Improvements in Means for the Production of Designs or Patterns for Weaving Textile Fabrics.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 24th May, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 26th Feb., 1894-Accepted, 31st Mar., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for the Production of Designs or Patterns
for Weaving Textile Fabrics.
I, JAMES YATE JOHNSON, of 47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (which has
been communicated to ine from abroad by Pierre Gutton of Epinal (Vosges) in the
Republic of France) to be as follows:
This invention relates to improvements in the processes employed for designing
patterns which are required to be reproduced in fabrics manufactured on Jacquard
or other like looms. The object of the invention is to obviate the long and
delicate work of the ordinary designing in which mistakes are very liable to be
made bighly prejudicial to the appearance of the fabric the desired effect
according to this invention being obtained by means of photography as hereinafter
explained.
With this object the design for the fabric is produced upon a sensitive surface
(previously printed on with lines forming squares checkers or points) by means of
a photographic impression obtained by means of a negative representing the points
corresponding to a fundamental draught and tie and moving in front of screens
enabling those parts of the sensitive surface which are not to receive any impression
to be covered or protected from the action of light.
The invention is based on the considerations that any combination for a weavers
design may be regarded as dependent on a fundamental draught and tie, and that
inversely all the combinations of the design dependent on the fundamental draught
and tie selected can be obtained simply by parallel displacements of all the points
or checkers constituting the design for the said draught and tie.
The appearance of a fabric depends on the nature and mode of spinning the
threads of which it is composed and on the mode of distributing these threads
according to their nature, their thickness or their colour. It also depends upon
the degree of closeness of these threads that is to say the reduction of the warp
and weft, and further on the manner in which the warp threads and the picks
or shots of weft are bound together by interlacing with one another. This
combination constitutes the draught and tie adopted for the manufacture of the
fabric.
When the fabric presents a plain surface the draught and tie is uniform. In
other cases it may vary considerably in the same fabric.
This definition of the term draught and tie is explained as follows:-
In a fabric each shot or pick of weft passes or floats over one or more warps and
is bound or tied to the warp by passing under one or more of the succeeding threads
and is thus carried in a more or less varied or irregular manner across the entire
width of the fabric.
The evolutions of the shots or picks across the fabric may be represented by very
simple marks which to a person familiar with the work immediately indicate the
effect produced by the fabric.
In the present instance the warps and the wefts are represented by intervals
left between vertical and horizontal lines. The crossing of a warp and a weft is
thus represented by a square or rectangle which is coloured or left blank
A figure is thus obtained
according to the relative positions of the threads.
which completely represents the contexture of the fabric and is termed the
"design."

page_text: Taking any given design that is required to be reproduced in weaving, the first
operation to be performed is that which gives the contexture of a fabric being the
"designing of the pattern."
This operation has heretofore been performed entirely by hand by marking upon a
special checkered paper all the points or squares indicating where the warp passes
over the weft.
This hand work is tedious, complicated and liable to cause numerous errors which
produce an extremely bad effect when reproduced in the fabric. Moreover the
designing is costly and this expense greatly interferes with the development of the
manufacture of figured fabrics.
According to the present invention the impression of the aforesaid points is
obtained mechanically and with the aid of photography.
In carrying out this invention a negative impression of the design of a funda-
mental draught and tie is first obtained by photography. With this object a design
paper is taken and attached to a truly flat and vertical surface. It is then covered
with a sheet of tracing paper upon which the points corresponding with the funda-
mental draught and tie are drawn the several displacements of which are to serve
as the basis for the design.
With the aid of a carefully adjusted photographic apparatus a first negative
impression is obtained which reproduces the points of the draught and tie only and
afterwards without in any way altering the position of the photographic apparatus
the paper covering the checkered paper of the design is removed and a negative is
taken of the latter. By these means the design for the fundamental draught and
tie is obtained in the form of two impressions capable of being placed accurately
one over the other. In order to obtain all the desired combinations or derivations
from the fundamental draught and tie it is simply necessary to shift the negative
reproducing the points of the draught and tie in the direction of the warp or of the
weft relatively to the checkers of the design; each displacement of the negative
being made to correspond with an entire number of rectangles representing the
threads. The photographic impression obtained in each position upon a sensitive
paper either directly (by contact) or by projection thus enables the design of a
number of points, which may be very large being limited only by the size of the
negative, to be obtained each time and in one operation.
By suitably shifting or changing the relative positions of the negative varied
results can be obtained which produce corresponding effects in the woven fabric.
For example in order to obtain a certain design it is necessary to cover with a
screen the space reserved for certain parts of the design so that the displacements
of the negative cause the impression to be received solely upon those parts where
it is required. For this purpose the design must be divided into a certain number
of divisions or spaces corresponding with the effects to be obtained and as many
different screens must be provided as there are spaces.
In the foregoing description it has been assumed that the entire design to be
reproduced could be obtained by displacements of the negative or impression of a
single fundamental draught and tie but it will be readily understood that other
negatives of fundamental draughts and ties obtained precisely in the same way as
the first may be substituted in the place of the first negative of the points of the
first draught and tie so that all possible combinations of designs are enabled to be
obtained by means of a small number of photographic impressions of one negative or
a small number of negatives of fundamental draughts and ties, taking care at eaclı
exposure to protect the sensitised surface from the action of light at the places
which do not require to receive an impression.
By means of this invention the liability to error existing in designing a pattern
point by point by hand is obviated and a very great saving of time is effected by
printing a great number of points simultaneously at one operation.
The following description serves to explain in detail how the operations may be
performed in practice.
The negatives corresponding with the fundamental draughts selected are prepared

page_text: in the following manner viz.: Upon one designing checker a number of sheets of
tracing paper are placed in succession and the principal fundamental draughts and
ties are traced upon them thus enabling four negatives corresponding with four
fundamental draughts and ties for example to be obtained with one designing
checker.
These negatives may be made to any scale but preferably to a scale sufficiently
large to admit of the enlarging to be obtained in the projecting lantern or photo-
graphic enlarging apparatus being not greater than 6 or 8 diameters. The screens
are of such dimensions that when placed upon the checker negative they cover
exactly the number of threads to be counted in the fabric.
The projecting apparatus is arranged to receive (1) the negatives with the
checkers and points which successively occupy the same position the first being
simply employed for printing the checkering once for all and the second serving
for printing the design upon the sensitive surface after it has received the
impression from the checker negative; and (2) the screens..
The negative for the points is mounted in a frame which slides before the screen
its movement being controlled by a micrometric screw with divisions corresponding
exactly to the dimension adopted as representing the thickness of a warp thread
when the displacements are to take place parallel with the direction of the wefts or
picks.
The screens employed are photographic negatives obtained as follows:-A
positive photograph upon glass is taken of the sketch for the design; this is
projected of the required size on a ground glass, the contours are traced with a
fine brush using a colour insoluble in water, the contours of the spaces corre-
sponding with the different effects of the drawing are traced in like manner and
the combination for the design to be obtained is adopted for each of them.
Each space is numbered and space No. 1 is painted black with a soluble or
water colour. A photograph. is then taken on the proper scale and a negative
is obtained which is perfectly opaque except at the space corresponding to No. 1.
The ground glass is then washed and the space No. 2 is painted over with the
soluble colour and a photograph obtained
as before. These operations are
repeated as many times as there are spaces required to represent the effects of
the design. As many screens are thus obtained as there are different spaces in
the design. The screens are placed successively in the projection apparatus as
near as possible to each negative or impression of the points and between the
latter and the surface to be printed on at the same time remaining independent
of the movement of displacement imparted to the negative of the points. The
frames containing the negatives are further provided with adjusting screws
enabling the negatives and screens to register accurately with one another.
The movements of the negative being obtained by means of a micrometric
screw or other similar mechanical arrangement correspond with a given number
of squares in the checkering that is to say with a given number of warp threads
when the displacement takes place in the direction of the shots or inversely
when the displacement is effected in the direction of the warps.
Dated this 24th dex of Mer 1802
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for the Production of Designs or Patterns
for Weaving Textile Fabrics.
I, JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincoln's Inn Fields in the County of Middlesex
Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this invention (which has been
communicated to me from abroad by Pierre Gutton of Epinal (Vosges) in the

page_text: Republic of France) and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to improvements in the means or processes employed for
designing patterns which are required to be reproduced in fabrics manufactured on
Jacquard or other like looms. The object of the invention is to obviate the long
and delicate work of the ordinary designing in which mistakes are very liable
to be made highly prejudicial to the appearance of the fabric, the desired effect
according to this invention being obtained by means of photography as hereinafter
explained.
With this object the design for the fabric is produced upon a sensitive surface
(previously printed on with lines forming squares, checkers or points by means of a
photographic impression obtained by means of a negative representing the points
corresponding to a fundamental draught and tie, and moving in front of screens
enabling those parts of the sensitive surface which are not to receive any impression
to be covered or protected from the action of light.
The invention is based on the considerations that any combination for a weaver's
design may be regarded as dependent on a fundamental draught and tie and that
inversely all the combinations of the design dependent on the fundamental draught
and tie selected can be obtained simply by parallel displacements of all the points
or checkers constituting the design for the said draught and tie.
The appearance of a fabric depends on the nature and mode of spinning the
threads of which it is composed and on the mode of distributing these threads
according to their nature, their thickness or their colour. It also depends upon the
degree of closeness of these threads that is to say the reduction of the warp and
weft, and further on the manner in which the warp threads and the picks or shots
of weft are bound together by interlacing with one another. This combination
constitutes the draught and tie adopted for the manufacture of the fabric.
When the fabric presents a plain surface the draught and tie is uniform. In
other cases it may vary considerably in the same fabric.
This definition of the term draught and tie is explained as follows:-
In a fabric each shot or pick of weft passes or floats over one or more warps and
is bound or tied to the warp by passing under one or more of the succeeding
threads and is thus carried in a more or less varied or irregular manner across the
entire width of the fabric.
The evolutions of the shots or picks across the fabric may be represented by
very simple marks which to a person familiar with the work immediately indicate
the effect produced by the fabric.
In the present instance the warps and the wefts are represented by intervals left
between vertical and horizontal lines. The crossing of a warp and a weft is thus
represented by a square or rectangle which is coloured or left blank, according to
the relative positions of the threads. A figure is thus obtained which completely
represents the contexture of the fabric and is termed the "design."
Taking any given design that is required to be reproduced in weaving, the first
operation to be performed is that which gives the contexture of a fabric being the
"designing of the pattern."
This operation has heretofore been performed entirely by hand by marking upon
a special checkered paper all the points or squares indicating where the warp
passes over the weft.
This hand work is tedious, complicated and liable to cause numerous errors,
which produce an extremely bad effect when reproduced in the fabric. Moreover
the designing is costly and this expense greatly interferes with the development of
the manufacture of figured fabrics.
According to the present invention the representation of the aforesaid points is
obtained mechanically, and with the aid of photography.
And in order that my said invention may be fully understood I shall now proceed
more particularly describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to the several

page_text: figures on the annexed sheet of drawings, the same letters of reference indicating
corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 of the drawings represents a sample of the design paper. Figure 2 the
points of a fundamental draught and tie for satin known as "eight leafed tweel."
Figure 3, the design of the said material obtained by combining Figures 1 and 2,
and Figures 4. 5. 6. and 9. various other designs. Figure 7 shows an angular view
of a cube and Figure 8 represents the same cube drawn to a larger scale upon
design paper, while Figures 10. 11. 12 and 13. are views of the screens employed
in this inethod of producing designs.
Figure 14 represents a design on portions of which different effects are to be
produced. Figure 15. is a diagram representing the projecting apparatus and
Figures 16. 17 and 18 are respectively a side elevation, part vertical section, and
end view of the same said projecting apparatus.
Figure 19. represents an enlarged view of a mark or cross placed on the screens
for the purpose of adjustment and Figure 20. represents on a similar scale the
graduated marks on the negatives, having the points of the design to facilitate the
adjusting of the said negatives.
To carry out this invention certain negative impressions are required, the
production and employment of which will be hereinafter described.
To produce a design according to this invention take an ordinary commercial
design paper, such for example as that employed for the design of fabrics, in which
the thickness of 12 weft threads juxtaposed is equal to that of ten warp threads.
A representation of this paper is given in Figure 1, in which figure the arrow
drawn by a full line represents the direction of the warp and the arrow drawn in
a dotted line represents the direction of the weft. This paper is applied to a sheet
of glass, and on the flat surface thus formed a piece of white translucent paper is
secured by its edges thereto. On looking at this white surface, the lines forming
the squares or checkers on the design paper will be observed, and the points
corresponding to the fundamental draught and tie can be traced (eight-leafed
tweel for instance) on the white surface as shown in Figure 2. By the aid of a
carefully adjusted photographic apparatus, a first negative impression of these
points may be made. The paper on which these points are marked is then removed
without altering the position of the apparatus and another negative impression
of the design paper is taken. In this manner the design for the fundamental
draught and tie of the fabric (eight-leafed tweel) is obtained on two negative
impressions capable of being placed accurately one upon the other, and together
give a result similar to that shown in Figure 3. If a negative impression of another
draught and tie is required, this can be done by placing a fresh sheet of paper on
the checkered surface and marking thereon a second fundamental draught and tie.
A photographic negative made under exactly the same conditions as the two former
ones will give a third negative impression which will correspond with these as
regards size.
In order to obtain all the desired combinations or derivations of draught and tie
it is necessary to recall the double observation forming the basis of the invention.
Supposing for instance it is desired to make a design in which the proportion of
the weft to the warp is as 10 is to 12, negatives formed upon paper known as
would be necessary. The designer is enabled in this manner to see the effect
produced by a certain draught and tie such for example as that shown in Figure 4.
An examination of this figure shows that the draught and tie may be considered
as derived from the fundamental draught and tie for satin known as eight-leafed
tweel" and that it will be sufficient in order to obtain such a design to make the
following series of operations with the negative impressions herein before described.
(1) Print the checkering (10 by 12) on sensitised paper by means of the photo-
graphic negative, which will give a result similar to Figure 1.
66
(2) Print in the same way the points of the draught and tie by marking the
negative impression with the points on the sensitised paper, the result of which is
seen in Figure 3.

page_text: (3) Remove this negative one thread towards the left hand and print, the result
being as shown in Figure 5.
(4) By further removing the negative four threads to the left after having
brought it to its original position and printing, the result shown in Figure 6 will
be obtained.
(5) By displacing the negative finally five threads to the left, after having
brought it back to its original position, there is obtained the result shown in
Figure 4 which is the desired design.
From the preceding description it is clear that all the parts of a drawing for
which the draught and tie shown in Figure 4 has been adopted may be produced
by photography and by five successive operations.
Now supposing a designer wished to reproduce by the method hitherto employed
the design indicated in Figure 7, for instance, which represents an angular view of
a cube the following would be the method of procedure: If the cube between the
edges A A D D' comprises 36 warp threads, that the proportion of the weft to
the warp is as 10 is to 12 then the length of the side A A' will be equal to
30 threads of weft. On the design paper the designer will take A A¹ as thirty
weft threads, then A D = A' D₁ = thirty six warp threads, in this way the cube
will be completed as shown in Figure 8. The cube has three surfaces and if each
surface is to have a different shade but each presenting a uniform tint, each of
these surfaces in the fabric must be of a different draught and tie. The foundation
will be constituted by a fundamental draught and tie, such as that employed for
linen for example. Supposing the designer adopts the following method of
producing the desired effect:
1. On the surface A. B. C. D eight-leafed tweel, draught and tie shown in
Figure 3.
2. On the surface A AD D', the draught and tie shown in Figure 4: on the
surface D D', CC, the draught and tie shown in Figure 9 which, giving a
completely opposite effect to the draught and tie of the eight-leafed tweel, will
make the fabric appear darker on this surface.
The draught and tie shown in Figure 9 may be obtained by the improved means
(forming the subject matter of this invention) by printing the points of the eight-
leafed tweel in the checkering then by printing successively these said points after
displacing them 1. 2. 3. 4. 5 and 6 threads to the left.
The remainder of the design according to the method heretofore employed would
be completed by hand and it would be necessary to make the sketch shown in
Figure 7 enlarged to the desired dimensions, the designer drawing in by hand the
outline of the draught and tie. This invention aims at effecting this work
photo-mechanically as follows.
(1) Upon sensitised paper the checkering suitable to the count is printed, and
(2) a screen (Figure 1) is made to hide the whole except the face A. B. C. D. the
next operation is to print on the said paper the eight-leafed tweel. (3) A screen
is next made, hiding all except the face A A¹ D D' and the successive impressions
giving the desired draught and tie for this surface (Figure 4) are made. This
screen is shown in Figure 11. (4) Another screen (Figure 12) to hide all except
the surface D D C C is then made and the successive impressions giving the
draught and tie desired for this surface (Figure 9) are made. (5) Finally a screen
of similar shape to that shown in Figure 13 is produced so as to hide the whole of
the cube and the negative having the points of the draught and tie of linen is
printed.
In this manner the required design is produced on the sensitised paper.
Referring to Figures 3, 4 and 9 it will be seen that all the points indicated in
Figure 3 are shown in Figure 4 and that all the points in Figures 3 and 4 are
shown in Figure 9. It will therefore be possible to limit the total number of
photographic operations by taking the following screens.
1. The screen hiding all except the negative.
The sawoon hiding all aveout the cuntress & ALD DL and D DCCL

page_text: 3. The screen hiding all except the surface D D' C C¹.
4. The screen hiding the cube but allowing the foundation to be exposed.
The preceding description shows that the method of procedure is the same
whatever the form of design may be. The number of the fundamental draughts
and ties employed in weaving being limited and any possible draught and tie
obtainable by successive displacements and successive impressions of a fundamental
draught and tie, it will be possible with a limited number of negatives to obtain
all the draughts and ties desired. It is necessary that the screens and the
negatives having the points and checkering have a common scale.
The operations described in detail are as follows: Given a sketch which has
to be designed on paper corresponding to ten weft threads and twelve warp
threads, for instance, and occupy 1500 threads of warp by 1200 threads of weft,
the negatives having the draught and tie and checkering printed upon them
made as herein before described and upon a reduced scale, (1500 warp threads
occupying say 20 centimetres and 1200 weft threads occupying about 19 centimetres)
are first taken. The sketch is then photographed to any desired scale, and a
negative is thus obtained which is easily transformed into a positive on glass.
The photograph of the sketch is projected on to ground glass to a suitable
size by means of any ordinary photographic projecting apparatus, and the outline
is traced by means of a fine brush with a colour insoluble in water. Similarly the
outlines of the portions corresponding to the different effects to be produced are
marked out, and for each of these the combination of design which is required
to be produced is adapted. Each division of the design is numbered as shewn in
Figure 14 and a mark or cross is placed upon the glass at any suitable point. The
division marked 1 is painted, say black, in water colour and a photograph is taken
of the sketch of the desired size, that is to say to occupy 20 centimetres in warp by
19 centimetres weft. A negative is in this manner obtained which will be opaque
in all parts except that marked 1.
The ground glass is then washed and the division marked 2 is similarly painted,
a photograph being afterwards obtained on exactly the same scale as the previous
one. These operations are repeated as many times as there are different effects
to be produced in the design, and there are thus obtained as many photographic
screens as there are numbers or divisions, these screens being all capable of
being placed accurately one over the other by means of the datum mark or
cross.
The design is produced by a photographic projecting apparatus illustrated in
Figures 15, 16, 17 and 18 capable of simultaneously projecting both the negative E
(Figure 15) on which is printed the checkering and the screen F which is placed in
front of the negative E. In Figure 15 G is the objective and H the sensitised
surface, the light coming in the direction indicated by the arrow. In Figure 16,
which is a side view of the apparatus, the adjustment is obtained by means of a
micrometer screw V and the datum marks on the negatives are produced by means
of a lunette L furuished with a hair cross, while a mirror at G inclined at a
suitable angle, say of 45 degrees, reflects into the apparatus the diffused rays of
light. The negatives are placed in the part K (Figures 16 and 17) being supported
by heavy frames M, N, which are capable of vertical movement parallel to one
another and are separated by a thin plate. These two frames each rest on a.
straight edge R which can be raised or inclined by means of adjusting screws P. P¹
Q. Q, while two similar screws S. are provided for giving a longitudinal movement
to the frames M N on the straight edges. These different movements enable each
negative to be regulated so that its datum mark can be made to coincide with the
cross-threads of the hair cross in the lunette L. (Figure 16).
The datum marks provided upon the screens are so made that the horizontal.
line ab of the cross (Figure 19) is comparatively long. The position of each
screen in the frame N is adjusted by the screws Q Q', so that the line ab coincides.
with the horizontal thread of the hair cross, while by means of the screw S. the
line c d (Figure 19) is made to coincide with the vertical thread of the hair cross.

page_text: The negatives having the points and checkering printed upon them carry the
same datum marks as those upon the screens. Those having the points moreover
are provided with numbered vertical lines separated from one another by the
thickness of a thread as shown in Figure 20. Besides the means of adjustment
herein before described the negatives having the points marked on them have a
movement imparted to them by means of the screw U. the end of which bears upon
the straight edge R. so that a movement of the frame M is produced similar to
that obtained by hand, the line a. b. always coinciding with the horizontal thread
of the hair cross. This screw U adjusts the straight edge in a direction parallel to
the line a. b. and the line O. of the said negatives having the points may be adjusted
to coincide with the vertical thread of the hair cross by means of the screw S.
The sensitised paper is fixed on a flat surface perpendicular to the optical axis
of the projecting apparatus in a dark room. The negative on which is printed the
checkering is placed in the frame M, adjusted and projected; next the negative
with the points corresponding to the screen No. 1. is inserted into the said frame
and adjusted as above stated, and finally the screen No. 1. is placed in the frame M
and adjusted and the first impression made. The frame M is then moved by means
of the screw S. (Figure 18) so as to bring the line with the desired number in front
of the vertical thread of the hair cross for the impression of the draught and tie,
and a second projection is then made.
This process is continued until the draught and tie permitted to be printed by
the screen No. 1. is completed. By changing the negatives according to the results
desired the image is completed and only requires to be fixed, the retouching being
done by hand.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The means for producing on a sensitised surface previously printed by a
checkered negative, any desired design of fabric by means of a photographic
impression obtained by the aid of a negative representing the points corresponding
to a fundamental draught and tie, and being moved before screens for hiding
successively the parts of the sensitised surface which have not to receive an impression
substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. In photographic projecting apparatus employed for producing designs for
woven fabrics means for adjusting and varying the positions of screens and negatives
such as herein before described, the said means consisting of frames carrying the
said screens and negatives and adjusted in position by micrometer screws or other
suitable mechanical appliances substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this 26th day of February 1894.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.