Improvements in Weighing Apparatus.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Dec.. 1896-Accepted, 1st May, 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Weighing Apparatus.
We, WILLIAM BROWNING, of Seymour Grove, Old Trafford, Manchester, in
the County of Lancaster, Dock Labour and Traffic Superintendent, and JOHN
MELDRUM, of Landsbrook Villa, Brooklands, in the County of Chester; Inspector
of Weighing Material, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, 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 apparatus for weighing bulky articles such as cotton
in bales, goods in cases or bales, grain in sacks, wool in packs, hops in pockets and
the like, and its principal object is to enable the weighing to be carried through
more expeditiously, especially in dockyards and other like places.
We will describe our improvements with reference to the accompanying drawings
in which
Figure 1 represents a partial side elevation, and
Figure 2 a partial end elevation.
Our improvements may be applied to various existing forms of weighing
apparatus, and is shown as applied to the beam of an ordinary pair of scales; its
application to other appliances for weighing will be obvious from this illustration.
We dispense with the ordinary scale board or pan on the weighing side and
substitute therefor and for its suspensory chains, a stretcher A, chain or chains B,
and the pair of clamps C. The stretcher A should be a little shorter than the
width or breadth of the articles to be weighed, so that in action the chains will not
hang quite vertically, but extend outwards and downwards. The chain may be
continuous as shown; passing through eyes e in the returned ends of the stretcher,
and in the upper ends of the clamps, or separate chains may be attached to the
clamps and to the stretcher respectively. In the latter case the stretcher may have
notches along its upper edge in any of which the chain hooks may rest, so that the
suspension can be made from the stretcher at any distance on each side of its
point of suspension a, and the stretcher may have any convenient length. The
length of the chains may be made adjustable by means of hooks b which may be
engaged with any link of the chain B on that side, or of a branch chain bl. The
bottom end of each clamp is preferred to have lateral extensions D, which may be
provided with teeth or projections d.
E is a balance weight which may or may not be necessary but which is
introduced when existing scales are altered, to make up for the weight of the scale
board and chains removed, so far as this weight is not made up by our improved
appliances.
It is found that the knife edge in the end of the beam F upon which the hook G
is supported, soon wears out, and its repair or replacement becomes expensive. To
reduce this difficulty, we drill right through the end of the beam, in the position
usually occupied by the knife edge, and in this drilled hole we insert a through
pin H, separately shown in elevation and cross section by Figure 3. The middle
part of this pin is cut away to form the knife edge. We thus have a knife edge
which can be easily removed and replaced when worn. The through pin should of
course be made of good steel and the knife edge thereon be hardened and tempered
as is well understood. To prevent the turning of the through pin, we may make a
slot or flat i near one or both ends of it. In the cheeks of the scale beam end, we

page_text: make an orifice, slot or the like for the reception of a cotter I, or of an equivalent
key or the like which engages with the flat or slot or slots on the through pin
when the latter is in position..
In use, the article to be weighed is brought between the clamps by which it is
engaged, the weight is then taken, the clamps disengaged, and the article is
removed.
The jaws at the end of the beam may be joined together permanently in addition
to the temporary joint afforded by the through pin.
It will be understood that in the case of scales, our improved through pin may
be employed both at the weight and the weighing ends of the scale beam. In
the case of spring, hydraulic and other weighing appliances in which there is no
beam, we arrange our through pin, if used, in that part with which the hook K is
engaged.
We prefer to give the clamps the curvature shown in the drawings, Figure 1,
for weighing cotton and bale goods, but they may have other forms without
departing from our invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
1. In apparatus for weighing bulky articles, a stretcher, a chain or chains, and
a pair of clamps, constructed and arranged substantially as herein before described
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
2. In weighing apparatus, a knife-edge through pin constructed and arranged
substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and as illustrated by
the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 11th day of December 1896.
W. E. HEYS & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.