AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE TREATMENT. OF STRICKS OR BUNDLES OF FIBRES, AND THE CONVERSION OF THE SAME INTO SLIVERS OR RIBBONS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents, 66,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman,
for the Invention of "AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE TREATMENT. OF STRICKS
OR BUNDLES OF FIBRES, AND THE CONVERSION OF THE SAME INTO SLIVERS
OR RIBBONS."-A communication from abroad by Charles de Iongh, of
Guebwiller, in the Empire of France.
Sealed the 15th June 1860, and dated the 28th December 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton,
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th December 1859.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE TREATMENT OF
STRICKS OR BUNDLES OF FIBRES, AND THE CONVERSION OF THE SAME INTO SLIVERS
OB RIBBONS," to be as follows:-
In the dressing frames, heckling, or other similar machines, the stricks or
bundles of fibres are held in hinged clasps or other clips or holders, one-half or
thereabouts of the fibres being tightly nipped in such clasps, the other portion
being allowed to protrude therefrom, so that it may be acted upon by the
combing needles or apparatus. When this first operation has been effected
the combed end is. secured in another clasp or holder, and the other end of
the fibres being released from the first clasp, the uncombed end is operated
upon in the same manner. This mode of combing is very defective, inas-
much as a certain of short and broken fibres, as well as as small lumps,. are

page_text: unavoidably left in the middle of the stricks, which ought to have been combed
out.
Now the object of this Invention is to provide a means for combing out such
short and broken fibres and lumps, and thereby finishing and perfecting the
combing of such stricks of fibres, and for delivering the combed fibres out of
the machine in the shape. of slivers or ribbons. This is effected by the follow-
ing method:-The stricks are placed in combs or other suitable holding
instruments, in such a manner that one end shall protrude beyond the combs
so far, that if all the protruding fibres which form that end be drawn out, the
short and broken fibres which are in the middle of the strick, and which are
ultimately to be combed out, will remain along with the rest of the strick or
stricks in the combs, these protruding fibres having been drawn out by rollers
or other suitable drawing-off apparatus, and delivered out of the machine in
the shape of a sliver or slivers; the remainder of the stricks left in the combs
are taken off and introduced into the gripe of holders or clasps, in such a way
that the new ends of the stricks formed by the drawing out of the protruding
fibres protrude beyond the holders or clasps so far that the short and broken
fibres which are in these new ends shall not be held by the clasps, while the
long and good fibres shall be firmly held by the same; these holders or clasps
then present the protruding ends or fibres to the combing action of any suit-
able combing apparatus which will comb out all such short and broken fibres,
as well as any lumps or waste. The remainder of the stricks is next trans-
ferred from the holders into a second set of combs or other holding instruments,
from which the fibres are drawn out by rollers or other suitable drawing-off
apparatus, and delivered out of the machine in the shape of a sliver.
g
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 28th June 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County 30
of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,' 35
the said Alfred Vincent Newton, Her special license that I, the said Alfred

page_text: Vincent Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE TREATMENT OF STRICKS OR BUNDLES OF FIBRES, AND
THE CONVERSION OF THE SAME INTO SLIVERS OR RIBBONS," being a communication
from abroad by Charles de Iongh, of Guebwiller, in the Empire of France,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton,
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 Alfred Vincent Newton, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-
When subjecting fibres to the action of dressing frames, heckling, or other
similar machines, the fibres in the form of stricks or bundles are tightly held
in hinged clasps or other clips or holders, one half the length, or thereabouts,
of the fibres at a time being allowed to protrude therefrom, so that it may be
acted upon by the combing needles or apparatus. This first operation having
been effected the ends are reversed, the fibres being secured in another clasp
or holder and released from the first clasp, and the uncombed end is in like
manner submitted to the combing operation. This mode of combing is. very
defective, inasmuch as short and broken fibres and also small lumps are
unavoidably left in the middle of the stricks after the operation.
Now the object of this Invention, as communicated to me from abroad, is to
provide a means for combing out such short and broken fibres and lumps, and
thereby to finish and perfect the combing of such stricks of fibres, and convert
the same into slivers or ribbons.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 shews in plan view, and Fig. 2 in side.
elevation, so much of an arrangement of combing and clamping machinery.
suitable for the purposes of this Invention as will serve to explain the manner,
of completing the combing operation by separating the short fibres and lumps
therefrom and drawing the useful fibres into ribbon's or slivers while effecting:

page_text: this separation. The endless travelling combs employed in this arrangement
are similar to those adapted to the assorting machine of the present Inventor,.
and patented by him May Twenty-first, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-.
six; and the system of clamps used for retaining the fibres on the combs while
the combing out of the short fibres and lumps is being effected is similar in
construction to those employed by the present Inventor in the machine for
combing silk and other fibres, for which he obtained Letters Patent, dated
Twenty-ninth October One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six. The con
struction of drawing head adopted is also similar to that described in the
Specification of a Patent' obtained on behalf of the present Inventor, and
bearing date October Eighteenth, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
The means for driving the various parts I have not thought it necessary to
shew, as that may be arranged according to the fancy of the machine maker';
and, indeed, the parts above referred to, although it is preferred to employ them
in attaining the object sought by the present Invention, may be displaced by
equivalent mechanism without departing from the nature of the present
improvement. In the above-mentioned Figures A, A, A, is a set of endless
chains of combs working over rollers B, C. Upon the teeth of these combs
the stricks of combed fibres are laid, so that the short or waste fibres
remaining in the stricks will lie near one edge of the group of combs. Above
the combs a brush D is mounted for pressing the fibres down between the
comb teeth, the brush receiving rotation from the friction of the passing combs.
On one side of the chain of combs A, supporting wires a, a, are placed for
guiding the fibres that project beyond the side of the band of combs up to a
wiper E, which brings them within the bite of the drawing rollers. The
chains A, A, A, are spaced out to allow of a set of clamping chains F to work
between them and over the same supporting roller C. These clamping chains
pass round and are carried by a second roller C. Above these chains is a
second set F¹, carried by rollers G, G¹, and forming with the lower chains a
rotating clamp, by which the fibres are transferred to a second set of endless
chain combs H, which occupy the spaces on the roller C' between the clamping
chains. To ensure the proper action of the clamping chains and enable them to
retain the fibres firmly until parted from each other at the point whore the
combs H take up the fibres, the clamps are grooved on their nipping surfaces,
and they are kept up to their work by stationary guide rollers I, I, I. By the
side of the clamps F, F', a pair of cone-shaped combs K is mounted for the
purpose of combing out the short fibres and lumps from the stricks, and by:
the side of the chain combs H a second drawing head is provided for taking
up the remainder of the combed fibres and drawing them into a sliver. In

page_text: advance of this drawing head are guide wires a¹, a', for supporting the pro-
jecting ends of the combed fibres, and bringing them within reach of the
wiper E¹, which guides them into the nip of the drawing rollers. It will now
be understood that if the combs, stricks, or bundles are laid upon the combs
A, A, so that the thickest portion which contains the short fibres is near the
edge of the drawing side of the combs, as indicated by colour in Fig. 1, the
combed fibres projecting beyond this side of the combs will first, as the combs
are traversed forwards, be taken hold of by the drawing head, drawn into a sliver,
and delivered in that form out of the machine. The clamping chains will then,
as the chain combs still move forward, close upon the combed fibres still remain-
ing in the machine, and hold them fast while the middle of the original stricks
or bundles is presented to the action of the conical combs K, K, as will be
best seen by reference to the cross section Fig. 3. These combs are made to
rotate in opposite directions, so that the fibres presented to them will be
combed by a downward and an upward motion. By this means the broken
fibres, lumps, and other refuse will be effectually removed from the combed
fibres, and the clamps will, by their gradual progression, deliver the fibres to
the combs H, which will in turn present them to the second drawing head,
whereby they will be converted into sliver, and run off in that form into cans
or other suitable receptacles.
Having now set forth the nature of the Invention of "An Improvement in
the Treatment of Stricks or Bundles of Fibres and the Conversion of the same
into Slivers or Ribbons," as communicated to me from abroad, and explained
the manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that
under the above in part recited Letters Patent I claim the treatment of
combed fibres in the manner and for the purpose above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-eighth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.S.)