CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF HORSE SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS FOR TAKING THE MEASUREMENT OF HORSE SHOES OR HORSES Hoors
Year: 1849

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
HOBSON, of Leeds, in the County of York, Doctor of Medicine, 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 Fifteenth day of December, in the thirteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Richard Hobson, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Richard Hobson, my exors, admors, and assigns,
and such others as I, the said Richard Hobson, my exors, admors, 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF HORSE SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS FOR TAKING THE
MEASUREMENT OF HORSE SHOES OR HORSES Hoors;" in which said Letters Patent
is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said Richard Hobson, by an instru-
ment 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

page_text: 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
Richard Hobson, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and 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) :-
The principal object which I desire to attain by my Invention is to manu-
facture shoes of various shapes and sizes, according to the form of hoof required
to be fitted, and the nature of the work which the horse is intended to
perform. For this purpos I provide, first, a means of taking the exact
measurement of the tread surface of the hoof to be fitted, or of the shoe, a
counterpart of which is required to be made; and secondly, by applying such
measurements, I construct a shaping block on which to form a shoe of the
required dimensions and character. I will first describe the apparatus which
I have designed for measuring horse shoes and horses' hoofs, and the means
whereby I transfer such measurement to the shaping block, upon or around
which the bar of iron intended to form the shoe is bent, and I will afterwards
describe the improved construction of shoe which I have devised, and likewiso
the arrangement of machinery whereby my improved shoes, as well as the
ordinary construction of shoe may be formed.
In Sheet I. of the Drawings forming part of this my Specification, the mea-
suring apparatus is shewn in plan view at Figure 1, and in side view at Figure 2.
It consists of a graduated dial plate a, in' the centre of which is a stud for
carrying an index hand or pointer, which is formed of a thin slip of steel, and
graduated into inches and sixteenths, as shewn; cast in one piece with the dial
plate a is a slotted bar c, and in a line therewith, and on the opposite edge of
the plate, is an abutting piece d. Through the slot of the bar c a tightening
screw e passes, and enters a graduated barf, which is set at right angles to the
bar c. This bar fhas a lip on its inner edge, and is intended to be slidden back-
wards or forwards along the bar c, and held in any required position by means
of the binding screw. The face of the dial plate is graduated radially, and each
graduation is marked with a reference letter, as A, B, C, &c. There are also
holes made in the plate corresponding to the graduations, and intended to
receive a stop pin with which the pointer end of the steel slip is provided.
The divisions on this steel slip commence from its central point of motion,
and the divisions on the barf start from the centre of the tightening screw e,
as 0°, and are numbered to the right and left, as shewn. The mode of

page_text: applying this apparatus (which I term a "podometer") to obtain the measure-
ment of a shoe is as follows:-The abutting piece d is first brought into
contact with the toe of the shoe, and the sliding bar f is pushed up to the
heels, so that they rest upon the lip of the bar. The tightening screw e is
then turned, and the apparatus is thereby made to grip the shoe and hold fast
thereon. The groom or smith next moves the steel slip or pointer over the
dial plate from graduation to graduation, and reads off the distance from the
centre of the dial to the circumference of the shoe by means of the graduated
edge of the steel slip. These several radial measurements he marks down on
paper, and when he has taken down the requisite numbers (say, seven on each
side of a central line drawn through the shoe), and read off from the graduated
bar f the distance between the extremities of the heels, he removes the
apparatus from the shoe. The measurements thus obtained I make use of
in the following manner :-I provide a thin steel plate of the form shewn at
Figure 8, and of a size somewhat exceeding that of the largest shoe required
to be made; on this plate I engrave radial lines corresponding to those which
were measured by the apparatus. These lines I graduate into inches and
sixteenths (or less, if thought desirable), commencing with the common centre,
and I number the divisions from 0° (the centre), to correspond with the steel
slip b, and give them a letter of reference corresponding to the letters on the
dial plate. At each of these divisions I pierce a fine hole through the plate.
When therefore I desire to make a shaping block suitable for the formation
of a given measurement of shoe, I lay this thin pierced plate on the piece of
metal out of which the block is to be constructed, and prick through the
plate the measurements obtained by the apparatus, which will give a figure
corresponding to the outer edge of the tread surface of the shoe. I then draw
on the metal intended to form the block a line at right angles to the central
line A, I, Figure 8, and at such a distance from the pricked off point on the
line A as will give the extreme length of the shoe, and on the line thus drawn
I mark off on either side of the central line one-half the measured distance
between the extremities of the heels. It is only then necessary to cut from
this figure a margin of three-eighths of an inch or more wide, corresponding to
the width of tread surface of the shoe and its inner chamfered edge, and a
figure of the exact size and proportions for the shaping block will be the
result. The workman has now merely to cut away the metal to this line,
and he will thereby produce a shaping block suitable for use in my improved
horse-shoe machine. From the foregoing description, it will readily be seen
that the measurement of the hoof of a horse may be obtained and applied in
au exactly similar manner. I would however remark, that when measuring

page_text: from the hoof, besides subtracting the width of the tread surface from the
measurements given by the apparatus, a further subtraction should be made
of about a sixteenth of an inch, to allow for the paring down of the hoof when
'fitting on the shoe.
I will now describe that part of my Invention which refers to the con-
struction of the shoes.
Figures 4 and 5 represent a shoe for the fore foot of a carriage horse. In
making shoes of this form, I first prepare (by means of a pair of suitably
engraved rolls) bars of malleable iron of any given length, similar to that
shewn in plan view at Figure 6, and in cross section at Figure 7. This
bar it will be seen has at the middle of its width a V-groove or fullering C,
which is interrupted by solid parts A and B, which respectively form the heels
and toe of the shoe; D and H are ribs forming the sides of the V-groove,
and E, F, are flanges. Previous to working the bar up into shoes it is passed
through a shearing machine, for the purpose of cutting away a portion of the
flanges. The whole of the flange F is removed with the exception of such
portions as are indicated by dotted lines and marked G in Figure 6. These
parts G are intended to be bent up in the machine to be presently described,
and form "clips," instead of the clips being hammered out, as heretofore, from
the solid portion of the shoe. The flange E, which is intended to form a guard
to the horse's foot, is cut away, as indicated by the dotted lines at I, and the
bar is divided at the lines 1-2, into suitable lengths to form a shoe. It will
now be understood that for different strengths and qualities of shoe suitable
bars must be prepared; for instance, at Figure 8 a bar is shewn of the kind
which I employ in making shoes for hunters. In this case the solid parts B
are dispensed with, and a lighter shoe is thereby produced. In making a shoe
of the kind shewn at Figures 9, 10, and 11, (which is a hind shoe, and has at
its inner quarter a narrow tread surface for the purpose of preventing the horse
from "cutting,") a bar is rolled with a V-groove running a certain length, and
the outer side of the groove is then lost for a given distance, leaving merely a
flange J, which, when the bar is bent up into a shoe, extends along the inner
side of the shoe, and forms a good rest surface for the horse. In every case
I prefer to roll the bars with an outer flange F, which enables me to form clips
with great readiness and at any required part of the circumference of the shoe.
The piercing of the nail holes I prefer to effect after the shoe is formed.
When I desire to make roughed shoes for winter wear, I obtain the necessary
uneven tread surface by rolling the bars from which the shoes are to be formed
with indentations on the ribs D, H, or on one of them, instead of roughing
the tread surface after the shoes are made. The bars of malleable irou (of

page_text: whatsoever sectional figure) having been properly prepared by the shearing
machine, as explained, and severed into the proper lengths, the operation of
bending may be now commenced. For this purpose I heat the pieces of bar
iron in the flame of a suitable furnace, and submit them in quick succession
to the action of the machine, which I will now describe.
In Sheet II., Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved horse-shoe machine.
Figure 2, Sheet III., is a vertical section, taken through about the middle
of the machine, and Figure 3 is a partial plan view, taken at about the
line 3, 4, of Figure 2. A is the main framing of the machine; B is the
driving shaft, upon which a pinion B* is keyed, and drives two intermediate
wheels C. C*, which are mounted on studs projecting from the framing; D is
a cog wheel keyed to a crank shaft E, which has its bearings in standards
bolted to the main framing; F is a connecting rod for communicating the
motion of the crank shaft to a bed piece G, which slides between guides on
the framing A. This bed piece is provided with a rack which gears into
a segment rack H; the rack H is keyed on to a shaft I, which extends across
the machine, and has its bearings in the sides of an arched piece of framing A*.
On the ends of this shaft the arms K, K*, are respectively fixed, for the
purpose to be presently described. The framing A* carries a pair of vertical
guides L, L, between which slides a block M, provided at its sides with guide
pins, and carrying at its under side a die N. The face of this die corresponds
to the ribbed side of the bar from which the shoe is to be formed, and has in
addition a projecting rib for striking that portion of the flange F which was
left on the bar after the shearing operation and thereby forming the clips.
The die N is bolted at its ends to the block M in such a manner as to allow of
its having a little play, and a spring attached to the side of the block is made to
press upon the side of the die, for the purpose of keeping it up in its place. The.
ends of the guide pins of the block M take into the slots of a pair of levers O,
which are respectively jointed to the arms K, K"; when therefore the rack G
is drawn forward in the direction of the arrow, Figure 3, and the arms K, K*,
are raised to their vertical position, the bottom edge of the slots of the levers O
will come in contact with the guide pins and lift the block M in its guides;
P is a swage piece which lies on the top of the framing A*, and is intended to
receive on its outer end a blow from a hammer, and communicate that blow
to the heated iron of which the shoe is to be formed. The inner end of
this swage piece is slotted to receive a moveable bar a (see the partial cross
section, Figure 4), on which the heated iron is laid when fed into the machine.
The position which the heated iron occupies at this time will be best seen at
Figure 2; it is then immediately under the die N. The first operation which

page_text: the heated bar undergoes is the turning up of the clip. This is effected by
the descent of the die N, which falls in its guides at the time the rack G moves
inwards, and while the die rests upon the heated iron the hammering takes
place. The hammering is effected by the rapid descent of the arm Q, which
carries at its outer end a hammer head. This is keyed to a shaft R, sup-
ported in bearings at the top of standards S; and on the shaft R an arm b
is keyed, on the end of which a catch formed on one end of a crank
lever c takes. This lever c rocks on a stud d, projecting from a cross bar
of the framing, and to its lower end a jointed rod e is connected. This
rod slides in a lug on the framing, and it is actuated by an excentric f on
the shaft T, which shaft is supported in bearings on standards U, U. Upon
this shaft a cog wheel V, of the same pitch as the wheel D, is keyed,
and it is driven by the wheel C*, before mentioned. It will now be under-
stood that as the larger radius of the excentric f comes into contact with the
end of the rod e, that rod will be slidden forward and made to trip up the
crank lever c, and release the arm b, the lever Q will then immediately
descend, and the requisite blow will be given to the swage P. By this means
the heated bar will be pressed between the swage P and a lip on the top of the
framing A*, and greater solidity will be given to the iron, while at the same
time the fullering or groove in the bar will be preserved uninjured by the die
N being in close contact with the upper surface of the bar. The lever Q is
carried up into its horizontal position by means of a slotted lever W, which is
jointed to the upper end of the arm K of the shaft I. On the shaft R. an
arm X, which carries a pin at its outer end, is keyed, and this pin takes into
the slot of the lever W. As therefore this lever is caused to ascend by the
arm K assuming its vertical position, which it will do on the rack G moving
forward in the direction of the arrow, Figure 2, the arm X will be forced
upwards, and with it the lever Q, until the end of the arm 6 has passed the
catch of the lever c; the tendency of this lever c being to fall forwards by
reason of the weight h, the lever Q will be retained in its elevated position
until the excentric ƒ again comes round, and causes the lever c to be tripped
up as before. The clips of the shoe having been formed, and the hammering
operation effected, the heated bar is next to be carried to the shaping block
before mentioned, to undergo the bending operation. This is done by means
of two pairs of plyers, having a horizontal sliding motion, which seize hold of
the heated bar at either end and thrust it between the jaws of a pair of plyers,
which grasp it at about the middle of its length, and having a vertical move-
ment carry it down to the shaping block. Prior to the horizontal sliding
plyers seizing the heated bar it has to be raised from its bed. This is effected

page_text: in the following manner :-Attached to the bar a (see Figures 2 and 4) are
two vertical rods 1, 1, which slide through the top of the frame A*, and are
provided at their lower ends with tumbling pieces 2, 2. Standing up from
the sliding rack piece G are two inclines 3, 3, which, as the rack piece is
moving outwards in the direction of the arrow, come in contact with the
tumblers 2, 2, force them, together with the rods 1, 1, and bar a, upwards,
and raise the heated bar to the proper elevation to be seized by the horizontal
sliding plyers. These plyers traverse in a race 4, 4, on either side of the
machine, and on the under side of the race an opening is made, as at 5, to
allow of the heated bar dropping down. Their construction will be seen by
reference to Figures 5, which represent one of the plyers in plan view and
longitudinal section on an enlarged scale. It consists of a block 6, which has
an adjustable piece 6* bolted to its under face, forming the fixed jaw of the
plyers. To the end of this block a piece 7, which forms the moveable jaw is
jointed, and on the side of this jaw 7 is a bent lever 8. A tendency is given
to the jaw 7 to incline towards the fixed jaw and thus close upon the heated
bar when it is presented by reason of the downward pressure of a spring 9,
which is rivetted to the block 6. Motion is given to the horizontal sliding
plyers in the following manner:-10 is a shaft which has its bearings in
bracketts affixed to the framing A, and to this shaft an arm 11 is keyed, one
for each pair of plyers. This arm is slotted at its upper end, and receives a
pin projecting from the side of the block 6. On the same shaft 10 is a lever
12, to the ends of which the weighted catch levers 13 and 14 are jointed.
These levers are for the purpose of rocking the shaft 10, and causing the arm
11, to which the plyers are attached, to vibrate. The catches of these levers
take respectively on to pins 15 and 16, which are fixed to the sliding rack
piece G, and as this sliding rack moves in the direction of the arrow, Figure 2,
the pin 15 will first como in contact with the catch of the lever 18, draw that
lever forward, and through the arm 12, shaft 10, and arm 11, drive the plyers
suddenly forward to seize the heated bar. The lever 13, by being thus drawn
forward, will be thrown out of contact with the pin 15 by an inclined part
of its under surface being forced against a fixed pin 17, projecting from a
stationary arm 18. This will allow the pin 16, which has now come in
contact with the catch of the lever 14, to drive that lever forward, and thereby
bring back the plyers with the heated bar. A fixed pin 19, on the arm 18, in
like manner relieves the lever 14 from the pin 16. The plyers, which move
vertically, are now to take the heated bar and carry it down to the shaping
block. These plyers are shewn at Y. The lower jaw is jointed to the upper
jaw, and has a tendency to close upon it by a pin on its back end receiving

page_text: the pressure of a small spring (see Figure 2). The stem of the plyers is made
to slide up an oscillating guide Z, jointed to the upper end of the framing by
means of an arm or sweep 20, keyed on the shaft T, coming in contact with a
bowl 21, at the top end of the stem of the plyers. A bowl 22, at the lower
end the stem, works in a fixed guide 23, and causes the plyers as they ascend
to be drawn inwards. When they have arrived at their highest position the
bowl 22 has entered that part of the guide marked 23*, and the horizontal
sliding plyers are free to pass under them with the heated bar, which they have
just brought from under the die N; but when the end of the sweep Z has
passed the bowl 21, the plyers Y will drop on to a ledge 24, and rest thereon,
while the plyers 6 advance towards them, and thrust the heated bar in between
their jaws. This advance of the plyers 6 is effected by a piece 25, which
projects from the side of the block M, coming in contact (as the block
ascends) with a lever 26, supported a pin from a bracket on the race 4,
and tripping up that lever. The lower end of the lever 26 is forked, and
embraces a pin attached to a sliding piece 27, to which the ledge 24 is
attached at one end, and which at its other end is bent down at right angles.
When therefore the lever 26 is tripped up it will draw forward the sliding
piece 27, bring its bent end into contact with the projecting pin on the plyers,
and thereby push forward the plyers the distance required. At the same time
the ledge 24 will be drawn from under the plyer's Y, and the tail of the lever
8 will come in contact with a stationary finger 28 on the race 4, and will be
thereby made to tip up and raise the jaw with which it is connected. The
heated bar will thus loose the grip of the plyers 6, and the plyers Y will de-
scend by their own weight and bring the bar into the position to be bent round
the shaping block. This block, which has been formed of the required size in
the manner before described, is shewn at 29. It lies upon an under block 30,
the face of which is suitably bevelled to produce the requisite chamfer on the
rest surface of the shoe, and above it is a holding down plate 31, which is
attached to a vertical rod 32, the upper end of which slides in a guide 38, to
steady its motion; 34 is an excentric strap, forming one piece with the rod
32, and intended to receive the pressure of a cam 35, keyed on to the shaft T,
whereby the pressure and release of the holding down plate is obtained. I
will now explain how the bending is effected.
By referring to Figure 4, it will be seen that the sliding rack piece G has a
slot formed in it. This is for the purpose of receiving two bolts 36, which
form fulcra for the arms 87, 37. On the under side of each of these arms is a
guide pin, which pins take into guides 38, fixed on the bed plate of the
machine, and on the extremities of the arms are bowls 39. When the rack

page_text: moves inwards, which it will do so soon as the heated bar is brought down to
the shaping block, the bowls 39 will be made to press against the heated bar,
and lap it round the shaping block. At the completion of this movement the
guide pins on the arms 37 will come against a spring, and be thrown out
laterally into the return guide. The holding-down plate during the turning
of the shoe is in close contact with the shaping block, and when it is required
to manufacture shoes with turned-up heels, as shewn at Figures 12 and 13,
Sheet I., immediately the bowls have left the now bent bar or shoe, the
hammer head of a block 40 moves rapidly upwards, and strikes up the
heels of the shoe. A reverse motion is then given to the block 40, which
causes the hammer head **, to strike downwards, and beat the ends square.
This motion is effected in the following manner:-The block 40 is mounted
on an axle 41, to one end of which an arm 42 is keyed. This arm is con-
nected by a rod 43 (shewn detached at Fig. 6) to a guide link or strap 44,
which surrounds the shaft T, and a snail cam 45 on the same shaft acts upon
a bowl 46, which turns on a pin at the strap joint. When the snail in its
rotation presents its increasing radius to the bowl, the hammer head * is
raised, and made to bend up the heel, but as soon as it has passed the bowl a
weighted lever 47, fixed on the shaft 41, causes that shaft to rock suddenly
and bring down the hammer head * *, with great force upon the bent-up
heels, and complete their formation. (It will be understood that when
turned-up heels are not required, this motion may be thrown out of action.)
The plate 31 now rises, and the shoe is discharged by a sudden blow delivered
by a plate 48 on the heels of the shoe. This plate is fixed to the lower end of
a lever 49, which is suspended from a shaft 50, mounted in suitable bearings
in the framing. On this shaft is an arm 51, which is acted upon by a cam
52 on the shaft T. When the enlarged radius of the cam has passed the end
of the arm 51, a coiled spring 53, attached to the lever 49, and a fixed point;
suddenly contracts and draws the lever 49 with its plate inwards, as described.
When the shoes have been thus formed by my improved machine, it only
remains to punch the nail holes. This may be readily done by any ordinary
punching apparatus, and the shoes will then be ready for use.
Another arrangement of machinery whereby I am enabled to produce shoes
of various sizes is shewn in Sheet IV. of the accompanying Drawings. In
this Sheet, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the machine; Fig. 2
is a plan view, and Fig. 3 is an end view. 1, 1, 1, is a cross piecing of cast
or wrought iron, which is made fast between the frame sides 2, 2, and 2*, 2*,
and the upper part of 1, 1, is turned round at right angles at 3, so as to form
a level surface or table, the top of which, marked 1, 1, is seen in Fig. 2.

page_text: 4 is a shaft passing across the machine under the table part of 1, 1, and moving
freely in sockets made fast in the frame sides 2 and 2*. 5 and 5* are two
circular discs made fast on the shaft 4; one at each end of the shaft is
represented at Figures 2 and 3. In each of the discs 5 and 5* there are
four notches 6, 7, &c., of such a depth that the notches follow the bend or
curve of the fixing 1, 1, as represented at 8, Fig. 1. Outside of each of the
discs 5 and 5* there are fixed guides 11 and 11*, which are grooved out in
the forms shewn at 12, 12, 12, Fig. 1. The extreme width between between
the grooves of the guides 11 and 11* is made to correspond with the extreme
length of the straight bar of which the horse shoe is to be made, and by this
means it will be perceived that when the bar is laid on the table part of 1, 1,
as it is shewn in dotted lines in Fig. 2, with the ends of the bar lying in
the notches of the discs 5 and 5*, and projecting over so as to take into the
grooves of the guides 11 and 11*, the revolution of the shaft 4 through a
quarter of a circle will cause the discs 5 and 5* to deliver the bar to be
formed into a horse shoe in the position represented at 14, Figures 1 and 3.
As soon as the bar is brought into this position, the block 15, carrying the
mould 16, which is faced to correspond to the fullered face of the bar that is
to form the shoe, is made to move along the slides 17 and 17*, and to press
the mould against the bar, as shewn at 14, Fig. 1. This movement and
pressure of the block and mould is caused by the revolution of the cam 18
(which is made fast on the shaft 19) allowing the weighted lever 20 to
descend, which descent takes place as the bowl 21 follows the decline of the
cam 18. As soon as the mould 16 is pressed firmly against the bar, the
sliding plate 24, 24, is caused to descend in the guides 25 and 25* by the
cam 22 giving way to the bowle 26, which allows the two arms 27 and 27*,
by which the plate is suspended, to descend. When the plate 24 is brought
to rest on the bar 14, the hammer 28 is caused to descend by the cam 29
passing from under the bowle 30, and the falling hammer 28 is received by
the top edge of the plate 24, the lower edge of which was already resting on
the bar 14. The next movement which takes place is the raising of the
hammer 28, which begins to take place as soon as the cam 29, by proceeding
in its revolution, catches under the bowle 30, and as soon as the weight of the
hammer 28 is taken by the cam 29, the block and mould 15 and 16 are
withdrawn from the bar 14 by the cam 18 taking under the bowle 21.
and raising the weighted lever 20. As soon as the mould 16 is sufficiently
withdrawn, the weight of the plate 24 carries the bar 14 down to the position
marked 14* in Figures 1 and 3, and the bowles 81 and 81*, carried by the
arms 32 and 32*, which rock on the pins 36 and 36*, then move inwards,

page_text: and press against the bar 14*, bending it round the shaping block 38, Fig. 1, as
in the former arrangement. The pins 36 and 36* are carried by the rocking
arms 33 and 33*, which are made fast on the pins 37 and 37*, which move
freely in the sockets 41 and 42, Figures 4 and 1. The levers 34 and 34* are
also keyed fast on the pins 87 and 87*, and are weighted so as to pull the top
ends of the arms 33 and 33* inwards, and to cause the bowles 31 and 31* to
be pressed inwards towards the shaping block 38. Fig. 4 is a detached
sketch shewing the side view of the arms 82 and 32*, and the other parts
connected with them. When the bar has thus been lapped round the shaping
block 88, the bevelled edge of the block 45, 45*, is thrown against the ends of
the bar which project below the pressing block 40, and so bends the ends of the
bar forwards to produce the turned-up heels. When this has been effected,
a reverse movement of the shaft 49 (acting through the lever 48 and connecting
rod 47 on the rocking box 50) causes the block 45 to strike against the
ends of the bar which have been turned forward, and by this means the heels
are pressed into the required form. The shaft 49 is actuated by a snail
movement and a weight similar to that shewn in Sheet III., Figures 2 and 6.
When the heels have thus been properly formed, the next movement is the
pulling away of the pressing block 40 by the revolution of the cam 44 on the
shaft 19 causing the sliding frame 43 to move away from the stationary bed
plate 39. When the pressing block 40 is pulled away from the bed plate 39,
it will take with it the shaping block which is attached to it, and the finished
shoe will then fall through the rocking box 50. 8 is a circular disc, which
carries eight pins placed equidistant in the periphery of the disc; 52 is.a catch,
which acts on the pins of the disc 8; 51 is a bent lever, which carries the
catch 52 at one end, and the other end of the lever 51 is struck by the cam
53, which is made fast on the shaft 23, Fig. 1; 9 is a runner or bowle, carried
to one end of a weighted lever 10, and pressed against the pins of the disc 8,
as shewn by dotted lines in Fig. 1. By every descent of the plate 24, one pin
of the disc 8 is carried over the runner 9, and the movement of the lever 51
carries another pin over the runner, and by means of these combined
movements one-fourth of a revolution of the disc 5 is effected, and thus a
second bar is placed in the position marked 14, to be in like manner acted
upon by the machine, as has been above described.
In some cases I propose to coat the rest surface of the shoe with gutta
percha; this I effect by providing a suitably shaped mould for receiving the
gutta percha while in a soft state, and pressing the shoe upon it by means of
a plunger which fits the mould. By this means I am enabled to make the
gutta percha adhere to the shoe and form as it were one picce therewith

page_text: without the use of pins or other fastenings, as the gutta percha will enter the
nail holes and thereby take a firm hold of the shoe.
Having now described my Invention, and the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in part recited
Letters Patent I claim,-
First, the improved construction of apparatus for measuring horse shoes
and horses' hoofs.
Secondly, the mode of obtaining the figure of any given shoe or hoof, and
also the mode of applying the figure to the metal which is to form the shaping
block.
Thirdly, I claim the manufacture of shoes from bars of malleable iron
having a flange on either side of the fullering or groove in which the nail
holes are punched, for the purpose above set forth.
Fourthly, I claim the arrangements of machinery above described for
manufacturing horse shoes, and particularly I claim the use of the removable
shaping block and bed, which enable me to construct from suitably shaped
bars shoes of various sizes and kinds by the substitution merely of one block
or block and bed for another.
And, fifthly, I claim the mode of attaching gutta percha to the rest surface
of shoes, as above described.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Fourteenth
RICHARD (L.B.) HOBSON.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fourteenth day of June, in
the year of our Lord 1850, the aforesaid Richard Hobson came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Fifteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty.