IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BEARINGS AND JOURNAL BOXES FOR SHAFTING, AND IN THE Means of LubricaTING THE SAME
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Eugene Barber, of Berlin, in the
Kingdom of Prussia, Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BEARINGS AND JOURNAL BOXES FOR SHAFTING,
AND IN THE Means of LubricaTING THE SAME."—A communication from
abroad by Wellsly W. Crano, of Auburn, in the State of New York,
United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Eugene Barber
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 4th July 1874.
I, CHARLES EUGENE BARBER, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia,
Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
" IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE CONSTRUCTION OF BEARINGS AND JOURNAL BOXES
FOR SHAFFING, AND IN THE MEANS OF LUBRICATING THE SAME," to be as
follows:-
In putting up shafting in mills it is necessary that the bearings
and journal boxes should be very accurately placed, otherwise there will
:

page_text: be undue wear and tear on the boxes, and also on the shafting.
Sometimes, in spite of any reasonable amount of care, the bearings will
get out of line, and then great friction and consequent wear of the
rubbing parts ensues. It is one of the objects of this Invention to so
construct the supporting brackets or bearings that should the shafting
get out of the line or the bearings themselves get accidentally shifted,
the journal box should adjust itself to the new state of things or be
capable of being so adjusted with facility. To this end the hanger or
bracket which carries the bearing is provided with a swivel, from which
the bearing is suspended, so that the bearing will be capable of turning
round horizontally on a vertical centre. This swivel is also capable of
adjustment vertically by means of adjusting screws and nuts.
The bearing itself contains an inner bearing in the form of a cradle in
which the journal of the shaft rests. This cradle, which is lined with
soft metal (Babbitt's metal) is provided with two semicircular trunnions
which rest in similarly shaped recesses in the lower half of the bearing so
that it may rock therein in a vertical direction. Below this cradle is
mado (in the lower half of the bearing) a longitudinal recess into which
oil is poured (for lubricating purposes) through any suitable hole or
opening made in the bearing.
A short pipe (open at both ends and projecting from the under side of
the cradle) dips into the oil in the reservoir or recess below and oil is
made to flow up this pipe either by means of capillary attraction induced
by a cotton wick or by means of atmospheric pressure, to which end a
depression or recess is made inside the cradle just at the open mouth of
the tube, so that when the shaft is rotated it will produce a partial
vacuum in the tube and cause the oil to flow up to the shaft and lubricate
the same.
As a modification of the abovo the journal box may be divided into
two parts, the upper half of which will be secured to the swivel pin of
the pendant bearing or bracket while the lower half will form the
oil reservoir.
A saddle piece is fixed by screws or bolts to the upper half of the
bearing and carries a cradle in which the journal of the shaft rests, so
that the latter with its cradle is suspended from the upper half of the
bearing, and the lower half of the latter (forming the oil reservoir) may
therefore be detached for cleaning or otherwise even while the shafting

page_text: is running, to which end it is attached to the saddle piece by a stud and‐
screw.
At each end of the cradle there are two projections provided with
scrapers which bear against the face of the shaft and scrape off the oil
which escapes from the cradle. The oil so removed is dropped into the
reservoir and is used over again. The cradle, as in the former instances,
is provided with trunnions which fit into semicircular recesses made for
the purpose in the saddle piece, so that it is capable of a rocking motion
therein.
The horizontal swivel motion of the whole box, with its swivel pin in
the pendant bearing, will admit of all the necessary compensating
motions which may be required to allow the bearing to adjust itself
should any readjustment of the parts become necessary in consequence of
any accidental shifting of any parts of the bearing. ·
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,,
filed by the said Charles Eugene Barber in the Great Scal Patent
Office on the 4th January 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
EUGENE BARBER, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, Merchant, send'
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-:
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Charles Eugene Barber, Her
special licence that I, the said Charles Eugene Barber, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
Eugeno Barber, 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 vend, within the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BEARINGS and Journal

page_text: BOXES FOR SHAFTING, AND IN THE MEANS FOR LUBRICATING THE SAME," being a
communication to me from abroad by Wellsly W. Orane, of Auburn,
in the State of New York, United States of America, upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles Eugene Barber, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing, under my, or
their, or one of their hands and scals, 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 Charles Eugene Barber, 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, reference being had to the Drawing here-
unto annexed and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is
to say) :-
This Invention relates to improvements in the mode of setting up
"live" shafting in mills and in lubricating the same.
In putting up
mill shafting it is necessary that the bearings and journal boxes of such
shafting should be very accurately placed, otherwise there will be unduc
wear and tear on the boxes and also on the shafting. Sometimes, in
spite of the exercise of great care the bearings will get out of line, and
undue friction and rapid wear of the rubbing parts consequently ensues.
It is one of the objects of this Invention so to construct the supporting
brackets or bearings that should the shafting get out of line or the
bearings themselves get accidentally shifted, the journal boxes shall
adjust themselves to the new stato of things or be capable of being so
adjusted with facility. To this end I connect the journal bearing with
the hanger or bracket which is to carry the bearing by means of a
pendent swivel pin, and I thus render the bearing capable of turning
horizontally on a vertical centre. This swivel pin I adjust vertically by
means of screw nuts, and I provide also within the bearing a rocking
cradle to receive the journal of the shaft. This part of my Invention is
illustrated at Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the Drawing, where Fig. 1 is a side
view of a hanger with a journal bearing pendent therefrom; Fig. 2 is a
vertical section taken in the line 1, 2, of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a plan
view of the bottom half of the bearing showing the cradle in its place.

page_text: A is the hanger and B the swivel pin suspended from a cross bar of
the hanger by means of adjusting nuts fitted on the screwed end of the
pin. This pin is by preference cast in one with the upper half B₁ of tho
bearing, which is flanged at about the middle of its length to receive
coupling screws b, which secure the lower half B³ of the bearing to the
upper half B'. The lower half of the bearing is cast with a trough-like
recess which forms an oil well C, and into this well projects a pendent.
tubular extension d of a cradle D. This cradle is formed with half.
round trunnions d', which rest in similarly shaped recesses in the lower
half of the bearing, and thus the cradle will be free to rock to adjust
itself to the position of the shaft which it carries.
The cradle, which may be of brass, I prefer to line with soft metal as
is usual in axle boxes. The tube d of the cradle forms a conductor for
the oil which is caused to rise from the reservoir automatically and
spread itself over the bearing surface of the cradle. This is effected by
chamfering or recessing one side of the tube d (see Fig. 3) in the
direction of rotation of the shaft. Thus the shaft when driven will
produce a partial vacuum in the tube and cause the oil to flow up from
the reservoir and lubricate the rubbing surfaces.
As a modification of the above arrangement I use a saddle piece to
carry the cradle, which saddle piece I connect by screws to the upper
half of the bearing. In this case the lower half of the bearing will serve
simply as a reservoir for the oil, and it may therefore be detached for
cleaning while the shafting is running. Fig. 1 shows this arrangement
of bearing in cross section; Fig. 5 shews the bearing in side clevation,
the lower half being detached from the upper to shew the saddle and
cradle; and Fig. 6 is a plan view of the cradle, saddle piece, and lower
half of the bearing. In these Figures E is the saddle piece connected to
the upper half B₁ of the bearing by screws e. The lower half B³ of the
bearing which forms the reservoir for the oil instead of connecting with
the upper half as in the first described arrangement by screws I
connect to the saddle piece by means of screws e¹.
When, therefore, it is desired to clean out the reservoir it is only
necessary to remove the screws e'. At each end of the cradle D thero
are two projections provided with scrapers d, which hear against the
face of the shaft for the purpose of scraping off any oil which may
cscape from the cradle and returning it to the reservoir.

page_text: From the foregoing description it will be understood that provision is
made for enabling the various parts of the bearing to adjust themselves
or to admit of their adjustment to suit the requirements of shafting.
Having now set forth the nature of the Invention of "Improvements
in the Construction of Bearings and Journal Boxes for Shafting, and in
the Means of Lubricating the same," and having explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the
above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,―
First. The combination of suspended swivel adjustablo bearing and
cradle constructed as and for the purpose above described.
Secondly. The means abovo described for supplying the lubricant to
the cradle and for returning the overflow back to the reservoir.
Thirdly. The detachable reservoir as described with reference to
Figures 4, 5, and 6 of the Drawings.
נ-
In witness whereof, I, the said Charlos Eugenè Barber, have 1
hereunto set my hand and scal, the Second day of January,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.
CHARLES EUGENE BARBER,
(L.S.)