IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Goodair and Joseph Whiteside, both of Preston,
in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS
FOR WEAVING."
"
Sealed the 15th August 1876, and dated the 21st February 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Goodair and Joseph
Whiteside at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 21st February
1876.
RICHARD GOODAIR and JOSEPH WHITESIDE, both of Preston, in the County of
Lancaster. " IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
This Invention consists principally of a method of working the "drop boxes"
(employed where two or three different kinds or colors of weft are to be woven in
the same piece) direct from the dobby or index machine, thereby dispensing with
the various complicated and expensive motions at present in use for working the.
said "drop boxes." By this arrangement only one set of cards or patterns are
employed to work both the shed and the drop box, which is a very important feature,,
as if any mistake in the weaving occurs they are both put back together by one
operation, and the shedding of the warp and the color or count of the weft are-
obliged to correspond.
The required movements we can effect by either of two means, and which we
will now proceed to describe, and can be adapted to "drop boxes" for either two or,
three shuttles, but for the sake of simplicity we will here describe them as applied
to a "drop box" containing two shuttles only.
In our first method we have two levers pivoted at or near the centre, and
connected respectively at one end by slotted links to two other levers actuated by
the " dobby," or in what is well known as Hattersby's dobby" to two of the
ordinary bell-crank levers. These first-mentioned levers act upon a connecting rod
(which moves the lever for directly actuating the drop box), the one raising it.
through the medium of a link and short lever and the other depressing it, thus
according as one or other of these levers is raised by the " dobby" the "drop box
is raised or lowered, and the proper shuttle is presented to the picker. This.
arrangement is very suitable to be applied to looms which are provided with what.

page_text: "
is well known as Hunter's motion" for working the drop box, the ordinary lever
of which can be used as the lever to be acted upon by the connecting rod.
Our second arrangement is as follows:-We take the ordinary lever (which acts
by means of a rod upon the drop box), in what is well known as "Diggles' motion,"
and attach to it on each side of the central pivot a link having in its upper end
an shaped slot, and which can turn loosely on the stud which attaches it to the
level. There are two levers pivoted at opposite extremities and raised at each
stroke of the loom by means of cams on the tappet shaft. These levers each carry
a pin which works in one or the other of the L shaped slots before alluded to, and the
links are so weighted that the pins shall work in the vertical portion of the slots, and
so permit the main lever to remain in "statue quo unless one of the links are made
to turn slightly, and the pin is thus brought into the horizontal portion of
the slot. This is effected by means of two fingers or small levers which work
respectively against a swell in each of the links, and are actuated by strings from
the dobby. Thus as these figures are raised by the "dobby one or other of the
ends of the main lever is raised, and the "drop box" moved accordingly, the lever
being held in position until the next move by means of a spring catch or by any
other suitable means.
27
""
It will be evident that these arrangements can be used in combination with a
jacquard machine" as well as with a "dobby" if drop boxes are employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Richard Goodair and Joseph Whiteside in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 21st August 1876.
RICHARD GOODAIR and JOSEPH WHITESIDE, both of Preston, in the County of
Lancaster. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
This Invention consists principally of a method of working the "drop boxes"
(employed where two or three different kinds or colors of weft are to be woven in
the same piece) direct from the dobby or index machine, thereby dispensing with
the various complicated and expensive motions at present in use for working the
said "drop boxes." By this arrangement only one set of cards or patterns is
employed to work both the shed and the drop box, which is a very important
feature, since if any mistake in the weaving occurs they are both put back together
by one operation, and the shedding of the warp and the color or count of the weft
are obliged to correspond.
The required movements we can effect by several means, one of which we will
now proceed to describe with reference to the annexed Drawings.
The Invention can be adapted to " drop boxes" for either two or three shuttles,
but for the sake of simplicity we will here describe it as applied to a "drop box'
containing two shuttles only.
In the annexed Drawings Fig. 1 is a front view, and Fig. 2 a side elevation of
so much of a loom as is necessary to illustrate the application of my Invention ;
Fig. 3 is a plan view of a detached part of the apparatus herein-after referred to.
In this method we have two levers a and b pivoted one at or near the centre and
one at or near one end, and they are connected respectively at or near one end by a
link or thrust rod c, c, hereafter described, to another lever d, d, actuated by the
"dobby," or in what is well known as "Hattersley's' dobby" to one of the ordinary
bell-crank levers. One of these first-inentioned levers a, a, acts upon a connecting
rod d, d, (which moves the drop box), the one a raising it direct through the
medium of the rod d', d', and the other b depressing it by means of a short link e, e,
which connects the levers a, a, and b together; thus according as one or the other of
these levers is depressed by the link or thrust rod c, c, actuated by the dobby,"

page_text: the "drop box" is either raised or lowered, and the proper shuttle is presented to
the picker.
It will be evident that the lever d, d, being connected directly to the dobby, each
time its inner end is raised its outer end will depress the link or thrust rod c, c, and
we have also seen that the depressing of the outer end of the link a will raise the
drop box, and the depressing of the outer end of the lever b will on the contrary
lower the same; there now only remains to be described the means by which the
depressing of the link c, c, is caused to depress first the lever a and then the lever b,
and so on alternately; it being understood that the lever d is raised by the dobby
only when a change of weft is to be effected.
It will be seen that the lower end of the link or thrust rod c, c, is made with two
notches and g (one on each side), the notch f being part of the link, and the
notch being part of a spring lever h. The link or thrust rod c, c, is hung slightly
on an incline, so that its natural tendency in falling towards the perpendicular
position is to keep the notch f above the stud i at the end of the lever a, and hence
upon the link c, c, being depressed (say) for the first time it would press down the
outer end of the lever a, a, and consequently lift the drop box, which is held in
position by the spring catch , k. As the link c, c, however now rises the inclined
plane or projection 1, 1, on its lower end acting against the stud i throws the link
or thrust rod c, c, over into the reverse position, that is, with the notch above the
stud at the end of the lever b (the spring lever h, h, giving way for that purpose),
and hence the next time the link or thrust rod c, c, descends it carries down this
lever and lowers the drop box. As the link or thrust rod c, c, now rises again its
weight causes it to fall over into its normal position, and consequently to depress
the lever a at the next movement, and so on alternately.
A second arrangement is as follows:-We take the ordinary lever (which acts by
means of a rod upon the drop box) in what is well known as "Diggles" " motion, and
attach to it on each side of the central pivot a link having in its upper end an L shaped
slot, and which can turn loosely on the stud which attaches it to the lever. There
are two levers pivoted at opposite extremities and raised at each stroke of the
loom by means of cams on the tappet shaft. These levers each carry a pin which
works in one or the other of the L shaped slots before alluded to, and the links are
so weighted that the pins shall work in the vertical portion of the slots, and so
permit the main lever to remain in statu quê unless one of the links are made to
turn slightly, and the pin is thus brought into the horizontal position of the L slot.
This is effected by means of two fingers or small levers which work respectively
against a swell in each of the links and are actuated by strings from the "dobby."
Thus as these fingers are raised by the "dobby" one or other of the ends of the
main lever is raised and the "drop box moved accordingly, the lever being held
in position until the next move by means of a spring catch or by any other suitable
ineans.
It will be evident that these arrangements can be used in combination with a
"jacquard machine as well as with a dobby "if drop boxes are employed.
«
A slight modification might also be made to adapt this Invention in connection
with looms provided with what is well known as "Hunter's motion" for working
the drop box.
Other modifications may also be made to adapt the Invention to other looms
without departing from the distinctive novel feature of our Invention.
Having now described the nature and object of our said Invention, together with
the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or carried into practical
effect, we wish it to be distinctly understood that we claim as our Invention, con-
necting the "drop box" directly to and working it only by means of the "dobby or
index machine" of the loom, substantially in the manner and for the purposes
herein-before set forth, without confining ourselves to the precise arrangement or
arrangement of mechanism above described for connecting the drop box motion
directly to the "dobby" or index machine, so long as the latter is caused to work both

page_text: the "shedding" of the healds and the "drop box" without any separate or
independent motion.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Goodair (on behalf of myself and the
said Joseph Whiteside), have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth
day of August, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy-six.
RICHARD GOODAIR. (L.S.)