CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING ENGINES."
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Dobson, of the Firm of Messrs. Dobson
and Barlow, of Bolton, in the County of Lancaster, Machine Makers,
and William Slater, of the same Place, Manager, for the Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING ENGINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Dobson and
Willian Slater at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with.
their Petition, on the 31st July 1867.
We, BENJAMIN DOBSON, of the Firm of Messrs. Dobson and Barlow, of
Bolton, in the County of Lancaster, Machine Makers, and WILLIAM SLATER,
of the same Place, Manager, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING ENGINES," to be as
follows:-
Our Invention relates to the carding engines for which Letters Patent
were granted to George Wellman on the 11th September, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty, No. 2190 and known as Wellman's Patent carding engines.
In those carding engines the top flats are raised and lowered by a cam or
by a series of curves on the face of the lifting wheels, acting on pins in the
slides in the radial arms. Now our Invention consists in dispensing with
these curves and pins and lifting the top flats by a bowl on the lifting wheel
acting on a curved surface on the slides, which are drawn down by springs as
soon as the bowls have passed; by this means the top flats are rapidly raised
and lowered again into their proper working place, and thereby better work is
produced and time saved.

page_text: Another part of our Invention consists in the application of a ratchet
wheel to the cross driving shaft, and a catch to the radial arm to prevent the
said shaft from moving in the wrong direction.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 29th January 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, BENJAMIN
DOBSON, of the Firm of Messieurs Dobson and Barlow, of Bolton, in the
County of Lancaster, Machine Makers, and WILLIAM SLATER, of the same
Place, Manager, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of ller
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater, Her special license that we, the
said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Benjamin Dobson and William
Slater, our 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN CARDING ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater, our executors or administrators, by
an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of our or 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 we, the said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater,
do hereby declare the nature of our 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) :-
Our Invention relates to the carding engines for which Letters Patent
were granted to George Wellman on the 11th September 1860, No. 2190,
and known as Wellman's Patent carding engines.

page_text: In those carding engines the top flats were raised and lowered by a cam or
by a series of curves on the face of the lifting wheels, acting on pius in the
slides in the radial arms. Now our Invention consists in dispensing with
these cams or curves and pins, and lifting the top flats by a bowl on the
lifting wheel acting on a curved surface on the slides, which are drawn down
by springs as soon as the bowls have passed; by this means the top flats are
rapidly raised and lowered again into their proper working place, and thereby
better work is produced and time saved.
Another part of our. Invention consists in the application of a ratchet
wheel to the cross driving shaft and a catch to the radial arm to prevent the
said shaft from moving in the wrong direction.
And in order that our Invention may be more fully understood we will
proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of Drawings.
Figure 1 is an elevation of part of the framing of a carding engine and of
our improvements; Figure 2 is a section of the framing and side view of our
improvements; and Figures 3 and 4 are detached views of parts of our
improvements.
The main framing of the carding engine A carries the bends B, which
support the series of "top flats" C, and to these bends are secured, one at
each side of the engine, the double mangle racks or toothed segments D, for
obtaining the desired to-and-fro travelling motion of the radial arms E, which
carry the "flat" raising and stripping mechanism, and the gearing for driving
the same.
These radial arms are supported by and work round the pedestals
which carry the main cylinder shaft F; near the upper ends of the radial
arnis are mounted the wheels G; each of these wheels has a small anti-
friction bowl H working on studs I, which are secured to the wheels G ;
these studs and bowls are used for the purpose of raising and lowering the
slides X, seen best in Figure 3, which act upon the "top flats." The
wheels G have also attached or cast to one face on the opposite side to the
bowl H an internal cam J, in the grooves of which work the small antifriction,
bowls K carried by studs fixed in the levers L, these levers being jointed to
the radial arms near to their fulcra. At the upper end of the levers L are
secured the ends of the board M, to which is fastened the stripping card N,
which cleans the top flats. The upper ends of the two radial arms E are
connected together by a cross rail E¹, which passes over the top of the card.
Upon each side of the carding engine are similar cams, wheels, and studs, as
before named, to which rotatory motion is imparted by a small pulley O fixed on
the end of the main cylinder shaft F. The pulley O drives by means of a strap
the pulley P, which is fixed on the cross shaft Q; the cross shaft is supported.

page_text: at each end by the radial arms. On the shaft Q are two pinions R, R³, which
work into two carrier wheels S, S¹; these carrier wheels work on studs
secured to the radial arms, and have each of them a pinion T, T¹, fixed to
them; these pinions work into and drive the wheels G, G¹. It is by these
means that motion is transmitted from one side of the card to the other, so
that both sets of gearing rotate together. One portion of the periphery of
each of the wheels G, G', is provided with an extra segment of teeth, which
gears into and imparts one rotation to the pinions U, U', carried on the
ends of the swing arms V, V₁, as best shewn in Figure 1, which are jointed
to studs on the radial arms E. Each of the pinions U, U¹, is provided with
a lock plate, which by bearing upon the turned rims of the wheels G, G',
holds the radial arms stationary after each revolution of the pinions U, U'.
A second pinion W, W¹, is fixed on the axis of each of the pinions U, U',
and these gear into the toothed segments D, hence it follows that at each
revolution of the pinions W a forward motion will be imparted to the radial
arms, which motion enables it to pass from one top card or "flat" to another.
At the upper end of each of the radial arms is a slot in which the slides X
work; these slides are curved on the under surface in such a manner that
the bowls H first raise them together with the top flat to their full height; after
this the slides together with the top flat lower a little so as to bring the wire
clothing of the top flat C in contact with the stripping card N; the internal
cams J then act upon the levers L and withdraw the stripper M from under-
neath the top "flat," bringing all the impurities along with it. About the
time that the stripper has withdrawn from underneath the top "flat" the
bowls H begin to leave the slides X, X', on one side of each of which is a curved
incline which comes in contact with the bowls H as the bowls are carried
round by the wheels G; thus by varying the shape of these curved inclines
on the slides the speed at which the "top flats" are let down again into their
working position can be regulated. To each of the slides X, X', is fastened
one end of a spiral spring X³, the other end of which is secured to the radial
arms. The object of these springs is to draw down the slides as soon as the
bowls H have passed their lower ends; by these means the "top flats" are
more rapidly raised and lowered down again into their proper working position
than has hitherto been done when using cams or a series of curves on the face
of the wheels G for raising and lowering the "top flats;" thus producing
better work, because the cleaned wire of the "top flat" is brought into work
with the main cylinder in less time than before.
Another part of our Invention, shewn in Figures 1 and 2, consists in the
application of a ratchet wheel Y which is secured to the shaft Q, and a

page_text: catch Z which is jointed to the radial arm E; the object of this ratchet
wheel and catch is to prevent the stripping apparatus from moving in the
wrong direction. When the cross driving shaft Q is turning in the proper
direction the teeth of the ratchet wheel slide past the catch and lift it up;
but if in case the shaft attempted to turn in the wrong direction, by reason
of the driving strap of the stripping apparatus being put on the wrong way,
then the catch Z would fall into the teeth of the ratchet wheel Y and arrest
its motion.
A mechanical equivalent for effecting the same object is shewn in Figure 4.
The pulley P has one half of a catch box with ratchet teeth upon it, and
runs loose upon the shaft, whilst another half of a catch box (having
corresponding ratchet teeth and turning with the shaft, but capable of sliding
endwise on a key) is held in gear with the first half by a light spring when
the shaft Q is turning in the proper direction; but if in case the pulley P
is turned in the wrong direction then the ratchet teeth of the two boxes
would slide over each other and arrest the motion of the stripping apparatus.
Having now described the nature of our improvements, and the manner
in which the same are or may be carried into effect, we desire to say that we
do not claim any of those parts described and shewn, which are well known
and in common use; but what we do claim is, the mechanical combination
and arrangement of the parts marked G, H, and I, the slides X, and the
springs X³ for lifting and drawing down the top flats, and the application of
the wheel Y and the catch Z, or any mechanical equivalent that may be used
to prevent the cross driving shaft being driven in the wrong direction, as
described and as shewn in the Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said Benjamin Dobson and William Slater,
have hereto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-seventh day of
January, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.