Improvements in Delinting Seed and Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Aug., 1893-Accepted, 30th Sept., 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Delinting Seed and Apparatus therefor.
I, ABNER DUELL THOMAS, of No. 1118 Cumberland Street, in the City of
Little Rock, County of Pulaski, and State of Arkansas, United States of America
Manufacturer, 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 present improvement is designed more especially for cotton-seed. I have
heretofore made an improvement in methods and apparatus for delinting seed in
which the lint-bearing seed is fed in to a receptacle containing a lint-cutting, or
seed abrading part which, in its general outline, is cylindrical, or approximately
cylindrical, and which is arranged horizontally and adapted to be rotated in a
vertical, or approximately vertical plane.
The shell or casing which forms the wall of the seed receptacle forms a support
for the material while it is being acted upon by the rotating part, and the material.
being treated assumes an annular, or approximately annular, form around the
described rotating part, and the shell or casing, opposite the surface of the rotating
part, is perforated to provide an outlet for the lint which is separated from the
seed. The denuded seed is worked endwise within the described annular space and
is discharged through a separate outlet which is usually at the end of the receptacle.
The rotating part is the means relied upon for separating the lint from the seed
and it is shaped to cause its motion to be communicated to the surrounding body of
seed to cause it in turn to rotate within the annular space referred to, so that all
portions of it are presented to the surface of the rotating part and all the different
lirt-bearing seeds substantially brought directly into contact with the rotating part
to be uniformly treated. The construction referred to is described in a companion
application for Letters Patent of an even date herewith.
The construction under consideration resembles the one referred to in that a
horizontally arranged, rotating, cylindrical, or approximately cylindrical, lint
cutting or seed abrading part is employed in effecting the separation of the lint
from the seed. But in the place of having the body of seed being treated assume
the form of an annular roll around the rotating part, and imparting rotary motion
thereto, the body of seed rests upon and is subjected to the action of the rotating
part, in a manner somewhat analogous to that of a cotton-roll in a cotton gin, and
the separated lint and the denuded seed are discharged in separate directions, and
the lint as fast as it is separated is exhausted from the space above the rotating
part. And an additional feature of the improved method is subjecting the lint-
bearing seed to the action of more than one lint cutting or abrading part. That is,
the seed is subjected first to the action of a device which is designed to separate
the longer portion of the lint, and then the seed, with the shorter lint remaining
thereon, is subjected a second time to the action of another device which is
contrived to effect the separation of the remaining portion of the lint. The first.
one of the devices referred to is in its nature calculated rather to separate the lint
by pulling it or cutting it from the seed'; the second named device is designed
more especially for effecting the separation of the lint by abrading the seed. The
two devices in question are preferably contained in separate chambers, and in
practice they are preferably arranged one above the other, and the products
obtained from the two receptacles may be discharged in different directions and by
different means, or they may be discharged jointly and by the same means. The.
annexed drawings exhibit a desirable means for carrying out the improvement.

page_text: Figure 1, 18 a plan of the apparatus ;
Figure 2, is a side elevation, partly in vertical longitudinal section, of the
apparatus;
Figure 3, is a front elevation of the apparatus; and
Figure 4, is a vertical, transverse, section on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.
The same letters of reference denote the same parts.
A, represents that one of the devices to which the material to be treated is first
subjected, and B represents the one to which the material is subsequently subjected.
The device A, in practice, is a series of circular saws, a, fastened to a horizontal
shaft a', that is journalled in suitable bearings, a², a², in the frame C, and enclosed
by a casing as which quite closely surrounds the described series of saws saving at the
top thereof where the casing is extended upward to form a chamber, D, in which
the seed to be treated is received and held during its treatment. E represents an
inlet through which the lint bearing seed is introduced into the chamber D, and
F represents the flue through which the lint is discharged from the chamber D.
The needed air for the operation is admitted to the chamber D through the inlet d,
which is arranged at the front of the chamber, and G represents an adjustable gate
which serves partly to graduate the air supply and partly to direct the air favorably
to the immediate vicinity of the saws. The gate is adjustable to enable it to be set
closer to or farther from the saws, and convenient mode of holding the gate at any
desired point of adjustment is by means of a pin g, which can be passed through
any desired one of a series of perforations, gl, in the gate, and allowing its ends to
rest upon the top of the casing, or some shoulder thereon, and thereby suspend the
gate at the desired elevation, substantially as shown.
The other rotating device B, is in practice composed of corundum, and it is
secured to a horizontally-arranged shaft b, which is held and adjusted to be rotated
in the bearings, 61, 61, in the frame C, and the part is inclosed by a casing, ³, saving
at the top of the part where the casing is extended, in a manner analogous to that
in which the casing as incloses the device A, to inclose a chamber, D', above the
device and in which chamber the seed, after being partially treated in the
chamber D, is received and therein subjected to the action of the device B.
E³, represents a suitable passage or chute through which the partially treated seed
is, by gravity, transferred from the chamber D' to the chamber D. The air is
admitted into the chamber D, through perforations d', and F' represents a flue
through which the lint is discharged from the chamber C.
The flues F and F connect with the air-exhausting device G, and a single escape
flue, H, may suffice for the discharge of the lint to any desired point. But if
desired the fan G, may be divided to form a double fan parts operate respectively
in separate chamber with which the flues F, F1, respectively connect, and the
escape flue H, may be similarly divided and its parts may lead from the two fan
chambers respectively. This last named method is preferable, in that it enables
the chambers D, D', to be arranged at different distances from the fan, and this in
turn enables the device B, and the parts immediately therewith connected, to be
arranged in a different plane vertically from that of the device A, and its associated
parts and thus be made more accessible for inspection and repair. Another
advantage derived from attaching the devices A, B, to different shafts in that if
desired the parts in question can be rotated at different speeds. The saws which
constitute the device A are preferably arranged immediately alongside of each
other, and, alternately, arranged to cause the teeth in adjoining saws to be out of
line with each other. The saws are shown of the same diameter which I consider
to be preferable.
The preferably shape of the device B is similar to that shown in the construction
above referred to, namely a combination of channelled portions. 6, portions b,
having projections 67, smoother circular portions 68, and grooves b³, all relatively
arranged substantially as shown, thereby providing a varied contour along.which
the seed is worked and tumbled in various ways in its passage from one end of the
chamber D' to the other end thereof. The outlet for the denuded seed is at I.

page_text: In operation the lint-bearing seed is delivered through the inlet E, into the
chamber D where it, following the line of least resistance, works its way along to
the opposite end of the chamber and in such passage the seed is subjected to the
action of the saws, and a large portion of the lint-the longer lint-is separated
from it, and as fast as it is separated the lint, by the action of the fan, is carried off
through the flue F.
The partially stripped seed on reaching the farther end of the chamber D passes
out into the chute E' and falls through the same into the chamber D¹. The seed
then works along the chamber D¹ to the other end thereof and in such movement is
subjected to the abrading action of the device B, and ultimately, the denuded seed
is discharged through the outlet I. The lint from the chamber D¹ is exhausted
through the flue F¹. The device B may be variously shaped without departing.
from the principle of the improvement so long as it is adapted to separate the
shorter fibre from the seed. And instead of having the deeper grooves in the part.
to come toward the inlet E¹, they may be arranged toward the outlet I.
I desire not to be restricted to any special relative arrangement of the devices A
and B, and the chambers D and D may assume any relative position which.
harmonizes with the relative position of the devices A and B.
Nor do I wish to be restricted to circular saws in constructing the lint-cutting
device A, nor again in corundum, or any special contour, in constructing the seed-.
abrading device B. I prefer however in the one case to employ the saws and
arranged as shown, and in the other case to use a cylinder or cylinder-like part.
composed partly if not wholly of corundum, and of the irregular surface shown, as
being best fitted for the purpose in question. Nor do I desire to be confined to a
strictly horizontal arrangement in adjusting the devices A and B or either of them,.
as I have ascertained the travel of the seed is sometimes accelerated by lowering
the discharge end of the device or devices in question. The special means for
driving the devices A and B are not shown in the drawing. But in practice a belt
is carried around the various pulleys M, M², M³, which are attached to the various.
shafts as shown, so as to operate the devices A, B, at the desired rates. And if
desired the construction can be such as to cause the devices to be rotated at
different rates. The pulley which drives the belt referred to is not shown.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a cotton seed delinter the combination of a casing having a cylindrical
lower portion, a lint cutting cylinder adapted to revolve in said lower portion, said
casing having an unobstructed chambered portion above said cylinder wherein the
seed may be thoroughly agitated, an air inlet in one side of said chamber, and a
lint outlet in the opposite side of said chamber, and means for producing a current
of air from said air-inlet through the chamber to said outlet, substantially as.
described.
2. In a cotton seed delinter the combination of a revolving cylinder, a casing.
therefor having a free and unobstructed chambered portion above said cylinder in
which the seed is agitated, an air inlet in one side of the chamber, a lint-outlet in
the opposite side of the chamber, an outlet for the denuded seed, and means for
producing a current of air through said chamber, whereby the lint is separated
from the seed as the latter are agitated in the chamber, substantially as described.
3. In a cotton seed delinter the combination of a revolving cylinder, a casing.
therefor having an unobstructed chambered portion above said cylinder in which
the seed is agitated, an air inlet in one side of the chamber a lint outlet in the
opposite side of the chamber, an outlet for the denuded seed, means for producing a
current of air through said chamber, and means for regulating said air current,
whereby the lint is separated from the seed as the latter are agitated in the
chamber, substantially as described.
4. The combination, in a device for separating lint from cotton seed, of a lint

page_text: cutting or detaching device, and a separate means for abrading the seed connected
thereto, whereby as the longer lint is detached the partly denuded seed is dis-
charged into the abrading device, a separate exhaust or lint-conveying passage
connected to each of said devices, each of said passages being separated from the
other, and means for producing a current of air through such passages, substantially 5
as described.
DL: O SA At 1002
R. HADDAN,
Herbert Haddan & Co.,
18, Buckingham Street. Strand, London, Agent for Applicant.