IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LACE
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Topham, Joseph Topham; and Jabez Topham,
all of St. Pierre les Calais, in the Empire of France, Lace Manufacturers,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LACE."
Sealed the 11th April 1862, and dated the 30th October 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Topham, Joseph
Topham, and Jabez Topham at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Pétition, on the 30th October 1861.
We, ALFRED TOPHAM, JOSEPH TOPHAM, and JABEZ TOPHAM, all of St.
Pierre les Calais, in the Empire of France, Lace Manufacturers, do hereby
declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF LACE," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of lace.
Heretofore, in the manufacture of lace in which thick embroidery or gimping
threads are used, wherever the the pattern requires that a line of thick
or embroidery thread after passing down the lace a distance in the direction
in which the selvage runs should return a distance upwards in the same
direction, separate threads each running down the lace have been employed,
and these are then clipped off where they meet, so that many ends are left
which disfigure the fabric. The object of our Invention is to produce lace
in which the thick or embroidery threads are led up and down in the fabric
as the pattern may, require.

page_text: "We will proceed to describe the manner in which this object is attained.
The machine employed differs in no essential respect from machines now made
use of; the work is produced by twisting together warp and carriage threads,
and the meshes so *formed are carried up into their proper positions by the
point bars; the work goes on as usual until a portion of it is arrived at, into
which the embroidery thread has to be worked, but this not immediately but
after its return from a portion of the fabric lower down, and which at this
time has still to be made from this point. The machine as it continues to work
no longer produces work all across from side to side of the width, but it pro-
ceeds first to finish the portion of the fabric through which the embroidery
thread has to descend, and this being done it stops this portion of the work
and returns to the part previously left unfinished, to which the embroidery
thread is now ready to be brought back. Here, however, a difficulty arises,
the meshes produced by crossing the warp and bobbin threads require to be
taken up above the line of the work previously made, and this the take up
points will not do, these being necessarily at the same level across.the machine.
In order to lift these meshes higher than the points can take them, we employ
threads mounted in the machine. in a manner very similar to that in which
the embroidery threads are mounted, but these threads are never worked
into the fabric. After making a mesh, however, which requires to be raised
higher than the points can take it, the lifting threads are caused to pass under
the carriage threads of the meshes to be raised and the work is carried up by
the points as heretofore as far as they can take it; the extra or lifting threads
which have been drawn into an inclined position will then be found crossing
under the meshes of the warp and carriage threads, and deflected downwards
by them. The extra threads having up to this time been left more or less slack,
they are now pulled tight by suitable apparatus, and the angles previously mado
by them drawn up together with the meshes resting upon them, which are
thus brought to their required positions... The next passage of the carriage
through, the warp, does not produce any work, but is employed to. liberate the
extra threads from the fabric by reversing the lappings made over, these
threads at the previous course, and so the work continues, the lifting threads
being alternately caught into the work (and employed as described to.raise
the meshes) in one course and liberated the next, and this goes on until the
work is brought to the level at which the points can again take it to the
required height. In place of using threads for taking up the meshes above
the level of the points, another point bar (or-bars) may be .employed which
comes into action only when such meshes have to be raised and which
is adjusted so as to lift them to the required additional height, and as this

page_text: additional height varies according to the amount of work to be supplied to
complete the fabric down to the level of the point bars, we make the points-
on the extra bar or bars to spring or yield, or else we give a special motion
to the bar (or bars). to cause the points to rise each time to the exact height
required.
.
.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
I by the said Alfred Topbam, Joseph Topham, and Jabez Topham in the
.
Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th April 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ALFRED
TOPHAM, JOSEPH TOPHAM, and JABEZ TOPHAM, all of Saint Pierre les Calais,
in the Empire of France, Lace Manufacturers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Alfred Topham, Joseph Topham, and Jabez Topham, Her special licence
that we, the said Alfred Topham, Joseph Topham, and Jabez Topham, our
executors, administrators and assigns, or such others as we, the said Alfred
Topham, Joseph Topham, and Jabez Topham, our executors, administrators,
and 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 In-
vention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LACE," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said Alfred Topham, Joseph Topham, and
Jabez Topham, our executors or administrators, by' an instrument in writing
under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of
us, or them, should. particularly 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 the 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 Alfred Topham, on behalf of myself
and the said Joseph Topham, and Jabez Topham 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
thereof, that is to say:
:-

page_text: This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of lace.
Héretofore in the manufacture of lace in which thick embroidery or gimping
threads are used, wherever the pattern requires that a line of thick or embroid-
ery thread after passing down the lace a distance in the direction in which the
selvage runs, should return a distance upwards in the same direction, separate
threads each running down the lace have been employed, and these are then
clipped off where they meet so that many ends are left which disfigure the
fabric. The object of our Invention is to produce lace in which the thick or
embroidery threads are led up and down in the fabric as the pattern may
require.
We will proceed to describe the manner in which this object is attained.
The machine employed differs in no essential respect from machines now
made use of; the work is produced by twisting together warp and carriage
threads, and the meshes so formed are carried up into their proper positions
by the point bars; the work goes on as usual, until a portion of it is arrived
at into which the embroidery thread has to be worked, but this not
immediately, but after its return from a portion of the fabric lower down, and
which at this time has still to be made. From this point the machine as it
continues to work no longer produces work all across from side to side of
the width, but it proceeds first to finish the portion of the fabric through which
the embroidery thread has to descend, and this being done it stops this
portion of the work and returns to the part previously left unfinished to
which the embroidery thread is now ready to be brought back. Here,
however, a difficulty arises, the meshes produced by crossing the warp and
bobbin threads require to be taken up above the line of the work previously
made, and this the take up points will not do, these being necessarily at the
same level across the machine. In order to lift these meshes higher than
the points can take them, we employ threads mounted in the machine in a
manner very similar to that in which the embroidery threads are mounted,
but these threads are never worked into the fabric. After making a
however, which requires to be raised higher than the points can take it, the
lifting threads are caused to pass under the carriage threads of the meshes
to be raised, and the work is carried up by the points as heretofore as far as
they can take it; the extra or lifting threads which have been drawn into
an inclined position will then be found crossing under the meshes of the warp
and carriage threads and deflected downwards by them; the extra threads
having up to this time been left more or less slack, they are now pulled tight
by suitable apparatus, and the angles previously made by them drawn up
together with the meshes resting upon them, which are thus brought to their
mesh

page_text: required positions. The next passage of the carriages through the warp does
not produce any work; but is employed to liberate the extra threads from the
fabric by reversing the lappings made over these threads at the previous
course, and so the work continues, the lifting threads being alternately caught
into the work (and employed as described to raise the meshes) in one course
and liberated the next, and this goes on until the work is brought to the level,'
at which the points can again take it to the required height.
The Diagram, Figure 1, is intended to illustrate the object which our
'Invention is desired to attain; it shows a portion of fabric into which a gimp
or embroidery thread a is worked. This thread, as will be seen, passes from
a point a down the fabric to b, then rises to c, and afterwards again descends
to d, and the space enclosed in the loop between the points 6 and d is filled in
with fabric, that is to say, with meshes produced in the usual way by the
twisting and crossing of the bobbin and warp or gimp threads; this has never
heretofore been accomplished in machine-made lace. We effect this object as
follows: The making of the lace is proceeded with in the usual manner all
across the machine until the point c is arrived at, and then the working of a
number of warp and bobbin threads is stopped; this is conveniently done by
allowing the bobbins to swing through and through the warps without pro-
ducing twistings or crossings. In this manner a portion of fabric equal to that
to be included in the loop b, c, d, of the gimp or embroidery thread is left
unmade, the machine still working to produce the other parts of the fabric, as
is illustrated by the Diagram, Figure 2. This goes on till the level of the
point b is arrived at, and then the working of all the warp and bobbin threads
is stopped, excepting those which go to produce the portion of fabric enclosed
in the loop b, c, d, Fig. 1, and the fabric so made is lifted into the space
previously left for it; this is conveniently done, as above-mentioned, by lifting
threads. These threads are not worked into the fabric, but are used in the
following manner for lifting meshes higher than the points will take them :-
In Diagram, Figure 3, the crossing at A has been produced by the warp
threads in the usual manner, the lifting threads (which are connected with an
extra roller at the upper part of the machine, and are actuated by guide bars),
having in the meantime been kept clear of lappings; then whilst the bobbins
are in the front comb, the lifting threads are crossed under the bobbin threads,
being carried several gates to the right and left, as is shewn, and the bobbins
passed to the back comb. The points in the ordinary course take up the
crossing A, together with the lifting threads, to the level to which they are
able to raise the work. The roller to which the lifting threads are connected
is then caused to wind them up a short distance; this tightens them, and thus

page_text: causes them to lift the meshes. This being done, the bobbins return to the
front combs, and the lifting threads are brought back to their previous
position, and placed so that the machine may continue working, without their
becoming attached to the tissue.
When the distance the work has to be lifted is great, it may sometimes be
desirable to put the lifting thread roller under the control of the jacquard, so
as to cause it to wind up more or less, as may be required; this, however, will
seldom be necessary, as the elasticity of the threads will render great accuracy
in the height of lifting unattainable by this means; where it is required, it is
better to proceed by another method herein-after described. Where the dis-
tance to be lifted is short, the extra roller, before referred to, unto which the
lifting threads are attached, may be dispensed with, the threads being wound
round the work roller progressively with the work, the tension of the lifting
threads being sufficient to produce the effect. Although desirable, it is not
essential, in all descriptions of tissue, that two lifting threads passing to
opposite sides should be used to lift a mesh; one lifting thread will partially
effect the object. The winding up of the work is placed under the control of
the jacquard, so that it may be stopped whilst the lifting threads are in action,
or whilst the machine is producing those portions of the tissue underneath the
parts where the embroidery threads have been returned.
Figure 4 shews. a pattern of lace which, according to our Invention, may
be made with only two gimp. or embroidery. threads, and without clipping,
whereas heretofore it would have required several such threads and numerous
clips. By our method, the pattern is produced in the manner shewn. in
Diagram, Figure 5, where the several parts are shewn one below the other in
the order in which they.are produced.,
1.
In place of using threads for taking up the meshes above the level of the
points, another point bar or bars may be employed, which comes into action
only when such meshes have to be raised, and which is adjusted so as to lift
them to the required additional height, and as this additional height varies
according to the amount of work to be supplied to complete the fabric down
to the level of the point bars, the points on the extra bar or bars may be made
to spring or yield, or else a special motion may be given to the bar (or bars)
to cause the points to rise each time to the exact height required. As these
arrangements, however, produce considerable complication in the mechanism,
we prefer the arrangement shewn at Figure 6, which has the advantage also
of lifting accurately to the height required. The Figure shews the back
point bar of the machine with mechanism in connection therewith. The
points a are mounted at the extremity of thin metal plates a', and these plates

page_text: are capable of sliding to and fro in a comb b on the point bar c; they are
guided truly by the combs and the flat rods or wires of iron marked 6* running
through and from end to end of the comb. The points, when slid back, are.
freed from the work. The point bar c is carried and actuated very much in
the ordinary manner, being fixed to the lever d, bolted to the axis d'; this is
carried by the frame e, which is caused to rock on the axis e¹, to put in and
withdraw the points by means of the cam f, the lever f¹, and connecting rod f².
The raising and lowering of the points is effected by jointing the lever d to
the suspending link which connects it with the lever g¹, which is rocked on
its axis by the cam g². When the work only requires lifting to the usual
line these instruments actuate the point bar, but when certain portions of the
work require to be taken up higher, all the other points not working in these
portions are drawn back by cords connecting them with the sliding plates h,
of which the ends only are shewn, and these plates are connected by connect-
ing rods with the jacquard, as will be well understood, and in this manner
they are actuated. To cause the points not thus drawn back to rise higher
than usual, the axis of the lever g¹ has an arm i loosely jointed to it, and the
outer end of this arm is acted on by a cam, towards which it is constantly
pressed by a spring ; the arm has thus a rocking motion communicated to
it, which brings its horn 3 almost in contact with an arm on the axis of the
lever g¹, but this, so long as the machine is working in the usual manner,
produces no result, but when it is desired that the points should rise higher
than usual, a filling piece is drawn by the jacquard under the horn ; any
desired number of filling pieces may be employed, so as to cause a greater or
less amount of extra lift. To return the points withdrawn by the jacquard, a
bar is employed; this is mounted on a rod supported by a guide on the
lever d, and jointed to an arm on the axis m, which is carried by the rocking
The axis m is worked by the cam n in the manner shown; thus
the bar receives the motion required, as shown in the Drawing. The several
rollers are intended to be kept up to their cams by springs; in practice, how-
ever, this is better done, in the case of the drawing out cam, by a counter-
acting cam. It is not so shown in the Drawing to avoid unnecessary
complexity.
frame e.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we do not confine
ourselves to the exact details described; but what we claim is the allowing
the gimp or embroidery threads to pass up and down in the fabric as the
pattern may require, by so arranging the working of the machine that portions
of the fabric may for a time be left unmade, and then afterwards, when the

page_text: gimp or embroidery threads are ready to return, may be separately produced,
and raised into the spaces previously left for them.
We also claim the employment of lifting threads for raising meshes
requiring to be so treated to positions higher than the points can take them,
vizt., the lower edge of the line of work across the machine, such lifting
threads being crossed under the mesh to lift it, and afterwards being uncrossed.
to again free them from the fabric, as described.
We also claim the arranging points in such a manner as to take meshes
requiring to be raised higher than the lower edge of the line of work across
the machine to the extra height required, be it one, two, three, or more meshes,
as the case may be.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Topham, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
ALFRED TURHAM. (L.S.)