CER- TAIN NEW OR IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF WIRE HEDDLES
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Broomán, of 166, Fleet Street,
in the City of London, E. C., Patent Agent, for the Invention of "CER-
TAIN NEW OR IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF WIRE
HEDDLES." A communication.
Sealed the 11th January 1859, and dated the 12th July 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald
Brooman at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 12th July 1858.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, E. C., Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "CERTAIN NEW OF IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF WIRE
HEDDLES," (communicated to me by a foreigner residing abroad,) to be as
follows:-
This Invention consists in new or improved machinery for making wire
heddles, consisting of a pair of revolving tubes, cylinders, or other equivalent
holders, with appurtenances for drawing in the wire, gripping, twisting, and
discharging the same, all being worked by appropriate mechanism, whereby.
the complete heddle is made and discharged automatically and with great
speed and economy. The cylinders lie in a horizontal position, and in a line
with each other, a short space being left between their inner ends. A beddle

page_text: (which is usually a string or cord having a loop or eye midway of its length,
and affixed upon a "shaft" at each end), is by this machinery to be formed
of wire, (having a loop or eye at each end, and a third midway between,) by
twisting in a peculiar manner.
Thus, in the first place, a piece of wire of the proper length is at com-
mencing doubled together, and this is done by a rod with a hook upon its
end, which passes through the cylinders and seizes the wire as it lies across
the mouth. It is then forcibly drawn into and through the cylinders (the
bores of which are quite small). Being thus doubled together, certain spaces
are kept open by having the wires separate at those parts, while other
parts are firmly gripped by pincers. The cylinders then revolving twist the
wires together at appropriate places to form the required eyes.
.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 12th January 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of London, E. C.,
Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Richard Archibald Brooman, Her special licence that I, the said
Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, 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 ex-
pressed, 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 NEW OR IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR THE
MANUFACTURE OF WIRE HEDDLES," (a communication) upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my exe-
cutors 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 per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within

page_text: six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say:-
This Invention consists in new or improved machinery for making wire
heddles, consisting of a pair of revolving tubes, cylinders, or other equivalent,
holders, with appurtenances for drawing in the wire, gripping, twisting, and
discharging the same, all being worked by appropriate mechanism, whereby.
the complete heddle is made and discharged automatically and with great
speed and economy. The twisting cylinders are shewn detached from the frame
(though in their proper relative positions), and from the trains of wheelwork,
cams, &c., by which motion is communicated to the several parts. These are
all omitted in this Specification as being common devices easily applied and
arranged in divers ways to produce the motions upon the twisting cylinders,
and to operate the other parts used in connection therewith. The cylinders
lie in a horizontal position, and in a line with each other, a short space being
left between their inner ends. A heddle (which is usually a string or cord,
having a loop or eye midway of its length, and affixed upon a shaft at each
end), is by this machinery to be formed of wire, (having a loop or eye at cach
end, and a third midway between,) by twisting in a peculiar manner.
Thus, in the first place, a piece of wire of the
mencing doubled together, and this is done by a
end, which passes through the cylinders and seizes
the mouth. It is then forcibly drawn into and through the cylinders (the
bores of which are quite small). Being thus doubled together, certain spaces
are kept open by having the wires separate at those parts, while other parts,
are firmly gripped by pincers. The cylinders then revolving twist the wires
together at appropriate places to form the required eyes. Such a heddle is
seen in Figure 6 of the accompanying Drawings, wherein a shows the end eye
still over the hooked end of the drawing rod. a is the middle eye at right
angles to a, the shape being shown in a detached view just beneath, and
marked by the same letter; a" is the third eye, and is parallel with a.
Figure 1 is a top view of the cylinders; Figure 2, a section shewing the
pincers and the comparative size of the bore of the cylinders; Figure 3 is a
view partly in section of the cylinders and pincers standing in the closed
position of the parts which are seen open in the sectional view Figure 2;
proper length is at com-
rod with a hook upon its
the wire as it lies across

page_text: Figures 4, 5, and 6 are parts in detail, and for illustration of the work pro-
duced. The cylinders are represented by the letters A and A¹, and consist of
a tube of metal sufficiently thick to hold the pincers and their operating
thimbles, and otherwise to act with mechanical correctness. They are sup-
ported in any suitable framing so as to be capable of revolving on their
journals. At those ends which stand near to each other are pinion wheels b, b¹,
by means of which the cylinders receive their rotary motion from the main
wheel c.
Each cylinder has two pairs of pincers one at each end, as seen at
d, d¹, and e, e¹. The pinching ends are placed to act in the bore of the
cylinders, and near to the ends as shewn, the operating ends terminating
above the outer surface. Each pair is made to open and close by a thimble or
ferrule sliding along the cylinder; f represents those on A, and f¹ those on A'.
The sliding motion is readily given to each pair of thimbles by a rod with two
arms placed so as to enter the circular grooves cut around them, as seen in
Figure 2, the rod g operating the thimbles f, and the rod g' the thimbles f. At
the entering end for the wire, which is in cylinder A, there are placed two
pieces of mechanism; the first is the shears for cutting off the wire of the.
heddle, where it receives its final twist to give it a finish, as seen at the cross
mark at a", in Figure 6; the second is a shorter cylinder B revolving upon
the end of A, and receiving its motion from an independent gearing wheel.
This is formed to give the final twist to the two ends of wire where they
project beyond the mouth of the cylinder. The shears are shown at i, and
consist of two plates placed together in a vertical position across the end of
the cylinder B. A circular hole through them at the bore forms the shears,
by the slipping of one plate past the other, which, of course, severs the wire
projecting through. This is done by the wedge being driven through the
slots, as shewn. The short cylinder is represented at B, Figure 1, and in
section, in Figures 2 and 3, an end view being given in Figure 4. The bore
of this cylinder is sufficiently large to allow it to go over and revolve upon the
end of A. It has a pinion k at one end, and at the other end there is a
sliding plate crossing the said end, and of the shape seen at ' in Figure 4.
In the middle of this plate there is a hole placed, so that by sliding the plate
it may be brought to expose the bore of the cylinder to view.
¿¹
From the top
of the hole a tongue projects, so as partly to cross it, as shown. This
tongue is seen endwise, and is that which gives shape to the eye a" in the
heddle, as shown in Figure 6. Revolution is given to the cylinder B by the
wheel B', supported and driven in any convenient manner from the main
frame. There are two other pairs of pincers operating in connection with
those already described, but these are detached from the cylinders. The first

page_text: pair is placed outside of the cylinders at the receiving end for the wire.. In
Figure 2 they are shewn endwise, with the gripping fingers open, and in
Figure 3 a like view, but representing them as pinching the wire. The other.
pair is placed between the cylinders at m. They are similar to in that they
are made generally like that, but the end which acts upon the wire is different,
since it is not intended to pinch, but merely to come between the two parts of
the wire and keep them separate. The acting ends are shewn in Figure 5;
the lower half of the pincer has a recess, into which a wedge-shaped pro-
jection seen upon the upper half may enter. The wire is seen lying on each
side of this projection, and when the said projection is in the recess, that
position is maintained. As a twist is put in on both sides of this pincer, the
central eye a is shaped thereby, but the reason for not clamping the wire
firmly in this place is, that another and general twist may be put in along the
whole length, Figure 6 shewing that the part of the wire between the eyes
has also a twist. The wire from which the heddles are to be made is fed from.
a reel or otherwise along the end of the machine, a supporting plate r
receiving it and keeping it up in a level position. In Figure 1 is shewn a top
view of a portion of the plate ; the length is equal to the length of wire.
necessary for a heddle, or thereabouts. It is hinged at the outer edge, as
seen in Figure 2, so that the inner edge may be raised or lowered. The inner
edge is bent over to form a guide, to direct the wire as it is shot along the
plate from the feeding mechanism. The feed plate has also a piece cut out
of its bent edge, just opposite the bore of the cylinder, as seen at 7. This is
for the purpose of allowing the drawing book to get behind the wire and
engage it. The two sides of the cut place also cause the doubling of the wire
as it is being drawn into the cylinders. The hook used for drawing in the
wire is formed upon the rod t, and the shape of it is that which the eye at the
end where the wire is doubled is to have, as seen at t', and also in Figure 6,
where it is seen in the said eye a. This rod is to have two sets of motion
given to it during the act of forming a heddle, one in which the rod is drawn
backwards and forwards through the cylinder, and the other wherein it
revolves. It is drawn through the cylinders by a rack u, the end t" being
fixed to the end of the arm w by a clamp nut on either side of the said arm,
or otherwise, so that the rod may turn in the hole through which it passes.
At the end is either squared or has a cross pin, as shown, by which the
revolving motion is given, and that is to be produced when the rod is drawn.
out of the cylinder. For this purpose a revolving stock is placed in the frame.
with the end which is to receive the rod pointed towards it, and situated at.
such distance from the cylinders that when the said rod is run out, its end t

page_text: will engage in the stock. The stock is shewn at vin Figures 2 and 3, the
hole which receives the end of the rod being shaped so as to ensure the
turning of the latter when the stock is caused to rotate.
The operation will be as follows:-Figures 1 and 2 show the drawing rod
and hook in position to take hold of the wire at the commencement of the
work. The wire a has been fed on to the feed plate, coming in the direction
of the arrow, Figure 1, and is seen lying under the bent edge of it. In
Figure 2 this bent edge is seen to be standing above the level of the bore of
the cylinder, and of course above the hook t'. The feed plate is kept up by a
lifting post, which at this time is removed by appropriate connection with the
moving parts of the machine, thus allowing the spring to pull down the
plate until it strikes the fixed stud y. By this means the hook is brought
through the cut 1, and will then stand immediately behind the wire a, as in
Figure 1. The pinion which operates the rack u is now engaged, and the
rack travels along, drawing the rod t with it; the hook t' engages the wire,
which is immediately doubled by the two sides of the slot . So soon as the
hook has passed the wedge point the slide is forced down, so as to bring
the wedge between the wires; when the hook has passed from the cylinder A
to the cylinder A', the pincer m closes and causes its wedging piece to pass'
between the wires in like manner. The end t finally engages in the stock v,
as in Figure 3, in which position the hook will be scen supported just at the
terminal end of the cylinder A¹. The first general twist the whole length of
the two legs of the wire is now to be given; the stock v is therefore caused to
revolve, and at the same time the short cylinder B.
between the wires, a twist is formed on each side to
hook twisting that part in A', and the wedge
the wire from having a tendency to kink, it is
by k, though it is separated by these, and thus
may turn and accommodate itself to the twist.
be any tendency to unwind as it were when the finished heddle is released.
This is important, for the original relative position of the middle eye as to the
end ones must not be altered, which would be the case if there were a
tendency to unwind the long twist. In putting in the long twist, one or
more entire revolutions of the hook t¹ and cylinder B take place. Thus, as
The wedge m being
the extremities, the
" that part in A. To prevent
not clamped either by mor
each leg of the heddle wire
By this means there will not
stood upright as well as the hook that starting, they will at stopping con-
sequently be found to stand again in that position. The sliding bars g and g¹
next move in the directions indicated by the arrows, and close the pincers i, d
and c, c; the pincers e are also at the same time closed, as seen in Figure 3,
firmly gripping the wires at their respective points. The hook rod t now makes.

page_text: one-fourth of a revolution, thus placing the hook which holds the wire at a right
angle to the position it before occupied, and in which position it remains until
the twisting is finished. The toothed wheels c and B₁ now revolve, giving
thereby to the cylinders A and A¹ two entire revolutions, and to the short
cylinder B four and one-quarter revolutions, all moving in the same direction.
The pincers e¹ will by this have put a short hard twist into the wire in the
place between the hook t¹ and the nipping points, thus forming the first of the
eyes a; the pincers e will have formed a like twist between themselves.and m
on the one side, while the pincers d' will have done the like for the other
side, thus the eye a¹ is formed. The terminal eye at the other end has also
been formed, but differently. The eyes a and a¹ are formed by the revolution
of the pincers d, e, and e', in connection with the two fixed holders t¹ and m;
but in the forming of the last eye a" the pincers d become (although revolving
with A) in fact the fixed holder in connection with the fixed pincers 7, while
by the revolution of B the twists are given. This occurs in consequence of B
turning faster than the cylinder A, for, as the cylinders A and A¹ make two
revolutions (that number being sufficient for the purpose) to give the proper
twists, B in the same time makes four and one-quarter revolutions. Thus,
between the wedge and d two full twists will be put in, while between k¹¹
and l.there will be four and a quarter twists. The revolutions of A. and A¹
are complete ones, hence at stopping, the positions of those parts will be as at
the time of starting. The revolutions of B are one-fourth beyond the four
complete ones, and hence its point " now stands at a right angle to its first
position, and the eyes a and a" at a right angle to a¹. A cane or lever now
strikes the wedge , and the shear plates immediately cut off the wire in the
part which has the four twists, thus giving a complete finish, each eye being
fully formed. The slide ¹ is at the same time pushed up, removing the
forming wedge k¹ out of the eye a¹¹; all the other pincers are also at the
same time opened, leaving the heddle complete in the cylinder ready to be
discharged. While the operations of twisting were going on, a new feed of
wire for the next heddle was taking place. The moment the wire for the
previous heddle had been taken in the cylinders, and thus been got clear of
the feed plate r, its lifting rod came into action, and raised it once more to the
position seen in Figure 2. The complete heddle may be now discharged:
without interfering with the feed plate, as the heddle will shoot out of the
cylinder underneath free from obstruction, for being supported at each end,
leaves all between free. The pincers, &c., then being all open, and the heddle
thus free, as described, the stock v takes a quarter turn back, bringing the
hook t¹ upright once more, the heddle at the same time turning round with it.

page_text: The clutch on the pinion which propels the rack u out is at this moment
released, and the rack retreats by the force of a descending weight (or the
motion of the pinion may be reversed), and this discharges the heddle, which
tumbles off the hook t¹ when the latter is once more out of the cylinder A.
While these operations are going on the wheel B' is also turned, so far as to
cause the cylinder B to make three-quarters of a revolution, in order to bring
the wedge standing upright ready to pass between the wires for the next
heddle. All parts being now in the position seen in Figure 2, another wire is
drawn in in like manner, twisted and discharged, the work progressing auto-
matically and in regular order, as described.
It has not been deemed important to describe the train of mechanism by
which the several parts herein named are actuated, as such description of
'well-known devices would needlessly increase the length of this Specification,
and tend to complicate that of the parts in which the Invention lies. From
one main shaft lying across the end of the framing most of the motions are
given, by means of cog wheels, canes, levers, and the like, which it is believed
any one skilled in mechanics may arrange without further aid than is conveyed
by such skill and knowledge. It will be seen that the slides g and-g¹ are
readily operated by cams, the intermittent motions of the wheels c and B¹, by
wheels having teeth on portions only of their circumferences, the movement of
the rack and turning of the stock, &c., by like simple contrivances.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim, the making of
wire heddles automatically by means of twisting cylinders, or equivalent
holders, fitted and operating in combination with pincers or other equivalent
gripping apparatus, to seize hold and twist the wire, substantially in the
manner herein-before described and represented in the accompanying
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of January, One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
R. A. BROOMAN. (L.S.)