IMPROVEMENTS IN BLOCK-MAKING MACHINERY
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Mann Crosland, of Beaumont Street,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BLOCK-MAKING MACHINERY
" IMPROVEMENTS IN BLOCK-MAKING MACHINERY'
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Mann
Crosland at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 23rd March 1853.
I, WILLIAM MANN CROSLAND, of Beaumont Street, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BLOCK-MAKING MACHINERY," to be as
follows:-
I first commence with the boring machine, or apparatus employed
to drill holes for the sheave, slot, or mortice, and for the pin. I mount
a drilling tool upon a table, and cause it to advance into the wood by
means of a screw. I mount the blank or piece of wood to be formed
into a block in an apparatus which I make adjustable, so as to insure
the blank being presented in the proper position to the drilling or

page_text: boring tools. The blank is removed to a morticing machine, in which T
have no improvements. On leaving this machine I mount the blank
in a frame, and by means of two circular saws cut off two corners or
angles at one operation; the blank is then turned, and the two remain-
ing corners removed in like manner. A series of blanks are then
mounted, as at present, upon a chuck wheel or frame, in order to be
shaped. And my improvements in this part of the machinery consist
in mounting the blanks on independent axes, which I cause to move
together with the blanks thereon, either backward or forward, as may
be necessary.
In order to cut the sheaves I mount two or more
circular saws in a suitable frame, and at one operation produce two
or more discs, which are subsequently finished in the usual manner, so
as to form sheaves.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Mann Crosland, in the Great Seal
Patent Office. on the 23rd September 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
WILLIAM MANN CROSLAND, of Beaumont Street, in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the sixteenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself. Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said William Maun Crosland, Ier special licence
that I, the said William Mann Crosland, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Mann Crosland,
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 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 BLOCK-MAKING MACHINERY." upon the condition

page_text: (amongst others) that I, the said William Mann Crosland, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Mann Crosland, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had
to the drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say:
The first part of my said Invention has relation to the machine em-
ployed for boring the pin hole of blocks, and the hole required to ensure
the clearance of the tool for forming the mortise or channel for the
sheave.
My improvements in this machine consist, first, in a more ready and
correct means of setting the block to the required position for boring,
whereby a greater number of blocks can be bored in the same time;
and, second, in the adaptation of a self-acting motion to advance the
boring tool to its work with uniform regularity, and thus prevent its
liability to be broken, at the same time that it requires less attention
from the workman, who will by this means be enabled to superintend
more than one machine.
Figures 1, and 2, are elevations, partly in section, of the boring
machine, as thus improved; a, is the tool for boring the mortice hole,
and b, the tool for boring the pin hole. These tools are at right angles
to each other; c, is the table on which the block to be operated on is
mounted; d, is a spindle on which are cut the right and left handed
screws d', d², both of the same pitch; e, and f, are stops, which are
tapped with threads, corresponding to those of the parts d', and d³, of
the spindle d, on which they are mounted: 9, is a lever or handle
attached to the spindle d, by turning which the stops e, and f, will be
moved equal distances away from or towards each other, so as to hold
blocks of different sizes. h, is a screw for adjusting the stop i, which
acts as a further guide in setting the block. The table c, is adjusted to

page_text: the required positions for blocks of different sizes by means of the
screw j, which is worked by the hand wheel k, or a lever handle. I do
not, however, confine myself to this means of setting the table, as it
may be effected by other contrivances. 1, is a screw for adjusting the
headstock of the tool b, so as to enable this tool to be brought to its
proper position in relation to the tool a, for operating on blocks of
different sizes. The means by which the self-acting advancing move-
ment is given to the tool a, is as follows: m, is a screwed spindle, which
is connected by the nut m"; to the tool headstock », is a worm wheel
fixed upon the spindle m; o, is another spindle, on which is formed or
fitted a worm or screw, ¹, which gears into the worm wheel n; p, is a
pulley fixed upon the worm spindle o, and driven by a strap or cord
from any prime mover, so as to give motion to the worm and wheel »,
and n; and thus by means of the screwed spindle m, advance the
headstock, and tool a, carried by it, against the work; 7, and r, are two
levers for supporting one end of the worm spindle o; the lever r, has a
projection upon it, which, when the worm and wheel a', and n, are
required to be in gear, is hooked upon the catel s; t, is a rod attached
to the lever r, and sliding alongside of the tool headstock; ut, is a stop
fixed or adjustable on the rod t; and v, another stop or projection on
the tool headstock which, when the tool has advanced as far as required,
presses against the stop u, and by drawing the rod t, endwise, releases
the lever r, from the catch s, and allows the spindle o, to drop, so as to
release the worm 2, from the wheel 2. The traversing motion will then
cease, and the headstock can be brought back to its original position by
turning the handle w, on the extremity of the screwed spindle m. I do
not confine myself to the arrangement just described for giving the
advancing movement to the tool a, as the same effect might be pro-
duced by means of a rack and pinion motion, or by a lever acted
on by a weight, &c., or by other analogous contrivances.
Having thus described the first part of my Invention, I declare that I
claim in respect thereof,-
First, the means whereby the blocks are held and adjusted upon the
table, as described.
Second, the means of adjusting the table on which the blocks to bo

page_text: as described.
youth to atrapt to 101 receiving blocks of anerent sizes,
Third, making one of the tool headstocks adjustable by means of a
screw, so as to bring the tools to their proper relative positions for
operating on blocks of different sizes, as described; and,
Fourth, the adaptation of a self-acting motion to advance the boring
tool to its work.
The second part of my Invention consists of an arrangement of
machinery for cutting off simultaneously two corners from timber
intended for making blocks; the object being to facilitate the subse-
quent operation of giving external form to the blocks.
Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of my improved cornering machine;
4, and b, are two circular saws, one of which (a,) is fixed upon the
hollow spindle c, and the other, b, upon the spindle d, which slides
within the spindle c, and is capable of being adjusted by means of the
screw f, so as to vary the distance between the saws , and b, to suit
timber of different dimensions; g, is the table along which the timber
under operation is moved, so as to bring it in contact with the saws;
h, is one of two or more screws, by which the position of the table g,
can be adjusted when required; i, is a driving pulley, mounted on the
spindle c, for giving motion to the saws; j, is a key by which the
spindles c, and d, are connected, so as to revolve simultaneously.
Having thus described the second part of my Invention, I declare
that I claim in respect thereof,-
The arrangement of two circular or other saws, so as to cut off' at one
operation two corners from timber intended for the formation of blocks,
as described.
The third part of my Invention relates to the machine for giving
external form to the blocks, and consists in arranging the blocks in the
machine in such manner that they may be turned on their axes so as
to present different portions of their surfaces to the action of the shaping
tool, without the necessity for previously stopping the machine, or
changing the direction of its revolution.
Figures 4, and 5, are respectively a side elevation, and vertical
section, partly in elevation, of my improved shaping machine; a, a,

page_text: are the blocks to be shaped, which are mounted between the holders or
axles b, and c, in the frame d, d; on the holders b, are fixed pinions e,
which gear into the wheel f. in the centre part or boss of which are
formed recesses, which receive the projections g, formed on the boss h.
on the main shaft i. The projections y, are situated at an angle with
the axis of the boss . on which they are formed; and it will therefore
be seen that if the boss is prevented from turning on the shaft by means
of a feather h', and is then slid along the shaft i, the wheel f. being
prevented from sliding with the boss h, by means of the keys h", will be
caused to turn, and motion will by it be given to the pinions e. e, and the
blocks will be turned partially round on their axes to any extent
required (or the same effect would be produced if the boss h, were fixed
on the shaft, and the wheel caused to slide). The boss h, is moved end-
wise by means of the lever, which is worked by the screw k, and hand
wheel 1; . m, are pauls for holding the screw in any position in which
it is required to be secured.
Having thus described the third part of my Invention, I declare that
I claim in respect thereof,-
The arranging of the blocks in the machine in such manner that they
may be turned on their axes so as to present different portions of their
surfaces to the action of the shaping tool, without the necessity for
previously stopping the machine, or changing the direction of its
revolution.
The fourth and last part of my Invention has relation to the machine
used for slicing the material for the purpose of making the sheaves of
blocks, and consists in arranging in this machine two or more saws, so
as to cut off two or more pieces at one operation. Figure 6, is a side
elevation, partly in section, of a portion of a sheave cutting machine, ar-
ranged according to my improvements. a, a, is the frame for carrying the
saws d, d'. which is mounted between the centres b, b, so as to be capa-
ble of being moved in either direction; c, is a hollow spindle on which
the saw d, is fixed; and c, another spindle, moveable within the hollow
spindle c, and carrying the other saw d'; e, is a screw fixed upon or
bearing against the end of the spindle e, by means of which the
saws d, and d', can be adjusted to the required distance apart; f, is a

page_text: pulley on the spindle c; and g, a key for connecting the spindles, so
that they may be driven simultaneously. I do not confine myself to
the use of two saws only, as a greater number may be arranged, if
required, in the same machine.
And having now described the fourth and last part of my Invention,
I declare that I claim in respect thereof,-
The arrangement of two or more circular or other saws in the same
machine for the purpose of cutting at one operation two or more pieces
of material for forming the sheaves of blocks, as before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Mann Crosland, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of September,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.