IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FOOTSTEPS FOR SPINDLES AND SHAFTS.”AL SPFICATION
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Greenwood (the younger), George Albion Helliwell,
William Hammond, and Septimus Holt, all of Todmorden, in the West Riding
of the County of York, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
CONSTRUCTION OF FOOTSTEPS FOR SPINDLES AND SHAFTS.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Greenwood, George
Albion Helliwell, William Hammond, and Septimus Holt at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 11th December 1880.
JOHN GREENWOOD (the younger), GEORGE ALBION HELLIWELL, WILLIAM
HAMMOND, and SEPTIMUS HOLT, all of Todmorden in the West Riding of the
County of York. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FOOTSTEPS FOR
SPINDLES AND SHAFTS."
Our Invention is designed principally to be applied to the footsteps which are
employed in preparing and spinning machinery for supporting the "foot" or lower
end of the spindles used in such machines, but it is also applicable to footsteps for
supporting spindles and shafts employed for other purposes.
The objects of the Invention are to reduce the friction and increase the durability,
and to enable the spindle or shaft to run steadier and for a longer time than
heretofore.
We take a footstep of cast iron, brass, or other metal, and we bore the top with
a hole to fit the foot of the spindle or shaft. We then, with a larger tool, bore in
the reverse direction from the lower side upwards, thus forming an enlarged
chamber and leaving a portion only (say about one eighth of an inch thick) at the
upper side bored with the smaller sized hole.
We then take a plug of hardened steel or other suitable metal, and of the
requisite diameter, and having bored a shallow conical hole in its upper side to
receive the pointed end of the spindle we screw or drive it fast into the lower side
of the footstep. We thus have a cavity or chamber to contain the oil, a hardened

page_text: steel or other metal bearing for the point of the spindle, and at the top a collar or
bearing about an eighth of an inch deep only to steady the foot of the spindle, and
by these means we enable the spindle to run steadily at a high velocity with a
minimum of friction and a maximum of durability.
In adapting our Invention to old footsteps all that is necessary is to bore the
enlarged hole up from the underside to within about one eighth of an inch of the
top and to insert the steel plug as described.
In some cases, instead of boring the footstep from the bottom we bore it from
the top of the full diameter of the chamber required, and in order to get a bearing
at the top we insert a steel or other metal bush bored out to fit the foot of the
spindle.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Greenwood, George Albion Helliwell, William Hammond, and
Septimus Holt in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 8th June 1881.
JOHN GREENWOOD (the younger), GEORGE ALBION HELLIWELL, WILLIAM
HAMMOND, and SEPTIMUS HOLT, all of Todmorden, in the West Riding of the
County of York. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FOOTSTEPS FOR
SPINDLES AND SHAFTS."
Our Invention is designed principally to be applied to the footsteps which are
employed in preparing and spinning machinery for supporting the "foot" or lower
end of the spindles used in such machines, but it is also applicable to footsteps for
supporting spindles and shafts employed for other purposes.
The objects of the Invention are to reduce the friction and increase the durability,
and to enable the spindle or shaft to run steadier and for a longer time without
oiling than heretofore.
Such being the nature and object of our said Invention, we will now proceed to
describe 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
we have hereunto annexed 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.
The annexed Drawings show the Invention as applied to the footstep of a
throstle spindle only, but the application thereof to other spindles and shafts
being a mere matter of size does not require any further illustration or description.
We take a footstep a, a, of cast iron, brass, or other metal, see Fig. 1, and we
bore the top with a hole at b, b, to fit the foot c, c, of the spindle or shaft. We
then, with a larger tool, bore in the reverse direction from the lower side upwards,
thus forming an enlarged chamber d, d, and leaving a portion only (say about one
eighth of an inch thick) at the upper side, bored with the smaller sized hole.
We then take a plug e, e, of hardened steel or other suitable metal and of the
required diameter (see detached views, Figs. 1*), and having bored a shallow conical
hole in its upper side at f to receive the pointed end of the spindle c, c, we screw or
drive it fast into the lower side of the footstep a, a. We thus have a cavity or
chamber d, d, to contain the oil, a hardened steel or other metal bearing e, e, for
the point of the spindle, and at the top a collar or bearing b, b, about an eighth of
an inch deep only to steady the foot of the spindle c, c, and by these means we
enable the spindle to run steadily at a high velocity with a minimum of friction
and a maximum of durability.
In adapting our Invention to old footsteps all that is necessary is to bore the
enlarged hole up from the underside to within about one eighth of an inch of the
top and to insert the steel plug as described.
In some cases instead of boring the footstep from the bottom we bore it from the
top of the full diameter of the chamber required, and in order to get a bearing at
the top we insert a brass, steel, or other metal bush b, b, bored out to fit the foot of
the spindle, as shown at Fig. 2, and we insert the steel or other metal bearing e, e, for
the point of the spindle either from the bottom, as shown at Figs. 1 and 2, or
instead of boring through from the bottom at all we place it in a recess bored from
the top, as at Fig. 3.
The great advantage of forming the footstep in this manner is that there will be
a great saving of brass in making them, as they can be made of cast iron instead
of all brass as heretofore, and by fitting in the steel plug with conical hole for
the point of the spindle to work on at the bottom, and the steel or brass bush

page_text: about an eighth of an inch at the top (those being the working parts) they will not
require to be made of brass as usual.
Fig. 4 is a cross section of a slubbing spindle footstep; Fig. 5 a longitudinal
section, and Fig. 6 a plan view showing the footstep a, a, cast with the rail itself,
the plug e, e, which forms the bearing for the point of the spindle being either
let in from the top or in the form of a screw bolt and provided with a lock
nut g, g.
In this case also there is a great saving in brass, the chamber or cavity d, d,
being bored in the rail itself and only the plug and bush inserted.
Having now described the nature and object of our said Invention, together
with the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or carried into
practical effect, we wish it to be understood that we claim as our Invention,---
The construction of footsteps for spindles and shafts, substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated by the Drawings annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Hammond (on behalf of myself and
the said John Greenwood (the younger), George Albion Helliwell, and
Septimus Holt), have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Seventh day of
June, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty one.