Improvements in certain Apparatus to be Employed in connection with the Electro-deposition of Metals
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd July, 1897
Complete Specification Left, 4th Apr., 1898---Accepted, 28th May, 1898
Improvements in certain Apparatus to be Employed in connection
with the Electro-deposition of Metals.
- We, JOHN BOULTBEE BROOKS, Managing Director of J. B. Brooks and Company
Limited, of Great Charles Street, in the City of Birmingham, and JOHN HOLT, of
Great Charles Street, aforesaid, Manager of Works, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in certain apparatus to be employed in
connection with that particular process of the electro-deposition of metals in which
the articles to be plated are placed within a perforated. barrel, which is freely
rotated within an electrolyte or depositing solution. The naked metallic bearings
and journalled ends of the rotating barrel, in this process as used previously to this
invention, being the cathode received deposits of coating metal in common with the
articles being plated and thereby became clogged, so that the working of the barrel
was impeded and eventually the whole apparatus rendered inoperative until the
deposited metal had been removed by chipping or otherwise, hence considerable
waste and loss of the coating. metal.
One of the objects of our invention is to prevent such waste, and another object
is to obviate the clogging of the working parts by deposition thereon of plating
metal.
The apparatus consists of a suspended, freely-rotating and perforated barrel,
supported by insulated hangers depending from a super-structure or framing mounted
on the vat containing the electrolyte within which the shaking barrel is immersed.
To give freedom of motion, rollers or ball bearings are interposed between the
journalled ends of the axle and the bearing parts of the hanger.
Directed longitudinally within the interior of the shaking barrel, and lying close
up to the inside walls of the same and forniing, as it were, a series of metallic rods
composed of the same metal as the anodes which are suspended from rods so as to
come within the vat and around the shaking or rotating barrel. The rods supporting
the anodes receive the current from a dynamo, whilst the current leaves the anodes
and passes through the electrolyte and through the perforated or porous barrel to the
work and from thence to the conducting rods, whose ends are supported by crossing
bars or a frame made of rods of suitable metal. The barrel has independent
bearings which rotate in the insulated sleeves of the hangers. This aforesaid frame of
conducting rods, which communicates the electric current, to the work to be plated,
has connected with it a flexible and insulated shaft having suitable universal or ball
joints, and with the outer termination working in a metallic bearing or hole formed
within a metallic conductor, with which the negative wire of the circuit is connected.
The barrel which carries the work and the conducting rods disposed within it all
rotate together, motion being communicated thereto by an endless band passing
around it and being driven from a pulley on an overhead countershaft.
Assuming that the current is passing, it proceeds along the anode-supporting rods
and through the anodes carried by them, and thence through the electrolyte to the
work, which is tumbled during the process of depositing by the rotation of the

page_text: barrel and is then conveyed to the conducting rods in the barrel, which rods also
receive a deposit and from them the current passes outwardly through the flexible
shaft to the negative wire and completes the circuit. The flexible shaft is only
insulated so far as it is immersed in the solution.
By thus mounting the barrel and arranging for the current to enter and leave
the barrel as described, the bearings always remain uncoated inasmuch as they are
isolated from the current, and further, when the conducting rods become thickened
by successive coatings they admit of being readily removed from the barrel and being
either melted down or of being cut up into suitable lengths and used as anodes, thus
preventing waste.
T
JOHN BOULTBEE BROOKS,
JOHN HOLT,
By Henry Skerrett,
Agent for Applicant.
Improvements in certain Apparatus to be Employed in connection
with the Electro-deposition of Metals.
We, JOHN BOULTBEE BROOKS, Managing Director of J. B. Brooks and Company
Limited, of Great Charles Street, in the City of Birmingham, and JOHN HOLT, of
Great Charles Street aforesaid, Manager of Works, 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 apparatus to be employed in the operation of electro-
plating small articles, and of that type in which the said articles are placed within a
perforated barrel rotating within an electrolyte, and in which the current passes from
the anodes in the solution to the work. Now owing to the metallic bearings and
journalled ends of such bearings as heretofore used, being immersed in the electrolyte
and also being employed as the means for conducting the current from the work,
they also become cathode and consequently receive deposits of coating metal to such
an extent that they become clogged, so that the efficient working of the apparatus is
impeded and eventually stopped or rendered inoperative. They also furnish a means,
to a more or less extent, of diverting and carrying away the current without the same
having passed through the work.
The object of our invention is to obviate such defects, and this we propose to
accomplish by isolating the bearings of the barrel from electrical connection with
the work and from the current-conductor, which is in contact with the work.
The apparatus consists of a suspended, freely-rotating. and perforated barrel,
supported by suitable hangers depending from a super-structure or framing arranged
above or upon the vat which contains the electrolyte within which the shaking barrel
is immersed.
Located within the interior of the barrel is a helical or other conductor made of
any suitable metal; with each end attached to its corresponding end of the barrel and
insulated from the bearings. To one end or both ends of this inside conductor wire
a current carrying attachment is made which goes through the axle of the barrel and
is insulated therefrom, both of the said axles and bearings being insulated entirely
from the work. Froin the barrel, the attached conductor is continued into a flexible
or universally-jointed shaft, which may consist of an insulated wire or rod, part of
which is formed into a coil, whose outer terminal end is directed upwardly at an
angle out of the electrolyte, and rotating in a bearing or being in contact with a

page_text: brush, plate or other like device in connection with the negative wire of the dynamo
or source of electrical energy.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents a longitudinal section of an
electrolyte vat, provided with an immersed and perforated rotating work-barrel (shown
partly in section and partly in elevation), the axle and bearing of which are isolated
from the work and from the return current conductor in accordance with one form of
our invention. The said view. also shows how the flexible insulated shaft forms the
continuation of the return current conductor to the contact of the negative wire,
whilst the door or closure side of the barrel is removed in order to show the helical
conducting frame located within the interior.
Figure 2 is a cross section of the vat upon the dotted line a, Figure 1, showing
the barrel with central conductors and its flexible shaft conductor and negative wire
contact in end elevation.
Figure 3 represents, upon an enlarged scale, a longitudinal section of the rotating
barrel, with its bearings and the connections of the return current conductor, but
with the middle part of the barrel broken away.
Figure 4 is an elevation of one end of the said barrel, with its corresponding bear-
ing, upon the same scale as Figure 3.
Figure 5 represents, also upon the same scale as Figure 3, and partly in section and
partly in elevation, portions of the flexible and insulated conductor shaft, with the
bearing of its upper end and the brush contacts of the negative circuit wire.
Figure 6 is a cross section of the said barrel, upon the dotted line x¹, Figure 3.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the said figures of the
drawings.
:
a is an electrolytic vat, containing the electrolyte or plating solution a¹, and a² are
the anode plates, suspended from the positive conductor rods a", which run from end
to end over the top of the said vat and are in electrical connection at at, with the
b is a
positive wire a, leading from a dynamo or other source of electrical energy.
rotating and perforated work-barrel, immersed within the solution and into which
sinall articles requiring to be plated are introduced through an opening b¹, made in
the side of the barrel and closed by a removable side or door. This barrel is sus-
pended by means of hangers 62, from a suitably disposed rod or frame 63; and is rotated
by a band 64, from driven pulleys 65, mounted either upon the rod 63, as shown, or
upon a separate countershaft. c are the bearings of the barrel, mounted on the
ends a, which are made of wood or other insulating material, thus cutting off the
bearings, whose journalled parts c', turn in bearing sleeves 60, of the hangers, from
the work and from the current. Located within the interior of, and rotating bodily
with, the perforated barrel (the sides of which are also made of non-conducting
material) is a naked metal conductor d, made up either in a helical form as shown, or
of any other frame construction, which comes into contact with the work to be plated
on the tumbling of the same when the barrel is rotated. The fore end d¹, of the
conductor is made fast to and passed through the adjacent end of the barrel and its
extreme tip is embedded in insulating composition e, located within the hollow c², of
the journal c¹. The opposite end d², is attached by slipping it into a metal sleeve d³,
in electrical contact with an extension d, of the return current element or
conductor d³, passing through the adjacent end wall of the barrel, and through
insulating composition e¹, located in the hollow c³, of the bearing journal c¹, at that
end. The wire located in this composition may also be covered with an insulating
jacket or coating of gutta percha or the like, and then passes outwardly into the
electrolyte, being insulated then throughout the remainder of its length, where it is
evolved into a coil de, constituting a flexible joint for the conductor, which is made
fast to, and revolves bodily with, the barrel, which is necessary in consequence of the
angle made by the after part d', of the conductor in leaving the electrolyte, above the
surface of which it is made fast to a terminal do, working in a suspended and insulated
bearing f, and making contact at 10, with brushes or contact plates g¹, forming the
terminals or collectors of a frame g², from which the negative or return current
wire g³, proceeds, although it is understood that instead of employing an insulated

page_text: bearing such as f, we may use a conducting bearing in electrical connection only with
the return current wire.
Assuming that the barrel contains a quantity of small articles requiring to be plated
and that the same is being rotated within the electrolyte by the pulley and band as
described, then when the electrical circuit is made to start the plating operation the
current passes along the anode supporting rods and through the anodes suspended
from them into the electrolyte and thence to the work being tumbled within the
barrel and from it to the cathode conducting or current collecting frame, located
therein, whence the whole of the current passes out of the electrolyte through the
return current conductor to the contacts at its terminal in connection with the return
circuit wire. By this flow of current, electrolytic action is set up, the electrolyte is.
decomposed and the metal of the same is deposited on the work in the rotating
barrel, but as the metallic axles of the barrel and its bearings are isolated altogether
from the circuit by reason of the insulation of the ends of the current collector frame,
and by the interposition of the non-conducting material of the barrel between them
and the work, they are entirely uninfluenced by the current and consequently are
unable to receive a deposit of coating metal.
It is understood that the sleeve d³, forming the connection between the end d², of
the inside conductor and the return current conductor, is only provided as a con-
venience to admit of the removal of the said inside conductor when required and
convenience of fixing up. The conductor would work equally well if formed as an
uninterrupted continuation of the return current conductor.
Figure 7 represents a cross section of a rotating barrel interiorly provided with
another arrangement of current collecting or cathode conductor frame, consisting
of a series of metal bars d, arranged along the inner sides of the barrel so as to
constitute a frame, and with the ends terminating in cross frames d¹, one of
which is in connection with the return current conductor, as described in the
preceding arrangement.
Figure 8 is a plan, and Figure 9 an elevation of a universally jointed shaft
which may be employed as the return current conductor in lieu of the flexible shaft
represented in Figures 1 to 6, and with the joints so arranged as to adinit of the
shaft rotating with the barrel and leaving the electrolyte at an angle so that its
outer end makes a wiping or rolling contact with the terminal of the return current
conductor.
-
Figure 10 represents upon an enlarged scale, the parts of one of the joints
separately.
d are the sections of the shaft, with the ends d¹, each having seated blades d²,
with the blades of each pair of contiguous ends being arranged at right angles
to one another, and taking within annular cross channels d³, d, of the sphere or
ball d, of the joint, so that when one part of the shaft is rotated, motion is
communicated through the joint to the next section at a different angle. This is
suitably enclosed in a rubber tube e, or any suitable insulating material.
We wish it to be understood that we do not confine ourselves to this particular
form of joint, as any other known modification of Hooks joint may be employed for
the same purpose.
Figure 11 represents a longitudinal vertical section of another modification of our
invention, in which the rotating barrel makes its movement independent of the
helically-formed current-collecting frame, which, with the return current conductor
forming the continuation thereof, is made a fixture, the journals at the ends of the
barrel being made hollow or provided with sufficient clearance so as to admit of them
rotating without transmitting any movement to the collector or conductor.
b is the pierced and rotating work barrel, the ends a, of which carry hollow
journals c¹, rotating within the bearings 6, of the hanger brackets 62, whilst located
within the interior of the said barrel is a naked and helically formed metal frame or
current collector d, the function of which is the same as the internal coil described
in connection with Figures 1 to 6. One end d¹, of this frame passes through the
hollow journal c¹, is insulated from electrical connection with the bearings and is..

page_text: made fast (so as to prevent its rotation) to the hanger bracket 62, whilst the opposite
end d², passes through the other journal and is insulated in like manner therefrom,
and is made fast by the clamp or clip 67, carried on an extension of the bracket and
capable of being closed around the insulating sleeve of the collector by a screw or
other means. This end of the collector is continued into, or coupled to, the return
current conductor d, which is insulated at all the parts lying within the electrolyte
and has its outer end made fast to the terminal of the return circuit wire, no wiping
connection, as in the preceding arrangements, being necessary in this case, as the
collector and conductor are stationary or partake of no movement relative to the
barrel.
We wish it to be understood that one of the salient features of our invention, viz.,
the insulation of the bearings, is applicable also to rotating barrels having anode
elements located within the interiors of them, in which case the positive current
conductor enters the barrel and is in electrical connection with the anode, which is
suitably fenced to prevent actual metallic contact between the anode and the work,
whilst the return current conductor, which is in connection with a current collector
in contact with the work within the barrel, may pass away through the other hanger;
or such a barrel may have the positive and negative current conductor wires, entering and
leaving the same through insulated coils lying within the electrolyte and constituting
flexible connections between the said barrel and the main circuit wires, when the
said wires rotate bodily with the barrel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
:-
First In apparatus for the electro-deposition of metals in which a rotating work
barrel or drum, immersed, or partly immersed, in the electrolyte is employed-
mounting the said barrel upon bearings which are insulated from the electric circuit,
and providing it with a separate and independent rotating or fixed current conductor
or conductors, for the purpose of conveying the electric current between the interior
of the barrel and its exterior circuit connection, substantially for the purpose set
forth.
Secondly In apparatus for the electro-deposition of metals-the employment of
a current conductor, located within and rotating bodily with a barrel, and suitably
insulated from the immersed bearings thereof, and having an insulated flexible coil
or connection lying within the electrolyte outwards of the said barrel admitting of
the rotation of the said conductor when inclined at an angle relative to the said
barrel for leaving the electrolyte, whilst that end of the said conductor which comes
above or out of the electrolyte is in wiping or rolling contact with a terminal of the
return circuit wire.
Thirdly -In apparatus for the electro-deposition of metals of the construction
covered by the preceding claims-making the connection between the conductor
frame located within the interior of the rotating barrel and the terminal of the
return circuit wire by a universally-jointed insulated conductor shaft, substantially
as and for the purpose described and set forth.
Dated the oddow o
Dated ba
JOHN BOULTBEE BROOKS,
JOHN HOLT,
By Henry Skerrett,
24, Temple Row, Birmingham, Agent for Applicants.