AN IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR SHEARING AND BURLING ALL SORTS OF WOVEN FABRICS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Gedge, of the Firm of John Gedge
and Son, of No. 11, Wellington Street, Strand, in the County of Mid-
dlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
SHEARING AND BURLING ALL SORTS OF WOVEN FABRICS."-A communication
from abroad by Calixte Hippolyte Jean Pierre Damaye, and Jean
Compagnie both of No 15 Passage des Petites Ecuries Paris France
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Gedge
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
24th February 1865.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of No.
11, Wellington Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED APPARATUS
FOR SHEARING AND BURLING ALL SORTS OF WOVEN FABRICS," (a communication
to me from abroad by Calixte Hippolyte Jean Pierre Damaye and Jean Com-
pagnie, both of No. 15, Passage des Petites Ecuries, Paris, France,) to be as
follows:-
The apparatus or tool the subject of this Invention represents a square
plane hollowed interiorily in the shape of a wide mortice, the narrowest open

page_text: ing of which operates on the fabric by means of two steel blades grooved or
fluted on the flat of the side fixed to the wood, the flutings being to the
number of from 10 to 25 to the half inch according to the fineness of the
fabric to be prepared. These blades present a sharp and triangular toothing
formed by a bevel on the side opposite the fluting, that is to say, that it is the
bevel made on the flutings which forms the toothing. These blades are fixed
on the small side of the plane so as to place in face of each other the toothing
of each of them, leaving an interval of from a little more than one inch to
two inches, according to the fabric to be prepared, which interval forms a
mortice or groove by which the waste is removed. These blades are fixed on
the wood by means of screws, in sufficient number to secure them firmly.
The thickness of the blades is about of an inch by from about one inch
to 1 inches in breadth, and the wood of the plane is from about 3 to 5 inches
in breadth at its broadest part, and from 2 to 3 inches in thickness at the side,
the length being variable according to the breadth of the woven fabric to be
prepared. This plane is formed of two equal parts juxtaposed by means of a
pin or spindle placed inside each end, and with a screw at each end serving
to keep the two parts of the tool together. The part which operates on the
woven fabrics present a convex surface so as to facilitate contact of tool and
fabric. The apparatus is arranged so as to be set in motion either by the
hand of the workman by a come and go motion obtained from any sort of
motor, or by a circular motion, in which case the toothed blades are mounted
around a hollow cylinder in sufficient number for the work in view. This
latter arrangement is especially suitable for effecting the shearing and burling
of fabrics, cloths, for example, the downy part of which must always be operated
upon in the same direction. An iron or steel axle, the two ends of which
serve for crank pins, crosses longitudinally this cylinder, in which it is fixed by
cross bars.
The distinctive characteristics of this Invention consists-
Firstly, in the shape and triangular arrangement of the toothing of the
blades.
Secondly, that the two distinct operations of shearing and burling woven
fabrics, such as cloth, velvets, merinos, and other woollens, calices, linens, silk,
stuffs, and other fabrics are effected by one and the same apparatus.

page_text: .
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Gedge in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 23rd August 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,. WILLIAM
EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of No. 11, Wellington
Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Edward Gedge, Her special license that I, the said
William Edward Gedge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Edward Gedge, my executors, administrators,
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully, might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "AN IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR SHEARING AND BURLING ALL. SORTS.
OF WOVEN FABRICS," a communication to me from abroad by Calixte
Hippolyte Jean Pierre Damaye and Jean Compagnie, both of. No. 15,
Passage des Petites Ecuries, Paris, France, upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Edward Gedge, my executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in
te Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward, Gedge, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings and
to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to, say :-:
The apparatus or tool which forms the subject of this Invention consists of
a square "plane
or cutting tool hollowed interiorily in the shape of a wide
slot or mortice, the narrowest opening of which operates on the fabric. by
means of two stell blades which are grooved or fluted on the face of the side
fixed to the wood, such flutings being to the number of from 10 to 25 to the
half-inch according to the fineness of the fabric to be operated upon. These

page_text: 66
blades present a sharp and triangular toothing formed by a bevel on the side
opposite the fluting, that is to say, that it is the bevel made on the flutings
which forms the toothing. The blades are fixed on the small side of the plane
so that the teeth of one blade may be opposite to those of the other, leaving
an interval of from three-sixteenths to a quarter of an inch between the blades
according to the fabric to be prepared, which interval forms a slot or opening
through which the waste cuttings pass off. These blades are firmly fixed by
means of screws to the wooden holders or bars forming the body of the tool or
instrument. The thickness of the blades is about one-twelfth of an inch by
from about one inch to one and a half inches in breadth, and the wood of the
'plane" or instrument is from about three to five inches in breadth at its
broadest part, and from two to three inches in thickness at the side, the
length being variable according to the breadth of the woven fabric to be
prepared. This "plane" is formed of two equal parts placed in juxta-
position by means of a pin or spindle at each end, and by a screw at each
'extremity, which serves to keep the two parts of the tool together. The
part which operates on the woven fabric presents a convex surface so as to
facilitate contact of tool and fabric. The apparatus is arranged so as to
be set in motion either by hand or by a to-and-fro motion obtained from
any mechanical arrangement, or by a circular motion, in which latter
case the toothed blades are mounted round a hollow cylinder in sufficient
number for the work required. This latter arrangement is especially suitable
for effecting the shearing and burling of fabrics (cloths for example) the nap
or downy part of which must always be operated upon in the same direction.
An iron or steel spindle, the two ends of which serve for crank pins, is passed
longitudinally through and secured to this cylinder by cross bars or arms.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I skall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings represents a full-sized external elevation of a
portion of the improved apparatus or instrument; Figure 2 is a corresponding
plan of the same; Figure 3 represents a transverse section taken along the line
1-2 in Figure 1; and Figure 4 is an internal elevation of a portion of Figure
1. The shearing or "burling" instrument is composed of two equal parts
a, a', placed in juxtaposition and connected by screws. That part which
operates upon the fabric presents a convex surface in order to facilitate contact
between the fabric and the instrument. The blades and are fixed on the
wooden bars a, a', by means of screws so as to be perfectly firm thereon

page_text: Figure 5 represents on an enlarged scale a transverse section of one of the
blades; Figure 6 is a view of the under side corresponding to Figure 5. A
number of grooves or channels are made (see Figure 6) on the under side of
the blade ranging from about 10 to 25 per half-inch according to the fineness
of the fabric to be operated upon. In order to produce the cutting edge of
the teeth shewn in Figures 7 and 8 the upper edge of the blade is bevelled off
to a greater or less angle as desired. By this construction an acute pointed
and triangular set of teeth is obtained, which cut on all sides after the manner
of a burin. The teeth in each blade so formed are situate exactly opposite
each other, as shewn in Figure 9, an interval or space of about a quarter of
an inch being left between the two sets of teeth in order to allow the waste to
pass off freely. The arrangement and construction of toothed blades above
described will be found most suitable for shearing fabrics in a regular manner
on the right side of the cloth, for "burling "the same, that is to say, remov-
ing the knots or small inequalities in the surface of merinos and other fabrics
requiring such treatment, the following modifications will be necessary. The
blades l, shewn in top plan view at Figure 10, have their teeth made wider
and disposed in a quincunx, the point of a tooth in one blade corresponding
to the interval between two teeth in the opposite blade, moreover they are
not made to cut on all their sides or edges. They are made in the manner
shewn in Figures 11 and 12, which is similar to that adopted when required
for shearing, with this difference, that the bottom or gorge x is reduced or
filed down so as to curtail the cutting portion of this part of the tooth. The
shearing or "burling" instrument thus arranged may be actuated either by
hand or by mechanical contrivances of any suitable kind; in the latter case
the arrangement shewn at Figures 13 and 14 is preferred. Figure 18 is a
longitudinal elevation of a machine which imparts to the shearing or burling
apparatus or reciprocating motion in the arc of a circle; Figure 14 is a cor-
responding front elevation. The "burler" A, constructed as herein-before
described; it is fixed to the ends of two uprights m which are connected by
tie rods and work upon fixed centres p in the lower part of the machine. The
tie rod n is connected by the rod B to the cranked axle M of the machine,
which is rotated either by the winch handle M' or mechanically by the aid of
fast and loose driving pullies. The fabric of any kind which it is desired to
operate upon is stretched between the four rollers r, r¹, which are driven from
the crank shaft M by the pinion D, which actuates by means of the endless
chain d the large wheel D' keyed on to the axis of the lower roll r¹. The rolls
r turn only by the contact of the fabric as it passes along, and the upper roll
in each pair is pressed upon the lower one by means of weighted levers as

page_text: shewn in Figure 13. The crank shaft M transmits to the instrument A a
reciprocating motion in the direction of an arc of a circle. I would here
remark that I do not confine myself to the particular combination of
nechanism herein-before described for actuating the shearing or "burling
instrument, because if desired the shearing or "burling" blades may be fitted
to a hollow cylinder which may receive a continuous rotatory motion, which
arrangement would answer better for those fabrics which require to be worked
in one direction only.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that what I consider to be novel
and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First, the peculiar triangular form of teeth made so as to cut either in all
parts or only in certain parts thereof, accordingly as they are required for
shearing or "burling" fabrics, substantially as herein-before described.
Second, the peculiar combination of blades, whereby the two distinct opera-
tions of shearing and of "burling fabrics are effected by one and the same
apparatus.
Third, the general combination and arrangement of mechanism for actuating
the shearing and burling apparatus, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Gedge, have to this
my Specification set my hand and seal, the Nineteenth day of August
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
17
TY.
E. GEDGE (L.S.)