IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR WASHING WOOL, HAIR, AND OTHER FIBRE
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Edmund Donisthorpe, of Leeds, in the
County of York, Top and Noil Manufacturer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR WASHING WOOL, HAIR, AND OTHER
FIBRE."
Sealed the 19th October 1866, and dated the 21st April 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Edmund Donis-
thorpe at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 21st April 1866.
I, GEORGE EDMUND DONISTHORPE, of Leeds, in the County of York, Top
and Noil Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR WASHING WOOL, HAIR, AND OTHER
FIBRE," to be as follows:-
Heretofore in machinery for washing wool or other fibre, the fibre has first
been placed into a trough containing suds, and has then been lifted out of the
trough and placed on to a travelling apron which carried it between a pair of
squeezing rollers, by which the suds were expressed from the fibre, and if the
fibre still required more washing it was passed into another similar trough
and the same operation was repeated.
it omes
Now according to my Invention, in place of allowing the fibre as
from the squeezing rollers to fall either into another trough of suds or on to
the ground, I carry the fibre forward by a travelling apron, or other travelling
surface to a second pair of squeezing rollers, the fibre being retained on the

page_text: travelling surface by suitable side plates or flanges. As the fibre is thus
being carried from one pair of squeezing rollers to another, suds are by
means of a pump caused to fall on to and to flow over and through it. After
the fibre has been passed through the second pair of squeezing rollers it may
in a similar manner be carried forward to a third pair of squeezing rollers.
The suds lifted by the pump after passing over and through the fibre fall
into a trough below, from which they are again raised by the pump and again
caused to fall on to the fibre. I prefer to employ squeezing rollers without a
lapping of soft material around them, as described in the Specification of the
Patent granted to me on the 22nd day of March 1865, No. 808, but
squeezing rollers otherwise arranged may be employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Edmund Donisthorpe in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 20th October 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
EDMUND DONISTHORPE, of Leeds, in the County of York, Top and Noil
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Edmund Donisthorpe, Her special licence that I, the said
George Edmund Donisthorpe, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said George Edmund Donisthorpe, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
WASHING WOOL, HAIR, AND OTHER FIBRE," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said George Edmund Donisthorpe, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Edmund Donisthorpe, 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 thereof, that is to say :-
Heretofore in machinery for washing wool or other fibre the fibre has first
been placed into a trough containing suds, and has then been lifted out of
the trough and placed on to a travelling apron which carried it between a pair
of squeezing rollers, by which the suds were expressed from the fibre, and if
the fibre still required more washing it was passed into another similar trough
and the same operation was repeated.
Now according to my Invention, in place of allowing the fibre as it comes
from the squeezing rollers to fall either into another trough of suds or on to
the ground, I carry the fibre forward by a travelling apron or other travelling
surface to a second pair of squeezing rollers, the fibre being retained on the
travelling surface by suitable side plates or flanges. As the fibre is thus being
carried from one pair of squeezing rollers to another suds are by means of a
pump caused to fall on to and to flow over and through it. After the fibre
has been passed through the second pair of squeezing rollers it may in a
similar manner be carried forward to a third pair of squeezing rollers. The
suds lifted by the pump after passing over and through the fibre fall into a
trough below, from which they are again raised by the pump and again caused
to fall on to the fibre. I prefer to employ squeezing rollers without a lapping
of soft material around them, as described in the Specification of a Patent
granted to me on the 22nd day of March 1865, No. 808, but squeezing
rollers otherwise arranged may be employed.
And in order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto
I is a longitudinal section of a machine constructed according to my
Invention; Figure 2 is a plan, and Figure 3 is a transverse section taken at
the line 1, 1, Figure 1.
:
a, a, are the main frames of the machine which carry the bearings of the
squeezing rollers b, b, and c, c; these rollers are each about one foot in
diameter, and the bearings of the upper rollers of each pair are able to rise
and fall in guides in the frame, and are heavily weighted to keep the upper
rollers down towards the lower by levers and weights in the ordinary manner.
The frames a are connected together at the bottom so as to form a trough or

page_text: tank for containing liquid; they are also connected together at the top by the
cross ties d, d, (which, however, are omitted in Figure 2,) and by the inter-
mediate tie rods e, e. The rods e also. support the guard plates f, f, by which
the wool or fibre is prevented spreading beyond the ends of the squeezing
rollers in consequence of the beavy pressure to, which it is exposed; as will
be seen screw threads are cut on the tie rods, and lock nuts secure the rods
both to the side frames and to the guard plates; by this arrangement the
guard plates may be accurately set up to the ends of the rollers 6 and c. In a
similar manner the guard plates f are held and adjusted at their upper ends
by the studs g, which also have screw threads cut, on them and lock, nuts
thereon. The lower roller of each pair of squeezing rollers has flanges, upon
its ends, and there is a hole in each guard plate of a size exactly to receive
these flanges. The guard plates also have slots or recesses in them to, carry
the axes of the small wooden rollers h, i, j, k, and l. Round the rollers, h
and i an endless apron of felted fabric passes, and this receives the wool or
fibre as it comes, from the washing vessel; from this apron the fibre passes
between the squeezing rollers b, b, and is thus, pressed dry, and in this state
it passes on to another endless apron passing around, the rollers j and k; this
is constructed of three or other number of chains or metal bands, with
apron
bars or laths of wood fixed to them transversely at short distances apart so
that it will allow a free flow of water through it. As it is supported on this
apron the fibre, is subjected to a shower of soapsuds coming from the cistern
m, the bottom of which is perforated all over; this shower passing through the
fibre and through the apron on which it rests, washes out; any, impurities there
may be in the wool or fibre. The liquid descends into the, trough or tank at
the bottom of the frame, and from this, tank when it gets full it is again
drawn by a pump connected with, the pipe n, and is by the pump returned to
the cistern m. The pump may conveniently have a five-inch barrel, and a
fourteen-inch stroke, and makes thirty strokes per minute. The pump has
also a connection with another vessel in which the suds are in the first instance
prepared: for use. After thus receiving the shower of suds the fibre passes
between the. second: pair of pressing rollers c, c, which again dries the fibre,
and it is discharged over the roller on to the ground, or into a suitable
receiver. If desired, however, the machine may be constructed as will, be
readily understood so as to cause the fibre, to; be, carried on and a, second, time
exposed to a shower of suds. The, main shaft which gives motion to the
several parts of the machine is marked o; it is carried in bearings on the side
frames a, a, and has fast and loose pulleys upon it. This shaft o is driven by
a strap, and upon it there is a pinion p which drives a spur wheel q¹ on the

page_text: shaft q, on which also is a smaller wheel r, and this takes into and drives the
spur wheels 8 and t on the axes of the lower squeezing rollers 6 and c. There is
also on the main shaft o another pinion u, and this drives an intermediate wheel
which gives motion to the wheel w on the axis of the wooden roller k, and in
this way the endless apron which encircles the roller k and also the roller j is
driven. The apron which passes around the rollers h and i is also driven by
a pitch chain working with a chain wheel on the axis of the roller h, and
another chain wheel on the axis of the lower squeezing roller b. In
between the two guard plates f, f, on either side of the machine a filling
piece is applied to make good the space between them so as to prevent the
fibre escaping from the pressure at these points; these pieces carry a guard
plate which covers the axis q.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself
to the exact details described; but what I claim is, the arranging machinery
for washing wool, hair, and other fibre by submitting it to a shower of suds
or cleansing liquid intermediate of two pairs of squeezing rollers, as herein-
before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Edmund Donisthorpe, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of October, in the
year of our Lord Oue thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
G. E. DONISTHORPE, (L.S.)