Improvements in Multiple-needle Sewing Machines..
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Mar.,
1897
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Dec., 1897-Accepted, 5th Feb., 1898
[Communicated from abroad by SAMUEL HICKOX WHEELER, of Fairfield, County of
Fairfield, and State of Connecticut, United States of America, Manufacturer.]
Improvements in Multiple-needle Sewing Machines..
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
45, Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object to improve that class of machine for sewing with
a plurality of needles, the under stitch-forming mechanism being located in an
upright cylinder.
The invention herein comprehended relates largely to the construction of the
cylinder, it being composed of three essential members, viz.a stationary central
division, which serves to support the chief lever or part of the feeding mechanism,
said lever or part carrying the feed dog to move the material in the sewing operation,
and two upright arms each containing a hook for entering and expanding a loop. of
needle-thread to pass it about a bobbin or thread-case containing an under-thread,.
the two upright arms being capable of slight adjustment laterally, each toward and.
from the stationary division, to thereby adapt the points of the hooks to take loops
from the two needles which. latter may be located more or less distant one from the
other, according to the distance apart of the parallel seams to be sewn, the feed device.
remaining in one position no matter what the adjustments.
'
This invention in sewing machine for sewing with a plurality of needles, consists
in an upright cylinder composed of a stationary division, having a feeding mechanism
the chief lever or part of which carrying the feed dog is mounted on said stationary
division, and two separable, independent upright arms arranged at opposite sides of
said stationary division, each arm carrying its own hook or loop taker, and actuating
shafts therefor to operate substantially as will be described..
The needle-bar and its actuating mechanism, and the mechanism for rotating*
the main under shaft are not herein described, but they may be of any usual or
suitable construction...
The main under shaft has one of its ends mounted in an eccentric.bearing in the
bed of the machine and is provided. with a. gear wheel, which meshes with a pinion,
fast on a shaft having two like bevel gears, which are adjustably. mounted on said
shaft and engage two other bevel pinions, on and to rotate the vertical hook-
driving shafts....
One of the two vertical driving shafts is..mounted in an upright arm having a foot,
which is adjustably attached to the frame-work of the machine by means of suitable
binding screws in-slots in. the bed....
The other upright 'shaft has its bearings in a second upright arm provided with a
foot secured adjustably to the bed by suitable binding screws.. :
Each of the said vertical shafts; have secured to their upper ends the shanks of-
like hooks or loop-takers, but herein it will be necessary to describe specifically. but
one of them, viz. the loop-taker on the first mentioned shaft..

page_text: The hook has a shank which is fastened in a hole at the upper end of the said
shaft.
The hook consists of a back part with a two-part flange, one part having a point,
and the other part, which is made detachable from the back by means of a screw,
having a heel, the parts of the said flange having an internal groove to receive a flange
of the thread-case, said flange being cut away, so as to leave a notch or opening into
which the point of the hook when entering the loop of needle thread casts the
inactive side of said loop, the said side being retained-in said notch or opening while
the said hook in its further rotation opens, spreads and casts the said loop over and
about the thread-case containing the under-thread, the said loop passing out of said
notch as soon as the heel of the hook uncovers the said notch, a suitable take-up, not
shown, but which will be.such as commonly in. use, acting at that time to pull the
loop up into the material.
About one-half of the vertical wall of the bobbin case is cut away down nearly to
the said flange, to gain access to the bobbin to remove it, the part of the wall left
having a projection, and three thread slots and a lip, extended inwardly to somewhat
overlap the bobbin or other device carrying the under-thread, and keep the bobbin
within the case, the said lip also serving the additional purpose of aiding the loop in
passing over the edge of the bobbin and bobbin-case, the said wall having attached to
it ou au adjustable manner by suitable screws, a tension device such as a spring, the
movement of the screw in one or the other 'direction increasing or diminishing the
tension on the bobbin or under thread which is delivered from the, bobbin-case
through the rounded lower end of the slot.
::
The bobbin-case rests in the cavity at the face of the hook, and it contains the
bobbin.or.under-thread, and this bobbin has frequently to be renewed to afford proper
supply of thread, and by. cutting away the wall of the bobbin-case as stated, the
-operator may readily insert the finger into the thread-case and under the upper or
head end of the bobbin and pick it out of the case."
The removal of a portion of the wall of the bobbin-case is therefore of vital import
ance, for if it were not done the bobbin could neither be put in or taken from the
case.
To put the bobbin-case into the hook or to remove a case from the hook, it is
necessary to take off the removable part of the flange having the heel.
A needle-guard in the form of a washer having a cam-shaped flange, is applied to
the underside of the back of the hook, the said flange occupying such position as to
meet the needle if deflected out of its true working vertical position, the flauge acting
then upon the needle to put it properly in alignment to enable the point of the hook
to unerringly enter the loop of needle-thread and prevent the breaking of the needle
by the contact of the hook against it.
Between the two upright arms containing the devices for moving the hooks or
loop-takers, there has been erected on the bed a vertical stationary division, its foot
being held in place by suitable screws the said stationary division being provided
with a fulcrum composed of a block, and screw on which rocks and slides the chief
lever of the feeding machine, it having at its upper end a block, which we will herein
designate as the feed dog, it having in this instance three series of roughened surfaces
which are made to alternately engage and retire from the material, they working
through slots in the needle-plate, secured to the upper end of the said stationary.
division...
;
The lower end of the chief lever carrying the feed dog is jointed to a feed driving
bar having one end jointed to an arm, fixed to a rock-shaft, supported in the frame-
work, the opposite end of said driving bar resting in a shoe, pivoted to the outer end.
of an arm, attached to or forming a part of the feed lifting rock shaft, the said rock-
shafts being in.. practice substantially the same as those employed in British
Patent No. 12209 dated.Oct. 13, 1885, so the manner in which they derive their
motion need not be herein further described, except that, in view of the fact that
the chief lever is pivoted between its ends; the direction of movement of the feed:
driving bar to effect the feeding of the, material: resting on the.. needle plate is the,

page_text: reverse of that in the said patent, the usual cam for rocking the shaft for driving the
said feed driving bar longitudinally, being turned on its shaft substantially half a
rotation.
The feed driving bar and chief lever and the device herein before designated as the
feed dog, constitute the feeding mechanism.
When the upright arms are adjusted to adapt the hooks or loop-takers to needles
which are farther separated than in the drawings, or are of different gauge as to the
distance between the needles, a new needle-plate, and feed dog will be used, together
with a proper presser-foot, and the notch for holding the lug or projection of the
thread-case will also be located properly to be engaged by the said lug.
The needle-plate is provided with two. like needle-holes, and the underside of the
said plate at one side of each needle-hole and between said hole and the nearest
hook has a notch, in which enters loosely the projection or lug, of the bobbin-case,
the notch and projection preventing the rotation of the bobbin-case with the
hook.
The needle-plate has extended downwardly from it about each needle-hole, a boss
said boss being of such length that the flange or vertical wall of the hook, in the
rotation of the latter, acts on the under-thread. close to and bends the thread over
the edge of said boss, and in so doing acts to draw on said thread and pull it to a
measured extent from the bobbin to form slack thread for the next stitch.
If the machine has but one hook, it will of course be understood that the needle-
plate need have but one needle-hole, boss and notch.
The bobbin or under-thread is wound on a deep disk-bobbin, but the particular
method of holding the under-thread is immaterial, as balls, cops or other usual or
suitable thread masses may be used.
The two needles will be connected to a needle-bar actuated in any'usual manner.
A depression is made in the central stationary upright division to receive the
rounded ends of the strap behind which the chief lever vibrates.
:
Dated this 2nd day of March 1897.
.:'
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
Non
edco
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Multiple-needle Sewing Machines.
...I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents
45, Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, 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:
This invention has for its object to improve that class of machine for sewing with
a plurality of needles, the under stitch-forming mechanism being located in an
upright.cylinder.
The invention herein comprehended relates largely to the construction, of the
cylinder, it being composed of three essential members, viz.:a stationary central
division, which serves to support the chief lever or part of the feeding-mechanism,
said lever or part carrying the feed dog to move the material in the sewing operation,
and two upright arms each containing a hook' for entering and expanding a loop of
needle-thread to pass it about a bobbin or thread-case containing an under-thread,
the two upright arms being capable of slight adjustment laterally, each toward and
from the stationary division, to thereby adapt the points' of the hooks to take loops
from the two needles which latter may be located more or less distant one-from the

page_text: other, according to the distance apart of the parallel seams to be sewn, the feed
device remaining in one position no matter what the adjustments.
This invention in sewing machine for sewing with a plurality of needles, consists in
an upright cylinder composed of a stationary division, having a feeding mechanism
the chief lever or part of which carrying the feed dog is mounted on said stationary 5
division, and two separable independent upright arms arranged at opposite sides of
said stationary division, each arm carrying its own hook or loop taker, and actuating
shafts therefor to operate substantially as will be described.
"In the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1 shews the vertical section, the lower portion of the front end of a sewing 1
machine having a cylinder embodying this invention, the said figure also showing
parts of two needles which may be operated in any usual way.
Figure 2 is a section on the irregular dotted line, xx, Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a top or plan view of the vertical cylinder and part of the bed on which
it is erected;
j
Figure 4 is an underside view of the parts shown in Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a perspective view of the hook and its contained thread-case;
Figure 6 shows the hook in plan view;
Figure 6 is a section on the line x¹ x¹, Figure 6.
Figure 7 shows the needle-guard in plan view;
Figure 8 shows the thread-case removed and the bobbin taken from it ;
Figure 9 is an underside view of the thread-case;
Figure 10 is an underside view of the needle-plate; and
Figure 11, a perspective view of the feed-point..
Similar letter of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the
drawings.
The needle-bar and its actuating inechanism, and the mechanism for rotating the
main under shaft C* are not herein shown, but they may be of any usual or suitable
construction.
The main under shaft Cx has one of its ends mounted in an eccentric bearing a
and is provided with a gear wheel a', which.meshes with a pinion a², fast on a short
shaft a³ having two like bevel gears a, as, which are adjustably mounted on said
shaft and engage two other bevel pinions a, a mounted on and adapted to rotate the
vertical hook-driving shafts as, a³.
The shaft 8 is mounted in an upright arm alo having a foot a¹², which is adjust-
ably attached to the frame-work A, by means of suitable binding screws a¹³ in slots
in the bed.
The upright shaft a has its bearings in an upright arm 6 provided with a foot b¹
secured adjustably to the bed A by suitable binding screws b2.-
Each of the shafts a³, aº, have secured to their upper ends the shanks of like hooks
or loop-takers d, but herein it will be necessary to: describe specifically but one of
them, viz. the loop-taker on the shaft a³.
The hook has a shank g31 (see Figure 5) which is fastened in a hole at the upper
end of the said shaft a³:
The hook consists of a back part 95 with a two-part flange 16 and 96x, the part gle
having a point g" and the other part gox which is made detachable from the back by
means of a screw gº, having a heel g8, the parts of the said flange having an internal
groove go to receive a flange h of the thread case g¹, said flange being cut away at
20 Figure 8-to leave a notch. or opening into which the point of the hook when
entering the loop of needle thread casts the inactive side of said loop; the said side
being retained in said notch or opening while the said hook in its further rotation
opens, spreads and casts the said loop over and about the thread-case containing the
under thread, the said loop passing out of said notch as soon as the heel of the hook
uncovers the said notch, a suitable take-up, not shown, but which will be such as
commonly in use, acting at that time to pull the loop up into the material.
About one-half of the vertical wall of the bobbin case is cut away down nearly to
the said flange, to gain access to the bobbin to remove it, the part of the wall-left
1

page_text: having a projection g³, and three thread slots 4, 5, 6 and a lip, ge extended inwardly
to somewhat overlap the bobbin or other device carrying the under-thread, and
keep the bobbin within the case, the said lip also serving the additional purpose of
aiding the loop in passing over the edge of the bobbin and bobbin-case, the said wall
having attached to it in an adjustable manner by suitable screws as 7, a tension
device g*, shown as a spring, the movement of the screw 7 in one or the other
direction increasing or diminishing the tension on the bobbin or under thread which
is delivered from the bobbin-case through the rounded lower end of the slot 4.
The bobbin-case rests in the cavity of the face of the hook, and it contains the bobbin
or under-thread, and this bobbin has frequently to be renewed to afford proper supply
of thread, and by cutting away the wall of the bobbin-case as stated, the operator
may readily insert the finger into the thread-case and under the upper or head end
of the bobbin and pick it out of the case.
The removal of a portion of the wall of the bobbin-case is therefore of vital
importance, for if it were not done the bobbin could neither be put in or taken from
the case.
To put a bobbin-case into the hook or to remove a case from the hook, it is
necessary to take off the removable part of the flange having the heel.
A needle-guard, see Figure 1, shewn as a washer, m³, having a cam-shaped
flange ml, is applied to the underside of the back of the hook, the said flange occupy-
ing such position as to meet the needle if deflected out of its true working vertical
position, the flange acting then upon the needle to put it properly in alignment to
enable the point of the hook to unerringly enter the loop of needle-thread and
prevent the breaking of the needle by the contact of the hook against it.
Between the two upright arms containing the devices for moving the hooks or
1cop-takers, there has been erected on the bed a vertical stationary division c, its foot
being held in place by suitable screws c¹, c¹, (see Figure 4). the said 'stationary
division being provided with a fulcrum composed of a block c², and screw c³, on
which rocks and siides the chief lever ct of the feeding mechanism, it having at its
upper end a block, which we will herein designate as the feed dog c", it having in
this instance three series of roughened surfaces which are made to alternately engage
and retire froin the material, they working through slots in the needle-plate c",
secured to the upper end of the said stationary division.
The lower end of the lever or part ct carrying the feed dog is jointed at o to a feed
driving bar ox having one end jointed to an arm o', fixed to a rock-shaft o², supported
in the frame-work, the opposite end of said driving bar resting in a shoe ³, pivoted
at o' to the outer end of an arm o³, attached to or forming a part of the feed lifting
rock shaft of, the said rock-shafts being in practice substantially the same as those
employed in British Patent No. 12209, dated Oct. 13, 1885, so the manner in
which they derive their motion need not be herein further described, except that, in
view of the fact that the lever or part c¹ is pivotted between its ends, the direction
of movement of the bar ox to effect the feeding of the material resting on the needle
plate co is the reverse of that in the said patent, the usual cam for rocking the
shaft o² for driving the said bar ox longitudinally, being turned on its shaft sub-
stantially half a rotation.
The bars ox and ct and the device c³, herein before designated as the feed dog, con-
stitute the feeding mechanism.
When the upright arms are adjusted to adapt the hooks or loop-takers to needles
which are farther separated than in the drawings, or are of different gauge as to the
distance between the needles, a new needle-plate and feed dog will be used, together
with a proper presser-foot, and the notch for holding the lug g³ of the thread case
will also be located properly to be engaged by the said lug.
The needle-plate c as shown best in Figure 10, has two like needle-holes e³, and
the underside of the said plate at one side of each needle-hole and between said
hole and the nearest hook has a notch e, in which enters loosely a projection g³, see
Figures 1 and 8, of the bobbin-case g¹, the notch and projection preventing the
rotation of the bobbin-case with the hook.

page_text: The needle-plate has extended downwardly from it about each needle-hole, a
bosses, see Figure 10, the said boss being of such length that the flange or vertical
wall of the hook, in the rotation of the latter, acts on the under-thread close to and
bends the thread over the edge of said boss, and in so doing acts to draw on said
thread and pull it to a measured extent from the bobbin to form slack thread for the
next stitch.
If the machine has but one hook, it will of course be understood that the needle-
plate need have but one needle-hole, boss and notch.
The bobbin or under-thread is herein shown as wound on a deep disc-bobbin, but
the particular method of holding the under-thread is immaterial, as balls, cops or
other usual or suitable thread masses may be used.
:
... The two needles d², 13, will be connected to a needle-bar actuated in any usual
manner.
In Figure 1 t20 represents a depression made in the central upright division c to
receive the rounded ends of the strap 121, behind which the lever c vibrates.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed,. I wish it understood
that I do not claim broadly the loop taker herein referred to but what I claim is :--
In a sewing machine for sewing with a plurality of needles, the following instru-
mentalities, viz.: a bed having a stationary division, a feeding mechanism, the chief
lever or part of which, carrying the feed dog, is mounted on said stationary division,
combined with two separable independent upright arms arranged at opposite sides of
said stationary division, each arm carrying its own hook or loop taker, and actuating
shafts therefor, to operate, substantially as described.
מ
T
1007
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.