US506422A - Band-cutter and feeder - Google Patents

Description

v (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

R. E. DORTON. BAN-D CUTTER AND FEEDER. No. 506,422; Patented Oct. 10, 1-893.

F4. #2 I, l al 5' 5%! R a W A (No Model.) B E DORTON 3 Sheets-Sheet 2Q BAND CUTTER AND FEEDER.

Patented Oct. 10, 1893.

(No Model.) a Sheet-Sheet 3.

R. E. 'DORTON.

BAND CUTTER AND FEEDER. 1 6,422. Patented Oct. 10', 1893;

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT E. DORTON, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

BAN D-CUTTER AND FEEDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 506,422, dated October\10, 1893.

Application filed March 1, 1892- Serial No, 423,338. (No model.) v

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that 1, ROBERT E. DORTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Band-Cutters and Feeders and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. I Y

My invention has for its object to provide an efiicient band cutter and feeder for th rashing machines. To this end, I employa feeding device arranged parallel with and delivering to the thrashing cylinder; a clearing device working against the back pressure from the feeding device to clear the same from any excess of stock accumulating between the said feeding and clearing device, so as to prevent any excess of stock being fed forward; a rotary band-cutter having feathering blades; a resisting surface for the band-cutter and the feeding device; a bundle table extending forward of the feed board provided with endless conveyers delivering to the band cutter; a hood over-decking the feeding device and the band cutting and clearing devices open at its forward end and co-operating with the said devices to redeliver the excess of stock thrown back by the clearing device onto the conveyers; and a friction clutch governorcontrolled by the velocity of the thrashing cylinder and I having driving connections with the bundle conveyers and the feeding device, whereby the feed of the stock will be checked or stopped Whenever the thrashing cylinder falls below the speed required for the proper thrashing action. The feeding device is preferably in the form of a rotary cylinder and the clearing devices and the band cutting knives are preferably carried by one and the same cylinder, arranged in advance of and parallel with the feed-cylinder.

Other novel features in the construction and arrangement-of the parts will appear in the detailed description and be particularly defined in the claims.

A machine embodying the preferred form of my mechanism is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Therein like letters refer to like parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a left side elevation. of the machine, positions being taken with reference to .an observer facing the travel of the stock,

some parts being broken away. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same, some parts being broken away; and Fig. 3 is a plan view, some parts being removedand other parts broken away.

A represents a part of the separator.

I which in this machine constitutes the resistance surface for the feed cylinder "and the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder.

A 2 is the forwardly extended brace from the separator frame, forsupporting the outer end of the feed-board and some of the operative parts. 7

A and A are respectively the thrashing cylinder and concave.

A is the driving pulley on the right. end of the shaft offthe thrashing cylinder.

B is the rotary cylinder constituting the feed-device.

C is the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder.

D is the bundle-table, extending forward of and in line with the feed-board, and pivotally connected to the separator frame, at the head of the'feed-board and supported at its outer end by a pivoted truck and lock segment D and D to permit the angular adjustment of the same in the vertical plane.

' E are the conveyers, preferably in the form of independent toothed chains delivering to the feed-board'and band-cutter.

' G is the hood over-decking the feeding, band-cutting and'clearing devices, open at its forward end. 1 v

H is the friction clutch governor.

The feedcylinder is provided with a series of feathering shafts B, which have rigidly securedthereto a series of spike-like teeth B which are so set that they will always stand,

under their feathering action, at an angle tothe feed or travel'of the stock. As shown,

they stand approximately in vertical posi the main frame of B. The band cutting knives C and the clearhead of the cylinder.

ing teeth C normally stand, in this machine approximately parallel with the travel of the stock. The important point to be noticed in this connection, is that the knives-shouldalways extend backward with reference to the travel of the stock, so as to readily clear the same" after completing their cutting action; and that the clearing teeth C should always stand in such position that they will not in terfere' with the normal flow of the stock, but will engage with all excess of the sam'e'which may accumulate under the back pressn re'from the feed cylinder B. It will thusbe seen that the teeth B of the feed-cylinder and the clearing teeth C on the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder have an important relation and co-operation with each other, the effect of which is to produce-a substantially uniform feed of the stock. The over-"decking hood G has its forward section set at an angle extending downward and forward, so that the co-operation of the clearing teeth 0 and the said hood will be to carry the excess of stock backward over the combined band-cutting and clearing-cylinder C and deliver the same ontothe bundle=table D and the conveyers' E. The hood G is preferably made up'of fixed sections' and pivoted sections, the pivoted sections serving to give ready access to the working parts and to permit a yielding action to the hood at certain points where required. The particular pivoted section of the'hood located between thethra shin g cylinder and the feed cylinder is provided with a filling block G, which serves to prevent an excessive back draftand outwardmovem'ent of the'dust from the thrashing cylinder. v

Any suitable mechanism may beemployed to eifect the feathering action of the shafts B and C. Many forms of mechanism capable of this function are old and well-knownin the arts, especially as applied for feathering the paddles of'paddle-W'neel boats. I have used and show for the purpose, epicyclic' trains of gears. Of thesetrains, the inner end member' K is loosely mounted on the cylinder shaft and is keyed to'the right bearing-box of the said shaft, so as to be held rigidly with thesaid bearing box. The outer end member K of the said train, is keyed to the feathering shaft, and the intermediate member K is mounted on a studshaft K fixed to the The outer and inner members of the said train must be of the same size. The intermediate member may be of any size. The members of this train move in the directionsindicate'd by the arrows; and the effect of the same is to hold the feathering shafts in constant positions in respect to the movement of the cylinder. The central member of the train is common to all the trains of gear carried by each cylinder.

The friction clutch governor is, in the detail of its construction, identical with the so-called, automatic speed controlled clutch, shown and described in myformerPatentNo.439,490,

issued to me of date October 28, 1890, entitled band-cutter and feeder. A detailed description of the construction of this governor is not deemed necessary for thepurposes of this case. It will probably besufiicient to state that it comprises'a-hollow pulley I'I', loosely mounted on the shaft P, which is themain driving-shaft for the band-cutting and feed ing mechanism; and a pair of radially moving'fri'ction shoes H mounted for'ra'dial movementona head-bar H 'keyed to the shaft; and spring-held pivoted weights H arranged to eflFect the radial motion of thefriction shoes under the movement of the said shaft and head-bar. \Vhenever the centrifugal force overcomes the tension of the springs,- the shoes will he bron'ght into frictional engagement with the rim of the pulley and cause the same to move with the shaft. The powershaft P carries at its right=hand end a driving pulley Pf connectedby belt P with the pulley A of the thrashing cylinder. The

power from the engine (not shown) is applied tothe' pulley A of the thrashing cylinder by the main driving belt A (only partially shown). This main belt A works over the top of the belt P before described. In other words, the main belt simply encircles the belt P and works over the same pulley A The hub of the governor pulley H'is provided with a small sprocket H connected by a sprocket chain R with a sprocket-wheel R on a counter-shaft R supported in bearings on the front braces A of the separator frame. The connter shaft R carries on its outer end a small sprocket; R connected by sprocketchain R with a sprocket B on the left end of the shaft of the feed-cylinder. The countershaft R also carries a sprocket R connected by chain R with a sprocket E" on. a shaft E which is provided with a gearE meshing with the gear E on theconveyor-driving-shaft E The power shaftP has rigidly secured thereto a sprocket P connected by chain P with a sprocket C on the left end of the combined band-cutting and clearing cylinder shaft. The conveyer shaft E has sprockets E engaging the toothed conveyer chains E. It is evident that, with this arrangement of the driving-gear, the band-cutting and clearing cylinder 0 will be kept in constant motion; and that the feed cylinder'B and theconveyers E will move whenever the governor pulley moves. The thrashing cylinder is run at the customary high rate of speed, preferably about twelve to fourteen hundred revolutions perminute. The feed cylinder is driven at a slow speed, preferably from twenty to thirty,

revolutions per minute. The combined bandcutting and clearing cylinder is driven at a high rate of speed relatively to the feed cyl-. inder, preferably from two hundred and fifty to three hundred revolutions per minute. The toothed conveyers E travel at the rate of about fifty to eighty feet per minute. The feed cylinder B is so located with reference to the thrashing cylinder that the reach between the two on the line of the feed is less. than the length of the grain stalks. Hence, the butts of a bundle or bunch of stock will be held by the teeth of the feed cylinder, while the forward ends of the same will be engaged by the thrashing cylinder; and owing to the fact that the feed cylinder moves atsuch a slow rate of speed and that the thrashing cylinder moves at such a high ,rate'of speed, the feed cylinder has a retarding. effect on the stock relatively to the movement of the thrash-.

ing cylinder and the latter has a drawing and stripping effect on the stock while restrained or retarded bythe feed cylinder.

The general operation. of the machine is obvious from the description alreadygiven; butmay be briefly summarized as followsp-. The. uncut bundles are thrown endwise on the bundle-table D, preferably-heads forward,-

and are fed forward by the conveyers E to the cylinder 0. Under the action of, the

- knives on this cylinder, the bands will be cut and the bundles spread out and opened up and the stock be fed forward to the feed-cylinder. Under the combined efiect of the two cylinders O and B, the proper amountof the stock will be fed forward and delivered to the thrashing cylinder, and any excess of stock accumulating between the twocylinders will be thrown backward by the clearing teeth 0 through the open end of-the hood G onto the conveyers E to be again presented thereby to the band-cutting cylinder. This clearing ac-.

tion is vital to the success of a band cutter and feeder. Otherwise, an over-feed would be effected and stock would accumulate-between the two cylinders undersuch great pressure as to choke down the feed-cylinder and produce breakage. The control of the governor also comes in, in this connection, to insure the proper action of.the operative parts.v If owingto the condition of the stock,

- as for example, when damp, matted, or otherwise difiicult to thrash, the speed of the thrashing cylinder should fall below the proper movement, to effect good work, the governor pulley H will be released from the friction shoes H permitting the feed cylinder'B and the conveyers E to stop, until the thrashing cylinder recovers its proper speed. Meantime, and at all times, the band cutting and clearing cylinder 0 is in continuous and rapid motion, the effect of forwardthe stock or clear the feed cylinder and throats ofany accumulations of the same over and above the normal feed. This leaves which vis either to V the, feed cylinder always in condition for action, when'the thrashing, cylinder is moving at the proper speed. The fact that the gov-.

ernor is a friction governor is also important to the success of the action, as it permits a yielding action between its clutch members.

or frictional surfaces. This permits the pulley H of the governor and the feed-cylinder anjdconveyers driven thereby to start gradually or with a yielding action, ,if;necessary. It. also permits the feed cylinder and conveyers to slow up or stop under some conditions, even if the thrashing cylinder is running at full speed. This is desirable to avoid break-;

age on the entrance of solid materials, or the disarrangement of the conveyers or other parts. Interference withthe proper action, whether by the way of the presence of .chok-- ing materials, or disarrangement of any of the .parts, will be instantly revealed and breakage and danger of accidentsbe avoided;

. In addition to the functions, of .the .band. cutting cylinder C, herein beforespecified, it should also be noted that the construction is such that it adapts itself to the proper drawon the uncut bundles. In other .words,in

case the bundles should overlie each'otherand pile up, at the delivery end of .the bun-. dleconveyers E, ,thefeathering action of the knives C .will simply. throw the top bundles outward and will not begin tohave any draw on the uncut bundles, until approaching near. to the conveyers. It is therefore impossible to choke the band-cutter. overlie each other, stacking up against'the hood, for example, the upper bundles will simply stand there, as demonstrated by actual work, until the lower bundles are drawn in};

By actual usagc,I.have demonstratedthat; this. machine will do good work and that it has largecapacity.

It will of course fications might be made in many of the de tails of the construction, andin the arrange-. ment of some of the parts. For example, the clearing teeth 0 and the band cutting knives C might be carried on independent cylinders, spaced apart from each other, with the latter in front of the former.-

Having regard to the broad feature of cooperating feed-device delivering directly to the thrashing mechanism and a clearing device working in connection therewith, to prevent an excess of feed, I'desire to h'aveit un-j derstood that I do not limit myself tothe particular form of feed device and the particular form of clearing device herein shown' The feed-cylinder B herein.sh0wn and de-.

scribed as located parallel withthe thrashing'cylinder and with a reach between the If several bundles be understood,that modi-i- IIO two .of less extent that the grain-stalks or bundles of grainto be thrashed, is similarly shown and described and claimed in my pending application Serial No. 423,337, filed of date March 1, 1892, entitled method of and apparatus for feeding stock to thrashing machines.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

1. In a thrashing machine the combination with band cutting and feeding devices and a thrashingcylinder, of mechanism constructed and operating to remove any excess of stock which may accumulate between the band cutting devices and the thrashing cylinder and deposit thesame in frontof the band cutting mechanism, substantially as described.

2. In a thrashing machine, the combination with the thrashing cylinder, of a rotary cylinder rovided with feathering shafts and clearing teeth carried on and feathered by said shafts, adapted to throw outward to the front of the machine any excess of stock which may accumulatebetween the=band-cutting mechanismand the thrashing cylinder.

3. In a-thrashin-g machine, the combination with the thrashing cylinder, of a rotary cylinder provided with feathering shafts, carryingband cutting knives and clearing teeth,

the said cylinder operating to cut the bundles spread and forward the stock, and to throw outwardto the front any excess of stock which-may accumulate between the said band cutting and clearing cylinder and the said thrashing cylinder, substantially as described.

4. A feeding mechanism for thrashers, comprising a feed cylinder for effecting a forced feed to the thrasher and a clearing cylinder for preventing an excessive feed by said feed cylinder, the said clearing cylinder being arranged to work against the back pressure of the feed cylinder to throw backward and clear the same of any excess of stock accumulating between the said cylinders.

5. A feeding mechanisnrfor thrashers, comprising a feed cylinder and a clearing cylinder having forwardly projecting teeth, for preventing an excessive feed by said feed cylinder, the saidclearin g cylinder being arranged to work against the back pressure of the feed cylinder to throw backward and clear the same of any excessof stock accumulating between the two cylinders.

6. A feeding mechanism for thrashers com prising a toothed feed cylinder and a toothed clearing cylinder, the latter of which works against the back pressure of the former, the teeth of the feed cylinder being arranged to engage stock to eifect anormal feed and clear the accumulated excess of stock and the teeth on the clearing cylinder being arranged to clear the normal feed of stock and to engage and return the excess of stock accumulating between the two cylinders, substantially as described.

7. In a thrashing machine, a band cutter consisting of a rotary cylinder, provided with feathering shafts carrying the band cutting knives, substantially as described.

j inder and a combined band cutting and clearing cylinder provided with a series offbackwardly extended feathering knives and for- 3 wardly extended feathering teeth, the said 3 combined cutting. and clearing cylinder being arranged in advance of and parallelwith the feed cylinder, the feathering. knives of the same serving'to out the bands, spread out 1 the bundles and supply the stock to the feed cylinder and the said feathering teeth worki ing against the back pressure from the feed cylinder and serving to catch and throw backward any excess of stock which would other- 1 wise be carried forward by the'feed cylinder, 1 substantially as described.

10. The feeding mechanism for thrashers, comprising the feed cylinder with feathering i teeth standing at an angle tothe movement of the stock and the combined bandcutting and clearing cylinder provided with feathering' knives and feathering teeth standing approximately parallel with the line of thefeed, Z substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

11. A band cutter and feedercompri'singa i forwardly extended feed table, a bundle'table extending forward of the feed-table and provided with conveyers delivering thereto a feed cylinder parallel with and delivering tothe thrashing cylinder,a combined band cutting and clearing cylinder overhanging the feed table in advance of andparallel with thefeed cylinder and provided with feathering shafts having secured thereto backwardly extended knives and forwardly extended clearing teeth and an open ended hood over-decking the said cylinders and provided with a deflecting board for cooperation with said clearing teeth to redeliver to the conveyers the excess of stock thrown back thereby, substantially as described.

, 12. In a thrasher, the combination with the thrashing cylinder, of the feed cylinder, the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder, the endless conveyers for supplying the bun dles, the friction clutch governor, driving connections arranged to keep the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder in continuous motion, and driving connections from the thrashing cylinder to the said feed cylinder and the said conveyers having said friction clutch governor as one element thereof, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

13. In a thrasher, the combination with the thrashing cylinderand a feeding device delivering directly thereto, of the combined band cutting and clearing cylinder, the endless con 'BS'OHO element thereof, substantially as and, veyers for supplying the bundles, the fricfor the purpose set forth. IO tion clutchgovernor driving connections, ar- Intestimonywhereofl affix my signature in ranged to keep the s'aid 'band'cu'tting'and presence of two witnesses. clearing cylinder in continuous motioniand ROBERT E. DOR'IQN.

driving connections from the thrashing cylin- Witnesses: der tothe said feed device and t0 the said con- J AS. F. WILLIAMSON, veyers, having said friction clutch governor EMMA" F. 'ELMORE.

Images