US17230A - Improvement in the buckets of automatic grain-weighing machines - Google Patents

Description

'R. PORTER.

Grain Meter.

No. 17.230. Patented May 5. 1857.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicE.

RUFUS PORTER, OF IVASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE BUCKETS 0F AUTOMATIC GRAIN-WEIGHING MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 17,230, dated May 5, 1857.

To all whom it may cone/17 72,:

Be it known that I, RUFUS PORTER, of the city and county of 'Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented a new and useful Grain-IVeighing Machine; and I hereby declare that the followingis a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a front view. Fig. 2 is a side view. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the head on the line 0 O of Fig. 5. Fig. 4c is avertical section of the spout on the line P P of Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a vertical section of the spout 011 the line Q Q of Fig. Fig. 6 represents a section of the weight-bucket with its trap-door open and its knuckle-braces contracted.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A hopper A is mounted upon a table B, which is supported by a central post 0 and two side posts D D.

Two buckets E E are suspended by leather straps from the centerward ends of two balance-beams F F, which are mounted upon pivots CL 0. in the manner of ordinary scalebeams 0r steelyards, and their bearings are supported by two hangers G G, and the ends of each balance-beam are curved on the arcs of circles of which the pivot bearing is the center.

From the outward ends of the balancebeams are suspended two lifting-rods I I, upon which are arranged a series of circular weights IV IV, which ordinarily rest upon two braced arms II II. The weights and the arms are perforated with vertical apertures, through which the rods pass downward.

Between each bottom weight and the next above it is a pin or nut, as shown at c, Fig. l, by means of which the weights above are oecasionally elevated in advance of the bottom weight. An inch below the bottom weight is another pin or nut, as shown at b, Fig. 1, between which and the bottom weight is a helical spring J, which is ordinarily open and extended, but is compressed and closed up when the upper weights are raised; but when the balance-bean1 has reached a horizontal position the bottom weight is also raised.

To the front of the central post C is at tached a spout K, within which a valve-gate L is mounted upon a shaft 6, and extends twice far above the shaft as below it. The valve-gate is somewhat wider than the ordinary interior of the spout; but the latter is internally larger in that portion which contains the gate than above it. The front and rear edges of the valve-gate are furnished with thin plate-flanges (Z d, and its motions to the right or left are restricted to the ordinary width of the spout. Below the valvegate is fixed a division-block M, and the sides of the spout are extended right and left, so that the different positions of the valve-gate directs the descending grain into either branch, as occasion requires.

Upon the front end of the valve-shaft c is mounted a valve-plate N, to the front of which are connected two driving pawls or fingers f f, which alternately move a ratchet--wheel R, (see Fig. 3,) and also two tripping-rods S S, to the bottoms of which are attached two tripping-points s s, for purposes hereinafter explained.

The two buckets E and E are furnished with trap-doors m m, which are hinged to the bottoms thereof, opening downward and extending centerward two or three inches from the line of the hinges, and the eenterward edges are made heavy enough to preponderate and close the bottoms of the buckets. To the projecting edge of each trapdoor and to the centerward side of the bucket a pair of knuckle-braces 1' j are connected by hinges, being also connected to each other by a central hinge in such a manner as to open freely eenterward, but nottoward the bucket. From the upper end of each brace 2' an arm to projects centerward, nearly to the tripping-rod S. Immediately under the right arm to is a tripping-point s, which is attached to the left tripping rod, and under the left arm is a tripping-point attached to the right tripping-rod. The knuckle-braces, when in their ordinary positions, prevent the opening of the trapdoors 5 but the buckets are so adjusted that when either of them becomes sufficiently charged to preponderate and elevate its respeetive weights and change the position of the valve-plate N, the tripping-point 5 comes in contact with the arm 20, and thereby trips the knuckle=brace, thus allowing the trap door to open and discharge the contents of thebucket. Thenthe trap-door and knucklebraces instantly resume their ordinary positions.

From each balance-beam F two horns g and h project centerward, and from the valveplat-e N two wings 75 76 project horizontally right and left. Above these wings are two catch-levers T T, which are mounted upon fulcrum-pivots t t, and each has a shouldercatch '1' r, for the purpose of'arresting the motion of the apex of the valve-plate and retaining it until tripped by the horn g.

Above the valve-plate is a small shaft it, upon which is mounted a ratchet-wheel R, to the rear of which is attached a small eccentric t. Upon this shaft, in front of the ratchet-wheel, is a hollow shaft U, upon which is mounted another ratchet-wheel V. A small shackle-bar Z is mounted upon the eccentric 'U, and to the upper end thereof is connected a vibrating pawl p, which gives motion to the ratchet V. The ratchet R is moved by the fingers f f. The shafts have their front hearing in a dial-plate X, in front of which are mounted two indices Y and Z. The index Y performs a revolution while the buckets are being filled and discharged fifty times each, and the other index Z revolves once while fifty revolutions are performed by the first.

To the centerward corners of each bucket is attached a short flange as, which slides vertically through grooves or notches made for that purposeih the guide-pins n, which are attached to two horizontal guide-bars y Fig. 2.

The dial-plate is protected by a frame and glass, and immediately above it, at the head of the spout, is a horizontal sliding gate 2, whereby the stream of descending grain is regulated or occasionally suspended.

' Operation: The valve-plate N being placed in its right position, and the hopper being supplied with grain, and the gate .2 being open, the left bucket receives the stream of grain till the weight thereof elevates all the weights on the left save one, and the left balance-beam is brought to a horizontal position, as represented in Fig. 1, by which movement the horn h depresses the wing it, whereby the valve-plate is brought to the position shown in Fig. 1, resting against the shoulder-catch of the catch-lever T, while the tripping-horn g is brought into contact with the left end of said lever. By this position of the valve-gate (indicated by the valve-plate N) the stream of grain is divided and three-fourths thereof is conducted to the right bucket E; but when the left bucket preponderates and raises the bottomweight of the left series the horn g trips the catch-lever T, and the valve-plate being thus liberated, falls into its left position, suspending the descent of grain in that direction, and at the same time and by the same movement elevating the tripping point 8, thereby tripping the left knuckle-braces and discharging the grain from the buckets. Then the trap-door instantly closes and the kn ucklebraces resume their ordinary position. The same process is repeated with the right bucket, and the index Z is moved one point by the reciprocal motion of the fingers.

The adjustment of the requisite weight is aided by two movable poise q q. The fingers f are drawn toward the ratchet-wheel by two elastic cords or straps 0 0.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of the tripping-rods s with the valve-plate N and knuckle-bracesz' andj, whereby the movement of the valve-gate L, which is operated by means of the scalebeams F, causes the contents of the buckets E to be discharged alternately, as set forth.

2. The knuckle-braces i and j, in combination with the trap-doors m, whereby the latter are spontaneously closed and fastened immediately after the grain is discharged, as set forth.

RUFUS PORTER.

Witnesses:

PAUL STEVENS, WM. H. FANN'ING.

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