IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OR PRODUCTION OF CONFECTIONERYs
Year: 1855

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECI
UNO
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 9th July 1855.
I. JOHN PROPHET, of Broughty Ferry, in the County of Forfar, North
Britain, Confectioner, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OR PRODUCTION OF CONFECTIONERY
follows, that is to say:-
This Invention relates more especially to the manufacture or production of
lozenges and similar articles of confectionery in such manner as to effect great
economy in the process, combined with superiority of manufacture & facility
in carrying out the details thereof. In cutting out lozenges and other articles
requiring to be punched or severed from sheets or masses of dough or soft
material; the dough in a sheet form is laid upon a traversing board or table,
and gradually submitted to the action of a set of vertical traversing punches
or cutters out. The dough carrier is supported upon a set of hori-
zontal rollers in the framing of the machine, and it is traversed forward at
intervals as required by a ratchet connection, communicating with the vertical
traverse movement of the punches. The entire apparatus is actuated by an
overhead horizontal crank shaft, the cranks on which have connecting rods
passing down to the cross head of the punches. Two or more of the carrying
rollers of the dough table are geared together by strapping, & one of these

page_text: rollers carries upon its spindle the ratchet wheel, which acts as the driver, a
detent being passed down to this ratchet wheel from the punch movement.
The punches are in two rows or lines; they are plain short tubes, with
sharpened edges projecting from the bottom edge of their traversing frame.
To clear them of the severed lozenges after being cut, there are fitted up a
series of stationary pins carried by the stationary frame of the machine, and as
the punches ascend after their cut, the ends of these pins enter the tubular
cutters & force out the lozenges. Instead of using these knocking-out pins,
stationary pistons may be fitted up for working the interior of the punches,
forcing out the lozenges by the air pressure resulting from the compressing
action of the pistons. The mechanical connections for actuating the punches
as well as the dough carrier may be arranged in various ways to accomplish
the objects of the Invention. When the punches become at all clogged with
the material on which they are operating, especial provision is made for cleans-
ing them & rendering them again fit for producing good work. This end is
accomplished by removing the punches from their working frame, at the same
time substituting a fresh set of punches to keep the machine going. The
removed punches immediately on their removal are dipped into a shallow vessel
of cold water, which at once loosens & removes all adhering particles. A
dry cloth is then passed up each punch to clear out whatever may be in the
interior. Instead of this removal of the punches, the cold water tray or vessel
may be placed in the machine beneath the punches at the time when the
attendant is clearing away the scraps of dough. The depression of the punches
then brings them into the water, and effects the cleansing without loss of
time.