Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting Pile Fabrics.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Feb., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 7th Nov., 1891-Accepted, 6th Feb., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting Pile Fabrics.
I JOHN JAMES MANN of Ordsall Lane Mills Salford in the County of
Lancaster Fustian Cutter do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates principally to such knives used for cutting pile fabrics as
are described in the Specification of Letters Patent No. 16996 dated December 10th
1887, granted to James Hoyle Smith, Andrew Goddard, Lloyd Higginbottom and
Thomas Mannock, but it is also applicable to other pile cutting knives. Some of
these knives are so mounted in frames or handles as to be held in cutting position
by a trigger catch or equivalent device which is released when the guide or the
knife accidentally pierces and cuts through the back of the cloth, so as to allow the
knife to be moved into an inoperative position.
Hitherto this trigger or catch has been acted on by contact with the fabric
under operation and therefore the said trigger or catch has been necessarily set at
some distance from the point of the guide and knife; consequently when the latter
cut through the cloth it made a long slit therein before being released and thrown
out of action.
My invention is designed to reduce the length of this cut or slit to a minimum
and for this purpose actuate the trigger or catch mechanism by an electro magnet
or solenoid fixed on the frame or handle; the wires from the battery or dynamo or
electric supply actuating this magnet or solenoid, are connected respectively to the
knife and guide and to a suitable conductor immediately below the fabric the pile of
which is being cut.
Thus as soon as the point of the guide passes through the cloth it will come
instantly into contact with this conductor complete the electric circuit; and cause
the magnet or solenoid to attract its armature release the trigger or other mechanism
and allow the knife to be thrown out of action in the usual way; but as this will
be much more quickly performed than before the damage occasioned by the
accidental piercing of the cloth will be very greatly reduced.
It may be found advantageous to fix across the cutting machine and just below
but not touching the nose of the knife handle, a rod in such a position that the
knife handle may rest on it when the knife pierces the cloth. This rod may be
made, by means of the same current of electricity to rise a short distance in order
to help.the knife to clear the hole.
Dated this 6th day of February 1891.
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE. SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting Pile Fabrics:
1 JOHN JAMES MANN of Ordsall Lane Mills, Salford in the County of
Lancaster, Fustian. Cutter, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed; to. be. particularly described, and,
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates principally to such knives, used for cutting pile fabrics, as
are described, in the Specification of Letters. Patent No. 16996 dated 10th of
December 1887 granted to James Hoyle Smith, Andrew Goddard, Lloyd

page_text: Higginbottom, and Thomas Mannock but it is also applicable to other pile cutting
knives.
Some of these knives are so mounted in frames or handles as to be held in cutting
position by a trigger, catch, or equivalent device which is released when the
guide or the knife accidentally pierces and cuts through the back of the cloth,
so as to allow the knife to be moved, by a spring or otherwise, into an inoperative
position.
Hitherto this trigger or catch has been acted on by contact with the fabric
under operation, and therefore the said trigger or catch has been necessarily set at
some distance from the point of the guide and knife; and consequently, when the
latter cut through the cloth it made a long slit therein before being released and
thrown out of action.
My invention is intended to make the action of withdrawing the knife more
instantaneous and consequently reduce the length of this cut or slit to a minimum.
The nature of my invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed
or carried into practical effect will be readily understood on reference to the annexed
sheet of drawings and the following explanation thereof.
Fig. 1 on the drawings is a sectional elevation and Fig. 2 a plan view of the
front end of a pile cutting knife of the description above referred to, a being part
of the frame or handle, the knife, e the guide, d the knife carrier, e the trigger,
and the coiled spring for instantaneously withdrawing the knife when released.
The knife is held in cutting position (as drawn at Fig. 1) by a notch in the end
of the trigger e resting upon the upper edge of the half round stud g and I release
this trigger or catch e by means of an electro-magnet or solenoid ½ fixed on the
frame or handle a; the wires from the battery or dynamo, or other electric supply
for exciting this magnet or solenoid are connected respectively to the knife and
guide, and to a suitable conductor i immediately below the fabric, the pile of which
is being cut.
Thus as soon as the point of the guide passes through the cloth it will come
instantly into contact with this conductor i, complete the electric circuit and cause
the magnet or solenoid to attract its armature thus giving a partial revolution
to the half round study thereby releasing the trigger e and allowing the coiled
spring to instantaneously withdraw the knife, and its adjuncts into the position
shown by the dotted lines on Fig. 1 in the usual way; but as this will be much
more quickly performed than hitherto the damage occasioned by the accidental
piercing of the cloth will be greatly reduced.
It will be obvious that instead of making the electric contact by means of the
knife guide the same effect may be produced by fixing a metal rod or conductor
across the cutting machine and just below, but not touching the fore end or nose a¹
of the frame, so that whenever the guide or knife passes through the cloth the
consequent falling of the end of the frame will bring it into contact with this
conductor and so complete the electric circuit. This rod or conductor may also be
made by the same current of electricity to rise up a short distance in order to assist
the knife in clearing the hole.
It will also be evident that if preferred the electro-magnet or solenoid might be
fixed on any convenient part of the frame of the machine instead of upon the knife
handle and a connection by cord or otherwise established between its armature and
the trigger of the knife in such a manner, that whenever the electric circuit is
completed by the knife passing through the cloth and the armature is consequently
attracted, the movement thereof shall release the trigger and allow the knife to be
withdrawn into the inoperative position.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
In a pile cutting knife of the class hereinbefore indicated, the combination with
the knife or its adjuncts of the armature of an electro-magnet in such a way that

page_text: whenever the knife passes through the cloth the electric circuit is thereby
completed, and the movement of the armature releases the trigger to which it is
connected and allows the knife and guide to be withdrawn by a spring or otherwise
move into an operative position, substantially as hereinbefore described and
illustrated by the drawings annexed.
Dated this 6th day of November 1891.
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for the Applicant.