Improvements in the Construction of Looms for Weaving Slat and Wire Fabrics.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Mar., 1894-Accepted, 16th June, 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Construction of Looms for Weaving Slat and
Wire Fabrics.
We, CHARLES ENOCH PARKS, Manufacturer, of Number 506 Washington
Street, and LOBEGOTT MOLLART, Foreman, of Number 306 North Fifth Street,
both in the City of Watertown, in the County of Jefferson, and State of
Wisconsin, United States of America, 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 :--
The invention has for its object to provide a machine for simplifying and cheapening
the production of slat and wire fabrics, and to that end the said invention consists
in certain peculiarities of construction and combination of parts as hereinafter set
forth, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, whereby the said objects are
attained.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents the loom in horizontal section taken on line 1-1 of
Figure 4.
Figure 2, a detail horizontal section on line 2-2 of Figure 4.
Figure 3, a plan view of the loom.
Figure 4, an elevation of the same with parts broken away.
Figures 5 and 6, transverse sections respectively taken on lines 5-5 and 6-6 of
Figure 3.
Figure 7, a like view on line 7-7 of Figure 1.
Figure 8, a detail view illustrating a wire-guide at the free end of a warp-
spreader.
Figure 9, a plan view of a slat-guide, and
Figure 10, a detail plan view with parts broken away illustrating a slat-feeding
mechanism.
The frame of the loom comprises a top-plate A. and a base B joined by vertical
rods arranged at suitable intervals. The top-plate A has a hinged extension A'
provided at its free end with a bearing for a journal b at the upper end of a
longitudinally slotted roller C, and adjustable on this roller is a disk D or other
suitable supporting device for slat and wire fabric wound on said roller in the
manner hereinafter specified. The lower end of the roller is stepped upon the
upper side of a pulley E loose on a stud c that is screwed into a right angle
depending portion B' of the base B and a collar d on this lower end of said roller
is provided with lateral lugs e opposing vertical lugs f on the pulley in such a
manner that the rotation of this pulley imparts a eorresponding movement to the
aforesaid roller.
The pulley E is driven by a belt F that runs on another pulley G fast to a
vertical shaft H having its bearings on the loom-frame, the tension of the belt
being regulated by a suitable tightener. The tightener herein shown comprises
rollers gh, loose on studs projecting from a horizontal yoke I centrally secured to
a vertical rod J that has bearings on the loom-frame, and fast on the upper end of
this rod are arms i, j, the former serving as a hand-lever, and the other as a
support for a pivotal detent k which latter engages a rack m on the top-plate of
said loom-frame to hold said tightener in the position to which it may be adjusted.
The tension on the belt is such that it will slip on the pulley E when the fabric
wound on the roller C is taut, the wind of said fabric being necessarily
intermittent.

page_text: Fast on the shaft H above specified is a disk K having its upper side provided
with a peculiar form of cam-groove as best illustrated in Figure 2, and a bevel-gear
wheel L also fast on said shaft meshes with a corresponding pinion M upon a
horizontal shaft N that has its bearings ou the higher portion B of the loom-frame
base and is provided with tight and loose pulleys for a drive-belt.
A spur-wheel O also fast on the shaft N meshes with a corresponding pinion P
on a counter-shaft Q having suitable bearings on the loom-base and provided with
a pulley R for a vertical belt S that runs through a slot in said loom-base against
an anti-friction roller T and drives another pulley U on another horizontal shaft V
arranged in bearings depending from a yoke W fast to the underside of the top-
plate A of the loom-frame. The shaft V carries a feed-roller X provided with a
friction-collar n for impingement against another feed-roller Y having a shank p
arranged to turn in a yoke Z that has a pivot-connection 9 with the underside of
the top-plate A of the loom-frame and a lug that engages a transverse slots in
said top-plate. By means of a spiral-spring t engaging lugs on the pivotal yoke Z
and a depending flange of the top-plate the feed roller Y is kept normally in
contact with the friction-disk on the other parallel feed-roller X as best illustrated
by Figure 10.
Bolted or otherwise suitably secured to the yokes W, Z, beneath the same are
parallel plates u one of which has an end thereof provided with a lateral extension v
over-lapping the other, although it would be no departure from this invention to
substitute a single plate having a suitable slot therein. In either case is provided
a guide that prevents slats, fed down between the adjacent rollers, from deviating
out of the path of beaters hereinafter specified.
A lateral extension A2 of the plate A is provided with a stud wo that engages a
base-disk C and a drum D¹, the latter being in frictional contact with the disk
and provided with a series of peripheral passages at regular intervals, these
passages being for the reception of slats that successively come into register with
an opening in said plate and drop down between the feed-rollers above specified.
The feed-rollers being normally in frictional contact and under rotation, a slat
caught between the same is quickly run down and one of these rollers has the
yielding arrangement above specified to compensate for inequalities or varying
thickness of slats.
At intervals on the periphery of the drum, corresponding to the passages therein,
are lugs whereby is virtually provided a ratchet that is engaged by a spring-
controlled pawl z pivotally connected to a spring-controlled arm E' pivoted to the
top-plate of the loom-frame. This pivot-arm has its free-end in the path of a
cam on the vertical shaft H above specified and thus an intermittent rotary
motion is imparted to the drum to bring the slat passages therein into successive
register with the feed-opening in the top-plate of the loom-frame.
The upper end of the shatt H is provided with a crank F and this crank is
linked to the upper end of a vertical rod G' on which is arranged a series of
beater-arms H' preferably held in place by set-screws and consequently adjustable
as to position.
The rod G is fast in cross-heads I' loose on guides J' secured to lateral
projections c on the top and base-plates of the loom-frame, and the lower end of
said rod is linked to a wrist d' on the pulley G fast to the shaft H, this wrist being
positioned in line with the outer end of the crank F' on said shaft.
An arm K¹ fast on the rod G' has a lug e¹ in engagement with a cam-groove in
a horizontal plate L' suspended from the higher portion of the loom-base, the
contour of this cam-groove being two straight parallel paths f₁g the latter one
of which has curved extremities joining the other. Pivotal spring-controlled
gates are arranged at the junctures of the paths embodied in the cam-groove,
and these gates yield in one direction to the travel of the lug e on the arm K
thereby permitting said lug to divert from one to the other of said paths at certain
intervals, hence when the cross-heads travel in one direction, the beater arms are
dropped from their working position to clear a slat fed to the warp, but on the

page_text: reverse travel of said cross-head said beater-arms are exerted against the (for the
time being) last slat in the fabric.
Fast on one of the brace-rods of the loom-frame at suitable intervals are slotted
plates M' that serve as slat and fabric guides, these guides being provided with
spring-metal wings that bear against said fabric and tension the same against the
action of the beater-arms.
Fast to other brace-rods of the loom-frame are supports in the form of plates N¹
for wire-spools O', these supports being provided with suitable openings for
engagement with spindles P' that engage suitable bearings on the top-plate and
base of said loom-frame.
Shafts QR', parallel to each other and the shaft H, have their bearings in the
loom-frame and connect with each other by tooth-gear as shown in Figure 3.
Adjustably secured to these shafts Q' R', are spreaders S', T', having flanged rear
ends provided with eyes for the passage of wire drawn from the spools. Each
spreader is provided with a series of parallel sheaves k¹ on fixed bearings, a spring-
hung sheave m' forward of the former sheaves on a plane outward therefrom and
still another sheave n¹ having a fixed bearing forward of one that is spring-hung.
The wire from a spool is passed through the eye at the rear end of a relative
spreader and then in and out against the several sheaves in the manner best
illustrated in Figure 1, after which it is carried through a guide p' in the
form of a perforated pin drove into an opening in the grooved forward end
of said spreader, this guide and grooved spreader-end being shown in detail by
Figure 8.
In practice the forward ends of the wires are secured to a substitute for the
roller C until enough of the fabric has been woven to permit of its engagement
with the slot in said roller when positioned as shown in Figure 4, this engagement
being clearly illustrated in Figure 1.
A roller U is arranged intermediate of the roller C and guide-plates M' in
such position as to prevent strain on these plates as said fabric is wound on said
roller, the draw of the fabric being always from the same centre.
The spreaders S'T' are rocked at certain intervals by their respective shafts to
cross the wires and thereby establish a shed for each slat. As herein shown the
spreaders are so arranged that adjacent to the edges of the fabric the wires are
double and cross each other on opposite sides of each slat while the intermediate
wires are single and cross from one side of a slat to the opposite side of a succeeding
slat.
The necessary rock of the spreader-shafts Q1, R', is governed by the time-
mechanism consisting of the cam-grooved disk K and a crank V₁ on the former
shaft having a pivotal shoe ¹ engaging the groove in said disk, this rock taking
place each time a slat is beat up in its shed, and just prior to the instant the beater
arms begin their movement out of working position.
The cam-groove is necessarily of such contour that after a rock of the spreaders
they will remain stationary while a slat is being fed into the warp and beat up to
place and as shown in Figure 2, said cam-groove is virtually two concentric half-
circles joined by two segments of equal radius struck from different centres
eccentric to that of the half-circles and crossing each other in line with the latter
centre. As a result of this cam-contour the crank V is only actuated when the
eccentric segments travel against the pivotal shoe r, and remain stationary when
this shoe is in either of the concentric half circles.
Adjustable on the forward end of the counter-shaft Q is a bevel pinion W¹ to
be brought into mesh with a corresponding gear-wheel X' fast on an arbor Y
that has its bearings on the loom-frame and carries an adjustable saw Z', the
latter being brought into use when it is necessary or desirable to split a web of
fabric coincident with its production. When this splitting operation takes place
spreaders and wires are preferably arranged in such a manner that the latter are
double and cross each other on opposite sides of the slats adjacent to the inner
edge of each strip of fabric.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:
1. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a pulley-
controlled fabric winding-device, a drive-belt for the pulley, a roll loose in bearings
on the loom-frame, a yoke fast on the rod, rollers loose on the yoke against opposite
sides of the belt, an arm also fast on said rod, a detent pivoted to the arm, a
rack on said loom-frame engaging the detent, and a hand-lever connected to the
aforesaid rod.
2. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a driven shaft
having fixed bearings, a feed roller carried by the shaft and provided with a friction
collar, another feed-roller parallel to the first, and a pivotal spring-controlled yoke
having bearings for the shank of the second feed-roller.
3. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a drive-shaft,
a counter-shaft in gear therewith, another shaft that is arranged in fixed bearings,
has belt-and-pulley connections with the counter-shaft and carries a feed-roller, and
a yielding feed-roller parallel to the one aforesaid.
4. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of an inter-
mittently rotative drum provided with peripheral passages that come into successive
register with an opening in the loom-frame, and feed-rollers adjacent to said
opening.
5. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of an inter-
mittently rotative drum provided with peripheral passages that come into successive
register with an opening in the loom-frame, feed-rollers adjacent to said opening,
and a slat-guide succeeding the rollers.
6. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a slat-feed
drum provided with a series of peripheral passages and a corresponding series of
peripheral lugs, and a cam actuated spring controlled pawl-mechanism working in
conjunction with the drum-lugs.
7. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a slat-feed
drum provided with a series of peripheral passages and a corresponding series of
peripheral lugs, a spring-and-lever controlled pawl working in conjunction with the
drum-lugs, and a rotary cam for actuating the pawl-lever.
8. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of reciprocative
cross-heads, a rod loose in the cross-heads, a series of beater-arms fast on the rod, a
driven crank, and a link connecting said rod and crank.
9. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of reciprocative
cross-heads, a rod loose in the same, a series of beater-arms fast on the rod, two
straight parallel paths one of which has its extremities joining the other, pivotal
spring-controlled gates at the junctures of the paths, another arm fast to said rod,
and a projection on the latter arm having a travel in said paths.
10. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the frame having one side thereof
provided with a feed-opening for slats, a stay-rod, and a series of slotted plates
arranged at intervals on the rod, the slots in these plates being permanently in line
with said feed-opening.
11. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, a stay-rod, a series of slotted
plates secured thereto, and a spring-metal wing on each of these plates, the plates
serving as slat and fabric guides and their wings as tension devices for said
fabric.
12. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of frame stay-rods,
perforated plates fast thereon, spools arranged on the plates, and spindles that extend
through the plate-perforations and spools.
13. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of a pair of
parallel shafts connected by tooth gear, combined wire guides and spreaders
fast on the shafts, and suitable mechanism for rocking the shafts at predetermined
intervals.

page_text: 14. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination, of parallel
shafts connected by toothed gear, combined wire guides and spreaders fast on the
shafts, an arm fast to one of said shafts, a pivotal shoe on the arm, and a rotary
disk having a cam groove engaging the shoe, this cam-groove being in the form of
two concentric half-circles joined by two segments of equal radius struck from
different centres eccentric to that of the half circles and crossing each other in line.
with the latter centre.
15. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, a series of rocking wire-spreaders,
each of which has a flanged rear end provided with an eye for the passage of wire
drawn froin a spool, a series of parallel sheaves on fixed bearings, a succeeding
spring-hung sheave, another sheave having a fixed bearing forward of the one that
is spring-hung, and a wire-guide in the form of a perforated device at the forward.
extremity of said spreader.
16. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of an automatic
slat-feed, slat and fabric guides in line with the feed, reciprocative and rocking
beaters, rocking wire-spreaders operating conjointly with the beaters, and an.
automatic take-up for the fabric.
17. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of an automatic
slat-feed, slat and fabric guides in line with the feed, reciprocative and rocking
beaters, rocking wire-spreaders operating conjointly with the beaters, a splitting
device for the fabric, and an automatic take-up for said fabric.
18. In a loom for weaving slat-and-wire fabric, the combination of an inter-
mittently rotative drum having peripheral passages that come into successi ve
register with an opening in the loom frame, a feed mechanism succeeding the opening,
slat and fabric guides in line with the feed, reciprocative and rocking beaters, wire--
spreaders operating conjointly with the beaters, and an automatic take-up for the-
fabric.
Deted this 27th dow of March 1804
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents..