IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Matthew Mirfield, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong,
near Bradford, in the County of York, Worsted Top Maker, and
John Scott, of the same Place, Overlooker, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER
FIBROUS SUBSTANCES."
Scaled the 13th June 1871, and dated the 16th December 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Matthew Mirfield and
John Scott at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 16th December 1870.
We, MATTHEW MIRFIELD, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong, near Brad-
ford, in the County of York, Worsted Top Maker, and JOHN SCOTT, of
the same Place, Overlooker, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL
OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES" (to be as follows) :-
This Irvention relates to machinery or apparatus comprised in a
former Invention for this purpose, and for which Letters Patent were
granted to the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, dated the Ninth
day of October 1866, Number 2601, and the present improvements
consist,
•

page_text: Firstly. In arranging and operating the oscillating comb and the
feeding comb or instruments for supplying wool or other fibrous sub-
stances in slivers to the oscillating nippers shewn and described in the
Specification of Patent referred to, in such manner that the said feeding
comb also forms an intersecting comb or a cleansing instrument. This
feeding comb or cleansing instrument is so applied and operated as that
the teeth will be inserted into the slivers, while the teeth of the oscillating
comb are also inserted in the said slivers, and when the teeth of the
oscillating comb are withdrawn therefrom the said feeding comb will
move the slivers forward a suitable or determined distance, and the
oscillating comb teeth are again inserted, the teeth of the feeding comb
still remaining in the slivers when the oscillating nippers seize the end
of the said slivers and detach a tuft therefrom, drawing the fibres
through the teeth of both the said combs, whereby the same becomes
cleansed. The said feeding comb is then withdrawn, moved back, and
again inserted into the slivers to move them forward another distance
to be seized by the nippers as before, and so on.
Secondly. The improvements consist in the application of an oscil-
latory comb and a dabbing brush to act in conjunction to seize the noil
ends of the tufts when placed between and protruding through the jaws
of stationary nippers explained in the said Specification referred to, which
by their operation or action cleanse the said ends or remove the noil
therefrom. This comb is provided with a grating which is raised or
operated so as to push the noil out of the teeth of the said comb to be
taken away by the travelling motion of an endless belt having projecting
ribs thereon. The tufts thus cleansed at both ends are then deposited
on an endless travelling apron to be conveyed to a gill box or similar
instrument to be reformed into a sliver in the usual manner, as explained
in the said Specification herein-before referred to. By the application
and use of this comb and brush the revolving porcupine comb, shewn
and described in the said Specification, is dispensed with.
Thirdly. In the application and use of the said oscillating comb and
dabbing brush to other kinds of combing machines, whether constructed
with circular or rectilinear combs or with curved or straight nipping
jaws for the purpose of lashing or cleansing tufts of wool or other fibre
therefrom.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent;
filed by the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott in the Great
Scal Patent Office on the 16th June 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, MATTHEW.
› MIRFIELD, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong, near Bradford, in the County
of York, Worsted Top Maker, and JOHN SCOTT, of the same Place,
Overlooker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of December, in the year
) of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, Her
special licence that wo, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, our executors, administrators, and
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 MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR
COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, our executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or
one of our or their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
3 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 we, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner.
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement and accompanying Sheets of Drawings
(that is to say) :-
This Invention relates to machinery or apparatus comprised in a
former Invention for this purpose, and for. which Letters Patent were
granted to the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, dated the Ninth

page_text: uay
consist,―
AYULK
Firstly. In arranging and operating the oscillatory comb and the
feeding comb or instruments for supplying wool or other fibrous sub-
stances in slivers to the oscillating nippers shewn and described in the 6
Specification of Patent referred to in such manner that the said feeding
comb also forms an intersecting comb or a cleansing instrument. This
feeding comb or instrument is so applied and operated as that the teeth
will be inserted into the slivers while the tecth of the oscillatory comb
are also inserted in the said slivers, and when the teeth of the oscillating 1
comb are withdrawn therefrom the said feeding comb will move the
slivers forward a suitable or determined distance and the oscillating
comb teeth are again inserted, the teeth of feeding comb still remaining
in the slivers when the oscillating nippers seize the end of the said
slivers and detach a tuft therefrom, drawing the fibres through the teeth
of both the said combs, whereby the same becomes cleansed. The
said feeding comb is then withdrawn, moved back, and again inserted
into the slivers to move them forward another distance to be seized by
the nippers as before, and so on.
Secondly. The improvements consist in the application of an oscillatory 2
comb and a dabbing brush to act in conjunction to seize the noil ends of
the tufts when placed between and protruding through the jaws of
stationary nippers explained in the said Specification referred to, which
by their operation or action cleanses the said ends or removes the noil
therefrom. This comb is provided with a grating which is raised or
operated so as to push the noil out of the teeth of the said comb to be
taken away by the travelling motion of an endless belt having projecting
ribs thereon. The tufts thus cleansed at both ends are then deposited
on an endless travelling apron to be conveyed to a gill box or similar
instrument to be re-formed into a sliver in the usual manner as
explained in the said Specification herein-before referred to. By the
application and use of this comb and brush the revolving porcupine
comb shewn and described in the said Specification is dispensed with.
Thirdly. In the application and use of the said oscillating comb and
dabbing brush to other kinds of combing machines, whether constructed
with circular or rectilinear combs or with curved or straight nipping
jaws for the purpose of lashing or cleansing tufts of wool or other fibre
projecting therefrom.

page_text: VE
ALE
In order that this Invention may be clearly understood we herein. give
reference to accompanying Sheets of Drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a
longitudinal and vertical section of a combing machine, or such parts
thereof as are necessary to shew the improvements in accordance with
our said Invention, and Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section of a portion of
the same.
A is the oscillatory or reciprocatory comb, and B the feeding comb,.
which together form or constitute the instruments for supplying slivers
of wool or other fibrous substances to the oscillatory nippers C. These
combs A and B are mounted on a slide head or carriage D capable of
sliding on a rail E which is part of the framework. The slide head D. is
operated by the crank shaft F which is connected by rods or arms G to
other slides H, and these slides carry a grating I to work in the comb A
for pushing the slivers off the teeth at suitable times. The feeding
comb B is hinged on another slide head or slide box B' carried in the
slide head D and operated by a pin J coming into contact with a stop K.
fixed on the rail E, when the carriage is moved in that direction causing
the comb B to open or separate from the comb A, and which will close
again by gravitation on the reverse movement of the carriage. The
slide box B¹ carrying the comb B is supported on friction rollers Ļ
running on the rail M which is formed with an incline, so that as the
carriage D is moving in the direction of the crank shaft the friction
roller is ascending the incline and lifting the slide box B¹ with the
comb B, and on reverse motion of the carriage they will be lowered.
This comb B also carries a dabbing brush N which comes into:
contact with the comb A when the comb B is closing and presses the
sliver into the teeth thereof. The slides H are limited in their movement by..
the collars of the studs H', to which the connecting rods G are attached,
and which work in slot holes P, formed in the slide head D. The slivers
of fibre Q to be fed are brought forward upon the belt R between the
rollers S in the usual manner, and are passed betwixt the combs A and B,
'which by their action carry the same forward intermittently to the
oscillatory nippers C; Figs. 3, 4, and 5 shew these said combs and
slides in their several positions, Fig. 3 shewing the comb B open, and
the slides B¹ lifted by the friction rollers L, having ascended the incline
of the rail M, and ready to be further lifted by the cam T acting on the
roller U, which is on a stud in the end of the rail M. is a bar across

page_text: and thus reforming the sliver as explained in the Specification of prior
Patent.
Fig. 6 shews a modified arrangement of these feeding combs, nipping
jaws, and noil comb, with other necessary parts of apparatus in connection',
by which we dispense with the oscillatory nippers and transfer comb
shewn and described in the first part. A and B are the combs as before;
A is attached to a plate which is connected by a rod O. to a bell-crank
lever D, operated so as to rise and fall by means of a cam E fixed on the
shaft F, and it is hinged to a stud or bracket a capable of moving in a
slot in the slide box B'.. This slide box is connected by a rod Ġ to the
crank shaft H, which produces reciprocatory motion thereof. The
comb B is hinged on a shaft I, moveable in a slot of the box B', by means
of a lever J, operated by pins K and K', fixed in the frame Lat the
time when the motion of the box B' brings them in contact. A friction
roller M is attached to the comb B which when the box is moved in the
direction of the arrow runs upon one end of the lever N, the other end
carrying a friction roller which is acted upon by a cam P fixed on the
crank shaft H, by which the comb B is raised out of the sliver Q, and
the bar * prevents the sliver being lifted out of the box. While the saiḍ
comb B is in this position the lever J comes into contact with the stud K
which moves the shaft I in the slot and draws back the comb B to a
suitable position, when after the cam P has passed the friction roller the
comb B becomes re-inserted into the sliver. The comb A is then lowered
out of the sliver by reason of the cam E ceasing to hold it up, while the
sliver is held in position by a grating or bars placed between the teeth
supported on the bed plate e. On the return stroke of the crank H the
slide box B' is moved forward and the lever J coming into contact with
the stud K³ causes the comb B to feed or push tho sliver into or between
thie nippers R and R', which are then caused to close by the action of
the cams § and T fixed on the shaft F. These nippers. hold the end of
the sliver while the comb U operates upon it to remove the noil there-
from as herein-before explained. When the comb B has introduced the
end of the sliver between the jaws of the nippers the comb A is raised
betwixt the said comb and the nippers and re-inserted into the sliver by
the action of the cam E. At the return stroke of the crank H the
comb B is caused to separate from the comb A to the extent of the
length of slot in which the stud or bracket a moves, thus combing a
portion of the sliver which will be placed between the nip at the next
feed. The comb A then follows the comb B and detaches a tuft which
!

page_text: is left in the nippers cleansed on both sides thereof. The nippers are
then opened by the action of the cams S and T, aided by the force of a
spring V on a bell-crank lever W, when the said cleansed tuft is
deposited on the travelling endless apron Z, which has intermittent
motion as herein-before explained.
The third part of our said Invention is shown in Figs. 7 and 8, which
are plan and vertical section of a circular comb, somewhat similar to
what is known as "Noble's comb" with our improvements applied
thereto. The oscillatory and reciprocatory combs and comb boxes being
now so fully explained in the preceding parts of this Specification, as
well as in the Specification of Patent, Number 2601, A. D. 1860, herein-
before referred to, that we deem it unnecessary now to explain again
the parts and their actions in detail, but suffice it to be stated that tho
parts marked A. are a series of the oscillatory and reciprocatory combs
and boxes which are also shewn in section in various positions with part
of the circular comb, comb plate, and steam chest in Figs. 9, 10, 11, 12,
and 13 taken through the dotted lines in the plan Fig. 8 where marked
with the same numbers. B is the circular comb, and C the comb plate,
which revolve on the steam chest D as usual, and which steam chest is
fixed upon the framing E as heretofore. F and F are the dabbing
brushes which are carried on bell-crank levers G and G', operated by a
cam H fixed on the main driving shaft (shewn in Fig. 14), which acts
on friction rollers G³ and G³ carried on the said levers. The oscillatory
motion of the combs A is effected by means of inclines I carried on
brackets fixed to the stationary frame, and the reciprocatory motion
thereof is effected by cams or cam grooves J fixed on the steam chest,
and acting on friction rollers J' carried on the said boxes A.
From previous descriptions of the working of these combs A, it will
be readily seen how slivers of wool or other fibrous substances are fed
to the circular comb B, and the said combs A reciprocate and operate
to cleanse portions of the slivers to be placed on the teeth and between
the nip of the circular comb at the next and succeeding feeds, and held
thereby for the projecting ends of the slivers to be lashed or cleansed by
other combs Land L', which are carried on arms M hinged to a frame
N capable of reciprocating in slides P being operated by a cam Q fixed
on the main shaft. (These parts are shewn in detail at Fig. 15.) These
combs are also caused to oscillate by means of rods R and R', connected
to other bell-crank levers S and S', carrying friction rollers S and S³,

page_text: which are actuated by a cam T fixed on the main shaft (and shewn in
detail at Fig. 16). The gratings or bars U in the combs L are operated
as required at suitable times by means of a cam V fixed on the main
shaft (shewn in detail at Fig. 17), and which acts on friction rollers W
carried on slide arms X which clip on the bell crank levers Y, and
operate the slide blocks Z to which the gratings U are attached.
Fig. 13 shews a modification in the construction and arrangement
of the feeding and cleansing combs, in which both the combs are shewn
with the points of their teeth upward, and with a dabbing brush applied
to press the sliver into the teeth, and a grating or bars for lifting the
sliver out of the teeth. These feeding combs or instruments are also
capable of carrying the slivers back from the circular comb after being
lashed or cleansed thereon and ploughed out of the teeth, and of
refceding them on the same comb at the cleansed part for the purpose
of obtaining a perfectly clean sliver, or one without any noil. It will
be understood that the series of feeding combs or instruments are
applied completely around the circular comb, and it will be evident that
they may be applied to the internal side of the said circular comb, if
desirable, for the purpose of feeding and cleansing slivers of wool or
other fibrous substances in manner explained.
In conclusion we would observe that this our method or means of
feeding and cleansing slivers of wool or other fibrous substances can be
applied to the well known "Noble's comb," and to other circular combs,
also to rectilinear or straight travelling combs, and whether employing
straight or curved nipping jaws.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Scott, for and on behalf of
myself and the said Matthew Mirfield, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
TATT SAAM