IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Slater and Robert Halliwell, both of
Bolton-le-Moors, in the County of Lancaster, Forcinen, for tho
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING."
Sealed the 22nd February 1854, and dated the 7th December 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Slater and
Robert Halliwell at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 7th December 1859.
We, WILLIAM SLATER and ROBERT HALLIWELL, both of Bolton-le-
Moors, in the County of Lancaster, Foremen, do hereby declare tho
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
SPINNING" to be as follows :-
..:
The first five of our improvements are particularly applicable to the
machines for spinning, known as Potter's low headstock self-acting
mules; they consist,―
First, in connecting the carriages of such mules by a bridge or rail
attached to each of the carriage ends next to the headstock, and
reaching either over or under the headstock.

page_text: Secondly, in casting or otherwise fixing together the cam (which
actuates the backing off and winding on catch boxes, and gives the
motion for lowering and raising the fallers) and the large wheel on
the cam shaft; this largo wheel actuates the requisite parts for taking
up the carriage.
Thirdly, in actuating the lever of the break for stopping the spindles
previous to backing off by an adjustable bowl, snug, or stud fixed on or
attached to the large wheel on the cam shaft.
Fourthly, in the application of a copping motion (to the before-
mentioned mules), the copping rail of which is raised or lowered by
inclined plates moving in a horizontal direction.
Fifthly, in an improved mode of regulating the winding on motion
according to the tension of the yarn acting on the under faller.
The last of our improvements is applicable to the winding on motion
of mules working with a radial arm, and consists in attaching a box to
the mule carriage; the lower part of this box is furnished with two
holes, through which passes a bar extending from the front to the
back of the headstock. Within the box is a weight suspended by a
cord or chain to a pulley on the under faller shaft. The front end of the
bar is provided with an inclined slot in which the tail of a forked lever
fits; the upper part of this lever is in connection with a sliding catch
box on the same shaft as the bevel pinion that gears into the pinion at
the bottom of the screw of the radial arm. Upon the same shaft is a
check band pulley shaft or
pinion, to which motion is given from the
other convenient part of the mule. When the tension of the yarn on
the under faller is too great, the weight drops in the box and comes in
contact with the bar, which is thus held fast, so that as the carriage
continues to move in, the bar is moved with the carriage, and the tail
of the lever in the inclined slot at the end of the bar moves the catch
box into gear with the pinion driven from the check band pulley shaft,
thereby giving motion to the screw in the radial arm, the nut on which
is thus caused to move up the screw and alter the position of the nut
and letting off chain.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Slater and Robert Halliwell in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 7th June 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we,
WILLIAM SLATER and ROBERT HALLIWELL, both of Bolton-le-Moors, in
the County of Lancaster, Foremen, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in
the seventeenth year of Her reign, did, for Ierself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto us, the said William Slater and Robert
Halliwell, Her special license, that we, the said William Slater and
Robert Halliwell, our exccutors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said William Slater and Robert Halliwell, 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SPINNING," upon the condition (amongst others)
that we, the said William Slater and Robert Halliwell, by an instru-
ment 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 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 we, the said William Slater and Robert
Halliwell, 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:-
The nature of our Invention consists,-
First, in connecting the carriages of the machines for spinning,

page_text: known as "Potter's low headstock self-acting mules," by a bridge or
rail attached to the end of each carriage and reaching either over or
under the headstock.
Secondly, in casting or otherwise fixing together the cam by which
the backing off and winding on catch boxes and the fallers are
actuated, and the large wheel by which the carriage is taken up,
instead of fixing the said cam and wheel to the cam shaft inde-
pendently of each other, as in Potter's self-acting mules of the usual
construction; by this means the cam and wheel when set to their proper
places are not liable to get deranged.
Thirdly, in actuating the lever of the break for stopping the spindles.
of Potter's low-headstock mules by means of-an-adjustable-bowl,-snug,.
or stud, attached to the large wheel on the cam shaft, instead of
performing-the same by means of a cam as heretofore.
Fourthly, in certain.improved combinations of parts for working the
fallers applicable to Potter's self-acting mules.
Fifthly, in-an-improved combination of parts for regulating the.
winding on according to the tension of the yarn, also applicable to
Potter's self-acting mules...
And lastly, in an improved combination of parts for regulating the
winding on according to the tension of the yarn applicable to self-
acting mules in which a radial arm is employed. And in order that
our Invention may be fully understood and readily carried into effect,
we will proceed to describe the means pursued by us, reference being
had to the annexed two Sheets of Drawings and to the letters and
figures marked thereon..
Javi
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
On Sheet 1, Figure 1, is a side elevation of the principal parts of
one of Potter's low headstock self-acting mules, to which the first five
of our improvements are applied. Figure 2, is a plan, and Figure 8,
an end elevation (partly in section) of part of the same.
.
a, a, are the
side frames of the headstock; b, the drawing rollers; c, the disk of
the expanding snail, forming part of the winding on motion; d, the
rim for driving the spindles, fixed on the shaft e; f, f, are the car-

page_text: riages; 9, the spindles; h, the cam shaft; and i, (see Figure 2) the
driving shaft; all these parts are of the usual construction. The ends
of the carringes f, f, which are shewn best in Figures 2 and 3, are
united together by a bridge marked f'; this bridge is sufficiently high
to clear the top of the rim d, when the carriage is close to the drawing
rollers b. In this instance the bridge or connexion between the two car-
riages is shown above the working parts of the headstock, but by raising
the side frames sufficiently from the floor, the bridge or other connexion
may be made to pass under the working parts of the headstock. By con-
necting the two ends of the mule carriages, as above described, it is evident
that the headstock of this description of mule can be placed at or near
the centre of the machine as in mules of the ordinary construction, which
is very desirable when the mules contain a great number of spindles.
Upon the shaft h, is fixed the large wheel h', and the crank by which
the carriage is taken up in the ordinary manner; and to the wheel h¹,
is cast or otherwise fixed the cam h; this cam acts on a bowl at the
end of the lever j, see Figure 2, by which the backing off and winding
on catch boxes are put in motion; these catch boxes are fixed on the
shaft e, and are each brought into action when required by the sliding
double catch box c'. The outer circumference of the cam h, acts
upon a bell cranked lever for actuating the fallers in the ordinary
manner. Our object in casting or otherwise fixing together the cam
h, and wheel h', is to ficilitate the putting together of the machine
and to avoid the relative position of the cam and wheel being
altered, if the fixing by which either of them is connected to the shaft
should give way. To the wheel h', is fixed a stud 1, on which is
mounted the bowl l', which acts on the lever ; this lever is fixed to
the shaft l, and is made to tighten the friction break P, on the pulley
d', forming part of the rim d, by means of the lever P, also fixed to
the shaft. There are two or more holes in the wheel h', for the
stud 1, so as to be able to vary the position of the bowl P, in order
that it may come sooner or later in contact with the lever l. By this
means the friction break is brought against the pulley d, at the
required time for stopping the spindles previous to the backing off, and
this time can be varied at the discretion of the spinner, whereas when

page_text: the break is applied in the ordinary manner the action of the break
cannot be varied without altering the shape or position of the cam by
which it is worked. An adjustable stud or snug may be used to act
on the lever, instead of the bowl, but we prefer a bowl, as that
causes the least friction.
Our improvements relating to the copping motion consist in the
following arrangement of parts:- is the copping frame fixed to
the floor by the brackets m', in which the copping rail n is guided;
h, n, are the shaper plates by which the copping rail is elevated
during the building of the cop. To the carriage f is attached a
bracket o, a stud in which serves as a fulcrum for the double lever o'
one arm of this lever is connected to the faller shaft .e, by the chain o³,
and segment a, and the other arm of the double lever o', is fur-
nished with a bowl, which bears upon the copping rail n, in the
same manner as the bowl attached to the curved lever in Roberts
self actors. To one end of the frame m, in which the copping rail 22
is supported, are fixed the bearings of the screw m³. This screw is
turned partly round at every stretch by the incline p, fixed to the
carriage, acting on the curve p', fixed to the lever p², which is
hinged to the screw m²; the lever ² has a stud for the catch
which gears into the ratchet wheel mo, fast to the end ofthe screw m².
When the curve p¹ has been pressed down by the incline p, to take
a tooth of the ratchet wheel m³, it is raised again by the weight p';
and the set screw p', passing through a projection from the lever p
comes (when the weight is down) against the stand me. By varying
the length of the point of the set screw p³, and the number of teeth
in the ratchet wheel m², the amount of motion given to the ratchet
wheel can be varied according to the yarn that is being spun. The
screw m², by acting on the screw nut m', draws the nut and shaping
plates n' gradually in the direction of the arrow, and thereby causes
the shaping plates to act on the pins m³, and raise the copping rail n,
so as to vary the action of the fallers according to the increasing size
of the cops. The lever o' may be dispensed with, and the bowl o
attached to a vertical bar sliding in brackets attached to the carriage.
In this case the chain o³, after passing under a pulley supported in a

page_text: bracket is made fast to the vertical bar, the varying motion of which
is produced by sliding over the copping rail as above described.
The last of our improvements in mules of this description consists in
an improved arrangement of parts for governing or regulating the
winding on of the yarn according to its tension. The disk or winding on
box c, shewn in Figures 1 and 2, forms part of the winding on motion
common to mules of this description. This disk is furnished with radial
slots, in each of which works a slide having a projecting stud, around
which the winding on chain is carried in the usual manner. q, is a
catch hinged to the frame side; this catch is raised out of the way of
the star wheel c', forming part of the usual winding on motion, every
time the carriage goes out by the stud c, fixed to the winding on box c,
acting on the bowls, supported by a stud in the lever s, and it is
lowered when required by the following parts :-
To the faller shaft x, is fixed a piece a, to which is hinged the catch
, and to the counter fuller shaft is fixed the piece y³, from which
is suspended a chain, the other end of which is connected to a pin
projecting from the catch. To the frame side a, is fixed a stud r,
which serves as a fulcrum for the vertical latch 7, to the lower arm of
which is cast a weight. The horizontal levers is also hinged on a
stud s', fixed to the frame side; the right hand arm of the lovers has
a projections, which is shown in the Drawing as being latched by
71; from the left hand of the levers is suspended a chain and
springs, which are connected to the catch q. The mode of operation
of these parts is as follows:-The carriage is now supposed to be going
out, consequently the faller and counter faller wires are in the position
shown in the Drawings, that is to say, they are both clear of the yarn
which goes direct from the drawing rollers to the spindles. When the
carriage is going in, the faller wire is brought down, and by pressing on
the yarn, distributes it evenly on the cops in the usual manner. When
the under faller wire is brought down below its usual position, owing
to the yarn being too tight, the catch a assumes the position shewn by
dots in Figure 1; therefore, when the carriage is put up, the catch a
comes against the upper end of the latch r', thereby liberating the
levers, the left hand of which then drops, and allows the catch g to

page_text: ássume a horizontal, position, as shewn by dots in Figure 3; by this
means the "teetli of the star wheel c' come in contact with and are
moved by the catch q, but if the yarn is not too tiglit, the point of the
catch is held by the chain z, above the upper end of the latch r',
and therefore passes over it when the carriage goes in; when this is
the case, the lever s remains undisturbed, and the star wheel c¹ passes
round without coming in contact with the catch q. As the star wheel c¹
is the agent by which motion is given to the disk with curved slots
placed within the winding on box ć, by which the slides for the winding
on chain are actuated in the usual manner, it is evident that when the
yarn-is-too-tight, the catch 9 is lowered into the position for giving
motion to the star wheel, by which the diameter of the expanding-snail
is diminished, thereby causing the spindles to perform fower revolutions
during the running in of the carriage, whereas, when the yarn is at it's
proper tension, the catch q is held out of the way of the star wheel.
As soon as the bottom of the cop is completo the regulator coases. to
act, owing to the copying faller ceasing to descend low enough to allow
the end of the catch a³ to come in contact with the latch r'.
On Sheet 2, we have shown the outline of an ordinary.self-acting
mule, to which our improvements in radial arm winding on motions are
applied. Figure 4, is a front elevation; Figure 5, a plan; and Figure 6,
an end elevation of the same. a, the framing; b, the drawing rollers;
f, the carriage; 9, the spindles; t, the quadrant; t, the radial arm;
u, the winding on chain; u³, the winding on barrel; a, the faller shaft;
y, the counter faller shaft; and w, the guide pulley of the check band;
all these parts are made as usual. To the front of the carriage is fixed
a box f', in which is contained the weight, suspended by a chain or
cord from the lovers a and y'. The lower part of the box f is fur-
nished with two slots, through which passes the flat bar A, extending
from the front to the back of the headstock; this bar is supported at
one end by the bracket B, and at the other end by the framic C; to the
frame C is hinged the lever D, the lower end of which takes into a
slot A', and the upper end has a key fitting in a groove in the. sliding
catch box E. The screw of the radial arın t is furnished with a
bevel pinion to, gearing into the pinion E, to which is cast a'catch box

page_text: F. Upon the shaft G of the radial arm is a spur pinion G', driven
by the pinion w, fast to the check band guide pulley tv. The bar A,
is drawn back by the weighted catch F. When the carriage is running
in, if the yarn is at the requisite tension, the weight f is held above
the bar A, as shewn in Figure 4, and the catch boxes E and E*
remain out of gear, as shown in Figure 6; but if the yarn is too tight
the counter faller is depressed, thereby lowering the weight f' until it
bears upon the bar A, consequently the motion of the carriage in run-
ning in, and the friction of the weight f, acting on the bar A, draw it
in the direction of the arrow in Figure 5, as much as is necessary to
cause the inclined slot A' to act on the lever D, and to put the catch
box E into gear with the catch box E, thereby imparting motion to
the screw t, and moving the nut further from the fulcrum of the
radial arm; by this means more chain is let off the winding on barrel
at the next stretch, and consequently the tension of the yarn is reduced.
As soon as tho weight f* has been raised off the bar A, the weighted
catch F draws the bar into its original position, and at the same time
disconnects the catch boxes E and E2; by this means the various parts
are put in the proper positions for being acted upon again when the
yarn gets too tight. The shaft G may be driven by a pulley on the
shaft of the quadrant pinion, or from any other convenient part of
the mule.
When the bottom of the cop is completed, the piece a³ on the copping
faller, is raised by the faller sufficiently high to keep the weight f'
clear of the bar A, and thereby allowing the remainder of the cop to be
built, without acting on the bar A.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
of performing the same, we wish it to be understood that we do not
intend to 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,―
First, connecting the carriages of Potter's low headstock mules, as
herein-before shewn and as described.
Secondly, casting or otherwise fixing together the large wheel marked
h', and cam h³, as shown and described.

page_text: Thirdly, giving motion to the break lever for checking the rim by
which the spindles are driven by means of an adjustable bowl, snug, or
stud, fixed to the wheel h', as shewn and described.
Fourthly, the improved modes of working the fallers, as herein-
before shewn, and as described when applied to Potter's self-acting
mules.
Fifthly, the improved combination of parts for regulating the winding
on, according to the tension of the yarn, as shewn and described in
reference to Figures 1, 2, and 3.
And lastly, the improved combination of parts for regulating tlic
winding on according to the tension of the yarn, as shewn and dc-
cribed in reference to Figures 4, 5, and 6.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Slater and Robert
Halliwell, have hereunto set our hands and seals, the Sixth day
of June, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.