IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Hindle, of Sabden, Calico Printer, William
Fielding Calvert, of Enfield, Cotton Spinner, and Emanuel Thornton,
of Padiham, Manager, all in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Hindle, William
Fielding Calvert and Emanuel Thornton at the Office of the Com-
missioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 1st April 1863.
We, JAMES HINDLE, of Sabden, Calico Printer, WILLIAM FIELDING
CALVERT, of Enfield, Cotton Spinner, and EMANUEL THORNTON, of Padiham,
Manager, all in the County of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," to be as
follows:-
First, our improvements relate to that portion of looms called the con-
necting rods or crank arms used for communicating motion from the crank
shaft to the lay, slay, or batten, and consist in making the aforesaid rods or
arms with one or more intermediate joints between the two joints connecting
them with the crank and lay. The said intermediate joints are formed with
partly squared ends or stops for holding the rods or arms perfectly rigid during
the time the weft is being beaten up, but allow the joints to be turned when
the crank has passed the centre for the return stroke, and thereby cause the
arms to be thrown out of a straight line, and consequently shorten them to the

page_text: extent of the angle that one portion bears to the other, thus bringing the lay
back much quicker than by the ordinary method, and allowing the picking
motion to be brought into action considerably sooner than heretofore, and
giving more time for the shuttle to pass, and to a great extent easing the
pick.
Secondly, our improvements consist in causing levers connected to tho
ordinary stop rod to come in contact with a projection on each crank arm, and
cause it to be thrown into an angular position so as to allow the cranks to
proceed without continuing the forward motion of the lay, and thereby avoid
the concussion common to the ordinary loom, and also prevent the breakage
of the yarn by the shuttle being caught or trapped in the shed.
When the shuttle has to be delivered the levers are pressed by the projections
on the crank arms and push back the swell fingers, and thereby relieve the
shuttle in the box previous to the commencement of the pick, and remain in
the same position until the shuttle is boxed on the opposite side.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Hindle, William Fielding Calvert, and Emanuel
Thornton in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 1st October 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
HINDLE, of Sabden, Calico Printer, WILLIAM FIELDING CALVERT, of Enfield,
Cotton Spinner, and EMANUEL THORNTON, of Padiham, Manager, all in the
County of Lancaster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said James Hindle, William Fielding Calvert, and Emanuel Thornton,
Her special license that we, the said James Hindle, William Fielding Calvert,
and Emanuel Thornton, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said James Hindle, William Fielding Calvert, and Emanuel
Thornton, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,

page_text: the said James Hindle, William Fielding Calvert, and Emanuel Thornton, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, 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 we, the said James Hindle, William Fielding
Calvert, and Emanuel Thornton, do hereby declare the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be par-.
ticularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement (that
is to say):
First, our improvements relate to that portion of looms called the con-
necting rods or crank arms used for communicating motion from the crank
shaft to the lay, slay, or batten, and consists in making each of the aforesaid
rods or arms with an intermediate joint between the two joints connecting it
with the crank and lay. The said intermediate joints are formed with partly
squared ends or stops for holding the rods or arms perfectly rigid during the
time the weft is being beaten up, but allows the joints to be turned when the
crank has passed the centre for the return stroke, and thereby cause the arms
to be thrown out of a straight line, and consequently shorten them to the
extent of the angle that one portion bears to the other, thus bringing the lay
back from the front to the bottom centre much. quicker and from the bottom
to the back centre much slower than by the ordinary method, and allowing the
picking motion to be brought into action considerably sooner than heretofore,
and giving more time for the shuttle to pass, and to a great extent casing the
pick.
Secondly, our improvements consist in causing levers put in motion by the:
stop rod to come in contact with a bracket on the crank arm, and causing them
to be thrown into an angular position so as to allow the cranks to proceed
without continuing the forward motion of the lay, and thereby avoid the con-
cussion and consequent wear and tear common to the ordinary loom,
and also prevent the breakage of the yarn by the shuttle being caught or
trapped in the shed.
When the shuttle has to be delivered the levers are pressed by the projec-
tions on the crank arms and push back the swell fingers, and thereby relieve
the shuttle in the box previous to the commencement of the pick, and remain
in the same position until the shuttle is boxed on the opposite side.
This Invention will be clearly understood by the following complete descrip-

page_text: tion thereof, reference being had to the figures and letters on the accompanying
Sheet of Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a vertical section of part of a loom having
our improvements attached, the crank being at the front centre with the lay
and reed in the position for beating up the weft. Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5 are
vertical sections shewing the crank and lay at different positions of the stroke.
Fig. 6, a Diagram representing the position of the lay at eight points of the
revolution of the crank, and Fig. 7 a plan of the stop rod end.
In Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, a represents the crank shaft of the loom; b, the
cranks; c, the lay or batten; and d, the lay swords. We connect each crank
with its corresponding lay sword by a connecting rod or crank arm composed
of two parts e, f, jointed together as at g, one end of the part e being jointed
to the lay sword, and one end of the part f to the crank. To the part e is cast
the bracket h, made of such form and length that it abuts against the lay sword
when the crank is in the position shewn in Fig. 1, the part e being held firm
by the spring i, one end of which is connected to the said part e and the other
end to the lay sword. The intermediate joint g has a partly squared end for
holding the rod or arm perfectly rigid during the time the weft is being beaten
up, but allowing the joint to be turned when the crank has passed the centre
for the return stroke. The part e is in its lowest position when the weft is
being beaten up, as in Fig. 1, and occupies that position until the crank
has passed the bottom centre, as shewn in Fig. 2, but as soon as the crank
has passed the front centre the arm f turns at the intermediate joint and con-
tinues to bend downwards more and more until the crank is at the bottom
centre, thereby shortening the arm to the extent of the angle that the
part e bears to the part f, and accelerating the backward motion of the lay
from the front to the bottom centres of the crank, and enabling the picking
motion to be brought into action when the crank is in a horizontal line at the
front centre.
During the motion of the crank from the bottom centre, Fig. 2, to the
level centre at the back, Fig. 3, the traverse of the lay is much retarded, and
when the crank has passed the centro the crank arm bas again attained a
straight position and the curved bracket his removed a corresponding distance
from the place of its abutment on the lay sword, the spring i stretching to
allow it, and by the motion of the crank from the level back centre, Fig. 3, to
the top centre, Fig. 4, the spring is still more stretched and the curved bracket
is removed still further from the lay sword, and the crank arm is in a rigid
position for advancing to the beat up. The spring i not only maintains the
part e firm during the beat up, but assists the cranks to pass the front centre,
the spring being extended during the motion of the crank from the bottom to

page_text: the top centre, and attaining its natural position as the crank approaches its
bottom centre. When the crank is beating up the weft, as in Fig. 1, the crank
is inclined upwards, and when the crank arrives at the horizontal line the shed
is almost or entirely open, and the lay is drawn so far back that the picking
motion may be brought into operation to throw the shuttle across the shed.
From the moment the picking motion is brought into action to the time the
nose of the shuttle enters the shed the lay is drawn sufficiently back to allow
the shuttle to pass through the shed, which remains full open until it is at its
level back centre, as shewn in Fig. 3.
In the Diagram Fig. 6, representing the position of the lay at eight points
of the revolution of the crank, it will be seen that the backward motion of
the lay is accelerated from 1 to 3, and retarded from 3 to 5, when the arm
attains a rigid position, which is maintained until the weft is beaten up..
The improved crank arm and bracket before described are adapted to a
fast reed loom, as tho bracket is intended for other purposes than merely
abutting against the lay sword, and when a loose reed loom is employed the
bracket may be dispensed with, and the extreme end k, Fig. 2, of the part e
caused to abut against the lay sword instead of the bracket, the said end being
mado of any required depth according to the throw of the crank and strength of
the loom.
The second part of our improvements consists in certain arrangements for
preventing the damage which takes place when the shuttle is trapped in the
shed, and the avoidance of concussion when the loom is suddenly stopped. In
Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, 7 represents the stop rod; m, the frog; n, the stop rod
tongue; o, the swell; and p, the swell finger. The stop rod is of the ordinary
construction, as shewn in Fig. 7, and to it is connected or welded an arm or
lever g attached by a rod 7 to one end of a lever s, which passes through a slot
in the lay sword, and has a gib t at the other end. The levers is fixed to a
pin working in a bracket u fixed to the lay sword, as shewn; one end of the
said levers is connected to one end of a spring v, the other end of which is
attached to a hook w fixed to the lay sword, so that the spring v shall pull
down the lever q, stop rod tongue n, and raise the gib t, unless prevented, as it
will be by the shuttle being properly boxed on each side. The stop rod
tongue n and levers are in the positions shown in Fig. 1 until the crank.
arrives at the bottom centre, as shewn at Fig. 2, and when the crank turns
from the bottom to the back centre tho bracket h is drawn from the lay sword,
and allows the gib t to be raised by means of the spring and pass partly up
between the lay sword and the end of the bracket, by which means the swell
finger is pressed against the swell, as shewn in Fig. 3, and secures the shuttle in

page_text: the box. During the progress of the crank from the back centre to the top the
bracket is further removed from the lay sword, and allows the whole of the
gibt to pass directly opposite to the end of the bracket, so that if the shuttle
has not entered the box the swell will pass into the box and allow the stop rod
tongue to fall and catch the notch on the frog, and stop the loom. When the
stop rod tongue is depressed, as in Fig. 4, it is held in that position by the
pressure of the bracket against the gib and therefore the tongue is locked,
and the tip of the tongne is prevented from missing the notch in the frog.
The top of the gib t is curved, and the bracket when it advances acts upon the
top of the gib, and afterwards, as before stated, on the end of the gib, so
that the pressure on the shuttle and locking of the tongue shall take place
when required.
The swells are so arranged that they give the necessary resistance to the
shuttle without any motion of the swell finger, and therefore there is no con-
tinued oscillation of the stop rod as in other looms. The proper entry of
the shuttle in the boxes prevents the rising of the gib and depression of the
stop rod tongue, but the moment the shuttle is trapped it can exert no resis-
tance to the swell finger, and consequently when the bracket is removed from
the lay sword the gib rises, and the swell enters the box, and the stop rod tongue
is depressed, and as the lay comes forward presses against the frog and stops
the loom. As the stop rod only moves when the shuttle is trapped, instead of
continually vibrating as at present, there is very little wear and tear, and as
the movement of the stop rod tongue takes place only when the shuttle is
trapped, the swells are not pressed upon the shuttle, and therefore it enters and
leaves the boxes without undue resistance. When the shuttle is trapped
and the stop rod tongue comes in contact with the frog, the part e of the
crank arm is thrown into its highest position, as shown by the dotted lines,
Fig. 5, and allows the part f as the crank revolves to vibrate up and down at
the intermediate joint 9 without continuing the forward motion of the lay, and
thereby prevent damage to the cloth or fabric by the shuttle being caught in
the shed.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, we desire it to be understood that we claim in
looms for weaving,―
First, the improved connecting rods or crank arms with an intermediate joint
and peculiar foot stop for the purpose of drawing the lay rapidly back at the
commencement of its back stroke, and allowing the shuttle to be thrown across
the shed during the front stroke of the crank.
Secondly, the combination of levers in connection with the stop rod and the

page_text: bracket and intermediate joint of the crank arm for the purpose of preventing
concussion and the breaking of yarn when the shuttle is caught in the shed.
And, thirdly, the adaptation of the same combination of levers, stop rod,
and bracket for loosening and relieving the shuttle in the box previous to the
commencement of the pick, and for securing the shuttle when boxed on tho
opposite side, as all such improvements are herein described and illustrated in
the accompanying Sheet of Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Hindle and William Fielding
Calvert, for and on behalf of ourselves and the said Emanuel Thornton,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-ninth day of Septem-
ber, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-three.
WILLIAM FIELDING CALVERT. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by
the within-named James Hindle
and William Fielding Calvert, in
the presence of
E. J. HuоHES,
Patent Agent,
Manchester.