CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN SHUTTLE SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Eduard Barthelmes, of Berlin, in the Kingdom
of Prussia, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN SHUTTLE
SEWING MACHINES."
Sealed the 22nd May 1872, and dated the 31st January 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Eduard Barthelmes at:
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 31st January 1872..
I, EDUARD BARTHELMES, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SHUTTLE SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
:-
Sewing machines of all the different constructions hitherto known are:
still deficient in many respects, and in constructing my new machine I :
have endeavoured to remove all these defects, which principally
consist in,―
1. The mode of feeding the cloth not being done by rectangular move-
ment it is difficult to form a correct stitch, further the feeding of
ordinary machines causes a great noise.
1
:
i

page_text: 2. In the imperfect construction of the shuttle, which does not permit
giving the thread any necessary tension, and continuing the same up to
the last end.
"
3. In the impossibility of executing the necessary short movements of
the cloth without damaging the same in making ornamental work;
because the pressure of the cloth presser cannot be temporarily
interrupted.
4. In the difficulty of fastening in an easy and safe way needles with-
out shank, that is to say, needles made of steel of the same thickness as
the needles, which needles are very cheap in comparison with those
having a shank

page_text: position (in which it is kept by a spring e, Figure II.), right under the
surface of the bed No. 1 of the machine. The slide No. 8, together with
that No. 10 is kept in its farthest backward position by a spiral spring
No. 9, Figure II.
The slides are set in motion by two eccentrics, Nos. 14 and 16, fastened.
to the spindle No. 3 (see Figures I. and II.), (Sheets I. and II.). At first
the slide No. 10, Fig. II., is raised in vertical direction by the eccentric
No. 14, so that its teeth come up as far above the surface of the bed as to
catch the cloth which is held between the stitch plate and the cloth presser
No. 56, Figures I. and II. Whilst 10 is kept by No. 14 at this elevation,
the slide 8 (horizontal slide) is pushed forward by a second eccentric 16 on
part 9, 9, Fig. II., in horizontal direction, and quite square line in order
to move the slide No. 10; then the eccentric No. 14 falls off, and the
vertical slide drawn by the spring e, e, moves back in a straight
line to its lowest position, whereas No. 8 is kept by No. 16 in its farthest.
forward position. By giving the machine another turn the second
eccentric, No. 16 also falls off, so that the horizontal together with the
vertical slide is drawn in a straight line motion by the spiral spring q
into its farthest backward position. These movements require a whole
revolution of the spindle, and are exactly repeated by each following
revolution, so that by this system a regular and square feed movement of
the cloth is effected, which is indispensable to a nice and perfectly
regular formation of the stitch in sewing most classes of cloth.
In order to regulate the stroke of the square feed 6 for different
thicknesses of material there is a key slide attached to the same above
the eccentric No. 14, which moves on an incline, and can be regulated
by a screw 13.
A further important advantage of my system of feeding the cloth is
that it is done without any noise, as both the vertical and horizontal
slides are continually moving on their respective eccentrics.
Secondly. The great advantages of the shuttle of my system in com-
parison with others are, the tension of the thread is independent of the
bobbin, and is not altered by the successive decrease of the thread, but
continues the same up to the very end of the thread. The tension of
the thread can be regulated to the finest degree without even removing
the shuttle from its place, and without breaking or pulling off the thread..
This is done by a shuttle as shown in Figures VIII. and IX. (Sheet IV.).

page_text: The thread bobbin No. 36, Fig. VIII., is lying with both ends loose in
bearings, the one of which at b, Fig. VIII., is simply drilled, and the
other formed by a solid shoulder inside the shuttle, upon which the end
of the bobbin is simply resting at o, Fig. 8. The bobbin is held in this
position by a bow or strap No. 33, Fig. XIII., which is worked out on
this spot as a bearing. The bow or strap is held in its position by its
own spring power, but it can be opened and closed around the pin a¹ and
the screw a in order to take out or replace the bobbin. After the bobbin
has been put into the shuttle, the thread is wound half-way round the
bow or strap at e, Fig. IX., and then drawn on the other side through a
hole f, Figures IX. and X., whence it is drawn through a hole g, Fig. IX.
in the side of the shuttle. The bow or strap being closed, the thread is
now lying between the bow or strap and the one side of the shuttle, as
indicated by Fig. IX. It will be evident that by turning the screw a,
Fig. IX., more or less the tension of the thread can be regulated at
pleasure. The tension must evidently remain the same up to the last
bit of thread, because it is effected shortly before the thread leaves the
shuttle. Further, the tension can be easily regulated while the shuttle
is lying in its place, as a screwdriver can casily reach the regulating
screw a; I show this in No. 32, Fig. III. (Shẹct III.).
Thirdly. A further improvement of my sewing machine consists in a
simple "vibrator" to lift the cloth presser, in order to execute in making
ornamental work on patent leather and other delicate stuffs little curves
and short turns without damaging or distorting these materials, which
will always happen if the cloth presser is firmly pressing on the material
while these short turns are executed. By my vibrator the pressure of
the cloth presser 56, Figures I. and II. (Sheets I. and II.) can be
interrupted for a part of the revolution of my machine by lifting the
cloth presser by its bar, No. 58, Fig. II. This is done in the following
manner: The lever 50, Fig. I., which is the mover of the needle bar
No. 42, Fig. I., after a loop has been formed in usual manner, lowers
still further to enable the shuttle to pass through. The lever remains in
this lowest position for about 1 th of a revolution of the machine. This
lowest position of the lever 50 is to make a set screw No. 70, at K
(fastened to a nose i of the lever No. 60, Fig. I.) act upon a second
double-armed lever 67 (which I call the "vibrator"). In doing this,
the cloth presser is lifted by lever No. 67, at the pin 69, Fig. II.,
connected with the cloth presser bar. The cloth presser is held in this

page_text: position as long as the lever 50 remains in its lowest position, so that the
cloth can be conveniently turned round the needle during this time.
This mechanism works with accuracy and without any noise. If it is
not needed for ordinary sewing work the set screw 70 is simply screwed
back.
Lastly. Another advantage of my machine is that it permits the use
of needles without shank, which are considerably cheaper than needles
with shank. The second advantage of using such needles is that they
can always be brought into the exact and right position to the way of the
shuttle, so that a fine as well as a thick needle can be placed equally
near to the shuttle, whereby the leaving out of a stitch is as much as
possible avoided.
I effect this by a needle holder of the following description:-In
the lower end of the needle bar No. 42, see Figures XIV. and XV.
(Sheet IV.) there is cut a bearing, so that the head e of the proper needle
holder No. 43, Figures XVI. and XVII., fits exactly in it. This head 43,
Figures XVI. and XVII., ends in a screw f, and is drilled through at g;
the needle bar is also drilled through at c, Fig. XV., in such a way that
the screw f, Fig. XV., can pass through. If now the screw f, Fig. XVI.,
is put through the hole c, Fig. XV., and a small knob is screwed on the
screw f, the whole forms a clamp, as shown by Figures XI.' and XII.,
into which needles of all different thicknesses can be very easily
fastened. In order to set the needles up or down in the direction of
their length a hole 6, Figures XI. and XVI., is drilled in the needle bar.
In the needle head there is formed a small prism h, Fig. XIII., which
prevents the needle from slipping in the direction of the shuttle way.
It will be evident that by this needle holder and the assistance of the
prism a needle of any thickness may be fastened in a perfectly straight
direction, and that the needle, whatever its thickness may be, remains
always at a certain and quite precise distance from the shuttle 32,
Fig. XI., as the needle is always placed against the part a, a, Fig. XI.,
of the needle bar.
Differences in the thickness of the needle show only on the side
opposite the shuttle, where they cannot influence the regular formation

page_text: No. 8, horizontal slide; No. 9, spring of the horizontal slide; No. 10,
vertical slide; No. 13º, key of the vertical slide; No. 13º, screw of the
vertical slide; No. 14, lifting eccentric; No. 16, forward moving
eccentric; No. 18, knob or nut of forward moving eccentric; Nos. 20
and 52, curves; No. 22, lever of the shuttle driver; No. 26, joint of
the latter; No. 29, slide of the shuttle driver; No. 30, box of shuttle
driver in which the shuttle is led; No. 32, shuttle; No. 33, spring
of shuttle; No. 36, spool of the shuttle; Nos. 37 and 38, forward and
backward moving slides of the shuttle way; No. 42 (needle lever), or
needle bar; No. 43, needle holder; No. 44, knob or nut of needle holder;
No. 44, guide of the needle bar; No. 50, lever of needle bar; No. 54,
roller moving in the curves; No. 56, cloth presser; No. 58, cloth presser
bar; No. 60, spiral spring of the cloth presser; No. 63, eccentric of the
'cloth presser; No. 66, screw of cloth presser; No. 67, vibrator; No. 69,
driving pin of the vibrator; No. 73, eyes for the guidance of the thread;
No. 74, spindle of spool or bobbin; No. 76, screw regulating the tension
of the upper thread; No. 77, tension discs; No. 78, tension spring.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Eduard Barthelmes in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 31st May 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, Eduard
BARTHELMES, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
'thirty-fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Eduard Barthelmes, Her special licence
that I, the said Eduard Barthelmes, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Eduard Barthelmes, 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVE-

page_text: MENTS IN
Durtneemes improvements in Dnative Dewing ones.
-
or
SHUTTLE SEWING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Eduard Barthelmes, my executors
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 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 Eduard Barthelmes, 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 in and by the
following statement :—
Sewing machines of all the different constructions hitherto known are
still deficient in many respects, and in constructing my new machine
I have endeavoured to remove all these defects, which principally
consist in,―
1. The mode of feeding the cloth not being done by rectangular
movement it is difficult to form a correct stitch, further the feeding of
ordinary machines causes a great noise.
2. In the imperfect construction of the shuttle, which does not permit
giving the thread any necessary tension, and continuing the same up to
the last end.
3. In the impossibility of executing the necessary short movements
of the cloth without damaging the same in making ornamental work,
because the pressure of the cloth presser cannot be temporarily
interrupted.
4. In the difficulty of fastening in an easy and safe way needles
without shank, that is to say, needles made of steel of the same thick-
ness as the needles, which needles are very cheap in comparison with
those having a shank.
My improvements relate,-.
Firstly. To the square feeding of the cloth.
Secondly. To the shuttle.
Thirdly. To a vibrator for lifting the cloth presser.

page_text: And, firstly. The advantage of my feeding system over others is that
it makes all its movements in a square angle, that is to say, it lifts the
cloth from its place in a perfectly vertical direction, pushes it forward in
a horizontal and straight line for the whole length of the stitch, leads it
back downward perfectly vertically to its place, and then returns empty
in a horizontal line in order to repeat the same movements for every
other stitch. This method of feeding the cloth is effected by a system
of slides as shown, Figures Nos. V., VI., and VII., of the annexed Sheet
of Drawing. The horizontal slide 8 moves on the prismatical
grooves a, a, of the slide block No. 6. This horizontal slide has between
its bearing places a square vertical groove b, b, (lying in a vertical
square line to the latter), into which the vertical slide No. 10 is placed.
This slide system, together with the block No. 6, is so fastened by the
screws c¹, c¹, Fig. II., to a rib on the under side of that part of the bed
of the machine which is lying right under the road of the shuttle, that
the block screwed to the rib builds a closed box, in which the
slides Nos. 8 and 10 move, the latter alone vertically, the former with
the latter horizontal in square lines to each other. This system of slides
is used in the following way for feeding the cloth:-The slide No. 10
is sharply toothed on its upper end at d, and stands in its lowest position
(in which it is kept by a spring e, Fig. II., right under the surface of
the bed No. 1 of the machine. The slide No. 8, together with that
No. 10, is kept in its farthest backward position by a spiral spring

page_text: thread leaves the shuttle. Further, the tension can be easily regulated
while the shuttle is lying in its place, as a screwdriver can easily reach
the regulating screw a; I show this in No. 32, Fig. III.
Thirdly. A further improvement of my sewing machine consists in a
simple "vibrator" to lift the cloth presser, in order to execute in making
ornamental work on patent leather and other delicate stuffs little curves
and short turns without damaging or distorting these materials, which
will always happen if the cloth presser is firmly pressing on the material
while these short turns are executed. By my vibrator the pressure of
the cloth presser 56, Figures I. and II., can be interrupted for a part of
the revolution of my machine by lifting the cloth presser by its
bar, No. 58, Fig. II. This is done in the following manner :-)
-The
lever 50, Fig. I., which is the mover of the needle bar No. 42, Fig. I.,
after a loop has been formed in the usual manner lowers still further to
enable the shuttle to pass through. The lever remains in this lowest
position for about 1th of a revolution of the machine. This lowest
position of the lever 50 is to make a set screw No. 70 at K. (fastened to
a nose i of the lever No. 60, Fig. I.) act upon a second double-armed
lever 67 (which I call the " vibrator"). In doing this the cloth presser
is lifted by lever No. 67 at the pin 69, Fig. II., connected with the
cloth presser bar. The cloth presser is held in this position as long as
the lever 50 remains in its lowest position, so that the cloth can be
conveniently turned round the needle during this time. This mechanism
works with accuracy and without any noise. If it is not needed for
ordinary sewing work the set screw 70 is simply screwed back.
Lastly. Another advantage of my machine is that it permits the use
of needles without shank, which are considerably cheaper than needles
with shank. The second advantage of using such needles is, that they
can always be brought into the exact and right position to the way of
the shuttle, so that a fine as well as a thick needle can be placed
equally near to the shuttle, whereby the leaving out of a stitch is as
much as possible avoided.
I effect this by a needle holder of the following description:-In the
lower end of the needle bar No. 42, see Figures XIV. XV., there is
cut a bearing, so that the head e of the proper needle holder No. 43,
Figures XVI. and XVII., fits exactly in it. This head 43, Figures XVI.
and XVII., ends in a screw fand is drilled through at 9; the needle bar
is also drilled through at c, Fig. XV., in such a way that the screw f,

page_text: Fig. XV., can pass through. If now the screw f, Fig. XVI., is put
through the hole c, Fig. XV., and a small knob is screwed on the screw.f,
the whole forms a clamp as shewn by Figures XI. and XII., into which
needles of all different thicknesses can be very easily fastened. In
order to set the needles up or down in the direction of their length,
a hole b, Figures XI. and XVI., is drilled in the needle bar. In the
needle head there is formed a small prism h, Fig. XIII., which prevents
the needle from slipping in the direction of the shuttle way. It will
be evident that by this needle holder and the assistance of the
prism a needle of any thickness may be fastened in a perfectly straight
direction, and that the needle whatever its thickness may be, remains
always at a certain and quite precise distance from the shuttle 32,
Fig. XI., as the needle is always placed against the part a, a, Fig. XI.,
of the needle bar.
Differences in the thickness of the needle show only on the side
opposite the shuttle where they cannot influence the regular formation
of the stitch.
Enumeration of the parts of my shuttle sewing machine indicated by
numbers on the annexed Sheet of Drawing.
No. 1, bed plate of the machine; No. 2, foot of the machine; No. 3,
shaft; No. 4, fly wheel; No. 6, block; No. 8, horizontal slide; No. 9,
spring of the horizontal slide; No. 10, vertical slide; No. 13º, key of
the vertical slide; No. 13º, screw of the vertical slide; No. 14, lifting
eccentric; No. 16, forward moving eccentric; No. 18, knob or nut of
forward moving eccentric; Nos. 20 and 52, curves; No. 22, lever of
the shuttle driver; No. 26, joint of the latter; No. 29, slide of the
shuttle driver; No. 30, box of shuttle driver in which the shuttle is
led; No. 32, shuttle; No. 33, spring of shuttle; No. 36, spool of the
shuttle; Nos. 37 and 38, forward and backward moving slides of the
shuttle way; No. 42, needle lever or needle bar; No. 43, needle holder;
No. 44, knob or nut of needle holder; No. 44ª, guide of the needle bar;
No. 50, lever of needle bar; No. 54, roller moving in the curves;
No. 56, cloth presser; No. 58, cloth presser bar; No. 60, spiral spring
of the cloth presser; No. 63, eccentric of the cloth presser; No. 66,
screw of cloth presser; No. 67, vibrator; No. 69, driving pin of the
vibrator; No. 73, eyes for the guidance of the thread; No. 74, spindle
of spool or bobbin; No. 76, screw regulating the tension of the upper
thread; No. 77, tension discs; No. 78, tension spring.

page_text: Having now described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is or may be performed; I
would have it understood that I do not limit myself to the precise
details herein given, as such may be varied, while retaining the essential
features of my improvements, and that what I claim as secured to me
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
Firstly. The use of the slides for feeding the cloth, when constructed
and combined substantially as herein-before set forth.
Secondly. The use of a shuttle constructed and applied substantially
as and for the purposes herein-before set forth.
Thirdly. The use of the mechanism herein termed the "vibrator,"
substantially as herein-before set forth.
Lastly. The use of the needle holder for fastening shankless needles,
substantially as herein-before set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Eduard Barthelmes, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
two.
TD
MTCג דתחתית
ED. BARTHELMES. (L.S.)