IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND OTHER ARTICLES OF CLAY OR BRICK EARTH
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Francis Porter, of Bessborough Street, in the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND OTHER ARTICLES OF CLAY OR
BRICK EARTH."
Sealed the 24th July 1855, and dated the 31st January 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Francis Porter
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 31st January 1855.
I, JOHN FRANCIS PORTER, of Bessborough Street, in the County of Mid-
dlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND OTHER ARTICLES OF CLAY OR
BRICK EARTH" to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, first, in the combination of a pug mill with a pair
of rollers for expressing clay through dies or into moulds for forming bricks.
The pug mill will of itself form part of the feeding chamber to the rollers,
or will be connected with them by means of a chamber, for the delivery of the
clay or brick earth to the rollers after it shall have been prepared in such pug
mill; by which means a more economical mode of construction of machinery
for brick making will be effected, and the power expended in pugging the clay
will be partly available in a much greater degree than formerly for forming
the brick, &c.

page_text: Second, the pug mill will be constructed with two or more revolving shafts,
parallel to each other, or at an angle with each other, upon which inclined
blades are to be affixed, for the purpose of pugging the clay, or otherwise pre-
paring it and feeding the rollers, by which means the clay or brick earth
will be more effectually mixed and with less power than by the pug mills
with single shafts.
Third, I form the expressing orifices of substances which shall not offer
equal resistance to the passage of the clay, for the purpose of promoting a
more equable discharge of the same-through-the moulds, whereby those parts
of the mould which from their shape offer a greater resistance to the passage
of the earth may be rendered less adhesive by the use of different metals at
those parts to which the clay shall not so much adhere as to the other parts
where other metals are used.
The Invention also consists in making an indentation or hollow on the bed
of the brick by, suitable machinery, which shall scoop out, such indentation, or
hollow before it shall have been delivered from the, machine... And I add a
stop to the moulding orifice, so as to impede the passage of the clay in the
centre part of orifice, and in such position in respect of which orifice that
the brick shall not be perforated thereby, for the purpose of equalizing the
resistance to the passage of the clay through the whole section of the
moulding orifice.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said John Francis Porter, in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
28th July 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
FRANCIS PORTER, of Bessborough Street, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of January; in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Francis Porter, Her special licence that I, the said John
Francis Porter, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said John Francis Porter, 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 theréin 'expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain

page_text: and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS AND OTHER ARTICLES OF CLAY OR BRICK
EARTH," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Francis
Porter, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Francis Porter, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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:
My Invention consists, first, in the combination of a pug mill with a pair
of rollers for expressing clay through dies or into moulds for forming bricks.
The pug mill of itself forms part of the feeding chamber to the rollers, or is
connected with them by means of a chamber, for the delivery of the clay or
brick earth to the rollers after it shall have been prepared in such pug mill;
by which means a more economical mode of construction of machinery for
brick making is effected, and the power expended in pugging the clay is made
available to a great degree for forming the brick, etc.
Second, the pug mill is constructed with two or more revolving shafts,
parallel to each other, or at an angle with each other, upon which inclined
blades are affixed for the purpose of pugging the clay, or otherwise preparing
it and feeding the rollers, by which means the clay or brick earth is more
effectually mixed and with less power than by pug mills with single shafts.
Third, I form the expressing orifices of substances which shall not offer
equal resistance to the passage of the clay, for the purpose of promoting a
more equable discharge of the same through the moulds, whereby those parts
of the moulds which from their shape offer a greater resistance to the passage
of the clay or earth may be rendered less, adhesive by the use of different
metals. And I add a stop to the moulding orifice, so as to impede the passage
of the clay in the centre part of orifice, and in such position in respect of which
orifice that the bricks shall not be perforated thereby, for the
equalizing the resistance to the passage of the clay.
purpose
of
I do not think it necessary to describe fully the method by which the bricks
are formed, as that is already well known. I shall therefore describe such
parts particularly as are the subject of the present Invention. In the descrip-
tion.of the Drawings the same letters and figures of reference refer to similar
parts of the machine or apparatus.

page_text: Figure 5 is an
mill removed;
Figure 1 is a plan of machine for making bricks, etc., and of pug mill for
preparing material; Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same; Figure 3 is a
section on line A, B; Figure 4 is a section on line C, D;
elevation of rollers and chamber at the line E, F, with pug
Figure 6 is an end elevation of the machine as seen from the pug mill end;
Figure 7 is a section taken on line G, H; Figures 8 and 9 are sections of a
die with stop. a is the pug mill, the trunk of which is in two pieces for
convenience of manufacture for preparing the brick earth, etc., which is
introduced through the hopper. a', a², are hollow shafts, upon which inclined
or other blades 6 or spiral cutters are cast, or otherwise fixed, for mixing the
earth. bare spindles passing-through. these shafts, and secured thereto by
keys or other means; 62 are geared wheels for giving rotary motion to the
blades b; c is a pulley or cog wheel, by which the power is applied to work
the shafts a²; care the bearings of the spindles 61; c² are plates, forming part
of feeding chamber, and are moveable, in case the chamber requires to be
cleaned; d are the side frames of the machine, which also form in part the
feeding and expressing chambers m¹ and m³; d¹ are rollers, revolving on their
shafts d³ and bearings n¹, and driven simultaneously by the cogged wheels e.
These rollers receive the clay from the pug mill through the feeding chamber
m³, and force it into expressing chamber m³, and through mouth-piece e², and
die f. The rollers may be kept apart at the required distance by means of
the screw n³, working through the cap o, and turned by the handle o'. d¹ is a
cogged wheel, or other medium of giving motion to the rollers d¹; e is a mouth-
piece, of cast iron or other metal, bolted to the frames d, through which are
inserted scrapers of iron f, with adjusting screws f¹, for clearing the earth
from the rollers, and conducting the same into chamber m³; f is the die for
giving shape to the article moulded.
When the nature of the earth requires it, I construct the die of different
metals, in the manner following:-I make the angles of the die of gun metal
or brass, and the planes between the corners I construct of iron, or any
metal or substance which may offer greater resistance to the passage of the
clay than that used for the said corners, in order to proportion in some measure
tho resistance offered to the clay in its passage through the die. The resistance
of border of die at the angles being greater in proportion to the quantity of
earth passing through than it is at the planes between the corners, I make the
former of a material which shall offer less resistance. For a similar purpose,
namely, to promote an equal rate of discharge through the die, and to make
the moulded corners of brick issue more perfect, I add a stop 2, Fig. 8
and 9, to the moulding orifice, in order to prevent the clay issuing too rapidly

page_text: through centre of such orifice. 9 are segments of iron, which are pressed
against the ends of the rollers (as they wear) by the adjusting screws g¹; they
are sufficiently long to cover so much of the ends of the rollers as are within
the chambers m¹ and m³, and by this means all useless escape of brick earth
is prevented. 9 represents the brick earth after having been moulded by the
die f; h shews the bricks after they have been severed by the cutting wire l';
h is one of the bricks shewn in the act of falling from the delivery roller i",
with its pallet board i on delivery frame ¹, which turns on its pivot j. . This
frame is made to rise again after the brick has been removed by the tension
of the india-rubber spring m wrapping the roller . h² are rollers, covered
with fustian, for the more casy movement of the moulded material; is the
delivery roller, free to revolve, or the periphery of which is made to travel a
little faster than the moulded clay, and thus, the brick being moved forward
more rapidly, the corner of which in the act of turning over will not come in
contact with the brick behind. is the framework for carrying the apparatus
for severing the partially formed article; k are the side rods of severing frame
or cutting apparatus, which slide in guides in frame ; k are ends of severing
frame, upon which the handle is fixed; are thumb screws for tightening
cutting wires ; under these screws are springs m, to accommodate the wire to
obstruction there may be in the earth to their passage; m² is a board,
resting on bar n', upon which the delivery frame and pallet board i fall. For
the better preparation of the clay, I place a pair of rollers or more on the
hopper a', the sides of which hopper I use to carry the bearings of axles of
rollers. I have not thought it necessary to shew these rollers in the Drawing,
as their application to the machine may be sufficiently understood without.
any
The operation of the machine is as follows, namely:-Clay or brick earth
is put into the pug mill through the hopper a¹ by any suitable means; or it
may be discharged into it from rollers placed on hopper sides a¹, between
which rollers the earth is passed for the purpose of crushing the hard lumps
of clay or stones contained in it, or material mixed with the clay. The earth
is then effectually mixed by the revolution of the knives b, which also force it
towards the rollers d', by the mutual revolution of which the clay is forced
through chamber mouth-piece and die, and then cut into convenient shapes or
thicknesses by the wires described. The relative surfaces of the respective
metals forming the die (when different metals are used) must be determined
by experiment, according to the nature of the clay and shape of the article to
be moulded.
In my Provisional Specification I proposed to make an indentation or hollow
in the bed of the brick by suitable machinery. Since the filing, however,.of

page_text: the said Provisional Specification, I have found that such formation at that
stage of manufacture is not of practical utility, and therefore. lay no claim to
it. I do not claim the seperate parts (besides those hereafter enumerated) of
the machine, but I claim,..
First; the combination of the brick machine, with pug mill and feeding
chamber, and apparatus, as shewn or described herein, to form an improved
machine for the manufacture of bricks and other articles of clay or brick
earth...
Second, the constructing of shafts upon which knives or blades of any
form are cast or fixed, having a core through the centre of such shafts for the
insertion of the driving spindle.
Third, the moveable plates forming part.of.feeding chamber..
Fourth, the insertion, 'of, the scrapers in the mouth-piece between the rollers
and die, whereby the scraper is placed more tangentially with the surface of
rollers, and better secured by such insertion.
Fifth, the employment of different metals, in the, construction of dies and
the stops, as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Francis Porter, have hereunto set
my hand and' seal, this Twenty-fifth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
HDE. PAYAN,
14, Rue Chauchat,
Paris.
JOHN FRANCIS PORTER. (L.S.)