IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED, LOOPED, AND OTHER ELASTIC FABRICS
Year: 1851

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, CHRIS-
TOPHER NICKELS, of York Road, Lambeth, and THOMAS BALL, and JoUN
WOODHOUSE BAGLEY, of Nottingham, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-fourth day of
December, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, in the fifteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Christopher Nickels, Thomas Ball, and John Woodhouse Bagley, our
exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that we, the said Christopher Nickels, Thomas Ball, and
John Woodhouse Bagley, our exors, adñiors, and assigns, or such others as
we, the said Christopher Nickels, Thomas Ball, and John Woodhouse Bagley,
our exors, adiñors, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein ex-
pressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED, LOOPED, AND OTHER ELASTIC
FABRICS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that we, the
said Christopher Nickels, Thomas Ball, and John Woodhouse Bagley, or one
of us, shall cause a particular description of the nature of our said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in

page_text: writing under my hands and seals, or under the hands and seals of some or
one of us, to be inrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto bad,
will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
Christophe Nickels, Thomas Ball, and John Woodhouse Bagley, do hereby
declare that the nature of our said Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, are fully described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say:- .
Our Invention consists,-
First, of improvements in knitting machinery arranged suitably for the
purpose of making knit fabrics with cut pile, and other improvements consist
of employing one row or set of needles in circular knitting frames to remove
the work from the other set of needles.
Secondly, our Invention consists of improvements in the manufacture of
warp fabrics by causing weft or traverse threads to be laid in on either side of
inlaid longitudinal threads.
Thirdly, our Invention consists of improvements in looms suitable for
weaving narrow fabrics.
Fourthly, our Invention consists of improvements in manufacturing looped
fabrics made with a terry, fleeced terry, or cut pile surface, by applying india
rubber or a composition containing india rubber to one side for the
purpose of
producing a waterproofing thereto, thereby rendering the same applicable for
certain classes of gloves and other articles.
Fifthly, our Invention consists of improvements in apparatus to cover a
longitudinal thread or threads of india rubber, or other material.
And in order that our Invention may be most fully understood and readily
carried into effect, we will proceed to describe the means pursued by us.
And, first, as regards our improvements in manufacturing knit fabrics with
cut pile, which consists of apparatus for applying a rotatory cutter to cut the
loops as they are made in a suitable knitting frame.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING A.
This Drawing shows so much of a circular knitting frame, with apparatus
applied thereto, according to this part of our Invention, as will enable us to
describe our improvements in the cutting apparatus employed for cutting the
terry loops as they are produced by the working of a circular knitting frame.

page_text: The mode of making knit fabrics with terry or projecting loops on the surface
being well understood, it will not be necessary to enter into a description of
the apparatus employed further than is necessary to show how the terry pile is
produced and carried on to part of the apparatus for cutting. The loops of
the threads used for making the body and pile of the fabric are laid on to the
needles, and are sunk between the needles, as is well understood'; and the
pile loops are taken by means of instruments a, which keep the loops open and
listended, so that when the loops come up to the point of the instrument b,
on to which the loops are successively received, and as they slide along this
instrument they are divided or cut by the rotatory cutter, which is driven
quickly by a gut or band, the edge of such cutter entering into a groove
formed in the instrument b. The instruments a are formed with hooks at
their upper ends; and as the machine revolves the instruments a are by their
fixed tracks a caused to come under the needles beyond the pile loops; they
are then caused to move outwards, by which they receive the loops on them,
and then, as the loops will be horizontal, it becomes necessary that they should
be opened in a manner to admit of the loops passing on to the stationary
instrument 6, and this is accomplished by the hook of the instrument descending
a short distance, in order that one side of the loop may be drawn down
thereby, and then each loop will be in a position to receive the point of the
instrument b.
Another improvement in knitting machinery consists of improved apparatus
to be employed in circular knitting machines where two rows of needles are
employed for making knit fabrics with two similar or true surfaces.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS MARKED B.
These Drawings how so much of a circular knitting machine, with appa-
ratus applied thereto, a will enable us to describle this part of the Invention,
and to aid the workman understanding the Drawings by calling his attention
to the circumstance that ne set of needles work not only to receive and
produe their own work, but they are the means of drawing the work over the
heads of other needles, a, a, are the horizontal needles, which are fixed
radially on a circular frame; b, 6, are the vertical or second set of needles,
which are fixed on plates c, which work in combs or guides d, such plates
moving on a track e, so formed that at the proper parts it will guide the plates
in towards and away from the horizontal needles, and the track e also causes
the plates c with their needles to rise and fall, all which will readily be under-
stood by referring to the several positions indicated at No. 1, No. 2, and
No. 3 views of the parts.
At No. 1 the thread is being laid on to the hori-

page_text: zontal needles, the work being on the needles a and b, and the thread will be
sunk between the needles by the ordinary wheel. The vertical needles will then
by their track be caused to move towards the beards of the horizontal needles,
and by so doing they will drive the threads under the beards of those needles,
and at the same time they will draw the work which is on the stems of the hori-
zontal needles over the beards of those needles, and as the vertical needles are
caused to descend they will receive the new loops under their beards, and then
the pressing wheel will cause the beards to be closed, and in the further
descent of the needles they will pass through the loops of the work which was
previously on their stems, as is shewn at No. 2. The vertical needles will
then go into the position No. 3, and rise up to the position No. 1, and so
Simultaneous motion will be communicated to the horizontal and vertical
needles by the shaft f, by means of the wheels g, h.
on.
We would remark that we are aware that it is not new to employ two sets
of needles in circular knitting machines; we do not therefore claim the same,
the novelty of that part of this part of the Invention consisting of employing
one set of needles to remove the work from the other set of needles.
We will now describe the second part of our Invention, which has for its
object the laying in transverse threads on both sides of longitudinal inlaid
threads of warp fabrics.
We would remark in respect to this part of our Invention, that we are
aware that fabrics have before been made in warp machines by laying trans-
verse threads on one side of longitudinal inlaid threads of warp fabrics; we
do not, therefore, claim the same, but we find that fabrics are greatly improved
by laying in transverse threads on either side, which transverse threads on
the different sides may be of the same or different colors, and of the same or
different materials.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS MARKED C.
These Drawings show a section of so much of a warp machine as will
enable us to describe this part of our Invention a is the needle bar, which
has as many sets of needles as there are breadths of fabric to be produced,
there being spaces between the several breadths between which the guides
(which lay on the front transverse threads to the needles) to rise and fall as the
guides lap their threads on to the needles. We have not thought it necessary
to show a complete warp frame, as this part of our invention relates only to
laying in transverse threads on both sides of the fabric. is a row of guides
equal in number to the needles; e is one of several guides
which lays trans-
verse thread in front there being as mane cuch
are breadths

page_text: of fabric produced in the machine, and they are fixed to a sliding bar d, which
is caused to slide to and fro a distance suitable to lay its thread on to the
needles; e is the presser bar; f are the guides through which the longitudinal
threads of india rubber or other material pass; g is the work beam; his onc
of several guides which introduce the back transverse threads, and they are
fixed to the sliding bar i, which is caused to move to and fro a distance suit-
able for laying their threads across the needles.
The work as it is made descends between the bars j. j. The needle bar is
caused to move to and fro, and as it goes back between the longitudinal
threads the work will be drawn over the heads of the needles. When the
needles are forward, the looping guide threads lap their threads on to the
needles, the presser bar presses the beards and closes them, and they pass
back through the work, which is knocked over by the needles passing outwards
between the longitudinal threads in the guides f, the guide bar f moving on
its axis towà, the front of the machine, as shown at Figure 2 at that time.
The front and back transverse threads are laid on to the needles, as follows:
-The lace wheel shows the shogging of the guides, which lap their threads on
to the needles, in order to their being looped thereby into each other.
Figure 1 shows the parts in the position they would assume when the guides
are about to lap their threads over their needles, the lapping then takes place,
the needle bar moves towards the back of the machine, the presser acting on
the beards of the needles as they retire; the work is knocked over by the
needles passing out between the longitudinal threads f, the guides c and h slido
one towards the right and the other towards the left hand end of the machine,
laying a transverse thread on each side of the inlaid longitudinal threads of the
fabric to be tied in by the next succeeding course.
We will now proceed to describe the third part of our Invention, which
consists in improvements in looms suitable for weaving narrow elastic fabrics.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS MARKED D.
The nature of each of the views shewn by the Drawings being written
therein, it will not be necessary to repeat the same here. The object of one
part of these improvements is to manufacture more pieces of fabric at the
same time, and the improvements consist of so arranging the batten that
in place of simply having a single row of shuttles across the batten of the
loom, the batten is arranged in such manner that two, or it might be more, rows
of shuttles, one above the other, are used; and in order that the several fabrics
making at the same time may be readily seen and accessible, the reeds are not
placed one over the other, but those for making the upper row of fabrics are
intermediate of the reeds of the lower row.

page_text: The construction of looms for making narrow woven goods being well under-
stood, and as the present improvements apply to the batten, we have not thought
it necessary to show a conplete loom; neither will it be necessary to enter into
a description of the several parts, which are well known.
The arrangement of the loom shown is suitable for weaving narrow elastic
goods containing more or less india rubber, which, in passing from their
bobbins, are passed around the roller, and if in the elastic state are kept
distended, as is well understood, and the work is wound up by means of the
roller a and the pressing roller b, as heretofore practised. c is the batten,
which is suitably arranged and constructed to have two rows of reeds, those of
the upper row being intermediate of those of the lower row, thus allowing
of the fabrics made by each to be clear to view, and at the same time readily
accessable to the weaver. The shuttles d, d, are of the ordinary kind used for
making narrow goods, and each row of them woorks in the batten in like
manner to those in similar looms where only one row of shuttles is used, and
the movement of the shuttles is obtained similarly to those in other looms for
weaving narrow goods, and as is shown by the Drawings.
It will only be desirable further to state, in regard to this part of our
improvements, that there are two sets of warps, and that they are each worked
by their own harness, each such warp, in the arrangement shown, consisting
partly of india-rubber threads c, and of silk, or other yarn or threads, f.
Another improvement in such description of looms consists of so construct-
ing and arranging the battens that two rows of shuttles may be used in such
manner that each fabric may have weft thrown in at the back and front of a
middle warp, which may be composed more or less of india-rubber thread,
such middle warp not requiring any movement up and down, the silk or other
warp threads rising and descending above and below the middle warp, to open
sheds for the passage of the upper and lower shuttle for making each fabric.
In this arrangement or construction of batten only one reed is used for each
pair of shuttles, and we cause the shuttles to move in opposite directions at the
same time as both top and bottom sheds are opened at the same time. The
two rows of shuttles are similar to those employed in like descriptions of looms
where only one shuttle is used to make a fabric, and the batten is made with
two shuttle races or grooves, each similar to those employed in looms where
only one row of shuttles is used.
We will now describe the fourth part of our Invention, which consists of
improvements in manufacting looped fabrics made with a terry, fleece terry, or
cut pile surface, by applying a waterproof surface of india rubber, or composi-
tion containing india rubber. We would state that in carrying out this part
of our Invention we take looped fabrics made by warp or knitting machinery,

page_text: with terry, fleeced terry, or cut pile thereon, the making of which is not new,
and on to the front or face of such fabrics we apply india rubber, or a compo-
sition containing india rubber, to the front or face surface, in like manner to
that in which other fabrics have heretofore been coated to render them water-
proof, to which process of waterproofing separately we make no claim, this part
of our Invention consisting of applying the process to render the peculiar
fabrics above mentioned waterproof, by which combination elastic waterproof
fabric will be obtained, very suitable for gloves and other articles, by reason of
the peculiar flexible and elastic character it possesses, together with the circum-
stance of its having a waterproof outer surface, the terry, fleece terry, or cut
pile coming into the interior.
We will now describe the fifth part of our Invention, which consists of
improvements in machinery for covering one or more strands of india rubber,
or of other materials, by a looped fabric.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING MARKED E.
This Drawing shows a section of a machine arranged suitably for carrying
out the fifth part of our Invention, which has for its object the covering of an
internal longitudinal strand or strands with a looped fabric. a is a tube, which
turns in suitable bearings b, b, and it receives at intervals a rotatory motion by
means of a rack c taking into the cog wheel a' on the tube a. The rack c, at
suitable periods, is put in motion by a cam or otherwise, and causes the
tube a to make a revolution, after which the rack rises and moves back,
and again comes into action. The tube carries several needles d, generally
three, but more may be used, such needles passing through a circular plate e,
which revolves in the standard f, such standard having a to and fro motion
communicated to it by a cam g, and the beards of the needles are closed at
the proper time by the conical opening through the standard plate h, which
has a to and fro motion communicated to it by a cam i. The thread is laid on
to the needles by the thread carrier f, the thread being drawn on to thic
several needles by their tube making a revolution, as before stated.
point, which, entering between the needles, moves the thread under the beards
of the needles. The thread carrier and its point have a to and fro motion
communicated to it by means of a cam b. The longitudinal strand or core of
india rubber or other material is conducted into and through the machine, as
shown at m.
k is a
The working of the machine is as follows:-The thread is laid around the
needles, it is passed under the beards, the pressing cone closes the beards, and
the rotating plate knocks the work over the heads of the needles.

page_text: Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we do not confine
ourselves to the details as herein shown and described, so long as the peculiar
character of any part of our Invention be retained. But what we claim is,-
First, the improvements in machinery for making knit fabrics, herein
described.
Secondly, we claim the improvements in machinery for producing warp
fabrics, with transverse threads at both sides of the fabric.
Thirdly, we claim the improvements herein described in looms suitable for
weaving narrow elastic goods.
Fourthly, we claim the improvements in the manufacture of elastic looped
fabrics with a terry, or fleeced terry, or cut pile surface, and a waterproof
surface, as explained. And,
Fifthly, we claim the covering of strands of india rubber, or other material,
with a looped knit fabric.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher Nickels, have hereunto set
my band and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
CHRISTOPHER (L.S.) NICKELS.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-fourth day of June, in
the
year of our Lord 1852, the aforesaid Christopher Nickels came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.