IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR FORGING OR SHAPING CRANKS ON BARS OF METAL
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Smith, of the Firm of Messieurs William
Smith and Brothers, of Heywood, in the County of Lancaster, Machine
Makers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
FOR FORGING OR SHAPING CRANKS ON BARS OF METAL."
Sealed the 29th July 1864, and dated the 11th February 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Smith at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
11th February 1864.
I, ROBERT SMITH, of the Firm of Messieurs William Smith and Brothers,
of Heywood, in the County of Lancaster, Machine Makers, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS FOR FORGING OR SHAPING CRANKS ON BARS OF METAL," to be as
follows:
:
The machinery or apparatus consists of a foundation plate or block with a
central projection of the shape of the internal portion of the crank, and of two
swivel blocks with recesses of the shape of the external portion of the crank.

page_text: These blocks are jointed to a fulcrum stud or studs. The apparatus is placed
under a steam hammer or screw press or other mechanism for giving the
requisite pressure. The heated bar on which a crank is to to be formed is
then placed on the central projection of the foundation plate, and the two
swivel blocks are brought gradually down by blows of the hammer or other
pressure employed, thus bending the straight bar to the shape of the crank
required. The fulcrum stud is held while the pressure is being applied by
side catches to relieve it from the strain, and a bridle may be applied on the
outside of the crank to give it the desired shape; the details may be otherwise
modified. When a second crank is being formed on the bar, as is requisite in
forging the crank shafts of looms, the distance between the two cranks is
determined by an adjustable gauge, against which the outside of the first crank
is set when the bar is laid in the block to form the second crank. When
both cranks are formed the shaft is laid on a face plate and secured by wedges
acting on moveable plates to bring both cranks in line.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Smith in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 3rd
August 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
SMITH, of the Firm of Messieurs William Smith and Brothers, of Heywood,
in the County of Lancaster, Machine Makers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Robert Smith, Her special license that I, the said Robert Smith,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Robert
Smith, my executors, 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 for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS POR FORGING OR SHAPING CRANKS ON BARS OF METAL,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Robert Smith, my

page_text: executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, 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 Robert Smith, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say) :-
The machinery or apparatus consists of a foundation plate or block with a
central projection of the shape of the internal portion of the crank, and of two
swivel blocks with recesses of the shape of the external portion of the crank.
These blocks are jointed to a fulcrum stud or studs. The apparatus is placed
under a steam hammer or screw press or other mechanism for giving the
requisite pressure. The heated bar on which a crank is to be formed is
placed on the central projection of the foundation plate, and the two swivel
blocks are brought gradually down by blows of the hammèr or other pressure
employed, thus bending the straight bar to the shape of the crank required.
The fulcrum stud is held whilst the pressure is being applied by side catches
to relieve it from the strain, and a bridle may be applied on the outside of the
crank to give it the desired shape; the details may be otherwise modified.
When a second crank is being formed on the bar, as is requisite in forging
the crank shafts of looms, the distance between the two cranks is determined
by an adjustable guage, against which the outside of the first crank is set
when the shaft is laid' in the block to form the second crank. When both
cranks are formed the shaft is laid on a face plate of the usual construction,
and secured by wedges. acting on moveable plates to bring both cranks in
line.
And in order that my Invention may be readily carried into operation, I
will, proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of Drawings.
Fig. 1. is an end elevation of my improved machinery or apparatus for
forging or shaping cranks on bars of metal; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section;
Fig. 3 is an view, and Fig. 4 a plan of the same. a represents the
anvil block and 6 the hammer block of an ordinary steami hammer. To the
anvil block'a is secured the foundation plate or block c; to this block c is
fixed by set screws, or otherwise the central projection d, which has a semi-
circular groove of the shape of tlie internal portion of the crank; e, e, are two

page_text: swivel blocks hinged together by the fulcrum stud f, these swivel blocks have
recesses of the shape of the external portion of the crank, and the ends of the
fulcrum stud ffit in open slots in the foundation block c; the outer surfaces
of the swivel blocks e are guided by the side plates 9, 9, which are also fixed
by set screws or otherwise to the foundation block c; h represents a bar of
round iron on which the crank or cranks are to be bent, and i is an adjustable
guage fixed to a sliding bar j, supported on an upright similar to k, shewn on
the right hand of Fig. 1; the upright k fits in a socket k¹, placed on the
left-hand side of the apparatus; 1, l, are two catches jointed to studs fixed in
the foundation plate c, the object of these catches is to hold down the fulcrum
stud f of the swivel blocks e.
:
The mode of operation is as follows:-The position of the guage i having
been set according to the required distance of the crank from the end of the
bar h, and the swivel blocks e being raised up out of the way by elevating the
hammer block b, to which they are suspended by the chains m, the heated
bar h is then placed on the central projection d, and the two swivel blocks.e
are lowered until they bear on the bar h, the fulcrum stud f entering the
slots in the foundation block c, as shewn in Fig. 1. The steam hammer is
now set to work, and the hammer head acting on the blocks e, gradually force
them down until they assume the position shewn in Fig. 2, thus bending the
straight bar to the shape of the crank required. After the first two or three
blows of the hammer on the swivel blocks e, the ends of the catch levers 1, 1,
are raised to secure the fulcrum stud f; the object of these side catches is to
relieve the stud from the strain while the crank is being formed. By changing
the blocks d and e, and the side plates g, the shape and sweep of the crank
produced may be varied, and in some cases the swivel blocks e may be jointed
to a centre bridle piece furnished with two fulcrum studs. When a second
crank has to be formed on the same shaft, as is requisite in forging the crank
shafts of looms, the distance between the two cranks is determined by holding
the outside of the first crank against the adjustable guage n, fitting on the
sliding bar, when the shaft is laid on the block d to form the second crank.
When both cranks have been formed in the manner above described the
crank shaft is laid on a face plate of the usual construction, and secured by
wedges acting on moveable plates to bring both cranks in line.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, and described the manner
of performing the same, I declare that I do not limit myself to the details given,
as the same may be varied or modified; I would also observe that the pressure
on the swivel blocks e, instead of being derived from the blows of a steam

page_text: hammer, may be obtained by a screw press or other mechanism, or by hydraulic
power; what I claim as my Invention is the combination and arrangement of
the parts as shewn and described, or any modification of the same, for forging
or shaping cranks on bars of metal.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Smith, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Twenty-seventh day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
ROBERT SMITH. (L.B.)