Improvements in Apparatus for Measuring and Counting Rations of Oats and other Granular or Pulverulent Material.
Year: 1888

page_text: Improvements in Apparatus for Measuring and Counting Rations of
Oats and other Granular or Pulverulent Material.
A communication from abroad by FREDERIO LEMÉNE, of Châlons-sur-Marne, in the
Republic of France, Engine Builder.
I. WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester both
in the County of Lancaster, and 323, High Holborn in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
The present invention relates to an apparatus for measuring and counting
instantaneously any required quantity of litres of oats or bran. Moreover, the
working of this apparatus is such, that by means of a single stroke of a lever, the
measuring device is filled, measures, delivers and counts the quantity of rations
determined in advance.
Figure 1 shows in elevation an external view of the apparatus.
Figure 2 is a section showing the internal mechanism.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the measuring box.
Figure 4 represents the doors of the top of the measuring box.
Figures 5 and 6 are details of the measuring box.
This apparatus consists of a measuring box a (Figures 2 and 3) fixed inside a
casing (Figure 2) by means of cross bars c the ends of which are bolted to the sides
of the casing. In the measuring box a three of the vertical sides are fixed, the fourth
is movable and constitutes a sliding door d. The motion of this door is obtained by
means of a screw e which can be rotated by a crank, this door is besides guided in its
motion by four sliding rods f. To the upper part of the door d is attached an elbow
piece g provided with an index i indicating externally on the casing & the number of
litres which the measurer can give at each stroke of the lever. To the same door are

page_text: also fixed two ring bolts supporting a vertical shaft k, to the lower end of which the
operating lever is attached. To the upper end of the same shaft & are attached one half m
k.
of the door (Figure 4) the other half n pivots round an axis attached to the supporting
elbow piece g, these two halves of the door are moreover united by means of a small
cross piece o. On the elbow piece is screwed a plate p, the purpose of which is to
diminish the opening g of the hopper r in proportion as the sliding door d decreases
the contents of the measuring box. Under the measuring box is a trap door s hinged
to the sliding door d; this trap door is kept closed under the measurer by a spring t
(Figures 5 and 6) provided with a heel on which the trap door s rests (Figure 6)
the spring is fixed to the internal wall of the casing b. The release of the trap
doors is obtained by means of a rod vl bent to a right angle (Figures 3 to 6) for
this purpose the branch v¹ terminates in a sinuous form which strikes against the
spring, the branch terminates vertically into a rod the upper end of which is
pivoted to a point y fixed internally in. the casing b, the upper part of the rod is
provided with a pawl which actuates a counter; w is a spring actuating the part a v v¹.
The apparatus works as follows:
Let it be supposed that it is wished to supply at each stroke of the lever / three
litres of oats for instance, for this purpose the sliding door d is caused to advance by
means of the screw e until the index i comes opposite the figure 3 marked outside
on the casing b, the apparatus is then filled up with oats; by pushing the lever / to
the right, the doors m n are closed, so as to isolate the outs contained in the measuring
box a, on pushing further the lever it strikes against the angle piece v, pushes away
the spring by means of the sinuosity and the trap doors opens and allows the
measured oats to run out, in striking against the rod 2, the lever has caused
the rod to work and consequently also the counter, which records exactly the
number of times the lever has been worked, and consequently the quantity of oats
supplied by the measuring box. By bringing again the lever 7 to the left, the trap
doors is closed, the two doors m n open, and the oats fall into the measuring box,
and the same operation takes place again.
The apparatus can be made of any suitable material and the shape and dimensions
can be widely varied, it can be used not only for measuring and counting the rations
of oats but also any other granular or pulverulent material in bulk.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
A new apparatus intended for measuring and counting rations of oats, said
apparatus being characterized by the combination 1st. of a box a with sliding door d.
2nd. of a box a with doors m n. 3rd. of a door d with trap s. 4th. of a box a with
a lever . 5th. of a lever with release rod rv, the whole substantially as described
and shown on the annexed drawing.
Dated this 24th day of August 1888