IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND APPLYING INDIA RUBBER (CAOUTCHOUC) TO FABRICS
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
PICKERSGILL, of Coleman Street, in the City of London, Merchant, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date
at Westminster, the First day of September, in the seventh year of His reign,
did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
John Pickersgill, His especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said John Pickersgill, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said John Pickersgill, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exer-
cise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND APPLYING INDIA
RUBBER (CAOUTCHOUC) TO FABRICS," communicated to me by a certain Foreigner
residing abroad; in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that
I, the said John Pickersgill, shall cause a particular description of the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
inrolled in His said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully
and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in-compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Pickersgill, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to
the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon
(that is to say):
:-
According to the ordinary modes of making water and air proof fabrics by
the aid of india rubber (caoutchouc), whether laid in a thin layer or coating
on one side of a fabric, or a surface of india rubber between two thicknesses of
fabric, the same has been performed by dissolving india rubber by means of
coal oil or other chemical solvents, which bringing the india rubber into a
fluid state, it is spread over the fabric to be rendered waterproof, and when the
same is intended to be a layer of india rubber between two surfaces of fabric
(the fabrics being covered by a brush or similar means) with dissolved india
rubber, are stuck together by pressure; the material used as a solvent being
then evaporated, leaves the india rubber adhering to the surface of the fabric
when a single fabric is used, or the dissolved india rubber is the means of
sticking two surfaces of fabric together, in either case rendering the fabrics
water and air proof.
Now the object of the Invention is,-
First, the preparing india rubber by pressing or rolling it into thin sheets,
and applying them to the surfaces of fabrics, that the same may be rendered
air and water proof without the aid of solvents, and without the necessity of
bringing the india rubber into a state of fluidity; and,
Secondly, the Invention relates to the application of lamp black or other
colouring matter to the india rubber when the same is spread over only one
surface of a fabric without the aid of solvents, to render it fluid, whereby the
surface so prepared may be rendered of a dark or black or other color, and
thus producing an even glossy surface, the sticking properties of the india
rubber being thereby prevented, whereby single fabrics so prepared may be
used for a variety of purposes without covering or lining.
And in order that the Invention may be most fully described and readily
understood, I will now describe the process and machinery which have been
found fully to answer the purpose of carrying the Invention into effect.
DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS.
In each of the Figures the same letters are used to indicate similar parts,
wherever they occur.
Figure 1 represents a side view in elevation of a machine suitable for
carrying the improvements into effect. Figure 2 is an end view of that part
of the machinery which prepares and presses the sheet of india rubber
E

page_text: (caoutchouc) on to the surfaces of fabrics, or between two fabrics. Figure 3.
is the opposite side view to that shewn in Figure 1; and Figure 4 is an end-
view of that part of the apparatus which prepares the india rubber in order to
its being in a proper condition to be rolled out into thin even sheets to be laid
and pressed on the surface or surfaces of fabrics.
Figure 5 represents a longitudinal section of the two parts of the machine.
Figure 6 is a back view of that part of the machine which, pressing the india
rubber into a thin sheet, also lays such sheet on to fabrics.. A, A, is framing..
B is a brace or tie connecting the two parts of the frames together. C, C, are
two timbers upon which the frame stands. Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4 are iron
cylinders. D, D, are five bars or checks through which the cloth passes
before it enters between the rollers; E is a roller upon which the cloth is.
wound before being coated; F is a check weight attached to a friction cord
passing over roll E; G, G, are screws for regulating the pressure of tho
rollers or cylinders Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4; H is a cog wheel that drives the
cylinder No. 1; I is a cog wheel attached to the axle of cylinder No. 4, and
is driven by the wheel H; K is a cog wheel attached to the axle of the
cylinder No. 3; L is a cog wheel upon the axle of the roller No. 1; M is a
pinion taking into the wheels K and L, and serves to give the proper direction
to the wheel K, L being the driving wheel; N is a pulley or drum attached to
the roll or shaft O, seen in the sectional view, the shaft baving a pinion upon
its other end, which drives the cog wheel H. At R is seen the cloth passing
between the cylinders Nos. 2 and 3. At S is seen a sheet of india rubber,
which comes in contact with the cloth whilst passing between the cylinders
Nos. 2 and 3. P in the sectional view is a roller driven by the short
belt or strap from the shaft O. Q is a small roller, upon which the
cloth is wound when it leaves the cylinder No. 1. It is made to revolve by
resting upon the rollers O and P. The surface of O and P revolve a little
faster than the cylinder No. 1. At T the cloth is seen leaving No. 1 cylinder..
Between the cog wheel H and the frame A is a cog wheel upon the cylinder
No. 1, and also upon the cylinder No. 2, the wheels being the same size of the
cylinders to which they respectively belong. That upon No. 1 drives the one
upon No. 2, and consequently the cylinder No. 2. U' is a hopper, into which
the prepared rubber is put while hot as it comes from the preparing apparatus.
or machinery. When three rollers only are used, the hopper is, put upon the
opposite side of the cylinder, between Nos. 2 and 3. The ends of the hopper
are capable of adjustment, as shewn, in order to make the hopper an inch or
two inches less than the width of the fabric to be coated, and the hot mass
of india rubber is spread from end to end of the hopper. a, a, a, is a frame

page_text: of cast iron of the preparing machine; b, b, are timbers upon which the
frame rests; c is a large cylinder, six feet long, and twenty-seven inches
diameter; d is a cylinder, six feet long, and eighteen inches diameter; e is a
shaft six inches diameter; m is a pinion upon the shaft e, which drives the
cog wheel k, and consequently. the cylinder c; k is a cog wheel upon the axis
of the cylinder c; 1 is a pulley upon the shaft e, which is the first movement ;
n is a cog upon the cylinder c, which drives the cog wheel o upon the
cylinder d; g, g, are screws to regulate the pressure of the cylinders; ff, are
five bars of iron, seen more distinctly in the sectional view. They are one
foot wide, one inch and three quarters thick, and about seven feet long;
h, h, are two blocks of iron, having holes in them corresponding to the ends of
the bars f, into which the bars are put, and fastened by keys; i, i, are screws
for regulating the pressure of the bars upon the cylinder c; s is an endless
cloth, which carries the rubber to be prepared between the two cylinders c
and d. The same is more distinctly seen in the sectional views. p, q, are
rollers, round which the endless cloth revolves. The apparatus for propelling
the roller P and 9 is not represented, but will readily be applied to give slow
motion thereto. Atr in the sectional view is seen the prepared. rubber as it
leaves the last bar, and shrinks up into a mass. It will be seen on an
examination of the wheels or gearing of one cylinder or roller Nos. 1, 2, 3,
and 4, with the other, that they are so arranged as to produce a rolling and
sliding motion to the surfaces, which will be found to be very useful in the
operation to be performed.
Having thus described the machinery which is shewn in the Drawings, I
will now explain the manner of working of the various parts. The india
rubber is first cut into pieces of about two inches square, and about a quarter
to an eighth of an inch thick. It is spread on the endless cloths, which
conveys it to the cylinder c, where the compound rolling, pressing, and sliding
action of the heated cylinder softens and tears the india rubber into fine
threads or thin sheets. Thus it passes all the bats f, f, successively, and
undergoes this operation several times before it goes from this machinery to
that part of the machinery which is for the purpose of rolling or pressing out
the india rubber into a thin sheet, and for pressing it on to the surface or
surfaces of a fabric or fabrics. The india rubber being brought to a combined
mass by the operation of the cylinder c and the bars f, f, the parts of india
rubber being intimately blended, and the whole being so combined and in a
warm state, will readily allow of being rolled into thin sheets.
In the event
of the india rubber being only placed on one fabric, then it becomes desirable
to prevent the stickey property of the india rubber, in order that fabrics so

page_text: prepared may be made up into various articles of dress, or for other purposes.
In order to perform this part of the process, coloring matter, such for instance
as lamp black in the state of dry powder, is to be sifted. between the bars f, fi
amongst the india rubber, which will become mixed and intimately blended
with the india rubber by repeatedly passing the same through and through the
preparing part of the machinery c and f. f. The product from the preparing
machinery (whether india rubber or india rubber mixed with coloring matter)
is then taken to the hopper U, where the revolution of the cylinders Nos. 4
and 3 will press out the india rubber into a thin sheet, which, passing partly
around the roller or cylinder No. 3, will come in contact with the fabric
which has been previously conducted from E to Q. The indian rubber and the
fabric will then pass between Nos. 3 and 2, and thence between Nos. 2 and 1,
by which the india rubber or preparation thereof with coloring matter will be
pressed together, and so closely combined as to appear one fabric. The
machine here shown is only intended for laying a surface of india rubber on
one surface of fabric; but if it be desired to press a thin sheet of india rubber
between two fabrics, in that case a second fabric may be brought in the direc-
tion of the dotted red line; and meet the india rubber between the cylinders
Nos. 2 and 1. It should be stated, that the cylinders Nos. 1, 2, 8, and 4 are
hollow, and are to be mounted on hollow axles with suitable connections,
which are well understood by engineers, and will readily be applied, and which
are omitted in the Drawing to prevent complexity. The cylinders Nos. 1, 2,
3, and 4 are to be heated with water or steam to about two hundred degrees
of Fahrenheit, and the cylinder c is to be hollow, and is also to be heated to a
like temperature; but it will sometimes be found that the friction of india
rubber dragging on the surface will raise the temperature to that degree that
the india rubber will stick to the surface. In such case the cylinders are to
be cooled down by allowing cold water to pass into the same till. the tempera-
ture is reduced to such a degree as to allow of working with facility when
lamp black is used as a colouring matter, and also for the purpose of preventing
the sticking of the india rubber to any matter which may come in contact
therewith, when the composition has been covered over a fabric, and dried by
suspending the fabric in drying rooms. It will be found that about three
pounds of lamp black to twelve pounds of india rubber will be suitable
quantities, and in using either dry powder as coloring matter with india
rubber a very few tests of the quantities of the materials will quickly enable
the workman to adjust the same in working on a large scale. Note, the india
rubber should be freed as much as possible from all dirt and other extraneous
matters by washing before commencing the working thereof.

page_text: Having thus described the Invention, and the manner of performing the
same, I would remark, that I lay no claim to the various parts of the
machinery here shewn; nor do I claim the making of fabrics waterproof by
means of india rubber placed either on one fabric or between two fabrics,
india rubber having been used for that purpose before by the aid of solvents;
which, being evaporated, leaves the india rubber more or less free from such
solvents, but in many cases leave a disagreeable smell to the fabric so prepared:
And I would remark, that variations may be made in the machinery without
departing from the Invention. I would have it understood, that what I claim,
as the Invention communicated to me from a certain Foreigner residing abroad,
consists,-
First, in preparing, by pressing and rolling out, thin sheets of india rubber,
and pressing the same on to one or between two fabrics, for the purpose of
making such fabrics water and air proof, as above described; and,
Secondly, I claim the application of colouring matter to india rubber so
prepared, when applied and pressed into one surface of fabrics as above
described, for removing the sticking properties of the india rubber, and for
coloring the same. But I do not claim the mixing of colors with india
rubber when the same is dissolved, or when used for other purposes.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Pickersgill, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eleventh day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven.
JOHN (Ls.) PICKERSGILL.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eleventh day of February, in
the year of our Lord 1837, the aforesaid John Pickersgill came before our
said Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the First day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand