Improvements in the Construction of Washing, Wringing, and Mangling Machines.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Apr., 1886.
Complete Left, 1st Jan., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 1st Feb., 1887.
Improvements in the Construction of Washing, Wringing, and
Mangling Machines.
I THOMAS BRADFORD of The Crescent Iron Works, Salford in the County of
Lancaster Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
دو
IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WASHING WRINGING AND MANGLING MACHINES to be
as follows:
My improvements relate especially to that class of washing wringing and mangling
machines described in the specification of Letters Patent granted to me and dated
November 28th 1881 No. 5160.
I use a rectangular or other suitably shaped washing vessel hung upon an axle in a
convenient frame and I make this vessel larger in diameter than its width but I
dispense with the internal partition shown and described in the specification above
mentioned and in place thereof I fix or secure therein conical projections, extending
round the interior of the vessel, including the inner side of the lid or cover, so that
when the washing vessel is charged with the linen, or other articles to be washed, and
is rotated, the linen &c. is carried up and in falling is obstructed and subjected to
compression and friction according to its specific gravity by the narrowed passage
formed by these said projections, which in turn direct the mass of wet linen &c. upon
other similar projections beneath and thus the linen is further subjected in its fall to a
compressing friction against the projections and also against itself on all of its sides,
and also receives a "possing," action as it falls in contact with the opposite projections.
I propose to actuate the washing vessel by a spring winch handle (as described in
the specification annexed to an application for Letters Patent for Improvements in the
construction of churns bearing date 22nd September 1885) or by other suitable
gearing to be worked by hand or power.
A special feature of the adjustable spring handle is in its application to portable
washing machines suitable for army washing in the field, in which heavy gearing for
driving (and also heavy framework) is objectionable and I therefore propose to use
for such machines a portable framework of cross poles and connecting stays or rod
hooks easily taken asunder and in the second place I propose to use a trough with
suitable bearings upon which the washing vessel can be centred and rotated, in which
trough the water required for washing can be heated by wood, charcoal, or other
suitable fuel, the furnace hole being first excavated out of the earth (or raised by
earthwork) and a light wrought iron furnace grid being placed thereon or therein; or
when used as an ordinary domestic washing machine to be heated by gas and for this

page_text: purpose I adopt a double arrangement of flue pipe one inside the other, the outer one
for the purpose of carrying away the products of gas, and combustion and the inner
one for carrying away into the chimney the vapour arising from boiling water.
I also propose to fix upon the outer shell or water-boiling framework a suitable
arrangement of wringing rollers for expressing water from the linen and also for
mangling the same.
I propose to exercise pressure upon the rollers for wringing and mangling purposes
by means of springs or levers, or a combination of both, but by preference for the
army washing machine I propose to adopt a long spring bar made of lance-wood or
other suitable wood or steel.
And in this and other machines I propose to fix the wringing and mangling
rollers side by side instead of one roller being placed above the other as hitherto done,
by which means I economize space and secure a better and more convenient application
of pressure upon the roller journals as hereafter described.
the first place in consequence of the rollers being placed side by side as described
I fix the metal slides (in which the roller shafts work) in a horizontal position instead
of vertically. And I employ a new and very convenient combination of single or
compound levers for the purpose of exercising at will (by hand or foot) either a
continuous or an intermittent pressure according to the varying thickness of the
fabric to be wrung or mangled:
The combination of single levers is placed vertically with a hooked fulcrum at the
upper end to act upon the journals of the roller shafts and is more especially adapted
to wringing and mangling machines having rollers of different diameters, the larger
roller being the fixed or resisting roller, and the smaller roller being the roller which
exercises pressure when actuated by the lever.
The lower end of the lever is attached to a connecting rod made in two parts with
a right and left hand thread.
The other end of the link is attached to the frame.
There are two nuts forming parts of an open link, each threaded to fit one of the
screws so that by turning these two nuts by means of the link the connecting rod can
be lengthened or shortened at will, and the pressure of the rollers adjusted accordingly.
An important and valuable feature in connection with this compound system of
leverage is that when two persons are employed, which will invariably be the case
with such machines as are more especially adapted for army washing, each operator
while turning the roller handle with one hand can exercise pressure at will by the
other hand or by the foot.
Mangling Machines.
8, wrging, a
I THOMAS BRADFORD of the Crescent Iron Works Salford in the County of
Lancaster Engineer 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 :-
My improvements relate especially to that class of washing wringing and mangling
machines described in the Specification of Letters Patent granted to me and dated

page_text: November 28th 1881, No. 5180, and the nature of my said invention will be readily
understood on reference to the annexed drawings and the following explanation
thereof.
Fig. 1. is an elevation of one end.
Fig. 2 a front view, and Fig. 3 a view of the reverse end of a washing wringing
and mangling machine constructed according to my invention.
I use a rectangular or other suitably shaped washing vessel a, a hung upon an
axle b, in a convenient frame, and I make this vessel a, a larger in diameter than its
width but I dispense with the internal partition shown and described in the specifi-
cation above mentioned, and in place thereof I fix or secure therein conoidal or other
projections d, d extending round the interior of the vessel a, a including the inner side
of the lid or cover a, a, so that when the washing vessel a, a is charged with the
linen or other articles to be washed and is rotated, the linen etcetera, is carried up,
and in falling is obstructed and subjected to compression and friction according to
its specific gravity by the narrowed passage formed by these said projections d, d,
which in turn direct the mass of wet linen etcetera, upon other similar projections
beneath or on the opposite side and thus the linen is further subjected in its fall to a
compressing friction against the projections d, d and also against itself on all of its
sides, and also receives a "possing" action as it falls in contact with the opposite
projections d, d.
I propose to actuate the washing vessel by an ordinary winch handle e, e, as shown,
or by a spring winch handle (as described in the Specification annexed to an
application for Letters Patent for Improvements in the construction of churns, bearing
date 22nd September 1885) or by other suitable gearing to be worked by hand or power.
A special feature of the adjustable spring handle is its application to portable
washing machines suitable for army washing in the field, in which heavy gearing for
driving (and also heavy framework) is objectionable and I therefore propose to use
for such machines a portable framework of cross poles and connecting stays or rod-
hooks easily taken asunder.
Or I propose sometimes to use a trough f, f, (as shown on the drawings) with
suitable bearings 9, 9 upon its upper edge whereon the washing vessel a, a can be
centred and rotated, in which trough f,f the water required for washing can be
heated by wood, charcoal or other suitable fuel, the furnace hole being first excavated
out of the earth (or raised by carthwork) and a light wrought iron furnace grid being
placed thereon or therein.
Or when used as an ordinary domestic washing machine to be heated by gas, I
adopt a double arrangement of flue pipes one inside the other (as shown in dotted
lines in Fig. 1) the outer one h, h for the purpose of carrying away the products of
gas combustion and, the inner one i, i for carrying away into the chimney the vapour
arising from the boiling water.
I also propose to fix upon the outer shell or trough f,f a frame k, k supporting a
pair of wringing rollers 1, 1 for expressing water from the linen and also for mangling
the same.
I exercise pressure upon the rollers for wringing and mangling purposes by means
of springs or levers, or a combination of both, but by preference for the army washing
machine, I propose to adopt a long spring bar m, m made of lancewood or other
suitable wood or steel (see detached view Fig. 4) and in this and other machines I
fix the wringing and mangling rollers ", " side by side instead of one roller being
placed above the other as hitherto, by which means I economize space and secure a
better and more convenient application of pressure upon the roller journals as hereafter
described.
In the first place in consequence of the rollers being placed side by side as described
I fix the metal slides n, n (in which the roller shafts work) in a horizontal position,
instead of vertically, and I employ a very convenient combination of single or
compound levers for the purpose of exercising at will (by hand or foot) either a
continuous or an intermittent pressure according to the varying thickness of the
fabric to be wrung or mangled.

page_text: The combination of single levers shewn at Fig. 4. is placed vertically with a
hooked slide o, o at the upper end to act upon the journal of the roller shaft and is
more especially adapted to wringing and mangling machines having rollers of different
diameters, the larger roller being the fixed or resisting roller and the smaller roller
being the one which exercises pressure when actuated by the lever (or spring
bar) m, m.
The lower end of this lever m m is attached to one end p of a connecting
rod P, p' made in two parts with a right and left hand thread; the other end p¹ of
the rod p, p' is attached to the frame.
There are two nuts forming part of an open link q, q each threaded to fit one of the
screws p, or p² so that, by turning these two nuts by means of the link q, q the
connecting rod p, p¹ can be lengthened or shortened at will and the pressure of the
rollers, adjusted accordingly.
When compound levers are preferred I adopt the arrangement shown on Figs. 1, 2
and 3, wherein the lever m m is connected by the lever r, r and links s, s¹ to a hand
lever t, t; and an important and valuable feature in connection with this compound
system of leverage is that when two persons are employed, which will invariably be
the case with such machines as are more especially adapted for army washing, each
operator, while turning the roller handle with one hand can exercise pressure at will
by the other hand; or if preferred it may be arranged so that the pressure is applied
by a treadle.
The same handles e, e may be used for the washing vessel a, a and the rollers 1, 1.
For large fixed machines I sometimes propose to employ a suitable arrangement of
rollers or an endless moving lattice or bands for carrying the articles away from the
machine automatically after being operated upon.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :-
First. In a washing machine (either combined with a wringer or mangle or
otherwise) a rotating vessel larger in diameter than its width and provided internally
with conoidal or other suitably shaped projections substantially as and for the purposes
described.
Secondly. In a wringing or mangling machine (either combined with a washing
machine or otherwise) mounting the two rollers in a horizontal line with each other
(instead of one above the other) and giving pressure to the movable one either by
means of a spring bar or single lever, or by a system of compound levers worked by
hand or foot substantially as described.
Thirdly. The general construction and arrangement of washing, wringing and
mangling machines substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated by the
drawings annexed.
GEORGE DAVIES,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester,
Agent for the Applicant.