An Improvement in the Manufacture of Gutta Percha.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Dec., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 31st Aug., 1900-Accepted, 8th Dec., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement in the Manufacture of Gutta Percha.
We, SIEMENS BROTHERS & Co. LIMITED, of 12, Queen Anne's Gate, West-
minster, S.W., and WILHELM DIESELHORST, of 182, Victoria Road, Old Charlton,
Kent, Electrical Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
Gutta percha in the course of its manufacture for insulating purposes has to
be washed and then dried.
The drying is attended with great difficulty and has hitherto been effected
The tempera-
chiefly by masticating the moist gutta percha while it is heated.
ture, however, required to effect thorough drying is so high that the quality of
the material is often greatly impaired.
The object of the present invention is to obviate this disadvantage. For this
purpose the masticator, while heated to a moderate temperature not sufficient to
injure the gutta percha, is connected through a surface condenser to a pump by
which a partial vacuum is maintained in the masticator, so that the evaporation
of the moisture is greatly promoted.
The vapour is condensed in the condenser and the water of condensation shews
by a gauge the amount of water abstracted. The bearings for the masticator shafts
are provided with special lubricating arrangements for preventing any of the
lubricant from being drawn in to mingle with the gutta percha.
For this purpose, between each end of the masticator vessel and a stuffing box
through which its shaft passes, there is a chamber, and in the part of the shaft
which passes through this chamber a groove is cut which prevents such lubricant
as may pass through the stuffing box from going farther along the shaft. This
groove is so far from the end of the interior of the masticator vessel that when
any gutta percha is squeezed along the shaft it breaks off in the chamber before
reaching the lubricant and is not drawn back into the masticator.
The chamber has an opening provided with an air tight cover which from time
to time is taken off to remove such lubricant and gutta percha as may have col-
lected in the chamber.
1000
ABEL & IMĪRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.

page_text: Kent, Electrical Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement:-
Gutta percha in the course of its manufacture for insulating purposes has to
be washed and then dried.
The drying is attended with great difficulty and has hitherto been effected
chiefly my masticating the moist gutta percha while it is heated.
The tempera-
ture, however, required to effect thorough drying is so high that the quality of
the material is often greatly impaired.
The object of the present invention is to obviate this disadvantage. For this
purpose the masticator, while heated to a moderate temperature not sufficient to
injure the gutta percha, is connected through a surface condenser to a pump by
which a partial vacuum is maintained in the masticator, so that the evaporation
of the moisture is greatly promoted.
The vapour is condensed in the condenser and the water of condensation shews
by a gauge the amount of water abstracted. The bearings for the masticator shafts
are provided with special lubricating arrangements for preventing any of the
lubricant from being drawn in to mingle with the gutta percha.
For this purpose as shewn in a part vertical section in Fig. 1 of the accom-
panying drawings, and part end view Fig. 2 looking from the inside, each end
of the masticator vessel a has a stuffing box through which each shaft 6 passes and
within this stuffing box there is a catch chamber c and in the part of the shaft
which passes through this chamber a groove d is cut which prevents such lubricant
as may pass through the stuffing box from going farther along the shaft. This
groove is so far from the end of the interior of the masticator vessel that when
any gutta percha is squeezed along the shaft it breaks off in the chamber c, before
reaching the lubricant and is not drawn back by the vacuum into the masticator.
The chamber has an opening provided with a cover e which on removing the
lid of the masticating vessel from time to time is taken off to remove such
lubricant and gutta percha as may have collected in the chamber.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. The herein described method of drying moist gutta percha, by heating it to
a moderate temperature under partial vacuum while it is masticated.
2. For preventing mixture of lubricant with the gutta percha while under par-
tial vacuum, the construction of the bearing of each masticator shaft with a stuf-
fing box and catch chamber, substantially as described.
Dated this 31st day of August 1900
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.