IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAIN CUTTING MACHINERY
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Carl Pieper, of Dresden, Saxony, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAIN CUTTING MACHINERY." A communication from
Albert Zipser, a person resident at Cracow, Austria.
Sealed the 17th April 1877, and dated the 23rd October 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Carl Pieper at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd October 1876.
CARL PIEPER, of Dresden, Saxony. "IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAIN CUTTING
MACHINERY." A cominunication from Albert Zipser, a person resident at Cracow,
Austria.
The object of this Invention is to shear grain into pieces for the purpose of pro-
ducing semolina for the Hungarian system of manufacture of flour or for other
purposes. This object is attained by a machine consisting mainly of two rollers,
provided with teeth of peculiar design and action. Into each roller grooves of
suitable width and shape are planed or cut parallel to its axis, or nearly so, and
other grooves are turned into the same peripherically. These grooves by their
intersection form rows of teeth. The two rollers are placed parallel to each other
in such a manner that the teeth of the one project a suitable distance into the
peripherical grooves of the other, and they are made to revolve by proper gearing
at different circumferential speeds in opposite directions. The teeth of the rollers
whilst moving forward will consequently pass each other laterally, and shear into
pieces the grains falling between them from a hopper.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Carl Pieper in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd April 1877.
CARL PIEPER, of Dresden, Saxony. "GRAIN CUTTING MACHINE." A communi-
cation from Albert Zipser, Flour Mill Director, of Cracow, Empire of Austria.
In the Hungarian system of producing flour the grain is caused to pass several
times between common millstones or between rollers for the purpose of breaking
it down to semolina, from which after subsequent dressing the finest sort of flour
Price 6d1

page_text: is made. By this process, however, the grain is not only broken but it is partly
bruised and crushed, and consequently a large per-centage of flour of inferior quality
is produced besides the semolina.
Repeated attempts have already been made to improve the process, so as to
increase the quantity of semolina obtained and to reduce the production of an
inferior flour by the untimely crushing and bruising of the grain, but hitherto
without the desired success. This object, however, is attained in the most satis
factory manner by the machine to which this Invention relates, and which shears
the grain into pieces.
The machine consists mainly of two rollers, provided with teeth of peculiar
design and action. Into each roller grooves of suitable width and shape are planed
or cut parallel to its axis, or nearly so, and other grooves are turned into the same
peripherically. These grooves by their intersection form rows of teeth. The two
rollers are placed parallel to each other in such a manner that the teeth of the one
project a suitable distance into the peripherical grooves of the other, and they are
made to revolve by proper gearing at different circumferential speeds in opposite
directions. The teeth of the rollers whilst moving forward will consequently pass
each other laterally, and shear into pieces the grains falling between them from a
hopper. These rollers are represented on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, Fig. I.
being an end view, and Fig. II. a top view. The Figures III. and IV. show the
shape and position of the teeth on a larger scale; and the Figures V., VI., and VII.,
different methods of constructing the rollers.
The grains fall from a hopper A between the two rollers B and C, whilst these
revolve in the direction of the two arrows, Fig. I. The circumferential speed of B
is greater than that of C. The spaces between the teeth in peripherical direction
are of a width and depth to correspond to the diameter of the grains, and the width
of the spaces in the direction of the axis together with the thickness of the teeth
is such that a grain reaches in its length at least over two teeth and a space. The
grains will consequently have a tendency to lie the long way in the longitudinal
grooves of the rollers C, as represented in Figures III, and IV., and each grain after
having come into this position is caught and sheared into pieces by one or several
teeth of the roller B rotating quicker than C.
It is of advantage to design the teeth according to Fig. III. so that the cutting
sides stand more or less radially, but other forms may be applied.
The rollers may be constructed in the manner shown by Fig. V., where the
peripherical grooves are turned and the longitudinal grooves planed or cut by a
milling machine into a solid cylinder of iron, steel, or other suitable material; or
flat steel wires provided with teeth punched on one edge are fitted into peripherical
grooves of the rollers and subsequently fixed by caulking, as shown by Fig. VI.;
or, finally, the rollers may be composed of discs with teeth on their edge alternating
with smaller discs with smooth edge, see Fig. VII. The method of construction
may however be varied according to desire.
Instead of using only one pair of rollers two or more smaller rollers may be
combined with one large one,
As regards the advantages of this Invention, it is to be observed, that according
to the present practice in the Hungarian system of manufacture of flour, the grain
is usually passed four times between the millstones for the purpose of breaking it
down to coarse semolina (called in German "schrot"), which is subsequently further
reduced and fully dressed so as to produce the fine pure semolina (German "gries")
from which flour of the first quality is made. By this process, however, only 50 per
cent. of the desired coarse semolina are obtained, the rest being an inferior quality
of semolina of finer grain and of coarse and fine flour, the amount of flour being on
the average about 14 per cent.
According to the present Invention, however, by passing the grain once through
the described grain cutting machine, a product results which is equal to the
semolina as produced by passing it four times between common millstones. But
whilst the quantity of semolina obtained in the latter case is but 50 per cent. of the

page_text: grain used it amounts to 80 per cent. of the same sort by the cutting process, and
ouly from 1 to 1/2 per cent. of flour is produced at the same time against 14 per
cent. as by the common system.
The quantity of grain which may be cut by a grain cutting machine, the rollers
of which are 1212 inches long, amounts to 32 tons in 24 hours with 1%, horse
power. This is about one quarter of the power required to drive a millstone which,
moreover, has to be used four times to give the saine sort of semolina. Altogether
the performance of the described machine has never been attained even approxi-
matively by any grain crushing mill or any millstone, not taking into account the
quality of the product.
This grain cutting machine may be used with advantage for agricultural purposes
instead of the common crushing mills, as it requires less power. By means of the
same one man may cut 50 cwt. of oats or barley in a day.
Having thus described the nature of this Invention, and in what manner the
same may be put into practice as communicated to me by the Inventor, I claim in
a grain cutting machine the combination of two or more revolving rollers, provided
on their surface with cutting teeth arranged in longitudinal and peripherical rows,
the teeth of one roller projecting into the peripherical spaces of the other, as and for
the purpose specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Carl Pieper, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Twentieth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-seven.
CARL PIEPER. (L.S.)