IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING FLAX AND OTHER TEXTILE MATERIALS
Year: 1854

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by François Eugéne Sulpice Garnier at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th March 1854.
I, FRANÇOIS EUGÈNE SULPICE GARNIER, of Paris, in the Empire of France'
and of 16, Castle Street, Holborn (City), London, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PREPARING
FLAX AND OTHER TEXTILE MATERIALS" to be as follows, and consists of a fixel
& moveable jaw hinged together. The extreme portion of these jaws is
formed in V grooves, which run perpendicular to the hinge, & the jaws are
hinged in such manner that when the jaws are brought together there is a
zig-zag slot between them. The material to be operated upon is first laid
across the grooves, & the play between the jaws prevents the fibre being
injured; at the back of the crushing grooves there is a system of bruising
blades fixed on the stationary & moveable jaws parallel to the grooves.
Those blades which are on the fixed jaw are arranged on a level, whilst
those on the moving jaw are fixed so as to work between the former, and
to act upon the flax successively as the jaw descends.
For this purpose.

page_text: the moveable blades are each bevelled from front to back, and also from one
side to the other. After having been crushed, the. fibrous material is passed
between these blades, the moveable jaw being set in motion by a handle or
other suitable means.
Secondly, the material is passed through a breaking machine, consisting
of two concentric discs set at proper distances, & carrying each a set
of blades fixed perpendicularly to the discs, & tangentially to the circles
described by them; the edges of the blades are arranged in curves so as to
act successively on the strick of. flax. The blades on.opposite discs are
alternately arranged in such manner that a single blade always passés
between a pair of blades on the opposite disc. One disc being loose on the
shaft, it can by proper gearing be turned in the opposite direction, &
thus the flax or other material is drawn out and broken by the single
blades.
Thirdly, a scutching machine which consists of two beaters one after the
other. These beaters are driven together, and turning in opposite directions,
they act successively on both sides of the tuft or strick material, which is made
to pass over and cross them by means of a proper holder.
Fourthly, in the scutcher just described may be used two pieces cut out in
a curvilinear line, & so as to correspond with each other, having opposite
transversal reciprocating motion of such extent as to leave an undulated slot
when they are nearest to each other. In this slot the tuft is seized in such
manner that it offers to the action of the beater a surface which varies at' each
motion of the indented pieces, so that each point of the tuft is acted upon
more minutely.
13.
Fifthly, the rotary beater consists of two or more sectional discs, keyed at
proper distances on a common shaft, & which carry two rows of metallic
blades, the first of which is fixed along a straight line eccentric with the
radius, and the second is fixed on the sector. of the periphery of the-beater.
The first of these rows strikes the flax perpendicularly, & the second
continues & finishes the operation, after which the fibrous material is in good
condition for heckling.
.
Sixthly, the blades of the beaters are shaped & placed so as to differ
alternately in form, & penetrate more or less into the fibres; the difference
consists in those blades which penetrate more forward into the fibres having
a succession of indents cut out along an undulating curve, whilst the blades
which penetrate less into the fibres are only cut out to the curve of the small
indents.

page_text: Seventhly, a motion for actuating the plaiting pieces, consisting of a system
of eccentrics & bell cranks and straight levers, & is driven from the beater
shafts at each end of the machine.
Eighthly, an improved hinged holder.