AN IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF FELTED CLOTH, AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Guy Wilson, of the Office for British & Foreign
Patents, 71, Market Street, in the City of Manchester, Mechanical Engineer and
Patent Agent, for the Invention of" AN IMPROVED MANUFACTURE OF FELTED
CLOTH, AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN." A communication from abroad
by Gustav Müller, of Fulda Hessen, Nassau, in the Empire of Germany.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Guy Wilson at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st January 1879.
JOHN GUY WILSON, of the Office for British & Foreign Patents, 71, Market Street,
in the City of Manchester, Mechanical Engineer and Patent Agent. "AN IM-
PROVED MANUFACTURE OF FELTED CLOTH, AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN."
A communication from abroad by Gustav Müller, of Fulda Hessen, Nassau, in the
Empire of Germany.
This Invention relates to a novel process of grinding any kind of bird's feathers
into dust, like feather-down, and producing therefrom, when mixed and incorporated
with milling or felting materials, a felted feather cloth or stuff, which is made in
the piece by a felting and milling process, and without either spinning or weaving
the component parts, such as fabric being suitable to be used for articles of clothing or
wardrobe purposes generally; the feather-down produced in accordance with this
Invention being also suitable as a substitute for feathers or other material hitherto
used for filling beds, bolsters, quilts, and other similar articles.
In carrying out the Invention I employ a special construction of machine for
grinding the feathers into feather-down, such machinery consisting of revolving
Huted metal rollers working one upon the other, and whereby I am enabled to grind
or reduce to a state of powder any sort of feathers, so as to use them for the purposes
hereinbefore mentioned, without causing any waste.
I further employ a combined fly press, blower, and cleaner, in conjunction with a
carding engine, for distributing the dust like feather-down in such a manner as to
unite itself with the other milling or felting material employed, and which become
027

page_text: united together by mechanical friction or pressure exercised in the presence of
steam.
I thus form a felt in large pieces, which by being subjected to a subsequent
milling process becomes a cloth like material. The stuff so produced is then dried.
and afterwards steamed for some time in a closed steamn-chest at a very high tempe-
rature, whereby a thoroughly perfect and compact combination of the dust like
feather down with the other materials ensues, and an even plush like appearance is
imparted to the same. This appearance can be varied by applying different finishing
processes, and the color can also be varied as desired in the course of the
manufacture.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, and of
an Order of the Lord Chancellor, filed by the said John Guy Wilson in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 22nd July 1879.
.
JOHN GUY WILSON, of the Office for British & Foreign Patents, 71, Market Street,
in the City of Manchester, Mechanical Engineer and Patent Agent.
"AN IM-
PROVED MANUFACTURE OF FELTED CLOTH, AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN."
A communication from abroad by Gustav Müller, of Fulda-Hessen, Nassau, in the
Empire of Germany.
This Invention relates to a novel process of grinding any kinds of bird feathers
into dust like feather down, and producing therefrom, when mixed and incorporated
with milling or felting materials a felted feather cloth or stuff, which is made in
the piece by a felting and milling process, and this without either spinning or
weaving the component parts, such fabric being suitable to be used for articles of
clothing or for wardrobe purposes generally.
The feather down produced in accordance with this Invention being also suitable
as a substitute for feathers or other material hitherto used for filling beds, bolsters,
quilts, and other similar articles.
In carrying out the Invention I employ a special construction of machine for
grinding the feathers into feather down, such machinery consisting of revolving
Huted metal rollers working one upon the other, and whereby I am enabled to grind
or reduce to a state of powder any sort of feathers, so as to use them for the purposes
hereinbefore mentioned, without causing any waste.
This machinery, represented in the annexed Drawing, principally consists in the
self acting feeding apparatus a, provided with feeding rollers a pressed together by
the weighted levers a² in the cylinder A, fitted with plane-iron shaped knives, which
serve to cut the feathers continuously delivered to it by the rollers a', and in the
cylinder B, which has a sharpened checker like or fluted surface, and which by
slowly rotating in contact with three small rollers B' grinds the feathers previously
cut by the first cylinder A.
The ground feathers fall on to the feeding table or travelling apron, and are
thence delivered by the feeding rollers to the rotating steel toothed cylinder C,
which is designed to effect a complete grinding of all those feathers which have
passed the aforesaid cylinder without having become completely torn in pieces.
The beaters D and D' serve also to throw back any unground feathers on to the
cylinder C, and which thereby are submitted afresh to an additional grinding
operation by means of passing between the cutters c, c', and c² (which are supported
by metallic elastic bands, as illustrated), and the cylinder C.
A metal sieve is extended below the entire apparatus hereinbefore described, which
allows the completely ground down or material to pass through into the under
part F of the framework of the machinery, and from whence it is blown by the
blower G either to a suitable chamber, where such down is assorted or laid by the
action of the blower proportionately to its weight and fineness, or it is blown to
the feeding apparatus of the main cylinder of a carding engine, as shewn by the
annexed Drawing, and by which arrangemont it becomes possible to mix the feather
down or powder directly with the required fibrous materials, so as to effect an
intimate joining by the said carding engine.
The fleece or wadding so produced by the carding engine is now submitted to the
felting and milling process by ordinary felting machines, and thus a felt of great
width and length, say, six feet broad, and 100 to 150 feet long is obtained, and con-
sisting of an intimately mixed fabric compounded of a dust like feather down and
fibrous materials, and in a proportion of from 14 to 90 per cent.
The milling by mechanical friction or pressure is exercised in the presence of
The stuff so produced, as aforesaid, is then dried, and afterwards steamed
steam.

page_text: in a closed steam chest at a very high temperature, so as to effect a thoroughly
perfect, and compact combination of the dust like feather down with the other
materials, and to impart an even plush like appearance to the so combined
materials
This appearance can be varied by applying different finishing processes, and the
colour can also be varied, as desired, in the course of manufacture.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said In-
vention communicated to me from abroad as aforesaid, I wish it to be understood
that I claim,
1st. The grinding of all kinds of bird-feathers by machinery, as and for the
purposes herein before described.
2nd. The combination and arrangement of apparatus consisting of the cutting and
grinding cylinders, blower, and cleaner, in conjunction with a carding engine of
ordinary construction, as and for the purposes hereinbefore described, and illustrated
on the accompanying Drawing.
3rd. The mode of joining or combining the dust like feather down with other
fibrous materials, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
4th. The mechanical felting process, whereby a felt of great width and length, and
of equal quality and composition throughout is obtained, substantially as herein-
before described.
5. The process herein before described of steaming in a closed steam chest and
at a very high temperature, and by which manipulation a thoroughly perfect and
compacted combination of thedust like feather down with the other materials ensues,
and an even plush like appearance is imparted to the same.
6th. The manufacture of a feather down or other similar stuff by means of ground-
or cut feathers, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Guy Wilson, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this 19th day of July, in the year of our Lord 1879.
JOHN G. WILSON. (L.S.).