An Improved Machine for Pressing Bricks.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Feb., 1894-Accepted, 7th Apr., 1594
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Pressing Bricks.
I, WILLIAM BULMER, of the Atlas Foundry, Middlesbrough-on-Tees, in the
County of York, 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 :—
This invention relates to machines for pressing bricks and consists partly in an
improved arrangement and combination of parts for pressing the bricks between
the dies and partly in a modified construction of certain other parts of the machine
by which the brick is lifted out of or withdrawn from the die box clear of the
indent mould.
The invention aims at increasing the output of the machine partly by accelerating
the application of the requisite pressure to the brick and the subsequent withdrawal
of the said pressure therefrom and partly by lifting or withdrawing each brick out
of the die box, to be slipped off clear of the bottom indent mould so as to dispense
with the handlifting at present required for this purpose.
It is now usual to construct brick pressing machines of the kind to which my
invention applies with a fixed or stationary lower die box with the lower die and
indent mould attached thereto so that the pressure applied to the brick is derived
entirely from the down stroke of the upper die plate which takes effect each time
But it is found
a hand lever is pressed down and a toggle bar brought into action.
in practice that the intense pressure which the machine is intended to exert upon
the brick by means of its toggle leverage only takes effect during a very limited
portion of the stroke of the die plate that is to say that the toggle bar is reaching
the limit of its stroke just as the maximum intensity of the pressure transmitted
through it acts on the brick. Now by imparting the like vertical movement to the
lower die plate which has hitherto been imparted only to the upper die plate by
connecting thereto a second toggle bar to be operated by the same hand lever it
will be seen that the combined movements of the two dies to and from each other
must accelerate their approach to or withdrawal from each other in the ratio of 2 to: 1
as compared with the movement of one die to and from another die which is
stationary. And furthermore the travel of the dies through that part of the
working stroke of the machine at which pressure on the brick reaches its maximum
intensity is also continued through twice the distance as compared with a moveable
die approaching a stationary one. It is also usual in such brick presses to so
construct the die box that the brick can only be lifted out of the said die box in
contact with the bottom indent mould which has been pressed into it and hence the
necessity of handlifting to get the brick clear of the said indent mould whereas by
enabling the brick as it is lifted out of or withdrawn from the die box to leave this
indent mould behind in the manner hereinafter described it will be seen that the
brick as soon at it is clear of the die box can be slipped off the press without
handlifting.
But in order that my invention may be clearly understood and readily carried
into effect I will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the drawings
hereto annexed in which the same letters of reference indicate the like or corre-
sponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 is a part sectional transverse view taken on line xx of Figure 2, and
Figure 2 is a part sectional view taken on line y y of Figure 1, the two figures
corresponding in all their details and showing the press with its die plates closed
together as if applying the final pressure to a brick.

page_text: Figure 3 is a similar part sectional view to Figure 2 but with the moving parts
and dies at the extreme wide open position.
Figures 4 and are corresponding sectional and plan views respectively of my
improved arrangement of parts for lifting or withdrawing the brick clear of the
bottom indent mould.
In the figures a is the upper die plate, a' the upper die and a² the upper indent
mould attached thereto, b is the lower die plate, b¹ the lower die, and the lower
indent mould, the novel construction of which will be hereinafter described, c is
the main or hand lever for operating the machine, the travel of which is indicated
by dotted lines in Figures 2 and 3. This lever is mounted on a fulcrum c¹ and is
usually furnished with a balance weight e². d' d' are toggle arms linked in between
the lever and the top and bottom die plates a and b respectively so that the move-
ment of the lever c from the position shown in Figure 3 to that shown in Figure 2
forces the die plates a and b towards each other by thrusting the lower die plate b
up and the upper die plate a down the connection being direct in the case of the
lower die plate b and transmitted through a suitable frame in the case of the upper
die plate a the bottom member a³ of which is connected to and takes the thrust
direct from the toggle bar d' and transmits it through the pillar bolts a to the
upper die plate a the said pillar bolts being suitably guided through the frame of
the machine or through lugs or their equivalents attached thereto. But in order
to lift the bricks up clear of the bottom indent mould 62, as shown more particularly
in Figure 4, instead of attaching the bottom indent mould to the bottom die b
so that in lifting the brick clear of the die box e the die carries the indent mould
up along with it, I attach this bottom indent mould to the bottom die plate b and
slot out the centre of the die 6' to the form of the indent mould so that when
the die plate bis drawn down with the return stroke of the lever c it draws the
indent mould and the die box e down with it leaving the brick supported on the
die b¹ in the manner shown in Figure 4 from which it can be slipped off clear of
the machine without hand lifting. It must however be understood that in speaking
of lifting the brick out of the die box, that the die box is simultaneously slipped
down from the brick, and the construction of the machine as shown in Figure 1
provides for lifting the brick with the up stroke of the upper die plate a by bringing
the cross bar a³ into contact with the pintles 9 upon which the slide rods g' are
supported whilst the die box which is attached to the bottom die plate b is
simultaneously drawn down with the said bottom die plate which combined move-
ment of the bottom die and die box in opposite directions necessarily accelerates
the discharge of the brick from the said die box but the essential feature of this
part of my invention namely, withdrawing the bottom indent mould from the
bricks so as to dispense with handlifting can be attained without imparting an
upward motion to the die plate & because if the rods g' are made fixtures in the
frame of the machine and the die remain stationary in consequence the down
stroke of the die plate will draw the die box e far enough down to strip the brick
but of course by taking more time.
Although I have described my invention as applied to machines constructed
for pressing bricks it will be clearly seen that the same improvements can be
applied to machines constructed for analogous purposes especially in respect of that
part of my invention which relates to applying the toggle leverage simultaneously
to both dies.
Having thus described the nature and object of the said invention and the manner
in which it is to be performed or carried into practice I hereby declare that
although I have described a machine the construction of which embodies all my
improvements I would have it understood that I do not restrict my invention to
such machines only as that part of my invention which relates to the combined
movement of the dies can be applied to brick pressing machines apart from that
part of my invention which relates to withdrawing the brick from the die box and
further the novel arrangement of parts for withdrawing the brick from the die box

page_text: can be in like manner applied in certain modified forms to machines apart from the
novel arrangement for operating the dies, but what I claim is :-
--
Firstly. In machines for pressing bricks or other plastic forms, the arrange-
ment and combination of parts for pressing the brick between the dies in which
the requisite pressure is applied to the brick by the simultaneous movement of both
the die plates which are operated by means of toggle bars from one lever sub-
stantially in the manner and for the purpose as hereinbefore described with
reference to the accompanying drawings.
Secondly. In machines for pressing bricks or the like plastic forms, the
arrangement of parts by which the brick is withdrawn from the die box clear of
the bottom indent mould and having the die slotted out at the centre to the form
of the indent mould 6 which is attached to the die plate b all combined and
operating together substantially as and for the purpose as hereinbefore described
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Thirdly. The general arrangement and combination of parts constituting a
brick pressing machine in which the die plates are caused to simultaneously
approach each other and to subsequently and simultaneously recede from each
other in combination with means for withdrawing the brick from the die box clear
of the bottom indent mould all constructed, arranged and operating together,.
substantially as and for the purposes as herein before described and illustrated in
the accompanying drawings.
Din 2104 dan of La 1801
G. J. CLARKSON,
Chartered Patent Agent,
Stockton-on-Tees, Agent for the Applicant.