CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF NET LACE
Year: 1844

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
ATKINB; of the Town and County of the Town of Nottingham, Lace Manu-
facturer, send greeting.
.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent ünder the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Fifth day of November, in the eighth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors; give and grant unto me, the said
Henry Atkins, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority;
that I, the said Henry Atkins; mý executors, administrators, and assigns,
and such others às I, the said Henry Atkins, my executors, administrators,
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned; should
and lawfully thight miake, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and
the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF NET LACE;" in which said Letters Patent is contained
a proviso obliging me, the said Henry Atkins, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of
my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and
to cause the same to be inrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
in part. recited Letters Patent; as in and by the same; reference being there-
unto had, will more fully and at large appear...
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I; the said
Henry Atkins, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being had to
the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon
(that is to say)—
These Improvements in the Manufacture of Net Lace consist,―
Firstly, in effecting a new intervention of threads to produce the fabric of
lace upon a single lap and press principle, which improved fabric is to be
made upon a warp machine by means of peculiar movements given to the
guide bars and point bars, two courses being required to effect the interven-
tion, and to perfect the forms of the meshes.
Secondly, peculiar movements given to the machinery for the production of
holeing and fancy work in the fabric. And,
Thirdly, a new method of folding the lace ready for the dealer.
In the accompanying Drawings Fig. 1 represents, upon a magnified scale,
a portion of my first-mentioned nét lace, the distinct threads being shewn by
colors (red and blue) in order to explain their contortions and interventions.
These are effected without any alterations of the original warp machinery,
simply by a peculiar cut of wheels shewn at Figures 2 and 3.
Figure 4 is a sectional elevation of an ordinary warp machine taken
transversely through the machine near one end, and Figure 5 is a horizontal
view of the same taken about the level of the needle bar, in which two last-
mentioned Figures the parts colored and shaded represent the novel appen-
dages to the original machine by which I effect the production of the holeing
and the fancy work in the fabrics. A and B are the beams on which the warp
threads are wound. These threads are passed over guide rollers to the
guides a and b mounted on the machine bar Cas usual. The series of needles
are shewn at c, the sinkers at d, and the presser bar at e.
The points
which I employ for making the fancy work are placed over the needles, as
seen at f; as many of them as may be required according to the pattern of the
work, are fixed in a sliding longitudinal bar D, which is made to advance or
retreat by its connection to jointed bars E, E, E, acted upon by rotary
tappets g, g, set in the toothed wheel F, which being driven by a stud
wheel G, on the main shaft H, pushes the bar forward at intervals, and it is
drawn back by springs, when the tappets are not in operation. Shogging
motions are also given to this point bar by a cam wheel I on the shaft K,
seen in Fig. 5, and the parts are all actuated by gear in the way shewn in the
figures, or by any other convenient means from the rotation of the main shaft.
Instead of employing additional ordinary guide bars and additional threads, I
adapt two series of hooks h, h, seen above and below the guides in Fig. 4,

page_text: which hooks are fixed in bars mounted in the frame of the machine bar C.
Springs i, attached to tails extending behind these bars, keep the hooks open,
as shewn in Fig. 4; but when they require to be brought together for taking
hold of the threads, wedge pieces k, k, upon a sliding rod 1, 1 (see Fig. 5), are
passed between the tails, thereby causing the points to approach each other.
These wedges are brought into operation when required by the cam wheel L
on the shaft K, and the shogging movements of the hooks are effected by two
cam wheels M and N on the shaft K, which severally operate upon the upper
and under bars of the hooks. When holes are required to be formed in the
fabric, the hooks h prevent certain of the threads from being lapped over the
needles, and the loops which were before placed thereon are prevented from
being thrown over the beards of the needles by the points f, which advance
and receive the pressure of the bar e. One of the fancy kinds of net lace
which I make with the above-described single lap and press fabric I call wire-
ground lace. This is produced by three guide bars worked in four or six
courses; such lace made by six courses is shewn upon a magnified scale in the
diagram Fig. 6, and is made by a cut of wheels represented at Figures 7, 8,
and 9.
My new method of folding lace applies to the folding of narrow breadths of
lace and edgings, which are usually lapped or doubled into lengths of half-
yards or quarters of yards for the dealer, and is an operation heretofore
effected with some difficulty by hand. I now perform that work by means of
a machine represented in several views in the accompanying Drawing.
Figure 10 is a top or horizontal view of a rectangular wooden box (the
upper surface being partially removed in this Figure to shew the mechanism
within). Upon the upper surface of this box, as a flat table, I fold the
lace in lengths by means of two pairs of lever arms, which levers, in
falling from a perpendicular to a horizontal position, lay the face down
flat and hold it extended out to the required length whilst the levers
at the opposite end spread out another length of lace and hold that
distended whilst the former levers are performing the like operation. Fig. 11
is a longitudinal section of the box, and Fig. 12 a cross or transverse
section of the same, shewing the parts of the mechanism within. A, A, is a
longitudinal shaft, upon which is fixed a cylindrical block B, B.
block there are cut four cam-grooves a, b, c, d. The transverse shafts C, D,
turning on their pivots on the sides of the box, carry the longitudinal lever
arms E, E, and F, F, in the end of each of which arms there is inserted a
transverse pin or rod e, e, and f,f. The arms E, E, and F, F, are keyed to
the shafts C, D, but are allowed to slide along them in lateral directions,
Round this

page_text: which is effected by the action of the horizontal double armed levers
9, 9, and
h, h. These last-mentioned levers turn upon vertical shafts or fulcrum pins
i, i, i, i, set in brackets k, k, k, k, affixed to the sides of the box; the ends of
the shorter arms of the levers 9, 9, act in the groove a, and those of the levers
h, h, in the groove d of the cylindrical block. The ends of the longer arms
of the levers g, g, severally act in the bosses of the lever arms E, E, and those
of the levers h, h, in the bosses of the lever arms F, F. From the under part
of the shaft C there are studs 1, 1, extending, which take into the groove 6 of
the cylindrical block, and from the under part of the shaft D of the lever
arms F, F, there are similar studs m, m, taking into the groove c of the
cylindrical block.
Now the operations of this folding machine are these:-Having hung up
a piece of lace upon a roller above, and passed its end down between two
guide rollers n, n, I then spread one end of the piece of lace flat upon the
upper face of the box from left to right of Figures 10 and 11. I then
bring down the lever arms so that their pins or rods f, f, may lay and
press upon the lace and keep it fast upon the face of the box as a-table. I
then pass down the other lever arms E, E, thereby causing their pins or rods
e, e, to extend the length of lace and lay it flat upon the former layer toward the
left hand. This being done, I put the machine in action by means of a winch
applied to the end of the shaft A, A, or by any other means suitable for giving
rotary motion to that shaft. As this shaft revolves the cam d will act upon
the shorter arms of the levers h, h, and cause the longer arms of those, levers
to move outwards, and thereby to slide the lever arms F, F, laterally upon
their shaft D, by which means the pins or rods f,f, will be withdrawn sideways
from the fold of the lace. When this is done the groove c acting upon the
studs m, m, of the levers F, F, will cause those arms to rise into perpendicular
positions; and having so done, the operations of the cam grooved will again
slide the arms F, F, towards each other, and cause the pins or rods ff, to pass
behind the lace ready to bring another. length of it down flat upon the table.
The descent of the arms F, F, caused by the cam groove c, will now stretch a
length of the lace out straight from the holding pins or rods e, e, of the other
arms on the left towards the right hand, in which situation it will be held by
the pins ff, as before, whilst the arms E, E, rise and perform the same opera-
tion as those last described to have been effected by the arms F, F. Hence it
will be seen that as long as the shaft A, A, is turned, the lengths of lace will
continue to be folded in the desired length one upon another until the whole
piece is wound or lapped.
Having now described my improvements in the manufacture of net lace, I

page_text: desire it to be understood that without limiting myself to the precise mechanism
described, which I am aware may be varied by workmen to effect the same
objects, I wish it to be understood that I claim under the above in part recited
Letters Patent,—
Firstly, the novel construction or intervention of threads described above,
producing a fabric of net lace upon the single lap and press principle in a warp
machine by means of such movements of the mechanism as will effect the
intervention of threads in the way exhibited in Fig. 1.
Secondly, forming the device called net holeing in the said novel construction
of net lace, and also of any other kind of fancy device or ornamental figure-
ing applicable to the said kind of lace.
Thirdly, the particular mechanism and movements of the parts as described
above for working such fancy devices in lace net, of whatever character the
net may be.
Fourthly, the intervention of threads for the construction of net described
above and shewn in the Diagram at Fig. 6, called by me wire-ground fabric.
And
Lastly, the machine for lapping or folding lengths of lace or edgings when
produced by vibrating levers actuated by rotary cams.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Atkins, bave hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-five.
Inrolled the same Fifth day of May, in the year above written.