Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Oct., 1887
Complete Specification Left, 17th July, 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 24th Aug., 1888
I ARTHUR FRANCIS WILEMAN of Bull Head Lane Northampton, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention, to be as follows:-
My Invention has for its object to produce at low cost, a lock stitch Sewing Machine
which shall be durable and thoroughly efficient in operation, and which may be com-
prised within a very small compass. This end is attained by stamping out almost
the whole of the parts of which the frame and working parts of the machine are
constructed, from sheet metal by means of suitable dies and tools, this mode of
manufacture enabling the machine to be made and put together very rapidly and in
large numbers and therefore at a very low cost; and the invention consists in the
peculiar construction and combination of parts as hereinafter described, whereby
combined efficiency and cheapness are attained.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specifi-
cation wherein figure 1 is a front sectional elevation and figure 2 is an end elevation
(partly broken away) of the machine. Figure 3 is a cross section of the work plate
on line 1-1 figure 1, looking towards the feed mechanism. Figure 4 is an end view
of the arm of the machine frame, the needle operating shaft being in section. Figures 5,
6, 7, 8 and 9, are detail views of the shuttle. Figure 10 is a detail of the hinged
driving handle, in section on line 2-2 figure 1. Figure 11 is a cross section of the
shuttle race on line 3-3 figure 3 the foregoing figures being drawn about full size.
Figures 12 to 17 shew blanks of certain of the parts, drawn to half the scale of the
others. The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
The frame of the machine is made of several pieces-vizt.-(1) a base A of sheet
metal stamped up
to the form in section shewn in figure 1 and filled up solid at the
underside after the parts are put together. It is formed with a depression a at the
middle to receive the upper jaw of a clamp (not shown) by which the machine may
be secured firmly on to a table or other support, for use; (2) an upright formed of a
metal bar of half round section B and a plate B¹ of sheet metal rivetted together, the
plate being stamped out of suitable form and afterwards pressed up around the side

page_text: and top edges to form flanges b as shewn in figure 1, the lower edge being formed
with lugs or stumps 6' (figures 1 and 17) which, as well as the lower end of the rod B
are rivetted in corresponding apertures in the base A The parts B. B¹ are first
rivetted together by the tail end of the stud g on which the driving wheel turns and
by bushes which form bearings for the upper and lower shafts; (3) a support C, C¹
formed of a short upright rod of half round metal and a sheet metal plate C¹ stamped
out and having the side edges turned up to form flanges c, the parts C, C¹ being
rivetted on the base plate A by lugs or stumps c¹ after they have been rivetted together
by a bush e forming a bearing for the lower shaft. This plate is stamped up of the
form shewn in section in figure 11 to form a curved race for the shuttle, as shewn by
the curved lines in figures 2 and 3; (4) an arm D of special construction formed of
sheet metal stamped out of the form shewn in figure 12, and bent up to the form
shewn in figures 1 and 4, this plate being formed with lugs or stumps d at opposite
edges which are rivetted into corresponding apertures in the upright plate B¹ and in
the back of the head E respectively. The elongated parts d' of this plate when bent
up as shewn form spring arms between the ends of which the spool carrying the upper
thread is pivoted. The spool may be readily inserted between the arms d¹ or removed
and does not fall out of place when moving the machine about; (5) the head E which
is a box made of sheet metal in two parts E, E¹ the last mentioned part E¹ being a
sliding cover embracing the sides and back of the part E. In this head is a guide for
the needle bar formed by a strip e of the shape shewn in figure 15 bent along the
longitudinal dotted lines so as to embrace three sides of the needle bar and notched
at ee² so as to engage with the top and bottom ends of the box E which are also
notched, these parts being in fact "halved" together so as to prevent motion of the
guide e in any direction. The piece of metal e³ cut out of the bottom end of box E to
form the aperture for the needle bar is not wholly removed but bent down as shewn
to form a bearing and guiding surface for the needle bar. The presser foot bar is
similarly guided by inwardly bent portions of the top and bottom of box E; (6) the
worktable supported upon the plate C to which it is removably attached by clips c³
formed by the upper ends of the flanges c. which are split off from the plate for a
short distance down and sprung over the edges of the table, the latter being also
screwed to the upright B.
I will now describe the working parts of the machine. G is the driving wheel
turning on stud 9 and having rivetted to it by rivets and distance pieces, the toothed
ring G which gears with other wheels H¹, I on the upper and lower shafts H and I
respectively, the ring G' and wheels H¹, I being all stamped out of metal plates. For
I¹
convenience of packing, the driving wheel handle G2 is made to fold within the rim of
the wheel, as shewn in dotted lines in Figure 1. For this purpose, the spindle g¹ of
the handle is flattened at 92 and received in a longitudinal slot in a cylindrical stem g³
and hinged therein on a transverse pin 91 the stem being fitted in a socket through
the rim of the wheel and in which it is retained by a shoulder at one end and a thumb
lever g fixed on the other by which it may be turned in its socket. The wheel rim
has a radial slot in its inner side and when the axis is turned so that the plane
of the part coincides with said slot, the handle may be folded inwards, as shewn
in dotted lines in figure 1, but when turned outwards as in full lines in that figure
and the stem partially rotated, as in figure 10, so that g² 9 no longer coincide, the
spindle is rigidly locked. The needle driving shaft H passes under the hollow arm D
and turns in bearings in the upright B, B' and in the box head E and terminates in a
crank arm h having a crank pin with anti-friction roller which works in a V cam-
slotted plate & affixed to the needle bar K the parts and K being halved together
and rivetted. L is the take up arm, of the particular bent form shewn. It is
pivoted at to the inner rear side of the box E and is actuated in the downward
direction by a pin fixed to the needle bar and in the upward direction partly
by a spring attached to its tail end and to the box E and partly by the crank
arın striking it and thereby completing the motion commenced by the spring
and so raising the take up arm L to the required height to draw the stitch tight.
Its long end projects through a vertical slot in the side of the box and is formed

page_text: with an eye for the thread. M is the presser foot bar sliding in guides in the
head E and pressed down by a spring M¹, m being the presser foot screwed to the
lower end of the bar, and m¹ the cam lever for raising it out of work.
The shuttle driving shaft I turns in bearings in the uprights B, B₁ C, C¹ and
has rivetted on its squared end two discs N, O of the different shapes shewn, forming
a double cam for actuating the feed. p is a crank pin rivetted through both of
the discs so as to fasten them together in their proper relative positions, the crank
pin engaging in a peculiarly shaped slot p¹ in the arm P of the vibrating shuttle
driver which is fixed on the end of a shaft p² rocking in bearings in C, C¹ B, B¹
and having upon it a spiral spring p³ confined between C and a collar p* upon it
by which the shuttle driver is held up towards the shuttle race whilst permitting
of the shaft p² being drawn partially out of its bearings so as to disengage the
arm P of the shuttle driver from the crank pin p and permit of the shuttle driver
being swung forwards or backwards to enable the shuttle to be readily inserted or
removed. The shuttle driver or carrier is of the form shewn and is provided with
horns p p p which embrace the shuttle and lugs p upon which the shuttle rests.
To the horn p' is attached a spring p which presses the shuttle against the shuttle
The shuttle is prevented from jumping out of the shuttle carrier by the
overhanging upper portion of the plate C formed by pressing up the plate Ů, as
shewn in cross-section in figure 11 along the curved lines, the part towards the right
in figure 2 being struck to a rather greater radius than the remainder, to allow for the
shuttle rising when the loop of the needle thread slips under it. vis a portion of the
upper part of plate C¹ bent outwards over the shuttle race to prevent the loop of
the needle thread after the shuttle has passed through it being entangled in the feed
claw, before the needle has risen again.
race 2.
6
The feed claw is formed on a lever R stamped of the form shewn in figure 3 with
lugs n, o bent up at right angles and bearing against the peripheries of the cams N, O
respectively. It terminates in a disc shaped lower end r on which it oscillates as a
centre and which is free to slide up and down between C and the flange c of plate C¹
at the back of which the lever works, being held loosely by a strap rivetted to
plate C. A spring attached to R and to the plate C¹ holds the lugs n, o (which
pass through holes n¹ o' in the plate () against the cams and so gives the downward
and return movements to the lever. The feed claw is formed in one with the lever R
by bending over the upper end at right angles and serrating it. It rises through the
usual aperture in the table F. S is the stitch regulator, being an eccentric disc pivoted
to the plate and forming a stop to limit the return movement of the feed claw.
It is adjustable by means of an arm s sprung into notches s¹ in the flange c.
The shuttle T is of the usual form but differs in detail from the ordinary construction.
The recess in the nose end to receive the horn p' of the shuttle carrier is formed by
partially cutting out a piece t and bending it inwards to form on the one hand an
abutment for the horn p' of the shuttle carrier and on the other hand a spring bearing
for the front centre of the shuttle spool. The piece p' has a cavity punched in it to
receive the end of the spool axis and being integral with the shell of the shuttle and
being attached only at one end where it is bent inwards it has sufficient elasticity to
permit of the shuttle spool being slipped in and out of its bearings. The thread
guide bar is integral with the shell of the shuttle being formed by cutting out
parallel longitudinal slits in the upper rear side of the latter and pressing inwards the
intervening strip. From one of these longitudinal slits, an oblique forwardly directed
slit 2 is made to a hole t³ near the face of the shuttle towards the nose. Covering
this slit and hole on the inner side is a flat spring u pressing against the inner side of
the shuttle, the spring being integral with the filling piece u¹in the nose of the shuttle
which is integral with the lower side of the shuttle, the parts u u¹ being stamped out
in one with the shell of the shuttle and bent upwards and inwards.
The spring
terminates in a hooked end u² around which the shuttle thread passes as shewn, that is
to say the thread passes from the spool over the bar t back through the hook u² and
under the end of the spring to the hole through which it is readily passed by
threading it through the longitudinal slit and slipping it under the spring and through

page_text: the oblique slit t². The necessary drag or tension is ensured by the thread passing
round bar t, through the hooked end u² of the spring and under the latter which
clips it against the side of the shuttle, to the hole t³.
The table F is provided with the usual needle hole or throat with which coincides
the usual vertical groove in the face of the plate C¹ down which the needle passes.
X is the tension for the top thread and Y is the shuttle spool winder, consisting of
a bracket stamped out of sheet metal to the form shown in figure 16 and bent at the
dotted lines to a U shape. On the part y is soldered a tube y' within which the
usual spindle provided with a spring and wheel, is free to rotate.
secured by rivetting the part y to the plate B' as shewn in figure 1.
Dated this 17th day of October 1887.
The whole is
A. F. WILEMAN.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Patent Agents.

page_text: I, ARTHUR FRANCIS WILEMAN, of 24, Mount Park Crescent, Ealing, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer, 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 :-
My Invention has for its object to produce at low cost, a lock stitch sewing
machine which shall be durable and thoroughly efficient in operation, and which
may be comprised within a very small compass. This end is attained by stamping
out almost the whole of the parts of which the frame and working parts of the
machine are constructed, from sheet metal, this mode of manufacture enabling the
machine to be made and put together very rapidly, and therefore at a very low
cost.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this speci-
fication, wherein figure 1 is a front sectional elevation, and figure 2 is an end elevation
(partly broken away) of the machine. Figure 3 is a cross-section of the work plate
on line 1-1, figure 1, looking towards the feed mechanism. Figure 4 is an end view
of the arm of the machine frame, the needle operating shaft being in section.
Figures 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, are detail views of the shuttle. Figure 10 is a detail of
the hinged driving handle in section on line 2-2, figure 1. Figure 11 is a cross-
section of the shuttle race on line 3-3, figure 3, the foregoing figures being drawn
about full size. Figures 12 to 17 shew blanks of certain of the parts, drawn to
half the scale of the others. The same letters of reference indicate the same parts
in all the figures.
The frame of the machine is made of several pieces-vizt.-(1) a base A of sheet
metal stamped up to the form shown in section in figure 1, and filled up solid at the
underside after the parts are put together. It is formed with a depression a at the
middle to receive the upper jaw of a clamp (not shewn) by which the machine may
be secured firmly on to a table or other support for use; (2) an upright formed of a
metal bar of half round section B and a plate B¹ of sheet metal rivetted together, the
the plate being stamped out of suitable form and afterwards pressed up around the
side and top edges to form flanges b, as shewn in figure 1, the lower edge being
formed with lugs or stumps 6' (figures 1 and 17) which, as well as the lower end of
the rod B, are rivetted in corresponding apertures in the base A. The parts B B' are
first rivetted together by the tail end of the stud g on which the driving wheel turns
and by bushes 63 which form bearings for the upper and lower shafts; (3) a
support CC formed of a short upright rod C of half round metal and a sheet metal

page_text: This
plate stamped out and having the side edges turned up to form flanges the
parts C C¹ being rivetted on the base plate A by lugs or stumps c¹ after they have
been rivetted together by a bush c², forming a bearing for the lower shaft.
plate is stamped up of the form shewn in section in figure 11, to form a curved race
for the shuttle, as shewn by the curved lines in figures 2 and 3; (4) an arm D of
special construction formed of sheet metal stamped out of the form shewn
in figure 12 and bent up to the form shewn in figures 1 and 4, this
plate being formed with lugs or stumps d at opposite edges which are
rivetted into corresponding apertures in the upright plate B¹ and in the back of the
head E respectively. The elongated parts d' of this plate when bent up as shewn,
form spring arms between the ends of which the spool carrying the upper thread is
pivoted. The spool may be readily inserted between the arms d¹ or removed, and
does not fall out of place when moving the machine about; (5) the head E which is
a box made of sheet metal in two parts E, E¹, the last mentioned part E¹ being a
sliding cover embracing the sides and back of the part E. In this head is a guide for
the needle bar formed by a strip e of the shape shewn in figure 15, bent along the
longitudinal dotted lines, so as to embrace three sides of the needle bar and notched
at el e², so as to engage with the top and bottom ends of the box E which are also
notched, these parts being in fact "halved" together, so as to prevent motion of the
guide e in any direction. The piece of metal e cut out of the bottom end of box E
to form the aperture for the needle bar, is not wholly removed but bent down as shewn,
to form a bearing and guiding surface for the needle bar. The presser foot bar is
similarly guided by inwardly bent portions e of the top and bottom of box E;
(6) the work-table F supported upon the plate C to which it is removably attached
by clips c³ formed by the upper ends of the flanges c which are split off from the
plate C¹ for a short distance down and sprung over the edges of the table, the latter
being also screwed to the upright B.
I will now describe the working parts of the machine. G is the driving wheel
turning on stud g and having rivetted to it by rivets and distance pieces, the toothed
ring G which gears with other wheels H¹, I on the upper and lower shafts H and I
respectively, the ring G₁ and wheels H¹ I being all stamped out of metal plates. For
convenience of packing, the driving wheel handle G2 is made to fold within the rim
of the wheel, and shewn in dotted lines in figure 1. For this purpose, the spindle gl
of the handle is flattened at g' and received in a longitudinal slot in a cylindrical stem g³
and hinged therein on a transverse ping, the stem being fitted in a socket through
the rim of the wheel and in which it is retained by a shoulder at one end and a thumb
lever g fixed on the other by which it may be turned in its socket. The wheel rim has
a radial slot ge in its inner side and when the axis is turned so that the plane of the
part 2 coincides with said slot, the handle may be folded inwards, as shown in dotted
lines in figure 1, but when turned outwards, as in full lines in that figure, and the
stem partially rotated, as in figure 10, so that y² 96, no longer coincide, the spindle is
rigidly locked. The needle driving shaft H passes under the hollow arm D and turns
in bearings in the upright B B¹ and in the box head E and terminates in a crank
arm having a crank pin with anti-friction roller which works in a V-cam slotted
plate affixed to the needle bar K, the parts & and K being halved together and
rivetted. L is the take up arm of the particular bent form shewn. It is pivoted at /
to the inner rear side of the box E and is actuated in the downward direction by a
pink fixed to the needle bar and in the upward direction partly by a spring
attached to its tail end and to the box E and partly by the crank arm a striking it and
thereby completing the motion commenced by the spring and so raising the take up
arm L to the required height to draw the stitch tight. Its long end projects through
a vertical slot in the side of the box, and is formed with an eye for the thread. M is
the presser foot bar sliding in guides in the head E and pressed down by a spring M¹,
m being the presser foo; screwed to the lower end of the bar, and m¹ the cam lever
for raising it out of work.
The shuttle driving shaft I turns in bearings in the uprights B B¹, C C¹³, and has

page_text: rivetted on its squared end, two discs N O, of the different shapes shewn, forming a
double cam for actuating the feed. p is a crank pin rivetted through both of the
discs, so as to fasten them together in their proper relative positions, the crank pin
engaging in a peculiarly shaped slot pl in the arm P of the vibrating shuttle driver
which is fixed on the end of a shaft p² rocking in bearings in C C¹, B B₁, and having
upon it a spiral spring p³, confined between Cand a collar p upon it by which the
shuttle driver is held up towards the shuttle race whilst permitting of the shaft p
being drawn partially out of its bearings so as to disengage the arm P of the shuttle
driver from the crank pin p and permit of the shuttle driver being swung forwards
or backwards, to enable the shuttle to be readily inserted or removed. The shuttle
driver or carrier is of the form shewn and is provided with horns p p p² which
embrace the shuttle, and lugs p8 upon which the shuttle rests. To the horn p' is
attached a spring p³ which presses the shuttle against the shuttle race z. The shuttle is
prevented from jumping out of the shuttle carrier, by the overhanging upper portion of
the plate C¹ formed by pressing up the plate C, as shown in cross-section in figure 11
along the curved lines z, the part towards the right in figure 2 being struck to a rather
greater radius than the remainder, to allow for the shuttle rising when the loop of the
needle thread slips under it. vis a portion of the upper part of plate C bent outwards
over the shuttle race, to prevent the loop of the needle thread after the shuttle has
passed through it, being entangled in the feed claw, before the needle has risen again.
The feed claw is formed on a lever R stamped of the form shewn in figure 3, with
lugs no, bent up at right angles and bearing against the peripheries of the cams NO,
respectively. It terminates in a disc shaped lower end on which it oscillates as a
centre and which is free to slide up and down between C and the flange c of plate C¹
at the back of which the lever works being held loosely by a strap rivetted to
plate C. A spring 22 attached to R and to the plate C¹ holds the lugs no
(which pass
through holes n¹ o¹ in the plate C¹) against the cams and so gives the downward and
return movements to the lever. The feed claw is formed in one with the lever R by
bending over the upper end at right angles and serrating it. It rises through the
usual aperture in the table F. S is the stitch regulator, being an eccentric disc
pivoted to the plate C₁ and forming a stop to limit the return movement of the
feed claw. It is adjustable by means of an arm s sprung into notches s¹ in the
flange c.
The shuttle T is of the usual form but differs in detail from the ordinary con-
struction. The recess in the nose end to receive the horn p' of the shuttle carrier, is
formed by partially cutting out a piece t and bending it inwards to form a spring
bearing for the front centre of the shuttle spool. The piece t has a cavity punched in
it to receive the end of the spool axis and being integral with the shell of the
shuttle, and being attached only at one end where it is bent inwards, it has sufficient
elasticity to permit of the shuttle spool being slipped in and out of its bearings.
The thread guide bar is integral with the shell of the shuttle, being formed by
cutting out parallel longitudinal slits in the upper rear side of the latter, and pressing
inwards the intervening strip. A filling piece is soldered in the nose of the
shuttle. This filling piece is bent backwards or inwards, to form an abutment for
the horn p' of the shuttle carrier. Integral with this part is a piece u which lies
flat against the upper inner side of the shuttle. The piece u extends rearwards about
half the length of the shuttle and has a series of notches u² through which the
shuttle thread passes, as shewn, that is to say, the thread passes from the bar t¹
through one or more of the notches u² and between the piece u and the shell of the
shuttle to the hole 3. The table F is provided with the usual needle hole or throat,
with which coincides the usual vertical groove in the face of the plate C'. X is the
tension for the top thread and Y is the shuttle spool winder, consisting of a bracket
stamped out of sheet metal to the form shewn in figure 16, and bent at the dotted
lines to a U-shape. On the part y is soldered a tube y' within which the usual spindle
provided with a spring and wheel is free to rotate. The whole is secured by rivetting
the part y to the plate B', as shewn in figure 1.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A sewing machine constructed of a base A, uprights B B¹, C C¹, arm D,
and head E, formed in separate parts united by rivetting together, as shewn and
described.
2. In a sewing machine frame the uprights BB, CC₁, each constructed of a flanged
plate of sheet metal and a central vertical half-round rib rivetted to the plate by the
bushes in which the shafts revolve, substantially as specified.
3. In a sewing machine frame, the arm D of sheet metal of inverted U section
rivetted at the ends to the upright B¹ and to the needle bar box E, substantially as
specified.
4. In a sewing machine frame, the arm D of inverted U section with upwardly
directed spring-arms formed in one piece of sheet metal bent up, as and for the
purpose specified.
5. In a sewing machine, the head E constructed in the form of a box made in two
parts E E¹, both being plates of sheet metal bent up at right angles, the part E at top
and bottom to form the top and bottom of the box head and the part E' at the sides
to enclose the sides of the box and the two parts being united by the sides of the
part E embracing and sliding upon the edges of the part E, substantially as
specified.
6. In a sewing machine in which the head E is made of sheet metal, the guiding
or bearing surfaces et for the presser foot bar and a guide e³ for the needle bar formed
by partially severed and inwardly bent portions integral with the ends of the box E,
substantially as specified.
7. In a sewing machine, the guide for the needle bar constructed of a sheet metal
stripe of U section partly embracing the needle bar and secured by being notched
and halved into, or interlocked with, the correspondingly notched edges of the top
and bottom ends of a box or head E constructed of two parts E E¹, in the manner
described.
8. In a vibrating shuttle sewing machine, the shuttle race and feed mechanism
support formed of a plate of sheet metal creased or stamped up along arcs of slightly
different radius, to form the boundary of the shuttle race and prevent the shuttle
jumping out of its carrier, as specified.
9. The spring clips for securing the work-plate in position, formed by partly splitting
off the flanges of the upright plate C, as described.
10. In a sewing machine, a feed claw lever made in one piece of sheet metal having
portions bent up at right angles to its plane to form the feed claw and the lugs by
which it is operated and terminating at its lower end in a circular enlargement acting
as a movable fulcrum for the lever, as described.
11. The feed claw lever constructed as described and working in vertical guides at
the back of the plate Cand provided with lugs projecting through apertures in the
said plate in combination with a double cam at the opposite side of the plate and with a
spring to hold the lugs up to the cams, as described.
12. The double feed cam made of two separate discs juxtaposed and rivetted
together by the crank pin which works the shuttle driver, as described.
13. The mode of folding and locking the spindle of the driving wheel handle by
hinging it in a slotted cylindrical stem revolvable in a slotted socket in the driving
wheel rim in order that the two slots may coincide or not according as the handle is to
be folded or not, as described.
14. A sewing machine shuttle having a spring bearing for one end of the spool
formed integrally with the shell of the shuttle by partially cutting out and inwardly
bending a piece of the shell near the nose of the shuttle to leave a notch to receive
the horn of the shuttle carrier, as specified.
15. A sewing machine shuttle having the thread guide bar formed integrally with

page_text: the shell of the shuttle by cutting longitudinal slots in the shell and pressing the
intervening strip inwards, as described.
16. A sewing machine shuttle having a tension device consisting of a spring
integral with the filling piece soldered in the nose of the shuttle said spring lying
close against the upper side of the shuttle and terminating at its free end in a hook
forming a guide for the thread, as specified.
A. F. WILEMAN.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.