Improvements in and relating to the Process of Mercerizing, Dyeing, Warping and Beaming and the like Treatment of Yarns.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Mar., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 28th Dec., 1899-Accepted, 24th Mar., 1900
Improvements in and relating to the Process of Mercerizing, Dyeing,
Warping and Beaming and the like Treatment of Yarns.
GRINDROD KERSHAW, Draughtsman, 64, Clement Royds Street, Rochdale, and
ALFRED SEELEY, Commercial Traveller, 34, South Street, Rochdale, in the County
of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention consists of an arrangement (of machines or mechanism or parts
of machines or process) whereby we are able to mercerize or dye yarn of different
fibres when being made into a warp, nart of a warp, or forming a congregation of
threads, by employing a creel or bank to carry out bobbins, cops, beams or the
like behind a warping machine, or other such machine, a tank or a number of
tanks for mercerizing, dyeing, neutralizing or washing, being attached to or
detached from the above mentioned warping machine, or other such machine, and
then being wound upon the warping or other such machine, into a warp, part
of a warp, or congregation of threads. We may or may not use one or more
sets of rollers to draw the yarn from the creel or bank of bobbins and the like
and also another set or sets of rollers to keep the yarn at a stretch to prevent
shrinkage of the yarn after treatment. We may also use in connection with
this process, mechanism, or machine, a stop motion arrangement, to stop the
machine at the breakage of an end or thread of varn.
We may also use a drying chamber or cylinder in connection with this process,
so as to dry the varn before it is made into a warp, or portion of a warp, or a
congregation of threads, or wound on to a beam, or such like process.
Dated this 28th day of March 1899.
GRINDROD KERSHAW.
ALFRED SEELEY.
Improvements in and relating to the Process of Mercerizing, Dyeing,
Warping and Beaming and the like Treatment of Yarns.
We, GRINDROD KERSHAW, Draughtsman, 64, Clement Royds Street, Rochdale, and
ALFRED SEELEY, Commercial Traveller, 34, South Street, Rochdale, in the County
of Lancaster, 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:
-
Our invention relates to a process and arrangements and combinations of
mechanism for subjecting cotton and other fibrous threads which can be so treated,
to the process known as mercerizing, while such threads are being formed into
warps or portions of warps, the threads forming such warps being wound from
bobbins, cops or like receptacles or forms of thread placed in a creel, and wound
on to what are termed "sections or beams, or balled, linked or wound into a
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page_text: box or bag or otherwise formed in any ordinary way, in which warps are pre-
pared, the process being a combined warping, mercerizing and when required
dyeing, at one and the same operation.
The mechanism for carrying out the operations may be varied. For example
there are or may be bobbins, cops or other forms in which threads are accumu-
lated, (or beams as hereinafter described) placed in a creel or bank of any ordinary
construction, and the yarns or threads are collected from the creel or creels and
taken through the spaces of a reed or like instrument, and then pass over rollers
either driven by power or by being rotated by the threads passing over or round
them. Each separate thread may pass under and over drop rollers when used,
and then passes or may pass through the hook, hole or curl in a drop or
detector pin or wire and over rods or rollers which hold up the
threads against the weight of the detector or drop pins or wires suspended on
them, any one of which detectors will fall or drop when the thread passing
through its eye or hook falls from the breakage or absence of the thread, and
this causes the winding or progress of the threads through the machine to stop.
The detector or stop mechanism to be used may be any ordinary and well known
stop mechanism such as "Singleton's" by preference.
From the detector stop mechanism the thread then passes through the spaces of
a reed of the desired width, or through a reed such as are known as
V or
expanding and contracting reeds which will guide the threads passing through
them into any desired space or width.
The threads then pass or may pass under and over a series of rollers or other
guides or supports over troughs or tanks containing the mercerizing solution of
such strength as is desired, which may vary with the speed at which the threads
pass along or the character of the threads to be treated, some of the rollers or
guides for the thread being immersed in the solution so that the threads passing
over them become saturated in passing through the solution in the tank. The
threads next pass or may pass from rollers over the solution tank to a series of
rollers similar to those in the mercerizing tank through a neutralizing tank or
acid solution, and then the threads are or may be passed through a washing tank
and are or may be stretched to some extent while in or over each tank to counter-
act the shrinking produced by the mercerizing solution. This stretching is or
may be effected by arranging that the roller or rollers in or over the mercerizing,
neutralizing and washing tanks, having increasing surface speeds.
Neutralizing, checks a too excessive action of the solution and the washing
removes any excess therefrom.
B
From the washing tank, the threads pass to a section warping, machine
which draws (if the rollers are not positively driven) or assists in drawing the
threads from the bobbins, cops or other forms of thread--but any other known
mechanism in place of the section warping machine may be used for accumulating
the threads into any of the ordinary forms of warps or parts of warps.
In some cases, if desired, the threads after leaving the washing or neutralizing
tank are passed in contact with the surface of a drying cylinder of any ordinary
arrangement such as those used in warp sizing machines and for other drying
purposes heated by steam. Or the threads are arranged to pass over a series of
rollers in a chamber heated by hot air or steam boxes or pipes, or near them before
passing to the section warping or other equivalent machines. Or in some cases
the warps which have been made by our process may be passed over heated
rotary cylinders or through heated chambers while being wound say from one
section to another or on to beams.
The threads when passing both the mercerizing and neutralizing or washing
tanks are or may be caused to pass between rollers that will squeeze the moisture
out of them to a large extent especially those rollers which act on the threads
when leaving the mercerizing, neutralizing and washing tanks.
Fig. 1
is a side elevation to illustrate the manner of carrying our invention
into effect, and Fig. 2 is a similar elevation with a drying arrangement added,

page_text: a, is any ordinary and suitable creel, in this case it is supposed to be one for
bobbins like ordinary warping bobbins-from bobbins in the creel the threads pass
through the spaces in an ordinary reed b, used for such purpose-then pass over a
roller c, and other rollers, and each thread through the eye of a detector drop
pine, which falls and passes between two rollers e, below the pins, and the
movement thus given to one roller in being separated by the pin passing between
them from the other roller, acts to cause the machine to stop. This arrangement
is or may in every respect be the same as that known as "Singleton's" warping
or beaming and stop mechanism, and the rollers indicated by c¹ and ², or others
added, are those or some of them which descend and ascend in a well known
manner when taking up and giving out slack thread from the creel.
From the drop or detector mechanism, the threads pass through an ordinary V
or expanding and contracting reed d, which can be used for causing the threads
to spread to any desired width then they pass over a roller e¹ and between it
and one e, below it, and then under another roller 3, and then over a roller et,
and between it and a roller e, and then under a roller e, and between it and
one e, above it.
The rollers e, e,
and e, are within the mercerizing tank e, and more or less
immersed in the solution therein.
There is a similar series of rollers to those used in the mercerizing tank, in or
over the tank f, for water, for washing the threads passing from the roller e, to
the roller f, between it and the roller f, below it, then to the roller f, between
it and the roller f, under the roller f, under the roller f, and between it and
the roller above fi.
The threads pass or may pass from the roller f, to the roller g', which may
represent the measuring roller of the section warping machine g, on to the block g³,
of such machine or any equivalent machine for forming threads into a warp or
partial warp similar to warps wound on section blocks.
In cases where the threads pass between two rollers, as between c¹ and e³; et
and and e f and f²; f and f; and fo and f, the upper roller is pressed
down upon the lower roller by levers and weights or springs, in any ordinary
manner as when rollers are used for gripping and squeezing threads or fabrics
passing between them. The pairs of rollers and e; and e": f³ and f*;
and and f, will act to squeeze the moisture out of the threads more or less
as required.
These gripping and squeezing rollers also act when required to put any required
stretch or tension upon the thread.
The mechanism is driven from the "Singleton" machine having the detector
drop pins ‹³, by a belt h, working on the driving pulleys of that machine, so that
the entire machine stops and starts with the "Singleton" machine, and it is or
may be driven from the driving shaft of that machine, by a bevel wheel h',
gearing with one on a horizontal shaft h², passing on one side in the lengthway
of that machine in suitable bearings.
From bevel wheels on this shaft h2, other bevels on studs in the framing are in
gear arranged according to the direction of rotation required, and each of these
bevels or studs, has a wheel upon it for an endless toothed chain h³, (though other
gearing may be substituted) to drive the chain wheel on the axis of the lower
roller of each pair of gripping or squeezing rollers. It is by arranging this
gearing or the diameters of the rollers that the passing threads may be more or
less stretched as required.
For example, the surface speed of the rollers and e, is greater than the
surface speed of the rollers and e, to give stretch, and so on with the other
rollers if the yarn is to be further stretched.
The section warping machine g, is driven by a friction pulley, which may be
arranged to slide on a key on the horizontal shaft h, this pulley h+, being pressed
as in section warping machines against a disc on the shaft of the section block,
and the friction pulley is or may be regulated in position in relation to the

page_text: friction disc h³, upon which it operates by mechanism similar to that of the
ordinary section warping machine.
Or the friction pulley 4, may be arranged to slip upon the disc it acts upon
more and more as the section block increases in diameter.
In Figs. 1 and 2 a mercerizing and washing tank is shown for example, but
when required a third tank is employed interposed between the mercerizing and
washing tank with a similar arrangement of rollers to those used in those tanks.
The neutralizing tank is one in which there is a solution of water and an
acid neutralizer, to arrest the action of the mercerizing solution upon the threads.
The solutions and water in the tanks is kept at near a fixed level, and may be
supplied as required to maintain the level by the attendant or by pipes and auto-
matic ball taps or valves connected with pipes from cisterns containing the solu-
tions or water to be supplied to the tanks.
Fig. 2 shows a similar machine to that illustrated by Fig. 1, except that a
drying cylinder is added. The threads as they come from the roller . of the
washing tank pass to a roller i, in a framing for an ordinary drying cylinder i,
heated by steam, under this cylinder and over another roller, and then to the
section warping or equivalent machine.
In place of the drying cylinder, the threads may pass over and under a series
of rollers which will cause them to pass through a chamber enclosing the rollers.
heated by hot air, or pass in close contact without touching, hollow boxes heated
by steam, there being outlets in the chamber of the drying apparatus to allow
vapour and moist air to escape at the top and fresh dry or heated air to enter
at the bottom of the chamber through which the threads pass to be dried.
We wish it to be understood that the mechanism to stop the machine when a
thread breaks may or may not be used as desired by our process of warping
and mercerizing yarns, and in some cases a neutralizing tank and drying arrange-
ments need not be used in our process of warping and mercerizing.
In some cases the threads warped and mercerized by our combined process may
be dried by a separate process, by causing the yarns from the section or other
form of warp or partial warp, in which they are accumulated, to pass from the
section or other form of warp over an ordinary drying cylinder heated by steam,
or through a chamber heated by air, or hollow boxes heated by steam to be
wound upon a section block in a section warping machine or on to a beam.
66
According to a modification of our invention, yarns or threads formed into
partial warps or sections" in say section warping or other suitable machines, are
arranged on an axis or on axes in a suitable creel or "bank" and the threads
are then taken over or round or partly round rollers in tanks for mercerizing,
neutralizing and washing, and cylinders i, or other equivalent arrangements for
drying (omitting the neutralizing and drying in some cases if desired) the arrange-
ments of tanks and rollers for this purpose being the same as those already
described in reference to Figs. 1 and 2, and then lastly on to a beam in place of
the block on the section shaft shown by Figs. 1 and 2, which is or may be driven
from a horizontal shaft corresponding to the shaft h2, Figs. 1 and 2, and by
friction pulley and disc, as above described in reference to Figs. 1 and 2. Reeds
may be used to keep the threads separate if desired, and guide them on to the
beam.
The horizontal shaft 2, in this case may be driven by a belt and its pulleys, shaft
and gearing as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, but placed in bearings in any con-
venient position, or any other suitable arrangements of gearing may be used for
driving the rollers and beam, on which the threads are to be wound.
The tanks and rollers and machine are made wide enough to suit the width of
the beams or width of threads to be treated.
The yarns or threads of the sections to be mercerized by this arrangement need
not be particular as to diameter, as is necessary for "sections" to be brought
end to end to form a full warp beam, as it will only be necessary to avoid waste

page_text: of thread, that they shall contain as near as possible a uniform length of yarn or
thread upon each section.
Each section in the creel or bank has or may have a suitable brake to retard its
rotation so that the threads from each section will be at about uniform tension
when being drawn therefrom. Or if the sections are made of uniform diameter
in a section warping machine they may all be fixed on the same shaft.
The same arrangement as above described, is used for mercerizing warps from
sections, for mercerizing warps made in any ordinary manner on beams, the
bank or creel for the beam or beams containing the warp threads to be mercerized
being arranged accordingly.
The solutions used for mercerizing are well known and vary in strength or
materials according to the character of the threads to be treated and the speed at
which they pass through the combined machine.
When threads which are or have been mercerized by our process and combina-
tion and arrangement of mechanism, require to be dyed after being mercerized,
this operation is or may be effected by our invention by adding one or more
tanks as required by the process with rollers arranged in a manner similar to those
described for mercerizing for effecting the required dyeing of the thread, being
dyed while passing through the tank or tanks. These dyeing tanks are placed
to succeed the washing tank f, so that the combined process of mercerizing, dye-
ing and warping or forming threads into warps is effected at one operation and
in one combined machine or apparatus.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. The warping of yarns or threads and mercerizing them in the same machine
at one operation, substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. The combination of machinery or arrangements for warping and mercerizing
yarns or threads at one operation substantially as hereinbefore described and
illustrated by the drawings.
3. The combination and arrangement of mechanism or apparatus in which the
warping, mercerizing and washing, or the warping mercerizing, washing and
drying, or the warping, mercerizing neutralizing and washing, or the warping,
mercerizing neutralizing, washing and drying the yarns or threads so treated and
wound on to a section or made into other form of warp is effected in the same
combined machine at one operation substantially as herein before described.
4. The combination and arrangement of mechanism or apparatus as under
Claim 3 with stop mechanism for stopping the operation when a thread breaks,
substantially as herein before described and illustrated by the drawings.
33
5. The drying of threads, warped and mercerized in one machine at the same
operation, in a separate operation, substantially as hereinbefore described.
or partial warps, or on
6. The mercerizing of warps first formed in "sections
beams, when being wound from sections or partial warps or beams, and passed
on to beams, substantially as and by the combinations and arrangements of
mechanism hereinbefore described.
7. The dyeing of yarns or threads after being mercerized and while being formed
into warps at one operation, and in one combined machine, substantially as herein-
before described.
dave of December 1899.