IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING MULES
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Rawcliffe, junior, of Preston, in the County
of Lancaster, Walter Bibby, and Andrew Fleming, of the same
Place, Cotton Spinners, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SPINNING MULES."
Sealed the 21st June 1872, and dated the 20th March 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Rawcliffe,
Walter Bibby, and Andrew Fleming at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 20th March
1872.
- We, JOHN RAWCLIFFE, junior, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster,
WALTER BIBBY, and ANDREW FLEMING, of the same Place, Cotton
Spinners, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN SPINNING MULES," to be as follows:-
'Our Invention consists in fixing on a radial arm a lever oscillating on
its centre instead of being simply hinged to such radial arm. One end
of this lever carries the ordinary stud or pulley used for tightening the

page_text: winding-on chain; the other end of the lever is jointed to a connecting
rod, the opposite end of which swivels on a travelling stud moved by the
common ratchet wheel and catch, and mounted in a frame firmly secured
to the floor. The gradual moving of this stud starting from a point
nearly in a line with the centre of the quadrant at the commencement of
the cop where no tightening of the winding-on chain is required, imparts
to the oscillating lever on the radial arm a continually increasing motion
throughout the working of the cop, the amount of which motion can be
so nicely adjusted as to compensate for the gradually diminishing
diameter of the spindle as the cop progresses, and without the slightest
strain upon the yarn, at the same time the use of springs to raise the
hinged lever out of the way of the carriage is dispensed with, and is also
the sliding hooked rod for pulling the hinged lever, by substituting a
connecting rod vibrating on fixed centres, by means of which the
oscillating lever on the radial arm is raised out of the way of the
carriage, thus removing all liability to accident and imparting a much
steadier motion to the tightening stud or pulley.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Rawcliffe, Walter Bibby, and Andrew
Fleming in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 19th September
1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
RAWCLIFFE, junior, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, WALTER
BIBBY, and ANDREW FLEMING, of the same Place, Cotton Spinners, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of March, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
fifth year of Her reign, did,. for Herself, Her. heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said John Rawcliffe, junior, Walter Bibby,
and Andrew Fleming, Her special licence that we, the said John
Rawcliffe, junior, Walter Bibby, and Andrew Fleming, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John
Rawcliffe, junior, Walter Bibby, and Andrew Fleming, our executors,

page_text: 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
SPINNING MULES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said John Rawcliffe, junior, Walter Bibby, and Andrew Fleming,
our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our, 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.

page_text: the way of the carriage, thus removing all liability to accident and
imparting a much steadier motion to the tightening stud or pulley.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and incidentally in general terms described in what
manner the same is to be performed or carried out in practice, we now
proceed more specifically and particularly to describe and ascertain in
what manner the same is to be performed or put in practice (that is, in
and by the following statements referring to the accompanying Draw-
ings), the aid of the foregoing descriptive statements to be resorted to if
necessary
These Drawings are illustrative, and show as much of a self-acting
mule as is required to make our Invention understood. Fig. 1, side
elevation; Fig. 2 shows the finger or jointed bracket for depressing the
tumbler.
A denotes frame secured to the floor (or to the framework of the mule
if preferred), in which is a worm for working the travelling stud on
which the connecting rod B swivels; C, the lever carrying the tightening
stud or pulley; D, the tumbler or catch for propelling the ratchet wheel
fastened on the end of the worm; E, the quadrant arm; G, the finger or
jointed bracket for depressing the tumbler at each outward or inward
motion of the carriage is mounted on the front of the carriage or carriage
coupling as may be most convenient.
The dotted lines show the position of the connecting rod and lever at
the commencement of the cop, no tightening of the winding-on chain
being then required, but by the time the cop bottom is formed the stud
in the frame A will have travelled a sufficient distance to cause the
tightening stud or pulley to touch the chain, and as the pressure upon
the
chain is increased by every succeeding draw up to the last, an uniform
tightly wound cop is thereby ensured without the slightest strain upon
the yarn, however delicate the thread may be. As all mules do not
require the same amount of tightening of the chain, we make the con-
necting rod B in two parts, so that it can be adjusted with the greatest
nicety to the requirements of each mule. There is also a small stop or
lock nut in the frame A for regulating the point from which the
travelling stud shall start, so that by the time the cop is finished it shall

page_text: have reached the position shown by the shaded parts of the Drawing.
This stop or lock nut we move a certain distance backward or forward,
as the case may require when changing the counts, so that if we are
spinning fifty (counts) with a No. 10 ratchet wheel, and wish to change
to sixty (counts) we simply shift the stop a given distance backwards,
so that the stud will have as much farther to travel as there will be
extra stretches put on compared with fifty (counts). And if we change
to forty (counts), we shift the stop forward a given distance, so that the
stud shall have a diminished space to travel in, in accordance with the
diminished number of stretches. It will thus be seen the same wheel
that will do for forty (counts) will answer for sixty (counts), and as a
matter of course for any intermediate number as well.
,
Fig. 3 shows the arrangement we adopt for moving the upper
instead of the lower end of the connecting rod. A slotted bracket A is
firmly secured to the floor, in which a stud is fitted to receive the end of
the connecting rod B. The worm in this arrangement is mounted on
the lever C instead of a separate frame, as shown in Fig. 1, and the
travelling stud forms the point of connection between the rod B and the
lever C. The position shown in the Drawing indicates the point
the travelling stud will have reached when the cop is nearly finished.
At the commencement of a fresh "set" the stud must be brought back
to a point near the ratchet wheel.
Fig. 4 is an end elevation of the ratchet wheel and catch fixed on the
end of the worm in the lever C, as shown in Fig. 3. The quadrant arm
when brought back to an upright position brings the catch into contact
with a projection on the framing of the mule, and thus moves the ratchet
one tooth, or as much as may be required at each draw.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature and
object of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed or put in practice, we hereby declare that we claim the In-
vention of "Improvements in Spinning Mules," as herein-before
described, wherein the following are particular and important points :--
First. The application of a connecting rod to the opposite end of the
lever to that on which the tightening stud or pulley is mounted, whereby
the rectangular motion hitherto imparted to the tightening stud or
pulley is changed into a curvilinear one.
Secondly. Imparting a variable angle of inclination to the lever

page_text: carrying the tightening stud or pulley by moving mechanically either
the upper or lower end of the connecting rod attached to the lever (by
preference the lower end), whether such rod be mounted on a separate
frame on the floor, or attached to or suspended from any part of the
framework of the mule; it being understood that the principle as to!
the curvilinear motion is a main point in the said Invention, whether
effected in the way described or in any equivalent manner.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Rawcliffe, junior, Walter
Biddy, and Andrew Fleming, have hereunto set our hands and
seals, this Eighteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
Witness,
JAMES DUCKWORTH,
JNO. RAWCLIFFE, Jun".
(L.S.)
WALTER BIBBY.
(L.S.)
ANDREW FLEMING.
(L.S.)
5, Wibberaham Street,
Preston.