IMPROVEMENTS IN WEAVING
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Dryden, of Dundee, in the County of
Forfar, North Britain, Manager, for the Invention of." IMPROVEMENTS IN
WEAVING."
Scaled the 29th May 1857, and dated the 29th November 1856..
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Dryden at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,' on the
29th November 1856.
I, JAMES DRYDEN, of Dundee, in the County of Forfar, North Britain,
Manager, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN WEAVING," to be as follows, that is to say:
This invention relates in the first instance to the arrangement and construc.
tion of looms of various kinds in such manner as to obtain an uniform and
equable take-up motion for the woven cloth as it is produced by the weaving
action.
The actual cloth roller or beam is worked in the ordinary manner by
ratchet or other gearing, and the fabric as it is woven passes in its course to
this beam round and beneath a fixed guide roller carried by the loom framing,
thence round and beneath a roller.studded with pins or projections, and, finally,
up to the cloth beam. The studded roller is driven by a train of gearing, the
first wheel of which is actuated by a ratchet arrangement connected with the
loom lathe or slay arm. This train of gearing is contrived so that it can bé
adjusted to suit various thicknesses of cloth, the wheel upon the spindle of the
studded roller being so proportioned that each of its teeth represents one
one

page_text: "porter" of weft. The detent catch of the ratchet motion of this train has
attached to it a rod or link, passing upwards to the level of the breast beam,
along which a continuation of this link, or a connection thereof, passes to the
other side of the loom, where a stud or lever is fitted to it to be acted upon
by the weft fork or protector movement. When the weft thread breaks, the
weft fork action raises the detent of the ratchet movement out of gear, so that
the cloth cannot be taken up by the studded roller whilst no weft is being
thrown in. The stop action of the loom is also fitted with a spring stud,
which acts so as to retain the detent out of gear until the loom is again set on.
By this system the cloth is taken up uniformly, and in cases of stoppage due
to the failure of the weft thread, thin places cannot occur in the fabric.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Dryden in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
29th May 1857..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
DRYDEN, of Dundee, in the, County of Forfar, North Britain, Manager, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of November, in the year of.our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said James Dryden, Her special license that I, the said James Dryden, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said James
Dryden, my executors, administrators, or 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
WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said James
Dryden, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly 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 Dryden, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,

page_text: to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
in writing, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:―
My said Invention relates in the first instance to the arrangement and con-
struction of looms of various kinds in such manner as to obtain an uniform
and equable take-up motion for the woven cloth as it is produced by the
weaving action.
The actual cloth roller or beam is worked in the ordinary manner, by
ratchet or other gearing, and the fabric as it is woven passes in its course
to this beam round and beneath a fixed guide roller carried by the loom
framing, round and beneath a revolving guide roller carried by the breast
beam, thence round and above a vibrating guide roller carried by an india-
rubber cushion fixed in the loom framing (the effect of which is to ease the
strain on the warp), and then round and beneath a roller studded with pins or
projections, and, finally, up to the cloth beam. The studded roller is driven
by a train of gearing, the first wheel of which is actuated by a ratchet arrange-
ment connected with the loom lathe or slay arm. This train of gearing is
contrived so that it can be adjusted to suit various thicknesses of cloth, the
wheel upon the spindle of the studded roller being so proportioned that each of
its teeth represents one "porter" of weft. The detent catch of the ratchet
motion of this train has attached to it a rod or link passing upwards to the
level of the breast beam, along which a continuation of this link, or a con-
nection thereof, passes to the other side of the loom, where a stud or lever is
fitted to it to be acted upon by the weft fork or protector movement. When
the weft thread breaks, the weft fork action raises the detent of the ratchet
movement out of gear, so that the cloth cannot be taken up by the studded
roller whilst no weft is being thrown in. The stop action of the loom is also
fitted with a spring stud, which acts so as to retain the detent out of gear until
the loom is again set on. By this system the cloth is taken up uniformly, and
in cases of stoppage due to the failure of the weft thread, thin places cannot
occur in the fabric.
And in order that my said Invention may be properly understood, I will
now proceed to describe the several illustrative Figures on the explanatory
Sheet of Drawings, which I have hereunto appended for the purpose of showing
certain modifications under which my improvements may be judiciously carried
out in practice.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a loom as fitted with my improvements
applied thereto; Figure 2 is an elevation of the opposite side; and Figure 3,
a front elevation of the loom; Figure 4 is a section of a roller as fitted with

page_text: my improved elastic bearing; Figure 5 is a plan showing part of the arrange-
ment of the weft fork or protector drawn to a larger scale than the parts
shown in Figure 1 to 3.
The framing of the loom consists of open rectangular cast-iron side
standards A, united by transverse stays of the usual description. On the
stud of the ratchet wheel B is fitted the bent lever C, to the upper end of
which a pall D is attached by a pin; the lever is made with a tail piece,
which is in contact with a stud E, fixed on the end of the rocking shaft F,
which carries the swords of the lathe G. The stud E is adjustable in the slot
made in the bracket to which it is bolted. At each backward movement of
the lathe the stud draws with it the lower end of the lever C, which depresses
the upper end, and thereby causes the pall D to move forward and fall into
the next tooth of the ratchet wheel. On the outer end of the lever C is a
counterweight H, by which means an adjustable tension is maintained on the
cloth when the tail piece of the lever is released from the pressure of the
stud E on the lathe making its forward stroke to beat up the weft. When
the ratchet wheel B is moved round by the action of the lever C, its position is
maintained by the pall D', which is secured by a stud attached to the loom
framing, its free end taking into the teeth of the ratchet wheel. On the inner
end of the short shaft of the ratchet wheel B is a pinion I, which is in gear
with, and consequently gives motion to the spur wheel J on the shaft of the
cloth beam or roller K. Before the cloth reaches the cloth beam it is passed
round the measuring roller L; the surface of this roller is roughened or
covered with points projecting from its periphery. Motion is given to the
spiked roller L by means of a ratchet wheel and gearing fitted at the
opposite side of the loom to that shown in Figure 1. To a bracket M,
Figure 2, is connected a swinging lever N, the lower end of which has
a slot in it, in which a stud projecting from the sword of the lathe G
works. A pall O is connected by a pin to the lever N; the free end
of the pall takes into the teeth of the ratchet wheel P, which is carried
by a stud Q. The ratchet wheel is also held by another pall, the action
of which will be described hereafter in referring to the
loom by the weft protector. Motion is given to the
through the reciprocatory movement of the lathe sword.
movement of the lathe the pall O draws the wheel P
equal to one tooth, the ratchet wheel is thus turned one tooth at each
stroke of the lathe. The ratchet wheel is made in
spur pinion R, which gears with the toothed wheel S.
stopping of the
ratchet wheel P
At each backward
round a distance
95013
one piece with the
This wheel is made-
in like manner to the ratchet wheel P, with a spur pinion T at its centre

page_text: The pinion T is in gear with a pinion U on the spindle of the spiked roller L.
By means of this system of gearing the spiked roller L is put in motion.
The ratchet wheel P is moved one tooth at a time by means of the pall 0,
acted upon by the reciprocatory motion of the lathe sword. The rotation of
the ratchet wheel moves the spur wheel S, and its pinion T in its turn moves
the pinion U on the spiked roller L, the motion of which is therefore uniform
with the action of the lathe. The rate of motion of the spiked roller may be
varied, and adapted to the number of shots and the thickness of the fabric by
changing the pinion U on its axis for one having more or less teeth; the
pinion U being so proportioned to the fabric that each tooth in its periphery.
is equivalent to one "porter" of weft, or 40 threads in 37 inches of cloth.
The woven fabric passes from the breast beam V round the small roller W,
which is carried in brackets projecting from the under side of the loom
framing or breast beam. From the roller W the fabric is carried over a
vibrating roller X. This roller X is supported in brackets or snugs fixed to
the side standards A. The brackets or snugs are by preference made of an
eccentric form, as shown in the cross section, Figure 4. In the hollow or
recess of the bracket is fitted a piece of vulcanized india-rubber or other
elastic substance Y, forming a cushion, on which the ends of the roller X rest.
The effect of this arrangement is that the roller X has a certain amount of
vibratory action imparted to it by the elastic nature of the cushions or
bearings Y, which admit of the roller X being depressed to a certain extent
by the pressure of the cloth upon it, while the reaction of the india-rubber
maintains an elastic tension on the fabric. By this means the strain on the
warp is taken off during the process of weaving. From the roller ✗ the cloth
passes round the spiked roller L to the cloth beam K on which the woven
fabric is wound. An uniform "tension is maintained on the cloth beam by
means of the counterweight H on the lever C, which may be adjusted to
the nature of the fabric by shifting the weight along the lever. Thus, by
the combined movements of the mechanical arrangements on each side of the
loom the cloth is accurately and effectively taken up as it is woven. The
drag take-up motion being used upon the one side to drive the winding.on
ruller or cloth beam K, and the positive motion on the other to drive the
spiked roller L. This arrangement admits of the rollers being kept as far.
apart as may be necessary, and obviates the uncertainty arising from the
mole of driving one of the rollers by its friction against the other, thereby.
preventing also the injury done to the cloth by its rubbing against the
roller.
1
The next part of my Invention consists in the application of a spring detent

page_text: to the setting-off lever of the weft fork or protector. The weft protector
lever a has upon it a pin or projection b, which presses against the finger c on
the light rod or spindle d. This spindle passes along to the other side of the
loom, and carries on its outer end an arm e, to which a rod or wire fis
attached. The lower end of this rod or wire is connected to a pall g, which is
attached by a stud to the loom framing; the pall falls into into the teeth of the
ratchet wheel.P; when the weft thread breaks the weft protector, lever a is
pushed back, causing the pin 6 to press against the finger c on the spindle d.
This action lifts the arm e and raises the pall g out of the ratchet wheel, by
what means the ratchet wheel is prevented from actuating the taking-up
motion; and although the loom should make one or two shots without weft,
no cloth will be taken up. Under the lever a a spring detent h is fitted.
This detent is made with an angular point, which takes into one of two
notches made in a in the lever a, as seen at i, in Figures 3 and 5. The
position of these notches correspond to the two positions in which the lever is
placed when the loom is in and out of gear; in either case the detent enters
one of the notches and holds the lever a fast. The detent is acted upon by
a spiral spring j, which presses and serves to retain its angular point in the
notches of the lever a. For example, when the weft protector is brought into
action by the failure of the weft, the lever a is pushed back, the point of the
detent passes into the next notch, thereby holding the lever a in that position,
and preventing the pall g from falling into the teeth of the ratchet wheel. It
is shown in this position in Figure 5. When the loom attendant shifts the
strap from the loose to the fast pulley, this action moves the lever a back to
its former position, and the point of the detent becomes engaged in the other
notch of the lever a. By means of this arrangement of the parts connected
with the weft protector the loom is instantly and effectively stopped, and no
thin places or "gauze" can occur in the woven fabric.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I may observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict
myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion to
describe or refer to, as many variations may be made therefrom without
deviating from the principles or main features of my Invention; but what
I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention
secured to me by the herein-befor in part recited Letters Patent, is,-
First, the general arrangement and construction of loomis for weaving, as
herein-before described.
Second, the system or mode of combining two taking-up motions in one

page_text: loom, by which means the regular wefting of the cloth is secured, and admit-
ting of the measuring roller being kept apart from the cloth beam, thereby.
avoiding the injurious effect of friction on the cloth, as herein-before
described.
Third, the application and use of rollers to which an elastic action
is imparted by means of flexible cushions or bearings, as herein-before
described.
Fourth, the system or mode of stopping the taking-up motion of the loom
by means of a spring detent acting upon the lover of the weft protector, as
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Dryden, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of May, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-seven.
JAMES DRYDEN. (L.s.)