Improvements in Machinery for Producing Letters and Designs in Wood, Metal, or other Material, and for Routing Out Engraved Blocks.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Oct., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 20th July, 1892-Accepted, 10th Sept., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Producing Letters and Designs in
Wood, Metal, or other Material, and for Routing Out Engraved
Blocks.
We THOMAS GREAVES and SAMUEL ALGERNON MASON both of Southbrook
Road Works Lee Kent trading as "Thos. Greaves & S. Mason" Printing Material
Manufacturers and CHARLES HOWARD of 63 Linton Street New North Road
Middlesex Wood Letter Carver do hereby declare the nature of this invention to
be as follows:-
In a machine made according to our invention the block of wood or other
material to be cut is fixed by clamps upon a sliding table working on bearings
which themselves work in a direction at right angles to the sliding table ou metal
rails fixed into the frame of the machine.
Above this sliding table are fixed one or more vertical spindles each fitted with
a drill or cutter and in such a position that the cutters are immediately over the
sliding table before mentioned. The frame containing the spindles is so arranged
that they may be raised or lowered by a spring lever so as to cut, the required
depth in the block.
The sliding table before mentioned is actuated by an arrangement of four or
more horizontal levers connected to each other by studs and clamps supported at
one end on a pivot at a fixed point outside the frame of the machine and in a line
with the spindles.
At the extremity of one of the levers on the opposite side of the system of
levers to that at which is the fixed point is fitted the tracer which works
over the design or letter to be reproduced fixed by clamps on a table below
the tracer.
These levers are provided with adjustable centres which enable the operator to
produce letters or designs of a given size according to a graduated scale marked
on such levers.
According to our invention the sliding table containing the block to be cut is
made to move under the fixed spindles containing the cutters in exactly the same
direction as the tracer is moved by the hand in tracing out the letters or designs on
the model and by this means producing the same letter or design either of the same
size, or smaller according to the position of the levers with regard to the graduated
scale. In other machines for producing letters or designs the table containing the
block is fixed and the cutters are moveable whereby only diminished copies can be
produced and only one at a time but by our invention we are enabled to produce
exact copies as well as diminished ones and are also able to produce more than one
copy at the same time and in addition to this there is less friction and the machinery
for producing the same is much less cumbrous.
LESLIE ANTILL,
1, Gresham Buildings, Basinghall Street, E.C., Agent for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Producing Letters and Designs in
Wood, Metal, or other Material, and for Routing Out Engraved
Blocks.
We THOMAS GREAVES and SAMUEL ALGERNON MASON both of Southbrooke
Road Works Lee Kent trading as Thomas Greaves and S. Mason Printing
Material Manufacturers and CHARLES HOWARD of 63 Linton Street New North
Pin27

page_text: Figure 2 is a front elevation thereof the supporting bar of the tracer lever being
omitted for the sake of clearness.
Figure 3 is a transverse section taken on the line 1-1 of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a view similar to the upper part of Figure 3 but representing a slight
modification.
Figure 3 is a plan thereof.
Figure 6 is a detail view of part.
In the several figures like parts are indicated by similar letters of reference.
Referring to Figures 1, 2 and 3 a represents the base frame of the machine
a represents a vertical standard rising therefrom for supporting the upper 'frame
and represents a transverse beam upon which some of the working parts are
supported as hereinafter more fully described.
On the front end of the beam is mounted a slide c which is capable of endway
adjustment thereon & is adapted to be fixed in position upon the beam & by means
of clamping or binding screws c¹.
From the upper side of this slide crises a spindle ce upon which is mounted
with capability of revolution a ring formed with ratchet teeth upon its upper
side and with a hand lever * and above the ring 2 is mounted upon the spindle ³
a cylinder d furnished upon its lower end with ratchet teeth d' corresponding with
those of the ring and this cylinder is so controlled by a stud d³ or it might
be a feather or the like that it is capable of vertical movement only upon the
spindle whilst upon the upper end of the cylinder d¹ is fixed a table d upon
which the pattern or template is clamped by means of a screw d*.
Thus by partially rotating the ring in one direction the table d may be
lowered to receive the template or pattern and by rotating the same in the opposite
direction the table d and template or pattern may be raised into the required
position beneath the tracer * hereinafter more fully referred to.
The block of wood or other material to be cut is fixed by means of a clamping

page_text: screw e¹ upon a table e which is adapted to slide transversely of the machine upon
dovetailed ways formed upon a slide which is itself adapted to slide longitudinally
of the machine upon rails a fixed to the standards a' so that the table e and slide f
are capable of being moved in directions at right angles to each other.
Above and immediately over the work table e and mounted with capability of
rotary movements in bearings g* which are mounted with capability of vertical
movement upon longitudinal bars a³ of the frame extending between the standards a¹
is a spindle y upon the upper end of which is fixed a grooved pulley g¹ which is
driven by means of a strap or band 2 from any suitable source of power
whilst upon the lower. end of the spindle is fixed a cutting tool of any
suitable form.
To the cutter spindle g is pinjointed at ¹ one end of a lever h which is mounted
upon a centre of motion 2 carried by a bracket a³* from one of the bars a³ and
the opposite end of this lever his pinjointed at ³ to a connecting rod at its
lower end pinjointed at to one end of a treadle lever he mounted upon an axis
of motion and by means of which the cutter spindle g is adapted to be brought
down upon the work whilst a spring * at one end attached to the lever hand at
the other end connected with one of the bars a³ acts to lift the cutter off the work
and normally retain it in its raised position.
The work table e has fixed to the underside thereof a stud or spindle e³ which
passes through a long slot f¹ formed in the slide f and is pivotally and adjustably
connected with one of a system of horizontal levers i,,,which are pin-
jointed together at **2*3* the pivot being a fixed vertical spindle or centre
of motion upon which the levers are loosely mounted and which spindle is carried
by an adjustable bracket capable of sliding and adapted to be fixed in position
upon the bean by means of clamping screws ; whilst in order to afford a broad
bearing for the system of levers, the levers P,, are supported by inclined stays
or struts ***** at their inner ends also loosely mounted upon the spindle **.
The levers are formed with holes therein and they are marked with a
graduated scale as is well understood so that by altering the position of the
centres to corresponding points of graduation upon the levers i² and by
shifting the spindle to a corresponding graduation in the lever and moving
the centre * along the beam & to correspond the scale of the work being cut may
be varied with relation to the pattern or template.
On the front end of the lever i is fixed a pointed tracer *1 immediately over the
pattern table d and this tracer is by the hand of the operator moved over the
design to be reproduced by the cutter upon the block carried by the work table e
the scale of the pattern produced by the cutter being regulated by the adjustment
of the centres **** of the system of levers as hereinbefore described whilst
in order to support and guide the tracer end of the lever i a bar k is employed
which is adjustably mounted upon the beam "6" in a similar manner to the
slide c.
When it is desired to produce a design upon the table e to precisely the same
scale as that of the template or pattern the slide c and pattern table d are placed
upon the base a beneath the spindle of the table e whilst the end of the spindle e³
is provided with a suitable fitting (not shown) to which the tracer * is fixed
but otherwise the construction and operation of the machine are the same
as has been previously described and the system of levers is still manipulated
from the extremity of i.
In the example given at Figures 4 and 5 two cutter spindles y are mounted side
by side in a similar manner to that hereinbefore described with respect to
Figures 1, 2 and 3 or a number of such spindles might if desired be so mounted
the work table e and connected parts being extended to accommodate the increased
area of work as will be readily understood whilst-the-frames- g*
** of the cutter
spindles are mounted with capability of lateral adjustment upon the" beams a³ of
the frame in order to enable the cutters to be spaced to correspond with the
position of the work.

page_text: When the machine is arranged in the manner lastly herein before described
designs may be reproduced to an equal scale by clamping the template or
pattern upon the extension of the work table e and substituting a fixed tracing
point for one of the cutters the system of levers still being manipulated from
the extremity of the lever i but the tracer at that point being dispensed
with.
In machines of the character hereinbefore described for producing designs from
a template or pattern the work table carrying the block to be cut has heretofore
been fixed whilst the cutter spindle and cutter has been caused to move over the
surface of the block in order to produce the desired design and by this arrange-
ment it was difficult or impossible to produce more than one copy at the time and
to a scale corresponding with that of the pattern or template.
By the means hereinbefore described however the work table e carrying the
material in which the design is to be produced is by the system of levers caused to
move in unison with the tracer *1 whilst the cutter spindle g is a fixed point
and this arrangement of parts renders it easy to adjust the machine either for
the production of a design of a scale identical with the scale of the pattern
or template or to vary the same at will by a trifling alteration of the parts, and an
additional advantage is that the working parts are much simplified and the machine
is much less cumbrous than heretofore.
Although the invention has been described in connection with the reproduction
of letters or designs it will be understood that it is equally applicable for routing
out engraved blocks produced by other means.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is
1. In a machine of the character hereinbefore described the combination of a
work table adapted to carry the material in which the design is to be reproduced
and to receive a universal movement a cutter spindle mounted with capability of
rotary and vertical movement a system of jointed levers connected with the work
table and at one point mounted upon an adjustable fixed centre and at another
point provided with a tracer and a table located beneath the tracer for holding the
pattern or template to be reproduced substantially as herein shown and described
and for the purpose stated.
2. In a machine of a character hereinbefore described table capable of
universal moment and adapted to hold the material upon which the design is
to be reproduced substantially as herein shown and described and for the
purpose stated.
3. In a machine of the character hereinbefore described the combination of a
cutter spindle mounted with capability of rotary and vertical mo ement a work
table mounted in guides upon a slide with capability of moving transversely thereof
and a slide carrying the work table adapted to move in guides at r. ht angles to
the traverse of the work table substantially as herein shown and described and for
the purpose stated.
4. The peculiar combination and arrangement of parts constituting machinery
for producing letters and designs in wood, metal, and other material and for routing
out engraved blocks substantially as berein shown and described.
LESLIE ANTILL,
1, Gresham Buildings, Basinghall Street, E.C.,
Agent for the said Thomas Greaves, Samuel Algernon Mason, and
Charles Howard.