IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRIC
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Wilkins, of Station Street, Nottingham, Machinist,
"
for the Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRIC."
Sealed the 19th April 1876, and dated the 1st February 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Wilkins at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st February 1876.
THOMAS WILKINS, of Station Street, Nottingham, Machinist. ." IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRIC."
The Invention relates to means by which to lay in threads to warp or looped
fabric machines, either circular or horizontal, in the course of manufacture. For
this purpose I employ a revolving rod, upon which are placed two or more ratchet
wheels cut to pattern that shall determine the length to which each thread shall
be worked. Two discs or plates are attached to the rod, on the periphery of
which inclines are fixed which actuate a cutter or scissors placed in position. The
cutter divides the threads after they have passed the machine. Upon the upper
disc or plate a guide or guides are fixed by which the various threads are laid into
the machine.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Thomas Wilkins in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 27th July
1876.
THOMAS WILKINS, of Station Street, Nottinghain, Machinist.
"IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRIC."
The object of the Invention is to afford increased facility for the laying in of
yarns of different color or character for the production of variations in the color
or character of the fabric in stripes or bands at intervals transversely of the
direction of the length of such fabric as it is being produced in a circular, looped, or
knitted form either plain or ribbed. For this purpose I employ a revolving rod
or axis, upon which I place one or more ratchet wheels with adaptations thereto to
the pattern or variations required in the widths of the succeeding stripes or bands,
and the consequent length of time during which each thread shall in succession be

page_text: unread carriers are also applied to this revolving spindle or axis to come into
operation in succession. When a fresh thread is brought into operation a cutter or
cutters operate to cut, and thereby separate the thread of the thread carrier or
guide previously laid in.
But that the Invention may be the better understood I will, by the aid of the
accompanying Drawings, proceed to describe means pursued by me in carrying the
same into effect.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shows a front view, Figure 2 a side view, and Figures 3 and 4 sectional
horizontal views of parts of apparatus arranged to effect my improvements;
Figures 5, 6, & 7 shew details.
It will be seen that in the Drawings I have only shown parts of the ordinary
apparatus, just sufficient to aid in the description of the parts acting therewith,
according to my Invention. Other of the ordinary parts are omitted that the
parts shown may more clearly appear.
The apparatus to which the improvements are shown applied in these Figures is
that known in the trade as a vertical "circular" knitting machine, in which the
needles used are those formed without beards, but with hooked outer ends and
lever bits to act with them in place of the beards, or as they are sometimes called
latched needles."
$5
In each of the Figures the same letters are employed to indicate corresponding
parts.
"3
The dotted lines a represent these latched needles, which are soldered in "bits
or "jacks" in the usual way, and are carried by a cylinder b, on which is applied
the bevilled pinion b₁, by which the cylinder and its needles receives motion from
another corresponding bevilled pinion to give the desired rotary motion to such
cylinder of needles in the ordinary way. c is the stationary cylinder in which the
cylinder revolves, and d is the back stationary standard to which the parts are
mostly attached. e is the additional revolving rod or axis, supported at its lower
end so as to be capable of revolving in the fixed bracket d' affixed to the standard
d, and this rod or axis e is also supported higher up by passing through another
bracket & affixed to the upper part of the standard &; f is a circular frame or disc
affixed to this rod or axis e, and carrying the thread carriers or guides g. As
shown there are four of these guides or carriers g, but this number may be varied
by the use of more or less of them, and each as it comes into operation lays its
thread under the hooked upper ends of the needles at the time when they are
raised for the purpose of receiving a fresh layer of thread, and then as those needles
descend their lever "bits" or "latches" close up, and the new thread is held by the
rising and knocking over thereon of the previous row of loops.
The time allowed between the laying in of one thread and the bringing into
operation of another to take its place is capable of being varied to the number of
courses required for the time to be formed by the thread from either guide. The
method I have shown applied is by the use of ratchet wheels and i, both of
which are affixed to the rod or axis e, so that by movement being given to them a
step-by-step rotary motion is given to that shaft e, and thence to the thread
carriers or guides g. In some cases, however, only one of such wheels or moving
means may be used, but it will be readily seen that increased facilities for changes
are obtained by using more than one of such wheels or moving means.
The teeth of the wheels h and i are taken into respectively by the drivers
and, and these drivers j and are supported to turn on their studs j and
carried by the lever arm l, and they are borne to their respective wheels h and i by
spring pressure. The lever arm is affixed to the vertical shaft U, which is
supported to turn in the brackets d', , and it has applied to its lower end another
lever arm, which is by spring pressure borne to the surface of the cam or tappet
13 formed on or applied to the plate be affixed to and revolving with the revolving

page_text: cylinder b. The movement thus given to the arm P, and thence to the arm l, is
adapted to impart a partial rotary motion to the wheel by the driver j equal to
the distance from one of its teeth to the next, or by the driver to the wheel of
one-sixth of that of the wheel or other number depending on the relative
numbers of teeth in the wheels used and the positions of their drivers.
As shown there are 20 teeth to the wheel h and 120 teeth to the wheel i, so that
with four thread carriers g, unless the action on any of the teeth h by the driver j
is for a time intercepted, the respective threads laid in by each of the thread
carriers in succession would be five courses or five revolutions of the circle of
needles a to one-fourth part revolution of the disc f, and then another thread carrier
or guide g would come into operation, and so on in succession, but these relations
will be varied to circumstances. In order however to increase the time during
which any one of the thread carriers shall remain in operation for increase in the
number of courses formed by the thread therefrom, there are provided filling or
covering bits m adapted to be fitted as required, each to cover the space of one
tooth of the wheel h, and when so placed the driver jis prevented from acting, and
the driver alone acts on the wheel i. Then assuming one tooth in the wheel h to
be covered, so as not to be acted upon by its driver j, whilst the other four teeth in
that section of that wheel h remain uncovered, and that, as stated, there are six
teeth in that wheel i to every one tooth of the wheel , then, six times the number
of motions will have to be given the wheel i for a movement thereof equal to
that one tooth, or ten courses will be laid in by the one corresponding carrier by the
closing of one tooth in the wheel h, and so on. In place of whole bits m half (as
shown at m¹) or quarter bits may be employed, and various modifications of the
widths of the respective bands or stripes of colours or material may thus be obtained,
as, for instance, supposing that during the laying in of thread by one thread
carrier g the corresponding teeth of the wheel h are allowed to be regularly acted
upon, five courses of such thread would be laid in, but supposing when the next
thread carrier or guide g comes into operation all the corresponding teeth of the
wheel are closed by the application of filling bits m, then the motion to that
guide will be slower, and during its slower motion 30 courses will be laid in, and
Each thread carrier or guide g is carried by the plate with capability for
them to turn upon their respective axes g¹, in order that their outer ends may be
tilted upwards for facility of laying in threads, and whilst they are acted upon at
their inner ends g3 by slight springs g' with a tendency to bring them back again.
As each thread carrier comes into operation to lay its thread under the hooks of the
needles its outer end g is for this purpose lifted by passing up the inclined edge of
the plate n. Each thread, as represented by the dotted lines o, is fed from a suitable
source of supply to the eye formed in the outer end of its guide or thread carrier g
through a hole f¹ formed in the plate f, and thence by the loop g³ to the eye in the
end. As the end g³ of a guide grises up the incline n the end of the thread
projecting therefrom to be caught by the hooks of the needles is guided thereto by
the incline p, and as that end of the guide g passes away from the needles the
portion of thread between the needles and the end of that guide is correctly guided
between the plate and the wire guide q by which that thread is held correctly,
whilst the guide g passes the cutters to have the thread form such guide separated
from that just used in the formation of work and 7 from the two blades of the
cutters, which are shown separately by plan and front view at Figure 5. The
part is fixed with capability of adjustment to the standard d, whilst the part 71
is supported to turn thereon upon the pin, and its cutting edge is controlled to
close over the corresponding edge of the part r by spring pressure applied to the
end or otherwise, whilst this lower jaw is opened for the passage of each
guide g, and until a portion of thread therefrom has also passed then. This opening
of the jaw is effected by inclines 8 affixed to the axis e under the frame f, acting
on the projecting end of the jaw ; z is an elastic guide for guiding the outer
ends of the guides to between the cutters.
So on.
P
2+1
In place of the closing of the jaw against the jaw for cutting being effected

page_text: Dy spring pressure, inclines may be applied arranged both for opening and closing
one or both of the jaws of the cutters.
u is a wire standing upwards, and acting as a guide to control the projecting
end of the thread o from the guide y next coming into operation, so as to lead it on
to the incline p.
As shown the respective threads o are supplied from bobbins t, and these bobbins t
are held so as to be readily removed and replaced by being applied on spring stems
with hooked ends t¹, and the upper ends of these spring stems are fixed in arms t
carried by the upper end of the rod or axis e. The respective threads o from these
bobbins corresponding in number with the guides employed thence pass through
holes in the outer ends of other arms x, also carried by the rod or axis e, and
thence to the openings f¹ in the plate f, and to the guides or thread carriers g, as
stated.
In order to put friction on the threads as they pass to the respective guides I
sometimes apply, as is not uncommon in such machinery, portions of fabric to the
under sides of the arms x, or in other suitable position, and I pass each thread o
around one of such pieces of fabric by which friction is given to these threads.
Although I have shown four guides or thread carriers for effecting four changes
in the color or character of the thread laid in it will be evident to persons acquainted
with this class of machinery that other numbers may be employed, and that the
method of operating the guides, as well as the time and method of their selection,
may be greatly varied, as may also the form or character of the guides be varied
to the particular classes of circular machine to which the improvements are
upplied.
Figure 8 shows by side view, and Figure 9 by plan view a modification of the
above adapted particularly to that class of circular knitting frame generally known
in the hosiery trade as "wheel" machines, and fitted with ordinary bearded
needles.
In this case the dotted lines a represent the circle of needles, and the arrow
thereto the direction of their rotation; g are four guides or thread carriers, which
in this case are formed tubular, and each thread passes through one of them. These
tubes g are supported with capability of vertical movement in frames v, which are
applied to a dise f affixed to a rod or axis e, to which rotary motion is given in the
direction of the arrow thereto, and with capability of change of speed in relation
to the speed of the circle of needles for varying the number of courses of thread
laid into those needles by any of the tubular thread carriers by a wheel or wheels,
such as described, applied to give motion to the rod or axis e, or by other suitable
means. Each tubular guide g is borne in a direction downwards by the action of a
spring go, and it is lifted by a projection g therefrom, coming on to the incline w¹
of the stationary ring w, by which the lower end of each guide is raised to pass
9
over the needles, but as soon as it is passed from over the interior of the circle of
needles a the projection gi slips over the edge w² of the ring w, when the projecting
end of the thread o carried by that guide will be laid between the needles, and be
caught under their beards, and looped thereon by the action of the looping wheel,
the position of which is indicated by the dotted lines y. In its progress towards the
incline w the thread from this guide will pass between the jaws of the cutters,
and when the required number of courses have been laid in by this thread carrier
the thread will be cut by cutters, such as already described and similarly actuated,
or by other suitable cutters.
In all cases care will be taken that before the thread supplied by one thread
carrier is cut from that carrier by such cutter, that the thread from another thread
carrier is laid into the needles, or the work will be pressed off. A is a guide by
which the respective threads are conducted on to the needles; and it will be readily
understood that corresponding variations will be made in the form of or means for
operating the thread carriers when adapting the Invention to other varieties of
circular looped or knitted fabrics.
Having thus described the nature of-my-said. Invention, and means which I

page_text: adopt in carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood that I do not
confine myself to the particular arrangements of parts as shown and described, as
the same may be varied without departing from the peculiar character of the
Invention; but what I do claim is, the arranging or combining parts in apparatus
employed in the manufacture of looped or knitted fabric, whereby changes may be
effected in the color or character of the courses laid for effecting stripes capable of
variation of width, and in directions transversely of the length of the fabric, sub-
stantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Wilkins, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
THOS. WILKINS. (L.S.)