IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN DYEING, DUNGING SOARING AND CLEARING FABRICS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Jones, Assistant Manager, and John Hilton,
Millwright, both of Rhodes, near Middleton, in the County of Lancaster,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN DYEING,
DUNGING SOARING AND CLEARING FABRICS"
Sealed the 17th April 1860, and dated the 6th December 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Jones and John
Hilton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 6th December 1859.
We, JAMES JONES, Assistant Manager, and JOHN HILTON, Millwright, both
of Rhodes, near Middleton, in the County of Lancaster, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED
IN DYEING, DUNGING, SOAPING, AND CLEARING FABRICS," to be as follows:-
In performing the various processes of dyeing, dunging, soaping, and clear-
ing, it is customary to employ a vat furnished with a reel; the pieces of fabric
to be operated upon are formed into endless webs by stitching together, or
otherwise uniting their ends. When the reel is revolving the pieces of fabric
are continually drawn through the dye or other liquid in the vat, until the dye-
ing or other process is completed; it is then necessary to disunite the two ends
of each piece of fabric, and then remove them from the vat. Now our Inven-
tion consists of an apparatus for stopping all the pieces of fabric under operation

page_text: in a convenient position for being disunited. For this purpose we employ a
cross rail and board or plate with open slots at one edge; these slots must be
sufficiently wide to allow the fabric to pass freely, except at the part where the
two ends are united. When it is desirable to remove the pieces of fabric from
the vat, the board or plate is applied, and each piece of fabric is introduced into
one of the slots, the reel is allowed to revolve until each joining of the ends of the
fabric has been stopped by the slot board; the reel is then stopped, and the
attendant can then disconnect the ends with facility, as they are all in contact with
the slot board, thereby considerably economising labor. Or any other instrument
may be used, whereby the motion of the fabric is arrested by the extra thickness
or bulk caused by the joining of the ends coming against a fixed object, or in
case the joining of the ends does not sufficiently increase the bulk, a piece of
any suitable material may be attached to the fabric at or near the joining.
The pieces may also be stopped by pegs or projections attached to a rail, which
pegs or projections take hold of the joining, which is made with a loop or
double portion, or the pegs or projections may take hold of any object attached
to the fabric at or near the joining.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Jones and John Hilton in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 1st June 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
JONES, Assistant Manager, and JOHN HILTON, Millwright, both of Rhodes,
near Middleton, in the County of Lancaster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said James Jones and John Hilton, Her special licence that we,
the said James Jones and John Hilton, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said James Jones and John
Hilton, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO

page_text: BE USED IN DYEING, DUNGING, SOAPING, AND CLEARING FABRICS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said James Jones and John Hilton, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their,
or one of our or their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be
performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said James Jones and John Hilton, do.
hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement (that is to say) :-
In performing the various processes of dyeing, dunging, or cleansing, soaping,
and clearing, it is customary to employ a vat furnished with a reel. The pieces
of fabric to be operated upon are formed into endless webs by stitching
together or otherwise uniting their ends; when the reel is revolving the pieces
of fabric are continually drawn through the dye or other liquid in the vat
until the dyeing or other process is completed. It is then necessary to disunite
the two ends of each piece of fabric, and then remove them from the vat.
Now our Invention consists of an apparatus. for stopping all the pieces of
fabric under operation in a convenient position for being disunited. For this
purpose we employ a cross rail and board, or plate with open slots at one edge..
These slots must be sufficiently wide to allow the fabric to pass freely, except
at the part where the two ends are united.. When it. is desirable to remove the
pieces of fabric from the vat, the board or plate is applied, and each piece of
fabric is introduced into one of the slots; the reel is allowed to revolve until
each joining of the ends of the fabric has been stopped by the slot board. The
reel is then stopped, and the attendant can then disconnect the ends with
facility as they are all in contact with the slot board, thereby considerably
economizing labor. Or any other instrument may be used whereby the motion
of the fabric is arrested by the extra thickness or bulk caused by the joining
of the ends coming against a fixed object; or, in case the joining of the ends
does not sufficiently increase the bulk, a piece of any suitable material may be
attached to the fabric at or near the joining. The pieces may also be stopped
by pegs or projections attached to a rail, which pegs or projections take hold
of the joining, which is made with a loop or double portion, or the pegs or
projections may take hold of any object attached to the fabric at or near the
joining.

page_text: And in order that our Invention may be fully understood, we will proceed
to describe the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, which represents an
apparatus suitable for carrying out the same in practice.
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a dye vat or beck, to which our
improvements are applied, and Figure 2 a plan of the same. a is the
dye vat, and 6 the reel or winch which is turned round in the direction
of the arrow by steam or other power in the usual manner; c is a plate
or rail of cast iron or other metal or material, extending the whole length
of the dye vat, and supported at each end in the brackets d, d, which
are bolted to the ends of the dye vat; the plate c has as many curved
slots e, e, through it as there are pieces of fabric in the dye vat. The ends of
the pieces of fabric are united by stitching or otherwise in the usual manner,
and the pieces are held at the proper distance apart by the pegs f, f, which
are fixed to the rail c, as shewn in Figure 1, or they may remain in their
usual position when preferred. To each bracket dis hinged a catch g; these
catches, when the rail c is pulled forward, drop behind it to retain it in position
as will be explained hereafter.
The Drawing represents the apparatus in the position it occupies when the
winch is in motion, and the fabrics indicated by the lines i are being carried
round clear of the plate c in the direction of the arrows. When the dyeing
or other process is completed, the attendant draws the plate c forward until
the catches g, g, drop down behind it to hold it in the proper position; the
pieces of fabric are then drawn into the curved slots e, e, through which they
pass freely until the joined ends come against the under side of the plate c,
and as the increased bulk prevents the passage of the joining, it is evident
that the motion of each piece of fabric is arrested when the joining comes in
contact with the plate. When the desired number or all the pieces are
arrested, the winch b is thrown out of gear, and the ends are disunited in the
usual manner, thereby saving the time and labor now required in catching hold
of the ends.
Having thus stated the nature of our Invention, and described an apparatus
which has been found in practice to work well, we wish it to be understood
that we do not limit ourselves to the peculiar arrangement of parts described,
as the same may be considerably varied or modified without departing from
the peculiar character of our Invention; but what we do claim is the con-
struction and arrangement of apparatus as applied to machinery used in
dyeing, dunging, or cleansing, soaping, and clearing fabrics, for the purpose of
arresting the motion of the pieces when required. And we further claim any

page_text: modification of such Invention by which the motion of the pieces is arrested
by the extra bulk of the joining, or of any material attached to the fabric
to increase the bulk at or near the joining coming against a fixed or moveable
object.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Jones and John Hilton, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-fourth day of May, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
JAMES JONES. L.B.)
JOHN HILTON. (L.S.)