Improvements in Back-washing and analogous Machines for Treating Wool and other Fibres or the like.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 17th. Mar., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 19th Jan., 1891-Accepted, 28th Feb., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Back-washing and analogous Machines for Treating
Wool and other Fibres or the like.
We, JOHN CHARLES WALKER and JONATHAN EDWARD STEPHENSON, trading
as John Perry, of Valley Road, Shipley, in the County of York, Machine Makers,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
:-
This invention relates to improvements in back-washing and analogous machines
for treating wool and other fibres or material of a similar nature, and its chief
object is to facilitate the drying process without exposing the material operated
upon to a degree of heat liable to be injurious.
The said improvements consist of the arrangements hereinafter described in
which air more or less heated is forced through the fibres and also in the arrange-
ment for rarefying, exhausting or drawing away the air and vapour as it passes
from the material to prevent the moisture with which it is charged condensing and
again settling thereon.
For this purpose we employ perforated drying cylinders arranged in any
convenient manner and preferably heated by a coiled or other internal arrangement
of steam piping around which said cylinders revolve. Air under pressure supplied
by a fan, air propeller or other means is forced into said cylinders and is heated by
the steam piping therein as it passes towards the perforated peripheries through
which it is forced and being thus brought into contact with the material passing
round such cylinders is blown through it.
In this manner when the nature of the material being treated renders it desirable
it may be thoroughly and rapidly dried by air at a comparatively low temperature.
Or the air may be heated to any degree not liable to damage the material operated
upon either in the above mentioned manner or preparatory to reaching the
cylinders.
The above mentioned method of heating the cylinders by means of an internal
arrangement of steam piping may be applied to the cylinders of back-washing
machines generally.
We find the air charged with evaporated moisture or vapour from the material
under treatment does not pass away from the cylinders as rapidly as desirable thus
not only interfering with the drying process but in certain cases the vapour actually
condenses again upon the material under treatment. To obviate this we cover the
cylinder or cylinders with a hood, cowl or cover from which the air is exhausted by
a fan or other means. And in order to effect this in an approximately uniform
manner from all parts of the cylinders said hood, cowl or cover is provided with a
lining leaving an air space between it and the interior of said hood and in operation
the air is drawn uniformly through said perforations into said air space.
Our improvements further consist of certain improvements appertaining to the
washing or other bowls or baths used in connection with back-washing machines in
which rollers are generally used to guide the material through the baths. Said
improvements consist in employing endless chains, aprons or the like operated in.
any suitable manner to convey the material treated through the baths. For this
purpose two endless aprons may be used either with or without nip rollers, or one
apron may be employed in combination with one or more rollers. By this means
the material treated may be guided completely through the bath without having to
be touched by the attendant which is a decided advantage particularly when hot or
chemical baths are employed.
Dated this 14th day of March 1890.
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Back-washing and analogous Machines for Treating
Wool and other Fibres or the like.
We, JOHN CHARLES WALKER and JONATHAN EDWARD STEPHENSON, trading
as John Perry, of Valley Road, Shipley, in the County of York, Machine Makers,
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:-
This invention relates to improvements in back-washing and analogous machines
for treating wool and other fibrous material of a similar nature, and its chief object
is to facilitate the drying process without exposing the material operated upon to a
degree of heat liable to be injurious.
The said improvements consist in the arrangements hereinafter described in
which air more or less heated is forced through the fibres and also in the arrange-
ment for rarefying, exhausting or drawing away the air and vapour as it passes
from the material to prevent the moisture with which it is charged condensing and
again settling thereon.
For this purpose we employ perforated drying cylinders arranged in any
convenient manner and preferably heated by a coiled or other internal arrangement
of steam-piping round which said cylinders revolve. Air under pressure supplied
by a fan, air propeller or other means is forced into said cylinders and is heated by
the steam piping therein as it passes towards the perforated peripheries through
which it is forced and being thus brought into contact with the material passing
round such cylinders is blown through it.
In this manner when the nature of the material being treated renders it desirable
it may be thoroughly and rapidly dried by air at a comparatively low temperature.
Or the air may be heated to any degree not liable to damage the material
operated upon either in the above mentioned manner or preparatory to reaching the
cylinders.
The above mentioned method of heating the cylinders by means of an internal
arrangement of steam piping may be applied to the cylinders of back-washing
machines generally.
We find the air charged with the evaporated moisture or vapour from the
material under treatment does not pass away from the cylinders as rapidly as
desirable thus not only interfering with the drying process but in certain cases the
vapour actually condeuses again upon the material under treatment. To obviate
this we cover the cylinder or cylinders with a hood, cowl or cover from which the
air is exhausted by a fan or other means. And in order to effect this in an approxi-
mately uniform manner from all parts of the cylinders said hood, cowl or cover is
provided with a perforated lining leaving an air space between it and the interior
of said hood and in operation the air is drawn uniformly through said perforations
into said air space.
Our invention further consists of certain improvements appertaining to the
washing or other bowls or baths used in connection with back-washing machines in
which rollers are generally used to guide the material through the baths. Said
improvements consist in employing endless chains; aprons or the like operated in
any suitable manner to convey the material treated through the baths. For this
purpose two endless aprons may be used either with or without nip rollers, or one
apron may be employed in combination with one or more rollers. By this means the
material treated may be guided completely through the bath without having to be
touched by the attendant which is a decided advantage particularly when hot or
chemical baths are employed.
To fully describe our invention reference is to be had to the accompanying sheet
of drawings forming a part of this Specification, in which similar letters of reference
indicate corresponding parts in each of the figures.

page_text: Figure 1, is a side view partly in section of such parts of the drying portion of a
back-washing machine as are necessary to illustrate our improvements.
Figure 2, is a plan view of the same.
And
Figure 3, is a transverse section on the line a, b of Figure 1.
Figure 4, is also a transverse section of certain parts illustrating a modification
hereinafter referred to.
Figure 5, is a longitudinal section of a washing bowl illustrating our
improvements.
Figure 6, is a plan view of the same.
And
Figure 7 is a sectional view of a modification.
The drying cylinders A. may be mounted and arranged in any convenient manner
they are represented in the drawings mounted on the studs B projecting from the
standard C. They are also supported at their inner ends within the annular
bearings and are driven in the usual manner by the annular toothed wheel D.
The peripheries of the cylinders. A are of any suitable perforated material e such
as perforated brass adapted to freely allow the passage of air. A coil E of
copper or other tubing is fitted within each cylinder A. which coils are supplied
with steam by the pipes F branching from the steam supply pipe G and pipes J
convey the steam from the coils into the waste pipe 1.
A fan or air propeller fitted in connection with the passage K communicating
with the chamber L is arranged to pass air into such chamber and force it through
the openings a in the standard C opposite each of the cylinders A into the interior
of such cylinders where coming in contact with the steam coils E it is more or less
heated before passing through the perforated peripheries of the cylinders and
reaching the material operated upon.
Instead of arranging the steam coils within the cylinders a system of tubes E¹
heated by steam may be fitted in the chamber L as shown in Figure 4 to heat
the air as it is passed through such chamber. Or such an arrangement may be
used in conjunction with the coils inside the cylinders if a greater heat is
desirable.
From the foregoing description it will be readily understood that a large volume
of air heated if required may be passed in the above described manner through
the drying cylinders and the material operated upon thus greatly facilitating the
drying process.
To create an upward current and prevent the air surrounding the cylinders
from remaining stagnant we fix a hood or cowl N to the top of the standard C
over the cylinders A and preferably line it with perforated material O leaving a
space or chamber P from which the air is drawn by a fan or other means through
the passage Q
The wash bowl represented in Figures 5 and 6 is provided with two endless
aprons and represented by the broken lines mounted on two sets of rollers i, i, i,
and j,j, j, driven by the chain or in any convenient manner. The material to be
treated is passed between the aprons and is carried between them completely
through the bowls up to the ordinary nip rollers.
In Figure 7 the drum n is used instead of the upper apron h and the material
passed through the bowl between it and the apron h. Pressure may be applied to,
the drum n or rollers in any ordinary manner to nip the material as it passes
through the bowl.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare what
we claim is:-
1. In a back-washing machine the use of perforated drying cylinders with an
arrangement for passing air heated or otherwise through them, substantially as
herein shown and described.
2. In a back-washing machine the combination with the drying mechanism of a

page_text: cowl or cover provided with an arrangement for withdrawing the air, substantially
as herein shown and described.
3. In the wash bowls of back-washing machines the use of endless aprons,
chains or the like arranged to guide the material treated completely through the
bowl, substantially as herein shown and described.
Dated this 16th day of January 1891.
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.