Improvements in Grids for Machines for Opening and Cleaning Cotton and other Fibres.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Mar., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 21st Dec., 1891-Accepted, 30th Jan., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Grids for Machines for Opening and Cleaning
Cotton and other Fibres.
I, WALTER FROST, of Well Street, Todmorden in the County of York,
Mechanic, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to grids for machines for opening and cleaning cotton and
other fibres, such as openers, scutchers, willows and similar machines and consists in
an improved construction of the bars composing said grids.
Ordinarily these bars are solid bars of cast iron and of triangular section, the
angle at the bottom or outer corner of the bar being acute and the two sides
enclosing this angle of different lengths, the leading side first encountered by the
beater or its equivalent being longer than the other side. My improvement
consists in forming the bars with a groove on the top or side turned towards the
beater, making said groove preferably as deep as possible, and leaving the sides of
uniform thickness, so that the bar is of a Vee shaped or angle iron section with an
acute angle and two sides of unequal length. Preferably these bars are made of steel.
They will present two edges over which the cotton or other fibre is propelled by
the beater or its equivalent and thus produce a much greater opening and cleaning
effect than the ordinary bars, and impurities can collect in the groove.
removal of these impurities and dust one of the sides of the bar may be formed
with notches or slots. The bars may be fixed in any ordinary suitable manner.
Preferably I employ a fixed circular segment with notches in the underside into
which the edge of the leading longer side of the angle bar enters and another move-
able segment with notches into which the corner of the angle bar enters and hold
the bars in this manner.
For the
By shifting the moveable segment the angle formed by the leading side with a
radius from the centre of the beater, or the "hook" of the bar, and the space
between two consecutive bars can be varied as may be desired for obtaining the
best effect of the machine upon the material treated on it.
Dated this 20th day of March 1891.
W. T. EMMOTT,
Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Grids for Machines for Opening and Cleaning
Cotton and other Fibres.
I WALTER FROST of Well Street, Todmorden in the County of York, Mechanic,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
My invention relates to grids for machines for opening and cleaning cotton and
other fibres, such as openers, scutchers, willows and similar machines and consists
in an improved construction or form of the bars composing said grids.
Ordinarily these bars are solid bars of cast iron and of triangular section, the
angle at the bottom or outer corner of the bar being acute and the two sides
enclosing this angle of different lengths, the leading side first encountered by the
beater or its equivalent being longer than the other side. My improvement consists
in forming the bars with a groove in the top or side turned towards the beater,
037

page_text: making said groove preferably as deep as possible and leaving the sides of uniform
thickness so that the bar is of an angle iron or V shaped section with an acute
angle and sides of unequal length. They will present two edges over which the
cotton or other fibre is propelled by the beater or its equivalent and thus produce a
much greater opening and cleaning effect than the ordinary bars.
:
In order that my invention may be more readily ascertained I have hereunto
appended a sheet of drawings on which
Fig. 1. represents a partial section of a scutcher grid constructed with my
improved bars,
Fig. 2 a partial plan of the same with straight bars,
Fig. 3 a similar plan with zig-zag bars,
Fig. 4 a partial view of a vertical grid for openers,
Figs. 5, 6 and 7 details on an enlarged scale.
My improvement consists mainly in making the bars a a of said grids of a
V shaped section similar to that shewn on Figs. 1 and 7 with one side a longer
than the other side a² and an acute angle at the bottom. The triangle y = Figs. 1
and 7 being of a similar shape as that formed by the sides of the solid or ungrooved
bars hitherto used. The V shaped bars may be cast of iron or steel or rolled of
wrought iron or steel or bent into shape out of flat rolled strips of iron or steel.
The bars may be supported and combined in any suitable manner. For instance,
the ends of the bars may be partly cut away as shewn by Fig. 6 and inserted into
blocks or plates b (Figs. 6 and 7) having suitable slots formed in them for the
reception of the bars, and these blocks inserted into grooved segments c (Figs. 1, 2
and 3) fixed to the machine frame, in a similar manner as the solid ordinary bars
cast with plates or blocks at their ends are supported. Or instead thereof the
bottom corners y of the bars a may be inserted into notches of a moveable segment
on its concave side and the upper corners into notches of a fixed segment on its
convex side, so that by shifting the moveable segment and locking it in different
positions the inclination of the leading side of the bars to a radius from the centre
of the beater or the "hook" of the bars can be varied, the arrangement being
similar to that at times used with the solid bars hitherto employed.
The shaped bars may be straight as shewn by Fig. 2, or waved or zig-zag as
shewn by Figure 3, and they may be in one length extending over the width of the
grid or in several parts with intermediate supports for the ends of said parts.
Figure 4 shows as an example of this arrangement part of a grid for a Crighton
opener composed of the improved V shaped bars. This grid is formed of several
conical rings superimposed one on the other, two of which are partially shewn on
the drawing. The V shaped bars a a are fixed in flat rings or segments of rings d d¹
in a similar manner as in the blocks b herein before described. The inclination of
the bars in each ring is preferably opposite to that in the one below as shewn on
the drawing, and the bars set in advance of those below them by half the pitch of the
bars. With this arrangement the impurities and dust collected in the groove of
the bars will slide down to the bottom and pass out through the opening in the
lower rings d (similar to the opening & Fig. 7), the upper rings d' being formed with
openings or recesses at the intervals between the bars through which openings or
recesses the impurities and dust escape.
In the case of horizontal grids I form slots f, Figs. 1 and 2, in the long sides of
the bars, or slots f¹ in their short sides, or notch the bottom corners so as to form
slots at the bottom of the groove for the escape of the impurities and dust
collected in them.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
Firstly. The formation of the bars composing the grids for machines for opening
and cleaning fibres with grooves in the top side or of ✓ shaped section substantially

page_text: Secondly. The use of V shaped bars for forming grids for machines for opening
and cleaning fibres, substantially as described.
Thirdly. In V shaped bars for grids for machines for opening and cleaning fibres
the arrangement of slots or notches in the same for the removal of the dust and
impurities collected in the grooves of said bars substantially as herein before
described and illustrated by the drawings.
Dated this 10th day of December 1891
R. J. URQUHART,
Manchester, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent.
R. J. URQUHART,
Manchester, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent.