IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES follows:-
Year: 1884

page_text: We WILLIAM MCINTYRE CRANSTON and THOMAS CULPIN both of 36 Worship
Street, Finsbury Middlesex Agricultural Engineers do hereby declare the nature
of our said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES
follows:-
"
to be as
This invention relates to the construction of the frames of Reaping Machines so
as to completely enclose the gearing and to facilitate the lifting and the tilting of
the cutter bar also to a special arrangement of appliances for throwing the gearing
in and out of work.
The frame consists of a casting with cylindrical chambers on either side to
contain the genring and the crank arm and axle carried by the driving wheel of
the machine by which axle the frame is suspended and capable of being rotated
and fixed at any desired position the crank arın forming the bearing for the second
motion of the gear.
The first motion gear has upon it a ratchet wheel into which pauls on the driver
wheel engage, these being disengaged when desired by eccentrics on a hand wheel
carried by the boss or bub of the driving wheel.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
We WILLIAM MCINTYRE CRANSTON and THOMAS CULPIN both of 36 Worship
Street Finsbury Middlesex Agricultural Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of
our said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES " 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 the construction of the frames of Reaping Machines so
as to completely enclose the gearing, and to facilitate the lifting and the tilting of
the cutter bar, also to a special arrangement of appliances for throwing the gearing
in and out of work.
The frame consists of a casting with cylindrical chambers on either side to
contain the gearing and the crank arm and axle carried by the driving wheel of
the machine by which axle the frame is suspended and capable of being rotated
and fixed at any desired position, the crank arm forming the bearing for the
second motion of the gear.
The first motion gear has upon it a ratchet wheel into which pauls on the
driving wheel engage, these being disengaged when desired by eccentrics on a hand
wheel carried by the boss or hub of the driving wheel.
Our invention will be understood by the annexed sheet of drawings which show
a reaper frame in elevation Figures 1 and 2 and in back end view partly in
section Figure 3.
A is the main driving wheel mounted loosely on the axle B a portion of which
carries a ratchet wheel C forming part of a casting D this casting having teeth on
its inuer periphery as shown in the detached view Figure 4. The main wheel has
a couple of pauls Ĕ attached to drop into the ratchet wheel C while the machine is
travelling at work. The casting D is flanged on its outer periphery, and between
the flanges is a loose fitting collar F which also forms a hand wheel when the
pauls E have to be thrown out of gear from tho teeth of the ratchet wheel C.
This loose fitting collar has a couple of arms G which embrace the ratchet wheel C
and the main axle B passes through a boss H connecting the arms as shown at
Figure 5. The boss carries a plate I, I, which has two bulges J J which can be
brought (when the collar is turned in one direction) against parts of the pauls E
which project beyond the teeth of the ratchet wheel C to lift the pauls clear so
that the main wheel may rotate without imparting motion to the mechanism of
the machine such as when passing along a road.
Outside the casting D and on the main axle is a collar K forming part of
another collar L which supports the crank axle M from the main axle forming the
centre from which said collar L can move in a circular direction when the hand
lever N is lifted such as when the working mechanism has to be lifted to suit the
height of cut or for other purpose such as to clear obstacles when moving along a
road.
A portion of the socket plate has a bolt passing through it and the outer end
of the bolt works in a segmental slot formed in the partition plate P this forming
part of the casting within which on either side the chambers are formed for
containing the gear.

page_text: The head of the bolt is within the partition plate P so that the nut on its
opposite end can draw the bolt tight to fix the gearing at any desired height that
the hand lever N may have lifted to it.
The crank axlo M has on one end the pinion Q Figure 4 which is in gear with
the inner teeth of the casting D and its opposite end has the toothed wheel R
attached this being within one of the cylindrical chambers of the gear enclosing
casting which forms the important feature of this invention.
The wheel R gears into a pinion S within another cylindrical portion of the same
gear enclosing casting the axle T of the pinion S passing through a partition
plate P and carrying a bevil wheel U for communicating motion to the pitman and
cutters by the bevil pinion V which is on the shafte and in gear with said
wheel. The socket which carries the shaft e is also in a piece with the gear
enclosing casting so that it is raised when the hand lever N is raised, the socket f
carries the finger bar W in the usual manner and has a plate or inner shoe X
attached whose front end is linked to a chain Y by which it is raised and lowered
when the hand lever Z is moved over the quadrant a in a well known manner.
The raising or lowering of this hand lever Z determines the angle or the
horizontal position of the knives for cutting purposes and can also be used in
conjunction with the lift of the hand lever N for setting the finger bar to the
desired height.
The gear enclosing casting has also lugs b upon it to which the pole c is hong
and also the stay rod d of the finger bar W.
Having now particularly de-cribed and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed We declare that what
We c'aim is
First Constructing the frames in a single casting with cylindrical chambers on
either side for containing the gearing, crank arm, and axle from which said frame
and gearing are suspended and capable of being moved in a circular direction
round the same and be fixed at any desired position, said crank arm forming the
bearing for the second motion of the gear as described and substantially as shown
in the annexed drawings.
Secondly The hand wheel arranged as described and shown for releasing the
pauls from the first motion ratchet wheel as described and substantially as shown
at Figures 3 and 5.
H. GARDNER,
166, Fleet Street, London,
Agent for the said W. M. Cranston
and T. Culpin.