IMPROVEMENTS MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WOVEN OR FELTED FABRICS
Year: 1857

page_text: IN
LETTERS PATENT to Richard Dugdale Kay, of Accrington, in the County
of Lancaster, Manufacturer, for 'the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WOVEN OR FELTED FABRICS."
A communication.
Sealed the 27th October 1857, and dated the 13th May 1857......
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Dugdale Kay_at"
"
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
13th May 1857.
I, RICHARD DUGDALE KAY, of Accrington, in the County of Lancaster,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for," I-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WOVEN OR FELTED
FABRICS," as communicated to me from abroad, to be as follows::
.
ri:
This Invention relates to improved machinery or apparatus for applying
coloring matter, mordants, or resists to woven or felted fabrics. of all kinds, in
the white, dyed or printed state, and consists of a means. of printing stripes, &c.
Firstly, by a modification of the apparatus already used in printing, paper,,
whereby the same is made applicable for the first time to woven. fabrics.,
Secondly, by a mechanical arrangement entirely different but producing similar,
results. One of the important applications of this apparatus is that of producing.
stripes of various shades or properties on fabrics that have previously received.
an impression by roller or otherwise, such styles or effects having been hitherto,
obtained by hand, involving more or less loss of time, labour, general expense,
and bad work; the effects produced being moreover very limited in extent.
[Price 8d.]

page_text: The following is a description of the first apparatus alluded to:-I make
one or more V-shaped reservoirs or color boxes of brass, wood, or other suitable
metal or material, of a size varying according to the requirements of the
design, which boxes are fitted into a frame or support of the same form, so
that they rest firmly though sufficiently free to be moved in a lateral direction
only. The boxes being understood to be all in one line, end to end, now by
means of a pinion fixed to them, to which is attached a handle some four or five
inches long, and also by means of a rack (whose teeth correspond to those of the
pinion) fixed to the frame that supports the boxes, the said boxes may be moved
easily either one or all of them at once in a lateral direction. I also make
one side of each box loose, that is to say, it is not soldered or immoveably
fixed, but firmly and accurately fitted with liberty to move laterally, so that
with the assistance of a little fatty or resinous substance the color contained
in the box cannot escape. Now, by a similar contrivance to that for moving
the whole box I force in or out at will this moveable side, in other words I
contract or. enlarge the breadth of the boxes; I have thus two motions to each
box, the one varying the breadth of the box or the width of the
the stripe, the
other regulating the relative position or distance of the stripes according to
the requirements of the design or the deviations in the width of the fabric.
At the bottom edge of the boxes I make very fine oblong apertures or slits
varying in breadth and number according to the design.......
. I
Having thus described the method of constructing the most important part
of this machine, I proceed to shew the mode of working it: The range of
color boxes being raised upon a frame to a convenient working height from
the floor, the cloth is caused to pass in a state of tension under and in contact
with the edged bottoms of the boxes, which are supplied with color by inverted
bottles suspended over them or by other convenient means; from thence it'
passes immediately over a small brass cylinder, fixed or revolving and heated
by steam, and then over steam chests or cylinders, such as are ordinarily used
för drying, after which it is wound again upon a roll. Now, supposing the
fabric to have received a previous impression, say of a number of lines or other
design to which it is requisite to apply and to fit accurately a certain color in
stripes to compléte the pattern, it is evident that by the apparatus 'described
this can be easily done, for, by means of metal points or forks projecting from
and in connection with the boxes some six or eight inches in the direction the
fabric is advancing, the point at which the cloth ought to pass is indicated
with certainty and in time to alter the lateral position of the box or the breadth
of the stripe.
It is also easy to apply colors, resists, &c., in stripes waved or diagonal where

page_text: no fitting to a previous impression is desired, by giving to the cloth or to the
color boxes an excentric motion.
My second machine consists of a roller in lieu of the color boxes' just
described, made after the manner of an ordinary surface printing roller,
that is to say, the part which is to apply the color is in relief and furnished
with color in the ordinary way; the said roller, however, is formed of
several exterior parts fitted upon one centre, each part representing a box or
stripe as in the other machine, and each being regulated after the manner
of the said machine. By this method I also produce stripes across the
fabric or patterns in stripes fitting to an original impression, whereby the
customary application of reserves by block and promiscuous covering by
machine is avoided. It is evident that by either apparatus described, not only
can many effects be obtained that are impracticable by block or by any print-
ing machine at present in use, but that the same may be produced' with
immense economy.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,; filed
by the said Richard Dugdale Kay in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 13th November 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
DUGDALE KAY, of Accrington, in the County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Richard Dugdale Kay, Her special licence that I, the said Richard
Dugdale Kay, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said Richard Dugdale Kay, my 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 MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WOVEN
OR FELTED FABRICS," being a communication from abroad, upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Richard Dugdale Kay, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain

page_text: 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 I, the said Richard Dugdale Kay, do hereby
declare the nature of the 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):-
This Invention relates to improved machinery or apparatus for applying
coloring matter, mordants or resists, to woven or felted fabrics of all kinds,
in the white, dyed, or printed state, and consists of a means of printing
stripes, &c. by a modification of the apparatus already used in printing paper,"
whereby the same is made applicable for the first time to woven fabrics. One
of the important applications of this apparatus is that of producing stripes of
various shades or properties on fabrics that have previously received an impres-,
sion by roller or otherwise, such styles or effects having been hitherto obtained
by hand, involving more or less loss of time, labour, general expense, and bad
work, the effects produced being moreover very limited in extent.
The following is a description of the first apparatus alluded to:-I make
'one or more V-shaped reservoirs or color boxes of brass, wood, or other suitable
metal or material, of a size varying according to the requirements of the
design, which boxes are fitted into a frame or support of the same form, so
that they rest firmly though sufficiently free to be moved in a lateral direction
only. The boxes being understood to be all in one line, end to end, now by
means of a pinion fixed to them, to which is attached a handle some four or
five inches long, and also by means of a rack (whose teeth correspond to those
of the pinion) fixed to the frame that supports the boxes, the said boxes may
be moved easily, either one or all of them, in a lateral direction. I also make
one side of each box loose, that is to say, it is not soldered or immovably
'fixed, but firmly and accurately fitted with liberty to move laterally, so 'that
with the assistance of a little fatty or resinous substance the color contained
in the box cannot escape. Now, by a similar contrivance to that for moving
the whole box, I force in or out at will this moveable side, in other words I
contract or enlarge the breadth of the boxes; I have thus two motions to
each box, the one varying the breadth of the box or the width of the stripe,
the other regulating the relative position or distance of the stripes according
to the requirements of the design or the deviations in the width of the fabric.
At the bottom edge of the boxes I make very fine oblong apertures or slits
varying in breadth and number according to the design.

page_text: Having thus described the method of constructing the most important part
of this machine, I proceed to shew the mode of working it :-The range of
color boxes being raised upon a frame to a convenient working height from
the floor, the cloth is caused to pass in a state of tension under and in contact
with the edged bottoms of the boxes, which are supplied with color by inverted
bottles suspended over them or by other convenient means; from thence it
passes immediately over a small brass cylinder fixed or revolving and heated
by steam, and then over steam chests or cylinders, such as are ordinarily used
for drying, after which it is wound again upon a roll. Now, supposing the
fabric to have received a previous impression, say of a number of lines, or
other design, to which it is requisite to apply and to fit accurately a certain
color in stripes to complete the pattern, it is evident that by the. apparatus
described this can be easily done, for, by means of metal points or forks pro-
jecting from and in connection with the boxes some six or eight inches in the
direction the fabric is advancing, the point at which the cloth ought to pass
is indicated with certainty and in time to alter the lateral position of the; box
or the breadth of the stripe. It is also easy, to apply colors, resists, &c.,, in
stripes, waved or diagonal, where no fitting to a previous impression is desired,
by giving to the cloth or to the color boxes an eccentric motion. It is evident
that by either apparatus described not only can many effects be obtained that
are impracticable by block or by any printing machine at present in use, but
that the same may be produced with immense economy.
These improvements will be clearly understood by referring to the accom-
panying four Sheets of Drawings, with the figures and letters of reference
thereon, the same letters referring to similar parts in all the Figures:
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the machine complete, the piece taking, the
course indicated by the arrows; Fig. 2 is a plan of the same with the excep-;
tion of the drying apparatus; Figs. 3 and 4 represent plans of two V-shaped
color boxes and apparatus connected therewith, drawn to an enlarged scale;
Figs. 5 and 6 are elevations of the same; Figs. 7 and 8 are views of the
color boxes still more detached in order to shew them more clearly. In Figs. 1
and 2, a represents the bench on which the workmen sit when at work; b and
c, pulleys which (by means a handle and lever of the usual kind conveniently
placed for the workman) put the machine instantly into or-out of motion. The
cloth having been previously wound on a roller, and placed in the position indi-
cated by the letter d, runs off in the direction of the arrow and is wound on the
roller e, the speed or tension of the cloth being regulated by the pulley f at
the end of the roller d, the said pulley being partly encircled by. a strap g
pressed upon by the weights.h, which may be reduced or multiplied as desired.

page_text: In order to apply the color I employ the two V-shaped color boxes i, seen
enlarged in Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, the said boxes being made of brass or other
suitable material, and well fitted and adjusted by the screws to the triangular-
shaped bars k. Parallel with these bars I place the racks m, into each of which
is geared a pinion n, having at the end a double handle o, p, with a clutch or
saw-edged joining. The color box is caused to move or slide on the bar k
across the cloth when the handle o, p, is turned with the clutch or joining
open, as shewn in Fig. 6, and by turning the handle with the joining united, as
seen in Fig. 5, one side of the color box moves inwards and the box itself
remains stationary on its bar. It is evident that this operation of altering the
lateral position of the box, or of reducing or increasing its lateral dimensions,
can be performed by the finger and thumb of one hand, and therefore that one
man can regulate this compound action in two boxes, in the position shewn
at i, i, in Figure 1. At the bottom of these color boxes nicks or holes are
mâde to let out the color as may be required; thus, if I desire to produce three
lines or broad stripes of color on a piece of cloth in the direction of its length,
I have only to make three holes or nicks of the required breadth, and then
to draw the cloth under and in contact with the bottom of this perforated
box, and three stripes will be the result. In the case of applying such stripes
to lines or other objects previously printed on the said cloth, I make use of
the handles o, p, to regulate the breadth thereof, or the relative position of one
box to another, by which the variation in the width of the material and of the
design may be followed with certainty. To acquire rapidity, I attach to each
box the points or indicators q, which being set to some given point in the
pattern previously printed, the workmen may see whether the cloth is in' or
out of its proper position in time to alter it, if necessary, before the arrival of
the cloth at the apertures of the color box. The moveable end or division of
the box is smeared with grease or resinous matter in order to prevent improper
escape of color from inaccurate fitting of the metal, and to assist in this
object there is a spring r, seen in Figs. 5 and 6.
and receives its color from the boxes, the latter require a constant supply,
which is kept up by means of the bottles s, Figs. 1 and 2, previously filled
with color, and their necks inserted in the color already in the box. The
cloth having received its color passes over the roller or cylinder t (which may
be either heated by steam or not, and revolving or stationary), and from thence
to be dried over a series of steam chests or cylinders to the roller e on which
it is wound. In some cases I employ chests and cylinders either separate or
combined, and either with or without a fan or bellows to expedite the drying
of the "cloth or I run the cloth over and allow it to hang on rollers to dry
As the cloth passes onwards

page_text: spontaneously. Although two color boxes only. have been described, it is
obvious that a considerable number may be employed, and that each may
contain similar or totally different. shades of color. And it is also evident that
although stripes only have been mentioned, a great variety of waved or cur-
vilinear patterns may be produced on the cloth simply by giving an eccentric
motion to the color boxes or to the cloth, or to both combined. By printing.
resists, discharges, or colors of other chemical action, in figures by engraved
rollers or by blocks, and then running such printed cloth through this machine,
a great variety of effects may be produced, which are perfectly impracticable
by any other method at present known.
This machinery or apparatus, occupying little more space than a block
printers' table, produces from twenty to thirty times as much work of a
superior quality in the same time, with fewer damages and at about one-sixth
the cost.
Having thus fully described the nature of the said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, as communicated to me from
abroad, I desire it to be distinctly understood that I do not confine myself to
the exact details herein set forth, as such may be varied or modified without
departing from the principle thereof; but I claim the arrangement and con-
struction of machinery or apparatus for printing woven or felted fabrics, as
herein described and illustrated in the accompanying four Sheets of Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Dugdale Kay, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Tenth day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
RICHARD DUGDALE KAL. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the within-
named Richard Dugdale Kay, in the
presence of
E., J. HUGHES, Patent Agent,
Manchester.