Improvements in Warp Stop Apparatus for Looms.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Sept., 1895-Accepted, 5th Oct., 1895
CUBIT LEIN SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Warp Stop Apparatus for Looms.
A communication from abroad by WILLIAM FRANKLIN DRAPER, of Hopedale,
in the County of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, United States of
America. Manufacturer.
I ALFRED GEORGE BROOKES of 55 and 56 Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Chartered Patent Agent, 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:-
This invention has for its object the production of a warp-stop motion for looms
wherein a series of detectors are controlled by the tant or unbroken warp-threads,
each detector co-operating with and detecting the slackening or breakage of either
of two warp-threads, or anyone of a series of as many warp-threads as may be
used co-operatively with each detector, the warp-threads being separated by shed-
forming devices in such manner that of the plurality of threads co-operating with
a detector, but one thread at a time will be raised, if intact, into the upper plane
of the shed, to thereby move a detector into abnormal position out of the path of
a vibrating feeler.
range
In this invention the detectors are moved into abnormal position out of
of a vibrating feeler by the formation of the shed, oue thread at a time in each
group of warp-threads being raised, while the other thread or threads in each
group are lowered, whereby the active thread, as I shall hereinafter term it, will
act upon and move its detector into abnormal position, so long as such active
thread is taut or unbroken.
Slackening or breakage of an active thread prevents the movement of its
particular detector into abnormal position when the shed is formed, and the vibrating
feeler will engage with a detector in normal position, and, through suitable stopping
mechanism act to stop the loom before the formation of another shed.
Preferably and in most instances two warp-threads will co-operate with each
detector, so that each thread, while intact, will move the detector at the formation
of alternate sheds, but if more than two warp-threads are used with a detector,
one thread after another in each group will become the active thread.
If there are more than two warp-threads in each group, it will be obvious that
the movement of the harnesses will be so timed that every thread in each group
will be given an opportunity to move a detector into abnormal position.
My correspondent has located the detectors entirely independent of the lay,
between the shed-forming devices and the lease rods, slotting the detectors for the
passage therethrough of the co-operating warp-threads; the detectors being turned
edgewise to the front and back of the loom, serve to comb the warp, as it were,
and also prevent snarls and breakage of threads.
The detectors are made as flat slotted strips of metal placed face to face and
longitudinally movable in a suitable guide back of the harness frames, secured to
the loom sides, the guide being open at its bottom and at the lower part of its rear
side from one to the other end, to permit the entrance of the feeler when the
detectors are in abnormal or lifted position.
The thread is held in proper relation to its detector at all times by the slot
through which it is passed."

page_text: Upon the slackening or breakage of the active thread of a group of warp-
threads, its detector will drop into normal position below the open lower portion.
of the guide to engage and stop the vibration of the feeler, and to prevent the
escape of the detector through the open bottom of the guide, in case all the
threads which it governs should break, there is provided a fixed support which
passes transversely through the slots of the detectors, limiting the descent of a
dropped detector until the attendant can correct the fault in a defective thread.
The invention accordingly consists in the construction, arrangement and operation
of parts hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims.
Fig. 1, in elevation, represents the back of a sufficient portion of a loom to be
understood, with my invention applied thereto, the whip-roll and warp-beam being
omitted to show parts which would be otherwise hidden;
Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, and partially in section looking to the left
Fig. 1, showing the shed-forming mechanism, the detectors in abnormal position
and the feeler at the forward end of its path of movement ;
Fig. 3 is a similar view of a portion of the mechanism shown in Fig. 2, with a
detector in normal position, due to breakage of the active thread, and with the
controlling devices for the stopping mechanism in position to stop the loom ;
Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail of a portion of the controlling device in the position
shown in Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a perspective detail of the actuator detached, and
Fig. 6 is a side elevation of one of the detectors enlarged.
The loom-frame A, the crank or lay-shaft A' therein having suitable fast and
loose pulleys B and B', shown only in Fig. 1, adapted to receive a belt under the
control of a suitable belt-shipper, not shown; the lay A² carrying a reed A×; the
lay-cap A2; the whip roll A³, and the shedding mechanism, are and may be all
.as common in looms.
A bracket a is secured to the inner side of the part A' of the frame at each
side of the loom, to which are attached by suitable bolts 20 lateral ears or
flanges of standards b, see Figs. 1, 2 and 3, each stand having a rearward
extension 2 to support one of the lease rods 1, the other rod , shown only in
Fig. 2, being supported in usual manner, the main portion of the stand having a
bub-like bearing for the ends of a rock-shaft C extending across the loom at the
back of the lay and below the shed.
Plates or webs c and c¹ secured to the edges of depending portions 6x of the
standards by suitable bolts 25 and 30 respectively, form the front and back of
the detector guide, open at top and bottom, and extending substantially the length
of the reed, the back plate c¹ being quite narrow, as clearly shown, with its bottom
edge higher than the corresponding edge of the plate c.
Bolts 35 are passed through lugs ex on the plate c, and into a flat bar c' to hold
it tightly against the lower edge of the front plate, the inner face of said bar
being preferably serrated or milled, as at c³, Fig. for a purpose to be described.
In the guide formed by the front and back plates, there is placed a series of
detectors d, and in the form in which the invention is embodied in this application,
each detector is composed of a flat strip or piece of metal having a long slot or
opening therein, and a support, shown as a flat bar d2 is extended through the
slots in the series of detectors to prevent them from falling entirely out of the
support, the said support being held on edge by its ends entering suitable recesses
in the stands b.
The detectors are placed side by side in the guide with their flat faces adjacent,
and they are adapted to be readily moved up and down therein, the support &
being so located that the front longitudinal edges of the detectors rest against the
inner face of the front plate c, and the milled or serrated edge of the bar c² assists
in keeping the detectors from being twisted when acted on by the vibrator.
The number of detectors will depend, of course, upon the number of warp
threads, and also upon the number of threads which will be led through the slot №
in and to co-operate with each detector, the detectors being located between the

page_text: lease rods and the harnesses and of the shed-forming devices, not shown, and
which may be of any usual construction, the loom also being provided with the
usual take-up and let-off.
In practice the warps contained on a warp-beam or equivalent device D, Fig. 2,
will be led forward over the whip-roll A3 around the lease rods and l by which
the
warp threads will be separated, and to the harnesses hand h', two harnesses
only being herein shown.
Between the lease rods and the harnesses the warp threads will be led through
the long slots or openings d¹ in the detectors, and after passing through the eyes of
the heddles or harnesses they will pass between the dead spaces of the usual
reed A, and to and over the breast-beam.
The length of the slots d' in the detectors is such that the warp threads therein
may cross each other and be fully opened or shed above the support d², as clearly
shown in Fig. 2, and while each detector slot is herein shown as containing two
warp threads, it will be understood that more may be used according to the
particular class of work done, so long as the movement of the harnesses is such
that one thread at a time in each group will be raised into the upper plane of the
shed during its formation, the other or inactive threads remaining in the lower plane
of the shed, there being as many harnesses, consequently, as there are threads in
each group.
In the formation of the sheds the active warp threads of each group, as they rise
into the upper plane of each shed, act upon the detectors at the upper ends of the
slots d', and lift or move said detectors into abnormal position, so that their lower
ends are above the path of movement of the feeler e herein shown as an angle bar
secured to arms e fast on the rock-shaft Cat suitable points, and movable by
oscillation of said shaft towards and away from the open bottom and rear side of
the detector guide, the feeler being shown in Figs. 1 and 2, at the front end of its
path of movement when the loom is running properly.
In case the active warp thread about to be lifted into the upper plane of the
shed should slacken or break, it is obvious that the detector in the slot in which the
said warp thread lies, would not be lifted from its normal position, and the lower end
of the detector will stay down in the path of movement of the feeler e.
A dropped or depressed detector acts to prevent the movement of the feeler
toward the lay, as clearly shown in Fig. 3.
The stand bat one side of the loom is provided with an extension 6 having a
sleeve-like bearing for a short rock-shaft 6, to one end of which is secured an
arm connected by a link with and to control the shipper-handle of any
suitable stopping mechanism for the loom, not shown, and forming no part of
this invention.
A depending arm 69, best shown in Fig. 4, is secured, as by a set screw 40, to the
other end of the rock-shaft 66, and it has loosely pivoted thereon, at 610, a dagger b¹²,
adapied at times to he engaged by the end of an actuator f, shown separately
in Fig. 5, and secured to the rear side of the lay support, to turn at such times the
rock-shaft and its attached arms into the position shown in Figs. 3 and 4, by the
backward stroke of the lay.
The rock-shaft C is turned in the direction of the arrow 70, Fig. 2, by a strong
spring s, shown clearly in Fig. 1, secured at one end to a collar 75 fast on the rock-
shaft, and at the other end to the bearing 63, the spring normally moving the feeler
into the position shown in Fig. 2.
An arm C extended upwardly and towards the front of the loom is secured to
the rock-shaft C, and has pivoted thereto at C2 the upper end of a link C³ slotted
at its lower end at 3, to receive the end of a stud A' on the lay support A, and of
such length that in the forward or beating stroke of the lay, the link will depress
he arm C and turn the rock-shaft C in opposition to the springs, moving the
eeler e back and away from the bottom of the detector-guide.
A. pin or projection 80, see dotted lines Fig. 4, on the outer side of the arm C¹
extends under and turns the dagger on its pivot 610 whenever the spring s is free

page_text: to turn the shaft and elevate the arm, to thereby lift the free end of the dagger out
of the path of movement of the actuator f in the backward stroke of the lay.
If, however, a detector is in the position shown in Fig. 3, stopping the vibration
of the feeler e, and supported at its front edge by the front c of the guide, the arm C'
will be depressed, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and the dagger will remain in the
position shown in said figs. to be engaged by the actuator f as the lay completes its
backward stroke, pushing the dagger before it to turn the rock-shaft 6 into the
position shown in Fig. 4, and, by the link 68, causing the stopping mechanism to
stop the loom, the slot 3 in the lower end of the link permitting the completion of
the backward stroke of the lay when the actuator is in engagement with the
dagger, without lifting the arm C¹.
A stop 85 on the arm prevents undue lifting of the dagger, and when the pin 80
is moved out of engagement with the dagger, it will rest on a pin 90, shown in dotted
lines Fig. 4, as also on the arm bº.
It will be seen that the support d² prevents any of the detectors from falling out
of the bottom of the guide, in case all the threads governed by the detector should
break, and the attendant can readily lift the lowered detector into position to
re-thread it and connect the ends of the broken thread, or remedy the defect therein
if it is due to slackness.
When the loom is to be started, the movement of the rock-shaft 6 in the direction
of the arrow 95, Fig. 4, will carry the arm 6 into the position shown in Fig. 2, and
as soon as the detector which stopped the movement of the feeler has been moved
out of engagement therewith, the spring of the rock-shaft C will elevate the arm Û¹,
lifting the dagger from engagement with the actuator f, and the loom will be in
condition to start.
I have not shown any mechanism to effect the automatic stopping of the loom or
the transfer of the driving belt from the fast to the loose pulley, as any well known
form of such mechanism may be incorporated with the loom containing the
improvements.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The use in a warp stop motion for looms, of a series of slotted detectors each
adapted to be moved into abnormal position by one thread at a time of a plurality
of co-operating warp threads passing through the slot of each detector when the
active thread is taut and unbroken and lifted in the formation of the shed, a support
extended transversely through slots in the detectors, and a stopping mechanism for
the loom controlled by a teeler which engages a detector in normal position,
substantially as described.
2. The use in a warp stop motion for looms, of a series of slotted detectors
between the least reds and harnesses, each detector adapted to be lifted by one
tbread at a time of a plurality of warp threads passed through its slot when the
active thread is taut and unbroken and raised by the harnesses, the longitudinal
edges of the detectors being provided with a guide, and a stopping mechanism for
the loom controlled by a feeler which engages a detector if the latter is depressed
when the shed is formed, substantially as described.
3. The use in a warp stop motion for looms, of a series of slotted detectors
adjacent to the harnesses, each detector being adapted to be moved into abnormal
position by any one of a plurality of warp threads passed through its slot, and a
support extended transversely through slots in the detectors, the front and back
edges of the detectors being provided with a guide in which the detectors are
vertically movable, a detector in normal position engaging a feeler controlling
stopping mechanism for the loom, substantially as described.
4. The use in a warp stop motion for loonis, of a feeler and an arm vibrated by a
ck-shaft which is turned in one direction by a spring, a lay connected by a link
the arm to turn the rock-shaft in opposition to the spring, a rocking arm on

page_text: which a dagger is pivoted and held inoperative when the spring is free to turn the
rock-shaft, and a series of detectors moved out of the path of movement of a feeler
while the warp threads are intact, engagement of a detector by the feeler
permitting a dagger connected to stopping mechanism for the loom to move into
operative position, substantially as described.
5. The use in a warp stop motion for looms, of the lay, a series of slotted
detectors guided at their longitudinal edges and controlled by the warp threads and
moved into abnormal position by intact threads in the upper plane of the shed, a
support extended_transversely through the slots of the detectors, a detector in.
normal position due to slackening or breakage of its active warp thread being
engaged by a vibrating feeler, and an actuator on the lay moving a dagger when
the feeler is engaged by a detector, the dagger being operatively connected to
stopping mechanism for the loom, substantially as described.
6. The use in a warp stop motion for looms, of the lay, a series of slotted
detectors moved into abnormal position by intact warp threads in the upper plane.
of the shed, a rock-shaft having an attached feeler to engage a detector in normal
position, an arm on said shaft being connected by a link to the lay, to rock the
shaft in one direction, said shaft being rocked in the other direction by a spring,
the arm of the rock-shaft normally moving into inoperative position a dagger
which controls stopping mechanism for the loom, and an actuator on the lay to
move said dagger and stop the loom when the feeler engages a detector,
substantially as described.
Dated the 31st day of August 1895.
WM. BROOKES & SON,
55 & 56 Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicant.