IMPROVEMENTS IN AND ADDITIONS TO SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Hesketh Hughes, of Homerton, in the County of
Middlesex, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND
ADDITIONS TO SEWING MACHINES.”
Sealed the 4th January 1876, and dated the 8th July 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Hesketh Hughes at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
8th July 1875.
I, HESKETH HUGHES, of Homerton, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN AND ADDITIONS TO SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improvements in and additions to sewing
machines, and consists in the employment of an endless plain built up
or articulated band in the upper or under portion of the machine to
work from the mechanism at the rear, and by which the needle in the
head can be caused to partake of an up-and-down motion corresponding
to those of existing machines, or the band may be caused to operate a
ring or segment of a ring-shaped needle forming an important feature of

page_text: my Invention, such needle working in a reciprocating or a continuous
manner.
The endless band may be arranged to work the shuttle, spooler,
bobbin, or hook as well as the needle, in which case the band is carried
down the upright of the machine, and then forward to the shuttle or the
hook as the case may be.
If I use a ring-shaped needle I prefer to form it of serrated or wavy
shape for a portion of its ring diameter, and to arrange pins upon its
supporting frame, which pins will be caused to reciprocate or retire from
the needle whilst passing through the fabric.
In some cases the point of my ring-shaped needle is in advance of its
tail end, and appears on its supporting frame like the thread of a screw
so that the point enters a fresh hole in the stuff being sewn, and as the
needle continues to pass through the fabric it acts as a feeder of the
same for the succession of stitches along the fabric to be made. In case
of using one band only for my reciprocating or continuous rotation ring
needle, I purpose using a shuttle, hook, or looper in the frame which
carries the needle.
The shuttle, spool, or spool carrier can be operated by a separate
endless band if desired. The needle can be worked from any part of
the band, so that seams can be sewn at any distance from a machine
head.
The ring-shaped needle made from a straight length of metal bent
round in a circle in the direction of its length to form a ring, but with
the ends disconnected and close or at a distance apart, as desired, can be
advantageously employed in what are known as over-hand or as button-
hole sewing, also for that known as the back stitch sewing.
The ring-shaped needle in a wavy form with an eye or a hook can
in some cases be fitted in a groove in the band, and be caused to rotate
by a travelling motion of the band on a circular direction to carry the
needle into, through, and out of the fabric.
When a ring-shaped needle with an eye is used, the loose end of the
thread can be drawn through the fabric at each stitch by a draw out or
whipping appliance worked by the machine.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Hesketh Hughes in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 8th January 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HESKETH
HUGHES, of Homerton, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-
ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Hesketh Hughes, Her special licence,
that I, the said Hesketh Hughes, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Hesketh Hughes, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
AND ADDITIONS TO SEWING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Hesketh Hughes, my executors or administrators, by
an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 Hesketh Hughes, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, that is to say :—
This Invention relates to improvements in and additions to sewing
machines, and consists in the employment of an endless plain built up
or articulated band in the upper or under portion of the machine to
work from the mechanism at the rear, and by which the needle in the
head can be caused to partake of an up-and-down motion corresponding
to those of existing machines, or the band may be caused to operate a

page_text: ring or segment of a ring-shaped needle forming an important feature of
my Invention, such needle working in a reciprocating or a continuous
manner.
The endless band may be arranged to work the shuttle, spooler,
bobbin, or hook as well as the needle, in which case the band is carried
down the upright of the machine, and then forward to the shuttle or the
hook, as the case may be.
If I use a ring-shaped needle I prefer to form it of serrated or wavy
shape for a portion of its ring diameter, and to arrange pins upon its
supporting frame, which pins will be caused to reciprocate or retire
from the needle whilst passing through the fabric.
In some cases the point of my ring-shaped needle is in advance of its
tail end, and appears on its supporting frame like the thread of a screw,
so that the point enters a fresh hole in the stuff being sewn, and as the
needle continues to pass through the fabric it acts as a feeder of the
same for the succession of stitches along the fabric to be made. In case
of using one band only for my reciprocating or continuous rotating ring
needle, I purpose using a shuttle, hook, or looper in the frame which
carries the needle.
The shuttle, spool, or spool carrier can be operated by a separate
endless band if desired. The needle can be worked from any part of
the band so that seams can be sewn at any distance from a machine
head.
The ring-shaped needle made from a straight length of metal bent
round in a circle in the direction of its length to form a ring, but with 1
the ends disconnected and close or at a distance apart as desired, can be
advantageously employed in what is known as over-hand or as button-
hole sewing, also for that known as the back stitch sewing.
The ring-shaped needle in a wavy form with an eye or a hook can in
some cases be fitted in a groove in the band, and be caused to rotate by
a travelling motion of a band to carry it in a circular direction into,
through, and out of the fabric.
When a ring-shaped needle with an eye is used, the loose end of the
thread can be drawn through the fabric at each stitch by a draw-out or
whipping appliance worked by the machine.
My Invention is represented in the annexed Sheet of Drawings.

page_text: Figure 1 is a side view of part of a sewing machine sufficient to show
the first portion of my Invention. A, A, are plates articulated to
links B, B, forming an endless band for working round end rollers or
wheels C, C, one of which only is shown. These wheels have teeth upon
their peripheries for taking into and between the couples of links, where
they engage against the cross connecting pins D; D, to pull the band
round. The outer edges of the plates, which are of different lengths to
produce a rising and falling motion of the needle E, have projecting
lips E¹, which ride in a slot in the needle stem F, the slot having a
couple of friction rollers F, F, one above and one below, to bear against
the lip or lips for the purpose.
The needle rides up and down by its stem or bar F, being guided in a
fixed part of the machine head. The amount of up-and-down motion is
governed by the depth of the wave of the outer edges of the plates A, A,
and the travel of the band is actuated by the pinion C, which can be
rotated by hand or other power.
I purpose fitting a hook or looper under the work plate G, and direct
upon the spindle H of the pinion I, but a separate looper spindle may
be provided, or a shuttle having a to-and-fro motion, as desired. The
needle can in this case be of the ordinary straight construction, or the
head may be crooked or wayy, as in the side and edge views; Figures 2, 3,
and 4, to take over pins J between the lower part of the stem F and a
plate K secured thereto, the needle being thus held firmly in position
after being placed over the pins. To ensure the bite of the plate against
the needle I form a projection L at the upper part to throw the greatest
strain of the pinching screw M upon the lower part.
I have referred to the endless band as composed of articulated links,
but it may be a plain band with holes for the teeth of the wheels C, C,
to engage in, and with lugs on the outer face for the joining or articu-
lation of the plates A, A. The endless band, particularly if a plain one,
may also actuate the hook, spooler, or bobbin, thus dispensing with the
driving of the band from beneath the needle. The crooked or wavy
headed needle facilitates its being fitted in the bar with a certainty of
the eye being in proper position for the formation of the loop with
regard to the hook without reference to the height at which it may
be set.
73
food andlows bond A

page_text: O, C, C' one of which C¹ is the driver, and has pins N upon its periphery for
engaging into the holes of the band. One edge of this band is serrated,
as in Figure 6, and its projections of the serrations take into a serrated
edge or side of the needle, as in Figure 8, which in this case is of
circular or ring shape, so that it partakes of a continuous circular
movement to pass into and through the fabric that may be upon the
work plate or table.
The needle in its travel rides upon or in a groove of a segmental
cylindrical plate P, this being so arranged that while the needle is
rotating some part of it is always in the groove, consequently its travel
is steadied, and vibration is prevented. The double thread of this needle
passes through the fabric, and the loose end is caught by a whipping
apparatus, which I attach to the machine after the style shown in
Figure 15, so as to clear it, and leave the thread free to be taken by the
needle through the fabric for the next stitch.
I fit a looper or spooler in the hollow of the segmental cylinder P to
take the loop of the main portion of the thread, according to whether a
chain stitch or a lock stitch is to be produced. This plan when applied
for what is known as over-hand sewing, that is over the edge of the
fabric, the hook or looper takes sufficient of the main body of thread,
while the fabric moves forward by the feed, and brings the loop into
position for the needle to pass through in its next through travel, and
so produce a lock stitch with a twist of the loop on the edge of the
fabric, thus giving in effect the button-hole stitch from a single
thread.
Figure 9 represents another method of driving my waved ring-shaped
needle. In this plan I arrange a series of pins or studs Q in a circular
position within holes of a plate R, which rotates under the action of a
spindle S. The pins bear against a fixed frame T as in a cage to keep
them in position and yet permit of the pins moving in and out under
the action of a fixed cam plate U against which their inner ends are
kept in contact. When the pins press against the projecting portion of
the cam plate their front ends bear against or within the hollows or
waves of the needle, and so drive it round in a groove formed in a
plate V to pass it through the fabric, the pins then taking into the
hollow of the cam plate to prevent them fouling the guide plate during
the operation. The fabric in this construction of apparatus is arranged

page_text: thumbscrew. I arrange a spooler W within a hollow of the rotating
pin plate and hold it in by another plate X attached to the base of the
machine, or instead of the spooler I can arrange a hook and give it a
rotative movement from the pin plate spindle to produce the chain
stitch if desired; or I can uso a hook needle for effecting overhand
sewing, a whipping apparatus being fitted or not as convenient. The
wavy needle used in this machine, having its point in advance of the
tail end, effects the feed of the fabric, or any usual feed apparatus can
be applied.
Figures 10 and 11 represent a plan in which the needle is caused.to
move the distance of the waves or corrugations of the needle by a cam
plate of corresponding shape, the fabric in this method being held
as fixed while each stitch is being performed.
Figure 12 is a detached view of one of my wavy needles with the
point in advance of the tail end. This needle is produced from a length
of metal wire, such as is shown at Figure 13, and then bent into shape
of the circular or ring shape.
Figure 14 shows a needle with the wave or corrugations on the external
periphery of the ring, the point and cye end being on the internal line
of the inner portions of the wave, the former needle, shown at Figure 12,
having the point and tail end in a concentric line between the inner and
the outer peripheries of the wave.
Figure 15 represents a portion of an apparatus in which a plain ring
needle E is carried by the grip of articulated plates a forming an endless
band. The band travels round rollers, one of which is the driver, as in
Figure 5, and the plates which are articulated to links B, as in Figure 1,
become separated as pairs by coming into contact with a guide plate.
during part of its travel to release the needle from between them and
against another guide plate to close them and grip the ring-shaped
needle to drive it through the fabric, the segmental cylindrical grooved
plate being in this arrangement dispensed with. When a hook needle is
used the thread is drawn across the hole in the table plate, so that as it
passes through it takes the thread with it and travels round the
segmental guide, and is cast off at the right moment to complete the
stitch.

page_text: Figure 16 represents an endless plain band arrangement for com-
municating a reciprocating motion to a wavy or corrugated needle from
a connecting rod b actuated by an excentric c from below. The point of
the needle in this case only enters through the fabric a fixed distance
corresponding to the throw of the excentric, and the loose end of the
thread at the completion of each stitch is caught by one or other of the
points of the whipping apparatus and withdrawn. The whipping
apparatus is composed of an endless band e with the points d on one of
its faces, and is driven at great speed by a separate pulley f. I affix a
guide plate near the hole of the work plate to separate the double
thread and to throw the loose one, that it may be taken by the
points.
Figure 17 represents a face view of a portion of the band used in this
machine, the edge of it being serrated for working the feed and per-
forated along the central line for operating the needle. Any number of
these sets of pullies, with separate endless bands, can be arranged upon
one machine so as to actuate separate needles and other appliances and
produce distinct rows of stitching or sewing, which can be crossed to
form what is known as quilting, or by fitting the pullies and needles
close together side by side the thread from one needle can be taken by
the looper or hook of the next adjoining one alternately to produce a
distinct fabric composed of the sewing threads themselves. The needle
carriers can be arranged in a circular manner and be all worked by the
same band, the carriers being sufficiently close together that cach needle
may pass through the loop of the next adjoining one and produce a
tubular fabric, this being formed of the needle threads themselves or
in conjunction with others.
For the manufacture of button holes and overhand stitching I employ
an arrangement such as in Figure 18, which represents a cone fon the
head of a spindle g. This cone has a sleeve or cap / put upon it having
grooves i in its working faces for the ring-shaped needle to take into in
succession at each stitch, the sleeve or cap shewn separately in Figure 19
being of a shape corresponding to the button hole, or any pattern, as a
leaf or flower. In embroidery, the spindle of the cone partakes of a
lateral motion through the action of a spring j, forcing a cam plate k of
the pattern to be formed against a fixed pin 7. The cap is retained on
the fabric while being sewn by a spring above.

page_text: Figure 25 shows a modification of the last-named Figure. In this
Figure I attach a link to the point of the ordinary needle bar and have
the segmental needle affixed to a vibrating plate c', which carries the
needle, as in the previous Figure; the hook or looper in one of these
plans being above the work plate and in the other below.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
The several improvements in sewing machines and arrangements of
parts thereof, all as herein-before described and shown in the annexed
Drawings, as and for the purposes set forth.
S 1..
Secondly. I claim. the construction and employment of ring-shaped
needles in sewing machines of a wavy or a plain form with a hook or an
eye, as described and shown and as and for the purposes set forth.,
:
In witness whereof, I, the said Hesketh Hughes, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eighth day of January, One thousand
cight hundred and seventy-six.