CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Lawrence Whitaker, of Haslingden, in the County
of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner, and John Diggle, of. the same place,
Manager, and George Howarth, of the same place, Overlooker, for the
Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR
SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Lawrence Whitaker,
John, Diggle, and George Howarth at the Office of the Commissioners
of Patents, with their Petition, on the 13th March 1854.
We, LAWRENCE WHITAKER, of Haslingden, in the County of Lancaster,.
Cotton Spinner, and JOHN DIGGLE, of the same place, Manager, and GEORGE
HOWARTH, of the same place, Overlooker, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR.
SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS" to be as follows:-
Our Invention applies to a peculiar construction and arrangement of appa-
ratus called a "clearer" or "scavenger," and is to be employed in "mules,"
"stretchers," "jennies," whether "self-actors," or otherwise, and in other
spinning machinery requiring the waste fly" or loose fibres to be cleaned or
taken up. Our improvements consist in the employment or use of a small.
scavenging apparatus, which traverses longitudinally from one end of the roller
beam to the other, for the purpose of collecting any waste "flyings " or loose
filaments of cotton or other fibrous substance that may fall from the drawing...

page_text: rollers during the process of spinning, and also to remove or take up all wasto
that may accumulate on the top of the mule carriage, tlius cleaning both the
roller beam and the top of the carriage at the same time, close up to the bolster
of the spindles. The cleaning or "scavenging apparatus" is driven from the
"twist" shaft by means of a worm working into a toothed wheel, which gives
motion to a small grooved pulley in which a band runs, and this band being
connected to the other end of the beam keeps the "clearer" or "scavenger "
continually traversing from one end to the other, or it may be driven by means
of a small worm shaft working into a worm wheel fixed upon a traversing
block. The simplicity of this apparatus prevents any interference with the
working parts of the "mule" or other spinning machine, as it is merely formed
of a piece of tin, brass, or any other suitable metal, with a small block and slide
attached to the back of it. The use of the block being to turn the "scavenger
when it arrives at the end of the roller beam, the slide giving the machine time
to stop whilst the spindle carriage comes up, to the back of which is attached a
fillet of "carding wires," or other suitable cleaner, which cleanses the "scavenger"
from the fly which it may have gathered. The "scavenger" may consist either
of a brush, flannel, fustian, or of any other suitable material.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Lawrence Whitaker, John Diggle, and George Howarth in
the Great Seal Patent Office on the 13th September 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, LAWRENCE
WHITAKER, of Haslingden, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner, and
JOHN DIGGLE, of the same place, Manager, and GEORGE HOWARTH, of the same
place, Overlooker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the seventeenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Lawrence Whitaker, John Diggle, and George Howarth, Her especial
license that we, the said Lawrence Whitaker, John Diggle, and George
Howarth, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we,
the said Lawrence Whitaker, John Diggle, and George Howarth, our execu-
tors, 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

page_text: Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of
Man, an Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
FOR SPINNING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said Lawrence Whitaker, John Diggle, and
George Howarth (or one of us) by an instrument in writing under our hands
and seals (or under the hand and seal of one of us) should particularly describe
and ascertain 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 Lawrence Whitaker, do hereby declare
the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement and accompanying Drawings (that is to say):-
66
"
Our Invention applies to a peculiar construction and arrangement of appa-
ratus called a "clearer" or "scavenger," and is to be employed in "mules,"
"stretchers," "jennies," whether "self-actors" or otherwise, and in other
spinning machinery requiring the waste "fly" or loose fibres to be taken up or
removed. Our improvements consist in the employment or use of a small
"scavenging apparatus," which traverses longitudinally from one end of the
roller beam to the other, for the purpose of collecting any waste "flyings" or
loose filaments of cotton or other fibrous substance that may fall from the
drawing rollers during the process of spinning, and also to remove or take up
all waste that may accumulate on the top of the mule carriage. The traversing
scavenger or clearer" may be supported or guided by various arrangements of
wires or rods, or by a tenon on the back of the "scavenger" working in a
groove cut on the "roller beam or any other similar and appropriate adapta-
tion of apparatus for obtaining the same end. The scavenger may be made of
tin, brass, or any other suitable metal or material, and the strictly clearing
parts may be made of flannel, fustian, or other such material; or, in lieu, a brush
may be employed. But in order that our Invention may be better understood
and explained in detail, I have hereunto attached a Sheet of Drawing, made to
a scale of about two inches to the foot, and having the same letters of reference
on similar parts of the apparatus in the several Figures shown. Fig. 1 repre-
sents a side view of part of a mule frame and carriage with our improvements
attached; Fig. 2 exhibits a back longitudinal view (broken) of part of "frame"
and carriage with box and revolving brush for cleaning "scavenger." This box
will admit of several arrangements to effect the same object; as, for instance,
instead of the employing of the revolving brush which, in its turn is cleaned by

page_text: projecting points secured to the side of the box, the box may be furnished
with cards, as used in a carding engine, or fine teeth points or needles may be
employed, but this last arrangement is more applicable where a brush is used;
we prefer that the box be secured to the front of the carriage about the centre,
Fig. 3. represents a plan or top view of the scavenger, which in this case is
composed of flannel secured to a framing of tin. In Fig. 1; a represents the
driving pinion (which may be secured on the end of the roller shaft, or motion
may be otherwise communicated) working into the small pinion b, upon one
side of which is cast the small bevil pinion c, gearing into the bevil pinion d, on
the small vertical shaft e, at the lower end of which is secured the pulley f; at
the opposite end of the frame is a-fitting, carrying a corresponding. pulley g;
round these two pulleys and ga small rope or cord h runs, to..which is
attached the "scavenger" j...It will be observed that the back or hinder plate of
the "scavenger" rises.obliquely, while the lower portion is curved, and to which
the flannel is secured; the, oblique plate lies close to the roller beam, and con-
sequently in its traverse and re-traverse cleanses that; the cleansing of the top
of the carriage we will hereafter describe.k;k, are, the guide wires, and
support the scavenger," and are secured rat each end of the framing. On
reference to the Drawing it will become evident that at each revolution of the
driving pinion a,,motion will be transferred, through the pinion.b,and bevil
pinions c and dato, the small pulley f, thence to the cord.h, and necessarily, the
scavenger will be proportionately shifted, which is the case, at each going out
of, the "mule carriage; at other times the scavenger," is, stationary; con
sequently, at every draw the oblique portion of the scavenger will clear, the
roller beam to such an extent as it may advance as well as becoming so
situated as to be in a position, to cleanse the next part of the surface of the
mule carriage as it is "drawn in;" this operation is repeated until, the
scavenger has made, the length of, its traverse, when. the motion is reversed by
a very simple arrangement,, which we, will now describe. From the back and
at the junction of, the oblique and curved portions of the scavenger an oblong
frame, extends (supported by the guide wires-k, k), the longer, side of which is
slotted in the slot.o, the small jointed connecting piece p is secured, and to the
other end is attached the cord h. The reverse action will be readily understood
on reference to Fig. 3; the "scavenger." having, as shewn, nearly, reached the
end of its traverse. The end of the jointed connecting piece pattached to the
cord h, is carried round the small pulley.f; when. the piece p. is at its longest
stretch a right line would cut through all its centres,: but as the revolution of
the small pulley continues, the two extreme centres, of, the connecting piece p
are brought closer together, the joint gives way, the cord continues its.course,

page_text: and the reverse motion is obtained, as shewn by dotted lines. r is a collecting
box, the best situation for which is at the top of the front surface of the mule
carriage, and in the centre it is furnished with a revolving brush s, carrying on
its axis a small pulley t, which is connected by the cord u to a corresponding
pulley v, which receives motion from a wheel of the "mule carriage;" inside
the box r is likewise secured pickers or projecting points w (Fig. 1), which
in their turn clean the revolving brush s. x is the flannel of the scavenger or
clearer.
Having now particularly described the nature of our Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be distinctly
understood that we claim,-
First, the employment and use of a brush or suspended flannel, fustian, or
other similar material applied as a "self-acting scavenger and clearer, and
traversing longitudinally the length or partial length of the frame whereon it
may be employed.
And, secondly, we claim the particular arrangement of the several parts of
the machinery or apparatus, as herein particularly described and set forth, and
fully illustrated in the accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Lawrence Whitaker, have hereunto set
'my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
LAWRENCE WHITAKER. (L.S.)