CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SPINNING AND DOUBLING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
HIGGINS, of Salford, in the County of Lancaster, Machine Maker, and THOMAS
SCHOFIELD WHITWORTH, of the same Place, Mechanic, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Sixth day of July, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in
the sixteenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said James Higgins and Thomas Schofield Whit-
worth, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that we,
the said James Higgins and Thomas Schofield Whitworth, our exors, admors,
and assigns, and such others as we, the said James Higgins and Thomas
Schofield Whitworth, our exors, adiñiors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of
years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England and Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our
Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SPINNING
AND DOUBLING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso, that we, the said James Higgins and Thomas
Schofield Whitworth, shall cause a particular description of the nature of our
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be enrolled
in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in

page_text: and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large
appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
James Higgins and Thomas Schofield Whitworth, do hereby declare that the
nature of the said Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be
performed, is particularly described and ascertained in and by the Drawings
hereto annexed, and the following explanation thereof, that is to say :—-
Our Invention relates to improvements upon a Patent which was granted to
us on the Twenty-fourth September, One thousand eight hundred and forty-
nine. In the Specification of that Patent we described a mule, the principle
of construction which was that two sets of rollers and spindles mutually
receded from and advanced towards each other in order to form a stretch;
the roller beams moved in a vertical direction, and each of the carriages con-
taining the spindles along the segment of a circle. According to our present
improvement, the roller beams ascend and descend vertically as before, but the
spindle carriages move in a right line at an angle to the motion of the roller
beams, and this arrangement we employ either in double or single mules. The
methods of imparting the ordinary mule motions constitute no part of our
Invention, as the same may be accomplished by a variety of well-known
mechanical arrangements; the Drawings accompanying this our Specification,
however, shew a complete machine.
In order to explain how the Invention may be carried into practical effect,
the working parts being similar in general arrangement to those of that
construction of self-acting mule, commonly known as Sharp and Roberts, and
as the motions thereof are in extensive use, and are well known, it will not
be necessary to enter into a detailed account of their construction and opera-
tion, nevertheless we shall describe them to a certain extent in order to point
out their positions and general action.
In the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1 is a side view, shewing more par-
ticularly the central portion of the machine, but broken off towards each end;
Fig. 2 is a portion of the other side of the machine; Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, are
vertical sections, taken respectively about the lines a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, k, l, m;
some portions of the machinery are omitted in each of these Figures, in order to
avoid confusion, and similar letters and numbers of reference are marked upon
corresponding parts. The main driving pulley of the machine is shewn at 1,
mounted upon a shaft 2, the strap 3 being crossed for the purpose of allowing
it to pass between the two sets of rollers. The "self-actor pulley" is at 4, turning
loosely as usual upon the shaft 2. The apparatus for effecting the changes, is
on the escapement principle, similar to that of the construction of mule above

page_text: referred to, and well known. The friction pulley for actuating the change
shaft 8 is shewn at 5 revolving in contract with the disc excapement wheel 6,
which is provided with the ordinary circular indentations 7, escapement stops
and pins 9, against which pins the spring 10 acts for the purpose of giving the
impulse. The roller beams are shewn at A, B, mounted upon frames 11,
which carry the creel containing the bobbins of material from which the yarn
is to be spun. The frames 11 are mounted on guides 12, formed upon the
skeleton of the machine, and they also bear against rollers 13, so as to be
capable of sliding up and down in a parallel direction. The carriages of the
mules are shewn at 14 provided with wheels 15, which run upon inclined rails
16, and in these carriages the two sets of spindles 17 are mounted in any
ordinary manner; by causing therefore the frames 11 to rise, and the carriages
14 simultaneously to descend along their inclined planes, the material delivered
by the rollers of the beams A, B, will be drawn out, so as to effect the neces-
sary stretch; the method adopted for effecting these movements is as follows:
-Upon the shaft 2 there is a pinion 18 taking into a wheel 19, mounted
upon a short shaft 20, which carries at its other end a toothed pinion 21, which
actuates, by means of a wheel 22, a longitudinal shaft 23. Upon this shaft
there is a pinion 24, which, through the intervention of a carrier wheel.25,
communicates rotatory motion to a shaft 26, which shaft has its bearings upon
antifriction rollers 27. A similar arrangement at the right-hand side of
Figure 1 also gives motion to a shaft 23*; that portion of the machine, how-
ever, is represented broken off, as not being necessary for an explanation of
the parts. The shafts 23, 23, are provided with pinions 28, the teeth of
which take into racks 29, attached to the sliding framework 11; accordingly,
therefore, as motion is communicated in one direction or the other, the pinions
28 will in like manner revolve, and by means of the racks 29 cause the sliding
frames 11, and with them the roller beams A, B, and bobbins of material,
to rise and fall, and consequently move towards or recede from the spindle 17.
Upon the shafts 26 are mounted pulleys 30, around each of which chains 31
are coiled; one of these passes over and the other under its respective pulley,
and the extremities are connected by means of screws and nuts to the carriages
14. As, therefore, the shaft 26 is caused to revolve (say in the direction of
the arrow Fig. 6), both sets of chains will uncoil from their respective pulleys,
and therefore the carriages and their spindles will be allowed to descend along
the inclined planes 16, at the same time such revolution of the shaft 26 will
by means of the racks and pinions 29, 28, effect a rising motion of the roller
beams, thus causing those two main portions of the machine to recede from
each other. A reversed motion (hereafter to be described) of the shaft 23

page_text: will effect after the same manner a mutual approach, during which the winding
on will take place, and thus the successive stretches required for spinning are
obtained. It will be observed, by inspection of the arrangement of parts
described, that the descent of the carriages by the uncoiling of the chains has
a tendency to turn the pinions 28, and therefore to raise the roller beam; if
therefore the carriages and their appurtenances be of equal weight to the roller
beam and its connexions, those two main portions of the machine will con-
stitute reciprocal counterbalance weights during their mutual advancing and
receding motions. The method of giving motion to the rollers of the roller
beams is as follows:-Upon the shaft 23 is a bevil wheel 32, taking into
another mounted upon the lower part of a vertical shaft 33. This shaft turns
in a step at bottom, and passes above through a bearing carried by the roller
beam; it is provided with a longitudinal groove, within which is situate a
feather projecting from the boss of a pinion 34; as the sliding frame 11 there-
fore rises and falls, the pinion 34, although travelling with it, will receive
rotatory motion. Upon the axles 35 of the front rollers are mounted bevil pinions
36, taking into others 37, mounted upon a cross shaft 38, which shaft is provided
with a pinion 39, driven by that shewn at 34, by which arrangement rotatorý
motion is communicated to the two sets of front rollers. Upon the shaft 38
there is a pinion 40, which actuates a carrier wheel 41, driving by means of a
pinion 42 a second cross shaft 43, each end of which is provided with a bevil
pinion 44, taking into others upon the axles of the back rollers 45, which are
caused to revolve. If it be desired to effect an alteration in the draft, it will
merely be necessary to change the pinion 42, when the required speed will be
gained for both sets of back rollers. The middle rollers are driven at the off
ends in the usual manner. Thus far we have shewn how the necessary motion
may be communicated to the two sets of rollers for the delivery of the material,
but as such motion is derived from the shaft 23, which has at intervals (while
the rollers are stationary) to revolve in a contrary direction, it is necessary that
the communication should be broken at those periods; this we accomplish
in the following manner-The wheel 32 of the shaft 23 is mounted upon a
boss capable of turning loosely thereon, but is caused to revolve therewith in one
direction, by means of clicks 46, mounted upon centres which are affixed to a
flange fast upon the shaft 23. These clicks take into the teeth of a ratchet
wheel 47, and therefore move it and the pinion 32 in one direction, but slip over
its teeth without producing any motion when revolving in the other direction.
We will now proceed to describe the method by which the spindles are
caused to revolve during the spinning of the material. Upon the shaft 2
there is the rim pulley 48, around which the band or cord 49 is passed. 50

page_text: is another pulley also attached to a shaft which turns in the stationary frame-
work 51; and 51 are others similarly mounted; and 52 are two guide pullies
also turning upon stationary bearings. Two guide pullies 53 are mounted in
the spindle carriages, and are arranged so as to afford the means of tightening
the cord by shifting their axes within suitable slots. 54 are pullies affixed to
axles of the tin drums 55, these axles being mounted in bearings attached to
the spindle carriages. The cord or band 49 is passed over the several pullies,
as shewn in the Drawings, and upon motion therefore being communicated to the
shaft 2, will be caused to travel, as shewn by the arrows in Figure 4, and thus
impart rotatory motion to the spindles during the formation of the stretch. The
shaft 56 of the pulley 50 is mounted so as to slide in its bearings, and is pro-
vided at one end with a clutch 57, and it is embraced by a forked lever 58,
operated upon by a tappet affixed to the change shaft, which tappet, by arriving
in contact therewith, causes the clutch 57 to be moved, as hereafter described.
The axles of the tin drums 55 are provided with skew bevil pinions 59, beyond
which they extend into bearings formed within bosses 60, mounted so as to
slide upon a cross shaft 61, which shaft has segmental pieces removed from its
circumference opposite to each other so as to form flat sides, but as the sockets
internally are of the full diameter the shaft is capable of turning therein.
Upon the shaft 61 are also placed skew bevil wheels 62, taking into the pinions
59, and kept into gear therewith by being connected to the sockets 60; these
wheels are provided with lugs, within which are mounted friction rollers 63,
resting upon the flat sides of the shaft 61. As the tin drums therefore revolve,
motion will be communicated to the wheel 62, and as the rollers 63 are con-
nected thereto, they also will be caused to rotate, carrying round the shaft 61
by reason of the flattened edges thereof. The shaft 61 is mounted at its
central part in guides 64, and confined from lateral motion by flanges formed
upon it, within which guides it will therefore be carried up and down as
the carriages rise or fall, the sockets receding from each other according to
the angular motion by sliding upon the shaft; by this arrangement a corre-
sponding rate of revolution of the tin drums is effected. The arrangement by
which the carriages and roller beams are stopped and cause to remain
stationary when the stretch is completed, and also that through which the
rollers discontinue their revolutions, are as follows:-The wheel 22, before
mentioned, slides upon the shaft 23, and is provided with a clutch box 66,
taking into another upon the shaft 23, by the medium of which connexion
therefore the carriage is moved out during the formation of a stretch; this,
however, having been completed, a bowl arrives in contact with the lever 180,
thereby causing it to turn upon its centre and relieve the lever 181 from the

page_text: notch 182, which lever being then forced outward by the spring 183 liberates
the escapement wheel 6 from a stop, so as to allow a cam 67 upon the change
shaft 8 to arrive in contact with a forked lever 68, which, by shifting the
clutch 66, disconnects the shaft 23 from the driving power, and thereby arrests
the motion of the wheels 24, 25, 32, &c., and therefore of the carriages and
roller beams, and also the delivery of the rollers. The revolution of the
spindles will now continue until the required twist has been imparted to the
material; the amount of this is regulated by the ordinary twist or bell wheel,
the arrangement of which apparatus as employed by us is as follows:-The
twist wheel is shewn at 69 (Figs. 1 and 8) actuated by the worm 70 upon the
shaft 2, and provided with the tappet 71 upon its face. Upon the change 8
is a tappet 72, which, when the carriages have run out, will have arrived in
contact with a notch 73 formed upon the lever 74, whereby a further revolution
of the change shaft will be prevented, and the rim pulley 48 still be allowed
to revolve; when, however, the requisite quantity of twist shall have been
imparted, the tappet 71 will have arrived in contact with one end of the
lever 74, thereby causing it to turn upon its centre, and by liberating the
tappet 72 allow the change shaft 8 to revolve, which motion will effect
the shifting of the driving strap on to the self-actor pulley 4, by means of the
forked lever 75, acted upon by the cam 76, whereby the driving power being
taken from the shaft 2, and consequently rim pulley 48, the motion of the
spindles will be arrested at the same time, also the cam 77 will cause the
lever 78 to turn upon its centre, whereby the wheel 79 and its conical
clutch 80 will be slidden so as to thrust the latter into the pulley 1. By this
change rotatory motion will now be imparted to the shaft 2 through the medium
of the wheels 81, 82, 83, 84, 79, &°, and therefore in a contrary direction to
that in which it formerly moved, the shaft 23 however being at this time
disconnected by the clutch 66, and therefore remaining stationary. The
shaft 2 being thus turned in a reverse direction, the rim pulley 48 will also
revolve backward, and thus the backing-off will be effected. The position of
the apparatus for determining the backing-off will be best seen in Figure 3.
The axle of one of the tin drums is shewn at 85, upon which is mounted
loosely the usual ratchet wheel 86, caused to revolve by the click 87, and
thereby coil up the chain 88; this chain passing over the pulley 89 imparts to
the lever 90 a tendency to turn upon its centre 91, which motion, however, is
at this time prevented by the stop 92; the action of the faller, however, having
taken place, the stop is withdrawn, and as this motion takes place, when the
carriage is at the bottom of the stretch, a bowl upon the lever 90, on becoming
free, arrives in contact with the lever 95, which, by turning upon its centre,

page_text: liberates, as is well understood, the escapement wheel 6, so as to allow the
change shaft to revolve, by the action of which the cams 77 will withdraw the
conical clutch from the pulley 1, and the backing off motion will be arrested.
The sliding bar for regulating the shaping apparatus is shewn at 96 mounted
upon the inclined rail 97, upon which is formed a bracket for receiving one end
of the regulating screw 98; this screw passes through a nut attached to the
bar 96, and carries at its other end a skew bevil pinion 99, taking into another
mounted upon the axis 100, which is also provided with the ratchet wheel 101;
a lever 102 turns loosely upon the axis 100, and carries a jointed click 103,
taking into the teeth of the ratchet 101; as the carriage descends a roller 104
arrives in contact with the lever 102, thereby causing it to turn upon its centre
and carry round the ratchet, which, by communicating rotary motion to the
screw 98, advances the sliding bar 96, the lower extremity of which, operating
upon the inclines formed upon the under side of the link 105, causes the
shaping bar 106 to fall, the same operation also taking place, but by direct
action, at the upper end of the bar 96. The roller which runs upon the
shaper is shewn at 107, and operates in conjunction with the toothed segments
and other apparatus connected with the faller, as usually practised in that
description of self-acting mule above referred to. There is, however, an
apparatus employed in our arrangement not commonly used, and which we will
now therefore refer to. Upon the axis 85 is a pinion 166, taking into a
segmental rack 167, which turns upon a centre 168; to the boss of this centre
a short chain 169 is attached, its other end being connected to a spring 170.
As the backing-off motion proceeds, the chain 88 becomes coiled around the
centre 85, and on the reverse motion for winding taking place the said chain
has a tendency to slacken, at which time, however, the spring 170 will cause
the rack 167 to operate upon 'the pinion 166, so as to keep the chain 88
distended. The faller is unlocked by the arrival of the inclined part 184
against the bowl 185, whereby the excentric 93 is lifted by the fork 186, so as
to raise the catch 187 from the quadrant 188. The apparatus thus pointed
out has reference to one side of the machine only, and therefore to one set of
spindles; it is necessary therefore to communicate the operations of the fallers
to the other side of the machine, where another set of spindles are employed;
this we do in the following manner:-Upon the faller and counter-faller
shafts 108, 109, at one end of the machine are affixed toothed segments 110,
which segments take into others 111 affixed to shafts 112, turning in bearings
formed within a standard 113, attached to a bar which is bolted to the spindle
carriage. The shafts 112 are also supported at 114, and are formed hollow
for the reception of square shafts 115, which square shafts turn in a

page_text: standard 116, and are provided with toothed segments 111, taking into
others 110 mounted upon the fuller and counter-fallers 108, 109. By this
arrangement it will be perceived that whatever motion shall take place in
reference to a faller at one side of the machine must also take place at the
other. As the carriages travel up and down their inclined rails the shafts 115
slide within the shafts 112, and thus compensate for the varying width between
the two sets of apparatus; and in order to prevent a binding upon the end
bearings by a thrusting action, discs 117 are attached to the shafts 112, which
discs revolve against rollers 118, mounted upon studs attached to the bar of
the carriage. The putting up of the carriages, and the descent of the roller
beams have now to be effected, accompanied by the necessary motion of the
spindles for winding on. The arrangement of parts for these motions are as
follows: Upon the change shaft is a cam 119, which, upon the backing-off
having been performed, comes into operation upon the lever 120, so as to shift
one portion of the clutch 121 into gear with the other portion which is fast
with the scroll wheel 122. This wheel is provided with the chain 123, the
other extremity of which is attached to the spiral pulleys 124 upon the
shaft 23; by the revolutions of the scroll wheel shaft, therefore, the lower
shaft 23 is caused to revolve at the usual gradually increasing rate, by which
means the drums 30 will be turned, and through the medium of the chains 31
cause the carriages with their spindles to ascend at the same time; the
pinions 28 being also caused to revolve, will operate upon the racks 29, and
effect a downward motion of the roller beams; upon the putting up of the
carriages having taken place, a bowl 189 will have arrived in contact with the
end 181 of the lever 181, whereby it is brought again to the position repre-
sented in the Drawing. The arrangements for the winding-on motion are as
follows: Upon the shaft 23, before mentioned, is a bevil pinion 125, taking
into another 126, mounted upon a cross shaft 127, which carries a spur
pinion 128; this pinion actuates a sliding rack 129, to which a bracket 130 is
attached, the upper part thereof being provided with a centre pin, upon which
the vibrating lever 131 turns. The axle of the regulating screw 132 is
connected by means of the train 133, 134, 135, to a pinion 136, mounted
by means of a feather upon the horizontal shaft 187, and connected by
a fork to the bracket 130; as the pinion 128 revolves, the centre of the
vibratory lever is caused to travel, so as to move the upper part of the said
lever up or down, the inclined plane 138 thereby effecting the required
vibration, the train of the pinions 133, &c. at the same time moving with the
bracket 130 so as to maintain their connection with the screw. The centre of
motion of the lever is placed upon the pitch line of the pinions 133, 134, by

page_text: reason of which no motion will be communicated to the screw by the vibrating
action. The winding on chain proceeding from the regulating screw is coiled
around a drum 139, the axis of which is provided with a bevil wheel 140,
taking into another 141, mounted loosely upon the shaft 56, the wheel 141
being provided with a clutch box. To the drum 139 is attached a cord 142,
which passes over a pulley 143 at the upper part of the machine, and carries
a weight for the purpose of causing the drum 139 to take up the slacker.ed
chain as the vibrating lever ascends the inclined plane, at which time, owing
to the disengagement of the clutch box 57, the drum will be free to revolve
without turning the shaft 56. Upon the descending motion being about to take
place, a tappet mounted upon the change shaft 8 will arrive in contact with the
lever 58, the fork of which embraces the boss of the spindle pulley 50, whereby
the shaft 56 will be forced forward a sufficient distance to carry the clutch
box 57 into gear with that of the wheel 141, in order to connect the drum 139
with the shaft 56. The descending motion of the vibrating lever will now
therefore, in causing the chain to uncoil, give motion to the shaft 56, and
through the band 49 and pullies, before described, effect the required revolution
of the spindles. The arrangement for giving motion to the regulating screw
is as follows:-Upon the shaft 137 there is a loose pulley 144, to which is
jointed a click, taking into the teeth of a ratchet wheel 150, fast upon the said
shaft; around the pulley 144 a cord 145 passes, and from thence is conducted
over rollers 146, as seen in Figure 6. This cord passes between the clamp 147,
and there is attached to it an adjustable piece 148. Upon the counter faller
shaft are mounted loosely, but in one piece, three arms 190, 191, 192, one of
them being connected to a lever 149 by a link 193; another (192) is provided
with a bowl, which bears against a cam 194, mounted upon the faller shaft.
The lever 149 turns upon a centre at 195, and carries, at its lower part, one
portion of a clamp 147, which has a tendency to press upon the other portion
thereof by means of a weight 196. To the counter-faller shaft is affixed an
arm 197, provided with a set screw, which, as the counter-faller rises, arrives
in contact with the arm 190, and thereby turns the lever 149 upon its centre,
so as to prevent the cord 145 from being held by the clamp 147; this, according
to the positions of the parts shewn in the Drawing, would also be effected by
the interposition of the cam 194, but when the faller has descended the smaller
diameter of the cam will be opposite to the bowl of the arm 192, and would
not therefore offer an obstruction to the closing of the clamp; if, however,
the tension of the threads should be greater than a certain amount, then the
counter-faller not turning upon its centre so far will fail to bring the screw of
the arm 197 into contact with the arm 190, which, being mounted loosely upon

page_text: its shaft, will be free to move thereon, so as to allow the weight 196 to turn the
lever 149 upon its centre, and thus close the clamp 147 upon the cord 145.
As the carriage ascends, the cord 145 will therefore be carried upward, but as
the teeth of the ratchet wheel 150 are so arranged as not to be taken by the
click in that direction, no revolution of the shaft, and, therefore, of the regu-
lating screw, will take place. By this motion of the cord the adjustable piece
148 will have been carried upward, and upon the next downward motion of
the carriage the clamp 147 will arrive in contact with it, thereby carrying it
to its former position, and dragging with it the cord 145, which, by causing
the pulley 144 to turn, will carry the click against the teeth of the ratchet
wheel 150, and thus effect a revolution of the shaft 137, and, through the
medium of the wheels 136, &c. a turning of the regulating screw 132. When
the base of the cop shall have been formed, and no motion of the regulating
screw necessary, the faller not descending so far will fail in bringing the smaller
diameter of the cam 194 opposite to the bowl of the arm 192, which will
therefore be retained in the position shewn in the Drawing, and the weight of
the lever 149 constantly prevented from closing the clamp 147. In order to
check the carriage as it advances towards the top of its ascent, we apply a
break to the shaft 23, from which its traversing motion is derived. This
apparatus will be best seen at Figs. 1 and 8. Upon the shaft 23 is a drum
151, upon which is placed a friction hoop 152. This hoop is formed in two
portions, it being jointed at 153, from which part it extends around each side
of the drum to the points 154, 155. To one portion a rod 156 is attached,
and to the other another rod 157, the other ends of which rods are jointed to
a double lever 158, affixed to a short staff 159; to this shaft is also attached
a lever 160, loaded with a weight sufficient for effecting the required break.
This lever 160 is supported when the break is not required to act by an
inclined piece 161, formed upon the end of a lever 162, turning upon a centre
pin 163. When the carriage is ascending towards the top of its traverse, a
roller 164, which travels with it, arrives in contact with the upper portion of
the lever 162, thereby causing it to turn upon its centre, and remove the piece
161 from under the lever 160, which then being unsupported, the weight will
cause it to turn upon its centre, and by means of the double lever 158 draw
forward the one portion of the break, and thrust forward the other upon the
periphery of the drum 151. When the carriages are about to commence their
downward motion, a tappet upon the change shaft 8 will arrive in contact with
a short lever 165, attached to the shaft 159, and by turning it a short distance
upon its centre will liberate the drum 151 from the break. Fig. 9 represents
in horizontal view another arrangement of parts for accomplishing the winding-

page_text: on motion, which we have found applicable to our construction of mule. The
vibrating lever is shewn at 131, constituting one arm of a quadrant furnished
with teeth at 200, driven by a pinion 201, affixed to the shaft 23, before
referred to. The revolutions of that shaft, therefore, will cause the lever to
perform the necessary vibratory movements. The regulating screw 132 is
provided with a pinion 133, taking into the teeth of another 134, the pitch
lines of which pinions are coincident with the centre of motion of the vibrating
lever 131, as mentioned in reference to Fig: 1. The pinion 134 is mounted
upon a shaft 202, driven by another shaft 203, upon which are mounted the
pulley 144 and ratchet wheel 150. The winding-on chain, proceeding from
the nut of the regulating. screw, passes over a guide pulley 204, and from
thence to the winding-on drum 139, mounted loosely in this instance upon the
shaft 56 (before referred to), and provided with a clutch 170, capable of being
placed into gear with the clutch attached to the spindle pulley 50 of the former
Figures. To one end, of the quadrant is jointed a circular arm 205, which
passes between pins projecting from the nut of the regulating screw; as that
nut, therefore, moves along the screw, it carries with it the circular arm, and
causes it to turn upon its centre, so as to alter the position of its periphery in
reference to the centre of motion of the vibrating quadrant. At the commence-
ment of forming a cop, the regulating nut will, in this instance, be situate at
the outward extremity of the vibrating lever 131, whereby the circular arm
205 will be brought concentric, or nearly so, to the centre of motion of the
quadrant upon the shaft 23, therefore being put into motion so as to move the
quadrant 200 in the direction of the arrow; the winding-on chain will be taken
up by the circular arm 205, and thereby unlapped from the drum 139, thus
causing the spindle pulley 50 by means of the clutch 170 (then in gear) to
revolve. This unwinding of the chain from the drum 139 being performed by
a concentric position of the arm 205, the motion communicated to the spindles
will be uniform, or nearly so, and at the greatest velocity; but upon the regu-
lating nut having been brought by the arrangement 144, 150, &c. to the
position shewn in the Drawing, the circular arm will have assumed a position
excentric to the centre upon which the quadrant moves. Upon the vibrating
motion being now therefore applied, the winding-on chain will be drawn from
the drum 139 by a surface of gradually increasing radius, and consequently at
an accelerated velocity. Upon the regulating nut having arrived at the end of
its traverse, the excentricity of the arm 205 will have become greater, and the
spindles will be caused to revolve at that variable speed suitable for com-
pleting the cop. In order to adapt this mule for doubling, it will be necessary

page_text: to substitute for the rollers through which the material passes that arrange-
ment commonly employed for such purpose.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of our Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, we desire it to be understood
that although we have described, in reference to the accompanying Drawings,
a machine constituting a double mule, yet we do not intend to confine ourselves
thereto, as a single mule may be constructed, if desired, upon the same
principle. We therefore claim, as secured to us under the above in part
recited Letters Patent, performing the stretch in self-acting mules, by causing
the roller beam or beams to move in a vertical direction, and the carriage or
carriages to traverse a right line at an angle thereto.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Higgins and Thomas Schofield
Whitworth, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Fifth day of
January, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.