IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CLEANING GRAIN
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Houghton, of Great Grimsby, in the
County of Lincoln, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR CLEANING GRAIN."
Scaled the 7th October 1871, and dated the 6th July 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Houghton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 6th July 1871.
I, WILLIAM HOUGHTON, of Great Grimsby, in the County of Lincoln,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY FOR CLEANING GRAIN," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to improvements in “smut" mills for removing
"smut" balls, dirt, and other refuse matter from grain.
My improvements consist in such a disposition or arrangement of the
air passages that the good or useful matters may be separated from
the bad, also in the construction and arrangement of the drum by which
the scouring is effected, and the beaters which operate without the aid

page_text: of rings or shelves on the stationary cylinder to keep the grain up and
prolong its subjection to the machine.
In carrying out my Invention I construct the machine of a vertical
stationary perforated cylinder surrounded by an outer cylinder or casing
and within which the drum or smutter revolves. The latter is mounted
on a vertical shaft and is constructed with an inner rotating perforated
cylinder or backing for the beaters which are fixed in an inclined or
spiral position so as to keep up the grain and prevent its passing too
rapidly through the machine. The grain is supplied from the separators
to the beaters through spouts suitably arranged in which it is subjected
to the preliminary action of a draught of air passing through an upper
exhaust box to the fan. The inner perforated cylinder serves to prevent
the grain getting into the centre of the machine, but at same time allows
of a current of air entering at the centre at either end of the drum,
being supplied to the beaters, whence it passes through the outer
cylinder into the space between the latter and its case and thence by
horizontal passages provided at top and bottom of the machine to a
suction fan mounted vertically on a separate spindle by which the
draught is created. Openings are also provided in the outer case at
opposite sides to admit air to the space between it and the stationary
cylinder, and a division plate is placed in the fan casing to keep the
matters arriving at the upper and lower passages separate, the grain
being discharged at the lower end of the drum where it is again acted
on by a second exhaust, both exhaust boxes being placed intermediately
between the drum or smutter and the fan.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Houghton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 4th January 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HOUGHTON, of Great Grimsby, in the County of Lincoln, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-fifth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said William Houghton, Her special licence that I,

page_text: the said William Houghton, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said William Houghton, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thercafter 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 MACHINERY
FOR CLEANING GRAIN," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said William Houghton, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-
vention, 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 William Houghton, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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 Sheet of
Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say) :-
My Invention relates to improvements in "smut" mills for removing
"smut" balls, dirt, and other refuse matter from grain.
My improvements consist in such a disposition or arrangement of the
air passages that the good or useful matters may be separated from
the bad, also in the construction and arrangement of the drum by which
the scouring is effected, the beaters of which operate without the aid of
rings or shelves on the stationary cylinder to keep the grain up and
prolong its subjection to the machine.
In carrying out my Invention I construct the machine of a vertical,
stationary, perforated cylinder surrounded by an outer cylinder or casing
and within which the drum or smutter revolves. The latter is mounted
on a vertical shaft, and is constructed with an inner rotating cylinder or
backing of perforated metal or wire cloth for the beaters, which are
fixed in an inclined or spiral position so as to keep up the grain and
prevent its passing too rapidly through the machine. The grain is
supplied from the separators to the beaters through spouts suitably
arranged, in which it is subjected to the preliminary action of a draught

page_text: of air passing through an upper exhaust box to the fan. The inner
perforated cylinder serves to prevent the grain getting into the centre
of the machine, but at same time allows of a current of air (entering
at the centre at the upper end of the drum) being supplied to the
beaters, whence it passes through the outer cylinder into the space
between the latter and its case, and thence by horizontal passages
provided at the sides of the machine to a suction fan mounted vertically
on a separate spindle, by which the draught is created. Openings are
also provided in the outer case at opposite sides to admit air to the space
between it and the stationary cylinder, and a division plate is placed in
the fan casing to keep the matters arriving from the upper and lower
parts of the machine separate, the grain being discharged at the lower
end of the drum whence it is again acted on by a second exhaust, both
exhaust boxes being placed intermediately between the drum or smutter
and the fan.
Figure 1 shows a plan of the machine in section on line 1-1;
Figure 2 which is an elevation of the machine in section on line 2-2,
Figure 1.
A is the cast-iron framework by which the shafts B and C of the
"smutter" or scourer and the fan are supported in suitable bearings at
top and bottom; D, D, are the top and bottom frames of the scourer
cylinder keyed on shaft B; E, are the blades or beaters of the scourer
fixed at the top and bottom ends to the frames D; E₁ is the inner
cylinder of wire cloth or perforated metal also fixed at top and bottom
to the frames D, and placed so as to form a sort of backing to the
blades E as shown, so as to prevent grain passing to the centre of the
scourer, while the apertures therein permit a current of air entering at
the upper end of the scourer to pass through as indicated by the arrows.
The blades E¹ are fixed obliquely as shown in the plan and also inclined
or spirally as shown in the clevation. Each blade is made of a plate of
wrought iron curved to the proper form, so that its outer edge conforms
to the circumference of the cylindrical scourer and is equidistant at all
parts from the outer fixed cylinder F by which the scouring of the grain
is effected. The said cylinder consists of two halves formed of plates of
the ordinary perforated steel clothing encircled by semicircular hoops F¹
connected at the opposite sides by vertical ribs or flanges G, by which

page_text: the two halves of the cylinder are united; H is an outer casing of wood
encircling cylinder F at a suitable distance therefrom, so as to leave a
passage for air which enters through apertures H' at opposite sides of
the casing, which also encloses the sides and part of the end of the
machine as shown.
"
The action of the apparatus is as follows:-Power is applied to
pulley I to rotate the scourer from any suitable prime mover, the fan
shaft C.being driven by a belt from pulley 1', whilst the "separators
are likewise operated by a belt from the top of shaft B. The grain is
supplied to the first separator J which retains all stones or matters
larger than the grain, whence it passes on to the second separator J',
which removes loose dust and small seeds, both separators being
mounted and operated from a crank on the spindle of pulley J* in the
ordinary manner. The grain passing over the second separator is
delivered through a shoot into a spout K, whence it meets an upward
current of air, which passing through it as it falls removes any loose
smut balls and other light impurities before the grain enters the
scourer through the shoot L. The air current carries the impurities
into the upper exhaust box M, in which a curtain M¹ is placed together
with a damper M², which may be closed more or less as required to
cause the heavier particles to be deposited in box M, whilst only the
very light dust is carried on to the fan. The grain being fed to the
scourer is subjected to the action of the beaters, which throw it off
against the steel clothing of cylinder F, whereby the adhering smut is
detached; the resulting, dust being carried away by the air draught
through the perforations in cylinder F to the fan by the side passages
N, N, Figure 1. The grain gradually passes down through the scourer
to the bottom, whence it escapes by the exit O which carries it into
a second exhaust spout P, where as it falls it is again subjected to
a current of air, whereby the remaining impurities are separated
and carried upward into a second exhaust box Q, in which the
heavier particles, consisting principally of unsound grain, are deposited,
the remainder passing on to the fan. A damper R is provided to
regulate the strength of the air current in passage P. S is the fan, by
which the draught is created, the course of the several air currents
being indicated by the arrows; T is the fan casing; and U is a hori-
zontal division plate placed in the mouth of the fan to keep the matters
arriving from the upper part of the scourer and upper exhaust box

page_text: separate from those from the lower part of the machine, which being
partly of a useful character it is advantageous to obtain unmingled
with the first refuse. V is a spout in continuation of spout K, through
which the grain is passed directly into the exit O when it is desired only
to separate and clean it without subjecting it to the action of the
Scourer. Y is a valve, which when brought into the red line position
closes the passage to the scourer and opens spout V. The exhaust
boxes are emptied by valves W at the side of the machine.
Having described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would observe that I lay no claim to the
Invention of spiral blades or beaters for the scourer, but what I claim
as my Invention to be protected by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is,―
1st. The combination in a smutter or scourer cylinder provided with
spirally inclined beaters of a wire cloth or other perforated backing, sub-
stantially as and for the purpose specified and shown in the Drawings
annexed.
2ndly. Constructing the casing of the smutter or scourer cylinder
with an annular air passage surrounding the fixed perforated cylinder F
and having air inlet apertures at opposite sides, as and for the purpose
set forth.
3rdly. I claim in combination with the scourer and scourer casing
so constructed the arrangement of the air passages N, N, and exhaust
spouts and boxes M, Q, intermediate of the fan and scourer, as herein-
before described and illustrated in the Drawings.
4thly. I claim the combination with the said passages exhaust boxes,
spouts, and fan so arranged, of the spout V, provided with valve Y, as
and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Houghton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Third day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
WILLIAM HOUGHTON. (L.S.)