IMPROVEMENTS IN WEFT THREAD KNITTING LOOMS
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, &
Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN WEFT THREAD KNITTING LOOMS." A communication from
abroad by Charles Lowrey Spencer, of Providence, Rhode Island, Dentist, and
Samuel White Pingree, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Machinist, both in the
United States of America.
Sealed the 11th August 1876, and dated the 19th June 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 19th June 1876.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEFT THREAD KNITTING
LOOMS." A communication.
The object of this Invention is to provide in a barb or latch-needle knitting
machine simple and positive means whereby a weft thread may be interwoven into
the fabric with the loops or stitches without danger of injuring the reciprocating
needles or straining or breaking of the yarn or thread, or dropping of stitches, and
to equalize the taking up of goods as fast as formed by maintaining a uniform
tension at all times between reciprocating needles and the rollers of the take up.
The said Invention relates to that class of knitting machines whereby a weft or
filling thread is inserted or woven into the stitches of the goods for the purpose of
producing a fabric that may be finished equal to cloths woven upon looms of the
usual construction. To do this it is necessary that the weft or filling thread should
be inserted in such a manner as to be positive in passing under the latches of the
needles and between them in order that the desired style of goods may be produced.
The said Invention comprises the arrangment of the needles in the jacks by so
inclining such needles to any required angle therewith that the upper ends of said
needles may stand in a zig-zag line when projected above the cylinder which carries
them without the employment of wheels or any other extraneous mechanical device
for preserving their alignment, a portion of said needles being set or inclined out-
wardly, and another portion being set or inclined inwardly, thus forming a con-
tinuous channel or space for the insertion of the weft or filling when the needles
are elevated for this purpose.

page_text: It further comprises a novel construction of the revolving cylinder which carries
the reciprocating needles, whereby a number thereof in descending will be brought
into or nearly into a line concentric with the other portion at the time of taking
the stitch, and without effecting the alignment of the remainder of the series. It
further comprises a peculiar arrangement of the needles of a knitting machine, so
that in forming the stitch one portion of said needles shall be aided in being brought
into a line concentric with another portion by the action of the selvage edge of the
cloth at the time of taking the stitch; and it further comprises the construction of
a mechanical take up for the cloth, the same being automatic in its operation, and
operating with reference to the movement of the needles in the manufacture of all
kinds of goods.
Also the combination of automatically adjustable take-up rollers with a shaft,
ratchet, and regulating mechanism.
Also the combination of a gear wheel, revolving frame, and fixed wheel with the
said shaft, and an automatically acting worm wheel for operating the said rollers.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by the
said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 19th December
1876.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN WEFT THREAD KNITTING
LOOMS." A. communication from abroad by Charles Lowrey Spencer, of Providence,
Rhode Island, Dentist, and Samuel White Pingree, of Lawrence, Massachusetts,
Machinist, both in the United States of America.
The object of this Invention is to provide in a barb or latch-needle knitting
machine simple and positive means whereby a weft thread may be interwoven into
the fabric with the loops or stitches without danger of injuring the reciprocating
needles or straining or breaking of the yarn or thread, or dropping of stitches, and
to equalize the taking up of goods as fast as formed by maintaining a uniform
tension at all times between reciprocating needles and the rollers of the take up, as
herein-after described.
The said Invention relates to that class of knitting machines whereby a weft or
filling thread is inserted or woven into the stitches of the goods for the purpose of
producing a fabric that may be finished equal to cloths woven upon looms of the
usual construction. To do this it is necessary that the weft or filling thread should
be inserted in such a manner as to be positive in passing under the latches of the
needles and between them in order that the desired style of goods may be produced.
The said Invention comprises so arranging the needles in the jacks by inclining
such needles to any required angle therewith that the upper ends of said needles
may stand in a zig-zag line when projected above the cylinder which carries them
without the employment of wheels or any other extraneous mechanical device for
preserving their alignment, a portion of said needles being set or inclined outwardly,
and another portion being set or inclined inwardly, thus forming a continuous
channel or space for the insertion of the weft or filling when the needles are
elevated for the purpose.
It further comprises the herein-after described construction of the revolving
cylinder which carries the reciprocating needles, whereby one portion thereof in
descending is brought into or nearly into a line concentric with the other portion
at the time of taking the stitch, and without effecting the alignment of the re-
mainder of the series. It further comprises the herein-after described arrangement of
the needles of a knitting machine, so that in forming the stitch one portion of said
needles shall be aided in being brought into a line concentric with another portion
by the action of the selvedge edge of the cloth at the time of taking the stitch;
and it further comprises the construction of a mechanical take up for the cloth, as

page_text: berein-after described, the same being automatic in its operation and operating
with reference to the movement of the needles in the manufacture of all kinds of
goods.
:
:
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a loom constructed according to this
Invention.
Figure 2 is an elevation of one of the needle jacks showing two barbed needles.
· Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of a portion of the revolving cylinder which
carries the needles and of its casing, showing between them a jack in which is
inserted a latch needle, a second needle being shown for the purpose of illustrating
the position of the needles with reference to each other when in use.
Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 show details of the said Invention herein-after
described.
A represents the revolving cylinder for carrying the reciprocating needles and
their jacks. The casing of the cylinder is shown at B, B¹; it has one or more cam-
shaped grooves formed in it for operating one or more sets of needles and their
jacks, and is provided with a suitable number of braces or supports C, C¹, secured
externally for the purpose of holding the casing in position and securing the sections
B, B', at a suitable distance from each other to cause them to form a double helical
cam for the projections formed upon the needle jacks to move in, and thus give the
required motion to the needles.
I
.
Externally on the upper end of the casing B a standard D is arranged and
secured thereto, having a cross bar d' extending through its upper head, as shown
in Figure 6, it being made adjustable and held in position by a set screw i. To
this cross bar is fitted the adjustable clamp blocks E, E, for holding the latch
guard fand the thread guides g and g¹ in their proper positions.
F, Figure 1, represents the top plate of the frame of the machine, in which the
cylinder A is made to revolve, said cylinder being provided at its lower end with a
gear wheel H, having at its centre an annular opening to admit of its being con-
nected with the cylinder. By means of this wheel motion is imparted to the other
moving parts of the machine, the said wheel receiving its motion from a small
bevilled pinion turned by a crank or by means of a pulley, as shown in Figure 1 or
the Drawing, the wheel H also serving to hold the cylinder in position. Brackets
K, K', are secured to the top of the plate F of the frame, and are provided with
vertical slots; the lower projecting ends of the supports C, C¹, of the case are fitted
therein so as to be raised or lowered with a screw passing through their centres.
By this arrangement the reciprocating needles may be adjusted to form the proper
length of stitch required in different numbers or run of yarn.
In order that the aforesaid path or passage for the yarn may be formed between
the upper ends of the reciprocating needles for the reception and passage of the
weft or filling thread as it passes from the guide g¹, the slots in the upper end of
the jacks are cut at an angle to their axes so that the upper ends of the needles
when elevated may stand divided or in different concentric lines, as represented in
Figures 2 and 3 of the Drawing,
Another and an equivalent method of arranging the needles would be to bend.
them to the requisite angles with reference to the jacks; but in either case, in order
to secure the path for the yarn between the upper projecting ends thereof, it is
necessary that one needle be set or inclined outwardly and the next one inwardly,
and so on alternately throughout the series. It will, however, become necessary, in
forming different patterns of goods, to set or incline two or more adjacent needles
outwardly and two or more inwardly alternately. The weft thread is inserted
between the advancing needles at or near the point where they begin to rise, as
represented in Figure 1, the cam groove being so formed that the top ends of the
advancing needles before they begin to rise range on a line or nearly so with the
lower ends of the hanging latches of the same when elevated to the highest point,
and thus the desired result; a positive insertion of the weft thread below the

page_text: latches is attained without the use of any of the mechanical devices heretofor
employed for that purpose.
This last-described feature constitutes an important part of the said Invention,
as it removes all danger of injury to the needles, permits the production of a more
perfect character of goods, and enables the machine to work at a higher rate of
speed, and so produce a greater amount of cloth in a given period of time.
To ensure the proper operation of the latches of the inwardly inclining needles
and the insertion between them and said needles of the warp or looping thread
which is inserted in advance of the weft, the needles are brought forward as they
descend by the inclined surface of the upper end of the groove in the cylinder, as
shown at 2 in Figure 3. The outward movement of the needles at this point has
the effect of pressing it against the weft or filling thread, the lower ends of the
latches come in contact therewith, and they are thus carried up and made to clasp
the warp or knitting thread between them and their needles just before the stitch
is formed, the outwardly inclined needles being drawn into a line with the others
by the tension of the cloth put upon it by the take up, soon to be described. The
guard fis situated in front of the needles between the two thread guides to prevent
the latches from flying out of place when the needles are rising or descending and
before they pass beyond the warp or looping thread.
For the purpose of equalizing the taking up of the cloth as formed I employ two
fluted rollers arranged in a frame, represented at J, Figure 1, the upper ends of the
vertical parts of which are secured to the gear wheel H in order that it may revolve
with the cylinder A. At a suitable distance below.their upper ends these vertical
portions of the frame are enlarged, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, for the purpose of
causing them to receive and hold in position boxes in which the take-up rollers
revolve; the said rollers are so geared at one of their ends as to be caused to turn
together, and they are made adjustable in their approximation towards each other
by two set screws, which press against elliptic springs a and a¹ arranged in contact
with the boxes of one of the rollers for the purpose of giving a yielding pressure
thereto and making it equal at both of their ends, so that the cloth may pass
between them as fast as formed. For operating the aforesaid rollers a worm wheel
I is placed upon one end of them, to which wheel a worm M, placed upon the upper
end of a vertical shaft N, gives motion. Upon the upper end of worm M a ratchet
surface is formed, the worm being fitted loosely upon its shaft so as to turn thereon,
said shaft extending from the top to a short distance below one side of frame J, it
being attached thereto so as to revolve in suitable bearings, its lower end being
provided with a small gear wheel which meshes into a stationary wheel P situated
at the base of the machine. The frame J is operated by the gear wheel H and in
connection with the cylinder A, the same turning upon a stud at the centre of its
base and above the wheel P, which is stationary, the consequence of which is that
a rotary motion is imparted to the shaft N, to the upper end of which a collar R is
secured having ratchet teeth formed upon its lower surface, and made to fit those
on the worm M; by this arrangement the two ratchet surfaces may be held in
by a spiral spring b on the shaft N, said spring being made to act with the required
pressure against the lower surface of the worm M. In order that the required
pressure for regulating the action of the take-up rollers may be brought to bear
upon the worm a hollow screw h with a nut h¹ placed thereon is provided, and a
cap is made to slide over the end of the screw, the details being shown in
Figure 9 and the parts in position in Figure 4 of the Drawing, where the parts are
shown as being held in position by a set screw fitted through the side of the hollow
screw h. As an alternate method of constructing this mechanism a screw thread
may be formed on the shaft N, and have a nut and sliding cap or collar fitted
thereon, which will accomplish the same purpose; but we prefer the device shown
in the Drawing. The fluted rollers of the take up are positive in their action when
the spiral spring is properly adjusted, and are self-regulating in the taking up of
the cloth as fast as formed; and at the same time they exert an even strain on the
selvedge edge thereof or on the stitches as they are being formed. To avoid any
gear

page_text: slack in the cloth between the needles and the rollers it is necessary that the said
rollers should revolve with a greater speed than is absolutely necessary to take up
the same, and to permit this action without injuring the goods or the needles of
the machine the clutch upon the worm and the collar R are provided and so
arranged that when in gear a positive action is given to the needles, which, in con-
sequence of the fact that their surfaces move faster than the cloth can be formed,
causes a strain to be put upon the cloth and thus to draw one portion of the needles
into position while the stitch is being taken, as previously described, and at the
same time, owing to the action of the goods upon the rollers, the worm M operates
upon the worm wheel I, which, when too much strain is exerted upon the cloth,
compresses the spring b and draws the teeth of the worm wheel away from those
on the ring or collar R, thus disconnecting the clutch and allowing the shaft N to
revolve freely while the worm remains stationary; but as soon as the knitting has
proceeded to such an extent as to relieve the strain upon the goods the worm is
relieved from its downward pressure and the spring returns it to its original
position, where it again clutches with the collar or ring and the positive connection
is restored; and thus a self-regulating and suitable strain or tension 'is put upon
the goods throughout the whole operation.
For receiving the goods from the fluted rollers a cloth beam or roller may be
arranged in the centre of the frame, and motion may be imparted to it by any
suitable mechanism; or the goods may be led to any other position and then wound
upon a beam or folded as desired.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondents, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it under-
stood that I claim―
First. In a machine for knitting cloth in which a weft or filling thread is inserted
or woven into the stitches the within described arrangement of the needles, con-
sisting in arranging the said needles as shown, in order that they may stand at
different angles to the axis of the jack or slide to which they are attached, and thus
form a path between their upper ends for the passage of weft thread, as above
described and for the purpose set forth.
'
Second. In a machine for knitting cloth in which a weft thread is inserted or
woven, arranging a portion of the needles with an outward inclination from the
axis of the jack or slide which carries them, whereby they are made susceptible to
the action of the cloth at the time of taking the stitch, and are thereby brought
into a line concentric with the other needles at that time, as above set forth.
Third. The combination of the automatically adjustable take-up rollers with the
reciprocating needles and the needle cylinder, whereby the required tension is put
upon the goods while being woven, as above specified and for the purpose set forth.
Fourth. The combination of the automatically adjustable take-up rollers with
the shaft ratchet and regulating mechanism, these parts being constructed and
arranged to operate as above described and for the purpose set forth.
Fifth. The combination of the gear wheel, revolving frame, fixed wheel, and
shaft with its automatically operating worm wheel, these parts being arranged to
operate as above described and for the purposes set forth.
Sixth. A weft thread knitting loom or machine comprising the above-described
parts, constructed and combined as shown in the Drawing and operating as set
forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
W. ROBT. LAKE (LS.)