IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES AND IN PRESSING
Year: 1851

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of the firm of J. C. Robertson & Co., of 166, Fleet
Street, in the City of London, Patent Agents, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-fifth day of
September, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, in the fifteenth year of
Her reign, did for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, Her
especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said
Richard Archibald Brooman, my exors, adññiors, and assigns, or such other's
as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my exors, adñiors, or 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, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark,
and Man, and also in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad,
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRESSES AND IN PRESSING," communicated
to me from abroad, in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I,
the said Richard Archibald Brooman, shall cause a particular description of the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her said
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and

page_text: required. H, H, are standards or bearings into which the shafts of the
pressing pistons slide when (being actuated by cams) they work into the holes
of the moveable discs B, B; J, J, are helical springs which force the pistons
G, G, back out of the apertures of the moveable discs; K, K, hoppers into
which the substances are placed in order to their being supplied. to the
openings of the moveable discs; L, L, are cams which exercise pressure on
the end of the shafts of the pressure pistons; Q, Q, are friction rollers affixed
thereto; M is the shaft of the fly wheel, it is supported at one end by
the cast-iron longitudinal frame and at the other by the bearing Y, and
imparts motion to the whole machine by means of the gearing wheels R, R;
N, N, are the cam shafts which carry the wheels R, R, into the cams L, L.
These two shafts also carry at one end two wheels S, S, which commu-
nicate motion to two similar wheels placed beneath them, and thus impart
motion to two shafts placed parallel to the cam shafts, on which are fixed the
two excentrics which put the feeding plungers and the clearing pistons A¹, A',
in motion. At the other end the shafts N, N, carry. two bevil wheels U, U,
which turn the moveable discs one-third of a revolution from every entire
revolution of the cam shafts by means of bevil pinions T, T, the shafts Z, Z,
and pinions V, V, which gear into the teeth on the peripheries of the moveable
plates B. The bevil wheels U, U, are toothed on one-half of their circum-
ference only, and thereby impart to the moveable discs an intermittent move-
ment. In the arrangement shewn the fly wheel, for accumulating power in
order to overcome the resistance at the moment of producing the pressure,
makes three turns to every turn of the cam shafts. P, P, are the excentrics
for working the feeding plungers and clearing pistons; Q, Q, rollers placed at
the end of the shafts of the pressing pistons in order to render the contact of
the cams more gentle and reduce friction; X, X, fast and loose pulleys which
receive motion from a strap; Z, Z, is the shaft which communicates motion
to the moveable discs; A¹, A¹, the clearing pistons, and B', B', bearings for the
clearing pistons. C₁, C', Figure 5, is a curvilineal plate placed before the
moveable disc and extending from the opening of the feeding cylinder to the
aperture where the substance is pressed; it serves to prevent the materials fed
into the opening or cylinder from again falling out during the passage to the
front of the pressing piston.
The manner in which the press is worked is as follows:-By the arrange-
ments shewn in the Drawings and above described each of the three apertures
or compartments of the moveable discs is successively and periodically brought
before the feeding plunger to be filled with the materials to be pressed, and
then opposite to a piston (sct in motion by a cam), the purpose of which piston

page_text: is to effect the pressure of the materials; this piston which, as before mentioned,
has its end perforated with holes and covered with wire gauze, is placed opposite
to another aperture exactly corresponding with a part of the stationary disc
which is perforated with holes and covered with wire gauze or cloth. The
substance is thus pressed between two perforated surfaces, which greatly
facilitates the escape of the liquid portion of the substances operated on, and
especially so if the moveable disc is not very thick, as then a thin layer of
material would be operated upon, and if the three apertures of the discs are
encased by circles or collars perforated with a number of small holes through-
out their peripheries, this would further increase the means of escape for the
liquid. Opposite to the third opening there is placed a clearing or discharging
piston for expelling the materials when pressed and pushing them through the
opening in the stationary disc from whence they are carried away. It follows
that by the circular and periodical movement of the moveable discs the three
openings are brought into action at the same time, one with the feeding
plunger or piston by which the opening or cylinder D is filled, a second, G,
with the pressing piston by which the chief part of the pressing action is
performed, and a third, A', with the discharging or clearing piston. The pistons
having accomplished their respective functions recede and remain at rest until
the moveable dis has made one-third of a revolution when another series of
changes are performed, namely, filling one cylinder or opening, pressing the
second, and employing the third one. The moveable disc is represented in the
Drawings in a vertical position, but it may be placed horizontally, suitable
alterations being made to suit such arrangement.
Figure 6 represents another arrangement of pressing machinery. A, A, is a
foundation plate in which there is a recess a³, a²; A', A', are standards; B is a
plate for carrying the press which is fastened to the standards A', A', in which
plate B' is a recess faced to receive a plate C. The plate B has a hole B
in it, which is bored of the same size as the cylinder D, and placed exactly
under it; B is an axis round which the plate C revolves.
Figure 7 is a plan on a reduced scale of the plates B, C, the cylinder D, and
flanges D', D'
Figure 8 is a separate plan of the plate C which is faced to fit the recess B¹
and has a number of holes C¹, C, C', made in it which correspond in size
exactly with the bore of the cylinder D. The cylinder D has flanges D', D', at
the lower end by which it is bolted to the plate D and standards A', A¹; D is
a spout with a valve or tap D³ in it, and D' is a vessel for containing the
material to be operated upon; D³ is one of a number of catches placed in
recesses formed inside the cylinder D; D, is a spring for holding the catch D

page_text: forward; D is a small tap for the admission or escape of air when required;
Ds is a pipe connected to a steam reservoir to admit steam into the lower part
of the cylinder for the purpose of accelerating the extracting operation; E is
short cylinder joined to the cylinder D by the flanges E', E', and fastened by
a suitable number of pins and cotters E, E; E³ is a cover which closes the
cylinder D at the top and has a wire gauze disc E* fixed in it to allow a free
passage for the air coming through the valve E³ to act on the whole top
surface of the material in the cylinder; E is a vessel fixed on the cover having
a valve E on the lower part of it; the cover E³ is perforated underneath the
valve (instead of being cut away) to admit of a free passage for the liquor and
at the same time to support the wire gauze disc E; F, F, are perforated
plates which are covered on both sides with wire gauze for the purpose of
allowing a passage to the liquid in the material to be operated upon; G is a
piston which fits the cylinder D and has a perforated plate G¹ fixed on the top
of it; G is a recess in the piston, and Gs a pipe fitted with a valve for drawing
off the expressed liquors. The piston rod G* works in a guide Go and is con-
nected to a crank H¹ by the connecting rod G; H is the crank shaft which
moves in bearings A2, A3; H2 is a wheel for driving the shaft H; suitable
gearing must be added to, this wheel to be worked by hand or other power, as
desired; but when steam, power is employed a convenient method of employing
such power is to place a steam cylinder directly under the cylinder D and let the
piston rod G form the piston rod of the steam cylinder, when by using suitable
valves the power required to force the piston either up or down would be
communicated directly from the steam cylinder.
The mode of working of this press is as follows:-Suppose, for example, it is
desired to press sugar, and by this means to separate the molasses therefrom;
it is necessary that the sugar should be previously prepared by being broken
and brought into a semifluid state. If the piston is down as represented in the
Drawing, Figure 6, and the openings C¹, C', in the plate filled with the per-
forated plates F, F, one of these plates will then be in the cylinder at the top
of the piston. A portion of the semifluid mass is then admitted into the cylinder
by opening the valve D³, after which the valve is closed and the piston set in
motion, which pushes the perforated plate above the caches D; the piston
then returns (the catches preventing the return of the perforated plate) and
the plate C is turned until another of the perforated plates F comes into the
cylinder over the piston. The space between the two perforated plates F, F, is
now filled with another portion of the sugar as before. The piston being again
caused to ascend lifts the second perforated plate into the place occupied by
the first one and raises the sugar above the first plate up to the flange E. On

page_text: the descent of the piston the same operation is repeated, and a third portion is
then brought into the cylinder, by which the cylinder is completely filled up to
the flange E¹; the valves Es and D³ must be opened at the proper time to
allow of the passage of the air and the molasses. A portion of purifying
liquor is then poured into the top of the cylinder from the vessel through the
valve E' and the piston again made to ascend, which forces the upper portion
of the sugar against the air contained in the top E of the cylinder D,
which causes the purifying liquor to pass partly down through the sugar. The
piston now going down a partial vacuum is formed betwixt it and the per-
forated plate held by the catches. The valve Es being thereupon opened
'causes the atmosphere to press on the liquor in the top of the cylinder and to
force it through the sugar contained in the top division, from which it is drawn
off by means of the valve in the piston. When it is desired to have a pressure
over and above the pressure of the atmosphere then a suitable contrivance must
be made to force air through a moveable pipe into the top of the cylinder D.
Steam may also be introduced in the same way. The length of time the
substance must be kept under pressure will vary according to the description
of substance operated upon. At the end of each up stroke of the piston the
top and moveable part E of the cylinder is removed with the finished portion
of sugar in it. The same, or another top similar to that which is removed is
then put on, and a fresh portion of the materials admitted into the cylinder; the
pressing operation is repeated as before, and so on. The moveable portion of
the cylinder may be used as a mould for forming loaf
sugar, and may be made
any convenient or suitable shape, and in that case any number of such forms
or moulds would be required to give the time necessary for the sugar cooling
and setting. When vegetables or fruits are to be operated upon for the purpose
of expressing and clearing the juices the plates F, F, are perforated and
covered as before, and made hollow and deep enough to hold a quantity of the
extracted liquor, so that when imbedded in the material which is being pressed
a larger surface may be presented for the escape of the liquids. When the
press represented in Figure 6 is worked by gearing from steam power it will
be necessary to make some provision for making the action intermittent, a
convenient method of doing which is shewn in Figures 9 and 10; H is the
main shaft, and O an excentric keyed upon it which has a groove O¹, O¹, in it
as is shewn. The piston rod has two arms which work into guides A³ on the
standard, and a projecting pin a which takes into the groove O', by which
arrangement the piston is enabled to stand still during part of a revolution
of the shaft so as to give time for putting in and taking out the materials
from the press.
of

page_text: .
Having thus described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is,―
First, the improved construction of press and arrangement of pressing ma-
chinery represented in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, in the general arrangement
and combination of parts of which the same consists, that is to say, in so far
as regards the employment of a revolving disc, the holes in which form the
pressing cylinders placed before a fixed plate or disc, in combination with
feeding, pressing, and discharging pistons, as described.
Second, I claim the improved press and mode or system of pressing, as
described, in reference to the machinery represented in Figure 6, whereby the
substances are acted upon in layers or divisions and forced into intimate con-
tact with the superincumbent air and water or other liquid, as described; also,
the subjection of the substances while in layers, and in such state of intimate
contact, to the action of a vacuum, as described.
Lastly, I claim the arrangements by which the substances are fed in por-
tions or divisions in conjunction with the perforated plates into the bottom of
the containing cylinders, and whereby they are removed at the top from time
to time after being pressed, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of March, in the
voor of our Low