IM- PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING DRAINING PIPES, BRICKS. TILES AND ALL OTHER O n.
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Louis Julien Brethon, of the Town of Tours, in
the Empire of France, Practical Engineer, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING DRAINING PIPES, BRICKS.
TILES AND ALL OTHER O
n.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Louis Julien Brethon
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 10th January 1857.
I, LOUIS JULIEN BRETHON, of the Town of Tours, in the Empire of France,
Practical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING DRAINING PIPES, BRICKS,
TILES, AND ALL OTHER SIMILAR PLASTIC ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the centre of the machine, which is
composed of a stout cast-iron cylinder B, B, cast in a single piece, which
cylinder is erected on square brickwork F. A vertical shaft A in the middle
of the cylinder is set in motion either by horse or any other power. The
shaft A carries a double-threaded screw b, b, and a set of steel knives c, cl, cll.
The clay as it is extracted from the quarry is thrown with a shovel into the
cylinder B, being only previously mixed with a small quantity of water; itisat
first cut and triturated by the knives c, c', which bring it under the action of
[Price 8d.]

page_text: the helical wings b, b, the latter force down the clay through numerous small
perforations of a cast-iron plate g,g, a plan of half of which is shown on a
larger scale Fig. 2. The pebbles contained in the clay cannot pass through
the perforations of the plate g, and in order to prevent them from obstructing
the said perforations, a steel knife m, fastened to the shaft A, rotates with it
over the upper face of the plate g, driving away the pebbles wich gather in
the chamber above the said plate, whence they are expelled by opening from
time to time the side apertures closed by small gates. The clay, after passing
through the plate g, meets a similar screw,, fixed on the shaft A; the said
screw forces the clay into the lower chamber M, M, the bottom of which is
inclined, as seen in the Figure; the clay is forced out from the chamber through
properly-shaped holes, so as to make it into either tubes or sheets, which are
carried away by endless cloths running on rollers i, i, i. The tubes or pipes
or the sheets are then divided into the required lengths as usual for making
either draining pipes, bricks, tiles, or similar articles.
Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the lower part of the cylinder underneath the
perforated plate, showing two trefoil-shaped discs H, H, placed on each side,
and moveable on axis; they prevent the wings f, f, from slipping through
the clay when the latter contains two much water, in which case the screw
might not be able to force the clay through the apertures.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Louis Julien Brethon in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 7th July 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, LOUIS
JULIEN BRETHEN, of the Town of Tours, in the Empire of France, Practical
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Louis Julien Brethon, Her special license that I, the said Louis Julien
Brethon, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Louis Julien Brethon, 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 thereiu expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain

page_text: and Ireland, the Channel Islands. and Isle of Man, an invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING DRAINING PIPES, BRICKS.
TILES, AND ALL OTHER SIMILAR PLASTIC ARTICLES." upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Louis Julien Brethon. my excenters or administra-
5 tors, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals. 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 immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE. that I, the said Louis Julien Brethon, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed. to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
This improved machine is applied to the manufacture of solid or of per-
forated bricks, of tiles, and draining pipes, and other articles made of clay,
having a regular cross section. It is superior to other similar machines.
inasmuch as it is formed of very few castings, and is not liable to be injured by
pebbles or other hard substances in the clay. It may be worked by any
motive power, and is simple. suong, and economical. The machine is as
follows: A strong vertical cast-iron screw revolving freely in the middle of
an upright cast-iron cylinder; a rotative notion is given to the helix either
by horse or steam power, and the clay is thrown with a shovel into the upper
box of the cylinder as it is dug out from the ground, without any other
preparation than that of being mixed with water; it is ground. mingled,
malaxated and freed from hard or filamentous substances, and, finally, the clay
is forced down through side moulding apertures for producing either pipes,
bricks, tiles, or other articles of that description.
The annexed Drawing shews several views of my improved machine
crected in the middle of a rectangular pit of brickwork (Fig. 1 and 4.) over
which it is supported by means of thick wooden boards, and fixed with stout
setting bolts to a frame of stout oak beams. When worked by horse-power
t stands in the middle of the ring in which the horse is walking. It is
composed of two distinct parts: 1st, the preparing apparatus, where the clay is
riturated, purified, and forced down. 2nd, the moulding apparatus, where it
s transformed into either bricks, tiles, or pipes.
The Figures 1 and 2 are complete front and side elevations of the
nachiue. The cylinder, the screw, and all the most important pieces are
ade of rough cast iron, from to of an inch thick. The casing is com-
osed of two cylinders of unequal diameters, one of which is placed above

page_text: the other, both together being about four feet high. The upper cylinder A is
the larger one; it is open at its upper part for receiving the clay, which is
thrown in with a shovel. When the clay is either too dry or thick it is
softened with a little water, any other manual preparation being unnecessary.
The inner diameter of the lower cylinder B is about 14 feet, and that cylinder
is about two-thirds of the total height of the envelope or casing: the malaxing
screw or helix works within this cylinder. Half way up this cylinder there
is a kind of projecting square box c, Fig. 1, about a foot high; 2 sides of
the box C are closed by curved flaps or doors V in cast iron, which slide at
pleasure over the rounded edges of the box C when actuated by the levers
L, L, moveable on fulcrums fixed to the sides of the box, as shown Fig. 1.
One of the flaps or doors is represented in Fig. 2 as being open; its upper
edge has a flange, and this flange bears upon the upper edge of the box C
when the flap or door is lowered (Fig. 1), and keeps it opposite the apertures,
so as to close it. These moveable doors or flaps placed on either side of the
cylinder B are opened from time to time for the purpose of removing pebbles
or other extraneous bodies separated from the clay, as will be explained here-
after, and gathered by the motion of the machinery within the box C.
Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the machine made through theaxis of the brick-
work, all the front part of the envelope being removed for the purpose of shewing
the helix. This screw consists of double winding surfaces, wings, or vanes,
fixed round the shaft a, a, which carries also several blades c, cl, cl, the object
of which will be explained hereafter. The shaft a is hollow, and cast in a
single piece together with the screw or vanes H, H; a suitable steel pivot T,
let into the lower part of the shaft, rests on a corresponding bearing, where it
can rotate freely, and the upper part of the said shaft runs in a collar d, d,
fixed in the standards e, e, fastened to the envelope A. The screw thread or
vanes H, H, are cast on the shaft, as already stated: they are about 4 of an
inch thick and a foot deep; their inclination is about 45 degrees; the
lower thread or vanes H must be a little thicker, on account of the compress-
ing force they have to exert; there is some space leit between the screw and
the inner surface of the cylinder B. The spiral threads or wings of the
screw are symetrically disposed around the shaft a, two being above and two
below the box C. Several strong steel blades or knives c, cl,cl, are fitted spirally
around the shaft; these blades c, cl, cl, enter into a slanting direction into
the clay, cutting, grinding, and mingling it; and, lastly, force it down into the
wiugs H, which wings force it lower still. The bottom of the box C is full
of holes like a colander; it is composed of an iron plate g, g, about of an
inch thick, perforated with numerous conical holes, with the larger opening

page_text: downwards, about an inch wide, and symetrically disposed; this bottom plate,
half of which is shown, Fig. 3, on a larger scale, is fastened or only rests upon
a cast-iron square frame. A steel blade or horizontal scraper P' fastened to
the shaft a travels over the upper face of the perforated plate g.g. as the shaft
rotates: this scraper, having its convex surface in front, drives, as it revolves,
all the pebbles or other hard extraneous bodies, and forces them towards the
circumference. When the screw is at work forcing down the clay the resist-
ance of the latter would tend to raise up the shaft a and all its appendages,
which shaft would slide upwards in the collar d, d, and its shoulder would
press against the said collar, wearing it out, and consuming a great deal
more driving power. In order to prevent this, there is an arrangement
shown in Fig. 5, which is as follows:-Three steel rollers 7, 1, 7, are connected
together by a steel collar, and turn freely on fixed axes; the said rollers run
in circular grooves between the upper face of the shoulder of the shaft a and
the under side of the collar d. d; the shoulder of the shaft a is surrounded
with a sheet-iron wrapper G, so as to form a chamber containing oil for
lubricating the antifriction rollers run freely in the circular grooves
before-mentioned when the screw is raised by the pressure. In order to
prevent the clay rotating with the screw, and thereby escaping being forced
down, which rotative motion would unavoidably be produced if the clay
were too wet, I have applied a contrivance, represented Fig. 1, 2, and 6.
Two narrow vertical apertures are made through the lower part of the
cylinder B at opposite sides; these apertures are about 14 feet high and 1
inches wide; in each of the said apertures a trefoil-shaped plate E is introduced,
a little thinner than the apertures; these plates E are fitted on axes turning on
suitable bearings, and are enclosed in a sheet-iron box fastened to the cylinder
B; the rounded wings of both diaphragms E are engaged in the wings or
thread of the lower screw H', H', thereby preventing the clay from rotating,
and therefore helping the vertical pressure of the screw.
The moulding apparatus is a square cast-iron box M, Fig. 1, 2, 4, and 6,
fixed below the screw; it is fastened to the cylinder B by four bolts h, h, the
hollow bottom of the cylinder B allowing the clay to enter freely into the
two compartments of the box B, divided by the cross piece T, on which is
the bearing of the shaft a, the under faces of the cross piece T forming two
planes inclined at 45°. From this disposition it follows that the clay is forced
through the horizontal apertures of the moulding box. When it is required
to make pipes of a large diameter the moulding box is placed in a horizontal
position in a
agroover, r, which holds it, the inclines being removeable moveable
at pleasure; the moulded pipe issues in a vertical direction.

page_text: Fig. 4 shows in vertical section two moulding boxes for 13 inch pines.
The round discs inthecentre of their circular apperture is attached to the box f
by a thin iron plate, which cuts into the clay, dividing it for each hole. a, a,
are two horizontal iron blades rounded off at their ends; they have been added
above the moulding boxes for the purpose of compelling the clay to meet
the inclined planes, instead of sliding along the vertical plane of the said
moulding boxes, which is a great improvement for the econoiny and regularity
of the work. The inclined tables with moveable rollers R. R. and endless;
cloths for receiving the pipes as they issue from the moulding box, together
with the cutting wires, are disposed in the brickwork F, Fig. 1 and 4, as usual
in other similar machines.
What I consider as being new in my said machine is the disposition of the
helixes and sieve for preparing the clay; also the disposition of that sieve and
its use; also the use and contrivance of the screw with wings or vanes-fixed
round the shaft, and the trefoil-shaped plate or other contrivance on the same
principle and for the same object; and, lastly, the antifriaction rollers, as
described in the said Drawings and Specification.
In witness whereof, I, the said Louis Julien Brethon, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Seventh day of July, Eighteen hundred and
Signed and sealed in the presence of
witness,
L. D'AUBREVILLE, C.E.,
L. J. BRETHON. (L.S.)
Rue de l'Echiquier, 36.