Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 27th July, 1886.
Complete Left, 26th Apr., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 27th July, 1887.
WILLIAM WESTMORELAND 10 Sullivan Street, Radford Nottingham Sewing Machine
Maker do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The application of a Jacquard to a knitting machine, in such a manner, that the
knitting needles are operated on, and put in or out of action, by being connected in a
suitable manner, with the needles of the jacquard, these needles being operated on by
perforated cards, these cards, revolving on a perforated cylinder the perforations in
the cards being so arranged, as to select out the needles to be acted on by each
motion of the machine, one motion of the cylinder, being so arranged as to act for
two motions of the knitting machine, The manner in which the needles in the
jacquard are connected with the needles in the knitter, to be described in complete
specification.
The gearing by which the machine is driven, is so arranged that by action of the
jacquard, the knitting machine can have either a continuous rotary motion or a
reciprocating motion, according to the manner in which the cards on the jacquard are
perforated, this reciprocating motion is especially designed for circular knitting
machines and has a device for taking up the slack thread, caused by the return motion
of the thread carrier, which device is controlled by the cards on the jacquard.
Dated this 26th dow of Inl., 1906
WILLIAM WESTMORELAND.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Knitting-machines.
I, WILLIAM WESTMORELAND, of Sullivan Street, Radford, Nottingham, in the
County of Nottingham, Sewing machine maker, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to knitting-machines and comprises a novel method or 5
manner of applying Jacquard-mechanism to such machines so that the changes
necessary in the operation of the machine for the purpose of fashioning the heels and
toes of stockings or for similar purposes will be automatically effected.
An important feature of my said invention is the employment of novel means for
automatically putting the needles out of or into action as required and of a perforated 1
card or pattern card carried by an intermittently rotated perforated box or cylinder,
for selecting the needles to be thus put out of or into action.
My said invention, moreover, comprises various other improvements hereinafter
set forth.
In the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is a plan of a knitting-machine provided with Jacquard mechanism
according to my said invention, some of the parts being removed.
Figure 2 is a side elevation, and
Figure 3 a rear end elevation of the said machine.
Figure 4 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line x, x Figure 1, some of the
parts being removed.
Figure 5 is a side elevation drawn to an enlarged scale, showing a needle and one
of the rods or pushers hereinafter described for putting the needles out of and into
action.
Like letters indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
A is a metal frame which is supported upon standards A¹. B is the main or
driving shaft, which has fixed thereon a pulley B' designed to be connected by a
belt with a steam-engine or other motor. C is a circular knitting-machine, the
bed-plate C¹ of which is firmly secured to standards A³, A', A' attached to the
frame A.
D is a shaft which is mounted in a bearing in the standard A*; on one end of this
shaft is fixed a bevel wheel D¹ which is geared with another bevel wheel D* for the
purpose of operating the knitting-machine. On the other end of the said shaft D is
fixed a toothed wheel D³, which is connected with the driving shaft B by the
mechanism hereinafter described, that is to say :-A crank B is fixed on the shaft B
and has its free end coupled, by means of a connecting rod or link E', to a lever E
pivotted at E to a bracket A firmly attached to, and extending downward from the
frame A. The upper end of the lever E is coupled, by means of a connecting rod E³,
to one end of a block or piece F fitted to slide longitudinally upon a rod F fixed in
brackets A attached to the frame A. A pin or stud F' is fixed in the other end of

page_text: the sliding piece F, and a bar G provided with a double rack G¹ is pivotted upon the
said pin or stud. Reciprocating motion is imparted to the bar G and rack G₁ from
the shaft B, through the medium of the crank B³, the connecting link E', the lever E,
the connecting rod E³ and the sliding piece F. The said rack has both its upper
part G and its lower part G formed with teeth, the pitch whereof corresponds to
that of the teeth of the wheel D². The said rack is, moreover, so constructed that,
when its lower part G³ is in gear with the wheel D³, its upper part G2 is out of gear
therewith, and vice versa. The parts are shown in the position which they occupy
when the said rack is moving backward, as indicated by the arrow 1 in Figure 2,
and its lower part is in gear with the said wheel D. The forward end of the rack Gi
is provided with a stud or projection G₁ which, in the to-and fro movement of the
said rack, slides upon or between guides A7, A8 formed or fixed one above the other
on the standard A². The top guide A is made somewhat shorter at its rear end
than the bottom guide A"; therefore, when the rack G₁ arrives at the end of its
backward stroke or movement, it will fall by gravity so that its lower part will be
moved out of gear and its upper part into gear with the wheel D². The projection G*
will then rest upon the guide A8. The guide A' is moreover cut away at its forward
end, which is bevelled or inclined; and a spring G is attached to the frame A so
that, when the rack G¹ arrives at the end of its forward stroke or movement, the said
spring will move it upward into gear with the underside, and out of gear with the
upper side of the wheel D².
To ensure the downward movement of the rack G' at the termination of its
backward movement, I prefer to employ a bar H pivotted at H¹ to the bed-plate C¹
and acted upon by a spring H2 whereby it is held in the position shown in Figure 2.
The rack G is provided with a projection G, which, when the said rack has nearly
terminated its backward movement, strikes the bar H and turns the same upon or
about its pivot. At the end of the backward movement of the said rack, when the
projection G has travelled past the end of the top guide A7, the bar H acting upon
the projection G turns the rack G¹ upon its pivot until the projection G* rests upon
the lower guide A³, thereby throwing the upper part G of the rack into gear
and its lower part G³ out of gear with the wheel D². It will be seen that,
in the forward movement of the rack, its projection. G will slide between the
guides A7, A8.
From the foregoing description, it is obvious that the said rack, in its to-and-fro
movement, will impart rotary motion to the shaft D and consequently to the rotating
part of the knitting-machine.
To provide for automatically putting out of and into action the needles not required
in fashioning the stocking or other article and for automatically effecting other
operations necessary in changing from round and round knitting to shaping or
fashioning and vice versa, I employ the means hereinafter described.
In combination with the guides A7, A8, I employ a sliding har I, which is arranged
to work in a groove in the standard A2, and is coupled to a crank I¹ fixed upon a
shaft I', the said shaft being carried in bearings A* formed on, or attached to the
standard A. The shaft I2 has also fixed thereon a lever 13, and the said shaft is
arranged to be operated automatically as hereinafter described, so that, at certain
times selected or determined by the Jacquard mechanisın, the bar I will be moved
alternately outward and inward. When moved outward the outer end of the said bar
will form an extension of the top guide A' and thus prevent the upward movement of
the rack G at the end of its forward movement, therefore the upper part of the said
rack will be kept in gear with the wheel D during the forward as well as during the
backward movement of the said rack, and will therefore impart reciprocating motion
to the cam-ring or equivalent rotating part of the knitting machine. When the said
bar I is moved inward, it will permit the upper and lower parts of the said rack to be
geared alternately with the said wheel as above set forth.
The Jacquard mechanism is constructed as hereinafter described, that is to say:—
A, A are two frames which are firmly attached to the main frame A. J, J are
two levers which are pivotted at J J³ to the said frames A³, A and are provided

page_text: with bearings in which a perforated box or cylinder K is supported by means of
suitable journals. A pattern-card L (Figure 3) hereinafter described is placed upon
the box or cylinder K, which is provided with projections K' adapted to enter holes
in the said pattern-card, as in the usual Jacquard mechanisın heretofore employed in
weaving.
The box or cylinder K has four pins or studs K2 fixed in one end thereof, and an
inverted T-piece K³ is fitted to slide in guides J formed or fixed on the lever J.
This T-piece is acted upon by a spring K* which presses the said T-piece downward
against the two uppermost pins or studs K2, and tends to hold the said box in such a
position relatively to the lever J as to ensure the proper action of the pattern-card as
hereinafter explained. A hooked rod M is pivotted at M¹ to the frame A' and works
in a guide M2 attached to the said frame. This hooked rod is adapted to engage with
one or other of the pins or studs K2 as, and for the purpose, hereinafter described.
The lever J is made with a forked arm J', which engages with an eccentric or cam J6
fixed on the shaft B, so that, in the rotation of the said shaft, oscillating motion will
be imparted to the levers J, J¹ and box or cylinder K upon or about the pivots J³, J³.
In the inward movement of the box or cylinder K, the hooked lever M will fall into
such a position that, in the outward movement of the said box or cylinder, the said
lever will engage with one of the pins or studs K2 and thus cause the partial rotation
of the said box or cylinder so as to bring a fresh surface of the pattern-card into
operative position.
N, N are levers which are pivotted upon a rod N¹ fixed in the frames Aº, A¹º, and
which are connected at their forward ends with vertical rods or pushers N². The
forward ends only of these levers are shown in Figure 1, the remainder thereof
being omitted for the sake of clearness in the drawing. The rods or pushers N'
extend upward into the grooves or spaces C2 in the needle-cylinder of the knitting
machine, wherein the needles C³ are fitted to slide up and down. The forward ends
of the levers N extend into or through elongated slots N in the said rods or
pushers N2; the upper ends of these rods or pushers are bent as shown in Figure 5 and
extend between shoulders or butts C, C, on the needles C³. By constructing and
arranging the said needles and rods or pushers in this manner, I provide for permitting
the operation of the needles by the cam-ring in the usual manner whilst enabling the
said needles to be moved out of and into the work as hereinafter described. There
are as many of the rods or pushers N2 as there are needles in the rear half of the
cylinder which require to be moved out of and into the work for narrowing and
widening the same. Each of the levers N is connected with two vertical lifting
rods 0, 0¹, one on each side of its pivot or fulcrum N¹. These rods are provided at
their upper ends with hooks o. P, P are lifters each of which is firmly attached to a
vertical rod P² or P³ fitted to slide up and down in guides A" formed or fixed on the
frames A, A. The lifter P is provided with arms p adapted to engage with the hooks o of
the lifting rods O on one side of the machine; it is also provided with arms pl adapted to
engage with the hooks o of the lifting rods O' on the other side of the machine. The lifter P¹
is provided with arms på, på adapted to engage with the hooks of the remaining lifting
rods 0, 0¹. The rods P2, P3 are acted upon by springs, such as those shown at P* in
Figures 2 and 4, which tend to hold the said lifters in their lowermost positions. The
rod P2 and lifter P are arranged to be moved up and down in each revolution of the
shaft B, by means of a bent lever q pivotted upon a rod q¹ fixed in the frames A³, A;
one arm of this lever bears against the lower end of the rod P' and its other arm
bears against a cam q* fixed on the shaft B. The rod P³ and lifter P¹ are arranged
to be moved up and down, in each revolution of the said shaft, by means of a bent
lever also pivotted upon the rod q¹; one arm of this lever bears against the lower
end of the rod P³ whilst the other end of the said lever bears against a
on the shaft B.
cam q* fixed
Q, Q are horizontal sliding rods which are passed through, and work in holes in
plates Q firmly secured to the frames Aº, A. Each rod is connected by means
of a half-loop Q (such as that shown in Figure 1), with a lifting rod O or 0¹. The
said rods are, moreover, provided with springs Q which, under normal conditions,

page_text: hold the said rods in the positions shown, so that the hooks o of all the lifting
rods O, O' are in position for the arms of the lifters to engage therewith when the
said lifters are moved upward. When either of the rods Q is moved forward, it will
compress the corresponding spring Q³ and move the corresponding rod O or 0¹ into
such a position that the lifter P or P' cannot engage therewith.
R is a lever which is pivotted upon the rod N and is provided at its forward ond
with a curved piece R¹ connected with vertical rods or pushers N' for raising the
needles in the front or forward half of the needle-cylinder out of action and moving
the said needles into action again. The connection between the curved piece R¹ and
the rods or pushers N³ is effected by means of a curved bar R' firmly attached to the
piece R¹ and passed through slots Ñ in the said rods or pushers N³, so as to permit
the operation of the needles in the manner above described with reference to the rods
or pushers N. The lever R is, moreover, connected with lifting rods 02, 03 one on
each side of its fulcrum N' which rods are provided at their upper ends with hooks o.
P is a lifter which is firmly attached to a rod P fitted to slide up and down in
suitable guides formed on, or attached to the frame A10, and which is provided with
a spring P which tends to hold the said lifter in its lowermost position. The lifter P
is provided with arms p*, p adapted to engage with the hooks of the lifting
rods 03, 03. The said lifter is arranged to be moved up and down, in each revolu-
tion of the shaft B, by means of a bent lever q pivotted upon the rod q' and bearing at
one end against the rod P and at the other end against a cam q fixed on the said
shaft B. The lifting rods 03, 0³ are connected with two of the horizontal sliding
rods Qin the manner above described with reference to the lifting rods 0, 0¹.
To provide for the automatic taking up of the slack of the worsted or yarn when
commencing the shaping or fashioning of the heel or toe of a stocking, I employ a
spring arm S which is attached to the cross-bar T¹ at the top of the standard T. The
said spring arm S has a loop or eye S₁ at its extremity through which the worsted is
passed before being passed through the thread-guide T. The arm S is connected, by
means of a rod or link S2, with a pin or rod R³, fixed in the curved part R' of the
lever R. This pin or rod R³ works in an elongated slot in the arm I³. Therefore
during round and round knitting, the said arm S is held down in the position shown in
Figure 2. When, however, the lever R is operated to move the needles in the forward
half of the knitting cylinder out of action, the shaft I will be turned so that it will
move the sliding bar I outward and will at the same time permit the spring arm S
to move upward and thus take up the slack of the thread or yarn.
The operation of the improved machine is as follows, that is to say :-
In the rotation of the shaft B, assuming the parts to be in the positions shown, the
cam-cylinder or cam-ring of the knitting machine is continuously rotated. At the
same time, the box or cylinder K is, through the medium of the eccentric or cam Je
and lever J, moved alternately towards and away from the sliding rods and thus
caused to push the said rods forward so as to move the lifting rods 0, 0¹, 0³, 0³ out
of reach of the arms of the lifters P, P₁, Ps. The said lifters P, P₁, P, are moved up
and down through the medium of the cams 93, 9, 98, and levers 7, 1, 9. During
round and round knitting, however, the said lifters do not engage with any of the said
lifting rods.
The pattern-card L is made with holes L' where required, through which one or
more of the rods Q may pass when the said card and the box or cylinder K are
pressed against the rods Q by the operation of the cam J. Therefore, while the
rods Q acted upon by the solid parts of the card are pushed forward so as to hold the
corresponding lifting rods out of reach of the lifters, the remaining lifting rod or rods
will be left in position for the arms of the lifters to engage therewith.
In each backward movement of the lever J, the hooked rod M engages with one of
the pins or studs K³, so that the box K is turned a quarter of a revolution. A fresh
length of the pattern-card is thus brought into operative position in each revolution of
the shaft B.
The pattern-card L is so arranged that, when the leg or parallel part of the stocking
has been formed and the fashioning is about to be commenced, the rod Q connected

page_text: with the lifting rod 0³ will be selected by the said pattern-card; therefore, in the
next upward movement of the lifter P5, the arm p³ thereof will engage with and lift
the said rod O³, thereby turning the lever R upon or about its pivot N¹ and
automatically raising the needles in the front or forward half of the needle-cylinder out
of the work, and, at the same time, moving outward the sliding bar 1 so that the cam-
cylinder or cam-ring of the knitting machine will be reciprocated instead of rotated, and
permitting the spring arm S to move upward to take up the slack of the thread or yarn.
During the knitting of the heel, one needle alternately on either side of the machine
is automatically pushed upward out of the work by means of the levers N, and then
these needles are automatically moved down into the work one by one in the reverse
order, the pattern-card L selecting or determining which lever N shall be operated by
the lifters in each revolution of the shaft B. As soon as the needles in the rear half
of the needle-cylinder are thus brought into the work, the remainder are moved down
simultaneously and rotary or round and round knitting is effected until the toe is
reached, when the operations above described are repeated to fashion the toe. The
stockings are knitted continuously, that is to say, when the toe of one stocking is
completed, or nearly completed, the needles are all brought into action and the leg or
parallel part of another stocking is commenced. In this manner, stockings can be.
knitted by my improved machine by steam power.
Although my improvements are chiefly designed to adapt knitting-machines for
automatically narrowing and widening to and from the heels and toes of stockings,
the said improvements are also applicable to machines for knitting other articles, in
the manufacture of which some of the needles have to be put out of and into action as
above specified.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I wish it understood that I do
not claim broadly or irrespectively of my improvements as herein set forth, the
combination of Jacquard mechanism with a circular or cylindrical knitting-machine,
as I am aware that such mechanism has already been used in combination with
machines of this kind; but I claim:
First. A knitting machine which has jacquard mechanism so combined therewith
that the pattern-card of the said mechanism will select the needles to be put into or
out of action, will control the changes in the movement of the cam-ring or geared
ring so that the said ring will have alternately a continuous rotary motion and a
reciprocating motion and will also control the device for taking up the slack of the
yarn, all substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Second. The combination of parts comprising the double rack G₁ provided with
the projection G4, the guides A7, A8, the sliding bar I and means for automatically
operating the same, (with or without the projection G and pivotted bar H)
substantially as described, whereby I provide for imparting rotary and reciprocating
motion alternately to the cam-cylinder or cam-ring of the knitting-machine as above
specified.
Third. The combination of parts comprising the lever R, the rods or pushers N³,
and means for operating the same, substantially as described, whereby the needles not
required in fashioning the stocking or other article are at the proper times auto-
matically moved out of and into the work as above specified.
Fourth. The combination, with the lever R and means for operating the same, of
the sliding bar I and the shaft I having the arms I, I, (with or without the means
for taking up the slack of the yarn) all substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Fifth. The combination of parts comprising the rods or pushers N³, the levers N
and means for operating the same, substantially as described, whereby needles selected
by the pattern-card are moved out of and into the work for the purposes above
specified.
Sixth. The combination of parts comprising the lifters and means for operating the
same, the lifting rods and the horizontal sliding rods arranged to be operated by
means of a pattern-card, substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.

page_text: Seventh. The combination, with a knitting-machine-needle provided with two
shoulders or butts, of a rod or pusher arranged to slide up and down in the same
groove as the said needle and to engage therewith between the said shoulders or
butts, substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Eighth. The improved Jacquard-mechanism constructed substantially as described
with reference to the accompanying drawings and operating as, and for the purpose,
above specified.
Ninth. The improved machine consisting of the parts constructed and combined
substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings and operating
as, and for the purposes, specified.