IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE PREPARATION OR MANUFACTURE OF THE BOTTOMS OR SOLES AND HEELS OF BOOTS AND SHOES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Grimes, of Leicester, in the County of
Leicester, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE PREPARATION OR MANUFACTURE OF THE
BOTTOMS OR SOLES AND HEELS OF BOOTS AND SHOES."
Sealed the 14th July 1868, and dated the 30th January 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Grimes at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
30th January 1868.
I, JOHN GRIMES, of Leicester, in the County of Leicester, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE PREPARATION OR MANUFACTURE
OF THE BOTTOMS OR SOLES AND HEELS OF BOOTS AND SHOES," to be as
follows:-
In the manufacture of boots and shoes the inner and outer soles
and pieces of material required in making the heel and other parts,
as the bottoms or soles, have to be cut by hand or to be stamped or

page_text: pressed out to the required shapes and sizes. Now heretofore even in
the best constructed presses used for this purpose the die or punch has
been uppermost, and it has been secured to a block by running lead
round the die when placed in a groove in the block, in which arrange-
ment inconvenience and difficulty have been experienced in readily
removing the punched or pressed pieces and the refuse arising therefrom,
thereby considerably reducing the speed at which the press might be
worked.
Now such inconvenience and difficulty are entirely obviated by the
employment of my machinery or apparatus in which a press and die
are used constructed according to my Invention as follows:-I employ
a press, upon the bed plate of which is secured a block, upon which is
fixed a sharp-edged die of the required shape, having its sharp edge
pointing upwards; and in addition to the sharp-edged dic at each end
thereof is placed an auxiliary knife or die, which knives or dies slide
in a V slot, and are secured in these slots by screws. These knives or
dies are employed for separating the refused leather or other material
out of which the required piece is punched or cut, so as to enable the
refuse or other material to fall to the floor or into a suitable receptacle.
At the back of the press are two guard pieces which are held up to
the top edge of the die, and against which the leather or other material
employed is pushed. These guard pieces are held to the die by levers
actuated by a grooved cam or by equivalent, and the guard pieces
are capable of adjustment to answer or correspond with any shaped or
sized dio that may be used in the press. Above the die is a block
faced with metal and secured to the moveable head of the press, and it
remains so fixed until changed for a block of other size or shape. The
faced block and the moveable head are brought down until the face
just touches the sharp edge of the die, so that when a piece of leather
or other material is pushed over the die the die will cut out a picce
of its own shape and size, such piece having a square edge will fall
through the dio and block, and also through the pierced bed of the
press, or into a spout, or to a slide, which will conduct it into a drawer
or other receptacle. The moveable head of the press is brought down
by means of two excentric cams or their equivalents upon the shaft
which carries the grooved cams, and lies preferably under the bed of
the press in bearings in the end standards, or in bearings attached to
the standards. This shaft may be provided at one end with a toothed

page_text: wheel, and at the opposite end with a fly wheel, and the press may be
driven by a spur wheel upon a main shaft gearing into the toothed
wheel.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent
filed by the said John Grimes in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 30th July 1868:
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
GRIMES, of Leicester, in the County of Leicester, Engineer, send.
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs, and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Grimes, Her special licence,
that I, the said John Grimes, my executors, administrators, and.
assigns, or such others as I, the said John Grimes, my 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, 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
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE PREPARATION OR MANUFACTURE OF THE BOTTOMS
OR SOLES AND HEELS OF BOOTS AND SHOES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said John Grimes, my executors or administrators,.
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 John Grimes, 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

page_text: following statement thereof, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, that is to say :-
In the manufacture of boots and shoes the inner and outer soles and
the pieces of material required in making the heel and other parts, as
the bottoms or soles, have to be cut by hand, or to be stamped or
pressed out to the required shapes and sizes. Now heretofore, even
in the best constructed presses used for this purpose, the die or punch
has been uppermost, and it has been secured to a block by running
lead round the die when placed in a groove in the block, in which
arrangement inconvenience and difficulty have been experienced in
removing the punched or pressed pieces, and also the refuse arising
therefrom, thereby considerably reducing the speed at which the press.
might be worked.
Now such inconvenience and difficulty are entirely obviated by the
employment of my machinery or apparatus in which a press and dic
are used constructed according to my Invention, as follows:-I employ
a press, upon the bed plate of which is secured a block of metal. Upon
this block is secured a sharp edged die of the required shape, the sharp
edge of which points upwards, and in addition to the sharp edged die
at each end thereof is placed an auxiliary knife or die, which knives
or dies slide in V slots or grooves, and are secured in these slots by
screws. These knives or dies are employed for the purpose of separating
the refuse leather or other material out of which the required piece is
punched or cut, so as to enable the refuse or other material to fall to
the floor, or into any suitable receptacle. At the back of the press are
two guard pieces, which are held up to the top edge of the die and
against which the leather or other material employed is pushed. These
guard picces are held to the die by levers actuated by a grooved cam,
or by its equivalent, and these guard pieces are capable of adjustment
so as to answer to or correspond with any shaped or sized die that may a
be used in the press. Above the die is a block faced with brass or
other metal, which block is secured to the moveable head of the press,
and it remains so fixed until it is changed for a block of another size
or shape. This faced block and the moveable head are brought down
until the face just touches the sharp edge of the dic, so that when a
piece of leather or other material has been previously pushed over the
die the die will cut out a piece therefrom of its own shape and size;

page_text: such piece having a square edge will fall through the die and block
to which it is secured, and also through the pierced bed of the press
into a spout or slide, which will conduct it into a drawer or other
receptacle. The moveable head of the press is brought down by means
of two excentric cams which are placed upon the same shaft which
carries the grooved cam, this shaft being placed under the bed of the'
press and lying in bearings in the end standards, or in bearings attached
to the standards. This shaft may be provided at one end with a toothed
wheel, and at the opposite end with a fly wheel, and the press may'
be driven by a spur wheel upon a main shaft gearing into the toothed'
wheel; but of course other ordinary driving arrangements may be used"
for these purposes.
:
Having thus set forth the nature of my said Invention, I now proceed.
more fully to describe the manner of performing the same, with.
reference to the accompanying Drawings, and to the letters and figures.
marked thereon.
1
Figure 1 is a front view, and Figure 2 a side view of my improved
machinery or apparatus constructed according to my Invention; Figure 3:
is a top view of the sharp edged die, and Figure 4 a view of the under
side of the block, which is faced with brass or other metal.
A, A, are two standards which support a bed plate B, to which are.
secured V or otherwise shaped slides which form part of vertical arms C,
between which slides the moveable head D of the press, which moveable
head is brought down by means of two eccentric cams E placed upon
a shaft which lies in bearings in the standards, or in bearings attached
to the standards. This shaft is provided at one end with a toothed
wheel F, which gears into the teeth of a spur wheel G. which is secured
upon one end of another shaft carried by bearings upon brackets which
project from the standards. The other end of the shaft is provided
with a fly wheel and with a fast and loose pulley. Upon the bed plate
of the machine is secured a block of metal, upon which is fastened a
sharp edged die H of any required shape and thickness, the sharp edge
of which points upwards, and in addition to the sharp edged die at cach
end thereof is placed an auxiliary knife or die, which knives or dies slide
in V grooves or slots, and are secured therein by screws, that is to say,
each knife slides in a separate slot or groove. Examples of these knives
ór dies are shown in plan secured to its block at Figure 3, and are

page_text: employed for the purpose of separating the refuse leather or other
material out of which the required piece is punched or cut, so as to
enable the refuse to fall to the floor or into a suitable receptacle. At
the back of the press are two guard pieces I, which are held up to the
top edge of the die H, and against which the leather or other material
employed is pushed. These guard pieces are adjustable horizontally in
sockets carried by a T-piece, which is adjustable vertically upon the
upper end of a lever actuated by a grooved cam K; the guard pieces
are set horizontally to suit the size of the die used in the press. The
cam K is so shaped that it draws back the guard pieces I to allow
the waste material to fall to the floor or other receptacle. Above the
die is a block L, shown in Figure 4, faced on its under side with brass
or other metal; the V-shaped recesses cut in one side of it are for
receiving the ends of the guard pieces I when the said block is brought
down on to the sharp edged die. This block is secured to the under
side of the moveable head D of the press, and it remains so fixed until
a change of die is made. This faced block and the moveable head are
brought down until the face just touches the sharp edge of the die,
so that after a piece of leather or other material has been previously
pushed over the die the die will cut out a piece therefrom of its own
shape and size, such piece having a square edge will fall through the
die and the block to which it is secured, and also through the pierced
bed of the press on to a spout or slide M, which will conduct it into
a drawer or other receptacle; the leather or other material which is fed
to the die to be cut or punched is pushed over and by the side of a
gaugo B which is adjustable horizontally upon a bracketed table B',
capable of being raised or lowered to the height of the sharp edge of
the die before mentioned, the table being raised or lowered by a screw
and hand wheel B. The moveable head D of the press which carrics
the brass faced block L is adjusted to correspond with the throw of the
excentrics E according to the height of the cutting die H (which may
be employed) by means of a hand wheel D' on one end of a shaft
carrying two worm wheels, which gear into two toothed wheels placed
one upon each of the threaded screws D' which support the head D,
the height at which it is adjusted.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same may be performed, I declare that I claim, the
improvements in machinery or apparatus herein-before described in so

page_text: far as regards the general arrangement and combination of parts whereof
the samic consists.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Grimes, have hercunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-cight.
Witness,
GEO. JON. ROBINSON,
Patent Office,
Nottingham.
JOHN GRIMES. (L.S.)