IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Priestley, of the Firm of Briggs, Priestley, and
Company, of Laisterdyke, near Bradford, in the County of York, Manu-
facturer, and William Deighton, of the same Place, Foreman Mechanic, for
an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Priestley and
William Deighton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
25th March 1881.
WILLIAM PRIESTLEY, of the Firm of Briggs, Priestley, and Company, of
Laisterdyke, near Bradford, in the County of York, Manufacturer, and WILLIAM
DEIGHTON, of the same Place, Foreman Mechanic. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS
FOR WEAVING."
This Invention relates to that class of loom in which rising and falling shuttle
boxes are employed at each end; and our improvements consist, firstly, in a new
combination and arrangement of parts for automatically raising and lowering the
shuttle boxes as they are from time to time selected by the jacquard or pattern
surface. For this purpose we fix a cam on the crank shaft for giving an oscillatory
motion to the upper end of an upright lever having a pin or peg therein, and which
is brought into contact with the upper end of a bell crank or other lever, for
purposes hereinafter explained.
Upon a stud attached to the loom frame is a circular plate or disc, which is
slided backward and forward on the said stud by the lower end of the bell crank
lever previously referred to. The upper end of this bell crank lever is formed
hollow or tubular, in which rods or weights work up and down as they are selected
by the jacquard, such rods or weights representing the several shuttle boxes. After
each revolution of the crank shaft the peg on the oscillatory upright lever is
brought into contact with one or other of the lifting rods or weights, causing the
bell crank lever to slide the disc (on the stud) opposite one or other of a series of
shells attached to the top of another upright lever, which is in connection with a
horizontal lever, such horizontal lever being connected by a link to another or third
upright lever attached to the shuttle boxes. The number of shells correspond to

page_text: the number of shuttle boxes, and they are so formed that they will either lift or
lower the shuttle boxes according to the position of the disc, and they are brought
into contact with the said disc by means of a rod and eccentric upon the crank
shaft. The shells may be loose and adjustable, so that the rise and fall of the
shuttle boxes may be regulated to the greatest nicety.
"
Secondly. Our Invention relates to apparatus employed for holding the shuttle
boxes firmly in position until the shuttle has crossed the loom. For this purpose
we place a star wheel upon a rocking shaft at the bottom of the loom, into one of
the grooves of which star wheel is placed a projection formed on the underside
of an arm or short horizontal lever held down upon the star wheel by a spring,
by which means the rocking shaft is held perfectly stationary during the time the
shuttle is crossing the loom, but immediately the shuttle arrives "home a cam
or cams on the low shaft acts upon and raises a lever in connection with the short
horizontal lever, and removes the projection out of the recess of the star wheel
Also we employ a weighted vertical rod, the bottom end of which rests in the
recess of another star wheel also placed on the working shaft. We also place a
pulley upon the rocking shaft upon. which a spring or plate bent to fit the
periphery of the said pulley is brought to bear by means of screw and hand
wheel.
Thirdly. To looms in which the rising and falling shuttle boxes are raised and
lowered by means of a rack and pinion. Our improvements therein consist in the
employment of apparatus for keeping the rack in gear with the pinion, and yet
allow it to easily come out of gear should the shuttle become fast in the box.
For this purpose a bar or friction pulley bears against the back of the rack, and
forced against it by a spring which will yield and allow the rack to become
disconnected if the shuttle gets locked in the box, by which means breakages of
the parts are prevented.
Fourthly. To a means of keeping the picking stick stationary, and so preventing
the movement of the shuttle whilst the weaver is finding a "broken pick," and
this we accomplish by sliding the picking tappit out of contact with the picking
cone. For this purpose we employ a hand lever, which when operated in one
direction will slide a boss on a rod and remove the picking tappit from contact
with the picking cone and provent another pick or portion of a pick, whilst at the
same time this lover will remove the catch out of gear with the taking up wheels
employed for taking up the cloth as it is being woven, by which means the taking
up motion is rendered stationary.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Priestley and William Deighton in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 24th September 1881.
WILLIAM PRIESTLEY, of the Firm of Briggs, Priestley, and Company, of
Laisterdyke, near Bradford, in the County of York, Spinner and Manufacturer,
and WILLIAM DEIGHTON, of the same Place, Foreman Mechanic. "IMPROVEMENTS
IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
This Invention relates to that class of loom in which rising and falling shuttle
boxes are employed at each end; and our improvements consist,-
Firstly. In a new combination and arrangement of parts for automatically
raising and lowering the shuttle boxes as they are from time to time selected by
the jacquard or pattern surface. For this purpose we fix a cam on the crank shaft
for giving an oscillatory motion to the upper end of an upright lever having a pin
or peg therein, and which is brought into contact with the upper end of a bell
crank or other lever, for purposes hereinafter explained. Upon a stud attached to
the loom frame is a circular plate or disc which is slided backward and forward
on the said stud by the lower end of the bell crank lever previously referred to.
The upper end of this bell crank lover is formed hollow or tubular in which rods
or weights work up and down as they are selected by the jacquard, such rods or
weights representing the several shuttle boxes. After each revolution of the crank
shaft the peg on the oscillatory upright lever is brought into contact with one or
other of the lifting rods or weights, causing the bell crank lever to slide the disc
(on the stud) opposite one or other of a series of shells attached to the top of
another upright lever which is in connection with a horizontal lever, such horizontal
lever being connected by a link to another or third upright lever attached to the
shuttle boxes. The number of shells correspond to the number of shuttle boxes,
and they are so formed that they will either raise or lower the shuttle boxes
according to the position of the disc, and they are brought into contact with the
said disc by means of a rod and eccentric upon the crank shaft. The shells may
be loose and adjustable, so that the rise and fall of the shuttle boxes may be
regulated to the greatest nicety.
This part of our Invention is shewn in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 of the accompanying
Drawings, which are end view and details of a three box loom. 1 is the framework
of a loom, 2 the crank shaft, and 3 the tappit or low shaft; 4 is the oscillatory lever
working upon a stud 5 at its lower end, its upper end moving backward and
forward at every revolution of the crank shaft by means of the cam 6. Towards
the upper end of this oscillating lever is a pin or peg 7, which at each forward
movement thereof comes into contact with one or other of the weights 8 working
up and down (as selected by the jacquard) in the tube or box 9 formed at the top
of the bell crank lever 10, thereby sliding the disc 11 on the stud 12 opposite ono
or other of a series of adjustable shells 13 attached to the upright lever 14, which
either depresses or lifts the left hand end of the horizontal lever 15 hinged at 16,
thereby lifting or lowering the upright rod 17 to which the shuttle boxes 18 are
attached. At a certain part of each revolution of the crank shaft the shells 13 are
removed from contact with the disc 11 by means of the eccentric 19, which is
connected to the lever 14 by rod 20, and as soon as the shells are removed from
the disc, if a change in the shuttle boxes is required, the disc is moved on the
stud 12 opposite the required shell, when the shells are brought into contact
with disc by the eccentric, and the shuttle boxes are either raised or lowered
thereby.
Secondly. Our Invention relates to apparatus employed for holding the shuttle
boxes firmly in position until the shuttle has crossed the loom. For this purpose

page_text: we place a star wheel upon a rocking shaft at the bottom of the loom, into one
of the grooves of which star wheel is placed a projection formed on the underside
of an arm or short horizontal lever held down upon the star wheel by a spring.
Also we employ a weighted vertical rod, the bottom end of which rests in the
recess of another star wheel also placed on the rocking shaft. We also place a
pulley upon the rocking shaft upon which a spring or plate, bent to fit the
periphery of the said pulley, is brought to bear by means of screw and hand
wheel,
This part of our Invention is also shown in Figs. 1 and 2, where 21 is the
rocking shaft caused to rock as the shuttle boxes are raised or lowered, by means
of a rack formed at the bottom of the rod 17 gearing with a pinion wheel 22 fixed
on the said shaft. Upon the rocking shaft is fixed a star wheel 23, upon which
star wheel bears a projection 24 formed on the underside of the lever 25, such lever
bearing upon the star wheel with considerable pressure by the spring 26, by which
means the rocking shaft and upright rod 17 are held perfectly stationary during
the time the shuttle is crossing the loom, but immediately the shuttle has arrived
"home" the cam 27 on the low shaft 3 is so timed and regulated that it acts upon
the bowl 28, lifting the levers 29 and 25 connected together by rod 30, and removes
the projection 24 out of the notch in the star wheel, and leaves the rocking shaft
free to act.
In addition to the star wheel arrangement for keeping the shuttle boxes steady,
we employ a vertical rod 31 (shewn in detail, Figs. 4 and 5) resting in notches
formed in a disc or plate 32 also fixed upon the rocking shaft 21; the bowl at the
bottom end of the rod 31 bears upon the notched plate by the weight 33. Figs. 6
and 7 shew another method of keeping the shuttle boxes stationary, which consist
of a friction pulley 34 placed upon the rocking shaft 21. Bearing upon the pulley
is a plate 35 pressed thereon by means of screw and hand wheel 36 supported by
bracket 37 fixed to the loom framing.
Thirdly. To looms in which the rising and falling shuttle boxes are raised and
lowered by means of a rack and pinion. Our improvements therein consist in the
employment of apparatus for keeping the rack in gear with the pinion, and yet
allow it to easily come out of gear should the shuttle become fast in the box. For
this purpose a bar or friction pulley bears against the back of the rack, and forced
against it by a spring, which will yield and allow the rack to become disconnected
if the shuttle gets locked in the box, by which means breakages of the parts are
prevented.
This part of our Invention is shewn in Fig. 1. The pinion is shewn at 22, and
the rack at R. The said rack is kept in the teeth of the pinion by means of the
friction pulley 38 attached to the lever 39 being forced against the back of the
rack by the spring 40.
Fourthly. To a means of keeping the picking stick stationary, and so preventing
the movement of the shuttle whilst the weaver is finding a "broken pick," and
this we accomplish by sliding the picking tappit out of contact with the picking
cone. For this purpose we employ a hand lever, which when operated in one
direction will slide a boss on a rod and remove the picking tappit from contact
with the picking cone, and prevent another pick or portion of a pick, whilst at the
same time this lever will remove the catch out of gear with the taking up wheels
employed for taking up the cloth as it is being woven, by which means the taking
up motion is rendered stationary.
This part of our Invention is shewn in Figs. 8 and 9, Sheet 2, where 41
represents the picking tappit, and 42 the picking cone, the picking tappit
revolving with the picking shaft 3, but capable of sliding end wise thereon.
When the weaver wishes to find a "broken pick" he operates the handle 43 of
the lever 44 in such a manner as to cause the series of levers and rods 45, 46,
and 47 to slide the boss 48 on the shaft 49, which also slides the picking tappits 41
on the shaft 3, and so removes them from contact with the picking cones. The
same movement of the lever 44 which disengages the tappits also operates the

page_text: lever 50 by means of projection 51 in such a manner as to turn the rod 52, and
thereby lift the catch 53 out of gear with the taking up wheel 54, by which means
the taking up motion is stationary. When the lever 44 is released the catch drops
into gear and the springs 55 pushes the picking tappets into contact with the
picking cones, and the loom proceeds.
Fifthly. To improved means of removing the driving strap from one pulley to
another, which is illustrated in Figs. 10 and 11. The strap fork 56 is attached to
a horizontal rod 57 slided backward and forward in its bearings when the spring
handle 58 is operated.
Having now described the nature and particulars of our said Invention, and
shewn by Drawings how the same is to be performed and carried into practice,
we would have it understood that we do not confine ourselves to the exact details
of the parts herein shewn and described, as the same may be varied or modified
without departing from the peculiar features of the Invention; but what we
claim is,
Firstly. The employment of the bell crank lever 10 having a box or tube 9
at its upper end for the purposes, substantially as herein shewn and described.
Secondly. The combination and arrangement of the several parts herein shewn
and described for selecting the shuttle boxes, and automatically raising and
lowering them, in the manner substantially as herein shewn and described.
Thirdly. The employment of the star wheel 23 and parts connected therewith
for holding the shuttle boxes firmly in position until the shuttle has crossed the
looin.
Fourthly. The employment of the vertical weighted rod 31 and star wheel 32,
for the purpose substantially as described and shewn in Figs. 4 and 5.
Fifthly. The employment of the lever 39 and spring 40 for keeping the rack R
in gear with the pinion 22, substantially as described and shewn in Fig. 1.
Sixthly. The combination and arrangement of levers operated by hand lever 44
for disconnecting the picking cone from the picking tappit, substantially as shewn
and described.
Seventhly. The means or method for rendering the taking up wheels stationary,
substantially as shewn and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Deighton, for and on behalf of
myself and the said William Priestley, do hereby set my hand and seal,
this 12th day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and eighty one.
WILLIAM DEIGHTON. (L.S.)