CERTAIN NEW AND USEFUL MECHANISM FOR REDUCING, OR REDUCING AND CRUSHING, AND IN VARIOUS OTHER RESPECTS TREATING GRAIN, SUGAR CANE, TOBACCO, OR OTHER SUBSTANCE OR SUBSTANCES
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Richmond, of the State of Massachusetts, of
the United States of America, for the Invention of "CERTAIN NEW AND
USEFUL MECHANISM FOR REDUCING, OR REDUCING AND CRUSHING, AND IN
VARIOUS OTHER RESPECTS TREATING GRAIN, SUGAR CANE, TOBACCO, OR OTHER
SUBSTANCE OR SUBSTANCES."-A communication from Thomas Blanchard,
a Citizen and Resident of the said United States.
Sealed the 28th May 1858, and dated the 8th April 1858.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Edward Richmond at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and Declaration,
on the 8th April 1858, pursuant to the 9th Section of the Patent Law
Amendment Act 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, BE IT
KNOWN that J, EDWARD RICHMOND, of the State of Massachusetts, of the
United States of America, am in possession of an Invention of "CERTAIN NEW
AND USEFUL MECHANISM FOR REDUCING OR REDUCING, AND CRUSHING, AND IN VARIOUS
OTHER RESPECTS TREATING GRAIN, SUGAR CANE, TOBACCO, OR OTHER SUBSTANCE. OR
SUBSTANCES," Such Invention, or most of its essential features, having been
communicated to me by Thomas Blanchard, a Citizen and Resident of the said
United States, and, I do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention,
and the manner in which it is to be performed, are duly explained and repre-
sented in the following Specification and the Drawings annexed to or accom-
panying the same, of which Drawings, Figure 1 is a plan of the mill or

page_text: reducing mechanism, with the hopper removed; Figure 2
side elevation
of it, while Figure 3 is a vertical section of it, such section being taken at the
line A, a, of Figure 1:
The same letters indicate like parts in all the said Figures.
The object of the Invention is to reduce grain into meal or flour, or to
reduce other substances such as heretofore it has been customary to reduce by
grinding or crushing, or both, and to effect this reduction of substances by a
shearing action of two series of rotating discs instead of a grinding, rasping,
sawing, or crushing action, the Invention enabling important new and useful
or better results to be obtained as to the quality of the product and quantity
in proportion to the amount of power applied than by other known plans,
while, at the same time, the Invention is simple, cheap of construction, and
easily maintained in working order.
And in view of the object to be accomplished by the said Invention, its
nature or the manner of carrying it out consists in the employment in com-
bination with each other of two series of circular discs, those of each series
being arranged on a separate shaft, side by side with each other, and with
washers of less diameter and of slightly greater thickness interposed between
them, the two shafts being placed parallel to each other, and at such distance
apart that a portion of the periphery of each of the discs on each shaft shall
pass into the space between the two discs on the other shaft, the said shafts
being geared to rotate in opposite directions, and with equal velocity. In
this way the peripheries of the two series of discs in their rotation in opposite
directions, jointly act as a series of continuous shears to sever any material that
may be placed between them, and reduce it to pieces of a width or length equal
to or less than the width of the space between any two of the discs. And the
said Invention further consists in a combination of the two series of discs com-
bined, as above described, and one series of clearers or stationary eccentric plates
for each series of discs, such clearers being interposed between the discs in a
manner to be herein-after described for the purpose of forcing the particles or
pieces of the reduced substance from between any two of the discs, and dis-
charging such at their peripheries.
The Invention further consists in a combination of such rotary shears, or
the same and their clearers with crushing rollers or mechanism, or such, and
an endless apron, or other suitable device for removal of the reduced or
reduced and crushed material from the reducing mechanism in such direction
as circumstances may require.
And the Invention further consists. in a combination of an endless apron or
conveyor, one or more sets of the shearing or reducing mechanism, and a

page_text: bolting or sifting mechanism arranged together, as will be herein after duly
explained.
In
In Figures 1,2, and 3 of the accompanying Drawings, (a) represents a
suitable frame, and (b, b,) two parallel shafts mounted therein. To the two shafts
are fixed two spur wheels of equal diameter, so that when either of the said
shafts is rotated by a crank (c,) or by any other suitable means, the other shall
rotate in the reverse direction, and. with equal velocity. On each shaft is
mounted a series of circular metallic plates or discs (d) with washers (e)
placed between them. The central hole in each disc and in each washer
should be made to fit the shaft accurately, and the disc or washer be prevented
from turning on the shaft by a "feather," or any equivalent means.
mounting the discs and washers on the shaft, the first disc is slipped upon the
shaft and against the face of a fixed collar f; next, a washer, and afterwards
another disc are slipped on the shaft, the same being repeated until the
required number of washers and dises have been put on the shaft. This
having been accomplished, they are to be forced against the fixed collar, and
bound and held in place by a movable collar g tapped or screwed on the shaft,
or otherwise secured to it in any appropriate manner. The discs and washers
on one shaft are to be made and mounted in precisely the same manner as are
those of the other shaft, except that the collars on the two shafts are to be so
arranged relatively to the shoulders of the journals, that the peripheries of the
discs on each shaft shall pass in the spaces between the discs on the other
shaft more or less, as represented in the Drawings. In making the discs,
care should be taken to have each disc of a uniform thickness. The same
may be said with regard to the washers, each of which should be slightly
thicker than a disc, in order to prevent binding of the discs, while those on
each shaft move in the spaces between the discs on the other shaft. I mako
two series of plates h, h, equal in number to the number of the washers, and
ench of about the same thickness as each of the discs. A hole of sufficient
diameter to fit over each of the washers e is formed in each plate h. These
plates, which I term the clearers or eccentric clearers, are placed respectively
in the spaces between the (liscs, each encompassing a washer. I prefer to
make each of these plates h, h, of the form as it is represented in the Drawings,
or with the tail end i of cach projecting back of the periphery of the discs for
some distance, in order that the said plates may be held properly by the franic
as representeil, or in any other suitable manner. The opposite end of each
of the said plates is of an eccentric form, so as to leave a considerable space
between it and the periphery of the disc opposite to it and on the other sboft;
and the lower edge k should extend to or beyond the lower part of the peri-

page_text: phery of the adjoining discs. The upper edge of each plate h may be of any
form, but for convenience I make it of the same form as the lower edge.
Above the bite of the two series of discs or rolling shears I place any
suitable hopper (x; Figure 2), to receive the substances to be reduced, and
present them to the action of the rolling shears. When the rolling shears or
dises are made of considerable or large diameter, the angle formed by the
cutting edges of any two fellow shears will be so acute that the edges will
take sufficient hold of the substances to be reduced; but to avoid making them
of so great a diameter, which would render them too liable to flexure when
meeting with unequal lateral resistance, I make notches in the periphery of each,
and of the form represented in the Drawings, or of any other suitable form to
enable them to take hold of the substances to be reduced, and feed them into
the bite of the series of rolling shears, where by the rotation of such two series
in opposite directions, as indicated by arrows, such substances will be sheared
and reduced to particles or pieces of a size depending upon the thickness of the
discs, or the space between any two of them. The form of the notches or
grooves is not at all material, as the object is to present sufficient resistance to
prevent the substances from rolling or sliding back when subjected to the
shearing action of the oppositely moving shears. From the foregoing it will
be perceived, that grain, (or other substances) being supplied to the hopper,
and the two series of rotating shears put in motion, as described, the grain will
be caught between the opposite edges of the two series of discs or rotating
shears, and as these gradually approach or rotate together, each grain will be
cut by the shear-like action of the edges of the opposite discs precisely in the
same manner that any substance is severed by the gradual approach of the
opposite edges of common shears. And as the two edges of any one disc
acting in conjunction with the inner edges of the opposite discs between which
it passes effect the separation, the grain or other substances will be separated
thereby into particles, pieces, or fibres of a size or width equal to that of the
space between any two dises, and in case the substances should be frangible as
grain, the fibres or lamina will immediately separate in a granular form, and
of a size or width approximating to the thickness of any of the discs, or, what,
is about the same, the space between any two of the discs. But if the
substance to be reduced be not of frangible nature, and it is to be reduced
to a granulated state, in some instances it may be necessary to pass it'twice
through the mill, or through two such mills in succession.
As the particles
are thus severed, in many instances they will expand, and have a tendency to
remain in the space between the discs, but as the discs rotate, the particles
thus held between them will be brought gradually in contact.with the eccentric

page_text: edges of the clearers, by which they will be gradually forced towards, and
discharged at or near the periphery of the discs.
In constructing mills on this improved plan, the thickness of the plates or
discs will have to be governed by the size of the particles to which any desired
substance is to be reduced. As before intimated, the form of the upper part
of the eccentric clearers is not material, and in fact such upper part may be
dispensed with, the portion below the plane of the axes of the two shafts alone
being necessary, but it will be found to be more convenient to make them of
the form represented; and instead of curving the edge of each clearer below
the axis of the shaft, such edge, or part of the edge, may be in a tangential
line, as represented by dotted lines, or of any other form provided it will
operate to force the particles gradually towards the peripheries of the discs, as
otherwise the mill would be liable to become choked.
In Figure 4 is shown a sectional view of a mill for shearing and crushing
sugar cane, such being constructed in accordance with my Invention.
Figure 5 denotes a top view of some of the reducing or crushing mechanism.
In the Drawings, A represents an endless conveyor or feeding belt upon
which the cane is to be placed lengthwise, or with the stalks thereof arranged
so that their axes may extend longitudinally on the belt. This belt operates
around rollers B, B¹, over the former of which is a roller C for properly
directing the canes into the shearing mill, or two sets D, E, of cutting discs
or shearers furnished with clearers F, G, and arranged on two shafts n, o.
Beyond the same is a set of crushing rollers H, I, J, and leading from them is
a discharger or endless belt K, made to work around two rollers L, m, the
directions of the movements of the operative parts being denoted by arrows
thereon. Underneath the crushing rollers H, I, J, is a pan P for catching
the cane juice after it is expressed from the reduced cane and falls from the
crushing rollers. The canes after having been submitted to the crushing
rollers are removed or carried away from them by the endless belt K.
In constructing a machine for reducing and bolting tobacco or other
material which requires to be assorted or spread out and cleared of extraneous
matters while on the machine, and before being reduced and sifted, a long
endless apron or conveyor may be employed in connection with one or more
sets of the improved mills or reducing mechanism, and one or more sieves,
screens, or bolters. The endless apron should be arranged so as to cause the
material laid on it to be delivered to the reducing mill made with one or more
sets of shears and clearers, as herein-before described. When two or more
sets of the reducing mechanism are employed, each set in advance of the first
may be constructed so as to reduce the material to a finer state than it is

page_text: reduced by the set immediately preceding. Between each two sets of reducing
mechanism there should be a hopper, spout, or some other proper means of
transferring the material from one to the other of each set, and finally any
reducing bolting apparatus suitable for the purpose may be employed and
applied so as to receive the material after it may have been reduced, and sift
or separate its coarser from its finer parts.
I am aware that it has been proposed to construct mills with two series of
circular saws mounted on two parallel shafts, and with washers placed between
the several saws of each series, the teeth of one series of saws working in the
spaces between the saws of the other series, and one series rotating with a
greater velocity than the other. But the mode of operation of this is entirely
different from the said Invention, as the mechanical action of such a con-
struction is to disintegrate substances by a sawing operation, the teeth on that
series of saws which move with the least velocity acting as holders of the
substances to be reduced, whilst the teeth on the other series of saws rasp or
scrape, and finally saw through the said substances, and the product will be
essentially sawdust, a result neither contemplated nor produced by the said
Invention. And such a construction would be attended with a serious incon-
venience, as the edges of the saw teeth would soon become dull, and require
to be frequently sharpened. And I am also aware that it has been proposed
to construct mills by combining two rollers or parallel shafts geared to rotate
in opposite directions, and each with a different velocity, each roller being
composed of circular discs or saws with teeth on their peripheries, and the
saws of two diameters, each small saw interposed between two large ones, and
the large saws of each roller working in the spaces between the large saws of
the other roller, so that the teeth in the large saws or discs of one roller shall
act in conjunction with the teeth on the periphery of the small saws of the
other roller, to effect the reduction of substances by a combined scraping or
sawing and crushing action, a mode of operation not at all analogous to the
said Invention, and therefore I do not wish to be understood as claiming
broadly the use of two series of circular discs on parallel rotating shafts, with
the periphery of one series working in the spaces between the discs of the other
series, except when arranged so as to have- a mode of operation such as
described above. What I claim as the Invention is as follows:-
I claim the new method herein-before described and represented of arranging
or applying together and operating two sets of rotary discs, in order that by
their conjoint operations they may reduce a material by a process of shearing
substantially as herein-before explained.
And I also claim, in combination with the two series of rotary shears applied

page_text: and arranged together substantially as described and represented, two series
of clearers disposed and operating with respect to such shears essentially in
manner and for the purpose as herein-before explained.
And I also claim in combination with the two series of rotary shears, or in
connection with such, and two series of clearers applied to them as specified, a
set of crushing rollers or their equivalent or the same, and an endless apron or
other suitable divice for the removal of the refuse material in such direction
from the crushing mechanism as circumstances may require.
And I also claim in combination with one or more sets of rotary shearing
mechanism constructed as described and represented, and for shearing or
reducing a material or materials as stated, an endless apron or conveyor
substantially as specified, and a bolting apparatus, whereby, by the combined
operations of the said parts or mechanical devices, a material to be reduced
and separated by one or more bolters or sieves before being reduced may be
spread on the apron or conveyor in manner and for the purpose as herein-
before explained.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my signature and seal, this
Seventeenth day of March, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
EDWARD RICHMOND. (L.S.)