IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CUTTING AND SPLITTING WOOD, ESPECIALLY WOOD USED FOR FIREWOOD, ALSO APPLICABLE FOR CUTTING TOBACCO AND OTHER ARTICLES.”
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edmund Edwards, of 40, Southampton Buildings, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer and Patent Agent, for the Inven-
tion of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CUTTING AND
SPLITTING WOOD, ESPECIALLY WOOD USED FOR FIREWOOD, ALSO APPLICABLE
FOR CUTTING TOBACCO AND OTHER ARTICLES.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edmund Edwards at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 24th February 1877.
EDMUND EDWARDS, of 40, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer and Patent Agent. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR
APPARATUS FOR CUTTING AND SPLITTING WOOD, ESPECIALLY WOOD USED FOR FIRE-
WOOD, ALSO APPLICABLE FOR CUTTING TOBACCO AND OTHER ARTICLES."
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery or apparatus used for the
purpose of splitting wood into pieces of suitable section, and especially wood used
for firewood. My improved machinery may also be applied to cutting other
materials, such as tobacco, hay, gutta percha. It has for its objects improved
methods of constructing and arranging such machinery, so that it is simpler, more
durable, and capable of doing more work than machinery for similar purposes as
heretofore constructed and used.
I take a wheel or drum, preferably of metal, made to revolve in bearings by
hand, steam, or other suitable power. The periphery of this drum is made truly
circular, and of a width as great as that of the pieces of wood or other material
which are to be cut. I prefer to make the wheel revolve in a horizontal plane, but
if preferred it may be made to revolve in a vertical plane, in which latter case I
arrange a table, horizontal or nearly so, opposite its circumference, and preferably
somewhat below its centre. This table does not fit close to the edge of the wheel,
but leaves a space between them somewhat greater than the thickness (in end view)
of the pieces into which the material is to be cut or split.
At one or more points of the circumference of the wheel I fix across it knife
blades, the edges of which are adjusted at a distance from the wheel equal to or

page_text: somewhat greater than the thickness of the pieces to be cut. The lower edges of
the knife blades as they come down to and pass the table described may be made
either horizontal or inclined, so as (in the latter case) to cut the wood or other
material by degrees. The pieces of the material (of a suitable width and thickness)
are fed forward upon the table by hand or otherwise towards the circumference of
the wheel, and the knife or knives in their revolution pass through and split or cut
the material in a succession of slices, which are then forced by projections upon the
wheel through the space between the wheel and the table, and are delivered into
baskets or other receptacles.
I prefer to make a recess in the circumference of the wheel behind the edge of the
knife, and as long or longer than the length of the pieces to be cut, so that the latter
may not be held between the knife and the wheel. Or openings may be made
through the circumference of the wheel, in a similar position, and the cut pieces
pass through these openings and are discharged. inside the circumference of the
wheel.
In some cases I attach the knife blades to the wheel by bolts or screws passing
through washers of india-rubber or other sufficiently flexible material, between
which the knife blades are arranged. In this way the plane of the blade is able to
vary a little so as to be more or less tangential to the circumference of the wheel.
Where the wheel is made to revolve horizontally I prefer to arrange two or more
tables opposite different points of its circumference, and to use one (or more) knife
blades, which pass each table in succession. In this arrangement I use vertical
guides or tables, as well as horizontal ones, the pieces of wood or other material
passing through spaces left between the edges of the former and the circumference
of the wheel.
Where it is desired that the slices cut off the material as described shall also be
split or cut into a series of pieces (as, for instance, to make firewood) I use a suffi-
cient number of radial knife blades, arranged across the circumference of the wheel
in advance of the knife blades first described, and at a distance apart equal to the
thickness into which the material is to be cut. These radial knife blades may be
arranged in a line across the circumference of the wheel, or one behind the other.
I sometimes use two wheels revolving at right angles to each other, and coupled
together by bevilled toothed wheels, and I attach the radial knife blades to the
circumference of one wheel, towards which the wood or other material is fed; and
I attach one or more knife blades (which I also make radial) to the circumference
of the other wheel, so that after the material has been divided into a sufficient
number of widths by the first blades the second blade descends upon them and
splits or cuts off the whole of the pieces, in a way similar to that first described.
I prefer to make the wheels of as great diameter as convenient, and where pieces
of wood or other material of great length have to be cut or split I sometimes use,
instead of a wheel, an endless band, preferably of steel, passing over two or more
pullies, upon which it is stretched, and having attached to it knife blades, similar to
those already described. The material is fed against the endless band in the straight
part of its length between two of the pullies.
In the different arrangements of apparatus the wood or other material may be
fed forward through a hopper, either by hand or by means of rollers actuated at
proper intervals by an excentric or cam and ratchet wheel, in the method well
understood. And sometimes I hold the material firm whilst it is being cut
by means of a pressure plate forced against it at the proper time by a cam
and lever; or I arrange springs by which the material is steadied as it is fed
forward.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Edmund Edwards in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th August
1877.
EDMUND EDWARDS, of 40, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer and Patent Agent. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR
APPARATUS FOR CUTTING AND SPLITTING WOOD, ESPECIALLY WOOD USED FOR FIRE-
WOOD, ALSO APPLICABLE FOR CUTTING TOBACCO AND OTHER ARTICLES."
My Invention relates to improvements in machinery or apparatus used for the
purpose of splitting wood into pieces of any desired section, and especially wood
used for firewood, but it may also be applied to the purpose of cutting other sub-
stances, such as tobacco, hay, gutta percha.
In order to put my Invention in operation I take a wheel or drum of any suitable
material, but preferably of metal, such as cast iron, and I cause it to revolve in
bearings by hand, steam, or other convenient power. The periphery of this drum
is circular, and is made of a width as great as that of the pieces of wood or other
material to be split or cut, or somewhat greater. The wheel may revolve in a hori-
zontal plane, or in a vertical plane, in which latter case I arrange a table horizontal,
or nearly so, opposite its circumference, and preferably somewhat below the centre
of the wheel. I arrange the edge of this table at a distance from the edge of the
wheel rather greater than the thickness of the pieces into which the wood or other
substance is to be split or cut.
I prefer to make a narrow flange at each side of the periphery of the wheel, and
at one or more points across the periphery I fix knife blades, the edges of which are
adjusted at a distance from the face of the wheel about equal to the thickness of
the pieces which are to be split or cut. The lower edge of the knife blades as they
come down to and pass the edge of the table may be made either horizontal or
inclined so as (in the latter case) to cut or split the wood or other material by
degrees. The pieces of wood or other material are fed forward between suitable
guides fixed to the table towards the circumference of the wheel, either by hand or
by feeding gear actuated by the apparatus, so that the knife blades in their revo-
lution pass through and split or cut the material in a succession of slices of the
thickness desired. In the periphery of the wheel at the part just below the edge of
each knife blade I make an opening completely through, so that as the pieces are
split or cut off they pass through these openings, and fall or are delivered from the
interior of the wheel. For the purpose of such delivery I make the wheel so that
it is driven from arms or a disc upon one side of its periphery only, the other side
being completely open; and I make the upper and lower edges of each opening
bevelled or inclined, so that the pieces of wood are guided through the openings as
required, and the lower edge of each opening is at such a depth that the wood is
prevented from being fed too far forward until after the edge of the blade has com-
menced to split its upper surface.
Where wood is the material operated upon I prefer to make the edges of the
knives of such a shape that they split instead of cutting it.
Instead of the arrangements described the pieces of wood or other material after
being cut or split may be forced down by a piece fitted or formed between the
upper part of the blade and the periphery of the wheel, the part of which inside the
blade is preferably flattened or slightly recessed to allow the material to split more
readily.
Where the wheel is arranged to revolve horizontally two or more tables and
guides for supplying the material may be arranged round its periphery, the knife
blades coming in their revolution opposite each such table in succession.
The accompanying Drawing is in illustration of my Invention.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section, Figure 2 an end view, and Figure 5 a plan
of a machine arranged for splitting wood, and having its wheel revolving in a
vertical plane.

page_text: a is the wheel, supported upon an axis b, which revolves in bearings c, c², upon
the framing d. The periphery of the wheel is shewn with flanges at each side, and
is supported and driven entirely from one of its sides (as shewn in transverse section
in Figure 3). The knife blades e, e¹, are fixed across the periphery of the wheel,
so as to split the wood f, which is fed forward as required in guides upon the
table g. Below each of the knife blades e, e¹, is an opening h, h, through the
periphery, sufficiently large to allow the pieces of wood when split off to pass into
the interior of the wheel, whence it is delivered through the open side of the latter.
Guides may be arranged for this purpose. The edges of the openings h, h¹, are mado
bevelled, as shewn, so as to guide the pieces when split.
I sometimes attach the knife blades described to the periphery of the wheel by
screws passing through washers of india-rubber or other sufficiently flexible and
elastic material, between which the knife blades are arranged. In this way the
plane of the blade is able to vary its position slightly, so as to be more or less tan-
gential to the circumference of the wheel.
Where it is desired to split transversely the pieces of wood split or sliced off, as
described and shewn in the Drawing, I prefer to take such pieces and pass a suffi-
cient number of them together through the same or a similar machine, the wheel of
which may be fixed upon the other end of the axis b. Or sometimes I use for this
purpose supplementary knife blades attached to the periphery of the wheel in
advance of the edge of the knives already described, so that the wood is split suffi-
ciently deep down its face before the latter slice off in the way just described the
part so split. I prefer to make these additional knife blades of the shape shewn in
dotted lines in Figure 1, and full size in Figure 4, and I attach them to the peri-
phery of the wheel by means of shanks passing through the latter and held by nuts,
as shewn. I prefer to make these blades project from the periphery of the wheel
more than twice the thickness of the pieces sliced off by the transverse knives, as
shewn in Figure 4, so that the last slice of. each piece of wood may not be forced
out without being split into separate pieces, as described. The edge of the table
upon which the wood is fed forward may have notches or recesses formed in it,
through which the points of the supplementary knives pass.
I sometimes use two wheels revolving at right angles to each other, and coupled
together by bevelled toothed wheels, and I attach the small supplementary radial
knife blades to the periphery of one wheel towards which the wood is fed forward,
and I attach corresponding knife blades (which I also make radial) to the periphery
of the other wheel, so that after the face of the wood has been split into a sufficient
number of widths by the first blades one of those upon the other wheel descends
upon them and splits or cuts off the whole of the pieces in a way similar to that
first described.
In the different arrangements of apparatus described I prefer to make the wheels
or drums of as large diameter as convenient.
Where pieces of wood or other material of great length (such as laths) have to be
split I sometimes use, instead of the arrangements already described, an endless
band, preferably of steel, passing over two or more drums, upon which it is stretched,
and having attached to it knife blades similar to those already described. The wood
or other material is fed against the endless band in the straight part of its length
between the pullies.
In the different arrangements of apparatus described and shewn the wood or other
material may be fed and pressed forward through a hopper or suitable guides by
hand, or by means of friction rollers actuated at proper intervals by an eccentric
or cam and ratchet wheel, in the method well understood and practised. And
sometimes I hold the wood or other material firm whilst it is being split or cut by
means of a pressure plate forced against it at the proper time by a cam and lever;
or sometimes I arrange springs, by which the material is steadied whilst it is being
fed forward.
Having now described my Invention and the manner in which it is to be per-
formed, I do not claim the use of knife blades fixed to the periphery of a revolving
1

page_text: wheel for the purpose of splitting wood, which arrangement has been used by me
for twenty years past, but I claim,―
The combination of a revolving wheel or drum, having one or more knife blades
fixed transversely across its periphery, with a corresponding number of openings
through such periphery, arranged so that the wood or other material split or cut by
the knives is forced into the interior of the wheel, and delivered through its open
end, substantially as described and shewn in the Drawing.
Also the combination with such wheel or drum, so constructed and arranged, of
knife blades for the purpose of splitting the face of the material before it is split off
by the transverse blades.
Also the arrangement of two wheels or drums working together at right angles
to each other, and having their peripheries fitted with radial knife blades, substan-
tially as and for the purpose described.
Also the arrangement of moveable endless bands stretched between pullies, and
fitted with knife blades, substantially as and for the purpose described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edmund Edwards, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
EDMUND EDWARDS. (L.S.)