft c, Figure 1. The shaft k
is rotated by the bevel wheel m fitted on the axle of the machine, which
gcars into the pinions n, o, either of which may be thrown into gcar
by means of the clutches p, q, according to the direction in which the
endless chain a is to travel. The endless band may be actuated by
any other arrangement of mechanism suitable for producing rotatory
motion.
Having now described the nature of our said Invention, and the
manner in or under which the same is or may be used or practically
carried into effect, we would observe in conclusion that what we con-
sider novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
us by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the application
of endless travelling bands or chains to reaping and mowing machines
for the purpose of carrying the cutting knives, as herein-before described
and shown on the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, or any mero
modification thereof.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Douglas and Alexander
Douglas, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Sixteenth
day of December One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
JOHN DOUGLAS.
(L.S.)
ALEXANDER DOUGLAS. (L.S.)
JOHN DOUGLAS.
(L.S.)
ALEXANDER DOUGLAS. (L.S.)