matthewleechen/300YearsOfBritishPatents huggingface dataset:
IMPROVEMENTS IN OR APPLICABLE TO TROUGHS OR VESSELS FOR HOLDING LIQUID SUBSTANCES REQUIRED IN THE ART OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Year: 1854

page_text: by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Jean Pierre Bourquin at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 18th January
1854.
I, JEAN PIERRE BOURQUIN, of Newman Street, in the County of Middlesex,
Dealer in Photographic Apparatus, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN OR APPLICABLE TO TROUGHS OR VESSELS FOR
HOLDING LIQUID SUBSTANCES REQUIRED IN THE ART OF PHOTOGRAPHY" to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates, first, to a novel or improved method of making
troughs or vessels for holding the various chemical solutions required in
photographic processes; and, second, to a method of levelling the troughs or
vessels, so that the same depth of liquid may be maintained in every part of
the trough.
The first part of the Invention consists in making the troughs or vessels of
a square, rectangular, or other conveniently shaped framework of wood, in
which a glass bottom is cemented in any suitable manner by means of a
cement which is not liable to be acted upon by the chemical solutions to be
employed.
The improved mode of levelling the trough, tray, or other vessel consists
in adapting to the framework of the trough, tray, or vessel three or more

page_text: levelling screws which pass through screwed shoulders or brackets, fixed on
the tray, trough, or vessel, and form the feet whereon the vessel rests.
The upper end of these screws is provided with a milled head or other
contrivance, whereby the screws may be turned for the purpose of raising or
depressing any particular part of the trough, tray, or vessel. This method of
levelling troughs or trays may be adapted to vessels made of any suitable
substance, such as gutta percha, porcelain, or glass; but I prefer to employ
trays made in the manner already explained.
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN EXTRACTING AND MANUFACTURING THE ALCOHOL OF BEET ROOT AND OF OTHER SWEET MATTERS OR TUBERS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Absalon Hippolyte Leplay at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 3rd
June 1854.
I, ABSALON HIPPOLYTE LEPLAY, of Douvrin (Pas de Calais), in the French
Empire, Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN EXTRACTING AND MANUFACTURING THE ALCOHOL OF
BEET ROOT AND OF OTHER SWEET MATTERS OR TUBERS" to be as follows:-
In lieu of extracting the juice and fermenting it, and then distilling the
liquid, I cut the beet root or other substance into small pieces or slices, or
shreds, and I ferment and distil it in this state. The pieces or slices are
immersed in water, or in a liquid already in fermentation, to which a small
quantity of sulphuric acid is added. The pieces may conveniently be placed in
canvass bags and immersed in the liquid. When the fermentation is complete, the
saccharine matter in the beet root is converted into alcohol, which remains in
the pieces of beet root, which are then taken out of the fermenting liquid and
placed in the distilling apparatus. The distilling apparatus is a close vessel,
containing several perforated trays, one above another, on which the beet root
is placed. Steam is admitted under the bottom tray, and, ascending amongst
the pieces of beet root, causes the alcohol to pass off in vapour and enter a
worm or refrigerator, where it is condensed. Two or more of these apparatus

page_text: may be connected, so that the vapour is conveyed from the top of the first appa-
ratus to the bottom of the second, and from the top of the second to the bottom
of the third, and so on.
Another form of distilling apparatus consists of a cylindrical vessel of con-
siderable height, filled with trays of fermented beet root. The central part of
this vessel is employed for the distillation, while the upper and lower parts are
sufficiently stopped up and closed by the mass of beet root. The exhausted
beet root is removed from the bottom, and trays of fresh fermented beet root
are added at the top, so that the distillation proceeds continuously.
The pieces of beet root remaining after the process are better adapted for
feeding animals than the cake remaining after expressing the juice from beet
roots in the ordinary manner, as they contain most of the ingredients of the
original beet root, with the exception of the sugar, which has been converted
into alcohol and distilled off. Carrots, turnips, sugar cane, and other sweet
matters are treated in a similar manner..
A NEW OR IMPROVED AXLE AND AXLE Box, TO BE CALLED THE ANATEIROS OR ANTIPRICTION AXLE, WHICH SAID AXLE AND AXLE Box MAY BE USED FOR WHEEL CARRIAGES, AND FOR A SHAFT OR AXLE AND BEARING FOR MACHINERY IN GENERAL
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Anguish Honour Augustus Durant
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
13th September 1854.
I, ANGUISH HONOUR AUGUSTUS DURANT, Esquire, of Tong Castle, Salop, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "A NEW OR IMPROVED AXLE
AND AXLE Box, TO BE CALLED THE ANATEIROS OR ANTIPRICTION AXLE, WHICH SAID
AXLE AND AXLE Box MAY BE USED FOR WHEEL CARRIAGES, AND FOR A SHAFT OR
AXLE AND BEARING FOR MACHINERY IN GENERAL," to be as follows:-
The working part of my axle consists of a cylinder, in which two or other
number of broad grooves are cut, so as to diminish the working or bearing
surface of the said axle. The axle box consists of a hollow cylinder fitting the
axle. Instead of making the broad grooves described in the axle, I sometimes
make the same in the axle box, and thereby diminish the friction in the said
axle. At the bottom of the said broad grooves 1 cut a fine helical or spiral.
groove, along which the oil or lubricating matter is carried and deposited at or
near the working surfaces, the said lubricating matter being supplied from a
reservoir at or near the end of the axle box. Although I have described my
axle and axle box as being cylindrical, yet they may be made slightly conical.
The same method of reducing friction may also be applied to the shafts or

page_text: axles of machinery, and to the journals and bearings of the same. The axle
box is attached to the axle as follows:-A screwed ring bears against a collar
on the axle, which said screwed ring engages in a thread in the end of the
axle box, and brings the latter up to its bearing against the shoulder of the
axle; or the axle box may be attached to the axle in any other convenient
An axle or axle box made according to my Invention requires less
oil or lubricating matter than an ordinary axle and axle box. /
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY CARRIAGE AXLE BEARINGS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Perceval Moses Parsons at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd November 1854.
I, PERCEVAL MOSES PARSONS, of No. 6, Duke Street, Adelphi, in the
County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY CARRIAGE AXLE BEARINGS" to be as
follows:-
I make such axle bearings of various suitable kinds of hard woods, either
in their natural state or impregnated with aqueous, alkaline, oleaginous,
saponaceous, or metallic solutions.
ADDITION TO PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I, PERCEVAL MOSES PARSONS, of No. 6, Duke Street, Adelphi, in the County
of Middlesex, do hereby further declare that the objects of my Invention
for "Certain Improvements in Railway Carriage Axle Bearings," and the
advantages I expect to derive from it, are,-
First, a saving in the cost of the bearings themselves, as my improved
bearings can be supplied at a less cost than the metal ones now gene-
rally used.
Secondly, a saving in the cost of the lubricating material, as I anticipate
that a lubricator of a much less expensive nature than the "Booths' grease,"
now generally used, such as a mixture of soap and water, and other cheap

page_text: saponaceous and oleaginous mixtures, and in some cases even water alone, may
be employed to lubricate my improved bearings.
Thirdly, I anticipate an increased durability of the bearings themselves,
and a greater freedom from hot axles than is now the case with metal
bearings, and less injury to the journals of the axles, if such an occurrence
does take place.
My object in impregnating the bearings in some cases with aqueous, alkaline,
oleaginous, saponaceous, and metallic solutions is to give the bearing a certain
amount of lubricating material within itself, to render them less liable to
take fire when over-heating takes place, and to increase their hardness and
durability.
I propose to impregnate my improved bearings with any of the herein-before
mentioned solutions by first thoroughly drying or desiccating them, or subjecting
them to a partial vaccuum, for the purpose of extracting the natural juices, and
then immersing them in the solution under sufficient pressure to cause it to
enter the sap vessels and pores, or by simply soaking them in the solution; or
by any of the means now in use and well known for impregnating timber
sleepers, &c. with chemical solutions; and either the bearings themselves in
the rough' or finished state, or the wood from which they are to be made, may
be subjected to these operations.
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PIANOFORTES
Year: 1854

page_text: application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Auguste Edouard Loradoux Bell-
ford at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 22nd May 1854.-A communication.
I, AUGUSTE EDOUARD LORADOUX BELLFORD, of 16, Castle Street, Holborn
(City), London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said In-
vention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PIANOFORTES" to be as follows; and
consists of arrangements for playing in octave accompaniments above the
normal notes by one and the same key and hammer, and playing one or more
octaves at the same time, at pleasure, by introducing the upper octaves by
means of extra strings and extra bridges arranged in front of or within the
bridges at present in use; also in a peculiar arrangement of the strings,
bridges, and action of the pianoforte, by which the upper octaves may be
introduced in addition to the normal notes; also in a newly-constructed
hammer head, by which two strings of different lengths may be struck at the
same time; its face is divided into two parts, that part which strikes the
octave is made harder than the part which strikes the normal string. The
mode of shifting the action consists in pivoting the key board near the front
right hand corner, and is operated by a pedal.
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, QUARRIES, TUBES, AND OTHER SUCH LIKE ARTICLES
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Henry Byerley, of Paris, in the Empire of
France, now residing at Brompton, in the County of Middlesex, Gen-
tleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, QUARRIES, TUBES, AND OTHER SUCH LIKE
ARTICLES."
Sealed the 15th December 1854, and dated the 20th June 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Henry Byerley
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
20th June 1854.
I, GEORGE HENRY BYERLEY, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES,
QUARRIES, TUBES, AND OTHER SUCH LIKE ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
I manufacture hollow bricks, tiles, quarries, slabs, and tubes or pipes from
clay or brick earth, in a dry or partially dry state, reduced to powder, and
intimately mixed with sand, ashes, or with whatever substance it may be
deemed needful to employ, by means of pressure. For this purpose I employ
a metal tube or chamber, or any number thereof, being so cast that the interior
will give the desired form to the articles to be made, whether bricks or tiles.

page_text: In the tube or chamber are supported rods or bars to form the hollows in the
goods. At the inlet end of the tube or chamber is a piston adjusted to fit
therein. The piston is made with hollows, through which the bars or rods pass,
and are held fast in a support. The piston works with a to and fro movement.
Above the tube or chamber and the piston is a hopper, filled with clay and its
compounds, which, as the piston is drawn back, fall down between the ends of
the piston and the inlet of the tube or chamber. The return stroke of the
piston drives the charge into the chamber. The same operation is repeated,
and the clay is driven through the tube or chamber by each successive stroke of
the piston, until it leaves the outlet in a solid and compact state, and is then cut
off in lengths, as required; or a number of chambers may be arranged in a
circle, and the pistons made to work in and out, by the rotation of a ring with
an eccentric slot, in which projections attached to the pistons take. The form
of the tube or chamber will have to be varied according to the form of goods
required. The rods or bars and hollows in the piston may be dispensed with,
and the goods made solid. In the case of pipes or tubes, the chamber will
have to be circular, as well as the piston and the bar, to form the interior.
IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMUNICATING SIGNALS TO ENGINEERS, GUARDS, AND OTHERS IN A MOVING RAILWAY TRAIN
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Penrose Goodchild Julyan at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 16th
January 1854.
I, PENROSE GOODCHILD JULYAN, of 71, Bath Street, Birmingham, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMUNICATING
SIGNALS TO ENGINEERS, GUARDS, AND OTHERS IN A MOVING RAILWAY TRAIN" to be
as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for signalling
to engineers, guards, or others in a moving railway train. For this purpose
apparatus is set up near stations, and it may be at intervals on a railway.
Each apparatus is formed with an arm or projection, which being turned across
the railway will, when a train is passing under it, come in the way of a trigger
or instrument in connection with the steam whistle, and by the resistance offered,
cause the whistle to be opened, and as the train moves onward, the bells or
signal instruments carried by the carriages where the guards are will in succes-
sion be sounded or acted on. These apparatus on a railway may, when near
stations, be moved, and set across the line by wires proceeding from the stations,
and the apparatus distant from stations may be arranged to be worked from a

page_text: distance by wires, or on the spot, by which means in case of accident a guard
or other person may set such apparatus across the line, and thus signal to the
engineer and guards of any coming train which may pass under the instrument
set across the line.
IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR RENDERING THE SHUNTS OR POINTS OF RAILWAYS SELF-ACTING, APPLICABLE ALSO TO THE WORKING OF RAILWAY SIGNALS
Year: 1854

page_text: This Invention received Irovisional Protection, out notice to proceea with the
application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by James Thomas Skinner at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th August 1854.
I, JAMES THOMAS SKINNER, of Georgiana Street, Camden Town, in the
County of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR RENDERING THE SHUNTS OR POINTS OF
RAILWAYS SELF-ACTING, APPLICABLE ALSO TO THE WORKING OF RAILWAY SIGNALS,"
to be as follows:-
The chief object of this Invention is to facilitate the working of railways by
rendering the shunts or points self-adjusting; for this purpose I provide the
locomotive engine with a bar or lever, which shall act as a wedge, and when
set for that purpose strike against a bowle, carried by a sliding plate, situate
between the rails of a line of railway, and impart a sliding motion to that
plate, which motion, by the connection of the plate with the shunts, will be
communicated thereto.
I employ a weighted vertical bell crank lever for keeping the shunts in the
position which leaves the main line open, and by means of a pair of horizontal
bell crank levers and connecting rods, (provided at some part of their length
with a spring box, to permit of the adjustment of the apparatus,) I transmit
the sliding motion of the plate to the shunts or points, and thereby give them

page_text: the lateral movement required for turning the engine off the line of rails
on which it is running. The engine I furnish with a wedge bar, which may
be raised or lowered at pleasure by the engine driver. When in its raised
position the engine will pass the sliding plate without acting upon it; but
when the wedge bar is lowered, its inclined edge will press against the friction
bowle of the sliding plate, and bring the shunts into position in time for the
fore wheels of the engine to pass over them. Or, instead of the rising and
falling bar, I propose to employ a horizontal lever, which, by being set at an
angle to the line of motion of the engine, will act like a wedge upon the bowle
of the sliding plate, and thereby impart the requisite lateral motion to the
shunts.
It will be understood that this arrangement of mechanism may be applied
to work railway signals automatically.
OBTAINING A MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1854

page_text: by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Antoine Ponçon at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 11th January
1854.
I, ANTOINE PONÇON, of Marseilles, in the Empire of France, and of 16, Castle
Street, Holborn (City), London, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "OBTAINING A MOTIVE POWER" to be as follows:-
My Invention consists in using the sun's rays to create a vacuum in a
suitable vessel, elevated at the height of a column of water, which in the
above vacuum is kept in equilibrium by the pressure of the atmosphere.
Such vacuum being formed, I fill it with water acted upon by the external
pressure of the atmosphere, & thus obtain a head of water which may be
applied as motive power. To produce the vacuum, I use a boiler-shaped vessel
(raised above the level of a reservoir with which it is connected by a pipe),
provided with a safety valve opening outwards; &, being exposed to the rays
of the sun, the air which it contains is heated, and expands, so as to escape by
the safety valve, & when rarified to a sufficient extent I cool & condense
it by means of a cover, which is kept cool on the opposite side to that heated
by the sun, or it may intercept the rays of the sun. The density of the air in

page_text: the boiler is diminished to one third of that of the atmosphere. Suppose the
boiler at an elevation of 22 feet, the pipe, which is shut off from both boiler
& reservoir, being filled by some means with water, & then opened to both,
will act as a siphon, and convey water into the vessel, which is again emptied
into a reservoir below it's level, & the operation repeated so as to obtain a 5
head of water available for the purpose set forth.
IM- PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING OR FORMING SLIVERS OF COTTON, WOOL, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS FOR SPINNING OR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1854

page_text: I, JAMES LIVESEY, of Bury, in the County of Lancaster, Spinner and
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING OR FORMING SLIVERS OF COTTON, WOOL,
AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS FOR SPINNING OR OTHER PURPOSES," to be as
follows:-
That machine to which I at present believe my Invention may be most
usefully applied is to the carding or preparing engine, generally known as the
"condenser carding engine," especially for the production of slivers from
short fibrous materials, and it relates to the performance of that action or
operation by which the condenser carding engine is distinguished, namely, the
condensing or consolidation of the fibres as stripped from the doffer into a
sliver, which will hold together. This has hitherto been generally accomplished
in the condenser carding engine, to such extent as the method has been useful,
by straps or surfaces moving in opposite directions, between which the fibres or
slivers to be condensed or consolidated have been passed, but the method has
certain defects, which it is the object of my Invention to remedy. My Inven-
tion consists in the application of a combination of rollers in contact with each
other, (which may be covered with leather or other suitable material,) between
which the stripping or strippings, sliver or slivers, to be condensed or con-

page_text: solidated are passed, revolving motion being given to them to pass the sliver
forward, which at the same time is combined with a lateral reciprocating
motion; the lateral motion of the rollers on opposite sides of the sliver or
slivers being simultaneous and in opposite directions, by which the sliver or
slivers are condensed and kept in the same position. This combination and
arrangement of mechanism is also applicable to other machines for forming or
preparing slivers, when such are required to be condensed or consolidated,
namely, to the ordinary carding engine, and to combing and other machines.
IMPROVEMENTS IN INFLATING LIFE BELTS, BUOYS, AND ARTICLES OF A SIMILAR NATURE
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Auguste Edouard Loradoux Bell-
ford and Persius Ristori at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 13th March 1854.-A communication.
We, AUGUSTE EDOUARD LORADOUX BELLFORD and PERSIUS RISTORI, of
16, Castle Street, Holborn (City), London, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN INFLATING LIFE BELTS, BUOYS, AND
ARTICLES OF A SIMILAR NATURE" to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in certain means for evolving carbonic gas, or any
other gas, in the belt or buoy which it is desired to inflate. To evolve the
carbonic gas we use a small apparatus having two compartments, and which
are joined together by any suitable ineans. The lower compartment is furnished
with a pressing screw, and the upper compartment is made to enter into a
collar adapted to the belt, and is perforated. In the lower compartment bi-car-
bonate of soda is introduced, & also a small phial, well corked, & filled with
some powerful acid, such as sulphuric acid, &c., which bottle is broken by the
pressure of the screw when put in operation, and the combination of the
matters evolves a gas which inflates the belt or buoy.
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SHEARING PILED, TERRY, OR RAISED FABRICS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Louis Beer at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 28th September
1854.
I, LOUIS BEER, Manufacturer, of Elbeuf, (Seine Inférieure,) in the Empire
of France, and of 16, Castle Street, Holborn (City), London, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR SHEARING PILED, TERRY, OR RAISED FABRICS" to be as follows,
viz.—
These improvements consist in producing by the shearing operation on the
fabrics mentioned in the title designs which hitherto have only been obtained
by the jacquard machine or in the weaving process. This is effected by
substituting for the rigid plain table, which is placed under the shearing roller,
and over which the fabrics are made to pass in ordinary shearing machinery,
a cylindrical or moveable table or figuring roller, which is set to rotate by the
friction of the cloth or by separate driving.
This figuring roller is tightly clothed with a web of cloth, leather, or any
other suitable material on which the designs desired to be obtained have pre-
viously been produced in relievo, embossed, cut out, or fixed by any suitable
means; or else the figuring roller may have the designs at once produced upon
it by engraving, &c. It will be easy to see that the stretched fabric passing
over the figuring roller will assume the contours of the designs which it

page_text: carries, and the shearing blades, cutting the plush, terry, or nap deeper at
the raised parts than at the cavities, they will thus produce a succession of
designs. For designs of greater dimensions, I also use instead of the figuring
roller an endless figuring web, which passes over two rollers placed at suitable
distances.
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WOVEN FABRICS, YARN, CORDAGE, ROPES, PAPER, AND PASTE- BOARD, BY THE APPLICATION OF A MATERIAL NOT HITHERTO USED FOR SUCH PURPOSES
Year: 1854

page_text: vention received Tovisional rotection,
application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by George Thatcher at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th July 1854.
I, GEORGE THATCHER, of Welton Midsomer Norton, in the County of
Somerset, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE MANUFACTURE OF WOVEN FABRICS, YARN, CORDAGE, ROPES, PAPER, AND PASTE-
BOARD, BY THE APPLICATION OF A MATERIAL NOT HITHERTO USED FOR SUCH PURPOSES,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in employing the fibres of the leaves of the horse
radish in the manufacture of woven fabrics, yarn, cordage, ropes, paper, and
pasteboard. The fibres of this plant when obtained are spun and fabricated
in like manner to hemp and flax, and may be bleached or not, according to the
nature of the intended article to be made therefrom.
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF DRYING OR DESICCATING BY THE AGENCY OF ATMOSPHERIC AIR
Year: 1854

page_text: application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by. Richard Ellis and James William
Martin at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 25th April 1854.
We, RICHARD ELLIS, of the Parish of St. James's, Carpenter, and JAMES
WILLIAM MARTIN, of the same Parish, in the City of Westminster, Cooper,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MODE OF DRYING OR DESICCATING BY THE AGENCY OF ATMOSPHERIC AIR" to be as
follows:-
It has hitherto been customary in drying timber, bricks, pottery, agricultural
produce, peat, and other matters, either to leave them exposed to the natural
drying action, of atmospheric currents, or to place them in heated kilns,
chambers, or the like, aided by natural currents of air, or by draughts
artificially produced. Now, the nature of our Invention consists in whirling
the bodies through the air by a rotatory motion, by which means they are
more speedily dried at common atmospheric temperature than when re-
maining, still. And we would observe, that our method of drying is not
dependent on centrifugal action, but simply on travelling through the air,
and being thereby exposed to a renewed surface of air at the common or
at an artificially obtained temperature.

page_text: The mode we adopt is to erect a horizontal or vertical shaft, and affix arms
thereto, or trays, shelves, rails, or other suitable means of retaining the matters
or things to be dried; and the shaft may be further surrounded with an
external-open casing, giving it the appearance of a circular cage or drum, the.
exterior of which may have a Venetian arrangement of vanes turning to any
required angle to facilitate the admission of air, and when desired the drum
need be furnished only with an axis at each end.. It is thus obvious that the
rotation of the, shaft or axes will carry round the drum or other arrangement
attached thereto, causing the same to circulate constant currents of air through
the matters to be dried, and that such drying process may be conducted by
moderate rotation at a low temperature, or augmented at pleasure. When
hot air is to be employed, we recommend our arrangement of rotatory drying
apparatus to be erected within a circular building, the heat rising from the
floor entering the whirling dryer, and then passing off by the roof. And we
claim as the novelty of our Invention, the mode described of whirling bodies
through atmospheric air at its ordinary or at an artificial temperature.
IMPROVEMENTS IN VENTILATING SHIPS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Peter Edwin Henderson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th
December 1854.
I, PETER EDWIN HENDERSON, of 4, Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross, (Office
for Patents,) in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN VENTILATING SHIPS"
to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in causing an artificial current of fresh air to be
directed to any desired part of a ship, for the purpose of ventilating the same,
or for exhausting the vitiated air therefrom, the means employed for such said
purposes being as follows:-To any suitable part of the ship's sides I connect
at pleasure fan wheels, which receive rotary motion from the water, either
directly or through the medium of gearing, or other suitable mechanism; the
use of the said fan wheels (when employed for the purpose of ventilation)
being to induct fresh air into a small cupola, and from thence to force it
through gutta percha or other tubes to the cabins or other parts of the vessel
which it is desired to ventilate, said gutta percha tubes having cocks connected
thereto, by opening which fresh air may be directed at pleasure to any cabin
or other part of the ship; and by reversing the direction of motion of the fan

page_text: wheels, the aforesaid tubes may be used as respirators, by exhausting or
educting the vitiated air from the cabins and other parts of the ship instead
of forcing or inducting it thereinto, as before stated, said fans and tubes being
arranged and disposed for the above purposes so as to offer the least possible
inconvenience to the vessel at a comparative trifling cost.
CERTAIN MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR MULTIPLYING POWER
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Robert Harling at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 7th April
1854.
I, ROBERT HARLING, of Clerkenwell, Mechanist, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "CERTAIN MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR MULTIPLYING
POWER" to be as follows, that is to say :-
My said arrangements, which are applicable to the multiplying or augment-
ing of motive power in all crank & fly-wheel machinery, consist in a certain
method of actuating such machinery through the intervention of screws, and
the mode in which I carry the said arrangements into effect is as follows:-
I construct two cylinders hollow, and enternally wormed, each divided longi-
tudinally into two equal portions, and one such portion of each cylinder is
connected by a flange with a corresponding portion of the other cylinder, and
the other portions are connected in like manner by another flange, and the
said flanges are supported on a common bearing on which they turn, in such
manner as to unite and disunite the halves of each cylinder alternately, so as
to form in the interior of each cylinder a perfect female screw, and again to
break it; and in the interior of each cylinder I cause to work, by any suitable
motive power, and by the intervention of cranks or wheels and bands, or any
similar contrivances heretofore employed, a male screw, and the said screw to
be right-handed in one of the said cylinders, and left-handed in the other; and
the said screws, being wormed in contrary directions, & being rigidly connected

page_text: at the other extremity of each, the one screw will tend to work the cylinders,
one upwards and the other downwards; and it is evident that as the female
screw in each cylinder is alternately broken and reunited, one or other of the
male screws will be thrown out of action, and the upward or downward motion
of the cylinders will be reversed; and the traversing motion of the combined
cylinders thus obtained is employed to actuate a piston and other machinery
therewith connected, by any contrivances hitherto in use, the power thus
imparted to the said machinery being multiplied or augmented, according to
well-known mechanical principles, by the intervention of the screw. I claim
the method of applying a screw or screws for the multiplying or augmenting of
motive power in the manner and for the purposes above mentioned, through
the employment of one or more sets of cylinders of the construction set forth
and described.
AN IMPROVED VENTILATOR
Year: 1854

page_text: mis invention received Provisional Protection, but notice to proceed with the
application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Fast at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 22nd March 1854.
I, WILLIAM FAST, of Goswell Road, London, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED VENTILATOR" to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of an improved ventilator for windows, and is self-
acting, or rises and falls by the opening and shutting of the window to which it
is attached. I construct the said ventilator with one or more plates of per-
forated metal, which extend the width of the window. These plates may be
either single or double. When single, they are placed face to face; when
double, one within the other, so as to slide up or down or in and out. The
ventilator can be enclosed in a shield or case, or shut into a recess formed for
the purpose.
The perforated plates when double are bent to the shape of an U, with
straight parallel sides, and fitted one into another (thus ); they are each
left open at the bottom, so as to drop one below the other and are held in the
required position by wires arranged in the inside to which they are suspended.
These suspending wires terminate with heads or knobs, which hold the plates
in their proper places as they each slip or drop one below the other, so that
one plate slides upon the wires attached to the next plate in succession, the
whole being suspended in a similar manner from the inside of the shield or
cover, by which they are secured to the sash frame or window.

page_text: When attached to the bottom frame of the sash, and the same is closed, the
plates all shut within the shield before mentioned, and either rest upon the
window sill, or may be secured by a pin inserted through the shield; when
the sash and shield are lifted the required height, the plates will slide out to
their full extent, and the bottom plate resting upon the sill, the ventilator will
occupy the opening, and the air will pass through the perforations in the
plates. The ventilator can be increased in depth by either increasing the
number or depth of the plates. The ventilator may consist of a single plate
made to rise and fall in a similar manner.
The perforations may be finer or coarser, as circumstances may require.
When the ventilator is applied at the top of the window, the shield is attached
to the under side of the head casing of the window frame, and when the top
sash is closed, it shuts, the plates into the shield or recess by means of studs or
pins projecting in front of the sash frame or otherwise; when the sash is
lowered the proper depth, the plates drop down upon the suspending wires,
and occupy the opening, allowing the air to pass through the apertures, as
before described.
When not required to be in use, a pin, as before mentioned, keeps the venti-
lator from injury when closed, and at the same time conceals it from view;
they may be applied either inside or outside. of the window by screws or
otherwise, and can be removed when necessary.
CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CLEANING DRESSING COMBS
Year: 1854

page_text: by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by François Xavier Alexis Fauvelle
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
5th September 1854.-A communication.
I, FRANÇOIS XAVIER ALEXIS FAUVELLE, of Paris, a Town of the French
Empire, Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CLEANING DRESSING COMBS " to be as follows:-
I construct an instrument consisting of a number of parallel wires or threads
tightly stretched on a suitable support, and which I construct in the following
manner: A number of fine iron or copper wires are passed through an
apparatus, in which they first enter a bath of muriatic or other suitable acid to
clean the surface of the metal, and are then conveyed through a bath of melted
tin, which tins the surface; the tinned wires are then wound upon bobbins.
The bobbins of wire are transferred from this apparatus to another apparatus
or machine, in which a number of the wires are arranged side by side, and
guided in their parallel course by a grooved roller. The whole series is drawn
forward by means of nippers on a sliding carriage until it lies upon the two
ends of a strip of metal which is to form the frame or support for the wires.
This piece of metal may be a piece of tinned hoop iron or other flat strip of
metal, which is bowed or bent downwards in the centre, and has its two ends
also slightly bent downwards. The wires being brought over this piece of metal

page_text: are soldered to its two ends by a soldering iron or otherwise, and the wires are
kept in a state of tension by means of the sliding carriage and nippers, so that
they may be tightly stretched on the finished instrument, which is detached
from the remaining lengths of wire by a knife or cutter. Before detaching the
instrument, however, it is drawn forward by the sliding carriage, so as to bring
forward the series of wires, under which another strip of metal is placed, and
the wires soldered to it as before. The first one is now detached and removed,
and the second takes its place, and so on. Each instrument thus draws forward
the wires for its successor. These instruments may be varied in form and
material, and in the mode of construction, but always consist of a series of wires
or threads stretched upon a suitable support or frame, which serve for cleaning
dressing combs by pushing the comb into the series of wires or threads, and
moving it backwards and forwards.
IMPROVEMENTS IN ENGINES TO BE WORKED BY STEAM, AIR, OR OTHER FLUIDS OR LIQUIDS
Year: 1854

page_text: his invention received Provisional Protection, out notice to proceed with the
application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Knight at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 7th August 1854.
I, JOHN KNIGHT, of Stamford, in the County of Lincoln, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ENGINES
TO BE WORKED BY STEAM, AIR, OR OTHER FLUIDS OR LIQUIDS" to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object to so arrange and actuate the several parts
of steam or other engines that they are made more compact than the ordinary
construction of engines. This object is effected by mounting the cylinder of the
engine in such a manner that it, as well as the piston that works therein, may
bo made to reciprocate to and fro. By thus causing both the cylinder and
piston to move, and connecting them by means of cranks to the same shaft, I
am enabled to obtain a double motion, and to act with great effect upon the
crank shaft with a much shorter stroke than usual. The cylinder is provided
with lugs or ears, which work on guides or guide rods, for the purpose of
making the motion steady; the piston rod must of course be connected with
a cross head as usual. The engine may be either mounted vertically or hori-
zontally, as may be considered most convenient and advisable, and which must
depend upon the circumstances of the case for which it is intended to be used.
IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC PISTONS FOR STEAM ENGINES AND PUMPS
Year: 1854

page_text: application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Thomas Wood and Samuel Howard
Heginbottom at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 21st April 1854.
We, THOMAS WOOD, of Culcheth, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer,
and SAMUEL HOWARD HEGINBOTTOM, of the same place, Bleacher and Dyer, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC
PISTONS FOR STEAM ENGINES AND PUMPS " to be as follows:-
We cast or make the boss of the piston in one piece, to fit as nearly as
possible the inside of the cylinder; we then make or sink in the periphery
of the said boss a groove, to admit of a spiral spring. This spiral spring is
easily put into the said groove, as it is not connected at the ends, but merely
formed round, so as to open or expand, to go over the largest part of the boss,
and then sink into the groove and clip it tightly. We then place metallic
segments of a circle upon the spring to fit in the groove, but to project a little
beyond the surface or periphery of the boss, so that when the boss is put into
the cylinder, the spring will press the segments tightly against the interior of
the cylinder, and thus keep it steam-tight, and if used for pumps or similar
purposes will keep it water-tight.
IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING BLOCKS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Pierre Victor Delaye at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 26th July
1854.
I, PIERRE VICTOR DELAYE, of Paris, in the Empire of France, and of 16,
Castle Street, Holborn (City), London, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING BLOCKS " to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in forming the blocks used for printing calico, paper,
and similar surfaces of moveable pieces, type, or parallelopipeds, instead of
carving or otherwise making the same, as has been done hitherto. For this
purpose, I fill a frame or open box of any suitable shape (square is preferred)
with parallelopipeds, some of which are longer than or protrude above the
others, so as to form one or more colors of the pattern or design the latter
having to be represented on a card, similar to embroidery pattern paper, for the
purpose of reading it therefrom, which is done in a manner similar to setting
type. The parallelopipeds may have various forms in cross section, but I use
in preference either square or rectangular ones. The parallelopipeds are com-
posed in any suitable way, such as by means of a slotted plate, the parallelo-
pipeds being read off and dropt into the slot, and the plate being shifted to the
next row until the color for which the block is composed is fully represented,
when an impression may be taken of it in the usual way.
IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CLEARING OBSTRUCTIONS ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1854

page_text: application for Letters Patent was not given within the time prescribed
by the Act.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Frederick Russell at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th March
1854.
I, FREDERICK RUSSELL, of Clarence Gardens, Regent's Park, in the County
of Middlesex, Mechanic, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CLEARING OBSTRUCTIONS ON RAILWAYS" to
be as follows:
This Invention relates to the removing of obstructions on the rails or to the
clearing of snow from the line, and consists in fitting to the front of the engine
or first leading carriage or truck of the train a peculiar shield, made rather
pointed or sloping back from the centre on each side. This shield is nearly
the width of the line, leaving a clearance of about two inches on each side
between the edge of the shield and the inner side of the rails. A suitable framing
is fitted to the front of the engine or carriage to receive this shield, which
constitutes the snow clearer, acting as a plough to cut through the snow, and
turning it off sideways similar to the action of a ploughshare. For removing
obstructions on the rails themselves a pair of spring hinged guards or scrapers
are employed, fitted to each side of the engine or carriage framing, and situated
immediately over the rails. These guards or scrapers, placed angularly over
the rail, are so made that they may give slightly either way should any fixed

page_text: obstruction occur, as the starting of a joint in the rails, for example. The
bottom of the guard, or that nearest the rail, is also made moveable, being
connected by vertical slides to the upper portion, and is kept down near the
rail by a curved spring. By this means the oscillation of the springs of the
engine or carriage is allowed for, thereby enabling the guard to be much
nearer the rail than in the ordinary arrangement. These lower moveable
pieces are made so that they may be easily taken off when worn or out of order
and new ones supplied.
IMPROVEMENTS IN WINDLASS FITTINGS
Year: 1854

page_text: Charles Spencer Lowndes at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 8th September 1854.
We, JOHN THORNBORROW MANIFOLD and CHARLES SPENCER LOWNDES, both
of Liverpool, in the County Palatine of Lancaster, Engineers, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WINDLASS
FITTINGS" to be as follows:-
Our said improvements relate to fittings applicable to winlasses, for facili-
tating the operations of lifting and lowering ships' anchors and chain cables,
and consists,
First, of a circular grooved and notched catch attached to the windlass
barrel, and would be represented by a large, strong, deep-grooved metal wheel,
the chain cable being received by and lying within the upper portion of the
circular groove, and prevented from slipping by suitable bosses opposite each
other on each side of the groove or channel, cut in the edge of the wheel
deep enough to imbed the chain therein; such bosses receiving and supporting
each of the vertical links of the chain in succession, and the spaces between
each pair of bosses receiving the horizontal links of the chain cable, by which
means each link can be brought in in succession, the chain only lying
over this circular catch within the groove, instead of having a turn round the
windlass barrel.

page_text: And, second, of a metal stopper, which may be of cast iron, and made to
act as a pall to catch each vertical link of the chain cable. It consists of a
solid metal bed, on which are raised two plain vertical side guides, sufficiently
apart to afford a channel for the chain cable to pass freely between them, and
having on the face of the bed plate centrally between the two upright sides or
guides a lesser channel, of width and depth sufficient to receive the lower half
of each vertical link, and allow all the horizontal links to rest on the face of
the bed plate within the broader channel between the two side guides. The
length of this bed plate may be equal to about four links of the cable, and of
strength proportionate to the required strain upon it. At one end the two side
guides are raised sufficiently for a stopper to work casily between them. kept
in its place by strong pivots, which may be made moveable through slots
therein properly secured. The stopper is a solid mass of metal, its lower face
occupying about the space of ono link, & having a lever or handle worked by
hand or other means to raise or depress it. The stopper is formed to lie
equally over an horizontal link, while its edge bears against the round end
of the pressing vertical link of the chain cable.