IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CLOTH OR COMPOUND FABRICS OR ARTIFICIAL LEATHER, AND IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH TO CERTAIN PURPOSES
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Paul Rapsey Hodge, of Number 10, Adam Street,
Adelphi, in the Parish of St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, and City of
Westminster, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CLOTH OR COMPOUND FABRICS OR ARTIFICIAL
LEATHER, AND IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH TO CERTAIN PURPOSES."
Sealed the 19th October 1869, and dated the 21st April 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Paul Rapsey Hodge
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 21st April 1869.
I, PAUL RAPBEY HODGE, of Number 10, Adam Street, Adelphi, in the
Parish of St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, and City of Westminster, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CLOTH OR COMPOUND FABRICS OR ARTIFICIAL
LEATHER, AND IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH TO CERTAIN PUBPOSES," to be as
follows: -
This Invention relates to the compounding and comingling and
chemically treating of certain well-known elements together in the
TPrice 8d 1

page_text: manufacture of artificial leather or leather cloth, and in the uses of such
materials (when so compounded) for the various purposes to which it
may and can be adapted. I take cotton or linen cloths known under
the name of twilled canvas or twilled or plain calicoes, which cloth I
treat by submitting it to a chemical process to partially convert the
coating of the cotton fibre from which the cotton cloth is made into
colodion by a colodion solution, a well-known process, or what I term
colodianising the cloth. When the cloth is so treated the acid it may
have absorbed is neutralised, and then washed off perfectly clean. I
then take a pulp made of gelatine and fibre, or it may be made by
softening by the heat of steam the pearings of skins and hides, and
beat them up in an ordinary pulping machine. When this material is
so pulped I combine it with the colodianised cotton fibre before described
in the following manner:-The cotton cloth, after being partially con-
verted on its surface into a vegetable gelatine, is boiled in a pure
solution of animal gelatine with or without a minute proportion of gly-
cerine compounded with it for a period of time dependent on the nature
of the material so to be treated. It is then laid on a table of metal,
wood, or glass and stretched perfectly tight, when the gelatinous pulp
made from skins or animal cuticle of any kind is laid on and brought
into contact with the cloth, when a polished piece of metal or glass is
put on it to render the surface perfectly smooth, and then dried to the
consistancy of a common skin before it is tanned. This sheet of material
is then punctured through with fine needle punctures, and then sub-
mitted to the process of tanning in the ordinary way by tanning it with
the tanning liquors used by the morocco tanners, or those employed in
the tanning of light morocco, rones, or other leathers of a light character,
when it may be dressed and coloured as morocco. Or I take the first
thickness of cloth so treated as before described and lay on it another
piece of cloth so treated, and if necessary any number of layers in like
manner, and so combine them by pressure to press the air out from
between the layers, and then percolate them, as before described, during
the process of tanning to imitate the natural pores of the skin of animals,
so the tanuing material may enter and combine with the centre of the
skin from each side, and thus by such means I tan the material into
au artificial leather to be so dressed and used for the purposes hereafter
expressed. This material I claim the following special uses:-Belting
for machinery, covering of floors when printed with a device or pattern,
boots and shoes, harness, the covering of carriages, either internally or

page_text: externally, covering of chairs or couches, waterproof coverings for
animals, tents, carpets, covering for stairs, the groundwork for machine
carding, as a substitute for leather.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Paul Rapsey Hodge in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 21st October 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, PAUL
RAPSEY HODGE, of Number 10, Adam Street, Adelphi, in the Parish of
St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, and City of Westminster, Civil Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of April, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Paul Rapsey Hodge, Her special
licence that I, the said Paul Rapsey Hodge, my executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Paul Kapsey
Hodge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CLOTH OR COMPOUND FABRICS
OR ARTIFICIAL LEATHER, AND IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH TO CERTAIN PURPOSES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Paul Rapsey
Hodge, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 Paul Rapsey Hodge, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same

page_text: Is to be performed, to be particularly described and aber voeu
by the following statement:-
111
This Invention relates to the compounding, comingling, and chemically
treating of certain well-known elements together in the manufacture of
artificial leather or leather cloth, and in the uses of such materials (when
so compounded) for the various purposes to which it may and can be
applied. I take cotton or linen cloths known under the name of twilled
canvas or twilled or plain calicoes, which cloth I treat by submitting it
to a chemical process to partially convert the coating of the fibre from
which the cotton cloth is made into colodion, or what I term colo-
dianising the cloth. When the cloth is so treated the acid it may have
absorbed is neutralised, and then washed off perfectly clean. I then
take a pulp made of gelatine and fibre, or it may be made by softening
by the heat of steam the pearings of skins or hides, and beat them up
in an ordinary pulping machine. When this material is so pulped I
work it into and combine it with the colodianised cotton cloth before
described in the following manner:-The cotton cloth, after being
partially converted on its surface into a vegetable gelatine, is first boiled
into a solution of animal gelatine with or without a very minute portion
of glycerine compounded with it, and boiled for a period of time
dependent on the nature of the material so to be treated. It is then
laid on a table of marble, metal, wood, or glass, or any other polished
material and then stretched, when the gelatinous pulp made from skins
or animal cuticle of any kind is laid on, rubbed on, and brought into
contact with the cloth, when a polished surface of any material is laid
on it to render the surfaces perfectly uniform and smooth. It is then
dried to the consistency of a common skin before it is tanned. This
sheet of material is then punctured through with fine needles as a
substitute for the natural pores of the skin, and then submitted to the
tanning process in the ordinary way by tanning it with any of the
tanning materials used by the tanners for morocco, rones, or other
leathers of a light character, when it may be dressed, coloured, and
grained to suit each and every specific purpose. Or I take the first
thickness of cloth so treated as before described, and lay on it another
piece of cloth treated as before described, and if necessary any number of
layers in like manner, and so combine them by pressure to press the ai
out from between these layers, and then percolate them with needles, as
before described during the process of tanning, so the tanning materials

page_text: may enter readily the centre of the material from both sides, and thus by
such means tan the material into any artificial leather; it can be then
This
"stuffed," dressed, and used for the purposes hereafter described.
ma terial I adopt as belting for machinery when made in more than one
layer, also covering for floors when ornamented with any devise or
pattern; also in the manufacture of harness, saddlery, bookbinding,
boots and shoes, bags, aprons for carriages, coverings for the same, the
covering of furniture; also for tents, and in the groundwork for
machine cards as a substitute for leather as now used; also in the
manufacture of hose for water engines, or for breweries or distillers for
the conveying of liquids.
Having thus described the nature and particulars of my said Inven-
tion, and the adaptation of the material so manufactured to the various
useful purposes herein mentioned, I wish it to be distinctly understood
that I do not confine myself to the exact mode herein described, as such
may be varied or modified without departing from the main features of
this Invention; but what I claim is, the manufacture of artificial leather
or leather cloth and its uses in the arts, as herein described and set
forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Paul Rapsey Hodge, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.
PAUL R. HODGE. (L.B.)