IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING AND TWISTING FIBROUS MATERIAL
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Tatham, of Vulcan Works, Rochdale, in the
County of Lancaster, Machine Maker for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING AND TWISTING FIBROUS MATERIAL"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Tatham at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 22nd December 1883.
WILLIAM TATHAM, of Vulcan Works, Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster,
Machine Maker, "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING AND TWISTING
FIBROUS MATERIALS,"
My invention relates to and consists in a combination or in combinations,
arrangements and constructions of mechanism for spinning and twisting fibrous
materials, and applys to spinning and twisting mechanism where the flyer is in
independent bearings and is either driven directly or by the drag of the thread
when the spindle is rotated.
According to one modification of my invention the spindle is fixed in a rail and
does not rotate and the rail is arranged in suitable guides and is actuated by
mechanism to produce an up and down traverse and building or copping motion,
and is also arranged so that the rail may be lowered at the completion of a set to
doff the cops or tubes from the spindles.
Upon the non-rotating spindle a thin tubular shell is fitted having in its interior,
bearings for the tip and lower part of the spindle, the lower end of this tube or
shell descends into a cup placed upon the dead on non-rotating spindle, which cup
is to contain a lubricant to pass up the interior of the shell tube, to lubricate its
bearings; On the exterior of the lower end of the shell tube an inverted cup is
secured to rotate with the shell, this cup partly covers without touching the
stationary oil cup on the spindle.
This inverted cup is or may also be formed to be pressed upon by a friction
surface such as a band, spring weight lever or other arrangement, which is
actuated by a cam or other arrangement in connection with the copping motion to
increase or decrease the friction and drag or retardation according to the diameter
at which the yarn or thread is being wound upon the cop.
The spun or twisted thread is or may be wound in the conical or cop form or
in the cylindrical or bobbin form, and the thread is or may be wound on the
tubular shell or on a paper or other tube on the shell.

page_text: The twist is put in and the thread is wound on the cop or bobbin by a flyer
formed on the end of a tubular axis which rotates inside of another tube fixed in
any convenient manner in a rail. On the tubular axis of the flyer at its lower
end another tube is secured which passes over without touching the exterior of
the tubular bearing for the tubular axis of the flyer, this tube being formed with
an internal annular recess and with a groove for the endless band which is to
rotate the flyer, the upper end of the tube being funnel shaped.
The lubricant passes from the upper end of the tubular bearing, and the exterior
tube which also acts as a warf, serves as a reservoir for oil and prevents it from
flying off.
The driving band pulls and holds the tubular flyer axis up within its tubular
bearing (or this may be done by a collar on the tube of the flyer), but to hold up
the flyer when required without the band, a projection or projections is or are
secured to the rail to enter an exterior groove on the tube for the warf, but so as
not to touch it when the flyer is rotating-These projections are or may be
secured on a shaft or bar extending the lengthway of the rail, one projection for
each flyer so that by moving the shaft or bar endways or sideways all the flyers
on a side may be simultaneously released or secured when desired.
The fibrous material being spun or the threads being twisted pass from the cop
or bobbin to one leg of the flyer then up the interior of its hollow axis to the
rollers.
"end"
This is the direction in which the thread is passed when piecing an
but the thread when being spun or twisted moves in the reverse direction, that is,
from the rollers to the cop or bobbin on the spindle.
The rail carrying the flyers is or may be made in some cases movable in the line
of the axis of the spindle which passes into the tubular axis of the flyer without
touching it.
و"
It will be understood that when the flyer rotates, the pull of the thread between
the flyer and cop or bobbin on the spindle pulls the shell on the stationary spindle
round with it and the inertia of the cop bobbin and tube constitutes the "drag'
which winds the thread as it is spun or twisted on to the cop or bobbin, but
friction is or may be added as hereinbefore described to modify the drag as
required.
According to another modification of my invention a rotating spindle is
substituted for the non-rotating spindle.
Such rotating spindle has its footstep and collar bearing in a tube which is filled
with oil or lubricant, and this tube is secured in the spindle rail.
The spindle in this latter arrangement is thus free to rotate with the cop or
bobbin upon it by the pull of the thread, and has a warf or surface upon it by
which it is held down in the tube when doffing and to which friction is applied as
herein before described to modify the drag when required.
According to another modification of my invention each spindle either solid or
hollow or partly hollow is arranged in a tube as above described and has a warf for
driving it, the thread being wound upon the spindle by the drag of the flyer
which is rotated by the pull of the thread between the spindle and flyer.
Arrangements as hereinbefore described are or may be combined with the flyer,
actuated by connection with the copping motion to increase or decrease the drag as
required.
Spindles and flyers combined as herein before described may be placed with their
axes in a vertical position and may be driven in any ordinary manner, but my
invention also consists in placing the axes of each spindle and flyer in an inclined
position so as to be conveniently driven by a band working upon one or two
drums or cylinders.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Tatham in the Patent Office on the 21st June 1884.
WILLIAM TATHAM of Vulcan Works, Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster,
Machine Maker, IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING AND TWISTING
FIBROUS MATERIALS
"
My invention relates to and consists in a combination, or in combinations
arrangements and constructions of mechanism for spinning and twisting fibrous
materials, and applies to spinning and twisting mechanism where the flyer is in
independent bearings and is either driven directly, or by the drag of the thread
when the spindle is rotated.
According to one modification of my invention the spindle is fixed in a rail, and
does not rotate and the rail is arranged in suitable guides and is actuated by
mechanism to produce an up and down traverse and building and copping motion,
and is also arranged so that the rail may be lowered at the completion of a set to
doff the cops or tubes from the spindles.
Upon the non-rotating spindle a thin tubular shell is fitted having in its
interior bearings for the "tip" and lower part of the spindle, the lower end of
this tube or shell descends into a cup placed upon the dead or non-rotating spindle,
which cup is to contain a lubricant to pass up the interior of the shell tube, to
lubricate its bearings; On the exterior of the lower end of the shell tube an
inverted cup is secured to rotate with the shell, this cup partly covers without
touching the stationary oil cup on the spindle.
This inverted cup is or may also be formed to be pressed upon by a friction
surface such as a band, spring, weight, lever or other arrangement which is actuated
by a cam or other arrangement in connection with the copping motion to increase
or decrease the friction and drag or retardation, according to the diameter at
which the yarn or thread is being wound upon the cop.
The spun or twisted thread is or may be wound in the conical or cop form or in
cylindrical or bobbin form, and the thread is or may be wound on the tubular
'l or on a paper or other tube on the shell.
The twist is put in and the thread is wound on the cop or bobbin by a flyer
formed on the end of a tubular axis, which rotates inside of another tube fixed in
any convenient manner in a rail. On the tubular axis of the flyer at its lower end
another tube is secured which passes over without touching the exterior of the
tubular bearing for the tubular axis of the flyer, this tube being formed with an
internal annular recess and with a groove for the endless band which is to rotate
the flyer, the upper end of the tube being funnel shaped.
The lubricant passes from the upper end of the tubular bearing, and the exterior
tube which also acts as a warf, serves as a reservoir for oil and prevents it from
flying off.
The driving band pulls and holds the tubular flyer axis up within its tubular
bearing (or this may be done by a collar on the tube of the flyer) but to hold up
the flyer when required without the band a projection or projections is or are
secured to the rail to enter an exterior groove on the tube for the warf but so
as not to touch it when the flyer is rotating.
These projections are or may be secured on a shaft or bar extending the lengthway
of the rail, one projection for each flyer so that by moving the shaft or bar
endways or sideways all the flyers on a side may be simultaneously released or
secured when desired.
The fibrous material being spun or the threads being twisted pass from the
cop or bobbin to one leg of the flyer then up the interior of its hollow axis to the
rollers.

page_text: This is the direction in which the thread is passed when piecing an end but
the thread when being spun or twisted moves in the reverse direction that is,
from the rollers to the cop or bobbin on the spindle.
The rail carrying the flyers is or may be made in some cases movable in the line
of the axis of the spindle which passes into the tubular axis of the flyer without
touching it.
"
It will be understood that when the flyer rotates the pull of the thread between
the flyer and cop or bobbin on the spindle pulls the shell on the stationary spindle
round with it, and the inertia of the cop bobbin and tube constitutes the "drag
which winds. the thread as it is spun or twisted on to the cop or bobbin; but
friction is or may be added as hereinbefore described to modify the drag as
required.
According to another modification of my invention a rotating spindle is
substituted for the non-rotating spindle.
Such rotating spindle has or may have its footstep and collar bearing in a
tube which is filled with oil or lubricant and this tube is secured in the spindle
rail.
The spindle in this latter arrangement is thus free to rotate with the cop or
bobbin upon it by the pull of the thread, and has a warf or surface upon it by
which it is held down in the tube when doffing and to which friction is applied
as hereinbefore described to modify the drag when required.
Rotary spindles combined with flyers according to my invention may also be
arranged with the spindle in a footstep bearing, and a bearing in a hole in the
tubular axis of the flyer, and with an additional rail to hold the spindles when
being doffed, and keep them down in their footstep bearings.
Spindles and flyers combined as hereinbefore described may be placed with
their axes in a vertical position and may be driven in any ordinary manner but
my invention also consists in placing the axes of each spindle and flyer in an
inclined position so as to be conveniently driven by a band working upon one or
two drums or cylinders.
Fig 1 is a sectional elevation illustrating one modification of my invention.
a represent the drawing rollers, and 6 the roller beam, which in this illustration
is supposed to be in an inclined position.
c and d are rails supposed to extend from end to end of the machine carried on
suitable stands or end frames.
c¹ is a tube, having a shoulder c², at its upper end it is fitted in a hole in the
rail c and secured by a screw nut c³, screwing against the under side of the rail c.
e is a tube that fits and rotates in bearings in the interior of the tube c¹.
The flyer el is formed at the lower end of, and solid with the tube e or the lower
end of the tube e is secured, and the flyer is formed separately to screw on the end
of the tube.
On the lower end of the tube e another tube is secured which comes on the
exterior of the tube c¹ without touching it. The interior of this tube forms the
reservoir for the oil, and prevents any lubricant from being thrown off when
the flyer is rotating-This tube also has a groove e³ to form a warf for the band e¹
to work upon which is to drive the flyer, and the upper end of the tube e² is also
funnel shaped, as shown; and into the groove e the edge of a plate e secured to
the underside of the rail c, can enter without touching the tube when the flyer is
rotating.
This plate e will act to prevent the flyer from dropping out of its bearings in
the tube c¹ when not held by the driving band e¹.
The flyer may be driven by a driving band working on one or two tin drums in
the ordinary mode of driving spindles, except that the drums are placed in such
position in relation to the warf of the flyer, that the pull of the driving band will
be in such a line (as for example that shown-by e' which represents one side of the
band) as to hold and keep the flyer in its tube bearing.

page_text: The spindle is fixed in the rail d or it is secured in a tube d which is made
fast in the rail & the tube d' having a cup d³ for lubricant at its upper end.
Upon the spindle d' there is a thin shell or tube of metal d closed at its upper
end and having a bearing there to rest and rotate upon the tip of the spindle; the
lower end of the thin metal shell baving also an inner bearing to fit and work
against the fixed spindle d¹.
The lower end of the thin metal shell d' has an inverted cup d³ secured upon it
which encloses without touching the cup d³ round the spindle or at the upper end
of the tube in which the spindle is fixed.
The oil can pass from the stationary cup d³ to the interior of the thin shell d'
and thus lubricate the inner surfaces of the thin shell and those of the spindle d¹
which come in rubbing contact when the spindle rotates.
The form of the cup d² prevents the escape of lubricant by centrifugal force, as
all oil getting upon the exterior of the lower end of the thin shell d is thrown
back into the cup (if not filled too full) below the inner flange at its upper edge.
There is a small warf de formed on the boss part of the inverted cup do for a
drag band to press against.
This band d is a short length of cord with a knot at one end to prevent the end
of the cord from being through a notch in a plate d³ in front of the rail and there
is a small weight do on the other end of the cord.
There are or may be several notches in the plate for each spindle and by placing
the end of the cord in one or the other it may be made to bend or extend more or
less over the periphery of the small warf do and thus give more or less drag-The
notched plate d³ is or may be attached to a rod d* and arranged to slide the
lengthway of the rail in suitable bearings, and is or may be moved to and fro to
increase or decrease the drag as the cop builds, by a cam or cam incline actuated
from the copping motion or by any other known and suitable arrangement for this.
purpose.
The cord passes from the notched plate d³ and then over a rib carried by or on
the rail d, de being the weight keeping the cord in tension.
The thread being spun or twisted passes from the rollers a through the tube of
the flyer e then to one leg of the flyer e and then to the shell d.
The rail d is arranged in any suitable guides or slides so that the spindle may be
slided up and down in the direction of its length so as to build the cop, and motion
for this purpose is imparted and conveyed to the rail by any suitable and well
known arrangement of copping motion.
When the cop is finished the rail d is capable of being lowered sufficiently clear
of the flyer to allow the cops to be doffed from the spindle by any known and.
suitable arrangement of copping motion for giving extra lowering movement to a
copping rail, and in addition the rail d is or may be arranged on horizontal pivots
so that the tops of the spindles can be moved outwards to the front, when lowered
sufficiently to bring the tip of the spindle clear of the tube of the flyer by which
arrangement the cops may be doffed without having to lower the rail d to give
clearence to take the cop from the spindle.
Instead of giving more motion than is necessary for copping purposes to the
rail d, the rail c is or may be mounted on slides having toothed racks upon them each
rack gearing with a pinion on a shaft in suitable bearings on the framing and
passing from end to end of the machine so that by rotating this shaft by any
suitable means the rail c may be lifted to give space between the flyer and spindle
for doffing.
The angle of the driving band (e) will admit the lifting movement of the flyers
to the required extent, and the plate e will prevent it from being drawn by the
band out of its bearings in the tube c¹.
In place of lifting the rail d it is or may be arranged on slides having toothed;
racks and a pinion to gear with each rack, the pinions being fast on a shaft in
suitable bearings on the framing passing from end to end of the machine, so that
when the points of the spindles have been lowered clear of the flyers, the rail d and

page_text: thus the flyers are moved backwards by rotating the shaft to give space for doffing
the cops or bobbins.
The plate e may be made with one projection for each flyer to come opposite the
groove e in the warf tube e and the plate e is or may be arranged to slide
end ways or sideways so that when required all the flyers can be simultaneously
released or secured when the driving band does not. hold them in position as
described.
I have only spoken in describing my invention of the parts connected with one
spindle, but it will be understood that any required number of spindles are arranged
side by side as usual with the desired space between them.
When that modification of my invention with a rotating spindle is employed the
spindle has or may have a footstep and collar bearing in a tube screwed or otherwise
secured in the rail d.
The spindle in this case has the inverted cup do secured to it which comes over
the upper end of the tube that carries the bearings of the spindle-The length of
the tube for the bearings is about half the length of the spindle, all the length
of the bearing tube passing or may pass through and extend below the rail d
except a collar on the upper side of the rail which forms or may form a cup to
lubricate the bearings therein.
In the last described modification of my invention the pull of the thread between
the flyer and spindle will drag round and cause the latter to rotate and the cord (d')
acting upon the small warf do secured upon the spindle hereinbefore referred to is
used to modify the drag as required.
The warf or inverted cup d³ on the spindle is also made use of to hold down the
spindle when doffing, as a plate similar to that e is or may be arranged on
projections on the rail d to come above the warf, but not touch it when the spindle
is rotating.
Fig 2 is a sectional elevation illustrating another modification of my invention,
where the spindle rotates and fig 3 is a section through the lower end of the tube
of the flyer.
The flyer is constructed and arranged in this modification the same as that
herein before described and illustrated by fig 1 except that a disc e' is formed or
secured at the lower end of the tubular axis of the flyer of the shape shown by
figs 2 and 3.
The centre hole in the disc or block e is for the end of the spindle to slide
through and the notches between the edges of the disc e7 and the interior of the
tubular axis e of the flyer are (one or the other) for the thread to pass through to
one of the legs e¹ of the flyer.
The lower end of the spindle is in a footstep bearing in the rail d the disc or
block e' in the tubular axis of the flyer forms its upper bearing, in which it can
slide up and down by the copping motion, the spindle rotating with the flyer,
except in respect of the difference of speed necessary for winding on the thread
upon the spindle, bobbin or tube upon it, so that the rotary frictional motion of the
spindle in its upper bearing is only that required for winding on the thread.
The spindle d' passes through a guide rail d¹¹ which is mounted on studs d¹
secured in the rail d but the spindle does not touch the hole in the rail d¹¹ when
spiuning, this rail being for the purpose of keeping the spindle in position when
withdrawn from the upper bearing in the tubular axis of the flyer.
4
The small warf de for giving drag (as described in reference to de fig 1) is fixed
on the spindle d' below the underside and just clear of the rail d" when spinning
so that the rail also acts to keep down the spindle as well as to keep them in
position when the cops or bobbins are doffed.
The spindles and flyers herein before referred to may be placed with their
longitudinal axes in a vertical position, but I prefer to arrange them in an inclined
position in a line passing at about an angle of 65 degrees (more or less) from the
drawing rollers, and if the line x-y of the roller beam 6 (fig 1) be considered
horizontal then the rollers a rails c and d and spindle and flyer will be at about

page_text: the angle above referred to, this angle of the spindles also admits of the drums or
cylinders for the bands being placed in a position that will conveniently allow the
driving bands being in the line hereinbefore explained so that their pull will hold
up the flyers in their bearings.
I may explain that in piecing the threads a small wire hook is passed down the
tubular axis of the flyer and the thread is drawn up it.
I have now particularly described the nature of my said invention and the modes
of carrying the same into effect and claim as my invention.
1. The combination and arrangement of a flyer on a tubular axis within a
tubular bearing and with a tubular warf or exterior tube on the axis of the flyer
enclosing the tubular bearing to retain the lubricant substantially in the manner
and for the purpose hereinbefore described.
2. The combination of a flyer constructed and arranged as hereinbefore described
with a shell or tube on a dead or non-rotating spindle substantially in the manner
and for the purpose specified.
3. The combination of a flyer constructed and arranged as hereinbefore described
with a rotating spindle substantially in the manner and for the purpose specified.
4. The combination of a flyer constructed and arranged as hereinbefore described
with a shell and non-rotating spindle, or with a rotating spindle and with drag
modifing arrangements substantially as and for the purpose specified.
5. The combination of flyers arranged as hereinbefore described with a rotating
spindle arranged with one bearing in the tubular axis of the flyer substantially as
herein before specified and illustrated by figs 2 and 3 of the drawings.
6. The arrangement of the combination of flyers and spindles hereinbefore
described so that their longitudinal axis is an inclined position substantially as and
for the purpose specified.
7. The system or mode of retaining the flyers in their tube bearings by the pull
of the driving bands, substantially as herein before described
8. The arrangement of the plate e or its equivalents on slides to release and
secure simultaneously all the flyers in a frame substantially as hereinbefore
described.
In Witness whereof I the said William Tatham have hereunto set my hand and
seal this twentieth day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred
and eighty four,