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THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[May 1, 1914. 



New Machines and Appliances. 



A NEW METHOD OF VULCANIZING FOOTWEAR. 



THE dry heat process is the one in common use for vulcaniz- 

 ing footwear and similar rubber goods, and the time con- 

 sumed is from 6 to 8 hours. The trouble with the dry heat 

 process, where air is confined with the rubber goods, is the oxidiz- 

 ing which takes place. Again, with the open steam process, em- 

 ployed chiefly in making mechanical goods, the moisture has a 

 bad cfTect upon the fabric lining and also injures the rubber sur- 



is obtained tlio valve K is closed. When llie rod /•' of the car- 

 riage is filled with rubber shoes, thus prepared and suspended 

 on the rod F by the hooked pipes /, the carriage is run into the 

 vulcanizer and the door is closed. The thin rubber and fabric 

 envelopes allow the shoes to be surrounded by live steam, but 

 prevent the rubber from coming in direct contact with the steam. 

 They also exclude the oxygen of the air and prevent oxidizing 

 of the rubber. By this metliod the shoes are vulcanized in about 

 two hours. [U. S. Patent No. 1,090.535, 

 granted to Wm. G. Hill and assigned to the 

 Apsley Rubber Co., Hudson, Massachusetts.] 



LH-.STR.\TINC THE HiLL METHOD OF VULCANIZING FoOTWEAR. 



face by causing it to be pitted. Those processes which utilize 

 certain gases under pressure to drive out air are often expensive. 

 According to a new invention, which is illustrated herewith, 

 the objectionable features in the processes mentioned above are 

 eliminated. By this new process the oxygen of the air is ex- 

 cluded almost entirely from the goods while they are being vul- 

 canized. The feature of this invention is a thin rubber and fabric 

 envelope which fits over the shoe, and from which the air is ex- 

 tracted to make it conform to the outline of 

 the shoe. Referring to the drawings, which 

 show a longitudinal and a cross section of an 

 ordinary steam cylinder vulcanizer, A repre- 

 sents a vulcanizer provided with an escape 

 valve B to allow the escape of air as the steam 

 enters. The usual therinometer C and steam 

 gage D are also provided. The steam enters 

 at E and condensation is taken care of in the 

 usual manner. The rubber shoes to be vul- 

 canized are placed on the lasts and suspended 

 by hooks on a rod F of the roller carriage G. 

 With this new process the shoe is placed on 

 its last and enclosed in a thin envelope H. 

 This is closed at the ends by means of metal 

 clamps /; and the opening in the top, which 

 allows the pipe J to pass through, is closed 

 by means of a washer clamped tightly against 

 the envelope by means of a set screw or nut 

 fitting around the pipe. When the envelope 

 is thus tightly sealed the valve K is opened 

 and the end of the hooked pipe / is con- 

 nected with an air pump and the air extracted 

 from the envelope through a hole in the lower end of the pipe 

 inside the envelope. As the air is extracted the operator smoothes 

 the envelope out to remove wrinkles, so that it conforms ex- 

 actly to the outline of the shoe, and so that the line where the 

 two sides of the envelope meet will lie along the center line of 

 the shoe. When a vacuum of 21 inches, or 10 pounds pressure. 



AN INNOVATION IN RUBBER WASHERS. 



Except in those cases where tub washers are 

 used, crude rubber containing sand, dirt, etc., 

 is passed between the crushing rolls of the or- 

 dinary roll washer without preliminary treat- 

 ment, to remove the foreign matter. The ma- 

 chine illustrated in the accompanying draw- 

 ings, and which has just been patented in this 

 country, is of somewhat unusual construction. 

 Upon the bed plate A are mounted two frames 

 B and C. The former is rigidly attached, while 

 the latter is pivoted at its lower end. Each 

 of these frames has a series of jaws E and F 

 extending towards each other as shown. These 

 jaws are U-shaped and are provided with teeth 

 as shown in the plan views of the machine. 

 When the frames B and C are at their minimum distance apart, 

 as shown in the first drawing, the toothed portions of the jaws 

 £ and F form opposite sides of an almost circular passage 

 through which the rubber descends from a hopper G in the 

 upper part of the frame B. When the frame C is set in motion, 

 by means of power applied to the pulley H and communicated 

 to the frame through the connecting rod /, the jaws F are forced 

 back as indicated at /, so that a lump of rubber of the shape 



The Latest Type of Rubber Washer. 



shown at K will be stretched into a thin and corrugated sheet 

 as indicated at L. As the crank shaft continues to revolve, the 

 rubber sheet becomes thinner as it descends between the jaws. 

 During this operation water is impinged against the rubber from 

 nozzles M and N. At the lower ends of the frames B and C are 

 corrugated jaws R, which are opened and closed by the move- 



