IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SEWING AND STITCHING
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Wilson Morrell, of No. 14, Summerseat
Place, Great Horton Road, Bradford, in the County of Yorkshire, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR SEWING AND
STITCHING."
Sealed the 18th July 1865, and dated the 23rd March 1865.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Robert Wilson Morrell at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 23rd March 1865, pursuant to the 9th Section of the
Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
WILSON MORRELL, of No. 14, Summerscat Place, Great Horton Road,
Bradford, in the County of Yorkshire, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR SEWING AND STITCHING," and have petitioned Her Majesty to
grant unto me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Ier Royal Letters
Patent for the same, and have made solemn Declaration that I am the
true and first Inventor thereof.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Robert Wilson Morrell, do hereby declare
that the following Complete Specification under my hand and seal fully
describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement:-
My Invention relates more particularly to the construction and arrangement
of a machine for sewing and stitching, having a series of needles on one needle
Price ST

page_text: slide in combination with a series of duck bill crotchet hooks working on
one reciprocating shaft, each needle having its own hook, and each hook its
respective needle (in the series) for the purpose of sewing lines of single
thread stitches at the same time. Or the same arrangement of needles may
be each supplied with a shuttle race and shuttle for the purpose of sewing
stitches with two threads. The series of shuttles in their respective races to
be actuated on by one shuttle bar, on to which I affix a shuttle driver for each
shuttle, so as to have their motions at one and the same time. The machine
is so arranged that the fabric to be sewn can be fed up to the needles on a
table with a feed movement, such as to sew straight parallel lines, but when
straight lines are to be departed from, the table has a transverse movement
carrying the whole feed motion with it, so that by the combination of the
movement of the table carrying the cloth transversely in one direction, and the
direct longitudinal movement of the feed at the same time in another direction,
a series of geometrical" wave lines" or "zig-zag," lines parallel to each other,
ȧre produced by this compound movement of the feed and table. The same
being useful in quilting or sewing of fabrics together.
(Chapter1.) The construction and operation of the crotchet-hook machine
for producing a single-thread chain stitch will be readily understood by the
following description and Drawings annexed,and marked with theirrespective
letters of reference :-
Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a front elevation, and Figure 2 a side elevation of the
inachine; Figure 3, Sheet 2, a plan, and Fig. 4 a full size view of cams for
giving reciprocating motion to duck bill shaft; Fig. 5, "tappet" affixed to
"duck-bill" shaft; Fig. 6, throw cam, for giving transverse motion to duck-
bill shaft; Fig. 7, section of dit to; Fig. 8, cams for lifting the upper clips;
Fig. 9, cams for feed motion; Fig. 10, cams for raising needle slide; and
Figs. 11, 12, and 13, side, back, and front views of duck-bill crotchet
hooks.
Fig. 14, Sheet 3, full size side view of upper clips, bow pieces, and cams
for raising the same; Fig. 15, plan of ditto, also showing the bracket for
carrying upper clips and bow pieces; and Fig. 16, side view of bracket, feed
cains, and rubbing pieces for same, regulating screws, duck bills, and needle
plate.
A, A, the base of the frame of the machine; B, B, B, the standards;
C, C, the top rail of the frame, connecting the standards one with another;
D, D, the needle slide, made of angle iron, on to which are fixed a series of
needie clips and needles F to any number required. This needle slide
stretches across the machine, and works on two slide pieces G, G, which are

page_text: affixed to the standards B, B, B, which keep the whole series of needles to
their lines of work in their up-and-down movements. On to this needle slide
are attached two rectangular pieces H, H,through which the two cams I, I,
operate for lifting up and down the needle slide; these cams are fastened to
the main shaft J, which has bearings on the brackets K, K, K, at each end
of the machine. This main shaft is driven by a belt on the driving pulley L.
On to the right angle or horizontal part of the needle slido D is a series of
spools of thread M (one to each needle) which run on the dead spindles N
fastened on to the needle slide; the threads from these spools pass through
the guide hooks or wires O,then pass through the friction clips P, which give
the required tension to the thread. The needles in their downward movement
pass through a small gap or opening in the needle plate Q; this needle plate
is attached to the standards B, and is perfectly independent of the table R ;
this table has a transverse oscillating motion, as before mentioned, which
carries the feed motion to feed the cloth, the difference of a stitch from a
straight line being determined by the length of each oscillation. The feed
motion attached to the table basa motion at right angles with it, which when
usedincombination with thetransverse movement of the table, produces lines of
of
stitches either of a "zig-zag" pattern, or in waved geometrical lines dependent
on the form of the cam used in producing this lateral movement to the table
on which the fabric to be quilted passes. The one movement determining the
length of the stitches in one direction, while the other movement inclines the
stitch either right or left of a direct line. In order to render this compound
feed movement more intelligible, it will be seen that the table is supported and
oscillates on four spring legs S, S, S, S, and the feed motion oscillates on the
springs T, T, which are attached to the table R. The springs S allow the
table to play transversely, and the springs T allow the feed motion to play
longitudinally.
These two motions are produced by the following means:-The feed
in a longitudinal direction is caused by the cams U, U, on the main shaft J,
the true shape of which is shewn in full size Diagram, Figure 9, Sheet 2, and
works against the rubbing pieces V attached to the springs T, T, to advance
the feed motion, and when released by the cams U, U, it returns by the
natural tension of the springs T, T, assuming its natural position, the
distance to which it must return being regulated by the set screw W.
In order to move so large a mass of fabric such as a quilt, petticoat, or any
other combination of fabrics to be quilted (of weight or width) there are
spring clips X, X, one at each end of the moving table. Fastened to these
spring clips are pieces of angle iron Y the whole width of the fabric, forming

page_text: a pressure plate, and which performs the same office as the pressure foot of
the ordinary sewing machine, with the exception that this presses down on
the whole breadth of the cloth to be sown, moving with the lower resting
plates Z, which are attached to the brackets a at both ends of the machine
and extend across, moving forward and backward together holding the fabric
and feeding it to the needles at given distances equal to the length of the
stitch desired. The upper clip pieces X, X, on to which are attached the two
pieces of angle iron Y,Y,as previously described, extend from one clip spring
to another at each end of the moving bracket b, which is attached to the
bracket a and springs T; between these clip pressure pieces Y and the lower
plates Z pass the pieces of fabric to be sewn or quilted. When the needles
enter the cloth the upper clips Y are released from the cloth by the cams c,c,
operating against the bow pieces d, d; see Figure 14, Sheet 3. These bow
pieces are fastened on to and project down from the upper clips at both ends
of the table, and over the cams c, c, so that when the feed is going forward it
is moved by the means previously described; the upper clip: hold down the
fabric, advance to the needles with the lower feed plates Z, Z, and before
returning the upper clip plates Y are lifted off the cloth or fabric, the whole
feed motion recedes, the clip plates then press down on the cloth,and the whole
again advances for another stitch. This feed is only to sew straight lines one
way in the direction of the needles, but when any deviation from a straight
line is required, such as a "zig-zag "pattern or waved lines (either simple or
compound) a motion is required to move the table transversely. This is
effected by means of a cam plate e affixed on the shaft f, on the other end
of which is affixed a ratchet plate g, an intermittent motion being obtained
by an eccentric hon the main shaft J, which eccentric communicates to the
slotted bell crank lever i radiating on the end of the shaft f, on the upper
end of which is a "pall" or "catch" j, which at every stroke actuates the
ratchet plate g; then, through the medium of the shaft f, moving the cam
plate e, which works against the friction roller k attached to the moveable
table R, the table being always pressed against the cam plate e by the
springs S, S, so that of whatever form the lines of stitches are required (de-
parting from a straight line) the undulations on the face of the cam plate e
must be so formed as to move the table holding the feed out of a straight line,
whilethe feed in the direction of the needles is in motion; thus the straight
line sewing is effected by the longitudinal feed motion, and the wave line
sewing by the combination of the transverse and longitu linal motions given to
the table R and the feed motion attached there to at one and the same time.
Chapter 2. The Drawings represent a machine adapted to the sewing by

page_text: a single thread chain stitch, which is produced by the action of the needle
conveying a loop through the fabric, and then receding upward a little to form
that loop on the under side of the cloth in the ordinary way. These loops are
caught by the "duck bill" crotchet hooks l, a series of which is placed on
the "duck bill" shaft m, the rocking movement of which is produced by the
action of the cams n on the main shaft Joperating on the "tappet pieces" O,
(which have attached spiral springs p,fastened to the table R for the purpose
of keeping them up to the cams n), and are shewn full size in Sheet 2
Figs. 4 and 5,so that the operation of forming the single thread chain stitch is
similar to that of an ordinary sewing machine of that class, with the exception
of an important modification in the form of the "duck bill" crotchet hook, as
shewn in Figures 11, 12, and 13, Sheet 2, which represent a side elevation
back and front view of the same. The heel of the hook is so formed as to
allow the side of the hooks to spread the loops) and ensure the descending
needles catching the same, or, in other words, when the needles pass through
the fabric and enter the centre of the grooves in the top of the "duck bill"
hooks, as marked 4 in Figures 11 and 12; they then catch the loops of the
"duck bills," which advance about gth of an inch to free the needles from the
grooves in the duck bills. The throw cam r, Figure 6, Sheet 2, then
operates on the duck bill shaft m, and moves the "duck bills" about
of an inch to the left hand; when in this position the cam n operates on
the "tappet "o, liberates the "duck bill" hook from the loops, so that as the
needles descend again the loops or slack thread are drawn up tight to the
fabric forming the chain stitch.
Chapter 3.-I also convert this same machine into a shuttle machine by
taking away the "duck bill" shaft m and "duck bill" crotchet hooks 7,
and provide instead to each needle a shuttle race and shuttle, or with any
equivalent for a shuttle, as before described, and move the whole series of
shuttles by one shuttle bar attached to which will be shuttle-pushing pieces
for each separate shuttle,the fecd motion clips and table operating in the same
manner as previously described in Chapter 2. The motion to the shuttle bar
for moving the various shuttles in their races may be obtained by converting
the cams n, n, into another form to give a reciprocating movement to the
shuttle bar; so that the compound sewing machine can be used either as a
single or double thread machine, as may be required.
Having thus particularly described may said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I would state that I do not restrict myself
to the precise details herein described and shewn in the Drawings annexed,
for either of the two combinations may be modified without departing from

page_text: the main features of my Invention, as, for instance, my table may move on
guides instead of springs; or the table may be stationary, and the needle plate
and attached parts may move on a separate carriage working on V guides.
What I claim as new and of my Invention is,
Firstly, the combination of the series of needles and "duck bill" crotchet
hooks working together by the means and for the purposes herein set forth in
combination with the moveable table.
Secondly, the peculiar construction of the moveable table with direct feed,
and clips, working either on guides or springs, for producing lines of stitches;
and also the differential transverse movement to the table working in com-
bination with the feed movement, for producing waved or angular parallèllinės
of stitches, as fully described and set forth in this Specification, and shewn in
the Drawings.
Thirdly,the peculiar construction of the clips and plates for the feeding of
wide masses of fabric up to the needles,and in holding down the same,and in
the manner of operating on the feed movement and clips in combination,a's
fully set forth and shewn in the Drawings annexed.
Fourthly, the using of the common shuttle and races, or the revolving spool
shuttles in combination with the series of needles and moving table and clips,
converting the same machine into a double-thread stitch machine, for the
purposes herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Wilson Morrell, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
ROBERT WILSON MORRELL. (L.S.)
Witness,
HENRY WILLIAM YATES.