IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING, SPINNING, AND DOUBLING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Ridley Hetherington, of Manchester,
in the County of Lancaster, Machine Maker, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING, SPINNING, AND DOUBLING
COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Ridley
Hetherington at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
his Petition, on the 20th November 1869.
I, THOMAS RIDLEY HETHERINGTON, of Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Machine Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARINO, SPINNING, AND
DOUBLING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, firstly, in the use of a peculiar form of
grid" for opening or scutching machinery, such as the various forms
of willows, scutchers, openers, and other machines used in performing
similar operations, including also such carding engines as are provided
with a "grid" casing. I propose to form such grids by perforating

page_text: sheets of metal, and bending one or more side of such perforations
upward or downward, so that in the former case there will be projecting
parts extending towards the operating cylinder or other such portion of
the machine, and in the latter case inclining from it; or both of these
bendings may be employed in combination.
Secondly. My Invention refers to a method of regulating the quantity
of material delivered by the feed rollers in opening, scutching, and
similar machinery. For this purpose I employ a friction apparatus
consisting of a plate whose surface is clipped by two other plates pressed
towards each other by a spring or similar means, or the plates may be
multiplied and formed into a series of any desired extent. Suppose that
a single plate thus disposed is placed upon the axis of the top roller of
such machinery as aforesaid, then should an unusual quantity of material
be passing the said roller will rise and carry with it the plate, which
then being situate further from the centre of motion of those plates
which embrace it the speed will be diminished, and the contrary effect
will take place when an insufficient quantity of material is passing.
Instead of placing the plate upon the axis of the roller the rising or
falling thereof may act through intermediate apparatus. I also apply
this part of my Invention for regulating the winding of laps in openers,
scutchers, lap, and other such machines.
Thirdly. My Invention refers to the carding engine, and consists in
an arrangement whereby the wheels which drive the draw box are
thrown out of gear upon an unusual pressure taking place either in the
said wheels or box. For this purpose I mount 'one of the wheels in a
sliding bearing, which is kept in working position by one end of a lever
which is weighted at its other end. This weight I propose to fix upon
a second lever capable of turning upon a centre, and connected to that
first mentioned by a pin passing into a slot. When an obstruction
takes place the bearing of the wheel slides outward and disengages the
driving power, the weighted lever turning upon its centre through the
medium of the slot and pin, and this turning over may or may not be
so far as to pass the vertical line; in the former of these cases it becomes
a tumbling lever, and will keep the wheels out of gear. This improve-
ment I also propose to apply to the feed rollers and to adapt it to the
side shaft.
Fourthly. My Invention refers to throstles for spinning and doubling
in which bobbins are formed with a conical end or ends. In machines of

page_text: this description it has been usual to employ one heart cam for both
sides of the frame, but there has been a difficulty to get it to act properly
for those two sides. To avoid this I employ a separate "heart cam
for each side, and connect them to. their respective rails by suitable
mechanism.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Ridley Hetherington in the Great Scal
Patent Office on the 20th May 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
RIDLEY HETHERINGTON, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Machine Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing dato the Twentieth day of November, One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-third year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said Thomas Ridley Hetherington, Her special licenso
that I, the said Thomas Ridley Hetherington, my executors, ad-
ministrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Thomas
Ridley Hetherington, 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 MACHINERY FOR PREPARING,
SPINNING, AND DOUBLING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the
condition, amongst others, that I, the said Thomas Ridley Hetherington,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and scal, should par-
ticularly 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 Thomas Ridley Hetherington, 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

page_text: in and by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that
is to say):
My Invention consists, firstly, in the use of a peculiar form of " grid"
for opening and scutching machinery, such as the various forms of
willows, scutchers, openers, and other machines used in performing
similar operations, including also such carding engines as are provided
with a "grid" casing.
This part of my Invention is shewn at Fig. 1 and 2 of the accom-
panying Drawings; the former being a face view and the latter a section.
At 1 is a sheet of metal, which is punched with holes, as represented at 2.
When this has been done the curved edges 3 are turned at an angle to
the face of the plate, as seen at 4, Fig. 2. When this grid is in use the
beater or other instrument which acts upon the material carries it in the
direction of the arrow and strikes it against the turned over portions 4,
and the open spaces 5 allow the impurities to pass outward. If however
from the description of the machine or for other reasons a less violent
action of the material is desired the grid is reversed and the cotton or
other fibrous material is caused to pass as shewn by the dotted arrow, and
the edges 6 become the parts against which it is carried, or instead of
these arrangements some of the curved parts may be turned over in one
direction and some in the other.
Secondly. My Invention refers to a method of regulating the quantity
of material delivered by the feed rollers in opening, scutching, and
similar machinery, and is shown in one arrangement at Fig. 3. At 7, 8,
are the feed rollers, upon the axis of one of which is fixed a disc 9 formed
with bevitted edges as shewn. This disc is situate between two others
10, 11, hollowed out on their faces so as to leave projecting flanges 12, 13,
around their peripheries. The disc 10 is fast upon a collar 14 which
turns upon a stud 15 and carries the pinion 16 by which the feed
rollers are driven from any convenient part of the machine. The
disc 11 is mounted loosely upon the collar 14, and so as to be capable of
sliding upon a feather thereon, and is pressed towards the top disc 9 by
means of a spring 16 carried by the stud 15 and capable of being
tightened by screws 17, and by the intervention of these discs and the
spring 16 the roller 7 is therefore driven. During the operation of the
machine an undue quantity of material passing onward will raise the
roller 7 above a certain height, and this movement will cause the disc 9
also to rise, thereby bringing a larger diameter of its surface in contact.

page_text: with the driving discs 10, 11, by which means the speed of the feed
rollers will be diminished and less material will pass into the machine,
and the opposite effect will take place when the roller 7 sinks below its
proper position.
Figs. 4 and 5 shew a modification of this part of my Invention. At
18 is the disc upon the feed roller 19, formed like that previously
described and situate between two other discs 20, 21, placed upon a
collar 22 which is carried by a forked lever 23 turning on a centre 26,
the said disc 21 being mounted loose upon the collar 22, and that shewn
at 21 being forced forward by the spring 24. In contact with and
between the lower portions of the discs 20, 21, is a fourth disc 25 turning
upon a fixed centre 27, to which motion is communicated from any
convenient part of the machine, and it therefore becomes the driver of
the arrangement, the central discs 20, 21, acting as an intermediate. The
forked lever 23 turns upon a fixed centre 26, and to is jointed a rod 28;
which at its lower end is connected to a lever 29 turning upon a fixed
centre 30. This lever 29 is jointed to a rod 31 which is crooked at its
upper end and rests upon the top roller 32. Should an unusual quantity
of material be passing into the machine the roller 32 is pressed upward,
and by means of the connexions shewn and described will cause the
rod 28 to move downward, carrying with it the lever 23 and discs 20, 21,
whereby the said discs will be brought on to a smaller diameter of the
disc 25 and will be driven at a slower speed; but upon this taking
place the intermediate discs 20, 21, will move on to a larger diameter
of the disc 18, which will consequently be driven at a slower speed, and
the revolution of the feed roller is by these means reduced from two
sources and a compound effect is produced by a given upward motion of
the roller 32.
Thirdly. My Invention relates to the carding engine, and consists in
an arrangement whereby the wheels which drive the draw box are
thrown out of gear upon an unusual pressure taking place either in the
said wheels or box. This arrangement I also apply to the side shaft
from which the feed rollers or other parts of the carding engine - are
driven.
In Figs. 6 and 7 a portion of the frame of the carding engine is shewn
at 33, to which is bolted a fixing 34 cast hollow but with ribs 35,
through which a rod 36 passes so as to bo capable of sliding therein.
This rod is attached to an arm 37 which extends downward from the

page_text: bearing 38 of the draw box shaft 39 to which motion is communicated
by the gearing 40, the said shaft being capable of sliding inward and
outward in a slot formed in the bracket 11. Upon a centre carried by
the fixing 34 is a lever 42, the end 43 of which presses against the
bearing 38, and its other end is provided with a slot within which is a
pin 44 projecting from a bell-crank lever 45, 45*, capable of turning
upon a centre and the arm 45* of which carries a weight 16. By
these means therefore the lever 42 is forced in the direction of the arrow,
and the end 43 thereof pressing against the bearing 38 keeps the wheels 40
in gear. Supposing an obstruction should arise to the draw box or gear-
ing then the natural tendency of wheels to pass out of gear will causo
the shaft 39 to press outward, and such pressure overcoming the weight
46 will cause the lever 43 to turn upon its centre, thereby giving motion
to the bell-crank lever 45, and when the weight 40 has passed the cen-
tral line it will fall over and keep the wheels out of gear, or if the
obstruction be but slight the weight will not move sufficiently to effect
a disengagement of the gearing and will of itself return.to the working
position...
'
In Figs. 8 and 9 the side shaft of a carding engine is shown at 50
mounted in a block 51 which is capable of sliding in bearings.
mounted in a slot in the bracket 52, the said shaft being driven by bevil
wheels 53, 54, the former of which is on the doffer shaft. In the block
51 is an opening, within which is one end of a lever 55 turning upon a
fixed centre 56, and provided at its other end with a slot within which is
à pin 57 carried by a bell-crank lever 58, 58°, turning upon a centro 59,
the end 58° thereof being provided with a weight 60. When as in the
former case the side shaft 50 being obstructed is forced outward the
block 51 slides in its slot and causes the lever 55 to turn upon its centre,
thereby raising the weight upward through the medium of the pin 57,
and when it has passed the centre line it falls over, carries forward the
shaft 50, and disengages the gearing as in the former instance.
Fourthly. My Invention refers to throstles for spinning and doubling
in which bobbins are formed with a conical end or ends.
Fig. 10
represents a partial end view of a throstle with my improvement
adapted. At 60 is the frame; at 61, 62, the two rows of spindles, and at
63 the bobbin lifting rails; at 64, 65, are bell-crank levers turning upon
centres 66, 67, and to which are connected chains 68, 69, (shewn by
dotted lines) extending over pullies 70, 71, and from thence to other

page_text: pullies 72, 73, to which their ends are attached, the said pullies being
upon shafts through which motion is communicated to the copping
rails. At 74, 75, are the shortening screws carried by the levers 64, 65,
the copping and shortening operations are therefore performed sub-
stantially after the usual manner. At 76, 77, are rollers carried by the
bell-crank levers 64, 65, and between which according to the practice
hitherto adopted there would be a single heart wheel or cam for effecting
the copping motion, but it is found impossible to get the said heart
wheel to act in exactly the same manner for both rows of spindles, owing
to the angles which the levers 64, 65, assume turning upon their
centres 66, 67. To obviate this I employ two heart wheels 78, 79, one
for the right-hand side of the machine, and the other for the left, that
shown at 78 acting upon the lever 64 and 79 upon the lever 65.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I desire it to be
understood that I claim, as secured to me under the above in part
recited Letters Patent,-
Firstly. The grid consisting of apertures with an edge or edges turned
at an angle in one or more directions.
Secondly. And for the purposes above set forth, the use of the friction
surfaces illustrated at Figs. 3, 4, 5.
Thirdly. The tumbler weight disengaging apparatus, as illustrated at
Figs. 6, 7, 8, 9.
Fourthly. In reference to such throstles as aforesaid the use of a
separate heart wheel or cam for each row of spindles.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Ridley Hetherington,
have hereunto set my hand and scal, this Nineteenth day of
May, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy.