IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MODE OF WORKING APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED IN PRESSING, MOULDING, SHAPING, EMBOSSING, CRUSHING, SHEARING, AND CUTTING METALLIC AND OTHER SUBSTANCES." PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Bessemer, of Queen Street Place, New
Cannon Street, in the City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MODE OF WORKING APPARATUS TO BE
EMPLOYED IN PRESSING, MOULDING, SHAPING, EMBOSSING, CRUSHING, SHEARING,
AND CUTTING METALLIC AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Bessemer at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 5th
January 1863.
I, HENRY BESSEMER, of Queen Street Place, New Cannon Street, in the
City of London, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MODE OF WORKING APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED IN
PRESSING, MOULDING. SHAPING. EMBOSSING, CRUSHING, SHEARING, AND CUTTING
METALLIC AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
My said Invention relates to that class of machines known as "hydraulic
presses," and consists,―
Firstly, in transmitting to the ram or pressing surface of such apparatus a
continuous reciprocating motion through a limited and regulated distance, and
also in transmitting to such ram or pressing surface at or near to the end of
each stroke or pulsation the force accumulated in a heavy revolving fly wheel
during the inoperative portion of the stroke of such ram. This apparatus in
its simplest form consists of a stout cast-iron upright cylinder with-a close

page_text: bottom; an arch springing from opposite sides of the samecasting serves at its
upper part to affix a die or other pressing surface, a ram of cast iron is fitted
to the cylinder, and is rendered water-tight in the usual way by an expanding
leather ring, while the top of the ram carries the other die or pressing surface.
A steam engine (or other motor) is inade to actuate a force pump plunger by
means of a crank, on the shaft of which a heavy fly wheel is fixed; the pump
barrel, if so it may be called, is not provided with any valves, but continues as
a simple pipe of uniform diameter, until it communicates with the cylinder of
the press beneath the plunger; now, if this pipe and the lower part of the
press cylinder be filled with water and the steam engine be put in motion, it
follows that the withdrawal of the plunger by the crank will allow the press
ram to sink down, while the forcing in of the plunger will again raise it
upward, the ram of the press thus rising and falling with every stroke of the
pump plunger through a distance in proportion to their respective areas.
This constant and uniform motion of the pressing ram is inade to operate on
the body subjected to its action, through a variable distance and with a varying
amount of force by means of a regulating valve or valves under the control of
the workman; for this purpose an elevated reservoir of water is provided, or
water may be supplied from a boiler or other vessel by direct steam pressure;
or a second set of pumps with an accumulator or other suitable arrangement
may be so made to insure a supply of water under such a degree of pressure
as will more than balance the weight of the large pressing ram whenever a
communicator is opened to such ram from the reservoir or other source of
power before named; the workman will thus be enabled, by admitting water
to the cylinder or by allowing it to escape therefrom by a suitable valve or
cock, to cause the strokes or pulsations of the pressing ram to take place at a
higher or lower level, and thus operate upou masses of greater or less
magnitude when placed between the fixed and moveable dies or pressing
surfaces. The space between these surfaces may be such that at each pulsa-
tion of the ram they only just come in contact with the body to be acted on,
but by the admission of water from the reservoir or other source of supply
before named, the pulsations of the rain will be made to act on the said body
through a greater distance, and thus compress it to the desired extent, while
the action of the press on such body can be made at any time to cease by
simply allowing some of the water to escape from the press cylinder by the
regulating valve, without the necessity of stopping the steam engine or other
'motor employed; thus it will be seen that the amount of force caused to
operate on the body subjected to pressure at each upward movement of the
press will be equal to the entire effective force generated by a complete

page_text: revolution of the engine in consequence of the heavy fly wheel absorbing the
surplus power during the inoperative portion of the stroke or pulsation, and
again developing the power so stored during the period of active pressure, and
thus imparting to the apparatus the mechanical effects of the fly press and
hydraulic press combined.
.
Secondly, with regard to the mode of constructing machines in which are
embodied the general principles herein-before described, I would remark that
a great variety of modifications may be made so as to specially adapt the
apparatus to the many useful purposes to which it may be applied; thus the
apparatus herein-before described, with its ram moving upwards, will be found
suitable for moulding or compressing and consolidating dry materials, as in the
making of bricks, tiles, tessera, and other articles in a dry or nearly dry state
of powder, as also peat and artificial fuel, or for embossing or coining, or
squeezing puddle balls, or for other like purposes, but it would be less con-
venient for purposes where only partofthe material is acted upon at one time,
as in pressing, swaging, or shaping iron or steel bars, rods, or axles, since they
would be carried up and down by the motion of the ram at every stroke; I
therefore for such purposes prefer to construct a press in which the ram or
moveable presser is situated above the articles to be acted upon, which will in
that case lie quietly on the lower or fixed pressing block or die. But in appa-
ratus so constructed it will be seen that the ram will not make its return
stroke by its own gravity, as in the first herein-before described apparatus; I
therefore employ a second cylinder, which I place above the pressing cylinder,
the said upper cylinder having a piston attached by a rod to the press ram.
Steam or water under pressure from a reservoir, or otherwise, acting bencath
the upper piston will give a constant tendency in the press ram to rise,so that
whenever the superior pressure in the downward direction is removed it will
make the return stroke as required. But this placing of the pressing ram
overhead is not so convenient as may be desired when the apparatus is to be
employed in making large shafts,cranks, or other "uses," in steel or malleable
or wrought iron, because the pressing cylinder comes more or less in the way
of the chain and tackle of the crane by which such masses are supported while
under operation; 1 therefore prefer to construct a press for such
purposes, in
such manner that while the lower die or pressing surface is in a state of rest
the upper die or pressing surface is made to move up and down in connection
with an open rectangular pressing frame, made of malleable iron or steel,
which moves vertically in suitable guides connected to or forming part of the
same casting as the cylinder of the press, which latter is placed in an inverted
position with its open mouth downward, and its closed end forming a seat on

page_text: which the lower pressing surface rests; the sliding frame at its lower end has
a cross head to connect both its vertical sides, and to this cross head is
attached the ram which gives motion to the apparatus, so that the admission
of water under great pressure brings down the ram and pressing frame, and
causes the upper die or surface to impinge upon the mass of metal interposed
between it and the lower one, the return stroke of the ram and frame upward
being effected by an additional cylinder placed below the apparatus, into which
an elongation of the pressing ram is fitted, such cylinder being connected, asin
theapparatus herein-before described, with an elevated reservoir of water or
other source of fluid pressure, or the return stroke may be effected by a spring
or counterbalance weight.
In those cases where masses of large dimensions are to be pressed or
sheared, I prefer to use two main pressing cylinders, and to form the pressing
frame in separate parts, that is, a massive cross head with round or square
pillars fixed thereto, and forming the vertical sides of the frame, the cuds of
the cross head working in guides,and the pillars forming piston rods in which
pistons are fitted, and which work in the main pressing cylinders; these latter
I prefer to make in one casting, and so connected by webs as to constitute a
strong bed or foundation plate for the press, the upstroke being in this case
effected by employing pressure, as before described, not on a separate piston
but on the under side of the main pistons. Such an apparatus is peculiarly
adapted for treating masses of large dimensions, or for shearing long plates
and punching long rows of holes at a single operation. In those cases where
access to the work operated upon is required in a transverse direction I make
a double sliding frame or use four pillars instead of two, so that a space is left
between them. When two pistons and cylinders are employed to bring down
the sliding frame of a press I prefer to make two plunger pumps of equal
size, driven simultaneously with the engine, so as to insure an equal motion
at each end of the pressing frame, and in those cases where an engine may
be required to work several presses, as many pumps may be employed, of
sizes suitable for each press, and so in like mauner, when two or more
separate pressing surfaces are required they may be worked simultaneously
in one machine, each having suitable dies.
The smaller class of shearing and punching machines, as also those for
sundry other purposes, may be made with one arm or side only, that is, with
a sliding frame open on one side, the ram either rising from below or
descending from above, as herein-before described, or actuated by a piston
fitted to a single sliding arm, which carries the upper die, punch, or cutter.
The apparatus will thus readily admit the edge of a large sheet of metal for

page_text: punching or shearing, and may in many cases be employed advantageously in
lieu of the two-sided press.
In the manufacture of cast steel or cast malleable iron, the first consolidation
of the ingot or cast mass is performed by what is called "cogging," that is,
rough hammering it to a certain extent prior to forging it to the desired
dimensions; this process may be advantageously replaced by pressing or
shaping the ingot between plain or curved surfaces, or in dies or swages
actuated by hydraulic pressure, by apparatus made according to either of the
modes herein-before described, but when constructing apparatus for this
especial purpose I add to it an iron table, which extends on both sides of the
lower dressing surface or die, so that the ingot to be treated may rest on the
table in front of the press, while its foremost end is being acted upon, and will
in like manner rest on that part of the table which lies beyond the pressing
surface or die when the other end of the ingot is being pressed, the pressing
surface or die rising a little higher than the surface of the table, will receive
the pressure while the table only supports- the ingot; small rollers may be
substituted for the table as a means of support, or the table may have slots
made therein through which rollers project a short distance, in order to
support the overhanging end of the ingot; the rollers or table may be fixed
or allowed to move downward if desired by the compression of a spring or
elastic packing.
And, lastly, I would remark that the workman who regulates the working of
all such apparatus should have placed near to him a handle by which he may
control the steam engine which works the plunger, so that whenever the
pressing operations are to cease for a short period he may at once check the
supply of steam to the engine, and in like manner turn on again full steam
whenever the use of the apparatus is resumed; it will also be necessary to
provide a loaded valve in connection with the plunger, by which the pressing
power is generated, so that in case the object placed in the apparatus is too
large or too hard to admit of the motion of the pressing surfaces that such
valve may open and relieve the apparatus from an undue strain, I prefer that
such valve should be nearly in a state of equilibrium, so that a small weight
would suffice to regulate it.
Whenever the pulsations of the apparatus are required to follow each other
more slowly or more rapidly than can conveniently be provided for by the
direct motion of the steam engine, I drive a separate crank shaft to actuate
the force pump or pumps, such shaft being geared with an increasing or
reducing speed as compared to the speed of the engine; and I would further
remark that although I have described the several forms of apparatus as
.

page_text: moving vertically, it will be obvious that the pressing surfaces may be made to
move horizontally or otherwise whenever the nature of the operation renders
other positions desirable, amongst others the crushing of ores, minerals, and
other substances where the use of inclined surfaces approaching to and
receding from each other are employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henry Bessemer, in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th July 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, T, HENRY
BESSEMER, of Queen Street Place, New Cannon Street, in the City of London,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said Henry Bessemer, Her special licence that I, the said
Henry Bessemer, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Henry Bessemer, 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 THE CONSTRUCTION AND MODE OF WORKING APPARATUS TO BE
EMPLOYED IN PRESSING, MOULDING, SHAPING, EMBOSSING, CRUSHING, SHEARING,
AND CUTTING METALLIC AND OTHER SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Henry Bessemer, my executors or administrators,
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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henry Bessemer, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-
My said Invention relates to that class of machines known as "hydraulic

page_text: presses," and consists, firstly, in transmitting to the ram or pressing surface of
such apparatus a continuous reciprocating motion through a limited and
regulated distance, and also in transmitting to such ram or pressing surface at
or near to the end of each stroke or pulsation, the force accumulated in a
heavy revolving fly-wheel during the inoperative portion of the stroke of such
ram.
This apparatus in its simplest form is represented in front elevation at
Figure 1, in side elevation at Figure 2, and partly in vertical section at.
Figure 3 on Sheet A of the Drawings hereunto annexed, and consists of a
stout cast-iron upright cylinder a, with a close bottom; an arch b springing
from opposite sides of the same casting serves at its upper part to affix a die
or other pressing surface c, a ram of cast iron d, is fitted to the cylinder, and
is rendered water-tight in the usual way by an expanding leather ring e,
while the top of the ram carries the other die or pressing surface f. A steam
engine (or other motor) is made to actuate a force pump plunger by means
of a crank, on the shaft of which a heavy fly-wheel is fixed; the pump barrel,
if so it may be called, is not provided with any valves but continues as a simple
pipe of uniform diameter or nearly so until it communicates with the cylinder
of the press beneath the plunger as shewn at g. Now if this pipe and the
lower part of the press cylinder be filled with water and the steam engine
be put in motion, it follows that the withdrawal of the plunger by the crank
will allow the press ram to sink down, while the forcing in of the plunger will
again raise it upward, the ram of the press thus rising and falling with every
stroke of the pump plunger through a distance in proportion to their respective
areas.
It will be understood that the ram of the press will only operate on the
substance subjected to its action through a part of its stroke in one direction;
thus, suppose it were intended to operate on a bar of iron or steel, and that
the amount of compression at each stroke of the ram was desired to be equal
to half an inch, it would in such case be convenient to give to the
ram of the press a movement through a distance of two inches in order that
the bar may be moved with facility in time to receive the next compression
at a point further along it, hence it will be seen that the force pump actuating
the press will have only to raise the weight of the ram and the weight of the
work during three-quarters of its upward movement, and during the other
one-fourth part the compression of the bar will take place; it will also be
seen that during the whole of the return stroke of the ram no compression
of the bar will take place, hence it follows that, during the interval occupied
by one complete stroke of the press, one-eighth only of the time is occupied in

page_text: the case supposed in the compression of the bar, the force transmitted by the
steam engine during the other seven-eighths or inoperative portion of the
stroke will be accumulated or stored in the heavy fly wheel employed on the
crank shaft which works the force pump and will be again given out during
the one-eighth of its revolution, in which time the act of compression is
effected.
The form of apparatus which I prefer for forcing water into and actuating
such presses is shewn on Sheet A of the annexed Drawings, where Figure 4.
is a side elevation, Figure 5 a longitudinal vertical section, and Figure 6 a
horizontal section of the same. is a cast-iron frame terminating at one
end in the pump cylinder * and at the other end supporting the. crank
shaft i, which is shewn broken off, but which is intended to carry a heavy
fly wheel, and to have on its outer end and beyond the said fly wheel a crank
arm, through which motion is transmitted to it from a steam cylinder supported
on a separateframe in the mannerusuallyemployed in theconstructionof steam
engines and therefore not shewn in the Drawings. The plunger is supported
in guides, and is attached to the connecting rod 1, by means of which
it is made to move to and fro whenever the crank shaft i is made to revolve,
the water thus alternately drawn into and driven out of the pump cylinder /*
through the pipe will produce a constant rise and fall of the ram d. This
constant and uniform motion of the pressing ram is made to operate on the
body subjected to its action through a variable distance and with a varying
amount of force by means of cocks, or of a regulating valve or valves under
the control of the workman; for this purpose an elevated reservoir of water
is provided, or water may be supplied from a boiler or other vessel by direct
steam pressure or a second set of pumps with an accumulator or other
suitable arrangement may be so made to insure a supply of water under such
a degree of pressure as will more than balance the weight of the large
pressing ram d, whenever a communication is opened to such ram from the
reservoir or other source of power before named, the workman will thus
be enabled by admitting water to the cylinder a, or by allowing it to escape
therefrom by a suitable valve or cock, to cause the strokes or pulsations of the
pressing ram to take place at a higher or lower level, and thus operate upon
masses of greater or less magnitude when placed between the fixed and
moveable dies or pressing surfaces.
In order that this mode of regulating the space left between the pressing
surfaces e and may be understood I have shewn at Figure 7, Sheet A, an
elevation of the pumping apparatus connected to the press, together with
the cocks and handles used to regulate it. m is an elevated reservoir of

page_text: space
water connected by the pipe n with the cylinder a, the reservoir being of
sufficient height to cause the water in the pipe n to more than balance the
weight of the ram d whenever a communication is opened between it and the
cylinder a by means of the cock o, and handle 2, and thus to lessen the space
between the pressing surfaces or dies cand f; a pipe q also communicates with
the cylinder a, and is provided with a cock and handle s, by means of which a
portion of the water may at any time be allowed to escape from the cylinder a
and thus increase the distance between the pressing surfaces or dies candf.
The between these surfaces may be such that at each pulsation of the
ram d, they only just come in contact with the body to be acted on, but
by the admission of water from the reservoir or other source of supply before
named the pulsations of the ram will be made to act on the said body through
a greater distance, and thus compress it to the desired extent, while the action
of the press on such body can be made at any time to cease by simply
allowing water to escape from the press cylinder by the regulating cock or
valve, without the necessity of stopping the steam engine or other motor
employed to work the force pump; thus it will be seen that the amount of
force caused to operate on the body subjected to pressure at each upward
movement of the press will be equal to the entire effective force generated by
a complete revolution of the engine in consequence of the heavy fly wheel
absorbing the surplus power during the inoperative portion of the stroke or
pulsation, and again developing the power so stored during the period
of active pressure and thus imparting to the apparatus the mechanical
effects of the fly press and hydraulic press combined.
Secondly, with regard to the mode of constructing machines in which are
embodied the general principles herein-before described, I would remark, that
a great variety of modifications may be made so as to specially adapt the
apparatus to the many useful purposes to which it may be applied; thus the
apparatus herein-before described, with its ram moving upwards, will be
found suitable for moulding or compressing, and consolidating dry materials,
as in the making of bricks, tiles, tessera, and other articles in a dry or nearly
dry state of powder; as also peat and artificial fuel, or for embossing or
coining, and for squeezing puddle balls, or for other like purposes; but it
would be less convenient for purposes where only part of the material is acted
upon at one time, as in pressing, swaging, or shaping iron or steel bars,
rods, or axles, since they would be carried up and down by the motion of the
ram at every stroke.
It may, nevertheless, be used in this simple form for those purposes, and in
Figures 1, 2, and 3, Sheet A., I have shown a cast-steel ingot at z in the

page_text: position it would occupy when under treatment in the press; but for such
purposes I prefer to construct a press in which the ram or moveable presser
is situated above the articles to be acted upon, which will in that case lie
quietly on the lower or fixed pressing block or die; but in apparatus so con-
structed it will be found that the ram will not make its return stroke by its
own gravity, as in the first herein-before described apparatus. I therefore
employ a second cylinder, which I place above the pressing cylinder; the
said upper cylinder having a piston attached by a rod to the press ram.
Steam or water under pressure from a reservoir, or otherwise acting beneath
the upper piston, will give a constant ten-lency in the press ram to rise, so
that whenever the superior pressure in the downward direction is removed
it will make the return stroke as required.
A press, with its cylinder above, is represented in front elevation at
Figure 6; in side elevation at Figure 7, and in vertical section at Figure 8,
on Sheet B. of the Drawings hereunto annexed. In this modification of the
apparatus the press cylinder A is cast in connection with the sides and base A*
of the press frame, the upper pressing surface or die B being fitted to the
ram C, and the lower pressing surface or anvil is fitted to the base of the
press frame; the ram is made to move downward by the action of a force
pump, in the manner herein-before described, and on the return stroke of
the force pump the rain C is made to move upward by the pressure of water
from an elevated reservoir, or by water directly acted on by steam pressure,
or by steam without the intervention of water, kept in constant communica-
tion with the under side of the piston D, the pressure on which must more
than balance the weight of the ram C, so as to cause it to move freely
upwards; whenever the superior pressure acting on the ram C is removed,
an ingot of cast steel or other malleable metal is shewn at E, in the position
to be operated upon by the press; but it will be obvious that this form of
apparatus may be employed for many other useful purposes. The regulating
of the distance between the pressing surfaces may be effected in a manner
similar to that herein-before firstly described. It will also be obvious that
the side cheeks of the press may be strengthened or stayed by wrought iron
or steel bults, or tension bars, or the cylinder may be cast separate from
the lower part or bed, and be attached thereto by columns or tensions bars
of malleable iron or steel.
But this placing of the pressing ram over head is not so convenient as
may be desired when the apparatus is to be employed in making large shafts,
cranks, or other "uses" in steel, or malleable or wrought iron, because the
pressing cylinder comes more or less in the way of the chain and tackle of the

page_text: crane by which such masses are usually supported while under operation.
I therefore prefer to construct a press for such purposes in the manner
represented on Sheet C. of the Drawings hereunto annexed, where Figure 1
is a front elevation, Figure 3, a side elevation, and Figure 3, a vertical
section of the same. The arrangement of this formn of apparatus being such
that while the lower die or pressing surface E is in a state of rest, the upper
die or pressing surface F is made to move up and down in connection with
an open rectangular pressing frame G made of malleable iron or steel; which
moves vertically in suitable guides FL connected to or forming part of the
same casting as the cylinder H* of the press, which latter is placed in au
inverted position, with its open mouth downwards, and its closed end forming a
sent, on which the lower pressing surface E rests. The sliding frame G at its
lower end has a cross head J to connect both its vertical sides, and to this
cross head is attached the ram K, which gives motion to the apparatus, so
that the admission of water under great pressure brings down the ram and
pressing frame, and causes the upper die or surface to impinge upon the mass
of metal interposed between it and the lower one; the return stroke of the
ram and frame upward may be effected by an additional cylinder placed below
the apparatus, into which an elongation of the pressing ram is fitted, such
cylinder being connected, as in the apparatus herein-before described, with
an elevated reservoir of water or other source of fluid pressure, or the
return stroke may be effected by a spring or counterbalance weight.
Instead of the additional cylinder, lastly described, for effecting the return
or upward stroke of the ram K, I prefer to bore out the ram, as shewn at
K*, and fit a smaller ram L thereto; the lower part L* of which rests on the
foundation. It is made hollow, and has a pipe M bolted to it for the con-
of water from an elevated reservoir or other source of constant
veyance
pressure; the area of the ram L being such that the pressure employed shall
be ample to cause the upward stroke of the ram K whenever the superior
pressure of the force pump is withdrawn; the space between the pressingdies
or surfaces being regulated by cocks or valves admitting water under pressure
to the cylinder K*, or discharging water therefrom in the manner herein
firstly described. When presses of this class are required of very great power
I prefer that the details of construction should be modified in the manner
represented on Sheet D. of the Drawings hereunto annexed, where Figure 1
is an elevation; Figure 2, a vertical section on the line A, B, of Figure 5 ;
Figure 3 is another vertical section on the line C, D, of Figure 5; Figure 4 is
a plan; Figure 5 is a horizontal cross section, and Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10

page_text: are details of some parts thereof. A is the main pressing cylinder, to the
sides of which are bolted two massive guides B, B, which are connected at
their upper and lower ends by the bars X, X; these guides having chanuels
formed truly therein for the steel or iron bars C, C, to slide in.
The bars C, which are shewn detached at Figures 6, 7, and 8, have their
npper ends inserted in grooves formed in the cross head D, and are there
secured by steel bolts E, which are accurately fitted to the holes both in the
cross head and bars C; the cross head D carries on its under side the pressing
surface or die F; the cylinder A has fitted to it a ram G, the lower part of
which is formed into a cross head at G*, it is provided with grooves in which
the lower ends of the bars C are fitted and bolted by accurately fitted bolts.
The united areas of the transverse section of these bolts must be sufficient to
resist the most powerful strains to which the apparatus can be subjected; the
ram G is formed into a cylinder at H, and has a ram I fitted into it, which is
rendered water-tight by a leather ring in the usual manner. J shews a
portion of a foundation plate, having raised parts J*, between which a pipe K
passes upwards into the ram I, and is kept tight by a leather ring; there are
also two inoveable pieces of iron L placed between the ram I and resting on the.
projecting parts of the foundation plate, as shewn in elevation at Figure 9 and
in plan at Figure 10%; the pieces L, L, are made moveable for the purpose
of facilitating the insertion of the ram I into its cylinder after the erection
of the apparatus. A large flange B* is formed on the guides B, for the
purpose of supporting the press on a foundation of masonry, to which it
may be secured by bolts passing through the holes M.
The press is to be put in motion by a force pump communicating with the
main cylinder A through the pipe N; the return stroke is effected by the
pressure of water from an elevated reservoir, or by the direct pressure of water
in a boiler or other vessel in connection with the pipe K and cylinder H. It
will be understood, that the pressure employed in apparatus of the kind herein-
described may be varied considerably; but for the efficient working of such
apparatus, I prefer to employ a pressure from two to three tons on each square
inch area of the main pressing ram, and to use a pressure of two hundred to
three hundred pounds on each square inch of the ram employed to produce the
return stroke of the large ram. In those cases where masses of large.
dimensions are to be pressed or sheared, I prefer to use two main pressing
cylinders and to form the pressing frame in separate parts, that is, a massive
cross head with round or square pillars fixed thereto, and forming the vertical
sides of the frame, the ends of the cross head working in guides, and the pillars

page_text: forming piston rods on which pistons are fitted, and which work in the main
pressing cylinders; these latter I prefer to make in one casting, and so con-
nected by webs as to constitute a strong bed or foundation plate for the press,
the up stoke being in this case effected by employing pressure as before described
I not on a separate piston but on the under side of the main pistons. Such
an apparatus is peculiarly adapted for treating masses of large dimensions or
for shearing long plates and punching long rows of holes at a single operation.
This modification of the press is represented on Sheet B. of the Drawings
hereunto annexed, where Figure 1 is a front elevation, Figure 2 a side
elevation, Figure 3 a vertical section, Figure 4 a horizontal cross section, and
Figure 5 a plan of the same.
a is a massive bed plate or casting, on which the cylinders a' and a³ are
formed, and are connected together by a web a³; the bed plate a has bolted to
its upper surface the guides b, which are connected at their upper ends by
rods c. The ends of a massive cross head d fit into grooves formed in the
guides ; into each end of the cross head the piston rods e, e, are keyed or
otherwise secured, these rods pass through a leather packing ring in the bed
plate, and enter the cylinders a¹ and a²; the lower ends of these cylinders are
provided with covers fhaving pipes g fitted thereto, connected in the manner
herein-before described to an elevated reservoir or other source of pressure,so
as to act on the under side of the pistons, and effect their upward stroke, the
upper sides of the pistons being in connection with the force pump herein-
before described. Pressing surfaces or dies may be employed in this apparatus
for moulding, pressing, or shaping various substances, or suitable cutters may
be fixed to the bed plate and cross head for shearing or cutting metallic or
other substances; or a series of punches may be fixed to the cross head, and
suitable dies fitted on to the bed plate for the purpose of punching,piercing, or
cutting holes.
In those cases where access to the work operated upon is required in a
transverse direction, I make a double sliding frame,or use four pillars instead
of two, so that a space is left between then. When two pistons and cylinders
are employed to bring down the sliding frame of a press, I prefer to make two
plunger pumps of equal size driven simultaneously with the engine, so as to
ensure an equal motion at each end of the pressing frame, and in those cases
where an engine may be required to work several presses, as many pumps may
be employed of sizes suitable for each press, and so in like mauner when two
or more separate pressing surfaces are required, they may be worked
simultaneously in one machine, each having suitable dies, as represented on

page_text: Sheet E. of the annexed Drawings, where Figure 1 is a front elevation, and
Figure 2 a vertical cross section of a press, in which three separate rams are
employed to actuate swages or shaping dies or surfaces of any required form.
A greater or lesser number of rams may be employed, and each may have a
separate and independent motion by the employment of as many separate
plunger or force pumps connected to the cylinders in which the several rams
are fitted, or any two or more of them may be actuated by one force pump by
making a communication common to each ram, as in the example shewn on
Sheet E., where aisa frame casting,in which the three cylinders b,shewn by dots
are formed; the rams c are fitted to these cylinders and carry the lower swages
or dies d, d, d, and the upper or corresponding swages or dies e, e, e, are
fastened by dovetails and wedges to the under surface of the head of the press.
The working of each of these rams is similar to that herein firstly described,
and the mode of regulating the height at which their pulsations are to take
place is also to be regulated in a similar manner by the addition of water from
an elevated reservoir or otherwise, or by the discharge of a portion of the
water therefrom.
The smaller class of shearing and punching machines, as also those for
sundry other purposes, may be made with one arın or side only, that is, with a
sliding frame open on one side, the ram either rising from below or descending
from above as herein-before described,or actuated by a piston fitted to a single
sliding arm, which carries the upper die, punch, or cutter. The apparatus
will thus readily admit the edge of a large sheet of metal for punching or
shearing, and
may in many cases be employed advantageously in lieu of the
two-sided press.
g
An example of this mode of constructing presses is shewn in side elevation
at Figure 3, Sheet E. of the annexed Drawings, where 9 represents a strong
iron casting with an overhanging part g*; a ram is fitted into it, as shown
by dots. On the top of the ram a die i is shewn, and a cutting punch j is
fitted to the under side of the overhanging part g*,so that the constant recipro-
cating motion of the ram will effect the punching or piercing of sheet metal or
other substances, if introduced between the die and punch in a manner
well understood.
For swaging, shaping, or shearing metals, another modification of the one
armed press may be preferred; it is represented in vertical section at Figure 4
on Sheet E., where m is the main frame in which the cylinder n is formed. A
massive sliding bar of steel p is formed into an overhanging jaw at p*, to
which part the upper swage or die qis fixed; the bar works in a sunken channel

page_text: formed in the main frame, its lower part being turned truly, forming a short
piston rod kept water-tight by a packing ring of leather; this rod carries the
pistons, which has also a packing ring of leather to keep it water-tight
whenever water is admitted under great pressure into the cylinder ; above
the pistons the bar and the die which it carries will be forced downward and
press on the article placed between it and the lower die or swage t, the reverse
motion of the bar being effected by hydrostatic pressure exerted between the
cylinder cover u and the under side of the piston in the same manner as
herein-before described.
In the manufacture of cast steel or cast malleable iron the first consolidation
of the ingot or cast mass is performed by what is called "cogging," that is
rough hammering it to a certain extent prior to forging it to the desired
dimensions, this process may be advantageously replaced by pressing or shaping
the ingot between plain or curved surfaces or in dies or swages actuated by
hydraulic pressure by apparatus made according to either of the modes herein-
before described, but when constructing apparatus for this especial purpose I
add to it an iron table which extends on both side of the lower pressing surface
or die, so that the ingot to be treated may rest on the table in front of the press
while its foremost end is being acted upon, and will in like manner rest on
that part of the table which lies beyond the pressing surface or die; when the
other end of the ingot is being pressed, the pressing surface or dierising alittle
higher than the surface of the table, will receive the pressure while the table
only supports the ingot; small rollers may be substituted for the table as a
means of support, or the table may have slots made therein through which
rollers project a short distance. In order to support the overhanging end
of the ingot the rollers or table may be fixed or allowed to move downward
if desired by the compression of a spring or elastic packing. This mode of
supporting ingots or other masses of metal while under operation may be
employed in lieu of the cranes or other contrivances now generally used for
that purpose, and is represented in vertical section at Figure 7, Sheet E. of
the annexed Drawings, as applied to a press of the construction represented
at Figures 1, 2, and 3, Sheet A., the table with rollers is also shown in plan
detached at Figure 8. vis a cast-iron table bolted to the frame or cylinder
of the press; it is provided with transverse slots in which small hollow
rollers are fitted, and on which the ingot of steel w, or other forging or
article under treatment rests, and which may be moved freely backward aud
forward by a workman who grasps one end of it with a pair of tongs as
shewn at y. In some cases it may be preferred to fix the table to the ram
and allow it to move upward and downward with it.

page_text: And lastly, I would remark that the workmen who regulates the working of
all such apparatus should have placed near to him a handle by which he may
control the steam engine which works the plunger, so that whenever the pressing
operations are to cease for a short period he may at once check the supply
of steam to the engine, and in like manner turn on again full steam whenever
the use of the apparatus is resumed; it will also be necessary to providealoaded
valve in connection with the plunger by which the pressing power is generated,
so that in case the object placed in the apparatus is too large or too hard to
admit of the motion of the pressing surfaces, that such valve may open and
relieve the apparatus from an undue strain. I prefer that such valve should
be nearly in a state of equilibrium, so thatasmall weight will suffice to regulate
it. Whenever the pulsations of the apparatus are required to follow each
other more slowly or more rapidly than can conveniently be provided for by
the direct motion of the steam engine,I drive a separate crank shaft to actuate
the force pump or pumps, such shaft being geared with an increasing or re-
ducing speed as compared to the speed of the engine, and I would further
remark that although I have described the several forms of apparatusas moving
vertically, it will be obvious that the pressing surfaces may be made to move
horizontally or otherwise whenever the nature of the operation renders other
positions desirable, amongst others the crushing of ores, minerals, and other
substances where the use of inclined surfaces approaching to and receding
from each other are employed.
A horizontal press adapted to the crushing of mineral and other substances
is represented in vertical section at Figure 5, and in plan at Figure 6, on Sheet E.
of the annexed Drawings. A massive iron casting A with circular ends has a
cylinder formed within it at A*, in which the ram B is fitted and rendered
water-tight by a packing ring in the usual manner; to the outer end of the ram a
wedged-shape block of iron or steel J is fitted and keyed; a similar inclined block
of metalk, is fitted to the end of the press in the position shewn; these surfaces
may becorrugated or plain, and may be made of any desired angle with reference
to each other, but taken separately and disconnected from the hydraulic
apparatus when employed for crushing ores or minerals are not new nor of
my Invention, and I therefore lay no claim thereto. The large casting A is
further strengthened by bands or hoops of iron or steel 1) shrunk on to the
casting when in a heated state; the return stroke of the ram B is effected by a
small cylinder E formed immediately behind the ram which is connected by
a rod G to a piston H, to which water under pressure is applied in the manner
herein-before described, and by means of which, together with the force pump
employed to give the forward stroke of the ram, a continuous backward aud

page_text: forward motion is effected, the inclined blocks moving from and towards each
other with a steady though powerful motion, the materials falling deeper
into the inclined space between the blocks at each return stroke, which
is only required to take place through a small distance, the distance
apart of the crashing surfaces being regulated in the manner herein-before
described by the admission or emission of water to the main cylinder of
the press.
Having described the manner in which the several modifications of my
Invention may be carried into practical operation, I desire it to be understood
that I do not confine myself to the details herein-before described, but what I
do claim is,―
Firstly, transinitting to the rams of hydraulic presses a self-acting and
continuous reciprocating notion through a limited and regulated distance.
Secondly, transmitting to the rains of hydraulic presses during a portion
or near the end of each stroke or pulsation of the rams, the force stored or
accumulated in a heavy revolving fly wheel during the inoperative portion of
the stroke of such rams.
Thirdly, the method or methods herein described of regulating the distance
apart of the cutting or pressing surfaces ordies employed in hydraulic presses
having a continuous reciprocating motion.
Fourthly, the employment of a sliding frame in hydraulic presses for the
purpose of transmitting the force of the ram in a downward direction on to
the article or matter under operation.
Fifthly, the employment in hydraulic presses of two pistons acting simul-
taneously on one cross head or pressing frame as described.
Sixthly, the employment of two or more rams in one hydraulic press
frame, such rams acting independently or simultaneously as herein de-
scribed.
Seventhly, the employment of one-armed hydraulic presses in the moulding,
shaping, embossing, shearing, and pressing of metallic and other substances.
Eightly, the employment of a table or support with or without rollers as
described when used in combination with a hydraulic press, employed in
pressing, shaping," cogging," or forging ingots, blooms, or other inasses of mal-
leable iron or steel.
5 Ninthly, the continuous working of hydraulic presses bymeans of a plunger
or force pump not furnished with valves and communicating direct with such

page_text: other substances.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Bessemer, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
HENRY BESSEMER. (L.s.)