CERTAIN MACHINERY FOR EFFECTING THE OPERATION CALLED KNITTING, AND PRODUCING A FABRIC SIMILAR TO THAT OF KNITTED. STOCKINGS
Year: 1835

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN-
WILDE, late of New York, in the United States of America, but now residing
in Manchester, in the County Palatine of Lancaster, Merchant, and JOSEPII
WHITWORTH, of the latter Place, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the
Fourth, by His Letters Patent, under the Great Seal of Great Britain,
bearing date at Westminster, the Tenth day of November, in the sixth year of
His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said John Wilde and Joseph Whitworth, His especial licence, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that we, the said John Wilde and Joseph Whitworth,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, and such others as we, the said:
John Wilde and Joseph Whitworth, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of "CERTAIN MACHINERY FOR EFFECTING THE
OPERATION CALLED KNITTING, AND PRODUCING A FABRIC SIMILAR TO THAT OF KNITTED.
STOCKINGS," being partly a communication of a foreigner residing abroad;
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that we, the said John
Wilde and Joseph Whitworth, or one of us, shall cause a particular description
of the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be

page_text: performed, to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery, within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said recited
Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will
more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Joseph Whitworth, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described
and ascertained in the Drawing hereto annexed, and by the following expla-
nation thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention is a certain combination of mechanism for manufacturing
stockings and other articles fabricated from cotton, worsted, silk, and other
fibrous materials, in what is commonly called or known as the knitting stitch,
the operations of the mechanism being designed to produce distinct loops or
stitches upon short needles or points resembling the knitted fabric made by
knitting needles when worked by hand. In the accompanying Drawings,
Figure 1 is a front elevation of the complete machine drawn on a scale equal
to the real size; Figure 2 is a plan or horizontal view of the same, some of
the upper portions of the machine being removed to exhibit the lower parts
more perfectly; Figure 3 is an end view of the machine, some of the parts
being cut through transversely and shewn in section. A, A, is a sliding rail
or bar moving longitudinally to and fro in front upon rollers B, B, B, which
turn on fixed studs extending from the base plate C, C. The rail or bar A
carries a row of needles or points a, a, a, upon or round which severally the
thread or yarn is to be looped to form the stitches. As a matter of convenience
we set these needles or points in leads, and attach them to the front of the
sliding bar or rail by screws, as at 6, b, b, much in the same way as points and
needles are mounted in lace machines and in ordinary stocking frames. One of
these leads with the needles or points a is represented detached in three posi-
tions at Figure 4, for the purpose of shewing the forms of the needles or points
more perfectly. A horizontal rotary shaft D, D, turning in plummer blocks on
bearings E, E, fixed to the base plate, is the main driving shaft of the machine.
Upon this shaft there is a loose driving pully F, turned by a band or cord from
any first mover, which pully in order to put the machine in action must be
locked to the shaft by the clutch G, this shaft D carries the several cams by
which the operating parts of the mechanism are actuated. The shaft D with
its cams is represented detached from the machine at Figure 5 for the purpose
of shewing the forms and positions of the cams more clearly than they can be
seen in any of the other Figures, and these cams are severally represented
detached from the shaft in Figures 6, 7, 8, and 9. A standard II, II, II, fixe!

page_text: at the hinder part of the base plate is bent forward at top principally for tho-
purpose of carrying the axle of the lever I, which conducts the thread or yarn
to be worked upon the points or needles a, a, a, in front. This standard also.
carries the levers L and M, by means of which the stitches are connected, that
is, the manipulations of the knitting are performed. A bobbin K containing
the yarn or thread from which the knitted fabric is to be produced is mounted
and turns loosely upon an axle or on pivots in a frame or bracket at the back
of the standard H, and from this bobbin the yarn or thread c, c, c, is conducted.
over the bent part of the standard between guide rollers d, d, over a pully c,
and thence through a hole in the lower part of the guide arm of the lever I to.
the eye or guide at the extremity of that lever which we denominate the feeding
lever, because by it the thread or yarn is conducted and looped round the
points a, a, a. This lever is attached to an axle mounted in the front part of
the bont standard H, and is shown detached and in different positions at.
Figure 10, with its tail J, on which a rotary cam operates to work the lever
and effect the feeding of the yarn or thread, the lever L having a small arm f
extending at a right angle from its side, called the pressing lever, as shewn,
detached in several positions at Figure 11. This lever is mounted upon a
swivel joint at g, in the upright part of the standard H, and is employed for
holding down and tightening the yarn or thread while it is conducted or looped
round the needle. The lever M which carries at its extremity a tumbling-
piece h, having a hook i, is called the lifting lever because its hook lifts
successively each loop (formed by a previous course of operations) from the
lower part of the stem of each needle a, and passes it over the loop sub-
sequently made and over the points of the needle for the purpose of securing:
the loop just formed upon the needles and so perfecting the stitch. This lever.
has its fulcrum in an axle or pin at j, in the standard H, and is shewn detached.
at Figure 12. The cam N, upon the rotary shaft D (shewn detached at.
Figure 6), acts against the tail lever J, affixed to the shaft of the feeding lover I,.
and as it revolves causes the lever I with the guide arm to move inwards
into the position shewn by dots in Figure 3, but the lever I is forced outward.
again by a spring O, which depresses the tail lover as soon as the cam N
has passed away from it. The cam wheel P (shewn detached at Figure 7).
has a thin edge or rim x, acting in the teeth or notches at the back part of
the sliding rail or needle bar A (see Figure 2). A portion of this rin x is
moveable at a upon a hinge joint, and which portion by being, drawn.
obliquely on one side causes the rim as it revolves to act as a lateral cam
or endless screw taking into the next notch in succession of the rack at
every rotation, and by that means sliding the rail or bar A, with tho

page_text: points a, a, a, laterally upon the rollers B, B, B.
Two stop pieces Q, Q, are
employed for changing the lateral movements of the bar A; these are
mounted on adjustable plates R, R, which may be slidden along the bar A, and
placed at any distance apart in order to determine the breadth of the work to
the extent to which the knitting shall be carried on the row of needles a, a, a;
on each of the plates R an arm S is mounted as a lever upon a joint in a
standard fixed upon the plate, and when the plates are adjusted, that is, slidden
into the desired situation, the arms S are let down into horizontal positions
between the points a, a, a, a, as shewn, and there remain stationary. The
means by which the stops affect the changing of the lateral movements of the
rail or bar A will be explained hereafter. The cam T (represented detached
at Figure 8), as the shaft D revolves, raises the lever M to effect the lifting
and turning over of the loop by the hook i; and when this is done, the lever
is drawn down again by the force of a helical spring. The cam U(shewn
detached at Figure 9) is intended as it revolves to raise the pressing lever L,
that lever being drawn down by a helical spring also. The arm fextending
from the end of this lever when depressed, holds down the thread or yarn tight,
while the feeder is forming a loop upon one of the needles a. A small anti-
friction roller, mounted in a fork at the under side of the lever L, runs upon
the periphery of the cam U, and a bent part of the cam seen at Y causes the
lever to be suddenly shifted sideways at a certain part of the operation, for the.
purpose of withdrawing the pressing arm f from the loop, when the stitch has
been completed, and bringing it into a proper position for pressing down and
holding the yarn or thread while the loop is formed round the next needle.
The several parts of the machine having been now described, I proceed to
explain its mode of operating to produce the fabric, a course of loops of yarn or
thread being first put upon the series of needles a, a, a, a, a similar kind tof
the loops put upon ordinary knitting needles, in commencing to knit. The
shaft D being put in rotary motion by means of a driving band passed round
_the_pully_F, (when_the_pully_is_locked_thereto-by-the-clutch-G,-as-before-
described,) that rotary motion causes the several cams to move the several
levers, and to traverse the needle bar A, as explained; and the yarn or thread
c, c, c, is fed in by drawing from the loose bobbin K, between the rollers d, d,
over the pully e, and through the eyes of the feeding lever L; merely by the
tension it acquires in being looped upon the needles. The cam N thus
revolving moves the lever L in and out, as shewn by dots in Figure 3, for the
of causing the guide at its end to carry the thread or yarn between the
needles a, at the same time the rim x, x, and, of the cam wheel P; acting as
a spiral tooth in the rack at the back of the bar A, in performing one rotation;
purpose

page_text: moves that bar with the row of needles laterally a distance equal to one of the
spaces at which the needles are placed apart, consequently the guide at the
end of the lever L, in proceeding inward, conducts the thread or yarn on one
side of one of the needles a, and in returning leads it on the opposite side of
the same needle, thereby looping the thread or yarn round the upper part of
the shaft of the needle above the loop previously formed thereon. This
being done, the lever M governed by the cam T is now allowed to fall into
the situation shewn by dots in Figure 3; and in falling its tumbler p is thrown
by a pin on its side, striking against a piece 1, attached to a perpendicular
plate V, affixed to the bent part of the standard H above; but a spring
guide 2 prevents the tumbler from falling too far back. The tumbler p
being by these means thrown into the position shewn by dots, the point
of the hook is made to pass down a groove in the back of the needle,
and having descended below the lower loop of thread or yarn previously
formed
upon the stem of the needle as described, or by the preceding course of
the machine on the lever again rising the point of the hook will take hold of
the lower hoop and lift it up, the stem of the needle is also assisted by the
rising of the presser f. As the lever rises, the pin on the side of the tumbler
is, by the tension of the loop upon the hook, brought against the curved guide
piece 3, fixed to the plate V, which causes the hook to turn the lower loop over
the point of the needle, thereby securing the upper loop upon the needle and
finishing the stitch. A lateral movement of the lever L now takes place for
the purpose of withdrawing the presser f sideways from the stitch, which is
effected by the bent part of the cam U at Y as it revolves, acting against the
side of the fork under the lever L, the lever turns horizontally a little distance
upon its swivel joint at g, and is then returned to its former place ready to
assist in forming the next stitch. Repetitions of these evolutions of the levers
form and connect the successive stitches consecutively upon the range of
wheels a, a, a; and when the series is complete the bar A is made to slide in
the opposite direction for the purpose of connecting another series of stitches
with the former by similar means, which operations go on until the required
piece of knitted fabric is completely made. I now proceed to describe the
means by which the bar A carrying the needle a, a, a, is made to change the
direction of its lateral movement; this is effected through the agency of the
jointed part of the rim a of the cam wheel P; when the piece
stands in
the oblique position shewn in Figures 2 and 5, the rotation of the can wheel
P will cause the oblique part of the rim acting in the rack at the back of the
middle bar A to drive that bar toward the left hand; but when the position
of the piece is changed to the opposite angle, as shewn by dots in these

page_text: Figures, then the needle bar will be moved to the right hand. In order to effect
theso changes of position in the piece the following means is adopted :-
A small spring catch, shewn detached at Figure 13, affixed within the cylin-
drical part of the cam wheel P, as shown by dots in Figures 2 and 5. This
spring catch has two notches, separated by a ridge or double inclined plain,
into one of these notches the outer or moveable end of the jointed portion *
of the rim of the cam wheel P is to be inserted, for the purpose of being held
firmly at an oblique angle to the other part of the rim. On applying lateral
force to the piece it will move upon its hinge, and the spring giving way it
will be readily shifted from one notch to the other. By these means tho
pieco is made to stand in either of the oblique positions for the purpose,
when revolving, of conducting the bar A towards the right or the left. The
shifting of the picco a is effected by the small dise, mounted on a pivot in
the periphery of the cam wheel P. This disc has a notch or recess in its
edge into which the moveable end of the piece a is inserted, and there are
cars extending from the disc for the purpose of moving it upon its pivot. The
stops Q, Q, being as before explained fixed at those parts of the needle bar A
where tho knitting is to terminate, the lateral movement of the bar will, at the
extremity of each course, bring one of those stops up to the sido of the rim a,
and when this period of the operation arrives, one of the cars of the disc = will,
as the cam wheel revolves, strike against the stop Q and cause the disc to be
turned round, so as to throw the piece into the opposito oblique position,
when the needle bar A will immediately be mado to travel in the reverse
direction. It will be perceived by reference to Figures 1 and 10, that the
feeding arm of the lever I stands a little out of the perpendicular. This
is for the purpose of causing the eye, which conducts and loops the
thread or yarn upon the needles, to be in advance of the hook i, which
turns the stitch over the point of the needle. When, therefore the travel-
ling movement of the bar A is reversed, the inclination of the feeder must
be changed also, in order that by standing at an opposite inclination it may
be still in advance of the hook. For the purpose of effecting this the feed-
ing arm is attached to a square upon the axle of the lever I by a screw 4,
at the top (see Figure 10), and turns upon that screw as a pivot. At the
back of this arm there is a spring piece 5, standing at a right angle to the
axle, the upper end of which is firmly fixed to the square of the axle, but the
lower end has a tooth, which, by the pressure of the spring, is formed into one
of the two notches in the back of the feeding arm; by these means the feeding
arm is made always to stand slightly inclined from the perpendicular. A
piece 6, 6, is attached to the lower part of the feeding arm, extending on each

page_text: a
standard
side, and when the bar A has travelled so far as to bring the stop Q nearly up
to the side of the rim a, one of the arms S, extending from the stop plate,
comes in contact with one of the ends of the piece 6, and pushes it and the
feeding arm over into the opposite angle of inclinatiou. The various evolutions.
of the machine for producing the fabric having now been explained, I pro-
ceed to point out the means by which its movements are suspended when it
is requisite to shift the stops S, S, and narrow the width of the fabric formed
upon the needles as in shaping the calf and narrow parts of a stocking. It
has been before said that the mechanism is put in action by locking the
driving pully F to the shaft D, by means of the sliding clutch G, conse-
quently when the clutch is withdrawn from the pully the movements of the
mechanism must necessarily be suspended; this is done by means of a pin or
stud fixed into the face of a disc wheel W, the stud having an inclined plain
at its end, which, as the wheel revolves, comes in contact with the clutch
lever X, and pushes it aside; this lever turns upon a fulcrum pin Y, fixed in
upon the base plate C, and is connected to the clutch box, as shewn
at Figure 2, and therefore, when the pin or stud Z comes against the side of
the lever X the clutch G is withdrawn from the driving pully F, and the
movements of the mechanism become suspended in order that the attendant
may shift the stops S, S, to tho required positions. The mechanism may be
again put in action by removing the stud which has last acted from the
wheel W, and again locking the clutch to the driving pulley. It will be seen
by reference to Figure 14, which represents in elevation the gear for driving.
the disc wheel W taken transversely across this machine, and partly in section,
that there are several studs inserted into a segmental series of holes in the
face of the disc wheel; these holes are for the reception of any required
number of studs Z, in order that studs may be placed in different parts of the
wheel, according to the required variable breadths of the fabric. The con-
struction and position of the several wheels and pinions employed for driving
the stud wheel W, will be perceived by Figures 2 and 14, and it will be
unnecessary to describe very particularly this gear, as it is only to be under-
stood that a tooth a, introduced into the cam shaft D, drives the wheel bone
tooth at every rotation of the shaft; it will then be seen that the wheel c, upon
the shaft of b, by taking into the wheel d, causes an endless screw e to drive
another wheel f, standing transversely, and principally shewn by dots, upon
the shaft of which last-mentioned wheel there is an endless screw g, taking
into the wheel h, on the shaft of the disc or stud wheel W. Hence a certain
number of rotations of the cam shaft D will bring any one of the studs Z into
contact with the lever X and throw the mechanism out of gear as described,