IMPROVEMENTS IN BUTTON HOLE SEWING ATTACHMENTS FOR SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1885

page_text: We FREDERICK EGGE and CARL JOHAN ADOLPH SJOBERG residing at 45 Wall
Street Bridgeport in the County of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, in the
United States of America, Machinists do hereby declare the nature of our inven-
tion for IMPROVEMENTS IN BUTTON HOLE SEWING ATTACHMENTS FOR SEWING
MACHINES" and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Our invention relates to certain novel and useful improvements in button hole
attachments for sewing machines and has for its object to provide a simple and
comparatively inexpensive machine of this description by means of which button
holes may be speedily and effectually worked and perfectly barred at the ends, and
with these ends in view our invention consists in the details of construction and
combination of elements hereinafter fully explained and then specifically designated
by the claims.
In order that those skilled in the art to which our invention appertains may
more fully understand its construction and operation we will proceed to describe
the same in detail referring by letter to the accompanying drawing forming a part
of this specification in which
Fig. 1 is a plan view of our attachment.
Fig. 2 a side elevation.
Fig. 3 a plan view with the top casing removed.
Fig. 4 a section taken at the line x-x Fig 6.
Fig. 5 a section taken at the line xx¹ Fig 6.
Fig. 6a section taken at the line a², x³ Fig 1.
Fig. 7 a section taken through the line ³ ³ Fig 1.
Fig. 8 a section taken at the line x, x, Fig 1, and
Fig. 9 a detail enlarged view of a button hole showing the manner in which the
barring stitches are made at the ends, the location of said stitches being shown by
loops.
Similar letters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing.
A is a rock-shaft which is adapted at the forward extremity to be connected
with the needle bar of a sewing machine. This shaft is mounted within
uprights B projecting from the casing C. Loosely hung on said shaft is a dog D,
and rigidly secured, on the rear end of the shaft is a plate E having lugs Fintegral

page_text: therewith; through these lugs are passed set screws G extending toward the dog D
and on opposite sides thereof and by the adjustment of which the throw of the dog
is regulated as will be readily understood.
H is a lever pivoted to the bed plate I and with its forward end formed in a
box J within which is arranged the pawl K in such manner as to slide freely. Lis
an ordinary wire spring connected to a pin M projecting from the pawl and with
its free ends attached to the box, the object of this arrangement being to give to
said pawl a spring movement.
N is an L shaped lever pivoted to the bed-plate and having its outer portion cut
away or recessed as shown at O and its inner portion provided with an elongated
slot P. Qis a wiper and R a ratchet.
This wiper and ratchet are preferably made from the same piece of metal and are
pivoted to the bed plate in such manner that the wiper is within the recess ☐ as
shown at Fig. 5 while the ratchet extends over the recess and immediately above
the plane of the lever N as clearly shown at Figs 3, 4 and 7. It will be readily
understood that the action of the wiper, within the recess will cause the lever N
to vibrate. Within the lever H is a slot S within which projects the dog D as
shown at Fig 7, and by the rocking of the shaft A motion is thereby communicated
to the lever H At each vibration of this lever the pawl K will engage with the
ratchet R and turn it around one tooth; on the backward movement of said lever
the pawl will, as soon as it gets beyond the next preceding tooth, spring behind the
same and be in position to turn the ratchet at the next forward movement of the
lever. The construction of the recess and the arrangement of the wiper therein
is such that at each intermittent turning of the ratchet by the pawl, one of the cams
of the wiper will strike against the wall of the recess and thereby cause the lever N
to vibrate. Within the slot P is a hollow pin T provided with a head U on the
bottom and threaded interiorly. V is a screw extending within said pin and
adapted to set against the surface of the lever N. whereby the location of the pin
along the slot may be fixed at any desired point for the purpose presently
explained.
W is a toothed wheel, ✗ an eccentric disk and Y a trippet all arranged on the
same short shaft and in such manner as to rotate in unison, we can if desirable form
these parts out of the same stock in one piece but we prefer to connect them rigidly
together with their perforations for the shaft in alignment. Z is a plate pivoted to
the bed-plate as seen at A¹ the rear portion of this plate is forked as shown and
provided with inwardly projecting lugs B¹ which extend around on opposite sides
of the eccentric disk X and are in constant contact therewith for the purpose
presently explained, the plate being raised from the bed-plate by the washer C¹,
(Fig. 6) in order to elevate it to the same horizontal plane with the disk, and
thereby not interfere with the movement of the wheel W D' is a plate and is
fastened by pins E' to the underside of the plate Z.
Fare spring arms formed integral with the plate D and extending upward at
right angles thereto above the level of the plate Z for the purpose presently
explained. G' is a flat spring (see Figs 4 and 6) which bellied upward at the
forward portion and secured to the plate Z by the screw H¹ driven into the
pivot A¹
I is the oscillator having two elongated slots J¹ K¹ (see Figs 3 and 6) the former
being racked at the sides. This oscillator in its assembled position rests upon the
spring and the rim L' of the set screw V said rim acting as a washer interposed
between the oscillator and the lever N, the set screw itself extending upward
through the slot K¹ and fitting closely therein. The spring arms F¹ embrace the
oscillator closely as shown at Fig 3 and act as a yielding fulcrum for said lever as
will be hereinafter set forth. Motion is imparted to the oscillator from the lever N
through the medium of the pin T which extends through the slot K¹ in the lever.
By shifting the said pin along the slot P the vibration of the oscillator is increased
or decreased according as the pin is moved nearer to or further away from the
fulcrum of the lever.

page_text: M² is a ratchet wheel (see Figs 3 and 6) secured on the end of a short shaft N¹
the upper extremity of the latter being formed into a small pinion O¹ which extends
below the under surface of the said wheel, a distance equal to the thickness of the
oscillator. The shaft N¹ has its bearing within the hollow post P¹ and extends
therein far enough to bring the pinion O¹ in the same horizontal plane with the
oscillator and between the racks in the sides of the slot J.
The spring Gacts against the bottom surface of the pinion O' for the purpose of
insuring a steady movement thereof and preventing slipping.
Qis a friction spring placed around the hollow pivotal post R¹ (see Fig 7) and
bears against the casing C and the lever H for the purpose of ensuring a steady
movement of the latter. S' is also a friction spring which bears against the casing
and the ratchet R to prevent the turning of the latter by the spring pawl K on the
return movement of the lever H; if desired we can readily use the ordinary detent
or click to accomplish this purpose.
T is a spring pawl pivoted to the underside of the lever H and adapted to
engage with the toothed wheel W and turn the same at each forward vibration of
said lever as will be presently explained. U' is also a spring pawl pivoted to said
lever at the upper forward extremity thereof and adapted to turn the ratchet M¹
at every forward vibration of the lever,
The operation of our improvement is as follows
The vibration of the lever H imparts motion to the oscillator as herein before set
forth. When a button hole is stitched along the side the pawl T¹ always lies at
the base of the incline of one of the two long teeth of the wheel W and the play of
said pawl is only sufficient to enable it to engage with the short teeth, accordingly
the said wheel, the eccentric X and trippet Y are stationary during said stitching and
no motion whatever is imparted to the plate Z. The normal position of the pinion Ol
is that of engagement with one side of the rack in the oscillator the particular side.
being of course dependant upon the side of the button hole which is first stitched.
At every upward movement of the forward arm of the rock shaft A the ratchet M¹
will be turned by the action of the pawl U on one of the teeth and the pinion O¹
will act on the rack and thereby feed the oscillator in order to carry the
work forward or backward under the needle so as to stitch the button hole
throughout its length. V' is a push-bar having an ear W₁ (see Figs 3 and 8)
projecting laterally therefrom and adjustably secured to a side extension X¹ of the
oscillator by means of a screw Y₁ headed at the bottom and passed upward through
the elongated slot Z' (see Figs 3 and 8) and surmounted by a thumb-nut A¹¹.
When, the oscillator has been fed forward so that the stitching has extended to the
end of the button hole the push-bar will strike the trippet Y and turn the toothed
wheel W around sufficiently to enable the pawl T¹ to drop in front of the long
tooth and at each vibration of the lever H, turn the said wheel until the pawl
again falls into position at the base of the incline of the other long tooth. While
the wheel W is being turned around, the constant action of the eccentric X on the
pivoted plate Z causes the latter to change its position around the pivotal point
thereof and since the oscillator is carried by said plate, the reciprocation of said
oscillator is effected between different vertical planes thereby causing the barring
stitches at the ends of the buttonhole to be made in different places in the fabric.
as shown at Fig 9; when the action of the eccentric has caused the position of the
oscillator to be so changed that the pinion and rack are disengaged the feeding
movement will stop and the timing of the action of said eccentric is such that the
oscillator will be carried gradually so that the other side of the rack may engage
with the pinion, a succession of barring stitches being made in the meantime in
alignment; when the rack and pinion engage again, the oscillator will then feed in
a direction opposite to that above described, and barring stitches in different places
will be made at the other side of the button hole until the wheel W has ceased to
turn, when the vibration of the oscillator will become regular and constant and the
stitching of the button hole at the other side effected. A push bar B' (see Fig. 4)
secured to the side of the oscillator opposite to that at which the bar V₁is connected

page_text: strikes the trippet Y on the reverse feeding movement of said oscillator and enables
the pawl T to operate on the wheel W and effect the barring at the other end
in precisely the same manner as above described.
The number of barring stitches depends upon the number of teeth in the wheel W
because at every movement of the eccentric caused by the action of the pawl T¹ on
said wheel the stitches will be made in a direction at an angle to the line of stitches
along the side of the button-hole,
If more teeth are placed in the wheel the timing of the eccentric must be such
that the oscillator will be carried more gradually in order to allow a greater
number of stitches to be made in the same space.
The normal position of the trippet Y is in alignment. with one of the push
bars VB so that the latter may perform their functions, and at the same time
permit the pawl T¹ to operate along the incline of one of the long teeth without
turning the wheel, whereby the oscillator may be fed and oscillated within the
same vertical planes thereby enabling the stitches to be made uniformly along the
side of the button-hole.
The length of the button hole is accommodated by the adjustment of the push
bar V¹ through the medium of the screw Y¹ and thumb nut A¹¹ since the further
the push bars are apart the greater will be the longitudinal movement allowed to
the oscillator before the trippet is acted upon. In order to adapt our improvement
to machines in which the needle bar has a greater or less vertical play than usual,
the screws G are simply run out or in as the case may require thereby allowing
more or less lost motion before the dog D is operated upon; any suitable cloth
clamp C is attached to the oscillator.
The yielding fulcrum enables the oscillator to be fed forward and vibrated, while
at the same time the movements are positive as the spring arms always maintain
a grip.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is
1. In a button hole sewing attachment for sewing machines the oscillator or
cloth support having two racks and fulcrumed by means of two springs embracing
said oscillator at each side and adapted to be fed forward and backward by the
action of an intermittently revolving pinion on said racks in combination with
means for shifting the normal position of the oscillator laterally and throwing said
pinion out of engagement with the rack, whereby a series of barring stitches may
be made in different places in the fabric and across the end of the button hole
substantially as set forth.
2. The pivoted fulcrum plate having spring arms adapted to constantly embrace
the oscillator and capable of being shifted around its pivotal point by the action of
an eccentric, in combination with the oscillator and the devices for effecting the
vibration and feeding of said oscillator substantially as shown and described.
3. The eccentric, trippet, and wheel having two long teeth and intermediate
short teeth, all secured on the same short shaft, in combination with the pivoted
plate having spring arms the oscillator fulcrumed between said arms and provided
with a stationary and an adjustable push bar pinion arranged between racks in
the oscillator and the devices for continually revolving said pinion and for operating
against the teeth in said wheel, whereby the oscillator is fed, and the barring
stitches formed substantially as set forth.
4. The combination of the rock-shaft A adapted to be actuated by the vertically
reciprocating needle bar of a sewing machine, dog D depending froin said shaft and
operated by adjustable abutments, pivoted lever H having attached thereto spring:
pawls U TK lever N cut away to accommodate a wiper Q secured on the same
short shaft with the ratchet wheel R, pivoted plate Z having upwardly extending
spring arms F, wheel W having two long teeth and intermediate shorter teeth,
eccentric K arranged between two diametrically opposite points of contact of the

page_text: plate Z trippet Y, said wheel, eccentric and trippet being secured on the same short
shaft, oscillator I fulcrumed between said spring arms and having at its forward
portion racked slot J¹ and at the rear elongated slot K' pin T extending upward
through the slot P in the lever N within the slot K¹ and adjustably secured by
means of set screw V, ratchet wheel M' secured on the extremity of short shaft N³,
pinion also secured on said shaft and extending below the under surface of the
ratchet and between the racks in the sides of the slot J¹ and a stationary and an
adjustable push-bar V₁ B attached. at the sides of the oscillator and adapted to act
on the trippet substantially as shown and set forth.
5. The shaped lever pivoted to the bed-plate and recessed at one extremity
and vibrated by a wiper wheel revolving intermittently within said recess in
combination with the oscillator connected to the lever by a pin adjustable along
elongated slots in said oscillator and lever whereby vibration is imparted to the
oscillator and the throw of the same determined substantially as set forth.
6. The combination of the pivoted fulcrum plate, the oscillator supported thereby,
and the eccentric having two diametrically opposite points of contact with said
plate and adapted to move the latter to and fro substantially as set forth and
described.
7. The lever H carrying spring pawls K. T¹ U¹ in combination with the ratchet B,
toothed wheel W and ratchet M substantially as set forth.
8. In combination with the toothed wheel having two long teeth and intermediate
short teeth and the trippet secured on the same short shaft with said wheel, the
pawl adapted to be reciprocated throughout the length of the short teeth and to
thereby turn the wheel, in combination with the oscillator having arranged at the
sides thereof push-bars adapted to abut against said trippet and thereby turn the
said wheel, whereby said pawl may engage with the long teeth and by turning
the wheel enable barring stitches to be made across the end of the button, hole
substantially as shown and specified.