IMPROVEMENTS IN FINISHING OR STIFFENING TEXTILE FABRICS
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Jones, Manager, of Rhodes, near Middleton,
in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
FINISHING OR STIFFENING TEXTILE FABRICS."
Sealed the 13th April 1863, and dated the 1st January 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Jones at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
1st January 1863.
I, JAMES JONES, Manager, of Rhodes, near Middleton, in the County of
Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN FINISHING OR STIFFENING TEXTILE FABRICS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in finishing or stiffening
textile fabrics. For these purposes instead of applying the size, starch, or
stiffening fluid to textile fabrics by passing them between two plain or smooth
rollers in contact, or by passing them between an engraved roller and a plain
roller wrapped with blanket or other material, as in ordinary machine
printing, it is applied by means of an engraved roller, (engraved by preference.
in a peculiar manner, as will be hereafter described,) which roller itself is
partly immersed in the size, starch, or stiffening fluid, or it may be supplied
by another roller partly immersed therein, and the excess of such stiffening
fluid is removed from the engraved roller by a doctor in the ordinary manner
when printing with engraved rollers, and which engraved roller moves in an
opposite direction to the fabric to be stiffened or finished, whereby the cylinder
or pressing roller with the grey or back cloth and all its appurtenances is dis-

page_text: pensed with. The engraved roller is engraved in pinned diagonal lines, as is
usual for a padding roller, but instead of the diagonal lines running the whole
length of the roller, they incline from the middle of the roller to the two ends
thereof in opposite directions, so that one half of the engraved lines incline in
one direction and the other half incline in the opposite direction to the axis of
the roller. These two sets of diagonal lines cross each other a short distance
on the centre of the roller. By using a roller engraved in this manner running
in an opposite direction to the fabric to be stiffened, the cloth is somewhat
stretched in the direction of its width and caused to pass over the roller more
evenly than it otherwise would.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Jones in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
30th June 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
JONES, Manager, of Rhodes, near Middleton, in the County of Lancaster,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her beirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said James Jones, Her special licence that I, the said James Jones,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
James Jones, my 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 Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
FINISHING OR STIFFENING TEXTILE FABRICS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said James Jones, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, 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 within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Jones, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in finishing or stiffening
textile fabrics. Heretofore in applying size, starch, or stiffening fluid to textile
fabrics it has been usual to pass such fabrics between two plain or smooth
rollers in contact, or to pass them between an engraved roller and a plain
roller wrapped or covered with blanket as in ordinary machine printing, and
in each case the use of one of the rollers has been to press the size, starch, or
stiffening fluid into or upon the fabric, and in each case the textile fabric has
been moved by and between the rollers employed at the surface speed of the
rollers.
Now, according to the present Invention, the roller employed to apply the
size, starch, or stiffening fluid to a textile fabric is caused to move in oppo-
sition to the fabric which in passing the roller comes in contact with a small
arc of the surface of the roller, by which the fabric receives the size, starch, or
stiffening fluid from the surface of the roller, and is thereby stiffened without
requiring the use of the ordinary pressing roller or cylinder with its back cloth
and appurtenances.
In carrying out the Invention it is preferred to employ rollers engraved in
the following manner:-They are engraved in pinned diagonal lines as is
sometimes used for padding rollers, but instead of the diagonal lines running
the whole length of a roller in the same direction, they incline from the middle
of a roller to the two ends thereof in opposite directions, so that one half of the
engraved lines incline in one direction and the other half incline in the opposite
direction to the axis of the roller. Each alternate line of the two sets of
diagonal lines is carried forward for about half an inch into the other set; it
is found that this is desirable in order to stiffen that portion of the fabrics
which passes over the roller at the joining of the lines. By reason of a roller
being thus engraved and caused to move in opposition to the fabric there will
be a tendency to stretch the fabric laterally when spreading or rubbing the
size, starch, or stiffening fluid on to the surface of a passing textile fabric.
The engraved roller employed is either caused to revolve partly immersed in the
stiffening fluid, or the engraved roller is supplied by another roller which is
partly immersed in the stiffening fluid and in contact with the engraved roller.
A doctor or other suitable instrument is employed, as is well understood, with
the engraved roller, so as to remove any excess of the stiffening fluid from
its surface.
It may be stated, in reference to the surface speed of the roller as compared
with that of the fabric, when the roller is moving in the reverse direction to

page_text: the fabric, that the surface of the roller should move at about the same rate
as that at which the cloth is passing over it; for instance, for every yard the
cloth moves in one direction, the surface of the roller moves a yard in the other
direction; this can, however, be varied if it be desired to put more or less
starch or stiffening fluid into a fabric. Although it is preferred to employ
engraved rollers such as are above described, other rollers may be used in a
similar manner to what is above described in place thereof, and they are
either to revolve in the stiffening fluid or have such fluid supplied thereto as
above described.
In using a roller or rollers in a machine in the manner above explained the
textile fabric is to be caused to move through the machine in contact with the
roller, but independent of the movement of such roller, and it is preferred that
the surface of the roller should, as above explained, be moved in the reverse
direction to that of the textile fabric, and so to obtain the requisite opposing
action of the surface of the roller to that of the passage of the textile fabric;
but this may be varied, as it will be evident that a like result will be accom-
plished if the surface of the roller against which a textile fabric is being
moved has a quicker surface speed communicated to it than that given to the
fabric.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Jones, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Signed in the presence of
JAS. BROWN,
Cashier,
Salford Iron Works.
JAMES JONES.
(L.S.)