Improvements in Machinery for Corking Bottles.
Year: 1897

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Corking Bottles.
CHARLES ARMSTRONG, of Grange Road, Cambridge, in the County of
Cambridgeshire, Merchant, and FREDERIC JAMES KNIGHTS, of 27, Portland Road,
South Tottenham, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention is designed to cork one or more bottles at one revolution of the
machine. The machine consists of a stationary table fixed on a substantial frame
work on which table the bottles to be corked are placed. A series of V shaped
bars are attached to a chain or other conveyor, this conveyor is made to operate
above the table parallel with the table when the bar automatically places the bottles
under the cork compressor ready to be corked. A box is inserted in the table
level with the face of the table directly under the cork compressor which box con-
tains the required number of plungers equal to the number of bottles to be corked
at each revolution of the machine.
These plungers lift the bottles up to the cork compressor by means of a lever
under the table, and when the bottles are corked they again drop level with the
face of the table and allow the conveyor which is actuated by a pawl attached to
a suitable lever and worked by a disc from the rotating shaft to remove the bottles
which are already corked and to bring another set of bottles under the compressor
ready for corking.
The corks are fed into the cork compressor by means of a tube placed immedi-
ately in front of each compressor, these tubes are filled with corks and by means
of a sliding conveyor each cork is separated at the bottom end of the tube and
delivered into the cork compressor ready for operating.
This invention is also designed to be readily adjusted to all heights of bottles,
for this purpose an internal slide is fitted into the slide or crosshead which operates
the plungers for driving the corks into the bottles. This internal slide is fitted on
either side of the machine with a suitable screw and nut, the screw being made
to operate by means of two bevel wheels fitted to a spindle placed above the cross-
head a hand wheel is fixed to this spindle and by this means the operator at the
machine can readily adjust the same for bottles of all sizes.
This machine is operated by a shaft geared directly into the shaft working the
cork drivers with pulleys for putting the machine in or out of operation.

page_text: Improvements in Machinery for Corking Bottles.
We, CHARLES ARMSTRONG, of Grange Road, Cambridge, in the" County of
Cambridge, Merchant, and FREDERIC JAMES KNIGHTS, of 27, Portland Road,
South Tottenham, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, 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:-
The machine has a stationary table along, which an endless conveyor travels with
an intermittent motion.
:
The conveyor consists of two endless chains to which are attached slats 'with
V shaped indentations according to the number of bottles the machine is designed
to cork at one time. The mechanism for compressing the corks and the plungers
for pushing the corks into the bottles are carried on bars, which can be adjusted to
take bottles of various heights.
Beneath the, bars, are a series of bottle stands which slide in and out of a box
beneath the table and hold the bottle 'up to the corking nozzle. The bottle stands
are normally flush with the table and' their periphery or sides extend downwards
thus broken glass
or corks are prevented from interfering with their movements.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine, Figure 2 is a longitudinal section.
Figure 3 is a plan with the conveyor removed, Figure 4 is a section on the line 4, 4,
Figure 2; and Figure 5 is a front elevation partly in section, Figure C is a plan
showing one of the cork compressors to a larger scale, Figure 7 is a plan showing
a portion of the conveyor and the bottle stands. Figures 8 and 9 show to a larger
scale one of the springs and the plates operating the delivery of the corks. In
Figure 8 the upper plate is in its rearmost position and in Figure 9 the springs
have pulled the upper plate forward.
Figures 10 and 11 show the same plates controlling the delivery of the corks,
their positions being the same as are shown in Figures 8 and respectively.
Figure 12 is a back elevation and Figure 13 is a section of a modification. In
this case the springs are dispensed with, the upper plate receiving motion from
the pivotted lever shown in the drawings.
a is a stationary table along which travels a conveyor consisting of two endless
chains and slats c with V shaped indentations d. The apparatus receives all
its movements from the disc e keyed to the shift et which is continuously revolved
by the belt pulley f on the shaft f¹ through pinions e² and f2 on the shafts el fl
shown in Figures 2 and 3. The endless chains 6 pass over chain wheels g to one
of which is fixed a toothed, wheel h which receives an intermittent motion by means
of the connecting rod ¹ pivotted at one end' to the wheel e and having a slot h³ at
the other to receive the pin h³. This pin is fixed to the lever h turning on the
shaft and carrying a pawl he which engages with the teeth of the wheel h.
The bottles are placed on the table by hand, the conveyor takes them along the
table and at the same time the V, shaped indentations guide them over the bottle
stands. 'as is shown in Figure 7. Referring to Figure 2 the bottle j has been
corked and has been moved from the stand, the bottle has been corked and is
moving from the stand, and the bottle is moving onto the stand.
kare the corking nozzles carried by the bar which also carries the cork com-
pressors one of which is shown in plan in Figure 6 this is of usual construction
and forms no part of the present invention. The compressors are operated by the
projections fixed to the bar l. Above the compressors, is a plate m upon which
slides another plate m' .controlling the delivery of corks from tubes n.
The plate mis slidden 'on the platem by means of the lever m² connected by
the rod m to the bar and it is locked by bolts m; the plate m¹ also carries
springs'm which are compressed by the levers m² in their return motion until the

page_text: bolts mare raised when the springs carry the plate m¹ into the position shown in
Figures 2 and. 9. The bar is reciprocated backwards and forwards by the
groove o in the cam plate o attached to the bar p carrying the plungers pl.
The bars. and p can be adjusted for different heights of bottles as can be
seen by reference to Figures 1 and 5. The bar to which is attached the com-
pressors and the cork operating mechanism is connected to the nuts g sliding in
guides q which can be raised and lowered by the screw q³. The bar p is connected
to nuts r sliding in guides r which can be raised or lowered by the screw.
the top of the stem of the 'screw. q is a toothed pinion q³ gearing with another
pinion. The stem of the screw has a feather working in a slot in the pinion 3
so that it turns with the pinion but is free to reciprocate up and down with the
bar.
:
At
These screws are operated by the hand wheel R through the toothed pinions q*q³
which turn the pinions.q³
The bar P is operated from the disc e by means of the connecting rod r. The
rollers p take the thrust of the cam plates o.
The bottle stands are moved up and down in the box by means of levers s
pivotted to the shaft s¹ which engage with the stems projecting through the
bottom of the box
The levers s have attached to their ends weights 2 which can be raised by the
bar which is reciprocated in the guides by the rod 5 by these means any
height of bottle can be corked at the same time; the weights at the ends of the
levers forcing the bottles into the corking nozzles where they are locked by the
wedges t. The rod s has a slot s at one end and is attached to the rod at
the other.
The levers s have nibs s by which they can be locked by the wedges t attached
to the bar t. The bar is moved in a vertical direction by the rod t connected
to the block fixed to the screw r². Brakes u are provided to insure the positive
drive of the machine.
The operation of the apparatus is as follows:-
In the position shown in Figure 2 of the drawings the bottle ² is just moving
onto the stand i and the bar 3 is allowing the weights to fall. At the same time
the bar is moving down with the plungers and the bar is moving horizontally
compressing the corks and sliding the plate m². This movement of the plate m¹
allows the corks at the bottom of the tubes to fall onto the plate m and the plate m¹.
is retained in the rearward position by the bolts m*.
By the time the bottle is on the stand the end of the levers s act on the
stems raising the bottles up to the nozzles where they are locked by the wedges t
engaging with the nibs s. The bar p continues its descent and the plungers pl
push the corks into the bottles. The bar p then begins to rise taking the plungers
with it the cam groove o reopens the compressors and the bar t is raised unlocking
the levers s. At the end of the upward movement the bolts m* are freed allowing
the plate m¹ to be drawn forward by the springs ms pushing the corks into the
compressors. The bottle will then be in the position in which is shown in the
drawings.
In the modification shown in Figures 12 and 13 the springs m³ are omitted and
the plate m¹ is pushed forward by the arm v of the bell crank lever pivotted at ¹
to a standard on the bar m. In the other arm is a slot 3 which engages with
a pin on the arm z. The arm z is raised by the projection ¹ on the bar p. As
the bar p moves up, the arm z is raised and motion is given to the bell crank lever
by the pin wo and the plate m¹ is slidden on the plate m.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. In a corking machine, a conveyor consisting of endless chains carrying slats
with V shaned indentations for pushing the bottles along a fixed table:

page_text: 2. In a corking machine, the combination of a conveyor, a fixed table, and a
row of bottle stands fitting holes in the table, substantially as described.
3. In a corking machine, the combination of a conveyor, a fixed table, and a
row of bottle stands normally flush with the table, and their sides or periphery
extending into a box beneath it, substantially as described.
4. In a corking machine, the combination of a fixed table, with means for raising
and lowering the corking mechanism relatively to the table to suit different sizes
of bottles.
5. In a corking machine, the combination of a fixed table, bottle stands fitting
holes in the table, and means for raising and lowering the corking mechanism
relatively to the table to suit different sizes of bottles.
6. In a corking machine, the combination of a fixed table, bottle stands normally
flush with the table, and their sides or periphery extending into a box beneath it,
and means for raising and lowering the corking mechanism relatively to the table
to suit different sizes of bottles.
7. The means for feeding and compressing the corks, and plungers for pushing
them into the bottles, arranged substantially as described and shown in the
drawings.
8. A corking machine-substantially as described and shown in the drawings.
Dated this 30th day of March 1898.
CHARLES ARMSTRONG.
FREDERIC JAMES KNIGHTS.