IMPROVEMENTS IN KNITTING MACHINERY
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Bernoulli Barlow, of the City of Man-
chester, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN KNITTING
MACHINERY."-A communication from abroad by Nicolas Berthelot, of
Paris, in the Empire of France, Machine Maker.
Sealed the 28th November 1861, and dated the 25th June 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Bernoulli Barlow
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th June 1861.
I, HENRY BERNOULLI BARLOW, of the City of Manchester, Patent Agent,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
KNITTING MACHINERY," a communication to me from abroad by Nicolas
Berthelot, of Paris, in the Empire of France, Machine Maker, to be as
follows:-
The object of this Invention is to produce knitted fabrics of varying widths.
by means of certain improved arrangements of self-acting machinery, which
are applicable to rectilinear and to circular frames.
The improvements consist in the general arrangement of the whole of the
parts, in the peculiar construction of some of the parts, and in the mechanism
for actuating the sinkers, and parts in connection therewith, to form the stitches
or meshes. The needles are stationary, but the sinkers by which the thread
or yarn is guided are actuated to and fro, and up and down, by means of three
cam bars furnished with the requisite elevations and depressions.

page_text: Another part of this Invention consists in the mechanism for reducing the
number of needles according to the width of the stocking, or other article to
be knitted; the reduction is effected by a division wheel, to which one or more
toothed segments are attached; these segments act in combination with a
vertical and two horizontal racks which are in communication with the needles,
or a compound sliding rack with suitable levers may be used in lieu of the
division wheel above referred to.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henry Bernoulli Barlow in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 21st December 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
BERNOULLI BARLOW, of the City of Manchester, Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors; give and grant unto me, the said
Henry Bernoulli Barlow, Her special licence that I, the said Henry Bernoulli
Barlow, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Henry Bernoulli Barlow, 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 Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN KNITTING MACHINERY," being a communication to me from
abroad by Nicolas Berthelot, of Paris, in the Empire of France, Machine
Maker, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Henry Bernoulli
Barlow, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe-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 Henry Bernoulli Barlow, 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, that is to say:

page_text: The object of this Invention is to produce knitted fabrics of varying widths
by means of certain improved arrangements of self-acting machinery, which
are applicable to rectilinear and to circular frames.
The improvements consist in the general arrangement of the whole of the
parts, in the peculiar construction of some of the parts, and in the mechanism
for actuating the jacks or sinkers, and parts in connection therewith, to form
the stitches or meshes. The needles are stationary, but the jacks or sinkers
by which the thread or yarn is guided are actuated to and fro, and up and
down, by means of three cam bars furnished with the requisite elevations and
depressions.
:
"
Another part of this Invention consists in the mechanism for reducing the
number of needles according. to the width of the stocking or other article to be
knitted; the reduction or narrowing is effected by a division wheel, to which
one or more toothed segments are attached; these segments act in combina-
tion with a vertical and two horizontal racks, which are in communication with
the needles, or a compound sliding: rack with suitable levers may be used in
lieu of the division. wheel, above referred to..
,་
.
And in order that the Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into operation, I will proceed to describe the two accompanying Sheets of
Drawings, reference being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
On Sheet 1, Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a rectilinear self-acting knitting
machine or frame, constructed according to these improvements; Fig. 2 is a
sectional elevation through the line 1, 2, on Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan in section
through the line 3, 4, on Fig. 1; Figs. 4 and 5 are detached views of the
eccentric cam bars; and Figs: 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are detached views of the
jacks and sinkers, and parts connected therewith. .
The machine consists of the handle a, by which motion. is given to the
shaft w;
the pinion 6 on the shaft a gears into the wheel b, and gives motion
to it, and to the crank c, which by means of .the link c', levers d and d², com-
municates the requisite to-and-fro motion to the table e, which slides in the
bed f, see Fig. 2. On one side of the table e are fixed the cam bars o and u,
attached to the plate g, and at the other side. is the eccentric cam bar q
attached to the plate h. To the tablete is also attached the bracket i¹ for the
two little presses i, i, and the pieces k, k, which are called supporters and
depressers; these various pieces are moved to and fro with the table e; m is
the needle bar, and j-the needles, fixed in the copper. plate, or back l¹, which
is held by the clip 7. The needle bar m is supported in the slides m³, and its
level can be regulated by the screws m³ ; q¹ is the bar for the thread or yarn
carriers t, fixed to the guide bar n', which slides freely on the bar q', being

page_text: beld by bridles; the top bar p¹ actuates the guide bar n¹, which is moved with
the table e. The rack bars o¹, o', are fixed to each end of the guide bar n¹;
the object of these racks is to stop the said guide bar, and the division of the
teeth corresponds to that of the needles.
The operation of the sinkers and plates or jacks is as follows, and the
various positions they assume in working are shewn in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9,
and 10; it will be sufficient to describe the operation of one set, as all the
others are similar; the plate or jack p, in Fig. 6, is in the starting posi-
tion, and it passes, between the teeth of the combs n and v; it is held in
position by the eccentric cam bars o, u, and q. The jack p now descends,
being acted upon by the eccentric cam bars, and it is brought into the position
for taking the yarn, as shewn in Fig. 7, pressure is then applied while the cam
bars bring the jack to the barb of the needles j, when the loop is opened;
as shewn in Fig. 8. The jack then rises and advances beyond the end of the
needle sufficiently to produce the closing of the loop, as shewn in Fig. 9. The.
jack being always guided by the cam bars now descends, takes hold of the
fabric, and causes it to return on to the body of the needle, as shewn in
Fig. 10, after which it resumes the position shewn in Fig. 6, and the same
operations are repeated for every row of the fabric.
In Figs. 4 and 5 the spaces from 6 to 6¹, or from 10 to 10¹, represent the
shapes of the cams for acting on the jacks to knit the fabric; therefore the
operations of a single jack, as illustrated in the Figs. 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, are
produced by the points marked 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, or 61, 7, 8, 9, and 10¹.
The method of reducing or narrowing the width of the knitted fabric is as
follows, and as the mechanism is alike on both sides of the machine, it will
be sufficient to describe one side. Each end of the shaft r¹ is furnished with
a stud, and these studs fit in two columns, which support the narrowing or
diminishing bars, to which is connected the pin (poincon) r, see Fig. 2, fixed
in a rack bar divided to correspond with the racks o¹, o', which are connected
by the rod s¹. The counter is the wheel E containing 300 angular teeth; the
circumference of this wheel is rather greater than the length of a stocking;
the wheel E gears into a pinion with 25 teeth mounted on the same shaft as
the ratchet wheel F with 50 teeth. The number of teeth in these wheels are
only given as an example, and may be varied. At every movement of the
lever 'd, the lever d¹ raises and depresses the vertical rod H, which moves the
ratchet wheel F one tooth forward, consequently the wheel E advances half a
tooth. To this wheel E are fixed the narrowing plate M, having the teeth R
for forming the calf of the leg, and the narrowing plate N with the teeth T.
The number of these teeth depends upon the quantity of meshes or stitches to

page_text: be reduced, and the division depends upon the width or the number of meshes
which it is intended to have between the narrowings. The distances between the
plates M and N depends upon the space to be left between the calf and the heel.
I also intend to substitute a rack with teeth for the plates M and N, as will be
described hereafter. The pin r is put in operation by the teeth R on the
plate M, or by the teeth T of the plate N; consequently when one of the
teeth R comes in contact with the lever x, in Fig. 2, this. lever takes forward
the lever y, when the narrowing mechanism s, which was held at the extre-
mity of the lever y, is liberated, and being acted upon by a spring it describes
the arc of a circle, bringing the pin r over the needles j, and pressing upon
them, the jacks p being acted upon by the curves a, a, see Figs. 4 and 5; then
bring the meshes on to the end of the pin r, the pin then raises the meshes
above the barbs of the needles j, and the piece v', which traverses with the table e,
comes against and turns the piece y¹ sufficiently for moving the rack of the
narrowing mechanism one tooth forward; the space of one tooth being equal
to the distance between two needles, it follows that the pin r advances or
carries forward the meshes of two needles. The rod s¹ being connected with
y', and moving with it, causes the rack o¹ to move also one tooth, as well as
the thread holder t fixed to the bar n', the pin again lowers on to the points
of the needles; the jacks, owing to the shape and motion of the curves a, are
lowered, take hold of, and withdraw the meshes from the pin, and take the
whole fabric forward on to the body of the needles. The pin r having per-
formed its operations is thrown back by the cam t', see Fig. 3, which places it
in its original position, where it is held at the extremity of the lever y until
another tooth R of the plate M again comes into action, and causes it to
repeat the same operations; the teeth T then act upon it in like manner to
produce the narrowing for the heel. The heel is entirely formed by the nar-
rowing apparatus, and has a selvage at each side, so that it does not require
to be cut, as in the present rectilinear knitting frames, thus economising labor
and material.
I will now proceed to describe the mechanism before referred to for effecting.
the narrowing by a rack instead of the wheel E; the other parts of the frame
are similar to those above described.
Fig. 11 is an elevation of the various parts of this narrowing apparatus, and
Fig. 12 a section of the same.
D is a double rack with inclined teeth, which
receives its motion from the two levers c and c¹; these two levers are hinged
to a three-armed lever h, mounted on a stud o¹. The piece i is fixed to the
table e, which in its to-and-fro motion comes in contact with the vertical arm
of the lever h, thereby causing it to oscillate on the stud o¹, and the levers.c

page_text: and c¹, acting alternately on the double rack, cause it to move a tooth down-
wards at every oscillation. To the same plate as the rack D are fixed the
narrowing plates M¹ and N¹.
The above parts may be placed horizontally instead of vertically, as shewn.
Owing to the length of the rack D, if it should be requisite to make very long
narrowings, I apply a counter to the table e, which acts on the finger i, and
brings it in contact with the lever h at a given time, that is to say, at the
moment when the narrowings should commence. The plates M¹ and N¹,
instead of having teeth R¹, as shewn in Fig. 11, may be made with recesses,
and the table e, instead of working in slides, as shewn in Fig. 2, may be
supported in brackets turning on cast-iron rails, thereby rendering the action
of the machine more regular, easier to turn, and capable of being regulated
with accuracy.
On Sheet 2, Fig. 1 is a front elevation, and Fig. 2 a plan, of a modification
of the improved narrowing apparatus. On the same axle as the spoke wheel P
is fixed the pinion O, gearing into the rack B. To the table e, which has a
rectilinear to-and-fro motion, is fixed a catch h, which comes into contact with
one of the spokes of the wheel P, and moves the rack a certain distance; the
catch h is hinged to the table e, so that it may ride over the spoke wheel P on
its return motion, and it is brought into its original position after passing the
spoke wheel by the spring i, which presses it against the stop k. The same
effects are produced on the second rack A, Fig. 2, which is moved in the
contrary direction to that of the rack B by the spoke wheel P¹. To prevent
any irregularity in the motion of the racks a ratchet wheel R, with a retaining
catch, is applied to the axle of each spoke wheel. Both the racks A and B
have angular teeth, and move in slides on the table D. The plates M and N
are moved, as shewn in Fig. 11 of Sheet I.; the teeth are of the same
shape, and act on the lever S, hinged at q.
As the lengths and proportions of the narrowings of the stockings must be
varied, the apparatus shewn in Fig. 3 may be employed; a series of small s
holes are placed at distances apart corresponding to the narrowing required,
and screwed studs are fitted into the holes according to the length of the
narrowings; the levers & act against these studs, instead of the teeth above
described.
In Fig. 11 of Sheet 1, and in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 of Sheet 2, the plates
M', N', and M, N, must be changed to vary the proportions of the
narrowing.
Fig. 4 represents an elevation of a narrowing apparatus, consisting of the
triangular threaded screw a, supported in the bearings h and i; to one end is

page_text: fixed the bevel wheel b, which is driven by the pinion c, fixed on the driving
shaft of the machine; on the screw a are mounted two bearings o, o¹, con-:
taining nuts, which can be tightened by the screws 8, 81; these bearings are
connected by the rod d, and to them are attached the plates m and n, furnished-
with teeth r and t, the distance between which is regulated according to the
narrowing required. These teeth act on the lever q, which gives motion to the
pins (poincons), as described in reference to Sheet 1.
Fig. 5 is an elevation of another narrowing apparatus, possessing, the:
advantage of only requiring a short rack, and only acting on the narrowing
plates, at the time when the narrowing of the calf of the stocking commences.,
This apparatus consists of the bar s, sliding on rollers 1, on the fixed bar V.
The bar s supports the rack a, furnished with a certain number of angular;
teeth. To the ratchet wheel c is fixed the pinion b, gearing into the rack a.
The lever o communicates a rectilinear to-and-fro motion to the table. On:
this lever is mounted the star wheel f, see also Fig. 6, the ratchet wheel g,
and a screw h, having a nut i, which is prevented from turning round by the.
rod p. The star wheel fis moved round for one tooth every time the lever o
brings it against the stud y, fixed to the under side of the bar V. After a
certain number of oscillations of the lever o, the nut i is moved beyond the
thread of the screw h, and being acted upon by a spring moves to the end of
the rod p; when in this position it touches the extremities j, j, of the balance
lever z, and causes it to vibrate on the centre stud k; on each side of the
stud k are jointed the palls or catches d, e, taking in the ratchet wheel c,.
thereby causing it to advance one tooth for every oscillation of the lever o; by
this means the rack a and the plate m, with the teeth r, r, are put in motion,
and actuate the lever q. A counterweight may be connected to the bar s.
Fig. 7 is an elevation of another improved narrowing apparatus; the rack g
in this combination is also very short. The apparatus consists of a worm f,
fixed to the driving shaft, or other convenient shaft of the machine. This worm
gears into the wheel e, fixed to a shaft, to which is also fixed a cam repre-
senting the entire length of the stocking. In this cam are two recesses a, c,
corresponding to the narrowing of the calf and the heel. The pointer h bears
on the cam, and is guided by two studs. The upper end of the pointer h is
jointed to the catch i, gearing in the rack g. The catch i is jointed to the
lever k, mounted on the stud y. The hook is fixed to the table e of the
frame, so that at each traverse of the table the hook 1, acting on the lever k,
moves the rack g for one tooth, and it is held by the retaining catch j, but
when the projections 6 and d on the can raise the pointer h, the catch i is held
above the rack, and no motion is communicated to it. By this means the cam

page_text: may have a certain number of curves, according to the narrowings required,
and without changing the system of the rack, which can be made to work
with a certain amount of friction, thereby dispensing with the counter-
weight P.
Fig. 8 is a modification of Fig. 7. In this case the cam causes the pointer h
to act horizontally.
Having thus stated the nature of the Invention as communicated to me,
and described the manner of performing the same, I declare that I claim,
First, the general arrangement and combination of the machinery shewn in
Sheet 1, for knitting fabrics.
Secondly, the improved construction of plates or jacks p, shewn in Fig. 6
of Sheet 1, and the apparatus by which they are actuated, whether the same
be applied to the improved machinery shewn in the Drawing, or to any other
machinery for knitting.
And, thirdly, the various improved self-acting combinations of machinery
for effecting the "narrowing," as shewn and described in reference to the.
various Figures on Sheets 1 and 2.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Bernoulli Barlow, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
D DADLO
DADIOW
DARED
H. B. BAR
(5.)