IMPROVEMENTS IN VARIETY KNITTING MACHINES
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Bradley, of Lowell, in the County of
Middlesex, and State of Massachusetts, in the United States of
America, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN VARIETY KNITTING
MACHINES."
Sealed the 19th March 1875, and dated the 23rd September 1874.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said John Bradley at tho
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 23rd September 1874, pursuant to the 9th
Section of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
BRADLEY, of Lowell, in the County of Middlesex, and State of Massa-
chusetts, in the United States of America, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of "IMPROVEMENTS IN VARIETY KNITTING
MACHINES," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto me, my exc-
cutors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the
same, and have made solemn Declaration that I am the true and first
Inventor thereof.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Bradley, do hereby declare
that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal,
fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawing forming
a part of this Specification, that is to say:-
This Invention relates to improvements whereby fancy striped and
mixed hosiery and cloth are produced.
According to this Invention I construct a straight up fancy stripe of
different colors, either a plain stripe, or mixed hosiery, or mixed cloth,
or other mixed articles, or partially mixed with wide and narrow stripes
alterating upon what are known as circular machines, in which a
continuous set of needles are used with two different colored threads,
which form the body of the fabric. To effect this I employ,-
First. An irregular toothed filling wheel and a clearing wheel, and a
plain nibbed stitch wheel. The irregular toothed filling wheel is con-
structed so as to receive from the eye of a guide the filling thread or
yarn, and convey it between the needles, which are divided by the
operation, so that its thread or yarn is carried in front of three and back
and front alternately of the next five needles; then a clearing wheel s
carries it down upon the needles, while a plain nibbed stitch wheel
carries its thread of another color under the beards of all the needles,
and thus completes the stripe.
Second. In making woollen cloth or hosiery I employ a regular
toothed filling wheel, which carries its thread or yarn alternately in a
front of one needle and back of the next; then a clearing wheel carries
it down, while one plain nibbed stitch wheel puts in a woollen. thread,
and then another plain nibbed stitch wheel puts in a thread of cotton,
and thus produces cloth or hosiery.
Third. In making a mixed fabric I employ two plain nibbed stitch
wheels with a different colored thread in each wheel, which by the
operation become mixed together, so as to form mixed or clouded fabrics,
hosiery, or other goods.
Fourth. In making a straight up or perpendicular stripe in hosiery I
employ one plain nibbed stitch wheel, and one nibbed stitch wheel 3
having two notched teeth placed in a series alterately between a series
of six plain nibbed teeth. These operate in connection with an equal

page_text: number of long and short beard needles arranged to correspond in
number respectively with the notched teeth and the plain nibbed teeth,
each varying according to the width of stripe desired, the two notched
nibbed teeth carrying the thread over the ends of two long beard needles
and under six short beard needles, while the plain nibbed stitch wheel
carries its thread under the beards of all the needles and thus completes
the stripe. A presser wheel, landing wheel, and finishing wheel complete
one course of the fabric as usual.
In the accompanying Drawing I have shewn in several views so
much of a head of a circular knitting machine as will serve to illustrate
the application of my Invention thereto.
Figure 1 is a plan view of the head with the irregular toothed filling
wheel and the two plain stitch wheels applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a side
elevation of the head.
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the irregular toothed filling wheel.
Fig. 4 is a plan view of a regular toothed filling wheel employed in
making cloth.
Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a series of long and short beard needles.
Fig. 6 is a view of a beard needle.
Fig. 7 is a view of a notched toothed stitch wheel removed.
a is the head containing a circle of long and short beard needles e, e¹.
The long beard needles e¹, e¹, are arranged alternately between a series
containing a larger number of short beard needles e, e, e, e, e, e. To
the head a is imparted a continuous rotary motion as usual. b is the
irregular toothed filling wheel arranged on an angle to the needles e,
and is formed of a solid piece of iron or other metal with irregular
oblique teeth arranged around its periphery, and having on their face.
a vertical groove or grooves ¹, and a horizontal groove or notch ", as
shown in Fig. 3.
The arrangement of the teeth z obliquely across the periphery of the
filling wheel 6 admits the filling thread or yarn from the eye of the
guide to pass into the horizontal groove or notch ", and be laid
behind the needles that fall into the notches between the teeth z, and in
front of the needles that fall in the vertical groove or grooves ¹ on the
face of the teeth z. The irregular toothed filling wheel 6 divides the
needles, so that its thread is carried in front of three, and back and

page_text: front alternately of the next five needles; then the clearing wheel c
carries it down, when the plain nibbed stitch wheel d receives a thread
of another color from the eye of guide w¹, and carries it under the
beards of all the needles, and thus finishes the stripe.
When desired to make cloth or hosiery of wool I remove the irregular ||
toothed filling wheel b, Figs. 1 and 3, and substitute the regular toothed
filling wheel b¹, Fig. 4, and place an extra thread of cotton in the eye of
guide w. A thread of wool passes from the eye of guide w into the
horizontal groove or notch ", and is laid behind the needle that falls
into the notch between the teeth, and in front of the next one which
falls into the vertical groove z¹ on the face of the tooth z alternately;
then the clearing wheel c carries it down, when the stitch wheel d
receives a thread of wool from the eye of guide w³, and the stitch
wheel d¹ receives a thread of cotton from the eye of guide w", then the
presser wheel h, landing wheel k, finishing wheel l, and curved blade m,
as usual, finishes a course of the fabric.
When desired to make mixed goods I employ only the two plain
nibbed stitch wheels d, d', and two threads of different colors, one from
each guide w¹ and w", which by the operation become mixed into one
thread, thus forming mixed or clouded fabrics.
Fig. 7 shows a nibbed stitch wheel 9 provided with two notched
teeth arranged alternately between a series of six plain nibbed teeth
of usual construction. This stitch wheel is substituted in place of the
plain nibbed stitch wheel d. These notched teeth agree in number
with a series of long beard needles e¹, e¹, and the plain nibbed teeth
with the short beard needles e, e, ‘e, e, e, e. The number in each series
of needles e and e¹, and the plain and notched teeth v vary according to
the width of stripe desired. Then as the circle of needles are rotated
the two notched teeth v in the stitch wheel g carries the thread from the
guide w¹ over the ends of the two long beard needles e', e¹, and under
six short beard needles e, e, e, e, e, e, thus partially finishing the stripe,
while a thread of another color from guide w" is carried by the plain
nibbed stitch wheel d, takes up the space left by the notched teeth v¹,
and carries its thread under the beards of all the needles, and thus
finishes a perpendicular or straight up stripe in the stocking or other
article manufactured. h is an ordinary presser wheel for closing the
beards of the needles, whilst the loops which were previously upon their
stems are lifted over the points of the beards by the landing wheel k;

page_text: I is a finishing wheel for knocking over the work as usual, and m is a
curved fixed blade for subsequently depressing the loops from under the
beards and holding them down on to the stems of the needles in the
ordinary manner during the time they are carried past the thread guides
and stitch wheels.
By my improvements I am enabled to overcome difficulties existing
in this class of knitting machines as heretofore constructed, and am
enabled to produce more work in a given time, and ensure the manu-
facture of mixed and striped fabrics more even and perfect in appearance
and make, and in a greater variety of styles, introducing plain, colored,
and mixed stripe work with narrow and wide stripes alternating, or
clouded, mixed, on the plain body of the article manufactured in per-
pendicular fancy stripes for hosiery and other articles.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner
of performing the same, I would have it understood that I claim,-
1. The employment in circular knitting machines of a filling wheel
provided with irregular oblique teeth as herein described with one plain
nibbed stitch wheel for manufacturing hosiery or other goods with a
perpendicular or straight up stripe of various widths.
2. The combined arrangements of a regular toothed filling wheel with
two plain nibbed stitch wheels for producing woollen cloth or hosiery
goods.
3. The combined arrangements of two plain nibbed stitch wheels with
two guides carrying a different colored thread in each for producing
clouded or mixed fabrics.
4. The combined arrangements of one plain nibbed stitch wheel with
one having notched teeth as described for producing plain or mixed
straight up stripes in hosiery or other articles.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Bradley, have hereunto set