IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Lewis Budd Bruen, of the City, County, and State
of New York, United States of America, now of No. 8, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention
Sealed the 20th August 1867, and dated the 24th April 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Lewis Budd Bruen at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 24th
April 1867.
I, LEWIS BUDD BRUEN, of the City, County, and State of New York,
United States of America, now of No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
The said improvements relate to sewing machines in which a thread is passed
by a vertically reciprocating needle through the cloth or fabric, and is secured
therein by a second thread carried by a bobbin over which a loop of the first
thread is passed by a rotating hook, the two threads being caused to produce a
stich known as the "lock stitch."

page_text: The said improvements consist partly in the construction of a machine in
which the devices for operating the said needle and hook are permanently com-
bined with additional mechanism for producing either a double loop stitch or a
stitch consisting of the three or more threads, the said mechanism being so con-
structed and arranged that without detaching or removing the same the machine
can be adjusted to form either the "lock stitch," the "double loop stitch,"
or the "three or more threaded stitch." This additional mechanism consists
mainly of a vibrating looper or thread carrier, which is pivotted to a portion of
the framing, and is so arranged that it can be readily connected or disconnected
with a cam or other operating device carried by the mandril or other convenient
portion of the machine. The thread for the said looper is supplied from an
additional spool or number of spools according to the number of threads required.
When the vibrating looper is thrown out of action the machine forms the
ordinary "lock stitch." When the said looper is adjusted to operate in con-
junction with the needle, the rotating hook and bobbin, and the latter is left
empty, the "double loop stitch" is produced, but if the bobbin is filled the
machine will make the three or more threaded stitcb.
The said improvements consist also in the employment of a shield or guard
which prevents the derangement of the under thread tension by the over-
lapping or dropping down of the cloth or fabric, and which carries the under
thread spool and tension device. The said shield is attached to the cloth plate
and can be readily removed therefrom without disturbing the said plate.
The vibrating under thread carrier is fitted to work freely upon a fulcrum pin
or stud which projects from the top of an arm or bracket whose upper surface
is nearly level with the upper part of the rotating hook. The said bracket
may be cast solidly with the frame of the machine, or may be attached by
screws or other suitable means to one of the upright pieces which support the
cloth plate. This vibrating thread carrier or looper has one curved arm which
is provided with two or more eyes or holes for the thread to pass through, and
the said arm is so formed and arranged as to carry its thread properly across
the path of the needle and rotating book. The looper is provided on the
opposite side of its fulcrum or pivot with an extension in which a slot or aperture
is formed between two jaws. A stud or finger which projects from one end of
an arm or rod attached to a sliding plate is fitted to work freely in the said
slot. One of these two jaws is cut away or shortened to allow the stud to be
drawn out of the slot so as to clear the end of the looper. The latter can then
be turned on its pivot to bring its point from under the cloth plate, and can be
threaded without removing the said plate. The arm which carries the stud or

page_text: finger is fitted to slide in a guide way formed in the bracket whereon the
looper is pivotted. The plate from which the said arm projects is also fitted
to slide freely end wise in a guideway formed in another bracket cast upon or
otherwise securely attached to the frame or bed of the machine. This sliding
plate is provided with a sleeve or socket through which an adjustable pin
extends into a groove formed round the periphery of a cam carried by the
mandril or spindle which carries the rotating book. The said cam is by
preference cast solidly with the feed cam of the machine, and is arranged
between the same and the driving pulley. The groove in the cam into which
the adjustable pin projects is so formed that its revolution will impart to the
vibrating looper or thread carrier the required throw or travel, and the said
cam must be so arranged upon the mandril in relation to the needle arm
and rotating hook that the looper will co-operate properly with them. When
it is desired to form either the double loop stitch or the three or more threaded
stitch the adjustable pin is locked with its point in the groove of the cam by
a tangent pin passing through the sleeve or boss, or by a set screw or other
suitable device. When the machine is to be used to produce the ordinary "lock
stitch" the said adjustable pin is drawn out of the groove in the cam, and
the sliding plate is pushed back so as to draw the stud or finger on the end of
the sliding arm from between the two jaws of the looper, and may be locked in
this position by the tangent pin. The looper can then be turned on its pivot to
bring its point away from the needle and rotating hook. The looper may bo
so formed that it will be locked in this position by a portion of its other
extremity bearing against its stud or finger on the sliding arm. The under
thread spool is supported upon a spindle which with the under thread tension
device is secured to the shield or guard, which is constructed in a curved form,
and is attached to the cloth plate in such a manner as to be easily detached
therefrom without removing the said plate from the machine. This attachment
is preferably effected by forming an aperture or slot in the shield which slips
over the head of a short stud or pin projecting from the under side of the
cloth plate. The spool stands in a horizontial position under the shield, and
the under thread is thereby completely covered and the derangement of its
tension by the dropping down of the cloth or fabric being sewn is entirely
prevented.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Lewis Budd Bruen in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
15th October 1867.
: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, LEWIS
BUDD BRUEN, of the City, County, and State of New York, United States of
America, now of No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant, unto me, the said
Lewis Budd Bruen, Her special licence that I, the said Lewis Budd Bruen,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as 1, the said
Lewis Budd Bruen, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 "IMPROVE
MENTS IN SEWING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Lewis Budd Bruen, 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
late of the said Letters Patent..
..NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Lewis Budd Bruen, do hereby declare
the nature, of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per.
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings forming
a part of this Specification:-
The said improvements relate to sewing machines in which a thread is
passed by a vertically reciprocating needle through the cloth or fabric, and
is secured therein by a second thread carried by a bobbin, over, which a
oop of the first thread is passed by a rotating hook, the two threads being
caused to produce a stitch known as the "lock stitch."
The said improvements consist partly in the construction of a machine
in which the devices for operating the said needle and hook are permanently

page_text: "
combined with additional mechanism for producing either the stitch known
as the "double loop" stitch, or a stitch consisting of three or more threads, the
said mechanism being so constructed and arranged that without detaching.
or removing the same the machine can be adjusted to form either the
"lock stitch" the "double loop stitch or the "three or more threaded.
stitch." This additional mechanism consists mainly of a vibrating looper or
thread carrier which is pivoted to a portion of the framing, and is so arranged
that it can be readily connected or disconnected with a cam or other operating:
device carried by a rotating mandril or other convenient portion of the
machine. The thread of the said looper is supplied from an additional spool
or number of spools according to the number of threads required. When
the vibrating looper is thrown out of action the machine forms the "lock-
stitch" when the said looper is adjusted to operate in conjunction with the
needle, the rotating hook, and bobbin, and the latter is left empty, the "double
loop stitch" is produced, but if the bobbin thread is used with the other two.
threads the machine will make the "three or more threaded stitch," which
is a combination of the "lock stitch" and "double loop stitch."
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
:
Figure 1 is a plan of the top of my improved sewing machine; Figure 2,
is a right-hand side elevation of the same; Figures 3 and 4 are a plan
and side view of the front part of the said machine drawn to an enlarged
scale; Figures 5, 6, 7 and 8 represent detached portions of the same. Like
letters indicate corresponding parts in each of the Figures.
'
A is the bed plate of the machine, upon which are cast or otherwise firmly;
secured the brackets or standards A¹ and A'; the latter are provided with
bearings for the horizontal shaft or mandril B which carries the eccentric D;
the latter by means of the connecting rod E and arm F communicates motion
to the vibrating shaft G, which is supported upon the centres H, and which
carries the needle arm I, upon whose outer end is secured the reciprocating
needle J; one end of the mandril B projects through its bearing in the
standard A, and the rotating hook K is fixed on this projecting end.. The
central portion of this hook is recessed or cut away to receive the bobbin L,
which is kept in place by the adjustable ring slide L', whose foot L' is formed
with the slot L³ for the thumb screw M, whereby the said ring slide is secured.
The feed cam N which is fixed upon the mandril B is formed with the
lateral projection N₁ for imparting the required endwise movement to the
bar O, and the said cam is also formed with a radial projection arranged to

page_text: The latter
act on the tongue O₁ whereon the teeth 02 are formed, and thereby raise the
said teeth slightly at each stroke of the bar; other devices may be sub-
stituted for this cam to produce the required movements of the feed bar O.
The presser foot P is supported so as to be readily adjustable in the socket Q¹
on the end of the arm Q, which is firmly fixed upon the top of the standard A'.
The cloth plate R, which is secured by screws or other suitable means upon
the standards A2, is provided with changeable needle plates S formed with
apertures for the needle J to pass through; thread is supplied to the
needle J through the tension device U and guides V from the reel or spool W.
The vibrating under thread carrier a is fitted to work freely upon a fulcrum
pin or stud which projects from the top of an arm or bracket c.
may be cast solidly with the frame A of the machine or may be attached by
screws or other suitable means to one of the upright pieces A2 which support
the cloth plate R; this vibrating thread carrier or looper has one curved
arm a', which is provided with two or more eyes or holes a² for the thread to
pass through, and also with a groove for the threads to lie in. The said arm
is so formed and arranged that when caused to vibrate upon the fulcrum b
it carries its thread properly across the path of the needle J and over the
rotating hook K. The thread carrier or looper a is provided with an
extension d in which a slot or aperture d' is formed between two jaws d², d³.
A stud or finger e which projects from one end of an arm or rod fattached
to a sliding plate g is fitted to work freely in the said slot. The outer jaw d³
is cut away or shortened to allow the stud e to be drawn out of the slot d¹ to
clear the end of the thread carrier or looper a.
on its pivot so as to bring its pivot from under the cloth plate R, and can
then be threaded without removing the said plate. The arm which carries
the stud or finger e is fitted to slide in a guideway formed in the bracket c
whereon the looper a is pivoted. The plate g from which the said arm
projects is also fitted to slide freely endwise in a guideway formed in the
bracket h, which may be secured to the standard A2 or cast upon or otherwise
securely attached to the frame or bed A. The sliding plate g is provided
with a sleeve or boss g¹ through which an adjustable pin i extends into a
groove formed round the periphery of a cam; carried by the mandril or
spindle B, whose end carries the rotating hook K. The said pin has a recess
or shoulder near its outer end, and a tangent pin is passed through the
sleeve g by which the pin i is locked when adjusted in the cam groove j.
The cam jis by preference cast solidly with the feed cam N and is arranged
between the same and the driving pulley C. The groove j¹ in the cam j into
The latter can then be turned

page_text: which the adjustable pin i projects is preferably made taper, and the point of
the pin i should be of corresponding form to enter more readily into the said
groove. The latter is so formed that the said cam in one revolution will
impart to the vibrating looper or thread carrier a the required throw or travel
in each direction, and the said cam must be so arranged upon the mandril in
relation to the needle arm I and rotating hook K that the looper a will
co-operate properly with them. The form of the cam j and groove j¹ may be
varied, and also the devices for communicating the required motion from the
said cam to the thread carrier a. The under thread spool k is supported upon
a spindle which with the under thread tension device m is secured to the
shield or guard n. The latter is constructed in a curved form and is attached
to the cloth plate in such a manner as to be easily detached therefrom without
removing the said plate from the machine. The spool k is supported in a
horizontal position under the shield n whereby the under thread is completely
covered and the derangement of its tension by the dropping down of the
cloth or fabric being sewn is entirely prevented. If desired the under thread
spool or spoels may be supported on spindles arranged below the machine and
the threads brought to the tension device m through an aperture formed in
the bed A. The cloth or other material being placed upon the cloth plate R
the machine is set in motion by means of a belt passing over the pulley C,
which is caused to rotate in the direction of the arrow, Figures 2 and 4. When
it is desired to produce the lock stitch, which is formed by the threads of the
needle J and bobbin L, the adjustable pin i is drawn out of the groove in the
cam and the sliding plate g is pushed back so as to draw the stud or finger e
on the end of the sliding arm f from between the two jaws d³, d³, and may
be locked in this position by the tangent pin or other suitable device. The
thread carrier or looper a can then be turned on its pivot b to bring its point a
away from the needle and rotating hook K; as shown in dotted lines in
Figure 3. When the looper a is thrown into this position the jaw d³, which
is in front of the stud e, acts as a stop to prevent the sliding bar g and pin i
being accidentally drawn forward. The machine being properly adjusted and
set in motion the needle J descends, and carries its thread through the cloth.
As the said needle commences to rise the point of the rotating hook K
passes between the said needle and its thread, and as the needle continues to
rise and the hook K to rotate the needle thread forms a loop. The continued
rotation of the hook K extends this loop, which is drawn over between the
bobbin L and the recess in the hook K. The loop passes entirely over the
bobbin L, one side of the said loop passing over each side of the bobbin encircling

page_text: the bobbin thread which is secured or locked in the loop of the needle thread.
When either the "double loop," or three or more threads stitches are to be
formed the pin i is adjusted with its point in the groove j¹ of the cam j, and
is locked in that position by turning the said pin around till it binds over the
tangent pin . The machine being set in motion the looper a through its
connection with the cam will vibrate and co-operate with the needle and
rotating hook K, and if the thread of the bobbin L is not used will form the
"double loop stitch," which is preduced in the following manner :-The
needle J descends and passes its thread though the material, which thread is
caught and spread upon the rotating hook K as the needle rises. The under
thread carrier a then passes through the loop of needle thread, carrying its
own thread through the same. The needle then again descends and carries its
thread through the loop of the under thread, and while the second loop of
needle thread is being spread by the rotating hook the under thread carrier
a is withdrawn from the first loop of needle thread and enters the second,
carrying its own thread across the track of the needle J as before. If the
bobbin is threaded when the looper a is used the machine will produce the
three-thread stitch, or a stitch composed of a number of threads according
to the number supplied to the under thread carrier or looper a.
By slight modifications in parts of these improvements the same may be
employed in machines wherein the device known as the elliptical hook is
employed as a substitute for the rotating hook K.
Having thus fully described my said improvements, and shown how the
same may be conveniently and advantageously carried into practice, I claim,-
First, the needle arm I, rotating hook K, thread carrier a, cam j, aud feed
bar O, or equivalent devices, combined and operating together for the purposes
and substantially in the manner set forth.
Second, the needle arm I, rotating hook K, bobbin L, thread carrier a,
cam j, and feed bar O, or equivalent devices, combined and operating
together for the purposes and substantially in the manner set forth.
Third, the thread carrier a, adjustable pin i, and cam j, or equivalent
devices, constructed, combined, and operating for the purpose and substan-
tially in the manner set forth.
Fourth, the thread carrier a, sliding plate g, and cam j, or equivalent
devices, combined and operating for the purpose and substantially in the
manner set forth.
Fifth, a sewing machine with the needle arm I, rotating book K, thread
carrier a, with jaws de d³, sliding arm f, with stud e, plate g, adjusting pin i,

page_text: and cam, with groove j', combined and operating for the purposes and
substantially in the manner set forth.
Sixth, the shield or guard n, removeable or permanent, and with or without
the spindle and tension device m.
In witness whereof, I, the said Lewis Budd Bruen have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
Witness,
GEORGE HASELTINE,
Civil Engineer,
8, Southampton Buildings,
London, W.C.
LEWIS B. BRUEN. (L.S.)