IMPROVEMENTS IN PNEUMATIC LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Richardson, of No. 75, Gracechurch
Street, and William Henry Beck, of No. 139, Cannon Street, both
in the City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PNEUMATIC LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
Sealed the 2nd November 1875, and dated the 4th May 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Richardson and
William Henry Beck at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 4th May 1875.
We, CHARLES RICHARDSON, of No. 75, Gracechurch Street, and
WILLIAM HENRY BECK, of No. 139, Cannon Street, both of the City
of London, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for “Iм-
PROVEMENTS IN PNEUMATIC LOOMS FOR WEAVING," to be as follows:-
The Invention relates to improved means for arresting, retaining, and
releasing the shuttles in looms, in which such shuttles are driven from
side to side of the sley beams by means of compressed air.
In looms of this description, in which shuttles fitting loosely into the
shuttle boxes are employed, it is necessary to lock the shuttle on its

page_text: According to another arrangement the locking instrument is adapted
to lock the shuttle on its entrance into the shuttle box, in a manner
similar to that last described, and to hold it there until the pressure of
the compressed air is sufficient to move the shuttle a short distance
outwards against the resistance of a spring. Such motion of the shuttle
liberates a trigger in connection with the locking instrument, and allows
a pressure spring to come into action to effect an instantaneous disen-
gagement of such locking instrument from the shuttle.
arrangements the shuttle can never leave the box until the pressure
behind it has reached a certain point, which can be regulated by
adjusting the frictional or spring resistance, as may be required, and
when once released there is no further impediment to the free motion of
the shuttle out of the box.
By these
In cases where it is found necessary to employ a swell spring or its
equivalent in order to stop the shuttle gradually on its entrance into the
box, we connect such swell spring with the releasing mechanism or with
the buffer by means of levers, springs, and other appropriate instru-
ments, in such manner that at or before the release of the shuttle the
pressure of the said swell spring is removed therefrom.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Charles Richardson and William Henry Beck in
the Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th November 1875.
'
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, CHARLES
RICHARDSON, of No. 75, Gracechurch Street, and WILLIAM HENRY
BECK, of No. 139, Cannon Street, both in the City of London, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-eighth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto us, the said Charles Richardson and William Henry Beck,
Her special license that we, the said Charles Richardson and William
Henry Beck, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said Charles Richardson and William, Henry Beck, our

page_text: -
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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PNEUMATIC LOOMS FOR, WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said Charles Richardson and William Henry Beck,
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 Charles Richardson and William
Henry Beck, 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 thereof, reference
being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, and to the letters
and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
The Invention relates to improved means for arresting, retaining, and
releasing the shuttles in looms, in which such shuttles are driven from
side to side of the sley beams by means of compressed air.
In looms of this description, in which shuttles fitting loosely into the
shuttle boxes are employed, it is necessary to lock the shuttle on its
entrance into the box each time it is driven across the sley in order to
prevent its rebounding; it must then be retained in such shuttle box
until the air is sufficiently compressed to drive it with certainty across
the sley beam and until the proper moment arrives for its release; it
must then be released suddenly and completely so as to leave it quite
free for the compressed air to act upon.
The locking of the shuttle in the box has been found to be quite
easily effected by a latch or spring catch, but the releasing at the proper
moment has been found to present certain practical difficulties. In some
arrangements of apparatus it has been attempted to effect this release by
mechanism governed by cams and such like mechanical parts operated;
by certain of the moving parts of the loom; in another arrangement,
by self-acting means independently of the moving parts of the loom;

page_text: but in such latter arrangement the said release has been effected almost
immediately after the locking, and therefore before the proper moment
for such release has arrived, and consequently other separate retaining
instruments such as those known as "swell springs" have had to be
used in order to retain the shuttle until the proper moment has arrived
for its liberation. These means of effecting the retention and release of
the shuttle have been more or less unsuccessful, and the chief object
of the present Invention is to obtain the necessary dwell or interval of
time between the locking and unlocking of the shuttle by self-acting
means independently of the crank, second motion shafts or wheels, or
other moving parts of the loom distinct from the shuttle box, and also
without separate retaining instruments or swell springs.
:
The Invention consists, according to one arrangement, in the employ-
ment of a retaining latch so arranged that when the shuttle enters the
box it shall be locked either by the direct action of a spring upon the
said latch, or by the action of the buffer thereon, or by both jointly.
The rebound of the buffer shall not then directly effect the release of the
shuttle as heretofore, the releasing mechanism being held or restrained
by suitable frictional or spring resistance until the air is sufficiently
compressed behind the said shuttle to overcome such frictional or spring
resistance, but when such frictional or spring resistance is once overcome
by the pressure of the air the shuttle is free to leave the box without
further resistance.
According to another arrangement the locking instrument is adapted
to lock the shuttle on its entrance into the shuttle box in a manner
similar to that last described, and to hold it there until the pressure of
the compressed air is sufficient to move the shuttle a short distance
outwards against the resistance of a spring. Such motion of the shuttle
liberates a trigger in connection with the locking instrument, and allows
a pressure spring to come into action to effect an instantaneous dis-
engagement of such locking instrument from the shuttle. By these
arrangements the shuttle can never leave the box until the pressure
behind it has reached a certain point which can be regulated by adjusting
the frictional or spring resistance, as may be required, and when once
5 released there is no further impediment to the free motion of the shuttle
out of the box.
In the Drawings similar letters refer to like parts in each of the

page_text: Fig. 1 of the Drawings represents one arrangement for carrying the
Invention into effect. The Figure represents the plan view of a shuttle
box with the cover removed. A is the shuttle box constructed in the
manner usual in this class of loom; A¹ is the orifice by which the com-
pressed air is admitted from the cylinder or other air compressing
instrument to act upon the shuttle; B is the shuttle fitting freely into
the box; C, the buffer against which the shuttle strikes on entering the
box. It is by preference constructed of a block of iron or steel containing
a recess into which a piece of hide or other suitable soft material is
pressed, as shown in dotted lines, and arranged so as to receive the blow
of the point of the shuttle Lis a spindle sliding freely in a hole formed
in the back of the shutt.e box; one end of the spindle D bears against, or
is fixed to the hinder part of the buffer C, and the other end is acted upon
by the spring E fixed to any convenient part of the sley beam, such spring
tending by its pressure to restore the buffer to the position shown in the
Figure when driven back by the impact of the shuttle; F is an arm fixed
to and projecting from the outer end of the spindle D. A rod G, which
is adapted to slide in the bearings H; H, passes at one end through a
hole near the end of the arm F, being allowed an amount of free motion
therein, which is regulated by the set nuts I, I', mounted on the screwed
part of the rod; J is a bell-crank latch lever pivotted to the shuttle
box side and having one arm pin-jointed to the sliding rod G, the other
arm forming a latch with two inclined faces J¹ and J³. This latch takes
into a recess K, formed in the side of the shuttle for the purpose of
locking it in the shuttle box, as will be hereafter explained.
The operation of the apparatus is as follows:-The shuttle enters the
box and strikes the buffer C, driving it, the spindle D, and arm F back-
wards against the resistance of the spring E; the arm F acting against
the set nut I draws the rod G to the left; in the Figure the rod G being
jointed to the arm of the latch J the latter is pressed into the recess K
in the side of the shuttle whereby the said shuttle is securely locked in
the box and its rebound prevented; the spring E then forces the buffer,
the spindle D, and arm F back into their normal positions, as shown in
the Figure, in which the arm F is free from the set nut I; a slight
pressure of air on the base of the shuttle would now be sufficient to
cause the latter to move outwards, pressing the latch J aside by means
of the inclined face J* were it not for the frictional resistance applied to
the rod G by means of the adjustable friction spring L whereby any

page_text: required resistance to motion of the rod G, and consequently of the
latch J, can be obtained. The said resistance is to be so adjusted as to
retain the shuttle in the box until the sley has arrived at the proper
position for the shuttle to be driven across the sley, by which time the
pressure of air accumulated behind the shuttle by the air compressing
mechanism is sufficient to force the shuttle forward so as to press the
inclined edge of the recess in the shuttle against the inclined face J² of
the latch pressing it back, and thereby disengaging the said latch from
the recess K and leaving the shuttle free to be driven from the box by
the blast of air behind it.
The disengagement of the latch from the recess in the shuttle causes the
rod G to be drawn to the right in the Figure so as to bring the set nut I
towards the arm F, and the apparatus is thus prepared to receive the
shuttle on its next stroke from the other side of the sley. In somes cases
it may be found preferable to adapt the latch so as to lock the shuttle
by being projected into the box behind the shuttle, as shown in dotted
lines in the Figure, instead of taking into a recess cut in the shuttle
itself; and if preferred the latch may be partially withdrawn after the
shuttle has been locked by the arm F (in its return under the action of
the spring E) being brought against the set nut I', thereby causing the
rod G to be moved slightly to the right so as to relax the latch more or
less as may be desired; by this means the shuttle will be relieved of a
part of the resistance offered by the latch and will be liberated more
suddenly. The latch is prevented from entering too far into the shuttle
box when the shuttle is not in it by the set nut I' bearing against the
arm F.
Figs. 2 and 3 represent another arrangement for carrying the Inven-
tion into effect. In this case the Figures represent partial vertical
longitudinal sections through a shuttle box and the locking mechanism.
M is the cover, usually of wood, fixed to the top of the shuttle box;
N, the drop piece adjustable in the cover M by means of the screws O, O,
for the purpose of compensating for virtical wear of the shuttle, as is
well understood in connection with pneumatic looms; J is the latch
mounted in a recess in the drop piece N, being centred therein by a
fulcrum pin P which passes through a hole in the latch and the ends of
which take into slots Q formed in the parts of the drop piece forming
the sides of the recess in which the latch is placed (or if preferred the
slot Q may be formed in the latch and the pin P fixed in the drop

page_text: piece); L is a spring, the pressure of which may be regulated by the
nut S; it bears on its free end on the upper part of a vertical spindle T,
passing freely through the guide socket, as shown, and bearing at its
lower end upon the front portion of the latch J, pressing it downwards.
The hinder part of the latch J is shaped at its under side so as to project
down behind the buffer C, its upper side being adapted to slide against
the upper surface of the recess in the drop piece N.
The apparatus acts as follows:-The inclined faces J³, J, of the
latch J project into the shuttle box when the shuttle is not in it. The
shuttle on entering the box lifts the front end of the latch against the
action of the spring L by means of the inclined face J³, until the
recess K in the shuttle comes under the front of the latch, when
the spring L forces it into the said recess, as shown in Fig. 2.
The shuttle then strikes the buffer, and forcing it backwards against
the resistance of the spring E, brings it against the shaped hinder
end of the latch, the peculiar form of which is such that the rear
upper edge of the buffer acting upon it tends to force it upwards,
presenting the front end of the latch from being lifted out of the recess
in the shuttle, and thereby the rebound of the latter is prevented. The
backward motion of the buffer also forces the latch to slide bodily
backwards, the fulcrum pin P sliding in the slots Q (or the latch sliding
on the fixed fulcrum pin as the case may be). The object of this
sliding motion of the latch is to obviate the necessity for a great length
of the recess K in the shuttle which would be necessary were the latch
not allowed to slide, in order to allow for the backward motion of the
buffer and the gradual wear of the point of the shuttle into the pad of
the buffer.
Fig. 3 shows the position of the parts with the buffer driven
back, and the shuttle so securely latched or locked that rebound is
impossible.
Fig. 2 shows the position of the parts when the spring E has restored
the buffer shuttle and latch to their normal positions in which it will be
seen that the shuttle is still retained in the shuttle box by tho inclined
face J of the latch, the spring L pressing the front of the latch into the
recess K.
By regulating the pressure of the spring L the shuttle may be
retained in the box a longer or shorter time at will, in a manner similar

page_text: to that described in reference to Fig. 1, the pressure of air overcoming
the direct resistance of the spring L by means of the inclined face J*
just as in that case it overcomes the frictional resistance of the friction
spring L.
Figs. 4 and 5 represent a modification of the last described arrange-
ment in which the latch is not adapted to slide horizontally, and
therefore the recess K in the shuttle must be made of sufficient lengtlı
to allow for the backward motion of the buffer and the wear of the
shuttle into it. It will be seen that the pin P, which in this case is
only a guide pin is adapted to slide in a vertical slot (or the pin may be
fixed and the slot made in the latch as may be preferred), and that when
the shuttle enters the box the front end of the latch takes into the
recess K in the shuttle, the edge of the buffer forming for the moment
the fulcrum of the latch. The buffer then drawn back being driven wards,
as shown in Fig. 5, the rear shaped end of the latch mounts on to the top
of the buffer and the pin P rising to the top of its slot, the front end of
the latch is so locked in the recess of the shuttle that the latter cannot
rebound. The spring E then returns the buffer to its normal position
and the latch resumes the position shown in Fig. 4, retaining the shuttle
until the air is compressed sufficiently to overcome the resistance of
the spring L in the same manner as before described.
If preferred, instead of making the vertical slot for the pin P of the
exact length required to secure the retention of the front of the latch
in the shuttle recess when the rear end of the latch is on the top of the
buffer, it may be made longer, as shown in dotted lines, and a second
and stronger spring L' adapted to press upon the part T¹ of the spindle T
when it is raised above the edge of the socket in which it slides by the
elevation of the rear end of the latch on to the top of the buffer. By this
means in cases where the full length of the recess in the shuttle cannot
readily be obtained the play of the pin in the slot, and the yielding
action of the spring L' admits of the front inclined face of the latch
being allowed to ride up on to the rear edge of the recess without fear
of breakage of either latch or shuttle.
Figs. 6 and 7 represent another modification in which the latch is
allowed to slide horizontally in a manner similar to Figs. 2 and 3, but
near the rear end of the latch is fixed a stud or trigger U which takes
into a slot V in the drop picce. In Fig. 6 the parts are in their normal

page_text: position ready to receive the shuttle, which on entering the box strikes
the buffer as before, which in its turn strikes the shaped rear part of the
latch, in the first place forcing it upwards, lifting the stud or trigger U
out of the vertical part of the slot V, and forcing down the front end of
the latch into the recess in the shuttle; further motion of the buffer then
slides the latch backwards so as to bring the stud or trigger U into the
horizontal part of the slot V, and the shuttle is securely latched or
locked. When the pressure of air behind the shuttle is sufficient to over-
come the resistance of the spring L (suitably regulated as before
explained) to the sliding of the projecting part W below the spindle T,
the shuttle and with it the latch are driven forward till the stud or
trigger U comes over the vertical part of the slot V, when the spring L
forces down the rear end of the latch, the front end is thereby disengaged
from the shuttle recess and the shuttle is free to be driven out of the
box.
Having now described the nature of our said Invention and the
manner in which the same is or may be performed, we would have it
understood that what we claim as our Invention is, the use of locking
and retaining apparatus so arranged and adapted that the shuttle is
locked in the shuttle box, and its rebound therefrom prevented by the
action of the buffer upon the latch, and after the partial relaxation of
the said locking apparatus by the return of the buffer to its normal
position, the said shuttle is still retained and held by the latch by the
operation upon it of adjustable frictional or spring resistance, or by both
jointly, until the proper moment for its liberation, substantially as
herein-before described and illustrated by the Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said Charles Richardson and William
Henry Beck, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Third
day of November, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and seventy-five.
CHARLES RICHARDSON.
(L.S.)
WILLIAM HENRY BECK. (L.S.)
Patentees.