IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF COTTON GINS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Maitland, of the City of London,
Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF
COTTON GINS."
Sealed the 31st March 1865, and dated the 24th December 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry Maitland
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
24th December 1864.
I, WILLIAM HENRY MAITLAND, of the City of London, Gentleman, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON-
STRUCTION OF COTTON GINS," to be as follows:-
These improvements consist, firstly, in the employment of tubes of steel, or
of iron, in place of solid rollers, in the construction of cotton gins; and,
secondly, in greatly increasing the width of the machine. And in order to
prevent the springing of the lengthened rollers they are supported in a central
bearing as well as at the ends. The driving gearing instead of being single,
is duplicated, and placed at each side of the machine so as to act upon the
rollers at both ends simultaneously.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said William Henry Maitland, Her special licence that I, the said Williamı
Henry Maitland, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said William Henry Maitland, my executors, administrators, 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 "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF COTTON GINS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Henry Maitland, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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 William Henry Maitland, 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 thereof, that is to say :-
These improvements consist, firstly, in the employment of tubes of steel or
other metal in place of solid rollers in the construction of cotton gins; and,
secondly, in increasing the width of the machine. And in order to prevent
the springing of the lengthened tubular rollers they are supported in a central
bearing or bearings as well as at the ends. The driving gearing instead of
being single is duplicated and placed at each side of the machine, so as to act
upon the rollers at opposite ends or at both ends simultaneously, and so prevent
torsion or twisting.
And in order that the manner of performing my said Invention may be
clearly understood, reference is had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and
to the following description thereof :-
Figure 1 is an end elevation, and Figure 2 a back view of an improved
cotton gin, constructed in accordance with my said Invention. The same
letters of reference apply to similar parts in each of these Figures.
A, A, is the standard or framing of the machine; B is the feeding table;
C is a hollow steel roller, the surface of which is grooved spirally from end to
end, and supported in bearings at a, b, c, and d; D is another hollow steel

page_text: roller, having a plain surface, supported similar to the former, and revolving
in easy contact therewith; E and F are fast-and-loose pulleys on a shaft f,
which passes through the machine, having at each end a spur wheel G¹, G³.
The wheel G2 takes into and gives motion to a corresponding spur wheel F³,
on the end of the plain tubular roller D. The wheel G³ takes into and drives
an intermediate adjustable wheel H, by means of which motion is given to the
wheel I on the end of the upper tubular roller C. Motion being given by a
steam engine or any other suitable prime mover to the fast pulley F, the
rollers C and D revolve in the direction indicated by the arrows. Cotton
being fed on to the table B, the fibres are drawn between the rollers, and
passing through fall down the inclined board K in front of the machine,
while the seeds which are squeezed out by the rollers are kept back and fall
down the inclined board K in front of the machine, while the seeds which
are squeezed out by the rollers are kept back and fall down the incline L, and
are collected beneath the feeding table clear of the cotton fibres. There are
discs at m, m, to prevent the oil from the bearings injuring the fibres of the
cotton.
In the foregoing arrangement motion is given to the rollers C and D at
opposite ends; but in some cases equal sized pinions are fitted at each end of
the rollers, and driven by corresponding spur wheels at each end of the
shaft f.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I desire it to be understood that what I
claim as constituting my said improvements is, the construction of cotton gins
with hollow tubular rollers substantially as herein-before described and shown
in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Maitland, have hereunto
set my hand nd seal, this Nineteenth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
W. BADDELEY,
Patent Agent,
Islington.
WILLIAM HENRY MAITLAND. (L.s.)