Preserving Vegetable Matters to be Used as Food.
Year: 1886

page_text: Preserving Vegetable Matters to be Used as Food.
DAVID JOHNSON of Radbourne Manor Farm, in the County of Warwick, Farmer,
and HENRY GILBERT RICE DAVIES of Southam in the same County, Gentleman,
do hereby declare the nature of our invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN MEANS
OR APPARATUS FOR USE IN STORING OR PRESERVING VEGETABLE MATTERS TO BE
USED AS FOOD, to be as follows:-
The object of the invention is to store or preserve vegetable matters in masses or
bodies under pressure in mauner known as ensilage in a more convenient ready
and effectual manner than that at present practised and with other advantages.
For this purpose we are able if desired to dispense with the surrounding or
enclosing walls or to render such unnecessary in order to obtain the requisite
pressure on the matters preserved in a compacted mass, and in carrying our
invention into effect we prepare a floor or platform of wood, metal or other
suitable material or combination of materials suitably braced or strengthened to
enable it to resist strains thereto. This platform floor or base may conveniently
be constituted by cross pieces or logs of wood or angle or hollow iron underlying
or secured to a floor or base of boards or sheet metal or other material and upon
this floor the vegetable matters are built up or placed and upon these matters an
upper structure of wood or metal in strips boards or sheets overlaid by and
secured to cross beams, bars or parts and these upper and under parts are drawn
together or towards one the other by means of screwed rods or pillars either
operating telescopically or otherwise under the rotating influence of lever pressure,
or the compression by drawing together of the floor and cover may be attained
by chains ropes or bands passed from floor to cover and drawn upon by means of
leverage applied to the rotating axes on which the chains ropes or bands are
connected and wound.
The upper and under platforms or pressing and supporting surfaces may be
made in sections or parts and bolted or similarly connected and rendered rigid
under the strains of draught towards each other by girders or cross pieces acting
as such which form at their ends where they project the means of connection for
the tackle by which the compression is applied and as already stated this method
enables us to dispense with side walls or to render them independent of the
compressing parts,

page_text: The pressure may be applied either around, centrally or otherwise of the
compressed mass and when centrally or similarly applied the means of draught
may be caused to pass down through the mass being compressed.
Hydraulic or other pressure may be employed to operate the draught of the floor
and cover towards each other or other pressure exerted herein.
Having thus obtained the necessary compactness or compression perpendicularly
and having trimmed the sides or edges of the mass we in some cases proceed to
encircle or surround the mass with planks, sheets or plates to form a wall or
surface upon which we then bring side or lateral pressure to bear so as still further
to condense the matters, or prevent access of air or moisture or other deleterious
influences thereto: or the order of these operations may be varied.
The cover or roof or the upper platform or either or both may be raised from
the matters under compression or otherwise lifted or lowered by means of tackle
or connections passing over poles supports or pillars placed around or otherwise
conveniently for the purpose of raising the cover or the platform to the desired
height for removal, renewal or addition of matters to be treated.
In between the outer surfaces of the ensiloed matters and the encircling or
surrounding walls may be applied lime or other suitable decay preventing material."
W BROOKES & SON,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Agents for the said David Johnson and
Henry Gilbert Rice Davies.

page_text: Preserving Vegetable Matters to be Used as Food.
We DAVID JOHNSON of Radbourne Manor Farm, in the County of Warwick,
Farmer and HENRY GILBERT RICE DAVIES of Southam in the same County,
Gentleman 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 :-
The object of the invention is to provide improved means or apparatus for use
in effecting the safe or effectual storage or preservation of vegetable matters from
one season to another in masses or bodies under pressure in the manner now
generally known as ensilage and to enable this to be effected in a more convenient,
ready, effectual and economical manner than by the means at present practised and
to gain other advantages.
In carrying out our invention we are able, if such be desired, to dispense with
the surrounding building or more or less permanent surrounding walls or enclosing
structure and render any permanent enclosing parts unnecessary for the purpose
of preserving the matters or to obtain the requisite pressure thereon to attain a
compacted mass; to a great extent exclude air and moisture and attain greatly
increased compression of the matters and so arrest fermentation and delay
decomposition.
In carrying our invention into effect we prepare a floor or platform of wood,
metal, concrete or other suitable material or combined materials suitably laid,
braced and of strength to adapt it to resist strains thereto or pressure from the
Bupported matters as also to preserve the ensiloed matters from contact with the
earth and consequent absorption of moisture.
This platform, floor, foundation or base may be conveniently constructed with
cross pieces, bars, or logs, of wood, metal or, say, angle or hollow iron underlying
or secured to a floor or base of boards, sheet metal or other material and upon this
base, be it wooden boards, metal sheet, tile, brick, stone slabs or material most
convenient for the locality, the vegetable matters are built up or placed and upon
these matters so stored or heaped up, an upper structure covering or compressing
platform of metal wood or like convenient material in strips, boards or sheets is
laid and these again are overlaid by and secured to other cross beams, girders, bars,
or ribs bracing or securing the parts together so as to form a strong pressing
surface capable of being separately moved and this upper platform or overlying
pressing surface is drawn or pressed towards the bottom supporting floor by means
of screwed rods or pillars or jacks either screw or hydraulic, either operating
telescopically or otherwise under the rotating motion derived from levers or the
compression may be attained by drawing together the floor or base and the upper
platform by means of chains ropes or bands passed from the base to the covering
or pressing platform and around it from side to side or through the ensilaged
matters and drawn upon by levers applied to rotating axes applied to the bars
affixed to the cover or the base.
The upper and the under pressing and supporting surfaces are conveniently
made in sections or parts and bolted or similarly connected and rendered rigid
under the strains of the pressure or draught towards each other requisite for the
proper compression of the matters by girders, bars, ribs or cross pieces acting to

page_text: stiffen the same and these girders form at their ends where they project means of
attachment or abutment for the compressing tackle. Thus as already noted we
are enabled to dispense with any permanent, side walls, or structure to obtain
purchase or abutment from and we make our apparatus self contained and
independent.
Any walls or enclosure that may exist or be used may be quite separate from
the compressing means.
The compression may be applied either around, centrally or otherwise distributed
to press the mass.
Screw pressure will generally be found most convenient for application in
operating the upper toward the under surface or in other direction to compress
the mass.
Hydraulic pressure gives most effectual pressure at a low rate of speed for the
same purpose.
...
The necessary compactness of the mass by downward or perpendicular pressure
having been attained the sides or edges of the mass should be trimmed and then if
so desired the encirclement or enclosure of the mass with a sheathing of planking
plates or sheets may be proceeded with using the standards as retaining ribs or
buttresses for the sheathing. The planks or like divisions of the sheathing may
be built up, utilizing the cross pieces to retain the pieces in the direction at right
angles thereto so that the whole becomes locked in and secure preventing access of
air or moisture too freely to the mass.
To obtain side way pressure if desired these planks may be forced inwards.
The rearing of the sheathing may in some cases be proceeded with in stacking the
matters and serve to clamp them.
The upper compressing structure will be found to afford great protection from
entrance of moisture to the mass under pressure and as the mass is generally more
solid in the middle and the pressure generally applied according to our invention
around the structure any flexure is generally in directions to facilitate running off
of wet clear of the contents but where further protection from wet is desired a
roof or supplemental cover may be suspended over the stacked matters by cords
chains or lines passing over pulleys or runners at the heads of the uprights and
this may be lowered as required.
Raising and lowering of the compressing platform as desired after the matters
have taken their set after compression may be effected in like manner should
access be facilitated thereby in order to remove, renew or make addition to the
mass of enclosed vegetable matter.
In some conditions of circumstances it is desirable to apply line or other
matter anti-septic or preservative in its operation-between the mass and the
sheathing to prevent or minimise decay.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shews an outer side view of a convenient arrangement of the improved
apparatus.
"
Figure 2 shews a section taken vertically through Figure 1.
$
Figure 3 shews an 'end view and Figure 4 a sectional plan view of the same
taken on the line A A of Figure 3 a, a, a, a are the undermost girders or
rafters shewn as of metal supporting other cross girders b, b, 6 laid thereon and
on which again is laid the floor or support c for the matters to be preserved under
pressure. d is the under floor or lining surface of the compressing cover backed
by or connected to the longitudinal ribs or girders e which again are backed by
and connected to the cross girders f. 9, 9, 9, 9, gl, g¹, g¹, g¹ are upright double.
pillars or supports connected to the lower cross girders a and longitudinal girders b
and also held in proper relative position above by tie rods h and filling pieces or
blocks . In the spaces between the bars of these uprights the cross girders
ends slide up and down. Diagonal ties or bracings ; may be introduced as

page_text: desired care being taken not to interfere unnecessarily with free access to the mass
enclosed.
1, 1, are keys passing through holes g' in the mid-feather of the upright posts g, g₁
and serving to lock the cross bars f by their ends f¹ at their respective positions as
step by step depressed by the jacks or like depressing means applied to the ends f¹
to draw or press them down towards the bottom bars a by means of chains or
links applied thereto or press them down using keys as I, l as abutments.
m are pullies applied to the upper ends of the uprights g¹ over which chains or
lines to support a roof n indicated by dotted lines in Figure 2 may be passed.
o, p indicate respectively the cross and longitudinal planks for sheathing in the
mass, the cross planks pass between the ribs of the upright double posts gand the
longitudinal planks p within the upright side posts g₁ and butt end on against
the cross planks o.
The planks of the upper compressing platform d may conveniently be of 3 inches
thickness placed flat side by side and they may extend to from 6 to 12 inches at
the edges of the platform beyond the finished line of the stacked mass and they
may be further bound together and to girders by bars of iron indicated by the
lines Figure 1s and hooks d' fastened to these bars passing through from side to
side, or otherwise secured, hold to lift or lower the platform without employing the
jacks may be obtained such as during stacking.
These bars d being provided at their screwed ends d' with a connector d³ and
nuts d, or equivalent means, may be used to draw the planks & tightly together
and hold them close, when the moisture and heat of the ensiloed matters will aid
by swelling the wood to further prevent access of exterior wet and secure a water-
tight cover, even without a separate roof. d³ are books for suspension.
In using chains either in aid of the double bars or uprights g and g¹, or either of
them, or in substitution therefor we pass the chains t (see Figure 5) from a saddle
pieces to which each end of each separate chain is connected down by the sides of
the bars f¹, to and around the bars à and using the surface of the upper bars flas
fulcrum bases lever pressure applied to lift the saddle 8 and depress the bar ends f¹
will depress the upper platform or a screw jack or like lifting means applied as
at x under the saddles will serve to depress the end f1 of each girder and on each
lift being effected the girder may be locked down step by step by a holding down
chain de applied below f¹ secured to a, or the chain de may be drawn up by screws
or other means to pull down the beam f¹ using a as the abutment, using coupling
links for better hold.
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 :-
l
1. In apparatus for use in storing or preserving vegetable matters to be used as
food the combination of a base or floor and its supports, side supports and guides,
with locking means acting therein and an upper compressing floor or structure to
be depressed by screws or jacks or equivalent means all co-operating in manner
and for the purpose set forth.
2. The general combination or arrangements of parts of apparatus for use in
storing or preserving vegetable matters to be used as food co-operating to compress
the matters between two surfaces as set forth.