IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING AND WINNOWING MACHINES
Year: 1840

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPH
ATKINSON, of Round Hill, near Masham, in the County of York, Farmer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date
at Westminster, the Seventh day of March, in the third year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Joseph Atkinson, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Joseph Atkinson, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, and such others as I, the said Joseph Atkinson, my executors,
administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein
mentioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THRASHING AND WINNOWING MACHINES;" in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said Joseph Atkinson,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to describe
and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in Her Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Joseph Atkinson, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures
marked thereon (that is to say) :-
--
My Improvements in Thrashing and Winnowing Machines consist in a
novel arrangement of parts for effecting the operations of thrashing, or separa-
ting corn from its straw, and also for winnowing or clearing it from its chaff
and husks. The thrasher, or that part of the machine which strips or separates
the grain from the ear and stalk; consists of a rotary drum or cylinder fur-
nished with any suitable number of spikes made of iron standing radially,
or nearly so, round its periphery. This drum or cylinder is mounted in
bearings fixed on the framework, and is partially enclosed or surrounded by a
semicylindrical box or recess, the interior of which is also furnished with
spikes standing in inclined positions.
Fig. 1, in the Drawing hereunto annexed, represents a longitudinal section,
taken vertically through the middle of the machine.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal view, as it would appear when seen from above, some
parts of the covering being removed to exhibit the interior.
Fig. 3 is an elevation or external side view, shewing the manner in which
the different parts are actuated by bands and toothed gear. And
Fig. 4 represents an end elevation of the machine, shewing some of the
internal parts, the same letters referring to similar parts in all the Figures.
a, a, is the drum, armed with radial spikes, as before mentioned. b, b, is
the semicylindrical recess by which the cylinder a is partially surrounded.
The spikes fixed in this recess are placed obliquely, as represented in the
Drawing Fig. 1. The wheat or other material to be thrashed is placed on the
inclined plane c, in front of the cylinder or drum a, a, and is conducted or
fed into the machine over the roller d, which prevents the passage of stones..
As the drum a, a, revolves, the spikes which are fixed thereon drag the wheat
or other material forward into the space between the said drum and the
recess b, where the grain is beaten out or stripped and separated from the ear
by the action of the radial spikes of the revolving drum, the oblique spikes
in the concave recess being placed sufficiently close to hold or retain the
ear of corn during the operation of beating or stripping it. When this has.
been accomplished, the grain and chaff will fall down the inclined plane e on
to the segmental sieve of wirework f, the meshes or openings of which are.
sufficiently large to allow of the grain and chaff passing through and falling
down into the hopper 9 below. In passing through the opening at the bottom
of the hopper the chaff becomes separated from the grain by a current of wind

page_text: produced by the rotation of a rapidly revolving fan or blower h, which drives
the chaff and dust away through the opening in the bottom and back of the
machine, the grain from its gravity falling down on to the inclined shoots i
and k, as represented in the Drawing at Fig. 1. The straw, as it is brought
down on to the sieve f, by the action of the drum a, is conducted or cleared
out of the machine by an instrument which I denominate a rake. This rake
consist of four arms 1, 1, 1, 1, affixed to a revolving axle m. The arms are
formed by plates n, n, n, n, the outer edge of each of which has a row of
blunt teeth, seen in the Figs. 1, 2, and 4. As this rotary rake turns upon its
axle in bearings it rakes or throws out the straw at the opening p, as seen in
the Drawing. The working parts of the machine are all inclosed in a
wooden casing, as seen at Fig. 3, and the whole is mounted on running
wheels 7, 9, 9, 7, for the purpose of removing the machine with facility from
one situation to another. In Figs. 3 and 4, r is the shaft to which manual or
other power must be applied to work the machine; upon this shaft is mounted
a cog wheels, s, which gears into two pinions t and v, the pinion t being
mounted on the axle of the drum a, a, and the pinion on the shaft or axle m
of the revolving rake. The fan or blower for winnowing the corn is actuated
by a band or strap u, u, which communicates motion from the small band
wheel w, on the axle of the drum a to the band wheel w, on the axle of the
drum a to the band wheel x, on the axle of the fan or blower.
Having thus described my improvements, and the manner in which the
new constructed machine is to be used, I wish it to be understood that I
claim as my Invention,―
First, the drum, with pegs or spikes on its periphery, or a series of arms
or wheels with pegs or spikes (which might answer the same purpose)
revolving within a segmental casing, furnished also with pegs or spikes, as
shewn in the Drawing, or a series of bars or ribs furnished with pegs or
spikes arranged in a similar manner, for the purpose of separating the corn
from its ear in passing through the machine, and also the adaptation and
arrangement of the rotary rake and blowing apparatus in connection with the
spiked drum and its segmental casing for the purposes of thrashing and
winnowing as above stated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Atkinson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty.
JOSEPH (L.S.) ATKINSON.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the same Twenty-seventh day of
August, in the year above mentioned, the aforesaid Joseph Atkinson came
before our Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained in form above
written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute in that case made and provided.
T1111 hth dove of Angust in the rear above written.