AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF WEIGHING MACHINE
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughts-
man, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF WEIGHING
MACHINE." A communication from abroad by S. E. Robbins, of Boston,
in the United States of America.
-
Sealed the 24th August 1860, and dated the 13th June 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton:
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
13th June 1860.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF WEIGHING..
MACHINE," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to enable the platform of weighing machines..
to adjust itself properly to the levers on which it rests, also to make suitable
provision against difficulties attending the winding or twisting of the platform
timbers, and to facilitate the movement or adjustment of the weight of the
beam and the noting of the weight of articles counterpoised on the platform.
The platform is supported on parallel beams, placed near its sides and furnish-

page_text: on their under face and near their ends with bearing plates, which are formed
with a segmental recess running parallel with the beams, and on either side
thereof with pendent lugs. These lugs enter slots in the ends of loose plates,
which are furnished with a half round projection on their upper sides to enter
the segmental recess of the bearing plate above. A segmental recess on the
under face of these loose plates, and at right angles to the half round projection,
is formed to receive a knife edge of one of a series of bent or S-shaped arms
keyed to the extremities of a pair of rock levers. Both ends of these rock
levers terminate in a knife edge, the one projecting upwards and the other being
inverted, and the two being parallel with each other. The inverted knife edges
rest each in the segment recess of a loose plate, carried by a hanger (there
being four of these provided) pendent from the frame of the machine for sup-
porting the weight of the platform. The loose plates that receive the pressure
of the inverted knife edges are provided on their under side with a half round
projection (at right angles to their recess) which rests in a segmental recess
formed in the bearing surfaces of the several hangers. Two levers projecting
inwards from the rock shafts are connected together and to a cross lever by links,
and this lever which is hinged to the platform is brought into connection
by a pendent rod with the scale beam. This scale, beani is balanced on a
fulcrum, formed by a bracket arm from a cross head, and it is furnished with a
screw shaft for traversing the counterpoise weight. In gear with the screw
shaft is a worm wheel with a graduated face for indicating, by means of a
fixed pointer, the weight of the load placed on the platform, and mounted on
the end of the screw shaft is another wheel graduated on its periphery for
indicating, by means also of a fixed pointer, the fractional parts of the weight
indicated on the dial. The screw shaft is rotated by means of handles fitted
to the wheel on the screw shaft, whereby the counterpoise weight is traversed
from end to end of the shaft as required.
.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office 3
on the 12th December 1860.
TO ALL TO. WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL, COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.
. WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 3

page_text: Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord
1860, in the twenty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs
and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Alfred Vincent Newton,
Her special license that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alfred Vincent
Newton, 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 "AN IM-
PROVED CONSTRUCTION OF WEIGHING MACHINE," a communication to him from
abroad by S. E. Robbins of Boston, in the United Sates of America, upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, by
an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Alfred Vincent Newton, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
Fig. 1 is a vertical section of the Invention taken in the line x, x, Figure 3;
Fig. 2 is a detached side view of the scale beam; Fig. 3 is a vertical section
of the Invention taken in the line y, y, Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a plan or top view
of the levers below the platform; Fig. 5 is an under view of one end of one of
the platform beams; Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken in the line z, z, Fig. 5;
Fig. 7 is a section of one of the hangers and plates taken in the line =³, 2¹,
Figure 1. Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several
Figures.
This Invention relates, 1st, to an improvement in the scale beam.
2nd, to a mode of hanging the platform and applying the same to the levers
which form a connection between it and the beam.
The object of the Invention is to enable the platform to adjust itself pro-
perly to the levers on which it rests, also to make suitable provision against
difficulties attending the winding or twisting of the platform timbers, and to
facilitate the movement or adjustment of the weight of the beam and the

page_text: noting of the weight of articles counterpoised on the platform. To enable
those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct this Invention I will
proceed to describe it.
A represents sill pieces, which form a box that contains the levers on
which the platform B rests. In two opposite end sills A, A, hangers C, C, are
screwed, two in each. These hangers are of hook form at their upper parts,
as shown, at a, Fig. 1, and they are secured to the end sills by being simply
fitted into them. The lower end of each hanger has a horizontal projection b,
in the upper surface of which a semicircular recess c is made to receive a
corresponding shaped projection d at the under side of a plate e, which has a
semicircular recess f, in its upper surface; see Figs. 1 and 7. The recesses c
in the projections 6 of the hangers, as well as the recesses f in the plates e are
oblong, and the recesses c are at right angles to the recesses f. D, D, are two
shafts, each of which has an arm g at its end of S form, as shown clearly in
Fig. 1, and at the ends of each arm a knife-edged projection is formed, one h
extending downward, and the other h¹ extending upward, as shown clearly in
Fig. 1. The pendent projections h fit into the recesses f of the plates e, as
shown clearly in Fig. 1. F, F, are two beams to which the flooring of the
platform is attached. At the outer ends of each beam F, and at its under
sides, a plate G is secured. These plates have each an oblong semicircular
recess i made in them, said recesses being longitudinal with the beams. To
each plate G two pendents j, j, project, one at each side, both pendents being in
line with the centre of the recess i. In each recess i a corresponding shaped
projection is fitted, the projection k being at the upper side of a plate l, which
is slotted at each end to allow the pendents j, j, to pass through. The plates
are retained in proper position by pins m, which pass through the pendent j;
see more particularly Figs. 3, 5, and 6. In the under side of the plates
semicircular recesses n are made into which the projections h¹ of the arms g
fit, as shown clearly in Fig. 1; to the centre of each shaft D a lever H is
attached. These levers project inward or towards each other, and are
connected by links o, o, to a lever I, one end of which is attached to the under
side of the platform B, as shown at p, Fig. 3, and the other end attached to
the lower end of a rod J, the upper end of which is attached to the scale beam
K atq; L are links or hooks, which are attached to the sills A and to the
platform B. The scale beam K is suspended to a horizontal bar M, as shown
at N, and the beam is formed of two parts, a bar r and a screw s, the latter
being fitted in proper bearings t on the bar r, and in the same plane with
On the screws a nut O is placed, and from said nut a weight P is sus-
it.

page_text: pended. To the outer end of the screws a hand wheel Q is attached, the
periphery of which is graduated and has an index t projecting over it, said
index being attached to the outer bearing of the screw. Into the screws a
worm wheel R gears, said wheel having its axis attached to a vertical rod u
which is secured to the bar r. The face of the worm wheel R is graduated,
and an index v which is attached to the upper end of rod u projects down over
its upper end. At the back or inner end of the barr a counterpoise v¹ is
placed on a screw rod w, the rod w being fitted in the end of the bar, as shown
clearly in Figs. 1 and 2.
66
From the above description it will be seen that the platform is allowed to
adjust itself perfectly in proper position, even in case of the twisting or
"winding" of the platform beams F, a result due to unseasoned timber. This
adjustment of the platform is due to the arrangement of the projections b,
plates e on the hangers C, and the plates G, 1, attached to the under sides of
the beams F, said arrangement of parts admitting of perfect bearings being
obtained at all times on the knife edges h, h', of the shafts D, D. By having
the lever I connected to the platform B, the whole device is rendered compact,
and the platform self-sustaining. By having the beam K formed of a screw
and bar, as shown, the weight P may be readily adjusted, and by having the
wheels Q, R, connected with the screw s, as shown, the weight of the article
on the platform may be readily noted, the graduated wheel Q noting fractional
parts of the weight indicated by the subdivision on the wheel R. The pitch of
the thread of the screw s may be made as circumstances may require. For hay
scales the thread is cut one revolution of a thread to the inch, and the leverage
is such, that a twenty-two pound poise will draw 1000 pounds to each revolu-
tion of the screw, the fractional parts of a 1000 being indicated on the
wheel Q. In lieu of attaching the levers H to the middle of the length of
each of the shafts D, as shown in Fig. 4, one of these levers may be attached
to the end of each shaft D beyond its bearings on the hanger C on that side of
the scale on which the beam is placed. This permits the lever I to be
shortened considerably and in some styles of scales is to be preferred.
Having now set forth the nature of this Invention, and explained the manner
of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that I do not claim
broadly moving or adjusting the weight P by means of a screw, for that bas
been previously done, but what I claim under the above recited Letters
Patent is,
1st, the combination of the two graduated wheels Q, R, screws s and bar r,
arranged substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

page_text: 2nd, attaching the lever I to the platform B, levers H, E, and rods J,
when the above parts are arranged to operate substantially as described.
3rd, the construction and arrangement of the fulcrum arms g of the
shafts D, projections 6 and plates e of the hangers C and the plates G, I, of the
beams F, F, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twelfth day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.S.)