IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING BOLTS, RIVETS, SPIKES, AND OTHER LIKE ARTICLES
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS, PATENT to John Lewis, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer and Draughtsman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR MAKING BOLTS, RIVETS, SPIKES, AND OTHER LIKE ARTICLES."
Sealed the 27th December 1864, and dated the 13th July 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Lewis at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
13th July 1864.
I, JOHN LEWIS, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer and
Draughtsman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING BOLTS, RIVETS, SPIKES, AND OTHER LIKE
ARTICLES;" to be as follows:-
A bar of iron is first heated in a suitable furnace, near the mouth of which
is placed a machine constructed in the following manner :-In the front of
the machine opposite the furnace are ordinary feed rollers, grooved to suit
the size of the heated iron, and acted upon by an ordinary ratchet and pall
lever. from the driving shaft by means of a lever worked by a cam. The iron
passes between the rolls, afterwards through an opening in the frame of the
machine, and thence through a bell-mouthed hole in a steel shear plate which
leaves a sharp edge inside. The length of iron required for making the bolt
or other article is regulated by a slot in the pall lever and a set pin. Above
the iron passed through the shear is a half die, which serves also as a pressure
plate, and has a horizontal motion; this again works in a slide having a vertical

page_text: motion. The horizontal motion is obtained by a box cam, the vertical motion
by an edge cam, both being worked by a shaft at right angles with the
machine. The effect produced is that the lever acted upon by one cam
depresses the vertical slide, and the pressure plate cuts off the projecting
piece of iron with which the bolt is made, it is then between the flat surfaces
of the top and bottom pressure plates, the other cam now gives motion to the
horizontal pressure plate and causes the piece of iron to roll between the two
surfaces, the bottom being fixed and having the other half of the die thereon
at a suitable distance. The iron used is sufficiently large to form the square or
other shoulder when forced up by the dies. The pressure plates only act upon
the part required to be round. The action of the top pressure plate carries
the iron-forward, pressing it to the proper or required size on its way until the
two half dies meet and embrace the iron firmly, forming the square or other
shoulder by a continued action from the two cams. The heading tool then
advances worked by an excentric and slide of ordinary construction. Imme-
diately the heading tool has done its work it retires, and the lever cam
suddenly raises the vertical slide, thus liberating the bolt, and by its quick action
strikes a lever which knocks out the bolt by means of a pin called in the
trade a "tipping pin." The motions herein-before described are so arranged
that no attention is required beyond entering the bars into the feed rolls and
cleaning the pieces of the ends of the iron out of the dies.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Lewis in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th January 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
LEWIS, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer and Draughtsman,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant. unto
me, the said John Lewis, Her special licence that I, the said John
Lewis, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said John Lewis, 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

page_text: 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 MACHINERY FOR MAKING BOLTS, RIVETS; SPIKES, & OTHER SUCH
LIKE ARTICLES, WITH SQUARE OR OTHER SHAPED SHOULDERS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said John Lewis, my executors or admi-
nistrators, 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.
1
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Lewis, 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 ful-
lowing statement :-
1
My Invention chiefly relates to the so arranging machinery as to producè
square or other shaped shoulder bolts, rivets, spikes, and other like articles.
In performing my Invention I place in front of my machine a furnace to
heat such number of bars or rods of iron as may be required (of ordinary
length) to supply the machines, the said furnace to have a door at each end in
order that the iron to be used may be put in at one end & drawn out at
the other. The iron I use for square or other shaped shoulders will be the
ordinary round bar, but as much larger in diameter as may be required to
form the shaped shoulder wanted.
In my Drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improved machine ;
Fig. 2 is a plan of the same; Fig. 3 is a back elevation of the headstock;
shewing the position and actions of dies, levers, cams, and slides.
In front of the machine I place a pair of feed rollers B, in Fig. 2; these
rollers receive the bar D1 from furnace; under this roller is a coresponding
roller; a simultaneous action is obtained by a pair of wheels, c, c, in Figs. 1
& 2; these rollers and wheels are keyed on to shafts B1; on the other end of
one of these shafts is keyed a ratchet wheel D, in Fig. 2; this is acted upon
by a pull or catch E; this may be obtained by other motions not necessary
here to describe; the action to this is obtained through a connecting rod from
a lever g, and through connecting rod D2 to slide motion J, which slide'
motion may be obtained by a cam on main shaft; the length of motion here
given. may be regulated by the slotted lever g; k, on Fig. 3, is a side box
cam, which gives motion to connecting rod L, through slide m to top slide
pressure die block ; in the end of slide m is a steel pin, on which is a tube

page_text: roller which works in groove, dotted in cam k by which the slide motion is
obtained. The top pressure die block n slides horizontaly in the verticle slide o
which is connected to the end of lever p; in the other end of this lever is a
friction roller working on the edge cam R, these cams R & K are worked
by the shaft S by mitre wheels T, T, off main shaft I; W, W, W, is the:
headstock, in which is a groove, in which the veticle slide O works, likewise
the block in which is the bottom half die w; x, in Figs. 1 & 2, is an eccen-
tric giving motion to slide Z through guide box A1, in which is the heading
tool E1 C1 are set pins to regulate height of centres; likewise in flange of
guide box A1 are bolts C2; a steel cutter plate is fixed in the headstock u
between the two die blocks n & w; D2 is a tapet lever connected by rod E2
to lever D3.
Having enumerated distinctly the various parts of my improved machine I
proceed now to describe the action. The rod of iron D1 is drawn from the
furnace to feed rollers B, and drawn by the motion communicated through
catch wheel D through headstock u and cutter plate E11 sufficient to make
the article required; the action of the edge cam now gives motion to the
lever P, pressing downwards the slide block O, cutting off the piece of iron; the
iron thus cut off is firmly held between the top and bottom pressure blocks in
which are fixed the two half dies n & w; the side box cam K, through con-
necting and slide L & m, moves the top slide pressure block in an horizontal
direction, thus rolling the piece of iron cut off between the two surfaces,
increasing in pressure as it advances untill the iron arives where the two half
dies meet; when the edge cam raises the lever P untill the two half dies are
close upon the iron thus rolled, and crushing the part not rolled which is to
form the neck & head to its proper or required shape, which shape is formed
in the dies. The iron thus rolled to its proper size at that part required
round and forced to the shape required in shoulder (the head if square or
hexagonel will be formed in the dies, but if round or snapp it will be done in the
heading tool; the heading tool now advances and forms the head through and by
eccentric, connecting rod, and slide y & z, the two cams R & K are working on
fixed positions during the operation of the header, which will be seen by dotted
lines in Fig. 3. The header having done its work retires, when the edge cam
R suddenly releases the bolt thus made, the sudden action of slide O strikes
lever D2, & by means of a tipping pin under or at the end of the article just
made knocks it out.
Having now described and particularly shewn the nature and action of my
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I may observe in conclusion that I do not confine or

page_text: restrict myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had
occasion to describe or reffer to, as many variations may be made therefrom
without deviating from the principles or main features of my Invention; but
what I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention
secured to me herein, are,―
First, the general arrangement and construction of improved machinery for
making bolts, rivets, spikes, & other like articles with square or other shaped
shoulders.
Second, the so constructing the dies to form the shoulders required like-
wise act as pressure plates between which my iron is rolled and consequently
reduced to the size required.
Third, the rolling and reducing of the iron between two surfaces in an
horizontal direction, thereby overcoming the great difficulty that has allways
been found in making bolts, &c., of square or other shaped shoulders by
machinery.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Lewis, have hereto set my
hand & seal, this Tenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
(T) CIMIT NHOP