IMPROVEMENTS IN PORTABLE THRASHING MACHINES, PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS ALSO APPLICABLE TO FIXED THRASHING MACHINES
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Weston Tuxford, of Boston, in the County of Lincoln,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PORTABLE THRASHING MACHINES,
PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS ALSO APPLICABLE TO FIXED THRASHING
MACHINES."
for the Invention of
IMPROVEMENTS IN PORTABLE THR
LACHINES,
PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS ALSO APPLICABLE TO FIXED THRASHING
MACHINES."
Sealed the 30th June 1854, and dated the 31st December 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Weston Tuxford at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 31st
December 1853.
I, WESTON TUXFORD, of Boston, in the County of Lincoln, do hereby
declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PORTABLE THRASH-
ING MACHINES, PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS ALSO APPLICABLE TO FIXED
THRASHING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
The improved machine consists of a combination of a feeding apparatus to
the drum, consisting of an endless web working on rollers, with an additional
roller in front next to the drum, this part will fold up when the machine is
travelling; a drum and screen on the usual construction; an inclined straw
shaker with wired, perforated, corrugated, ribbed, or lathed bottom, and a
circular revolving rake for lightening up and thinning the contents of the
shaker; riddles and winnowing apparatus; an archimedian screw furnished
with knives for taking off the horns of barley, and for scouring wheat and
other grain, having perforated or wired portions in the case for allowing
passage out to seeds and dirt, and arranged for elevating and passing the
grain into a screen, separator, barley avellor, scutcher or rubber. The capes

page_text: and tailings operated upon being conducted by one spout into the dressing
apparatus to be winnowed, whilst another spout delivers the dressed grain into
a sack on a platform, at a sufficient height for a man to take the sack on his
back without assistance, the straw elevators remove the straw. It has framed
sides and back, and consists of two endless ropes, bands, or chains, having
bars secured across furnished with teeth for forming a series of rakes for
drawing the straw along the inclined back. This inclined back has several
doors to it at varying heights, so constructed as to fall outwards and so form
shoots, and through any of these doors the straw can be delivered; the sides
are jointed for folding, clevating or depressing, and are acted upon by a skew
worm and wheel working on a segment. In some cases, however, the skew
worm wheel and segment are not required, but when used, pulleys or rollers
for guiding the bands, ropes, or chains for carrying the rakes are employed for
accommodating the bands, ropes, or chains, to an increased or decreased angle
of inclination between one part of the frame and another. A portion of the
back is also wired, perforated, corrugated, ribbed, or lathed, so as to allow any
grain which may have passed the shaker to escape from the straw.
The
straw elevators are intended to be attached when the machine is at work,
either to the end of the machine or to the straw shaker direct, or to any
other convenient part of the machine; and when travelling it will fold up and
fall over the top of the machine, or will take some other convenient
position.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Weston Tuxford in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th
June 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WESTON
TEXFORD, of Boston, in the County of Lincoln, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three. in the seventeenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself. Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Weston Tuxford, Her special licence that I, the said Weston Tuxford,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I. the said Weston
Tuxford, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and

page_text: vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PORTABLE
THRASHING MACHINES, PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS ALSO APPLICABLE TO FIXED
THRASHING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Weston Tuxford, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Weston Tuxford, 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):-
The improved machine consists of a combination of a feeding apparatus to
the drum, consisting of an endless web working on rollers with an additional
roller in front next to the drum, this part will fold up when the machine is
travelling; a drumm and screen on the usual construction; an inclined straw
shaker with wired, perforated, corrugated, ribbed, or lathed bottom; and a
circular revolving rake for lightning up and thinning the contents of the
shaker; riddles and winnowing apparatus; an archimedian screw furnished
with knives for taking off the horns of barley, and for scouring wheat and
other grain, having perforated or wired portions in the case for allowing
passage ont to seeds and dirt, and arranged for elevating and passing the grain
into a screen, separator, barley aveller, scutcher or rubber. The capes and
tailings operated upon being conducted one spout into the dressing
apparatus to be winnowed, whilst another spout delivers the dressed grain into
a sack on a platform, at a sufficient height for a man to take the sack on his
back without assistance, the straw elevators remove the straw. It has framed
sides and back, and consists of two endless ropes, bands, or chains, having
bars secured across furnished with teeth for forming a series of rakes for
drawing the straw along the inclined back. This inclined back has several doors
to it at varying heights, so constructed as to fall outwards and so forni shoots.
and through any of these doors the straw can be delivered. The sides are
jointed for folding, elevating or depressing, and are acted upon by a skew
worm and wheel working on a segment. In some cases, however, the skew
worm wheel and segment are not required, but when used pulleys, or rollers
for guiding the bands, ropes, or chains, for carrying the rakes are employed
for accommodating the bands, ropes, or chains to an increased or decreased
augle of inclination between one part of the frame and another. A portion of

page_text: the back is also wired, perforated, corrugated, ribbed, or lathed, so as to allow
any grain which may have passed the shaker to escape from the straw. The
straw elevators are intended to be attached when the machine is at work,
either to the end of the machine or to the straw shaker direct, or to any
other convenient part of the machine; and when travelling it will fold up and
fall over the top of the machine, or will take some other convenient
position.
Figure 1 shows a ground plan when open and ready for use; Figure
shows a longitudinal section when open for use; Figure 3 shows a side elevation
of the machine when shut up for travelling; Figure 4 is a transverse section
through the drum and blower, Figure 2; Figure 5 is an end elevation, shewing
the hummeller or aveller with the screw elevator and shaker behind. The same
letters of reference are used to denote the same parts in all the Figures. A, A, is
the framing of the machine mounted upon wheels for travelling; B is an endless
web of laths on belts passing over rollers C, C, the laths being furnished with
teeth D. The web B is driven by an endless band passing over a pulley E,
from a pulley F, on the intermediate shaft which drives the riddles. The
endless web B is caused to traverse under a hopper G, having a roller II, with
bent spikes in the front to lighten up and turn back the sheaf as the revolving
web in passing under draws out a portion of the sheaf; the roller II is driven
by an endless band passing over a pulley I, fixed on the axis II, which receives
motion from a pulley K on the stud K', which receives motion by an endless
band passing over a pulley K², from a pulley J, fixed on the axis of the roller
C, carrying the endless web B, the pair of pullies K, K², on the stud K', being
employed to reduce the speed of the roller II. The drum or roller II is made
capable of being raised or lowered so as to thin the straw on the feeding web B;
or the web B may be made to vary in its speed to accommodate the feed to the
power applied to drive the druin or roller 1. L, L is a drum and screen upon
the usual construction; M is a pulley fixed on the axis of the drum L, to which
motion is communicated from any prime mover; N, N are a series of endless
perforated bands for receiving and shaking the straw after being operated upon
by the beaters of the drum L. These bands have pegs on their surfaces and
travel over drums or rollors 0, 0, each keyed eccentrically in graduated
positions upon shafts P, P, which receive motion by an endless band from the
pulley V, passing over the pulley W, fixed on the axis of the roller P. The

page_text: axes of the rollers P, P', have cranks Q, Q, upon them coupled by connecting
rods R, R, to keep them in their relative positions; and it will be seen that the
excentric drums opposite as they revolve with their axles will carry the endless
bands with them, alternately rising and falling, and thus, as the straw is carried
along on them, it is alternately lifted by the bands on the rising excentric
drums from off the bands on the descending excentric drums, by which the
grain, &c., is separated from the straw. S is an inclined board under the
perforated bands, down which the grain, chaff, and cavings separated from
the straw is passed to be winnowed. At the lower end of the inclined board
there is a grating T, which prevents the long straw passing with grain to the
winnower, and allows the teeth on the endless bands collecting and returning
it to the top to be carried away with the other straw. U is an inclined board
conducting the grain, chaff, &c., that has passed through the screen of the
drum L to the winnower; X is a fan driven by an endless band passing over
the pulley Y, from the pulley Z, and acting under the riddle a, upon which the
grain from the inclined boards S and U is received; b is a tail board over
which the heavy cars containing grain or parts of ears are received into a stripper
or scutcher c, driven by an endless band passing over a pulley d, from a pulley <
on the shaker shaft. This stripper or scutcher consists of a barrel covered
with wool carding revolving in a trough clothed with wove wire gauze or other
rough perforated material, and the effect is, that the cars containing grain, or
grain with chaff on, is rolled round between the carding and rough wove wire or
perforated covering of the trough, and the ears by this process are cleared of their
grain, and the grain of its chaff. f is a shoe receiving the grain from the inclined
board under the riddle a, and delivering it into the hopper of the archimedean
screw elevator 9, which elevates the grain to a hummeller or aveller and screen h,
clothed with wire, and driven by an endless band passing over a pulley i, fixed
on its axis from a pulley j, fixed on the axis of the drum L. The shaft of the
hummeller or aveller is furnished with knives upon the usual construction for
about half the length of the cylinder; the remaining portion of the cylinder has
an internal worm fixed within it. The cylinder or case is made to revolve slowly,
and is driven by an endless band passing over a pulley fixed on its shaft or axis and
over a pulley k, the speed of which is further reduced by a pinion working in a
curb or wheel around the case. Thus, barley is chopped or horned, and other grain
chaffed. The horns and small seeds are delivered through the fine portion of
cylinder containing the knives, and in consequence of the revolving of the cylinder,
having a fixed archimedean screw within it, the grain is screened through the
coarse wire in its spiral course towards the end, and delivered by a spout at the
side into a sack sufficiently high for a man to back without help, and anything

page_text: more bulky than the grain is delivered out at the end, falling amongst the short
straw and cavings below. The screw elevator is driven by a worm and wheel from
the hummeller or aveller spindle, as shewn. is a riddle for riddling chaff out
of the short straw and cavings; it has a perforated plate m inclining over it,
through which the wind from the fan escapes, but the short straw and chaff is
turned down on the riddle to be separated. This riddle and also the riddle to
the winnower are hung on slings and have a backward and forward motion
given to them by the connecting rods from the shaft n, which is driven by an
endless band passing over the pulley o, from the pulley p. q is a straw elevator,
having a frame r, with a close boarded back with doors 8, 8, any of which may
be lowered at pleasure to allow of the straw falling through at a lower eleva-
tion. The frame is jointed to the end of the frame carrying the straw shaker
by rule joints t, having spur wheels u, u, firmly keyed on their knuckles; a
shaft v, with pinions w upon it, acts upon the periphery of the spur wheels u;
the pinion shaft has a skew wheel a upon one end of it, with a worm y acting
upon it by the hand wheel, so as to elevate or lower the framing at pleasure.
1, 1, are two endless bands passing over rollers 2, 2, having rakes or bars 3, 3,
with teeth in them driven by an endless band passing over a pulley 4 from a
pulley 5; these rakes draw the straw up between the bands and the close
bottom, and either deliver it over the top or through the doors 8, 8. 6 is a
plate or cushion pressed to by a spring to close the opening of the joint made
by the raising or lowering of the framing.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood I make no claim to the
mechanical parts separately, nor do I confine myself to the details; but what
I claim is, the combined machinery herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Weston Tuxford, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
0
Witness,
GEORGE HILL
Boston.
WESTON TUXFORD. (L.S.)