IMPROVEMENTS IN SHAPING AND FINISHING METALLIC AND OTHER ARTICLES BY ABRASION, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Bernard Peard Walker, of North Road House,
Wolverhampton, in the County of Stafford, Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHAPING AND FINISHING METALLIC AND
OTHER ARTICLES BY ABRASION, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN."
Sealed the 20th July 1869, and dated the 25th February 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Bernard Peard Walker
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 25th February 1869.
I, BERNARD PEARD WALKER, of North Road House, Wolverhampton,
in the County of Stafford, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHAPING AND FINISHING METALLIC AND
OTHER ARTICLES BY ABRASION, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED
THEREIN," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the manufacture of a variety of articles in
which the process of grinding and polishing is employed for the purpose

page_text: of shaping or finishing their surfaces, and consists partly in the adap-
tation of the copying principal employed in the machines in use for the
shaping of wood stocks of guns, lasts for shocs, and such like articles;
to the production of surfaces other than flat in articles of metal; and
partly in special machinery and apparatus for grinding and polishing
the edges and surfaces of the metal heels of boots and shoes, the edges
of iron washers for machinery, and similar articles. Hitherto this process
has been chiefly effected by applying the article to the surface of a
grinding or polishing stone or wheel by hand, and depending upon the
skill of the workman and his scuse of touch chiefly for the shape and
finish desired.
By the use of this Invention the hand of the workman is replaced by
an arrangement of machinery so contrived as to move the article under
manufacture towards and over the grinding surface with a mechanically
determined and controled motion, by employing a model or pattern of
the surface required, which is reproduced in the article made. In some
cases the necessary mechanically controuled motion may be given to the
article without the employment of a model.
One form of apparatus may consist of a headstock similar to that of a
lathe mounted upon a pivot, so as to permit a lateral motion in a line at
right angles to the axis of the spindle of the headstock similarly to what
is provided in a rose engine. The spindle is driven by a train of wheels
the axis of the driver of which is a line produced from the axis of the
pivots on which the headstock vibrates, so that the spindle may be kept
revolving at the same time that lateral motion is given. The spindle is
furnished at the one end with a chuck or clump by which the article to
be ground is held, and at the other a model or plate of the shape to be
produced in the article. Opposed to this last-named plate, which may
be called the "shaper plate," is a roller of about the same size as the
grinding wheel, the supporting bracket of which roller is attached firmly
to the base plate of the machine. A spring or weight. is employed to
force the edge of the "shaper plate" into contact with the roller. The
grinding wheel, which may be either natural grindstone or artificial, is
so arranged as that by the revolution of the article on the axis of the
spindle combined with the lateral motion obtained by means of the
'shaper plate" the article is ground down to the figure of the model.
In the case of shoe heel tips which are made of iron bars bent into the
shape desired, and have therefore the inside and outside edges nearly
"

page_text: parallel, the "shaper plate" is dispensed with, and it is sufficicut to
attach a small roller to the spindle, and between which and the edge of
the grinder the heel tip is passed. It is necessary for some shapes of
heel tip to employ a roller mounted upon a spring, which by pressing
the surface of the tip into close contact with the chuck or spindle
end produces sufficient friction to carry round the tip at the surface
velocity necessary for its being, properly ground or polished, as may be
required.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Bernard Peard Walker in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 25th August 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BERNARD
PEARD WALKER, of North Road House, Wolverhampton, in the County
of Stafford, Engineer, send grecting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Bernard Peard Walker, Her
special license that I, the said Bernard Peard Walker, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Bernard
Peard Walker, my executors, administrators, or 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHAPING AND FINISHING METALLIC AND OTHER ARTICLES BY
ABRASION, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I; the said Bernard Peard Walker, my
executors or administrators, 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,
aud 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Bernard Peard Walker, 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, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is
to say-
My said Invention relates to the manufacture of a variety of articles
in which the process of grinding and polishing is employed for the
purpose of shaping or finishing their surfaces, and consists partly in the
adaptation of the copying principle employed in the machines in use for
the shaping of the wood stocks of guns, lasts for shoes, and such like
articles; to the production of surfaces other than flat in articles of metal;
and partly in special machinery and apparatus for grinding and polishing
the edges and surfaces of the metal heels of boots and shoes, the edges of
iron washers for machinery, and similar articles. Hitherto the operation
of grinding has been chiefly effected by applying the article to be ground
to the surface of a grinding or polishing stone or wheel by hand and
depending upon the skill of the workman and his sense of touch chiefly
for the shape and finish desired.
By the use of my Invention the hand of the workman is replaced by
an arrangement of machinery so constrived as to move the article under
manufacture towards and from the grinding surface with a mechanically
determined and controuled motion by employing a model or pattern of
the surface required which is reproduced in the article made. In some
cases the necessary mechanically controuled motion may be given to the
article without the employment of a model. One form of apparatus
may consist of a headstock similar to that of a lathe mounted upon a
pivot so as to permit a vibrating or to-and-fro motion in a line at right
angles to the axis of the spindle of the headstock similarly to what is
provided. in a rose engine. The spindle of the headstock is driven by
gearing or other suitable means, the axis of the driver being in a line.
produced from. the axis of the pivots on which the headstock vibrates, so
that the spindle may be kept. revolving at the same time that the
vibrating motion is given. The spindle is furnished at the one end with
a chuck or clamp by which the article to be ground is held, and at the
other end with a model or plate of the shape to be produced in the article.
Opposed to this, last-named plate, which may be called the "shaper
plate," is a disc or roller of about the same size as the grinding wheel,

page_text: the supporting bracket of which disc or roller is attached. firmly to the
base plate of the machine. A spring or weight is employed to force
the edge of the "shaper plate" into contact with the said disc or roller:
The grinding wheel, which may be either natural grindstone or artificial,
is so arranged as that by the revolution of the article on the axis of the
spindle combined with the vibrating motion obtained by means of the
shaper plate" the article is ground down to the figure of the model:
In the case of shoe heel tips which are made of iron bars bent into the
shape desired and have therefore their inside and outside edges nearly
parallel, the "shaper plate" is dispensed with, and it is sufficient to
attach a small roller to the spindle end, between which and the edge of
the grinder the heel tip is passed. It is necessary for some shapes of
heel tips to employ an additional roller mounted upon a spring which
by pressing the surface of the tip into close contact with the chuck or
spindle end produces sufficient friction to carry round the tip at the
surface velocity necessary for its being properly ground or polished as
may be required.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood, I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheets of Drawings,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the
Figures.
Figure 1 (Sheet 1) represents a front elevation of my improved
machine for grinding articles by the aid of a model or "shaper plate,"
and shews its application to the grinding or polishing of the sides of
hexagonal nuts; Figure 2 is an end elevation shewing a portion of the
same machine; and Figure 3 is a plan shewing the main features of
my Invention.
A is a steel model or "shaper plate" of the form and size of the
finished article required. This model is fixed to a spindle B so as to turn
with it, and rests against the surface of a metal disc or roller C, which
should be nearly of the size and shape of the grinding wheel employed
in the process. The article to be shaped (in this case a hexagon nut) is
attached to the opposite end of the spindle B in the manner shewn at B¹
(Figures 1 and 3), or in any other suitable way, so that it may revolve
along with the model A. The spindle B is mounted upon a vibrating
plate D, which is furnished with a pivot E, upon which it vibrates
towards and from the surface of the grinding wheel F and disc C

page_text: (Figure 3). The model is by means of the blade spring G kept in close
contact with the edge of the disc C. By means of the wheel H and
pinion I, driven by the pulley K (omitted for the sake of clearness in
Figures 2 and 3) the spindle B is made to revolve. The axis of the shaft
of the pinion I is in the same line as that of the pivot E of the vibrating
plate D, so that the revolutions of the spindle B are not interrupted by
the vibrations of the plate D, which, as will be evident from the
Drawings, must take place when the spindle is rotated. The shaft of the
pinion I, the pivot of the vibrating plate D, and the support of the
plate C are all attached to one casting L, which is mounted in the same
way as the top of an ordinary slide rest of a lathe, as shewn in the
Drawing, so that by the action of the screw. spindles M and N of the
cross slides the position of the spindle B and conscquently of the article
to be shaped can be varied at pleasure either towards or from or along
the surface of the grinding wheel. The grinding wheel F which may be
abrasive material, is mounted in the ordinary way, and may have
an endlong motion given to its spindle so as to traverse slowly to and fro
and thereby wear its surface evenly, or the work may be brought in
contact with successive portions of the grinding surface by means of the
cross slides above referred to upon which the carriage plate or casting L
is mounted. Although I have selected a hexagon nut as one example of
the articles for the shaping and polishing of which my machine is
adapted, it is obvious that a great variety of articles may be equally well
shaped, ground, or polished, and reduced to the form of the model or
"shaper plate" by my Invention.
of
any
Figure 4 (Sheet 2) is an end elevation, Figure 5 is a front elevation, and
Figure 6 an enlarged plan view of part of one of my machines adapted
to the finishing and polishing of the edges or surfaces of shoe heel tips by
means of a grinding wheel, which may be either a natural grindstone, an
emery wheel, or other suitable revolving grinder. A portion of such a
wheel is shown at F with appropriate spindle and bearings. B is a
revolving spindle so arranged as to be driven continuously by either
toothed gearing or belt or gut, whilst its distance from the grinding
surface is varied. This spindle is furnished with chucks or other con-
trivances by means of which the article to be operated upon is secured
thereto, so that by its revolution each portion of the surface is succes-
sively presented to the grinder. In this modification of my machine the
spindle B is mounted on a vibrating frame D, which frame moves on a

page_text: means.
pivot or axis E in a line with the axis of the pinion I. The pulley K by
means of which the pinion I is driven, is, like it, keyed upon its axis, and
by its revolution drives the wheel H into which the pinion İ gears.
Motion is imparted to the pulley K from the prime mover by any suitable
I prefer to make this pulley with grooves of different diameters
so as to be able to suit the speed of the spindle B to the work required to
be produced and the variation of the abrasive power of the grinder. O
represents a heel tip, the edge of which is to be polished. The end of
the spindle B is formed into a roller at the point where the tip is applied
(see Figure 6), and a cushion of clastic material P, such as leather or
vulcanized india-rubber, is arranged to form part of the said roller. This
elastic cushion or washer is secured to the spindle B, and made to revolve.
with it by means of a screw bolt passing through the length of the
spindle and furnished with a nut, as shown at B', Figure 5. O (Figure 6)
is a section of the iron of which the heel tip is made or a section of one
side of the heel tip; Q is a roller mounted on a spring arm R, and so
adjusted as to press the heel tip into contact with the roller end of the
spindle B. It will be evident that when the spindle B is set in motion
the heel tip will be drawn in between the two rollers Q and B in the
direction indicated by the arrows, and carried round by them, whilst the
edge of the heel tip will by the cushion or washer P be kept in yielding
contact with the surface of the grinding wheel. The distance of the rollers
from the surface of the grinding wheel is varied to suit the different
sections of the heel tips by means of the fly nut and screw pin S, the
spiral spring G keeping the horizontal part of the vibrating frame D in
contact with the fly nut, and also allowing the frame to move away from
the grinding wheel should any irregularity in the surface of the latter
or of the heel tip which is being ground or polished require it. The
supports for the vibrating frame D and the axis of the pinion I are
attached to or formed on a sliding plate or carriage L, which is so arranged
as to be moved in a direction parallel to the axis of the grinding wheel
by means of a leading screw and handle at M, so that successive portions
of the grinding surface may be brought into action. In some cases I
apply a self-acting arrangement by means of which the carriage is made
to move slowly to and fro and thereby wear the surface of the grinder
uniformly. I have not particularly described this portion of the arrange-
ment as many such contrivances are in use and are well known to
engineers.

page_text: Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
said Invention and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider
to be novel and original and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First. The system or mode of grinding or polishing metallic articles by
the aid of a model or "shaper. plate," operating substantially as herein-
before described.
Second. The system or mode of grinding or polishing the edges or
surfaces of heel tips, washers, and similar articles, by causing them to
revolve or change their position by the aid of a rotatory spindle and rollers
whilst in contact with the grinding surface, substantially as herein-before
described.
Third. The use of a rotatory spindle carried in a vibrating frame or
slide, and capable of moving to and from the grinding or polishing
surface for the purpose of presenting different parts of the article to be
ground to the action of the grinding or polishing surface, substantially as
herein before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Bernard Peard Walker, have to
this my Specification set my hand and seal, the Twenty-third day
of August, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.
BERN. P. WALKER. (L.S.)