Tempering or Hardening Operation.
Year: 1887

page_text: Tempering or Hardening Operation.
I, RICHARD DENISON, of 48 Malvern Terrace, Beeston Hill, Leeds, in the County
of York, Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
Hitherto it has been customary to clean the files and rasps after they have under-
gone the tempering or hardening operations by hand, and the remains of the hardening
or tempering materials have been removed by brushing sand and water thereon; this
entails a great loss of time and labour.
Now my invention is designed to perform this operation by machinery, and to clean
the files and rasps more quickly and better than by the hand process, and it consists
in mounting an adjustable shaft in suitable bearings formed on or attached to the frame-
work of the machine. On the shaft is mounted and fixed a disc which works against
a second disc also mounted in bearings on the framework, and through which bearing
and disc the herein before mentioned adjustable shaft is made to slide or pass. To or
on the inner face of each disc may be attached or fixed a series of radiating or circular
brushes or wire card filletting of any desired width. The shaft is made adjustable to
allow for the varying thicknesses of files or rasps being operated upon, and in order to
bring the faces (to which the brushes or cardings are fixed) of the two discs together so as
to work against each other a horizontal sliding (as well as a rotary) notion may be
given to the shaft through an arrangement of levers, screws, or other suitable means. In
some cases and when preferred instead of allowing the shaft to pass through the
second disc and its bearing as herein before described, the first disc may be mounted
on the end of the sliding shaft nearest to the second disc. The discs are rotated in
D

page_text: the same or opposite directions by suitable gearing at a very high high speed, motion
being conveyed thereto from any convenient source. The revolving discs and shafts
are enclosed within suitable caseing or framework provided with an opening at the
side or other convenient place through which the file or rasp is admitted or inserted
for cleaning. Above the revolving discs, and attached to the caseing is a hopper
containing sand, into which is injected a jet or jets of water or steam.
An opening
or openings is or are made in the bottom of the hopper and through the caseing,
through which the sand and water or condensed steam descend onto the brushes or
card filletting attached or fixed to the revolving discs; also one or more holes are
provided at the base of the casing for the exit of the used sand and water. A suitable
receptacle being provided for the reception of the sand and water as they pass from
the caseing so that it can be used again Suitable valves or doors may be employed
for closing or regulating the size of the above mentioned openings.
To clean a file or rasp the machine is set in motion, the supply of sand and water
or steam turned on, and a file inserted in the opening in the caseing and between the
brushes or cardings (attached to the faces of the revolving discs) in a similar manner
to that in which a knife is inserted between the revolving brushes of a knife cleaning
machine, and by the high speed at which the discs are caused to revolve the remains
of the hardening or tempering materials are removed by the combined action of the
brushes (or carding), sand and water or steam.
T
11 1
1007
W. FAIRBURN HART,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: A New or Improved Machine for Cleaning Files and Rasps after the
Tempering or Hardening Operation.
I, RICHARD DENISON, of 48 Malvern Terrace, Beeston Hill, Leeds, in the County
of York, Mechanical 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 :-
Hitherto it has been customary to clean the files and rasps (after they have under-
gone the tempering or hardening operations) by hand, and the remains of the hardening
or tempering materials have been removed by brushing sand and water thereon; this
entails a great loss of time and labour.
Now my invention is designed to perform this operation by machinery such as herein
described, which consists of two discs armed with brushes or wire carding and made
to revolve in the same or opposite directions within a casing over which a hopper is
mounted for receiving the sand or grit and water to be poured onto the discs. By the
herein after described machinery the files and rasps may be cleaned quicker and better
than by the hand process.
Fig. 1. is a side elevation, Fig. 2. a sectional elevation, and Fig. 3. a plan looking at
the top of a machine constructed according to this invention.
Like parts in all the views are marked with similar letters of reference.
The outer casing A (made in two halves and bolted together), its legs B and the
bracket C secured to the outer casing constitute the framework of the machine. In
the pedestal or bearing D turns the adjustable shaft E. This shaft passes through the
casing and into a second bearing formed to receive it on the opposite side of the
machine as hereafter described. On the shaft and within the casing is mounted a
disc F the face of which works against that of a second disc G. Attached to the
second disc is a long journal or neck g which is carried and revolves in a second
pedestal H fixed to the framework on the opposite side of the machine to pedestal D
The journal y also forms a bearing in which the free end e of the adjustable shaft
revolves and slides.
To or on the inner face of each disc F and G may be attached and fixed by screws
or other convenient means any desired number of radiating or circular brushes or
strips of wire carding of any desired width. In the drawings these brushes or strips
are shown radiating from the centre of the disc, but they may also, when preferred,
be arranged in circles on the face of the disc. Each brush or piece of wire carding
may be formed in one or more strips. In order to provide sufficient space between
each strip or set of brushes or wire carding for the remains of the hardening,
tempering, or other materials to pass freely into the receptacle a (formed at the bottom

page_text: of the casing A) I provide a number of spaces f' about three or four inches in width.
These spaces are made to radiate to the centre of each disc. Should a file or rasp
break in two during the cleaning operation provision is thus made for the piece or
pieces passing into the receptacle a. The brushes or strips of carding may also increase
in width as they approach the periphery of the disc. When wire carding is employed
it may be mounted on wood backings and screwed to the face of the discs.
The discs are rotated in the same or opposite directions at a very high speed,
motion being conveyed thereto from any convenient source through pulleys e¹ and
mounted respectively on the outer ends of the shaft E and journal g.
In order to provide for the varying thicknesses of files and rasps, as well as to be
able to bring the inner faces of the discs (to which the brushes, or strips of wire
carding is attached) nearer together as the brushes or carding wears away, the shaft E
is made so that it can be adjusted horizontally, that is it is capable of sliding back-
wards and forwards at the same time that it is revolving. To accomplish this, and
also to keep the disc F up to its work, a grooved boss or pulley I is mounted on the
shaft E to which is attached by pins (working in the groove of the pulley) a forked
lever J pivoted or fulcrumed at ; to the bracket C. At the other end of the lever J
is a slot hole gl in which works a pin or stud attached to a block L. The block L
slides in V slides formed in or attached to a projecting arm c of the bracket C. The
sliding block 1 and lever J are operated by means of a screw M and hand wheel N.
The sliding block L acts as a nut for the screw. When the block L is drawn outwards
by the screw M the grooved pulley I, shaft E and disc F will be forced nearer the
inner face of disc G thus limiting the space between the two dises. It will be readily
understood that the same object may be attained by an arrangement of hand levers;
also that instead of allowing the shaft E to pass through the disc G and journal g the
shaft may be shortened and the disc F may be mounted on the end thereof; also, when
preferred, both dises may be made adjustable. But I prefer mounting the discs as
illustrated in the drawings as it enables the moving parts to work more accurately
together.
0, 0¹ are holders communicating with the inside of the casing in which the file or
rasp to be cleaned is placed. These holders are provided with packings o² o³ of wood,
and may be adjusted to the varying thicknesses of files by means of set screws o¹
And in order to adjust the position of these holders to the position of the discs, slot
holes may be provided in the flanges of. When preferred more than two of these
holders may be provided and fixed to the upper portion of the casing.
Above the revolving dises F and G, and fixed to the outer casing A by brackets pl
is a semi elliptical hopper P having a hole p communicating with the inside of the
casing A. Into this hopper is placed sand or grit and a jet or jets of water or steam
is injected therein through pipe Q. The hopper should be fixed almost centrally over
the two discs, so that the sand and water may pass through the hole p directly onto
the filo and brushes. And in order to assist the sand and water in passing through
the hole, they are kept agitated by means of the stirrers R attached to the vertical
shaft S. Motion being conveyed thereto from pulley T on shaft E to pulley t and
bevel gearing t¹ on shaft t² (carried in bearings on cross bar t³) through a belt or other
equivalent means.
In order to protect the bearings of the shaft as much as possible from the action
of the sand and water, the end of the journal g is made to telescope into a boss on the
disc F as shown.
The sand and water after passing through the discs enters the receptacle a. This
receptacle is provided with a hinged door a' (held in position by a spring catch a²)
whereby it can be readily emptied. But when preferred one or more holes a³ (with
or without valves for regulating their size) may be provided in the hinged door through
which the sand and water may pass into a bucket or other receiver so as to be used again.
To clean a file or rasp the machine is set in motion, the supply of sand and water
or steam turned on, and one half of the file inserted in the holder O and between the
brushes or carding (attached to the faces of the revolving discs) in a similar manner
to that in which a knife is inserted between the revolving brushes of a knife cleaning

page_text: machine, and by the high speed at which the discs are caused to rotate the remains of
the hardening or tempering materials are by the combined action of the brushes (or
carding), sand, and water or steam removed. The file is then reversed and cleaned as
above described.
Flaving now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is :-
1. The method of cleaning files and rasps by machinery such as herein described,
after the hardening or tempering operation has taken place, which consists in sub-
mitting the files or rasps to the action of revolving dises armed with brushes or wire
carding onto which sand and water is poured, substantially as herein set forth.
2. In a file and rasp cleaning machine, the combination of two discs, such as F
and Garmed with brushes or wire carding, and made to revolve in the same or
opposite directions within a casing, means for adjusting the relative position of the
dises, and holders such as O, O', with a hopper such as P, and agitating apparatus, as
and for the purposes above set forth.
3. The combination of the various parts forming the file and rasp cleaning
machine as a whole, arranged and constructed, substantially as herein set forth and
illustrated.
Dated 1tl. l…….
Nation 1007