IMPROVEMENTS IN RAG MACHINES
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Rhodes, of Morley, near Leeds, in the County
of York, Machine Maker, and Richard Kemp, óf Leeds, aforesaid, Rag
Grinder for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAG MACHINES."
Sealed the 16th October 1861, and dated the. 24th April 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Rhodes and
Richard Kemp at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 24th April 1861.
We, JOSEPH RHODES, of Morley, near Leeds, in the County of York,
Machine Maker, and RICHARD KEMP, of Leeds aforesaid, Rag Grinder, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN, RAG
MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to machines employed in tearing up rags of woollen
or other fabrics and reducing such to fibrous substances, technically known as
mungo or shoddy; and the improvements ..consist in applying a toothed roller
or rollers over or above the feed rollers, in near contact with the teeth or
points of the swift or cylinder for stripping or. removing the untorn-up rags
therefrom, which rags, by means of other rollers placed in contact therewith,
are carried back to the feed apron, which again passes them through the feed
rollers to the swift to be again operated upon...

page_text: By means of this Invention any rags or fabrics not sufficiently torn up in
passing through the feed rollers to the swift the first time are returned and
again passed through, and so on until they are perfectly reduced to fibres.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 23rd October 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOSEPII
RHODES, of Morley, near Leeds, in the County of York, Machine Maker, and
RICHARD KEMP, of Leeds, aforesaid, Rag Grinder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fourth year of Her
reign, did; for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp, Her special license that we, the said
Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agrée with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein ex-
pressed, 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 IN RAG MACHINES," upon the con-
dition, amongst others, that we, the said Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp,
our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or
their, or one of our or 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 we, the said Joseph Rhodes and Richard Kemp, do
hereby declare the nature of our 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) :-
:-
This Invention relates to machines employed in tearing up rags of woollen
'or other fabrics and reducing such to fibrous substances, technically known as
mungo or shoddy; and the improvements consist in applying a toothed roller

page_text: or rollers over or above the feed rollers, in near contact with the teeth or
points of the swift or cylinder for stripping or removing the untorn-up rags
therefrom, which rags, by means of other rollers placed in contact therewith,
are carried back to the feed apron, which again passes them through the feed
rollers to the swift to be again operated upon.
By means of this Invention any rags or fabrics not sufficiently torn up in
passing through the feed rollers to the swift the first time are returned and
again passed through, and so on, until they are perfectly reduced to fibres...
In order that this Invention may be clearly understood we have given.
reference to an accompanying Sheet of Drawings, which represent a longi-
tudinal and vertical section of an ordinary rag machine, with our improvements
applied thereto.
A is the endless feed apron; B, the feed rollers; and C, the swift or cylinder
arranged and supported in framing, with proper driving means as usual. Rags
of woollen or other fibrous substances to be torn up are laid on the apron, by
which they are carried to the rollers, which gradually present them to the
action of the teeth, points, or spikes of the swift or cylinder, which tears them
to pieces; but in practice it is found that a considerable quantity of bits or
small pieces of untorn up rags are carried forward on the teeth or points of the
cylinder, which are thrown off and pass out along with the fibre or torn up
materials; to prevent which we apply a toothed or spiked roller D, the points
of which spikes are in near contact with the points of the spikes of the
cylinder, which strips or removes such rags therefrom, throwing them back on
to the apron, and to prevent any rags being carried round the roller D another
toothed roller E is applied in contact therewith, and there is also another
roller F set with ribs of leather cut across, so as to allow the teeth or spikes of
the roller E to pass through. These rollers have rotary motion given to them
in the direction of the arrows, which effectually removes all rags or substances
from the swift, which rags fall on the apron and are again carried betwixt the
feed rollers along with other and larger rags, when they are again operated
upon by the spikes of the cylinder, and so on; the rags not torn up in passing
the first time through the feed rollers are thrown back to the apron by the
rollers D, E, and F, and are again passed through until thoroughly reduced to
fibres.
Having thus fully described the nature of this our said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is performed or carried into practical effect, we
would have it understood that we do not confine ourselves to the precise details
as herein set forth; but what we claim is, the application and use of toothed

page_text: or other rollers as applied to rag machines, in manner and for purposes
substantially as herein described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Rhodes, for and on behalf of
myself and the said Richard Kemp, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Nineteenth day of September, One thousand eight hundred
and sixty-one.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the within-
named Joseph Rhodes, in the presence
of:
ALEXANDER SCOTT
JOSEPH RHODES. (Ls.)