AN IMPROVED MACHINE CALLED THE SILK WORM, FOR THE PURPOSE OF SPINNING, TWISTING, AND DOUBLING SILK
Year: 1838

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
NEEDHAM, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Gentleman, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Thirty-first day of May, in the first year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Needham, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said William Needham, my exors, adññors, and assigns,
and such others as I, the said William Needham, my exors, admors, and
assigns, should agree with, and no other, 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, my Invention of "AN IMPROVED MACHINE CALLED THE SILK WORM,
FOR THE PURPOSE OF SPINNING, TWISTING, AND DOUBLING SILK;" in which
Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said William Needham, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled 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 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, I, the said
William Needham, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention of

page_text: An Improved Machine called the Silk Worm, for the Purpose of Spinning,
Twisting, and Doubling Silk, to consist in a new and improved arrangement
of machinery, by which the operation of spinning, twisting, and doubling silk
is more readily and economically performed than by the machinery now in use
for that purpose; and the manner in which the same is to be performed and
carried into effect is set forth and described in the annexed Drawings and the
following description thereof. In these Drawings the scale is marked thereon,
and the same letters and figures of reference indicate the same parts

page_text: provided with two; from these the threads pass upwards round the knobs a, as
shewn in the Drawing, and are then guided by means of a small eye b at the
extremity of the wire H, the opposite end of the wire H being supported at I;
thence they still continue upwards together over the knobs d, d, and finally to
the flyer G and finishing hobbin K. I prefer imparting the traverse motion
to the copping rail L through the medium of a mangle wheel, as shewn at M';
it being so arranged that, instead of the pinion passing round the extreme
tooth or pin from the exterior to the interior of the wheel or the reverse, I
cause the pinion to be stationary, and allow the wheel to shift so as to be
always in geer and in motion, without dwelling as in the ordinary arrangement.
This will be easily understood by reference to the Drawing. I also govern
the velocity of the bobbins for receiving the thrown silk marked K, by elevating
the rail N, and consequently the strap on the conical pulley C, by which
means the velocity is diminished in proportion corresponding to its increase
of diameter, which cones can be calculated to give all the various degrees of
twist required in different kinds of silk.
I will now proceed to describe the contrivance by which I prevent the
pullies C, C, C, C, from continuing in motion if one of the threads should break
that compose the twist or organzine. Attached to the bosses of the pulleys
C, C, C, C, are strong circular springs with or without a thin strip of leather or
other material in the inside, as represented full size at Figure 5, which, when
in their natural position, embrace the shaft B so as to revolve the pullies along
with it. It will then be seen that, while the operation of. spinning is in pro-
gress, the threads being at an equal tension, the small eye 6 at the end of the
wire H is kept in the position shewn in the Drawing; but as soon as either of
the threads break, the tension of the remaining thread is sufficient to draw the
wire to the extremity of the guide O, by which removal the lever P falls, and
the click at the extremity marked e strikes the projection f on the spring,
the force of which, occasioned by the velocity, is sufficient to open the spring,
which is protected from being sprained by a guard, and retain it in that
position by the abutment of the click e against the smaller prominence g, as
shewn at Figure 4, thereby releasing the pulley C from the shaft B, when the
end which is broken must be pieced by the attendant, the lever P replaced in
its former position, and the throwing process resumed by allowing the spring to
return to its original position. I would however remark, that I consider the
spring just described as best adapted for the purpose, though various forms
may be used.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, together with the manner
in which the same is to be performed and carried into effect, I do not claim

page_text: any of the ordinary or well-known parts of which the machine herein-before
described is constructed. But I do claim as my Invention that application to
the driving shaft of a spring or clip, as herein-before described, by means of
which the driving pulleys are connected and disconnected with the driving
shaft, as already mentioned; also the manner of applying the tightening and
carrier pulleys, as herein-before described, and the general arrangement of
the machine used for the immediate operation of spinning, twisting, and
doubling, as herein-before described. And such. Invention being, to the best
of my knowledge and belief, new, and never before used in this Kingdom,
I deliver this as a true and faithful Specification of the same.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Needham, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of November, in the year of our
WILLIAM (L.S.) NEEDHAM.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-eighth day of November,
in the year of our Lord 1888, the aforesaid William Needham came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in
form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped ac-
cording to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Thirtieth day of November, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.