IMPROVE- MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES.
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick William Fox, of Cross Banks, Shipley,
near Leeds, in the County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS
SUBSTANCES.
"
Sealed the 29th May 1874, and dated the 7th January 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick William Fox
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 7th January 1874.
I, FREDERICK WILLIAM Fox, of Cross Banks, Shipley, near Leeds, in
the County of York, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER
FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in the use of combs or gills applied and
operated in such manner as to cleanse wool or other fibres without the
use of the ordinary circular combs, or such combs are so used and

page_text: applied as to cleanse wool or fibre preparatory to its being further
operated upon by ordinary circular combs.
I employ a series of combs or gills similar to the gill combs of an
ordinary "gill box," or of those employed on the "feeding head" of a
combing machine. These combs have the usual traverse and return
motion imparted to them. As each of the combs reach the termination
of their traverse, that is to say, when nearest the nipping jaws, they are
received successively by a carrying apparatus; or each end of the combs
are received within a cam groove so formed as to tilt or move the said
combs in the arc of a circle, thereby to cause the teeth thereon to be
passed longitudinally through the end or ends of the fibre, lashing
out and cleaning from noil and impurities such end or ends pre-
paritory to its being siezed by the nipping jaws. On the latter
detaching a tuft and receeding the next comb will be operated in like
manner, each succeeding comb acting as a cleaning instrument, the
tufts having their outer ends cleansed as described, and the remaining
portion of the tuft being cleansed by being drawn through the combs by
the action of the nipping jaws, whereon it will by the said jaws be
passed to a transfer or oscillating comb and be deposited thereby on the
fallers of a finishing box, or on a circular or other ordinary comb to be
further dealt with. Meanwhile each comb used as described for
cleaning the outer ends of the tufts will by the carrying apparatus or
the cam groove be carried or have descended to a lower " race or return
way ready to be raised to position to again cleanse the outer end of the
fibre or reaching the position nearest the nipping jaws, the noil or other
impurities having been removed from such combs by means of a brush
or other apparatus employed for the removal of noil.
"

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Frederick William Fox, Her special
licence that I, the said Frederick William Fox, my executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Frederick William
Fox, 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER
FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Frederick William Fox, my executors or 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 Frederick William Fox, 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 (that is to say):-
This Invention consists in the use of combs or gills applied and
operated in such manner as to cleanse wool or other fibres without the
use of the ordinary circular combs, or such combs are so used and
applied as to cleanse wool or other fibre preparatory to its being further
operated upon by ordinary circular combs."
I employ a series of combs or gills similar to the gill combs of an
ordinary "gill box," or of those employed on the "feeding head" of a
combing machine. These combs have the usual traverse and return
motion imparted to them. As each of the combs reach the termination.
of its traverse, that is to say, when nearest the nipping jaws, it is
received by a carrying apparatus, or each end of the comb is received.
within a cam groove so formed as to tilt or move the said comb in the

page_text: are of a circle, thereby to cause the teeth thereon to be passed
longitudinally through the end or ends of the fibre, lashing out and
cleansing from noil and impurities such end or ends preparatory to its
being seized by the nipping jaws. On the latter detaching a tuft and
receding the next comb will be operated in like manner, each succeeding
comb acting as a cleansing instrument. The tufts having their outer
ends cleansed as described, and the remaining portion of the tuft being
cleansed by being drawn through the combs by the action of the nipping
jaws, whereon it will by the said jaws be passed to a transfer or
oscillating comb and be deposited thereby on the fallers of a finishing
box, or on a circular or other ordinary comb to be further dealt with.
Meanwhile each comb, used as described, for cleaning the outer ends of
the tufts, will by the carrying apparatus or the cam groove be carried or
have descended to a lower "race" or return way ready to be raised to
position to again cleanse the outer end of the fibre on reaching the
position nearest the nipping jaws, the noil or other impurities having
been removed from such combs by means of a brush or other apparatus
employed for the removal of noil.
Such being the nature and object of this my Invention I will now
proceed to describe the same in.detail, and in order that the Invention
may be fully understood I have hereunto annexed three Sheets of
Drawings, and have marked the same with figures and letters of
reference, the same letter referring to the same parts in the several views
or Figures.
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of part of a machine (which is
similar to an ordinary screw gill box) having my improvements applied
thereto; Fig. 2 is a plan view.
Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, are details or views of parts detached for the
purpose of illustrating more clearly their construction.
The wool or other fibre to be combed will be supplied to the combs or
screw gill fallers A by the ordinary means, and a dabbing brush A¹ will
be employed, the said combs or fallers being carried forward by the
screws B, B. As each comb or faller reaches the ends of the screws
at B¹, B¹ in lieu of falling or dropping vertically to the lower bed C as a

page_text: heretofore, its ends will be received within the grooves E, E, formed in
the rotating cams F, F, whereby the faller, and each succeeding comb
or faller will be moved. or carried outwards a distance clear of the
remaining combs or fallers and equal to the width of the cam, the pins
or teeth of the said comb or faller being passed through, out of, and
beyond the end of the protruding wool or fibre (see Fig. 3) thus lashing
and cleansing the protruding end. An insecting comb B may be
used as a further means of securing the cleansing of the fibre. The
comb or faller on passing out of the cam groove E, E, will be guided on
its descent to the lower bed C by means of the springs H, H, and will
be received by and carried along the bed C by means of the screw J, the
noil and impurities left in the teeth or pins of the comb or faller being
removed by means of the card rollers K, L, M, and stripper N.
Meanwhile the lashed and cleansed protruding end of the fibre will have
been seized by the oscillating nipping and detaching jaws N¹ (or by
other detaching apparatus) the tufts of fibre when detached on being
released by the separation of the jaws may be taken by a carrying comb
or other appliance and conveyed to a finishing box. The necessary
rotation of the shaft F¹ and cams F, F, is obtained by the gear
wheels R, R, and bevils S, S. The shaft marked W is the top back
driving shaft which, by means of the bevil gear S, S, also gives motion
to the screw gill shafts Y, Y, as usual on gill boxes.
Having thus fully described the nature of this my Invention and the
mode the same may be carried into effect, I would have it distinctly
understood that I lay no claim to the use of the gill faller comb apart
from my said Invention; nor to the screws for operating the same; nor
to the nipping and detaching apparatus; nor to the apparatus or means
for removing the noil therefrom; nor to the dabbing brush; nor to the
use of the intersecting comb; but what I do claim is, the causing of
each gill faller comb when nearest the nipping apparatus (instead of
as heretofere being dropped vertically at the end of its ordinary race on
to the lower bed) to be projected forward, out of, and clear of, and from
the fibres so as to cleanse the ends of the same, and then to be
dropped on to the lower bed to be returned in the usual manner.
I also claim the means herein-before described and illustrated in the
Drawings hereunto annexed, or any mere modification thereof, whereby
the gill faller comb nearest the nipping apparatus is at the end of its

page_text: ordinary race lashed out or projected forward out of and from the fibres,
as and for the purpose herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick William Fox, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Fourth day of July, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four
FREDERICK WILLIAM FOX. (L.S.)
Witness,
WALTER BRIERLEY,
Tasker & Brierley,
Patent Agents,
Halifax, Bradford, & Blackburn..