IMPROVEMENTS IN WAX-THREAD SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
"
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention of
IMPROVEMENTS IN WAX-THREAD SEWING MACHINES." A communication
from abroad by Duncan H. Campbell, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, United
States of America, Machinist.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th May 1881.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN WAX-THREAD SEWING
MACHINES." A communication from abroad by Duncan H. Campbell, of Pawtucket,
Rhode Island, United States of America, Machinist.
In the Specification of former Letters Patent bearing date the 4th day of May,
A.D. 1878, No. 1795, for an Invention communicated by the said Duncan
H. Campbell, there was shown and described a wax-thread sewing-machine,
embodying in its construction the combination of a book-needle, a centrally
pointed shuttle grooved at its sides, and a pair of shuttle-rails V-shaped at their
edges, and occupying V-shaped grooves in the sides of the shuttle; and in the
Specification filed this 17th day of May, A.D. 1881, with the petition for other
Letters Patent for an Invention, also communicated by the said Duncan
H. Campbell, there is described a novel combination of a hook-needle, a centrally
pointed shuttle without race grooves therein, and a race composed of more than
two rails so arranged with relation to each other as to limit the shuttle strictly to
a longitudinal movement when driven to and fro by a shuttle-carrier, which controls
all its movements.
In the present Specification there is described a novel combination of a hook-
needle, a centrally pointed shuttle, and a shuttle-rail which lies beneath the shuttle,
and is so interlocked therewith that while the shuttle is free to move to and fro

page_text: longitudinally, it is properly restricted from lateral and vertical movements. The
interlocking referred to is obtained by the employment of the well known "dove-
tail" principle, but that feature in itself considered is not broadly new, it having
heretofore been employed in connection with shuttles which were not centrally
pointed, but which on the contrary had points which were extended or projected
laterally to one side in order to reach the plane or path traversed by the needle,
and requiring therewith devices for aiding the shuttle in its passage through the
thread-loop, whereas in the present combination the path of the needle is traversed
by the shuttle, its central point being in line with the axis of the shuttle, and in
the plane of the path of the needle. With the organization of the parts stated,
and as hereinafter described and shown in various forms in the Drawing, a portion
of the rail operates as a central "stop" for engaging with the bottom of a loop to
prevent its being unduly carried forward by the shuttle. As described in the
Specification of the said former Letters Patent, there is now employed a shuttle
having a longitudinally recessed web on its underside, which operates as a
"cast
off" in enabling the needle to readily free itself from a loop, but in this present
organization the said web is further utilized in various forms as a means whereby
the shuttle is interlocked with its rail.
The said improvements are illustrated in the accompanying Drawing, in which
Figure 1 is a perspective view of so much of a sewing machine as is deemed
necessary to illustrate the general application of my improvements.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of a shuttle-rail detached with the shuttle and
driver mounted thereon.
Figure 3 is a vertical central section of the machine at right angles to the line
of the shuttle-rail.
Figure 4 is a plan or top view of the shuttle-driver detached.
Figure 5 represents the rail and shuttle-driver in longitudinal section with a
shuttle thereon.
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the shuttle detached.
The remaining Figures are hereinafter described.
The hook-needle A is mounted in vertical guides, and is vertically reciprocated
by the lever a, substantially as heretofore. The shuttle-rail B is here shown to be
located at right angles to the needle in the same vertical plane, and broken away
centrally at b to afford a path for the needle, and also to afford the abutting
surface c which operates as a stop for preventing a loop from being unduly carried
forward by the shuttle after being released or cast off by the hook-needle. This
rail is T-shaped, and is embraced by the shuttle-web, which is recessed to
correspond with the rail, as hereinafter more fully described. It being important
that the rail should be accurately adjusted, I have shown it provided with the
flanges or arms d at each end, which occupy beds or frames e on the inner surface
of the frame of the machine, and the set screws fin the said frames e bear against
the said arms d, so that the rail may be laterally adjusted. This rail, being divided
into two parts adjacent to the path of the needle, is rendered firm and solid by
means of a ring-web g which encloses the needle-path.
The shuttle-driver C here shown is mounted directly on the rail B, and is
composed of the slide h recessed to embrace the upper portion of the said rail, and
a bridle is hinged to the said slide and arranged at its front end to engage with
the neck of the shuttle on both sides thereof. For operating this driver there is
combined therewith and with its vibrating lever la cylindrical hub-block 7, slotted
transversely to receive the outer end of the said lever, and fitted to concavo or
semi-cylindrical bearings m on the slide h. The hub-block is maintained in
position by the turn-button n. This construction affords a smooth even motion,
the pressure of the lever always being exactly in line with the axis of the shuttle,
the centre of the driver, and the rail. For preventing any lateral movement or
strain of the bridle at its front end, it is provided with the saddle o which rests
upon the rail and extends downward slightly on each side thereof.
The centrally pointed shuttle D is similar to that shewn in the Specification of

page_text: the prior Letters Patent hereinbefore referred to, in that its longitudinally recessed
web operates as a "cast off" for releasing a loop from the hook-needle, but it is
now for the first time also utilized as a medium for connecting the shuttle with its
rail. The said web has an internal T-shaped recess which is occupied by the
T-shaped rail, and thereby interlocked there with and limited strictly to a longi-
tudinal movement thereon. The point of the shuttle when in working position is
closely adjacent to the upper surface of the rail, and as the shuttle enters and
opens a loop laterally the end of the rail at c adjacent to the path of the needle is
abutted by the lower end of the loop, thus preventing the latter from being unduly
carried forward, while the shuttle spreads open the loop during its forward move-
ment and enables the shuttle to pass through the said loop with. but little friction
therewith, and a minimum of abrasive action upon the waxed thread.
While the construction and arrangement of the parts as thus far shown and
described are preferred, various modifications may be employed, some of which are
hereinafter described, as aids to the full and complete understanding of the main
features of the present improvements.
Referring again to the Drawing,
Figure 7 is a plan or top view of the front portion of a machine with its race-
plate removed, and
Figure 8 represents the same in central vertical section on a line at right angles
to the shuttle-rail.
Figure 9 is a perspective view of the shuttle-rail detached.
Figure 10 is a perspective view of the shuttle-driver detached.
Figures 11 and 12 represent the shuttle respectively in side view and central
cross section.
The hook-needle A is similar to that herein before described. The shuttle rail B¹
has also a central opening b¹ to afford a path for the needle, and is squared off at c¹
to afford an abutting contact with a loop, as before described. The said rail has a
longitudinal recess, which in cross section is shaped like the letter T inverted, as
at 62, for the reception of a T-shaped web on the shuttle. This rail may be solidly
constructed, but it is preferably divided longitudinally into two parts connected
by means of screws f¹, by which they may be adjusted with relation to each other,
and to the web of the shuttle. The ends of the said rail are preferably mounted
as before described, and are susceptible of vertical and lateral adjustment.
The shuttle-driver C' here shown is not mounted on the rail (as above described)
but on independent guides, and it is composed of the slide h¹ connected by a
link h² with the vibratory lever k'. It has however a hinged bridle ¿¹ similar to
that previously described, which has a spring-latch for preventing it from tilting
upward during its movements in driving the shuttle.
The shuttle D' here shown is centrally pointed as before described, but its web p²
is T shaped and recessed centrally, as shown in Figures 11 and 12, at q, so that
the hook-needle after descending to its lowest point may rise slightly beneath the
shuttle, enter said recess, and enable the sides of the latter to operate as a "cast off,"
as before described. This recess may be dispensed with however, if other means
for casting off be provided.
Referring again to the Drawing,
Figure 13 is a plan or top view of the front portion of a machine with the race-
plate removed, and
Figure 14 a central vertical section of the same at right angles to the shuttle-
rail.
Figure 15 represents in plan or top view and in cross section the rail detached.
Figure 16 represents in plan or top view and in perspective the shuttle-driver
detached.
Figure 17 represents the shuttle in side view and in central cross section.
The hook-needle A is similar to that hereinbefore described. The shuttle-rail B*
is rectangular in cross section but concaved on top. At b it is cut away centrally
to afford a path for the needle. As seen in cross section it has a central vertical

page_text: member b standing in the middle of a groove which has inclined sides, making the
space at the top considerably narrower than that at the bottom. If the central
member were removed then the groove would be an ordinary dovetail groove, but
with the central member present there are two grooves, each of which has one
vertical and one inclined side, and the said grooves are respectively occupied by
one side of the shuttle web as hereinafter further described. These grooves contain
on their inclined sides the retaining guides b which constitute the inclined walls
of the grooves, which engage with the shuttle-web and confine the shuttle to the
rail. These guides are stiffened by gibs dovetailed into the rail, and at each gib
and between them there is a set screw for slightly advancing the guides and
enabling their accurate adjustment to be made with reference to the central
member and to the shuttle-web. That portion of the central member 63 which is
immediately in front of the needle serves as a stop for preventing a loop from
being unduly carried forward by the shuttle.
The shuttle-driver 02 is substantially like the one first described in being
mounted upon the rail and in having a hinged bridle 2. This driver has inwardly
projecting splines on each side which occupy longitudinal grooves in the sides
of the rail, as clearly indicated in the Drawing, and it is driven by a lever le linked
thereto as before described.
The shuttle D2 here shown differs from the one shown in the Specification of the
prior Letters Patent hereinbefore referred to, in having the outer sides of the
web p inclined from the bottom of the shuttle outwardly so as to operate as a
"dovetail" in occupying the two grooves in the rail.
Upon each of the rails, as shewn, the shuttle is limited to a longitudinal
movement, but confined against vertical and lateral movement, and in each case
some portion of the rail itself serves as a stop for the loop, and in all of them the
centre of the rail, the path of the needle, and the axis and point of the shuttle
occupy one common vertical plane,
The operation of the needle and of the awl usually used therewith and the
driving of the shuttle are all too well known to require detailed description.
The Specification of the former Letters Patent hereinbefore referred to contains
full description of accompanying mechanism, which would require only the most
obvious modification to adapt it in each case to co-operate with the portions of the
machine herein shown and described. When either of the rails herein shown is
employed, an opening larger than the shuttle in cross section is provided at one
side through the frame of the machine coincident with the rail, so that on lifting
the bridle of the shuttle driver, the shuttle may be slipped pointwise along the rail
and through the said opening for refilling, after which it is replaced heelwise and
the bridle lowered to engage with the front of the shuttle. The usual heating
apparatus desirable in working waxed thread may be applied as heretofore.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim.―
First. The combination of a hook-needle, a centrally pointed shuttle provided
with a web on its underside, and a shuttle rail which engages with the said web,
and thereby limits the shuttle to a longitudinal movement with its point and axis
in the plane occupied by the path of the needle, substantially as above set forth.
Second. The combination with a hook-needle, a shuttle-rail, and a centrally
pointed shuttle, of a shuttle-driver mounted in slides upon or adjacent to the said
rail, and provided with the hinged bridle, substantially as above set forth and for
the purposes specified.
Third. The combination with a hook-needle, a centrally pointed shuttle, and a
shuttle-rail which confines the shuttle to a longitudinal movement of means,
substantially as described for adjusting the rail with reference to the path of the
needle.
Fourth. A centrally pointed shuttle provided on its underside with a longitudinal
web which serves as a "cast off" in operation with a hook-needle, and also as a

page_text: means for connecting the shuttle with its rail and limiting it strictly to a
longitudinal movement, substantially as above set forth.
Fifth. The combination with a shuttle-driver and its driving lever of the hub-
block and the cylindrical bearing m, substantially as above set forth and for the
purpose specified.
Sixth. The combination with the hinged shuttle-carrier bridle, of a latch for
preventing the tilting of the bridle during the rearward motion of the carrier with
its shuttle, substantially as above set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
W. ROB. LAKE. (L.S.)