IMPROVEMENTS IN MILLS FOR GRINDING GRAIN OR SEED A communi
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake of the firm of Haseltine Lake
"
& Co. Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London for an invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MILLS FOR GRINDING GRAIN OR SEED A communi-
cation from abroad by Noah William Holt and Richard Kirby Noye, both of
Buffalo, New York, United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 5th April 1882.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine Lake & Co. Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London, "IMPROVEMENTS IN MILLS FOR CRINDING
GRAIN OR SEED [A communication from abroad by Noah William Holt and
Richard Kirby Noye, both of Buffalo, New York, United States of America.]
"
These improvements relate to that class of roller mills which are employed for
the reduction of grain or seeds and similar material.
The said invention consists first, of feed-mechanism whereby the flow of material
from the feed hopper to the crushing rolls is regulated or controlled. Second, of
driving mechanism whereby the rollers are rotated by means of an endless belt
which is clamped or pressed between two pulleys whereby the belt is prevented
from slipping and the rollers prevented from changing their speed by frictional
contact with each other through the medium of the material passing between them;
third, of mechanism whereby the rollers are adjusted toward or from each other to
regulate the space between the rollers and to open the rollers for starting the mill;
and, fourth, of the peculiar dress-ribs or corrugations applied to the rollers, as will
be hereinafter described.
In carrying the said invention into practice I provide rollers which are mounted
in fixed bearings secured to the side frames of the machine, also rollers mounted in
movable bearings which are adjustable toward and from the fixed bearings. The
feed-hopper is arranged above each pair of rollers and the feed rollers are in the
discharge opening of the feed-hopper. I provide an automatic feed-slide pivoted
to swing toward and from the feed-roller and operated by a hinged board which is

page_text: depressed by the weight of the grain resting on it and held against this pressure by a
spring applied underneath the board. There is a cut off slide pivoted in the feed-
hopper above the feed-roller so that when the slide is placed across the discharge
opening, the escape of material from the hopper is entirely prevented. When the
cut-off is opened it is withdrawn under a plate which relieves the cut-off plate
from the pressure of the material in this position. The cut-off slide is moved by a
handle applied to one of its pivots.
I provide a counter shaft arranged transversely in the lower part of the machine,
and there are two pulleys mounted on this shaft near its ends; two pulleys are
mounted on the fast rollers and there is an endless driving belt which runs around
one of the pulleys, thence downward and around the pulley on the counter-shaft,
and thence upward and around one of the other pulleys, and thence downward and
around a pulley on a driving shaft below.
Two pulleys are mounted on the shafts of the slow rollers on the opposite side of
the machine and there is an endless belt which runs around one pulley, thence down-
ward and around a pulley on the counter-shaft thence upward and around one of
the pulleys, thence downward and arcund a friction pulley and thence upward to
a pulley. The friction-pulley is pressed against one of the other pulleys by a
spring or other suitable means so that the belt running around the friction pulley
is firmly clamped between this pulley and another. By this incans the belt is
prevented from slipping and the slow rollers are prevented from gathering speed
from the fast rollers. The ends of the counter shaft are supported in adjustable
bearings. The friction pulley is arranged against a pulley which is mounted on
the shaft of the fast roller and the endless belt runs around the lower part of the
friction pulley, thence upward and around a pulley mounted on the shaft of the
slow roller, thence upward and around one of the pulleys, and thence back to the
underside of the friction pulley. The latter is mounted in a bifurcated arm which
is attached to the frame of the machine by an excentric or other suitable means, so
that it can be raised or lowered thereby pressing the friction-pulley with greater
or less force against one of the pulleys. The belt is firmly clamped between the
friction pulley and another pulley and the slow roller is thereby prevented from
acquiring an improper speed and the belt is prevented from slipping.
The movable bearings of two of the rollers are pivoted to a base or support
which is made adjustable on the side frames of the machine, by a screw. The two
bearings of the same roller are rigidly connected by a bar so that both bearings
move on their pivots simultaneously; a spring is interposed between the bar and
the frame of the machine so as to press these rollers against the other rollers; a
screw bolt passes through the spring and the bar and is provided, above the latter,
with a nut and attached with its lower end to an excentric mounted on a horizontal
shaft to which both screw bolts on both ends of the machine are connected.
By adjusting the nuts the distance between the rollers is regulated, and by
turning the shaft both movable rollers are separated from the stationary rollers
to facilitate the starting of the mill without disturbing the adjustment of the
rollers.
Angular ribs, and ribs with blunt or dull edges are arranged alternately upon
the surface of the rollers. It is found in practice that a dress composed of blunt
or dull corrugations or ribs, does not work satisfactorily upon some grades of wheat
especially when damp, or in the finer reductions of the grain, and that a dress
composed of sharp corrugations is objectionable because it cuts the bran; I therefore
combine the sharp with the dull corrugations in the same dress whereby the
advantageous features of both are combined and their objectionable features to a
large extent neutralized. In rollers designed for the coarsest reductions two dull
ribs may alternate with one sharp rib, and in rollers for the finest reductions two
sharp ribs may alternate with one dull rib, or two sharp and two dull ribs may
alternate.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
5th October 1882.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Flaseltine, Lake, & Co, Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MILLS FOR GRINDING
GRAIN OR SEED A communication from abroad by Noah William Holt and
Richard Kirby Noye, both of Buffalo, New York, United States of America.
"
This Invention relates to that class of roller mills which are employed for the
reduction of grain or seed and similar materials
The said Invention consists of feed mechanism whereby the flow of material
from the feed-hopper to the crushing rolls is regulated or controlled; of driving
mechanism whereby the rollers are rotated by means of an endless belt; of
mechanism whereby the rollers are moved towards or from cach other to regulate
the space between them and to open the said rollers for starting the mill; and of
the peculiar dress-ribs or corrugations of the rollers; as hereinafter described.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a roller mill constructed according to this invention
containing two pairs of rollers.
Figure 2 is an end elevation thereof
Figure 3 is a transverse section on the line x, x Figure 1 drawn to a reduced
scale
Figure 4 is a plan of the roller adjusting mechanism.
Figure 5 is a central vertical section thereof
Figure 6 is a detail sectional view of the lower portion of the adjusting
mechanism
Figure 7 is a side elevation of a roller mill provided with one pair of rollers.
Figure 8 is a top view or plan of the belt driving mechanism whereby the
rollers of this mill are connected
Figure 9 is an end elevation drawn to an enlarged scale of the friction pulley
and connecting parts
Figure 10 is a vertical section of the same at right angles to Figure 9.
Figure 11 is a side elevation of one of the feed-hoppers.
Figure 12 is a vertical transverse section thereof, showing the automatic
operating inechanism disconnected from the feed plate.
Figures 13 and 14 are vertical sections on the lines x, x and y, y, respectively
Figure 11
Figure 15 is a detail view drawn to an enlarged scale of that portion of the side
wall of the feed hopper to which the automatic feed plate is pivoted.
Figure 16 is a section on the line w, w Figure 15.
Figure 17 is an end view of a pair of rollers
Figures 18, 19 and 20 illustrate the different modes of dressing the rollers
Like letters of reference indicate the same parts throughout the drawings
A represents the stationary frame of a roller mill, and B, B¹ the rollers which
are mounted in fixed bearings a secured to the said frame, the rollers B2, B³, are
mounted in bearings b which are adjustable in relation to the fixed bearings a.
These two pairs of rollers are arranged in the same horizontal plane as shown in
Figure 1, the inner rollers being stationary and the outer rollers adjustable. The
bearings bare each pivoted by a horizontal bolt 6' to a base plate 62 which is secured
to the frame A by bolts 6s in elongated openings 64 and having an adjusting
screw 65 or any other suitable means, so as to be adjustable in relation to the

page_text: bearings a; a bar 6 connects the bearings b on the outer side of each of the
movable rollers B2, B3, and may be cast in one piece with the said bearings as
shown, or be otherwise rigidly secured to the same so as to cause both bearings
supporting one of the said movable rollers to move simultaneously in either
direction toward or from the stationary roller; a spiral or other suitable spring b
is applied to the connecting bar 6 in such a manner, as to press the movable
rollers against the stationary rollers, the said spring rests upon the frame A as
shown in Figures 5 and 6 and bears against the underside of the bar be; a screw
rod 68 is surrounded by the spring 67 and its upper end passes through an opening b
in the connecting bar be; the said upper end of the screw-rod is provided with a
hand wheel or screw-nut 610 bearing upon the upper side of the connecting bar.
A ring b is formed at the lower end of the screw-rod 6s, and an excentric 12 is
mounted on a horizontal shaft 613 and engages in the said ring so that the screw
rod 68 is raised and lowered by turning the excentric 612. The shaft 613 turns
in bearings 6 formed on the frame A of the machine and is provided at
either end with a hand lever 615 whereby it can be turned. The spring 67 tends
to hold the movable roller against the stationary roller. By tightening the hand-
wheel or screw-nut 610 the spring is compressed, and both bearings bare swung on
their pivots away from the stationary roller hence the position of the movable
rollers with reference to the stationary rollers can be easily regulated by the hand-
wheel 10
If the movable roller should not be parallel with the stationary roller, it is easily
made parallel with the same by adjusting either or both of the base pieces b². The
throw of the excentric b, is made so large that by giving the shaft b₁ a half turn
so as to bring the centre of the excentric on the lower side of the shaft, the movable
roller is separated sufficiently from the stationary roller to permit the mill to be
easily started. By returning the excentric to its upper position the movable roller
is turned to its former working position without disturbing its adjustment with
reference to the stationary roller.
When the device is applied to a roller mill containing two pairs of rollers as
shewn in Figure 1, the shaft 613 is extended to the opposite end of the machine,
and the excentrics of both adjusting devices are mounted on this shaft so that by
turning the shaft both movable rollers are simultaneously swung away from the
stationary rollers for starting the mill
A feed hopper C is arranged over each pair of rollers, c, c are the vertical side
walls and c, e the inclined transverse walls thereof; the feed-roller D is arranged
under the discharge orifice of each feed-hopper and runs in contact with the lower
edge of the inclined wall c'; the automatic feed-plate d obstructs the opening
between the lower edge of the inclined wall and the feed-roller; the cut-off*
plate whereby the discharge orifice of the feed hopper is regulated is opened or
closed at will without disturbing the adjustment of the automatic feed-plate d.
The cut-off consists of a plate or board d¹ of sufficient size to close the orifice of the
feed-hopper when in a horizontal position, and arranged wholly within the feed
hopper, and provided at its ends with upwardly projecting ears or arms d² which
are pivoted to the side walls c of the hopper by horizontal bolts d³. The latter
project outwardly through the walls c and turn in bushes in the said walls. One
of the pivots d³ is provided outside the hopper with a hand-lever d' whereby the
pivot can be turned, and the said pivot is formed with a square shank fitting in a
corresponding opening in the arm de so that the plate d¹ will follow the movements
of the pivot, a guide segment is secured to the outside of the hopper, and bears
against the outer side of the arm d. It is provided on its inner side with notches
which hold the arm d in any desired position. The lower side of the plate d¹ is
preferably curved concentrically with the pivots d³. An inclined plate d³ is secured
to the upper side of the inclined board c', and d' is a space or recess formed
between the plates d. and c¹ into which the cut-off plate d' enters when the dis-
charge orifice of the feed hopper is open. The upper inclined plate de relieves the
cut-off plate in this position from the weight of the grain contained in the

page_text: hopper, and enables the operator to swing the plate easily downward when the
discharge orifice is desired to be closed. In its closed position the cut-off plate d¹
rests with one edge against the automatic feed plate d and with the other edge
against the wall c₁ as indicated by dotted lines in Figure 12. The cut-off plate d¹
is easily moved into any desired position, and as no part of the plate projects
through the walls of the feed hopper there can be no leakage of the material
contained in the latter.
The automatic feed-plate d is arranged between the side walls c of the hopper,
and provided at both ends with ears d whereby the plate d is pivoted to the side
walls c,
An arm do is secured to the underside of the plate d, and is provided at
its end with a depression or socket in which rests loosely the end of the rod d¹º,
whereby the plate d-is operated in a well known manner from the hinged pressure
board d in the feed hopper. The rod do is pivoted to the underside of the
board d", so that the lower end of the said rod can be swung out of its seat in the
arm d when desired. The plate d is pivotted to one of the walls c by means of a
bolt d which passes through the adjacent ear ds and turns in a bush or bearing
in the said wall. The ear ds at the opposite end of the plate is pivoted to the
adjacent wall c by a pivot d3 which is secured to the ear by a square shank d¹4
at the inner end of the bolt d's, so that the ear and the plate & turn with the
pivot. The latter is fixed in an adjustable plate E applied to the outer side of the
feed-hopper; the plate E is pivoted to the side of the hopper by a bolt e and held
in any desired position by a thumb-screw e' which passes through a curved slot e²
and screws into the side wall of the hopper as shown in Figures 11 and 13. Upon
releasing the thumb-screw e¹ the plate E can be swung on its pivot e so as to cause
the pivot d¹s of the plate to approach the feed roller D or recede therefrom, as
may be desired. By this means the edge of the plate d which is adjacent to the
feed roller can be readily adjusted if necessary to render it parallel with the feed-
roller.
The wall c is provided with an elongated opening c³ as shown in Figure 15
through which the pivot d¹³ passes, and which permits of the requisite movement
of the said pivot.
An arm F is detachably secured to the outer end of the pivot (1¹³, and a screw
bolt or rod fis attached with one end to the free end of the arm F and passing
with its other end through a lug f¹ secured to the feed hopper, a spiral spring f2
surrounds the bolt f and bears with its ends respectively against the free end of
the arm F and the lug f', a thumb nut f is applied to the threaded end of the
bolt on the outer side of the lug f'. The arm F is secured to the pivot d¹³ by
a thumb screw f, and the end of the pivot and the opening of the arm F through
which the end of the pivot passes are made conical as shown in Figure 16 so that
by tightening the screw f¹, the arm F is secured to the said pivot, whereby the
latter and the plate d are connected and the said plate d is operated by the arm F,
while upon releasing the screw f' the pivot d¹³ turns loosely on the arm F and is
rendered independent of the same.
When it is desired to work up all the material as fast as it is delivered into the
feed-hopper, the plate d is used as an automatic device, as shewn in Figure 1, and
the arm F is disconnected from the pivot 13. When it is desired to feed only a
certain quantity of material to the rollers in a given time, the pressure board d
is disconnected from the arm d as shown in Figure 12, and the arm F is tightened
upon the pivot d¹³ and the plate d adjusted by the screw nut f³. In this manner
the plate & can be used either as an automatic feed plate or as an ordinary
adjustable feed-plate as the nature of the work may require
In Figures 1 and 2, G, G¹ represent two pulleys mounted on the shafts of the
fast rollers B, B³ and H, H¹, two pulleys mounted on the shafts of the slow rollers
B2, B¹. represents the horizontal driving shaft arranged underneath the roller
mill. I is a large pulley mounted thereon for driving the fast rollers B, B³. J is
a small pulley secured to the shaft i for driving the slow rollers B1, B2. k repre-
sents an endless belt which communicates motion from the pulley I to the pulleys

page_text: G, G¹, of the fast rollers and which runs from the pulley I upward as indicated by
the arrow to and around the pulley G', thence downward around a tightener or
jack-pulley K. which is arranged near the base of the machine, thence upward and
around the pulley G and thence downward and back to the pulley I. Z represents
a straight or open belt running around the pulley J on the driving shaft i, and
around a pulley L arranged on the rear side of the machine below the pulleys
H, H. This pulley L is mounted on a short shaft m supported in bearings m¹
attached to the side frames of the machine. M is a similar pulley secured to the
shaft m on the outer side of the pulley L, and arranged in the same vertical plane
with the pulleys H, F, n is an endless belt running around the pulley M, thence
upward and around the pulley H¹, thence downward and around the tightening
pulley N, thence upward and around the pulley H, and thence downward to the
pulley M. The tightening pulley N turns with its journals in bearings n' which
are made vertically adjustable between guides or ways O, or if preferred the
pulley N may turn loosely on an arbor. The belt k drives the fast rollers B, B³
and the belt n the slow rollers B', B2. Motion is imparted to the belt n by the
belt and pulleys M, L in such a manner, that the pulleys H, H' of the slow rollers
rotate in an opposite direction to the pulleys G, G¹ of the fast rollers. The two
sets of rollers are thereby rotated in opposite directions by means of straight or
open belts and without employing a counter-shaft extending across the machine.
In Figures 7, 8, 9 and 10 G, represents the belt pulley secured to the shaft of
the fast roller, and H represents the belt-pulley secured to the shaft of the slow
roller and which is larger in diameter than the pulley G, to produce the desired
difference in the speed of the rollers. P represents a guide pulley arranged about
in the same horizontal line with the pulleys G and H. R represents a tightening
pulley which is arranged below the pulleys G, H. q represents an endless driving
belt which runs around the pulleys G, H, P and R in the direction of the arrow
in Figure 7, the pulleys H, P and R being arranged within the driving-belt, and
the pulley G on the outer side of the driving belt in the bight thereof, so that the
belt q runs from the pulley H to the guide pulley P, thence to the tightening
pulley R, thence to the roller pulley G and thence to the roller pulley H. The
pulley P is mounted in the upper bifurcated end of an arm S which swings on a
horizontal-pin or bolt a secured to the frame of the machine. The pulley R. is
mounted in the upper bifurcated end of an arm S¹ which is shorter than the
arm S and which swings preferably on the same horizontal pivot or bolt s to
which the arm S is attached. The lower end of the arm S is preferably bifurcated
and crosses the lower end of the arm S¹ on the bolt 8 as shewn in Figure 9. The
upper or free end of the arm S' is provided with a curved extension 82 which is
connected to a spring 83 or other suitable tension device, the opposite end of which
is secured to the frame of the machine or to the floor by a screw-bolt s. By
properly adjusting the screw-bolt s the upper end of the arm S¹ in which the
tightening pulley R is mounted, is drawn downward whereby the belt is properly
tightened. The pressure of the belt against the outer portion of the pulley P tends
to hold the inner side of the said pulley against the outer side of the belt when
the latter passes between the pulleys G and P. By this means the belt is clamped
between the pulleys G and P and prevented from slipping and the desired
differential speed of the rollers is thereby easily maintained. If it is desired to
keep the pulley P away from the pulley G so as not to clamp the belt between
theso pulleys, this is readily accomplished by securing the arm S to the frame of
the machine in the desired position by means of a screw-bolt or other suitable
fastening device.
In Figures 17 to 20 represent angular ribs, and u¹ ribs with blunt or dull
edges arranged alternately upon the surface of the rollers. Heretofore rollers have
been provided with ribs having sharp edges, and rollers have also been constructed
with ribs having blunt or dull edges and with ribs having the form of a cylinder
segment. In the practical operations of these rollers it is found that they do not
work satisfactorily upon some kinds of wheat, especially when the wheat is damp

page_text: and in the finer reductions of the grain, as they do not properly clean or finish the
bran, and that rollers having sharp corrugations cut the bran and produce spccks.
In order to avoid these difficulties I provide each roller with sharp as well as
round or dull ribs, whereby the advantageous features of both kinds of ribs are
combined and their objectionable features to a large extent neutralized.
In the rollers employed for the coarser reductions, the ribs are preferably
arranged parallel with the axis of the roller or nearly so, and in the rollers used
for the finer reductions the ribs are arranged spirally. The system of ribs or the
dress of each roller is composed of round or dull ribs u' and sharp ribs u, which
alternate with each other with greater or less frequency according to the nature of
the work for which the rollers are designed.
For the coarser reductions every two round or dull ribs u' are followed by one
sharp rib as shewn in Figure 19. For reduction of medium fineness the dress
may be composed of an equal number of sharp and dull ribs alternating with each
other, for instance one of each kind, as shown in Figure 17, or two of each kind as
shewn in Figure 20
For the finer reductions two sharp ribs u are followed by a single dull rib u¹ as
shown in Figure 18.
Owing to the different speeds of the rollers, a rib of either kind on the slow
roller co-operates successively with the dull and sharp ribs on the fast roller, so
that the reduction effected by the rollers is due to the joint operation of the dull
and sharp ribs, thereby avoiding the objectionable results attending the use of a
dress composed entirely of either dull or sharp ribs.
The ribs on the rollers used for the coarser reductions are preferably made
somewhat larger than those used for the finer reductions
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign Correspondents, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it
understood that I claim :-
First. The combination, with the feed-hopper and the cut-off plate a pivotted
therein, of the protecting plate do, whereby the plate d¹ is relieved from the weight
of the grain when the discharge opening of the hopper is open, substantially as set
forth
Second. The combination, with the feed-hopper, of the cut-off plate d¹ pivotted
within the said feed-hopper, the feed-roller D, and the automatic feed-plate d,
substantially as set forth.
Third. The combination, with the feed-plated, of mechanism whereby the same.
can be automatically operated, mechanism whereby the plate d can be adjusted
independently of the said automatic mechanism, and means whereby either the
said automatic mechanism or the adjusting mechanism can be connected with the
plate d, substantially as set forth
Fourth. The combination, with the feed roller D, of the feed-plate d, and
mechanism whereby one of its pivots can be adjusted toward and from the said
feed-roller, substantially as set forth.
Fifth. The combination, with the feed-hopper and the plate d provided with
pivots d¹, d³, of a pivotted plate E supporting the said pivot d¹³ and provided
with a slot e², and thumb-screw e¹, substantially as set forth.
Sixth. The combination, with the feed-hopper and the plate & provided with
the pivot d¹³, of the arm F the screw-bolt f, the spring f2, and the lug f¹,
substantially as set forth.
Seventh. The combination, with a roller B², of the movable bearings b, the con-
necting bar 6 and the base-pieces 62 upon which the bearings bare supported, and
means for adjusting them towards and from the roller or other surface against
which the said roller B operates, substantially as set forth.
Eighth. The combination, with a roller B³, of the movable bearings b, the con-
necting bar be provided with an adjusting device, the base-pieces 62, and means for
adjusting them toward and from the roller or other surface against which the said

page_text: roller B2 operates, and the pivots b', whereby the bearings bare attached to the
base-piece b, substantially as set forth.
Ninth. The combination, with the rollers B¹ B2 provided with pulleys H', H, of
a tightening pulley N, à pulley A, an open endless belt n passing around the
pulleys H, H, N and M, and a pulley L secured to the pulley M and adapted to
receive the driving belt, substantially as set forth.
Tenth. The combination, with the fast rollers B, B3, provided, with pulleys G, G¹,
the slow rollers B', B, provided with pulleys H', H, and the driving shaft i
provided with pulleys I, J, of the jack-pulley K, and an open endless belt k
running around the pulleys G, G¹, I and K, the pulleys M, L, and N, an open
endless belt running around the pulleys J and L, and an open endless belt n
running around the pulleys H¹, H, M, and N, substantially as set forth.
Eleventh. The combination, with a pair of rollers B, B2, provided respectively
with pulleys G and H, of a guide pulley P, a tightening pulley R, and an endless
belt running from the pulley H to the guide-pulley P, thence to the tightening
pulley R and the pulley G, and thence back to the pulley H, substantially as set
forth and represented in Figure 7.
{
Twelfth. The combination with a pair of rollers B, B2, of the pulleys G and H
mounted on the shafts of the said rollers, a guide-pulley. P mounted on a pivotted
arm S, a tightening pulley R mounted on a pivotted arm S', and an endless belt
running around the said pulleys, substantially as set forth and represented in
Figure 7.
Thirteenth. A roller for roller inills provided on its cylindrical surface with
alternating sharp and rounded or dull ribs, substantially as set forth.
Fourteenth. In a roller mill, the combination of two rollers provided on their
cylindrical surfaces with alternating sharp and rounded or dull ribs, and means
whereby the rollers are rotated at different peripheral speeds, substantially as set
forth
In witness whereof I the said William Robert Lake have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Fifth day of October in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty two.