IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HACKLING AND OPENING HEMP AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Tomlinson, of the Soho Iron Works, Rochdale,
in the County of Lancaster, Machine Maker, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HACKLING AND OPENING HEMP AND OTHER
FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Sealed the 27th July 1866, and dated the 12th February 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Tomlinson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
12th February 1866.
I, JAMES TOMLINSON, of the Soho Iron Works, Rochdale, in the County of
Lancaster, Machine Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HACKLING AND OPENING HEMP
AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as follows:-
My Invention is applicable to the machines for hackling and opening hemp
and other fibrous materials in which a drum with toothed blades works
eccentrically in a shell with longitudinal slots or in a cage with bars, the
toothed blades alternately projecting beyond and being drawn within the said
shell or cage, and it consists in an improved mode of driving the drum with
the toothed blades and the shell. The plates forming the ends of the shell or
cage are connected to the plates forming the ends of the drum with toothed

page_text: blades by means of cross pieces, two arms of which are guided between ribs
on the ends of the plates of the shell, and the other two arms are guided
between ribs on the ends of the drum. When motion is given by a pulley
and strap or other equivalents to the shell the motion is communicated by the
cross pieces above described to the drum, and vice versa.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Tomlinson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
10th August 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
TOMLINSON, of the Soho Iron Works, Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster,
Machine Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said James Tomlinson, Her special license that I, the said James
Tomlinson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said James Tomlinson, 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HACKLING AND OPENING HEMP AND OTHER
FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said James
Tomlinson, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 James Tomlinson, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say) :-
.
My Invention is applicable to the machines for hackling and opening hemp
and other fibrous materials, in which a drum with toothed blades works

page_text: eccentrically in a shell with longitudinal slots, or in a cage with bars, the
toothed blades alternately projecting beyond and being drawn within the said
shell or cage; and it consists in an improved mode of driving the drum with
the toothed blades and the shell. The plates forming the ends of the shell
or cage are connected to the plates forming the end of the drum with
toothed blades by means of cross pieces, two arms of which are guided between
ribs on the ends of the plates of the shell, and the other two arms are guided
between ribs on the ends of the drum. When motion is given by a pulley
and strap or other equivalents to the shell, the motion is communicated by
the cross pieces above described to the drum, and vice versa.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into operation, I will proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of Drawings,
reference being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the principal parts of a machine suitable for
hackling and opening hemp to which my improvements are applied; Figure 2
is a section through the main drum, and Figure 3 a plan of one end of the
smaller drum.
:
a represents part of the ordinary feeding apparatus; b is the axle of the
small toothed drum; this axle revolves in bearings fixed to the frame sides,
as shewn in Figure 3, and to it are fixed the plates c supporting the blades d,
in which spikes or teeth are fixed in the usual manner. The plates e form
the ends of the cage within which the small drum revolves; these end plates
are placed eccentrically to the small drum, and they have bosses which revolve
in bearings fixed to the frame sides; to the circumference of the plates e are
fixed the iron blades f and wooden lags g, the spikes project beyond the lags
towards the feeding apparatus and carry the hemp or other fibres around the
lower portion of the small drum and deliver them to the large drum, which
will be described hereafter. The plates e are connected to the plates c by
means of the cross pieces h, two arms of which are guided between ribs on
the inside of the plates e, and the other two arms are guided between ribs on
the plates c.
When the axle b is turned round by means of the strap and
pulley, as shown by dotted lines in Figure 1, the cross pieces h transmit the
motion to the cage, thereby causing the spikes to project beyond and to be
drawn within the bars f and lags g. It is evident that if the driving power
is given to the cage it will in like manner be transmitted to the drum. The
fibres carried forward by the small drum are delivered to the main drum,
which consists of the axle i (revolving in the bearings n) having the two end
plates fixed thereon; these end plates support the blades k which are pro-
vided with spikes or teeth as usual. The plates form the ends of the cage

page_text: within which the main drum revolves, these plates support the blades p, and
they have bosses revolving in the bearings m, see Figure 2, to each of the
plates are fixed the brackets; fitting on two arms of the cross pieces o, and
to each of the plates are fixed. the brackets / fitting on the other arms of
the cross pieces o. These cross pieces serve to connect the shell and the main
drum in the manner above described, and as the main drum revolves the teeth
or spikes are made to project beyond the blades p, when near the small drum,
and they are drawn within the said blades when near the delivering end of
the machine, thereby leaving the fibres on the surface of the cage from which
they drop into a suitable receptacle, as in machines of the usual construction.
The main drum and the small drum may be driven by the same strap, as
shewn in Figure 1, and this strap is driven by the pulley 9 on the driving
shaft, or any other convenient mode of driving may be adopted.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, and described the manner
of performing the same, I wish to remark that I make no claim to any of
the well-known parts of the backling and opening machine, which are shewn
and described for the purpose of illustrating my improvements; but what I
do claim is the cross pieces marked h and o, by means of which the motion
of the toothed drum is transmitted to the shell, or vice versa, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Tomlinson, bave hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventh day of August, One. thousand eight hundred
and sixty-six.
JAMES TOMLINSON. (L.S.)