AN IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF TEXTILE FABRICS SUITABLE FOR SACKCLOTIL AND SUCH LIKE PURPOSES, AND APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Denton Abel, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, for an Invention of "AN
IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF TEXTILE FABRICS SUITABLE FOR SACKCLOTIL
AND SUCH LIKE PURPOSES, AND APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR." A com-
munication from abroad by Friedrich Schinalbein, of Cologne, in the German
Empire, Manufacturer.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Denton Abel at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st December 1881.
CHARLES DENTON ABEL, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex. "AN IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF TEXTILE FABRICS
SUITABLE FOR SACKCLOTH AND SUCH LIKE PURPOSES, AND APPARATUS EMPLOYED
THEREFOR." [A communication from abroad by Friedrich Schmalbein, of Cologne,
in the German Empire, Manufacturer.]
The commonest sack cloth at present in use consists of spun yarns or threads
both for the warp and the weft, and as for the latter, yarns of lowest quality are
taken, the fabric produced has very little strength. The manufacture is also coin-
paratively expensive, as the vegetable fibre when taken from the ground has to be
subjected to several operations before it can be used for weaving.
According to the present Invention woven fabrics of the above mentioned class
aro produced in which only the warp is of spun yarn or thread, while the weft is
formed of the stalks or stems of flax and similar fibrous plants, without undergoing
any spinning process. Such fabrics can be produced in two ways. First, the
natural stalk or stern can be used of its natural length so that fabrics are produced,
the width of which depends upon the length of the said stalks, and of which the
weft is not formed of a continuous length bent backwards and forwards as in
ordinary wefts, but consists of a separate piece for each insertion, and therefore
forming no selvage on the fabric; this does not however prevent the use of the
fabric for the purposes in question. Second, the stalks may be made to overlap
TD 0.17

page_text: each other at their ends so as to produce fabrics of a width equal to about double
the length of the stalks; in this case a very thin thread is combined with the
stalks as part of the weft, in order to close the weft at those places where gaps
would arise through insufficient lengths of the stalks; in this case a selvage is
formed by the said thin thread alone.
In producing this fabric a feed mechanism for the stalks is applied on cach side
of the ordinary loom, consisting of an endless apron travelling over two rollers and
having a row of equidistant nippers which hold the stalks. Intermittent motion
is imparted to this apron from the movement of the batten of the loom in such
manner that the feed is stopped at the same time that the shuttle arriving at
the outer edge of the loom has to take up one of the stalks. Instead of this
feed mechanism may be used a fixed shoot into which the stalks are inserted by
hand.
The shuttle employed has at its upper sido a rod turning as a hinge and carrying
two horizontal plates that close the ends of the shuttle. In the middle this rod
bas a plate passing vertically downwards, on which a lever device can operate in
such a manner that at the right moment a pressure is applied to the said plate,
whereby the rod is actuated so as to raise the first named plates from the ends of
the shuttle. On this pressure ceasing the rod and end plates in re-assuming their
original position seize the stalk, which is then drawn into the shed by the motion
of the shuttle. The shuttle has a spring which holds the middle plate of the
rod in its position until the above described movement thereof by the lever device
is effected.
For the second described mode of manufacture, namely, with fabrics having a
greater width than the length of the stalks, a spool secured by a spring in the
usual manner is introduced into the shuttlo, on which spool is wound the before
mentioned thin thread, which is continuously delivered by the shuttle for closing
the weft at those points where gaps are left by the stalks, as described.
The fabric produced, as above described, is further operated upon by passing the
same through a set of rollers having ribs, the action of which renders the stalks
pliable. The rollers are arranged horizontally behind each other, there being from
6 to 10 pairs thereof. The transverse circular ribs of the one roller of each pair fit
between the ribs of the other roller, and the ribs are varied in width in such a
manner that they are widest in the front pair of rollers and decrease gradually in
width and height in the following pairs, the ribs of the several pairs being also
arranged out of line with each other, so that the fabric in being passed through will
have every part of its surface acted upon by the ribs so as to be rendered uniformly
pliable thereby.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Charles Denton Abel in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
17th April 1882.
CHARLES DENTON ABEL, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex. AN IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF TEXTILE FABRICS
SUITABLE FOR SACKCLOTH AND SUCH LIKE PURPOSES, AND APPARATUS EMPLOYED
THEREFOR." A communication from abroad by Friedrich Schmalbein, of Cologne,
in the German Empire, Manufacturer.
The commonest sack cloth at present in use consists of spun yarns or threads,
both for the warp and weft, and as for the latter, yarns of lowest quality are taken,
the fabric produced has very little strength. The manufacture is also com-
paratively expensive, as the vegetable fibre when taken from the ground has to be
subjected to several operations before it can be used for weaving.
According to the present Invention woven fabrics of the above mentioned class
are produced in which only the warp is of spun yarn or thread, while the weft is
formed of the unspun stalks or stems of flax, hem, nettles, and such other similar
fibre bearing plants, of which the fibre has heretofore always been extracted and
spun into yarns or threads for use in woven fabrics. Such fabrics can be produced
in two ways:-First, the natural stalk or stem can be used of its natural length, so
that fabrics are produced, the width of which depends upon the length of the said
atalks, and of which the weft is not formed of a continuous length bent backwards
and forwards as in ordinary wefts, but consists of a separate piece for each
insertion, and therefore formning no selvage on the fabric; this does not, however,
prevent the use of the fabric for the purposes in question. Second, the stalks may
be made to overlap each other at their ends, so as to produce fabrics of a width
equal to about double the length of the stalks; in this casc a very thin thread is
combined with the stalks as part of the weft, in order to close the warp at those
places where gaps would arise through insufficient lengths of the stalks; in this
case a selvage is formed by the said thin thread alone.
For producing the above described improved fabrics looms of ordinary con-
struction may be employed, but the shuttle will of course require modification to
adapt it to the mode of operating. The construction of shuttle which is employed
by preference is shewn in Figures 1 to 6 of the accompanying Drawings, in which
Fig. 1 shews a vertical longitudinal section of the same, Fig. 2 shows a plan, Fig. 3
a sectional plan, Figs. 4, 5, and 6 transverse sections taken respectively on lines
V.-VI., III-IV., and L-IL, Fig. 1. The external form of the shuttle is generally
similar to that of an ordinary shuttle; the modifications are as follows:-On the
upper side is a metal rod Q, capable of turning on its own axis in bearings or
hinges U, U, and having fixed on it at each end of the shuttle plates M' lying in
the same plane. These plates nro somewhat similar in shape to a duck's bill; on
their underside they have one or more triangular or other shaped projections P;
which fit into corresponding recesses in plates M, fixed to the ends of the shuttle..
At the middle of the rod Q, a plate N is fixed thereto which passes vertically down-
wards, so as to form an acute angle with the plates M. The plate N is acted on
by a spring Z, either directly or through a stud. O, tending to press it outwards,
thereby causing the plates M to be pressed firmly down upon the plates M².
The lathe B of the loom, Figs. 10 and 11, carries a lever K, mounted on a
pivot V, which lever is caused at a certain moment to press with its curved end
against the plate N, thereby turning the bar Q, so as to cause the plates M¹ to rise
or open. On the upper side of the shuttle are two recesses S, into which takes the
projection Y of the driver that imparts motion to the shuttle, shewn in end view,
side view, and plan at Figs. 7, 8, and 9.

page_text: For feeding the stalks into the shuttle by hand an arrangement may be employed
such as is shewn to a small scale in plan at Fig. 12, and in enlarged elevation and
plan at Figs. 13 and 14. A funnel shaped guido K' is fixed to a rod whose end is
forned with ratchet teeth, into which takes a pawl m, pivotted to the lathe. A
spring X, also fixed to the lathe, has at its upper end two fingers p, p, which
project in front of the opening of the guide K₁ as shown. This arrangement
operates as follows:-The workman introduces a stalk into the guide K', until it
rests against the upper finger p, so as to be held thereby. On moving the latho
forward the pawl m also causes the guide K' with its stalk to move in the same
direction to a certain point, the spring X, with its fingers p, p³, being attached to 1
the lathe, also following. Arrived at the said point, the opened beak of the before
described shuttle will stand directly opposite the guide K³, the fingers p, p', with
the end of the stalk being then situated between the opened plates M', M³, of the
beak now closing, the fingers p, 2', which are rigid are pushed back by the plates,
the spring X bending backwards with the fingers, and the stalk will thus bo left 1
between the plates of the beak, being held firmly thereby. The shuttle is now
thrown across the lathe, carrying the stalk into the shed of the warp, and when
its end is clear of the guide K1, the latter is moved back into its original position
by the action of a spring X" fixed to the loom frame, so soon as the pawl m, by
the continued forward motion of the lathe being raised out of gear with the
ratchet teeth, by means of a lug r, coming in contact with a fixed stop n, or by any
other convenient devico.
On the lathe completing its backward motion the above described operation
will be repeated.
The opening and closing of the beak of the shuttle at the proper moments is
effected as before stated by the lever K; namely, when the lathe is in the position
shewn at Fig. 10, in which the shuttle is just about to receive the stalk from the
feed apparatus, the lever K is in such a position relative to a fixed rod L fixed to
the framing that its weighted end be held in a raised position by the rod L, causing
the curved end thereof to hold open the beak of the shuttle as shewn more clearly
at Fig. 11, but as the latho moves farther forward towards the fixed rod L tho
weighted end of the lever will be allowed to sink somewhat, and in thus with-
drawing the curved end from the plate N, and consequently allowing the beak to
close on the stalk as described.
In the above described mode of operating the stalks are each inserted singly
into the fabric so that the width of the latter can only be equal to the length of
the stalks. If it be desired to produce a fabric of greater width, this can be effected
by adding a very thin thread as part of the weft. In this case the shuttle is
provided with a small spool V', Figs. 1 to 5 carrying a very thin thread and held
in a known manner by the spring B. The thread passes out through the opening ô
as the shuttlo draws the stalk into the shed, and it has the object of closing
the warp at those points where this is prevented by the want of length of the
stalk.
The woven fabric produced as above described may be rendered pliable by
passing it through a set of rollers such as are shewn in side elevation, plan, and
front view at Figs. 15, 16 and 17. A series of from 6 to 10 pairs of rollers a, a,
arranged one behind the other, have grooves b so arranged so that the projections
of the one roller fit into the grooves of the other of each pair, as shewn at Fig. 17,
and the grooves are made to gradually decrease in width and height in the several
pairs of rollers from front to back, while at the same time they are placed out of
line with each other so that as the fabric is passed consecutively through all the
rollers every part of the weft is effectually subjected to the varying bending action
of their grooves so as to impart to the fabric the desired amount of flexibility.
The rollers may be driven either by gearing, as shewn, or by bands. Instead of
acting on the woven fabric as above described for rendering it pliable, the
stalks may also be acted upon so as to become more or less pliable before being
woven.

page_text: I wish it to be understood that I am aware that woven fabrics have been
produced in which the warp is formed of threads while the weft is formed of bast,
reeds, straw, and such like materials, which fabrics have only been applicable as
matting for various purposes on account of their want of strength and their brittle
unpliable nature, but the distinguishing feature of the present Invention consists
in the use as the weft of woven fabrics of the unspun stems of fibre-bearing plants,
such as flax, hemp, nettles, and the like, the fibre of which has heretofore always
been extracted from the plant and spun into yarn or thread for use in woven
fabrics. The woven fabrics produced according to this Invention are particularly
applicable with great advantage as sackcloth or tent-cloth and such liko
purposes on account of their great strength combined with pliability, while at the
same time their manufacture is greatly cheapened as compared with ordinary
Back-cloth as the processes of extracting the fibre from the plant and of spinning the
same into yarn or thread are dispensed with.
Having thus described the nature of the said Invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent,
I claim,
First. An improved manufacture of textile fabric having a warp consisting of
spun yarn or thread and a weft consisting of the unspun stalks of flax, hemp,
nettles, and such other fibre-bearing plants, the fibre of which has heretofore
always been extracted from the plant and used in a spun condition for woven
fabrics.
Second. An improved manufacture of textile fabric having a warp consisting
of spun yarn or thread, and a weft consisting of the unspun stalks of fibre-bearing
plants in combination with a spun thread substantially as described.
Third. An improved manufacture of textile fabric having a warp consisting of
spun yarn or thread, and a weft consisting of the unspun stalks of fibre-bearing
plants that are subjected either before or after weaving to a bending or crushing
process in order to render the fabric more pliable.
Fourth. The construction of shuttles substantially as herein described, with
reference to Figs. 1 to 6 of the Drawings, adapted for introducing stalks of plants
as weft into woven fabrics.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Denton Abel, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty two.
ATLAR D
Abbr