Improvements in Boot and Shoe Sewing Machines.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Sept., 1899-Accepted, 4th Nov., 1899
COMPLETE DELICATI
Improvements in Boot and Shoe Sewing Machines.
A communication from abroad by THE INTERNATIONAL GOODYEAR SHOE
MACHINERY COMPANY, of 100 to 104, Bedford Street, Boston, State of Massa-
chusetts, United States of America.
I, ALFRED GEORGE BROOKES, of 55 and 56, Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:
-
The present invention relates to shoe sewing machines and more particularly to
that type of shoe sewing machines adapted to stitch the outsole to the lasted upper
and welt of a welted shoe.
"
In some forms of shoes the outsole projects varying distances beyond the upper
as in the so called Baltimore edge shoes wherein the sole at the outer side
of the "ball" portion projects out farther from the upper or is wider than it is
at the toe portion, or at the inner side of the "ball" of the shoe.
In securing the outsole to the welt it is necessary that the line of stitches be
accurately positioned at a uniform distance from the edge of the sole whether the
sole edge extends out uniformly on all sides or be of varying width as in the
type of shoe above referred to, and much difficulty has been experienced in operat-
ing upon such shoes, by reason of the fact that the work gages of the sole sewing
machine as now constructed are either fixed for operating upon shoes with soles
of uniform width, or such gages have been rendered adjustable by means of hand
levers or other devices arranged to be manipulated by the operator.
With such devices the positioning of the shoe and the sole edge with relation
to the stitch forming devices must largely depend upon the skill of the operator
and great care and judgement has been necessary in order to accurately position
the shoe to secure the desired position of the line of stitches in shoes where the
soles extend beyond the upper varying distances.
The object of the present invention is to provide a shoe sewing machine of the
type referred to with an automatically variable gage which shall accurately
position the shoe with relation to the stitch forming devices so as to secure the
sewing of the line of stitches in the proper position in the shoe, and to provide
means whereby one machine will sew many different sizes of shoes, and my inven-
tion consists broadly in the combinations of means to secure these results and in
the various other combinations hereinafter set forth and claimed.
One form of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which
Figure 1 is a plan of the invention,
Figure 2 is a right hand end elevation of the same,
Figure 3 is a front elevation, and
Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are details of certain parts thereof hereinafter to be referred
to.
Similar reference letters refer to similar parts throughout the specification and
drawings

page_text: '
In the machine illustrated in the drawings the fixed gage or work table E is
mounted in its usual position in front of the needle segment 6'. The upper side
of the fixed gage or work table may be designated the work supporting face as
its function is to support the work in proper horizontal position with relation to
the stitch forming mechanism, and the front face of the fixed gage may be desig-
nated a work guiding face as its function is to engage the upper of the lasted
shoe and guide it so as to present the desired part thereof to the stitch forming
mechanism.
The awl segment a¹ is mounted upon the upright B+; carried by the feed slide D¹,
and reciprocated through means of the feed regulating lever D, which is moved
by the feed lever C pivoted upon the stand C and in turn oscillated by means
of the cam B, mounted upon the main shaft A¹. This main shaft, supported in
standards A, of which only one is shown, mounted in the usual manner upon the
bed of the machine, carries the usual cams (not shown) by which the operative
parts of the stitch forming devices are actuated, and is driven by a belt or other-
wise from any desired source of power.
My invention contemplates the use in connection with the part of the machine
so far described, or so much thereof as may be necessary to carry out the stitch
forming operation, of an automatic variable gage which is to be gradually and
progressively moved with relation to the stitch forming devices so as to vary the
position of the seam during the sewing operation.
In the form of my invention shown in the drawings, the movable gage G is
a curved wedge shaped piece of metal with an approximately horizontally disposed
upper end which is adapted to be moved by suitable means so as to project it in
front of the work guiding face of the fixed gage or work table and between it
and the upper of the shoe being sewed. The gage is provided in the illustrated
form of the invention with a downwardly extending portion by means of which
it may be attached in any desired manner to a gage carrier G¹. It is desirable that
the movable gage may be made adjustable so that the path of movement of the gage
may be changed to accomodate the machine to different classes of work. To this end
the gage carrier G is formed with an upper part provided on its under side
with a depending tongue g which is adapted to engage and slide in a correspond-
ing groove in the upper side of the lower part of the gage carrier, the two parts
being secured together in the desired relation to each other by a cap bolt g³
screwed into the lower part and passing down through a slot g³ arranged in
the upper part y parallel to the tongue g¹. Thus it is seen that the tongue and
groove will secure an adjustment of the position of the path of movement of the
gage without substantially changing its length or at all changing the direction
of that path.
The provision that is shown in the machine of the drawing for controlling the
direction of the path of movement of the movable gage is a gage carrier G2, which
is provided on its upper side with a circularly curved groove adapted to receive
a correspondingly shaped tongue ga upon the bottom of the lower part of the
gage carrier G₁, so that when motion is imparted by any suitable means to the
gage carrier it will move in the arc of a circle which corresponds to the curve of
the tongue of the gage carrier and gage carrier guide. The curve of the tongue
and groove is such that the path of movement of the gage will carry it from a
position in the rear of that shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, around in front of
the work guiding face of the fixed gage or work table SO as to
engage the upper of the shoc being sewed, and present its sole
in the desired position with relation to the stitch forming mechanism.
For different forms of extension soles it is desirable that the
of the path of movement of the movable gage be changed or adjusted to adapt
direction
the machine to the work and to this end the gage carrier guide G is adjustably
supported upon any convenient part of the machine. In the machine of the
drawing the front plate D2 of the feed slide guide is provided with a projecting
ear D³ on its left hand end through which passes a pivot screw D* to which is

page_text: pivoted the gage carrier guide G2. The position of this pivot is preferably near
or directly below the point of the fixed gage or work table so that when the gage
carrier guide is adjusted about the pivot as a center to change the direction of the
path of movement of the movable gage, the point of the path directly
over the pivot will not be changed, in other words that point of
the path of movement of the movable gage which intersects the axis of
the pivot will not be changed by changing the direction of tho
path of movement of the movable gage. If however the gage carrier be so
adjusted by means of the tongue and groove that the path of movement of the
movable gage does not intersect the axis of the pivot the only difference will be
that that point of the pivot will be but slightly moved with relation to the point
of the fixed gage or work table by adjustment of the gage carrier guide to secure
a change in the direction of the path of movement of the gage. Suitable holding
means is provided to secure the gage carrier in its adjusted position and for this
purpose in the machine of the drawings the gage carrier guide is provided with
the slot through which passes the cap bolt 8 which screws into the plate D³
of the feed slide guide. By the tongue and groove adjustment between the two
parts of the gage carrier the position and by the pivotal adjustment of the gage
carrier guide the direction, of the path of movement of the movable gage is
changed to secure the desired path of movement of the movable gage to adapt the
machine to the sewing of different kinds of shoes.
In the machine of the drawings the gage carrier is provided with a recess 9³,
V-shaped at the outside and parallel sided at its inner end into which extends
the gage lever arm H2 provided on its extreme end with a circular enlargement
adapted to engage the parallel sided inner end of the recess go, by which the
gage carrier is adapted to be moved. The gage lever arm H2 is provided on its
outer end with a vertical shaft H1 rotatably supported in a bearing H¹ which
is adjustably mounted upon the front of the feed slide guide 102, so as to be capable
of being moved closer to or farther from the gage carrier. It is obvious that as
the bearing H¹ is moved to the left being brought nearer to the gage carrier the
enlargement on the end of the gage lever arm will be moved farther into the
parellel sided inner end of the recess and nearer the center of curvature of the
groove and the result of a movement of the gage lever arm through a certain
arc will cause a correspondingly increased movement of the movable gage, in
other words, as the bearing H₁ is moved toward the gage carrier the length of
the path of movement of the movable gage will be proportionately increased.
To secure this adjustment I have provided the bearing H with a projection h
slotted longitudinally at hand adapted to he secured in the desired position by a
cap bolt screwed into the front face of the feed slide guide. The purpose of
this adjustment is to adapt the machine to the sewing of different sizes of shoes
as will be hereinafter more fully set forth, it being sufficient at this point to show
that by this means the length of the path of movement of the movable gage may
thus be changed. Upon the lower end of the shaft H the gage lever H is
adjustably secured by means of a cap bolt 3 passing through the slotted end of
the gage lever, so that the lever may be secured in any desired position on the
shaft H31 as shown.
Automatic pattern mechanism is provided for actuating the movable gage so
as to vary the position of the seam during the sewing operation and for this
purpose any desired pattern mechanism may be employed, the preferred form of
which is described as follows:-
Projecting outwardly from one side of the stand C¹ is an arm C² which carries
at its outer end a bearing for the cam shaft F, which latter is shown in detail
in Fig. 5. The cam shaft is provided on its upper end with a projecting flange Fi
which rests upon and is thus supported by the upper face of the bearing C³;
upon the upper side of this flange is carried a loose bell crank lever F2, above
which is carried a ratchet disk F3 provided with square teeth as shown so as to
be actuated in either direction by the reversible ratchet hereinafter described,

page_text: said ratchet disk being splined upon the shaft and held in position by a nut and
washer. The shaft F is shouldered above the bell crank lever, which is made a
little thinner than the distance from the upper side of the flange F¹ to the
shoulder, so that when the ratchet disk is clamped down upon the shoulder by
the nut the bell crank lever will remain loose and capable of being oscillated
upon the shaft. Upon the lower end of the cam shaft is carried a gage cam F4,
which is provided with a sleeve F5, splined on the cam shaft and held at the
desired heighth thereon by a set screw, and provided on its underside with a cam
groove, hereinafter more fully described. The lower end of the cam shaft
is provided with a screw threaded hole adapted to receive a cap bolt by means of
which a collar F6 is fastened to the shaft; the purpose of this collar is herein-
after pointed out. In order to provide against accidental rotation of the cam
shaft there is provided a friction brake, which consists of a screw F7 which enters
a boss in the side of the bearing C, and is adapted to compress a piece of raw
hide or other suitable substance F8 against the cam shaft. In the machine of
the drawing the bell crank lever receives its motion from the feed lever, it being
connected thereto by a connection C, which is pivoted to the feed lever and
arm f of the bell crank lever as shown. The feed lever is provided with a longi-
tudinal slot c, so that the amplitude of oscillation to be imparted to the bell
crank lever may be varied by moving the connection towards and from the
fulcrum. A cross section of the feed lever C, a longitudinal section of the end
of the connection C and the connecting bolt care shown in detail in assembled
position in Fig. 7. The other arm f¹ of the bell crank lever is provided with a
spring pressed pawl f adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchet disk; it is
mounted in a recess in the end of the lever and pressed towards the ratchet disk
by means of a spiral spring f located behind it. The spindle of the pawl pro-
jects outwardly through the spiral spring and through the hole f³ in the bell
crank arm, and carries on its outer end a pin f6. Notches in the outer end of
the arm of the bell crank lever are adapted to engage and hold the pin fo of
the pawl so that it will be held in the position as shown in Fig. 1, which will
secure left hand rotation to the cam shaft, or in the opposite position which
would secure right hand rotation to the cam shaft; and the notches at right
angles thereto, the bottom of which are farther distant from the center are
adapted to engage and hold the pin fo in position so that the pawl will be with-
drawn from engagement with the ratchet disk and inoperative to actuate it.
Provision is made for rotating the gage cam one revolution and causing it to
automatically stop at the completion thereof and to this end I have shown the
ratchet disk as provided with one wide tooth f, so that when rotation is imparted
to the ratchet disk by the pawl, it will continue to impart a step by step rotation
to the disk until the wide tooth f comes under the pawl which will occur when
one revolution of the ratchet disk is completed and further movement will then
cease by reason of the failure of the pawl to pass beyond the smooth surface of
this tooth.
The gage lever H is adapted in certain positions of the gage cam, hereinafter
defined, to be moved by hand, but for automatic movement it is moved by means
of the cam link I pivoted at H³ to the gage lever, the said link carrying upon
its upper side at its cam end a cam roller I¹ which is adapted to enter and be
actuated by the cam groove f, above referred to, of the gage cam.
The cam
link must be supported and guided by appropriate provisions and for this
purpose the cam end of the link is forked at 12 and embraces the lower end of
the cam shaft F between its forks, being held from downward displacement by
means of the washer F, carried by the lower end of the cam shaft F as above
described.
For certain classes of work it may be desirable to have a connection between
the gage lever and the feed regulating lever D and to this end there is shown a
connecting link K pivoted to the gage lever at H and passing loosely through an
opening in a lug d depending from the lower side of the feed regulating lever,

page_text: so that two stops K¹ adjustably fixed upon the link K upon opposite sides of the
lug d, by engagement with said depending lug of the feed regulating lever will
secure a movement of one lever from the other. By this means changing the
feed (or length of stitch) may secure the throwing of the movable gage into and
out of operation, or the throwing of the gage into and out of operation may
secure a change of feed.
:―
The operation of the machine of the drawings is as follows:-
Assuming that it is desired to sew a right shoe, the movable gage is entirely
withdrawn from in front of the work guiding face of the fixed gage or work table
by moving the gage lever to a position somewhat farther out than the position
in which it is shown in the drawings; the cam roller I will be
completely withdrawn from the cam groove through the open-
ing 4, of said groove, clearly shown in Fig. 6; the ratchet disk and gage
cam will be in the position shown in Fig. 1, the feed regulating lever will be in
approximately the position shown in the drawings, that is to say in its outer
position, so as to make long stitches, for the stitches are longer in the shank
than in the forepart of the sole; the pawl will be in the position shown in Fig. 1,
but on the other side of the wide tooth f from that shown and the ratchet disk
and cam groove will be stationary by reason of the fact that the oscillations of
the pawl will be of insufficient amplitude to carry the pawl beyond the wide
tooth. The outside of the shank of the sole at a point near the heel will be laid
on the work supporting face of the feed gage or work table and the machine set
in operation to sew the outside of the shank, during which operation the upper
of the shoe will be pressed against the work guiding face of the fixed gage or
work table, the movable gage and its associated parts will remain stationary and
in the position above described. Before the completion of the sewing of the
outside of the shank the feed regulating lever will be moved inward to shorten
the stitches; the gage lever will be moved inward to carry the cam roller I'
into the cam groove f* of the gage cam at the point indicated by 1 in Fig. 6;
the pawl will be turned over by the operator with its flat face in the opposite
position from that shown in Fig. 1; continued motion of the machine will begin
the sewing of the outside of the forepart of the sole. The gage cam will be
progressively turned to the left as seen in Fig. 1, (to the right as seen in Fig. 6)
and the cam roller I¹ on the cam link will enter the grooves f* at the point 1
and the gage cam will draw the gage lever inward thus forming the movable
gage gradually and progressively outward, and between the work guiding face
of the fixed gage or work table and the upper of the shoe, so that the distance of
the seam or line of stitches from the upper will gradually increase, until the roller
reaches that part of the groove indicated by 2, which corresponds to the outside
of the ball of the shoe, then the distance of the seam or line of stitches from
the upper will gradually decrease, until the roller arrives at the point marked 3,
which corresponds to a point on the outside of the sole near the toe; at the time
the pawl will have arrived at the wide tooth f and the ratchet disk and gage cam
will cease to be rotated and the cam roller will remain at the point 3 of the cam
groove during the sewing of the remainder of the forepart of the sole, the
distance of the seam or line of stitches from the upper remaining constant and
corresponding to the distance of the point 3 of the cam groove from the center
of the gage cam; then the gage lever will be moved outward thereby withdraw-
ing the gage from in front of the work guiding face of the fixed gage or work
table, and at the same time withdrawing the cam roller from the groove of the
gage cam through the opening 4; the feed regulating lever too will be moved
outward to increase the length of the stitches and the parts, with the exception
of the pawl, will thus be restored to the position they occupied during the sewing
of the outside of the shank and continued operation of the machine will sew the
inside of the shank of the sole. The next shoe taken up by the operator to be
sewed will be a left shoe and sewing will begin with the parts in the same
position by laying the inside of the shank of the sole, the feed regulating lever

page_text: will be moved inward to shorten the stitches; the gage lever will also be moved
inward until the cam roller I assumes the position indicated at 3 in the cam
groove of the gage cam; the position of the parts is thus seen to be the same
as that occupied during the sewing of the inside and toe of the forepart of the
right shoes; continued operation of the machine will sew the inside
of the forepart of the shoe and around the toe to a point on the
outside and near the toe, there the pawl will be turned over and
immediately begin to rotate the ratchet disk and gage cam to the
right as seen in Fig. 1 (in the opposite direction to that in which it was
rotated during the sewing of the right shoe) and the variations of the distance of
the seam or line of stitches from the upper will take place in the inverse order to
that described in sewing the right shoe. At the conclusion of the sewing of the
forepart of the sole the ratchet, disk and gage cam will cease rotation, and then
the gage lever and feed regulating lever will be moved to the position for sewing
the shank of the shoe as above described, at the conclusion of which the parts
will be in position ready to sew a right shoe.
The machine of the drawings as before stated is especially adapted to the sewing
of "Baltimore edge" shoes, but by providing appropriate gage cams and ratchet
disks the machine will sew shoes with different forms of extension edge soles;
by variations of the pitch of the teeth of the ratchet disk it is possible to make
gage cams correspond to different fractional parts of the forepart of the sole or
to the whole thereof.
An exceedingly useful feature of my invention is the provisions for sewing
different sizes of shoes with the same gage cam without changing the machine
in any way except in matter of adjustment. With stitches of the same length
different gage cams or ratchet disks would of course be necessary in sewing shoes
of different sizes to allow for the different lengths of seams, but this is obviated
by increasing the length of the stitches with and in proportion to the increased
size of the shoe. This for instance, if the gage cam and ratchet disk illustrated
in the drawings were designed to sew a certain sized shoe with a certain number
of stitches per inch around the forepart of the shoe and it is desired to sew larger
shoes on the machine, all that is necessary is to adjust the feed lever so that the
number of stitches per inch would be proportionately diminished, that is, the
length of the stitches would be proportionately increased and the gage cam and
ratchet disk would then correspond to the larger sized shoe.
By decreasing the length of the stitches, the same gage cam and ratchet disk
would in like manner be adapted to the sewing of smaller sized shoes. This
result may also be accomplished by adjustment of the bearing H₁ to the right or
left in order to vary the amplitude of oscillation of the movable gage or in other
words the length of its path of movement. When the bearing is moved to the
right the length of the path of movement of the movable gage will be decreased
and then the same gage cam and ratchet disk will make the larger sizes of shoes,
and when moved to the left the corresponding smaller sizes can be made.
My invention therefore contemplates the use of one gage cam and ratchet
disk for sewing different sizes of shoes.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
of a movable work gage, and mechanism for automatically actuating said work
gage during the sewing operation, to vary the position of the seam with relation
to the upper of the shoe, substantially as described.
2. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
of a fixed work gage for supporting the projecting edge of the sole, a movable
work gage and mechanism for automatically and progressively advancing the
movable gage in front of the fixed gage during the sewing operation to vary the

page_text: position of the seam with relation to the upper of the shoe, substantially
as described.
3. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
comprising a work feeding mechanism, of a movable work gage, and mechanism
actuated by the work feeding mechanism for automatically moving the gage
during the sewing operation, substantially as described.
4. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with stitch forming and work
feeding mechanism, of a movable work gage, mechanism for automatically
moving the gage during the sewing operation to vary the position of the seam,
and means for relatively adjusting the feeding and gage moving mechanisms for
operation upon shoes of different sizes, substantially as described.
5. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with stitch forming mechanism,
of a movable work gage, mechanism for automatically moving said gage during
the sewing operation, and means for adjusting the movements of the gage to
properly position said gage for shoes of different sizes, substantially as described.
6. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism, of
a movable work gage, mechanism for automatically moving said gage during the
sewing operation to vary the position of the seam with relation to the upper of the
shoe, and means for changing the path of movement of said gage, substantially
as described.
7. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
of a movable work gage and pattern mechanism for actuating said gage, con-
structed and arranged to actuate the gage to position the seam on a right shoe
when turning in one direction and a left shoe when turning in the opposite
direction, and connected mechanism for actuating the shoe sewing and pattern
mechanisms, substantially as described.
8. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
of a movable gage and mechanism for automatically advancing and retracting
said gage, and means under the control of the operator for connecting said gage
with and disconnecting said gage from its actuating mechanism, substantially
as described.
9. In a shoe sewing machine, the combination with shoe sewing mechanism,
of a movable gage, mechanism for automatically advancing and retracting said
gage, means under the control of the operator for bringing the gage actuating
mechanism into operation, and means for automatically stopping said gage during
the continued operation of the shoe sewing mechanism, substantially as described.
Dated the 7th day of September 1899
WM. BROOKES & SON,
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Agents for the Applicant.