Improvements in Self Acting Mules and Twiners.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 9th June, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 9th Mar., 1894-Accepted, 14th Apr., 1894
Improvements in Self Acting Mules and Twiners.
I, WILLIAM HENRY RHODES, of 5 Lime Grove, Longsight, Manchester, in
the County of Lancaster, Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in self acting mules of the type known as
semi-mules, for which Letters Patent numbered 744 of 1884 and 10226 of 1888
were granted to me.
According to my present improvements I propose to make the creel which holds
the bobbins a fixture so that it remains stationary while the roller beam, to which
the rovings pass, is traversed backward and forward to or from the creel, and the
mule carriage is also traversed backward or forward say half its usual traverse to
and from the travelling roller beam. The creel and its bobbins are preferably
arranged according to the system for which Letters Patent numbered 13272 of
1890 were granted to me. The roller beam is supported in guides and driven by a
rack and pinion from the squaring shaft and the rovings from the bobbins pass over
or through glass loops or hooks carried by knee or knuckle jointed levers pivoted
at one end to a standard above and secured to the creel frame and at the lower end
to the roller beam.
The mule carriage has a rack secured upon its under side which rack is curved
for say a quarter circle at each end and is driven by a pinion turned in either
direction by means of grooved pulleys or drums and bands from the squaring shaft.
The shaft upon which the pinion and its driving pulleys are fixed is carried in
arms pivoted to the under framing of the mule.
Dated this 8th day of June 1893.
H. B. BARLOW & GILLETT,
Agents for Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Self Acting Mules and Twiners.
I, WILLIAM HENRY RHODES, of 5 Lime Grove, Longsight, Manchester,. in
the County of Lancaster, Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to improvements in self acting mules of the type known as
semi-mules, for which Letters Patent numbered 744 of 1884 and 10226 of 1888
were granted to me.
According to my present improvements I propose to make the creel' which holds
the bobbins a fixture so that it remains stationary while the roller beam, to which
the rovings pass, is traversed backward and forward to or from the creel, and the
inule carriage is also traversed backward or forward say half its usual traverse to
and from the travelling roller beam. The creel and its bobbins are preferably
arranged according to the system for which Letters Patent numbered 13272 of
1890 were granted to me.. The roller beam is supported in guides and driven by a
rack and pinion from the squaring shaft and the rovings from the bobbins pass over

page_text: or through glass loops or hooks carried by knee or knuckle jointed levers pivoted
at one end to a standard above and secured to the creel frame and at the lower end
to the roller beam.
The mule carriage has a rack secured upon its under side which rack is curved
for say a quarter circle at each end and is driven by a pinion turned in either
direction by means of grooved pulleys or drums and bands from the squaring shaft.
The shaft upon which the pinion and its driving pulleys are fixed is carried in
arms pivoted to the under framing of the mule.
And in order that my invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
effect I will describe the accompanying sheet of drawings reference being had to
the figures and letters marked thereon."
Fig. 1 represents a side elevation, partly in section, of the main portion of a
self acting mule or twiner made according to my invention, and Figs. 2 and 3 are
detail views of parts of the same.
In the drawing,-a is the frame of the machine which supports the bearings for
the rim shaft 6 on which are shown the driving pulleys cc and other parts which it
is unnecessary to specify. In front of the driving pulleys is a transverse rail or
girder in which are fixed pegs for carrying the creel bobbins e, constructed
according to my aforesaid Patent No. 13272 of 1890; the rovings f from the
bobbins e pass through hunting tubes (not shown but which are fully specified in
my said Patent) between the bobbins and shields g which almost surround them.
I prefer to employ hunting tubes as I am thereby enabled to spin from rovings
having less twist than is usually necessary. The rovings from the bobbins e are
taken upward and passed over guide hooks fixed in a board carried on creel
pillars i secured to the creel frame; from these hooks the rovings pass over
hooks carried in a rail j supported by arms kk' the former of which is pivoted
to the creel pillars i and the other arm k' to the stands on the roller beam at a
point near where the rovings enter the drawing rollers under hooks 12 in their
'passage to the spindles on the carriage. The roller beam is mounted in slideways
and driven to and fro by a travelling rack supported by the framing and actuated
by a pinion on the squaring shaft t; the racks and pinions and the slideways in
which the roller beam I moves are not here shown as they are fully described in my
Specification No. 10226 of 1888 before mentioned.
In
The mule carriage m is driven in and out in the manner set forth in my said
previous Patents by means of bands not shown or in other suitable manner.
the mule carriage
m are supported the spindles m³ driven by bands n from the tin
roller drum n' in the usual manner. The roller beam / is shown at the extremity
of its outward movement and the carriage m at its extreme inward position, and
these parts are also indicated by dotted lines at their other extreme positions.
To insure the positive traverse of the carriage m to the exact limits of its inward
and outward run a long lever or rail o is pivoted to the front lower end of the
carriage m at m³, and to this rail o is secured a rack o' which is curved for say a
quarter of a circle at each end 02 03 respectively; a pinion p in gear with this rack
is keyed upon a stud p', see Fig. 2, and mounted in a bracket g secured to the
bottom portion of the frame a; on the end of the stud p' outside the pinion p is a
bowl p² on which the top rail of the lever o rests and whereby its free end is sup-
ported the lever being guided by pieces z secured to the carriage m. A grooved
pulleys is secured upon the stud and a band s¹ gives motion to the stud p' from
a grooved pulley t secured to the squaring shaft t.
The operation is as follows:-
The rovings from the bobbins e pass over the guides hand into the nip of
the drawing rollers l' on to the spindles m³ carried on the carriage m, when the
mule is started the roller beam begins to move inward while the carriage m starts
its outward run which it continues until the pinion p has traversed the lever rack o'
its full distance and rests on the curved end in the recess at the other end of the
rack. Similarly when the reverse movement takes place and the roller beam !
moves outward while the carriage m moves inward the pinion p traverses the rack o¹

page_text: to its full extent in the opposite direction until it rests in the recess at the other
end o².
It is important to notice that if the rotation of the squaring shaft t continues
after the rack o' has completed its traverse in either direction the band s' which
drives the pinion p slips in its grooved pulleys whereby risk of injury to the
teeth of the pinion p or rack o' is avoided.
I have shown and described the lever o and rack o' as pivoted to the mule
carriage m, and the tracket 9 which supports the short shaft or stud plas fixed to the
under framing a; but it will be readily understood that as stated in my Provisional
Specification I may, if preferred, fix the rack to the carriage and support the stud
in swivel bearings so as to give the pinion p the required freedom of movement
over the carved ends of the rack.
The dotted lines in Fig. 1 indicate the position that the arm k', roller beam land
carriage m assume at different times.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
In a self acting mule or twiner of the type described―
1. The combination with a stationary creel, of a movable roller beam and
guides supported by jointed arms for conducting the rovings to the drawing rollers
substantially as and for the purposes herein described with reference to the
accompanying drawing.
2. The combination with the carriage and means for traveiling the same, of the
rack and pinion governing mechanism for insuring the positive traverse of the
carriage to the exact limits of its inward and outward run substantially as herein
described with reference to the accompanying drawing.
3. The combination and general arrangement of parts embodying my
improvements substantially as herein set forth.
Dated this 8th day of March 1894.
H. B. BARLOW & GILLETT,
17, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for Applicant.