IMPROVEMENTS IN THE SPINNING OF COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Julius de Hemptinne, of Ghent, in the Kingdom of
Belgium, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
SPINNING OF COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Sealed the 14th November 1865, and dated the 9th June 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Julius de Hemptinne at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th June 1865.
I, JULIUS DE HEMPTINNE, of Ghent, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Manu-
facturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE.
MENTS IN THE SPINNING OF COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as
follows:--
The object of this Invention of improved apparatus for preparing and
spinning cotton and other fibrous substances is to effect in onc process by
a succession of laminating and condensing operations on the sliver a conden-
sation and preparation of the fibres, so that the condenser, the slubbing frame,
the roving frame, and other of the preparing machines now in use may be
dispensed with, and the cotton or other fibrous material conducted direct to
the spinning frame. To this end the sliver passes from the can of the carder
or finisher, and is placed nearly horizontally upon the grating; it has a
tendency to fall from its own weight, and a slight tension put on by the first
81

page_text: cylinder brings it forward in sufficient quantity. A table placed in front of
the can prevents the sliver from falling in a mass; this sliver is guided by a
trumpet or mouth, and is drawn therefrom by a fluted cylinder and metal
roller; it passes by another trumpet, which slightly condenses it, and it is
taken by another fluted cylinder and roller, which rotates rather faster than
the preceding one, and thus the sliver is drawn out; it then passes to other
rollers placed at suitable distances apart, so that it may be spread out, after
which it is again condensed. In this way the fibres are conducted between
eight or more sets of fluted cylinders, metal rollers, and pressing rollers, which
are all acted upon by one lever by means of a saddle piece which is common
to them all. By means of an adjusting screw more pressure may be given at
one end of the series than at the other, and thereby the thickness of the sliver
may be regulated. The rollers or cylinders are mounted in bearings in a bar
which is connected with the pressing lever, so that all the rollers may be lifted
up together when required. The fibres when properly laminated, spread out,
and afterwards condensed, are finally twisted and conducted to the spinning
machine. In order to keep the fluted rollers clean a series of rollers covered
with leather and cloth are made to bear against their surfaces by means of
springs, and thus wipe out any dirt or extraneous matter that may be formed
on the fluted rollers or cylinders.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Julius de Hemptinne in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
9th December 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JULIUS
DE HEMPTINNE, of Ghent, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Paient, bearing date the Ninth day of December, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Julius de Hemptinne, Her special licence that I, the said Julius de
Hemptinne, my executors administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Julius de Hemptinne, 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

page_text: Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE SPINNING OF COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Julius de Hemptinne,
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 Julius de Hemptinne, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is say): -
The object of this Invention of "Improvements in the Spinning of Cotton
and other Fibrous Materials" is to effect in one process by a succession of
laminating and condensing operations on the sliver a condensation and
preparation of the fibres, so that the condenser, the slubbing frame, the roving
frame, and other of the preparing machines now in use may be dispensed
with, and the cotton or other fibrous material conducted direct to the spinning
frame. To this end the sliver passes from the can of the carder or finisher,
and is placed nearly horizontally upon the grating; it has a tendency to fall
from its own weight, and a slight tension put on by the first cylinder brings it
forward a sufficient distance. A table placed in front of the cam prevents the
sliver from falling in a mass; this sliver is guided by a trumpet or mouth, and
is drawn therefrom by a fluted cylinder and metal roller; it passes by another
trumpet, which slightly condenses it, and it is taken by another fluted cylinder
and roller which rotates rather faster than the preceding one, and thus the
sliver is drawn out; it then passes to other rollers placed at suitable distances
apart, so that it may be spread out, after which it is again condensed.
this way the fibres are conducted between eight or more sets of fluted cylinders,
metal rollers, and pressing rollers, which are all acted upon by one lever by
nieans of a saddle piece which is common to them all. By means of an
adjusting screw more pressure may be given at one end of the series than at
the other, and thereby the thickness of the sliver may be regulated. The
rollers or cylinders are mounted in bearings in a bar, which is connected with
the pressing lever, so that all the rollers may be lifted up together when
required, The fibres, when properly laminated, spread out, and afterwards
condensed, are finally twisted and conducted to the spinning machine. In
In

page_text: order to keep the fluted rollers clean a series of rollers covered with leather
and cloth are made to bear against their surfaces by means of springs, and
thus wipe out any dirt or extraneous matter that may be found on the fluted
rollers or cylinders.
In the accompanying Drawings Figure 1, Sheet I., is a sectional side view
of the machine Figure 2, Sheet II., is a plan view; Figure 3, (Sheet II.),
is a section taken in the line Z, Z¹, of Figure 2; and Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, 8,
and 9, (Sheet II.), represent some of the parts detached.
A is the ordinary support for spinning machinery; B is a T-piece, carrying
the standards o, in which are the grooves for the rollers. In Figure 3, c¹ is the
ordinary front fluted roller; C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8, C, are rollers having
flutes of a triangular form, which are made deeper as they approach the part
where the sliver enters; C" is the pressing roller, covered with cloth and
leather in the ordinary manner, with the exception that there are slight grooves
where the sliver does not pass, which allows of the pressure being diminished;
C¹ to C19, Figure 2, are fluted rollers rotating upon spindle-like wheels on their
axles; they are made of soft metal, in order not to injure the iron spindles; a
suitable alloy for this purpose consists of equal parts of zinc and tin, but many
other alloys would answer the purpose. Each roller presses upon the sliver.
There are two rollers upon each spindle, and the pressure is applied between
them. G to G are conical or trumpet-mouthed channels, which serve suc-
cessively to condense the sliver, and which are cast upon the frame R, so that
no displacement can take place. R is a cast-iron frame, which is supported
at a suitable height by means of feet or pillars, and it is held in place by
flanges E', which fit exactly in grooves in the framing E", see Figures 2 and 3,
Sheet II.; this frame serves first to hold the condensers, as above mentioned,
and also to hold the spindles of the rollers at suitable distances apart by means
of grooves cast in the bars composing the frame; these grooves are closed at
their lower part, so that on raising the frame all the spindles will rest at the
bottom of the grooves, and thus the frame, the spindles, and rollers may be all
raised at once (see Figure 4, Sheet II., which is a longitudinal section of the
frame); these grooves are also closed at their extremities, so that the spindles
have no lateral play (see Fig. 2). In Figure 3, L is a lever, having its fulcrum
at t, and bearing upon the front pressing roller C" by means of the screwed
rod U, which works in the screw nut U', in order to regulate the tension;
this rod acts upon the slotted saddle piece S, S, which bears upon the nut N,
in which the axle C" of the pressing roller works (see Figure 3, Sheet II.) In
Figure 1, Sheet III., S, S, S, are saddle pieces bearing upon the spindles t
between each pair of rollers; these saddle pieces are grooved at their upper

page_text: part, and to every two of them is applied a bar S¹; two other bars are con-
nected by the common saddle piece S"; all these parts are connected together
by small pins, so that the pressure put upon S" may be transmitted to all the
saddle pieces. L is a lever, having a weight cast on to it, but its power may
be augmented by hanging other weights on it at l'; this lever has its fulcrum
at T, which is a bar extending from one standard to the other; it is slotted
from to (see the plan view, Figure 2), in which slot is the bridle piece E,
having a nick e at its extremity, which takes on to ah angular cross piece of
the lever L. S3 is a screw provided with a winch handle. When the saddle
pieces are in their place, and the bridle piece E has been inserted in the slot
of the lever L, on turning the screw S the lever L will be raised, and two sets
of rollers will be immediately brought to bear upon the fluted rollers. In
Sheet IV., are small rollers, covered with cloth, for cleaning the fluted
rollers; R, R', is a cast-iron frame, having bearings for the axles of a set of
rollers n', over which passes an endless cloth, for the purpose of cleaning the
fluted rollers. The rollers are placed alternately in front of and behind
each pair of fluted rollers, which arrangement prevents the endless cloth from
being caught between the fluted rollers, as is the case when one roller is
placed between the two. L', Figure 1, Sheet III., is a lever, which also has its
fulcrum upon the transverse bar T, and which serves by its weight to press
the frame R' against the fluted rollers. This arrangement allows of the
frame being readily removed and replaced for the purpose of cleaning the
same; when it is removed the edge t' of the lever rests upon the framing A..
in Figure 1, Sheet I., F, F, F, is the frame (supported by the brackets E),
having in the machine represented in the Drawings three rows of small cans
in which the cotton is contained. There are vertical divisions, and in each
division two cotton holders may be contained. In front of each vertical
partition is a slotted piece H, in which a shutter rests upon the bracket h.
When it is required to remove an empty can it is only necessary to push down
the sliding shutter, and when it is required to put in a full can the shutter is
again raised, which prevents the cotton from falling. The cotton cans might
be placed vertically upon the bed or table of the machine, and the cotton
drawn out by means of a roller extending the whole length of the machine
as is ordinarily done at the back of roving frames. V, W, Sheets III.
and IV., are the driving wheels. Figures 5, 6, 7, and 8, Sheet II., shew in
plan and section two methods of regulating the distances of the pressing
rollers; (Figure 3, Sheet II.) is a roller, covered with cloth, for the purpose
of cleaning the front fluted roller, against which it is pressed by means of
the spring h.

page_text: The operation of the machine is as follows:-The sliver is fed from a small
can or vessel, which is carried from the carder or preparer, and which is
placed in a nearly horizontal position upon the frame. The sliver has a
tendency to descend by its own weight, and a slight drawing action from the
front roller will be sufficient to draw it in in sufficient quantity. A shutter
placed in front of the cotton can prevents the cotton from falling in a mass.
The sliver is guided by the trumpet mouth G, and is drawn forward by the
fluted roller and a metal roller; it thence passes through the channel G¹,
which condenses it in a slight degree, and comes between the rollers C
and C18, which rotate a little faster than C, and a slight degree of tension is
thereby put upon it; from thence it passes between C and C, which are set
at suitable distances, and it is thus submitted to its first lamination; it is then
again condensed by the trumpet G, through which it passes to C and C16,
having about the same speed as C7 and C, and it is then again laminated by
C3 and C15, placed also at a suitable distance from C and C16. The sliver
then proceeds through the trumpet G³ to C and C, and undergoes a third
lamination by C3 and C, and passing thence through the trumpet G it is
condensed, taken by C and C, and undergoes a final lamination by C¹
and C, where on making its exit it is twisted in the ordinary manner.
it were required to spin fine numbers additional rollers might be added.. The
sliver will thus have passed between eight fluted rollers, eight plain rollers,
and an ordinary pressing roller, which acts upon six slivers at once, and to
which pressure is given by the lever L, as above described. This series of
eight rollers and another series of eight rollers at the side are acted upon by
a single lever, which transmits its action by means of a connecting rod or
bridle piece, which presses upon an ordinary saddle piece to which four others
are jointed by means of two intermediate bars. The requisite pressure is
easily obtained from the screw S³ by turning the handle, and it is evident
that by causing this screw to act more at the back a greater degree of pressure
may be obtained behind than in front, and which may be regulated according
to the thickness of the sliver. The cleaning, which is an essential feature, is
effected as above described.
If
The machine is driven as follows, the various wheels for this purpose being
represented by pitch lines in Sheets III. and IV. of the Drawings:-The
front roller C, which is actuated by the driving pulley of the machine, acts
through the intermediate wheels I¹ and W upon the wheel W2 of the
roller C². Upon the same roller is mounted the wheel W, which through
the intermediate wheel I.drives the wheel W. At the other extremity of C
is mounted the wheel V³, which through the intermediate wheel I drives the

page_text: wheel of the roller C, which also carries the wheel W, and this latter
through the intermediate wheel I drives the wheel V. At the other extremity
of the roller C is mounted the wheel W, which through the intermediate
wheel drives the wheel W of the roller C, to which is also affixed the
wheel W, which drives the roller C7 through the intermediate wheel I. To
the other extremity of C' is fixed the wheel V, which through the intermediate
wheel drives the wheel V mounted upon the roller C, to the other extremity
of which is attached the wheel W, which through the intermediate wheel I
drives the wheel Ws attached to the roller C8. In this manner all the rollers
are driven. The wheel W will also generally serve as a change wheel, but
the wheels W, W6, V, may also serve for this purpose. The distances of the
fluted rollers are regulated by pieces inserted in the grooves of the framing,
each groove of the back roller of each pair having sufficient play for the
greatest distances, and the distances of the pressing rollers are regulated by
the grooves of the frame. When the distances are to be changed either
another frame is to be taken or the grooves corresponding to the back fluted
rollers of each pair are to be cast as wide as possible, and the distance is to be
regulated by means of moveable pieces, such, for instance, as those shewn at k
(Figures 5, 6, 7, 8, Sheet II.), having a slot at r, and held in position by the
screw, which piece holds the spindles of the rollers by means of a grooved
bearing (see Fig. 5); or the arrangement shewn at Q, Fig. 6, may be
adopted, in which there is a slot r, which allows of the bearing being held in
any required position by the screw Q. Fig. 7 is a section, and Fig. 8 a plan
view of this arrangement; by one or the other of these arrangements the
distances may be varied without altering the arrangement of the machinery.
Having now described my Invention of "Improvements in the Spinning of
Cotton and other Fibrous Materials, and having explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by
Letters Patent as aforesaid,-
First, the general arrangement of parts herein set forth for drawing out
and spreading the fibres of each sliver by means of pairs of fluted cylinders,
and of fluted rollers made of soft metal, the rollers being so arranged that
each of them is made to press only on a single sliver, so that the lumps and
inequalities in different slivers will have but little influence on the others, and
only two rollers are acted on by each presser.
Second, I claim adapting to each pair of rollers a condenser for collecting
the fibres together.
Third, the mode herein set forth of applying the pressure to the rollers, so

page_text: that with two or three turns of a screw sixteen or more rollers are acted on
for increasing or removing the pressure.
Fourth, the mode herein set forth of clearing the fluted cylinders by pressing
a cleaning roller before and behind each pair of cylinders, instead of placing a
roller between each pair.
Fifth, the mode of pressing the cleaning roller against the fluted cylinders,
so that only one transverse bar will be required.
Sixth, I claim the mode herein set forth of arranging the rack frame so as
to admit of the cans or vessels being removed without permitting the cotton
to fall.
Seventh, I claim the cast-iron frame which carries the conduits, and in the
grooves of which the spindles are supported in such a manner that by removing
three screws from each end, and taking away three straps, and lifting away
the frame the grooved cylinders will be left uncovered, and may be taken
* out.
Eighth, I claim the saddle of the front cylinder, which is made in such a
manner that with a turnscrew the position of the lever may be regulated, and
the saddle may be removed and replaced without touching the lever.
In witness whereof, I, the said Julius de Hemptinne, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the First day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
JULES DE HEMPTINNE. (L.S.)