IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR BOARDING OR BREAKING HIDES
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Melville Clark, of Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINES FOR BOARDING OR BREAKING HIDES." A communication from
abroad by William Coupe, of South Attleborough, in the County of Bristol,
State of Massachusetts, and Edwin Alpheus Burgess, of the City and County
of Providence, State of Rhode Island, both in the United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Melville Clark at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th July 1878.
ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
BREAKING
Patent Agent. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR BOARDING OR
HIDES." [A communication from abroad by William Coupe, of South Attleborough,
in the County of Bristol, State of Massachusetts, and Edwin Alpheus Burgess, of
the City and County of Providence, State of Rhode Island, both in the United
States of America.]
This Invention relates to improvements in machines for boarding or breaking
hides, whereby the hides may be more effectively boarded or broken, the cages in
which the hides are worked being capable of exact adjustment to the number and
size of the hides, so as to fully control the degree of boarding to which they are
to be exposed.
The Invention consists of a crib or cage with fixed or permanent heads and
sliding and recessed false heads that are adjusted by means of right and left hand
screw bolts and traversing nuts and of radially adjustable cross bars.
It consists further of the combination of these hide confining parts with a central.
revolving shaft having concaved recesses at the middle portion, but at varying
relative positions to the heads, and of spurred clamping dogs fitting the recesses and
secured by fastening screws.
The following is a description of the machine, which consists of a cage made of
stationary or fixed heads of disc shape supported on suitable standards. The

page_text: stationary heads are provided at some distance from the centers of the upper disc-
shaped portions with short radial guide slots, of which the slots of one head are
closed, so as to form sockets, while the slots of the other are open for removing or
inserting cross bars that extend from head to head, being adjusted nearer to or
farther from the centre by radial set screws, and cushioned by spiral springs. The
heads are stiffened at the top by connecting rods or-bars of suitable strength to
prevent any springing or spreading of the heads. The cross bars are retained when
inserted into the guide slots and socket recesses of the heads by means of pivot
plates locking over buttons, so as to prevent the playing out of the cross bars during
the working of the machine.
The cage is provided with a centre shaft that revolves in centre bearings of the
stationary heads, and is alternately turned by suitable gearing and reversing
mechanism, first in one, then in the opposite direction.
On the shaft are arranged between the stationary heads two false heads that are
provided with radial recesses for the cross bars above mentioned, the recesses
extending from the circumference toward the centre. The false heads are laterally
adjusted on the centre shaft by means of two right and left hand screw bolts, of
which, one is arranged at each side of the cage, and by traversing nuts that are
engaged by elbows or hook bars of the false heads.
Between the false heads and traversing nuts are interposed spiral cushioned
springs, by which the rigid bearing of the false heads on the hides mounted on the
centre shaft is diminished, and thereby a certain degree of yielding imparted to the
same. The cross bars are cushioned by their spiral springs for the same purpose.
The ends of the right and left hand screw bolts are connected at one side by gear
wheels, with an intermeshing centre crank wheel that turns loosely on the centre
shaft, so as to produce the simultaneous adjustment of the traversing screw nuts
and false heads, either toward each other or from each other, according as the hides
are to be confined into narrower compass before breaking them, or for removing
them after the breaking operation is completed.
The right and left hand screw bolts turn in detachable journal boxes that are set
into recesses of the stationary heads, and firmly retained therein by pivoted and
locking cross straps, the boxes and screw bolts being removed from the heads when
the hides are applied to or taken off from the centre shaft.
The hides are firmly clamped at one end to the middle portion of the shaft by
means of detachable dogs or clamp sections that fit into concaved recesses of the
shaft, and hold the hides firmly by means of spurs and clamp screws.
The recesses are not all placed around the centre portion of the shaft, but so that
one recess is nearer to one of the stationary heads, the other nearer to the opposite
one, and so on alternately so as not to weaken the shaft at the middle portion, give
a better hold for the clamping screws, and distribute the hides over the entire
lateral surface of the middle portion of the shaft.
When the hides are thus attached to and wound on the shaft the false heads are
moved up, so as to confine the hides laterally to the required degree, and then the
cross bars inserted into the stationary and false heads. The pressure of the gradually
tightened cross bars and of the false heads produces the tight lapping of the hides
around the shaft.
The machine is then set in motion, first in one, then in reverse direction, and
thereby the hides are broken or boarded in uniform manner all through.
The even distribution of the hides around the shaft by the clamping dogs in
connection with the yielding action of the false heads and cross bars requires less
power for working the machine than where the hides are all attached to and bulging
at one point of the shaft, and broken up by a rigid crib or cage,

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Alexander Melville Clark in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
16th January 1879.
ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Patent Agent.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR BOARDING OR BREAKING
HIDES." A communication from abroad by William Coupe, of South Attleborough,
in the County of Bristol, State of Massachusetts, and Edwin Alpheus Burgess, of
the City and County of Providence, State of Rhode Island, both in the United
States of America.
The object of this Invention is to provide for the purpose of treating raw hides
in lieu of tanning them, an improved machine by which the hides may be "boarded"
or broken by mechanical means solely, without the employment of moisture and
chemical agents; the machine finishing the hides in a rapid manner, and requiring
but one attendant to supply and remove the hides from the cribs or cages.
The Invention consists of a crib or cage with fixed or permanent heads, and
sliding and recessed false heads that are adjusted by means of right and left hand.
screw bolts and traversing nuts, and of radially adjustable cross bars, whereby the
hides may be effectively boarded or broken, the cribs in which the hides are
worked being capable of exact.adjustment-to-the-number and size of the hides, so
as to fully control the degree of boarding to which they are to be exposed.
It consists further of the combination of these hide confining parts with a central
revolving shaft, having concaved recesses at the middle portion, but at varying
relative positions to the heads, and of spurred clamping dogs fitting the recesses and
secured by fastening screws.
In order that the Invention may be more readily understood, I have illustrated
it in the accompanying Drawings, and will proceed to describe it with reference
thereto.
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of the improved machine for boarding or
breaking raw hides; Figure 2, an end view; and Figure 3, a vertical transverse
section of the same on line x-x, Figure 1.
Figure 4 represents an elevation, and Figure 5, a plan of a number of such.
machines driven from a single central shaft.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.
Referring to Figures 1, 2, 3, A represents a crib or cage that is made of stationary
or fixed heads B, B', of disc shape, supported on suitable standards. The stationary
heads are provided at some distance from the centres of the upper disc-shaped
portions with short radial guide slots a, of which, those of head B¹ are closed, so as
to form sockets, whilst those of the other head B aro open for removing or inserting
the cross bars b that extend from head B to head B¹. These cross bars b are
adjusted nearer to or farther from the centre by radial set screws d, and they are.
also cushioned by spiral springs d¹. The heads B, B¹, are connected at the top by
rods or bars of suitable strength to prevent any springing or spreading of the
heads.
The cross bars b are retained, when inserted into the guide slots and socket
recesses a of the heads, by means of pivot plates e pivoted to head B and locking
over buttons e¹, so as to prevent the playing out of the cross bars during the working
of the machine.
The crib or cage is provided with a centre shaft C that revolves in centre bearings
of the heads B, B', and is turned by suitable gearing and reversing mechanism, first
in one and then in the opposite direction.
On the shaft C are arranged, between the stationary heads B, two movable or.
false heads or discs D that are provided with radial recesses 6' for the cross bars b,
the recesses extending from the circumference toward the centre. The false heads
D.are. laterally adjusted on the centre shaft C by means of two right and left hand.

page_text: screw shafts E, of which, one is arranged at each side of the cage, and by traversing
nuts E¹ that are connected to the false heads D by elbows or hook bars g.
-
Between the false heads and the traversing nuts are interposed spiral cushioning
springs g', by which the rigid bearing of the false heads on the hides mounted
on the centre shaft is diminished, and thereby a certain degree of yielding
imparted to the same. The cross bars are cushioned by their spiral springs for the
same purpose.
The right and left hand screw shafts E are connected at one end by gear wheels
keyed on them, which mesh with an intermediate gear wheel that turns loosely on
the centre shaft C, and is provided with a crank handle by which to turn it, in
order to effect the simultaneous adjustment of the traversing screw nuts and false
heads, either toward each other or from each other, according as the hides are to be
confined into narrower compass before breaking them, or for removing them after
the breaking operation is completed.
The right and left hand screw shafts E turn in detachable journal boxes h that
are set into recesses of the stationary heads B, B', and firmly retained therein by
pivoted and locking cross straps h¹, the boxes and screw shafts being removed
from the heads B, B¹, when the hides are applied to or taken off from the centre
shaft.
The hides are firmly clamped at one end to the middle portion of the shaft C by
means of detachable dogs or clamp sections i that fit into concaved recesses of the
shaft, and hold the hides firmly by means of spurs and clamp screws 22.
The recesses are not all placed around the centre portion of the shaft, but so that
one recess is nearer to one of the stationary heads, the other nearer to the opposite
one, and so on alternately, so as to avoid weakening the shaft at the middle portion,
give a better hold for the clamping screws, and distribute the hides over the entire
lateral surface of the middle portion of the shaft.
When the hides are thus attached to and wound on the shaft the false heads D
are moved up, so as to confine the hides laterally to the required degree, and then
the cross bars inserted into the stationary and false or movable heads. The pressure
of the gradually tightened cross bars b and of the false heads D produces the tight
lapping of the hides around the shaft C.
The machine is then set in motion, first in one, then in reverse direction, and
thereby the hides broken or boarded in uniform manner all through.
The even distribution of the hides around the shaft by the clamping dogs in
connection with the yielding action of the false heads D and cross bars b requires
less power for working the machine than where the hides are all attached to and
bulging at one point of the shaft, and broken up by a rigid crib or cage.
Referring to Figures 4 and 5, A, A, are a number of the cribs or cages that are
arranged equidistant from and radially to a common centre F. The cribs or cages
A are constructed as above described, and their central shafts C are extended
beyond the inner ends B, and carry loose bevel pinions C', which all gear with a
common bevel wheel C³ revolved by a worm gear F¹ from a power shaft with
suitable reversing gear, in order that when the hides have been revolved in the cribs
in one direction for a sufficient length of time the motion of the operating gear is
reversed, and thereby the shafts turned in opposite direction. This causes the
forcible reversing of the hides from the shaft to the outside; and as the hides are
retained by the cross bars and the false and permanent heads, the so-called
"boarding" or breaking up of the same is obtained by the powerful strain exerted
thereon.
When the position of the hides on the shafts is thus changed, and the same are
lapped in opposite direction to the former around the shafts, the motion of the
driving gear is again reversed, and thereby the position of the hides changed in the
same manner as before, from the inside to the outside, which reversing or changing
is continued until the hides are sufficiently boarded or broken.
They aro then successively removed from the cribs by throwing one shaft after
the other out of gear with its bevel pinion C¹ by means of a separate clutch

page_text: mechanism k, with which each shaft C is provided outside the head B¹, and the
hides are thus obtained in a tanned state, ready for being cleansed and scraped, the
tanning being thus obtained by the exposure of the hides to powerful mechanical
action, in place of the treatment by chemical agents as heretofore.
The apparatus is readily attended by one or two workmen that charge or empty
the cribs successively, and is capable of finishing the hides in a quicker,
superior, and more economical manner than by the tanning process heretofore
employed.
Having described the nature of the Invention and the manner of performing the
same, I declare that what I claim as the Invention to be protected by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
1st. A machine for boarding or breaking raw hides, consisting of stationary outer
heads with radially adjustable cross bars, inner adjustable and spring cushioned
false heads, and a central revolving shaft with clamping devices for attaching the
hides, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
2nd. The combination with the revolving centre shaft and stationary outer heads
having radially adjustable cross bars of recessed and spring cushioned false heads,
adjusted simultaneously by right and left hand screw bolts and traversing nuts,
substantially as specified.
3rd. The combination of the stationary outer heads having detachable journal
boxes and retaining devices, and of the adjustable inner false heads having hook
arms with right_and_left hand screw bolts-and-traversing-screw nuts, to allow
removing and replacing of bolts and nuts for attaching or detaching hides, substan-
tially as set forth.
4th. The combination of the central revolving shaft having concaved recesses in
the middle portion, said recesses being placed alternately nearer to one or to the
opposite head, with clamping dogs or sections having retaining spurs and fastening
screws, substantially as shown and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Melville Clark, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine.
A. M. CLARK. (L.S.)