IMPROVEMENTS IN APPA- EATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TIN AND TERNE PLATES
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Saunders and Joseph Piper, of Cookley Iron
Works, Kidderminster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPA-
EATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TIN AND TERNE PLATES."
Sealed the 27th May 1863, and dated the 19th March 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Saunders and Joseph
Piper at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 19th March 1863.
We, JOHN SAUNDERS and JOSEPH PIPER, of Cookley Iron Works, Kidder-
minster, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TIN AND TERNE PLATES," to
be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus employed in
the manufacture of tin and terne plates. For these purposes, in order with
more advantage to carry on that part of the process where tin or terne
plates are caused to pass through heated grease, to equalize and to remove
the excess of the coating apparatus, is employed, arranged, and combined
in the following manner:-A pair of rollers is placed and revolve in a
shallow trough or vessel, and they are mounted in bearings which are
carried by levers, which are pressed together by springs, so as to produce
the desired pressure or nip to the rollers. The grease is retained in this
trough or vessel to any desired height by means of an overflow pipe,
the delivery end of which may be raised or lowered to any required point.

page_text: There is also a separate grease trough at one end in which the necks of the
rollers, their axes, and clutch boxes revolve, from which also there is an over-
flow pipe. The axes which give motion to the rollers are driven by friction
surfaces, which are pressed together by a weighted lever; below the trough in
which the rollers revolve and in connection therewith there is a descending
trunk, the lower end of which descends to the bottom of another trough, into
which the tin or terne metal removed from the plates descends, and from it
such metal is removed or is allowed to flow. There are openings at the lower
end of the trunk through which such metal flows into the receiving trough
below, whilst the melted metal in the lower trough supports the grease in the
trunk and in the upper trough or vessel. The coated plates are placed in
succession into a portion of the upper trough or vessel, which is divided off by
a partition, and each plate as it is introduced descends into the trunk till its
lower edge rests on a lifting bar or cradle therein, and such plate is then
caused to assume a vertical position in the cradle by fingers, which are
mounted on an axis above. These fingers give way as the plate descends
in an inclined position into the trunk, and then the fingers by pressing against
the plate cause it to assume a vertical position in the cradle which is below the
nip of the rollers. The lifting bar or cradle is then raised by a lever handle,
which brings the upper edge of the plate to the nip of the rollers, so that by
the revolution of the rollers the plate is raised out of the grease, which is kept
heated by any suitable means.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 5th September 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
SAUNDERS and JOSEPH PIPER, of Cookley Iron Works, Kidderminster, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper, Her special licence that we, the
said John Saunders and Joseph Piper, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and

page_text: 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 APPARATUS
EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TIN AND TERNE PLATES," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper,
our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our or
their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us, or them,
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.
KNOW NOW YE, that we, the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper, 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 thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus employed in the
manufacture of tin and terne plates. For these purposes, in order with more
advantage to carry on that part of the process where tin or terne plates are
caused to pass through heated grease to equalize and to remove the excess of
the coating apparatus, is employed, arranged, and combined in the following
manner: A pair of rollers is placed and revolve in a shallow trough or vessel,
and they are mounted in bearings which are carried by levers, which aro
pressed together by springs, so as to produce the desired pressure or nip to the
rollers. The grease is retained in this trough or vessel to any desired height,
by means of an overflow pipe, the delivery end of which may be raised or
lowered to any required point. There is also a separate grease trough at one
end, in which the necks of the rollers, their axes, and clutch boxes revolve,
from which also there is an overflow pipe. The axes which give motion to
the rollers are driven by friction surfaces, which are pressed together by a
weighted lever; below the trough in which the rollers revolve and in connection
therewith there is a descending trunk, the lower end of which descends to the
bottom of another trough, into which the tin or terne metal removed from the
plates descends, and from it such metal is removed. There are openings at
the lower end of the trunk through which such metal flows into the receiving
trough below, whilst the melted metal in the lower trough supports the grease
in the trunk and in the upper trough or vessel. The coated plates are placed
in succession into a portion of the upper trough or vessel, which is divided off
by a partition, and each plate as it is introduced descends into the trunk till its

page_text: lower edge rests on a lifting bar or cradle therein, and such plate is then
caused to assume a vertical position in the cradle by fingers, which are mounted
on an axis above. These fingers give way as the plate descends in an inclined
position into the trunk, and then the fingers by pressing against the plate cause
it to assume a vertical position in the cradle which is below the nip of the
rollers. The lifting bar or cradle is then raised by a lever handle which brings
the upper edge of the plate to the nip of the rollers, so that by the revolution
of the rollers the plate is raised out of the grease, which is kept heated by
any suitable means.
And in order that our Invention may be most fully understood and readily
Figure is a side view, Figure 2,
Section,
view, and Figure 4 a transverse section of a machine constructed according to
our Invention.
a, a, are rollers contained in a trough b; the bearings of one of these
rollers are carried by levers c, c, which turn on centres at their lower ends;
the upper ends of the levers are forced by the springs d, d, towards the
standards e; the rollers are thus pressed against each other. The force with
which the rollers are pressed against each other can be adjusted by the nuts f
In place of the springs d weighted levers may be employed, but we prefer to
employ springs in the manner shewn in the Drawing; the levers c and the
bearings carried by them are, as is seen contained in the trough b. The axes
of the rollers a are at one of their ends connected by the clutches g to the ends
of the axes h, h¹; these axes pass through the end of the trough b, and on the
outer end of one of them h is a wheel or pulley, by which it can be caused to
rotate at any required velocity; the axes h and h¹ are caused to revolve
simultaneously by the bearing ", which supports the outer end of the axis h',
being pressed by the weighted lever k towards the bearing i which supports
the outer end of the axis h, thus causing the boss or friction pulley h³ on the
axis h¹ to press against the boss or friction pulley h2 on the axis h. 6¹ is an
overflow pipe from the trough 6; the delivery end of this pipe can be raised
or lowered, and the grease can thus be kept at any level in the trough; any
grease that passes away through the overflow pipe is received into a trough b
68 is a small trough on that end of the trough 6 through which the axes h, h¹,
pass; this trough receives any grease that may escape through the bearings
of the axes, and from it is an overflow pipe, which delivers into the trough b

page_text: Z is the descending trunk in connection with the bottom of the trough b; this
trunk at its lower end has openings formed through it, which open into a
trough m. Any tin or terne metal removed from the plates by the rollers
descends to the bottom of the trunk and passes through the openings at its
bottom into the trough m, from which it can be removed by any suitable
means, always leaving sufficient metal in the trough m to support the required
quantity of grease in trough 6 and trunk 1; the trough m thus always contains
as much metal as is required to support the grease in the trough 6 and trunk l;
62 is a trough containing a supply of grease, from which the trough 6 can from
time to time be replenished. n is a partition at the front of the trough 6; this
partition separates the portion of the trough that contains the rollers a from
the portion of the trough into which the coated plates are introduced. As
each plate is introduced into the trough it is kept in its proper position by the
guiding pieces o, which can be set at different distances apart to suit different
widths of plates, these guiding pieces being for this purpose supported at their
upper ends by projections or pins upon them entering into notches formed in
the top of the partition n, the partition being, as is shewn, formed at its top
with several notches to admit of this. p, p, are finger, which, when a plate
has been introduced into the trunk l, cause the plate to assume a vertical
position; these fingers at their upper ends turn on an axis q, on which is an
arm, provided with a weight q'; these fingers give way as each plate is
introduced into the trough, and allow the plate to descend into the trunk, and
as soon as the top of the plate has passed beyond the bottom of the partition n
the fingers, by being caused by the weight q' to turn on their axis, press back
the plate until it comes against the vertical stops or guides 6, thus causing tho
plate to assume a vertical position. The bottom of the plate is received into
the cradler; this cradle can be raised by means of the lever handle s; this
handle is fixed on an axis s¹, from which arms & project, which arms are
connected to the cradle. As soon as a plate is received in the cradle, the
cradle is raised by the lever handles, the top of the plate is thus brought up
to the rollers, and as the rollers are constantly rotating, they draw the plate
up between them, and thus equalize the coating of tin or terne metal upon
them, and at the same time remove from them any excess of coating metal.
Figure 5 is a plan in section, and Figure 6 a vertical section, showing the
mode we prefer for keeping the grease and metal contained in the apparatus
heated.
t is a fire-place or furnace, from which two flues u, v, proceed; these
flues are provided with dampers, by which more or less of the products of
combustion can be caused to pass through either of them, and by this

page_text: means the temperature of the different parts of the apparatus can be
regulated.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we make no claim to
any of the mechanical parts separately; but what we claim is, the combined
arrangement herein described.
In witness whereof we, the said John Saunders and Joseph Piper, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twelfth day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
JOHN SAUNDERS. (L.8.)
JOSEPH PIPER.
(L.S.)