IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBING WOOL, COTTON, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIAL
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Cunliffe Lister, of Manningham, in
the Parish of Bradford, in the County of York, Manufacturer, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBING WOOL, COTTON, AND
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIAL."
Sealed the 27th January 1854, and dated the 24th November 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Cunliffe
Lister at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 24th November 1853.
I, SAMUEL CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Manningham, in the Parish of Brad-
ford, in the County of York, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature
of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBING WOOL, COTTON, AND OTHER
FIBROUS MATERIAL" to be as follows:-
Heretofore in combing wool, cotton, and other fibre the same has
been fed into one comb, and the fibre has been worked or combed out
by another, the holding of the fibre in the comb-being simply by being
amongst the teeth. Now my first improvement consists of introducing
a blade or pressing instrument to press and hold the fibre more tightly
amongst the teeth and against the head of the comb. And my second
improvement is applicable when wool, cotton, or fibre has been fed into
travelling combs, and consists of mounting rollers with bent. or card

page_text: teeth on an axis, so that the general system of rollers may revolve in
one direction, and the card or bent teeth rollers may revolve in an
opposite direction. And such system of rollers is applied to remove
the loose and to comb out the other fibres after they have been fed into
the travelling comb, and the loose fibrest aken by the rollers may be
constantly doffed off, or they may be drawn in a sliver by suitable
rollers. And I find it very advantageous to place card or similar
toothed surfaces so that after the fibrous material has been filled on to
combs, that as the combs move along the first pointed surface shall act
on one side, and the next on the other side, so as to work both sides of
the fibrous material.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 23rd May 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
SAMUEL CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Manningham, in the Parish of Bradford,
in the County of York, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of November, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in
the seventeenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto me, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister,
Her special licence that I, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister, my execu-
tors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Samuel
Cunliffe Lister, 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 Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBING WOOL, COTTON, AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIAL," upon-the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Samuel
Cunliffe Lister, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal;
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-

page_text: vention, 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 Samuel Cunliffe Lister, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof (that is to say):-
__
Heretofore in combing, wool, cotton, and other fibre the same has
been fed into one comb, and the fibre has been worked or combed out
by another, the holding of the fibre in the comb being simply by being
amongst the teeth. Now my first improvement consists of introducing
a blade or pressing instrument to press and hold the fibre.more tightly
amongst the teeth and against the head of the comb. And my second
improvement is applicable when wool, cotton, or fibre has been fed
into travelling combs, and consists of mounting rollers with bent or
card teeth on an axis, so that the general system of rollers may revolve
in one direction, and the card or bent teeth rollers may revolve in an
opposite direction. And such system of rollers is' applied to remove
the loose and to comb out the other fibres after they have been fed
into the travelling comb, and the loose fibres taken by the rollers may
be constantly doffed off, or they may be drawn in a sliver by suitable
rollers. And I find it very advantageous to place card or similar toothed
surfaces so that after the fibrous material has been filled on to combs,
that as the combs move along the first pointed surface shall act on one
side, and the next on the other side, so as to work both sides of the
fibrous material.
I will now proceed to describe the plan which I adopt to hold the
fibrous material upon combs when being worked by other combs or
pointed surfaces. I would here remark that in a former Patent I have
shewn-a-plate-placed on the outside-of-the comb-to prevent the wool
from being pushed off the teeth of the holding comb. But the object.
of my present Invention is to prevent working combs or other points
from robbing from holding combs, and this I accomplish by placing a
plate within the chamber of the comb.
Figure 1 represents a section of the comb and plate. A, is an;

page_text: excentric fixed on the axis A', which gives motion to the lever G, G,
having pin joints at I, H, working upon the centre B, so that as the
excentric revolves, motion will be. given to the lever G, G,, which.
working upon the centre. B' will give an up and down motion to the
plate C, working within the chamber of the moving comb D;. a fixed
plate with a bevilled or rounded end where the fibre first comes under it
would do, but I prefer to have it moveable because the pressure would
otherwise be apt to disturb, and displace the fibre on the, combs,
whereas the moveable plate by pressing upon the fibre at that point
where the working comb or other points are passing through the fibre
it holds for the instant, and then rises and allows the moving or carrying.
comb to pass.
.
What I claim is, a holding plate pressing upon the fibre so as to
hold it whilst being worked. >
I will now. proceed to describe my second improvement. "I find that
cotton and other fibrous material can be combed to great advantage
(after being filled on to combs by suitable filling apparatus) by employ-
ing rollers covered with card teeth, and worked according to the
arrangement shown in the Drawing,. but other arrangements of card
rollers may be adopted' without departing from my Invention. Figure
2, a, a, shows the section of a circular or travelling comb on to which
the cotton or other fibre is filled by being lashed on by a filling head in
the ordinary manner or otherwise. The cotton or other fibre as it is
carried forward by the comb à is brought into a position to be combed
or worked by the card teeth on the roller b, which descend into the
fibre, and take the short and loose fibre which is delivered to the card
roller c, from which it is taken by the roller d, and is then drawn off by
the drawing off rollers e. The speeds of the respective rollers b, c, d,
I prefer to be as follows, but the same may be varied: the roller b
sixty revolutions, the roller cone hundred revolutions, and the roller d
one revolution, per minute. Sometimes I use a crank doffer in the place
of the rollers e, especially for wool; the crank doffer which I use is in
all respects, the same as is commonly used in carding engines. The
cotton or other fibre which is retained by the travelling comb when it
has passed the roller 6 is next operated upon, and combed by the card

page_text: teeth on the roller f, shewn in section Figure 3, which enter the under
side of the fibre and comb it upwards, the fibre being held against
the surface of the roller f by a fixed blade i, which prevents the fibre
being lifted off the travelling comb a; the fibre which is taken by the
roller is transferred to the roller g, from which it is drawn off by a
pair of drawing-off' rollers h; the fibre, after being drawn from the roller
g by the rollers h, may be received in the form of a sliver in a can, and
again filled on to the comb a, or may be allowed to accumulate in the
form of a lap, the great object, of the Invention being to work both
sides of the sliver, and also to deliver the fibre taken by the card rollers
in such a state as to be again refilled on to the comb with little or no
expense. The cotton or other fibre retained on the travelling comb a
having been combed from above and below in passing the rollers
band is then drawn off from the travelling comb a by drawing-off
rollers, as is well understood; another filling head then succeeds the
drawing-off rollers, and the apparatus before described is repeated as
many times as the circumference or length of the travelling comb will
admit.
I have not thought it necessary to show the apparatus for driving
the card rollers, as a workman acquainted with this class of machinery
will readily apply the same, aided by the relative speed marked thereon,
but to which I do not confine myself, as this may be varied.
What I claim is, working both sides of the fibre by card or like
teeth, also the arrangement of the card rollers so as to obtain a
continuous sliver or lap.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of May, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
Witness,
J. G. TONGUE.
S. C. LISTER.
(L.S.)