IMPROVEMENTS IN CLEANING AND ROASTING OF COFFEE, IN THE APPARATUS AND MACHINERY TO BE USED THEREIN, AND ALSO THE APPARATUS FOR MAKING INFUSIONS AND DECOCTIONS OF COFFEE
Year: 1848

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ELIZABETH
DAKIN, of No. 1, Saint Paul's Church Yard, in the City of London, Widow,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Third day of July, in the twelfth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Elizabeth
Dakin, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial license, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that I, the said Elizabeth Dakin, my exors, adiiors,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Elizabeth Dakin, my exors, aditiors,
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, Wales, and
the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey,
Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and Plan-
tations abroad, the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN CLEANING AND ROASTING
OF COFFEE, IN THE APPARATUS AND MACHINERY TO BE USED THEREIN, AND ALSO
THE APPARATUS FOR MAKING INFUSIONS AND DECOCTIONS OF COFFEE;" in
which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said
Elizabeth Dakin, to cause a particular description of the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High
Court of Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Elizabeth Dakin, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed and carried out, are fully
described and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference
being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon, that is to say: -
First, the improvements consist in a process or processes of cleaning and
roasting coffee, by which the quality of the coffee is much improved, and the
flavour rendered superior to that roasted by the ordinary processes; also in the
arrangement and construction of the machinery and apparatus to be used and
employed for that purpose.
Secondly, the improvements consist in a mode or modes of making and
preparing infusions and decoctions of coffee, and in the apparatus to be used
and employed therein.
Hitherto various processes and descriptions of apparatus have been employed
for cleaning and roasting coffee, more or less advantageous and economical; but
the quality of the coffee is injúriously affected in the process of cleaning and
roasting by apparatus of the ordinary construction, in consequence of the
coffee coming in contact with iron during the process. The vapours or other
matter set free from the coffee by the application of heat act chemically on
the iron, and then react upon the coffee in a very prejudicial, manner, and
impart to it a disagreeable flavour when made into a beverage, rendering
it also more or less unwholesome. The apparatus generally used is an
iron cylinder, in the interior of which the coffee is confined, whilst the
exterior surface of the cylinder is exposed to the immediate action of the fire
without any conveying or intermediate medium, the heat necessary to the
process causing the vapours or other matter from the coffee to react as before
stated. The gases and other resultants of the fire coming in contact with the
coffee through apertures or openings in the cylinder, impart to the coffee
noxious qualities. To obviate these defects in the process of cleaning and
.roasting coffee is the object of this the first part of the Invention, and of the
apparatus to be employed for that purpose. Instead of cleaning and roasting
the coffee in cylinders or vessels exposed directly to the action of fire, I
introduce a medium between the cleaning and roasting cylinder or vessel and
the fire, by placing it within an oven or other close vessel upon the outside
of which the fire acts, whereby the coffee in the cylinder is protected
from contact with the products. of combustion. Instead, also, of using
cleaning and roasting cylinders or vessels of iron or other similar materials,
which exert a prejudicial effect upon the coffee, I employ cylinders
.

page_text: or vessels composed of materials which do not, during the process
of cleaning and roasting, react injuriously upon the berry; and I take
especial care that throughout the whole process of heating and cooling the
coffee is not suffered to come in contact with any metal possessing tho
property of reacting injuriously upon the coffee, as above described. With
this view I construct the cleaning and roasting cylinder, vessel, or receptacle,
as also those parts of the apparatus and machinery with which, during the
process, the coffee, may come in contact, wholly of such metal or alloys of
metal as do not react upon the coffee; and for this purpose I make the
apparatus, or such portion thereof as the coffee may come in contact with, of
gold, silver, platinum, or other similar metal, or of an alloy of such metals.
The arrangement and construction of the machinery and apparatus for
effecting and fully carrying out these improvements in the process of
preparing coffee are fully illustrated and represented in the annexed Sheets
of Drawings, and by the following description thereof, that is to say:-
Sheet A: Figure 1 represents a longitudinal elevation of the heating and
roasting apparatus. In this Figure the cylinder is shown in its position
withdrawn from the oven or heating apparatus.
Sheet B: Figure 2 represents a longitudinal section through the centre of
the apparatus, being the line Z, Z, Figures 3 and 4.
.1
Sheet C: Figure 3 represents a front elevation, Figuro 4 a back elevation,
and Figure 5 a transverse section through the lines X;X, Figure 1; Figure 6
represents the taster, which will be hereafter fully explained and described..
The letters of reference to all these Figures refer to the same parts in the
whole of them.
A represents the cylinder which, with the ends A', A¹, thereof, are made
and constructed either of gold, silver, platinum, or other similar. metal or
metals, or of an alloy or alloys of metals, which do not react prejudicially
upon the qualities of the coffee contained therein during the process of
cleaning and roasting; or the cylinder may be composed and made principally
of other metal or metals, as iron, brass, copper, or such like metals; and the
whole of the interior surfaces thereof lined, coated, or covered with any of
the metals or alloys before stated. Or it may be made and constructed
of wire made of or coated or covered with any of the before-named metals or
alloys. This cylinder A is provided with a slide A" made, and constructed,
of similar materials to that of which the cylinder itself is composed; this slide.
extends the whole length, or nearly so, of the cylinder; the edges are made
slightly taper, and pass within grooves or rebates upon the cylinder itself, which.
thereby renders it, when fairly closed up, air-tight, or nearly so. "This side, is,
provided with a handle projecting in front of the cylinder, for the purpose of

page_text: removing and replacing it when requisite; the slide opens and closes the aperture
of the cylinder; or a flap or door may be used, the object being to make the
roasting cylinder or vessel as nearly air-tight as practicable. The cylinder A
is secured to the end plates B, B', which plates may be made of gun metal,
iron, or other metal; they are connected together by the rods B", B", which
pass through the end plates B, B' upon the outside of the cylinder, thereby
liolding the cylinder firmly and securely between them; the end plates B, B¹,
are provided with bosses upon their centres, to which are secured the
shafts C, C. The shaft C at the front part of the cylinder is formed hollow
throughout its length, for the purpose which will be hereafter explained; it is
supported by the suspended bearing D attached by means of the bars D', D',
to the carriage E above, which traverses upon the railway or platform E', E',
from end to end, whereby the cylinder is passed into and withdrawn from the
òven F. Upon the front suspending bar D' are affixed the handles D", ono
on either side of the bar, by which the operator is enabled to pass the cylinder
into the oven, and also to withdraw it therefrom. The shaft C' which is
secured to the plate B at the after end of the cylinder, passes through a hole
bored to the size of the back or end of the oven F, and also through the wall
box C affixed to the back of the heating apparatus, where the shaft C' is
supported in the plummer block II, affixed to the wall box; the shaft C¹ slides
longitudinally in the plummer block whenever the cylinder is passed into or
withdrawn from the oven or heating apparatus. The shaft C¹ has also a
longitudinal groove throughout the greater portion of its length, into which fits
and is capable of sliding a tongue or feather fitted in the interior of the boss
of the clutch I, which therefore rotates with the shaft, though the shaft is
capable of sliding longitudinally within it. Between the clutch I and the
pluminer block II is the chain wheel K, which is fitted loosely upon the
shaft C', and capable of revolving without communicating motion to the
shaft C; whenever out of gear with the clutch I it is retained in its proper
position by having a groove upon the exterior of its boss, into which pass the
two plates C, C, affixed to the wall plate C". The chain wheel K is driven
by the chain from any first mover; it is therefore evident that when the clutch
is out of gear with the chain wheel, no revolving motion is communicated to
the cylinder; but when it is in gear revolving motion is given to the
cylinder, whether it be within or without the oven or heating apparatus.
The length of the shaft C' is such that, when the cylinder is out of the oven or
heating apparatus, the end of the shaft shall be just through the clutch, as
shewn in Figure 1. The clutch I is thrown in or out of gear with the chain
wheel K by means of the forked lever I', the other end of 1" of which is acted
upon by the operator when required, and the clutch is retained either in gear

page_text: or out of g gear by the end I" of the lever being respectively in the lower
or the upper. notch of the catch I". The front of the oven is closed by
means of sliding doors" rendered air-tight, or as nearly so as practicable;
and for such sliding doors, as well as in the construction of the oven
itself, I prefer the Inventions for which better Patents were granted to
John Silvester, dated Tenth March, One thousand eight hundred and
thirty-five; and Third March, One thousand eight hundred and forty; but
the said oven and doors may be constructed in other ways without affecting
the nature of this Invention. L, the furnace above which is the arch M,
supporting the oven or cylinder "; through the arch M are the flues or
openings N, which carry the heat from the furnace to the flue or chamber O
surrounding the oven to which it communicates its heat. The oven not being
exposed to the direct action of the furnace will be more uniformly heated from
the flue or chamber O surrounding it. The heated air passes off through the
chimney P. At any convenient part of the apparatus is placed the thermo-
meter or other apparatus for indicating the degrees of heat, T, the bulb of
which passes into the interior of the oven, for the purpose of indicating the
temperature of the interior thereof, to which the cylinder is exposed during the
process, as I attach great importance to roasting the coffee at a certain tem
perature; and for the purpose of answering this object I insert also a thermo-
meter or other apparatus for ascertaining the temperature through the hollow
spindle C. The taster is shewn at Fig. 6. It is introduced through the hollow
shaft C, and is made of materials similar to those employed in the construction
of the cleaning and roasting cylinder itself. It is constructed in the form of a
hollow tube pierced or perforated at the part which, when inserted through
the hollow shaft C, projects within the cylinder. About the middle or in other
parts of the tube a portion or portions of the tube are cut away, for the purpose
of holding a number of the coffee berries and extracting them from the
cylinder during the cleaning and roasting. The berries are prevented from
getting into the tube itself by means of perforated ends inserted where the
portion or portions of. the tube is or are cut away. The other and exterior
end of the taster is furnished with a handle of glass or other suitable
material, which is a bad conductor of coloric. This handle is detached from
the taster when not required to be used, so that it may not prevent the free
escape from the cylinder of the vapors generated from the coffee under
operation.. By this means I am enabled at any time to extract from the
interior of the cylinder a small portion of the coffee under operation, for
the purpose of examining such coffee and ascertaining its condition during
the process, and also for ascertaining when the process is complete without ių

page_text: any way interfering with the usual and regular working of the apparatus or
suspending the
process.
commences.
I will now proceed to describe the action of the said machinery and appa-
ratus, and also the mode of carrying on the process. The fire being lighted
in the furnace the temperature is raised until it has reached the necessary
height, which will be indicated by the thermometer or other indicating
apparatus. The cylinder is then withdrawn from the oven ready to receive
the charge of raw coffee to be operated on. By reason of the clutch I upon
the shaft at the back of the heating apparatus being out of geer with the
chain wheel K no revolving motion is communicated to the cylinder. When
the temperature of the interior of the oven is sufficient the charge of raw
'coffee is put into the cylinder through the aperture, which is then closed by
the slide. The clutch I is now thrown into geer with tho chain wheel K by
depressing the lever handle 1" into the lower notch, whereby rotary motion
will be communicated to the roasting cylinder; the oven doors are now to
be opened, when the operator by means of the handles upon the suspending
bars will push and pass the cylinder with its change of raw coffee into the oven,
when the doors are immediately closed and the cleaning and roasting process
As the process proceeds the vapours generated from the coffee
will have free egress from the cylinder, through the taster or the hollow shaft;
by the use of which now and then, to withdraw coffee berries, the proper
moment is ascertained when to suspend the roasting, which will differ in
point of time with the different varieties of coffee. When the coffee is ascer-
tained to be sufficiently roasted the doors of the oven are opened and the
cylinder is instantly withdrawn, still revolving. When withdrawn the doors are
again closed for the purpose of confining the beat and preventing inconvenienco
to the operator. The revolutions of the cylinder are to be discontinued by
throwing the clutch out of geer with the chain wheel, the slide of the cylinder
is then removed. By means of the handle K' the cylinder is turned by hand
till the slide is the lowest part of the cylinder, and the charge of roasted coffee
is discharged or falls from the cylinder into a tender or receiver, by means of
which it is carried and thrown or discharged into the cooler (to be hereafter
explained), where it is spread and agitated or moved over the surface until
sufficiently cool. Upon the completion of the process of roasting one charge
of coffee, and its discharge from the cylinder, another charge may be
immediately introduced, and the process of roasting repeated. The tender or
receiver in which the coffee is received from the cylinder, at the termination of
the roasting process, is made and constructed of wire or plates wholly of gold,
silver, platinum, or other similar metals, or alloys of such metal, or may be

page_text: mado, and constructed of other materials, as of wood, and lined, coated, or
cased with any of the before-mentioned metals or alloys, which do not prejudi-
cially affect the berry; and it may be constructed of any convenient shape and
size, but should be of sufficient capacity to contain the ordinary charge of
coffee, so that the coffee may be removed from the roasting cylinder and
submitted to the action of the cooler as quickly as possible. The cooler may
be formed and constructed of a square, circular, or other convenient shape and
configuration; the sides being formed of any of the before-named metals, or
alloys, or lined therewith, and may be placed in a vertical or inclined position,
having at one side or end thereof an aperture or opening capable of being
closed by a slide or door, which aperturo is for the purpose of discharging the
coffee from the cooler when sufficiently cooled. The bottom of the cooler is
constructed of plates or sheets of any of the metals or alloys above mentioned,
closely perforated with holes, the size of which shall not be such as to allow of
any of the coffee berries passing through; or the bottom of the cooler may be
formed and constructed of wires of, or coated with, the inetals or alloys above
mentioned, having the meshes of such a size as not to admit any of the coffee
berries passing through. Motion is to be given to the cooler when the coffee is
placed, therein hot from the cylinder, in such manner that the coffee may be
spread over the bottom of the cooler and kept during the period of time.
necessary to cool the coffee sufficiently, in, a state of agitation; thus con-
tinually presenting fresh coffee to the cooling influence of the atmosphere.
I also apply, in conjunction with the cooler above described, a blast or
current of cold air to the surface of the coffee while in the cooler, by.
means of a fan, bellows, blowing cylinder, or other convenient method;
which blast or current 1 pass either over or under the exposed surfaces
of the coffee while being agitated or moved in the cooler, or both over and
under such surfaces of coffee. I cause the necessary movement to be given to
the cooler either by manual power or by mechanical means by connection
with the first mover through suitable and appropriate apparatus.
Having now fully described the nature of this the first portion of the said
Invention and improvements, and the manner of carrying the same into
effect and operation, and the arrangements and construction of the machinery
and apparatus applicablo thereto, it will be obvious that several of the forms
and details hercin-before illustrated and described may be modified and
varied, and that modifications for supporting or suspending the roasting
cylinder or vessel and for facilitating the ingress or egress from the oven of
the roasting cylinder or vessel may be adopted. And I hereby declare that
1 claim under this the first part of. my
Invention,

page_text: First, I claim the improvement in cleaning and roasting coffee by the use
of a vessel or vessels constructed of or lined with, at the surfaces with
which the coffee is in contact, gold, silver, platinum, or other similar metal or
alloy of such metal, as above described.
Secondly, I claim the adaptation and application in and to the cleaning and
roasting of coffee of a cylinder or other receptacle constructed of or lined
with, at its inner surface, gold, silver, platinum, or other similar metal or
alloy of such metal as above described.
Thirdly, I claim the arrangement and application of machinery and ap-
paratus as hercin-before described, consisting of a traversing.carriage-oi a
railway, for the purpose of suspending or supporting the end of the roasting
vessel or receptacle, and withdrawing. the same from or passing the same
into the oven or heating apparatus in the cleansing and roasting of coffee.
The second part of the improvements consists in an improved apparatus to
be employed in the process of making the infusions or decoctions of coffee as
a beverage, the object being to make the infusion or decoction in as short a
space of time as possible and to render it clear. The coffee-pot or biggen to
be employed may be similar in external construction and appearance to that
generally used for such purposes, or it may be made of other shapes or
construction at pleasure. Within the coffee-pot or biggen is placed a purse
or bag made and formed of any suitable flexible and porous material, such as
flannel, linen, silk, cotton, or hair cloth, or of other suitable fabrics or
materials or combinations of them, the texture of which is such that it will
operate as a strainer for the purpose of draining-and- separating in manner
(as will be hereafter described), the-liquid-infusion or decoction from the
coffee grounds, after such infusions or decoctions shall have been made, such
liquid infusion passing and straining through the purse or bag from the
interior thereof into the coffee-pot or biggen, leaving behind in the purse or
bag the coffee grounds only.. Such straining is effected by compressing,
twisting, collapsing; pressing, or otherwise diminishing the size or capacity
of thió flexible purse or bag, so that the liquid shall be strained-through the
pores or through any additional strainer piece attached thereto, and at the
termination of the process it shall contain the coffee grounds only, which
will then be in a comparatively dry state. The purse or bag A (sco
Fig. 7, Sheet D), composed of the materials as herein-before described, or
of others which, are suitable, is placed in the coffee-pot or biggen B,
and is fastened to the bottom thereof. The top is secured to a ring or inside
cover piece C, which has a connexion with the top or cover of the coffee-pot
or biggen, by which it is turned; or it may be turned by other convenient

page_text: means whereby the purse or bag will be twisted and compressed while within
the pot or biggen; or the arrangement may be modified by fastening the top
of the purse or bag to the ring or inside cover at the top of the coffee-pot or
biggen, as before described, and a rod or spindle passed through the said
inside cover or top of the pot or biggen, and also through the purse or bag,
which is to be secured to the lower end of the said spindle. The top of this
rod or spindle, outside the cover or top of the pot or biggen, is provided with
a button or knob, having a key attached thereto for the purpose of turning it;
and which, when so turned; twists and collapses up the purse or bag as beforo
described. The mode of operating by either of these arrangements of my
Invention is as follows:-The cover or covers of the coffee-pot or biggen being
removed; I place within the purse or bag the coffee, upon which is poured a
proper quantity of boiling water. The cover or covers are then placed on;
and the button or knob having the key before described is turned, when the
liquid infusion will, by the twisting and collapsing of the purse or bag, bo
forced through the pores thereof, or through any additional stainer pieco
attached thereto, and so be fully and effectually strained, leaving behind in
the purse or bag itself only the coffee grounds, in a state of comparativo
dryness, depending upon the degree of force with which the purse or bag has
been twisted. I employ also for the same purpose the following arrange-
ment place the purse or bag, composed of any of the materials beforò
named, within the coffee-pot or biggen, and when the infusion shall have
been made within the purse or bag, "the liquid is forced and passed outward
through the purse or bag by winding or passing the purse or bag over a small
windlass frame or roller, placed in a horizontal position near the top, or in any
other part of the coffee-pot or biggen. This roller or frame being turned,
the coffee grounds only will remain within the purse or bag, as in the method
lastly described.
Another arrangement of apparatus for making and preparing infusions and
decoctions of coffee is represented at Fig. 8, and consists of a metallic
cylinder or other vessel A, having its bottom and sides, or its bottom only,
perforated with small holes, or formed of wire gauze, or other suitable strainer.
To this cylinder or vessel is fitted a metallic disc or piston B, also perforated
with holes or formed of wire gauze, to which is fitted a screw worm or thread C,
having its bearings in the top and bottom plates of the cylinder or vessel:
It passes through the disc or piston B, which is prevented from moving round
when the screw is turned. The top or cover of the cylinder or vessel is
separate, or it may form the cover of the coffee-pot or biggen D, into which

page_text: the apparatus is place. The top of the screw worm or thread projects through
the top or cover of the cylinder or vessel, or otherwise, and is turned by
having thercon a button, wrench, or knob, or by any other convenient means.
· The process of preparing and filtering the infusion or decoction is as
follows: The disc or piston B has to be screwed down to the bottom of the
cylinder or vessel when the coffee is put on the top of the disc or piston B
within the cylinder. Boiling water is now. poured upon the coffee, and
the lid or cover of the cylinder and the lid of the coffee-pot is closed. When
sufficiently macerated it is filtered from above the disc or piston B, into the
coffee-pot or biggen D, by turning the screw C, which draws the disc or
piston B upwards within the cylinder A, and pressing the liquid between the
disc or piston and the cover of the cylinder, which may also be perforated,
and thus forces and filters the liquid infusion through the perforated disc or
piston, and through the perforation portions of the cylinder and its cover, into
the coffee-pot or biggen. The apparatus may be modified by fixing the rod
or screw to the disc or piston, and passing it through the cover of the cylinder
and the cover of the coffee pot, and through a nut or knob on the outside
thereof, by the turning of which the disc or piston may be moved up or
down within the cylinder, so as to press the liquid through by screwing
against the bottom of the cylinder, or of the pot, or biggen itself, instead of
against the top or cover. The disc or piston may be placed within the coffee-
pot or biggen itself, so as to dispense with the use of the separate cylinder or
vessel, but I prefer the first-named arrangement..
Having, now described the nature of this the second part of the present
Invention and improvements, and the manner in which the same is to be
carried into operation, I would have it understood that what I claim is,
First, the application of a purse or bag of flexible material placed within
a pot, biggen, or other vessel in connexion with apparatus constructed and
arranged as above. described, so that by screwing, twisting, wringing, or
pressing the, said purse or bag the infusion or decoction of coffee shall be
made to pass through such purse or bag, or through any additional strainer
piece attached thereto, thereby filtering and rendering such infusion or decoc-
tion clear and free from the coffee grounds.
Secondly, I claim the construction and application of apparatus consisting
of a moveable perforated disc or piston, traversing within a cylinder or vessel
placed within a coffee-pot, vessel, or biggen, or with in the pot, vessel, or biggen
itself, in such manner that the infusions or decoctions shall filter and strain
through the disc or piston, or through the dise or piston and the cylinder or

page_text: vessel by means of screw pressure within the vessel or vessels themselves,
s herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Elizabeth Dakin, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Second day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight.
ELIZABETH (L.S.) DAKIN.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Second day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1848, the aforesaid Elizabeth Dakin came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Speci-
Ofication aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in
form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Second day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight: