AN IMPROVED MULTIPLE DRILLING MACHINE
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International
Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, for the Invention
of "AN IMPROVED MULTIPLE DRILLING MACHINE."-A Communication
from abroad by Daniel Rice Pratt, of Worcester, Massachusetts,
United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 15th March 1869.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office,"
No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "AN. IMPROVED MULTIPLE DRILLING MACHINE," a com-
munication, to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to a machine for simultaneously drilling a
number of holes in or through rails, bars, plates, or other articles, and is

page_text: more especially designed for drilling bolt holes through the ends of
railway rails and in other articles to be drilled or perforated with holes
at the same distance apart, or in corresponding positions.
The nature of the said Invention consists chiefly in constructing and
arranging the drilling mechanism in such a manner that the required
number of holes may be drilled at the same time at any desired distance
apart in a rail, bar, or other articlo, and so that in drilling the said holes
the drills will adapt themselves to such variations or deviations from a
straight line or plane as are produced by the twisting or warping of the
rail or other article, and will form the holes at right angles to the surface
of the immediately surrounding portion of the rail or other article. By
this capability of angular adjustment 1 am enabled to drill any number
of rails with holes in the desired position, which holes when the rail is
placed in a chair or joint will allow the bolts or screws to be easily and
properly fitted therein. The said machine may be constructed of any
desired length and with any convenient number of drills which may be
adjusted at any desired distance apart. The latter are attached to vertical
spindles which are geared in connection with a horizontal driving shaft.
The rails or other articles to be drilled are supported upon a tablo
arranged below the drills. The drills are fitted in the usual manner to
the spindles which are carried by heads fitted to slide longitudinally on
a vertical bed or rest, so that the distance between the centres of the
drills may be increased or decreased at will. One of the heads may be
stationary, if preferred, the other is moved and held in any desired
position by a screw working in a nut on the bed. Tho drill spindles pass
through worm wheels and are grooved to receive feathers on the same,
the said wheels are driven by worms on the main or driving shaft and
give the necessary rotary motion to the drills at the same time that the
spindles slide freely through the heads and worm wheels. The drill
spindles have a left hand screw thread cut on the upper or back end,
whereon are fitted nuts, and these nuts according to the direction in
which they turn feed the drills into the work or withdraw them there-
from. The said nuts are driven by means of suitably arranged spur and
bevel gearing. A bevelled pinion forming part of this gearing can be
thrown out of gear at will by means of a handle, so that the points of
the drills may be all set to enter the work together. When the holes arc
drilled a clutch which connects the driving pulley to the main shaft is

page_text: adjusted to stop the said shaft, at the same time breaking the connection
between the same and the gearing above mentioned, so that by means
of a hand wheel the drills can be drawn out of the holes. The drill
heads being complete in themselves, and independent of each other in
their operation, any number of them may be put on the vertical bed,
their distances apart may also be varied at pleasure, and by throwing the
worms and bevel pinions out of gear any desired number of drills may
be operated at once. The rail or other work while being drilled is held
firmly down on a form or table by a screw extending down from the
head. The said form is so fitted to the contour of the work as to insure
its being fairly presented to the drills, and is secured to a horizontal bed
which by means of a projection and screw governs the position of the
work under the drills longitudinally, while a cross slide and screw govern
its position transversely, the whole resting on a table which also supports
the vertical slide bed whercon the drill heads are carried. This table is
supported upon a raised projection or rail on a rest in such a manner that
by turning an elevating screw the said table may be tipped or inclined
on tho said rail. The rest is supported by two excentric shafts which lie
upon a block or slab, so that by turning these excentrics one or both
ends of the rest may be raised or depressed to suit the nature of the
work. The block or slab rests on a long bed or foundation plate, and is
made to slide thereon by means of a rack and pinion, or otherwise, so
that several machines may be set on one bod or foundation plate and
used together or separately as required.
25 SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 14th September 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton
30 Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Consulting
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of March, in the year of

page_text: our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-
second 1 year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence
that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, my exccutors,
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 of "AN IMPROVED MULTIPLE ]
DRILLING MACHINE," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
William Robert Lake, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the 1
same to be filed in the Great Scal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the
accompanying Drawing forming a part of this Specification :-
My Invention relates to a machine for simultaneously drilling a
number of holes in or through rails, bars, plates, or other articles, and
is more especially designed for drilling bolt holes through the ends of
railway rails, and in or through other articles of which there
series or number requiring to be drilled or perforated with holes at the
same distance apart or in corresponding positions in each article.
may
be a
The nature of the said Invention consists chiefly in constructing and
arranging the drilling mechanism in such a manner that the required
number of holes may be drilled at the same time at any desired distance
apart in a rail, bar, or other article, and so that in drilling the said holes
the drills will adapt themselves to such variations or deviations from a
straight line or plane as are produced by the twisting or warping of the
rail or other article, and will form the holes at right angles to the
immediately surrounding portion of the rail or other article. By this

page_text: capability of anguiar adjustment i am enabled to drill any number of
rails with holes in the desired positions, which holes when the rail is
placed in a chair or joint will allow the bolts or screws to be easily and
properly fitted therein. The said machine may be constructed of any
desired length and with any convenient number of drills, which may
be adjusted at any desired distance apart. The latter are attached to
vertical spindles, which are geared in connection with a horizontal
driving shaft. The rails or other articles to be drilled are supported
unon a table arranced below the drille
capabшity or angular adjustment I am enabled to aru any number of
rails with holes in the desired positions, which holes when the rail is
placed in a chair or joint will allow the bolts or screws to be easily and
properly fitted therein. The said machine may be constructed of any
desired length and with any convenient number of drills, which may
be adjusted at any desired distance apart. The latter are attached to
vertical spindles, which are geared in connection with a horizontal
driving shaft. The rails or other articles to be drilled are supported
upon a table arranged below the drille
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 is a front view of one of my improved multiple drilling
machines; Figure 2 is an end view of the same. Like letters indicato
the same parts in both of the Figures.
The drills A are fitted in the usual manner to the spindles B, which
are carried by the heads C. The latter are fitted to slide longitudinally
on the bed or rest D, so that the distance between the centres of the
drills may be increased or decreased at will. One of the heads C may
be stationary if preferred, the other is moved into and held in any desired
position by the screw E working in the nut F. The drill spindles B pass
through worm wheels G, and are grooved to receive the feathers on the
same. The said wheels are driven by the worms H on the main or
driving shaft I, and give the necessary rotary motion to the drills, at the
same time that the spindles B slide freely through the heads C and worm
wheels G. The drill spindles B have a left-hand screw thread cut on
the upper or back end whereon are fitted the nuts K, and these nuts
according to the direction in which they turn feed the drills into the
work or withdraw them therefrom. The nuts K are driven by the spur
wheels L, the bevel wheels M, and spur wheels-N. The smaller of the
bevel wheels M can be thrown out of gear at will by means of the
handles O, so that the points of the drills may be all set to enter the work
together, and no time is lost after one drill has gone through in waiting.
for another. When the holes are drilled the clutch P, which connects
the driving pulley to the main shaft I, is adjusted to stop the said shaft,
at the same time breaking the connection between the said shaft and
the wheel N, so that by means of the hand wheel Q the drills can be
drawn out of the holes. The drill heads C being complete in them-
selves and independent of each other in their operation, any number of

page_text: them may be put on the vertical bed D; their distances apart may also
be varied at pleasure, and by throwing the worms H and the bevel
pinions M out of gear, any desired number of drills may be operated at
once. The rail or other work R while being drilled is held firmly down
on the form or table S by the screw T. The said form S is so fitted to
the contour of the work R as to insure its being fairly presented to the
drills, and the said form is secured to a horizontal bed U, which by
means of the projection V and screw W governs the position of the
work under the drills in one direction (longitudinally), while the cross
slide X and screw Y govern its position the other way (transversely), the
whole resting on the table Z, which also supports the vertical slide bed D
whereon the drill heads are carried. The table Z is supported upon a
raised projection or rail on a rest or bed Z' in such a manner that by
turning the clevating screw Y' the table Z may be tipped or inclined
on the said rail forward or backward. The bed or rest Z' is supported
by two eccentric shafts W', which lic upon a block or slab V', so that
by turning these eccentrics one or both ends of the rest Z' may be
raised or depressed to suit the nature of the work. The block or slab V¹
rests on the long bed or foundation plate U', and is made to slide thereon
by means of a rack and pinion or otherwise, so that several machines
may be set on one long bed or foundation plate, and used together or
separately as required.
Having thus fully set forth the said Invention as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent, and shown how the same may be
conveniently and advantageously carried into practice, I claim,―
First. A multiple drilling machine arranged to be universal in its
adaptation for drilling two or more holes at the same time, substantially
in the manner described.
Second. The arrangement of parts for moving one or more of the
spindles on the slide D to or from each other, substantially as set
forth.
Third. Moving the spindle heads or frames with all their parts resting
on the long bed U' to or from each other, to take any length of work
between the guides V by means of the rack and pinion, substantially in
the manner set forth.
Fourth. The construction, arrangement, and combination of parts for

page_text: tipping the spindle or frame heads to conform to the condition of the
rail or other work, and for holding the work firmly while being drilled,
substantially as set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and scal, this Fourteenth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
nine.