IMPROVEMENTS IN PROALFIC
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Baldwin Woodruff, of Cheapside, in the City
of London, Mechanical Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Baldwin Woodruff
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th July 1866.
I, GEORGE BALDWIN WOODRUFF, of Cheapside, in the City of London,
Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for :
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:->
My improvements in sewing machines relate, first, to certain novel arrange-
ments which will enable me to impart a rapid and silent lateral motion to the
vertical needle for the purpose of producing herring-bone, and transverse:
stitching. Instead of rocking the needle bar, as heretofore proposed, and thus
causing the needle to pierce the work at an inclination alternately on opposite.
sides of an intermediate vertical line, I propose to preserve the verticality of i
the needle, and to give it the lateral motion required by the following means:

page_text: Fitted to the needle bar is a radius bar, which is provided with feathers to
allow of its moving freely through the radius bar in a vertical direction to
pierce the work. The radius bar is slotted to receive an adjustable pin carried
by a slotted rock lever, which is mounted on a fixed centre, and has a pin at
its extremity working in a grooved cam that receives rotary motion through
gearing from the driving shaft. The rotation of this cam will therefore
impart a vibrating motion through the rock lever to the radius bar, the
amount of which motion will be determined by the position of the adjustable
pin of the rock lever, and by the vibration of the radius bar the needle will be
moved to and fro across the line of traverse of the work, so as to throw
zig-zag or transverse stitches into the work.
When giving a vertical needle a lateral or traverse motion it is commonly
necessary to provide an adjustment for the shuttle race in order that the
shuttle motions may conform to the shifting positions of the needle. In
machines where the traverse of the shuttle is parallel with the lateral motions
of the needle I mount the rock lever which works the shuttle driver on an
excentric fulcrum pin carried by an adjustable slide on the face of a spur
wheel. This wheel is driven by a pinion of half the size, and receives half a
revolution for every whole revolution of the pinion. A crank pin fitted to
this pinion works in a slot cut in the rock lever, and as the pinion rotates it
imparts a vibrating motion to the lever, which motion will, owing to the
varying position of the excentric fulcrum pin, shift the traverse motion of
the shuttle on its race and make it correspond to the change of position
of the needle.
When the shuttle works across the machine or at right angles to the
vibration of the needle I propose in some cases to mount the shuttle race
frame on fixed centres below the bed of the machine, which will allow of its
oscillating to meet the vibrating movements of the needle while sewing herring-
bone stitches. The oscillating movement may be taken from a cam or crank
operating upon an arm jointed to the shuttle race frame.
The second head of my Invention relates to an improvement upon my
Patent of July 8th, 1865, No. 1811, for marking the width of tucks or pleats
to be sewn. In place of the knife-edged marker and the adjustable slotted
presser, which together form the crease, I propose to fit upon the rocking
presser arm a presser which terminates in two inclined spring jaws; these
jaws as the presser is forced down upon the work as it lies flat upon the table
will close upon the work and nip or crease it. When the presser is released
from pressure the jaws will open and release the work, and allow it to be fed

page_text: forward. A repetition of this action of the presser will produce a creased line
upon the work.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Baldwin Woodruff in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 25th January 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
BALDWIN WOODRUFF, of Cheapside, in the City of London, Mechanical
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said George Baldwin Woodruff, Her special licence that I, the said
George Baldwin Woodruff, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said George Baldwin Woodruff, my executors, adminis
trators, 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 Kingdou
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SEWING MACHINES," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Baldwin Woodruff,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascer-
tain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to
be perfornied, 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 George Baldwin Woodruff, 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, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
My improvements in sewing machines relate, first, to certain novel arrange-
ments which will enable me to impart a rapid and silent lateral traverse
motion to the vertical needle for the purpose of producing with its thread (by

page_text: the aid of a locking thread) herring-bone stitching and transverse or lateral
stitching suitable for working button holes.
In the accompanying Drawings I have shewn the improvements forming the
first head of my Invention as applied to a Singer machine; but it will be
obvious that they may be applied to other kinds of sewing machines.
Heretofore it has been proposed to rock the needle in order that it might
pierce the work alternately on opposite sides of an intermediate line; but in
effecting this object the needle was inclined, and a tendency was thus created
for the needle to push away the work from its quiescent position, or to strain
the work. I now, however, propose to preserve the verticality of the needle,
and to give it the lateral motion required by rocking the needle bar on its
axis, giving also a corresponding movement to the shuttle to enable it to
follow the change of position of the needle, and thus enter the loop of the
needle thread with certainty, while at the same time I provide for the free
'escape of the loop at the butt of the shuttle, and for the drawing of the
locking thread to a uniform tension.
!
In Sheet I. of the Drawings, Fig. 1 shews in side elevation a Singer
machine fitted with my improvements; Fig. 2 is a front elevation, shewing
the table and shuttle race in transverse section; and Fig. 3 is a detached plan
view of the parts for giving the vibrating axial motion to the needle bar.
In Sheet II., Fig. 4 is an inverted plan view of the machine, shewing a
reversing feed motion and the arrangement of mechanism (below the table)
for operating the shuttle, and giving it a variable traverse motion in a line
with or parallel to the chord of the arc of vibration of the needle; Fig. 5 is
a side elevation of this mechanism, and Fig. 6 is an end elevation of the
same.
A is the needle bar which receives its vertical motions as usual in the Singer
machine from a crank pin of the main driving shaft 1, working into the slot of a
cross piece affixed to the needle bar. Fitted to the upper end of the needle bar is
a radius bar B, which is provided with feathers that fit into grooves cut in the
sides of the needle bar. The needle bar is thus allowed to move freely
through the radius bar in a vertical direction, but 'without turning therein.
The radius bar is slotted in the direction of its length to receive an adjustable
pin C carried by the slotted arm of a rock lever D, which is supported in a
fixed bearing forming part of the projecting bracket arm of the machine.
The lower arm of the rock lever D has a pin at its extremity working in a
grooved cam E that receives rotary motion through gearing F from the main
driving shaft 1, the cam E rotating once for every two rotations of the shaft 1.

page_text: The rotation of this cam, so long as the pin of the rock lever D is in the.
groove, and the parts are properly coupled up as explained, will impart a
vibrating motion through the rock lever to the radius bar B, the amount of
which motion will be determined by the position of the adjustable pin C of
the rock lever, which pin, when its position is properly adjusted, is to be
secured by a clamping nut, as shewn in the Drawings. The upper limb of
the rock lever D is graduated, as shewn at Fig. 2, in order to facilitate the
adjustment of the pin C. The needle a is mounted in an adjustable slide A¹
.at. the foot of the bar A, and by means of a traversing screw it is made
capable of adjustment nearer to or farther from the bar. It will now be
understood that as the work is fed forward in the ordinary manner the needle,
by reason of the vibrations of the radius bar, will be moved to and fro across
the line of traverse of the work, so as to throw zig-zag or transverse stitches
into the work. When giving a lateral, or transverse motion to the vertical
needle it is commonly necessary to provide an adjustment for the shuttle race,
in order that the motions of the shuttle (which throws the locking thread into
the loops formed by the vertical needle thread) may conform to the shifting
positions of the needle. In machines where the traverse of the shuttle is
parallel with the chord of the arc described by the lateral motions of the
needle, I keep the shuttle race stationary and vary the traverse to suit the
varying position of the needle when it has pierced the work by mounting the
arm which works the shuttle driver on an excentric fulcrum pin carried by a
slide affixed to a spur wheel, which wheel revolves around a pinion of half
the size, as in the well-known wheel-and-planet motion. In doing this the
spur wheel causes the slide to vary the position of the excentric pin, so as to
ensure a variable traverse motion of the shuttle to suit the varying position of
the vertical needle.
In Fig. 4, G is the shuttle driver connected to one end of an arm H, from
which it receives its traverse motions. The other end of this arm is secured
to the fulcrum pin I, which projects from and forms a portion of a traversing
nut fitting into and capable of being adjusted in a slide K by means of a tra-
versing screw. This slide is affixed to or forms part of the stud axle to which
the spur wheel L is keyed, and the axle itself is supported by means of a
balanced arm M keyed to the vertical driving shaft 2, which receives motion
through bevil gearing from the main driving shaft 1. The shaft 2 runs freely
through the spur pinion N, into which the wheel L gears, and the pinion is
made fast to the fixed bearing 3 of the shaft 2. The wheel L is carried round
the pinion by the rotation, of the balanced arm M, and by gearing into this

page_text: pinion the wheel L receives its axial motion to vary the positions of the crank
pin I for the purpose above explained.
In order that the somewhat complex movements of this pin and the parts
in immediate connection therewith may be fully understood I will refer to the
Diagram, Fig. 7, Sheet III., which represents in red and black colors the two
positions taken by the needle in piercing the clotb, and the corresponding
positions required for the shuttle to enter the loop of the needle thread, and
to pass through and beyond that loop; also the corresponding positions of the
crank pin I to obtain through the arm H and shuttle driver G the four
different positions of the shuttle constituting the two extremes of two
traverses. Supposing the needle to enter the cloth at the point indicated by
the small black circle at 1, the point of the shuttle must be brought into close
proximity thereto, as shewn in black at 1, and also marked 1, as being the
corresponding position of the shuttle. At the same time the imaginary point 1
on the spur wheel L will be in line with the point 1 on the pinion N, and the
slide K will stand at an angle of forty-five degrees with a line drawn through
the centres of the wheel and pinion, the crank pin I being outside the circle
described by the axis of the wheel L. In order then that the shuttle shall
pass through the loop of the needle thread and leave the locking thread
therein to secure the stitch, the point of the shuttle must pass to the position
drawn in black and marked 1*. This movement will be effected by the
wheel L rolling round the pinion N until the imaginary points 1* of the wheel
and pinion come in line, as shewn in the Diagram. The slide will then again
stand at an angle of forty-five degrees to a line drawn through the centres of
the wheel and pinion, and the crank pin I will have attained an advanced
position equal to the length of traverse required for the shuttle to clear the
loop, but within the circle described by the axis of the wheel L. Now suppose
the needle to have risen from the cloth and completed the stitch, and to have
been then moved laterally and brought down to pierce the cloth at the point
indicated by the small red circle 2, the shuttle will in the meantime in its
return motion be required to take up a correspondently advanced position, or
to that indicated by the point of the shuttle drawn in red and marked 2, in
order to be ready to enter the loop of the needle thread. This will be effected
by the continued revolution of the wheel L around the pinion until the point 2
of the wheel has come into line with the point 1 before mentioned on the
pinion N, when the crank pin I, instead of being outside the circle described
by the axis of the wheel L, as when formerly in the position it has again
reached, is now within the circle. The shuttle in its forward throw will now

page_text: also be required to make a corresponding advance to allow of the free escape
of the loop at the back of the butt and to ensure the locking thread being
drawn to the proper tension. By tracing the further rotation of the wheel
L on its own axis, and its continuous revolution around its centre of motion,
it will be seen that when the point 2* of the wheel L has come opposite the
point 1 of the pinion N the crank pin I will be once more outside the
circle described by the axis of the wheel L, and the utmost limit in the for-
ward throw of the shuttle will consequently be reached. As the next descent
of the needle to pierce the work will be in the position of the small black
circle 1, the shuttle will have to recede to take up its first described position ;
but this it will do by reason of the next succeeding quarter rotation of the
wheel L carrying the crank pin I to the opposite side of the circle or orbit
of rotation of the axis of the wheel, or, in other words, to its starting point.
Thus it will be seen that the shuttle receives alternately a short and a long
backward stroke, whereas its forward motion is always uniform with respect
to the needle. As, however, the amount of the lateral throw or traverse of the
needle is made adjustable to suit different lengths of stitch, it is requisite that
a similar adjustment should be provided for the shuttle; this. I effect by
means of the traversing screw k, and I fix a pointer i to the traverse nut of
the crank pin I to indicate by graduations on the side of the slide K the
amount of adjustment of the crank pin given or required.
To the machine provided as above described with the means for producing
the zig-zag or herring-bone stitch, I propose to apply the reversing feed
described in the Specification of my Patent, dated January Twenty-second,
6 One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six. This feed is shown clearly at
Figures 2 and 4 (Sheets I. and II.), where O is a rock lever, having as its
fulcrum a turn plate O*, through a guide in which it is free to slide. At its
rear end the rock lever is formed with a square opening, which embraces a
triangular cam on the shaft 2, the rotation of which shaft imparts the requisite
reciprocating motion to the rock lever. At its other end this lever O, is
forked to embrace a pin p on an arm p' keyed to a short axle that carries &
slotted bar P; this axle is supported by a bracket P¹ (Fig. 2) bolted to the
under side of the table. The slotted bar P, which I term the slotted feed bar,
is intended to transmit the requisite to-and-fro motion to the feed plate Q,
and for this purpose it receives a constant and equable rocking motion from
the forked rock shaft O. Fitting into the slotted feed bar P is a pin q, which
is carried by a radius rod q¹ jointed to a link 9, which is itself jointed to a
short rock lever g carried by a stud projecting from a bracket secured to the

page_text: under side of the table; the upper end of this rock lever q³ is jointed to a
cranked arm.q, which carries at its free end the feed plate Q. The cranked
arm moves between guides fixed to the under side of the table, and its
under face is bevilled to take the upward pressure of a wedge-shaped piece
carried by the rock lever O. This lever O as it is rocked moves simultaneously
both endwise and laterally, and thus while rocking the slotted feed. bar P
to give the endway motion through the arrangement just described to the
roughened feed plate Q it will lift that plate, so as to make it take hold of the
work, a spring being used to depress the plate and keep. the crank arm in
contact with the wedge-shaped projection on the rock lever O. The radius
rod q is connected by the pin q to a rod g³, which is itself jointed to an arm qⓇ
keyed to a vertical axle 7 projecting upwards through the table, and supported
in a bearing cast on the table; this axle carries at its upper end an arm q³,
by which it is capable of being rocked, and it is held in position by a spring
catch (see Fig. 1) taking into a notched sector fixed upon the table of the
machine. From the above explanation it will be understood that by turning
the arm ³ the pin q may be moved toward, or from, or past the centre of
motion of the rocking plate P, and thus the amount of motion transmitted to
the feed plate may be regulated, or its direction of feed reversed at pleasure..
Fig. 8, Sheet III., shews in edge view, Fig. 9 in side view, and. Fig. 10 in
plan view a slight modification of the arrangement for giving the rocking
motion to the needle bar. It consists mainly in substituting a face cam for
the grooved cam. The same letters of reference being used in both arrange-
ments for like parts a description of those parts will not need repeating. The
face cam E and spur wheel F are cast together, and are mounted on an
excentric pin projecting from a stud axle which has its bearing in a bracket R
bolted to the main bracket arm of the machine. Secured to the stud axle is
a hand lever R* for giving an axial motion when required to the stud axle.
In some cases it may be desired to use the machine to produce the ordinary
stitch, and in that case the mechanism for rocking the needle bar should be
thrown out of action; this is to be effected by moving the clamping screw C
along the radius bar B until its axis is directly over the axis of the rock
lever D, no vibrating motion of the radius bar or rocking motion of the needle
bar can then take place. The like remark refers also to the arrangement
first described, and I would further state that when it is required to put the
machine, fitted with the groove cam arrangement, upon ordinary work the
clamping nut on the cam shaft may be slackened, and the shaft shifted back
until the spur wheel is free of the pinion on the driving shaft. To avoid the

page_text: noise of the gear wheels in the arrangement shewn in Sheet III. the stud
axle may be turned by means of the hand lever R*, and the spur wheel F
will thus be thrown out of gear with the spur pinion on the driving shaft. In
order, however, to restore the cam E to its proper position for giving the
needle bar its rocking motion at the proper time relatively to its vertical
movements a notch is cut in the needle bar at any given height to receive a
catch a which is hinged to the top of the main bracket arm, and by this
means the needle bar is held in a definite vertical position. A spring stud
is also attached to the bracket R, and a hole is made through the bracket to
allow the stud to project through and enter a slot hole made in the back of
the wheel F; this slot hole in the wheel is so situate that the spring stud
by entering the hole determines the correct axial position of the cam E, its
spur wheel F is then to be brought into gear by turning the stud axle, as
before explained. To ensure the proper readjustment of the groove cam,
Figures 2 and 3, interlocking pieces f, f*, are applied to the gear wheels F;
the piece being capable of sliding radially; when therefore these pieces
are brought round into a position for locking, the wheel and pinion may be
put in gear, and the stud axle of the cam may be clamped in position. The
piece f* is made to slide, in order that it may be moved back out of the way
when the setting of the cam is effected. I have described the taking up of
the loop of the needle thread by a shuttle that traverses in a line with or
parallel to the arc of vibration of the needle; it may, however, not be always
convenient to adopt this arrangement. When the shuttle works across the
machine, or at right angles to the vibration of the needle, I propose to mount
the shuttle race frame on fixed centres (below the bed of the machine), which
will allow of its oscillating to suit the vibrating movements of the needle
while sewing berring-bone stitches.
..
This arrangement is shewn in elevation at Fig. 11, and in plan view at
Fig. 12. In these Figures a, a, is the shuttle race, supported at either end
by 'the arms b, b, of a rock shaft c. One end of this race is extended as at a*;
and jointed to a radius bar d of the same length as the arms b, and having its
fulcrum on a pine on a level with the rock shaft c. This arrangement
ensures a parallel motion to the shuttle race when, rocked, as will now be
described. Projecting from the shaft c is a slotted arm f, which receives a
clamping screw g that connects it with the slotted arm of a bell-crank lever h;
the upper limb of this crank lever carries a pin, which projects into the
groove of a cam i carried by a stud axle. This cami is cast with a spur
pinion, which gears into and receives its motion from a pinion on the

page_text: longitudinal shaft k. The rotation of the shaft k transmits through a crank
and connecting rod la traverse motion to a slide 1', and jointed to this slide
(which moves in a fixed guide cast with the table of the machine) is a link bar 12,
which connects the slide with the shuttle driver m; this shuttle driver slides
upon a bar of the race, and by reason of being connected with the slide l¹ by
the link bar the oscillations of the race to bring the shuttle into position
with the reciprocating needle will in no way affect or interfere with the action
of the shuttle driver.
The second head of the Invention relates to an improvement upon my
Patent of July Eighth, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five (No. 1811),
for marking the width of tucks or pleats to be sewn. In place of the knife-
edge marker and adjustable slotted presser described in the Specification of
said Patent, I use the contrivance shewn in side and end views at Figures 13
and 14, and in plan view at Fig. 15, Sheet II. V is a horizontal arm or square
bar rounded at one end to enter a socket forming part of a clamping piece v,
which is secured to an ordinary rocking presser bar V*; on this arm V I fit
an adjustable presser W, which terminates in two inclined spring jaws or
elastic nippers. Affixed to the rounded end of the arm V of the presser bar
is a finger v¹, so situate as to underlie a pin projecting from the needle bar;
when therefore the needle bar descends after every feed forward of the work,
its pin will strike the finger v¹, and thereby rock the arm V, and force the
jaws of the presser down upon the work as it lies flat upon the table. Under
this pressure of the descending needle bar the jaws, the tendency of which is
to remain slightly open, will close upon the work and nip or crease it, but so
soon as the finger ³ is released from pressure the jaws will open and release
the work, and allow it to be fed forward. A repetition of this action of the
presser will produce a creased line upon the work (indicating the width of
tuck required) parallel to the line of stitches. A coiled spring, one end of
which is connected to the finger, while the other bears upon the clamp, will
have a tendency to rock the bar V and lift the elastic jaws of the tuck marker
clear of the work. The tuck marker is made to slide on its bar to enable it
to crease the work at any required distance from the line of stitches to suit
various widths of tucks.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improvements in the
Construction of Sewing Machines," and explained the manner of carrying the
same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in part
recited Letters Patent, I claim,- .
First, giving an axial motion to the needle bar for the purpose of traversing

page_text: the needle over the work, and thus producing zig-zag and parallel stitches, as
above described.
Secondly, shifting the course of the shuttle longitudinally to suit the change
of position of the traversing needle.
Thirdly, the arrangement above described for giving a lateral motion to the
shuttle race for the purpose of following the lateral movements of the needle.
And, lastly, the improved construction of tuck marker, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Baldwin Woodruff, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-fifth day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
GEORGE BALDWIN WOODRUFF. (L.S.)