IMPROVE- MENTS IN SPINNING MACHINERY
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Norman Macbeth and Robert Nivin Cottrill both of
Bolton le Moors in the County of Lancaster for an Invention of IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SPINNING MACHINERY
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Norman Macbeth and
Robert Nivin Cottrill at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
30th December 1882.
NORMAN MACBETH and ROBERT NIVIN COTTRILL of Bolton-le-Moors in the
County of Lancaster, "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING MACHINERY"
Our Invention relates to continuous spinning machinery in which the yarn is
spun and wound upon the bare spindle or upon a tube or bobbin and in the first
place to the arrangements for acting upon the yarn in its passage from the draw
rollers to the spindle, tube or bobbin to effect the winding of the yarn thereon.
In place of the ordinary ring and traveller used in ring spinning machines we
employ a flyer which works between two plates or rings or between a plate and a
ring. One of the said plates may be the rising and falling rail or may project
from the said rail or be hinged thereto so that it can be depressed to facilitate
the finding of the yarn end a spring or weight restoring it to its working position.
In each plate is a circular aperture which is concentric with the axis of the spindle
and the two plates are separated by a space in which the flyer works. The main
body of the Hyer encircles the spindle and is proportioned to sufficiently clear the
yarn or bobbin upon the spindle. The flyer is provided with a thread arm which
extends upwards through the hole in the upper plate and with a drag arm which
projects outwards in the space between the plates. The outer end of the said
tbread arm projects over the upper plate and is suitably hooked, twisted or curled
to receive the yarn as it comes from the guide eye which is above the centre of the
spindle. The yarn is preferably turned or twisted round the arm in such a
manner as that it leaves the arm at a point nearer to the spindle than the part of
the arm on to which the yarn is first received. Provision is made by means of
eyes, hooks or twists for varying the frictional hold of the yarn upon the arm in
ID 31

page_text: order to regulate the tension upon the yarn so that the strain arising from the
giving motion to the flyer is principally sustained by the length of yarn extending
from the said arm to the spindle which said length being fully twisted is more
capable of withstanding the tension than the length extending from the draw
rollers. Upon the drag arm is mounted a drag washer or a brake piece of any
suitable form which by the centrifugal force is caused to bear against the sides of
the holes in the plates. The drag may be regulated by varying the weight of the
brake piece or by varying the number of washers upon the drag arm.
We may
combine arrangements for lowering or turning down the plates with mechanism
for stopping the revolution of the spindle. In a modification we use only one
plate in which case the thread arm projects above and the drag arm below the
plate. The body of the flyer may be provided with an additional arm or with
additional arms projecting below the plate. In some cases we use "ballooning
wires" to prevent excessive slackness in the lengths of yarn extending between
the draw rollers and the flyers. We attach such wires to arms which project
downwards from a bar or rod which is mounted to swivel and slide in bearings.
The said bar also carries the yarn eyes or guides which may consist of grooves cut
in the bar or of wire curls or eyes screwed into the bar. The said bar is slid
endwise to withdraw the yarn eyes out of the way preparatory to doffing and is
turned in its bearings self-actingly or otherwise to cause the ballooning wires to
advance towards or to recede from the spindles and also to cause the said wires to
clear the aforesaid plates and the rail when the use of the said wires has become
unnecessary. In some cases we arrange for the yarn guides to be lowered by the
turning of the said bar or rod when the frame is stopped and to be raised when
the frame is started in order to lessen the tendency to the formation of snarls.
The necessary movements of the said bar or rod may be derived from the strap-
shifting apparatus. When spindles which require to be held down during doffing
are used we prefer to provide the frame with a rail or bar which is carried by
excentric or radius arms which are connected together so that the said rail can be
moved through a segment of a circle maintaining its parallelism during such
movement. The said rail carries double fingers which project over the warves or
other shoulders carried by the two spindles in a pair.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Norman Macbeth and Robert Nivin Cottrill in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 29th June 1883.
NORMAN MACBETH and ROBERT NIVIN COTTRILL of Bolton-le-Moors in the
County of Lancaster "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING MACHINERY
"
Our Invention relates to continuous spinning machinery in which the yarn is
spun and wound upon the bare spindle or upon a tube or bobbin and in the first
place to the arrangements for acting upon the yarn in its passage from the draw
rollers to the spindle, tube or bobbin to effect the winding of the yarn thereon.
In place of the ordinary ring and traveller used in ring spinning machines we
employ a fyer which works between two plates or rings or between a plate and a
ring. One of the said plates may be the rising and falling rail or may project
from the said rail or from a part taking the place of the said rail or may be hinged
thereto so that it can be depressed to facilitate the finiling of the yarn end a spring
or weight restoring it to its working position. In each plate is a circular aperture
which is concentric with the axis of the spindle and the two plates are separated
by a space in which the flyer works. The main body of the flyer encircles the
spindle and is proportioned to sufficiently clear the yarn or bobbin upon the
spindle. The flyer is provided with a thread arm which extends upward through
the hole in the upper plate and with a drag arm which projects outward in the
space between the plates. The outer end of the said thread arm projects over the
upper plate and is suitably twisted; hooked or curled to receive the yarn as it
comes from the guide eye which is above the centre of the spindle. Upon the
drag arm is mounted a drag-washer or a brake-piece of any suitable form which
by the centrifugal force is caused to bear against the sides of the holes in the
plates.
In order that our Invention may be fully understood we have attached hereunto
a sheet of drawings marked with letters of reference and illustrating the means
whereby we propose to carry our Invention into effect. In the said drawings
Fig. 1 partly in section-represents a single spindle of a ring-spinning inachine,
and the flyer and carrier constructed in accordance with our invention, Fig. 14
being a plan of the same parts. In the said Figs. a is a spindle mounted in a
bulster b which is secured to the spindle rail c. These parts may be of an ordinary
or suitable construction. The carrier D projects from a rod e which takes the
place of the rising and falling rail. Upon the said rod is secured a fixing f which
is formed with a jaw and is fastened to the rod by means of a set-screw f¹ or by
suitable means. Upon the said rod is mounted a hinge-piece g which is fitted in
the jaw of the said fixing and is free to turn within limits on the rod but is
prevented by the side of the jaw in f from sliding on the rod. The jaw may be
formed either upon the part f as shewn or upon the hinge-piece g. To a projecting
part of the piece g are secured the two ring plates d, d, of the carrier D. In the
example these plates are each formed with a circular hole to clear the cop and have
cranked shanks whereby they are secured to the hinge-piece by means of a bolt h
which passes through the three parts as clearly indicated in Fig 1. The opposed
surfaces of the said ring plates are finished to be smooth and are separated a short
distance so as to form a space in which the flyer k can work. In the example the
said flyer is made of wire bent into a ring with the ends twisted or hooked
together and formed into projecting arms k¹, k³. The arm k¹ is the aforesaid
thread arm and is cranked so as to extend through the hole in the upper ring
plate and outward over the said plate. The outer end of the arm is formed with

page_text: a hook or curl. The arm k is the aforesaid drag arm and extends into the space
between the two ring plates. On this arm is mounted a drag-washer 7 separately
represented in Fig. 4. The yarn is led through the curl at the end of the thread
arm and after making one, two or more turns around the thread arm passes on to
the spindle as seen in Fig. 1. When the spindle commences to wind on the yarn
the side of the flyer from which the arms project is drawn into contact with the
spindle and as the spinning proceeds into contact with the cop and this contact
aids in carrying around the flyer so that the strain upon the yarn is relieved. The
ring part of the flyer projects behind the point of contact as seen in Fig. 1A and
by the centrifugal force tends to maintain the said contact. It will be seen that
the pressure of contact of the flyer with the spindle or cop will increase as the
flyer approaches the spindle for the reason that the outward projection of the
ring of the flyer increases at the same time. This increase of pressure counter-
acts the slight decrease in driving contact so that the strain upon the yarn is
maintained about constant. The slight strain upon the yarn arising from the act
of giving motion to the flyer is principally or entirely sustained by the short length
of yarn which extends from the thread arm to the spindle or cop and as this said
length is fully twisted it is more capable of withstanding the tension than the
length which extends from the draw rollers to the said thread arm.
It is necessary
to retard the rotation of the flyer or it would revolve without winding the yarn
upon the spindle. The necessary retardation is effected by the drag-washer
which as the flyer revolves bears against the margins of the holes in the ring plates.
The retardation or drag may be regulated by varying the weight of the washer
or by varying the number of washers upon the drag arm. Any suitable form of
brake-piece may take the place of the said washer or washers. In the example the
ring plates are sustained by means of a spring piston m which is mounted in a
recess in the fixing f. If necessary the plates may be prevented from rising in
obedience to the pull of the yarn by the application of a spring, weight or other
appliance. The ring plates can be depressed when desirable by pressing the finger
upon the nose d' of the upper plate the spring piston restoring the plates to the
horizontal position when the pressure is removed. Other arrangements may be
adapted for the purpose or the plates may be sustained by means of an adjustable
screw as in the case of the screw n in Fig 2 which represents a modified form of
fixing. In either case the plates can be raised whenever desirable. A channel is
formed in the nose part d¹ of the upper plate to convey oil deposited thereon
inward to the margin of the hole in the plate whence the oil is taken up by the
drag washer and its arm and lubricates the margins of the holes in the two plates
and also the space between the plates. We may dispense with the hinging of the
plates as for example we may bolt or secure them to the rising and falling rail
which may be of the section represented by Fig. 3 or of any other suitable form.
In some cases a rising and falling rail may answer for one of the plates or turned
rings carried by the said rail may be used instead of the plates of irregular
formation. Figs 5 and 6 indicate some of the forms which such rings may have.
The form of the flyer may be greatly modified so long as it encircles or nearly
encircles the cop and runs between the two plates or rings and is provided with
the thread and drag arms and drag pieces. Figs. 7 to 11 illustrate some of the
modifications which may be made in the forms of the flyers. In Fig. 7 the back
of the ring is looped to weight the flyer at that part. In Fig. 8 the increase in
weight at the back is obtained by varying the form of the flyer. In Figs. 9 and 11
the flyer is made from sheet metal instead of from wire. The flyer might be so
modified in form as that one plate or ring only would be required in which case
the thread arm would project above the plate and the drag arm below the same
or the drag-washer might be upon two arms one above and the other below but
we prefer to use two plates or rings. In some cases we propose to employ
ballooning wires in connection with our invention as described in our Pro-
visional Specification but we make no claim in respect of the use of such wires nor
do we claim the arrangement described in the said Provisional Specification for
"

page_text: holding down the spindles during the doffing operation. Our invention may also
be applied to machinery for doubling yarns.
Having now fully set forth and indicated the nature of our said invention and
the manner in which we carry and propose to carry the same into practical effect
we would have it to be understood that we claim
First, the combination of parts arranged and acting substantially as set forth
and indicated hereinbefore and in and by Figs 1 to 3 of the accompanying
drawings.
Secondly, the flyer of any of the indicated forms arranged to work between two
plates and acting substantially as set forth.
Thirdly, the flyer k furnished with a thread arm and with a drag arm mounted
between two plates d, d, the drag arm carrying a washer or drag piece substantially
as and for the purpose set forth and indicated.
And lastly, a flyer encircling or partly encircling the cop, bobbin or spindle and
carried by a plate or between plates and having a projecting thread arm and a
drag arm carrying a washer or drag piece which rubs against the margin of the
hole in the plate or each plate substantially as and for the purpose set forth and
indicated.
In witness whereof I the said Norman Macbeth for myself and on behalf of
the said Robert Nivin Cottrill have hereunto set my hand and seal this
twenty-eighth day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred and eighty-three.
Signed, sealed and delivered
in the presence of
EDWARD K. DUTTON
41 John Dalton St, Manchester.
(Agent for the Patentees)
NORMAN MACBETH (L.S.)