US233245A - haywaed - Google Patents

Description

(N0 Model.)

W. S. HAYWARD. Cracker Pa,

cking Machine.

Patented Oct. 12

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WILLIAM S. HAYWARD, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO RICE 82: HAYWARD, OF SAME PLACE.

CRACKER-PACKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 233,245, dated October 12, 1880.

Application filed J' une 19, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it-known that I, WILLIAM S. HAYWARD, of the city and county of Providence, in the State of Rhode Island, have invented a certain new and useful Gracker-Packing Machine; and I do hereby declare that the following specification, taken in connection with the drawings furnished and forming a part thereof, is a clear, true, and complete description of my invention.

It is well known that certain classes of crackers and biscuits are put up for the market in boxes, barrels, 85e., and that they are packed in their receptacles on edge and in rows, the better to preserve them from being broken during transportation, and also to enable them to be readily handled without breakage by the retailer, whether sold by count or weight. Heretofore, so far as my knowledge extends, such goods have been first delivered from the oven-pans into boxes or baskets in mass, and from thence they have been taken out by hand, arranged side by side, and placed in rows into the packing case or barrel. This operation is comparatively slow and expensive,-mainly because of the time and labor involved in picking up the goods and arranging them side by side in the hands preparatory to placing them into the packing case or barrel.

Ihe object of my invention is to mechanically accomplish the main portion of this 1abor-vL e., to operate upon the goods in mass and arrange them in rows side by side, and in a position from which they can be readily picked up by the hands many at a time and transferred to the packing-case.

Practically, with a machine embodying the several features of my invention, goods of the character named can be packed at a savingin cost of labor of upward of seventy-tive per cent.

My invention consists in the combination of certain devices, as fully specified in detail in the several claims hereunto annexed.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a machine embodying my invention. Fig. 2 represents the same in longitudinal vertical central section. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal horizontal sectional view of the same on line fr. Fig. 4 is a rear view of the device for vibrating the hopper.

The frame of the machine may be variously constructed; but the drawings are sufficiently accurate to enable a person skilled in the art to construct a frame suitable for the purpose.

The inclined hopper A is located upon the upper rear portion of the frame. Into this the crackers are poured in mass, and to insure their free downward course the bottom a of the hopper is pivoted at its upper end and made to vibrate to and fro, in this instance by means of an inclined revolving disk, a', mounted on shaft a2, and a fork projecting downward from the bottom a, which loosely embraces said disk near its periphery.

As the crackers descend they enter the several curved chutes B, which are adapted to receive the crackers edgewise only, and are alittle wider than the diameter of the crackers and open in front at the bottom. Above the mouths of the chutes, and over the lower end of the hopper, is a revolving sweep, C, which revolves, as indicated by an arrow thereon, so that its bars at the lower side move toward the hopper, the prime value of which is due to the fact that its bars c so far approach the bottom ofthe hopper that the intervening space is but little greater than the thickness of the crackers, and therefore they cannot enter the chutes while riding one upon another. The sweep is therefore preferably adj ustably mounted with its bearings on springs c', provided with adjusting-screws o2. By turning these screws outward the springs lift the' sweep, and by turning them inward the springs yield, and thus enable the adjustment of the sweep to any desired position with reference to the bottom of the hopper, to provide for proper operation with crackers of different thicknesses.

The chutes are provided with light flexible spring-fronts D, secured at their upper ends to a cross-bar, d, and free to yield at their lower ends sufficiently to obviate the crushing of crackers under circumstances hereinafter set forth. From the bases of the chutes a stationary table, E, projects from the frame of the machine for the recept-ion of the crackers as they are projected from the clmtes. This table is longitudinally channeled, so as to constitute, in substance, a horizontal prolongation of each chute. The bottom of each channel e is concave to correspond generally with the usual outline of the crackers.

The crackers are projected from the bottoms of the chutes B into the concave channels e by means of a series of plungers, F, which are reciprocated longitudinally by means of a slide, f, to which all of them are connected, and apitman, f, which connects said slide with a crank on the main shaft G of the machine.

The revolving sweep and the vibrating bottom of the hopper may be driven by means of gearing from the main shaft, as shown, or, as is sometimes preferable, light belts may be employed for that purpose.

As thus far described, it will be seen that crackers placed in mass within the hopper will be made to descend into and occupy the chutes in nearly a vertical position, each in contact with the edge of the other, and that the reciprocating plungers will push them singly from the bottoms of the chutes forward into the channels, ill which they will lie side by side on their edges, so that the workman may pick them up in considerable numbers, all prearranged for readily placing them into the packing-cases. In the case of very delicate goods, however, they are liable to be broken by the plungers whenever the latter at their upper front edges engage with a cracker next above the one at the bottom of the chute, and therefore I have introduced means whereby each plunger is prevented from engaging with more than one cracker or biscuit at a time. This is effected by lneans of a series of stop-rods, H, one of which enters each chute above the plunger, and at adistance therefrom slightly greater than the diameters ofthe crackers or biscuits. These stop-rods have a reciprocating movement, alternating with the movement of the plungers. Said stop-rods do not move precisely as the plungers do, but are arranged to rest during a portion ot' the movement of the latter-z'. c., assuming the plungers to be at their most rearward position, the stop-rods would be fully forward, and would remain so until the plun gers had advanced morethan the thicknessofacracker. Then,whi|etheplunger still advanced, the stop-rods would retire, but simultaneously with the return movement of the plungers, the stop-rods then move forward again. 1t will be readily seen, therefore, that each stop-rod engages with one of the crackers in the columns and prevents the one thus engaged and those above and resting upon it from falling, except when the plunger is so far projected as to support a cracker on its upper side, and that then said rod retires, dropping the column of crackers, which then rests upon the plunger until the latter commences to retire, whereupon the stop-rod next engages with the cracker next above, so that when the plunger fully retires the cracker which rested thereon falls tothe bottom of the chute,and is next projected into the channel by the succeeding forward movement of the plunger, and so on, as long as the hopper is supplied with crackers.

There are various conditions to be provided for in theoperation of these stop-rods it'the best results are to be attained. The crackers are sometimes very delicate, are warped out of shape in baking, and frequently puffed, leaving only a thin shell on oneorboth sides thereof. To provide against breaking the crackers the fronts of the chutes are preferably capable of yielding, as previously described. So, also, are the stop-rods so mounted as not to move forward positively, but so as to exercise a yielding pressure, as by a spring, or its equivalent, a weight, as preferably employed by me. The rearward movement of the stop-rod is positive, to provide against the adhesion thereto of a putl'ed or soft cracker or biscuit, such as is liable to be pierced by the stop-rod, notwithstanding its yielding pressure. For enabling a minimum of pressure of the rods to be employed the bottoms of the chutes are curved from the hopper downward and forward, so that the weight of the crackers in line therein is partially borne by the bottom of the chute, instead of having the whole weight thereof snpported by the cracker with which the pin is engaged, as would be the case if the chutes were wholly vertical.

The stop-rods are preferably constructed and arranged by me to operate as follows A pivotrod, I, extends from side to side of the frame of the machine parallel with the main shaftG and above the slide f, to which the plungers are attached. 0n this pivot-rod are loosely pi voted a series of tappets, g, one for each stoprod, and to the upper ends of the tappets the rear ends of the rods are hinged or pivoted. Each tappet has projecting forward from its upper end a rigid arm, h, carrying at its outer end a weight, t', which normally causes the tappet to maintain a vertical position on its pivotrod, and the stop-rod in a fully-projected position. Upon the slide f, in line with the lower ends of the tappetsg, are lugs k, which, when the slide moves forward, engage with the lower ends of their respective tappets, and so rotate them on their pivot-rod as to cause the retirement of all the stop-rods simultaneously, and when said slide moves backward the tappets, by their weights, are each made to assume such position as circumstances warrant-t. e., if no cracker be engaged by a. stop-rod it moves fully forward and its tappet resumes its normal position but if a cracker be engaged thereby its tappet is left in a position corresponding to the position ofthe rod.

The yielding front of each chute operates well with a positively-projected stop-rod; but I prefer the yielding stop-rod.

In practice I have found that two stop-rods for each chute is sometimes desirable, one be- IOO ing located above the other, with about the same space between them as between the lower stop-rod and the plunger. When two stoprods are thus employed the upper arm ot' the tappet may be somewhat extended, or the upper rods may be bent at an angle above the tappets in an obvious manner. The Weights used with the double stop-rods should be slightly heavier thanthose used with the single rods.

With the machine constructed as shown and described very valuable results are attainable, with a minimum loss in breakage of the goods; but approximately desirable results will be attainable if the hopper be very much inclined and have no movement, or if the contents be vibrated in a manner other than by the vibrating bottom or without therevolving sweep.

With certain classes of goods the stop-rods may be dispensed With; but their use is preferable in all cases. So, also, may the stop-rods be variously arranged and operated, and I therefore do not limit my invention to the precise construction, combination, and arrangement shown of any of the parts shown, for they may be largely varied without substantial departure from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described myinvention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of an inclined vibrating hopper, a stationary channeled table, one or more chutes adapted to receive the crackers edgei wise only, connecting the table and hopper, and plun gers for projecting single crackers or biscuits from the bottom of the chutes into the channels of the table.

2. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of the hopper, chutes, channeled table, and plungers, and a stop-rod for each chute, for controlling crackers within the chute and delivering them one at a time to the plungers.

3. The combination, with the hopper and chute of a cracker-packin g machine, ot' a yielding stop-rod, substantially as described.

4. The chute provided with a yielding front, in combination with a stop-rod, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the hopper, ofthe revolving sweep, the series of chutes, the plungers, and the channeled table. substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the hopper and the chutes, of the sweep mounted above the hopper and in adjustable bearings, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with the chutes, ofthe yielding stop-rods, the tappets, and the positively-driven slide for retiring said rods, substantially as described.

WILLIAM S. HAYWARD.

Witnesses SnuoN S. LAPHAM, Louis L. ANGELI..

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