IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CLEARING AND SEPARATING THE WOODY PARTS FROM THE FIBROUS PORTIONS OF FLAX, HEMP, AND OTHER LIKE MATERIAL
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Nevin and William Coppin, both of London-
derry, Ireland, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
CLEARING AND SEPARATING THE WOODY PARTS FROM THE FIBROUS PORTIONS
OF FLAX, HEMP, AND OTHER LIKE MATERIAL,"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Nevin and William
Coppin at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 3rd May 1864.
We, DAVID NEVIN and WILLIAM COPPIN, both of Londonderry, Ireland, do
hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR CLEARING AND SEPARATING THE WOODY PARTS FROM THE FIBROUS PORTIONS OF
FLAX, HEMP, AND OTHER LIKE MATERIAL," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for clearing
and separating the woody parts from the fibrous portions of flax, hemp, and
other like material.
The Invention is applicable to the machinery described in the Specification
of Letters Patent granted to us, and dated the 5th January 1863, No. 39,
wherein there are two rotating axes carrying:beaters..
The present Invention consists, firstly, in gearing and driving the feed
rollers in such a manner that the rollers may be caused either to revolve in
such a direction as to feed the fibre forwards to. be acted on by the beaters, or
may at the will of the workman be caused to revolve in the opposite direction
to move. back the fibre; and when the rollers are revolving in a direction' to

page_text: feed the fibres forward the rollers are caused to revolve at a slower speed than
when revolving in the opposite direction to move back the fibres. In order
to accomplish this we prefer to give motion to one of the axes of the feed
rollers by means of two bevilled toothed wheels fixed thereon, and the axle of
the feed roller is driven by one or the other, receiving motion from one or other
of two bevilled toothed wheels on an upright shaft or axis, which receives
motion from one of the axles of the rotating beaters. The two bevilled wheels
on the upright shaft are of different diameters, the smaller bevilled wheel
being for giving motion to the feed rollers when feeding the fibres forward,
and the larger bevilled wheel for giving motion to the rollers when moving
back the fibres. The two bevilled toothed wheels on the upright shaft or
axis are each capable of turning freely thereon, and are only fixed or held
thereto by a sliding clutch which is capable of being moved by the workman
by a lever, according as he may desire to cause the feed rollers to be turned in
a direction to feed the vegetable fibrous material up to the beaters or to with-
draw the fibrous material therefrom. The clutch may also be retained in an
intermediate position so that the feed rollers may remain without motion.
The Invention also consists in covering one of the feed rollers with an
elastic material, by which means the whole of the layer of fibres will be held
between the rollers even though the layer be of uneven thickness.
The beaters for acting on the fibres are, according to this Invention, formed
in such manner that when one of the beaters on one of the shafts or axles is
acting on the fibrous materials such materials may rest against a curved plate
carried by the other beater axle, so that the fibrous material is prevented
getting away from the beater which is for the time acting upon it by means of
the curved plate or guard.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said David Nevin and William Coppin in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 3rd November 1864..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, DAVID 3
NEVIN and WILLIAM COPPIN, both of Londonderry, Ireland, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of May, 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 us, the 3
said David Nevin and William Coppin, Her special licence that we; the said

page_text: .
David Nevin and William Coppin, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such, others as we, the said David Nevin and William Coppin, our ex-
ecutors, 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 FOR CLEARING
AND SEPARATING THE WOODY PARTS FROM THE FIBROUS PORTIONS OF FLAX, HEMP,
AND OTHER LIKE MATERIAL," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said David Nevin and William Coppin, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us or them, 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 William Coppin, on behalf of myself
and the said David Nevin, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for clearing and
separating the woody parts from the fibrous portions of flax, hemp, and other
like material.
་
The Invention is applicable to the machinery described in the Specification
of Letters Patent granted to us, and dated the 5th January 1863 (No. 39)
wherein there are two rotating axes carrying beaters.
The present Invention consists, firstly, in gearing and driving the feed
rollers in such a manner that the rollers may be caused either to revolve in
such a direction as to feed the fibre forwards, to be acted on by the beaters, or
may at the will of the workman be caused to revolve in the opposite direction
to move back the fibre, and when the rollers are revolving in a direction to
feed the fibres forward, the rollers are caused to revolve at a slower speed
than when revolving in the opposite direction to move back the fibres.. In
order to accomplish this, we prefer to give motion to one of the axes of the
feed rollers by means of two bevilled toothed wheels fixed thereon, and the
axle of the feed roller is driven. by one or the other, receiving motion from
one or other of two bevilled toothed wheels on an upright shaft or axis which
receives motion from one of the axles of the rotating beaters, the two bevilled
wheels on the upright shaft are of different diameters, the smaller bevilled

page_text: suitable roller or core, or the roller or core may be covered with a number of
rings of india-rubber, placed side by side, the roller or core passing through
the rings. The rollers d and e are formed with. longitudinal, serrations; in
order to hold the flax or other fibre more securely. The roller c has motion
imparted to it in the following manner: On the axis of the roller. are two
bevil wheels f and g, the bevil wheel f constantly gears with a bevil wheel h,
and the wheel g constantly gears with a wheel i, the wheels h and i are carried
by the upright shaft k, and are both free to turn around this shaft; either one
or other of these wheels can however be made fast on the shaft by means of
the sliding clutch 7 worked by the lever as is shown at Figure 1; the wheel
h is of smaller diameter than the wheel i, and therefore the wheel h is made
fast with its axis k, when it is desired to feed a-layer of fibre inwards to be
acted on by the beaters when the: layer of fibres is to be withdrawn from
being acted on by the beaters; the wheel i is made fast on the shaft, and the
roller c is thus caused to revolve in the opposite direction and at a greater
speed.
The construction of the beaters carried by the axes 6, 61, is seen in the
Drawing. Each beater axle carries two blades m, m, and two curved plates
or guards n, n, the beater axles are geared together in such manner that when
one of the blades m on one of the beater axles comes round to act on the pro-
jecting end of the layer of fibres held between the rollers, one of the curved
guards n, on the other beater axle will have come round into such a position
as to prevent the fibres being thrown upwards by the blade m and so escape
from being acted on by the beater. The curved guards at their front edges
that come in contact with the fibrous material held by the rollers, are by pre-
ference serrated, the acting edge of the blades m and also the edges o¹ are
likewise by preference serrated. The serrated edge o¹ is formed on a plate
secured in its place by bolts as is shown, a portion of one of these plates is
shown separately. at Figure 2. In working the machine a layer of flax or
other fibre is spread on the table p, the clutch is then moved by the lever
handle in such a manner as to cause the wheel h to be made fast. on its
axis and so cause the feed rollers to revolve in a direction to draw the layer of
fibre inwards towards the.beaters, the layer of fibre on the table p is then
moved forward by hand so as to cause the feed rollers to sieze hold of the for-
ward end of the fibres, the rollers then gradually feed forward the layer of
fibre until about half of its length has been acted on by the beaters, the rollers
are then by moving the clutch handle caused to revolve in the opposite direc-
tion and so move back the layer of fibre and deposit it on the table p, the layer
of fibre is then by the workman turned end for end, and the feed rollers are

page_text: again caused to revolve in such a direction as to feed the fibres forward to be
again acted on by the beaters; after this the fibres are again drawn back on
to the table p, by causing the rollers to revolve in the contrary direction, and
the layer of fibre is then removed from the table and a fresh layer placed
upon it to be treated in a similar manner to that above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Coppin have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
WILLIAM COPPIN. (L.S.)