CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1852

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Smith, of Swinton, near Manchester,
in the County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, for the Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
Sealed the 12th March 1853, and dated the 8th October 1852.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Smith at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 8th October 1852.
I, SAMUEL SMITH, of Swinton, near Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING " to be
as follows:-
The object of these improvements is to stop the loom when the weft
thread breaks, or otherwise fails to be supplied from the shuttle. To
the tappet shaft of the loom is fixed a cam, acting upon an elbow lever,
the upper arm of which presses against a straight lever with sufficient
force to overcome a spring acting against the upper end of the straight
lever; the top end of this straight lever is on the same level as the
weft fork, when the same has been raised by the action of the

page_text: weft in the ordinary manner, and the lower end of the straight lever
acts on a shot bolt passing through the loom side, and connected to the
spring starting lever.
When the loom is in action the cam on the tappet shaft keeps the
upper arm of the elbow lever against the straight lever during about
three fourths of a revolution, but during the other fourth the shape of
the cam allows the elbow lever to drop suddenly, and by so doing
liberates the straight lever, the upper end of which is then pushed by
the spring behind it against the end of the weft fork, if the weft is in
the shed; but if the weft is not in the shed the fork remains down,
and the straight lever is pushed so much forward by the spring at its
back that the shot bolt becomes liberated, and the starting lever is
at liberty to move the driving strap from the fast to the loose pulley
in the ordinary manner. The shot bolt may in some cases be dis-
pensed with by making the upper end of the elbow lever to act on a
horizontal instead of an upright lever; the horizontal lever would
pass through the loom side, and the outer end, by acting on the ordinary
spring lever, would stop the loom in the absence of the weft.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Samuel Smith in the Great Seal Patent Office, on
the 8th April 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
SAMUEL SMITH, of Swinton, near Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of October, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in the sixteenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Samuel Smith, Her special licence that I,
the said Samuel Smith, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Samuel Smith, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,

page_text: 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 "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Samuel Smith, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, 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 Samuel Smith, 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 (that is to say):
My Invention consists in certain improved combinations of ma-
chinery for stopping looms when the weft breaks, or otherwise fails to
cross the shed; and in order that my Invention may be fully understood,
and readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the means
pursued by me, reference being had to the annexed Sheet of Drawings,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1, is a sectional elevation; Figure 2, a front view; and
Figure 3, a plan of part of a loom, shewing the mode of applying my
improvements. «, is part of the framing; b, the breast beam; c, the
crank shaft; d, the tappet shaft; and e, the lay or batten. f, is an
elbow lever fitting on a fulcrum stud in the loom side; the longer arm
of this elbow lever is furnished near its end with an anti-friction roller
f¹, bearing on the cam g, which in this instance is fixed on the tappet
shaft d, but which may in some cases be fixed on the crank shaft; the
upright arm of the elbow lever f, is provided with two pins, between
which is the vertical piece h; this piece is bolted to the double lever i,
seen best in Figure 3, the outer end of which is in contact with the
spring starting lever k. The weft fork l, is very similar to those in

page_text: ordinary use, and it is furnished with a feeler l', the object of which
will be explained hereafter. The weft fork is rather more than counter-
balanced by the feeler l', consequently, when the weft acts on the
weft fork 1, it raises the feeler l', but as soon as the lay recedes
from the cloth the feeler drops and bears on the little bracket m, fixed
on the horizontal rod m', supported in the bush m², fixed on the breast
beam b; the upper part of the vertical piece h, has a projecting flange,
as shown in Figure 2; and when the weft fork is in a state of rest the
lower end of the feeler l', is below the said flange of the piece h; when
the weft, by acting on the fork, elevates the fecler l', it assumes the
position indicated in red at Figure 1. The action of the various parts
is as follows: the weight of the longer arm of the elbow lever f, must
be sufficient to unlatch the spring starting lever k, from the notch
in the retaining plate k', when the anti-friction roller f', drops into
the recess in the cam g; but this can only take place when the weft
breaks or fails to cross the shed. The elbow lever f, and vertical piece
h, are retained in the position shewn in Figure 1, by the cam g, during
the greater part of the revolution of the cam; but when the lay beats
up, if the weft is in, the feeler l', is elevated into the position shewn
in red, and the anti-friction roller f', is prevented dropping into the
recess of the cam g, by the projecting flange at the upper end of the
vertical piece h, which then bears against the end of the feeler l', con-
sequently the recess in the cam g, will have time to pass beyond the
anti-friction roller f', while the feeler l', is held up by the weft fork,
but as soon as the feeler drops the anti-friction roller is again supported
by the concentric part of the cam g. When the weft breaks, the feeler
1, is not raised by the action of the weft on the weft fork; the long arm
of the elbow lever f, then drops into the recess of the cam g, as shewn
in red in Figure 1, and by this means the pins in the upright arm of
the elbow lever f, act on the vertical piece h, and move the double lever
i, which disengages the spring starting lever k, from the retaining catch
in the plate ', thereby stopping the loom in the usual manner.
In Figure 4, I have shewn another combination of parts, forming a
modification of the weft stopper herein-before described. In this view
the upright arm of the elbow lever f, bears against the front edge of

page_text: the vertical lever m³, the spring n, bears against the opposite edge
of the lever m³, and serves to keep the anti-friction roller f¹, in
contact with the cam g; the lever m³, is supported by the stud m*,
and the lower end of it is made to cover the end of a shot bolt m³,
passing through the loom side and connected to the spring starting
lever marked k, in Figure 2; when the feeler 1, is raised by the
weft acting on the weft fork 1, the recess in the cam g, is directly
under the anti-friction roller f, which is prevented dropping into it by
the action of the spring n, owing to the feeler l', being at this time
raised by the weft fork into the position shewn in red; but if the weft
fails, the feeler ', remains down, and the projection at the top of the
lever m³, is at liberty to pass over the end of the feeler P, consequently
the spring n, causes the anti-friction roller f', to drop into the recess of
the cam g; by so doing, the lower end of the lever m³, liberates the
end of the shot bolt connected to the spring starting lever, which is
thus set at liberty, and moves the driving strap from the fast to the
loose pulley, and stops the loom in the ordinary manner.
In Figures 5, and 6, I have shewn another modification of my Invention;
in these views several of the pieces are similar to those represented in
Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4, and are consequently marked with the same letters
of reference; in this modification the elbow lever f, is dispensed with,
and the swivel inclined plane o, is used instead; the end of this inclined
plane serves as a stop to the end of the double lever i, and vertical
piece h, against which the spring n, acts as in Figure 4. The swell p,
acts on the lever 7, fixed on a short shaft fitting in a bearing q¹,
screwed to the lay bottom e. To the lower end of the shaft of the
lever 2, is fixed a lever r, furnished with an anti-friction roller ¹;
when the shuttle has boxed, the roller, is brought over the inclined
plane o, as seen in black in Figure 6; but as soon as the shuttle is
out of the shuttle box, the lever q, which is acted upon by the spring
q, moves the roller r¹, beyond the reach of the inclined plane o, as
shewn in red in Figure 6. These parts act in the following manner:
so long as the weft continues to pass between the weft fork I, and the
grid in the reed, the fork is raised into the position shewn in red in
Figure 5, and it remains in this position during the time that the roller

page_text: r, depresses the short end of the swivel inclined plane o, beyond the
reach of the end of the double lever i, consequently the pressure of the
spring n, is prevented moving the double lever i, by the upper end of
the vertical piece h, coming against the end of the feeler ; but when
the weft breaks, the weft fork does not lift the feeler, therefore as
soon as the roller ³, depresses the short end of the inclined plane o, the
spring n, pushes the flange of the vertical piece h, over the feeler l',
thereby disengaging the spring starting lever k, from the retaining
notch in the plate k³, as before described.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner
in which it is performed, I declare that I claim as of my Invention
the feeler, attached to the weft fork, acting in combination with
the improved machinery herein-before shewn and described, or any
modification thereof, for stopping looms in the absence of the weft.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Smith, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Seventh day of April, One thou-
sand eight hundred and fifty-three.
SAMUEL SMITH. (L.S.)