IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING AND FEEDING PLASTIC MATERIAL IN THE PROCESS PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Nichols, of Old Victoria Foundry, Leeds,
and William Short Batley, of Park Gate, near Rotherham, both in
the County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING AND FEEDING PLASTIC MATERIAL IN THE PROCESS
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Nichols and
William Short Batley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 12th April 1871.
.WC, WILLIAM NICHOLS, of Old Victoria Foundry, Leeds, and
WILLIAM SHORT BATLEY, of Park Gate, near Rotherham, both in the
County of York, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING AND FEEDING
PLASTIC MATERIAL IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING AND PRESSING BRICKS, TILES,
BLOCKS, OR OTHER ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
:-
· Our Invention relates to machinery or apparatus for carrying blocks
of clay or plastic material from the pug mill or other apparatus.to the

page_text: press, whereby the labour of carrying the clay is economized and the
dangerous operation of feeding the press by hand avoided. The clay
delivered in a cylindrical form from the pug mill or moulding apparatus
is cut into lengths or blocks suitable for the brick or object to be made,
and these blocks are received upon a surface which is caused to move
step by step so as to carry away the blocks as they are delivered from
the pug mill or moulding apparatus. This surface is formed from a
series of boards or plates linked together into an endless chain, the
chain passing over a poligonal roller at each end and being supported
by guiding surfaces between such rollers. The chain of plates is of a
suitable length to carry the blocks of clay from the pug mill or
moulding apparatus to the press, and the chain of plates is so placed
and arranged in combination with the press that the blocks of clay are
successively delivered by the movement of the chain of plates into the
press without the intervention of hand labour. At that time when the
top plunger of the press is raised and after the pressed brick or article
has been removed from the press the chain of plates is moved forward
a step by suitable mechanical contrivances, and by this movement one
of the plates is caused to turn over the chain roller so as to throw the
block of clay which was upon it into the press for the next pressing
operation, and so on for each action of the press.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Nichols and William Short Batley in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 10th October 1871.
'
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, WILLIAM
NICHOLS, of Old Victoria Foundry, Leeds, and WILLIAM SHORT BATLEY,
of Park Gate, near Rotherham, both in the County of York, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of April, in the year of 3
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto us, the said William Nichols and William Short Batley,
Her special licence, that we, the said William Nichols and William
Short Batley, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others 3

page_text: "
as we, the said William Nichols and William Short Batley, our 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 OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING AND FEEDING PLASTIC MATERIAL IN THE
PROCESS OF MAKING AND PRESSING BRICKS, TILES, BLOCKS, OR OTHER ARTICLES,'
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said William Nichols
and William Short Batley, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the
hand and scal of one of us or them should particularly describo 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
Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Nichols, on behalf of
myself and the said William Short Batley, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-
Our Invention relates to machinery or apparatus for carrying blocks
of clay or plastic material from the pug mill or other moulding
apparatus and delivering such blocks into the press, whereby the labour
of carrying the clay is economized and the dangerous operation of feeding
the press by hand is avoided.
And in order that our Invention may be readily understood and
carried into practice, we will proceed to describe the same reference
being had to the accompanying Drawing.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 shews a side view, Figure 2 a plan, and Figure 3 a trans-
verse section of so much of apparatus constructed and arranged according
to our Invention as will enable us to explain the same.
The clay or other plastic material is delivered from the orifice of a
pug mill or other machine for preparing the same (not indicated in the
Drawing) as commonly practised and is then cut into lengths or blocks
of suitable dimensions to form the brick, tile, block, or other article to
be made and pressed.

page_text: When carrying out our Invention we prefer to adapt a circular orifice
to the pug mill or other preparing machine so that the clay or plastic
material may be delivered in a cylindrical form.
The blocks of clay a are placed successively upon surfaces which arc
caused to move step by step so as to carry away the blocks as they are i
delivered from the pug mill or moulding apparatus. The surfaces upon
which the blocks a are placed are a series of boards or plates linked
together by endless chains b, b, and such chains b, b, pass over poligonal
rollers c, c', and are supported by guiding surfaces d, d, between such
rollers. The chains b, b, are of suitable length to carry the blocks of
clay from the pug mill or moulding apparatus to the brick press; ✓ is
the brick press frame, and f' the mould into which the block a is to
be introduced to be pressed. The plunger for pressing the bricks is
omitted from the Drawing; g is the cranked shaft of the brick press,
and a step by step motion is communicated to the chain b from the
crank shaft in the following manner is a lever which is free to
move upon the axis of the roller c', and the lever c is caused to oscillato
by means of the connecting rod c', and the crank pin g¹ upon the crank
axis g; c' is a ratchet wheel fixed on the axis of the roller c', and a
catch upon the lever takes into the teeth of the ratchet wheel c'
and moves the roller c' round a suitable distance for each operation of
the brick press.
According to our Invention the chain of plates is so placed and
arranged in combination with the brick press that the blocks of clay a
are successively delivered by the movement of the chain of plates into
the press mould ƒ¹ without the intervention of hand labor. At that
time when the plunger of the press is raised and after the pressed brick
or article has been removed from the press the chain of plates b is moved
forward a step, as above described, and by this movement one of the
plates is caused to turn over the chain roller c' and throw the block
of clay which was upon it into the press mould for the next pressing
operation, and so on for cach action of the press.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
of performing or carrying the same into practice, we would have it
understood that we do not confine ourselves to the exact details hercin
described, but what we claim is, the combination and arrangement of a
travelling chain of plates with a brick press or moulding machines

page_text: substantially in the manner and for the purposes herein-before
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Nichols, have hereunto set
my
hand and seal, this Fifth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-one.
Sigued, scaled and delivered by
tho above-named William
Nichols, in the presence of
W. MIDDLETON,
WM. NICHOLS. (L.S.)
Sol.,
Leeds.