IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CODES R CUTTING CORKS, BUNGS, AND SUCH LIKE ARTICLES
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Conroy, of Boston, United States of
America, but now residing at Drummond Street, Euston Square, in
the County of Middlesex, Machinist, for the Invention of "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CODES R
"
Sealed the 14th November 1862, and dated the 4th June 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Conroy at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 4th
June 1862.
I, EDWARD CONROY, of Boston, United States of America, but now re-
siding at Drummond Street, Euston Square, in the County of Middlesex,
Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS, BUNGS, AND SUCH LIKE ARTICLES," to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to machines used for "rounding" or cutting the
quarters" into cylindrical or conical corks, for which Letters Patent were
granted to Alfred Vincent Newton, dated June 28th, 1859, No. 1540, for an
Invention communicated to him by me.
The present improvement consists in giving to the frame or shaft which
carries the revolving cutter plate an upward and downward motion when
required. These motions are governed by a cam mounted upon the main

page_text: shaft, and the object of this arrangement is to enable the rotating disc or
cutter to make two distinct cuts, one of which will simply cut off the rough
sides and angles of the quarter, and the other will be a finer and finishing
cut, which will complete the cork. Both of these cuts are effected during
two revolutions of the "quarter" between the suspending or holding pivots.
Another improvement consists in giving to the mandrils or pivots (used in
holding the "quarters"
quarters" to be cut or "rounded,") and also to the sliding
feeder considerable facilities for self-adjustment should any variation occur in
the length of the cork or "quarter" to be cut. The mandrils or pivots, or
the pivot and hub, between which the block or "quarter" to be cut is held,
are both mounted with helical or other springs, and the face of the feeder is
made capable of a slight lateral adjustment by means of a spring slide, thus
avoiding the possibility of compressing the cork more than is necessary to
hold it during the process of cutting or "rounding."
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edward Conroy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th
December 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
CONROY, of Boston, in the United States of America, but now residing at
Drummond Street, Euston Square, in the County of Middlesex, Machinist,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Edward Conroy, Her special license that I, the said Edward Conroy,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Edward Conroy, 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 Ire-
land, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR CUTTING CORKS, BUNGS, AND SUCH LIKE ARTICLES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Edward Conroy, by an instru-
ment in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same

page_text: 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 Edward Conroy, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, 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) :-
My Invention of "Improved Machinery for Cutting Corks, Bungs, and
such like Articles," relates to various improvements upon a machine for
cutting corks and bungs, for which Letters Patent were granted to Alfred
Vincent Newton, dated June 18th, 1859, and consists in cutting pieces of
cork that have been previously prepared of suitable dimensions, or as they are
termed "quarters," into cylindrical or conical corks or bungs by means of a
rotating circular disc cutter or plate. The frame or shaft which carries this
revolving disc or cutter plate has an upward and downward motion com-
municated to it when required. These motions are governed by a cam
mounted upon the main shaft, and the object of this arrangement is to enable
the rotating disc or cutter to make two distinct cuts on the same piece of
cork. One of these cuts will simply cut off the rough sides and angles of
the "quarter," and the other will make a finer and finishing cut, which will
complete the cork. Both of these cuts are effected during two revolutions
of the "quarter" between the suspending or holding pivots.
Another improvement in this machine consists in giving to the clamps or
pivots (used in holding the "quarters" to be cut or rounded), and also to the
sliding feeder, considerable facilities for self-adjustment should any variation
occur in the length. of the cork or "quarter" to be cut. The clamps or
pivots or the pivot and tube, between which the block or quarter to be cut
is held, are both mounted with helical or other springs, and the face of the
feeder is made capable of a slight lateral adjustment by means of a spring
slide, thus avoiding the probability of compressing the cork more than is
necessary to hold it during the process of cutting or rounding.
In the accompanying Drawings, I have shewn various views of a machine
for cutting the squares or "quarters" of cork into finished cylindrical or
conical corks.
Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of the machine; Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation
taken at right angles to Fig. 1 at the line 1, 2, of that Figure; and Fig. 3 is
a plan view of the machine.
Within a rectangular frame A is arranged an upright sliding frame B,

page_text: having horizontal plates C secured to its upper ends. The plates C slide upon
horizontal guides D cast upon the framing A. At the lower ends of the
frame B are stud axles, carrying friction wheels C¹, bearing against guides D
bolted to the framing A. Within this traversing frame B is another frame B*,
capable of sliding vertically between the guides a, a, on the frame B, and upon
this frame B✶ are arranged the bearings F, F, of the cutter shaft E, which
may be slightly inclined from a vertical line in order to give the required taper
to the corks (as shewn by red lines in Fig. 2.) The lower end of the cutter
shaft E rests upon the end of an adjusting screw G, which passes through a
lug provided for that purpose upon the lower bearing F', and by which means
the shaft can be raised or lowered to suit the size or thickness of the cork.
The upper bearing F has a central stud pin b, Fig. 1, projecting from it, and
passing through the frame B* can be secured thereto by the hand lever nut c
at any desired angle, as may be required by the inclination of the cutter
shaft E. The lower bearing F¹ is mounted in a similar manner upon the
frame B, but has a slot provided therein for its adjustment laterally; it
may therefore be secured in such position upon the frame B*, as will give the
desired inclination to the cutter shaft E and rotating cutting disc H, and con-
sequently any desired taper to the corks. The frame B* has upon it a
friction bowle d resting upon a lever I, one end of which is hinged to a bracket
on the frame A, and its opposite end is furnished with a friction bowle, which
rests upon the cam J on the shaft K. The vertical motion of the frame B*
is thus given by the cam J for the purpose of taking two distinct cuts from
the cork under operation in the machine. The thickness of the finishing cut
taken from the cork is determined by an adjustable screw stop e, Fig. 1,
attached to the frame B, and bearing against the under side of the frame B*.
Motion is communicated to the machine from any prime mover by a band
passing round the pulley E* on the cutter shaft E, and also to one of the
pulleys L on the short horizontal shaft M. On this shaft M is a screw or
worm N, in gear with a worm wheel on the horizontal cam shaft K. A
cam O secured on the shaft K near its centre gives the required traversing
movement to the frame B. On the other end of the shaft K there is a bevil
cog wheel P, which gears with a similar wheel on the lower end of an inclined
shaft P (as seen by dots in Fig. 1). This inclined shaft P¹ carries another
bevil wheel P, which drives the horizontal cross shaft Q. This shaft Q,
carries at both ends cams R, R', the large halves of which are made in the
form of a semicircle, while the reduced portions are in the form of a segment
of a circle concentric with the first portion, the peripheries of the two being
joined by curved surfaces. Immediately next the cams R, R', are the bevil

page_text: wheels S and S', having cogs extending nearly one-half round the wheel, the
remaining portion being blank in order that the cogs shall (during the revo-
lution of the bevil wheels S, S¹) give two full rotations alternately to the
smaller bevil cog wheels T, T, with which they gear at each revolution as
they pass the same, and allow the said bevil cog wheels T, T', to remain in a
state of rest during the remainder of its circut for the purpose herein-after
stated.
The cog wheels T and T are mounted in bearings in the standards fon
both sides of the machine. The mandrils U and U₁ are mounted in the
bearings g, g', their outer ends provided with a feather pass through the bevil
cog wheels T and T', so that the mandrils may have a longitudinal movement
through the bevil cog wheels. The spindles U and U are also surrounded by
coiled springs, which are compressed between the standards g and collars
., u', so as to keep their outer rounded ends always pressed in contact with
the cams R and R'. The opposite ends of these mandrils are provided with
caps armed with short sharp points or with serrated edges, as shewn at v,
Fig. 3, and on the same horizontal line, and immediately opposite on both
sides of the machine are other mandrils V and V₁ mounted in the standards h,
and surrounded by coiled springs so as to keep their inner ends pressed
towards the caps v on the opposite mandrils U, U¹, between which and the
serrated caps v¹ on the mandrils V and V₁ the cork is held while being cut.
To the face of the standards g, which carry the end of the mandrils U and U',
but at right angles thereto, are secured guides, between which the horizontal
bars W and W are caused to slide. To each of these sliding bars a bracket i
is secured, having on its face a spring slide i', armed with five sharp pins,
which will enter the uncut cork or "quarter," and will draw it back between
the caps v and v².
Motion having been communicated to the machine, the cam O, Fig. 1, by
acting upon the friction roller O', will traverse the sliding frame B over
towards the left-hand side of the machine, and will present the cutter H to
the "quarter," which is firmly embraced between the heads v, v³, of the
mandrils U and V₁ on that side of the machine. The cogs on the bevilled
surface of the wheel S', being in gear with the bevilled pinion T', will turn
the same, together with the mandrils and the "quarter," so as to cause the
disc plate cutter by its swift revolution to cut off the corners of the quarter.
After the "quarter" has made one revolution, and a coarse cut has been
taken off the frame B* that carries the cutter shaft E and cutter H, is lowered
by the action of the cam J on the cam shaft K, and the disc plate cutter II
will then -take another and finer cut from the cork during the remaining

page_text: revolution of the mandril and cork. The cam O will then withdraw the
frame B and cutter plate II from the cork, and will cause the frame B and
cutter plate to traverse to the right hand of the machine in order to cut
another quarter, which is at this time held firmly between the mandrils U
and V. Simultaneously with this action, the mandril U having made its
revolution, ceases to turn, and is withdrawn from the cork, when the latter
will be allowed to fall in a finished state from the machine. Immediately
after this disengagement and discharge of the finished cork, the cam Z' will
act upon the lever Y¹, causing it to vibrate and slide the bar W¹, and with it
the bracket i attached thereto, so as to bring the points on its front surface
in contact with the next "quarter" to be cut. The quarter having been
pushed forward by the attendant, the points will be moved forward by the
cam Z', and will take hold of the "quarter;" the sliding bar W¹ will then
slide backwards towards its former position with the "quarter" held on the
points of the bracket piece i, and they hold it between the serrated or pointed
surfaces of the mandril heads U¹ and V₁, where it will remain until the
mandril U is forced towards the mandril V' by the action of the cam R¹.
When the "quarter" is firmly embraced, the sliding bar W will be slidden
from the cork, and the points on the bracket i will be withdrawn. The cogs
on the bevil wheel S' now again come into gear with the pinion R' and the
frame B and cutter plate H, after having operated at the right hand side of
the machine, will be again brought to act upon the now rotating "quarter"
at the left hand side of the machine.
It will sometimes happen that the quarter presented to the points of the
bracket i may be slightly shorter, or may not have been pushed to the end of
the trough X. In such case the spring slide in the face of the bracket i will
allow the mandril U, U¹, to carry the slide and cork together till they reach
and press the head of the mandril V, VI, (shewn detached at Figs. 4 and 5.)
This slight lateral movement will prevent the possibility of the points in the
face of the bracket i being strained, or broken, and together with the elas-
ticity given to the mandrils V and V¹ by the coiled springs, will enable the
machine to adjust itself to any little inequality in the length of the quarters to
be cut.
Having now described my Invention of "Improved Machinery for Cutting
Corks, Bungs, and such like Articles," and having explained the manner of carry-
ing the same into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters
Patent, as aforesaid, mounting the cutter shaft in such a manner that the
rotary cutter may be raised and lowered and placed at an angle when required
to cut conical corks or bungs..

page_text: I also claim the arrangement of parts herein set forth for holding the quarters
or pieces of cork while being cut.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Conroy, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFatt,
66, Chancery Lane.
EDWARD CONROY. (L.s.)