Improvements in Apparatus for Opening and Cleaning Cotton or other Fibres.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Aug., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 17th May, 1899-Accepted, 15th July, 1899
PROVIDIUNAL DIUITIVATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Opening and Cleaning Cotton or
other Fibres.
We, RICHARD GREENHALGHI and JOSIAH GREENHALGHI, both of Vulcan Iron
Works, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, Machinists, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows;-
"
This invention relates to that type of apparatus for opening and cleaning
cotton, cotton waste, wool and the like, which are known as Willows," such
as described and shown in Specification belonging to Letters Patent No. 17322
of 1887, granted to us and John Greenhalgh, and in which the flake or grid is
raised and lowered and the delivery door opened and closed automatically at
intervals, the object being to provide means whereby the said operations are
performed in a more simple, reliable and effective manner than hitherto has
been the case.
To this end according to one form of our invention we employ at the side of
the frame of the apparatus as hitherto a short shaft carried by a bracket suitably
suspended.
This shaft has secured at each end a worm and the upper end being also fur-
nished with a bevel wheel gearing into another actuated by a pulley and strap.
The said bracket at its fulcrum is formed with two arms one being adapted to
operate in conjunction with the recessed rim of a worm wheel and the other
with an adjustable stop employed on a rack.
The said rack is arranged in gear with a pinion on which is formed a worm
wheel of larger diameter and which together thus form a compound wheel,
whilst the outside of this worm wheel is formed with a pulley to which is secured
a weighted cord or strap.
The action of the mechanism described is as follows:-
During the time the said flake or grid requires to be in its working position
and the delivery door is closed, the upper worm is in gear with and rotates the
respective wheel and thereby the pinion on the latter which lowers the said rack
and brings its stop to bear and press upon the respective arm of the worm shaft
bracket. This action causes the latter to swing from the said compound wheel
which brings the upper worm out of gear, allows the weighted pulley to raise
the rack to its normal position, lifts the other arm of the said bracket out of
the recess on the rim of the respective wheel and the lower worm in gear with
the latter. The wheel thus geared up thus rotates and by suitable, connections
is caused to operate the said flake or grid and delivery door during the period
of the said lever arm entering and leaving the recess in the rim of the wheel.
When the said lever arm drops into the said recess again the lower worm is

page_text: brought out of gear and the upper worm into gear with the respective wheels
and the operation repeats itself.
The stop is arranged in connection with an index and by adjusting it the
time for operating the said flake or grid and delivery door may be altered at will.
In order to cause the lower worm to be thrown into gear with its wheel
reliably, we employ between the said stop and respective arm of the worm
bracket a spring or piece of rubber or other yielding material adapted to com-
press on the descent of the said stop and after the latter has arrived in its lowest
position to expand.
According to another form of our invention in some cases we may dispense
with the said compound wheel and operate the said rack direct by the upper
worm or in lieu of the said rack the respective stop and index may be arranged in
connection with a wheel rotated by the pinion of the compound wheel.
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1/11
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F. BOSSHARDT & Co.,
Agents to Applicants.
Improvements in Apparatus for Opening and Cleaning Cotton or
other Fibres.
We, RICHARD GREENIALGH, and JOSIAH GREENHALGII, both of Vulcan Iron
Works, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, Machinists, 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 that type of apparatus for opening and cleaning
cotton, cotton waste, wool and the like, which are known as Willows," such
as described and shown in Specification belonging to Letters Patent No. 17322
of 1887, granted to us and John Greenhalgh, and in which the flake or grid is
raised and lowered and the delivery door opened and closed automatically at
intervals, the object being to provide means whereby the said operations are
performed in a more simple, reliable and effective manner than hitherto has
been the case.
+
And in order that our invention may be more fully understood we have caused
to be appended hereunto one sheet of drawing marked with letters of reference
indicating like parts in the various figures, Figs. 1 & 1 being side views and
Fig. 2 a plan of our invention, and Figs. 3 & 4 side views of two modifications
thereof.
-
In carrying out our invention and referring to Figs. 1, 1 & 2, according to
one form of our invention we employ at the side of the frame a of the apparatus,
a short shaft carried by a bracket e suitably suspended from the stud d secured
to the frame a.
This shaft has secured at the lower end, a worm e and at the upper end. the
worm and a bevel wheel g, the latter gearing into another bevel g₁ actuated by
a pulley and strap from a pulley on the shaft of the cylinder . The said
bracket is formed at its fulcrum d with two arms c¹, 2 of which e is furnished
with a bowl and adapted to operate in conjunction with the recessed rim 7, 1
of a worm wheel and c³ with an adjustable stop m employed on a rack m¹.
The said rack is arranged in gear with a pinion m² on which is formed a worm

page_text: wheel f¹ of larger diameter forming together a compound wheel, whilst the out-
side of this worm wheel f¹ is formed with a pulley n to which is secured a
weighted cord or strap n.
The action of the mechanism described is as follows;
During the time the flake or grid o requires to be in its working position and
the delivery door 2 is closed, see dotted lines Fig. 1, the upper worm is in gear
with and rotates the respective worm wheel f¹ and thereby the pinion m³, which
latter lowers the rack m¹ and causes the stop m to press upon the arm of the
worm shaft bracket c, see Fig. 1. This action causes the bracket c to swing
from the said compound wheel m², f¹ and bring the upper worm f out of gear,
after which the weighted pulley n raises the rack m¹ to its normal position, as
shown in Fig. 1, lifts the bowl k on the other arm c out of the recess in the rim
of the wheel 12 and moves the lower worm in gear with the latter, see Fig. 1.
The wheel thus geared up, then rotates and through suitable connections the
flake or grid o and delivery door p are opened, see dotted lines Fig. 1, and closed
between the period of the bowl k on the lever arm c¹ leaving and entering the
recess in the rim of the wheel 12.
In the present instance we open and close the delivery door p by employing
on the side of the wheel 12 a bowl 7 adapted to raise and lower a rod q¹ vertically
guided in the frame r and its upper end jointed to the delivery door p.
The flake or grid o we operate also from the said bowl q by causing it to press
against an arms formed on a pulley having attached a weighted cord t¹ and
transmitting reciprocatory motion by a strap 12 to a pulley on the shaft u from
which the flake or grid o is suspended and which carries the feeder v, upon which
the fibres to be treated are placed and which throws the same upon the grid o
when open.
When the bowl k on the lever arm c¹ drops into the recess again, the lower
worm e is brought out of gear and the upper worm f into gear with the wheel f¹, 1ª
respectively and the operation repeats itself.
The stop m is arranged in connection with an index 10 and by adjusting it,
the time for operating the flake or grid o and delivery door p may be altered
at will.
In order to cause the lower worm e to be thrown into gear with the wheel 2
reliably, we employ between the stop m and arm c², i.e. on the latter, a spring
or piece of rubber or other yielding material, adapted to be compressed by the
stop m when descending thereon and after the latter has arrived in its lowest
position to expand and thereby assist the action of the bracket c¹, c².
According to another form of our invention in some cases we may dispense with
the said compound wheel and operate the said rack direct by the upper worm, as
shown in Fig. 3, in which case the weighted cord or strap n² is attached to the
rack m', as will be readily understood, or in lieu of the said rack, a spur wheel r
may be arranged in gear with the pinion m³, see Fig. 4, upon which the stop m
is rendered adjustable in connection with an index w formed around the wheel a.
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 :-
1st. In apparatus for opening and cleaning cotton and other fibres, the employ-
ment of two continuously rotating worms f, e keyed upon one shaft and adapted
to be swung alternately in and out of gear with two separately mounted worm
wheels f&(or rack" m² and worm wheel 1) for the purpose of intermittently
moving an adjustable stop m employed opposite an index w, all substantially as
set forth.
2nd. The worm wheel formed with a recessed rim 7 and the stop m specified
in the preceding claim, in combination with a suspended bracket c, carrying the
shaft and having two arms c¹, e², of which is acted upon by the said stop
and c by the said recessed rim, and the worms f, e thereby brought alternately

page_text: in and out of gear with the worm wheels f¹ & 12 (or rack m¹ and worm wheel 12),
all substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
T1
1001
"
1000
B. BOSSHARDT & Co.,
4, Corporation Street, Manchester,
Agents to Applicants.