CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN COMBING WOOL
Year: 1834

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, 1, JAMES
NOBLE, of Halifax, in the County of York, Worsted Spinner, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twentieth day of February, in the fourth year of His reign,
did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
James Noble, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that
I, the said James Noble, my exors, aduiors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said James Noble, my executors, adiñiors, 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 expressed, 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 COMBING WOOL;" in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that I, the said James Noble, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in His said Majesty's Court
of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the said in
part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto
had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
James Noble, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-

page_text: tained in and by the following description thereof, reference being had to the
Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon, that
is to say-
My Invention consists of a new mechanical combination into a machine of
certain well-known parts, as will be hereafter fully described, for combing
wool.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 is a sido clevation of a machine constructed according to my
Invention; a being the driving shaft or axis of the machine which receives
motion from any first mover by a pulley and hand, or by mill-work not shown
in the Drawing, in order to prevent complexity, and this axis does not pass
from side to side of the machine, but turns in bearings on a bracket, or other-
wise attached to one side ouly of the framing h, by this means this axis does
not interfere with the action of the excentricj or the lever i, but these bearings
are not shown in the Drawing; b is a toothed wheel affixed on the driving
axis a, and this wheel b takes into and drives the intermediate toothed wheel
(c), and the wheel c takes into and drives the wheel d, the axis of which turns
in bearings on each side of the machine; the wheel b also drives the inter-
mediate toothed wheel e, which takes into and drives the toothed wheel f
which wheel is affixed on the axis of the crank g, and thus is the proper
relative motions obtained from the main shaft a to the crank g, and the
Drawing shews that the wheels c, d, e, turn on proper axes in bearings affixed
to the framing h, which carries the various parts of the machine, and the
crank shaft g turns in bearings on each side of the machine. The crank g,
will be seen, is capable of adjustment, that is, the motion may be shortened or
lengthened by bringing the crank pin to which the lever i is attached nearer
to or farther from the centre of the shaft g, and thus lengthen or shorten the
extent of motion of the lever i, and consequently the extent through which
the combs or points travel in combing out the wool. On the shaft of the
wheel dis aflixed the excentric j. the fly-wheel k, and the bevelled toothed
wheel, the object of the executric j being to raise and lower the lever i,
ns will be hereafter described. The bevelled toothed wheel takes into
al drives the bevelled tooth-wheel m, which is aflixed on the shaft n which
turns in bearings o, o, as shewn in the Drawing. On this shaft is affixed
the screw p, which takes into and drives the wheel 9, which is on the
shaft, which turns in proper bearings on the framing h, as shown; 8 is
a lever turning on the pin or fulcrum at t, and is connected at the one end
to a clutch box on the shaft r, for the purpose of affixing or detaching the
wheel to or from the axis r, as will be hereafter described; v is one of two
it

page_text: parallel guide rods, which carry one of the combs or series of needles or
points; w is the upper or what may be called the working comb or set of
needles or points, which is attached to the lever i in the following manuer:-
At the end of the lever is a cross head w, having two studs y, one at each end
(see Fig. 2), and Figure 3 shows one of the comb or needle boards separately,
which has two slits cut therein, one at each end, to correspond with the studs y
on the cross head of the lever i, therefore, when a set of combs or needles are
placed on the cross head, the lever is turned on its fulcrum, and holds the
needle board. A is the lower comb or set of needles or points, which is affixed
on a carriage or frame B, which slides on the guide rods v, and is attached to
this frame in like manner to the comb w to the lever i, that is, by a similar
lever; c is a toothed rack, affixed on the under side of the frame or carriage
B, and on the axes there is affixed a toothed pinion, which takes into and
drives the toothed rack C, and by this means the combs or series of points or
needles is caused to approach to the lever i as the wool is becoming combed,
and thus offering a longer fibre for the succeeding action of the comb w.
Having thus described the means of combining the various parts, I will
describe the manner of their action, first observing that, in using the machine,
the combs or needles are to be heated in like manner to those used in hand
combing. A quantity of wool being placed in the comb A by hand, or by the
means hereafter described, motion is to be communicated to the main or
driving shaft a, and by means of the wheel-work, before described, this motion
will be communicated to the crank, and thus the lever i, which is attached
thereto, will be drawn from and advanced to the comb A, and thus the comb w
will be continually passed through the wool contained in the comb A, and this
comb A being set back and approaches gradually to the lever i, the extreme
ends of the wool will be first drawn or combed out, and the same will be pro-
gressively brought forward to undergo the operation of combing. It will be
evident in tracing the action of the machine that the excentric j will come
into action and raise the combs w on the lever i out of the wool immediately
on the lever i arriving at the end of its stroke, and the continued revolution of
the crank g will return the combs w back (but in an elevated position) to the
comb A, when the excentric j will permit of the descent of the lever i, and,
consequently, of the combs w, the continuation of the revolution of the crank
again drawing the combs w through the wool, and, as before observed, the
carriage or frame B with the combs A are progressively brought towards the
combs w, and as the frame B comes forwards, and has arrived at the end of
its movement, it strikes against the lever E, which throws out the clutch box
on the axes and puts the wheel 2 out of geer, by which means the comb A

page_text: will remain any number of strokes required in this position, and when the
combing is complete, the wool is to be removed and a fresh supply placed in
the machine, the comb A is set back, and the machine again set to work, as
above described.
Now it will be evident, from the above description, that although I have
described the combs or needles as descending into the wool, and then being
drawn out by the crank, the same effect may be obtained by causing the
combs or needles to ascend through the wool and then be drawn out, and in
some instances, where the wool would not be penetrated by the combs or points
by the weight of the lever i, I then employ a weight or a spring, or other
contrivance for forcing down the lever i.
Figure 4 shows a slight variation of the machine for the purpose of
combing wool of long fibre, and differs only in placing sets of combs or
needles on a cylinder G, the axes of which turns in bearings on each side
of the machine, and on the axis is a toothed wheel FI, which is actuated
by the screw I on the shaft ; the bearings of the axes of the cylinder G
is carried by a frame or carringe, which is capable of moving to or from the
combs or points which are on the lever i; the cylinder G having thus as low
rotary motion in addition to its being carried forward towards the combs or
needles in like manner to the needles or points A, in Fig. 1; the other parts
are marked with like letters of reference, and perform similar offices; they
do not therefore require to be again described.
Figure 5 shows a variation of the machine, for the purpose of feeding the
combs with wool, and at the same time, in some degree, combing out the same.
J is an endless fabric, on to which is fed the wool; this endless fabric is worked
by two rollers K and L, the axes of which turn in bearings on each side of the
machine; on the axes L is aflixed a toothed wheel M, which is driven by the
intermediate toothed wheel N; O is a screw which takes into and drives the
toothed wheel p which is on the axis of the lower of two rollers Q, and on this
axis is a pinion R, which takes into and drives a toothed wheel S, and also an
intermediate wheel N; on the axis of the upper roller Q is the pinion S, by
this means the two rollers Q travel at equal rates, and draw out the wool or
fibre and deliver the same to the combs or points on the lever i, which comb it
out and take up a quantity therefrom, and thus become supplied; from thence
the combs are removed to the machine, Figure 1.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
combining and using the same, I would observe that I lay no claim to any of
the parts separately of which the machine is composed, they being separately
well known and in use, and I am aware that combing of wool has been per-

page_text: formed by hand, and otherwise by means of two sets of combs, similar to those
shown and described; I do not therefore claim this part of the machinery as
new, my claim of Invention relating only to the constructing of a machine
for working the same, as above described. And I do, therefore, hereby declare
that I confine my Invention to the combination of the following parts into
a machine for working the combs or needles in combing wool (that is to
say) -
The combining, in the manner above described, the crank g, the lever i, and
the excentrix, together with the wheel-work b, c, d, e, f, for actuating the
same, when used for the purpose of working combs, as above described for
combing wool.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Noble, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Third day of July, in the year of our Lord One thousand