Machine for Decorticating and Scutching, and if desired Combing, Ramie Hemp or other Fibrous Materials.

摘要

26,614. Burrows, T., Palmer, W. H., and Matheson, A. Dec. 20. Decorticating ramie, hemp, &c. ; breaking and scutching apparatus; heckling - machines. - A machine for decorticating and scutching, and, if desired, partially combing, ramie, hemp, and the like is constructed so that the stems, which are crushed either on a separate machine or by plain or fluted rollers arranged at the feed end, are fed to and laid across a travelling chain or cable gripper, whereby the longer overhanging ends are carried between a pair of travelling chains, sheets, or other carriers on which scrapers, and, in some cases, brushes and combs, are mounted and arranged, so that those on one sheet intersect those on the other, the stems thus cleaned at one end being transferred by hand or automatically to another similar or other gripper, which carries the other, and now the longer projecting end between another pair of similar chains, sheets, or carriers also provided with scrapers &c. The grippers consist of travelling chains 18, 19, 20, the outer ones of which travel in channels secured to a stationary plate 22 pressed down by springs 24. The front ends of the channels are bent up to facilitate the entry of the stems. The scrapers 12, which may have a plain edge throughout, or be formed partly with a plain edge, partly with coarse serrations 13, and partly with fine serrations 14, and, in some cases, with comb teeth or brushes so as to act gradually on the crushed stems as they are carried past the scrapers, are detachably secured to travelling chains or carriers 11 carried by sprocketwheels, and one or both carriers are rendered adjustable vertically, horizontally, or otherwise by the adjustable mounting of the shafts 3, 4, 5, 6 carrying the sprocket-wheels, and by the provision of adjustable supports 46, 47 or side guides in which the ends of the scrapers travel. This adjustment, together with the adjustable spacing and interchangeability of the scrapers, some of which may be replaced by brushes 15 and combs, renders the machine adaptable for treating various kinds of fibres. The drive imparted to the pulleys 25 is transmitted by the chain 41 and gearing 44,45 to the first pair of carriers, and through gearing 28, 29, 30 to the second pair. The main shaft 27 drives through worm gearing 31, 32 and spur gearing 34a at the back end of the machine the pulleys of the second set of gripper chains, and the front set is driven from these through a chain 36 and shaft 38. By changing the worm 31 and worm-wheel 32, or the spur gear 34a, or introducing a variable-speed gear or change-speed gear, in the train, the relative speeds of the grippers and scraper sheets may be varied.