Year: 1885

page_text: I, HERBERT JOHN HADDAN, of 67 Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention a communication to me
from abroad by Joseph Breuer, Engineer, of Rue de la Tour Maubourg, Paris,
France, to be as follows:-
This invention relates to machinery for decorticating textile plants or obtaining
fibres therefrom, and is more particularly intended for the treatment of the stalks
of ramie.
The improved machine comprises a series of organs which act on the fibrous
stalks in different ways.
The stalks are first crushed, then the wood is ground or broken to pieces,
subsequently it is separated from the bark, and finally the bark is delivered in
the shape of slivers or bands and the broken particles of wood are completely
separated from the slivers.
These operations may be performed on the green or on the dry stalks by a series
of rollers or beaters, partly plain and partly toothed or riffled. The machine may,
for instance, comprise; a pair of flat crushing rollers, a pair of toothed or grooved
breaking rollers, a pair of stripping rollers provided with radial arms or blades, and
a pair of ventilating beaters, consisting of revolving cylinders provided with arms
at an angle to the respective radius. The fibrous stalks fed between the crushing
rollers are thus subjected to four consecutive operations before they emerge from
between the beaters. The stand or frame of the machine has on each side a
vertical slot for each pair of rollers, the said slots receiving the bearings of the
rollers; the distance between each pair is rendered variable by means of a spring
and a set screw pressing on the bearing of the upper roller from the top.
The stripping or breaking rollers may be replaced by a pair of parallel endless
aprons armed with teeth or blades, placed so that the teeth of one apron project
into the interstices between the teeth of the other apron, and the fibrous stalks are
thus obliged to take a zig-zag course while passing between the said aprons.

page_text: The friction of the blades serves to detach the resinous outer skin and at the
same time to separate the fibrous bark from the wooden stem. In front of the
beaters and parallel thereto is a rod serving to receive and collect the slivers
delivered by the beaters.
There may be more than three pairs of rollers acting on the fibrous stalks before
it is subjected to the beaters, for instance the machine may have three pairs of
crushing and drying rollers, two pairs of friction rollers, one pair of stripping
rollers and one pair of breaking rollers.
The
The different pairs of rollers revolve with different speeds, the grooved friction
rollers revolving more rapidly than the preceding rollers, in order to increase the
friction between the teeth of the friction rollers and the textile material.
different pairs of rollers are connected by tooth gear and may be driven by hand or
by engine power, and the whole machine may be mounted on a wheeled truck.
After the textile material has been once treated in the machine, it may be passed
into a hot soap bath, and subsequently again subjected to the machine, in order to
detach the outer pellicle of the ramie.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Decorticating Ramie and other Textile Plants,
and in Apparatus therefor.
I, HERBERT JOHN HADDAN of 67, Strand in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, a communication to me
from abroad by Joseph Breuer of Rue de la Tour, Maubourg, Paris, France,
Engineer, and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to machinery and process for decorticating textile plants
or obtaining the fibres therefrom, and is more particularly intended for the
treatment of stalks of ramie.
The improved machine comprises a series of rollers which act on the fibrous
stalks in different ways.
The stalks are first crushed, then the wood is ground and broken to pieces
subsequently it is separated from the bark, and finally the bark is delivered in
the shape of slivers or bands, and the broken particles of wood are completely
separated from the slivers.
These operations may be performed on the green or on the dry stalks by the
apparatus shown in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a plan view,
Fig. 2 an end elevation, and Fig. 3 a front elevation of my machine Figs. 4, 5, 6
and 7 show various methods of arranging the different rollers.
A is the frame or stand of the machine B. C. D. E pairs of rollers of special
construction showing the manner in which the rollers are utilized in the machine.
The frame of the machine shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 is adapted for the arrangement
of rollers illustrated in Fig. 4. The former however only differs, when required for
either of the methods shown in Figs. 5 to 8, in the number, and distance apart of
the slots S. As shown in Fig. 4, a pair of flat crushing rollers C L, a pair of
toothed or grooved breaking rollers C B¹ a pair of stripping rollers C³ E¹ provided
with radial arms or blades, and a pair of ventilating beaters C³ V consisting of
revolving cylinders provided with arms at an angle to their respective radius The
fibrous stalks fed between the crushing rollers are thus subjected to four con-
secutive operations before they emerge from between the beaters. The stand or
frame A of the machine is provided on each side with vertical slots S one for each
pair of rollers, the said slots receiving the bearings of the rollers; the distance
between the rollers of each pair is rendered variable by means of a spring R and a
set screw T pressing on the bearing of the upper roller from the top.
The stripping or breaking rollers may be replaced by a pair of parallel endless
bands or aprons E Fig. 7 armed with teeth or blades T¹ placed so that the teeth
of one apron project into the interstices between the teeth of the other apron, and
the fibrous stalks are then obliged to take a zig-zag course while passing between
the said aprons. The friction of the blades serves to detach the resinous outer skin
and at the same time to separate the fibrous bark from the wooden stem. In front
of the beaters and parallel thereto is a rod F serving to receive and collect the
slivers delivered by the beaters.

page_text: There may be more than three pairs of rollers acting on the fibrous stalks before
it is subjected to the beaters CV for instance the machine may have three pairs of
crushing rollers C L two pairs of scratching rollers C G provided with sharp
file-like surfaces, one pair of stripping rollers C³ E' and one pair of breaking
rollers C' Bas in Fig. 6. Or, as in Fig. 5-one pair of flattening rollers C J,
two pairs of scratching rollers CG, one pair of stripping rollers C³ E¹ one pair of
breaking rollers C B or as in Fig. 8 One pair of flattening rollers C6 J, one
pair of friction rollers C7 F¹ having more or less roughened surfaces, one pair of
stripping rollers C³ E³, and one pair of breaking rollers C* B¹.
The different pairs of rollers revolve with different speeds, the scratching
rollers CG revolving more rapidly than the preceding rollers, in order to increase
the friction between the friction rollers and the textile material. The different
pairs of rollers are connected by tooth gear and may be driven by hand by
crank P or by engine power by pulleys P or P¹ and the whole machine may be
mounted on a wheeled truck.
After the textile material has been once treated in the machine, it may be passed
into a hot soap bath, and subsequently again be subjected to the machine, in order
to detach the outer pellicle of the ramie.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is ;-
1. For decorticating ramie and other textile plants, the apparatus, carrying a
pair of crushing rollers CL a pair of breaking rollers C B₁, a pair of stripping
rollers C³ E, and a pair of beating and ventilating rollers C³ V, and with the
various modifications all substantially as described and illustrated.
2. The arrangement of my machine on wheels so as to render it more portable.
3. The process for decorticating ramie and other textile plants, consisting in first
passing them between the rollers in my machine, then immersing the plant in a
bath of hot soap and, lastly, passing the plant again between the rollers of the
apparatus, substantially as and for the purpose described.
Dated this 25th day of June 1886.