Improvements in Apparatus for Operating the Healds, Shuttle Drop Boxes, and Picking Motions of Looms.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Sept., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 18th June, 1890-Accepted, 19th July, 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating the Healds, Shuttle Drop
Boxes, and Picking Motions of Looms.
We, WILLIAM ARTHUR CRABTREE and DAVID CRABTREE, of Wrose Brow Road,
Windhill, Shipley, in the County of York, Machine Makers, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows :-
This invention relates to certain improvements in mechanism applicable for the
operation of healds, shuttle drop boxes and the picking motions of looms, and has for
its object, the combination of certains parts whereby the apparatus is simplified in
construction, some of the parts locked or retained in their required position until
again actuated, and the number of pegs required for operating the mechanism reduced.
We accomplish our object in the following manner: The bell crank or other levers
are mounted and connected to the healds in the usual manner, each lever being
coupled by a rod to its respective wheel, each wheel of the series having teeth on a
portion of its circumference.
Immediately below the wheels is another series of wheels having teeth on a portion
of the circumference of each, and which are mounted on a rotating shaft having a
key groove cut therein attached to each wheel is a lever having a key which when.
the lever is in its normal position, projects into the beforenamed key groove, thereby
causing the wheel and that in gear therewith to rotate some portion of a revolution and
operate the healds, the respective levers when the wheels are not rotating being held.
by other levers so that the key projections are clear of the grooved key-way; the
wheels being held in position when not rotating by a concave part of one wheel fitting
a convex part of the other wheel.
The shuttle drop, boxes are operated by wheels constructed as before described, the
first named series being coupled by rods to separate levers of various lengths which
are suitably connected, a chain being attached to one lever, the chain passing over
pullyes is finally connected to some portion of the drop box frame, which is raised or
lowered in accordance with the wheels and levers operated.
When the apparatus is applied for regulating what is termed "odd picking," one
of the first series of wheels is coupled by a rod to a bell crank or other suitable lever,
to which is attached a rod, which in turn operates sliding tappets or cones which
actuate the picking stick.
By combining the levers in the second series of wheels with the second or last
named levers, the rotating pattern surface only requires as many pegs to be brought
into contact with the levers as heald shafts to be changed. each pick.
Dat this with doir at Cantrenan 1980
JOHN WAUGH,
Agent.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating the Healds, Shuttle Drop
Boxes, and Picking Motions of Looms.
We, WILLIAM ARTHUR CRABTREE and DAVID CRABTREE, of Wrose Brow Works,
Windhill, Shipley, in the County of York, Machine Makers, 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 relates to certain improvements in mechanism applicable for the
operation of healds, shuttle drop boxes and the picking motions of looms, and has for

page_text: its object, the combination of certain parts whereby the apparatus is simplified in
construction, some of the parts locked or retained in their required position until again
actuated, and the number of pegs required for operating the mechanism reduced.
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1. represents the side elevation of a loom fitted
with our improvement for operating the shuttle drop boxes.
Fig. 2. a front view of the mechanism for operating the healds.
Fig. 3. a detail view looking from the opposite side, of a portion of the mechanism
for operating the healds.
Fig. 4. a plan of the same with two of the wheels in position.
Fig. 5. an enlarged view of the wheels used for accomplishing our object, and
Fig. 6. a view of the connections for controlling the picking motions of looms.
In all the figures corresponding letters and figures indicate similar parts where they
appear.
The bell crank or other levers A. are mounted and connected to the healds in the
usual manner, each lever A. being coupled by a rod B. to its respective wheel U. each
wheel C. of the series having two sets of teeth on its circumference divided by concave
portions G.
Immediately below or at an angle with the wheels C. is another series of wheels D.
having teeth on a portion of the circumference of each, gearing with the respective
wheels C. when the latter are in motion: the wheels D. are mounted on a rotating
shaft having a key groove cut therein, or they may be mounted on a long collar or
sleeve E. secured to the rotating shaft and with a key groove cut therein.
Mounted on each wheol D. is a lever F. one end of which acts as a key in the
beforementioned key groove when the lever F. is in its normal position, thereby
causing the wheel D. and that in gear therewith to rotate; the wheel D. rotating-an
entire revolution, whilst the wheel C. rotates one half of a revolution for each revolution
of wheel D. tlius changing the position of the respective rods B. and levers A. thereby
operating the healds.
When the wheels are at rest, each wheel C. is retained in its position by a concave
part G. fitting the convex part or plain portion of the circumference H. of the other
wheel, the teeth of the respective wheels being out of gear.
When the lever F. of any wheel D. is in its normal position as shown by detail
Fig. 5, that is with the end engaged with the key groove, the wheels D. and C.
rotate in the manner as herein before described, but when a telling lever J. is operated
by the mechanism P. of the pattern surface, so as to come in contact with end of
lever F. at F then the key end F' is withdrawn from the key groove in shaft or long
sleeve E. thereby leaving the wheels stationary until the key end at F is allowed to
enter the key groove, which is effected by the spring S. whenever the end F2 is free.
When a telling lever J. is raised by the peg mechanism clear of the end of a
lever F. preparatory to the next change of healds, the wheel D. will be at rest until
the grooved key way in rotating shaft or long sleeve E. arrives opposite the end F
of said lever, when the spring S. causes the same to enter therein and thus rotate the
respective wheel C and wheel D. in gear therewith; and in order to prevent the
wheels D. moving until the keys F¹ engage with the said grooved key way, they are
retained by a cross bar L. secured between the levers K. K. and which is in such
position that; the end of extended flanges on wheels D. at M. come in contact
therewith.
On each revolution of the shaft supporting the wheels D. the levers K. are raised
such a distance by the rotating cam N. that the cross bar L. is clear of the ends of the
levers F. at F2 thereby allowing the wheels D. to revolve and the levers F. to be
operated by the telling levers J. only.
The shuttle drop boxes O. are operated by wheels C. and D. constructed as before
described for a four box loom, two wheels of each series are required, the wheels D.
are mounted on the same shaft some little distance apart, and the wheels C. in line
therewith so as to come in gear when required, are carried by a short shaft or stud
supported by a bracket A' placed between the wheels in order to afford free action for
-the rods connected thereto. One wheel C, is coupled by a rod Q. to the lever Q and

page_text: the other wheel C immediately behind and on the same shaft or stud is coupled in a
similar manner by a rod R. to another lever R' both levers being supported by
bracket B.
On the lever R'a grooved pulley T. is mounted, around which passes a chain U. one
end being attached to lever and the other after passing over a guide pulley T¹ to
a sliding block V. to which are attached the drop boxes O. in the ordinary manner.
The levers W. are operated by peg mechanism actuated in the usual manner, and
are connected by rods X. to the bell crank levers Y. mounted on a stud as fulcrum.
When a lover Y. is operated so that the end comes in contact with F of a lever F.
mounted on a wheel D. the key end F¹ of said lever is withdrawn from the key groove
in the shaft or long sleeve E. then the shuttle drop boxes are allowed to remain in the
same position; but if a lever Y. is operated so that the end is clear of then the key
end at F engages with the key groove, thereby causing the wheel to rotate and the boxes
to change position, which are locked during the picking of the shuttle by one of the
concave portions G. of the wheel C. fitting on the convex or plain portion of the
circumference H. of the companion wheel D. the wheels D. being retained in position
when the key ends at F are clear of the key groove, by the spring catches Z.
Supposing the drop box frame O. was at the top, that is, the bottom shuttlo deck
level or in position for receiving the shuttle, and the pattern required the boxes
lowering a distance equal to one box or deck, this can be accomplished by a wheel D.
making one revolution and its companion wheel C. one half of a revolution, thereby
bringing the stud 1. to the position shown at 2. thus moving the lever Q to the
position shown by dotied lines-and if the pattern required the boxes to skip from
the top to the bottom, then both series of wheels C. and D. would be operated,
the wlieels D. and C. immediately behind and on the same shaft or spindle as those
seen in Fig. 1. bringing the lever R' to the position shown by dotted lines, the
lever R although only moving about the same distance as lover operates the drop
boxes double the distance, as it liberates double the length of chain, thus by actuating
the levers Q and R' first in one direction and then in the other, separately and in
combination as indicated by the pattern surface, any box may be brought into position
for receiving or discharging a shuttle
When the apparatus is applied for regulating what is termed "odd picking" one of
the first series of wheels C. is coupled by a rod B. to a bell crank lever A. which is
connected by a rod 3. to another bell crank lever 4, one arm of which is coupled to an
ordinary sliding rod 5, to which is secured a forked bar 6, engaging with the groove 7,
of sliding tappet 8, mounted on revolving shaft 9, in the ordinary manner; so that on
the operation of a lever F. mounted on a wheel D. gearing with a wheel C. in the
manner as herein before described, the wheel C. will be rotated one half a revolution
each time a change in the picking is requirod.
By using wheels constructed and operated in the manner described, the rotating
pattern surface only requires as many pegs to be brought into contact with the lever3
as there are heald shifts to be changed each pick.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. In a loom for weaving, a wheel D. having a lever F. working in combination
with a key groove cut in the rotating shaft or long sleeve E. for the purpose herein-
before set forth.
2. In a loom for weaving the wheel D. having a lever F. mounted thereon arranged
for connecting and disconnecting the same with the rotating shaft, combined with a
wheel C. all arranged substantially in the manner and for the purpose as hereinbefore
set forth.
Dated this 16th day of Iun 1800