IMPROVEMENTS IN MULES FOR SPINNING
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Nicholls, of the City of Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner, and Samuel Ledward, of the same
Place, Mechanic, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MULES FOR
SPINNING."
Scaled the 22nd December 1857, and dated the 26th June 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Nicholls and
Samuel Ledward at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 26th June 1857.
We, BENJAMIN NICHOLLS, of the City of Manchester, in the County of Lan-
caster, Cotton Spinner, and SAMUEL LEDWARD, of the same Place, Mechanic,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MULES POR SPINNING," to be as follows:-
Our Invention refers to "hand mules," and relates to arrangements for
lifting the weighted lever that acts to bring the mechanism into gear for
taking out the "carriage."
carriage." This weighted lover has been generally lifted
hitherto by the action of the carriage, either when coming out or going in.
These methods are objectionable, particularly the former, inasmuch as a slight
pause or oscillation is imparted to the carriage when it is acting upon the
weighted lever.
Now, our Invention consists in arrangements for lifting the weighted lever
in such manner as to extend the time of lifting (and thus avoid the shock or
pause) over the larger portion of the "stretch," or going out of the carriage,"

page_text: the mechanism being actuated by the "mendoza," or "taking-out shaft.
Our Invention is carried into effect by means of a screw or worm, or a screw
incline or cam placed on the "mendoza," or "taking-out shaft." This screw
incline or cam acts upon an antifriction bowl placed upon a stud fixed in the
weighted lever. The screw incline or cam is loose on the shaft, and is only
carried round with the shaft positively in one direction, this being accom-
plished by a pawl or pawls and ratchet teeth, which allow the "mendoza,"
'taking-out shaft," to revolve, when the screw incline or cam is held from
moving in the same direction by a suitable stop, which keeps the screw incline
or cam in the proper position to allow the weighted lever to act, and so as to
be ready to again lift it as the carriage moves out.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Nicholls and Samuel Ledward in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 23rd December 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, BENJAMIN
NICHOLLS, of the City of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton
Spinner, and SAMUEL LEDWARD, of the same Place, Mechanic, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Benjamin Nicholls and Samuel Ledward, Her especial license that we,
the said Benjamin Nicholls and Samuel Ledward, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Benjamin Nicholls and
Samuel Ledward, our 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MULES FOR SPINNING," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
Benjamin Nicholls and Samuel Ledward, by an instrument in writing under
our hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us, should parti-
cularly describe and ascertain the nature of our 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Benjamin Nicholls and Samuel
Ledward, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that
is to say)
Our Invention refers to hand mules, and relates to arrangements for lifting
the weighted lever that acts to bring the mechanism into geer for taking out
the carriage. This weighted lever has been generally lifted hitherto by the
action of the carriage, either when coming out or going in. These methods
are objectionable, particularly the former, inasmuch as a slight pause or
oscillation is imparted to the carriage when acting upon the weighted lever.
Now, our Invention consists in arrangements for lifting the weighted lever in
such a manner as to extend the time of lifting over a larger part of the stretch
or going out of the carriage than is taken by the ordinary method, the
mechanism being actuated by the "mendoza," or " taking-out shaft." Our
Invention is carried into effect by means of a screw or worm, or screw incline,
or cam, placed on the "mendoza," or "taking-out shaft;" this screw incline
or cam acts upon an antifriction bowl placed upon a stud fixed in tho
weighted lover. The screw incline or cam is loose on the shaft, and is only
carried round with the shaft positively in one direction, this being accom-
plished by a pawl or by pawls and ratchet teeth, which allow the "mendoza,"
or "taking-out shaft, to revolve, when the screw incline or cam is held from
moving in the same direction by a suitable stop, which keeps the screw inclino
or cam in the proper position to allow the weighted lever to act, and so as to
be ready to again lift it as the carriage moves out. Hitherto it has also been
the practice to employ distinct and separate mechanism for lifting the weighted:
lever that brings the "mendoza," or "taking-out shaft," into geer, and that
for traversing the main driving belt from the loose to the fast pulley, but wo
perform both operations by the same mechanism, and accomplish this by.
connecting the two weighted levers, so that when one is lifted the other will,
be lifted by the same movement; by this means we dispense with the small
worm and worm wheel generally employed to lift the weighted lever for
traversing the main driving belt, which, being subjected to much friction, aro
rapidly worn away, and require to be frequently renewed, while the screw cain
which we employ for lifting both weighted levers, presenting a large wearing
surface, will last as long as the other most durable parts of the mule.
The accompanying Drawing shows the manner in which we carry dur
Invention into effect. Fig. 1 is a cross sectional view, Fig. 2 a back eleva-
tion, and Fig. 3, a plan sectional view of part of the headstock framing of a

page_text: hand mule; all ordinary parts of the mule which are well known are omitted,
except such as are necessary to explain the particular manner of applying our
Invention. a represents the framing; b, the mendoza shaft; c, the lever
carrying the footstep bearing of the mendoza shaft; d, the drum, upon which
the band or strap works that gives motion to the carriage; e, the weighted
lever that brings into geer the mendoza shaft and other parts, having its ful-
crum at e; fis the weight on the lever e; g is the latch, which is jointed to
the lever (e) at h, and it latches upon a pin (i) fixed in the framing; j is n
bracket fixed to the floor, upon which the weight (f) rests when the lever (e)
has operated; is supposed to be the weighted lever that acts to traverse the
main driving belt from the loose to the fast pulley; and is the bracket or
support upon which the weight rests when it has acted upon the belt guide.
All the parts referred to above are ordinary and well known, and are arranged
in the usual manner; the parts remaining are those which constitute our
Invention. m is the screw incline or cam, which is loose on the mendoza
shaft b, and rests on a collar P¹, fixed on the mendoza shaft. It will be scen,
on reference to Fig. 3, that tho incline m' occupies about two-thirds of the
circumference of the cam, one-third being left as an open space. The upper
part of the boss of the cam has ratchet teeth formed on it, into which
two pawls n rest that are jointed on a collar (p) fast on the mendoza shaft (b);
these pawls cause the screw cam (m) to rotate in the direction pointed by the
arrow on Fig. 3 when the carriage is going out, and consequently cause the
lower part of the screw incline of the cam to pass under and lift an antifriction
bowl 9. placed on a stud fixed in the weighted lever e, and consequently lifts
the lever (e) sufficiently high to allow the notch on the latch lever g to rest on
the pin or stud (i) fixed in the framing, and thus the lever (o) is held
up. When the carriage begins to move in to wind on, the direction of
the rotation of the mendoza shaft (b) is reversed, and the screw cam
is carried round by its own friction till it comes against a crank piece r that
swivels on a stud fixed in the lever e; this prevents the cam (m) from
revolving further, the pawls n consequently passing over the ratchet teeth in
that direction. The crank piece (r) acts as a pawl, and does not present any
obstruction to the rotation of the screw cam (m) in the direction pointed by
the arrow (Fig. 3), it only obstructs its rotation in the opposite direction, at a
point which will leave the antifriction bowl 9 free to descend when the weighted
lever (e) is liberated by the carriage pushing against the latch g. The part t
shewn in section in Figs. 1 and 2, but omitted in Fig. 3, is merely a cover to
keep "fly" from the pawls, and is loose on tho "mendoza shaft" (6), resting
upon the fixed collar p. The weighted lever (k), for traversing the main

page_text: driving belt from the loose to the fust pulley, is lifted by a connecting rod ",
jointed to the levere and to one end of a lever (v), having its fulcrum (v) on
a stud fixed in the framing; the other end of this lever v has one end of a
chain w attached to it, which passes over a pulley w¹ placed on a stud w³, fixed
in the framing, the other end of the chain being attached to the lever k or to a
rod w³, free to pass through a hole in a projection from the lever k, the rod w³
having adjusting screw nuts on it at the under side of the lever k; this
arrangement allowing the rod (w³) to descend while the lever k remains up, as
the lever e is always the first to descend.
We have now particularly described the nature of our Invention, and
the mode of carrying the same into effect, and claim as our Invention,
as applicable to hand mules,―
Firstly, the method of lifting the weighted lever for bringing into geer
the "mendoza" or shaft for taking out the carriage, and other mechanism, by
means of a screw, or screw incline or cam, placed on the "mendoza
taking-out shaft, and arranged substantially as herein-before described.
Secondly, the method of lifting both the weighted levers for bringing into
geer the mendoza, or taking-out shaft, and other mechanism, and that for
traversing the main driving belt from the loose to the fast pulley by one and
the same movement, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Nicholls, on my own bobalf,
and on behalf of the said Samuel Ledward, have hereunto set my
band and seal, this Twenty-first day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
DENJ. NICHOLLS. (L.B.)