Improvements in and in Machines for the Manufacture of a New Knitted Fabric.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Mar., 1893-Accepted, 7th Oct., 1893
COMPLETE SIBUIFICATION.
Improvements in and in Machines for the Manufacture of a New
Knitted Fabric.
We, ALBERT LAMBERT CUDEY, Shirt Maker, of 139, Faubourg St. Denis, and
JACQUES HENRI VACHERIE, Gentleman, of 23, Rue d'Aboukir, both in Paris,
France, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
=
This invention relates to improvements in, and in circular machines for the
manufacture of a new fabric which we term "cheviot-jersey."
Hitherto the special fabric known under the name of jersey has been treated so as
to render it suited for summer or winter wear, but it has been necessary to employ
in the manufacture of said fabric either combed yarns for plain jersey, or combed
and carded yarns, or both together, the fabric having in both cases a right and a
wrong side and presenting the appearance of the jersey fabric.
With a view to obviate these objections we subject the summer jersey fabric,
made with combed yaru, to a treatment and preparation similar to that of cloth,
consisting in fulling, napping, and steaming.
By these several operations, as applied to jersey fabric, a fabric is obtained
almost alike on both sides and having the rough appearance of what is known as
cheviot cloth, hence the name cheviot-jersey" given to it.
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The fabric thus obtained failed, however, to give entire satisfaction to the
purchaser as it did not present the illusion of woven cloth to the touch and still
too much resembled jersey fabric as regards elasticity. We have therefore sought
to find, in the mode of manufacture, a means of correcting from a purchaser's point
of view these so-called defects.
Jersey fabric is always made with yarns having a right-twist, the machines being
regulated so as to produce a fabric having a long mesh and consequently consider-
able elasticity. Woven cloth does not stretch in either direction, and it has long
been sought to obtain a cloth which by its suppleness and flexibility will assist the
tailor in the fit of garments. By employing in manufacture yarns having a left
or inverse twist we have succeeded in counteracting the elasticity of the jersey
fabric. The circular knitting machine rotating to the right, the inverse torsion of
the thread counteracts the tension of the fabric, but although a less elastic fabric
may be thus obtained, it still failed to present to the touch the illusion of cloth, or
does not "plumb" as it is termed by weavers.
It is therefore necessary to change the mode of manufacture by mounting the
needles in such a way (without however altering the mechanism ordinarily used in
circular machines) as to bring the loops into a more transverse position in the
thickness of the fabric, the effect being to shorten the loops as viewed on the right
side of the fabric and straighten the bows of the loops as viewed on the wrong side
of the fabric. By this system an elastic cloth is obtained of great strength and not
liable to wrinkle, but on the condition that the needles be filled with the greatest
possible number of threads. For example, four fine threads would be employed
instead of two thick threads representing the same number. In this manner a
fabric may be obtained which has long been sought after, but the ordinary circular
knitting machines now made do not admit of making cloth so thick of pure combed
wool. It is therefore necessary to find a means of avoiding the knotting or
piecing-up in the winding of the yarn, the false turns given to the yarn in this
operation, and also leave on the yarn all the nap or down given to it by the spinner.
The yarn as supplied by the spinner presents, for the purpose of making these
goods, the following objectionable qualities. It often has thick places due either

page_text: to imperfect drawing of the slivers or to the piecing-up of the broken yarns by the
spinner. These thicker parts on getting into the loopers and needles entirely arrest
and injure the working of the machine and hence the use of the special winders and
bobbins, where the yarns pass at an acute angle between knives termed "purifiers,"
and if this operation is well done the operator finds the advantage of using well-
cleaned yarn whilst if badly done there are often false turns in winding and the yarn
arrested on the bobbin causes the teeth of the loopers to be inclined to the needles,
with the frequent result of causing the breakage of two or three needle plates at
once. Moreover, the yarn, wound on to the bobbin with more or less friction,
arrested by the acute angle of the knives of the winder, and fatigued by the guide
fingers, becomes drawn and breaks easily, necessitating piecing-up and causing knots
which lead to breakages of the needles, and injury to the fabric.
This invention consists in the method and means employed for the manufacture
of the new fabric, and includes the mode of knitting and the preparation of the
fabric thereby produced.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, wherein
Figure 1 represents a front elevation and Figure 2 a plan of a circular knitting
machine adapted for the purposes of this invention.
Figure 3 is a detail view on a larger scale, showing the course of the thread
through the machine.
To produce the cheviot jersey fabric, four fine yarns a are employed, preferably
of combed wool. The knitting is effected by means of the looper wheel and needles,
as in ordinary circular knitting machines, and therefore needs no description, but to
enable uneven yarns as they come from the spinning machine to be used they are
subjected to the action of a special clearing device before arriving at the looper
wheel. This device is shown in Figures 1 and 3 and enables the yarns to be
employed without being specially wound on bobbins. The cops are placed point
downwards upon pins so as to unwind easily, the yarns a passing through a
guide c to knives d by which they are cleared or rendered even, the yarns being
guided by guides e, f, in such manner as to avoid the angles formed in ordinary
clearing knives. The yarns after being cleared by the knives d are lubricated by
contact with a spongy material saturated with lubricating matter and contained in
a vessel whence they pass over glass rollers and thence to the feed rollers i.
Suspended from each yarn between the two glass rollers is a bifurcated hook k
whose limbs depend above a divided trough containing mercury into which they
dip when a yarn breaks, so as to close the circuit through an electro-magnet n
whose armature n¹ is pivoted at n² and has a tail piece which normally holds a latch
lever o in engagement with the operating lever p of a clutch plas represented in
dotted lines in Figure 1.
When the circuit is closed by the breaking of a yarn, the electro-magnet attracts
armature n' and releases lever o which falls under its own weight and the pressure of
spring which tends to throw the clutch p¹ out of gear.
In front of the feed rollers i is a guide by which the yarns are directed
tangentially to the point of nip of said rollers whence the yarns pass over a hook r
at the upper part of the machine and thence down to the looper s, this long course
taken by the yarn between the cops and the point where it reaches the looper,
facilitating overlooking and the joining up of broken ends, thus avoiding the many
defects of ordinary machine knitting.
t is a wheel which bears on the needles so as to retain the loops thereon. A
special wheel a revolves in the needles for freeing them from any adhering particles
of yarn.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1st The hination
1

page_text: fabric, of the cops b, "clearing" knife d, lubricator g, electric stop motion k, feed
rollers and hook r for conducting the yarns first in an upward and then in a
downward direction to the loopers, as and for the purpose specified.
2nd. The process of manufacturing a fabric of the jersey class as herein-described
and of subsequently fulling, teaseling, and steaming it for the production of a new
product styled "cheviot-jersey," as specified.
Dated this on day of March 1
.A. L. CUDEY,
J. H. VACHERIE,
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.