Improvements in or connected with Warp Knitting Machines.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd May, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 11th Aug., 1894-Accepted. 15th Sept., 1894.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Warp Knitting Machines.
I, WILLIAM CUTTS, of Tabernacle Post Office, in the County of Burlington'
and State of New Jersey, United States of America, Inventor, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in that class of machines known as knitting
looms or embroidering machines, which are used for manufacturing gauze and similar
fabrics; and the object of my invention is to produce a very simple attachment by
means of which threads may, at any time, be thrown into the work and made to
produce ornamental figures on the fabric. A further object of my invention is to
make the attachments for throwing in the ornamental threads extremely simple
and cheap, and to construct the said parts in such a manner that they may be
conveniently applied to any ordinary machine, and operated by the customary
jacquard to produce the desired figures or patterns on the fabric which is being
made. To these ends my invention consists of certain features of construction and
combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described.
In order that the working of my improved attachments may be understood, I
will describe the invention as applied to an ordinary knitting loom for making
gauze fabrics but only in sufficient detail as regards its operative parts as to render
its operation comprehensible.
The machine has the customary frame on the upper front portion of which is
arranged the usual tilting warp frame which has a cross-bar thereon to which are
secured, by means of a plate, the warp guides, which are of the usual kind and
need no detailed description. The warp passes through the eyes of these guides in
the customary way, the warp being held on from the warp beam which is arranged
in the lower front portion of the main frame. The machine is provided with the
usual needles which are carried forward and backward to engage the warp in the
guides, said needles having the customary barbs and being held by means of a plate
upon a reciprocating needle frame for carrying the needles backward and forward,
as specified, and having, at its opposite ends, slide plates with lugs thereon which
move on tracks or plates fastened to the main frame, the needle frame being
adjusted in the tracks by means of set screws which project through the lugs and
impinge on one of the tracks. The machine has also the customary reed frame
which reciprocates vertically at a point between the needles and the warp guides
and has guide plates which slide on uprights on opposite sides of the machine. The
reed frame is adjusted, so as to move without too much play, by means of a set
screw, which projects through a lug on the frame and impinges against a plate on
an adjacent post of the main frame. The reed frame carries the usual reeds for
pulling back and carrying down the fabric as fast as it is made. The warp frame,
the needle frame, and reed frame, are all operated from the driving shaft by means
of a pulley and gear wheel which is adapted to connect with the jacquard, as
hereinafter described. The driving shaft is also provided with a cam wheel on
which is a projecting cam which engages, at every revolution, a stud on a swinging
lever extending rearwardly through the machine and being pivoted at its rear end
while its free end connects by means of a connecting rod with the inner end of the
warp frame, so that every revolution of the driving shaft raises and lowers the
warp frame. The warp frame is pulled normally to one side of the machine by a
spring and it is moved sidewise against the tension of the spring by a cam arm which
rides over the end of a spring plate secured.to the top of the needle frame at one end

page_text: and being pressed by a spring against an abutment on one side of the main frame.
When the warp frame is raised, the cam arm holds it to one side of the machine,
and when the guides are lifted above the needle hooks the cam arm will pass the
end of the spring plate so that the spring pulls the warp frame laterally, thus
carrying the guides over the needles when the warp frame drops and the warp is
left in engagement with the needles. All this is exactly as in the ordinary machine,
so that it is not necessary to describe it in further detail. The reed frame is also
moved from the cam wheel on the driving shaft, which wheel has on one side a
projecting cam adapted to strike a stud on a lever which lies parallel, or substan-
tially so, with the swinging lever before mentioned pivoted at its rear end and
connected near its free end, by a connecting rod, with the reed frame, so that at
every revolution of the driving shaft the reed frame is vertically reciprocated.
The needle frame is horizontally reciprocated and operated from the driving shaft,
by a crank at one end of said shaft to which is pivoted a connecting rod extending
rearward and having its rear end pivoted to a swinging arm which is pivoted at
its upper end to the main frame and connected at its lower end, by a rod, with an
arm on the needle frame. The turning of the crank thus causes the connecting
rod and swinging arm to swing back and forth, carrying with them the rod and the
needle frame.
All, or substantially all, the mechanism described above is old and forms no part
of my invention, but it has been thought necessary to describe it, in order that the
working of the improved attachments may be clearly understood.
The following is a description of the novel mechanism of this invention:-
Beneath the cross-bar of the warp frame are secured a plurality of spring guides,
the tension of which is upward, so that when the inner end of the warp frame is
raised the tendency of said spring guides is to rise and bring their inner ends
parallel with the inner ends of the stationary guides. The spring guides carry the
thread which is to be thrown into the work to form ornamental figures thereou, and
to this end the guides have eyes at their free ends, through which the threads pass,
the threads being arranged on spools carried on a cross-bar of the main frame, and
extending upward over one of the cross bars of the warp frame. The spring
guides move in a slotted plate which is secured to the inner end of the warp frame
and they are severally connected, by wires or equivalent devices, with levers which
lie normally in a horizontal position in the bottom of the machine, being pivoted at
their front ends, and the heft of the levers is such as to overcome the tension of the
spring guides and hold them in a depressed position in the slots of the plate, so that
they are out of the way of the needles, and consequently out of the work. The
levers move between vertical guides and their free ends are connected, by
means of wires, with an ordinary jacquard which is provided with an operating
connecting rod having a crank connection with a gear wheel meshing with the gear
wheel on the driving shaft. The jacquard is operated in exactly the usual way to
pick up the several designs to be made, whereby it lifts certain of the levers of the
spring guides, and whenever one of these levers is raised it relieves the spring guide
connected with it of its weight, and the guide springs up so as to carry its thread
above the hook of the adjacent needle, and the lateral movement of the warp frame
then carries the thread into engagement with the needle, together with the warp
thread, and in this way the ornamental thread is thrown into the needle at the
same time as the warp thread, and the operation of making the fabric is exactly
as usual. The needles are arranged horizontally, as already described, this
arrangement being slightly different from the usual plan and is such that, without
a preventative, the barbs of the needles would fly forward when the needle frames
are pulled back, so as to permit the work to slide off the needles, and to prevent
this, guard wires are used, these being stretched just above the needles and through
the reeds, the outer ones of which are made slightly wider than the rest, to offer a
good bearing for the outer and lower wire. The guard wires are secured to the
reed frame near its end, and thus the wires are kept constantly above the needles

page_text: and in close proximity thereto. The fabric, as fast as it is made by the needles,
passes down in the usual way beneath a tension roller and is wound in a roll.
Dated May 22nd 1894.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Paten: Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Warp Knitting Machines.
I WILLIAM CUTTS of Tabernacle Post Office, in the County of Burlington
and State of New Jersey, United States of America, Inventor, 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:
My invention relates to improvements in that class of machines known as
knitting looms or embroidering machines, which are used for manufacturing gauze
and similar fabrics; and the object of my invention is to produce a very simple
attachment by means of which threads may, at any time, be thrown into the work
and made to produce ornamental figures on the fabric.
A further object of my invention is to make the attachments for throwing in the
ornamental threads extremely simple and cheap, and to construct the said parts in
such a manner that they may be conveniently applied to any ordinary machine,
and operated by the customary jacquard to produce the desired figures or patterns
on the fabric which is being made.
To these ends my invention consists of certain features of construction and
combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
Specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in
all the views.
Figure 1 is a broken sectional plan of the machine constructed in the usual
manner, except for my improved attachments which are applied to it;
Figure 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a cross section on the line 3-3 of Figure 1; and
Figure 4 is an enlarged detail view, showing how the ornamental threads are
thrown into the work to produce the ornamental figures on the fabric which is
being made.
In the accompanying drawings I have shown an ordinary knitting loom for
making gauze fabrics, and it is uecessary to show the general arrangement of the
parts of the machine in order that the working of my improved attachments may
be understood, and for this reason the complete machine is shown, but its
operative parts will only be described in sufficient detail to render its operation
comprehensible.
The machine has the customary frame 10 on the upper, front portion of which is
arranged the usual tilting warp frame 11 which has a cross bar 12 thereon to which
are secured, by means of a plate 13, the warp guides 14, which are of the usual
kind and need no detailed description. The warp 15 passes through the eyes of
these guides in the customary way, the warp being held on the warp beam 15*
which is arranged in the lower front portion of the main frame. The machine is
provided with the usual needles 16 which are carried forward and backward to
engage the warp in the guides 14, said needles baving the customary barbs 17, see
Figure 4, and being held by means of a plate 18 upon a reciprocating needle
frame 19, for carrying the needles backward and forward as specified and having,
at its opposite ends, slide plates 20 with lugs 21 thereon, which move on the tracks
or plates 21 fastened to the main frame; the needle frame being adjusted in the

page_text: tracks by means of set screws 22 which project through the lugs and impinge on
one of the tracks.
The machine has also the customary reed frame 23 which reciprocates vertically
in the machine at a point between the needles 16 and the warp guides 14, and the
frame 23 has guide plates 24 which slide on the uprights 25 on opposite sides of
the machine. The reed frame is adjusted so as to move without too much play by
means of the set screw 26, see Figure 3, which projects through a lug 27 on the
frame and impinges against a plate on an adjacent post of the main frame. The
reed frame carries the usual reeds 28 for pulling back and carrying down the
fabric as fast as it is made.
The warp frame, the needle frame and reed frame are all operated from the
driving shaft 29, which is provided with a suitable pulley 30 and with a gear wheel 31
which is adapted to connect with the jacquard, as hereinafter described. The
driving shaft is also provided with a cam wheel 32 on which is a projecting cam 33
which engages, at every revolution, a stud 34 on a swinging lever 35, extending
rearwardly through the machine and being pivoted at its rear end, as shown at 36
in Figure 2, while its free end connects by means of a connecting rod 37 with the
inner end of the warp frame 11 so that every revolution of the driving shaft
raises and lowers the warp frame.
The warp frame is pulled normally to one side of the machine by a spring 38
and it is moved sidewise against the tension of the spring by a cam arm 39 which
rides over the end 40 of a spring plate 41, (see Figure 1), this plate being secured
to the top of the needle frame 19 at one end and being pressed by a spring 42
against an abutment plate 43 on one side of the main frame. When the warp
frame is raised, the cam arm 39 holds it to one side of the machine, and when the
guides 14 are lifted above the needle hooks the cam arm 39 will pass the end 40 of
the spring plate so that the spring 38 pulls the warp frame laterally, thus carrying
the guides over the needles when the warp frame drops and the warp is left in
engagement with the needles; all this is exactly as in the ordinary machine so
that it is not necessary to describe it in further detail.
The reed frame is also moved from the cam wheel 32, which has on one side a
projecting cam 44 and this is adapted to strike a stud 45 on a lever 46, which lies
parallel, or substantially so, with the lever 35, being pivoted at its rear end, as
shown at 47, while near its free end it connects by a connecting rod 48 with the
reed frame, so that at every revolution of the driving shaft the reed frame is
vertically reciprocated.
The needle frame is horizontally reciprocated and operated from the driving
shaft 29, which has at one end a crank 49 to which is pivoted the connecting rod 50,
this rod extending rearward and having its rear end pivoted to a swinging arm 51
which is pivoted at its upper end to the main frame 10 at 52, see Figure 2, and
connected at its lower end by a rod 53 with an arm 54 on the needle frame 19;
and consequently the turning of the crank 49 causes the rod 50 and arm 51 to
swing back and forth, carrying with them the rod 53 and the needle frame. All or
substantially all the mechanism described above is old, and forms no part of my
invention, but it is thought necessary to show it in order that the working of the
improved attachments may be clearly understood.
The mechanisın to be described I claim as novel: Beneath the cross bar 12 of
the
warp frame are secured a plurality of spring guides 55, which are fastened to
the warp frame by means of a plate 56, or equivalent means, the tension of these
spring guides 55 being upward, so that when the inner end of the warp frame is
raised the tendency of the spring guides is to rise and bring their inner ends
parallel with the inner ends of the stationary guides 14. The spring guides 55
carry the thread which is to be thrown into the work to form ornamental figures
thereon, and to this end the guides have eyes at their free ends, through which the
threads 57 pass, the threads being arranged on spools 58 carried on the cross
bar 59 of the main frame, the threads extending upward over one of the cross bars
of the warp frame.

page_text: The spring guides 55 move in a slotted plate 60, which is secured to the inner
end of the warp frame, and they are severally connected by wires 61, or equivalent
devices, with levers 62 which lie normally in a horizontal position in the bottom of
the machine, being pivoted at their front ends, as shown at 63, and the heft of the
levers is such as to overcome the tension of the spring guides 55 and hold them in
a depressed position in the slots of the plate 60, so that they are out of the way of
the needles 16 and consequently out of the work.
The levers 62 nove between vertical guides 64, and their free ends are connected
by means of wires 65 with an ordinary jacquard 66, which is not shown in detail
but which is provided with an operating connecting rod 67, having a crank con-
nection with a gear wheel 68, shown by dotted lines in Figure 1, and meshing with
the gear wheel 31 on the driving shaft 29.
The jacquard is operated in exactly the usual way to pick up the several designs
to be made, and when the jacquard is so operated it lifts certain of the levers 62,
and whenever one of these levers is raised it relieves the spring guide 55, connected
with it, of its weight and the guide springs up, as shown in Figure 4, so as to carry
its thread 57 above the hook of the adjacent needle 16, as shown clearly in
Figure 4, and the lateral movement of the warp frame then carries the thread into
engagement with the needle, together with the warp thread 15, and in this way the
ornamental thread is thrown into the needle at the same time as the warp thread,
and the operation of making the fabric is exactly as usual.
The needles 16 are arranged horizontally, as already described, this arrangement
being slightly different from the usual plan and such that without a preventative
the barbs 17 of the needles would fly forward when the needle frames are pulled
back, so as to permit the work to slide off the needles, and to prevent this guard
wires 69 and 70 are used, these being stretched just above the needles and through
the reeds 28, the outer ones 28* of which are made slightly wider than the rest, to
offer a good bearing for the outer and lower wire 69. The guard wires 69 and 70
are secured to the reed frame, near its end, as shown at 71 in Figure 3, and are
thus kept constantly above the needles and in close proximity thereto. The
fabric 72, as fast as it is made by the needles, passes down in the usual way, as
shown in Figure 2, beneath a tension roller 73 and is wound in a roll 74.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is,-
1. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with the needles and the
stationary guides on the warp frame, of spring guides supported below the stationary
guides and adapted to rise upward, and a series of levers connected with the spring
guides to depress them, substantially as described.
2. The combination, with the reciprocating needles and the warp frame having
the usual reed warp guides, of the spring guides arranged below the warp guides
and adapted to spring upward, and a series of levers arranged below the spring
guides and connected therewith, so that the weight of the levers depresses the
guides, substantially as described.
3. The combination, with the reciprocating needles, the warp frame and the reed
warp guides thereof, of a slotted plate arranged at the inner end of the warp frame,
spring guides held in the slots of the frame and adapted to move upward, and a
series of levers beneath the spring guides, the levers being suspended from the
guides so as to depress the latter, substantially as described.
4. The combination, with the reciprocating needles, the warp frame and the
guides carried by the warp frame, of the spring guides held below the warp guides
and adapted to spring upward, and means for holding the spring guides depressed,
substantially as described.
Dated this 10th day of August 1894
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.