IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Squire Diggle, of Radcliffe, in the County of
Lancaster, Machine Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
LOOMS FOR WEAVING."
Sealed the 12th April 1859, and dated the 14th October 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Squire Diggle at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
14th October 1859.
I, SQUIRE DIGGLE, of Radcliffe, in the County of Lancaster, Machine
Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to those looms which are provided with moving boxes
for two or more shuttles, and the improvements consist, firstly, in a method of
bringing cams or other apparatus into action so as to effect the raising or
lowering of the shuttles. For this purpose I employ an endless chain of plates
provided with apertures of various widths, and acting against step-formed
bars. These plates by moving to and fro thrust forward the bars to the full
extent, or allow one or more of the steps to enter the apertures, so as to
diminish the motion. I also employ a second endless chain or other such
apparatus which regulates the driving of the plates aforesaid or of similar
apparatus, so that they may be caused to move at intervals only, thereby
dividing the pattern between the two. The chain is so arranged that by
shifting the plates end for end, the pattern may be varied.

page_text: Secondly, I employ sliding cams with a series of elevations so as to act
more or less upon a lever or other apparatus for raising and lowering the
shuttle boxes in order to bring any desired shuttle into operation, and I mount
cams on both sides of the said lever, whereby it is moved positively to and fro
in order to effect the change. The lever employed for this purpose acts upon
a treadle provided with recesses for retaining it in its correct position.
Another part of my Invention relates to the taking-up motion of looms of
the above description or to those working with one shuttle only, and consists
in the application of a series of adjustable stops for the taking-up lever, which
stops are mounted in concert with the several shuttles so as to vary the
"taking up" according to the particular weft thrown, or are moved by an
endless chain or equivalent apparatus when one shuttle only is used.
Another part of my Invention consists in the application of a cam or tappet
upon the shaft of the second motion for bringing the shuttle back when it has
passed beyond its proper position in the box.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Squire Diggle in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
14th April 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SQUIRE
DIGGLE, of Radcliffe, in the County of Lancaster, Machine Maker, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Squire Diggle, Her special license that 1, the said Squire Diggle,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Squire
Diggle, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter
during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
LOOMS FOR WEAVING," upon the condition, amongst others, that I, the
said Squire Diggle, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner. the same was to be performed, and cause the same

page_text: to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Squire Diggle, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement and accompanying Drawings, that is to say:-
C,
upon
a
My Invention refers, firstly, to mechanism for moving the boxes of looms in
which two or more shuttles are employed. Fig. 1 represents a partial end
elevation of a loom with the improvements adapted, and Fig. 2 is a plan or
top view thereof; the crank shaft is shewn at a, which, by means of a train
mounted
of gearing b, communicates rotatory motion to a star wheel
shaft d. Upon this shaft is a toothed wheel e, which, by means of an inter-
mediate f, imparts rotatory motion to another wheel 9, mounted upon a
shaft ; this shaft is carried by levers i, which at their upper ends are mounted
loosely upon the shaft d, on which they are therefore capable of vibrating.
To the levers i is connected a rod k, the other end of which is jointed to a
lever, mounted so as to turn upon a centre at m; the lever l is formed with
an open part, within which is situate an excentric 2, caused to revolve by
toothed wheels o, p, the latter of which is on the usual second motion shaft q;
upon the shaft h is a polygonal barrel which carries the pattern chain 7, for
giving motion to the mechanism by which the shuttles are changed; as
therefore the excentric n revolves, it causes the levers i to vibrate upon their
centre of motion, and carry backward and forward the barrel with its pattern
chain, which chain is also caused to revolve by being connected to the star
wheel c, through the geering 9; the chain is formed of plates of metal or
other suitable material linked together and provided with two series of
openings s, s, each series of which is of two widths, for the purpose hereafter
to be described. Upon a part of the framing are guides t, within which are
sliding pieces u, u*, formed with steps v, w, a, at one end, as shewn in Fig. 3.
The most forward of these steps corresponds to or is something narrower than
the narrowest of the openings s, s, in the chain, so as to be able to pass therein
and allow a solid part of the chain to act against the step w, or the steps v
and w may pass into the next sized opening in the chain, a solid part of which
will then act against the step a. Supposing, therefore, that no opening in the
chain, when it is carried forward, is opposite the step v, then the sliding piece u
will be forced forward the greatest distance, if there be an opening sufficient
only to admit the step v, it will be forced forward another and smaller distance,
and if there be a wider opening so as to take in the steps and w, then it will
be moved a third distance, and smaller still. The above applies to either the

page_text: one or the other of the sliding pieces u, u, their separate action will appear
hereafter. To the sliding pieces u, u, are connected rods y, which at their
other ends are jointed to a lever, turning upon a fixed centre at ], this lever
has an arm 2, the outward end of which carries a pin projecting into a groove 3,
formed upon a boss 4, which is mounted so as to be capable of sliding upon
a shaft 5; to this boss is attached a bar 6, each end of which carries a
bowl 7, situate above cams 8, 8*; these cams have different elevations corre-
sponding to the number of shuttles employed, and receive rotatory motion
from the second motion shaft 9, by means of the toothed wheels p, p*. The
bowls 7, 7 carry studs 10, 10, the other ends of which are attached to a
lever 11, which turns upon a centre midway between them at 12. This
lever 11 is connected by means of a rod 13 to a treadle 14, turning upon a
centre at 15, and connected at its other end by means of a rod 16, to the
"rising box" 17, and in order to counterbalance the weight of this part of the
mechanism a spring 18 is adapted to an arm extending from the treadle 14;
to the framework is adapted a bar 19, the lower end of which is provided with
notches 20, for the reception of a pin 21, which extends from the treadle, such
notches corresponding to the different levels which the shuttle box is designed
to occupy, and the said notches being drawn forward by a spring 22, retain the
shuttle box in required positions while the cams 8, 8, are being shifted. The
operation is as follows:-Motion being communicated to the loom, the star
wheel c will, as before described, cause the pattern chain to revolve, which
chain is then moved towards the sliding pieces u, u, by the excentric 12, by
this means if an alteration in the shuttle be required, the piece u, for instance,
will be pushed forward a certain distance, according to the width of opening
in the chain as before described, and this will effect a turning of the lever
upon its centre, by which means the arm 2 will cause the bar 6 to slide upon
cam 8, so as to cause it
the shaft 5, thereby traversing the bowl 7 across the
to occupy a position above that prominence thereof which corresponds to the
shuttle nut to be thrown, this is accomplished while the smallest diameter of
the two cams are uppermost, and the cam 8 then revolving, will cause the
lever 11 to turn upon its centre so as to raise the box by the connections before
described. Supposing that by this operation the shuttle box has been moved
upward one rise, the next change may in like manner move it upward another
rise, but if it be required to descend, then a suitable hole in the series s of the
chain or a solid part will act upon the sliding piece u*, by which means the
lever will be turned in the contrary direction so as to traverse the bowl 7*
inward over a larger diameter of the cam 8*, which then revolving, will turn
the lever 11 in the opposite direction to that before described, and force the

page_text: shuttle box downward by springing the pin 21 out of one of the notches 20. It
will thus be seen that the cam 8 with its largest elevation outward is used for
raising the shuttle box, and the other 8 with its largest elevation inward, for
lowering it, and that the sliding pieces u, u correspond thereto. It will be
observed that no springs are employed for bringing the sliding pieces back to a
starting position, the use of these is avoided by making the chain a stop for one
of such sliding pieces while the other is being acted upon; for instance, suppose
an opening in the series s to admit the step v, and push forward the sliding
piece u by arriving in contact with the step w, then there will be an opening
in the same link in the series s*, which takes in the two steps *, w*, the
solid part of the chain forming an abutment for the step ; but supposing
that the opening in the series s will admit the two steps v, w, then the opening
in the series s* will take the step v*, and the solid part of the chain form an
abutment for the step w, or if a solid part of the chain act against the step v
then the opening in the series s* will take all the steps of the sliding piece u,
and the same effect takes place when the sliding piece is operated upon.
It has before been stated that the traversing of the bowls is effected when the
smallest and concentric parts of the cams are under them, during which
operation the shuttle box is held at its proper level by the notches 20, this
takes place while the shuttle is being thrown from that side of the loom which
is opposite to the rising box, but when the shuttle is thrown from the rising
box side, then the bowls 7, 7*, are held between the cams 8, 8, (as shewn in
Fig. 1) so as to confine the lever 6, and consequently the rising box, firmly in
its proper position. A peculiarity in the construction of the chain which has
not been alluded to is, that each plate or link may be used for producing a
different effect, by simply reversing it end for end, for supposing one of such
plates to contain apertures, as shewn in Fig. 2, by reversing it, the narrower
aperture, which now acts against the step piece u, will be caused to operate
upon the other step piece u*, and vice versa. The Drawings and description
allude to a loom with three shuttles, but it is obvious that more or less may be
employed upon the same principle. I would also observe that the Drawings
shew the gearing required for a change at every two picks, but that may be
varied at pleasure.
The next part of my Invention also relates to "rising box" looms, and is shewn
at Fig. 4, which represents the taking up motion of a loom arranged according
to my improvements. The second motion shaft is shewn at a, upon which is
mounted a cam b, acting against one arm of a bell crank lever c, which is
brought back against the said cam by a spring d. This bell crank lever when
caused to turn upon its centre of motion thrusts forward a rod e, the other end

page_text: of which is mounted by means of a pin within a slot formed in a lever f, which
lever carries the driver g for giving motion to the ratchet wheel h, from whence
rotatory motion is communicated to the cloth beam i by an ordinary train of
gearing. The pin of the rod e is carried by a rod k, the upper end of which
rests by means of a roller upon the cloth in progress of being wound upon the
beam i, so that a variable motion is imparted to the said roller according to its
increasing diameter. So far the arrangement being in ordinary use is well
known, but according to my Invention I impart another variable action in the
taking up, so that it may be altered in amount to suit the particular weft which
is then being thrown. Upon a shaft is mounted a segmental piece m, to
which are adapted a series of set screws n, so as to be capable of being adjusted
in different heights. This segment has a lever o, to which a rod p is jointed,
its other end being connected to a lever r, which I suppose to be that shewn
at 14, in Fig. 1, and described in reference to the first part of my
Invention.
As the shuttle box rises or falls in order to bring the required shuttle into
operation, this lever », or 14 as before described, will turn upon its centre, and
by so doing will cause the segment to turn and bring a certain one of the
screws n opposite to a pin q projecting from the rod e, which pin and its rod will
therefore be arrested in their backward motion so as to cause the lever e, when
forced forward by the cam, to effect a smaller or greater amount of taking up,
as the case may be. The number of the screws n corresponds to that of the
shuttles which are used, and as each one corresponds to a particular shuttle
and moves in concert with it, the taking up will always be the same for each
weft, so that the work beam may be caused to move at a greater rate whenever
a comparatively thick thread is thrown.
The next part of any Invention is shewn at Fig. 5, which represents the
picking motion of a "rising box" loom arranged according to my improve-
ment. The shaft upon which the picking tappet is mounted is shewn at a,
and the tappet at b, acting against the lever c, which gives motion to the
picking stick d. This is an arrangement in ordinary use, but it is found in
"rising box" looms that the box at times is checked from rising or falling by
the point of the shuttle projecting into the picker after it is become worn; in
order to obviate this I employ a second tappet e, which acts in advance of that
shewn at b, upon the lever c, so as to cause a slight action of the picker upon
the shuttle, whereby it is thrust a short distance into the box, the rising or
falling as required then takes place, and subsequently the tappet baffects the
picking. The second or additional tappet is mounted so as to be adjustable
and independent of the ordinary tappet, and may therefore be regulated in its
action at pleasure.

page_text: I claim, firstly, the general arrangement and combination of mechanism for
bringing any desired shuttle into operation; particularly and separately in such
mechanism I claim the use of the endless chain composed of plates, having
apertures of different areas, and working in conjunction with step-formed bars;
also the use of the cams with two or more elevations, and their sliding bowls,
or upon the same principle the cams may slide and the bowls be stationary ;
also the use of cams on either side or at each end of a lever or equivalent
apparatus, whereby it is moved positively in order to effect the change.
Secondly, and as applied to looms with more than one shuttle, I claim the
use of stops or equivalent apparatus for varying the taking up such stops or
other apparatus working in concert with the several shuttels, as above
illustrated.
Thirdly, the use of the separate tappet described in reference to Fig. 5 for
moving the shuttle backward.
In witness whereof, I, the said Squire Shuttle, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
SQUIRE DIGGLE. (L.S.)