IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY. FOR WASHING AND DRYING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William McNaught, of Rochdale, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY.
FOR WASHING AND DRYING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Sealed the 18th June 1865, and dated the 16th December 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William McNaught at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 16th
December 1864.
I, WILLIAM M NAUGHT, of Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR WASHING AND DRYING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,'
to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for washing
and drying wool and other fibrous materials.
In the Specification of a Patent granted to me and dated the 6th of
December 1862, (No. 3274,) a washing machine is described, in which the
fibre is fed into a trough at one end, and by means of screw blades or pro-
pellers on a longitudinal axis, the fibre is carried to the other end of the trough
together with the liquid in which it is immersed, and there the washed fibre
is deposited on to an endless apron which raises it out of the trough and

page_text: delivers it to squeezing rollers whilst the liquid returns under a false bottom
with which the trough is furnished to the end at which the fibre is fed in.
Now my present Invention has for its object the improvement of such
machines, and for this purpose, in place of making the propeller blades truly
sections of a screw, as heretofore, I make their outer ends to a faster pitch
than the parts nearer to the axis; this I find causes the more rapid and com-
plete submersion of the fibre, and also removes any tendency of the fibre to
lap around the axis. I also prefer to use in place of a single axis two parallel
axes, each with propellers upon it, they are arranged so that the propellers on
the one axis pass between those on the other, and they revolve in opposite
directions approaching each other at the bottom.
The endless apron for raising the wool out of the trough I construct as
heretofore of metal laths lapping the one over the other, but instead of linking
them together by rings or ferrules at their ends, I employ circular or elliptical
cups; the circular cups being for fine pitched aprons, and have a stud or
nipple projecting from the bottom; the chain pulley is constructed so as to
take hold of these studs or nipples which gives a much more positive hold of
the apron than when it had only hold of the circular ferrules. The elliptical
cups are for coarse pitched aprons, and can either have studs as above, or may
have sufficient space between each as to allow the teeth of the chain pulley to
protrude between them, and thus attain the object of getting positive hold of
the apron, and drive it correctly, even should it stretch slightly, and become
slack around the chain pullies at the two ends. In order to prevent the wool
or fibre coming upon the edges of the endless apron I arrange oscillating
scrapers, one on each side of the apron, and at the lower end thereof these are
caused to vibrate by cranks or other similar contrivance, and they carry the
fibre which comes in their path inwards towards the centre of the apron.
When it is desired to wash wool in the fleece I prefer to employ stamping
apparatus; the stampers are lifted by cams or wipers, and then descend on to
the surface of a roller on which the fleece is, supported; this roller is contained
in a water trough, and it slowly revolves to carry the fleece outwards as the
work progresses. An endless apron or a series of rollers is employed to
conduct the fleece down to the roller, and another apron or series of rollers,
receives it after it has passed under the stampers or from an endless apron,
and delivers it to squeezing rollers. In order to render the action of the
stampers more rapid than if they descended only by their own weight I carry
them at the ends of arms turning on centres and intermediate between the
centre on which each arm turns and the beater at its outer end, I fix a weight,
by preference, so that its position on the arm may be adjusted; the nearer the

page_text: weight is placed to the centre on which the arm turns, the more rapid will be
the action of the beater. Two or more machines may be used in succession
if desired, the one passing on the fleece to the other.
In order to dry wool and other fibre after washing, a table with a surface of
wire gauze or similar material is sometimes employed, and a partial vacuum is
formed under the gauze, so that the moisture is sucked out of the fibre, or air
is forced outwards through the gauze.
Now when such an arrangement is used, I combine therewith a travelling
carriage to pass to and fro over the surface of the table and stir the fibre, so
as to expose constantly fresh surfaces. I arrange along each side of the table
guide rails with a rack. The carriage runs on these rails, and it carries an
axis on which are spur wheels gearing with the racks; there is also a bevilled
wheel on the same axis gearing with another bevilled wheel carried by a
longitudinal axis, along which it is able to slide, so that the longitudinal axis
being driven the carriages traverse along the table. When the table reaches
the end of its course by moving a sliding bar it shifts the driving straps, so as
to reverse the direction of rotation of the longitudinal axis, and consequently
cause the return of the carriage. The axis on the traversing carriage has
teeth upon it, which act on the wool or fibre, and stir it as the carriage passes
over it; a grating may be employed to clear the fibre from the teeth and
prevent it lapping around the roller.
I would remark that the mechanism by which the carriage is caused to
traverse to and fro may be varied, but it is essential that it should be made
self-acting as described.
Similar apparatus may be employed when drying on heated plates or other
drying surfaces.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William McNaught in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
16th June 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
MCNAUGHT, of Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William McNaught, Her special licence that I, the said William McNaught.

page_text: my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the sai
William M Naught, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at an
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafte
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 I
MACHINERY FOR WASHING AND DRYING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William McNaught, m
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 William McNaught, 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 following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery for washing
and drying wool and other fibrous materials.
In the Specification of a Patent granted to me, and dated the 6th of December
1862 (No. 3274) a washing machine is described, in which the fibre is fed
into a trough at one end, and by means of screw blades or propellers on a
longitudinal axis the fibre is carried to the other end of the trough, together
with the liquid in which it is immersed, and there the washed fibre is deposited
on to an endless apron, which raises it out of the trough and delivers it to
squeezing rollers, whilst the liquid returns under a false bottom, with which
the trough is furnished to the end at which the fibre is fed in.
Now my present Invention has for its object the improvement of such
machines, and for this purpose, in place of making the propeller blades truly
sections of a screw as heretofore, I make their onter ends to a faster pitch than
the parts nearer to the axis; this I find causes the more rapid and complete
submersion of the fibre, and also removes any tendency of the fibre to lap
around the axis. I also, according to my Invention, prefer to use in place of
a single axis, two parallel axes, each with propellers upon it; they are arranged
so that the propellers on the one axis pass between those on the other, and
they revolve in opposite directions, approaching each other at the bottom.
Figure 1 is a plan of a portion of a machine for washing wool and other
fibrous materials; Figure 2 is a cross section of the same.

page_text: In Figures 1 and 2, a is the tank; b is the false bottom, which is perforated
with holes towards the end ¹; c, c', are the shafts upon which the propellers d
are fixed; a few only of these propellers are shewn in Figure 2.
prefer to make the propellers of the following proportions:-Taking the
radius to be one foot three inches, I make the portion of the propeller towards
the centre a true screw of a pitch of eight inches, and the outer end of the
blade for a distance of about two inches, I make to a pitch of 12 inches, and
this change from one pitch to another is made rather suddenly, say in about
of an inch of the radius of the screw. The wheels e, e, are also fixed on the
shafts c, c, as also the pulley f. The material to be washed is placed in the
tank or trough, and agitated and carried forward by the propellers as in the
Patent of 1862 (No. 3274); but the tendency of the two sets of propellers
is to keep the materials more in the centre of the tank or trough, and by
increasing the pitch of such propellers at the periphery, as is shewn, a strong.
under current is induced in the liquor, while the surface remains stationary or
even retrograde. The fibre or material is fed in by hand at the end b¹, and
at the other end of the vessel it is taken out by the endless apron g, and
delivered through squeezing rollers.
When it is desired to wash wool in the fleece I prefer to employ stamping
apparatus, the stampers are lifted by cams or wipers, and then descend on to
the surface of a roller on which the fleece is supported; this roller is contained
in a water trough, and it slowly revolves to carry the fleece outwards as the
work progresses. An endless apron or a series of rollers is employed to conduct
the fleece down to the roller, and another apron or series of rollers receives it
after it has passed under the stampers or from an endless apron, and delivers
it to squeezing rollers. In order to render the action of the stampers more
rapid than if they descended only by their own weight, I carry them at the
ends of arms turning on centres and intermediate between the centre on which
each arm turns and the beater; at its outer end I fix a weight, by preference,
so that its position on the arm may be adjusted the nearer the weight is placed
to the centre on which the arm turns, the more rapid will be the action of the
beater. Two or more machines may be used in succession if desired, the
one passing on the fleece to the other.
A machine specially adapted for washing fleeces as above described is
shewn at Figures 3 and 4. a is a tank; b is a cylinder, which may or may
not be perforated on the periphery, but it is preferred that it should be per-
forated; c, c, are feeding rollers, and c', c', are delivering rollers. These.
rollers are fixed in the frame y, which is made high enough to act as a guide
to the fleeces, and prevent any entanglement with the pinions by which they.

page_text: are all geared together as is shown; d is a shaft on which are fixed cams or
tappets e; ff, are beaters; g is the centre on which they work; h, h, are
weights, which it is preferred should be adjustable. The shaft d in which are
fixed the cams or tappets e as also the toothed wheel j, is set in motion by a
strap revolving over the pulley i, and as the tappets revolve they lift up the
beaters f, f, and let them fall upon the materials on the cylinder b. The
cylinder 6 fixed on the shaft k (which shaft passes through stuffing boxes at
the sides of the tank), receives its motion from the wheel driven by the
wheel j. On the opposite end of shaft k is fixed a pulley m, which gives
motion by means of a belt or chain n through pulleys o and p to the rollers
c and c¹. All the rollers of each set are made to revolve in one direction by
the arrangement of the gear pinions as is shown. The rollers c revolve towards
the cylinder b, and rollers c' away from the cylinder b, and may convey the
material to squeezing rollers as is usual, such rollers however are not
shown in the Drawing. The fleeces or other materials to be operated upon
are placed on the feed rollers c, and carried under an immersing roller r, which
works freely in a slot at each end, from thence the materials pass to the
cylinder b, and being subjected to the action of the stampers are carried
forward and delivered to the squeezers; s is a water-tight door for clearing
out the dirt which settles to the bottom of the trough.
I would remark that the novelty in the above arrangement consists mainly
in the combination of the stampers or beaters f turning on centres or axes
with the cylinder or roller 6 for supporting the fleece or other material whilst
it is acted on by the said stampers or beaters.
In order to dry wool and other fibre after washing, a table with a surface
of wire gauze or similar material is sometimes employed, and a partial
vacuum is formed under the gauze so that the moisture is sucked out of the fibre,
or air is forced outwards through the gauze. Now, when such an arrangement
is used, I combine therewith a travelling carriage to pass to and fro over the
surface of the table, and stir the fibre so as to expose constantly fresh sur-
faces. I arrange along each side of the table guide rails with a rack. The
carriage runs on these rails, and it carries an axis on which are spur wheels
gearing with the racks, there is also a bevilled wheel on the same axis gearing
with another bevilled wheel carried by a longitudinal axis along which it is
able to slide, so that the longitudinal axis being driven, the carriages traverse
along the table. When the table reaches the end of its course by moving a
sliding bar it shifts the driving straps so as to reverse the direction of rotation
of the longitudinal axis, and consequently cause the return of the carriage.
The axis on the traversing carriage has teeth upon it, which act on the wool

page_text: or fibre, and stir it as the carriage passes over it. A grating may be employed
to clear the fibre from the teeth, and prevent it lapping around the roller.
I would remark that the mechanism by which the carriage is caused to
traverse to and fro may be varied, but it is essential that it should be made
self-acting as described. Similar apparatus may be employed when drying on
heated plates or other drying surfaces.
Figure 7 is a cross section, and Figure 8 a portion of a plan of a machine thus
arranged for drying wool and other fibre after washing. a, a, are side bearers
on which are the racks b, b, and T-irons c, c; d is a moveable frame or
carriage which traverses along the side bearers by means of rack wheels e, e,
geared into the racks b, b, the carriage is guided by the pulleys ff, travelling
along the T-irons c, c. The rack wheels are keyed on a shaft on which is a
roller e armed with teeth or prongs on a level with this shaft, and fixed and
parallel to one of the side bearers at h, h, is the shaft g, this shaft may be
square, or have a groove in it the whole of its length. On the carriage d is
a bracket h¹, which carries the boss of a bevil wheel i, the bevil wheel is fitted
on the shaft g, and slides upon it, and also revolves with it, being connected
thereto by a key sliding in the groove, the wheel i is geared with the wheel i¹,
and so actuates the shaft of the rack wheels e and the spiked roller e¹, and
causes the said roller to revolve at the same time that the rack wheels give
motion to the carriage d. As the carriage approaches either end of the frame
the bracket comes in contact with one of the collars 1, 1, on the rod k, and
reverses the motion by shifting the straps, there being two straps running in
opposite directions, which are alternately shifted on to and from the central
loose pulley. By this means the spiked roller is traversed backwards and
forward over the table, stirring, piercing, or perforating any clots or knots in
the fibre, and thereby expediting the drying; m, represents any perforated or
gauze surface, and n are steam pipes for heating.
Figures 9 and 10 show end view of roller with two different forms of
spikes. o, o, represent clearers to prevent any wool or material from being
carried round by the spikes.
Figure 11 is a longitudinal section of another frame for the same purpose;
it is a slight modification of that already described; Figure 12 is a cross
section, and Figure 13 a plan of the same. The carriage p is made to traverse
along the side bearers a in a similar manner to that before described. It carries
along with it a crank shaft q, actuated through bevil wheels by the upright
shaft r, driven by the bevil wheels, which slides along and receives motion
from the shaft g. To the cranks t, t, on this shaft, is attached the rake u,
the sides of which pass through the swivelling blocks v, and as the cranks
.

page_text: revolve the said rake is moved up and down so as to perforate and stir the
wool as the frame p travels backwards and forwards; w represents the beating
surface.
In witness whereof, I, the said William McNaught, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of June, in the year of our 5
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
WILLIAM MCNAUGHT. (L.S.)