IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PRE- PARING COTTON TO BE SPUN, KNOWN AS OPENER'S SCUTCHERS AND CARDING ENGINES
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Brown, of Bury, in the County of Lan-
caster, Mechanic, and Richard Hacking, of the same Place, Machine
Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PRE-
PARING COTTON TO BE SPUN, KNOWN AS OPENER'S SCUTCHERS AND CARDING
ENGINES."
Sealed the 24th January 1862, and dated the 2nd November 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Brown and
Richard Hacking at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 2nd November 1861.
WE, BENJAMIN BROWN, of Bury, in the County of Lancaster, Mechanic,
and RICHARD HACKING, of the same Place, Machine Maker, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR PREPARING COTTON TO BE SPUN, KNOWN AS OPENER'S SCUTCHERS AND CARDING
ENGINES," to be as follows:-
One of our improvements consists in placing between the roller known as
the doffer and the cylinder in carding engines, other two rollers containing
teeth on their circumferences for the purpose of stripping the cylinder more
effectually. The roller next to the cylinder has a circumferential motion
greater than the circumferential motion of the cylinder, which enables it to
strip the cotton from the said cylinder, and the teeth of the roller having their
points bent in the direction of the roller's motion, also facilitate the said
stripping. Another roller having a circumferential motion greater than that

page_text: of the roller before named, and revolving in an opposite direction, its teeth
being bent in a similar manner to the one before named, strips off the cotton
from the first roller and conveys it to the doffer, the revolutions of which are
regulated as may be required. We also place fluted rollers underneath the
rollers lying between the cylinder and doffer, for the purpose of acting on the
cotton to remove sand, seeds, leaf or any other superfluous matter contained
therein. We also place under the said fluted rollers a band of cloth or other
pliable material, which passes over other rollers, the object being to clean the
fluted rollers. A revolving brush cleaned by a comb fixed near it is used to
keep the band of cloth or other pliable material free from any matter that may
adhere to it.
Another of our improvements consists of an arrangement of mechanism for
working the comb which removes the cotton from the doffer of the carding
engine, for which purpose we place a revolving shaft containing eccentrics in
the front of the said doffer; two of the said eccentrics give a vertical or
nearly a vertical motion to sliding blocks which carry the comb; the said
blocks are attached to oscillating levers having their oscillations communicated
to them laterally by two of the before-named eccentrics. The said levers are
so constructed that the blocks may slide upon or within them. The said
blocks are kept at a constant distance asunder by means of a rod or tube
passing from one to the other, strengthened by tension rods to prevent as
We attach a
much as possible any tremulous motion in the tube or rod.
spring to the sliding blocks to prevent any undue shaking of the working
parts of the apparatus. A rod is attached to the opposite side of the blocks
to that of the comb to be screwed, so as to prevent the blocks from being
twisted by the action of the screw used to secure the comb. We use cranks in
the place of eccentrics where necessary.
Our next improvement consists in so arranging the teeth of one or more
rollers used to pass cotton to the beating chambers of openers or scutchers,
that the said teeth shall continue round the roller at equal or unequal distances
apart and forming equal angles with the axis of the roller, the said angles
being less than a right angle. The teeth are widest at the base, and their
form that of a frustum of a pyramid. The object of this improvement
is to break up the cotton more effectually than heretofore, thereby allow-
ing the exhausting apparatus a better chance of extracting superfluous matter.
Another improvement is the placing of a revolving cage immediately below
or near the grate through which the sand, seeds, leaf or other superfluous
matter passes from the beater chambers of openers or scutchers. The cage
may be entirely open in its interior or divided into two or more compartments,

page_text: each compartment communicating with the exhausting apparatus by means
of openings in its ends or sides, and so arranged that when the cage revolves,
the action of the exhausting apparatus will draw the sand, seeds, leaf or other
superfluous matter on to or into that portion of the said cage nearest the
before-mentioned grate, whilst the other compartment or compartments, when
more than one is used, not being in connection with the exhausting appa-
ratus, will allow any extracted matter that will fall by its own gravity to leave
the cage.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Brown and Richard Hacking in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 26th April 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, BEN-
JAMIN BROWN, of Bury, in the County of Lancaster, Mechanic, and. RICHARD
HACKING, of the same Place, Machine Maker, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty. Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Benjamin Brown and Richard Hacking, Her special licence that we,
the said Benjamin Brown and Richard Hacking, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Benjamin Brown and Richard
Hacking, 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 MA-
CHINERY FOR PREPARING COTTON TO BE SPUN, KNOWN AS OPENER'S SCUTCHERS AND
CARDING ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Ben-
jamin Brown and Richard Hacking, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our, 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 we, the said Benjamin Brown and Richard Hacking,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the

page_text: same is to be performed; to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, and accompanying Drawings, (that is to say):-
One of our improvements consists in placing between the roller known as
the doffer and the cylinder in carding engines, other two rollers containing
teeth on their circumferences for the purpose of stripping the cylinder more
effectually. The roller next to the cylinder has a circumferential motion
greater than the circumferential motion of the cylinder, which enables it to
strip the cotton from the said cylinder; and the teeth of the roller having their
points bent in the direction of the roller's motion also facilitate the said strip-
ping. Another roller having a circumferential motion greater than that of the
roller before named, and revolving in an opposite direction, its teeth being bent
in a similar manner to the one before named, strips off the cotton from the
first roller, and conveys it to the doffer, the revolutions of which are regulated
as may be required. We also place fluted rollers underneath the rollers
lying between the cylinder and doffer, for the purpose of acting on the cotton
to remove sand, seeds, leaf, or any other superfluous matter contained therein.
We also place under the said fluted rollers a band of cloth or other pliable
material which passes over other rollers, the object being to clean the fluted
rollers. A revolving brush, cleaned by a comb fixed near it, is used to keep the
band of cloth or other pliable material free from any matter that may adhere
to it.
Fig. 1 is an elevation of a portion of a carding engine with one of the
sides removed. The cylinder a revolves in the direction pointed out by the
arrow, and has teeth passing round its circumference, a portion of which teeth
are shown in the Drawing in contact with the teeth of roller 6; the last named
roller revolves in an opposite direction to that of the cylinder as shown by the
arrow, and the teeth on its circumference are bent in the direction of its
revolution. Another roller c has its teeth as shown in connection with those
of roller b, and also in connection with the teeth of the doffer d; each roller
has its teeth bent, and the direction in which it revolves pointed out by the
arrow as shown in the Drawing. The fluted rollers are placed at e and f, and
the rollers which carry the band of cloth or other pliable material i are shown
at g, h, k. The brush for cleaning the cloth or other pliable material
is shown at l, and the comb for cleaning the brush is shown at m. When
the carding engine is put in motion, the cotton which is received on the
teeth of the cylinder a is stripped therefrom by the teeth on the roller b,
the said roller having a greater circumferential motion, and moving in au
opposite direction to that of the cylinder a. The circumferential motion of
roller c, being greater than the circumferential motion of the roller b, and the

page_text: said roller c, revolving in an opposite direction to that of roller b, the cotton
that has been taken from cylinder a by roller b, is now taken from roller 6 by
roller c, and delivered to the doffer d. The object we have in using the two
rollers marked b and c, is to more efficiently strip the cylinder a. The fluted
rollers e, f, act upon the cotton as they revolve for the purpose of removing
sand, seeds, leaf, or any other superfluous matter contained in the said cotton,
and are kept clean by the action of the cloth or other pliable material i, in
conjunction with the revolving brush and comb m, which removes the said
sand, seeds, leaf, or other superfluous matter. The doffer may be placed closer
to the cylinder than shown in the Drawing, by elevating the rollers b and c,
Fig. 1, or the same may be effected by placing the said rollers below the
centres of the cylinder and doffer.
Another of our improvements consist of an arrangement of mechanism for
working the comb, which removes the cotton from the doffer of the carding
engine, for which purpose we place a revolving shaft containing eccentrics in
the front of the said doffer; two of the said eccentrics give a vertical or nearly
a vertical motion to sliding blocks which carry the comb; the said blocks are
attached to oscillating levers, having their oscillations communicated to them
laterally by two of the before-named eccentrics. The said levers are so con-
structed that the blocks may slide upon or within them. The said blocks are
kept at a constant distance asunder by means of a rod or tube passing from
one to the other, strengthened by tension rods, to prevent as much as possible
any tremulous motion in the tube or rod. We attach a spring to the sliding
blocks to prevent any undue shaking of the working parts of the apparatus.
A rod is attached to the opposite side of the blocks to that of the comb to be
screwed, so as to prevent the blocks from being twisted by the action of the
screw used to secure the comb. We use cranks in the place of eccentrics,
where necessary. One of the fixings which carries a portion of the mechanism
is shown at b, attached to the upper part of the engine side a₂, Fig. 1, and
the mechanism on an enlarged scale, and in detail, is shown at Figs. 2, 3, and 4
of the accompanying drawings.
a, a, represent a portion of the two sides of the carding engine frame b, b₁,
being the fixings which carry the shaft c; the tube é and the comb stock f,
and c, e, f, are shown broken in the middle to save space in the Drawings;
g and n are eccentrics, two of each being fixed on the shaft c near its ends, and
in the interior of the fixings 6, b₁. The slides h, h₁, are attached to the eccen-
trics by the rods i, 4, and the other eccentrics n, each work in sliding blocks,
as shown at m; the said sliding blocks m and h each slide in the lever o, which
lever oscillates on the stud p. Two fly wheels r, r₁, are fixed on the shaft c, and

page_text: also a pulleys, for the purpose of driving the said shaft. A spring is attached
to the slides h, h₁, as shown at t, for the purpose of preventing as much as may
be any undue sbaking of the mechanism.. When the shaft c revolves, it carries
the eccentrics g, n, along with it, thereby causing the eccentric 9 to move the
slide and comb stock fin nearly a vertical direction along the lever o, and
the eccentric n moves the sliding block m in a similar direction along the said
lever o; but the said eccentric-n also causes the lever o to oscillate on the
stud p as a centre, thereby giving a lateral motion to the comb stock f. The
eccentric g having a much longer stroke than that of the eccentric n, the motion
of the comb vertically is much greater than its motion laterally.. When the
comb begins to descend, the action of the eccentric n causes it to comb the
cotton from the doffer teeth with more regularity and less tremour than the
old motion before used. The tube e prevents any fly or other substance from
lapping on shaft.c. The shaft c may have motion communicated to it in any
convenient manner from the other parts of the carding engine. When we use
two eccentrics only, we fix the comb stock on the rod i instead of on. the slide h,
and the oscillating lever o and slide m are dispensed with, but the slide his
retained, the lateral motion of the comb being increased or decreased by
fixing it farther from or nearer to the centre of oscillation of the rod i.
Our next improvement consists in so arranging the teeth of one or more
rollers used to pass cotton to the beating chambers of openers or scutchers
that the said teeth shall continue round the roller at equal or unequal distances
apart, and forming equal angles with the axis of the roller, the said angles being
less than a right angle. The teeth are widest at the base, and their form that
of a frustum of a pyramid. The object of this improvement is to break up the
cotton more effectually than heretofore, thereby allowing the exhausting
apparatus a better chance of extracting superfluous matter.
The roller having teeth of the form of a frustum of a pyramid is in part
shown at Fig. 5. It is constructed by making flutes in the roller in the
ordinary manner, and cutting a left or right hand screw along its length,
thereby forming teeth, the base, or a section parallel, to the base of which are
of a rhomboidal form, as shown in the Drawing Fig. 5. A section n of one
roller is shown in Fig. 6. Our arrangement of the said teeth spread open the
cotton more effectually than rollers with teeth passing round the circumference
of the roller at right angles to the axis.
Another improvement is the placing of a revolving cage immediately below.
or near the grate, through which the sand, seeds, leaf, or other superfluous
matter passes from the beater chambers of openers or scutchers. The cage
may be entirely open in its interior or divided into two or more compartments,

page_text: each compartment communicating with the exhausting apparatus by means of
openings in its ends or sides, and so arranged that when the cage revolves the
action of the exhausting apparatus will draw the sand, seeds, leaf, or other
superfluous matter on to or into that portion of the said cage nearest the before
mentioned grate, whilst the other compartment or compartments, when more
than one is used, not being in connection with the exhausting apparatus, will
allow any extracted matter that will fall by its own gravity to leave the cage.
Fig. 6 is a side view in part of portions of a machine in which our improved
method of extracting sand, seed, leaf, or other superfluous matter from the
beater chamber by means of the exhausting apparatus is shown. a is the
revolving cage; b the opening from the said cage into the pipe b₁, and the
arrow points out the direction in which the superfluous matter is conveyed to
the exhausting apparatus c. The grate is shown at d, and the beater at e.
When the beater revolves it breaks up the cotton as it is delivered through
the rollers m, n, and thereby liberates sand, seeds, leaf, or other superfluous
matter, which is drawn by the action of the apparatus into or upon the said
cage, as before stated.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which
the said Invention is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that what
we claim is,
Firstly, the two rollers placed between the cylinder and the doffer, as herein
described.
Secondly, the rollers and combination of parts for removing superfluous
matter from the cotton between the cylinder and doffer, as herein-described.
Thirdly, the slide at the end of the eccentric rod, and the mechanical arrange-
ment and combination of parts for working the comb, as herein described.
Fourthly, the roller having teeth of the peculiar form or shape, and for the
purpose herein described.
Fifthly, the revolving cage and combination of parts attached to the ex-
hausting apparatus, as herein described and set forth.
In witness whereof, we, the said Benjamin Brown and Richard Hacking,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this twenty-third day of April,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
RICHARD HACKING. (L.S.)