IMPROVEMENTS IN FANCY WEAVING
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Farran, of Bolton, in the County of
Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FANCY WEAVING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Farran at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th November 1872.
I, JOHN FARRAN, of Bolton, in the County of Lancaster, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN FANCY
WEAVING," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to the production in power looms of fancy
patterns by what is known as "cross weaving," that is, by crossing
some of the warp threads diagonally under or over the others so as to
produce a pattern having the appearance of network upon a plain twilled
or figured ground.
The Invention consists principally in a peculiar method of "drawing
in" the warp threads, whereby certain of these warp threads which I

page_text: call the " ' pattern warp threads" may be crossed backwards and
forwards under or over the ordinary or ground warp threads, so as to
produce the desired effect.
I employ (by preference) two warp beams, one for the ground warp
and one for the pattern warp; the ground warp passes through the
ordinary or plain healds which are actuated in the usual manner, so as
to weave plain, twilled, or figured cloth.
In front of these are a pair of healds which I call the " pattern
healds," as they are employed for working the pattern warp threads,
which threads instead of being drawn in straight through are drawn in
as follows: Each pattern warp thread after passing between the plain
healds is first drawn through the back pattern heald, after which
(instead of passing straight through the front pattern heald) it is
drawn diagonally across, under or over two or three of the plain or
ground warp threads, and then drawn in through the front pattern :
heald. It will be evident therefore, that whenever the front pattern
heald is raised, the pattern warp threads will be raised on one side of
the set or group (say two or three) of ground warp raised threads, and
if the back pattern heald be raised the same pattern warp threads are
drawn up on the other side of the same group of ground warp threads,
and thus the pattern warp threads are alternately crossed backwards and
forwards in a wavy or zig-zag line beneath or over the ground warp,
forming a kind of open network pattern.
The pattern warp healds are not made with eyes but are formed with
long loops, so as to enable each heald as it rises to draw the warp over
in the direction required.
Between the plain healds and the pattern healds a light metal rod is
laid over the pattern warp threads to hold them clear of the plain warp
threads when not being woven in with the ground, and a vibrating bar
or breast beam (two or more) is or are placed in front of the pattern
warp beam to ease or slacken the pattern warp threads or to take up the
slack of the same, as the case may be.
I prefer to actuate this vibrating bar, or bars, or breast beam, as well
as the plain and pattern warp healds, by means of the ordinary
"dobby" or "index machine," but they may also if thought desirable,
be actuated by means of "jacks and treadles."

page_text: 66
In working large patterns the healds will be dispensed with and, the
warps will be drawn in through harness worked by the ordinary
"jacquard" machine, or the plain cloth may be worked by the healds
and the pattern by harness, as will be well understood by any practical
weaver; each pattern warp thread being passed through two "mails" or
loops of the harness, and crossing diagonally over or under two or more
ground warp threads in the interval between the two, and an additional
mail being employed for slackening the thread by lifting the weight or
"lingo” when it has to be crossed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Farran in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 24th May 1878.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
FARRAN, of Bolton, in the County of Lancaster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said John Farran, Her -special
license that I, the said John Farran, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said John Farran, 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
FANCY WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
John Farran, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Farran, 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 and accompanying Drawings, (that is to
say) :-
My Invention relates to the production in power looms of fancy
patterns by what is known as "cross weaving," that is, by crossing
some of the warp threads diagonally under or over the other, so as to
produce a pattern having the appearance of network or "leno" upon a
plain, twilled, or figured ground.
The Invention consists principally in a peculiar method of "drawing
in "the warp threads, whereby certain of these warp threads may be
crossed backwards and forwards under or over the ordinary or ground
warp threads so as to produce the desired effect.
Such being the nature and object of my said Invention of “Im-
provements in Fancy Weaving," I will now proceed to describe more
in detail the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed
or carried into practical effect, and in order that the same may
be clearly understood I have annexed hereunto a Sheet of Drawings
illustrative thereof, and have marked the same with figures and letters
of reference corresponding with those in the following explanation
thereof.
I employ (by preference) two warp beams, one for the ground warp
and one for the pattern warp; the ground warp passes through the
ordinary or plain healds (as shown at a, a, in Fig. 1) which are
actuated in the usual manner, so as to weave plain, twilled, or figured
cloth.
In the Drawing only two plain healds are shown for weaving plain
cloth, but it will be evident to any practical weaver that by increasing
the number of ground warp healds a twilled or other pattern ground :
may be produced.
In front of the ground healds a, a, are two pattern healds b, b,
and c, c, and the pattern threads which are represented by the darker
lines are drawn through these healds as follows:-Each pattern warp
thread after passing between the ground warp healds a, a, is first drawn ;
through the back pattern heald b, b, after which (instead of passing

page_text: straight through the front pattern heald) it is drawn diagonally across,
under, or over one or more (say four) of the plain or ground warp
threads, which are represented by the lighter lines, and then drawn in
through the front pattern heald c, o, as represented at Fig. 1, and so on
across the piece. It will be evident therefore, that whenever the front
pattern heald c, c, is raised the pattern warp threads will be drawn up
on one side of the set (say four) or ground warp threads, and if the
back pattern heald b, b, be raised the same pattern warp threads will be
drawn up on the other side of the same group of ground warp threads,
and thus the threads are alternately crossed backwards in a waved line
beneath or over the ground warp, forming a kind of open network
pattern, as shown at Fig. 2.
It will be evident that if the pattern warp threads are "drawn in "
as represented at Fig. 3, then the pattern produced will be series of
waved or zig-zag lines, as shown at Fig. 4, and that by varying the
order in which the healds are raised (by altering the tappets as is
well understood by weavers) patterns similar to Figs. 5 and 6, and a
variety of other simple patterns may be produced.
The pattern warp healds are not made with simple eyes like
ordinary healds, but are formed with long loops, as shown at Fig. 7, in
order to allow each heald as it rises to draw the warp over in the
direction required.
The back pattern heald & has an additional shaft 6* at the bottom,
and to this shaft is fixed a long loop d, d, passing through the eye, as
shown at Fig. 7, and the front pattern heald has also a second shaft c*
at the bottom having a long loop e, e, fixed to. it. The pattern warp
threads are not drawn through the eye of the healds b and c, but first
through the loop d, d, of the heald b, and next diagonally across the
group of ground threads, and then through the loop.e, e, of the front
pattern heald o, c, and the consequence of this arrangement, is that as
each pattern heald is drawn up in its turn it pulls over the loop of the
other pattern and draws the pattern warp thread up clear on either one
side or the other of the group of ground warp threads.
In order to insure the slackening of the loop on the side where the
thread. is not to be drawn up, the top shaft of each heald is connected
by a cord j,j, to the additional or loop shaft at the bottom of the
other heald, so that when either the front or back pattern heald is.

page_text: raised it necessarily draws up with it the loop of additional shaft of the
other heald.
I prefer to weave the cloth with the pattern threads underneath the
ground threads (that is to say face downwards), and between the ground
healds and the pattern healds a light metal rod is laid over the pattern
warp threads to hold them down clear of the ground warp threads, and
a vibrating bar or breast beam (or more than one if required) is placed
in front of the pattern warp beam to ease or slacken the pattern warp
threads or to take up the slack of the same, as the case may be.
I prefer to actuate this vibrating bar (or bars) or breast beam as well 1
as the ground and pattern warp healds by means of the ordinary
'dobby" or "index machine," but they may also be actuated by means
of "jacks and treadles," if though desirable.
<E
In working large patterns the healds will be dispensed with and the
warps will be "drawn in" through harness worked by the ordinary 1
jacquard machine; or the plain or twilled ground may be worked
by healds and the pattern by harness, as will be well understood by
any practical weaver; each pattern warp thread being connected to two
cords of the harness, as shown at Fig. 8, by passing through an
additional "mail "fattached to the cord g, g, which has a light weight 2
lingo" "h, h, attached to each end, and passes through the mail i of
the cord k, k, and the mail of the cord m, m.
or
It will be seen on referring to Fig. 9, that if the cord m is raised the
additional mail f is raised with it, drawing the cord g through the
mail i and drawing up the pattern warp thread on one side of the set of 2
the group of ground warp threads; and that if the cord k is raised the
mail will on the contrary be raised with it and will draw up the
pattern warp threads on the reverse side of the group of ground warp
threads; and thus it will be evident to any practical weaver, that
any desired pattern of " cross weaving' or leno may be produced 3
conjunction with a plain, twilled, or
by these means by power in
fancy ground.
»
It will of course be understood that in figured weaving where the
pattern or ground is plain cloth, the pattern warp is drawn up always on
one side of the plain or ground thread or threads and forms part of the s
plain cloth; but where the leno or cross weaving effect is desired, then
the threads are crossed as before described.

page_text: Having now described the nature and object of my said Invention
together with the manner in which the same is to be or may be
performed or carried into practical effect, I would remark in conclusion
that I claim as my Invention, the production in power looms of fancy
patterns by "cross weaving," substantially in the manner herein-before
described and illustrated by the Drawings annexed, and especially I
claim the arrangement and working of the healds and harness for such
purpose, as herein-before set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Farran, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
Witnessed by
JOHN HUGHES,
Clerk to George Davies, C.E.,
Office for Patents,
Manchester.
JOHN FARRAN. (L.S.)