IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PROVISIONAL
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Fothergill, Engineer and Machinist, and
William Weild, Engineer, both of the City of Manchester, in the County
of Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Fothergill and
William Weild at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 27th February 1855.
WC, BENJAMIN FOTHERGILL, Engineer and Machinist, and WILLIAM WEILD,
Engineer, both of the City of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR COMBING COTTON, WOOL, FLAX, SILK, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,"
to be as follows:-
They principally relato and may be considered supplemental to that
improved combination of machinery for this purpose, secured to us, the said
Benjamin Fothergill and William Weild, by Patent, numbered 854, and dated
the Eleventh day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and fifty-four.
Our improvements consist, firstly, in giving to the detaching rollers a
reverse as well as a forward movement for each detachment of fibres, by which

page_text: means we obtain a better joining or piecing of the combed fibres, and a sliver
of more body or substance.
Secondly, in the use and adaptation of a wire (stretched behind the detach-
ing rollers) or other instrument, to which the requisite motions are imparted
by a cam or other suitable arrangement, for the purpose of placing the tail
ends of each detachment of fibres protruding from the detaching or nipping
rollers in the most favorable position for effecting a junction with the head
ends of the fibres next to be detached.
Thirdly, in making and arranging the detaching combs so that they may
each be adjusted on the bar or arın carrying them, so as to enter the combed
flcece the required depth.
Fourthly, in adapting within the double nippers an arrangement for feeling
the fleece to be combed, formed by a roller and bar with a concave surface for
cach sliver, in place of two rollers for each sliver, as described in the Specifica-
tion of the Patent herein-before referred to, each concave bar taking the place
of the roller dispensed with, and being kept sufficiently tight against the roller
to give the requisite pressure for feeding forward the uncombed fleece, by the
same means as are employed for effecting the pressure between the two rollers.
The rollers of each feed are placed in fixed bearings (but so as to be readily
removed from the front of the nippers), and they are geered together by equal
spur wheels, one on the end of each roller, one of them having the requisite
amount of revolving motion imparted to it from the oscillations of a lever
(having its fulcrum loose on the end of one of the rollers), upon which
lever is jointed a pawl, which works in a ratchet wheel fixed on the end of
the same roller upon which the lever has its fulcrum, the lever receiving .its
oscillations from a cam or pin carried in a plate fixed on one of the combing
drum shafts.
Fifthly, our improvements relate more particularly to machines used for
combing that class of fibres which have little tendency to adhere to cach other
in the form of a sliver, and the means we employ to produce a sliver that will
adhere together is as follows:-We receive the combed sliver from the front of
the detaching rollers on to an endless belt, and through a pair of nipping rollers
fixed to the rocking frame; the ends of the fibres protruding from such rollers
arc again detached by means of a nipping bar pincing the front ends of the fibres
and holding them on to a second endless belt, while they are being detached by
the back action of the rollers and the rocking frame; the fibres thus detached
are carried forward a little by the slow movement of the second endless cloth
until the succeeding detachments take place, and by these means (with the
aid of a vibrating wire or other instrument, stretched across the machine in

page_text: front of the second series of detaching rollers or roller and nipper bar) are
accumulated and consolidated, so as to form a mass of sufficient thickness for
being drawn into a sliver of greater tenacity, by a drawing head placed at the
other end of the endless cloth or belt.
Sixthly, in a mode of constructing combing drums or cylinders in such
manner that any one of the combs may be readily removed and replaced with-
out disturbing the others, which is accomplished by fitting and fixing the comb
bars in longitudinal grooves formed in the drums or cylinders, and securing
them in their places by means of plates at each end.
Seventhly, in adapting and employing an endless belt (or a trough) for
the purpose of collecting and carrying the waste or noil from each head of
combing machines as it is stripped from the doffer cylinders to a common
receptacle at one end of the machine.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Fothergill and William Weild in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 25th August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, BENJAMIN
FOTHERGILL, Engineer and Machinist, and WILLIAM WEILD, Engineer, both of
the City of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said Benjamin Fothergill and William Weild, Her especial license
that we, the said Benjamin Fothergill and William Weild, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Benjamin Fothergill
and William Weild, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
usc, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR COMBING COTTON, WOOL, FLAX, SILK, AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Benjamin
Fothergill and William Weild, by an instrument in writing under our hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said

page_text: 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 we, the said Benjamin Fothergill and William
Weild, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that
:-
is to say)-
The improvements herein-after described principally relate and may be
considered supplemental to that improved combination of machinery for this
purpose, secured to us, the said Benjamin Fothergill and William Weild, by
Patent, numbered 854, and dated the Eleventh day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
Our improvements consists, firstly, in giving to the detaching rollers of
machines above referred to a reverse as well as a forward movement for each
detachment of fibres, by which means we obtain a better joining or piecing of
the combed fibres, and a sliver of more body or substance. We accomplish
this by substituting for the intermittent motion, described in the Specification
of the Patent herein-before mentioned, any of the well-known forward and
reverse motions used in that combination of mechanism known as Ileilman's
combing machine.
Secondly, our improvements consist in the use and adaptation of a wire
(stretched behind the detaching rollers) or other instrument, to which the
requisite movements are imparted by a can or other equivalent arrangement,
for the purpose of placing the tail ends of each detachment of fibres protruding
from the detaching or nipping rollers in the most favorable position for effect-
ing a junction with the head ends of the fibres next to be detached. This
adaptation is exhibited by Figure 1 of the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
which is a full size sectional view through the operating parts of the machine.
(The parts shewn in Figure 1, which correspond with those shewn in the
Drawings of the Specification of the Patent granted us, and herein-before
referred to, are marked with the same letters and figures of reference as
are therein used.)
A shaft (1) is fixed in bearings on the rocking frame , which extends
before each head of the machine; on it arms (2) are placed, between which
the wire (8) is stretched behind the detaching rollers i. This wire has a
vibratory movement imparted to it, equal to the arc shewn in dotted line, the
object of which is, as before stated, to lay the tail ends of the fibres alternately
against the upper and lower detaching rollers (i) when the rocking frame ("")

page_text: approaches the nippers (c', c,) so that the ends protruding from the nippers
may enter unobstructedly between the detaching rollers (2), and effect a junc-
tion with the tail ends of the fibres held by the wire (3). Vibratory motion is
imparted to the shaft (1) through an arm (4) at one end of it by a cam (6),
which acts upon an anti-friction bowl (5), fitted in the end of the arm 4. The
cam 6 is placed loose on a shaft or centre (n³), fixed in bearings formed on
the rocking (i), and is geered to make the same number of revolutions as the
combing drum shafts (f) by a spur wheel (7) on the combing drum shaft (f),
which geers with one (8) loose on the centre (3) of oscillation of the rocking
frame (), that is attached to another 8, which acts as an intermediate to
convey the motion to a spur wheel (9) secured to the cam 6. The wheels
7, 8, 8, and 9 are partly shewn on dotted line in the Drawing; they may be
placed at that end of the machine opposite to that at which the mechanism
is placed for producing the forward and reverse motion of the detaching
rollers.
Thirdly, our improvements consist in making and arranging the detaching
combs so that they may each be adjusted so as to enter the combed fleece the
required depth. The comb bar e and arms e¹, e², are actuated, arranged, and
constructed as described in the Specification of our Patent herein-before
referred to in respect to one comb, the other comb e* having separate arms e¹*,
which center and are loose on the same shaft c as the comb bar e, and it (the
comb ex) is secured to and caused to move with the other comb e by two set
screws, which screw through a short arm from one of the arms ex against the
opposite sides of the arm e. These set screws are also used to adjust the
combs by unscrewing one of them and screwing the other.
Fourthly, our Invention consists in adapting within the double nippers an
arrangement for feeding the fleece to be combed, formed by a roller and bar
with a concave surface for each sliver, in place of the two rollers & for each
sliver, (described in the Specification of our before-mentioned Patent,) each
concave bar taking the place of the roller dispensed with, and being kept suffi-
ciently tight against its roller to give the requisite pressure for feeding forward
the uncombed fleece, by the same means as are employed for effecting the
pressure between the two rollers. The rollers of each feed extend the length
of the machine, that is, the rollers of each head are coupled together and are
placed in fixed bearings, (but so as to be readily removed from the front of the
nippers,) and they are geered together at one end by equal spur wheels, one on
the end of each roller, by which arrangement both rollers feed by the same
movement, one roller having the requisite amount of revolving motion imparted
to it for this purpose from the oscillations of a lever centred loosely upon its

page_text: end, upon which lever is jointed a pawl that works in a ratchet wheel fixed on
the end of the same roller upon which the lever has its fulcrum, the lever
receiving its oscillations from a a cam or pin carried in a plate fixed on one
of the combing drum shafts. The preceding explanation will be made clear
by reference to Fig. 1. A piece is cut out of the sides of the central nipper
or jaw c¹, and in its place a piece (10) is fitted to slide in, being secured in
position by a screw. When these pieces (10) are removed from the sides of
the nippers (c¹) the feed rollers (d) can be removed or replaced, as they fit in
recesses, the open sides of which are closed when the pieces 10 are replaced,
as will be seen by inspection of the Drawing. The stands a¹ are formed as
shewn to make room for the free oscillations of the feed rollers as they pass in
front of each stand between each head. The bars with concave surfaces taking
the place of the second roller are marked d³; they may have their surfaces
covered same as the nippers c. are the springs for effecting the required
pressure between the rollers and the concave bars d². Pins (11) are placed in
the concave bars (d²) to keep them in their places, passing through holes in the
springs d. The ratchet for revolving the rollers to give the feed is shewn
partly in dotted line, and marked d"; d³ is a pawl (also shewn in dotted line),
which acts upon it; it is jointed on an arm (12), having the same feed roller
(d), on which the ratchet is placed for its fulcrum, which is acted upon
once every revolution of the combing drum shafts (f) by a cam 13 (shewn in
dotted line) placed on the upper combing drum shaft. The two feed rollers
are geered together at one end by equal spur wheels (14), partly shewn in
dotted line.
Fifthly, the improvements which form the subject of this part of our Inven-
tion relate more particularly to machines used for combing that class of fibres
which have little tendency to adhere to each other in the form of a sliver, and
the means we employ to produce a sliver that will adhere together is as
follows: We receive the combed sliver from the front of the detaching rollers
on to an endless belt (15), (Fig. 1), which passes round two fluted rollers 16
and 17, having their bearings in the rocking frame , which have the same
motion imparted to them as the detaching rollers i by being geered with
them. The sliver is pinced against the belt 15 and roller 17 by the weight of
the roller 18, which is free in bearings on the rocking frame (*), between
which roller and belt the ends of the combed fleece delivered by the detaching
rollers protrude. The oscillation of the rocking frame brings the protruding
ends of the combed fleece over another endless belt 19, which passes round
two fluted rollers 20 and 21, that have their bearings in a roller stand or
bracket fixed on the stand a³, and the ends of the fleece are immediately

page_text: pinced against the second endless belt 19 by a nipper bar or roller 22, which
holds the fibres thus pinced, which are detached from the fleece on the belt 15
by the reverse movement of the belt and detaching rollers, or the back move-
ment of the rocking frame, or the two movements combined, assisted (when
a roller is used in place of the nipper bar 22) by the slow movement of the
belt 19, when the latter has an uniform motion imparted to it. The belt 19
and roller 23 convey the accumulated fibres to a series of ordinary drawing
rollers, marked 24 to 29, the draft of which combines the fibres, so that the
sliver delivered down the conductor 30 to the can or other receptacle pos-
sesses sufficient adhesion to hold together. The nipper bar or roller 22 is
attached to arms 31 from a shaft 32, having its bearings on the stand 38; it is
actuated by a cam 34 through an arm 33 fixed on the shaft 32; the cam 34
is keyed on a shaft 35, having its bearings on the stands a¹; it is geared to
make the same number of revolutions as the combing drum shafts f, by a
wheel 37 (attached to the wheel 8"), which geers with a wheel (36), koyed on
the end of the shaft 35; these wheels are partly shewn in the Drawing in
dotted line. The drawing rollers 24 to 29 are geered together in the ordinary
manner; the rollers 20 and 21 are also geered with them. The surface speed of
the belt 19 and the rollers 24 and 25 being equal, the thickness of the fleece
accumulated on the belt 19 will be regulated by its speed. When the nipper bar
22 is employed, the drawing rollers 24 to 29, and thus the belt 19, will require
to have an intermittent motion imparted to them, which may be accomplished
by a "star wheel motion," actuated twice for each revolution of the combing
drum shafts f, the action taking place immediately after the nipper bar 22 has
effected each detachment; but when a fluted roller (which wo prefer) is used
in place of the bar 22, the drawing rollers and belt 19 may be revolved
constantly..
Sixthly, our Invention consists in a mode of constructing combing drums or
cylinders in such manner that any one of the combs may be readily removed
and replaced without disturbing the others, which is accomplished by fitting
and fixing the comb bars in longitudinal grooves formed in the drums or
cylinders, and securing them in their places by means of a plate at each end
This description will be plainly understood by reference to the Figs. 2 and 3 of
the annexed Drawing; the first being a longitudinal view of one side and one
half of a drum or cylinder, and the latter an end view. The cylinder or drum
has dovetail longitudinal grooves formed in it, and the bars 39 for carrying the
comb teeth are fitted into them, so as to slide in and out endways; they are
kept from moving by the plates or rings 40, which are secured to the ends of
the drum or cylinder f¹ by screws 41; when these screws are removed, the

page_text: ring or plate 40 can be turned, so as to bring that portion (40%) of it from
which the edge is cut away opposite the ends- of the comb bars 39, any of
which may then be removed and replaced. The teeth are fixed to the bars 39
by cutting in them a narrow slit or groove longitudinally, as shewn by Fig. 5,
which is an end view, and Fig. 4, which is a longitudinal view of part of one
comb bar, the ends of the teeth being soldered while held by the guage in the
groove or slit.
Seventhly, our improvements consist in adapting and employing an endless
belt (or a trough) for the purpose of collecting and carrying the waste or noil
from each head of combing machines (such as Heilmann's) as it is stripped
from the doffer cylinders or endless belts to a common receptacle at one end of
the machine. We need not suggest any particular arrangement of the endless
belt or mode of driving it, (which will depend on the peculiar arrangement of
each machine,) further than to say that it should be placed so as to pass under
each doffer cylinder or belt in such manner that the noil or waste, as it is
stripped from each doffer cylinder or belt, will fall upon it, the speed given to
it being about the same as the surface speed of the doffer cylinders or belts.
We have now particularly described the nature of our improvements, and
the mode in which they may be carried into effect, and claim as our Invention,
the improvements herein-before described, either singly or in combination,
when used in machines acting in like manner to that described in the Speci-
fication of our Patent herein-before mentioned; and we claim the improve-
ments described under the sixth and seventh divisions of this Specification
when used in other combing machines acting on the principle of Heilmann's.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Weild, on my own behalf, and on
behalf of the said Benjamin Fothergill, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Twenty-third day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.