IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Greenbank and Samuel Pilkington, of
Withnell, in the County of Lancaster, Overlookers in the employ
of Messieurs John Park and Sons, of Withnell aforesaid, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING COTTON
AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES."
Sealed the 21st December 1858, and dated the 21st October 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Greenbank
and Samuel Pilkington at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 21st October 1853.
We, JAMES GREENBANK and SAMUEL PILKINGTON, of Withnell, in the
County of Lancaster, Overlookers in the employ of Messieurs John
Park and Sons, of Withnell aforesaid, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING
COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES" to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists in certain improved combinations of ma-
chinery applicable to self-acting mules, and particularly to those known
as Smith's self-acting mules.
Our improvements consist, first, in the application of a ball governor,
or other centrifugal, apparatus, which is put in motion by the front

page_text: shaft or other suitable shaft of the mule. When the carriage is
out, and the twist is being put into the yaru, the governor balls
are expanded, and the carriage strap is held on the loose pulley by
a catch; but as soon as the whole twist has been given to the yarn
the governor balls collapse, and in so doing the catch which holds the
carriage strap on the loose pulley is disengaged by a system of levers
in connection with the governor, thereby allowing the carriage strap to
move partially on to the fast pulley for putting the fallers down gradually,
in order to prevent the breaking of the yarn. When the fallers are
down the carriage strap is completely on the fast pulley, and the carriage
is put up in the ordinary manner.
When the carriage, in going out, arrives at the end of its stretch,
another of our improved combinations of machinery comes into opera-
tion; this consists of a break applied to a pulley on the driving shaft,
which is brought into contact with the pulley by a finger at the end
of the mangle wheel shaft acting on a catch, which liberates a weight,
thereby drawing the break on to the pulley.
Our last improvement consists of a shaft placed at the end of the
head stock. On this shaft is a wheel, which is put in motion by a worm
on the same shaft as the governor before referred to. The number of
teeth in the wheel driven by the worm can be varied to suit the amount
of twist required in the yarn. At one end of this shaft is a finger for
knocking off the spindle strap, and at the other end is a finger for
stopping the spindles, by bringing the spindle break into operation.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters l'atent,
filed by the said James Greenbank and Samuel Pilkington in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 21st April 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we,
JAMES GREENBANK and SAMUEL. PILKINGTON, of Withnell, in the County
of Lancaster, Overlookers in the employ of Messieurs John Park and
Sons, of Withnell aforesaid, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of October, in the

page_text: year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the
seventeenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and grant unto us, the said James Greenbank and Samuel
Pilkington, Her special licence that we, the said James Greenbank
and Samuel Pilkington, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said James Greenbank and Samuel Pilkington,
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 MACHINERY FOR SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS
SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
James Greenbank and Samuel Pilkington, by an instrument in writing
under our hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of either of us,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Inven-
tion, 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 James Greenbank and Samuel
Pilkington, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say:
Our Invention consists, firstly, in the application to self-acting mules
of a ball governor or other centrifugal apparatus, whereby the position
of the strap for actuating the carriage is changed from the loose to the
fast pulley, after the operation of twisting.
Secondly, in an improved mode of applying a break to the back
driving shaft of certain self-acting mules, which break is brought into
operation when the carriage is at the end of its stretch, for the pur-
pose of checking the momentum of the parts by which the carriage is
taken out.
And, lastly, in an inproved arrangement of parts for regulating the
amount of twist given to the yarn, and for stopping the spindles,

page_text: carried into elect, we will proceed to describe the means pursued by
us, reference being had to the annexed Drawing, and to the letters and
figures marked thereon.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1, represents a side elevation of the principal parts of a
machine for spinning, generally called Smith's self-acting mule, to
which our improvements are applied. Figure 2, is an end elevation of
the headstock of the said mule; Figure 3, a plan of part of the same;
and Figure 4, a detached view of part of our improvements. a, is the
framing; b, the drawing rollers; c, the rim shaft; d, the back driving
shaft; e, the twist shaft; f, the mangle wheel; f', the swing frame ;
and 9, the front shaft; all these parts are made in the usual manner.
To the front shaft g, is fixed a bevel pinion g', which gears into the
wheel h, fixed on the upright shaft ; to this shaft is attached the
governor i, which is constructed in the same manner as the governors
of steam engines.
is the sliding bush connected to the rod, the
upper end of which is hinged to the lever ; this lever is fixed to the
same shaft as the vertical lever ", which is connected by the link to
the catch; this catch, and the catch j', are supported on a stud j²,
and the catch j' is provided with a counterweight . To the end of
the rim shaft c, is fixed a worm c', which gears into the worm wheel k,
fixed on the shaft . Some of the teeth of the worm wheel k are
removed, in order that the shaft ke' may sometimes be at rest, although
the shaft c continues to revolve as long as the mule is at work. To
the shaft ¹ is fixed the stop finger ², which is held by the catches j
and j' before mentioned. At the outer extremity of the shaft k¹ is
fixed a slot lever k, to which is jointed the upper end of the link ',
the lower end of which is jointed to the slot lever m; this lever is
supported on a stud, and to it is fixed a bevel pinion m', gearing into
the bevel wheel n, fixed at one end of the shaft n', to the other end of
which is fixed the lever, by which the fallers are actuated in the
usual manner.
performs one revolution for every stretch
The shaft

page_text: of the carriage, but the shaft n² only performs a small portion of a
revolution, or as much as is necessary for putting the fallers down
during the same time. At the inner extremity of the shaft k' is fixed
the finger ko, which acts upon the lever o, seen best in Figure 4; this
lever is jointed to the bracket o', and to it is hinged the link o³, the
lower end of which is connected to the break lever o, which is common
to mules of this description. The link of passes through a slot in the
catch o'; this catch serves to hold the carriage strap on the loose
pulley d, when the carriage is out. A boss of is fixed to the link o²,
which boss when the link is raised comes against the under side of the
catch o, and sets the strap guide d' at liberty, which strap guide
is then moved into the position shewn in the plan, Figure 3, by the
spring d. Near the top of the upright shaft is fixed a worm h²,
which gears into the worm wheel p keyed on the shaft p'; part of the
circumference of this wheel is without teeth; the object of the blank
space is to allow the wheel p to remain at rest while the carriage is
running in, and the number of teeth in the wheel p can be varied to
suit the quantity of twist required. On the shaft p' is fixed a finger
p², which, when the shaft revolves, comes in contact with and moves the
pendant catch g, to which is jointed one end of the rod q', the other
end of which is jointed to the upper end of the lever ; this lever is
cast with the weighted latch ', by which the break lever o³ is held up.
To the shaft p' is fixed another finger p", which is in communication with
the spindle strap guide, by which the spindle strap is moved from the
fast pulley e' to the loose pulley e", by means of the pendant catch p',
rod p, and lever 1, which are seen best in Figure 3. The lever is fast
on the upright shaft ', and is held in its proper position by the spring
piece. On the shaft is fixed the usual strap guide ³, and the
lever 2, which is acted upon in the usual manner by a stud projecting
from the carriage square. On the shaft is also fixed the lever, the
office of which will be explained bereafter. From the rod p³ descends
a projecting piece in which is a pin p"; this pin serves to hold the catchi
, when the shaft p' is stationary, or when the worm his revolving in
the blank space between the teeth of the worm wheel p. To the back

page_text: driving shaft & is fixed the break pulley d", under which passes the strap
s, one end of which is made fast to the spring s¹, and the other end,
after passing over the guide pulleys, is attached to a rod ; the lower
end of this rod is jointed to a levers, which is supported on the fulcrumi
studs. From the lever st depend the latches and s, the latter of
which is acted upon by an anti-friction roller t, at the end of a lever t
fixed to the shaft of the swing frame f¹; to the latch is fixed a stud
83, and to the latch s is hinged one end of the rod u, the other end of
which is jointed to the pendant catch ', fitting on a stud attached to
the framing; the lower end of the catch u is acted upon by the lever
-
above mentioned. The Drawing represents the various parts in the
positions they occupy when the carriage is going out. The front shaft, 9
is therefore revolving, and imparts the requisite motion to the shaft
for expanding the governor balls ; the rod is thereby raised, and
the levers and 2, and link, hold the catelj forward, or in the
position for arresting the motion of the finger, which is held against
the catch by the weight k', the worm being at this time revolving
in the blank space between the teeth of the wheel . The catch is
held in a line with the catch, by the weight, and both the catches
bear against a bracket attached to the framing, as shewn in Figure 1.
When the carriage arrives near the end of its stretch the counterfaller
shaft 2, by coming against a projection of the catch, overcomes the
weight, and pushes the catch when the carriage is out into the
position shewn in dots in Figure 1; the catch; remaining in its original
position until the operation of spinning or twisting is completed. The
guide d for the carriage strap c, is during this time being moved in
the ordinary manner, so as to move the strap from the fast pulley d
to the loose pulley . The catch of then rises into the position shown
, so that the strap
by dots in Figure 4, and holds the strap guide
remains on the loose pulley d³. As soon as the strap is on the loose
pulley d, the break s is applied to the pulley in the following
manner: The swing frame f", in moving towards the centre of the
mangle wheel, causes the anti-friction roller t' to raise the catch,
until the stul & comes, against the catch s, the action of which elevates

page_text: the short end of the lever s, and depresses the longer end; by this
means the rod is drawn downwards, and the break s applied, thereby
checking the motion of the parts by which the carriage is taken out.
When the carriage is out the spindles continue to revolve in the
usual manner until suflicient twist is given to the yarn; the spindle
strap c' is then moved from the fast pulley e¹ to the loose pulley e, by
the worm wheel p, and parts acting in combination therewith; the
finger p, which revolves in the direction of the arrow in Figure 1, is
set a little in advance of the finger p, and acts on the pendant catch p',
thereby moving the lever », and strap guide 7, as much as is requisite
to move the strap c' from the pulley e to the pulley . At the same
time that this is being effected the lever by acting on the pendant
catch, draws the bar in the direction of the arrow, and pulls the
catch s from the stud 5; consequently as the swing frame f' continues
to move towards the centre of the mangle wheel f, the catch is at
liberty to move up with the lever t, without raising the levers, the short
end of which then drops and allows the lever & to regain its original
position. The break strap s is thus slackened off the pulley ; the finger
p2 then comes into operation, and liberates the break lever o³, by drawing
the rod in the direction of the arrow in Figure 1; by this means
the weighted catch is withdrawn from under the projection on the
lever o, which then drops until the break e is applied to the wheel e,
and the momentum of the spindles and parts by which they are driven
is checked. The worm wheel p has at this time arrived in such a
position that the the blank space between the teeth of the wheel P
opposite to the worm h², and consequently no motion is communicated
to the shaft p'; the weight ps is then in the proper position for holding
the catch p in contact with the stud p" projecting from the rod p³.
is
When these operations have been effected the upright shaft h' ceases
to revolve, consequently the governor balls collapse, and the sliding
bush and rod drop, thereby causing the levers and, and link
to pull the catch into the same position as the catch j'. The stop
finger being now at liberty, the action of the weight draws the
wheel into geer with the worm e, thereby causing the worm c¹ to

page_text: impart a slow motion to the shaft k' in the direction of the arrow in
Figure 2; the catch is then brought in contact with the longer end
of the lever o, seen. best at Figure 4, thereby raising the shorter end
thereof, and raising the rod o; this raises the break off the wheel e,
and brings the break lever o into its original position, where it is held
by the weighed catch ³, which drops under the projection from the
lever o, in the ordinary manner. During the upward motion of the
rod o, the boss o" comes against and raises one end of the latch o',
the other end of which is consequently depressed, and the strap guide
d, which had previously been held so that the strap was on the loose
pulley d, is then at liberty to be pushed into the position represented
in Figure 8, by the spring . During the time that the catch o' is
being raised, and the strap is moving from the loose pulley d, to the
fast pulley d', the fallers are being put down by the shaft k', lever k³,
link, lever m, pinion m', wheel n, shaft n', and the lever n³, which
acts on a curved lever in connection with the fallers. This curved
lever is not shewn in the Drawing, as it is common to mules of this
description. When the strap c arrives on the fast pulley d', the carriage
begins to run in, and when it arrives near the drawing rollers b, the
stud projecting from the carriage square comes in contact with the
lever, thereby putting the spindle strap c on to the fast pulley e',
and replacing the various parts in their proper positions for performing
their several operations at the next stretch.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
of performing the same, we wish it to be understood that we do not
limit ourselves to the details herein set forth, as the same may be varied
without departing from the peculiar character of our Invention; but
what we do claim is,―
Firstly, the application to self-acting mules and other machines of
the like nature for spinning cotton and other fibrous substances, of a
centrifugal governor, by which the requisite mechanism is put into
operation for moving the carriage strap from the fast to the loose pulley
when the operation of twisting the yarn is completed.
Secondly, the improved machinery herein-before shewn and described

page_text: At for che
ne momen-
tum of the parts by which the carriage is worked; and,
Lastly, the worm wheel marked p, in Figure 1, and parts acting in
combination therewith, for regulating the amount of twist given to the
yarn.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Greenbank and Samuel
Pilkington, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Nine-
teenth day of April, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
SAMUEL PILKINGTON. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the within-
named James Greenbank and Samuel
Pilkington, in the presence of
H. B. BARLOW,
Patent Agent,
Manchester.