IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR FORGING AND RIVETTING
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Fletcher, of the Firm of Messieurs
William Collier & Co., of Salford, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer and Tool Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR FORGING AND RIVETTING."
Sealed the 22nd November 1872, and dated the 27th June 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Fletcher at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
27th June 1872.
I, JAMES FLETCHER, of the Firm of Messieurs William Collier & Co.,
of Salford, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer and Tool Maker, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR FORGING AND RIVETTING," to be as follows:-
In forging hexagonal nuts from a flat bar by machinery, it has here-
tofore been the practice to heat a portion of the length of a bar and to
feed it in to the machine by hand, the cutters or dies cutting the bar
on four sides of the nut, and leaving angular pieces of scrap at each
operation; now this is objectionable, as it gives more work, and con-

page_text: sequently wear to the cutters or dies, the pieces of angle scrap are liable
to interfere with the proper working of the machine, and it is desirable,
in order to reduce cost of production, to entirely do away with angular
scrap pieces.
My Invention consists in applying certain apparatus to nut making
machinery, by which the flat bar out of which the nuts are made is fed
into the machine by self-acting apparatus, and as it is fed into the
machine it is compressed or indented edgewise to the form required for
making hexagonal nuts.
One mode of constructing this apparatus consists of two discs, with
angular projections on their circumferences, worked by an intermittent
feed motion. These discs are placed one on each side of the die, and
motion is given to them by a cam acting on a lever, and a catch acting
on a ratchet wheel, and by bevel and spur wheels, or other equivalents.
When the machine is at work every descent of the die cuts off the end
of the indented bar of metal, forces it into the mould box or die, and
holds it there under pressure until the punch descends to make the hole.
As the die and punch ascend the nut is forced out of the mould box or
die, and the partial rotation of the discs brings forward the end of the
metal bar and makes the requisite indentations in it. The forward
motion of the bar also pushes the nut last finished out of the way of the
die, which then descends to make the next nut.
:
In making square nuts the self-acting feed motion would be used, the
discs being left plain without the angular projections.
By means of this Invention the nut machine is rendered entirely self-
acting. The bar, after coming from the rolls or being fed through a
heating furnace, has its end introduced between the discs, by which it is
fed at each succeeding revolution of the machine over the die until the
whole bar is made into nuts, when immediately a fresh heated bar is
introduced. This motion allows great increase of speed over the old
system, cuts up a bar at one heat, the waste heretofore caused by cutting
off the angle pieces is avoided, and only one side of the hexagon is cut off
at each stroke, thereby saving power and wear of dies.
Instead of the discs with angular projections and intermittent feed
motion, levers with angular ends, and having an opening, shutting, and
forwarding motion may be applied.

page_text: This Invention is particularly applicable to the machinery patented
on the 22nd April 1854, by Henry Bernoulli Barlow, No. 924, a com
munication from abroad, but it may be applied to other nut making
machinery.
My improvements in machinery for rivetting consist in the application
of steam or mechanism for pressing together the plates through which
the rivet passes, the rivetting being effected by the direct application of
steam or by mechanism in the usual manner. When steam is used to
effect these objects I employ two pistons, the larger one having a solid
piston rod passing through the hollow rod of the smaller piston, both
pistons working in cylinders, to which the steam is admitted suc-
cessively. The steam is admitted first to the smaller piston, by which
means the hollow piston rod compresses the plates together, and while
the plates are thus held the steam is admitted to the larger piston to
bring the end of the solid piston rod against the rivet. When mechanism
is employed to effect the same objects I make use of two levers or slides,
actuated by cams in a similar manner to the nut making machine before
alluded to. That portion of the machine which is now employed to cut
off the iron in making a nut compresses the plates firmly together,
whilst that portion for punching the hole in the nut rivets up the head
of the rivet.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Fletcher in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th December 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
FLETCHER, of the Firm of Messieurs William Collier and Company, of
Salford, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer and Tool Maker, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said James Fletcher, Her special licence that I,
the said James Fletcher, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said James Fletcher, my executors, administrators,

page_text: and 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 Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR FORGING
AND RIVETTING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
James Fletcher, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 James Fletcher, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement (that is to say):-
In forging hexagonal nuts from a flat bar by machinery it has here-
tofore been the practice to heat the portion of the length of a bar and to
feed it into the machine by hand, the cutters or dies cutting the bar
on four sides of the nuts, and leaving angular pieces of scrap at each
operation; now this is objectionable, as it gives more work, and con-
sequently more wear to the cutters or dies, the pieces of angle scrap are
also liable to interfere with the proper working of the machines, and it is
desirable, in order to reduce the cost of production, to entirely do away
with the angular scrap pieces.
My Invention consists in applying certain self-acting apparatus to
machinery for forging nuts, by which the flat bar out of which the nuts
are made is fed into the machine, and at the same time it is compressed
or indented edgwise to the form required for making hexagonal nuts.
This Invention is particularly applicable to the machinery patented on
the Twenty-second day of April One thousand eight hundred and fifty-
four, by Henry Bernoulli Barlow, Number 924, being a communication
from abroad, but it may be applied to other nut making machinery.
My improvements in machinery for rivetting consist in the application
of certain improved arrangements of machinery or apparatus for pressing
together the plates through which the rivets pass, the rivetting being

page_text: effected by the direct application of steam or hydraulic power, or by
mechanism in the usual manner.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood and readily
carried into operation, I will proceed to describe the three accompanying
Sheets of Drawings, reference being had to the figures and letters
marked thereon.
On Sheet 1, Fig. 1 is a side elevation, and Fig. 2 a front view of the
principal parts of a machine for forging nuts similar to that described
in the Specification of the Patent granted to Henry Bernoulli Barlow
above referred to. A is the main framing; B, the cam shaft; I, the die
box; J, the upper swage; K, the stationary die; K', the bottom die;
and T, the punch. These parts and the others requisite to complete the
machine are made in the manner described in the said Specification, or
in
any other convenient manner.
My self-acting feed apparatus consists principally of the two discs a, a,
shewn detached in Figs. 3 and 3*. These discs have angular projections
on their circumferences, and they are worked simultaneously by means
of the cam b on the cam shaft B. This cam acts on a bowl in the
lever c, to which is suspended the link d, the lower end of which is
jointed to the lever e, to which is jointed the catch f, taking into the
ratchet wheel g. The ratchet wheel is fixed to the same shaft as the
mitre wheel g¹, which gears into a similar wheel on the upright shaft a¹,
to which one of the discs a is fixed. The shaft a¹ is connected by spur
pinions to the shaft a³ of the other disc. The heated bar of metal Z to
be made into nuts passes between and is carried a tooth forward by the
discs a at each revolution of the shaft B, causing the discs to produce
the requisite indentations in the edges of the bar, and carrying it forward
the required length to make one nut. When the machine is at work
every descent of the die box I cuts off the end of the indented bar of
metal, forces it into the mould or die box K, and holds it there under
pressure, as described in the Specification above referred to, until the
punch T has descended and punched the hole. As the die and punch
ascend the nut is forced out of the mould or die box, and the partial
rotation of the discs a brings forward the end of the hot metal bar, and
makes the requisite indentations in it. The forward motion of the bar
also pushes the nut last finished out of the way of the die, which then
.descends to make the next nut.

page_text: In making square nuts the self-acting feed motion may be used, but
in this case the discs a are left plain without the angular projections.
The discs a, a, may also be made with sharp teeth, as shewn in Fig. 3*,
to cut off hexagonal portions of the bar, which are then compressed and
punched to form nuts.
By means of this Invention the nut machine is rendered entirely self-
acting. The bar, after coming from the rolls or being fed through a
heating furnace, has its end introduced between the discs a, by which it
is fed by each succeeding revolution of the machine over the die until
the whole bar is made into nuts, when immediately a fresh heated bar ]
is introduced. This self-acting feed motion allows great increase of speed
over the old system and cuts up a bar at one heat, the waste heretofore
caused by cutting off the angle pieces is avoided, and only one side of
the hexagon is cut off at each stroke, thereby saving wear of dies.
On Sheet 2, Fig. 4 is an elevation, Fig. 5 a front view, and Fig. 6 a 1
plan of the principal parts of a nut making machine constructed on the
same principle as the machine shewn in Sheet 1, but differently arranged.
In the present arrangement the cam shaft B is placed below, and in lieu
of the discs a for indenting and bringing forward the bar of metal, I
make use of levers acting on slides with angular ends, as shewn best in
Fig. 6. These slides are made to approach each other to indent the
bar Z, then carry the end of the bar forward over the bottom die J, then
recede from each other to release the end of the bar, and then advance
towards the front of the machine to take a fresh hold by the following
combination of machinery:-To the cam shaft B is fixed the cam h,
which works in the frame ¹, and as the shaft revolves this frame is
moved up and down, the frame being guided in suitable slides. In the
upper part of the frame h¹ are two longitudinal slots, containing the
slides ³, in each of which is a stud for the antifriction bowls h³, which
fit in diagonal slots in the levers i, fitting on fulcrum studs . In the
upper ends of the levers i are holes fitting on studs projecting from the
slides with angular ends j, j. By this means every up-and-down motion
of the frame causes the slides j to approach and recede from each
other. The to-and-fro motion of the slides is obtained by the hori-
zontal cam, see Fig. 6, and this cam is caused to revolve by the mitre
wheel b³ on the cam shaft B, the said mitre wheel gearing into a similar
wheel on the shaft ¹, to which the cam k is fixed. This cam acts on
E

page_text: antifriction bowls connected to the nuts 1, and the screws of these nuts
pass through the ends of the slide m, which works in V grooves fixed to
the framing of the machine. One end of the slide m is forked, and the
slides with angular ends ; pass through the forked end of the slide m.
The Drawing represents the parts in the positions they occupy when the
slides ; have been pressed towards each other to cause their angular ends
to indent the edges of the heated bar Z. The finished nut has now been
forced out of the mould box, and during the next half revolution of the
cam k the slide m is moved in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 6 the
required distance to bring the indented end of the bar Z over the bottom
die, and in so moving the finished nut is pushed off the die, and falls
into a suitable receptacle below. The cam ½ now comes into operation
to open the slides j to release the end of the bar Z before the die box
descends to cut off the end of the bar, and to force it into the mould
box. During this last operation the cam k again acts on the slide m to
force it back into the position shewn in Fig. 6, so that when the cam h
forces asunder the lower ends of the levers i, the angular slides ; are
again pressed together to indent the edges of the bar Z ready for the
next nut.
The mechanism for acting upon the slides or other instruments j may.
be considerably varied.
On Sheet 3, Fig. 7 represents a sectional elevation of an arrangement
of machinery in which the direct action of steam or hydraulic power is
applied for pressing together the plates through which rivets pass.
n is
a double cylinder containing the larger piston o and the smaller piston p,
the two ends of the cylinder being separated by the partition n¹. The
larger piston o has a solid piston rod o¹, which passes through the hollow
piston rod p¹ of the piston p. When steam or water is admitted to the
smaller cylinder, the end of the piston rod p¹ compresses the plates
firmly together against the stationary heading die t, and while the plates
are thus firmly held the steam or water is admitted to the larger cylinder
to bring the die fixed in the end of the piston rod o' against the rivet
in the usual manner. The standard r, containing the heading die t, is
constructed as in ordinary rivetting machines.
Fig. 8 represents one of Daniel Adamson's patent rivetting machines
to which my improvements are applied. In this instance the cam v
actuates the solid ram w, in the end of which is the die for compressing
the rivet, and v¹ is a second cam on the same axle as the cam v for

page_text: actuating the hollow ram w¹, which presses the plates to be rivetted
against the stationary heading die before the heading diet commences to
head the rivet in the plates, as described in reference to Fig. 7.
I wish to remark here that the parts marked I, J, K, and K¹, in
Figs. 1 and 2 may also be applied for compressing the plates together
previous to rivetting.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, and described the
manner of performing the same, I wish it to be understood that I do not
limit myself to the details given, as they may be varied or modified; but
what I claim as my Invention is,―
First. The application of self-acting feed and indenting apparatus to
machinery for making metal nuts.
Secondly. The self-acting machinery for feeding and indenting the
iron in nut making machines, as shewn and described in reference to
Sheets 1 and 2.
And lastly. The application of a hollow ram or spindle to rivetting
machines for pressing the plates together before rivetting, as shewn and
described in reference to Figs. 7 and 8, and the parts marked I, J, K,
and K³, in Figs. 1 and 2.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Fletcher, have hereto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of December One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.