Improvements in or applicable to Dobbies or Shaft Machines for Looms.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Apr., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 13th July, 1895-Accepted, 17th Aug., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or applicable to Dobbies or Shaft Machines
for Looms.
We TOM SKERRATT of Brook House Cottage, Buglawton, Cheshire, Overlooker,
JOHN MOFFAT of Primrose Vale, Congleton, Cheshire, Manufacturer, and JOHN
PEARS of Primrose Vale, Congleton, Cheshire, Manufacturer, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our said invention relates to improvements in dobbies or machines used on looms
for working the shafts or healds according to the pattern to be produced.
In its essential features our said invention consists in the following arrangement
and combination of mechanism.
A rotating back shaft on the dobby has a crank or excentric at one end for
imparting a reciprocating motion to a side link connected therewith. The other
end is connected to a frame carrying a set of rising and falling plates or bars,
hereinafter called blanks, corresponding to the number of shafts of healds the
dobby is intended to operate. Each such blank has a bole through which a needle
of the dobby can pass when opposite thereto.
The reciprocating motion of the side link brings the blanks up to the needles at
each stroke and causes the shafts corresponding thereto to go down unless one or
other of the blanks is down when the hole therein allows the end of the needle to
pass through and the particular shafts corresponding to such needles go up.
The blanks rest each on separate hinged levers pivoted on a cross bar. Each
such lever has on its underside a projection.
Under the series of projections is a cylinder or barrel carrying chains suspended
therefrom and hanging freely downwards. The said chains have special links or
projections distributed throughout the length of the chain in such a manner as to
cause the hinged lever resting on the chain to lift by the passage of a projection
when it is required to drop the heald shaft corresponding thereto.
Between the chains on the barrel are division plates formed as cams so that
when weaving the body part of say a Turkish towel the said cams revolve between
the projections on the hinged levers.
When however it is desired to weave a heading cross border or the like the
chain barrel is slid endwise through a distance equal to half the distance of the
chaius from each other. Thereupon the chains come between the hinged levers
and are inoperative while the cam shaped division plates act instead of them and
operate the shafts for weaving the heading.
In some cases instead of cams alternating with chains we use two sets of chains
alternating with each other, each set of chains then producing different effects on
the shafts.
Dated 2nd day of April 1895.
E. T. WHITELOW, A.M. Inst. C.E.,
70 Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicants.

page_text: Improvements in or applicable to Dobbies or Shaft Machines
for Looms.
We TOM SKERRATT of Brook House Cottage, Buglawton, Cheshire, Overlooker,.
JOHN MOFFAT of Primrose Vale, Congleton, Cheshire, Manufacturer, and JOHN
PEARS of Primrose Vale, Congletou, Cheshire,. Manufacturer, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
Our said' invention relates to improvements in dobbies or machines used on looms
for working the shafts or healds according to the pattern to be produced.
In order that our said invention may be more clearly understood. we will describe
the same with reference to the accompanying drawings in which
Fig: 1 is a front elevation.
Fig. 2 is a side.elevation:.
Fig. 3.is a sectional elevation throughy of Fig. 1.
Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 illustrate details to be hereinafter described.
In the drawings only so much of a dobby or shaft machine as is necessary for
explaining the construction and mode of carrying into effect our said invention is
shown it being premised that the devices for lifting the shafts and for operating
the said devices are those at present in use and such as are well understood.
A rotating or rocking back shaft 1 (Fig. 2) driven by gearing from any
convenient part of the loom has a crank 2 at each end to which is connected a side
link 3. connected at the other end. to a frame 4 for the purpose of imparting a
horizontal reciprocating motion thereto as the shaft 1 rocks or makes a partial
rotation. backwards and forwards. In lieu of a crank or link an excentric and rod
or other like connection may be used for the same purpose.
The frame 4 carries a. set of plates hereinafter called blanks corresponding to the
number of shafts the dobby is intended to operate: Four such shafts only are
shown in the drawing alternate blanks having been omitted to avoid overcrowding
but it is to be understood that any desired number of blanks or shafts may
be used.
Each blank has a hole 6 through which the needles 7 of the dobby can pass
when opposite to the holes. The blanks 5 are free to rise and fall in the
reciprocating frame 4. The position of the needles regulates the position of the
hooks 8 by which the shafts are lifted as will be well understood by those
conversant with weaving machinery without further description. The recipro-
cating motion of the links 3: brings the blanks. 5 up to the needles 7 at each
stroke and pushing them back by compressing their springs 7 causes the shafts
corresponding thereto to go down unless one or other of the blanks is down when
the hole therein comes.opposite its corresponding needle and allows the ends of the
needle to pass through when the particular shaft corresponding to that needle
goes: up..
In Fig. one of the blanks 5" is shown up while the others are all down with
the holes opposite to the needles.
The blanks 5 rest each on separate hinged levers 9. pivoted on a crossbar 10.
Each lever 9 has at its underside a spur or projection 9*.
On the rocking shaft 11 is mounted what is technically known as the cylinder or
barrel which according to our invention is built in sections as hereinafter described.
From the said barrel are suspended chains 12 which hang freely downwards. The
said chains have special links or projections 12" (see Fig. 5) distributed throughout
the length of the chain in such a manner as to cause the levers 9 resting thereou to
rise by the passage of a special link 12 under the spurs 9*. The blanks 5 resting

page_text: on the raised levers are thereby raised into the position 5" of Fig. 1 and the
needle corresponding thereto, being pushed back the shaft controlled thereby
drops.
According to one method of constructing the barrel we assemble on the shaft 11
a series of sections such as shown in front view in Fig. 7 and in side view in Fig. 8..
These sections consist of a cam plate 13 formed integral with or attached to a chain.
wheel 14 which engages with the chain 12 and effects the revolution of the latter.
The chain wheels and the cam plates are so arranged that when weaving the body
part of say a Turkish towel the cam plates 13' lie and revolve between the
spurs 9*
and are inoperative.
When however it is desired to weave a different effect at any desired point in
the length of the piece as for example a heading, cross border or the like the chain
barrel is slid endwise through a distance equal to half the distance of the chains.
from each other. Thereupon the chains come between the hinged levers and are
inoperative while the cam plates 13 act instead of them on the spurs 9* and thus
operate the shafts for weaving the heading for as many picks as may be necessary
when the barrel is slid back into its former position.
Instead of cams alternating with chains we use two sets of chain wheels as
in Fig. 6 each with its chain alternating with each other so as to produce different
effects as one or the other set of chains is brought into operation by the sliding of
the barrel. The sliding of the barrel may be effected by hand or automatically
after any given number of picks. This may conveniently be effected by means of
special chains revolving on the barrel and provided with levers such as 9 which are
caused to lift when the change of the pattern is desired to take place and thereby
to pull a chain or lever which shall slide the barrel. Particular means for sliding
the barrel form however no part of our said invention and they can be readily
devised to suit any special case.
The shaft lifting devices are driven in the usual way as indicated in dotted
lines in Fig. 3. A lever 17 in the shaft 15 is operated by a link or rod 16 driven
from the crank shaft of the loom in the usual way.
Fig. 4 illustrates the means we prefer to adopt for driving the shaft 11 and the
sectional barrel and also for operating the back shaft 1. Fig. 4 is an elevation as
seen from the right hand side of Fig. 1. The side shaft 18 mounted in suitable
bearings 19 and 20 is driven through the bevel wheel 21 from a pinion deriving
motion from the picking shaft or other convenient part of the loom. A bevel
pinion 22 drives a bevel wheel 23 secured to or formed integral with a spur pinion 24
which in turn gears into a spur wheel 25 secured to the shaft 11. The number
of teeth in the respective wheels is proportioned to the speed at which it is desired
to drive the shaft 11 as compared with that of the part of the loom from whence
the shaft 18 is driven.
At the other end of the shaft 18 is a lever 26 (shown in side view in Fig 44)
having antifriction bowls or rollers 26 at each end. Under the lever 26 is a
lever 27 pivoted on a stud 28. The free arm of the lever 27 projects outwards
at right angles to the plane of the paper and is provided with a projection 27*.
As the antifriction rollers 26 revolve they come in contact with the projec-
tion 27 and depressing the lever 27 cause the latter to pull by means of the
chain 28 on the lever 29 secured on the back shaft 1. The effect of this is to
depress the lever 29 in the direction of the arrow and thereby to pull the
frame 4 against the ends of the needles. When the roller 26 has passed the
projection 27 the effect of the springs 7" on the needles (reinforced if need be
by an additional spring or weight applied at any convenient part) is to cause
the needles to push the frame 4 back again and to reverse the rotation of the
shaft 1 whereby the levers 29 and 27 are again lifted. Other suitable means may
be readily devised for operating the shafts 11 and 1.
We are aware that chains having raised links or projections have already been
used in connection with shaft machines for looms and we do not claim them apart
from the combination of mechanism constituting our said invention.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is-
1. The combination of a chain barrel built up of sections such as shown
in Figs. 5 and 6 or 7 and 8 the levers 9, the chains 12, the reciprocating frame 4,
the vertically sliding blanks 5, and the needles 7 substantially as and for the
purpose set forth and shown.
2. In a shaft machine for looms the combination of a longitudinally displaceable
chain barrel having cam plates 13 alternating with chain wheels 14, chains such
as 12, levers such as 9 and reciprocating blanks such as 5 substantially as and for
the purpose set forth and shown.
3. In a shaft machine for looms the combination of a longitudinally displaceable
chain barrel having two sets of chains alternating with each other and capable of
being successively used in order to vary the pattern, the chains 12, the levers 9,
with the horizontally reciprocating and vertically displaceable blanks 5 substantially
as set forth and shown.
Dated this 29th day of June 1895.
E. T. WHITELOW, A.M. Inst. C.E.,
70 Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicants.