IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINERY
Year: 1869

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Alfred Vincent Newton at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd February 1869.-A communication from abroad by Bruno
Rudolph, of Limbach, near Chemnitz, in the Kingdom of Saxony.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING
MACHINERY," to be as follows :—
This Invention relates to a novel arrangement of machinery which, by
the use of two threads, will produce a whip stitch suitable for sewing
the seams and backs of gloves. The material to be sewn is put in a
travelling spring cramp set at right angles to a horizontally working
needle, or it may be that the material is held between rotating cylinders
which will form the cramp. In either case the upper edge of the cramp
or holder is notched to receive and guide the needle. The upper edge
of the cranfp is level with the needle, so that the latter in working to
and fro will advance into one of the notches on the upper edges of the
cramp and which give the latter a saw-like appearance. The cramp is
moved by the driving parts of the machine in such way that with each

page_text: revolution of the main driving shaft the cramp is moved the space of
one notch, by which movement the needle will advance with each
following stitch into the next notch of the cramp. The travelling spring
cramp is mounted on a horizontal transverse sliding bar to which is
fitted a rack, into which gears a pinion on a longitudinal shaft carrying
at its opposite end a pin wheel for the purpose to be presently explained.
The cramp is opened by a handle or otherwise to receive the work,
which when in place is held firmly by a spring that closes the cramp.
Rotary motion is given to the pin wheel by a wiper fitted to a disc plate
mounted on the main driving shaft, which motion gives, through the
pinion and rack, an intermittent traverse motion to the cramp. When
the wiper is not in action a thin part of the disc projecting between the
pins of the pin wheel will keep it quiescent. But a notch is made in
the disc to allow of the pin wheel being run backwhen it is desired to
return the clamp to its starting point. For effecting the sewing a hori-
zontal reciprocating needle, a traversing looper, and a vertical loop guard
are used. The needle is carried by a cranked arm fitted to a horizontal
sliding bar to which a connecting rod from a crank pin is attached for
working it. This crank pin projects from a disc keyed on the end of
the main driving shaft. The looper is carried by a horizontal sliding
rock shaft which is fitted with arms that carry bowles for receiving the
pressure of a face and edge cam mounted on the main driving shaft.
By the edge of the cam and by a counteracting spring the shaft carrying
the looper is caused to slide in its bearings, while the face of the cam
(counteracted by the spring) causes the shaft to rock and thus advance
the looper to take up the needle loop and withdraw it therefrom after
the looper thread is drawn through it. The loop guard slides in a
vertical guide and is operated by a rock lever which receives its motions
from a cam on the main shaft and a counteracting spring. The material
to be sewn being put between the cramp so that the edge to be sewn
projects a little above the notches the machine is put in motion by a
hand wheel, a treadle, or other known mechanism. The needle as it is
advanced carries its thread into one of the notches of the cramp and
through the material to be sewn, and by its recession it forms a loop on
the outer side of the cramp. The threaded looper now enters the loop
of the needle thread and retires, and having secured it moves with the
loop to the inner side of the cramp; the latter will now be shifted the
space of one notch and the loop guard descending will, at this instant,
draw the looper thread into a loop and hold it open for the now

page_text: advancing needle to enter and secure it. These operations being repeated
a whip stitch will be produced. When the rotating cramp is used I
mount the notched cylinders on vertical shafts which are geared together.
A bevil pinion on one shaft is driven by a pinion which receives its
motion from the rack pinion of the first-described arrangement.