Improvements in or applicable to Apparatus for the Automatic Supply of Fibrous Materials to Opening, Beating, Carding, or other Preparing Machines.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 19th July, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 15th May, 1895-Accepted, 15th June, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or applicable to Apparatus for the Automatic
Supply of Fibrous Materials to Opening, Beating, Carding, or
other Preparing Machines.
1 EDWARD TILSTON of 2 Bate Street, Longsight, Manchester, Mechanical
Draughtsman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My said invention relates to improvements in machinery for the automatic
supply of definite quantities of raw or partly prepared fibrous materials such as
cotton and wool to the lattice or feed table of machines used in opening beating
cleaning carding or otherwise preparing such materials for subsequent treatment.
In its main features a machine made in accordance with my said invention
consists of a hopper through the outlet of which the material is passed by suitable
rollers whence it falls on to one or more balance or scale plates. This hopper
may be fed from an upper floor as is commonly the case or the material may be
led up to it from below by means of a creeper lattice or other conveyor.
When a predetermined weight of material has fallen the balance automatically
discharges the material into a shoot whence it passes to a feed box placed over the
lattice or feed table of the machine to which the material has to be fed.
The balance is adjustable so that it may be set to deliver various weights.
Immediately below the outlet of the hopper I in some cases apply one or more
spiked picking rollers with corresponding strippers to partly open or teaze out the
material before it reaches the balance plate. The balance is connected with the
supply rollers at the outlet of the hopper by gearing or flexible driving media
provided with stop motions in order that the action of the balance when opening or
closing may control the supply rollers so as to check stop or vary the supply of
material as may be desired.
One (or both) sides of the feed box which may be flat or curved is inclined so
that the box is wider at the top than at the bottom. It frequently happens that
the material varies much in bulk for a given weight while it is desirable to deliver
it to the feed lattice of as uniform density as possible. By having a feed box
with inclined sides the upper layers of material of less density than the average
will be spread out and thus occupy a less depth than in a box with parallel sides.
In descending they will however be compressed laterally and the density be thereby
augmented. To facilitate the descent under such a consolidating action one or
both sides of the box may be provided with travelling sheets or lattices, or rollers
may also be provided to aid in the discharge of the material.
One or both sides of the feed box may be hinged so as to vary the inclination
and thereby the consolidating action or the rate of the delivery of the material.
Such variation in the inclination may be effected either by hand or automatically
by the machine to which the feeding apparatus is attached.
Instead of the supply rollers at the outlet of the hopper being stopped when the
required weight has been delivered on to the scale pan, the material which then
passes may be intercepted on its way to the balance and be conveyed back again
by lattice or other suitable arrangements to the hopper.
Dated this 18th day of Jul 1891
E. T. WHITELOW, A.M. Inst. C.E.,
70, Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in or applicable to Apparatus for the Automatic
Supply of Fibrous Materials to Opening, Beating, Carding, or
other Preparing Machines.
I EDWARD TILSTON of 2 Bate Street, Longsight, Manchester, Mechanical
Draughtsman, 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 :-
+
My said invention relates to improvements in machinery for the automatic
supply of definite quantities of raw or partly prepared fibrous materials such as
cotton and wool to the lattice or feed table of machines used in opening beating
cleaning or otherwise preparing such materials::
1
'
1
For more clearly setting forth my said invention I will describe the same with
reference to the accompanying 'drawings.
Referring firstly to Fig. 1 which is a sectional elevation a is a hopper or shoot:
into which the fibrous material to be dealt with is placed.
The material is drawn from the hopper a by the roller cand clearer whence it
falls into the closed balance or scale pan d. The latter is made in two halves d d²
each mounted on a rocking shaft d³. When a certain predetermined quantity of
material has accumulated in the scale pan d'the shafts make a partial rotation
about their 'axes (by 'the means hereinafter described). in such a manner as to cause
the two halves and of the scale pan to diverge whereupon the material falls
through at d into the lower hopper or shoot a whence it is drawn by the spiked
roller and stripper and delivered to the feed box e. The sides ee of the feed
Box are inclined towards each other in such a way as to make the lower part of the
feed box" narrower than the upper part! It frequently happens: that the material
varies much in bulk for a given weight while it is desirable to deliver it to the
feed lattice of as uniform density as possible. By having a feed: box with inclined
sides the upper layers of any material of less density than the average: will be
spread out and thus occupy a less depth than in a box with parallel.sides. In:
descending the upper layers become compressed. laterally and thereby.,augmented
in density: To facilitate the descent under such a consolidating action one or both
sides of the box may be provided with travelling sheets or lattices as shown in
Figure 1 or a series of rollers may be provided to facilitate the discharge of the
material which as it leaves the 'box e falls on to the creeper or latticenf which
carries' it to the 'feed table g¹ of the opening or other machine to which the material
has to be supplied.
J
0:1
1.1
In some cases it will be 'convenient to allow the feed box eto debouch immediately
on to the feed table g¹. One or both sides of the feed box may be hinged so as to
vary the inclination of the sides to each other and thereby to vary the consolidating.
action or the rate of delivery of the material!
+, I
1
"
1
1
Figs. 2 and 3 show various alternative devices to be used instead of rollers and
strippers for taking the material from the hoppers a or a¹.
In combination with the devices herein before illustrated. it may in some cases
be expedient to use additional rollers for facilitating the passage of the material
from the hoppers.
In Fig. 2 a spiked roller c is partly covered by a grating whose distance from
the roller c may be adjusted as desired. Inclined boards lead the material to the
grating through which it is drawn by the spiked roller c*.

page_text: In Fig: 3 a spiked roller c works in combination with an oscillating. comb e'.
The spikes on the roller care arranged in parallel cylindrical rows and the
extremities of the teeth of the comb project between then. The comb c mounted
on a bell crank lever e¹ is caused to oscillate about its axis c by a disc crank c'
the pin of which engages with a slot in the lever c¹º.
It will usually be most convenient to arrange the hopper a under an opening in
an upper floor through which the material is discharged.
Where this is not convenient I adopt the arrangement shown in Fig. 5.
The hopper is placed at a² and the material therein is led by a creeper f to a
spiked travelling sheet or lattice which carries the material upwards over the
roller where the material is stripped by a stripper ft. The rest of the machine
is as herein described with reference to Fig. 1.
The mechanism for operating the scale pan is shown in elevation in Fig. 1
and in plan to a larger scale in Fig. 4. In these figures g is one of the main.
side frames of the machine between which the hopper the rollers and the feed
box. lie.. There is one such side frame at each side to one of which the
mechanism for operating the scale pan is attached. Fig. 4 is a section on the
line of Fig. 1 but for facility of description the shaft and the levers
thereon are also shown although they are above the level of the plane represented
by x-x.
The scale pan lever or beam has its fixed fulcrum at k¹ on a bracket secured
to the side of the machine. A sliding balance weight is provided which not
only balances the weight of the lever k, the scale pan and all the mechanism
connected therewith but besides furnishes an excess weight corresponding to the
weight of material which it is desired to accumulate in the scale pan d before
the latter opens.
There is a balance beam k at each side of the machine connected to each
other by, cross bars or stretchers to ensure their parallel action.
The cross shafts d are carried by the beams in which they can freely
rotate. A bolt pivoted in the beam k carries a bar through the ends k
of which the shafts d' can freely rotate. A sheet curtain is secured by,
screws to the bar and prevents the material from falling out at the sides of
the scale pan.d.
The scale pans are secured to brackets mounted on the shafts d' and
secured thereto by set screws SO S to oscillate therewith. Suitable slots are
provided in the frame sides g to admit the bosses of the bar and to allow
them. to freely rise and fall therein as the beam k oscillates about its fulcrum.
Levers are secured by set screws to the shafts d³ and have their ends
connected by a spring so as to keep the scale pan closed unless some force
is applied to open them positively. against the action of the spring k³.
Hinged at one end of the beam, k is a swing bar which when the scale pan
is closed is held up so that its lower end is just out of reach of a revolving
spider shaft 1.
At one side only of the machine is a shaft / free to rotate in bearings ¹
secured to the side frame g.
Secured to one end of the shaft is a lever 2 having a universal joint h
from. which depends a strut having a projection resting on a block h
A spring tends to keep the projection in position. The weight of the levers
and other parts connected to the shaft tend to cause the shaft to turn in the
direction of the arrow hd shown in Fig: 4. A spring or weighted lever may
however be applied to augment this tendency and prevent sticking.
When the weight of the material in the pan d has reached such a point as
to overcome the weight the latter will rise and' the other end of the beam k
will fall bringing the lower end of the hang bar into contact with the rotating
spider. shaft The. bar will then be driven in towards the machine and
meeting a bolt m on the strut the projection will slip off the block h

page_text: whereupon the strut h* will no longer prevent the turning of the lever h in the
direction of the arrow h³. On the turning of the shaft in the said direction
the arms of the shaft h will strike the arms do and depress them thereby
partially rotating the shafts & and causing the scale pans did to diverge and
to discharge their contents into the hopper a¹.
The turning of the shaft also stops the rotation of the spiked rollers c c
or (or the roll 3 of Fig. 5). The roller c is driven by toothed gearing from
a rotating shaft n (Fig. 1) on which is a clutch n¹ controlled by a lever from
the shaft in such a way that as the shaft turns to open the scale pan the clutch
is disengaged and as the shaft is put back the clutch engages again and the
spiked roller (or the roller f³) again rotates. After having discharged its contents
the pan d remains open a certain predetermined time. When it is automatically
closed by means about to be described.
A lever o having a fixed fulcrum at o! on the same side of the machine as
the shaft is provided with a spring 8 which continually tends to pull down
the outer end of the lever o and to elevate the inner end o*. On the lever o is
a roller o taking on to a slowly rotating can of. On the shaft is a lever o
connected to a plunger of working in guides o². So long as the strut * is in
engagement with the block hand the lever is up the plunger oⓇ is kept clear
of the end of the lever o². The swell of the cam of pressing on the roller o
keeps the end of the lever o depressed but when the depression in the cam comes
under the roller o³ the spring 08 elevates the point of the lever o². By the
opening of the scale pan d through the rocking of the shaft the plunger o is
depressed and the period of rotation of the cam of is so arranged that at any
given interval of time after the opening of the scale pan d the depression of the
cam shall come under the roller o when the point o' of the lever instantly rises
lifts the plunger of thereby rocking the shaft backwards. By this backward
rocking the scale pan is closed the struth is lifted into its first position the
clutch n is brought into engagement all parts revert to their original positions
and the supply of material recommences.
By varying the toothed change wheels which drive the cam of the rotation of
the latter and thereby the interval of time elapsing between the successive
closings of the pan d can be regulated at will to suit the particular rate of feed
suitable for the machine to be supplied or the material operated upon.
The arrangement of gearing for driving the various rollers from the main
driving shaft (other than that described) the feed lattices and the construction of
these elements is not shown as they may be arranged in various well known ways
and form no part of my said invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what 1
claim is,
1. A machine for automatically delivering weighed quantities of fibrous
materials to the feed tables of preparing machines substantially as hereinbefore
described and shown.
2. In a machine for automatically supplying weighed quantities of fibrous
materials the combination of hoppers scale pans rollers and feed box substantially
as set forth and shown.
3. In a machine for automatically supplying weighed quantities of fibrous
materials the means herein before described for opening and closing the pan
substantially as set forth.
4. In a machine for automatically supplying fibrous materials the combination of
an intermittently operating weighing apparatus with a feed box to receive the
weighed material and to discharge it in a continuous manner.
5. In a machine for automatically supplying fibrous materials the combination of
an intermittently acting weighing apparatus with a feed box having inclined sides

page_text: provided with continuously acting travelling sheets or rollers for taking forward
the material.
Dated this 14th day of May 1895.
E. T. WHITELOW, A.M. Inst. C.E.,
70, Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicant.