IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANGLING OR BEETLING FABRICS
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Colin Mather, of the Salford Iron Works, Man-
chester, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANGLING
OR BEETLING FABRICS."
Sealed the 23rd August 1867, and dated the 8th March 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Colin Mather at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 8th
March 1867.
I, COLIN MATHEB, of the Salford Iron Works, Manchester, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR MANGLING OR BEETLING FABRICS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in mangling and beetling
machines or engines. For these purposes in constructing a mangling or
beetling machine or engine two supporting rollers for the beam on which the
cloth is wound are used, on the surface of each of these two rollers spiral grooves
and ridges are formed, the direction of the grooves and ridges on one roller
being the reverse of the direction of the grooves and ridges on the other, by
which in their revolution they will be constantly counteracting each other in
their action on the fabric, that is to say, one roller having a tendency to force
the fabric in one direction, while the other roller forces it in the contrary
direction, thus producing a cross friction on the several folds of the cloth or
fabric on the beam; above the roll of cloth or fabric on the beam is a third

page_text: roller which by levers and weights or other means of applying pressure is
caused to press on the cloth or fabric on the beam, the combined action of the
three rollers produces in a very short time the desired mangling or beetling
effect or finish on the fabric; when desired, the beam on which the cloth or
fabric is wound may have a traversing or to-and-fro motion applied thereto, or
the supporting and pressing rollers, or either of them, may have a traversing
motion applied thereto. The rollers are driven alternately in contrary
directions by reversing the motion of the driving engine, or by reversing gearing,
and in order to prevent the injurious effects of the longitudinal strain on the
grooved rollers they are provided at each end with a tail pin.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Colin Mather in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
3rd September 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, COLIN
MATHER, of the Salford Iron Works, Manchester, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Colin Mather, Her special license that I, the said Coliu
Mather, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Colin Mather, my 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 "Ix-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANGLING OR BEETLING FABRICS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Colin Mather, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of
their hands and seals, should particularly 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 Colin Mather, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say):
This Invention has for its object improvements in in mangling and beetling
machines or engines. For these purposes in constructing a mangling or
beetling machine or engine two supporting rollers for the beam on which the
cloth is wound are used, on the surface of each of these two rollers spiral
grooves and ridges are formed, the direction of the grooves and ridges on
one roller being the reverse of the direction of the grooves and ridges on the
other, by which in their revolution they will be constantly counteracting
each other in their action on the fabric, that is to say, one roller having
a tendency to force the fabric in one direction while the other roller
forces it in the contrary direction, thus producing a cross friction on the
several folds of the cloth or fabric on the beam; above the roll of cloth
or fabric on the beam is a third roller which by levers and weights or other
means of applying pressure is caused to press on the cloth or fabric on
the beam, the combined action of the three rollers produces in a very short
time the desired mangling or beetling effect or finish on the fabric; when
desired the beam on which the cloth or fabric is wound may have a traversing
or to-and-fro motion applied thereto, or the supporting and pressing rollers, or
either of them, may have a traversing motion applied thereto. The rollers are
driven alternately in contrary directions by reversing the motion of the driving
engine or by reversing gearing; and in order to prevent the injurious effects
of the longitudinal strain on the grooved rollers they are provided at each end
with a tail pin.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into operation I will proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of Drawings,
reference being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Figure 1 is an elevation, and Figure 2 a plan of my improved machinery
for mangling or beetling fabrics, and Figure 3 is a section on an enlarged scale
of one of the grooved rollers.
a, a, are the two supporting rollers for the beam 6 on, which the cloth is
wound; c is the upper roller which is pressed on the cloth beam by means of
the levers d and e in the usual manner; the surfaces of the rollers a are made
with shallow spiral grooves and ridges running in opposite directions, and the
ends of the axles of the rollers are acted upon by tail pins a² to prevent the
injurious effects of the longitudinal strain. The rollers are made to revolve in
the same direction in the following manner, or by any other convenient arrange-
ment of gearing. f is the foundation plate of a horizontal steam engine
furnished with reversing gear, the piston rod of the engine is connected to the

page_text: crank shaft g, on which is the pinion h gearing into the wheel i on the central
shaft ; to this shaft is fixed the wheel k gearing into both the wheels a¹, a',
fixed to the axles of the rollers a, a. The dotted line m represents the cloth to
be wound on the beam b; the cloth passes as usual under and over the stretching
rails n, n. When the requisite quantity of cloth has been wound on the beam
b, and the pressure is applied to the upper roller c, the action of the grooves
and ri lges of the rollers a, a, on the cloth or fabric will be constantly counter-
acting each other, that is to say, one roller has a tendency to force the fabric
in one direction, whilst the other roller forces it in the contrary direction, thus
producing a cross friction on the several folds of the fabric on the beam; when
the cloth beam 6 has been turned round for a certain time in one direction the
motion of the engine is reversed to turn the cloth beam in the contrary
direction, and the combined action of the grooved rollers and the pressure roller
on the fabric produces in a very short time the desired mangling or beetling
effect or finish on the fabric. It is evident that the direction of motion of the
rollers may be reversed by means of a reversing gear, similar to that usually
applied to planing machines, but when a separate steam engine is employed to
work the mangling or beetling machine it is preferable to reverse the engine.
In some cases it may be desirable to impart a traversing or to-and-fro motion
to the cloth beam and to the supporting and pressure rollers, or to any or either
of them, when such is the case a grooved cam taking into a fixed key or other
equivalent is connected to the axle of the roller or rollers to be moved.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, and described the manner
of performing the same, I wish it to be understood that I do not intend to
limit myself to the details given, as they may be varied, but what I do
claim is, the application of rollers having grooves and ridges in contrary
directions on their surfaces to machines for mangling or beetling, as shewn and
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Colin Mather, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Second day of September, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-seven.
COLIN MATHER. (L.S.)