IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING APPARATUS FOR THRESHING MACHINES." FEEDING
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Joseph William Lee at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th August 1880.
JOSEPH WILLIAM LEE, of No. 6, Perowne Street, Mill Road, Cambridge, in the
County of Cambridge, Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING
APPARATUS FOR THRESHING MACHINES."
FEEDING
This Invention has for its objects improvements in self acting feeding apparatus
for threshing machines. In constructing this feeding apparatus I employ a wooden
frame of suitable size and strength, and upon this frame are fixed four springs
made of steel, iron, or other suitable metal or wood, and are made fast on the top
of the frame at one end; the other end is riveted or bolted to a cross bar of flat
iron or metal or other shape, or it can be made of wood. Two of these springs
are placed in a horizontal position on the frame, and the other two are brought
up taper from the end where they are made fast, and are connected to two pieces
of iron or metal of suitable size, which are rivetted on to the cross bar and rise up
some nine inches from the cross bar of flat iron, metal, or wood as above stated.
The springs are then secured to the ends of these upright pieces, and keep the
cross bar from twisting or from any undue strain upon it when in motion.
This cross bar is put in motion by means of a crank shaft or other motion, and is
driven by a belt or gear and made to slide on a piece of flat iron or metal secured
to the frame backwards and forwards in a circle of from four to six inches, the radius
of the circle being in proportion to the length of the springs. The cross bar has
also fixed upon it four tines, more or less, made of steel or iron, at equal distances,
and in addition to these four tines there is a second cross bar securely fastened to
the first bar and about three inches from the face of it. This bar carries three or
more steel knives for cutting the bands of the sheaves.
The tines and also the knives secured to the cross bars are made with slots, and
can be raised up and down at pleasure to allow more or less corn to pass when
feeding the drum.
The means of raising and lowering the tines is by a smaller bar to which the
ends of the tines are secured; the bar, which is placed immediately above the cross
bar, is arranged to carry a stud or screws at each end, the point of which comes
down on to the cross bar that carries the tines, and by screwing or unscrewing the
studs or screws the tines are raised or lowered to give more or less feed to the
machine.

page_text: An eccentrix or rack motion may be employed to raise the top cross bar instead
of studs or screws.
In connection with the tines, and in order to force the corn on to them, I employ
a roller with fine flat sides, and made with tee angle iron, of some 19 or 20 inches
diameter, which works in bearings screwed on to the sides of the machine. This
roller is drawn by a belt from the shaken shaft or any other convenient point of
the machine, and a pulley on the end of the roller spindle gives motion to a second
pulley keyed on to a small crank shaft; this crank shaft works a connecting rod
which is attached to the cross bar and springs, and moves them backwards and
forwards in a circular motion as above described.
I employ, if necessary, two rods of any shape placed in a parallel position and
working on stud pins or joints, and two rods to answer the purpose of the top
springs, for the purpose of giving a circular motion to the cross bar and tines in
place of the springs. An ordinary feed board is used to convey the corn to the
roller and thence to the tines, which separate it as it passes through them to the
drum.