IMPROVEMENTS ON A MACHINE OR MACHINERY FOR THE PURPOSE OF CROPPING OR SHEARING WOOLLEN CLOTHS OF EVERY DESCRIPTION
Year: 1818

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
COLLIER, of Frocester, in the County of Gloucester, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third, by His
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Fifteenth day of
January, in the fifty-eighth year of His reign, did give and grant unto me, the
said John Collier, my executors, administrators, and assigns, His especial
licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said John Collier,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, during the term of years therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend my
"IMPROVEMENTS ON A MACHINE OR MACHINERY FOR THE PURPOSE OF CROPPING
OR SHEARING WOOLLEN CLOTHS OF EVERY DESCRIPTION," within England, Wales,
and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in such manner as to me, the said
John Collier, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should in our dis-
cretion seem meet; in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that
if I, the said John Collier, should not particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, and cause the same to
be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within two calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent, that
then the said Letters Patent, and all liberties and advantages whatsoever
thereby granted, should utterly cease, determine, and become void, as in and

page_text: and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Collier, do hereby declare that my said improvements consist in certain
modifications of machinery which are herein-after described, and will appear
evident from the Drawings or Figures hereunto annexed.
Fig. 1 represents a side view of elevation of the machine, shewing also the
situation of the cloth to be sheared (which is coloured red), the same being
drawn one sixth part of the size of the machine I generally use. Fig. 2 is a
front view of part of the stretching or cutting table or bed, over which the
cloth is stretched for the purpose of being sheared. I is the support of this
bed. m, a pinion, working into the projecting toothed rack, by means of
which a side horizontal motion may be given to it. Fig. 3 is a perspective
view of the cloth guard or keeper. These two last Figures are drawn half the
size of the original. Fig. 6 is a plan of the machine, one sixth of the real
size. Fig. 9 is a front view of the machine on the same scale. Fig. 8 is a
side section of four of the principal acting parts of the machine, half the real
-size, namely, the cutting bed and its support I of the female blade or cutter i,
and its support k of the male cutting or shearing cylinder z, and the cloth
keeper n. Fig. 7, transverse section of the male cutting cylinder, of the
.real size, shewing its blades or cutters 13, and the manner of fixing them.
These blades may be spiral from one end of the cylinder to the other, or in
other forms, which be will herein-after described. Fig. 4, view of part of
another male cutting cylinder, in which the blades or cutters are elliptical
rings, fixed obliquely to the axis. Fig. 5, another view of a cutting cylinder,
in which the cutters are parts of spirals put on in separate rings, and so dis-
posed that they form a chequered appearance, and one blade follows another.
The particular construction of the machine, and the use of its several parts,
is as follows: Figs. 1, 6, 9, O, frame of cast iron or other material, upon
which the different parts of the machine are mounted or fixed for work.
Figs. 1, 9, C, support for the pedal or treddle U. d, support for the cylindrical
brush Q, for laying the pile. e, support for the roller C. Figs. 1, 6, 9,
f, support for the cylinder T to raise the pile. 9, support for the delivering
cylinder D. h, support for the cloth keeper n. Figs. 1, 2, 8, 9, i, support for
the cutting bed or table a. Figs. 1, 8, k, support for the female blade or
cutter i. Figs. 1, 6, 9, 1, support for the male cutting cylinder z. Figs. 1, 6,
9, support for the greasing piece V. Fig. 1, r, support for the roller E.
Figs. 1, 6, s, support for the taking-off cylinder F.
All these supports
are furnished with brasses and adjusting screws, by which they may

page_text: be accurately set in their places, as will appear by the Drawings. Fig. 1, J,
the floor or bottom platform of the machine upon which the cloth to be shorn
is placed as at A, in regular folds. From this place it is carried up by the
machine to be operated upon, and, when finished, is delivered in similar folds,
as at G. Figs. 1, 6, 9, B, C, E, cylindrical rollers, covered with plush, which
support and conduct the cloth. The two first of these have bands placed in
grooves near their ends, and carry the weights 6 to prevent their slipping, and
to produce a proper tension of the cloth between the roller B and the delivering
cylinder D. F, the drawing-off cylinder, also covered with plush, and operating
upon the cloth so as to draw it forwards after it is shorn. This it does by its
rotary motion, communicated to it by the wheel M, fixed upon its axis, which
is driven by the pinion O, fixed upon the axis of the wheel R, to which the
first motion of the machine is to be given by any prime mover. D, the
delivering cylinder, covered in the same manner with plush. This supplies
the cloth on to the shearing bed just as fast as the drawing-off cylinder takes
it up, which is effected by a rotatory motion given to it by two riggers or
pullies K, K, one placed on its axis, and the other on the axis of the wheel M.
They are both of the same diameter, and are connected by the strap or cord U,
which is kept constantly stretched by the weight L. Q, a cylindrical brush to
lay the pile of the cloth, and to clear away anything which may happen to
stick to it. T, the raising cylinder, covered with rough plush or other stuff, for
the purpose of disposing the pile of the cloth in a proper direction for being
cut or sheared as it passes over the shearing bed and under the female
blade and the male cutting cylinder z. The hairs of the brush Q and the
plush on the cylinder T must be disposed in spiral stripes along their
respective cylinders so as to form two opposite screws from the centre towards
the extremity of the cylinders, by which means the cloth passing over them
will always be stretched towards its selvages, and any creases which happen to
be in it will be removed. This brush and cylinder are moved by the principal
rigger R, by means of their pullies W and Z, and the cord or strap V, which
is kept constantly tight by the stretching weight S and its lever; and the
cylinder T can be made to revolve either backwards or forwards by crossing or
uncrossing the band U. In Fig. 1, p is a small long roller, the whole width
of the machine, or at least of any cloth which is to be sheared by it. This
roller is formed of a close spiral spring of iron wire, similar to those springs
used in bell-hanging. It is covered with cloth, and contains a quantity of
small leaden shot. It is placed upon the cloth to be sheared in a fold
or bed between the delivering cylinder D and the cutting bed, and its
weight must be such as to preserve its situation by keeping the cloth

page_text: stretched. Its use is to preserve an equal tension of the cloth upon the
cutting bed, for should the cloth be more strained in one place than
in another, this roller, by its weight and elasticity, will fall into the slack
places, and produce an equal tension upon the cutting bed. Figs. 1, 3,
6, 8, 9, n, the cloth guard or keeper, made in the form of a square, or of
two pieces of iron at right angles to each other. (See Fig. 3.) This turns
upon a pivot W at each end, and it extends the whole width of the machine
in front, and by pressing upon the cloth it completes the stretching and even
distribution of it upon the shearing bed, immediately in front of which it takes
its bearing upon the cloth. It also receives the nap or pile which is 'thrown
off by the circular motion of the male cutting cylinder z. Figs. 1, 2, 8, 9,
tlie shearing table, the equal and constant elasticity of which forces the cloth
up against the cutters during its whole traverse or passage thro' the machine.
This is composed of a piece of brass or other metal (a), the upper edge of
which is to press against the under side of the female blade i, and must be
rounded and made perfectly straight, so as perfectly to coincide with it. This
piece of brass is held without shake, and slides between two cheeks or sup-
porters, 2, 2, also of brass or other metal, which are screwed to their main
support or base I, the internal part of which is hollowed out or rounded. In
order to adjust the female blade i accurately upon the brass bed a, a screw 1
is applied at each end of the carriage of this blade, the head of which is
notched and held in any position by the spring click which is shewn at 1 in
Fig. 1. The whole apparatus which composes the shearing table or bed must
be as long as the widest cloth required to be shorn, and in order to give this
table a due and sufficient degree of elasticity, I not only cover it with several
thicknesses of soft and elastic cloth or velvet, but over these is stretched a
single thickness of fine glazed linen cloth, upon which the cloth to be sheared
passes, while the main brass bed a is supported and borne up against the
female blade by being placed upon a number of flat wire springs 8, disposed
in 'the hollow of the main support I. These springs may be such as are used
by bell hangers or brace makers, but I prefer and use the spring produced by
wrapping the steel wire round a thin flat iron ruler instead of round a cylinder.
The shearing table or bed has an horizontal lateral motion by means of the
dovetail which is formed in the bottom of its support I, and a groove for this
to work in in the frame underneath. This motion is produced and regulated
by the rack and pinion m, moved by the handle 4, and thus cloth of any
width may be sheared without affecting its lists or edges by merely adjusting
the bed and the blades to the width of the cutting or shearing which
may bc
required. The cast-iron support of the bed is held or supported at its two

page_text: extremities by the lugs or projections 5, and to its middle are adapted two iron
braces 6, 7, through the middle of which the screw 8 passes, the extremity
next to 7 being prolonged and rounded. Upon this screw there are nuts 9, 10,
both above and below the braces 6, 7, by means of which the shearing table a
may be adjusted into and kept into a perfect right line. Without such assistance
it might sink or give way in the centre by the pressure of the cloth and the
cutters acting upon it. Figs. 1, 6, 9, X, is the lever or handle of the shearing
table or bed; by means of this lever the eccentric or inclined plane 11. is made
to slide behind the prolonged end of the screw 8, which gently bears against it,
and thus the shearing table is moved forwards or withdrawn from the female
blade (being adjusted into its proper situation by the screws B, B), which
permits the workman to remove the cloth, which is necessary, because in my
process the two fag ends of the piece are sewed together so as to make the
cloth move in a perpetual circuit, and when this seam comes upon the bed
it must be withdrawn to permit it to pass without being sheared. Figs. 1,.6,
7, 8, 9, Z are representations of the cylinder or cone which I call the male.
Round this cylinder or cone the cutters or blades 13. are fixed; these are of
steel, and I find sixteen a convenient number. They stand round the cylinder
or cone so as to point to its axis, and are placed helically or spirally so as to
extend one third round the central part, by which means as this cylinder or
cone revolves their edges are brought into successive contact from one. end to
the other with the fixed under blade i, which I call female. This male cutting
cylinder or cone turns upon steel axles or gudgeons in its ends, bearing upon
the four friction wheels 12, and it receives its circular motion from the
principal rigger R by means of its end rigger 14, and the band or leather
strap 15. Figs. 1, 8, i, is the fixed or under blade, which I call the female.
This is also of steel, thin and perfectly straight, ground sharp from its under
side, and fixed firmly by screws between the brass or other metal chops 16,
attached to their main standards or supporters k. These male and female
parts, which form my shears or cutters, must of course be equal in length to
the widest cloth they may be intended to shear. Figs. 1, 6, 9, the male
cylinder or cone, is adjusted upon the female blade i by means of the four
screws 17, the heads of those two which are perpendicular being notched to
receive spring clicks or catches to hold them in any required situation. The
male may at any time be separated from the female i by means of two
connecting rods Y, placed at either side of the frame of the machine, and
connected at their upper ends to the carriage 1 of the male, while their lower
ends connect with the two treadle u, u, which are united by a cross framing.
so that one cannot move without the other. One side of the frame or carriage

page_text: any
situation to
7 is equipped with a rack and pall, as at 18, to hold it up in
which it may have been raised by pressing the foot on U. Figs. 1 and 6,
V, the greaser of the male, consisting of a strip of buff or other strong
leather fixed to a wooden piece which extends across the machine, and will
bear upon the blades of z, or may be removed from them at pleasure by turning
on the pivots 19. On this leather olive oil is applied, which eases the action
of the blades of z upon the fixed blade i, and makes their action much more
pleasant. Fig. 1, is a tin hopper or trough placed behind the female
blade to receive the dust and pile which is sheared or cut from the cloth.
Figs. 1, 6, 9, H, is a long wooden funnel or hopper, the bottom opening of
which must be as long as the widest cloth which has to pass through it, and
which is for the purpose of delivering the cloth after it is shorn in regular
folds upon the platform J of the machine. This it does by a backward and
forward motion upon the same axis as the receiving cylinder F received
through the medium of the rigger N, moved by the band 22, from K. N has
a crank pin upon its side, to which is attached the connecting rod 23,
while its other end is fixed by a joint near the bottom of the hopper H, and
of course as N revolves II will have the requisite motion. P is a stretching
weight and lever, which are necessary to keep the band 22 and connection 23
tight and in order, because it is sometimes necessary to change the pinion O
upon the prime moving axis for one of larger or smaller dimensions to regulate
the quickness of the passage of the cloth through the machine. When the
whole piece of cloth has been sheared and finished, and it is all delivered
upon the platform J of the machine at G, two workmen turn it over, and at the
same time slide it forward to the situation A, when it is ready to pass the
machine a second time, or as many times as it may be necessary to slicar it,
which will depend on the fineness of the cropping already performed and the
quality of the cloth. With respect to the construction of the male cutting
cylinder or conc, this should be intirely of solid brass, having an iron axis
running through it from one end to the other, the projections being turned
into proper gudgeons for it turn upon. Fig. 4 represents a transverse section
of this part of the machine drawn to its actual dimensions. 24 is the cylinder
of brass. 25, a set of segments, cast in pewter to fit the. brass cylinder.
These segments must follow the helical or spiral direction which it is intended
the blades 13 should have from one end of the male to the other. The
blades 13 are made of clock spring steel, projecting about an inch beyond the
pewter. They are placed on that side the long channels 26 which points to
the centre, and are held in their places by long angular or wedge-like pieces
of beech or other sufficiently hard wood 26, which fit into the grooves in the

page_text: pewter, and are pressed down into them by the screws 27, which pass thro' the
pewter and screw into the brass central part. The axis of iron which passes
thro' the centre has also a screwed nut at each of it's ends to fix it, which
nuts press upon the pewter segments and give to the whole cylinder or cone
as much stability and solidity as can be required. The pieces No. 25 may also
be cast as rings, instead of segments, to go round the brass cylinder, about an
inch each in thickness, and the spiral form of the notches 26 may be obtained
in the mould.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Collier, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighteen.