An Improved Scouring and Smutting Machine for Cleaning Grain, Rice and Seeds.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 18th June, 1890-Accepted, 2nd Aug., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Scouring and Smutting Machine for Cleaning Grain,
Rice and Seeds.
I WILLIAM HOUGHTON, of Helme Street Works, Great Grimsby in the County of
Lincoln, Engineer and Millwright do hereby declare the nature of this invention and
in what manner the saine is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
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My Invention relates to a scouring and smutting machine for separating the grit,
dirt, and other gross impurities from grain, as a preliminary to what is known as
polishing," and for cleaning rice, cotton and other seed.
In cleaning and polishing" machines such as that for which former Letters Patent
dated the 5th day of September 1889 No. 14016 were granted to me, a brush disc is
used in conjunction with a rotating perforated table but it has been found that the grit
and dirt lodged in the beard or otherwise mixed with the grain is liable to cause
undue wear of the brush and it is therefore desirable to remove these gross impurities
before submitting the grain to the action of the said machine.
For this purpose I provide a machine which is in many respects similar to the
aforesaid machine except that in lieu of the brush disc a perforated metal disc is
employed similar to the rotary perforated metal table, the grain being fed in between
the stationary and revolving perforated discs and subjected to the degree of attrition
necessary to dislodge the dirt which is carried off and ultimately separated from the
grain by a current of air admitted through the upper disc.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specifi-
cation, wherein
and
Figure 1 is a vertical section of a machine constructed according to my invention,
Figure 2 is a detail of the segmental scouring plates.
A is the revolving table and B the stationary disc both having a grated surface formed
of chilled iron castings in the form of segments secured upon a cast iron framework,
the apertures in the grated surface being in concentric circles of slits lying in a
direction nearly but not quite radial, the tangential inclination of the slits of the two
discs being opposite so that the slits of the one disc cross those of the other, the
direction of rotation of the table A being such that this opposite inclination of the slits
will counteract to a certain extent the centrifugal action of the rotating table on the
grain. The table A is keyed on a vertical shaft C whose footstep hearing Dis
vertically adjustable being supported on a lever E provided with a screw-adjustment F
whereby the distance between A and B can be varied as may be required to suit the
feed or other circumstances, without stopping the machine.
The rim of the table A projects over the inner wall of a circular trough G contained
within a casing made in two parts H H' connected by set screws, the upper part H
enclosing the upper disc B. Said trough has an aperture g in the bottom, through
which the grain after escaping at the circumference of the discs and falling into the
trough is discharged by pallets a attached to the table A and carried round thereby
in the trough. The upper disc B and its casing H' has a central aperture surmounted
by a feed hopper I and the casing also has a number of apertures by which air is
admitted above the upper disc. The outlet g of the annular trough leads into a grain
delivery spout K communicating with a winnowing hopper L whence an exhaust
passage M leads into the space below the table A enclosed by the lower casing H. In
the bottom of this casing is a central aperture and beneath it a fan N is keyed on the
shaft C by which a strong current of air is drawn through the apertures of the per-
forated disc B and table A and through the spouts and passages in the direction of
the arrows.
The dotted arrows shew the course of the grain. The hopper L has an
air inlet controlled by a regulator, and the discharge mouth of the hopper is fitted
ID 1

page_text: with valves forming a sort of air lock permitting of the collection and discharge of the
light grain. The table A and fan N are rotated at about 300 to 400 revolutions per
minute by a belt running on pulley O.
When however the machine is required to be made of large diameter and capacity,
the fan may be mounted on a separate shaft and in any suitable position and be driven
at a higher velocity than the table A, this being necessary in order to maintain a
sufficient exhaust in the vacuum chamber below the table with which the fan casing
would communicate.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is;
1. The herein described machine constituted by the combination of the stationary
and revolving perforated metal discs, the peripheral collecting trough, scrapers carried
by the revolving disc, enclosing casing, spouts, passages, and exhaust fan, arranged for
operation substantially as specified.
2. In the herein described machine, the combination of the rotating and stationary
perforated metal discs, substantially as and for the purpose specified.
3. In the herein described machine, the combination of the rotating and stationary
metal discs each having concentric circles of slits arranged in a slightly tangential
direction those of the one dise being reversely inclined to, and crossing, those of the
other disc substantially as and for the purpose specified.
4. In the herein described machine the combination of the rotating and stationary
perforated metal discs and of a screw adjustment and lever for supporting the footstep
bearing of the revolving disc shaft, substantially as specified.
Dated this 18th day
WM. HOUGHTON.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Patent Agents.
neor aun 10
APD HOT Spor