UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOEL HOUGHTON, OF OGDEN, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR WASHING TABLE FURNITURE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 7,365, dated May 14, 1850.

To all whom it may concern:

    Be it known that I, JOEL HOUGHTON, of Ogden in the county, of Monroe and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Machine for Cleaning Table Furniture; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

Dishwashing Machine - Patent 7,365    The nature of my invention consists in placing the crockery or other articles of table furniture in a machine fitted to receive them, and then to wash them, by turning a shaft with arms and buckets so arranged as to throw the water upon the crockery with force, and thus acting upon and cleansing each and every article.

    To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

    I construct a cylindrical vessel, metallic or of wood, such as A B C D E F. One side of this cylinder - say one-fourth - as at A C E F, is left open from near the top to the bottom. From the sides A C and E F of this opening are pieces running back far enough to form the ends of a curb, (shown by the red lines a a',) with a piece a a' fastened to and connecting these sides. This curb resembles that of a fanning-mill and contains within a horizontal wheel with two dippers or buckets b b. The shaft c passes through the sides of the curb and is supported by the uprights G G' of the frame. At one end of this shaft is a crank d, by which the wheel is turned. This shaft c may be placed at right angles to the direction of the machine, or at an acute angle, as in the shaft c'. (Represented by dotted lines in the drawing.) The bottom of the machine slants or inclines downward toward the outer end of the curb, so as to give the water a tendency in that direction to be taken up by the buckets and thrown forward into the cylinder and also to draw the water off when necessary through a hole in the bottom of the curb. (Seen at e.)

    Inside the cylinder A B C D E F is a vertical shaft H, resting on the center in a socket on the bottom, and which passes up through and above the top or cover of the cylinder. Through the top of this shaft is a hole f, through which a pin is passed, by means of which I give it a rotary motion. Connected with this shaft is a cylindrical rack or crib g, and which is supported by the shaft. The diameter of the crib is so much less than that of the cylinder as to allow it to revolve freely within it. From near the middle of the shaft, also attached to it, are other wires i, which converge toward and are fastened to the lower and outer rim of the rack g. Their inclination from the center of the shaft downward and outward is about thirty degrees. On the bottom of the rack a hoop is placed on edge about midway between the shaft and the outer rim of the rack. The upper edge of this hoop is notched, so as to hold a plate or dish in place when put into the rack. The bottom of the cylinder A B C D E F being inclined toward the rim, in order to tend , the water in that direction, the machine is placed in a frame, so as to raise that end which is farthest from the wheel as that the top or cover of the cylinder will lie horizontal.

    In order to show the operation, I have substituted for the cover in the drawing a cross-piece K', to support the vertical shaft in position. Dishes and other articles of table furniture are placed within the rack g upon the conical rack i in any position in which they can empty themselves, and so that their surfaces will be exposed to the direction of the buckets b in the revolution of the rack. Boiling water is poured into the machine and the top put on. The rack or crib containing things to be washed is gently made to revolve by giving a rotary motion to be shaft H. At the same time the crank is turned when water is taken up by the buckets and thrown into the rack upon the surfaces of its contents, and this continued until they are thoroughly washed. After standing a few minutes they become dry, are taken out, and are ready for use without wiping and have a bright surface. When the horizontal shaft c is inclined, as c', the force of the water as thrown from the buckets will cause the rack g to revolve without other action on it.

    What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is -

    The construction of a cylinder with a cylindrical rack supported by an upright shaft resting upon and being within and supported by the cylinder, the rack having within it a conical rack and hoop to receive and hold table furniture, in combination with a curb containing a horizontal wheel with buckets to throw water upon the cylindrical rack, the whole supported by a frame, and by these mechanical means cleansing the surface of table furniture without the use of hands, the
entire machine being arranged, combined, and operated substantially as is herein fully set forth.

JOEL HOUGHTON.       

    Witnesses:
        GEO. C. THOMAS,
        C. B. HUTCHINSON.
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