IMPROVE- MENTS IN CIRCULAR LOOMS OR MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRICS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Brooman, of 166, Fleet Street,
in the City of London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN CIRCULAR LOOMS OR MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED
OR KNITTED FABRICS."-A communication from abroad by Charles Amédée
dé Laire de la Brosse, of 23, Boulevard de Strasbourg, Paris, France,
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald
Brooman at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 28th May 1862.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN CIRCULAR LOOMS OR MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE
OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRICS," (communicated to me from abroad by
Charles Amédée de Laire de la Brosse, of 23, Boulevard de Strasbourg,
Paris, France, and Emile Adrien le Coeur, of 11, Rue Ecureuil, Rouen,
France,) to be as follows:-
This Invention is for improvements upon an Invention for which Letters
Patent were granted to Charles Amédée de Laire de la Brosse the 16th
January 1858, No. 78, as hereafter set forth. The present circular frame
forms, first, knitted or looped fabrics in the ordinary manner; second, it produces
the narrowing in stockings and other articles of hosiery; and third, it sews the
stocking or other article in course of manufacture.
In the following description I omit reference to those parts of the ordinary.
circular frame or machine, and refer particularly to those whereby the narrow-

page_text: ing and sewing are effected. In narrowing the needles and sinkers perform
three functions. The first set is fixed; the second set is free to slide or move
in a circular direction to fill up the space left by the needles and the loop,
forming sinkers as they are raised; and the third set is successively raised or
removed to produce the narrowing. When the knitting of the stocking is
accomplished, as in the ordinary frame, and when the narrowing has to be
commenced, a loop to the right and left of the loop forming needle is removed
and carried on to the movable needles; this operation is performed at every
narrowing. The needle and the loop sinker are afterwards removed and the
filled needles successively take the place of those removed. The machinery for
producing the narrowing is arranged as follows:-There is a horizontal lever in
connection with the upper part of the machine, which during the ordinary work
is kept out of action by a spring, but to produce the narrowing it is disengaged
and lowered by the hand on to a small escape lever. The effect is to raise
two needle levers whereby certain sinkers and needles are also raised. The
horizontal lever carries two lugs, one on each side, which as soon as the escape-
ment is produced abut against helices. The narrowing of the stocking or
each side and the narrowing
other article takes place symmetrically on
mechanism is repeated on each side of the machine. The two helices before
mentioned fulfil two functions; 1st, they act on compressers which abut against
screws in a horse-shoe guide. Each branch of this double guide is composed
of a number of screws equal to the extent of the narrowing to be obtained, each
screw governing the motion for each narrowing. The compressers are brought
back by a spring. When the helices are in action two guides work in such
manner as to place the needle levers in position for raising the sinkers and
loop needles; 2nd, the other function of the helices is to strike at the same
time on the head of two vertical levers; the foot of each lever corresponds
with a cover of the movable needles which makes them move obliquely in
closing concentrically right and left. There are guides carrying two smail
pivots to receive the cover of the movable needles in which two holes are
formed to cause them to move together; a long arm on the guide passes
through the crown of the machine upon which combs and needles are
supported. The long arm fits into the slide of each of the movable combs,
where the sinkers are placed which cause the whole arrangement to work by
means of binges. All these movements take place successively each in its
turn by simply lowering the horizontal balance lever, which is disengaged
from its suspension spring at the time the narrowing commences, and by the
intervention of the following appliances:-There is a chain wheel for drawing
the horse-shoe guides, a ratchet wheel serves to regulate the motion of the

page_text: chain and is applied to the shaft of the chain wheel, and this motion is effected
by a cam toothed wheel. The latter, the teeth of which may vary, warns the
attendant when to commence each successive narrowing; its stoppage takes
place after a certain number of revolutions determined by the number of
teeth on its circumference. Each tooth represents one rotation of the
circular machine; when the cam toothed wheel has made its revolution the tenon
of a spring lever engages in an aperture in the wheel and the machine is
stopped; the attendant removes other needles until the whole narrowing has
been effected as has been explained. There is a catch in contact with the
ratchet wheel to drive the chain one tooth each time it operates. The loop.
boxes are divided to receive the needle carriers; at the top of these loop
boxes there is a small comb divided for the passage of the loop sinkers. There
is a spring to push back the sinkers. The sinkers and loop needles work in
a reverse direction to the needles and ordinary sinkers; the latter are worked
by means of a track guide or railway under the comb, while in the loop sinkers
the comb is fixed under the gearing to guide them. In their oscillations the
loop sinkers are guided by a double guide or railway. The point of the sinkers
is enlarged on each side and takes into the space between the double guides
and passes down under them. The outer of the guides sustains the movable
loop sinkers to cause them to make the same motion as the others. The
inner guide guides the sinkers to take the ordinary motion in the circular
machine. When the narrowing is terminated the machine must work inde-
pendently of the narrowing mechanism, and for this purpose the narrowing
mechanism is thrown out of gear or connection when the machine works as
an ordinary circular loom or frame.
The improved arrangement of machinery whereby the mechanical sewing
or stitching of stockings and other articles of hosiery is accomplished is as
follows:-The needle for the sewing terminates at its upper end in a hook;
it is fixed on a support which is prolonged at it lower end to increase its
stability. A guide is placed excentrically inside the ordinary guide, its object
is to guide the needle sinker. This guide sinker is fitted in a space in the
comb of the fixed sinkers, which takes it round the circuit of the machine.
Another
The indulation of the guide makes it rise and fall to effect its work.
guide causes the needle to fall and in its motion
The result of this arrangement is that a loop of the stocking or other article
under manufacture is turned over and returned to constitute the mechanical
sewing. The product issuing from this machine is distinguished from all
other analogous articles by the configuration of the narrowing.
to knock down the loop.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 28th November 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Richard Archibald Brooman, Her special licence, that I, the said Richard
Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors, adminis-
trators, 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 CIRCULAR LOOMS OR MACHINERY FOR
THE MANUFACTURE OF LOOPED OR KNITTED FABRICS" (a communication. to me
from abroad by Charles Amédée de Laire de la Brosse, of 23, Boulevard de
Strasbourg, Paris, France, and Emile Adrien le Coeur, of Rue Ecureuil,
Rouen, France,) upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Richard
Archibald Brooman, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
described 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 Richard Archibald Brooman, 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 fol-
lowing statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say :-
This Invention is for improvements upon an Invention for which Letters
Patent were granted to Charles Amédée de Laire de la Brosse, the Six-
teenth day of January, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, No. 78;
as hereafter set forth. The present circular frame forms, first, knitted or
looped fabrics in the ordinary manner; second, it produces the narrowing in

page_text: stockings and other articles of hosiery; and third, it sews the stocking or other
article in course of manufacture.
In the following description I omit reference to those parts of the ordinary
circular frame or machine, and refer particularly to those whereby the
narrowing and sewing are effected.
Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying Drawings, are views in front and
side elevation of a machine constructed according to this Invention. The
other Figures are views of, the principal parts in detail, and will be hereafter
referred to.
In narrowing the needles and sinkers perform three functions. The first
set, shewn at Figure 3, which is a section through the line A, B, of Figure 1,
is fixed; the second set is free to slide or move in a circular direction to fill
up the space left by the needles, and the loop forming sinkers as they are
raised; and the third set is successively raised or removed to produce the
narrowing. When the knitting of the stocking is accomplished as in the
ordinary frame, and when the narrowing has to be commenced, a loop to the
right and left of the loop forming needle is removed and carried on to the
moveable needles, this operation is performed at every narrowing; the needle
and the loop sinker are afterwards removed, and the filled needles successively
take the place of those removed.
The machinery for producing the narrowing is arranged as follows:-
a, Figures 1 and 2, is a horizontal lever in connection with the upper part
of the machine, which during the ordinary work is kept out of action by
a spring a, c, but to produce the narrowing it is disengaged and lowered
by the hand on to a small escape lever b. The effect is to raise two
needle levers c, c, Figure 8, which raise the sinkers e, f, Figure 11, and
needles o, Figure 9. The horizontal lever a carries two lugs a¹, a², one on
each side, which as soon as the escapement is produced abut against
helices e, e, Figure 3*. The narrowing of the stocking or other article
takes place symmetrically on each side, and narrowing the mechanism is
repeated on each side of the machine. The two helices e, e, before men-
tioned, fulfil two functions; first, they act on compressers 9, g, Figure 4,
which abut against screws in a horse-shoe guide q, q, Figure 7.
Each
branch of this double guide q, is composed of a number of screws, equal
to the extent of the narrowing to be obtained, each screw governing the
motion for each narrowing. The compressers 9, 9, are brought back by a
spring. When the helices e, e, are in action, two guides d, d, Figure 6,
work in such manner as to cause the needle levers c, c, to abut against a
small roller c', Figure 8, whereby they are guided into position for raising

page_text: of
the sinkers and loop-forming needles; second, the other function of the
helices e, e, is to strike at the same time on the head of two vertical
levers f, f, Figure 5; the foot of each lever corresponds with a cover
the moveable needles, Figure 15, which makes them move obliquely in
closing concentrically right and left; i, j, Figure 12, are guides carrying
two small pivots 1, 2, to receive the cover 1, Figure 13, in which two
holes,, are formed to cause them to fix, and to move together the
part i, j, the long arm of which passes through the crown l, m, of the
machine, Figures 1 and 2, upon which combs d, c, and needles care sup
ported. The long arm fits into the slide of each of the movable combs
where the sinkers are placed, which cause the whole arrangement to work by
means of hinges, as shown in the plan, Figure 15, where one part b, c, is con-
tracted, and the other enlarged. All these movements take place successively,
each in its turn, by simply lowering the horizontal balance lever a, which is
disengaged from its suspension spring a, c, at the time the narrowing
commences, and by the intervention of the following appliances :-S is a
chain wheel, round which a chain s passes for drawing the horse-shoe
guides q, q; a ratchet wheel r serves to regulate the motion of the chain s',
and is applied to the shaft of the chain wheel S. This motion is effected
by a cam toothed wheel m. The latter, the teeth of which may vary,
warns the attendant when to commence each successive narrowing; its
stoppage takes place after a certain number of revolutions determined by
the number of teeth on its circumference: Each tooth of the wheel m,
represents one rotation of the circular machine. When the cam toothed
wheel has made its revolution the tenon of a spring lever p engages in
an aperture m¹ in the wheel, and the machine is stopped; the attendant
removes other needles as before explained, until the whole narrowing has
been effected. To the piece p is adapted a catch t, in contact with the
ratchet wheel r, to drive the chain s² one tooth each time it operates.
23, Figure 1, shows the loop boxes divided to receive the needle carriers o.
At the top of these loop boxes there is a small comb n, Figures 1 and 2,
divided for the passage of the loop sinkers. The two loop boxes are
represented, one with raised needles, and the other with the needles half
raised, Figures 1 and 2, is a spring to push back the sinkers. The
comb d, c, shewn at Figure 14, is the internal comb, and is placed under
that shewn at Figure 13; it is fitted on the same pivots of the guides i, j,
Figure 12, which raise the four together; g, h, Figure 10, shews one of
the sinkers detached; c, f, Figure 11, shows a loop sinker. The sinkers
and loop needles work in a reverse direction to the needles and ordinary

page_text: sinkers; the latter are worked by means of a track guide or railway
placed under the comb, while in the loop sinkers, the comb n is fixed
under the gearing to guide them. In their oscillations the loop sinkers
are guided by a double guide or railway X, X', Figure 3. The point g
of the sinkers is enlarged on each side, as shown at Figures 10 and 11,
and takes into the space between the double guides X, X', of the railway,
The
while in the length the point passes down under the railway X'.
outer of the guides X sustains the moveable loop sinkers to cause them
to make the same motion as the others; the inner guide ✗¹ guides the
sinkers to take the ordinary motion in the circular machine; o, Figure 9,
is the needle carrier, sliding in the loop box; q, Figure 7, represents the
double horse-shoe guide q, q, for regulating the motion during the narrowing.
The compressers g, f, are applied to the screws of the horse-shoe guide.
There is a spring for guiding and retaining the loop sinker while rising
on a support for preventing its falling when it is not at work; z is the
ordinary railway for the fixed sinkers. When the narrowing is terminated
the machine must work independently of the narrowing mechanism, there-
fore the narrowing mechanism is thrown out of gear or connection when
the machine works. as an ordinary circular loom or frame, and for this
purpose pressure is applied to the index p of the lever p, the tenon of
which is disengaged from the aperture m¹ in the cam wheel m, no con-
nection then exists between the narrowing mechanism and the ordinary
knitting machinery. The horizontal lever a is hooked to the top spring
a, c. Each of the vertical levers f. f, are acted on by the hand, the feet of
which cause the symmetrical parts b, c, of the movable combs to become
excentrix, one of which, that to the right, is represented open at Figure 15. The
sinkers and loop needles, which in the preceding narrowing have been succes-
sively and mechanically raised, are afterwards caused to descend into the open
space by the hand. -
The improved arrangement of machinery, whereby the mechanical sewing
or stitching of stockings and other articles of hosiery is accomplished, is
as follows, and as shown at Figures 1 and 2. The needle u for the sewing
terminates at its upper end in a hook; it is fixed on a support **, which is
prolonged at its lower end to increase its stability. A guide a is placed
excentrically inside the ordinary guide; its object is to guide the needle
sinker v.
This guide sinker is fitted in a space in the comb of the fixed
sinkers, as shown at Figuro 15, which takes it round the circuit of the
machine. The undulation of the guide makes it rise and fall to effect its
work; another guide y, Figure 1, causes the needle us to fall, and in its motion

page_text: to knock down the loop. The result of this arrangement is that a loop of the
stocking or other article under manufacture is turned over and returned to
constitute the mechanical sewing. The product issuing from this machine is
distinguished from all other analogous articles by the configuration of the
narrowing, as shown at Figure 16. The vertical line M, N, represents the
sewing with a reversed stitch. The curves R, S, T, symmetrically divided on
each side, indicate the narrowings.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim as the improve-
ments in circular looms or machinery for the manufacture of looped or knitted
fabrics,-
First, constructing and arranging circular looms for producing the narrowing
in stockings and other articles of hosiery, requiring such narrowing, sub-
stantially in manner herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.
Second, the arrangement of parts of circular looms for sewing the stocking
or other article under manufacture, substantially as herein-before described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
And, third, the particular combination of parts of circular looms, herein-
before described and represented at Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of November,
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
R. A. BROOMAN. (L.S.)