IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR COMBING HEMP, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Jules Lecoq, of the City of Le Mans, in the French
Empire, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVED MACHINERY
FOR COMBING HEMP, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Sealed the 30th November 1866, and dated the 2nd June 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Jules Lecoq at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 2nd
June 1866.
I, JULES LECOQ, of the City of Le Mans, in the French Empire, Manu-
facturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR COMBING HEMP, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as
follows:-
My Invention consists of an improved combination or arrangement of
machinery hereafter described and represented in the annexed Drawings,
characterized chiefly by,-
1st, the arrangement of the working parts and the means of transmitting
the motion as hereafter described, more especially a reversing lever, two
endless chains carrying combs, two fluted cylinders, a drum carrying cards
provided with pins or points, a flat saw-toothed or notched iron strip, a
travelling apron, and a brush, all as bereafter described; secondly, the employ-

page_text: ment of what I term a reversing box, as hereafter described, of which the
particular arrangement of gearing permits of the movement in either direction
according as it is required to produce the combing of the hemp or other
material or to carry it back in order to recommence the operation on the
other end or upon another bundle with an accelerated movement; thirdly,
the employment of a lever for effecting the change of motion of the apron in
order to carry forward or withdraw the hemp or other material. The machine
is composed of two side frames, the distance of which is variable; they are
each formed of two uprights and three transverse bars, and are connected by
The
cross bars or stays. The frames support eleven horizontal shafts.
upper transverse bar carries three of these shafts, viz., the driving shaft and
two shafts round which an endless chain is carried, which supports 18 combs,
as hereafter described. The middle transverse bar also supports three shafts,
viz., two shafts round which a second endless chain passes which is furnished
with only 12 combs, and a shaft which receives its motion from the driving
shaft by the intermediation of an inclined shaft and mitre wheels and pinions;
the motion is transmitted from this shaft, which receives its motion from the
driving shaft, by means of pinions and wheels enclosed in a box as hereafter
described to the axes of two fluted cylinders. The lower transverse bar carries
the shaft of a wooden cylinder furnished with inclined pins or points to
constitute a carding drum for receiving the tow from brushes fixed on another
wooden cylinder, the shaft of which revolves in a support bolted to the lower
transverso bar. Another shaft on the lower transverse bar receives two
alternate movements by a crank, connecting rod, and excentric turning on a
pin which is worked by one of the shafts of the lower endless chain by means
of two pulleys and a belt. The shaft which receives two alternate movements
carries two rods fixed to a horizontal flat iron strip which is cut with saw
teeth at its lower part for the object of removing from the carding drum the
tow which it has received from the brush which receives it from the combs, as
hereafter described. The shafts are driven as follows:-A toothed wheel
fixed to the driving shaft at the side of the driving pulley gives motion to one
of the shafts of the lower endless chain by means of another toothed wheel and to
one of the shafts of the upper endless chain by means of two toothed wheels,
one of which is only an intermediate wheel fixed on a movable spindle carried
by an upright. The motion being thus given to the two endless chains which
carry the combs it remains to drive the carding drum and the brush. For
this purpose a pinion fixed to the shaft of the lower endless chain between the
wheel which actuates this shaft and the frame gears into an intermediate

page_text: wheel which again is in gear with a wheel fixed to the shaft of the brush.
This shaft also carries at its end a pinion which drives a toothed wheel fixed
on the drum shaft. At the back of the machine two transverse picces bolted
to the frame and kept up by brackets support two small wooden cylinders,
round which an apron is wound to receive the hemp or material to be combed.
The hemp enters between the two fluted cylinders before mentioned which are
clothed with caoutchouc before reaching the combs. At the end of the lower
fluted cylinder is a pinion which drives the pinion of one of the wooden cylinders
by means of an intermediate pinion.
I now proceed to describe how the double motion by which these cylinders
are actuated is imparted to them. I obtain this result by the arrangement of
a box which I term a reversing box shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3. The
back and the cover of this box are each formed with a hole, through which
the shaft fpasses (this shaft is that which is before mentioned as receiving its
motion by means of an inclined shaft from the driving shaft); they are also
formed with a guide or groove in the form of an arc of a circle which receives
the shaft of one of the fluted cylinders. To one of the sides of the box the
end of a connecting rod L is fixed, which is jointed to a lever in such manner
that on moving the lever forward the box by turning upon the shaft ƒ as a
pivot and bearing upon the shaft by its guide or groove inclines at its upper
part towards the front of the machine. The effect of this change of position
is to change the motion of the shaft 1, because in this position of the box this
shaft receives its movement from the shaft f by the intermediation of the
pinions P, Q, N (see Figure 8), while in the first position of the box the
small pinion O of the shaft gears into the intermediate wheel R, whereby a
motion in the opposite direction and an increased speed of the shaft are
obtained (see Figure 2). The endless chains aro composed of two rows of
eight iron links or parts fixed to each other in fours. Teeth fixed to the
chain shafts draw these chains, the covering or band of which receives the
combs. The chains move over intermediate rollers, and guide bars prevent the
rising and lowering of the combs in their travel. As wear and use have the
effect of lengthening the chains their moving shafts turn in movable bearings
the position of which is easily changed by screws. The change of position of
the axes of the carding drum and of the saw-toothed strip is obtained by the
same means. The intermediate toothed wheels have their spindles fitted in
movable guides or grooves similar to that described with reference to the
Figures, and it is sufficient to loosen the nut which presses these guides
against the frame in order to allow of the change of position. As the distance

page_text: between the fluted cylinders ought to vary according to the thickness of the
bundles of hemp which enter between them, and as the lifting of the upper
cylinder should be prevented by a sufficient pressure, I place upon this cylinder
a plank or a flat strip of metal which receives the two ends of a spring tightened
by a pressure screw, the fixed nut of which is in an arched beam above the
spring.
The action of the machine is as follows:-By giving to the driving pulley
a mean speed of, say, 72 turns a minute, the reversing lever being in its
forward position, it is sufficient to lay the hemp or material to bo operated on
upon the apron at the back of the machine. The hemp being seized by the
fluted cylinders is carried into the space be ween the two endless chains to be
submitted to the action of their combs, which travelling in the same direction
separate and retain the tow. The lower chain first clears the upper chain of
this tow, and then gives it off to the cylinder carrying the brushes, which
deliver it to the carding drum; this drum is constantly cleared by the blows
of the saw-toothed strip, and the tow finally falls upon the ground. When
the bundle of hemp is sufficiently combed from one end the reversing lever
is moved back; the same operation is repeated for the other end, and the
bundle of hemp is then removed and another supplied to the apron.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Jules Lecoq in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
30th November 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JULES
LECOQ, of the City of Le Mans, in the French Empire, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and graut unto
me, the said Jules Lecoq, Her special licence that I, the said Jules
Lecoq, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Jules Lecoq, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter

page_text: 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 " IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR COMBING HEMP, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Jules Lecoq, 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 bo
performed, and causo 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 Jules Lecoq, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
that is to say :-
My Invention consists of an improved combination or arrangement of
machinery hereafter described and represented in the annexed Drawings,
characterized chiefly by, first, the arrangement of the working parts, and the
means of transmitting the motion, as hereafter described, more especially a
reversing lever, two endless chains carrying combs, two fluted cylinders, a
drum carrying cards provided with pins or points, a flat saw-toothed or
notched iron strip, a travelling apron, and a brush, all as hereafter described;
secondly, the employment of what I term a reversing box, as hereafter
described, of which the particular arrangement of gearing permits of the
movement in either direction according as it is required to produce the
combing of the hemp or other material, or to carry it back in order to
recommence the operation on the other end, or upon another bundle, with an
accelerated movement; thirdly, the employment of a lever for effecting the
change of motion of the apron in order to carry forward or withdraw
the hemp or other material.
Figure 1 is a side elevation and Figure 2 a front elevation of a machine
constructed according to my Invention; Figures 3, 4, and 5 represent the
reversing mechanism of differential speed.
The machine is composed of two side frames a, a, the distance of which
is variable; they are each formed of two uprights and three transverse bars,
and are connected by cross bars or stays b. These frames support eleven
horizontal shafts. The upper transverse bar carries three of these shafts,

page_text: viz., the driving shaft c and two shafts d, d', round which an endless chain
is carried, which supports 18 combs, as hereafter described; the middle
transverse bar also supports three shafts, viz., two shafts e, o, round which a
second endless chain passes which is furnished with only 12 combs and a
shaft f, which receives its motion from the driving shaft by the intermediation
of an inclined shaft g and mitre wheels and pinions h, i, j, l; tho motion is
transmitted from the shaft f by means of pinions and wheels enclosed in a
box, as hereafter described, to the axes of two fluted cylinders 1, . The
lower transverse bar carries the shaft m of a wooden cylinder furnished with
inclined pins or points to constitute a carding drum for receiving the tow from
brushes fixed on another wooden cylinder, the shaft n of which revolves in
a support bolted to the lower transverse bar. The shaft o receives two
alternate movements by a crank p, connecting rod q, and excentric r turning
on a pin s which is worked by the shaft e by means of two pulleys t, t', and
a belt u. This shaft o carries two rods v fixed to a flat iron strip which
is cut with saw teeth at its lower part for the object of removing from tho
carding drum the tow which it has received from the brush which receives it
from the combs as hereafter described.
The shafts are driven as follows:-The dotted circles in Figure 1 indicate
the toothed wheels at the other side of the machine. A toothed wheel A,
fixed to the sbaft c at the side of the driving pulley y, gives motion to the
shafte by means of a wheel B, and to the shaft d by means of the wheels C
and D, the latter being only an intermediate wheel fixed on a movable
spindle carried by an upright z. The motion being thus given to the two
endless chains which carry the combs it remains to drive the carding drum
and the brush. For this purpose a pinion E, fixed to the shaft e between the
wheel B and the frame, gears into an intermediate wheel F, which again is in
gear with a wheel G fixed to the shaft of the brush. This shaft also carries
at its end a pinion II which drives a toothed wheel I fixed on the drum shaft.
At the back of the machine two transverse pieces a bolted to the frame
and kept up by brackets & support two small wooden cylinders J, J', round
which an apron K is wound to receive the hemp or material to be combed.
The hemp enters between the two fluted cylinders 1, 1, clothed with caoutchouc
before reaching the combs. At the end of the lower fluted cylinder is a
pinion which drives the pinion of the wooden cylinder J' by means of an
intermediate pinion".
I now proceed to describe how the double motion by which these cylinders
are actuated is imparted to them. I obtain this result by the arrangement

page_text: and 5.
of a box which I term a reversing box, shown separately in Figures 3, 4,
The back and the cover of this box are each formed with a hole
hrough which the shaft ƒ passes; they are also formed with a guide or
groove in the form of an arc of a circle which receives the shaft of the fluted
cylinder . To one of the sides of the box the end of a connecting rod L
is fixed, which is jointed to a lever M in such manner that on placing tho
lever in the position M', the box by turning upon the shaft f as a pivot and
bearing upon the shaft by its guide or groove inclines at its upper part
towards the front of the machine. The effect of this change of position is to
change the motion of the shaft 1, because in this position of the box this shaft
receives its movement from the shaft f by the intermediation of the pinions
P, Q, N (see Figure 5), while in the first position of the box the small
pinion O of the shaft / gears into the intermediate wheel R, whereby a motion
in the opposite direction and an increased speed of the shaft are obtained
(see Figure 4). The endless chains are composed of two rows of 8 iron
links or parts fixed to each other in fours. Teeth fixed to the shafts e and d
draw these chains, tho covering or band T of which receives the combs U.
The chains move over intermediate rollers V, and guide bars X prevent the
rising and lowering of the combs in their travel. As wear and use have the
effect of lengthening the chains their moving shafts e and d turn in movable
bearings, the position of which is easily changed by screws Y. The change
of position of the axes of the carding drum and of the saw-toothed strip x is
obtained by the same means. The intermediate toothed wheels have their
spindles fitted in movable guides or grooves similar to that of the small
pinion, and it is sufficient to loosen the nut which presses these guides
against the frame in order to allow of the change of position. Sometimes I
substitute for the endless chains two bands of steel or other material which
As the distance between the
will not become lengthened by wear and use.
fluted cylinders ought to vary according to the thickness of the bundles of
hemp which enter between them, and as the lifting of the upper cylinder
should be prevented by a sufficient pressure I place upon this cylinder a
plank or a flat strip of metal Z', which receives the two ends of a spring A¹,
tightened by a pressure screw B', the fixed nut of which is in an arched beam
C' above the spring.
5 The action of the machine is as follows:-By giving to the driving pulley
a mean speed of, say, 72 turns a minute, the lever M being in the position
M', it is sufficient to lay the hemp or material to be operated on upon the
apron at the back of the machine. The hemp being seized by the fluted
cylinders is carried into the space between the two endless chains to be sub-

page_text: mitted to the action of their combs, which travelling in the same direction
separate and retain the tow. The lower chain first clears the upper chain
of this tow, and then gives it off to the cylinder carrying the brushes which
deliver it to the carding drum. This drum is constantly cleared by the blows
of the saw-toothed strip x, and the tow finally falls upon the ground. When
the bundle of hemp is sufficiently combed from one end the lever M is moved
back; the same operation is repeated for the other end, and the bundle of
hemp is then removed and another supplied to the apron.
gear or engage
with its notches
The reversing apparatus herein-before described may have substituted for it
the arrangement of apparatus represented in Figures 6 and 7, with sliding
collar and toothed wheels mounted loosely or freely on their shaft. The
shaft f, which is driven by the inclined shaft 9 (Figure 1), is prolonged at
the side where the driving pulley is situated, and its end is received in a
support a fixed to the frame a (Figure 1) by the nut of the stay b. On the
shaft fare mounted loosely or freely two toothed wheels b' and c¹ of bronze,
the naves of which are of tempered steel, and are cut with clicks or catches
to constitute an engaging appliance; the shaft f also carries a steel collar d',
a feather e', or flute of which draws the collar into a circular movement with-
out preventing it sliding laterally on the shaft f. A lever g', pivoted on tho
part of the support , causes the collar d', to which it is connected by a
fork and collar k¹, to move in such manner as to make it
with one or other of the loose wheels and c. The spring
or recesses serves to fix the lever g¹ in
back, and at the dead point. The shaft
and supported by the support a' (Figure
m and m¹ of bronze fixed or keyed to it. A wheel n of the same diameter
transmits the movement from the shaft f when the collar d' gears or engages
with the wheel b. When this collar gears or engages with the wheel c¹ the
shaft turns in the contrary direction and with three times the speed, a result
which it is necessary to obtain in order to diminish the loss of timo in with-
drawing the hemp. The fluted cylinders 1, 1, are by preference of the form
shewn in Figure 8, in order to avoid cutting the caoutchouc covering and
breaking the hemp, which an angular form of flute would be liable to produce.
Sometimes I join or connect two, three, or more machinos arranged as
before described, having the same shafts and prime mover; the aprons will
correspond in number to the machines.
its threo positions, viz., in front, at
of the fluted cylinder is prolonged
7); it carries two toothed wheels
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim constructing
machinery combined, arranged, and acting substantially as herein-before

page_text: described and represented in the accompanying Drawings, for combing hemp,
flax, and other fibrous materials.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jules Lecoq, have bereunto set my
band and seal, this Twenty-third day of November, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-six.
Witness,
CHI. ARMENGAND, Je..
Ingenieur Civil,
Boulevard de Strasbourg, 23,
à Paris.
J. LECOQ. (L.S)