Provision is made for taking up the slack of this belt by mounting the spindle of the outer coned drum in bearings adjustable along a circular path struck from the axis of the lower feed roller as a center, thus insuring a uniform engagement between the teeth of the small pinion and those of the spur wheel with which the drum and roller are respectively provided.
The webs for carrying forward the dough between the different operations pass round rollers, which are each operated by an adjustable silent clutch feed, in place of the usual ratchet and pawl mechanism. Movement is given to each feed by the connecting links shown, to each of which motion is in turn imparted by the bell crank lever placed beside the eccentric. This lever is actuated by a crank pin on the main shaft, working into a block sliding in a slot in the shorter or horizontal arm of the lever, while a similar but adjustable block, sliding in the vertical arm, serves to impart the motion of the lever to the system of connecting links, the adjustable block allowing of a longer or shorter stroke being given to the different feeds, as desired.
The scraps are carried over the roller in rear of the cutters, and so to a scrap pan, while the stamped biscuits pass by a lower web into the pans. These pans are carried by two endless chains, provided with pins, which take hold of the pans and carry them along in the proper position. The roller over which these chains pass is operated by a silent clutch, and in order to give an additional motion to the chains when a pan is full, and it is desired to bring the next pan into position, an additional clutch is caused to operate upon the roller. This clutch is kept out of gear with its pulley by means of a projection upon it bearing against a disk slightly greater in diameter than the pulley, and provided with two notches, into which the projection passes when the additional feed is required.
The makers, H. Edwards & Co., Liverpool, have run one of these machines easily and smoothly at a hundred revolutions per minute, at which speed, and when absorbing about 3.5 horse power, the output would equal 4,000 small biscuits per minute.--_Industries._
A hand separator of this type was exhibited at the Royal Show at Newcastle by the Aylesbury Dairy Company, of 31 St. Petersburg Place, Bayswater, England.