IMPROVE- MENTS IN DRYING AND COOLING GRAIN, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in
the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN DRYING AND COOLING GRAIN, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN."-A communication from abroad by William Henry
Sutton and James John Gibson, both of the Town of Brantford, County
of Brant, in the Province of Canada, Machinists.
Sealed the 11th September 1863, and dated the 28th April 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th April 1863.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN DRYING AND COOLING GRAIN, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR
APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication from abroad by William
Henry Sutton and James John Gibson, both of the Town of Brantford, County
of Brant, in the Province of Canada, Machinists, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a mode or method of drying and cooling grain by
the action of hot and cold air in suitable apparatus, and consists in the
employment for 'that purpose of a box or kiln provided at its upper portion
with a perforated metal plate or with a web of fine wirework which extends

page_text: over the entire area of the box or kiln, with the exception of a small slit or
opening at one end of the box or kiln through which the dried grain escapes
to the cooling apparatus; this perforated metal plate or wirework is corrugated
longitudinally so as to form a series of parallel troughs or channels of a
semicircular section, within each of which channels or troughs works an
archimedean screw on a shaft provided with a number of inclined blades, their
object being when rotated to carry the damp grain along the perforated or
reticulated surface. By making this surface in the form of a series of troughs,
the hot air which enters below the same can penetrate the passing grain from
the bottom and sides simultaneously, and so expedite the drying process.
This hot air may bo obtained either from a special stove beneath the reticulated
surface, or it may be blown into the box or kiln by a suitable blower from a
furnace situate some distance fron the kiln. At one end of the kiln there is
a hopper or garner provided with as many sliding doors as there are channels
or troughs in the reticulated surface, these doors being opened or closed
simultaneously, more or less as desired, by a fixed nut and screw spindle, the
latter being connected with the several sliding doors. The several screws
which first propel the grain as it enters from the hopper are driven from a
speed pulley, and as each is provided with a spur wheel in gear with its
noighbour throughout the series, it follows that each alternate screw will
revolve in an opposite direction; but in order that the grain may be carried
along the several perforated troughs in the same direction, the threads or
spirals on the series of screws are made alternately right and left, thus
dispensing with the necessity for extra gearing or carrier wheels. Along the
opposite end of the box or kiln to that where the hopper or garner is situate
there is a transverse screw enclosed in a cylindrical casing of perforated metal
or wirework, which casing is again inclosed in an outer non-perforated
casing, a space being left between the two casings for the admission of cold
air, which is forced therein by a fan. An inclined passage or shute com-
municates from the delivery end of the series of troughs to the inner end
above referred to, such passage or shute being perforated above and below,
and forming, in fact, part of the plate which constitutes the inner cylindrical
casing, the outer casing being continued also above and below this passage.
The grain to be dried is placed in the hopper, passes thence to the troughs,
where it is stirred and carried along by the screws, and subjected to the
ascending hot air, which carries off the moisture in the form of vapour, such
vapour escaping by a suitable ventilator or cowl; the dried grain then passes
down the inclined shute into the perforated metal casing above mentioned,
the spiral or screw rotating therein keeping it agitated and delivering it out

page_text: at one end of the casing, but whilst it is in this casing it is effectually cooled
by the action of the cold air which is forced into it through the perforations
or retirculations in the inner casing.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 28th October 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I, the said
John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, or
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 Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN DRYING AND COOLING GRAIN, AND IN THE MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication to me from abroad by
William Henry Sutton and James John Gibson, both of the Town of Brantford,.
County of Brant, in the Province of Canada, Machinists, upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, or
under the hand and seal of one of them, 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 John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
Letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-

page_text: The said Invention relates to a mode or method of drying and cooling grain
by the action of hot and cold air in suitable apparatus, and consists in the
employment for that purpose of a box or kiln provided at its upper portion
with a perforated metal plate, or with a web of fine wirework which extends
over the entire area of the box or kiln, with the exception of a small slit or
opening at one end of the box or kiln through which the dried grain escapes
to the cooling apparatus. This perforated metal plate or wirework is
corrugated longitudinally so as to form a series of parallel troughs or channels
of a semicircular section, within each of which channels or troughs works an
archimedean screw or a shaft provided with a number of inclined blades, their
object being when rotated to carry the damp grain along the perforated or
reticulated surface. By making this surface in the form of a series of troughs,
the hot air which enters below the same can penetrate the passing grain from
the bottom and sides simultaneously, and so expedite the drying process.
This hot air may be obtained either from a special stove beneath the reticulated
surface, or it may be blown into the box or kiln by a suitable blower from a
furnace situate some distance from the kiln. At one end of the kiln is a
hopper or garner provided with as many sliding doors as there are channels
or troughs in the reticulated surface, these doors being opened or closed
simultaneously, more or less as desired, by a fixed nut and screw spindle, the
latter being connected with the several sliding doors. The several screws or
spirals which first propel the grain as it enters from the hopper are driven
from a speed pulley, and as each is provided with a spur wheel in gear
with its neighbour throughout the series, it follows that each alternate screw
will revolve in an opposite direction; but in order that the grain may be
carried along the several perforated troughs in the same direction, the threads
or spirals on the series of screws are made alternately right and left, thus
dispensing with the necessity for extra gearing or carrier wheels. Along the
opposite end of the box or kiln to that where the hopper or garner is situate,
there is a transverse screw enclosed in a cylindrical casing of perforated metal
or wirework, which casing is again enclosed in an outer non-perforated casing
a space being left between the two casings for the admission of cold air, which
is forced therein a fan.
An inclined passage or shute communicates from
the delivery end of the series of troughs to the inner casing above referred to,
such passage or shute being perforated above and bolow, and forming, in fact,
part of the plate which constitutes the inner cylindrical casing, the outer
casing being continued also above and below this passage. The grain to be
dried is placed in the hopper, passes thence to the troughs, where it is stirred
and carried along by the screws, and subjected to the ascending hot air, which

page_text: carries off the moisture in the form of vapour, such vapour escaping by a
suitable ventilator or cowl; the dried grain then passes down the inclined
shute into the perforated metal casing above mentioned, the spiral or screw
rotating therein, keeping it agitated and delivering it out at one end of the
casing, but whilst it is in this casing it is effectually cooled by the action of
the cold air which is forced into it through the perforations or reticulations in
the inner casing.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall
refer to the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings is a longitudinal vertical section of the apparatus
herein-before referred to; Figure 2 is a corresponding plan of the same, partly
in section; Figure 3 is an end elevation, showing the driving gear for the
several screws or spirals; and Figure 4 is a transverse section of the apparatus
taken through the screws or spirals.
a represents the sides of the kiln, which may be of any convenient size to
suit the locality in which it is placed or the amount of work required to be
performed, and may consist generally of a box with four sides, about fifteen
feet in length, eight feet in width, and three feet in height, which dimensions
may be varied as above stated. The sides are strongly connected together at
the angles and lined on the inner side with metal plates. The top of the
kiln is covered with a metal plate f, f, perforated with a number of holes of
such size as will prevent the smallest grain of wheat passing through, and
supported by a number of strong longitudinal bars g, g. Between these bars
the perforated plate is accurately curved to the shape and size of the revolving
spiral conveyers c, c, extending the entire length of the kiln, and working in
and supported by journals at each end thereof. The centres of the shafts of
these conveyers may be of wrought iron with the outside portion and spiral
cast on, or the entire shaft may be of wood with wooden teeth or blades
arranged in a spiral form, as may be found desirable, but in either case they
should be made to fit and work accurately in the curved spaces or channels
provided for them in the perforated metal bed plate previously referred to.
The spiral will be arranged in a right and left direction on each alternate
conveyer, so that a uniform motion forward from the feeding to the discharging
end will be given to the grain being operated on. Motion is communicated
to these conveyers by means of the spur wheels d, d, gearing into each other,
the first in the series being driven by the pulley wheel e, actuated by means
of a belt from the driving pulley h on the speed pulley i. 6 is a box or

page_text: garner placed at the end of the kiln, extending its entire width, directly over
the spur wheels which drive the conveyers. The grain is spouted into this
receptacle immediately from the elevator. A number of apertures p, p, are
provided in the bottom of this garner, one over the end of each conveyer, for
the purpose of allowing the grain to flow from one to the other. This
discharge is regulated as may be required by sliding valves r, r, working
in rebated cleats, and connected together by the rod s. A uniform movement
is communicated to all the valves by the action of the hand nut t. This nut
is secured to the side of the kiln in the ordinary manner, and the screw
worked to and fro through it by the turning of the nut. By this arrangement
the supply of grain to the "drier" can be nicely graduated according to its
humidity, and at the same time the speed of the conveyers may be augmented
or diminished by the use of the speed pulley i, and thus admit of the grain
passing over the kiln in various quantities and different velocities as may be
required in order to have it thoroughly deprived of its moisture.
The heated air may be obtained by means of a large stove furnace placed
underneath the kiln, or, which would be preferable on account of less danger
from fire, the furnace may be placed at some distance from the kiln at a lower
level, with an air-tight metal casing surrounding it, and driven by a fan blast.
The air heated within the casing could be conducted by means of pipes, and
allowed to escape into the interior of the kiln, whence, rising up through the
perforated metal plate f, it comes in contact with and passes through the wheat
in process of being moved along the upper surface by the spiral conveyers c, c,
and extract or absorb the moisture contained by the same, carrying it away in
the form of vapor. From the peculiar circular form given the perforated bed
plate, the heated air will strike through into the wheat on nearly all sides.
and at the same time, as the grain is in a constant state of agitation by the
action of the spiral conveyers, it will, in the course of its passage in a thin
stratum over the perforated plate from one end of the kiln to the other,
subject each grain to the drying influence of the hot air striking through from
below and on each side. In the event of the machine being placed on a
floating elevator, an outside casing will be required to protect it from the
weather, and provided with a cowl on the top for the escape of the steam or
vapor arising from the damp grain.
During the process so far described the grain has been subjected to the
influence of hot air only in order to deprive it of moisture, but as at the end
of this stage, owing to the increased temperature gained, it would be manifestly
improper to transfer it to ships or large garners, a further process of cooling
must be passed through, which I will now proceed to describe.

page_text: When the grain being operated on has reached the end of the kiln it passes
from the perforated plate f, through the narrow opening u, extending the
entire width of the kiln, over a second perforated plate m, and discharges into
the top of a revolving spiral conveyer n, placed at the end of the kiln and at
right angles with the conveyers previously described.
This conveyer is
surrounded with a continuation of the perforated metal plate m, before
mentioned, which returns to the kiln and forms the upper side of the connecting
passage for the wheat from the kiln. In this perforated shell the conveyer
driven by the pulley n' revolves as closely as possible. A second shell of
metal plate k, air-tight, surrounds the first one, leaving the space of a few
inches intervening for the admission of the cool air, which is forced into it by
means of the powerful fan blast o, placed at the discharging end for the grain,
driving the air in a direction contrary to that of the grain; both ends of the inner
shell of the conveyer should be made as tight as possible, a suitable discharging
aperture in the bottom of the case (shown black in Figure 2) being provided
near the end for the grain to flow out into a receiver, whence it will be
removed as required either by an elevated or ordinary conveyer. The space
between the two shells at the discharging end is connected with a pipe from
the fan blast; the air will consequently be forced with great velocity into
the space surrounding the inner shell of the conveyer, and also on each side of
the perforated passage leading down from the kiln into the conveyer, and
having no other means of escape, the outside casing being air-tight, must
necessarily be forced through the perforated casing into the grain on the inside,
passing through it in all directions, and flowing up through the passage in the
direction of the arrows in Figure 1, meeting in its course the volume of grain
flowing down from the kiln above, which at the same time receives the benefit
of the cool air being forced in through the perforated bottom and top of the
passage. These various currents of cool air unite and escape through the
grain at the upper mouth of the passage, or at the discharging end of the
hot-air kiln, and thence escape with the vapor at the cowl. The diameter of
the conveyer n will be considerably greater than that of the conveyers c, c, so
that the grain will fall from the passage u in a thin stream upon it, and thus
afford a good opportunity for the cool air to strike the grains in falling.
From the foregoing description of the manner of cooling the hot grain after
passing the kiln, it will be evident that the process is both simple and complete,
and that the grain after passing through this machine is better fitted for
shipping or preservation than it would be if it were merely passed through the
ordinary hot-air drying machines now in use.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said

page_text: Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that what I consider to be novel and
original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent, is,-
First, the general construction, arrangement, and combination of machinery
or apparatus for drying and cooling grain as herein-before described.
Second, the peculiar form of the perforated metal plates f, and their
combination with spiral conveyers c, as and for the purpose herein-before
described.
Third, the arrangement of the garner b, with its regulating valves and
screw, as herein-before described.
Fourth, the general arrangement of gearing, and right and left special
screws, whereby a forward movement is given to the grain simultaneously
by all the conveyers without the introduction of extra gear wheels, as herein-
before described.
Fifth, the application and use of the air-tight and perforated casings of the
cooling spiral conveyer and their combination with the connecting passage
from the kiln, as herein-before described.
In witness whercof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of October, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-three.