IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND TILES
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Peter Bawden, of 49, Norland Square, Notting Hill,
in the County of Middlesex, Brick Manufacturer, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND
TILES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Peter Bawden at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd October 1880.
PETER BAWDEN, of 49, Norland Square, Notting Hill, in the County of Middlesex,
Brick Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
BRICKS AND TILES."
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for the manufacture of
bricks and tiles whereby such machines will make bricks and tiles of a better
quality and in greater numbers with less power and less labour than heretofore.
The machine is as nearly as possible self-acting, it is driven by horse or steam
power, and grinds or pugs the clay or brick earth, washes, sands, and fills the brick
moulds with clay, also cleans the palette boards and sands them and pushes them
into the moulds; these palette boards form the loose bottom for the moulds, the
moulds having two rails at bottom to receive the palette boards, the bricks resting
on the palette boards in the moulds are pushed away from the machine on to a
page," the bricks are then taken from the "page" and loaded on to the wheel-
barrows.
"t
The machine is constructed as follows:-The pug mill, tub, or box being about
throo feet four inches square inside, and about four feet high, to contain the clay or
brick earth, and may be made either of wood or iron, and with a round shaft with
bearings near the top and bottom.
The pole or lever is fastened to the top of the mill shaft, and, supposing the
machine to be driven by horse power, the horse is attached to the other end of
the pole which gives motion to the whole machine.
There are four clay knives, each with two blades, also one clay knife with four
blades placed near the bottom of the pug mill to force and press the clay through
the hole in the bottom of the mill and into the brick moulds which pass underneath
the pug mill near the front; the clay knives are fastened to the mill shaft which
passes through them; those knives cut and grind the clay and press it downwards.

page_text: The pug mill shaft which stands upright and passes down through the clay
knives which are in the pug mill; this vertical shaft is, say, three inches and a half
in diameter, it passes down through the pug mill bottom, and has a bevil cog
wheel, about say, two feet in diameter fastened to the bottom end of this shaft which
drives one smaller bevil cog wheel, being one half the size; this one foot bevil
cog wheel is fastened to a horizontal shaft about three inches in diameter, which
runs across the machine from front to back underneath the centre of the pug mill,
the bevil wheel being keyed on to the shaft towards the front of the brick machine,
and on the same shaft, still nearer to the front, is another wheel attached, this
wheel being about twenty inches in diameter, having about fifteen teeth or cogs,
forming a sort of spur wheel. There are two inore of these spur wheels, one on
each side of the machine, each being about three feet from the centre one; these
spur wheels are also fastened to horizontal three inch shafts which are about four
feet eight inches long, running from front to back on the right and left of the pug
mill of the 'machine, each being parallel with the centre horizontal shafts, having
bearings at the ends, front and back, resting on long frames forming the front and
back of the lower part of the machine, the three spur wheels being fastened to the
three horizontal shafts near their front ends; those three wheels being in a line
carry band or endless chain of brick moulds, the moulds resting on iron rails which
are above the wheels on the top, but the rails are under the wheels at the bottom.
The teeth of those spur wheels pass up through the rails on top and force the
moulds along on the rails from left to right of the machine, the band of moulds
continually passing over the three spur wheels and down underneath them, the
centre spur wheel forcing the band of moulds from left to right on the top and
forcing them back under the wheels from right to left.
There are about twenty four cast iron moulds forming the endless band or chain,
the moulds having no ends, only sides. The end views of the moulds are in shape
like the letter H, the upper part, being where the brick is made, having two rails
cast on the mould, the rails running lengthways of the mould on which the paletto
boards rest, the palette boards formning loose bottoms for the moulds, the bricks
being taken away to the drying ground resting on the palette boards in the same
way as is done in making hand moulded sand stock bricks. The under part of the
mould, of the shape of the letter H, is for three pins or bolts about threo quarters of
an inch in diameter of iron passing through from side to side of cach mould, one being
at the end of each mould, which forms a hinge to join the mould together in one
endless band. It is in the three bolts or pins in each mould which the teeth of the
twenty inch spur wheel catches the moulds and forces them along the rails top
and bottom.
The moulds are about ten inches long and about five inches wide, inside measure,
and about seven inches deep, the upper part of the mould being about four inches
and a quarter deep, that is, three inches deep for the brick, half inch for the-palette
boards or loose bottoms, and three quarters of an inch deep for the rails in the
mould for the palette board to rest on; one end of one rail in each mould is one
inch high, that is for the palette board to be pushed against it, which acts as a
regulator; it would be more or less this measurement according to the size of the
brick or tile required; in fact, the ineasurements given all through this description
of the machine would be more or less according to the size of the bricks or tiles
required, the mould being hinged at the ends so as to bend downwards to pass
around the wheels which are on the horizontal shafts. The moulds are made in
such a way that they cannot be pushed close together, but one end of each mould
has a pieco of iron cast on to keep the ends of them about the one sixteenth of an
inch apart; this is to allow the bricks to be cut off at the ends with a piece of tine
steel wire. Each mould has a piece of iron cast on each side of one end of the
mould about half an inch high and about half an inch from the outside of the
mould on top; this is to push the wire and to guide it by the weight of the wire
frame to cut the bricks off at the ends of the moulds, this wire being worked self-
acting with the rest of the machine. This wire frame has joints which allow the

page_text: wire to be pushed by the mould, and its weight cuts the bricks off at the ends of
the moulds; this wire cutting frame is lifted up after cutting the brick off by a
friction roller or small wheel, there being five of these rollers attached to a wheel
about twenty inches in diameter, this wheel being fastened on to the same hori
zontal shaft which has the twenty inch spur wheel on the right side of the pug
mill on which the band of moulds run, the moulds giving motion to this wheel by
being forced over it. On the centre of the horizontal shaft which has the twenty
inch spur wheel keyed to it, about three feet to the left of the pug mill, has another
twenty inch spur wheel fastened to it, and this shaft is driven by the action of the
moulds being forced over the front wheel; this twenty inch spur wheel on the
centre of the shaft, by means of a chain, drives another wheel of the same size on
the centre of another horizontal shaft, which is about seven feet from the centre of
the pugmill to the left; this shaft also runs parallel with the other three horizontal
shafts which run from front to back of the machine. Near the front end of this
shaft is attached a pulley wheel about one foot nine inches in diameter, with flanges
on each side standing out about, three quarters of an inch; this pulley is about
three inches and a quarter wide to carry a leather belt about three inches wide;
the pulley wheel runs in a line with the band of moulds. The leather belt runs
from this pulley about two feet further away from the machine to another small
pulley, which is about nine inches in diameter and fastened to a short small shaft.
On the outside of this leather belt pieces of iron are fastened crossways about five
inches long, one inch wide, and about half an inch thick; the pieces of iron are
fastened to the belt about twelve inches apart, the ends of the iron being one inch
out over the edges of the belt; those ends when on the top rest on two rails of iron
which form the bottom for the palette box. These rails are so made to catch the
ends of the iron cross pieces on the belt when they rise over the small nine inch
pulley; this iron on the belt will then catch the bottom palette board, and push it
towards the band of moulds. The palette boards rest only on those rails at each
side of the box when in the box, but they rest on the centre as soon as they are
pushed from the box, and there being no longer the rails for the ends of the irona
on the belt to rest on, the belt passes underneath the palette which it has just
pushed, and so on, around the one foot nine inch pulley which has the flanges. To
prevent the belt from slipping, and in order for it to keep time with the rest of the
self-acting machines, there are five little places cut in the flange on each side of the
wheel, about half an inch deep and three inches long, in the flanges for the iron
palette pushers to fall into. The palette boards are placed in a box one over the
other and over the belt, the iron pusher on the belt always pushing the bottom
palette, which passes under a scraper in front of the palette box, and then under a
sand box, which has a regulator to allow a very thin coating of sand to remain on
it. The palette being sanded, and the pushing belt being always going, the palette
is being pushed into the sanded mould as it rises up around the spur wheel, and
being pushed underneath the pug mill to be filled with clay, the moulds and
palettes being always going.
The flanged one foot-nine inch pulley wheel is not keyed on to the shaft, but
there is another small wheel keyed to the shaft near to it, and to this wheel is
fastened a spring which rests against one of the five arms of the flange wheel, so
that if at any time there should be an obstruction in the palette boards the spring
would give and catch the next arın in the flange wheel; there being five arms the
palette board would be always pushed up tight to the end of the mould, where
the one rail in the end of each mould is a quarter of an inch higher on purpose to
catch the palette board, there being a place cut in each end of the palette board to
receive the high place in the rail.
In the bottom plate of the pug mill, near the front is a hole for the clay to be
forced through, the hole being one foot seven inches long by six inches wide, there
being two sliding doors, which can be pushed forwards or backwards at will from
the outside, by opening or closing more or less will allow the clay to be forced
through with more or less pressure, therefore the sliding doors act as regulators for

page_text: filling the moulds when the clay is stiffer or softer, that is, with more or less water
in the clay; there is a die with the hole one foot seven inches long by about four
inches wide bolted underneath to the bottom of the pug mill, the moulds being
filled under this dic as they pass underneath it, the moulds being endless, and
about five inches wide, the die being but four inches wide in the hole, this prevents
the clay from pushing the sand off the sides of the moulds; the clay being pressed
through the die falls to the bottom of the moulds, and then fills out the sides; the
moulds being full of clay then pass underneath a plane formed of a water box, with
a grating for the bottoin, the bars being about one fourth of an inch apart, this
allows the water to pass through the bottom. Underneath this grated bottom is a
piece of canvas, leather, or other suitable material, which rests on the moulds; by
this means the tops of the bricks are made perfectly smooth, the moulds passing
under the plane; the wire then cuts the brick off, which then passes on to the
"page" to be then loaded on to the wheel-barrow. The end of the "page" is so
constructed as to go between the rails of the mould under the palette board
which holds the brick, the mould then, turning on its hinge, passing down around
the spur wheel, passing over the water box, which has two circular brushes which
brush the insides of the moulds as they pass over them, the moulds giving motion
to the brushes, as they are formed like two wheels with the hair on the outer sides,
but not on the edges of them, the brushes being about one foot in diameter. The
brushes always go around inside the moulds and down in the water, thereby
always keeping the moulds clean, and wet as well. There is a small shaft through
the centre of the brushes, the bearings resting on the sides of the water box, the
moulds still passing on under the three spur wheels, the moulds resting on two
rails as they go back to the other end, passing through a box of dry sand, therefore
they are always well sanded, as well as being well washed, which is of the
greatest consequence, in order that the bricks may leave the moulds smooth and
square.
There is in the front plate of the pug mill a hole six inches in diameter, which
has a sliding door to be opened to clean out the pug mill when required.
The machine makes ten bricks or tiles each revolution of the pug mill shaft, so
that when the machine is driven by horse power, the horse going once around with
the horse pole makes ten bricks.
When the machine is driven by steam power there is a three foot bevil cog wheel
fastened to the top end of the pug mill shaft. Instead of the horse pole this three
foot bevil cog wheel is driven by a cross horizontal shaft, on which is fastened a
small bevil pinion wheel, one fourth of the size of the three foot wheel on the mill
shaft. On the end of this horizontal pinion shaft is fastened a three foot spur wheel,
which is driven by a spur pinion wheel one fourth of the size; this spur pinion is
loose on the shaft, but there is cast on the back of it a snap catch or clutch, which
fits into a snap catch or clutch, which is attached to the shaft by a feather key on
the shaft, the clutch sliding in and out of gear by means of a lever, for starting the
machine to work, or for stopping it at a moment's notice; this snap catch or clutch
is so constructed that it would throw itself out of gear if started to go the wrong
way; on the other end of this snap catch shaft is a pulley four feet in diameter,
and six inches wide to receive the belt from the steam engine.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Peter Bawden in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd April
1881.
PETER BAWDEN, of 49, Norland Square, Notting Hill, in the County of Middlesex,
Brick Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
BRICKS AND TILES."
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for the manufacture of
bricks and tiles, whereby such machines will make bricks and tiles of a better
quality and in greater numbers with less power and less labour than heretofore.
And in order that this my Invention may be more fully understood I will
proceed to describe a brick machine constructed in accordance therewith, and such
a one as will be suitable for ordinary size building bricks and for any kind of clay
that can be used in hand moulding. Figure 1 is a plan of this machine; Figure 2
is a front side elevation; Figure 3, an end view; Figures 4, 5, and 6 are respec-
tively plan, side view, and end view of one of the brick moulds; Figures 7, 8,
and 9 are respectively end view, plan of upper side, and plan of underside of a
palette board; Figure 10 is a side view, and Figure 11 an end view of the brushes
in the water trough for cleaning and wetting the moulds.
The machine is as nearly as possible self-acting; it is driven by horse or steam
power and grinds or pugs the clay or brick earth, washes, sands, and fills the brick
moulds with clay, also cleans the palette boards and sands them and pushes them
into the moulds; these palette boards form the loose bottom for the moulds, the
moulds having two rails at bottom to receive the palette boards, the bricks resting
on the palette boards in the moulds are pushed away from the machine on to a
"page," the bricks are then taken from the " page" and loaded on to the
wheelbarrows.
The machine is constructed as follows:-The pug mill tub or box A, being about
three feet four inches square in size and about four feet high, to contain the clay
or brick earth, and may be made either of wood or iron, and with a round shaft B
with bearings near the top and bottom.
The pole or lever if used is fastened to the top of the mill shaft B, and supposing
the machine to be driven by horse power the horse is attached to the other end of
the pole which gives motion to the whole machine; c is a bracket or ledge on the
back of the pug mill for the wheelbarrow plank to rest on.
There are four clay knives c, each with two blades; also one clay knife with
four blades placed near the bottom of the pug mill to force and press the clay
through the hole a in the bottom of the mill, as shown in Figure 1, part of the
driving bevil wheel being shown removed for that purpose, and into the brick
moulds D which pass underneath the pug mill near the front; the clay knives are
fastened to the mill shaft B which passes through them; these knives cut and grind
the clay and press it downwards.
The pug mill shaft B stands upright and passes down through the clay knives
which are in the pug mill; this vertical shaft is, say, three inches and a half in
diameter, it passes down through the pug mill bottom and has a bevil cog wheel
(not seen in the Drawing) about, say, two feet in diameter, fastened to the bottom
end of this shaft, which drives a smaller bevil cog wheel, not seen in the Drawing,
being one half the size; this one foot bevil cog wheel is fastened to a horizontal
shaft E, about three inches in diameter, which runs across the machine from front
to back underneath the centre of the pug mill, the bevil wheel being keyed on to
the shaft towards the frout of the brick machine, and on the same shaft still nearer
to the front is another wheel F attached, this wheel being about twenty inches in

page_text: diameter, having about 15 teeth or cogs forming a sort of spur wheel. There
are two more of these spur wheels, G and H, one on each side of the machine, each
being about three feet from the centre one; these spur wheels are also fastened to
horizontal three inch shafts G¹ and H', which are about four fect eight inches long,
running from front to back on the right and left of the pugmill of the machine,
each being parallel with the centre horizontal shaft E, having bearings at the ends,
front and back, resting on long frames I forming the front and back of the lower
part of the machine, the three spur wheels F, G, and H being fastened to the three
horizontal shafts E, G, and H¹ near their front ends, these three wheels being in
a line carry a band or endless chain of brick moulds D, the moulds resting on a
pair of iron rails K, K', which are respectively above or near the top of the wheels
F, G, and H; on the top and under the wheel at the botton the teeth of these
spur wheels pass up through, that is, between the rails K on top, and force the
moulds D along on the rails from right to left of the machine, the band of moulds
continually passing over the three spur wheels and down underneath them, the
centre spur wheel F forcing the band of moulds from right to left on the top and
forcing them back under the wheels from left to right; g and h are friction rollers,
one at each end of the rail K; these are mounted on brackets g¹, g¹, and h³, h', and
serve for the moulds D to pass over.
There are about twenty four cast iron moulds forming the endless band or chain,
the moulds having no ends only sides, as shown more clearly in Figures 4, 5, and 6.
The end views of the moulds are in shape like the letter H, the upper part, that is,
where the brick is made, having two rails & cast on the mould, the rails & running
lengthways of the mould on which the palette boards L rest, the palette boards
forming loose bottoms for the moulds; these boards are shown more clearly in
Figures 7, 8, and 9, the bricks being taken away to the drying ground resting on
the palette boards L in the same way as is done in making hand moulded sand
stock bricks; the under part of the mould D of the shape of the letter H is for
three pins or bolts d, about three quarters of an inch in diameter, of iron passing
through from side to side of each mould, one being at the end of each mould which
forms a hinge to join the moulds together in one endless band; it is in the three
bolts or pins d in each mould which the teeth of the twenty inch spur wheel F
catch, and force the moulds along the rails K, K', top and bottom.
The moulds are about ten inches long and about five inches wide inside measure,
and about seven inches deep, the upper part of the mould being about four inches
and a quarter deep, that is, three inches deep for the brick, half inch for the
palette boards or loose bottoms L, and three quarters of an inch deep for the rails d
in the mould for the palette board to rest on; one end of one rail & in each mould
is one inch high, that is for the palette board to be pushed against it, which acts as
a regulator; it would be more or less this measurement according to the size of the
brick or tile required; in fuct the measurements given all through this description of
the machine would be more or less according to the size of the bricks or tiles
required, the mould being hinged at the ends so as to bend downwards to pass around
the wheels G and H, which are on the horizontal shafts G¹ and H'. The moulds
are made in such a way that they cannot be pushed close together, but one end of
each mould has a piece of iron cast on, as shown at D', Figure 4, to keep the ends
of them about one sixteenth of an inch apart; this is to allow the bricks to be cut
off at the ends with a piece of fine steel wire. Each mould has a piece of iron D
cast on each side of one end of the mould about half an inch high, and about half
an inch from the outside of the mould on top; this is to push the wire and to guide
it by the weight of the wire frame M, M', Figures 1 and 2, to cut the bricks off at
the ends of the moulds, this wire being worked self-acting with the rest of the
machine. This wire frame has joints at m and m¹ which allow the wire to be
pushed by the mould and its weight to cut the bricks off at the ends of the
moulds. This wire cutting frame M, M', is lifted up after cutting the brick off by a
friction roller or small wheel n, there being five of those rollers n attached to a
wheel N, Figure 1, about twenty inches in diameter, this wheel N being fastened

page_text: on to the same horizontal shaft G¹ which has the twenty inch spur wheel on the
left side of the pug mill on which the band of moulds runs, the moulds giving
motion to this wheel by being forced over it. About three feet to the right of the
pug mill centre a there is another twenty inch spur wheel o fastened to the shaft H',
and this shaft is driven by the action of the moulds being forced over the front
wheel H; this twenty inch spur wheel o on the centre of the shaft H¹ by means of
a chain P drives another wheel Q of the same size on the centre of another
horizontal shaft Q', which is about seven feet from the centre of the pugmill to the
right; this shaft also runs parallel with the other three horizontal shafts, which
run from front to back of the machine. Near the front end of this shaft Q¹ is
attached a pulley wheel R about one foot nine inches in diameter, with flanges on
each side standing out about three quarters of an inch; this pulley is about three
inches and a quarter wide to carry a leather belt about three inches wide. The
pulley wheel R runs in a line with the band of moulds; the leather belt runs from
this pulley about two feet further away from the machine to another small pulley S,
which is about nine inches in diameter, and fastened to a short small shaft S¹; on
the outside of this leather belt pieces s of iron are fastened cross ways about five inches
long, one inch wide, and about half an inch thick; the pieces of iron are fastened to
the belt about twelve inches apart. The ends of the iron being one inch out over
the edges of the belt, those ends when on the top rest on two rails of iron which
form the bottom for the palette box T. These rails are so made to catch the ends
of the iron cross pieces s on the belt when they rise over the small nine inch pulley,
this iron on the belt will then catch the bottom palette board Land push it
towards the band of moulds; the palette boards rest only on these rails at each
side of the box when in the box, but they rest on the centre as soon as they are
pushed from the box, and there being no longer the rails for the ends of the irons s
on the belt to rest on, the belt passes underneath the palette which it has just
pushed, and so on, around the one-foot nine inch pulley R which has the flanges.
In order to prevent the belt from slipping, and in order for it to keep time with
the rest of the self acting machine, there are five little places ? cut in the flange on
each side of the wheel R, about half an inch deep and three inches long, in the
flanges for the iron palette pushers & to fall into. The palette boards are placed in
a box T one over the other, and over the belt, the iron pushers s on the belt always
pushing the bottom palette which passes under a scraper U in front of the palette
box, and then under a sand box V, which has a regulator or slide v to allow a very
thin coating of sand to remain on it. The palette being sanded and the pushing
belt being always going, the palette is being pushed in to the sanded mould as it
rises up around the spur wheel H, and is pushed underneath the pugmill to be
filled with clay, the moulds and palettes being always going.
The flanged one-foot nine inch pulley wheel R is not keyed on to the shaft, but
there is another small wheel R¹ keyed to the shaft near to it, and to this wheel is
fastened a spring R2, which rests against one of the five arms or spokes of the
flange wheel R, so that if at any time there should be an obstruction in the palette
boards, the spring would give and catch the next arm in the flange wheel; there
being five arms the palette board would be always pushed up tight to the end of
the mould, where the one rail d in the end of each mould is a quarter of, an inch
higher on purpose, as shown in Figure 4, at d², to catch the palette board, there
being a place cut in each end of the palette board to receive the high place d³ in
the rail.
In the bottom plate of the pugmill near the front is a hole a, Figure 1, for the
clay to be forced through, the hole being one foot seven inches long, by six inches
wide, there being two sliding doors a³ and a³, which can be pushed forwards or
backwards at will from the outside by means of handles a³ and a. By opening or
closing these doors more or less, I can allow the clay to be forced through with
more or less pressure, therefore the sliding doors act as regulators for filling the
moulds when the clay is stiffer or softer, that is, with more or less water in the
clay. There is a die with the hole one foot seven inches long, by about four inches

page_text: wide, bolted underneath to the bottom of the pugmill, the moulds being filled under
this dic as they pass underneath it, the moulds being endless, and about five inches
wide, the die being but four inches wide in the hole; this prevents the clay from
pushing the sand off the sides of the moulds. The clay being pressed through the die
falls to the bottom of the moulds and then fills out the sides; the moulds being full
of clay then pass on underneath a plane formed of a water box, with a grating for
the bottom, the bars being about one fourth of an inch apart; this allows the
water to pass through the bottom; underneath this grated bottom is a piece of
canvas, leather, or other suitable material which rests on the moulds; by this
means the tops of the bricks are made perfectly smooth, the moulds passing under
the plane. W is a small water supply tank for supplying the plane W; the
wire m² then cuts the brick off, which then passes on to the "page" X, to be then
loaded on to the wheelbarrow. The end of the "page" X is so constructed as to go
between the rails d of the mould under the palette board L which holds the brick,
the mould D then turning on its hinge, passing down around the spur wheel G,
passing over the water box Y, Figures 10 and 11, which has two circular brushes Y¹,
which brush the insides of the moulds as they pass over them, the moulds giving
motion to the brushes, as they are formed like two wheels with the hair on the
outer sides, but not on the edges of them, the brushes being about one foot in
diameter, the brushes always going around inside the moulds and down in the
water, thereby always keeping the moulds clean and wet as well. There is a small
shaft y through the centre of the brushes, the bearings resting on the sides of the
water box, the moulds still passing on under the three spur wheels, the moulds
resting on two rails K' as they go back to the other end, passing through a box of
dry sand, shown at Z; therefore they are always well sanded as well as being well
washed, which is of the greatest consequence, in order that the bricks may leave
the moulds smooth and square.
There is in the front plate of the pugmill a hole A six inches in diameter, which
has a sliding door to be opened to clean out the pugmill when required.
The machine inakes ten bricks D³ or tiles each revolution of the pugmill shaft,
so that when the machine is driven by horse power, the horse going once around
with the horse pole makes ten bricks.
When the machine is driven by steam power there is a three foot bevil cog
wheel B¹ fastened to the top end of the puginill shaft B. Instead of the horse pole
this three foot bevil cog wheel is driven by a cross horizontal shaft B³, on which is
fastened a small bevil pinion wheel B³ one fourth of the size of the three foot
wheel on the mill shaft; on the end of this horizontal pinion shaft is fastened a
three foot spur wheel B' which is driven by a spur pinion wheel B³ one fourth of
the size; this spur pinion is loose on the shaft, but there is cast on the back of it
a snap catch or clutch, which fits into a snap catch or clutch which is attached to
the shaft by a feather key on the shaft, the clutch sliding in and out of gear by
means of a lever for starting the machine to work, or for stopping it at a moment's
notice; this snap catch or clutch is so constructed that it would throw itself out of
gear if started to go the wrong way; on the other end of this snap catch shaft is a
pulley B four feet in diameter, and six inches wide, to receive the belt from the
steam engine.
And having thus described the nature of this Invention, and the mode in which
it is or may be carried into effect, I declare that I claim,―
First. A machine for making bricks or tiles, consisting essentially of an endless
series of moulds open at each end, and supplied in a regulated manner with clay
from the pugmill, the said moulds being supplied with palette boards automatically
or otherwise, and operating in combination with a selfacting wire cutting frame,
and with a page which receives the moulded bricks or forms on the palette boards,
the empty moulds being then washed by revolving brushes, and passed through
dry sand, all substantially as described, and also the general arrangement and
combination of parts shown on the Drawing.
Second. The construction of the moulds open at each end, and arranged as an

page_text: endless series, so that the bar of clay resting on palette boards in the moulds can
be cut off into bricks or other forms by a wire cutting appliance, and be received
on a page which enters between rails in the moulds and under the palette boards,
all substantially as described and shown.
Third. The palette board supply appliance operated continuously and automatically
by belt, having palette board pushers passing round pulleys, one of which is
suitably formed for the said pushers, all substantially as set forth.
Fourth. The application of revolving brushes for cleaning and wetting the inner
sides of moulds for bricks and tiles, substantially as set forth.
Fifth. The construction of the paletto boards, substantially as and for the
purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Peter Bawden, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twentieth day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty one.
PETER BAWDEN. (L.S.)