CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Bramwell Hayes, of Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
Sealed the 12th September 1856, and dated the 12th March 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Bramwell Hayes
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
12th March 1856.
I, WILLIAM BRAMWELL HAYES, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," to be as follows:-
The improvements in looms, which constitute my said Invention, are, firstly,
a method of applying a break to the fly wheel as the sley advances, by means
of a cam or tappet on one of the principal shafts, such cam or tappet actuating
the break through a connection which is interrupted or cut off by the presence
of the shuttle in either of the shuttle boxes, so that the evolutions of the loom
will, continue so long as the shuttle makes its passages through the shed in
due course, but no longer.
Secondly, a method of connecting the aforesaid break with the weft motion,
in such manner that the break may be applied whenever the stoppage of the
loom becomes necessary, in consequence of an interruption in the supply
of weft.

page_text: Thirdly, an improved form of lever for communicating motion from the
tappet shaft to the picking stick.
Fourthly, an improvement in the method of actuating the treadles, the
shedding tappets being so applied as to elevate as well as to depress them.
Fifthly, an improved vibrator or vibrating back rest, held back by the yarn
beam weights; the usual ropes or straps embracing the yarn beam being
attached by one end to the vibrator, and by the other to the back weights or
to the levers which carry them. *
And, sixthly, an improved arrangement of the parts of the stop rod, and an
improved method of working the same, so as to relieve the shuttle from the
pressure of the stop rod spring.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance, of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Bramwell Hayes in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 12th September 1856.
TO ALL. TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
BRAMWELL HAYES, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing-date the Twelfth day of March,.One. thousand eight.hundred
and fifty-six, in the nineteenth. year of Her reign, did, for. Herself, Her
heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Bramwell
Hayes, Her special licence that I, the said William Bramwell Hayes,
my executors, administrátors, and assigns, or such others as I, -the said
William Bramwell Hayes,' my executors, administrators; or assigns," should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all timeš
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 of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said 'William Bramwell Hayes, 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
mouth's next and immediately after the date of the said 'Letters Patent.....
NOW KNOW YE; that I, the said William Bramwell Hayes, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in which the

page_text: same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by these Presents, and the two Sheets of Drawings thereunto annexed, the
same letters of reference being employed to indicate the same part or parts
throughout the various Figures represented in the latter, that is to say:-
The said improvements consist, firstly, in applying a break to the fly wheel
of the loom, so as instantaneously to arrest the motion of the same by the
motive force of the crank shaft, communicated by a cam tappet hook or pro-
jection upon such shaft, and drawing the break into sudden and forcible contact
with the fly wheel; and also in a peculiar manner of constructing the said fly
wheel, so as to combine a rim of extended surface for the break to act upon
with another rim of larger radius, to be grasped by the operative in adjusting
the position of the crank shaft.
Secondly, in applying the same break to the fly wheel with moderated force,
so as to bring the loom slowly and gradually to a state of rest after the inter-
ruption of the supply of weft from the shuttle, by causing the motion of the
spring handle, when liberated from its detent by the action of the weft lever, to
operate upon the break, and apply the same with a modified pressure to the
fly wheel rim.
Thirdly, in causing the picking tappet in looms furnished with the pick,
known technically as the under pick, to act upon the picking stick through the
intervention of a straight lever of the first order instead of a lever of the third'
order, or in other words, in placing the fulcrum of the intermediate lever
between the part of such lever acted upon by the picking tappet and the part'
which acts upon the picking stick, instead of causing the picking tappet to act
upon a point in the lever between the fulcrum of such lever and the extremity
of the same, which acts upon the picking stick, such my improved lever being
straight in form, or nearly so, and not rectangular, or of the bell-crank form.
Fourthly, in adding to each of the treadles of the shedding apparatus in plain
looms a curved arm, the extremity of which overhangs and rests upon its cor-
responding tappet, so that the weight of the treadle is lifted by the action of
the tappet when the healds attached to such treadle are being raised, the
said healds and their attachments being thus relieved from the strain otherwise
caused by the weight of the treadle.
Fifthly, in attaching the ropes or chains by which the weighted levers of the
warp beam are suspended to the arms of a vibrating back rest, such ropes or
chains passing also round the necks of the warp beam, so that the adjustable
weights which govern the letting off of the warp serve also to effect the recoil
of the vibrating back rest when the shed is closed.
Sixthly, in furnishing the stop rod with a blade spring or elastic arm pro-

page_text: jecting backwards, and which spring or arm is depressed by a pin upon the
crank arm in all positions of the latter, except when the same is most elevated
by the approach of the crank to the top centre, so that the tendency of the
vertical arm of the stop rod towards the shuttle box is neutralised in all other
positions of the crank arm.
Of the Drawings hereunto appended, by the aid of which I propose to explain
the manner in which I carry into effect the above several improvements,
Figure 1 is a view of the driving side of a left-hand loom, exhibiting so much
of my arrangements as would be visible in that direction; and Figure 5 is a
view of so much of such arrangements as would be apparent from the interior.
of a right-hand loom towards the driving or pulley side; the framework of the
loom in the latter view and many of the ordinary parts of the machine in both
views are omitted, as unnecessary to the present purpose. The purport of the
other Figures will be explained as the occasions for referring to them arise.
In applying the first of my said improvements, I fix upon the crank shaft a
cam with a hooked projection, or pin projecting laterally, or in lieu thereof I
insert a stud or pin in the disc-like portion of the fly wheel, herein-after described,
thus availing myself of the fly wheel instead of a cam, and rendering the con-
struction more simple and less expensive. I prefer the latter plan, and shall
commence by explaining the construction of the fly wheel, which will be easily
conceived by imagining a plate pulley to be affixed to the ordinary fly wheel of
a loom. Figure 2 is a view afforded by a horizontal section through the centre
of such a wheel, and side views of the wheel appear in Figures 1 and 5.
In these Figures, a is the boss; a', the disc part of the plate pulley; a², the
cylindrical part of the same, forming the rim, to which the break is to be
applied; a³, as, the other rim, for the convenience of the weaver in altering the
position of the crank shaft; and a', a', a, a, a, a, are arms, which attach the
last-mentioned rim to the former. In the disc part of this fly wheel a¹ I fix a pin
or stud b, which projects inwards or towards the side of the loom far enough to
catch the hook, herein-after mentioned. The position of the pin on the disc
must be such that it will encounter the said hook (if the latter be not removed
from its path) when the crank is at or about the top centre. g, g, is the break,
lying nearly in contact with the break rim of the fly wheel, and attached at one
end to the framing of the loom by the bracket g¹. The break shewn in the
Drawing is of the form described in the Specification filed in pursuance of
certain Letters Patent heretofore granted to me for "certain improvements in
looms for weaving," and bearing date the Fourteenth day of September, One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-four; but the form or construction of the
break employed constitutes no part of my present Invention: To the other end

page_text: of the break g, g, I attach by a pin joint g² the arm or lever g³, the extremity of
which is recurved into the form of a hook. In Figure 1 this arm is behind
the disc part of the fly wheel, but its position is shewn by dotted lines. c is a
lever, one end of which is pivoted on a stud c¹ in the framing; the other ex-
tremity lies parallel with and near to the arm g³, and carries two pins 3, 3,
which project laterally from it towards and across the arm g³, the one extending
above and the other below the said arm, and confining the same between them ;
the lever c is also furnished with an upright wing or projecting part, the
upper side of which is formed into an incline plane. The lever c, as will appear
by inspection of Figure 1, is suspended on the outside of the loom framing, and
between such framing and the arm g³. From the inner side of the lever ca
pin c projects through a slot in the loom side, and to a little distance within
the framing; this pin rests upon a blade spring d, which is affixed to the
inner side of the framing by the bracket d', and sustains the pin c* and lever c
in the position shewn in Figure 5; the spring & and pin c' do not appear in
Figure 1, being concealed by intervening objects. e is the stop rod; e¹ a fixed
spur, projecting backwards from the same, and armed with a friction roller .
The stop rod is also furnished with the usual vertical arm or finger e³, which
forms the connecting link between the stop rod and the swell . The shuttle;
when present in either of the shuttle boxes, raises the swell and forces back the
vertical arm in the usual manner, and the partial rotation of the stop rod
thus caused depresses the friction roller e on the end of the spur e¹ into the
position shewn in Figure 1; but if the shuttle be absent from both boxes no
such action of the swell upon the vertical finger nor partial rotation of the
stop rod takes place, and the spur e and friction roller e retain their elevated
position, as seen in Figure 5. The wing or projection c² on the lever c lies
with its upper surface immediately in the path of the friction roller e³, and so
long as the lever c is sustained in its position by the spring d, both being undis-
turbed, the height of the upper surface of the wing is such, that if both
shuttle boxes be empty, and the spur e¹ consequently elevated, as in Figure 5,
the friction roller can pass freely over the surface of the wing c³, and no dis-
turbance of the lever c ensues, but it remains quiescent in the position shewn in
Figure 5. If, however, the shuttle be present in either of the boxes, and the
spur e consequently in its lower position, as in Figure 1, the friction roller ²
in passing over the inclined upper surface of the wing c will depress the same,
and along with it the lever c, to which it is attached. In Figure 1 the lever c
is shewn in this depressed position. f is a rod, attached by one end to the pin
joint g2 of the break, and connecting the latter to the lever f¹, which bas for
its fulcrum the same stud c', which carries the lever c. The upper extremity f*

page_text: of the lever f¹ has a lateral finger or pin projecting past the spring handle, so
that when the lower end of the lever fis,moved towards the break, the finger
on its other end forces the spring handle out of its detent; and shifts the straj
guide in the usual way. It will be seen, by inspection of the. Figures, that if
the lever c remains undisturbed as, the,sley beats up, the pins c,.c; will keep
the arm g', which rests between them, in the elevated position seen in Figure 5;
in which position as the fly wheel revolves the pin & will becomic engaged with
the hook at the end of the lever g³, and will thus draw the break ginto closo
contact with the cylindrical rim qof.the fly wheel. Now; unless the shuttle
shall have entered one of the boxes and raised the swell so as to cause the
depression of the spur e', the lever c will retain its undisturbed position, and
the break will be applied accordingly. As the joint g is drawn closer to. the
fly wheel the rod will move the lower extremity of the lever f' in 'the same
direction, by which motion the finger få on tlic; upper extremity of the same
lever will be advanced and liberate the spring handle; but if the shuttle shall
have duly completed its transit through the shed, and raised one of the swells;
the spur e will have been lowered; and the friction rollere encountering the
wing will depress the lever c, and with it the arm g, into the positions shewn'
in Figure 1, in which position the pin 6 will pass clear of the book on the arm g³,
and the movements of the loom will be uninterrupted.. The foregoing arrange.
ment may be varied by reversing the action of the stop rod on the lever c, and
that of the lever c on the arm g³, so as, to retain the hook of the arm out of
the path of the pin'b, so long as the shuttle 'duly effects its 'transit, and guiding
the said arm into the path of the said pin whenever. the shuttle misses boxing.
But as such variation will be evident to any person conversant with imechanism
of this class from what has been already explained it would be useless to dwell
further upon it. The application of the break to the fly wheel, in the event of
an interruption in the supply of weft, is accomplished as follows:-The loom
being provided with the ordinary weft stopping motion, I make a slight variation
in the form of the aperture in the breast beam end through which the spring
handle passes, by dividing the inner part thereof into two recesses by a mid-
feather, making the outline of the aperture like that represented. in Figure 3,
in which the spring handle is shewn in section at h... Here the recess., is the
notch or detent which holds the spring handle. h when in its working position.
is the midfeather; and 2, 3, the two slots or recesses which it separates.
When the spring handle his ejected from tlie detent by the backward inove-
ment of the weft, lever it falls into the first or nearest recess, but when
removed by the hand it is to be drawn past the midfeather A, and allowed to drop
into the second and more distant recess. The rod f, which connects the

page_text: break with the knocking-off lever f', has a laterally projecting pin f³, against
which the shorter arm of a bell-crank lever bears. A stud in the loom side
forms the fulcrum of this lever, the longer arm of which 12 extends towards the
spring handle, and is furnished at its extremity with a friction roller P. On
the spring handle at the part opposite. the roller is fixed an incline h. When
the spring handle is in its working position. the lower edge of the incline'
projects under the roller. Figure 4 shews the form and relative position of
the roller and incline as seen from behind. When the spring handle. h is
released from its detent by:the action of the weft lever, it recoils towards the
loom side, in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 4, and falling into
the first or nearest recess in the breast beam end aperture, is brought up in the
position shewn by the dotted. lines: During this: motion, the incline encoun-
tering the roller Praises it, and the spring handle h and roller respectively
take the positionis shewn by the dotted lines in Figure 4.. Along with the
roller the horizontal arm of the bell-crank lever is of course raised, and the
vertical arm pressed against the pin f³, forcing the break into contact with
the fly wheel; the intensity of. the pressure exerted by the break may be
varied by raising or lowering the incline h³ on the spring handle h. The fore-
going motions ensue only when the spring handle, being released from its
detent by the action of the weft lever, .falls into the recess of the aperture in
the breast beam end, the incline ² being sufficiently broad to overlap the roller P
when the spring handle has been removed to the distance of the first recess
only; but when the spring handle has been released by hand, and drawn back
into the second or more remote recess, the incline 2 does not act upon the
roller P, because its breadth.is not sufficient to reach it after the withdrawal of
the spring handle to this greater distance. In Figure 1.is-shown the form-and
arrangement of my improved lever for communicating motion from the picking
tappet to the picking stick in looms furnished with the under pick. n is a stud
fixed in the loom. side, and forming the fulcrum of the improved lever, of which
is the shorter and n the longer arm; m.is the ordinary picking bowl,
which as the tappet shaft revolves impinges upon the inclined face of the lever
arm n', depressing the opposite and longer arm n; o is the picking stick,
bolted in the socket 'p, the said socket. being conjoined to the boss p', which is
pivoted on a stud carried by the end of the swing rail in the usual form. From
the boss plan arm projects inwards towards the loom side immediately under
the end of the lever arm n, and when the latter is depressed, by the picking
bowl impinging upon the arm n', as before mentioned, it strikes the aforesaid
arm and effects the vibration of the picking stick. This part of the Invention
is restricted to the form, position, and arrangement of the lover n', n.
:

page_text: My fourth improvement, which is for the purpose of relieving the healds of
the weight of the treadles, is seen best in Figure 5, and partially in Figure 1.
2,2, are the treadles; and r, r, curved arms, bolted firmly to the treadles, and
reaching upward and forward so as to overhang the shedding tappets. The
extremities of the arms r, r, have sockets, into which are inserted pieces of
hard wood r, r, which latter rest upon the upper edges of the shedding
tappets. By this arrangement the treadle attached to the rising shed is lifted
by the shedding tappet at each opening of the shed.
The arrangement which constitutes my fifth improvement is shewn in
Figure 1, but more completely in Figure 5. s is the vertical and s the hori-
zontal arm of one of the ends of a common vibrating back rest: Instead of
connecting a spring, or suspending a weight to the arm s², I attach thereto one
of the swag ropes or chains, first giving it two or three turns round the neck
of the warp beam v. The other end of the rope or chain is fastened to its
corresponding weight lever w. The same arrangement is applied at the opposite
side of the loom.
The sixth branch of my Invention is an improvement upon a former In-
vention, described in the Specification filed in pursuance of Letters Patent
granted to John Tayler and Richard Hurst, in the thirteenth year of the reign
of Her present Majesty, and bearing date the Seventh day of March, One
thousand eight hundred and fifty. It will be best explained by reference to
Figure 5, with the aid of Figures 6 and 7. I shall describe it as used in con-
nection with the first arrangement hercin-before described, namely, that for
applying the break, but it is equally applicable to any sley with a fast reed.
Referring to Figures 1 and 5, it is apparent that while the friction roller c
depresses the lever c, the latter in its turn reacts upon the stop rod through the
spur e', and aids the stop rod spring in pressing the vertical finger against
the swell, and binding the shuttle in the box so as to impede its exit therefrom
when the pick takes place. To counteract this reaction, I fix on the stop rod
a small boss a¹, to which I attach a blade spring x, which projects backwards
in a direction nearly parallel with the crank arm y. The latter carries a small
adjustable pin y', which overhangs the spring x, but rises a little way clear of
it when the crank arm is most elevated. is a small plate, screwed to and
descending below the front of the sley beam, the lower portion of it having a
rectangular aperture, as seen in Figure 7, which is a front view of the plate;.
2 is a small tongue fast to the stop rod, and projecting forward through the
aperture in the plate 2. These parts are so adjusted relatively to each other
that the tongue acts as a stop to limit the vibration of the stop rod. To explain
the action of these parts I shall refer to Figure 6, in which, let the circle 1

page_text: represent the orbit of the crank, the point 2 the crank arm pin, and the lines
3 and 4 the extrémne positions assumed by the crank arm during a revolution
of the crank. When the crank arm is in its highest position 3, the crank being
at the top centre, the pin y' is raised a little above the bighest position of the
spring a, and the stop rod spring is free to force the vertical finger e³ against
the swell e; but as the crank arm descends, the pin y¹ forces downwards the
the spring a, which being stronger than the stop rod spring, overcomes the
latter, and withdraws the vertical finger e from contact with the swell into
the position shewn in dotted lines in Figure 6, at the same time raising the
tongue z until it touches the upper side of the aperture in the plate. Tho
stop rod is now prevented from turning further, and the spring yields to
the pressure of the pin y' during the remainder of the descent of the crank arm.
It is evident that by this means both the pressure of the stop rod spring and
that of the lever c are removed from the swell, and the shuttle left unem-
barrassed by them during the time that the pick is being made.
2
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and the best mode
of carrying the same into effect with which I am at present acquainted, and
having in the course of such statement had occasion to refer to old and known
parts and arrangements of the loom for better elucidating the explanation of
my improvements, I shall close this statement by further declaring that what I
claim as new and of my Invention, and the subject of the privilege granted to
me by the Letters Patent aforesaid, is,―
Firstly, the construction and combination of parts of the fly wheel with two
distinct rims, herein-before described.
Secondly, the application of the break to the
wheel by the motive force
of the crank shaft and fly wheel when the shuttle misses boxing, and the regu-
lation of the times of such application by the position of the stop rod governed
by the movements of the shuttle, as described.
Thirdly, the application of the break in the event of an interruption of the
supply of weft by the recoil of the spring handle, as described.
Fourthly, the form, position, and arrangement of the picking lever, described.
Fifthly, the addition of arms to the treadles, for the purpose of causing the
latter to be raised by the shedding tappets.
And, sixthly, the attachment of the swag ropes or chains to the vibrating
back rest.
And, seventhly, the use of a blade spring or elastic arm instead of a rigid
arm, for counteracting by the depression of the crank arm the pressure upon
the swell produced by the stop rod spring, but not the method of coun-

page_text: teracting the tension of the stop rod spring by the depression of the crank arm
generally.
In witness, whereof, I, the said William Bramwell Hayes, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of September, in the, year
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
of
WILLIAM BRAMWELL HAYES. (L.S.)
Signed. and sealed by the said William
Bramwell Hayes, in the presence of
J. TAYLER, Patent Agent,
Manchester.