CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFACTURE OF GRAIN INTO FLOUR OR MEAL
Year: 1845

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWIN
ROSE, of Ogley, in the County of Stafford, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Iler
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Edwin Rose, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that I, the said Edwin Rose, my exors, adñiors, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Edwin Rose, my exors, adiñiors, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
MANUFACTURE OF GRAIN INTO FLOUR OR MEAL;" in which said Letters Patent
is contained a proviso that I, the said Edwin Rose, shall cause a particular
description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Ier said Majesty's High Court
of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Edwin Rose, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer
tained in and by the following description thereof, reference being had
to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon, that is to say :-

page_text: My Invention relates principally to that method of grinding grain in which
the said grain is partially ground between one pair of stones, and the grinding
completed by passing the partially ground grain between a second pair of stones,
which system or method of grinding is called "progressive grinding."
And my Invention consists in part of improvements on an Invention of
"Certain Improvements in the Progressive Manufacture of Grain into Flour
or Meal, the whole or part or parts of which improvements may be applied to
the ordinary method of manufacture, for which Invention Letters Patent,
bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-seventh day of April, in the sixth
year of the reign of Her present most Gracious Majesty, were granted to
Charles Forster Cotterill, of Wallsall, in the County of Stafford, Merchant,
and in part of improvements which are applicable to or may be used in con-
junction with mills in general for grinding grain.
Those parts of my Invention which consist of improvements in the Inven-
tion for which Letters Patent were granted to the said Charles Forster
Cotterill are as follows, that is to say:-
Firstly, an improvement in the smutter, or machine for removing the smut
from grain before the said grain is introduced into the mill.
Secondly, of an alarum or apparatus to be attached to to the feeder of the
upper pair of stones, which alarum or apparatus is so operated upon by the
grain supplied to the feeder that any interruption of the supply of the said
grain is immediately indicated by the ringing of a bell.
Thirdly, of an improvement in the feeder or apparatus which determines the
quantity of grain which is supplied to the upper pair of stones at each
revolution of the said stones.
Fourthly, the adaptation of a feeder to the lower pair of stones.
Fifthly, of improvements in the apparatus for dressing the ground grain,
which improvements consist in giving a rotatory motion to the sieve of the
said dressing apparatus, and in adapting a brush to the exterior of the said sieve
for the purpose of clearing the meshes of the said sieve, and also an alteration
in the brushes which revolve in the interior of the said sieve, which alteration
is herein-after particularly described.
Those parts of my said Invention which have no reference to the Invention
for which Letters Patent were granted to the said Charles Forster Cotterill, are
as follows; that is to say:
Firstly, a machine for rolling or crushing grain preparatory to the grinding
of the said grain.
Secondly, the adaptation of the before-mentioned and herein-after described
brushes to the ordinary dressing machine.

page_text: Thirdly, of an improvement in the construction of proof staffs for setting
millstones.
Figure 1 represents a vertical section of my improved smutter, and Figure 2
represents a section of the same made in a horizontal plane. a is the hopper,
in which the grain to be cleansed is introduced; bis the stone on which the
said grain is rubbed by brushes situated at c, but not shewn in the Drawing.
After the grain falls over the edge of the stone bit is, brushed against tho
cone of wire guaze d by means of the brushes e; e, by which the smutted
particles are forced through the meshes of the said wire guaze. The perfect
separation of the particles of smutt is much facilitated by forcing a current of
air up the channel f, by which current of air the dust floating in the interior
of the cone d is carried to the exterior of the said cone, and thus removed
from the cleared grain.
My improvement consists in substituting the vanes g, g, for the fan, by
.which a current of air was driven up the channel f in the smutting machine,
as originally constructed. The said vanes are not placed radially on the
shaft or axis h, but in the position shewn in the horizontal section Figure 2.
Figure 3 represents (partly in section) my improved alarum or apparatus to
be attached to the feeder of the upper pair of stones. i is a pipe or tube
through which the grain passes to the hopper j; the upper end of the said
tube or pipe communicates with the garner; is a lever which turns upon a
joint l. Near the lower end of the tube i a plate m, attached to one end of the
lever n, completely closes the lower end of the tube or pipe i. It is evident
that the plate m can only assume the position represented when no grain is
passing from the tube i to the hopper j, for the grain in passing from the said
tube to the said hopper necessarily forces the plate m from the mouth or
lower end of the pipe i. o is a bell suspended from the lever k, and con-
nected with the lever n by the bent arm g and link 1. The clapper of the
bell is furnished with a rods, which passes through a slot in the strap t, so as
to limit its motion to the plane in which the said slot is situated. u is a rod or
axis which is connected with the shaft or axis of the mill, and receives there-
froin a rotatory motion in the manner herein-after described. is a striker or
beater. fixed on the axis at such a height that when the plate m closes.. the
mouth of the pipe i and the bell o hangs vertically as shewn in the Drawing,
the said striker or beater as it revolves comes in contact with the rods of
the clapper, and causes the bell to ring. The said striker or beater. may be
made of Russia leather.or wood. When the pipe or tube i is filled with grain
the weight of the, said grain presses the plate from the mouth of the said pipe,
and the change of position of the said plate is necessarily accompanied by a
ข
.

page_text: change in the position of the bell o, with which it is connected, the said bell
being withdrawn from the range of the striker or beater v; hence, when the pipe
or tube i is filled with grain the striker or beater v does not act on the clapper
of the bell o; but when the said pipe contains no grain the said striker
operates upon the clapper of the bell, and by the ringing produced informs
the attendant that the supply of grain is exhausted.
My improved apparatus for feeding the upper pair of stones of a "pro-
gressive" mill is also represented in section in Figure 3. w is the upper end
of the shaft of the mill; a is a dish or cup, the cylindrical stem of which enters
a corresponding cavity on the shaft w; y is a helical spring placed in the said
cavity under the stem of the dish or cup ; the said spring by its elasticity
presses the said dish or cup upwards. The stem of the dish or cup z is keyed
to the shaft by a sliding key, so that it rotates with the said shaft, and is at
the same time capable of motion in a vertical direction. The precise vertical
height of the dish or cup is determined by the rod or axis u, the lower end
of which rests on the said cup or dish; the upper end of the said rod or axis
u bears against the arm or lever k, and a cord attached to the moveable end
of the said arm or lever passes down the side of the mill, so as to be within
reach of the attendant. The quantity of grain which falls from the tube of
the hopper during each revolution of the shaft is determined by the distance
between the cup and the end of the tube j, a greater quantity falling when
the distance between them is increased, and the reverse. In order to deter-
mine the falling of the proper quantity, the attendant has only to tighten or
relax the cord connected with the arm or lever k. By tightening or drawing
down the said cord the lever is depressed, and, consequently, the rod or axis
u and cup or dish a are depressed, and the increased distance between the
said dish or cup and the end of the tube occasions the flow of a greater
quantity of grain. By relaxing or loosing the cord attached to the lever k, the
elasticity of the helical spring y being no longer opposed, it raises the cup
and rod u, and the distance between the said cup and the end of the tube j
being diminished, a less quantity of grain falls. The rod u is made to rotate
(for the purpose herein-before explained with reference to the alarum), and its
rotation is effected by its square end fitting in a square chamber in the dish
or cup x.
My improvement of the adaptation of a feeder to the lower pair of stones in
a progressive mill is represented in section in the lower part of Figure 4. a is
a conical conductor, made of leather or other flexible material, through which
the partially ground grain passes from the upper pair of stones to the lower
hopper b. The partially ground grain passes from the hopper b to the lower

page_text: pair of stones through a feeding apparatus, resembling in principle that
herein-before described with reference to the upper pair of stones, but differing
from it in construction. c is a plate somewhat larger in diameter than the
mouth of the hopper b; this plate is keyed to the shaft c¹¹ by a sliding, key,
so as to enable it while rotating to slide up and down the shaft c". dis
a lever, one end of which turns upon a joint at e, the other forked end'
engages in the groove c¹ under the plate c. By means of the rod f, jointed
to the lever d, the said lever, and with it the plate c, can be raised. or
depressed. The rod f is raised or lowered by the nut g, which screws on its
upper end, and bears against the top plate of the conical vessel h. When it
is wished to determine a greater supply of the partially ground grain to the
lower pair of stones, it is effected by partially unscrewing the nut g, and
thereby allowing the rod f, lever d, and plate c to descend; the distance
between the said plate c and mouth of the hopper b is thereby enlarged, and
the quantity of grain which falls at each revolution of the shaft is increased.
When it is wished to diminish the supply of grain the nut g is screwed on
the rod f, so as to raise the said rod, the lever d, and plate c, and thereby
contract the space between the said plate and mouth of the hopper b, and
diminish the quantity of grain which falls at each revolution of the shaft.
A series of grooves is cut on the upper surface of the plate c; these grooves aro
arranged similarly to those on the surface of millstones, that is to say, nearly
but not quite in the direction of radii.
Figure 5 represents, partly in plan and partly in section, my improved
dressing apparatus, and Figure 6 represents a vertical section of the same.
My said improvements in the dressing apparatus consist in the construction
and arrangement of the brushes, in communicating a rotatory motion to the
sieve, and in the use of a brush on the exterior of the sieve for the purpose
of clearing the meshes of the said sieve. My improved construction and
arrangement of the brushes consists in using a large series of small brushes
a, a, instead of a small series of brushes each of a length equal to the depth
of the sieve, and attaching the said brushes to the cone b, by which they are
carried round in the direction of a series of spirals, as seen by the screws
c, c, c, by which the said brushes are attached to the cone b. d is a metallic
ring which is supported by the rollers e, e, in the annular chamber f, f; a
rotatory motion is communicated to the said ring by the toothed wheel 9
engaging in the teeth on the edge of the said ring. A series of scrapers
attached to the ring d carry the flour which has passed through the sieve h
into the said. chamber in the direction of their motion, until it is brought
over the aperture through which it falls. My improvement in the sieve

page_text: consists in attaching it to the ring d. so as to give it a rotatory motion
in common with the said ring. The sieve is seen supported on the re-
volving ring at i, i. My improvement of the introduction of an additional
brush on the exterior of the revolving cone or seive his represented in
Figure 6. It consists of a cylindrical or circular brush j revolving on the
axis k. The said axis is attached to the easing of the dressing machine at 1,
and is fixed at an inclination equal and similar to that of the side of the
sieve. At the top of the brush j a bevil toothed wheel m is fixed, to which
and to the brush with which it is connected a rotatory motion is communi-
cated. The said rotary motion is thus given to the brush - is a pinion,
the leaves of which engage in the teeth of the toothed wheel o, which toothed
wheel is fixed on the axis of the toothed wheel g, by which motion is com-
municated to the ring d and sieve h. On the upper end of the axis of this
pinion is a second pinion p, the leaves of which engage in the leaves of a
pinion on the axis r. The upper end of the axis r carries a bevil toothed
wheels, which engages with the bevil toothed wheel m on the top of the
brush; the rotatory motion of the wheel o is thus communicated to the
brush j. By comparing the relative diameters of the ring d and the wheel g
by which the said ring is driven, and the diameters of the wheels and pinions
by which the brush j is driven, or by comparing the number of teeth on each
of the said wheels and on the said ring, it will be found that the motion of
the said brush is much quicker than that of the ring d and sieve h, the said
brush making one hundred and fifty revolutions, more or less, during the
time in which the said sieve makes one.
My improvement of the adaptation of the herein-before mentioned brushes
to the common dressing machine is represented in Figures 7 and 8, Figure 7
being an end view and Figure 8 a side view of a dressing machine, in which
my said improvement is introduced. a, a, is the cylindrical sieve (part of the
wire gauze of which is omitted in the Drawing, in order that the arrangement
of the brushes may not be confused by it). is the shaft or axis carrying the
brushes by which the ground grain is dressed. The brushes c, c, are arranged
spirally round the axis b, and are of much shorter length than those usually
employed. The disposition of the brushes and the method of attaching them
to the axis is so obvious in the Drawing, that I deem a further description
unnecessary.
Figure 9 represents in side view, and Figure 10 in end view, my machine
for crushing grain preparatory to grinding the same. Figure 11 represents
the gearing by which the several parts of the said machine are driven, and
Figure 12 represents the roller by which the machine is fed or supplied with

page_text: grain. a is a drum or roller which rotates on the axis or shaft b. c, c', are
two small rollers placed in the position relative to the roller a, represented in
the Drawing. d is a scraper, the form of which is clearly seen in dotted lines
in Figure 9. The upper edge of this scraper d is pressed against the under
side of the roller c by means of the weight e on the end of the lever f, and
the lower edge of the said scraper bears against the upper edge of the lower
roller c'. g is a hopper in which the grain to be crushed is placed. The
rollers a, c, c', are fed with the proper quantity of grain by means of the
roller placed at the bottom of the hopper g. This roller is shewn separately
in Figure 12; it consists of a cylinder having a series of grooves i, i, cut upon
it in a spiral direction. As the said roller rotates the grooves i, i, become
filled with grain by passing under the hopper 9, and by the continuation of
their motion the said grain falls on the roller a. The grain is carried on by
the roller a until it is brought into contact with the roller c, and is compressed
between the said rollers a and c; and any portion of the grain which adheres
to the roller c is removed therefrom by the scraper d, and falls, together with
the other partially crushed grain, between the roller a at another part of its
circumference and the roller c'. It here suffers a second and final crushing.
The rollers c and c' are adjusted by the screws j, j. Figure 11 represents
the gearing by which the rollers a, c, c', are driven. The said gearing is
situated behind the said rollers a, c, c¹, as seen in Figure 10. The pitch
lines of the wheels of the said gearing nearly coincide with the circumferences
of the cylinders a, c, c', and are represented by the red lines in Figure 9.
k, k, Figures 10 and 11, represent the band wheel by which the machine is
driven. This band wheel is fixed on the axis of the lower roller c'; at the
other end of the said axis is a toothed wheel e, which gears into a toothed
wheel m on the axis of the large roller a, and the said toothed wheel m gears
into a toothed wheel n on the axis of the upper roller c. On the end of the
axis of the roller c, opposite to that on which the toothed wheel n is fixed
is a pulley or rigger, seen at o in Figure 10, and indicated by a blue lino in
Figures 9 and 11. A band on the said rigger passes around a pulley pon
the roller or feeder h (see Figure 12), and causes the rotation of the said
roller. The roller on the axis of the feeder h, as well as the band by which
it is driven, are indicated in Figures 9 and 11 by blue lines.
Figures 13 and 14 represent in section and of the full size my improved
proof staff for setting millstones. a, a, represent the several pieces of wood
of which the staff is composed, and which, as in the ordinary proof staff, are
so arranged that the grain of the wood in each piece is in a different direction
from that in the adjoining piece, in order that the tendency to warp in one

page_text: may be counteracted by the tendency to warp in the other. My improvement
consists in the introduction of a metallic tube b, b, in the axis of the said stall,
as shewn in the Drawing. The rigidity of the metallic tube prevents the
warping of the staff. It is obvious that a solid rod or a bar of metal may be
substituted for the tube b, but I prefer a tube as being the form which gives
the greatest rigidity with the least weight.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I
claim,―
Firstly, the method herein-before described, and represented in Figures
1 and 2 of the accompanying Drawings, of producing a current of air in a
smutting machine, that is to say, by means of vanes placed upon and made to
rotate with the axis of the said machine.
Secondly, the method of constructing an alarum for mills for grinding grain,
herein-before described, and represented in Figures 3 and 4 of the accompany-
ing Drawings, the said alarum giving information of any interruption in the
supply of grain by the ringing of a bell.
Thirdly, the method of determining the quantity of grain which is supplied
to the upper pair of stones of a progressive mill, or to mills of the ordinary
construction, hererein-before described, and represented in Figure 3 of the
accompanying Drawings; that is to say, by raising or depressing a revolving
plate placed opposite to the end of the pipe conveying the said grain to the
stones, the said plate being raised by a helical spring, and depressed by a
lever.
Fourthly, the adaptation of a feeder to the lower pair of stones of a pro-
gressive mill, or to mills of the ordinary construction, as herein-before
described, and represented in Figure 4 of the accompanying Drawings.
Fifthly, the improvements in the apparatus for dressing the ground grain,
herein-before described, and represented in Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying
Drawings; that is to say, in giving a rotatory motion to the sieve of the said
dressing machine, in adapting a brush to the exterior of the said sieve, and
also in using a series of small brushes instead of brushes of a length equal to
the depth of the sieve.
Sixthly, the method of crushing grain, by causing the said grain to pass
between rollers, arranged in the manner herein-before described, and repre-
sented in Figures 9, 10, 11, and 12, of the accompanying Drawings.
Seventhly, the method of arranging the brushes in a common dressing
machine, herein-before described, and represented in Figures 7 and 8 of the
accompanying Drawings.

page_text: Enrolled the Twenty-fourth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-five.