CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN KNITTING MACHINERY
Year: 1846

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
COTTON, of Loughborough, in the County of Leicester, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-second day of June, in the tenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Cotton, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said William Cotton, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, and such others as I, the said William Cotton, my executors,
administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein men-
tioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN KNITTING MACHINERY;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said William Cotton; by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to describe and
ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, and to cause the same to be enrolled in Her Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Cotton, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described

page_text: and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thercon (that is to say):
These Improvements in Knitting Machinery are designed to facilitate the
operations of framework knitting, or the production of various qualities of
goods or fabrics formed of looped threads, commonly called knitted fabrics, the
constructions and movements of the operating parts of the machinery being
materially simplified, and consequently enabled to work with greater expedition
and better effect than any of the knitting machinery heretoforo in use. The
improved forms and arrangements of mechanism are represented in the accom-
panying Drawings, of which Figure 1 is a longitudinal elevation of the front of
the complete machine; Figure 2 is an end elevation of the same, and Figure 3
a top or horizontal view, the similar letters of reference pointing out the same
parts in the several Figures. A, A, A, is the cast-iron framework or standards.
B is the beam or roller carrying the threads or yarns to produce the work. C is
the work-beam, upon which the knitted framework is wound as it comes
from the needles. D, D, is the crank shaft in front (to be turned by the
hands of the workman) by which the mechanism is actuated, or rotary
power, as of steam, water, or air, might be applied to this crank shaft
for the same purposo. E, E, are small fly wheels at the ends of the crank
shaft, to render its rotary mation uniform. F is a stationary bar extend-
ing the whole length of the machine, and to it the combs p, which are
fixed in leads, are attached by screws. Cams a, a, and b, b, are fixed upon
the shaft D, the former to work the needle bar and the latter to work the guido
bar. The series of needles c, fixed in leads as usual, are mounted upon the
bar I, which is supported by bent bracket armis e, e, e, attached to the longitu-
dinal rocking shaft fff, the shaft turning in pluminer blocks 9, 9, affixed to
the standards at the ends of the machine. From the rocking shaft lever
arms h, h, extend forward, carrying cach an antifriction roller d at its front
extremity, which rollers run upon the peripheries of the cams a, a, and couse-
quently, by the rotation of the cams a. a, the rocking shaft is caused to
vibrate, and give to the needle bar G the required movements. The guides
i, i, i, that conduct the threads to the needles are set in leads, as usual, and
are mounted on a bar H, which slides upon arms I, I, aflixed to the rocking
shaft. This shaft works on fulerum pivots mounted in the small standards
1, 1, attached to the end of the machine. From the rocking shaft & bent lever
arms m, m, extend forward, carrying at their front extremities antifriction
rollers, n, that run upon the peripheries of the cams b, b. Hence, by the
rotation of the canis b, b, the guides i are made to vibrate.

page_text: Having now described the general features of my improved machine, I
proceed to explain in detail the movements of the operating parts effected by
the novel construction, and for this purpose have represented, upon an enlarged
scale, sectional figures taken transversely through the machine, showing the
positions of the needles and guides, with their appendages, at different stages of
the operation of knitting.
Figures 4, 5, and 6 are detached portions of the machino in section, taken
transversely, the different Figures shewing the needles c and the guides i, in
different positions, with the thread or yarn j, j, passing upward from the yarn
beam below over a guide roller to the needles, and the work or knitted fabric
produced hanging down from the needles, and shewn at j. In Figure 4 it
will be seen that the last loop of the knitted work j* hangs upon the shaft of
the needle c, and that the thread or yarn ; extends straight from thence
to the eye of the guide i, the guides being in a raised position, that is, above
the ends of the needles, and the needles projected forward between tho
stationary combs P, such positions of the working parts being produced by the
rotary cams a and b acting on the arms h and m of the rocking shafts and k,
as before described. Now, in order to pass the threads or yarns j round the
needles for the formation of a fresh row of loops, the guides must be shogged,
that is, collectively moved in a lateral direction over the boards of the needles c.
which is done by the twofold actions next to be described. The needle bar
G, with its needles c, in coming forward to the position shewn at Figure 4,
has caused a catch 7 (scen at the right-hand end of the machine), Figure 3,
to act upon a horizontal ratchet wheel r, turning upon a stud fixed in the
standard frame, the catch a turning the wheel round part of a revolution.
This ratchet wheel has fast to its axle a cam wheel O, formed with many steps
or elevations and depressions upon its periphery, suited to different kinds of
work, and as the cam is moved round with the ratchet, different elevations are
brought against one end of a horizontal lever s, s, mounted on a fulcrum pin
and bracket at the end of the machine; the other end of this lever is by a rod t
made to communicate with the end of the guide bar H, and hence every time
that the ratchet r and cam O are moved, the guide bar will be shogged, in order
that the guides may carry forward their respective yarns, and lap them round
other needles. A spring at the opposite end of the bar has a tendency to return
the guides to their former position immediately the step or raised portion on
the cam O which has just acted on the lever s has passed the end of that lever.
The guides having been thus shogged, and the threads or yarns brought over
the needles, the guides are then, by the rotation of the cams b, b, made to
descend into the position shewn at Figure 5. The needle bar at the same

page_text: time, by the rotation of the canis a, a, recedes and draws the threads or yarns
under the beards of the needles. It will be now necessary to depress the beards
of the needles, in order that the yarns or threads under the beards may be drawn
through the loops of the previously made work, or, as it is, more commonly
expressed, that the row of loops may be passed over the beards of tho needles.
For this purpose I employ a rocking presser rod K, having an angular recess
cut along its whole length at the under part, as represented in section distinctly
in Figures 4, 5, and 6. The presser rod K is seen in its place in the machine
at Figure 3, on the front side of the combs, there being a recess made along
the whole length of the series of combs p, for the purpose of receiving the
presser rod K (seo Figures 4, 5, and 6). The presser rod is held in its
situation by arms, L, L. L, which arms are connected by hinge joints to curved
springs M, M, M, affixed to the back of; the stationary.comb bar F. The
presser rod K is enabled to turn freely in the clips of the arms L, L, L, and.
there are fingers u, u, extending upwards from the presser rod, which pass
through slots in inclined arms N fixed to tho needlo bar G. It will now
be seen, that as the needle bar G moves to and fro, the arms N will be
moved with it, and by so doing will cause the ends of the slots at v, w,
to act against the finger t, so as to turn the presser rod K upon its axis.
In Figure 4. it will be seen that the advanced position of the needle bar
has caused the hinder part of the slot v in the arm N to raise the finger u
nearly into, a. perpendicular position, by which means the presser rod K is
turned so as, to bring down its front angular edge. In this situation of the
presser rod the threads or yarns are carried over the needles, and passed under
their beards, as before said, by the shogging of the guides; the receding of the
needles, therefore, brings their beards under the edge of the presser rod, as
shewn in Figure 5, by which means the threads or yarns are confined within,
or under the beards, and in this retiring of the needles, their beards being still.
depressed, the proviously formed loops of work are brought against the front
edges of the combs, and as the stems of the needles pass between the combs
the loops are pushed over the beards of the needles, leaving the last row of
threads now connected to them under the beards, to form the next row of
loops. The receding of the needle bar has caused the end of the slot e, in the
arm N, to draw the finger into the inclined position shewn at Figure 6, by
which the presser rod K is turned so as to release the beards of the needles.
The needles are then left free to advance and commence a new course, as,
described above in reference to Figure 4. The forms of the cams a, a, and
b, b, for working the needle bar and guide bar being such as are commonly
used, in framework knitting machinery, need not be particularly described;.

page_text: and the adaptation of cams for shogging the guide bars being also well under-
stood, a further description of such parts will be unnecessary, their form being
varied according to the particular kind of work to be produced.
Having now described my Improvements in Knitting Machinery, I wish it
to be understood that I claim generally the novel arrangement of parts
(constituting my improved machine), whereby the number of motions to
produce looped fabrics are considerably reduced, and consequently the
machinery may be worked at a greater speed, and thus given lengths of fabric
may be produced in considerably less time than by the ordinary construction of
knitting machinery. And particularly I claim,-
First, the application of the rocking presser rod K for depressing the beards
of the needles, and also the mode of actuating that rod by the backward and
forward movements of the needle bar.
Second, the peculiar construction and arrangement of the fixed combs,
whereby the needles in receding from the guides are freed from the work
formed on them, the loops being stopped by the edges of the combs until the
depressed beards have passed through them, as above explained.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Cotton, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-six.
WILLIAM (L.S.) COTTON.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the same Twenty-first day of
December, in the year above mentioned, the aforesaid William Cotton came
before our Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Speci-
fication aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained, in form above
written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute in that case made and provided.