IMPROVEMENTS IN STOCKING AND CLOTHING KNITTING MACHINES
Year: 1884

page_text: I WILLIAM HARRISON of 69 Hyde Grove Chorlton-on- Medlock and of
128 Portland Street Manchester both in the County of Lancaster Machine
Manufacture do hereby declare the nature of Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STOCKING AND CLOTHING KNITTING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This invention applies to those knitting machines which employ the tumbler, or
self acting latch needles, and which are worked mostly by hand and produce
knitted goods; such knitted goods being a fac simile of hand knitted articles,
such as the "Lamb" and the "Harrison "knitting machines, which are made with
parallel beds.
I make a striping contrivance for one or more colors. I construct a frame
immediately above the beds, fitted with two yarn carriers opposite to each other.
When one yarn carrier has given the desired number of rounds of one color, it is.
raised up out of action, and the opposite one is simultaneously brought down into
action to give another color, this is effected by a rocking motion, actuated by
a hand lever fixed at one end. I also determine the traverse of the yarn carrier,
by adjustable catches and stops.
The catch is placed upon the latch opener, and rises to catch the yarn carriers,
by means of a spring, and releases the carrier by an incline or bevel.
The striping may also be effected, where two or more colors are required, by
means of a revolving perforated band, similar to thoso used in the jacquard loom,
I throw ono yarn carrier out of action and take up another, automatically, to
produce different widths of stripes; or by causing the yarn carrier at the one end
from which it'starts, to be swivelled out of action and immediately another one is
taken into action.
I also use a carriage or slide, which carries the needle cams, and which runs
upon wheels, rollers, or balls, so as to decrease the friction and labor of working,
which may be placed in various positions to obtain the same result but preferably
I place them on the needle cam slide, or carriage which may work under the
needle bed, or the carriage or cam slide may take its parallel bearings at the foot
of the upper side of the needle bed. The Balls rollera or wheels I place for the
slide or carriage to pass over, or I place the Balls rollers or wheels on the cam
slides or carriage to traverse with the slide or carriage; I also place two round or
other shaped rods in a parallel position at the foot of the upper side of the needle
bed to act as bearings for the needle cam slide or carriage which insures steadiness

page_text: of the carriage or slide, I make adjustable bosses to work on the rods, I also adjust
the position of the rods so as to raise or lower the carriage against wear; I also
make a counter and knot detector which gives an alarm by a bell or other means
of sounding an alarm when a knot is in the wool also at any given number of
sounds of knitting preferably every five ten or twenty rounds of knitting.
In order to actuate the alarm I use a rotating wheel which has studs, pins or
holes at equal distances which come in contact with and release or otherwise
actuate a trigger so that it will suddenly come in contact with an alarm.
I also apply this alarm to circular knitting machines as well to the parallel
knitting machines herein before referred to.
The central cam in the knitting machine is of a V form with flexible springs at
the corners so that it will yield upwards or downwards instead of striking the
needle.
I also make the needle diamond shaped or an elongated square at the heel or
that part which comes in contact with the cams, with the point of the square
pointing directly to the corner of the V cam, so that when the V cam moves
towards the needle, instead of striking the needle, the point of the square on the
beel of the needle will cause the needle to slip up the cam, or it will be pushed
down, so as to avoid being struck by the corner of the cam, I make the needle bar,
which keeps the needles in their places, with one or more notches so that the
needles can be lifted up out of action, for adjustment to different kinds of work.

page_text: I WILLIAM HARRISON of 69 Hyde Grove, Chorlton-on-Medlock, and 128 Portland
Street, Manchester in the County of Lancaster, and 67 Oxford Street, London, in
the County of Middlesex, Machine Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of
my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STOCKING AND CLOTHING KNITTING
MACHINES," and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This Invention applies to those Knitting Machines which employ the "tumbler"
or self-acting latch needles, and are worked mostly by hand and produce knitted
goods, such knitted goods being a fac-simile of hand-knitted articles, such as the
"Lamb" and the " Harrison" Knitting Machines, which are made with parallel
beds.
I make a striping contrivance for one or more colors Figs. I and II which I fit to
Fig. III and which works overhead. I fit two or more yarn carriers Fig. I A
opposite to each other. When the yarn carrier A has given the desired number
of rounds of one color it is raised up out of action and the opposite one is
simultaneously brought down into action to give another color which is effected by
a rocking motion.
(Fig. 1) F. F are studs at each end of bar C. O fitted into G G (Fig. II) end
view His the rocking handle fitted with a shoulder screw C to G bracket and
screw B to D. Slide plate E E vertical slots at the end of slide plate through which
are fitted the oscillating studs I. I. FF are the fulcrum studs I and F studs being at
the end of the rocking bar (Fig. I) C. C. so that when (Fig. II) H is pushed from J
the yarn carrier A' having given the desired number of rounds of one color is
raised out of action. The vertical slots being moved from the direction of J to H
bears against the studs I. I and so causes them to oscillate F being the fulcrum stud
and thus causes the yarn carrier A' to rise and the yarn carrier A to fall into action
with another color of yarn and so often as handle H is pushed to and fro the yarn
carriers A' A are taken in and out of action.
I also determine the traverse of the yarn carrier (Fig. I) A by the adjustable
stops B. B which stops the yarn carrier A in any part of the bar C. Č. This.
prevents too much slack yarn being made beyond the last needle in action.
The yarn carrier catches A. B. A. B are fitted (Fig. IV) upon the knives C. C
or any other convenient position and rises by means of a spring. The square
parts of B. B catches the shoulders (Fig. I) D. D which are immediately released
again when the half round part of the catches (Fig. IV) A A comes in contact with
the bevel parts (Fig. I) E E on the under side which depresses the catches (Fig. IV)
A. B. A. B and so releases the shoulder (Fig. I) D leaving the yarn carrier against
stop B while the cams and catch advance beyond, which on their return the catch
again comes in contact with D and leaves the yarn carrier as before.
I also use a carriage or slide which carries the needle cams and which runs upon
wheels or balls, so as to decrease the friction and labour of working, which may be
placed in various positions to obtain the same result, but preferably I place them

page_text: on the needle cam slide or carriage which may work under the needle bed, or the
carriage or cam slide may have its parallel bearings at the foot of the upper side of
the needle bed as Figs. III and XIV. A A. A A. A A. The balls or wheels I place
for the slides or carriage to pass over or I place the balls or wheels on the cam slide
or carriage to traverse with the slide or carriage Fig. XX A A. B may be of any
other shape and may be arranged in many other ways but the V shaped bearing B
with V wheels A A are the most preferable because of the simplicity of construction
and steadiness secured to the carriage besides doing away with any other means of
keeping the carriage firmly down without caps or other steadying rods..
Fig. XXI A A are the top and bottom bearings B is the ball.
I also place two round or other shaped rods in a parallel position (Fig. III) A¹ A*
(Fig. XIV) A A A A which acts as bearings for the needle can slide or carriage.
AA is a round he-rod upon which I fit one or more sho-bosses D. The object of
this bearing is to dispense with a portion of the weight of the present style of
carriage which reduces the friction and the labour, also to dispense with carriage
caps and end steadying rods and to secure uniforın, all-sufficient steadiness with
exact perfect smoothness of action.
I make the she-bosses with an adjustable lug (Fig. III) E' E³ (Fig. IV) E E which
may be placed at any part of the circle of the rod to take up the wear.
I also adjust the position of the (Fig. III) A¹ A² slide bar rod by means of
screw FF which is tapped into the ends of the slide bar A' A' which passes
through the boss at the end of the bracket G which will raise or lower the carriage
to or from the needle bed by a slight turn of the screw F.
I also use other shaped bearing slide parallel rods which are equivalents to
(Fig. III) A' A2 and D and which are shewn in end elevation sections Figs. XV,
XVI, XVII, XVIII, XIX, XXII, and XXIII and which have precisely the same
object as A¹ A² and D (Fig. III).
"
The two sides or front and back carriage or cam slides are united together by
the bridge or band (Fig. XIV) B.
I also use a revolving counter which gives an alarm by a bell or other equivalent
which sounds an alarm or rings a bell at any given number of rounds of knitting,
preferably every five, ten, or twenty rounds. In order to actuate the alarm I use a
rotating wheel (Fig. VII) A with projecting pins or studs. B is the worm wheel
into which wheel A is geared as more plainly shewn (Fig. IV) B' when the handle D
is turned round; motion is given to the pinion wheel (Fig. VII) A, the pin or
stud C comes into contact with the alarm trigger and so rings a bell or other
equivalent. I place the studs at equal distances (Fig. VIII) in greater or less number
to determine at what number of rounds of knitting the alarm shall be sounded.
I also use elongated slots (Fig. XIII) and round holes (Fig. XII) made at equal
distances in the wheel or other revolving plate so that the alarm trigger is actuated
and released by these holes for the same object as (Fig. VII) A. C and (Fig. VIII).
I also apply this aların to circular knitting machines as well as to the parallel
herein before referred to.
I also use a knot alarm (Figs. V and VI). The wool passes through the eyelet C
slit B and eyelet A when the knot comes into the slit B it rings the bell. The
eyelets A. Care adjustable by screw D (Fig. V) A is the yarn stand to which it is
conveniently fixed.
The central cam in the knitting machine is of a V form to which I use flexible
springs at the corners so that it will yield upwards or downwards instead of
striking the needle (Fig. IX) A, A,
I also make the needle diamond shaped or an elongated square at the heel
(Fig. X) B. B or that part which comes into first contact with the point of the
(Fig. IX) A which will cause the needle to slip up or down and so avoid being
struck by the corner of the V cam A. A.
I make the needle bar (Fig. XI) A A with one or more notches so that the
needles can be lifted up out of action for adjustment to different kinds of work.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
First. (Fig. 1) side elevation B B as a new application for regulating the stops at
any exact part of the Bar C. C.
Second. (Fig. II) E. E. I. L˚C B as generally described for the purpose of
knitting with more colors than one.
Third. (Fig. III) A. B. (Fig. IV) A. B as a new application for the purpose as
described.
.
Fourth. (Fig. III) A¹ A² D E¹ E² F. G as a new application for the purpose and
object generally described heretofore.
Fifth. (Figs. XV: XVI: XVII: XVIII: XIX: XX: XXI: XXII and XXIII
as a new application for the specific object generally described in combination with
the knitting machine.
"
Sixth. (Figs. VII: VIII; XII: XIII as a new application for the purpose and
as heretofore generally described.
Seventh. (Figs. IX A. A: X. B: B: XI A. A as a new application for the
purposes heretofore generally described.
Dated this 15th day of August 1885.
WILLIAM HARRISON.