IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS AND BUNGS
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughts-
man, for the Invention of "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS AND
BUNGS." A communication.
Sealed the 25th May 1858, and dated the 30th December 1857.
FROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton,
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on-the
30th December 1857.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents,, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare the:
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS AND
BUNGS," to be as follows:
This Invention relates to a certain novel and simple method of applying and.
operating expanding cutters for the purpose of cutting corks or bungs of conical
form, and also to certain means of feeding the "stuff" to the cutters.
The expanding cutters consist of knives loosely hung in lateral slots formed
in opposite sides of the cutter spindle, in the centre of which is fitted a sliding
rod, which is pressed downwards by a coiled spring, and caused to bear upon
the cork or wood under operation, and hold it firmly upon the feeding table.
This feeding table receives a vertical motion from a snail cam, the rotation of
which causes the table to rise and press up the cork or wood to the rotating
cutters. These cutters are pressed out or expanded by means of a plate with
bevelled edges-affixed to the pressing rod, and as the table in rising carries up.

page_text: the cork or wood under operation it forces up the pressing rod with its bevelled
plate, which latter gives the upper ends of the cutters a slight lateral move-
ment, and thereby causes them to cut the corks or bungs of a true conical form.
The shape of the cutters will vary according to the material on which they are
required to operate; thus for cutting cork, cutters with a sharp knife edge
are to be employed, but for cutting wood chisel pointed cutters will be
employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 30th June 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
.said Alfred Vincent Newton, Her special license, that I, the said Alfred
Vincent Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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
'IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS AND BUNGS," being a communication.
from abroad, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alfred
Vincent Newton, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Alfred Vincent Newton, 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 Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-

page_text: This Invention, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, relates
to a certain novel and simple method of applying and operating expanding
cutters for the purpose of cutting corks or bungs of conical form, and also to
certain means of feeding the material to be operated upon to the cutters.
The Invention is illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, in which Fig. 1
is a front view of a cork-cutting machine shewing the improvements applied;
Fig. 2 is a vertical section in a plane at right angles to Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a
side view of the cutter stock without the cutters, shewing it at right angles to
the position in which it is shewn in Figures 1 and 2; and Fig. 4 is a
horizontal section of the cutter stock in the line x, x, of Fig. 2, exhibiting it
with the cutters and all their appendages in it. Similar letters of reference
indicate corresponding parts in the several Figures.
A is 'the framing of the machine, which may be constructed of any wood or
iron of proper form to receive the working parts; B represents the main shaft
which receives, through a belt or otherwise, the power to drive the machine
working in bearings on the upper part of the framing; C is a shaft placed in
bearings in the lower part of the framing, and driven from the shaft B by a
belt D. The shaft C'carries a bevil' pinion E, which gears into a bevil wheel
F secured on the inner end of a shaft G, which turns in suitable bearings on
the framing A. On the outer end of the shaft C there is a screw thread H,
which gears into a worm-wheel I on a shaft J, arranged in suitable bearings
on the framing A, parallel with the shafts B, C. At each end of the shaft Ja
cam K is placed, and these cams support a horizontal bed L, which has
upright slides p, p, attached rigidly to its ends to fit in grooves in the framing
for the purpose of guiding the bed during the vertical motion which it derives
from the cams, as will be presently explained. The bed L is confined to the
cams by spiral springs S, S, at each end. M represents a vertical spindle, the
lower part of which constitutes the cutter head fitted to rotate in suitable
bearings in the front part of the framing A directly over the bed L. This
spindle is driven by a belt b from the driving pulley on the shaft B. The
lower part of the spindle, which constitutes the cutter head, is strengthened by
a flange M', and 'is bored centrally to receive a rod N, which is fitted to slide
within it. This rod has inserted tightly through it in a transverse direction a
pin c, which passes through two longitudinal slots d, d, in the spindle M, the
said slots permitting the rod to slide longitudinally within the spindle, but
compelling it to turn with the spindle. Between the top of the rod N and
the back of the cavity in the spindle which receives it, there is fitted a spiral
spring e, which tends to force the rod towards the lower extremity of the
spindle. A collar O is fitted loosely to the spindle M, and is connected with

page_text: the rod N by a pin f, which passes transversely through the two. This pin f
passes through the slots d, d, and assists the pin c in preventing the rod N
from turning in the spindle. This spindle M, besides the slots d, d, has two
other slots i, i, extending to the lower extremity and into the flanch M¹ to
receive two rods P, P, at the lower ends of which cutters r, r, with sharp
bevelled edges are formed or attached. The upper ends of these rods P, P,
have pins 9, 9, passing transversely through them, one through each rod, and
these pins are fitted in recesses h, h, shewn in Fig. 4, and dotted in Fig. 2, on
opposite sides of the spindle M. These pins 9, 9, are capable of working
laterally in the recesses h, h. To opposite sides of the collar O springs Q, Q,
are attached, in such a manner as to press against the backs of the rods P, P,
and to hold the said rods against the bevilled ends of a plate R, which is
inserted tightly through the lower part of the rod N, as is clearly shewn in
Fig. 2. The form of the cutters will be varied according to whether they are
to operate on cork or wood. For cutting cork, cutters with a sharp knife
edge are employed, but for cutting wood, chisel-pointed cutters should be used.
The operation of the machine is as follows:-The "stuff" or material to be
cut, shewn in red color, and indicated by T, from which the corks or bungs
are to be cut, is placed on the bed L, and the shaft B being set in motion, the
cutter spindle M receives a rotary motion through the belt b, the bed L with
the "stuff" upon it being simultaneously moved upwards towards the cutters
r, r, by the cams K, K. The stuff bears against the lower end of the rod N,
and as it is fed upwards, moves up the rod N, and causes the plate R to force
apart or expand the cutter rods P, P, which are permitted to move outwards
from the spindle in a horizontal direction or nearly so, by the lateral movement
of the pins g, g, in their recesses h, h. The above described outward move-
ment of the cutters combined with their rotary motion causes the corks or
bungs to be cut of a true conical form, and not with the sides of a curved or
concave form, as they would be if the pins g, g, were fixed relatively to the
spindle M. The cams K, K, are of such form, that they will feed the "stuff"
upwards a proper distance for the cutters to cut through the "stuff," and when
the most prominent portions of the cams have passed the bed L, the bed is
depressed or brought back to its original position by the springs S, S.
Having now set forth the nature of the Invention of "Improved Machinery
for Cutting Corks and Bungs," as communicated to me by my foreign
correspondent, and 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 within described method of applying and operating the expanding.

page_text: cutters in the cutter head or spindle, by which they are caused to cut the
corks or bungs of a true conical form, to wit, attaching the cutter rods and
cutters to the spindle by pins, which are capable of moving laterally, and
forcing the said rods and cutters apart by a sliding rod and plate, operating as
herein specified.
Second, the combination with the cutters applied and operated as shewn, of
the cams K and bed L, for feeding the cork or other material to be cut up to
the cutters.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-ninth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.S.)