Improvements in Machinery for Shearing, Cutting, or Cropping Textile Fabrics.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd June, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Apr., 1894-Accepted, 12th May, 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Shearing, Cutting, or Cropping
Textile Fabrics.
We, HENRY HARGREAVES of 43, Ripley Terrace Bradford, in the County of
York, Pattern Maker, and JOSEPH ANTCLIFFE, of 246, St. Stephen's Road,
Bradford aforesaid, Stuff Finisher, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
"
This invention relates to improvements in machinery for finishing textile fabrics
technically termed, "shearing," "cutting" or "cropping machines and its object
is to automatically raise the cutting mechanism to allow projecting seams
connecting the pieces of fabric or other similar projections to pass and auto-
matically lower said mechanism again into position as soon as the projection is
passed.
For this purpose we pass the fabric between a pair of rollers normally pressed
together by a spring or springs but one of which is capable of lateral movement
and is so arranged in connection with a spring catch or detent that when a seam or
other similar projection on the fabric passes between the rollers said detent is
operated thereby releasing a weighted lever. This weighted lever is connected by
a rack and pinion or other connecting mechanism to a clutch in such a manner
that the motion of said lever throws the clutch in gear with a worm which may be
mounted on the main shaft and thereby causes said worm to rotate with the shaft.
This worm is arranged to rotate a cam which vibrates a lever engaging the ordinary
hand or pedal lever or its equivalent in such a manner that the cutting mechanism
is raised to allow the seam to pass.
The said cam is so formed that before its rotation is completed the cutting
mechanism is lowered to its working position. Such cam then engages a convenient
part of the mechanism connecting the above mentioned weighted lever and clutch
and after raising said weighted lever to its normal position (where it is retained
by the said detent again engaging it) the cam finally disengages said clutch from
the worm.
cutter.
The improvements are equally applicable to machines with inore than one rotary
And in such machines the cutters may be raised one after the other as
the seam or other projection passes under them and be lowered immediately it has
passed.
Dated shin 1nt daw of Lu 1902
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Shearing, Cutting, or Cropping
Textile Fabrics.
We, HENRY HArgreaves, of 43, Ripley Terrace, Bradford, in the County of
York, Pattern Maker, and JOSEPH ANTCLIFFE, of 246, St. Stephen's Road,
Bradford, aforesaid, Stuff Finisher, 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 relates to improvements in machinery for finishing textile fabrics,

page_text: "C
technically termed "shearing," cutting" or "cropping" machines, and its object
is to automatically raise the cutting mechanism to allow projecting seams
connecting the pieces of fabric operated upon or other similar projections thercon
to pass, and automatically lower said mechanism again into position as soon as the
projection is passed.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying sheets of drawings forming a part of
this Specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in each of the figures.
Figure 1, represents an end elevation of such parts of a single cutter cropping
machine as are necessary to illustrate the application of our invention thereto.
Figure 2, represents a cross section of the machine showing the reverse side of
Figure 1 looking from the interior of the machine.
Figure 3, represents a front view of that end of the machine shown in the
previous figures but in which the rotary cutter and the cutter bed are omitted.
Figure 4, represents a sectional plan view of such parts of a three cutter
cropping machine as are necessary to illustrate the application of our invention
thereto.
Figure 5, is a front elevation of the same.
Figure 6, is a view of a detail hereinafter referred to.
The fabric represented by the broken lines A Figures and 2 is passed between
the pair of rollers B, B' (approximately the full width of the machine) and over the
rigid bar B before it reaches the usual cutter bed C below the rotary cutter C'.
The roller B is mounted in a block B³ at each end fitted in slots or guides B
formed in brackets B rigidly secured upon each end of the cross piece C. And
the roller B is kept tightly pressed against the roller B by means of spiral
springs B fitted in the slots B' so as to press against the back of the blocks B³.
The shaft or pivot B' of the roller B is arranged to project outside the bearing
block B against the top of the catch lever D mounted on the stud D' secured to
the end frame D². The lower end D³ of the catch lever engages the notch D' in
the weighted lever E rigidly fixed on the short shaft E' mounted in a bearing
formed in the side frame. A pinion E' is secured to the outer end of the shaft E¹
which pinion engages the rack or quadrant E pivoted upon the stud. E' fixed in the
side frame and connected by the rod E to one arm of the bell crank lever E'
pivoted on the stud E³. The other arm of the lever E' is connected by the short
rod or link E' to the arm F of the clutch lever F' mounted on the stud F*
projecting from the bracket F³ fixed to the end frame D².
It will be readily understood that a connecting wire or seam or other projection
on the fabric liable to damage the cutter will more or less press the roller B away
from B' and it is obvious that any movement of B in that direction will disengage
the lever D from the weighted lever E and the latter immediately falls to the
position shown by the broken lines in Figure 2. This movement partly rotates
the shaft E' and pinion E' and consequently vibrates the rack E in the direction
of the arrow Figure 1. This vibration of the rack is communicated by the rod E*
to the lever E' which in turn pulls down the arm F of the clutch lever F' thereby
sliding the clutch F on the main shaft F8 into gear with the pinion F loosely
mounted upon said shaft. Immediately the clutch is in gear with the pinion the
latter rotates with the shaft and drives the cam pinion G through the medium of
the intermediate wheels F and F. The cam pinion G is mounted upon a stud G'
fixed inside the end frame and has the cam G² rigidly secured to its face.
The
cam G' as it rotates engages the anti-friction roller G carried by the arm G₁ of
the lever Go and thereby vibrates said lever. The lever G' is mounted on the
stud G and its other arm G7 is connected by the rod GB to the lifting arm G° of
the rotary cutter in a similar manner to the ordinary hand or pedal lever, con-
sequently when the cam vibrates the lever G³ the rotary cutter is lifted the same
as if it were lifted by the attendant. And as soon as the proud part of the cam
has passed the roller G³ the cutter is lowered again.
After the cutter has been lifted and again lowered to position the weighted

page_text: lever E is restored to the position shown in the drawings by the anti-friction
roller H carried on the face of the cam G³ engaging the arm H' of the lever H'
and moving it from the position shown by the broken lines in Figure 2 to that
represented by the full lines. The lever H' is also mounted upon the stud G
and its arm H is connected by the rod H' to the arm J of the lever J' pivoted
above the weighted lever upon the stud J. The other arm J of the lever J' is
formed with a slot J' in which a sliding block J is fitted having a central hole to
receive the stud J' projecting from the face of the weighted lever. The parts are
so relatively arranged that when the herein mentioned movement of the lever H'
raises the weighted lever, through the medium of the connecting mechanism until
the clutch is again out of gear with the pinion on the driving shaft, the momentum
thus imparted to the weighted lever carries it further up so that the notch D'
passes below the bottom of the catch lever and the latter immediately swings to
the position shown in the drawings and prevents the weighted lever falling again.
The momentum of the cam and operating gearing also carries it round after the
clutch is disengaged approximately to the position shown in the drawings with the
rise of the cam against the anti-friction roller.
66
"
In Figures 4 and 5 the clutch F' mounted on the main shaft F is arranged to
engage and drive the worm N (also mounted on shaft F°) each time it is operated
by the clutch lever F connected by the rod E to the rack or quadrant E. The
worm N engages the worm wheel N¹ fixed on the cross shaft N' mounted in
brackets N³, N secured to the side frame D². The clutch lever F' is pivoted upon
a stud N carried by the extension N° of N³. The lever O (Figure 4) is the hand
lever usually fitted to this class of machine for raising the first rotary cutter and
the lever is the pedal lever usually employed to raise the second and third
cutters together. In this case however these levers are automatically operated by
the cams and O³ fixed on the shaft N2 bearing upon and depressing the levers O*
and respectively connected at one end by the rods Os and O' to the hand and
pedal levers, and pivoted at their other ends to the fixing 08 secured to the
floor.
The
The said cams are so arranged that, when the clutch is brought into gear with the
worm wheel in the manner described with reference to Figures 1, 2 and 3, the cam O'
first engages the anti-friction roller P carried by the lever O' and thereby depressing
said lever also depresses the hand lever O connected thereto and so raises the first cutter
in the same way as if the lever O were operated by hand. The cam Othen engaging
the anti-friction roller P' on the lever O also depresses this lever and consequently
the pedal lever O¹ connected to it thus raising the second and third cutters.
cams are so formed that the rotary cutters are held up sufficiently long to allow a
seam or other projection to pass beneath them and after the first cutter has been
again lowered and the second cutter is being lowered the anti-friction roller H on
the face of the cam O' comes in contact with the arm H¹ of the lever H' and
operates said lever in the manner described with reference to Figures 1, 2 and 3
for the purpose of raising the weighted lever by the rod H* and also throwing the
clutch out of gear.
As before, when the clutch is out of gear, the momentum of
the parts carries the shaft N' sufficiently round to move the anti-friction roller H
past the arm H'.
It is obvious that a separate cam may be employed to raise the second cutter in
advance of the third cutter but as these cutters are usually raised by one pedal
lever we prefer to adhere to that arrangement.
In the three cutter machine the rollers B and B are mounted in front of the
machine and may be further away from the first cutter than shown in Figures 1, 2
and 3, as thin goods are frequently cropped in this class of machine and the seams
may be more or less awry, that is to say, not at right angles to the length of the
fabric. Also in case the seams are thin we prefer to employ a compound lever
to release the weighted lever E.
Figure 6, represents a side view of this compound lever arrangement. The shaft
or pivot B' of the roller B is shown in section bearing against the lower end of the

page_text: lever d pivoted at d' and coupled by the rod d² to the catch lever D. The catch
lever D is pivoted at D' and its lower end D³ engages the weighted lever E. It
will be evident that a very slight movement of B will disengage D³ from the
notch D in E.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is:
1. In a cropping machine, the combination with mechanism arranged to
automatically raise the cutter or cutters to allow a seam or other projection
to pass, of a device adapted to restore said mechanism to its normal or working
position after the latter has raised the cutter or cutters, substantially as herein
shown and described.
2. In a cropping machine mechanism adapted to automatically raise the rotary
cutter to allow a seam or other projection to pass adapted to be brought into
operation by a roller or its equivalent arranged to be moved laterally by said
projection, substantially as herein shown and described.
3. In a cropping machine, mechanism adapted to automatically raise the cutter
or cutters to allow a seam or other projection to pass, substantially as herein shown
and described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 30th day of March 1894.
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.