CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CRACKING NUTS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edwin Bates and Thomas Dodd, both
of Northwich, in the County of Chester, for the Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CRACKING
NUTS."
Sealed tlie 30th April 1869, and dated the 31st October 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edwin Bates
and Thomas Dodd at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 31st October 1868.
WC, WILLIAM EDWIN BATES. and THOMAS DODD, both of Northwich,
in the County of Chester, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR
CRACKING NUTS," to be as follows:—'
This Invention is intended to be applied principally for the purpose
of cracking palm nuts in order to remove the shell previously to
submitting the kernels to the action of the press for extracting the oil,
but it may also be used for the purpose of cracking any other kind of

page_text: nuts that are required to be cracked in large quantities for any other
purpose.
The Invention consists principally in the use of a revolving fan
producing a blast or current of air and throwing the nuts with a
sufficient force against an iron or other target to crack or break the
shells without injuring the kernels. The fan is enclosed in a sheet iron
or other suitable case having an entrance passage provided with a
hopper for the introduction of the nuts, and a discharge or exit pipo
along which they are forced or driven by the current of air, and
discharged against the iron or other target (placed perpendicularly
opposite to the mouth thereof) against which they are cracked or broken
and fall down into a suitable receptacle placed beneath.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Edwin Bates and Thomas Dodd in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th April 1869.
TO. ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
EDWIN BATES and THOMAS DODD, both of Northwich, in the County of
Chester, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said William Edwin Bates and Thomas
Dodd, Her special licence that we, the said William Edwin Bates and
Thomas Dodd, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said William Edwin Bates and Thomas Dodd, 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, should and lawfully might make, use, excrcise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CRACKING NUTS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said William Edwin Bates, and

page_text: Thomas Dodd, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and scals, 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
monthis next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edwin Bates, on behalf of
myself and the said Thomas Dodd, do hereby declare the nature of our
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, that is to say:-
Our Invention relates, firstly, to improved machinery employed
principally for the purpose of cracking palm nuts in order to remove
the shells previously to their being submitted to the press for extracting
the oil. The same or similar machinery is also to be applied for
cracking common nuts, filberts, walnuts, and other similar fruits where
large quantities are required to be broken at the same time.
Our said Invention relates, secondly, to improved machinery for
separating the kernels of the nuts or fruits from the husks or shells
after having been cracked. Heretofore in the cracking of nuts, walnuts
and other similar fruits in large quantities, it has been customary to
use rollers having a sufficient space underneath to allow the shells or
husks of average sized nuts to be broken without injury to the kernels.
The inadequacy of this system is obvious. All those nuts that were
very large had their kernels damaged and broken, whilst the small ones
passed underneath the rollers without being touched.
The first object of our Invention is to produce an apparatus that will
crush or break the shells of any amount of nuts of any size without
injury to their kernels. For this purpose we construct an ordinary.
centrifugal fan or pump consisting of a disc with blades, fans or leaves,
attached to its periphery revolving round an axis in a barrel or case of
sheet iron or other metal. At the points where the water is conducted
into the ordinary centrifugal pump, we introduce the nuts or other
fruits required to be broken, which for this purpose are contained in a
hopper placed above the machine. The blades, fans, or leaves exactly
fill the interior of the barrel or case, as if any space were left the nuts
would accumulate and choke the machine. The disc and blades are

page_text: then caused by steam or other motive power to revolve at a great speed.
The blast or current of air generated by the rapid revolution of the disc
and blades and aided by the centrifugal force also generated thereby
causes the nuts or other fruits to fly off with great force at a tangent
along a discharge or exit pipe. A perpendicular or slightly inclined
target or shield of metal or wood (by preference metal) is erected
at a convenient distance from the fan and in front of the mouth of
the exit pipe. The space between this target and the mouth of the
exit pipe is boxed in to prevent the broken shells and nuts from flying
about. The nuts or other fruits to be cracked are driven with great
force against this target and are consequently broken, falling down
immediately in front of it into a convenient receptacle. By this
means as many as forty tons may be cracked per diem, being an
enormous increase on the capabilities of the present method.
The second part of our Invention relates to the separation of the
kernels of the nuts from the husks' or shells after being cracked. For
this purpose we use a rotatory wirework cylinder revolving on a central
spindle; this cylinder we place at an angle of about 30° (more or less)
to the horizon. The openings of the wirework are made small at the
elevated extremity of the cylinder, increasing gradually in size to the
lower portion, where they are made large enough to allow the exit of
an average sized nut or shell. We also use instead of the wirework
an iron (or other metal) perforated cylinder inclined to the horizon as
before, the perforations increasing in size from the elevated end of the
cylinder to the lower portion. The nuts after being cracked and still
mixed with the shells are introduced into the upper part of the cylinder,
which is then caused to revolve. The kernels and pieces of shells are
immediately impelled by the centrifugal force generated by the
revolutions and endeavour to escape through the apertures or perforations.
The smallest succeed in doing so first, then, those somewhat larger, and
lastly those of an average size. The largest pieces of shells together
with the largest nuts do not escape by the apertures or perforations,
but are ejected from the lower end of the cylinder. We have then
separated the kernels into several different grades or sizes, but the shells
or husks are still mixed with them. In order to separate the shells from
the kernels we introduce both into a vat, bath, or receptacle filled or
partially filled with water mixed with salt or water only (by preference
water mixed with salt.) The kernels having a greater specific gravity

page_text: to the bottom, winst the shers of musks will remain on the surface or
the water.
In order that the nature of our said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed and carried into effect in practice,
may be particularly described and ascertained, we append to this
Specification a Sheet of Drawings having letters of reference marked
thereupon, and we now proceed to describe our Invention in detail, with
reference to the Drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
The Figure represented on the Drawings is a sectional elevation of the
centrifugal fan or pump. a is the framework or case of metal in which
the blades, fans, or leaves b, b, revolve, in the direction indicated by the
arrow; 6' is the feed pipe from the hopper to convey the nuts into the
fan; c is the discharge or exit pipe; d the target, and e the hopper for
containing the nuts. The portion f, between the target and the mouth
of the exit pipe, is boxed in to prevent the broken nuts from flying
about; g is the receptacle for receiving the broken nuts as they fall
from the target.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of our
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, by illustrating and describing the best modifications
with which we are acquainted, we would observe, without restricting
ourselves to the particular form and detail shewn upon the Drawings,
that what we consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as
the Invention secured to us by the herein-before in part recited Letters
Patent is,-
Firstly. The cracking or splitting of palm nuts, nuts, walnuts, and
other similar fruits without injury to the kernels, by impelling them
from a centrifugal fan against a metal shield or target by means of the
blast or current of air, and the centrifugal force generated by the rapid
revolution of the fan.
Secondly. The sifting, screening, or separating the shells and kernels
into heaps containing different sizes by means of an inclined rotatory
wirework cylinder, the interstices or spaces between the wires of which
are made largest at the lower extremity, decreasing gradually in size
up to the elevated portion.

page_text: Also the separating of the shells from the kernels by introducing both
into a vat or bath containing water mixed with salt or water only (by
preference water mixed with salt). The specific gravity of the kernels
being greater than that of water, and the specific gravity of the shells
being less than that of water, the kernels and shells thus.separate.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edwin Bates, on behalf of
myself and the said Thomas Dodd, have hereunto set my hand
and scal, this Twenty-seventh day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.