CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED FOR RAISING COAL OR OTHER MATTERS PROM MINES, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO RAISING OR LOWERING MEN OR ANIMALS, OR OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES
Year: 1845

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
KNOWLES, junior, of Bolton le Moors, Coal Merchant, and ALONZO BUONA-
PARTE WOODCOCK, of Manchester, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Tenth day of October, in the ninth year of Her reign, and in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-five, did, for Herself,
Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the the said James Knowles
and Alonzo Buonaparte Woodcock, Ier especial license, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that we, the said James Knowles and Alonzo Buona-
parte Woodcock, our executors, administrators, and assigns, and such others
as we, the said James Knowles and Alonzo Buonaparte Woodcock, our
executors, administrators, and 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 and Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED FOR RAISING
COAL OR OTHER MATTERS PROM MINES, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE
TO RAISING OR LOWERING MEN OR ANIMALS, OR OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES;" in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that we, the said James Knowles
and Alonzo Buonaparte Woodcock, shall cause a particular description of the

page_text: nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery, within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully
and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
James Knowles and Alonzo Buonaparte Woodcock, do hereby declare that
the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be per-
formed, is particularly described and ascertained in and by the Drawings hereto
annexed, and the following explanation thereof (that is to say):-
These improvements in machinery or apparatus to be employed for raising
coal or other matters from mines, which improvements are also applicable to
raising or lowering men or animals, or other similar purposes, consist in the
application, employment, or use of atmospheric pressure or power to such
purposes, and which we accomplish in the following manner :-
Within the pit or shaft is placed a tube or pipe, constructed of iron, timber,
or other suitable material, formed either circular, square, or otherwise, and
extending from a few feet above the top or mouth of the mine shaft to the
bottom of the same. This tube, which may be about five feet diameter, more
or less, must be bored or formed accurately to one guage throughout, and must
be so constructed as to be impervious to air when exhausted, and having an
air-tight door or doors at or above the level or surface of the ground. Within
this tube is placed a piston working perfectly air-tight, and to this piston is
attached, by rods or otherwise, a cradle or cage, wherein the coal or other
matter, or the persons or animals to be raised from the mine, are placed.
The air is then exhausted above or compressed below the piston (in which
latter case the lower end of the tube must be closed by an air-tight door),
which exhaustion or compression of the air contained in the tube will cause
the piston, and with it the cradle containing the load, rapidly to ascend either
to or above the level or surface of the ground, when the piston strikes against
and raises a rod which closes a valve in the pipe which connects the main tube
with the air-pump or pumps, thus cutting off the moving power, and at the
same time shoots out certain sustaining bolts or catches below, or otherwise
attached to the cradle or cage. A valve is then opened for the admission of air
above the piston, if the air be exhausted, or for the egress or escape of the
air below it, if the air be compressed, thus allowing the cradle to fall down
upon the catches, which will support it and retain it in this position as long as
required; the door or doors of the tube are then opened and the load removed.
When it is required to lower empty vessels, or persons, or animals to the

page_text: bottom of the shaft, the load is then placed in a cradle or cage and the door or
doors closed, the holding catches or bolts are then withdrawn and air is
admitted through the valve of the piston, which will allow the piston, cradle,
and load to descend at a velocity regulated by the admission of atmospheric air
through the valve above. The advantage of persons ascending or descending
the shaft consists in the person or persons having at their own disposal the
power of regulating the speed or velocity of travelling by means of a valve
attached to the piston, by which, in descending, they will allow the atmospheric
air to fill the tube above them as they descend; and, in ascending, if the
velocity be too great, they may reduce it by opening the same valve; thus
avoiding the risk of accidents which so frequently occur from the breaking of
ropes, ascending and descending vessels meeting or coming in contact with the
side of the shaft, or through the negligence of the engineer. The speed of
ascending and descending may also be regulated in various other ways, as, for
instance, by having a friction roller fixed to the cradle or the piston, and bearing
against the side of the tube or pipe in the pit or shaft, connected by gearing to
a common governor as used in stationary steam engines, the rod from which
is made to open or close a valve attached to the piston according as the balls
contract or expand, owing to the decrease or increase in the velocity of the
ascent or descent of the piston, and thus keep it at or near an uniform speed
throughout.
Another modification in the arrangement of the apparatus may be made by
having two tubes communicating with each other by valves, in such a way that
when the piston and cradle or cage in one tube is ascending the piston and
cradle in the other tube shall be descending, and vice versa.
Having now described the nature and object of our Invention, we will pro-
ceed to point out the manner of carrying the same into practical effect, which is
distinctly exhibited in a Drawing annexed, and explained in the following
description thereof, the Drawing being made to a scale of about half an inch to
the foot, and having letters of reference marked upon them, similar letters
pointing out corresponding parts of the apparatus in all the Figures.
Figure 1 is a vertical section; and Figure 2 a horizontal or transverse
section of an arrangement of machinery or apparatus to be employed for raising
coal or other matters from mines; applicable, also, to raising or lowering
men or animals, or other similar purposes. a, a, is the main tube or pipe
extending from a few feet above the top of the mine shaft to the bottom of
the same, and connected by the pipe b, b, to an exhausting pump or pumps
of the required capacity, which may be worked by a steam engine or any other

page_text: suitable motive power.
In the tube a, a, is fitted a piston c, c, (working air-
tight) to which the cradle or cage d, d, is attached by the rods e, e; upon this
cradled an empty vessel, for containing coal or other matters to be raised from
the mine, is placed. This vessel will be introduced through the door f, f, which,
when closed, will form the inside of the tube or pipe for its own length, and
impervious to the atmosphere when closed. This piston c, c, and cradle or
cage d, d, are supported by the catches g, g, working through the stuffing
boxes h, h, in the side of the tube a, a. These catches may be withdrawn by
lifting the handle i, which is connected to the catches by the levers k, k; the
valve 1, 1, is then opened, and the piston c, and cradle d, d, will descend to
the bottom of the shaft at a velocity regulated by the admission of atmospheric
air through the valve above. When at the bottom the empty vessel will be
replaced by a full one through the opening n, and the pump or pumps set to
work to exhaust the air from the tube, thereby causing a vacuum equal to the
weight of the piston, cage, and load, inclusive of friction; so that, from
the pressure of the atmosphere below the piston c, c, the piston, cradle, and load
will rapidly ascend the shaft to a height a little beyond where the catches g, g,
are fixed, and by raising the rod o, o, which is weighted so as always to rest
upon the shoulder p, the tappet or bowl q upon the rod raises the ratchet * from
off the catch s, thus allowing the weighted lever i to fall down and force in the
catches g, g, and at the same time to close the stop valve t in the exhausting
pipe b, b, by means of the rods u, u, and bell crank lever v, thus cutting off the
communication with the exhausting pumps. Atmospheric air being then
admitted through the valve 1, the piston and cradle or cage will descend upon
the catches g, g, when the door f may then be opened and the full vessel
removed. w is a valve by which a person or persons descending may regulate
the velocity of travelling, by allowing the atmospheric air to fill the tube
above them.
Figure 3 is a sectional view shewing another arrangement of apparatus by
which the speed of ascending or descending may be regulated. a, a, is the
main tube; b, b, the exhausting tube; c, c, are the two piston plates connected
firmly together by means of the bolt b, and supporting the cradle or cage d*.
When the upper part of the tube is exhausted, the ring e, of iron or other
metal, (supported upon the blocks f, f, at suitable intervals upon the upper
plate of the piston) comes in contact with the vertical rod 9 passing through a
slotted bar h, and connected to the bell crank lever i; the lower end of this
lever is furnished with a fork, which, when the rod g is raised, takes hold of
the grooved head of the bolt d, and thus sustains the whole of the apparatus at

page_text: the same time that the levers k, k, open the slide valve for the admission
of atmospheric air. When it is desired to allow the apparatus to descend, the
air above the piston c is partially exhausted, which will raise the stud d off the
fork on the end of the lever i, when the weight of the vertical rod g will throw
the bell crank lever i into the position shewn in the Drawing, and at the same
time closes the slide valve l, the valve in the exhausting pipe is then closed,
and the apparatus begins to descend; or the vertical rod 9 may be forced
inwards by means of the slotted bar h, worked by the handle m, outside the
tube. When the apparatus begins to descend, the balls n, n, of the governor
are collapsed, and the valves o, o, on the piston plates are open; but as the
velocity of the descent increases the rotation of the friction roller p, which bears
against the side of the tube, will cause the governor balls n, n, to expand, and
thus close the valves o, o; thus, by lengthening or shortening the rod r, which
works the valves, the speed may be regulated to any required velocity. In
ascending, the pressure of the atmospheric air below keeps the valves o. o,
closed, but as soon as the slide valve in the side of the tube is opened, the
valves o, o, open by their own gravity.
Figure 4 is a sectional view shewing an arrangement of a double acting
apparatus, adapted for those situations where it is required to lower the empty
vessel at the same time that the full one is ascending. a, a, is the exhausting
pipe communicating with a pair of double acting air pumps, or other suitable
exhausting power; 6 is a threeway cock communicating by the curved pipes
with the main pipes or tubes c, c; d and e are two cages or cradles fitting the
interior of the pipes c, c, as pistons; and f is a valve box at the bottom of the
pit or shaft forming the communication between the two tubes c, c, through
the ball valves g, g. Suppose the cage d to be charged with coal or other
material at the bottom of the pit or shaft of the mine, while the empty case e
is at the top, the door (not shewn in the Drawing) is then closed, and the
pumps or other exhausting power set to work. The effect is the exhaustion of
the atmospheric air in the tube above the cage d, and (by the action of the
threeway cock 6) condensation of the same above the cage e, thus lifting
the loaded cage and lowering the empty one. Upon reversing the cock 6 the
cage d will ascend and the cage e descend, and so on alternately.
Having now described the nature and object of our Invention of "Certain
Improvements in Machinery or Apparatus to be employed for Raising Coal or
other Matters from Mines, which Improvements are also applicable to Raising
or Lowering Men or Animals or other similar Purposes," together with the
manner of carrying the same into practical effect, we would remark, in con-
clusion, that we claim as our Invention the application, employment, or use of

page_text: atmospheric pressure to such purposes as exhibited in the Drawing annexed
and herein before particularly described.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Knowles and Alonzo Buonaparte
Woodcock, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Third day of
April, One thousand eight hundred and forty-six.
JAMES (Ls.) KNOWLES, Jun.
ALONZO BUONAPARTE (L.S.) WOODCOCK.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the same Third day of April, in
the year above mentioned, the aforesaid James Knowles, junior, and Alonzo
Buonaparte Woodcock, came before our Lady the Queen in Her Chancery,
and acknowledged the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein
contained, in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid
was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute in that case made and
provided..