Thomas Hancock (inventor)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Hancock elder brother of inventor Walter Hancock
, was an English inventor who founded the British rubber industry. He invented the masticator, a machine that shredded rubber scraps and which allowed rubber to be recycled after being formed into blocks or sheets.
s, suspenders, shoe
s and stocking
s; in the process of creating these early elastic fabrics, Hancock found himself wasting large amounts of rubber. He invented a machine to shred the waste rubber, his "Pickling machine" (or "masticator" as it is now known). He called it by the deceptive name of "Pickling" because he initially chose not to patent it, instead preferring to rely on secrecy.
In 1820, Hancock rented a factory in Goswell Road, London, where he worked raw rubber with the machines he had invented. His machines produced a warm mass of homogeneous rubber that could then be shaped and mixed with other materials, and was more easily dissolved than raw rubber. The prototype of his masticator was operated by one man and could only hold 3 oz (85 g); it was a wooden machine with a hollow cylinder studded with metal "teeth", with an inner studded core that was hand-cranked. By 1821 he had produced a two-man machine that held 1 lb (0.45359237 kg), and by 1841, he had created a machine that could process up to 200 lb (90.7 kg) of rubber at a time.
Hancock experimented with rubber solutions and in 1825 patented a process of making artificial leather
using rubber solution and a variety of fibres. His choice of solvents, coal oil
and turpentine
, was probably influenced by Charles Macintosh’s 1823 patent. In the same year he began working with Macintosh to manufacture his "double textured" fabric.
By 1830 it was obvious to everyone concerned that Hancock’s leather solution, prepared with his masticated rubber, was better than Macintosh's. The two began more fully cooperating, constructing, for example, an automatic spreading machine to replace the paint brushes previously used by Macintosh.
In 1834, Hancock’s London factory burned down and Macintosh had already closed his Glasgow factory. The work was moved to Manchester where, in 1838, another fire destroyed that factory. A new factory was soon built and business continued as before, even though Macintosh’s 1823 patent had expired in 1837. It was only in 1837 that Hancock finally patented both his masticator and spreader (UK patent 7,344).
in the US (30 January 1844). He mentioned in his "Personal Narrative" that his friend William Brockendon invented the word vulcanisation from the God Vulcan
of Roman mythology. Hancock did not credit himself with discovering the reaction of sulphur with rubber; he instead said that in 1842 Brockendon had showed him some American rubber samples which had been treated with sulphur.
Brockendon later said in an affidavit that he never heard or knew of Hancock analysing the Goodyear samples, a claim Hancock verifies in his "Personal Narrative", where he claimed he had been experimenting with sulphur for many years himself. A number of chemists also swore that even if he had analysed Goodyear’s material, this would not have given him enough information to duplicate the process. Alexander Parkes
, inventor of the "cold cure" process (vulcanization of fabrics using sulphur chloride in a carbon disulphide solution), claimed that both Hancock and Brockendon admitted to him that their experiments on the Goodyear samples had enabled them to understand what he had done.
The firm had large display stands at the Great Exhibition of 1851
in London and at the 1855 Exposition Universelle
in Paris. In 1857 Hancock published the story of his life’s work as "The Origin and Progress of the Caoutchouc or India-Rubber Industry in England". He continued to work until his death in 1865.
Walter Hancock
Walter Hancock was an English inventor of the Victorian period. He is chiefly remembered for his steam powered road vehicles, but also received a patent for preparing and cutting indiarubber into sheets...
, was an English inventor who founded the British rubber industry. He invented the masticator, a machine that shredded rubber scraps and which allowed rubber to be recycled after being formed into blocks or sheets.
Early life
Hancock was born in 1786 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, and little is known about his early life. His father was a cabinet maker and it is possible that Thomas Hancock was trained in the same trade: in 1815 he is recorded as being in partnership with his brother, Walter, in London, as a coach builder.Career
Hancock's interest in rubber seems to have sprung from a desire to make waterproof fabrics to protect the passengers on his coaches. By 1819 he had begun to experiment with making rubber solutions. In 1820 he patented fastenings for gloveGlove
A glove is a garment covering the hand. Gloves have separate sheaths or openings for each finger and the thumb; if there is an opening but no covering sheath for each finger they are called "fingerless gloves". Fingerless gloves with one large opening rather than individual openings for each...
s, suspenders, shoe
Shoe
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to culture, with appearance originally being tied to function...
s and stocking
Stocking
A stocking, , is a close-fitting, variously elastic garment covering the foot and lower part of the leg. Stockings vary in color, design and transparency...
s; in the process of creating these early elastic fabrics, Hancock found himself wasting large amounts of rubber. He invented a machine to shred the waste rubber, his "Pickling machine" (or "masticator" as it is now known). He called it by the deceptive name of "Pickling" because he initially chose not to patent it, instead preferring to rely on secrecy.
In 1820, Hancock rented a factory in Goswell Road, London, where he worked raw rubber with the machines he had invented. His machines produced a warm mass of homogeneous rubber that could then be shaped and mixed with other materials, and was more easily dissolved than raw rubber. The prototype of his masticator was operated by one man and could only hold 3 oz (85 g); it was a wooden machine with a hollow cylinder studded with metal "teeth", with an inner studded core that was hand-cranked. By 1821 he had produced a two-man machine that held 1 lb (0.45359237 kg), and by 1841, he had created a machine that could process up to 200 lb (90.7 kg) of rubber at a time.
Hancock experimented with rubber solutions and in 1825 patented a process of making artificial leather
Artificial leather
Artificial leather is a fabric or finish intended to substitute for leather in fields such as upholstery, clothing and fabrics, and other uses where a leather-like finish is required but the actual material is cost-prohibitive or unsuitable....
using rubber solution and a variety of fibres. His choice of solvents, coal oil
Coal oil
Coal oil is a term once used for a specific shale oil used for illuminating purposes. Coal oil is obtained from the destructive distillation of cannel coal, mineral wax, and bituminous shale, while kerosene is obtained by the distillation of petroleum...
and turpentine
Turpentine
Turpentine is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly pine trees. It is composed of terpenes, mainly the monoterpenes alpha-pinene and beta-pinene...
, was probably influenced by Charles Macintosh’s 1823 patent. In the same year he began working with Macintosh to manufacture his "double textured" fabric.
By 1830 it was obvious to everyone concerned that Hancock’s leather solution, prepared with his masticated rubber, was better than Macintosh's. The two began more fully cooperating, constructing, for example, an automatic spreading machine to replace the paint brushes previously used by Macintosh.
In 1834, Hancock’s London factory burned down and Macintosh had already closed his Glasgow factory. The work was moved to Manchester where, in 1838, another fire destroyed that factory. A new factory was soon built and business continued as before, even though Macintosh’s 1823 patent had expired in 1837. It was only in 1837 that Hancock finally patented both his masticator and spreader (UK patent 7,344).
Vulcanisation
On 21 November 1843, Hancock took out a patent for the vulcanisation of rubber using sulphur, 8 weeks before Charles GoodyearCharles Goodyear
Charles Goodyear was an American inventor who developed a process to vulcanize rubber in 1839 -- a method that he perfected while living and working in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1844, and for which he received patent number 3633 from the United States Patent Office on June 15, 1844Although...
in the US (30 January 1844). He mentioned in his "Personal Narrative" that his friend William Brockendon invented the word vulcanisation from the God Vulcan
Vulcan (mythology)
Vulcan , aka Mulciber, is the god of beneficial and hindering fire, including the fire of volcanoes in ancient Roman religion and Roman Neopaganism. Vulcan is usually depicted with a thunderbolt. He is known as Sethlans in Etruscan mythology...
of Roman mythology. Hancock did not credit himself with discovering the reaction of sulphur with rubber; he instead said that in 1842 Brockendon had showed him some American rubber samples which had been treated with sulphur.
Brockendon later said in an affidavit that he never heard or knew of Hancock analysing the Goodyear samples, a claim Hancock verifies in his "Personal Narrative", where he claimed he had been experimenting with sulphur for many years himself. A number of chemists also swore that even if he had analysed Goodyear’s material, this would not have given him enough information to duplicate the process. Alexander Parkes
Alexander Parkes
Alexander Parkes was a metallurgist and inventor from Birmingham, England. He created Parkesine, the first man-made plastic.-Biography:...
, inventor of the "cold cure" process (vulcanization of fabrics using sulphur chloride in a carbon disulphide solution), claimed that both Hancock and Brockendon admitted to him that their experiments on the Goodyear samples had enabled them to understand what he had done.
The firm had large display stands at the Great Exhibition of 1851
The Great Exhibition
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations or The Great Exhibition, sometimes referred to as the Crystal Palace Exhibition in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held, was an international exhibition that took place in Hyde Park, London, from 1 May to 15 October...
in London and at the 1855 Exposition Universelle
Exposition Universelle (1855)
The Exposition Universelle of 1855 was an International Exhibition held on the Champs-Elysées in Paris from May 15 to November 15, 1855. Its full official title was the Exposition Universelle des produits de l'Agriculture, de l'Industrie et des Beaux-Arts de Paris 1855.The exposition was a major...
in Paris. In 1857 Hancock published the story of his life’s work as "The Origin and Progress of the Caoutchouc or India-Rubber Industry in England". He continued to work until his death in 1865.