Improvements in or relating to Sewing Machines.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Apr., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 30th Dec., 1896-Accepted, 20th Mar., 1897
[Communicated from abroad by FRANK WOODARD MERRICK, of corner of Grampian
Way and Rockland Avenue, Boston, U.S.A., Mechanical Engineer.]
Improvements in or relating to Sewing Machines.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 322, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, 6, Lord Street,
Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, and
Lower Temple Street, Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Civil Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Heretofore, in some instances, machines of the class to which my invention relates
bave been equipped with devices for raising automatically the presser-foot. In some
of such machines a friction-clamp engaging the presser-bar has formed a portion of
the lifting devices, the said clamp being given at intervals an upward movement
and raising the presser-bar with it. In such machines, the presser-bar has been
fitted to fixed bearings above and helow the friction-clamp. A disadvantage of this
construction and arrangement is the fact that when the clamp is closed upon the
presser-bar, the latter has communicated thereto a lateral strain or deflection which
forces its upper end with great pressure against one side of the bearing therefor,
and correspondingly forces the lower end of the presser-bar against the opposite
side of the lower bearing. When, now, the lifting action takes place, there is on
the sides mentioned, binding and greatly increased friction of the presser-bar in its
bearings, thereby throwing greater strain upon the lifting devices and causing the
latter to slip.
The object of the first part of the present invention is to obviate the foregoing
disadvantages and to provide an improved construction and combination of parts
which shall be free from all tendency to the slip above mentioned.
The object of the second part of the present invention is to provide an improved
construction of automatic lifting devices by means of which the presser-foot always
shall be raised to a uniform height above the upper surface of the work whatever
may be the thickness of the latter.
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation, partly in vertical
section showing the head and sufficient of the arm of a sewing machine having the
present invention applied thereto to indicate the nature and relations of the said
invention, the presser-foot being broken off.
Fig. 2 is a view in elevation looking from the right hand side in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a detail view partly in vertical section showing the parts in which the
invention more immediately resides.
Fig. 4 is a view in horizontal section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.
Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are perspective views of the sleeve, clamping block and nut which
are referred to hereinafter.
1 designates the head of a sewing machine, 2 the awl-bar thereof, 3 the awl carried
by the said awl-bar, 4 the presser-foot, and 5 the presser-bar. The machine in
practice is provided with the usual lever, operated by the foot of the operator, for
lifting the presser-bar and presser-foot when desired, and, also, with the usual hand-
operated lever by means of which the presser-bar and presser-foot may be raised by

page_text: band when desired. These parts are of well known character and it has been deemed
unnecessary to show or further describe the same, inasmuch as they may be of any
usual or preferred construction. The awl-bar is operated in any well known or
suitable manner.
At 9 is a sleeve which surrounds the upper end of the presser-bar 5, the said sleeve
being fitted to a bearing provided therefor in the upper part of the head 1 and being
free to slide up and down in such bearing. The upper extremity of the presser-bar
extends above the upper end of the said sleeve and is borne upon by the free end of
leaf-spring 10, which latter is secured to the arm of the machine, as will be clear
from Fig. 1. The said spring 10 acts to hold the presser-foot 4 normally pressed
upon the upper surface of the work. A second leaf spring 11 is secured by means
of a screw 12 or equivalent device to the underside of the spring 10. The free end
of the said spring 11 bears upon the nut 14 on the upper end of the sleeve 9 and
tends to force the sleeve downwardly into its lowest position. The pressure exerted
by the said spring upon the nut on the sleeve is adjusted by means of screw 111
applied to spring 10. The upper end of the sleeve 9 is screw-threaded and has applied
thereto the adjusting nut 13, above which is the lock-nut 14. A washer 15 preferably
of sound-deadening material is placed upon the said upper end of the sleeve 9 below
the adjusting nut 13, the said washer lying upon the top of the head 1. By means of
the adjusting nut 13 the vertical position of the sleeve 9 may be varied, as will be
obvious. In practice, however, it is not usually necessary to effect a change in the
vertical position of the said sleeve 9 by means of the said adjusting nut 13. The
sleeve 9 is formed as shown Figs. 3 and 5, it being provided with an offset portion 16
which serves to connect the upper portion of the sleeve 9 with the small lower
portion 17. Between the portions 17 and 9, and opposite the offset portion 16, the
sleeve is cut away and there is a vertical slot 171 in the offset portion, as will be clear
from Fig. 5. In the opening thus formed by cutting away the sleeve, I place a
clamping block 18 which has a vertical cylindrical hole 181 therethrough in which is
fitted a nut or collar 19, said nut or collar being interiorly screw-threaded to correspond
with the screw-threads on the presser-bar or that portion of said bar with which the
nut or collar 19 co-operates. The said screw-threads have a quick turn and the nut
or collar 19 is free to revolve in the vertical hole or bearing therefor which is formed
in the block 18. If the sleeve 9 be rigidly held while the collar and block are free,
the presser-bar may be caused to move vertically with reference to said sleeve, the
collar 19 rotating around the bar as the latter is moved. If now the collar 19 be
firmly clamped and prevented from rotating on the bar, the sleeve and bar will be
locked together and cannot be moved independently.
For the purpose of preventing the sleeve 9 and the clamping block 18 from rotating
on the presser-har, the clamping block 18 is formed with a vertical groove 201 which
corresponds in position with the vertical slot 171 in the offset portion 16 of the sleeve 9.
The slot in the said offset portion and the groove in the said block receive the awl-bar 2,
as will be clear from Figs. 3 and 4, and the said awl-bar serves as a guide for the
sleeve 9 and clamping block 18 in their vertical movement, to prevent their rotating
relatively to the said presser-bar. For the purpose of clamping the collar 19 rigidly
onto the presser-bar, 1 form the clamping block 18 slightly bevelling on its upper
surface as shown at 21, Fig. 3, so that said clamping block may be tilted slightly
relatively to the sleeve 9. A very slight tilting of the clamping block 18 serves to
cramp the threaded collar 19 and prevent the collar from rotating. If now the
clamping block be lifted, the presser-bar, collar and sleeve will move upwardly with it.
For the purpose of tilting the clamping block, as also of lifting it vertically, the said
block is provided with a projection or tail piece 22 with which the free end of the bent
arm 23 engages.
For the purpose of operating the lifting arm 23 I secure it rigidly to a rock shaft 25
which is journallod in the frame of the machine as shown, and which is rocked by
means of an eccentric 26 on the main shaft 27. The strap 28 of the eccentric is
pivoted to an arm 29 which is secured to the rock shaft 25 at the opposite end of the
said rock shaft from that at which the lifting arm 23 is secured, see Fig. 1. These

page_text: parts are of well known construction and do not require a detailed description. As is
well known they may be adjusted to vary the throw of the ar.n 23, or the time of its
movement.
As grooving attachments and similar devices are frequently employed in machines
to which my invention is applicable, and are arranged to work slightly above the
surface of the work-support or work-plate, provision should be made for preventing
the presser-foot from being forced downwardly onto these devices, or onto the work-
plate, when there is no work in the machine. To provide for limiting the descent of
the presser-foot I employ a block 30 which is provided with a hole through which the
presser har passes and which is split at one side and provided with laterally extending
lugs 31, 32, through which the threaded end of a bolt 33 is screwed. The shank of
the bolt 33 projects through a block 50 set to slide in a vertical slot 34 in the front of
the head of the machine. The split block 30 and its clamping bolt 33 are so set on the
presser-bar that at the lowest position of the presser-bar and presser-foot the block 50
will bottom in the slot 34 and it will be clear that in this way the lowest point to
which the presser foot may descend may be governed. To prevent noise the bottom of the
slot 34 with which the block 50 engages may be provided with a layer or piece 501 of
sound-deadening material, as leather, or the like.
The operation of the device is as follows: When work is placed in the machine
the presser foot may be raised either by means of the usual foot-operated lifting
mechanism or by hand-operated lifting mechanism. The work being in place, the
presser-foot is released and by means of the spring 10 is forced downwardly onto the
upper surface of the work and bears thereon holding the work firmly until in
the movement of the machine the work is to be fed forward. Just before the work
is fed forward the lifting arm 23 is operated by means of the rock shaft 25 and its
operating mechanism, and when it engages the tail-piece 22 the threaded collar is
gripped and prevented from rotating. This locks the sleeve 9 and presser-bar 5
together. The further lifting movement of the arm 23 raises the sleeve and bar
together and lifts the presser-foot from the work so that it is free to be fed forward.
At the end of the feed imovement the lifting arm 23 moves downwardly, freeing the
clamping device and allowing the spring 10 to force the presser-bar and presser-foot
downwardly onto the work. At the same time, the spring 11 acts to force the sleeve 9
downwardly, returning said sleeve to its lowest position. If the presser-foot upon its
descent meets a thicker portion of the work the descent of the presser-bar will be less
but the descent of the sleeve 9 will be the same regardless of the thickness of the
work, so that the action of the sleeve is the same under all conditions of stock. Since
the bar is locked to the sleeve before the latter is lifted the upward movement or lift
of the bar and sleeve must be equal at all times. The sleeve 9, as will be obvious,
may be shortened somewhat without departing from the spirit of the second part of
the invention, forming what might more properly be designated as a collar; or it
may be made in the form of two collars separated from each other and rigidly
connected.
The sleeve 9 constitutes a movable bearing for the presser-bar. The presser-bar is
clamped within the said bearing by the action of the rocker upon the clamping lever
which has been described herein, and when the lifting takes place the sleeve and
presser-bar rise together, being subsequently depressed by the action of the springs.
As will be obvious, the binding and friction which heretofore have been exerted upon
the presser-bar and have operated to prevent its movement, and to occasion slipping
of the clamp thereon, are transferred to the exterior of the sleeve and no longer have
effect upon the presser-bar. The sleeve is positively actuated by the devices which
have been described herein, and hence is not affected by the former causes of defective
action.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
322, High Holborn, London, W.C., Patent Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: improvements in or relating to Sewing Machines.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S.. M.1.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 322, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, 6, Lord
Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in the County of
Lancaster, and Lower Temple Street, Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
Heretofore, in some instances, machines of the class to which my invention
relates have been equipped with devices for raising automatically the presser-foot.
In some of such machines a friction-clamp engaging the presser-bar has formed a
portion of the lifting devices, the said clamp being given at intervals an upward
movement and raising the presser-bar with it. In such machines, the presser-bar
has been fitted to fixed hearings above and below the friction-clamp. A
disadvantage of this construction and arrangement the fact that when the clamp
is closed upon the presser-bar, the latter has communicated thereto a lateral strain
or deflection which forces its upper end with great pressure against one side of the
bearing therefor, and correspondingly forces the lower end of the presser-bar
against the opposite side of the lower bearing. When, now, the lifting action takes
place, there is on the sides mentioned, binding and greatly increased friction of the
presser-bar in its bearings, thereby throwing greater strain upon the lifting devices
and causing the latter to slip.
The object of the first part of the present invention is to obviate the foregoing
disadvantages and to provide an improved construction and combination of parts
which shall be free from all tendency to the slip above mentioned.
The object of the second part of the present invention is to provide an
improved construction of automatic lifting devices by means of which the presser-
foot always shall be raised to a uniform height above the upper surface of the work
whatever may be the thickness of the latter.
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation, partly in
vertical section, showing the head and sufficient of the arm of a sewing machine
having the present invention applied thereto to indicate the nature and relations of
the said invention.
Fig. 2 is a view in elevation looking from the right hand side in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a detail view partly in vertical section showing the parts in which the
invention more immediately resides.
Fig. 4 is a view in horizontal section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.
Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are perspective views of the sleeve, clamping block and nut
which are referred to hereinafter.
I designates the head of a sewing machine, 2 the awl-bar thereof, 3 the awl
carried by the said awl-bar, 4 the presser-foot, and 5 the presser-bar. The machine
in practice is provided with the usual lever, operated by the foot of the operator,
for lifting the presser-bar and presser-foot when desired, and, also, with the usual
hand-operated lever by means of which the presser-bar and presser-foot may be
raised by hand when desired. These parts are all of well known character and it
has been deemed unnecessary to show or further describe the same, inasmuch as they 4
may be of any usual or preferred construction. The awl-bar is operated in any
well known or suitable manner.
At 9 is a sleeve which surrounds the upper end of the presser-bar 5, the said
sleeve being fitted to a bearing provided therefor in the upper part of the head 1

page_text: and being free to slide up and down in such bearing. The upper extremity of the
presser-bar extends above the upper end of the said sleeve and is borne upon by
the free end of a leaf-spring 10, which latter is secured to the arm of the machine, as
will be clear from Fig. 1. The said spring 100 ac s to hold the presser-foot 4 normally
pressed upon the upper surface of the work. A second leaf-spring 11 is secured by
means of a screw 12 or equivalent device to the underside of the spring 10. The
free end of the said spring 11 bears upon the nut 14 on the upper end of the sleeve 9
and tends to force the sleeve downwardly into its lowest position. The pressure
exerted by the said spring upon the nut on the sleeve is adjusted by means of screw 111
applied to spring 10. The upper end of the sleeve 9 is screw-threaded and has
applied thereto the adjusting nut 13, above which is the lock-nut 14. A washer 15
preferably of sound-deadening material is placed upon the said upper end of the
sleeve 9 below the adjusting nut 13, the said washer lying upon the top of the
head 1. By means of the adjusting nut 13 the vertical position of the sleeve 9 may
be varied, as will be obvious. In practice, however, it is not usually necessary to
effect a change in the vertica! position of the said sleeve 9 by means of the said
adjusting nut 13. The sleeve 9 is formed as shown Figs. 3 and 5, it being provided
with an offset portion 16 which serves to connect the upper portion of the sleeve 9
with the small lower portion 17. Between the portions 17 and 9, and opposite the offset
portion 16, the sleeve is cut away and there is a vertical slot 171 in the offset
portion, as will be clear from Fig. 5. In the opening thus formed by cutting away
the sleeve, I place a clamping block 18 which has a vertical cylindrical bole 181
therethrough in which is fitted a nut or collar 19, said nut or collar being interiorly
screw-threaded to correspond with the screw-threads on the presser-bar or on that
portion of said bar with which the nut or collar 19 co-operates. The said screw-
threads have a quick turn and the nut or collar 19 is free to revolve in the vertical
hole or bearing therefor which is formed in the block 18. If the sleeve 9 be
rigidly held while the collar and block are free, the presser-bar may be caused to
move vertically with reference to said sleeve, the collar 19 rotating around the bar
as the latter is moved. If now the collar 19 be firmly clamped and prevented from
rotating on the bar, the sleeve and bar will be locked together and cannot be
moved independently.
For the purpose of preventing the sleeve 9 and the clamping block 18 from
rotating on the presser-bar, the clamping block 18 is formed with a vertical
groove 201 which corresponds in position with the vertical slot 171 in the offset
portion 16 of the sleeve 9. The slot in the said offset portion and the groove in
the said block receive the awl-bar 2, as will be clear from Figs 3 and 4, and the said
awl-bar serves as a guide for the sleeve 9 and clamping block 18 in their vertical
movement, to prevent their rotating relatively to the said presser-bar. For the
purpose of clamping the collar 19 rigidly onto the presser-bar I form the
clamping block 18 slightly bevelling on its upper surface as shown at 21, Fig. 3, so
that said clamping block may be tilted slightly relatively to the sleeve 9. A
very slight tilting of the clamping block 18 serves to cramp the threaded collar 19
and prevent the collar from rotating. If now the clamping block be lifted, the
presser-bar, collar and sleeve will move upwardly with it. For the purpose of
tilting the clamping block, as also of lifting it vertically, the said block is provided
with a projection or a tail piece 22 with which the free end of the bent arm 23
engages.
For the purpose of operating the lifting arm 23 I secure it rigidly to a rock
shaft 25 which is journalled in the frame of the machine as shown, and which is
rocked by means of an eccentric 26 on the main shaft 27. The strap 28 of the
eccentric is pivoted to an arm 29 which is secured to the rock shaft 25 at the
opposite end of the said rock shaft from that at which the lifting arm 23 is secured,
see Fig. 1. These parts are of well known construction and do not require a
detailed description. As is well known they may be adjusted to vary the throw of
the arm 23, or the time of its movement.
As grooving attachments and similar devices are frequently employed in

page_text: machines to which my invention is applicable, and are arranged to work slightly above
the surface of the work-support or work-plate, provision should be made for
preventing the presser-foot from being forced downwardly onto these devices, or
onto the work-plate, when there is no work in the machine. To provide for limiting
the descent of the presser-foot, I employ a block 30 which is provided with a hole
through which the presser-bar passes and which is split at one side and provided
with laterally extending lugs 31, 32, through which the threaded end of a bolt 33
is screwed. The shank of the bolt 33 projects through a block 50 set to slide in a
vertical slot 34 in the front of the head of the machine. The split block 30 and
its clamping bolt 33 are so set on the presser-bar that at the lowest position of the
presser-bar and presser foot the block 50 will bottom in the slot 34 and it will be
clear that in this way the lowest point to which the presser foot may descend may
be governed. To prevent noise the bottom of the slot 34 with which the block 50
engages may be provided with a layer or piece 501 of sound-deadening material, as
leather, or the like.
The operation of the device is as follows: When work is placed in the machine the
presser foot may be raised either by means of the usual foot-operated lifting mechanism
or by hand-operated lifting mechanism. The work being in place, the presser-foot is
released and by means of the spring 10 is forced downwardly onto the upper surface
of the work and bears thereon, holding the work firmly until in the movement of
the machine the work is to be fed forward. Just before the work is fed forward the
lifting arm 23 is operated by means of the rock shaft 25 and its operating inechanism,
and when it engages the tail-piece 22 the threaded collar is gripped and prevented
from rotating. This locks the sleeve 9 and presser-bar 5 together. The further
lifting movement of the arm 23 raises the sleeve and bar together and lifts
the presser-foot from the work so that it is free to be fed forward. At the end of
the feed movement the lifting arm 23 moves downwardly, freeing the clamping
device and allowing the spring 10 to force the presser-bar and presser-foot
downwardly onto the work. At the same time, the spring 11 acts to force the
sleeve 9 downwardly, returning said device to its lowest position. If the presser-
foot upon its descent meets a thicker portion of the work the descent of the
presser-bar will be less but the descent of the sleeve 9 will be the same regardless
of the thickness of the work, so that the action of the sleeve is the same under all
conditions of stock. Since the bar is locked to the sleeve before the latter is lifted
the upward movement or lift of the bar and sleeve must be equal at all times.
The sleeve 9, as will be obvious, may be shortened somewhat without departing
from the spirit of the second part of the invention, forming what might more
properly be desiguated as a collar; or it may be made in the form of two collars
separated from each other and rigidly connected.
The sleeve 9 constitutes a movable bearing for the presser-bar. The presser-
bar is clamped within the said bearing by the action of the rocker upon the
clamping lever which has been described herein, and when the lifting takes place
the sleeve and presser-bar rise together, being subsequently depressed by the action
of the springs. As will be obvious, the binding and friction which heretofore have
been exerted upon the presser-bar and have operated to prevent its movement, and
to occasion slipping of the clamp thereon, are transferred to the exterior of the
sleeve, and no longer have effect upon the presser-bar. The sleeve is positively
actuated by the devices which have been described herein, and hence is not affected
by the former causes of defective action.
Having now particularly ascertained and described the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The combination with the head of a sewing machine, the presser-foot, and the
presser-bar, of the sleeve, constituting a movable bearing surrounding the said
presser-bar, the said sleeve or movable bearing itself fitting a bearing in the head,
and clamping and lifting devices by means of which to clamp the presser-bar

page_text: within the bearing and lift the same together with the presser-foot, substantially
as described.
2. The improved means for clamping and lifting the presser-bar and presser-foot,.
substantially as set forth.
Dated the 30th day of December 1896.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of London, Liverpool, Manchester, and Birmingham.