IMPROVE- MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PLOUGHING AND TILLING LAND BY STEAM
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Fowler, junior, of Havering, in the County of
Essex, and William Worby, of Ipswich, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PLOUGHING AND TILLING LAND BY STEAM."
Sealed the 30th December 1856, and dated the 10th July 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Fowler and William
Worby at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 10th July 1856.
We, JOHN FOWLER, junior, of Havering, in the County of Essex, and
WILLIAM WORBY, of Ipswich, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PLOUGHING AND TILLING LAND BY STEAM,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for ploughing
and tilling land by steam. For this purpose two drums or capstans with
upright or vertical axes are with the steam engine, which gives motion to
them, mounted in a suitable frame on wheels, in order that the carriage may
be moved progressively on the land, in place of having the capstans and steam
engine anchored or fixed to the land. The capstans are, as heretofore, worked
by the engine in such manner that they may alternately wind up their wire
ropes, so that whilst one is being driven by the engine the other is running
free, and unwinding its wire rope. The pulley or apparatus from and to
which the plough or tilling instrument is drawn is moved at the other end of

page_text: the land, to coincide with the movement of the carriage with the engine and
capstans before mentioned..' 'Or, in place of the two drums being on the same
carriage with the engine, two carriages may be used, each with one upright
barrel or capstan and an engine, and the wire ropes be wound alternately by
the drums. The two carriages are to be caused to move opposite or parallel
to each other at the two headlands of the field which is being ploughed. In
ploughing by steam, the mould boards of the ploughs used are in some cases
arranged in combination with rotating harrows in such manner that the mould
boards of the ploughs raise the land from the furrows over the teeth of the
rotating harrows, which work and break up the land so brought up to the
harrow. In some cases also, when ploughing. by steam, we use as an anchor
a carriage with disc wheels, which in being dragged along cut into the land,
and the tackle being fixed to the side of the carriage is resisted by the wheels
so sunk into the land; and in order to move two such carriages parallel, but
at a distance from each other, two wire ropes are used, one attached to each
of the anchoring carriages, such ropes, pass partly round pulleys, and are
put in motion by capstans. or drums and steam engine anchored to a suitable
part of the land. The ploughs or tilling instruments are moved to and fro
between the anchoring carriages by wire ropes and pulleys, the wire ropes
receiving motion from capstans, or drums, and steam engine, anchored as
above mentioned.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters, Patent, filed
by the, said John Fowler and William Worby in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 10th January 1857."-
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
FOWLER, junior, of Havering, in the County of Essex, and WILLIAM WORBY
of Ipswich, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
John Fowler and William Worby, Her special licence that we; the said John
Fowler and William Worby, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said. John Fowler and William. Worby, our 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,

page_text: 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 PLOUGHING AND TILL-
ING LAND BY STEAM," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
John Fowler and William Worby, 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
perforined, 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 John Fowler, on behalf of myself and
the said William Worby, 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 ploughing
and tilling land by steam. For this purpose two drums or capstans with
upright or vertical axes are with the steam engine, which gives motion to
them, mounted in a suitable frame on wheels, in order that the carriage may
be moved progressively on the land, in place of having the capstáns and steam
engine anchored or fixed to the land. The capstans are, as heretoföre, worked
by the engine in such manner that they may alternately wind
their wire
up
ropes, so that whilst one is being driven by the engine the other is running
free, and unwinding its wire rope. The pulley or apparatus from and to
which the plough or tilling instrument is drawn is moved at the other end of
the land to coincide with the movement of the carriage with the engine and.
capstans before mentioned. Or, in place of the two drums 'being on the same
carriage with the engine, two carriages may be used, each with one upright
barrel or capstan and an engine, and the wire ropes be wound alternately by
the drums. The two carriages are to be caused to move opposite or parallel
to each other at the two headlands of the field which is being ploughed! In
ploughing by steam the mould boards of the ploughs used are in some cases
arranged in combination with rotating harrows in such manner that the níould.
boards of the ploughs raise the land from the furrows over the teeth of the
rotating harrows, which work and break up the land so brought up to the
harrow. In some cases also, when ploughing by steam, we use as an anchor
a carriage with disc wheels, which in being dragged along cut into the land,
and the tackle being fixed to the side of the carriage, is resisted by the. wheels
so sunk into the land; and in order to move two such carriages parallel, but

page_text: Tig
sno
an;
ure 2, site elevatio
steam engine and an apparatus constructed and arranged in accordance with
our Invention. a is the crank shaft or driving axis carrying two bevil toothed
wheels, either of which (according to the direction the windlass may be
required to turn, or the whole machinery to travel) takes into and drives the
bevil wheel c keyed upon the vertical axis d, which at its lower end carries
a pinion e and a worm. The pinion e takes into one of the spur wheels f,
carried by the vertical axis g, g. The axes are in the arrangement shown
made stationary, but this may be varied. The spur wheels f gear into each
other; the axes g, g, also carry drums h, h, provided with suitable clutches,
by which the spur wheels p, p, and drums h, h, may be caused at will to work
together or independently of each other. The other parts of the engine are
of an ordinary description, and their arrangement will be readily understood
from the Drawings. The drums h, h, each carry a wire rope, by which the
plough is made to traverse the land; it is drawn towards the engine in a
direct line. by the winding of the rope on to the forward drum; the other drum
at this time running free, and it is moved in the reverse direction by means
of the hinder drum h, its rope passing round a sheave or pulley anchored on
the opposite headland. After every forward and backward movement of the
plough across the land, the clutches which engage the drums h, h, with the
spur wheels f, f, are thrown out, and the clutch i of the worm k is thrown
into action. The worm k being thereby made fast to its axis d gives motion to
the worm wheel on the axis of the hind road wheels, until the engine and
windlass has advanced sufficiently for a fresh set of furrows, when the clutch i
is thrown out, and one of the clutches connecting a drum h with a spur
wheel is thrown in, and a repetition of the operation takes place. The
pulley on the further headland is also moved to correspond with the motions

page_text: of the engine. In place of using a single engine and winding apparatus, two
of such apparatus may be employed, one on each of the opposite headlands,
and then each engine works only to draw the plough or tilling instrument
towards itself, and thus only one winding drum will be required for each
engine, and the hinder winding drum may be removed.
Figure 4 is a side view, and Figure 5 a plan, of a tilling instrument, con-
sisting of a series of mould boards with rotating harrows working under them.
a, a, is the frame carrying the mould boards b, b, which are connected thereto
in the ordinary manner; c, c, are coulters, one for each mould board; d is the
leading wheel mounted at the fore part of the frame a; and e, e, are two
wheels mounted on studs at the hinder part thereof, and these studs are
arranged so that they can be raised and lowered as one or other of the
wheels e has to run in the furrow; fff, are three axes mounted on the
frame a, and having fixed thereon the revolving harrows g, g. The harrows
on. the axes f and f¹ run on the land, and the axes receive motion thereby,
but the axis f is driven in the opposite direction by the wheel h, over which
a crossed chain passes to the wheel i on the axis f¹ and the wheel j, over
which another crossed chain passes to the wheel on the axis f."
Figure 6 is a side view; Figure 7, an end view, and Figure 8 a plan of
the carriage with disc wheels, which we employ to anchor the pulley which
traverses along the headland. a, a, a, a, is the body of the carriage, having a
bottom and four sides like a cart or truck, only smaller. In place of being
mounted on ordinary wheels it is mounted on the four dises b, b, b, b, which
cut into the land, and sink therein until the weight of the carriage is taken
by the rollers c, c, which are mounted on the same axis as the discs; d is the
pulley, which turns on an axis firmly fixed in the bottom of the carriage; e is
a roller for guiding the rope; f is a bar passing the whole length of the
carriage, and fixed thereto. This bar has an eye at each end, to which the
rope for moving the carriage forwards is attached. 9 is a roller, over which
the rope passes. When the carriage is in use it is loaded with earth to give
it sufficient weight. The rope for moving the carriage forwards passes
through a pulley anchored at the end of the headland to the engine and
winding apparatus, and is passed round a small drum, which may be placed
for the purpose on the vertical axis d, but which drum is not shown in the
Drawing. Or, when the stationary winding apparatus is used, as described
in the Specification of a former Patent granted to me, together with two
anchor carriages on the headlands, then on the same frame with the winding
apparatus, -we-mount small-additional winding drums, to which the ropes
from the carriages pass.

page_text: What we claim is the giving motion to a plough or other tilling instrument
by means of an engine on a carriage, with two winding drums mounted each
on a vertical axis, such engine traversing on the headland as the work pro-
gresses, so as to draw the plough, and working a plough or tilling instrument
in both directions. We also claim the giving motion to a plough or other
tilling instrument by means of two engines, each on a carriage with a single
winding drum mounted on a vertical axis, such engines traversing on the
opposite headlands, and each working so as to draw the plough or other tilling
instrument towards itself.
Secondly, we claim the raising the soil by means of mould boards over
rotating harrows, as herein described.
Thirdly, we claim the use as an anchor of a carriage mounted on discs, and
capable of being loaded to give it sufficient stability.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Fowler, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Tenth day of January, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
S. CARPMAEL.
JOHN FOWLER, JUN. (L.S.)