IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR MANUFACTURING CORDAGE, WEBBING OR THE LIKE
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Harris Lake of the firm of Haseltine Lake
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings London for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR MANUFACTURING CORDAGE, WEBBING OR
THE LIKE” Communicated to him from abroad by James Pike Tolman, of
West Newton, Massachusetts, United States of America
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Henry Harris Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 24th April 1883.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine Lake and Co, Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR MANUFAC-
TURING CORDAGE, WEBBING OR THE LIKE." Communicated to me from abroad
by James Pike Tolman of West Newton Massachusetts United States of America
This invention relates to that class of machines for manufacturing cordage,
webbing or other similar fabrics in which the strands forming a cord or web are
united by an interlocking twist; and in which the travellers carrying the strands
have an intermittent motion, being at times held in position by a stationary
toothed guide ring or traveller-holding plate, and at other times removed by
carrier gear-wheels with which they revolve, to new positions in such guide ring.
The machines now in use for making cordage in this manner, are such as are
described in the Specifications of United States Letters Patent granted to James A.
Bazin July 17th 1866 A.D. N° 56,485 and to Charles E Barnes October 5th 1880
A.D. N° 232920. In both of these machines the traveller selectors are operated by
complicated mechanism actuated by a cam, which in one of these machines moves
a series of sliding plates, and in the other a set of pivoted jaws; the object in both
cases being to direct the projecting feet of the travellers into their proper places
in a main revolving table or platform.

page_text: The number of moving parts in these machines greatly increases the cost of con-
structing and maintaining them, and the cams wear out very rapidly, requiring
frequent repairs and renewals. The lost motion and "back-lash" of the gear
wheels also make it very difficult to properly time the machines; and render special
devices necessary to operate them in a reverse direction, as it is needful when
picking out bad work, or using yarns with an opposite twist to that usually
employed.
The object of the said invention is to simplify the construction of the mechanism
for selecting the travellers in this class of machine, in such a manner, as to greatly
reduce the cost of their construction, the number of their moving parts, and the
rapidity of their deterioration by wear, and to make it possible to revolve the
machine at will in either direction without special preparation or any adjustment
of the mechanism To this end the said invention partly consists in the combina-
tion with the usual revolving platform having one or more circular recesses or guide
paths cut into, or formed upon, the same, of one or more independent switch levers
or points adapted to be operated in one direction by the travellers and in the
opposite direction by a spring or springs for the purpose of automatically guiding
the said travellers alternately into and out of the recess or recesses in the revolving
platform; it also partly consists in certain details of construction hereinafter set
forth.
In the accompanying drawing,
Figure 1 is a plan of a machine constructed according to this invention a portion
of the toothed guide ring and one of the carrier gear wheels being removed; the
travellers in their various positions being indicated by discs and sections of their
feet.
Figure 2 is a vertical section through the centre of the same.
Figure 3 is a plan of a portion of the top of the machine with the parts in a
position different from that shown in Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a plan of the revolving platform of the machine with two of the
switch levers removed.
Figure 5 is a vertical section of a portion of the revolving platform with one pair
of the switch levers shown in elevation.
Figure 6 is an elevation of the base or lower portion of one of the travellers,
and
Figure 7 is a plan of the bottom of a traveller base.
A indicates the main revolving platform or table of the machine, E the circular
recesses or guide paths cut into, or formed upon, the same, and B.C. the movable
switch levers or points which control the entrance to the recesses E; each lever
being pivoted to the platform by means of a stud e projecting from its underside
and fitting into a hole d, Figures 4 and 5.
m, n indicate lugs or stops which serve to limit the range of motion of the
switch levers B, C; and b c, indicate springs which are coiled around the studs e
and tend to keep the switch levers in the position seen in Figure 4 with their
outer ends against the lugs m. A. small portion a of the platform A is made
removable to allow of the insertion and removal of the travellers, and is held in
place by means of a screw. F indicates the guide ring or traveller-holding plate,
which is held stationary at a suitable distance above the platform A by the
uprights h. of the main frame H of the machine. This guide ring F is provided on
its inner periphery with teeth, some of which fare suitably cut away at regular
intervals as seen in Figure 1 for the purpose of holding the cylindrical necks of the
travellers D¹, D³, D³, D*, D³. In Figure 1 a portion of the guide ring is represented
as cut away for the purpose of showing the action of the switch levers beneath.
G G indicate the carrier gear wheels (one for each recess E) arranged in the
same plane with the guide ring F and provided with studs having their bearings in
the platform A as seen in Figure 2 by which means the said gear wheels are main-
tained in position above and concentric with the recesses Ẹ. These carrier gear

page_text: wheels Gare rotated by their teeth engaging with the teeth of the guide ring F as
the platform A is revolved, and at suitable intervals the spaces between the teeth
of the gear wheels G are properly shaped as shown at g for receiving the necks of
the travellers.
The operation of the machine is as follows, that is to say:-As the platform A
revolves in the direction indicated by the arrow 10 Figure 1, the carrier gear
wheels Gare by the engagement of their teeth with the teeth of the stationary guide
ring.F, revolved in the direction indicated by the arrows 12, causing the travellers
D' and D Figure 1, to be carried thereby around the recesses E. The travellers D'
being in the positions indicated in Figure 1 hold the switch levers B in the position
seen, thus directing the travellers D' out of the recesses E, around which they have
just travelled, into positions in the cut away teeth f of the guide ring F, where
they are held until the next recess E in the revolving platform A is brought
opposite thereto. As the platform continues to revolve, it will pass by the
travellers D¹ in the cut away teeth f of the ring F, the feet of these travellers
bearing against a shoulder at the outer periphery of the platform, and the switch
levers B being carried past the travellers D¹ so that they will clear the same; and
as the travellers D' will have at the same time been advanced by the rotation of
the carrier gear wheels the switch levers B will have been released and returned
by their springs 6 to their normal positions against the lugs m. As the platform
still continues to revolve, the feet of the travellers D which are held in the cut
away teeth of the stationary guide ring F, will push the switch levers C aside,
allowing them to pass, and the switch levers B being at that time in their normal
positions against the stops m, will guide the travellers D' into the recesses. E as
seen in Figure 3.
When the travellers D* have advanced to the positions represented as occupied
by the travellers D³ Figure 1, the travellers D' will have advanced to the positions
represented as occupied by the travellers D' Figure 1, and will then be guided out
of the recesses E by the switch levers B, into the teeth f of the ring F which are at
that moment opposite thereto.
At the time that the switch levers C are being pushed against the lugs n by
passing in contact with the travellers D', their curved projecting portions 13 will
be removed out of the paths of the travellers D', and when the travellers D' have
entered the recesses E and cleared the switch levers C, the latter will be returned
by their springs c to their normal positions against the stops m and allow the
passage of the travellers D2 out of the recesses E.
It will be seen that when the platform A is revolving in the direction indicated
by the arrow 10, the levers B will guide the travellers alternately into and out of
the recesses E, the switch levers Chaving no work to perform, being merely moved
out of the way by contact with the travellers to allow of the free passage of the
latter. When however the platform A is revolved in the direction opposite to
that indicated by the arrow 10, the operation is reversed, the switch levers C then
acting in the same manner as the levers B above described, and serving to guide
the travellers alternately into and out of the recesses E, while the levers B have
then no work to perform, being merely moved out of the way by contact with the
travellers as they are carried past them; it will thus be seen that the mechanism
can be revolved at will in either direction without special preparation or any adjust-
ment whatever, whereby much delay and inconvenience are avoided and the
machine rendered much more valuable.
The platform A is furnished with a sleeve S Figure 2 which revolves around a
main spindle k rising from the frame H, this spindle k being preferably made
hollow to permit. the passage of a core or centre for the cord if such should be
required. To the said sleeve is secured at its lower end, a gear-wheel which is
adapted to be actuated by suitable mechanisın, similar for instance to that
described in the said former specifications for the purpose of communicating motion
to the machine.

page_text: In Figure 4 one pair of the switch levers B C is removed to show the holes d d
in the platform A which form bearings for the studs e e by means of which the
switch levers are pivoted on the platform.
The arrangement of coiled springs b c encircling the shafts of the switch levers
for the purpose of returning them to their normal positions after the passage of the
travellers, as seen in Figures 2 and 5, may be varied if desired, and I do not
therefore confine myself to this particular construction, as it is obvious that the
Bwitch levers may be operated by spiral or flat springs placed above the platform A
or arranged in any other suitable manner.
The base of each traveller is composed of two discs lq, a cylindrical neck r, and
a projecting foot tas seen in Figures 6 and 7. In practice the upper disc of the
traveller base carries the spool frame, and there is also placed above the whole
machine, a suitable take off mechanism for taking up the finished cord and winding
it up or conveying it away, but these devices are not shown as they form no part
of the said invention, and may be for instance similar to those described in the
said former specifications.
The machine shown in the drawing contains fifteen travellers, each carrier gear
wheel G having five spaces g between its teeth for the reception of the necks of
the travellers, but these carrier gear wheels G may be provided with any uneven
number of these spaces g and the number of travellers varied accordingly. The
carrier gear wheels G are here shown as adapted to be operated by engagement
with the toothed ring F, but if preferred they may be rotated in any other suitable
manner.
It is obvious that for varying or removing the twist of the cord, or in making a
flat web, it may be desirable to revolve the guide ring F in a direction either the
same or opposite to that of the platform A, or the platform A may be made
stationary, and the guide ring F revolved, but neither of these arrangements would
disturb or change the relative positions of the carrier gear wheels G and travellers
with respect to the guide ring, and would not therefore interfere with the applica-
tion of the present invention thereto.
Having thus fully described the said invention as communicated to me by my
foreign Correspondent and the manner of performing the same I wish it understood
that I Claim in a machine for manufacturing, cordage, webbing and other similar
fabrics.
First. The combination with the revolving platform A having a circular recess
or guide path E and a traveller carrier gear wheel G applied thereto, of a switch
lever, adapted to be moved in one direction by contact with the travellers and in
the opposite direction by a spring, for the purpose of automatically guiding the
said travellers alternately into and out of the recess or guide path E substantially
as set forth.
Second. The combination with the revolving platform A having a circular recess
or guide path E and a traveller carrier gear wheel G applied thereto, of the two switch
levers B, C, adapted to be moved in one direction by contact with the travellers,
and in the opposite direction by springs, and arranged upon opposite sides of the
entrance to the recess or guide path E to operate reversely for the purpose of
automatically guiding the said travellers alternately into and out of the said recess
or guide path, whereby the machine is adapted to be run in either direction without
adjustment, substantially as described.
Third. The combination with the revolving platform A having a series of circular
recesses or guide paths E, and traveller carrier gear wheels G applied thereto, of a
series of switch levers each adapted to be moved in one direction by contact with
the travellers, and in the opposite direction by a spring, for the purpose of
automatically guiding the travellers alternately into and out of the recesses or
guide paths E, substantially as set forth.
Fourth. The combination with the rotating platform A having a circular recess or
guide path E, and switch lever or levers adapted to be operated in one direction by

page_text: contact with the travellers, and in the opposite direction by a spring or springs, of
the stops m, n, adapted to limit the range of motion of the switch lever or
levers in opposite directions, substantially in the manner, and for the purpose, set
forth,
In witness whereof I the said Henry Harris Lake have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Twenty-fourth day of April in the year of Our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty three.