CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PRINTING SILK AND COTTON NET OR LACE
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
BURCH, of the Borough Road, in the County of Surry, Calico and Silk
Printer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King Williamn the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-third day of January, in the sixth year of His reign,
did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Burch,, His especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said William Burch, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said William Burch, my exors; adññors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term
of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed,
my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PRINTING SILK
AND COTTON NET OR LACE;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a
proviso, that I, the said William Burch, shall cause a particular description
of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be inrolled in His said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within
six calendar months, next and immediately after the date of the said in
part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being there-
unto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Burch, do hereby declare that the nature of my Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to
the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon,
that is to say:-
My Invention consists in applying certain machinery for filling the meshes
of cotton and silk net or lace with opaque coloring matter, either to form stops
or figures. The machinery used for this purpose may be divided into eight
part, videlicet:-No. 1, the railway, which is a fixture. No. 2, the travelling
frame, hereafter described, running on the railway. No. 3, the piece frame,
hereafter described, fixing on the travelling frame; the travelling and piece
frames are drawn along by a weight raised by a windlass, and work through
the table frame. No. 4, the table frame, is a fixture, and in which is the
stopping pin. No. 5, the stopping pin, with lever, &c. No. 6, the treadle, with
lever, &c.; and No. 7, the spring frame, in which works No. 8, the block for
printing.
No. 1, the railway, is a double rail, one inch by two (edge upwards), and
about thirty inches apart, connected and supported by trussels about thirty-
three inches in height, and runs from one extremity of the machine to the
other, passing through the table frame, and is for the purpose of supporting
and guiding the travelling frame, which is drawn along on it.
No. 2, the travelling frame, is half the length of the railway, and consists of
two long side rails flatways (three inches by one,) connected by cross rails
(thirty-nine inches long, by one and a half inch, by five-eighths of an inch,) and
is drawn with a rope by the raised weight along the railway on small wheels,
fixed under the side rails, and having brackets at intervals to prevent it sliding.
off. Underneath the near side rail (or side at which the printer stands,) is a
groove (half an inch deep, running lengthways in the centre,) for the stopping
pin, and at equal distances along this groove are fixed iron plates for the
purpose of stopping the frame; these plates are fixed at ten inches and
half distances, to correspond with the standard of the printing block. These
iron plates have the groove continued to the middle of the plate, by which the
stopping pin always attains the same place. On the top side of the same rail
are iron pins about one inch high, on which is fixed the piece frame.
No. 3, the piece frame, is a light frame, the same length as the travelling
frame, and fitting on it. It is furnished with pins on the upper side of each side
rail (the side rail is three inches by five-eighths of an inch,) on which the piece
of net is hooked, being fixed also at the ends in the same manner by moveable

page_text: stretchers, similar to the common dressing framo; there are stretchers,
thirty-nine inches long, and ono and a half by five-cighths across the
frame at equal distances. Thoy are fixtures to the near 'side rail, and slide
through a bracket underneath the opposito rail. At the bracket end of the
stretcher is fixed an iron plate, through which a screw bolt works into a nut
inserted in the side rail just above the bracket, and by this scrow bolt the
piece is tightened. In the near side rail are holes, to correspond with the pins
in the travelling frame, and which provent it shifting. Any number of these
frames may be used with the travelling frame.
No. 4 is a tho tablo frame, supported by four legs, with two upper side
bars and two cross bars, on which the railway rests, all three inches by
four inches. There is also a centre cross bar, thrco by four inches, underneath
the railway, being in the middle of the frame, with a morticed hole in it,
through which the perpendicular part of the treadle works twenty-five inches;
near the centro it is reduced to three inches by two inches, to allow the
treadlo to be taken out. There are also platforms for color sieves, consisting
of flat boards laid across the tablo framo, and resting on the side bars; they
aro covered with blanket to make them soft. There may be one or more
colors worked at a a time, by shifting the color sieves.
No. 5, the stopping pin, is a stout piece of steel wire, fixed on the end
of a small lover, and forced upwards through the centre cross bar of the
table frame and the railway, by a weight attached to the other end, into the
groove of the travelling frame, which passes exactly over it, and the iron
plates coming in contact with it, stop the frame, and regulate the joining of
the pattern. There is also, through the side bar of the tablo frame, a perpen-
dicular wooden pit, connected with the pin end of the lever, which, being
pressed by the hand, forces the stopping pin down, and allows tho travelling
frame to be drawn on.
No. 6, the treadle, is formed by a perpendicular piece of wood working
through tho mortice in the centro cross bar of the table frame, and kept
perpendicular by a wire in the bottom part working through a piece of
wood. At the bottom is also a lover, worked by the foot, for the purpose
of raising and letting fall the treadle. At the top of the perpendicular
piece of wood is a piece of board fixed horizontally, about twenty-five inches
long and eight inches wide, and attached to this, at the distance of six
inches, are two small pieces, twenty-five inches long and three wide, leaving a
space between them of two inches, to correspond with the reduced part of the
cross bar. On the top side of the upper board and under side of the under
boards are screwed small brass plates, with two apertures cach, for the bearer
a

page_text: and the bearer's spring to pass through. The bearer is a piece of metal, ten
inches long, three-cights of an inch wide, and one-twentieth of an inch thick,
made to a blunt edge at the top end, and the bottom end turned up square. To
this end is attached a fine brass wire spring, to allow the bearer to descend if
pressed down too hard, instead of tearing through the net.
No. 7, the spring frame, is an oblong square frame, one inch by three
inches flat, the ends of which rest on the side bars of the table frame, and
is placed-exactly over the treadle. It is furnished on each side with two stout
steel plate springs, with a small cup in one of each, and which are screwed by
the other end to the under part of the spring frame, leaving the cup projecting
from under the woodwork. This frame is confined down by screws and
plates, which allow it to shift, if required.
No. 8, the block, thirty-two inches long, 12 inches wide. This is formed
by two plates of zinc or other metal, with a space left between them, and
fixed on a wooden block, having a space also between the plate and the
block; this is done by slips of wood laid between each, or, if the pattern
will not allow of this, by short lengths of small metal pipe for the screw or
nail to go through. Through these plates are made holes, varying in shape,
and through these holes work metal pins or figures, varying in shape, which
fill up the meshes of the net, according to the pattern required; these pins,
&c., are made with blunt points, to prevent them fixing themselves on the
threads of the net; they have likewise heads, to prevent them falling out,
which lodge on the top plate of metal, between it and the block of wood.
The holes in the bottom plate of metal are just sufficiently large to allow the
pins, &c., to work freely through. In the top plate the holes are much larger,
to allow the pins to work about freely. When they are raised from the plate
by the block being pressed on the piece and treadle into these holes, the
heads of the pins partly sink, which has the effect of keeping the pins perpen-
dicular and in the centre of the holes, thereby making them drop straight on
the piece of net or lace. Near each corner of the block is fixed a stout pitch
pin, placed to fit the cups in the spring frame, and on which the block rests,
nearly touching the piece; it is partly suspended by a rope passing through
a pulley which is attached above. At the other end of the rope is a weight,
which partly counterbalances the weight of the block, and makes it easy t
lift backwards and forwards.
The Method of Working. Several persons are engaged hooking the
pieces of net or lace on the frames, and it requires a man and boy to
work the block. The process is as follows:-The piece of net or lace is
hooked on the piece frames, and stretched out very tight by means of the

page_text: screws; the piece frame is then fixed on the travelling frame, which is
pushed, along the railway between the table frame up to the last end (the
frames working: backwards), with the stopping pin against one of the iron
plates; the weight for drawing it back is then raised from the floor; the
block is next dipped into the sieve of color, which is just sufficiently deep to
allow a small quantity to get on the ends of the pins, and, being taken out,.is
placed with the pitch pins in the cups of the springs; it is then pressed down
on to the piece, the treadle being also pressed up against the piece and block
by means of the foot on the lever, and thus the piece is confined between the
pins of the block and the bearers of the treadle. The pins in the block being
forced up by the piece and treadle now rest entirely on the piece, being merely
kept upright by the plates of metal through which they rise; some of the
pins will fall at once into the meshes of the net, whilst others will rest upon
the threads, and it is necessary to knock the block gently at the off end, by
which they are shaken off into the meshes. The block is then allowed to rise
gradually by means of the springs that have been pressed down, by which the
color drains from the pins into the meshes of the net.. The treadle is then
allowed to drop. The hand is placed on the upright pin, which forces down
the stopping pin until the iron plate has passed over it, and the frame is drawn
along by the weight till stopped by the next iron plate coming in contact with
the stopping pin. The block is then dipped again into the sieve of color, and
the same process is repeated until the piece is finished, when the piece frame
is taken off the travelling fram and another one put on in its place. The
colors employed are such as are commonly used in printing opaque colors, but
in the present instance there must be more gum than is commonly employed.
It is necessary to fix the stretchers of the travelling and piece frames at such
distances that they shall come over of the perpendicular part of the treadle
between the two middle rows of bearers, and likewise that the stretchers of
the two frames shall come alternately. There is an extra set of trussels to
lay the piece frames on, to hook on the pieces of net, and there is an opening
or gap in the length of railway to allow of the workman passing through.
For Printing Quilling.-This is done by a revolving sexagonal wheel,
having, six flat sides about seven inches wide. The block that is, used is
on the same principle as that described, but much smaller, being sixteen
inches long and from half an inch to three inches wide, according to
the pattern required on the quilling. Each side of the wheel is fifteen
inches and five-eighths wide; at each angle is a piece of twisted wire raised
one-quarter of an inch from the wood by small metal supports three inches
apart; there are likewise fixed. at equal intervals between each angle five

page_text: blunt edged metal supports, three inches long across the middle of the
surface of the wheel, three-eighths of an inch above it, to prevent the
quilling touching the board; there are four small plate springs on each
flat of the wheel, two near each angle, raised five-eighths of an inch, having
cups similar to the spring frame. In each angle, inserted through the
twisted wire, are about five small pins, standing up about one-twelfth of an
inch above the wire, to prevent the net or lace slipping. An iron bolt goes
through the centre of the wheel into an upright post, and is the axis on which
it turns. There is likewise behind, at the centre of the wheel, an iron plate,
with six holes in a circle for stopping the wheel by means of a stopping pin
fixed on the post, with lever and weight, the same in principle as already
described. There is likewise a narrow frame, on the principle of the common
printer's rolling frame, and capable of being adjusted to different widths; this
is fixed to guide the piece of quilling straight to the wheel, and likewise to
keep it tight to the pins. The manner of working is the same as already
described, with the exceptions that there is a person to disengage the
quilling from the pins as the wheel revolves, and hang it up to dry on hooks;
the printer turns the wheel with one hand whilst dipping the block with the
other. The sieves that are usod are smaller, to correspond with the size of
the block.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I would remark, that there are various parts of
the machinery herein explained which are similar to what have been used for
other purposes. I do not, therefore, claim the same when not employed for
the purpose of effecting the object of my Invention, that of printing silk and
cotton net or lace, by filling the meshes thereof with opaque color, whether in
spots or other patterns or designs; nor do I confine myself to the precise
arrangement of machinery here shown for conducting the lace or net to be
printed, as variations may be made, though what I have described I consider
to be the best, for I would wish it to be understood that what I claim as my
Invention is the application of suitable machinery for stretching lace or net,
and conducting it to other machinery for printing such net or lace by filling the
meshes thereof with opaque color. And I would further have it understood,
that although I have described particular dimensions for the parts of the
machinery, and also the materials of which the same is to be made, I do not
confine myself thereto, as they may be varied without departing from the
object of my Invention as above described. And I would further remark, that
I am aware that silk or cotton net or lace have been before printed by
machinery, but in such cases the meshes were not filled up; but such printing

page_text: was only effected to the thread which bounded the holes or meshes of the
lace or net.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Burch, have hereunto set my
band and seal, this Twenty-third day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty-six.
Inrolled the Twenty-third day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-six.