IMPROVEMENTS IN EVENERS FOR WOOL CARDS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields,
in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN EVENERS FOR WOOL CARDS."-A communication from
abroad by Frederick F. Burlock, of Birmingham, Connecticut, in
the United States of America.
Sealed the 17th November 1874, and dated the 22nd May 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 22nd May 1874.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN EVENERS FOR WOOL CARDS," a com-
munication to me from abroad by Frederick F. Burlock, of Birmingham,
Connecticut, in the United States of America, to be as follows:-
66
This Invention relates to "side drawing" or roping" machines for
wool carding engines, and its object is to deliver from the wool card a
roping of uniform size and weight. To this end is combined with

page_text: drawing and delivery rolls, revolving at the same rate of speed, an
automatic evening mechanism brought into operation by variations in
the size of the sliver to increase or decrease, as the case may be, the
speed of both the said sets of rolls simultaneously and in unison. Under
this Invention, inasmuch as the two sets of rolls under all conditions a
revolve at the same rate of speed, there is no tension on the sliver; but
their variations of speed (which take place simultaneously and in
unison) simply affect the length of the sliver, more or less stock,
according to circumstances, being taken from the doffer in order to
maintain at all times a uniform size or weight of roping. In the
machine or mechanism in which this Invention is embodied the sliver is
not stretched or drawn as in the drawing frame used in cotton mills,
but the stock (wool) is carried forward by rolls, as above specified, which
exercise no stretching action on the sliver. Side drawing or roping
mechanism operating in accordance with this Invention deals invariably
with the product of one woollen card, and is designed to be attached to
said card.
By the old method any inequality in the feed does not affect the
length of the sliver discharged from the carding engine, but it affects
only the size or weight of sliver, always preserving the same length.
By this method the size or weight of the sliver is always the same, but
any inequalities in feeding affects the length only.
In carrying out this Invention a trumpet of such a size as is needful
in each particular case is attached to an upright balanced lever which is
hinged in the frame of the machine and balanced in the desired position
by an adjustable weight upon an arm or lever fixed thereto at a point
intermediate to its upper and lower ends. The lower end of the balanced
lever is attached to one end of a lever hinged also to the said frame, the
other end of the latter lever catching in the collar of a clutch splined
upon a horizontal shaft, which shaft is constantly in revolution, and has
loose upon it bevil pinions provided with stops, with either of which, at
the proper time, the splined clutch locks. These pinions engage
with a
bevil wheel upon the end of a second horizontal shaft mounted in
bearings in the said frame, and this shaft has upon it a worm thread
engaging with a wheel upon the end of an upright shaft provided with
a pinion, which operates a rack upon the shipper bar, which slides hori-
zontally in the said frame. Any movement of the shipper bar is
communicated to a belt extending from a cone speeding pulley to a

page_text: second cone pulley, which gives motion to the drawing and delivery
rolls. The second cone pulley directly drives the drawing rolls. The
delivery rolls are actuated from the drawing rolls, a driving belt passing
from a pulley on the shaft of the under drawing roll to a pulley of
corresponding size on the shaft of the under delivery roll, the two sets
of rolls will therefore invariably revolve at the same rate of speed, the
variations in speed caused by the action of the automatic evening
mechanism affecting the delivery rolls equally with the drawing rolls,
so that both scts of rolls will, under all circumstances, revolve in
unison.
The operation is as follows:-The roping being taken from the doffer
by the drawing rolls is taken, after passing through the trumpet by the
delivery rolls and delivered. The trumpet is balanced upon its lover by
the adjustable weight on the arm or lever fixed thereto to permit the
passage through it of the proper size of roping without the splined
clutch upon its shaft catching with either of the said bevil pinions.
Should, however, from an inequality in the sizes of the ends passing into
the engine or from the parting of some of them, or from improper
feeding to the first breaker, or from other causes, an alteration be
produced in the size of the roping to cause an increased or diminished
pressure against the trumpet the splined clutch is at once moved to lock
with one of the said pinions and through the gear worm, rack, and pinion
before mentioned ship the belt by means of the shipper bar to a position
upon the cone pulleys that will at once cause the uniformity of the
roping to be restored by causing the drawing and delivery rolls to take
from the doffer slower or faster, as the case may be, and in so doing take
a larger or smaller roping; and so rapidly are any changes in the size of
the roping met by the increased or reduced speed of the said rollers that
the roping is practically kept perfectly even in size and weight, and the
necessity of weighing from time to time during the day, fixed lengths of
roping to detect variation is entirely obviated.
"
In order to prevent bunches and inequalities from catching in the
trumpet and causing the speed of the said rolls to be unnecessarily
changed an auxiliary trumpet is placed before the said trumpet, which
is attached rigidly to the frame of the machine and acts as a clearer to
remove any local obstructions in the roping.
The lever to which the balanced levers attached is formed in two parts,.
making in effect a compound lever, one part being hinged to the frame

page_text: and grasping the clutch so as to ship it upon being itself moved. The
other part of the lever is connected at one end to the said balanced lever, .
and being hinged to the frame has its other end connected to the other-
wise free end of the shipper lever, so that while a leverage is obtained to
ship the splined clutch there is no possibility of any part of the com-
pound lever binding at any place from change of position, as would be
the case with a lever formed of one piece, and made to occupy no more
space than is required in this case.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 20th November 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
.
.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special
license that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Henry
Johnson, my executors, administrators, or 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 EVENERS FOR WOOL CARDS," a communication to me
from abroad by Frederick F. Burlock, of Birmingham, Connecticut,
in the United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors or administrators;
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should parti-
cularly 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 Henry Johnson, 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, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to
say:-
-
This Invention relates to "side drawing" or "roping" machines for
wool carding engines, and its object is to deliver from the wool card a
roping of uniform size and weight. To this end is combined with
drawing and delivering rolls revolving at the same rate of speed an
automatic evening mechanism brought into operation by variations in
the size of the sliver to increase or decrease, as the case may be, the
speed of both the said sets of rolls simultaneously and in unison. Under
this Invention, inasmuch as the two sets of rolls under all conditions
revolve at the same rate of speed, there is no tension on the sliver but
their variations of speed (which take place simultaneously and in unison)
simply affect the length of the sliver, more or less, stock, according to
circumstances, being taken from the doffer in order to maintain at all
times a uniform size or weight of roping. In the machine or mechanism
in which this Invention is embodied the sliver is not stretched or drawn
as in the drawing frame used in cotton mills, but the stock (wool) is
carried forward by rolls as above specified, which exercise no stretching
action on the sliver. Side drawing or roping mechanism operating in
accordance with this Invention deals invariably with the product of one
woollen card, and is designed to be attached to said card.
-
By the old method any inequality in the feed does not affect the
length of the sliver discharged from the carding engine, but it affects
only the size or weight of sliver, always preserving the same length. By
this method the size or weight of the sliver is always the same, but
any
inequalities in feeding affects the length only.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose.
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the
Figures.
T
Q

page_text: The trumpet B of such a size as is needful in each particular case is
attached to the balanced lever C, which is hinged in the frame D at d,
and balanced in the desired position by the adjustable weight E upon
the arm e.
The end c of the lever C is attached to one end of lever F
hinged also to frame D; the other end of lever F catching in the collar of
clutch splined upon shaft G, which shaft is constantly in revolution,
and has loose upon it the pinions H, H, provided with the stops h, h,
with either of which at the proper time the splined clutch flocks. The
pinions H, H, engage with the right angle gear wheel I upon the end of
shaft K in bearings in frame D, and the shaft K has upon it the worm
thread L engaging with wheel M upon the end of upright shaft N. The
shaft N has also the pinion O, which operates the rack P upon the
shipper bar Q, which slides in frame D. Any movement of the shipper
bar Q is communicated to the belt R. extending from the cone speeding
pulley S to cone pulley T, which gives motion to the drawing and
delivery rolls U, U, V, V. The cono pulley T directly drives the drawing
rolls U, as shown plainly in Figures 1 and 3. The delivery rolls V aro
actuated from the drawing rolls U, a driving belt V₁ passing from a
pulley on the shaft of the under drawing roll to a pulley of correspond-
ing size on the shaft of the under delivery roll, as shown in Figuro 2.
The two sets of rolls will therefore invariably revolve at the same rate
of speed, the variations in speed caused by the action of the automatic
evening mechanism affecting the delivery rolls equally with the drawing
rolls, so that both sets of rolls will, under all circumstances, revolve in
unison.
The operation is as follows:-The roping y being taken from the
doffer by the rolls U, U, is taken after passing through the trumpet B
by the rolls V, V, and delivered. The trumpet is balanced upon its
lever O by the weight E to permit the passage through it of the proper
size of roping without the clutch fupon shaft G catching with either &
pinion H, H. Should, however, from an inequality in the sizes of the
ends passing into the engine or from the parting of some of them, or
from improper feeding to the first breaker or from other causes, an
alteration be produced in the size of the roping to cause an increased or
diminished pressure against the trumpet, the clutch fis at once moved a
to lock with one of the pinions H, H, and through gear I, worm L, and
rack and pinion P, O, ship the belt by means of the rod Q to a position
upon the cone pulleys S, T, that will at once cause the uniformity of the

page_text: roping to be restored by causing the rolls U, U, V, V, to take from the.
doffer slower or faster, as the case may be, and in so doing take a larger
or smaller roping, and so rapidly are any changes in the size of the
roping met by the increased or reduced speed of the rollers U, U, V, V,
that the roping is practically kept perfectly oven in size and weight, and
the necessity of weighing from time to time during the, day fixed
lengths of roping to detect variation is entirely obviated.
•
In order to prevent bunches and inequalities from catching in the
trumpet B and causing the speed of rolls U, U, V, V, to be unnecessarily
changed the auxiliary trumpet X is placed before the trumpet B, which
is attached rigidly to the frame D, and which acts as a clearer to remove
any local obstructions in the roping.
In construction lever F is formed in two parts, making in effect a
compound lever, one part being hinged to the frame and grasping the
clutch so as to ship it upon being itself moved. The other part of the
lever is connected at one end to the lever C at c, and being hinged to
the frame has its other end connected to the otherwise free end of the
shipper lever, so that while a leverage is obtained to ship the clutch f
there is no possibility of any part of the compound lever F binding at
any place from change of position as would be the case with a lever
formed of one piece, and made to occupy no more space than is required
by this Invention.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that it is to bo under-
stood that broadly an automatic evening mechanism operated by
variations in the size of the sliver is not claimed, for it is known that
the same has been used in connection with the drawing frames of
cotton cards to operate the rolls, which draw and stretch the sliver before
it passes to the calendar rolls, but what is claimed and desired to be
secured by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, in side
drawing or roping machines for wool carding engines the combination
with drawing and delivery rolls revolving at the same rate of speed of
automatic evening mechanism brought into operation by variations in
the size of the sliver to increase or decrease, as the case may be, the
speed of both sets of rolls simultaneously and in unison, substantially as

page_text: and for the purposes herein-before described and illustrated by the
accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to
this my Specification set my hand and seal, the Thirteenth
day of November One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four.