Improvements in MEANS OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN WEAVING
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Wood, of Almondbury, Huddersfield,
in the County of York, for the Invention of "Improvements in MEANS
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN WEAVING."
Scaled the 20th June 1873, and dated the 14th January 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Wood at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
14th January 1873.
I, RICHARD WOOD, of Almondbury, Huddersfield, in the County of
York, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MEANS OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN WEAVING," to be as follows:-
:—
The Invention has for its object improvements in means or apparatus
employed in weaving shawls and other descriptions of fabrics, in which
parts thereof or ornaments thereon are produced of different colours or
materials to those employed for the general body of the material or
fabric being woven, and relates to a mode of working the shuttles so as
to cause the ornamental or figuring threads to be traversed the required
distance to produce the ornament or figure, and then to be carried out

page_text: of the way to allow the weaving of the general body of the fabric to
proceed. For this purpose I employ a "lay" with shuttle boxes at each
end thereof as usual, but between these ordinary shuttle boxes I mount
one or more extra shuttle boxes which as required may be brought into
position for receiving a shuttle from either end of the loom, and for a
shuttle or shuttles to be "picked "therefrom as desired, whilst it may
when required be taken out of position to allow a shuttle to be "picked"
across the entire width of the fabric being woven. These extra shuttle
boxes are provided as the others with check springs to prevent the
rebound of the shuttles, and with picker spindles for the pickers to
work on, but instead of being fixed in position I fix them to suitable rods
or slides which are capable of being raised and lowered in guides carried
by the "hand rail," and by other parts carried by the "lay." These
extra shuttle boxes are acted upon by a spring or springs to raise them
out of position, and are operated by a lever worked by the jacquard,
treadles, cams, or other apparatus to bring them into position when
required for use.
When the extra shuttle box or boxes are brought into position for use
their pickers are by suitable catches and connections automatically con-
nected with the ordinary pickers, so that all the pickers from one side of
the various shuttle boxes shall be simultaneously operated, but when
the extra shuttle boxes are taken out of position for work the means of
connection between their pickers and the ordinary pickers become
disconnected by the two parts of the catches or other fastenings
sliding away from each other when the loom can work in the usual
way.
The bottoms of the extra shuttle boxes are formed of thin metal, and
aro bevilled off at their ends so that when resting on the warps they

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and graut unto me, the said Richard Wood, Her special
license that I, the said Richard Wood, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Richard Wood, 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 MEANS
OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Richard Wood, 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 Richard Wood, do hereby declare
the nature of the 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 :—
The Invention has for its object improvements in means or apparatus
employed in weaving shawls and other descriptions of fabrics, in which
parts thereof or ornaments thereon are produced of different colors or
materials to those employed for the general body of the material or
fabric being woven, and relates to a mode of working the shuttles so as
to cause the ornamental or figuring threads to bo traversed the required
distance to produce the ornament or figure, and then to be carried out
of the way to allow the weaving of the general body of the fabric to
proceed. For this purpose I employ a "lay" with shuttle boxes at each
end thereof as usual, but between these ordinary shuttle boxes I mount
5 one or more extra shuttle boxes which as required may be brought into
position for receiving a shuttle from either end of the loom, and for a
shuttle or shuttles to be "picked" therefrom as desired, whilst it may
when required be taken out of position to allow a shuttle to be "picked"

page_text: Figure 1 is a front view of the lathe of a hand loom and parts con-
nected therewith showing my Invention applied thereto; Figures 2
and 3 are cross sections of the same, and Figures 4 and 5 are plan views
of some of the parts.
a, a, are the lathe swords which are connected to the bar or rock
tree" b, which is centred at c, c. dis the hand rail; e, the reed, and ƒ
the batten. g, g, are series of rising shuttle boxes at each end of the
lathe, each of which series is guided and operated in the usual manner
as shown in the Drawings. h are the ordinary pickers which slide on
the picker spindles h¹. These pickers are by cords h² connected to the 3

page_text: BOLORS OF Tmis & and also to cords, which are connected to a
handle, by which they are operated.
Thus far I have described parts of a hand loom as commonly
constructed, but in order to facilitate the production of various effects
on the fabric being woven I employ according to my Invention one
or more extra shuttle boxes j, one of which is shown in the Drawings.
This extra shuttle box is provided with a picker spindle j', picker j, and
check spring (not shown), and it is connected to rods or slides k, k,
which are capable of sliding through guides l, m, the guides being
fixed to the hand rail d, whilst the guides m are fixed to the bar b¹.
These rods k are rigidly fixed to a bar n, to which is fixed the lower end
of a cord or wire o, the upper end of which is connected to a spring
(not shown), the tendency of which is continually to keep the extra
shuttle box j raised as shown at Figures 1 and 2, out of position when it
is desired that shuttles shall traverse across the entire width of the cloth
being woven, but when it is desired that shuttles shall traverse only
partly across the cloth, then the extra shuttle box j is by the following
means lowered into position, as shown at Figure 3, to allow the shuttle
therein to be brought into use and to receive a shuttle from one or other
end of the lathe. To the spring to which the cord o is connected is also
connected another cord p, the lower end of which is fixed to one end of
a lever q. This lever q is mounted on an axis of motion at q', and is
connected at the opposite end to that of the cord p by a cord to the
jacquard mechanism. Thus whenever the jacquard mechanism shall
raise the cord the other end of the lever q is caused to overcome the
spring connected to the cords o and p, by which means the extra shuttle
boxj is allowed to fall into position for action as shown at Figure 3, and
in order that at such time the picker j³ may be simultaneously operated
with one or other of the pickers I use the following arrangement of
parts-The picker of the extra shuttle box j is by cords ³ connected
to two picking sticks or arms j", which are mounted upon centres of
motion carried by the rod n. The upper ends of these picking sticks or
arms are connected together by another rod j³, which is provided with
rollers or projections jo, each of which is fixed at the opposite end and
side of the rod j³, as will be seen more clearly at Figure 4.
In the guides m are also mounted slides 8, one of which is pulled towards
the left hand of the loom by a spring s¹, and the other towards the right
hand end of the loom by another spring 81, as shown at Figure 5, except

page_text: 8
when otherwise operated by the handle /*. These slides & have mounted
thereon studs or projections s², which when the extra shuttle box jis
lowered into position for use are the means of communicating motion in
the following manner from the slides 8 to the bar ³, and consequently
to the picking sticks j*. The slides & are each connected by a cord 8 to
the upper end of a picking stick i, and consequently when a picking
stick i is operated by the handle /* motion is also communicated to onc
of the slides & in one or the other direction, and when the extra shuttle
boxj is lowered into position for use the rollers j³ on the bars j³ are also
lowered into position to be acted upon by the studs or projections &²,
carried by the slides s, when the picker sticks or arms j* will be operated,
and the shuttle in the extra shuttle box j will be thrown in one or the
other direction as desired, and when the extra shuttle box j is raised up
is also
out of the way for action as shown at Figures 1 and 2, the bar j
raised with it, and the rollers or projections jo are consequently raised
out of the way of the studs or projections & on the slides s, which there-
fore are capable of sliding to and fro without communicating motion to
the bar, and picking sticks j'.
If desired more than one extra shuttle box arranged and operated
according to my Invention may be used in connection with a single
loom, in which case three or more different shuttles could traverse the
cloth at one time, according to the number of extra shuttle boxes
employed.
When the extra shuttle boxes are brought into use suitable sheds are
made by the jacquard mechanism or by heddles, as is well understood,
for the shuttles to pass through, at which time the general weaving of
the body of the cloth will be suspended.
When employing only one extra shuttle box as shown in the Drawings,
it will be evident that the different or ornamental effect of the extra
shuttle can only be produced at points beyond the limit on each side of
the extra shuttle box, and that no effect can be produced by the extra
shuttle at the part covered by the extra shuttle box j; by however
employing two extra shuttle boxes j the centre as well as parts on
each side thereof of the cloth being woven can be ornamented or varied
by means of the extra shuttles.
I would here remark that although I have shown my Invention
applied to a hand loom, it is equally applicable to looms operated by

page_text: power, and that although it is shown applied to a loom having a lathe
swinging from centres at the upper part thereof, and having a top
jacquard, it may also be applied with slight modifications of the parts to
a loom with a lathe swinging from centres at the lower part thereof, and
with an end jacquard.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the
mode in which the same is carried into effect, I would have it under-
stood that I do not confine myself to the precise details herein shown
and described, but what I do claim is,-
Firstly. The employment of one or more extra shuttle boxes j, pro-
vided with a picker spindle ³, and picker j², check spring and picking
sticks or arm j, and capable of receiving the ordinary shuttles and of
being raised out of position or lowered into position for use in manner
and for the purpose substantially as herein shown and described.
And, secondly. I claim the mode of communicating motion from the
ordinary picking sticks or arms at each end of the loom to the picking
sticks or arms of the extra shuttle boxes in manner and for the purpose
substantially as herein shown and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Wood, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this (7th) Seventh day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.