IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1861

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Nelson, James
Carr, and George Harrison at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 26th August 1861.
We, HENRY NELSON, of the City of Manchester, Machine Maker, JAMES
CARB, of Blackburn, Manager, and GEORGE HARRISON, of Burnley, Overlooker,
all in the County of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING COTTON AND
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to self-acting mules, and consists of a regulating
motion for winding on and keeping the threads at their proper tension by a
ratchet wheel with a stop pin and finger; the pin to stop and start it at pleasure,
and the finger to move it one or more teeth per stretch by the motion of the

page_text: fallers, so as to allow it more chain, strap, or band at the commencement of
the cop, and decrease it as the cop increases in size; and also the application
of an eccentric to the ratchet wheel to cause it to act more rapidly at that
part where it will be necessary to do so. The chain, strap, or band which acts
upon the bevil wheels connected with the screw of the quadrant is put in
motion by bringing a lever in contact with clicks or catches on the pulley,
which turns loose upon its shaft, and when not in contact with the clicks no
action or effect takes place; but when the lever is in contact with the clicks
the chain, band, or strap is moved, and acts upon the bevil wheels and screw.
The lover is put in motion by a chain, one end of which is connected to the
under faller bracket, and the other linked to a small eccentric or shaft on the
other faller bracket. To the said eccentric or shaft is fixed the before-
mentioned ratchet wheel, which is moved one or moro teeth by a catch when
the faller descends to a certain point; which motion of the ratchet wheel turns
the eccentric or shaft and tightens the said chain to the exact length required,
avoiding the necessity of adjusting the nut on the screw of the quadrant.
SPECIFICATION filed in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent
and of an Order of the Lord Chancellor, by the said Henry Nelson,
James Carr, and Georgo Harrison in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th May 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, HENRY
NELSON, of the City of Manchester, Machine Maker, JAMES CARR, of
Blackburn, Manager, and GEORGE HARRISON, of Burnley, Overlooker, all in
the County of Lancaster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of Her-reign,
did, for Herself, IIer heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
Henry Nelson, James Carr, and George Harrison, Her special licence
that we, the said Henry Nelson, James Carr, and George Harrison, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Henry
Nelson, James Carr, and George Harrison, 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

page_text: of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING COTTON AND
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said Henry Nelson, James Carr, and George Harrison, our executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of
their hands and seals, 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 on or
before the Thirtieth day of May, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Henry Nelson, James Carr, and
George Harrison, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement (that is to say):
:-
This Invention relates to self-acting mules, and consists of a regulating
motion for winding on and keeping the threads at their proper tension by a
ratchet wheel with a stop pin and finger mounted with a ratchet. The stop
pin regulates the entire extent of the revolution of the ratchet wheel, which is
moved one or more teeth per stretch by the motion of the fallers or other
moving part of the machine, and enables a chain to be longer at the com-
mencement of the cop, and shorter as the cop increases in size. The shaft of
the ratchet wheel, upon which the aforesaid chain is coiled, is usually con-
centric, but it may be formed with an eccentric, in order to wind more rapidly
if required. The endless chain, strap, or band, which acts upon the bevil
wheels communicating with the screw of the quadrant, is put in motion in the
usual manner by a lever causing pressure or friction upon it, or by bringing
the lever in contact with a click or catch on a pulley working loose on a stud
fixed to the mule carriage. When the lever causes no pressure or friction on
the endless band, or is not in contact with the click or catch, no action or
effect takes place, but when the lever causes friction upon the band, or is in
contact with the click, the endless chain, strap, or band is moved, and acting
on the bevil wheels and screw, alters the position of the winding-on chain.
The lever is put in motion by a chain, one end of which, in one arrangement,
is connected to the bottom faller bracket, and the other linked to a shaft or
eccentric working in an arm or bracket fixed to the top faller shaft. To the
said eccentric or shaft is fixed the before-mentioned ratchet wheel, which is
moved one or more teeth when the faller descends to a certain point, which
motion of the ratchet wheel turns the eccentric or shaft, and winds on the
chain, so that when the bottom of the cop is formed, the lever shall not press

page_text: on the band, or couno in contact with the click or catch on the pulley and
thereby prevent any further action upon the screw of the quadrant.
This Invention will be clearly understood by the following description
thereof, reference being had to the figures and letters on the accompanying
Sheet of Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a side view of part of a headstock and
carriage of a self-acting mule, having one arrangement of our improvements
attached, and Figs. 2 and 3 are full-sized views of parts of the same.
In Fig. 1, a, represents part of the headstock of a self-acting mule; b, part of
the carriage; c, the winding-on chain; d, the quadrant; e, the bevil wheel com-
municating with the screw of the quadrant; f, the endless band for giving
motion to the bevil wheel; g, the top faller shaft, and h, the bottom faller shaft.
To the top faller shaft is fixed the arm or bracket i, full-sized views of which
are shown in Figs. 2 and 3. In this bracket there are holes or bearings for
carrying the pin or shaft k, to which is fixed the ratchet wheel 1, having
holes m, in one of which is placed the stop pin n for stopping the revolution of
the ratchet wheel at any required position. The ratchet o, which turns the
ratchet wheel, is attached to the finger p, working loose upon the pin or shaft k,
and on a pin fixed to the bracket is the catch 7 for ensuring the rotation of
the ratchet wheel, and preventing any return movement. Attached to the
Tramework or passing over the two faller shafts is the stationary plate or pro-
jection r, so placed that the finger p shall come in contact with it and be moved
upwards when the bracket moves downwards with the top faller. The position
and length of the plate or projection determines the movement of the finger
and ratchet, so as to move the ratchet wheel one or more teeth per stretch until
the stop pin holds up the finger, and thereby stops its vibration upon the pin or
shaft, and prevents any further revolution of the ratchet wheel. The endless
band f, which turns the bevil wheel e, communicating with the screw of the
quadrant, encircles a pulleys, Fig. 1, working loose upon a stud fixed to the
mule carriage, and having upon it one or more clicks or catches t. Motion
is given to the said band f, by preventing the pulley from turning as the
carriage recedes to the roller beam; for this purpose there is a lever u, which
works on a stud fixed to the mule carriage. To this lever is fixed the catch t
which, when the lever is lowered, comes in contact with one of the clicks t
and holds the pulley firm, so that when the carriage moves the band will be
moved also, and turn the bevil wheel e so as to turn the screw of the quadrant
and alter the position of the winding-on chain; or, as before stated, the lever
acts by pressure or friction in the usual manner upon the endless band. The
said lever u is moved up and down by the chain w, which passes under a roller

page_text: or pulley x, connected to the lever 1, and is linked at one end to the shaft ķ
of the ratchet wheel, and at the other end to the bottom faller bracket y, so
that as the fallers move up and down the lever u moves up and down also,
and allows its catch to come in contact with one of the clicks t on the pulley ş,
and move the endless band f.. When the bottom of the cop is formed no
further action is required upon the screw of the quadrant, and therefore the
lever u should be raised out of reach of the clicks t on the pulley s. This
operation it is well known has hitherto been performed by shortening the
chain by hand, but the ratchet wheel and parts connected with it gradually
shorten the chain in a self-acting manner, so as to allow the lever to fall
according to the tension of the threads during the formation of the bottom of
the cop, and after the bottom is finished to raise the lever above the clicks on
the pulley 8, or when the lever causes friction to raise it above the band and
leave it free. At each movement of the fallers the ratchet wheel moves one
or more teeth, and winds the chain on the shaft or eccentric until the revolu-
tion of the ratchet wheel ceases in consequence of the motion of the finger
and ratchet being stopped by the stop pin, at which time the lever u is so
raised that it cannot come in contact with the band so as to cause friction, or
in contact with one or other of the clicks on the pulleys, which therefore rolls
on the band f, and prevents any further action upon the screw and nut of the
quadrant, exactly at the time required without any attention or supervision on
the part of the operative. When one set of cops is completed, and before
another set is commenced, the chain w is unwound from the shaft or eccentric
in order to permit the lever u to descend to its lowest position, and the opera-
tions before described are repeated. We also cause the lever attached to the
catch box of mules having the mangle wheel or Arabian arm motion to be
raised by the shortening of the chain in the same manner as in the mules
before described.
Having now described the nature and particulars of our said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, we desire it to be understood
that we do not claim the endless band f, the pulleys, the lever u, the chain w,
nor the bracket i, as these parts have been before used; but what we claim is,
the application to all descriptions of self-acting mules of a ratchet wheel and
stop pin, and causing the ratchet wheel to revolve to any required extent by
means of a finger and ratchet made to vibrate by the finger coming in contact
with a fixed plate or projection, so as to enable a chain to be so wound on the
shaft or eccentric fixed to the ratchet wheel that it may be gradually shortened
so as to allow more winding-on chain at the commencement of the cop, and less

page_text: as the cop increases in size, and thereby efficiently regulate the winding on so
as to maintain the proper tension of the threads during the formation of the
cop bottom, as all such improvements are herein described and illustrated in
the accompanying Sheet of Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said Henry Nelson and James Carr, for
and on behalf of ourselves and the said George Harrison, have here-
unto set our hands and seals, this Nineteenth day of May, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the
within-named Henry Nelson and
James Carr, in the presence of
E. J. HUGHES,
Patent Agent,
Manchester.
JAMES CARR.
(L.S.)