US406050A - kitson - Google Patents

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

B. KITSON, Deod.

S. KITSON, Executrix. MACHINE FOR OPENING GOTTON.

ted July 2, 1889.

MW an m Wihxemaaa u PETERS mun wn Wnhmjton, a Q

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

R. KITSON, Deod.

S. KITSON, Executrix. MACHINE FOR OPENING COTTON.

No. 406,050. Patented July 2, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

RICHARD KITSON, ()b LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE KITSON MACHINE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

MACHINE FOR OPENING COTTON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 406,050, dated July 2, 1889.

Application filed September 11, 1883. Serial No. 106,214. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.- through the bottom (I, and insure their final Be it known that I, RICHARD KITsoN, of separation from the fiber. Lowell, in the county of Middlesex and State Below the chambers formed between the of Massachusetts, have invented anew and partitions d, I construct my apparatus for 55 useful Improvement in Machines for Opencarrying away the dirt which falls into them, ing Cotton, of which the following is a specias follows: The vertical longitudinal sides of fication. the trunk, which sustain the partitions d at My improvement relates to that class of each end, are carried downward below their mechanisms for opening and cleaning cotton lower edges, and the bottom E is secured to 60 known as cotton-trunks, and it consists in them so as to form a longitudinal passage,

providing said cotton-trunks with a mechaninto which the bottoms of the chambers beism for automatically conveying away the tween the partitions (7" open, and which exdirt and leaf from the dirt-chambers, where tends beyond said chambers and terminates it is deposited by the action of the trunk in in a dust-chamber F, extending downward, as 65 I 5 cleaning the cotton, substantially as hereinshown. At the ends of bottom E, which is after described and claimed. flat upon its upper internal surface, are I11 the drawings, Figure 1 shows a sectional mounted rollers c 6, extending across the view of a cotton-opener and part of its trunk same, around which are passed endless cords with the present improvements applied to the c, as shown, to which are attached a series of 70 trunk and with part of the picker broken scrapers c c at suitable intervals. These away. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. scrapers are formed of slats of wood or B is an ordinary cotton-opener beater. b 7) other material of the proper shape and are feed-rolls, and c is a portion of a feedinglength to fit closely at their bottom edges apron, the same being shown in dotted lines. and ends to the bottom E and sides of the 75 C is a fan for producing a current of air, trunk, and prevent the passage of the dirt which takes the comminuted cotton from the or air beneath them as they are drawn along beater after the latter and the feed-rolls have by the cords c, which is accomplished by picked the same, and carries it through the one of the rollers 6 being revolved in the trunk D, intermingled with the air-current, proper direction by the pulley e attached to 80 0 to remove the dirt, leaf, &c. All these parts, its prolonged axis 011 the outside of the trunk, except the attachments of the trunk, hereinand a belt e", as hereinafter described. The after described, are constructed and comscrapers e c, when thus drawn along ovel bined together in the ordinary way, and opthe bottom E, continually carry the dirt and erated in the usual and well-known manner, impurities which have fallen upon the bot- 8 5 so that further description of them is unnectom ahead of them and drop or deposit it in essary. the chamber 1*. A roller e is placed over the After the current of air and commingled driven roller c to allow the dirt to escape uncotton fiberhas entered the trunk and reached der it, while preventing the escape of air past its horizontal part, it passes over the wire it to agreat extent. This is accomplished by 0 screen or slat bottom (I of this part of it, and mounting the ends of the axis of roller c the dirt, leaf, and impurities, which are heavwhich project beyond it, in vertical slots 0' in ier than the floating fiber, drop downward the side walls of the trunk, of such a breadth and separatefrom the latter, droppingthrough as to allow the axis to move up and down in the screen or slat bottom, while the fiber is them without horizontal. play. The roller 0 5 5 carried onward. Below the screen-bottom (I can therefore rise when the scrapers c c or are placed the vertical transverse partitionsd masses of dirt pass beneath it, and drop back (1, forming chambers in connection with the again after they have passed,thus preventing sides of the trunk and screen-bottom for the the escape of air beneath itor past its ends in reception of the falling dirt and impurities. a great measure. I00 These chambers prevent the latter from be- A box or receptacle G may be placed in the ing sucked or drawn back and upward again chamber F to receive the dirtand impurities the end of theprolonged beater-shaft.

deposited in it, if desired; or the dirt may be removed by other means if the box G1 is omitted. For this purpose a door I) is made in the side of the chamber, Fig. 2, which is suspended upon hinges 19 Z2 at its upper end.

The various revolving parts of the mechanism described maybe driven from countershafts or pulleys in various ways; but I have shown in Fig. 2 a method by which they may be driven. A belt a drives pulley a upon From pulley a on the same shaft a belt drives pulley at on the shaft of the upper feed-roll I). From pulley a on the beater-shaft a belt drives pulley a on the shaft of fan (1' From pulley a upon the latter shaft a belt drives pulley a? upon the endof the shaftof a roller of feed-apron c. From pulley a upon the latter shaft, the belt 6" drives pulley e of roller e, before described.

The advantage of providing a longitudinal passage in connection with the chambers between the partitions d (1', extending to a space or chamber beyond them, togetherwith suitable mechanism for removing the dust and impurities therefrom which are deposited therein from said chambers, is that said chambers and passage may be cleaned 'out when the cotton opener and trunk are in operatlon without aifecting the same. This obviates the expense of stopping the entire machine to clean out the compartments of the trunk under screen-bottom d during workinghours in the mill, or of doing it in extra time of the workmen afterward, and causes the cotton-trunk to be kept at the highest state of efficiency by having its compartments beneath screen-bottom d kept constantly in a comparatively clean state.

If it is desired to operate the scrapers e e intermittently, the belt 6 may be thrown on and off pulley a as required.

The combination of the longitudinal passage connecting with the chambers between the partitions. d d and opening into the dust space or chamber F, the fibei passage and screen-bottom d of the trunk being located above said partitions, are the features of the construction which render the employment of a unitary means or mechanism feasible-such as the connected scrapers eto keep the chambers between those partitions clean while the trunk is in operation, because it would not be practically possible without these featn res to employ a simple and convenient mechanism in-the cleaning, which must necessarily operate upon the contents of each of the chambers between the partitions (Z (Z' separately from that of the others.

The dust-chamberF performs the function, in connect-ion with the dust-passage, which conveys the dust and impurities fronibeneath the screen-bottom (I, of keeping the dust and impurities discharged from the chambers or spaces between the partitions d d confined, and preventing their lodging upon-the cotton 1 which is being fed to the beater B over apron 0 and from being sucked into the space around the beater through the openings by which it is surrounded and ii'ltermingling with fresh masses of cotton as they are fed through the opener to the trunk. This function of the dust passage and chamber F is performed by them both while said scrapers are in operation and thrown out of operation, as described, as they prevent currents of air taking up thedust as it falls from the chambers between partitions d d and carrying it to the beater. v 1

. As the scrapers e e consist of transverse slats inclosing spaces between them open at the top and lying closely upon the bottom E, they thus of themselves form shallow chambers or boxes, which prevent the dust and impurities from being drawn out of them by eddies or counter-currei'lts of air after being deposited therein and until discharged by the progressive movement of the scrapers into the d ust-chamber F.

' What I claim as new and of my invention 1. The combination of the beater B, the

.trunk 1), containing the horizontal air and fiber passage, the screen-bottom d beneath the same, and the transverse partitions'cl cl,which form with the trunk and screen bottom d chambers beneath the latter, the dust-passage running longitudinally along said trunk beneath said screen-bottom, connected to said chambers and adapted to receive the dust and impurities discharged therefrom and conduct the same to the dustchamber F, and the latter adapted to receive the dust andimpuri ties discharged into it from said dust-passage and prevent them from reaching fresh fiber while being fed past the beater, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the feed-apron c, feed-rolls b b, the beater B, the trunk D, containing the horizontal air and fiber passage, screen-bottom cl beneath the same, and transverse partitions cl cl, which form with the trunk and screen-bottom'd chambers beneath the latter, and the dust-passage running longitudinally along said trunk beneath said screen-bottom and connected to said chambers and adapted to receive the dust and impurities discharged therefrom and to conduct the same to the dust-chamber F, and the latter adapted to receive the dust and impurities discharged into it from said dust-passage and prevent them from reaching fresh same to the dustchamber F, and means whereby said dust and impurities may be conveyed to said dust-chamber F through and outof said dust tube, with the chamber adapted to receive said dust and impurities discharged into it from said dust-passage and prevent them from reaching the fiber being fed past the beater, substantially as described. 4. In a cotton-trunk, the combination of the air and fiber passage, the screen-bottom (Z beneath the same, the partitions d d, forming with the trunk and screen-bottom chambers below the latter, the dustrpassage below said chambers running longitudinally along said trunk beneath said screen-bottom and connected With said chambers and adapted to receive the dust and impurities discharged therefrom, and one or more scrapers c,adapted to traverse said dust-passage and clear out the same, with mechanism for operating said scrapers, substantially as described.

her, with mechanism for operating said 35 scrapers, substantially as described.

RICHARD KITSON.

\Vitnesses:

A. R. IIILDRETH, J. W. ANDERSON.

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