US774204A - Confectionery-machine. - Google Patents

Description

No. 774,204. PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904.

- W. s. SAMPSON.

GONFECTIONERY MACHINE; APPLICATION FILED JULY 25, 1904.

N0 MODEL. 5 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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No. 774,204. PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904. W. S. SAMPSON. GONPBCTIONERY MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 26, 1904. H0 MODEL. 5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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W. S. SAMPSON.

GONFEGTIONERY MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 26, 1904.

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No. 774,204. PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904. W. s. SAMPSON.

GONPEGTIONERY MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 25, 1904.

N0 MODEL. BBHEETS-SHEET 4.

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PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904.

" W. s. SAMPSON.

GONPEOTIONERY MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 25, 1904,

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N0 MODEL.

Patented November 8, 1904.

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IVALTER S. SAMPSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CONFECTlONERY-IVIACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,204, dated November '8, 1904. Application filed July 25, 1904. Serial No. 217,980. (No model.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVALTER S. SAMPSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Confectionery- Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to confectionery-machines adapted to operate upon viscous or semifiuid material, such as that commonly known as marshmallow.

The general object of the invention is to provide a machine of simple and durable construction, readily adjustable, so as to deliver large or small drops clean cut and free from threads or filaments. In obtaining this object novel details of construction are provided, which will be pointed out more fully in the following description and claims.

I attain my objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, 'in which- Figure 1 is a general side view of the machine. Fig. 2 is a general end view thereof looking from the right side of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side view of the machine similar to Fig. 1, except that in Fig. 1 the plunger-frame is shown raised in what will be termed the first position, while in Fig. 3 said frame is shown in full lines partially lowered in what will be termed the second position, and in dotted lines in what will be termed the third position. Fig. I is a plan view. Fig. 5 is an end view of the machine similar to Fig. 2, but illustrating the parts in the position shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is an end view of the machine looking from the left side of Fig. 1. i Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detail view in perspective, showing the adjustable seat whereby the size of the drops may be regulated. Fig. 8 is a fragmentary plan View of the main gear-Wheel at the right end of the machinethat is, the end shown in Fig. 5. Figs. 9, l0, and 11 are diagrammatic views taken in vertical section through the tank and represent the first, second, and third positions, respectively, of the plungers. Fig. 12 is a fragmentaryjplan View for illustrating the relative positions of the gate, trip-lever, and adjacent parts.

Similar reference characters denote similar parts throughout the several views.

The main frame a is of any suitable construction and forms a support for the tank 5 and the operating parts of the machine. Said tank is adapted to contain the supply of semifluid mass termed marshmallow, from which the confectionery-drops are to be made. WVithin the tank is a cross-head c, which is adapted to move vertically by means hereinafter to be described and carries the plungers c c, which are adapted to enter the vertically-arranged apertures (Z, in the tank-bottom d.

Beneath the tank-bottom are two plates 6 and f, having therein ports 6 and f, respectively, which are permanently arranged in line with theapertures (Z for permitting the delivery of marshmallow from the tank. Said plates 6 and f form false bottoms to the tank, and, if desired, the upper plate a may be omitted, although its presence is advantageous to facilitate manufacture. Between plates 0 and f is arranged a sliding cut-off or gate 9, having therein the ports g, which are so arranged that they may be brought into or out of register with the ports 6 f.

In the present machine gate g is moved toward the left to close ports and f by means of the link [2,, connected to the lever it, and is moved toward the right to open said ports by means of the link z', connected to the lever @I. Said links and levers are on opposite sides of the machine and are fulcrumed in the bearings a a in the main framework at. Lever h is connected to lever 7 by means of a turnbuckle y" or other adjustable device, and similarly lever c" is connected to lever in by means of a link 75. Levers j and is are fulcrumed at the points 7' and respectively, on the main frame a and are operated by the knobs or lugs m a, respectively, on the wheels m and n.'

heels m and 92 are mounted upon the shaft 0, journaled in the bearings (0 and'are rotated by means of the pinions m if, respectively, on the shaft m Shaft m is rotated by means of the pulley on. The precise manner of rotating Wheels on and n is not essential, and any construction whereby sa1d wheels may be made to rotate together as a single piece may be substituted.

A clutch 7) is provided for the purpose of enabling the pulley on to be thrown into and out of operative connection with shaft m so that the machine may be stopped or started at will, although the pulley rotates continuously. p affords means for operating clutch 7) from the front of the machine. The relation of gear-wheels m and a and levers j and Z: is such that gate Q will normally be held in closed position, as shown in Fig. 9, but will be opened at the proper time for a suitable period while the plungers c are descending.

The cross-head 0, above mentioned, is attached to the cross-head frame 9* by means of the rods 7', and said frame is raised and lowered by means of the link 0"", attached to the levers 0- outside of the tank. Said levers 9' are fulcrumed at the points preferably at one edge of the tank, and,if desirable,in order that the frame) may be guided in its rise and fall it is supplied with upright guide-pieces 9- sliding beneath the clips or keepers WGVS at the edges of the tank. The arrangement of the parts is such that the raising and lowering of lever o about its fulcrum r" will cause a corresponding raising and lowering of the plungers c.

The free or swinging extremities of levers are connected by means of the crosspiece v", and to said cross-piece are pivotally connected, preferably near the central portion thereof, the links a and t. The lower extemity of link s is pivoted to the lever 11., which in turn is fulcrumed on the framework rt at the point a. i

A pin or lug a" is formed upon the side of gear-wheel m in such position that when the gear is rotated in the direction of the arrows adjacent thereto, Figs. 2 and 5, the movement of said lug will first engage said lever 16 to raise the same and then disengage it and permit it to drop. The rotation of wheel m therefore operates first to gradually raise the plunger-frame 1- and then suddenly drop the same. The highest position of the plungerframe and plungers may appropriately be considered the first position in the program of operation of the machine.

The link i, above mentioned, is pivoted at its lower extremity to the arresting-bare, which is fulcrumed on the machine-frame a at the point o. It is obvious that the plunger-frame 1- may be supported from either thelever a or bar w and that after the lug if has disengaged the lever a the frame will drop until it is again arrested by contact with some stationary part. The arresting of the'downward movement of the plunger-frame '1 is accomplished by means of a seat-rod '11:, (shown in perspective in Fig. 7,) which has a laterally-extending projection or shoulder w, constituting a'seat adapted to arrest the downward movement of the bar 11.

A controlling-rod 22, having an arm 5 For reasons hereinafter appearing bar w is arrested by seat 01/ when in an intermediate position, which may be termed the second position and which is illustrated in Fig. 10.

The plungers are permitted to descend to the third position (illustrated in Fig. 11) by withdrawing the seat in from its position beneath the arresting-bar w in a manner now to be described. its upper extremity to a sleeve or collar "10 which is vertically slidable upon the stationary post Said post contains one or more vertical rows of apertures 00, adapted to receive pins 'w" for the purpose of retaining collar 10 in any desired position upon post A keeper m is rigidly secured at the side of post 11, the object being to control the path of the arresting-bar w and cause it to travel along the edge of post on, where it will tend to strike seat w when the latter is in normal position. A spring w" is rigidly attached to collar 10 and so arranged as to act against the edge of bar w, so as to tend to hold the same in such position that the seat '21: will be in the path of travel of the arresting-bar.

The rod w is trippedthat is to say, swung in a direction to withdraw seat in from its position beneath the arresting-bar by means of trip-lever 7 (Shown in Figs. 4:, 7, and 12.) Said trip-lever is pivoted to the frame a, at the point y, so as to swing, in the present instance, in a horizontal plane. Said trip-lever is pivoted to and operated by link it, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10, and the parts are so related that when gate 9 moves to the right, Figs. 9, 10, and 11, to open the ports the lever 1 and seat-rod 10 will be simultaneously moved to the right to withdraw seat w, and thereby permit bar 0 and the plungers c to drop to the third or final position. (Illustrated in Fig. 11.) Inasmuch as trip-leverg is positively connected to gate it follows that the final dropping of the plungers and the opening of the ports will occur simultaneously, as is necessary for the proper operation of the machine.

Underneath the tank is a mold-table a, which is guided so as to move in a vertical direction by means of the stationary ways .2, which form part of the framework of the machine. Said table is adapted to support a-mold-pan .2, containing starch or other materiahin which the drops are to be molded. The table 2 is moved vertically by means of the cams 1 1, rigidly secured to the shaft 2 and adapted to cooperate with the cam-rollers 3 3 on the bottom of the table Shaft 2 is operated from shaft 0 by means of a chain 4, connecting sprockets 5 and 6 on shafts 2 and 0, respectively, the object in employing chain-andsprocket connections between the two shafts being to insure the simultaneous and equal rotation thereof.

This machine is intended to operate upon material of a semifiuid nature and is not intended to operate upon material which is very Bed w is pivotally attached at M fluid nor upon material which is not fluid or only fluid to a slight extent. The material which is best adapted and most suitable for manufacture by this machine is of a consistency approximately equal to that of marshmallow in the state in which the marshmallows of commerce are usually manufactured. If the material is too thin and flows too readily, it will run out too quickly when the ports in the bottom of the tank are open, and, on the other hand, if the material is too thick and pasty it will not flow into the apertures 62 quickly enough to completely fill them when the machine is running up to speed.

In operation the tank 6 is filled with marshmallow and the machine is brought to the first position, as shown in Figs. 1 and 9, with the plungers c at their highest point and the ports in plates 6 and f closed by gate 9. As here shown, the gate when closed occupies a position toward the left, as in Fig. 9. Upon rotation of wheel m in the direction shown by the arrows, Figs. 2 and 5, the lug 7.6 will rotate out of engagement with lever u, thereby permitting the plunger-frame 7* to drop until the arresting-bar q: strikes the seat to on rod Q0 and the plungers reach second position, Fig. 10. The plungers c are arrested by seat we at a point above the tank-bottom (Z; but the point of stoppage may be raised or lowered by adjusting the rod 10 and sleeve 1/1 vertically upon the post a, it being obvious that the higher the position of rod w the higher will be the point of arrestation of the plungers. lVhile the plungers are elevated above position 2, the marshmallow will be slowly fiowing into and filling the apertures d in the tank-bottom (Z, and the amount of material entering said apertures prior to the time when further entrance is prevented by reason of the proximity of the plungers to said apertures will depend upon the fluidity of the material and the point at which the plungers are arrested and will also depend upon the period elapsing between the time when the plungers leave the apertures on their upward movement and the time when they reach position 2 on the downward movement. If the point of arrestation is high above the top of apertures (Z, the marshmallow will have sufficient opportunity to completely fill the apertures; but if the point of arrestation is closer to the apertures complete filling thereof will be prevented and a smaller amount of marshmallow will be delivered. The amount of marshmallow delivered, therefore, will depend (with a given speed of operation and consistency of material) upon the adjusted position of collar 10 on post After the plungers have been temporarily arrested at the second position the continued rotation of wheel 722 will bring lug n, Fig. 6, into contact with lever to raise the same, and the raising of said lever will cause lever 2" to be rotated in an anticlockwise direction when viewed as in Fig. 10, which rotation will force link i and gate 9 toward the right to open the ports 6 and f at the bottom of the tank. Simultaneously the gate will move the trip-lever y and cause the same to swing setting-rod w in position to release bar o. This will permit bar o .and the plungers and plunger-frame to fall to the third and lowest position, as illustrated in Fig. 11. This lowering of the plungers from the second to the third position will cause the plungers to force the marshmallow out through the ports and deliver it into the mold in the mold-pan The further rotation-of wheels m and n will bring lug a on wheel a, Fig. 5, into contact with lever 21 to raise the same and rotate lever j in a clockwise direction, Fig. 10. This will cause the gate g to slide toward the left to close the ports, which will prevent the further delivery of the marshmallow. This return movement of the gate g will retract the trip-lever y and permit spring 10* to throw rod w back into normal position to arrest bar 2; in the subsequent downward movement thereof.

During the above-described movement of the gate and plungers the table 2 is raised and lowered by the cams 1, and the time of operation is such that the table will be in its highest position, so as to bring the mold-pan 2 into close proximity to the discharge-ports during the time when said ports are open. As soon as said ports are closed, however, the table 2 moves downward, thereby breaking any threads or filaments which may remain between the marshmallow in the molds and that which may adhere to the discharge-ports. hen the table has dropped sufficiently. the operator removes the filled mold-pan and supplies a fresh one, and the operation is repeated.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A confectionery-machine having a tank; vertically-reciprocating plungers; a bar pivoted at a fixed point in the machine and connected to the plungers for supporting the same; and a seat for temporarily arresting said bar intermediate of the extremities of its swing.

2. A confectionery-machine having a tank; vertically-reciprocating plungers; an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said plungers; and a vertically-adjustable seat for temporarily supporting said bar.

3. In a confectionery-machine, the combination, with a tank, having ports in the bottom thereof and vertically-reciprocating plungers, of an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said plungers; a seat for supporting said bar; a gate for controlling the tank-ports and means for opening said gate and simultaneously moving said seat to release said arresting-bar. I

4. In a confectionery-machine, thecombination with a tank having ports in the bottom thereof and vertically-reciprocating plungers, of an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said plungers; a swinging seat-rod for temporarily supporting said. arresting-rod, a gate for controlling the tank-ports and means for opening said gate and simultaneously swinging said seat-rod out of engagement with said arresting-rod.

5. In a confectionery-machine, the combination, with a tank having ports in the bottom thereof and vertically-reciprocating plungers, of an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said plungers; a swinging seat-rod for temporarily supporting said arresting-bar; a spring for normally holding said seat-rod in position to engage said arresting-bar; a gate for controlling the tank-ports; and means for opening said gate and simultaneously swinging said seat-rod against the influence of said spring to release said arresting-bar.

6. In a confectionery-machinc, the combination of a tank having discharge-ports in the bottom thereof; vertically-arranged reciprocating plungers; a plunger-frame carrying said plungers; an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said frame at a point part way down in its descent; a movable seat for temporarily supporting said arresting-bar; and a trip-lever operating said seat to release said arresting-bar; a gate for controlling the tankports, said trip-lever being connected to said gate whereby the movement of said gate and seat are definitely correlated.

7. In a confectioncry-machine, the combination of a tank having discharge-ports in the bottom thereof, vertically-reciprocating plungers; a plunger-frame carrying said plungers; an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said frame at a point part way down in its descent; a movable seat for temporarily supporting said arresting-bar; a spring for normally holding said seat in the path of the arresting-bar for stopping the same; a trip lever for operating said seat to release said arresting'bar; a sliding gate connected to said trip-lever for operating the same and also controlling the tank-ports, the movement of said gate in one direction operating said trip-lever to release the arresting-bar and the movement of said gate in the opposite direction withdrawing said trip-bar to thereby permit said spring to return the seat to normal position.

8. In a confectionery-machine, the combination of a tank having discharge-ports in the bottom thereof; vertically-reciprocating plungers; an arresting-bar for temporarily supporting said plungers part way in their descent; a seat-rod for temporarily supporting said arresting-bar; a post for carrying said seat-rod; and means for adjusting said seat-rod vertically upon said post for varying the point at which the plungers are temporarily arrested during their downward travel.

9. In a confectionery-machine, the combination of atankhavingdischarge-ports therein; vertically-reciprocating plungers; a sliding gate for controlling the tank-ports; an opening-lever and a closing-lever connected to said gate for operating the same; and two wheels each having lugs thereon for respectively operating said levers; and means for causing said wheels to rotate simultaneously and maintain the same relative positions.

10. In a confectionery-machine, the combination of a tank having discharge-ports there in; vertically-reciprocating plungers; a sliding gate for controlling the tank-ports; an opening-lever 21 for moving the gate to open position; a lever 7:: for operating said opening lever; means for operating said lever A; a closing-lever 72 for moving said gate to closed position; a lever 7' for operating said closinglever; and two rotating members rigidly connected together and adapted to operate said levers j and Z: alternately.

11. In a confectionery-machine, the combination of a tank having discharge-apertures therein; vertically reciprocating gravitylowered plungers; a plunger-frame carrying said plungers; a wheel for raising said frame; an arresting-seat; means for operating the same; and two pivoted bars '11, and o connected to said frame and each capable of supporting the same, one of said bars being operated by said wheel to raise said frame and the other of said bars being adapted to rest temporarily upon said seat for temporarily sustaining the plunger-frame at a point above the lowest point of its travel.

12. In a eonfectionery-machine, the combination of a tank having ports in the bottom thereof vertical]y-reciprocating plungers; a gate for controlling the tank-ports; a vertically-reciprocating table for carrying a moldpan beneath the tank; and positive unyielding connections between said gate plungers and mold-table whereby the times of operation of said plungers, gate and table are rendered definitely relative.

13. In a confectionery-machine, the combination of a tank having ports in the bottom. thereof, vertically-reciprocating plungers; a gate for controlling the tank-ports; a vertically-reciprocating table for carrying amoldpan beneath the tank; cams for raising and lowering the mold-table; and positive unyielding connections between said cams, gate and plungers whereby the times of operation of said mold-table, gate and plungers are rendered definitely relative.

In witness whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

WALTER S. SAMPSON. \Vitnesses:

HOWARD M. Cox, J. I. MCDONALD.

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