IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBRES."
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Warburton, of Addingham, near Otley, in
the County of York, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN PREPARING AND COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBRES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Warburton at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
16th April 1857.
I, JAMES WARBURTON, of Addingham, near Otley, in the County of York,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBRES," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in preparing and combing
wool and other fibres, and the Invention is applicable when using circular or
endless combs, and when two or more such combs are combined and work
together in the same machine. For these purposes, when using two circular
combs of like diameter, with teeth set at right angles to the planes of the
circles, the peripheries of the two combs are arranged to meet or come together
at one point, and they are caused to revolve in planes inclined to each other;
the teeth of the two combs being arranged to point in opposite directions; suit-
able feeding and drawing-off apparatus are applied to each of the two combs.
By this combination, the fibres being fed into cach of the combs, the teeth of
the two combs where the combs come together penetrate the fibre contained
in each other's comb, and then by separating they comb out the fibres, and the

page_text: same are drawn off into two slivers, one from each comb, by their respective
drawing-off apparatus. When using a circular or other endless comb to
receive the wool or fibre, and to have it prepared or combed therein by other
circular or endless combs which incline to the plane of the first-mentioned
circular or endless comb, and which by preference havo their teeth pointing
downwards when the teeth of the other point upwards, the wool or other
fibre is fed into the first-mentioned circular or endless comb, and as it comes
opposite to the first working comb the teeth thereof penetrate the protruding
fringe of fibre, and as the two combs revolve at the same surface specil the
ends of the fibres will be combed out as the peripheries of the two combs
separate; and such is the case with the other working combs, the peripheries
of the succeeding working combs coming closer and closer to the periphery of
the first-mentioned comb, the fibres are drawn off at one or more places in
the circumference of the first-mentioned comb by suitable drawing apparatus.
In some cases, when working as above described, the teeth of another comb
are interposed between the drawing rollers or apparatus and the teeth of the
comb from which the fibre is being withdrawn. When working with two
circular or endless combs, on to one or both of which the fibres are fed, and
by the separation of whose peripheries the fibres are worked between the teeth
of the two combs, the two combs are in some cases so combined, that the
fibre having been so combed out or prepared by the two combs at one end,
such fibres are taken and lifted from the two combs by two other circular or
endless combs, and the uncombed ends of the fibres are placed into the teeth
of two other circular or endless combs, and worked or combed out by two
other circular combs, working with the two last-mentioned combs, and moving
at a like surface speed.
When making endless combs other than circular combs, I find it highly
advantageous, in place of using chain combs, to employ endless bands of teeth,
the bands being made of flexible strips or fillets of steel or other sheet metal,
with teeth fixed at their edges.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said James Warburton, Her special licence that I, the said James Warburton,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said James
Warburton, my 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
PREPARING AND COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBRES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said James Warburton, my executors or administrators, by
an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the 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
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Warburton, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in preparing and combing.
wool and other fibres, and the Invention is applicable when using circular or
endless combs, and when two or more such combs are combined and work
together in the same machine. For these purposes, when using two circular
combs of like diameter, with teeth set at right angles to the planes of the
circles, the peripheries of the two combs are arranged to meet or come together
at one point, and they are caused to revolve in planes inclined to each other;
the teeth of the two combs being arranged to point in opposite directions,
suitable feeding and drawing-off apparatus are applied to each of the two combs.
By this combination, the fibres being fed into each of the combs, the teeth
of the two combs where the combs come together penetrate the fibre con-
tained in each other's comb, and then by separating they comb out the fibres,
and the same are drawn off into two slivers and from each comb by their
respective drawing-off apparatus.
Figure 1 is a side view, and Figure 2 is an end view, of a machine for pre-
paring and combing wool and other fibres, arranged according to this the first
part of my Invention. a, a', are two circular or endless combs of the descrip

page_text: tion ordinarily used in wool-combing. They are carried by the axes 6,6¹,
having mounted on them screw wheels c, c', with which the screws d, d', gear.
The screws d, d, are so driven as to cause the combs a, a', to revolve at the
same surface speed, but in opposite directions, so that when they come together
at a point between the two axes the teeth on their peripheries shall be
travelling in the same direction and at the same speed. e, e', are feeding heads,
arranged in an ordinary manner. They consist of two rollers, between which
the sliver of fibres to be treated passes. These rollers are governed in their
motion by an excentric, which raises them up to the level of the teeth in the
comb, then moves them towards the head of the comb, so as to force the end
of the sliver which passes between the rollers in the teeth of the comb, and
finally it causes them to recede from the comb and to detach a portion of
the sliver. The feeding rollers now rotate a distance, so as to cause another
portion of the sliver to protrude from them, and then the operation is repeated.
The excentric which produces these motions is, as is shown by the Drawing,
driven by a band from one of the screw shafts d, d¹. The wool or other fibre
thus fed into the combs a, a', is carried round by them towards the point where
the combs meet, and as the teeth approach oach other those belonging to one
comb penetrate the fringe of fibre carried by the other comb, and vice versa,
and then as the combs move onward the teeth of each of the combs are drawn
through the fringe of fibre carried by the other comb, consequently the noils
or short fibres all remain in the heads of the combs, and the lower fibres pro-
ject from them as a fringe. When the combs a, a¹, carry the fibre to the
drawing rollers f,f¹, the top or longer fibres are drawn from each of the
combs in the ordinary way, and after the combs have had the noil removed
from them by other rollers, as is usual, the teeth arrive again opposite the
filling head, and the operations are repeated.
When using a circular or other endless comb to receive the wool or fibre,
and to have it prepared or combed therein by other circular or endless combs
which incline to the plane of the first-mentioned circular or endless comb, and
which by preference have their teeth pointing downwards when the teeth of
the other point upwards, the wool or other fibre is fed into the first-mentioned
circular or endless comb, and as it comes opposite to the first working comb
the teeth thoreof penetrate the protruding fringe of fibre, and as the two
combs revolve at the same surface speed the ends of the fibres will be combed
out as the peripheries of the two combs separate; and such is the case with
the other working combs, the peripheries of the succeeding working combs
coming closer and closer to the periphery of the first-mentioned comb, the
fibres are drawn off at one or more places in the circumference of the first:

page_text: mentioned comb by suitable drawing apparatus. In some cases, when working
as above described, the teeth of another comb are interposed between the
drawing rollers or apparatus and the teeth of the comb from which the fibre is
being withdrawn.
•
Figure 3 is a plan of a machine arranged according to this the second part
of my Invention. 9, 9, is a circular or endless comb of the description
ordinarily employed in wool-combing; it has on its interior a rack g' formed,
and with it works the pinion h, to the axis of which rotatory motion is com-
municated by a band or strap. The comb g is fed with fibre by the filling heads
i, i, which are similar to those already described, and they are driven by bands
passing round pulleys on the axis of the pinion h. When, as the comb g
travels, it brings the fibre opposite the small circular comb j, the teeth of this'
comb penetrate in amongst the fibres, for the two combs are placed at an angle
to each other, as is shown at Figuro 4, and the teeth of the combj turn down-
wards while those of the comb g turn upward, and the teeth of the two combs
as they approach each other travel in the same direction and at the same"
speed. As the combs 9 and j separate, the teeth of the latter are drawn
through the fringe of fibro in the teeth of the former, and separate there-
from some of the noil or shorter fibres. When the fibre in the comb 9 comes
opposito the inclined circular combs k and the same action is repeated, and
the combs j, k, and are made progressively finer and finer, that is to say, the'
comb is finer than the comb j, and the comb 7 than the comb k; the comb
j also is placed to work at some distance from the head of the comb g, tho
comb k nearer, and the comb 7 close up to the head of the said comb. The noil
or shorter fibre separated by the combs j, k, and I is removed from their teeth
by brushes or otherwise. As the combed fringo passos onwards, it is brushed
forwards by the instrument m and drawn off by the rollers n in the usual way;
and when tho noil has been removed from the teeth of the comb g, they pass
on to the next filling head, and the operation is repeated.
When working with two circular or endless combs on to one or both of
which the fibres are fed, and by the separation of whose peripheries the
fibres are worked between the teeth of the two combs, the two combs are in
some cases so combined, that the fibre having been so combed out or prepared
by the two combs at one end, such fibres are taken and lifted from the two
combs by two other circular or endless combs, and the uncombed ends of the'
fibres are placed into the teeth of two other circular or endless combs, and
worked or combed out by two other circular combs working with the two last-*-
mentioned combs, and moving at a like surface speed.

page_text: Figure 5 is a plan of a machine arranged according to this the third part of
my Invention. o and p are two circular or endless combs of the description
ordinarily employed, in wool-combing, and they may be set at an angle to each
other, as is described in the first part of this Specification, but it is preferable to
arrange them to revolve in the same plane and to feed the wool on to one of
them, and where the two combs come together to press the fringe of fibre which
projects from the one into the teeth of the other, for which arrangement I have
applied for a Patent since the Patent was granted to me of which this is the
Specification. 9 is a feeding head, which feeds the combo in the way already
described; then by the rovolution of this comb the fibro is brought to the
comb p, and by means of an inclined plate, which raises it, it is placed on the top
of the teeth in the comb p, and is then pressed down amongst the teeth by a
brush working up and down, as is woll understood. As the combs o and p
separate they each take some of tho fibre, and tho fringes which project from
then are clean or free from noil. As the combs o and p continuo to revolve
they bring the fibre opposite the inclined combs r, r, which raise it out of their
teeth, and as they revolve place it on the top of the teeth of the combs s, 8, into
which it is pressed by brushes; from these combs the fibre may be drawn, but
it is better to employ other combs t, t, working with the combs 8, 8, in the
same way as the comb p works with the comb o. The fibre is drawn from the
combs s, s, t, t, in the usual way.
The machine above described is geared in the following way:-The comb p
which is driven by the pinion u has on its axis a toothed wheel, gearing with
another toothed wheel' on the axis of the comb o; these wheels also gear with
pinions of the same size as the combs r, and which are mounted on hollow
axes, having at their upper ends bevilled wheels, driving other bevilled wheels
fixed on the under sides of the combs r, which with their bevilled wheels are
mounted on a fixed axis projecting up through the hollow axis, before men-
tioned, and bent at its upper end to the required inclination. The combs s, s,
have on their axes wheels which gear with the pinions on the hollow axes,
before mentioned, and which also drive similar wheels mounted on the axes of
the combs t, t. When making endless combs other than circular combs, I
find it highly advantageous, in place of using chain combs, to employ endless
bands of teeth, the bands being made of flexible strips or fillets of steel or
other sheet metal, with teeth fixed at their edges.
Figure 6 shows an endless comb constructed according to this the fourth
part of my Invention. v, v, are two pulleys, having stretched between them
the endless steel band w, having soldered to it the two rows of teeth x, as is

page_text: shewn in Figure 7. Endless combs of this construction may be used in almost
all cases in which circular combs or endless combs of other construction have
before been used.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Warburton, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
Wч M. WARD, Sol",
Bradford.
JAMES WARBURTON. (L.S.)