CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR FELTING HATS AND OTHER ARTICLES
Year: 1881

page_text: ETTERS PATENT to Henri Adrien Bonneville, of the British and Foreign
Patent Offices, 8, Rue de la Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, France, and 90, Cannon
Street, in the City of London, Patent Agent, for an Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR FELTING HATS AND OTHER ARTICLES."
A communication from William Alfred Baglin and John Gray, both of
Brooklyn, County and State of New York, United States of America,
Manufacturers.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Henri Adrien Bonneville at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd August 1881.
*
HENRI ADRIEN BONNEVILLE, of the British and Foreign Patent Offices, 8, Rue
de la Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, France, and 90, Cannon Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent. CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR FELTING
HATS AND OTHER ARTICLES." A communication from William Alfred Baglin and
John Gray, both of Brooklyn, County and State of New York, United States of
America, Manufacturers.
The Invention communicated to me relates to improvements in machines for
felting hats and other articles.
This Invention consists in a new method of felting hat bodies by placing said
hat bodies into perforated elastic felting tubes, and exposing said tubes, together,
with the hat bodies contained therein, to a repeated squeezing and rolling action ;
also in an apparatus composed of a squeezing drum which revolves in a suitable
case, a tank situated beneath said case, and communicating with it through suitable
openings in its top, and a felting tube (one or more), as will be hereinafter more
fully explained.
This Invention is illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, in which Fig. 1
represents a vertical section of any apparatus in the plane x, x, Fig. 2; Fig. 2
is a horizontal section in the plane y, y, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a section of one of the-
felting tubes. Similar letters indicate corresponding parts.
D

page_text: In these Drawings the letter A designates a drum, which is composed of two
heads a, a, and a series of slots b secured to the heads at short distances apart, as
shown in Figs. 1 and 2. This drum is mounted on a shaft B which has its bearing
in the side plates of a case C that encloses the drum A, leaving an annular space D
for the reception of the felting tubes E. The bottom part of the case C is per-
forated with holes c, c, which communicate with the tank F.
The upper portion of the circumference of the case is formed by a series of slots d,
leaving openings for the escape of steam or vapour, as will be hereinafter more
fully explained.
On one side of the case is secured a frame G which forms the bearings for two
rollers H, H, which support the endless apron I, over which the felting tubes are
fed to the annular space D through an opening e in the circumference of the case.
A pulley J, which is mounted on the shaft B, serves to impart motion to the feed
apron I.
•
The drum A is driven by means of a pulley K.
In the side of the case Ċ opposite to the feed apron is a door L which can be
raised to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and beneath this door is an
inclined shoot M for the discharge of the felting tubes.
A flue N serves to carry off the steam and the upper vapour rising from the
tank F.
The felting tubes E are made of vulcanized india rubber or of any other suitable
material; they are open at both ends, and perforated with many. holes. Their
diameter is about one fourth larger than the width of the annular space D.
The tank F is supplied with hot water through suitable means, or the water.in
the tank is kept heated by steam, or in any other suitable manner.
The hat bodies to be felted are rolled up and placed one into each of the felting
tubes, and then the felting tubes are fed over the endless apron I into the annular
space D, where they are carried down by the action of the drum A, and as they
pass down they are exposed to a squeezing and rolling action, while the hat body
in passing through the bottom part of the case becomes saturated with hot water
from the tank F. After a number of felting tubes have been fed into the case C
the motion of the drum A is continued until the hat bodies have become sufficiently
felted, the time required to accomplish this purpose being found by experience,
then the door L is opened and the felting tubes are allowed to discharge over the
In order to impart to the felting tubes a rolling motion, while the same in passing
through the annular space are squeezed, the circumference of the drum A is formed
of slots which act successively upon the felting tubes, and as they compress them
also cause them to roll, so that the action upon the hat bodies is similar to that
brought to bear upon them in the ordinary felting operation by hand.
It is obvious that our Invention is applicable to other articles besides hat-
bodies.
Having thus described the nature of the said improvements and the manner of
carrying them into effect, I claim,-
1. The method herein described for felting hat bodies, the same consisting in
placing the hat bodies within the perforated flexible tubes, and mechanically sub-
jecting said tubes while carried around and rolled within a surrounding casing, to
alternating squeezing action, substantially as set forth.
2. The combination, substantially as herein before described, of the drum, the
case which encloses said drum, the annular space between the case and the drum,
the elastic felting tubes, and mechanism for imparting motion to the drum.
3. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of the drum, the case
which encloses said drum, the annular space between the case and the drum, the
elastic felting tubes, the feed apron, and the mechanism for imparting motion to.
the drum and to the feed apron.
4. The combination, substantially as herein before described, of the drum, the

page_text: case which encloses said drum, the annular space between the case and the drum,
the elastic felting tubes, the hot water tank, and mechanism for imparting motion
to the drum.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, have hereto set my
hand and seal, this, First day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
H. BONNEVILLE. (L.S.)