IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SEWING BOOTS AND SHOES
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International
Patent Office," Southampton Buildings, London, Consulting
Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
SEWING BOOTS AND SHOES.”—A communication from abroad by Charles
Goodyear, junior, of the City and State of New York, United States
Scaled the 31st December 1870, and dated the 4th August 1870.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition.
and Declaration, on the 4th August 1870, pursuant to the 9th
Section of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," Southampton
Buildings, London, Consulting Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR SEWING BOOTS AND SHOES," and have petitioned Her Majesty
to grant unto me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal

page_text: Letters Patent for the same, and have made solemn Declaration that it
'has been communicated to me from abroad by Charles Goodyear, junior,
of the City and State of New York, United States of America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and
seal, fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawing forming a
part of this Specification :-
This Invention relates to certain improvements in that class of sewing
machines which are used to sew the welt and upper of a boot or shoe to
the insole, and also what is called turned shoes.
The said improvements consist partly in an improved arrangement of
the feeding mechanism, partly in the addition of an auxiliary gauge to
press against the edge or side of the boot or shoe combined with a
locking mechanism to fasten the said gauge rigidly in the desired
position so as to support or hold the work against the thrust of the
needle; partly in a novel construction of the mechanism used for lifting
the back gauge; and partly in a novel construction of the whole
machine dispensing with the awl and employing the needle as the sole
piercing instrument which is operated by a lever, segment, and corre-
sponding gear on the stock of the said instrument.
The first part of these improvements consists more particularly in the
arrangement of the channel gauge on a shaft which has a reciprocating
and also an oscillating motion in such a manner that the said channel
gauge performs the double function of a gauge and of the feed dog, and
the principal disadvantages attending the feed mechanism as heretofore
used are thereby avoided. The shaft on which this feeding gauge is
mounted is by preference concentric with the needle stock, so that the
same is free to oscillate without rubbing too hard upon the surface of
the sole and without disturbing the position of the work.
The second part of the said improvements consists more particularly
in an independent auxiliary gauge which bears against the edge or side
of the work, and to which is applied an automatic locking device so
arranged as to fasten the gauge rigidly in its position against the edge
or side of the work in whatever position it may be at the moment the
needle is piercing the stock.

page_text: The third part of these improvements consists in the arrangement of a
rock shaft in combination with the back gauge and with a cam lever in
such a manner that by the action of the cam lever on a toe extending
from the rock shaft the back gauge is lifted at the moment when the
feed takes place, and that the said gauge is kept from disturbing the
upper or lining in sewing turned work.
The fourth part of these improvements consists in a sewing machine
in which the needle forms the sole piercing instrument operated by lever,
segments, and gearing in combination with suitable devices for supporting
the work, and guiding the same during the operation of sewing, the
whole being so constructed that a machine is obtained of superior
simplicity. cheanness, and durability.

page_text: then carried back and swung in again, and as soon as the needle has
left the work the feeding gauge moves forward and feeds the work along,
holding it in the proper position for the next stitch. To effect these
motions the shaft which carries the feeding gauge receives a sliding
motion laterally for the length of a stitch by the action of a cam e¹ and
feed lever f, the said lever being made to pass through a slot in the shaft,
as shewn in Figure 4. The end of the feeding gauge which moves in
the channel in the sole is curved so as to conform somewhat to the
incision or channel cut in the leather, and to hook under the feather
edge of the leather, leaving a point upon the end which when pressed
into the leather serves to hold and move the boot or shoe the length of a
stitch, when the lateral motion is imparted to the said feeding gauge.
The oscillating motion of the feeding gauge is produced by a cam g
which actuates a lever h extending from the shaft c, and the end of
which is drawn up against the periphery of the said cam by a spring i.
By the action of this cam at the time the needle is quite through the
work the feeding gauge is thrown out, and it is then carried back the
length of a stitch by the action of the feed lever f, then again pressed
in the leather in the bottom of the channel by the action of the cam g
and lever ready to move forward again by the action of the feed leever
as soon as the needle is withdrawn from the work. While the needle
is through the stock the feed dog is moved out and back and takes a
fresh hold ready to move the shoe forward the length of a stitch, and
while the needle is drawing up the stitch there is a tendency to raise or
lift the sole from the last. To obviate this difficulty I find it useful to
employ a device to press the sole down upon the last near the point
where the needle enters the stock, such device having either a positive
motion, so as to relieve the pressure from the sole while the shoe is
feeding, similar in operation to the device applied to the back gauge for
the same purpose, or operated by a yielding spring with sufficient force
to keep the sole down upon the last without obstructing the operator in
guiding the slide. The needle being through the work holds it perfectly
stationary while the feeding gauge withdraws and takes a fresh hold. By
this arrangement although the feed mechanism is what may be termed a
four-motion feed but one motion is imparted to the work, namely, the
forward motion, and the work cannot possibly be thrown out of the proper
position in relation to the needle, whereas in similar machines heretofore
made there has been used what is termed a stationary channel gauge
serving to guide the shoe by the channel formed in the sole, and also to

page_text: regulate the depth at which the needle should enter the work, and in
connection with this stationary channel gauge there has been used a feed
dog working in front of the channel gauge, and having an up-and-down
perpendicular motion, and also the lateral motions back and forth. The
objections to this arrangement are, that the up-and-down motion gives
an unsteady motion to the work, and it is difficult for the operator to
guide the work with perfect precision; and in turning the heel, and
especially the toe, he is liable to run over the edge of the channel in the
sole as the feed dog depresses the work below the stationary gauge,
and sometimes throws it under, so that the gauge will rest on the top
of the work. Another difficulty is that as the work is pressed up by a
weighted lever or spring against the stationary channel gauge, this
gauge will sink deeper into soft leather than in hard leather, and thus
the needle will take hold at unequal depths in the work, making
irregular seams; and if it is attempted to overcome this difficulty by
using hard leather another objection arises owing to the difficulty of
opening and preparing the channel in such leather.
My feeding gauge obviates all these difficulties, and by mounting
the same so as to move concentrically with the needle, and therefore
nearly in a line with the bevel of the channel cut in the sole, it will
move out and in without striking or rubbing too hard upon the surface
of the sole or upon the under side of the channel.
It must be remarked that the feeding gauge and its lever / may be
made in one solid piece, but I prefer to make the gauge separate
from the lever or its shaft, and attach it thereto by means of screws,
so that it can be adjusted up or down to suit the different classes of
work.
The independent auxiliary gauge, which forms the second part of these
improvements, consists of a bar j, which slides in a cavity in the side of
the head B, and is provided with a perpendicular face k made in such
a form that it may present a square point of resistance at some point on
the work or its support in whatever position the work may be presented
to the sewing mechanism. Thus in sewing around the toe of the shoc
the shoe will touch or press against the top of the gauge, and in sewing
around the hollow part of the shank the shoe or its support will bear
against the lower portion of the gauge, while in either case it presents
an equally firm support or point of resistance to the thrust of the

page_text: needle. This auxiliary gauge is subjected to the action of a spring
which has a tendency to pull the same forward so as to press lightly
against the shoe at all points, but without sufficient pressure to embarass
the operator in guiding the shoe. With the gauge is combined a locking
toe m which is actuated by a cam p, and just before the needle enters
the work this toe is made to press on the bar j, and the gauge is firmly
locked in position to sustain the thrust of the needle (see Figure 3).
This auxiliary gauge is used in addition to the back gauge q, which
swings on the hub of the needle stock, Figure 4, and in the tail end of
which is secured a stud r, Figure 2, which catches in the forked end:
of a lever s secured on a rock shaft t. A spring u presses the face of
the gauge up against the edge of the work with a light pressure. The
rock shaft t has its bearings in the sides of the head B, and from its end
opposite to that of the forked lever s extends a toe v. This toe is
exposed to the action of a lever w which is actuated by a cam x, and
this cam is so timed that the back gauge is lifted from the work during
the time the feed takes place. This arrangement of lifting the back
gauge is used particularly in sewing turned work so as to prevent the
said gauge from wrinkling or disturbing the lining.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to a
me by my foreign correspondent, I wish it understood that I claim,—
First. The feeding channel gauge constructed and operating sub-
stantially as described.
Second. The combination of the feeding channel gauge with a shaft
passing through the centre of the needle stock substantially as set forth, a
so as to allow the said feeding gauge to swing in and out without undue
friction against the surface of the sole.
-
Third. The independent auxiliary gauge having a broad perpendicular
face substantially as described, so that the work or its support will
bear against some point of the same in whatever position the shoe a
may be presented.
Fourth. The combination with the independent auxiliary gauge of the
locking mechanism capable of alternately locking and releasing the said
gauge automatically at every stitch, substantially as set forth.
Fifth. Tne mechanism substantially as herein described for lifting a
the back gauge out of contact with the work during the time the feed
takes place.

page_text: Sixth. A sewing machine in which the needle is the sole piercing
instrument operated by lever segments and gear, substantially in the
manner herein shewn and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Third day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
Witness,
W. J. LOWE.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.S.)