The Probert Encyclopaedia of Science & Technology

BELLOWS

Bellows are an instrument or machine for producing a strong current of air, and principally used for blowing fires, either in private dwellings or in forges, furnaces, mines, etc. Bellows are so formed as, by being dilated and contracted, to inhale air by an orifice which is opened and closed with a valve, and to propel it through a tube upon the fire. It is an ancient contrivance, being known in Egypt, India, and China many ages ago, while forms of it are used among native tribes in Africa. Bellows of very great power are called blowing-machines, and were formerly wrought by machinery driven by steam.
Research Bellows