AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMBROVEMENTS ON POWER LOOMS FOR WEAVING CLOTH OF VARIOUS KINDS
Year: 1827

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
PATERSON REID, Merchant and Manufacturer, in Glasgow, North Britain, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date
at Westminster, the Fourth day of April, One thousand eight hundred and
twenty-seven, being the eighth year of His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs
and successors, give and grant unto me, the said John Paterson Reid, His
especial licence, that I, the said John Paterson Reid, my exors, adiñors,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Paterson Reid, my exors,
adiñors, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales,
and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "AN IMPROVEMENT
OR IMBROVEMENTS ON POWER LOOMS FOR WEAVING CLOTH OF VARIOUS KINDS;" in
which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said John
Paterson Reid, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be enrolled
in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery in England within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully
and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Paterson Reid, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,

page_text: and the manner in which the same is to be performed and carried into effect,
is described and ascertained as follows (that is to say):
-
I declare that my said Invention consists in the methods which I employ
for giving motion to the lathe or lay of weaving looms impelled by machinery,
and commonly called power looms, by means of the application of certain
excentric wipers or wheels, and springs or grooved or edged or ringed wheels,
working upon slides, friction rollers, or otherwise, as herein-after mencioned,
and the manner in which the same is performed will appear from the following
description.
I shall first describe the simple or ordinary motion of the lay of a loom,
which being understood will facilitate the description and understanding of my
improved motion in or applied to the same; but I expressly declare that
while I thus describe the simple or ordinary motion of the lay already known
and in use, and while I refer in this Specification to some of the annexed
Drawings, exhibiting different parts of a common power weaving loom, yet
this is done solely for the purpose of the better illustrating of my said Inven-
tion; and I protest that I claim no part or parts of the said loom or of its
construction as my Invention, or as forming any part of my right of Patent.
except the application thereto of the said eccentric or grooved edge or rimmed
wipers or wheels and springs as after mentioned. The same Letters in each
of the Figures of the annexed paper of Drawings denote respectively the
same parts of the machine. And first of the simple motion:-A, A, Fig. 1,
represents a vertical section of the lay containing the weaver's reed between
its frames, composing the upper shell and the sole. The lay may either be
hung by its swords or blades, having the axles or fulcri above the web in
the common way, or the swords may support it from, and the fulcri be placed
below, or the lay may have no swords at all or other supports than merely
being fixed to two slide rods, one at each end, and these resting and working
on friction rollers as at n, n, Fig. 9. To prevent confusion, the supports of
the lay are not shewn in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4. The simple motion of the lay
consists in being impelled in nearly a straight horizontal line from its present
position under B, Fig. 1, until the reed strikes the fell or point under C,
where the warp yarn of the web has, by the last weft being woven into it,
become cloth. Its situation at this instance of time is represented under C,
Fig. 2. The distance between B and C being seven inches; this motion, as is
evident from the Drawing, has been produced by the half revolution on its
axis of the impelling shaft D and its crank E, which last is three and a half
inches long. Another half revolution of the crank brings the lay to its original
position. as seen at Fig. 1, and so on alternately. It is while the lay is in

page_text: the position of Fig. 1, and the shuttle S. passing through the triangular shed
or aperture G, formed by the warp yarn, that the motion of the lay should be
slowest. To render it still slower during that small though important portion
of time, and afterwards to accelerate it, that is to produce its. relative
alternately quick and slow motion during its traverse backward and forward
between the points under C and B, I have invented, adopted, and now describe
and specify, the following mechanism, which however, may be almost endlessly
varied in form, position, and proportion.
Secondly, of my improved motion:-Upon the end of my impelling shaft D
I fix my eccentric wheel or wiper H, h, Figs. 3 and 4, and instead of the
crank E, Figs. 1 and 2, I place a stud or crank pin at K, Figs. 3 and 4.
Upon this stud or crank pin, the right-hand end, as shewn in the Drawing of
the connecting rod F, works, while the left-hand end is attached to a spring
rod fixed in the sole of the lay, (see L, Fig. 8,) so that during the revolution
of the impelling shaft D and its eccentric wheel or wiper H, h,.(which are
driven by water, steam, animal, or other power,) the motion at first sight
appears nearly similar to what it was when only the crank E. was used, with
this difference, that formerly the crank regulated the motion of the lay, but
now its motion is entirely regulated and governed by the shape of the eccentric
wiper, the periphery, outer edge, or circumference of which is by the said
spring and connecting rod F kept always in contact with the friction roller Z,
seen on or near the end of the sole of the lay A, Figs. 3 and 4. The short
side of the eccentric wheel or wiper Fig. 3, in revolving, keeps the lay
nearly stationary or at rest, because it is made nearly concentric with the
centre of motion, and thereby gives times for the shuttle S to pass through
the shed G, whereas when the other parts of the eccentric wiper are in
contact with the friction roller of the lay the latter is much excellerated. This
alternate retardation and acceleration are produced with a view to make the
whole motions of the lay as nearly as possible assimilated to those of the
lays of looms wrought by manual labour, and thus allows me to work with
facility various kinds of fancy tappet, raised, and other goods.
As such goods
which I weave by my Patent movements require more or less time between
the motions, first, to impel the shuttle in, secondly, to change the shuttles
when using two or more for different kinds or colours of weft, thirdly, for
other operations on or with the warp or weft yarn, and fourthly, for giving the
lay a quick or slow motion in driving up the weft, according to the nature,
fabric, or quality of the cloth to be made, I make the short side h of my
eccentric wiper to have more or less curvature, as seen at h in Figs. 3 and 4,
by which means I can give almost any degree of retardation to the lay that

page_text: may be required, while the shuttle is in its passage from one side of the web
to the other, and the other parts of the periphery or edge or rim of the wiper
-may-be-so-enlarged-or varied-in-form or curvature as to give any degree of
accellaration to the progress of the lay backward and forward that may be found
necessary. The curves on the wipers exhibited in the annexed paper of
Drawings, Figs. 3, 4, and 9, are the proportions that I most generally use
and find best to answer my purposes. But in order to my using these wipers
the above-mentioned springs L, L, Fig. 8, must be so elastic as to bend to
the motion and time of the eccentric wiper, and allowed the lay to be longer
or shorter time stationary, as found necessary, while the shuttle is in its
passage, as shewn in Fig. 3.
Although in the above description I mention only one eccentric wiper, and
one spring, yet I find it best to have a spring and a wiper at each end of
my lay; and although I mentioned its travel or traverse as seven inches, yet
in coarser and finer work the traverse may be more or less, the shape of the
wiper intirely regulating the relative motions of the lay from the time of its
being nearly stationary, while the shuttle is in its passage to its more or less
rapid motion towards the cloth and back again. The whole of the parts above
mentioned may be constructed of either wood, metal, or other suitable
substance. The eccentric wipers I use are of cast iron, and for the sake of
lightness, instead of being all solid, have arms cast in them, ramifying from D,
their centre of motion, towards their edge or rim, as seen in Figs. 3, 4, and 9, the
side nearest D being cast solid, in order to balance by its weight the longer side,
thus causing it to revolve more steadily. The edge or rim of the wiper is
polished to make it glide smoothly on the friction roller Z of the lay A,
although the wipers and friction rollers might work were they rough are
serrated. These eccentric wheels or wipers are constructed on the same
principles as heart wheels, well known to mechanics; but, as already mentioned,
it is the application of the eccentric wipers and the springs in the manner
above specified to a power loom that I claim as my Invention. The springs
may be either straight, bent, helical, or of any other shape, and placed where
most convenient. Those I use, L, L, Fig. 8, are of steel, and straight, and
are fixed to the sole of the lay A, at o and p. The spring may form part of
or be connected with the connection rod F, by merely allowing the length of
this rod to increase or diminish as the curvature of the rim of the eccentric
wiper may require. The connecting rod in this case may be made in two or
more pieces, with helical or other shaped springs, as seen at Figs. 5 and 6, or
the one piece to slide past or go into a tubular socket, formed of part of the
other, the helical spring being either within, as at Fig. 6, or encircling or

page_text: I
conjoining the two pieces, as Fig. 5. Fig. 7 represents another method of
making the connecting rod in two pieces, with a spring attached to each, and
bolted together, the springs shortening or elongating the rod to accommodate
it to, the irregularity of the rim of the eccentric wiper. I do not confine
myself to the use of springs only, for the purpose of keeping the lay always
in contact with the eccentric wiper. This may be done by other means.
have used slides or friction rollers, working on or clipping the edge of the rim,
and in a groove of the eccentric wiper, in place of springs; or a weight or
weights will answer the purpose; but I do not find that they answer the
purpose so well, and therefore I prefer the external friction roller and springs.
Fig. 8 is a front view of the lay A, with the weaver's reed between its upper
shell and sole. L, L, are the steel springs, the outer ends of which are
attached by swivels to the connecting rods F, F, Figs. 3 and 4. The elasticity
of the springs permits the lay to adopt is rest, and motion forced upon it by
whatever form the rim of the eccentric wiper may be of. Fig. 9 exhibits
all that is necessary of the side view of a loom for the description and
application of the wipers H, h, as used by me. A, the lay with its guide rod,
the one end of which is seen as sliding between the upper and lower grooved
friction rollers n, n. The other end of the rod slides between another similar
pair of grooved rollers n¹, n¹, in the Drawing, both ends of the lays being
supported in the same manner. The large fast and loose belt pullies for driving
the loom, though not introduced in the Drawing, are placed on the same shaft
as that on which the eccentric wiper is fixed, though that is not essential.
The inner ends of the springs L, L, Fig. 8, are fixed to the studs o, o. The
outer ends are held fast, and acted on by the connecting rods F, Figs. 3 and 4;
and by means of the pinching screws at p, p, the springs are tigtened or
slackened at pleasure. The springs I commonly use are about twenty inches.
long, one inch and a quarter broad, and a quarter of an inch thick. In
conclusion I may remark that I bring up the speed of my propelling shaft D
to as many revolutions per minute as I intend there shall be picks of
the shuttle during that period (mine go about ninety); and I consider it
quite unnecessary to make any further Drawing or description of the power
loom, now so well known to mechanics, or of any parts of it, other than
those to which my said Invention applies.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Paterson Reid, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven.
JOHN PATERSON (L.s.) REID.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fourth day of October, in the
year of our Lord 1827, the aforesaid John Paterson Reid came before
our said Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged-the-Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified,
in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven.