CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN BRAIDING OR PLATTING MACHINERY
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henri Louis Dormoy, Gentleman, of Paris, a Town
in the French Empire, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
Sealed the 3rd July 1855, and dated the 29th January 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henri Louis Dormoy at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
29th January 1855.....
I, HENRI LOUIS DORMOY, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN BRAIDING OR PLATTING MACHINERY" to be as
follows:
I manufacture fringes and other platted fabrics by means of platting or
braiding machinery, constructed with certain additional parts and motions,
some of which are worked by cams or excentrics, and act on the work almost
like hands or fingers. A series of revolving discs are arranged in a circular
or horse-shoe form, and are furnished with notches which carry round the
spindles, as in ordinary braiding or platting machinery. These spindles
are hollow, and carry the bobbins on their upper ends. Each bobbin has

page_text: a groove which receives the end of a spring, which prevents the bobbin
from rising and falling, but leaves it free to revolve as the thread is drawn
off from it.
The thread is kept stretched by a weight or rod inside the hollow spindle,
and the bobbin is locked by a catch, which is raised as the thread is consumed,
so as to allow a fresh portion to run off the bobbin. The rod falls when a
thread breaks, and it then strikes against one of a series of levers or fingers,
and by disengaging another lever from a catcli, it causes the driving pinion of
the machine to be drawn out of gear, and the machine is thus stopped. The
threads are caught by a hook on a horizontal rod, which carries them on to an
inclined rod forming a series of loops, which slide up the inclined rod, and
meet with a pair of cutting edges or scissors moved by a cam. The loops are
thus cut, and form the fringe. A wire or rod moved by a cam is continually
pressing upon and alternately releasing the work as it forms in a notch or fork
at the end of a fixed arm, and other rods or fingers, having a horizontal motion,
also press the sides of the work during its formation. The parts are so arranged
that if a loop escapes from the hook it catches against a lever, which releases a
detent and stops the machine.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henri Louis Dormoy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 2
14th July 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRI
LOUIS DORMOY, Gentleman, of Paris, a Town in the French Empire, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 2
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Henri Louis Dormoy, Her special licence that I, the said Henri Louis
Dormoy, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the 3
said Henri Louis Dormoy, 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,

page_text: usc, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN BRAIDING OR PLATTING MACHINERY," communicated to me
from abroad, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Henri
Louis Dormoy, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Henri Louis Dormoy, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the accompanying Drawing, and to
the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say:
The Invention relates to improvements in machinery for manufacturing
fringed braid, part of which improvements are also applicable to machinery
for making other descriptions of braid.
The complete machine comprises the following parts:-Cams or excentrics
for giving motion to parts of the machine; certain instruments acting some-
what in the manner of hands; a series of hollow spindles or bobbin holders,
which circulate in serpentine or undulating paths, so as to interlace the threads;
a lever or bar with a hook which carries the threads on to another hooked bar
or receiver, combined with a spring knife or shears for cutting the loops
of the fringe; certain combs or pins for forming the edge and for pressing
upon the work, and preventing it from being drawn forward; and an apparatus
for stopping the machine in the event of the breaking of a thread or other
accident.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawing is a front view of the machine;
Figure 3 is a back view of the same; Figure 2 is a side view, partly in sec-
tion; and Figure 4 is a plan of the machine; Figures 5 and,6 are horizontal
sections of the same; Figure 7 is an enlarged view of one of the hollow
spindles with its bobbin. The same letters refer to similar parts in each Figure.
A series of bobbins B, B, mounted upon hollow spindles are put in motion by
a set of discs C, C, having notches in their edges, and driven by geer from a
main shaft A, as in ordinary braiding machines. The course of the spindles
is governed by means of a series of moveable guides D, D, D, and E, whose
motion is limited by stops m and m². The bobbins are thus caused to move
in an undulating or serpentine course, until they arrive at the end of the series

page_text: of discs, when they return again in a similar manner to the other end of the
series, and so on continuously.
The threads from the bobbins B are thus interlaced or platted together to
form a braid. Other threads may also be introduced from bobbins F, F, through
the spindles of the discs C, which are made hollow for that purpose. The
threads are all conducted to a guide or fork at the point at the end of the
rode, where the braid is formed. Above the guide is fixed an inclined rod a,
the end of which is bent to form a sort of hook, as shewn in Figure 2. b is
another rod, having a hook on its under side which has a motion in a nearly
horizontal direction, by which it seizes the different threads in succession, and
then rises and loops them on the rod a. As the work proceeds, the loops slide
up the rod a until they arrive at a knife or pair of shears d, which is worked
by a rod acted upon by cams on a wheel M, as herein-after described. The
loops are thus cut by the shears, and form a fringe at the edge of the braid,
which passes away over rollers, one of which g is driven by gearing. At the
same time the threads. 'are seized by combs or fingers, which cause them to
rejoin the edge of the fringe, and by other combs or fingers which beat or
press them against the receiver or guide rod e. The roller gis covered with
emery, or glass paper, or other rough surface, so as to cause it to obtain
sufficient hold upon the braid to draw it forward. It carries a toothed wheel h,
which is driven by an endless screw i on a vertical spindle, which carries a
toothed wheel j, as shewn in Figure 3. The wheel j is driven by gearing
from the main shaft A.
The threads are carried by the rod b to the rod a, as already mentioned, for
which purpose the rod 6 receives an alternate vertical movement, combined
with an excentric or cam movement, which causes it to rise as it advances.
This motion is obtained by means of an enlargement or projection on the under
side of the prolongation of the rod b, which meets with a fixed incline or slope of
suitable form, which is placed as a guide in front of the connection of the rod b
with the vertical rod k, which receives a continuous reciprocating motion from
a cam or other mechanical means. To maintain the horizontal and vertical
direction of the rod b during its alternate horizontal and ascending motion, a
thread connected to it is attached to the frame of the machine, and another
thread serves as a spring, and is attached to the enlarged end of the rod.
The construction of the hollow spindle or bobbin carriers is shewn on a
larger scale in Figure 7. The spindle W carries an arm, to which is attached
a spring 1, which enters a groove in the bobbin and keeps up a slight degree of
friction on the bobbin, and prevents its action from being deranged. The

page_text: thread is passed through an eye in a small lever,, which rests in notches on the
upper end of the bobbin, and through an eye in a rod or wire within the hollow.
spindle W, and then through an eye at the top of the hollow spindle, in
the ordinary manner. The rod within the hollow spindle keeps the thread
properly stretched, and as the thread is consumed in producing.the braid, the
rod rises and lifts-the little lever, and allows the bobbin to revolve and give out
a fresh portion of thread. If the thread breaks or is all consumed, the rod falls
and projects through the lower end of the hollow spindle, and the machine is
immediately stopped, as herein-after described.
:
.
The machine is put in motion by means of a strap driving a pulley on the
spindle G, which carries a pinion H, which pinion is capable of being put in
gear with the pinion I, on the main shaft A, which drives the whole machine.
For this purpose it is only necessary to place the lever n in the position shewn
in Figures 1 and 2. This lever n is fixed to a spindle J, which is connected
by a chain or rod to a lever G¹, shewn in Figure 6, which carries the upper
bearing of the spindle G, which is thus advanced so as to put the pinion H into
gear with the pinion I.
A spring is employed to draw back the lever G¹ whenever the lever n is
released, so that by releasing the lever n the machine is immediately 'thrown
out of gear and stopped. The lever n is kept in the position shewn in Figures
1 and 2 by means of a hook O fixed to the barrel or spindle K, by turning
which, therefore, the machine is stopped. This spindle K is moved in the
following manner:-It carries a short arm p, which is so placed that it is
struck by the rod of one of the hollow spindles W, when such rod falls from
the failure of the thread; a series of these spindles K, K', &cta., are placed
round the machine and all connected together, so that in whatever part of the
machine the spindle may be when the thread breaks, the machine may be
immediately stopped. In the event of one of the threads escaping from the
rod a or from the hook of the rod b, which carries them to it, the thread strikes
against a curved rod or lever 9, which turns upon its axis r, and raises the
rod s, and lets go another rod t, which is constantly drawn forward by a coun-
terpoise or spring. This rod t strikes against the connecting levers of the
spindles K, K, and turns them so as to let go the lever n, and stop the machine
as before.
M is a horizontal wheel, driven by geering from the main shaft A, and
carrying two sets of cams or excentrics 2 and 3, in proportion to the number
of threads. The cams 2 communicate the motion to the vertical rod k in the
following manner :-A horizontal lever provided with a counterpoise is con-

page_text: stantly raised and lowered by the cams 2, and the motion of this lever. is
communicated by a rod (whose length can be adjusted or varied) to another
lever, and from that to the vertical rod k, by a horizontal connecting rod. The
rod k gives motion to the hooked rod b, as already mentioned. The same cams 2
give motion to the knife or shears d, by raising and lowering a counter-
poised lever L, to which is connected a rod u, which communicates the motion
to a bell crank or angular lever u³, and thence by the rod u to the shears d.
The cams 3 give motion to the comb or pin v, which oscillates up and down
a little, so as to withdraw itself from the threads and return again to prevent
the work from being drawn forward. This motion is communicated by means
of a lever L, resting on the cams 3 and giving motion to the rod w and to a
lever on a spindle x, which carries the rod with the comb or pin v.
carry
the
The two combs or pins N, which strike the threads at the sides of the braid,
are worked by two rods o, o, connected to an excentric pin on a horizontal
pinion y, which is driven by geering from the main shaft A. The rods o, o,
are connected to levers or arms on two vertical shafts P, P, which
combs or rods N. The greater portion of these vertical shafts is omitted
in the Figures to prevent confusion, but their lower ends are shewn in
Figure 3, and the top of one of them is shewn at P, in Figure 2. The
actions of the various parts of the machine concur at the same point z, where
the work is produced, and from whence the piece of braid or fringe passes
away continually over the rollers.
Various modifications in the work may be produced by varying the motions
of the parts and the number of cams and bobbins; and the length of the fringe
may be varied by altering the position of the knife or shears and the receiving
bar or rod a.
Having now described the nature of the Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I. wish it to be understood that what I
claim is,
Firstly, the constructing the spindles or bobbin carriers of braiding or
platting machinery with the spring 1, shewn in Figure 7, and herein-before
described.
Secondly, the constructing braiding or platting machinery with the rods a
and b, and knife or shears d, for forming and cutting the fringe, as herein-
before described.
Thirdly, the constructing braiding or platting machinery with apparatus
for throwing it out of gear, constructed and arranged in manner herein-before
described.

page_text: Fourthly, the general construction and combination of parts forming the
machine herein-before described, and the application of cams for giving motion
to the various parts, in manner herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henri Louis Dormoy, have hereunto
set my
hand and seal, this Tenth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
HENRI LOUIS DORMOY. (L.S.)
Witness,
CH. ARMENGAUD, Ing* Civil,
Rue Filles du Calvaire, 6, à Paris.