IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES, CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR THE MANU- FACTURE 'OF BOOTS AND SHOES
Year: 1882

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 SEWING MACHINES, CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR THE MANU-
FACTURE 'OF BOOTS AND SHOES" Communicated to him from abroad by
William H Alden of Boston, Massachusetts United States of America,
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th July 1882.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co, Patent
Agents, Southampton Buildings, London "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
[A communi-
CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BOOTS AND SHOES"
cation to him from abroad by William H. Alden of Boston, Massachusetts
United States of America.]
28
This invention consists in improvements adapted principally, but not in all cases
exclusively, to the machine for sewing the soles on boots or shoes commonly known
"The Blake Sole Sewing Machine," which improvements are intended to
improve the quality of the work and materially increase the speed of the machine.
One object of my improvements is to increase the practicable speed of the
machine by diminishing the weight of the working parts, especially those which
have reciprocating movements. For this purpose I make the needle bar and needle
lever pins tubular; I make the needle lever and the link coupling it to the needle-
bar, of a skeleton form; and construct the balance wheel with a rim of light wood
or similar material on a metal frame. I also improve the construction of the feed
cam by making the same composite, that is to say, a loose piece is introduced at
that part of the cam whereby motion is given to the feed lever. This piece is
attached adjustably to the body of the cain, by screws or other suitable means in
such a manner that the said loose piece can be moved in or out to alter the throw
of the cam within certain limits and the "feed" or pitch of the stitches can thereby
be varied. When, by long usage, this part of the cam is worn out it can be replaced

page_text: "
by a new piece. I thus provide for very readily and cheaply repairing or
renovating the said cam.
When the machine runs at a speed much greater than that which is now usual,
the reciprocating motion of the whirl and its long line of connections occasions loss
of power and affects the stability of the said machine. To obviate this difficulty,
and at the same time to provide for laying the thread around the barb of the needle
with the desired rapidity without irregular movements, the whirl is connected to
the main shaft of the machine by means of a train of gearing and revolving rods so
arranged that for every complete stroke of the needle-bar the whirl makes two
revolutions, during one of which the thread is laid around the barb, the needle
being down, while during the other, revolution the needle is up and out of the
work.
•
I provide an improved tension-device which has a pulley around which the
thread is made to pass after leaving the cop-pin or peg on which it is wound. The
said pulley runs loose on its spindle between a collar and a face on a bracket and
friction is produced to retard its movement by means of a spring adjustable by a
nut that confines it between the said collar and; face. To permit the thread to be
drawn off whenever it may be necessary, without disturbing the adjustment of the
frictional tension, as for instance when a boot is put on or taken off the machine, a
hand lever is arranged to take off the whole pressure of the spring and temporarily
relax the tension.
I, provide for obtaining a very even delivery of the thread, as follows, that is to
say, the thread is not wound on a revolving bobbin or spool as heretofore but on
a stationary pointed cop-pin or peg fixed at one end to the machine frame or a
bracket thereon, "The part of the peg adjacent to its fixed end is enlarged and
conical. The thread is' wound on the cone by means of a winder, hereinafter
described in such a manner that, each successive layer of thread lies parallel; to the
conical surface, and as the base of each of such conical layers is confined within
the diameter of the base of the cone on the pin it follows that a cylindrical cop
is formed of a diameter equal to that of the base of the cone, and of any length
less than that of the peg, but whose extremity is always a cone similar to that
upon which the cop was started; from this conical surface the thread leads off freely
and regularly.
"
To wind the cop upon the cop-pin a special winder is required. This consists in
the first place of a rotating, spindle, which may be driven either by hand or by
power, to the end of which spindle the cop-pin is temporarily attached. This
spindle gears with a toothed wheel provided with a heart-shaped cam which gives
to-and-fro motion to a thread-guide through a space equal to the length of the side
of the cone on the cop-pin "and in a plane parallel to its surface. The wheel
carrying the heart-shaped cam is furnished with a pin or tooth, which, by means of
a.lever and pawl; once in every revolution alters the, relative positions of the cop-
pin and the thread-guide. by, moving the cop-pin through a space equal, to the
thickness, of two layers of thread measured in the direction parallel to the axis of
the cop.
The operation of the said winder is, as follows, that is to say:-The end of the
thread having been passed through the eye of the thread-guide is attached to the
cop-pin eitheri at, the large or, the small end of the cone. The machine is then
started and.by, means of the moving thread-guide the thread is wound evenly over
the surface of the cone and back again, the said pin or tooth then comes into action
and alters the relative positions of the thread-guide and cop-pin so that other two
layers of thread are placed evenly upon those already there, and so on until the
pin is full, when it is removed from the winder, for use in the sewing-machine.
T

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th January 1883.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co, Patent
Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES,
CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF BOOTS AND SHOES"-A communi-
cation to me from abroad by William H. Alden, of Boston, Massachusetts, United
States of America,
cases
This Invention consists in improvements adapted principally, but not in all
exclusively, to the machine for sewing the soles on boots or shoes, commonly
known as "The Blake Sole Sewing Machine," and the said Invention is designed to
improve the quality of the work and materially increase the speed of the machine.
One object of the said improvements is to increase the practicable speed of the
machine by diminishing the weight of the working parts, especially those which
have reciprocating movements. For this purpose, I make the needle-bar and the
needle-lever pins tubular; I make the link connecting the needle-lever to the
needle-bar of a skeleton form; and I construct the driving wheel with a rim of
light wood or similar material on a metal frame. I also improve the construction
of the feed-cam by making the same composite, that is to say, a removable piece is
introduced at that part of the cam whereby motion is given to the feed-lever.
This piece is attached adjustably to the body of the cam, by screws or other
suitable means, in such a manner that the said piece can be moved laterally to
alter the throw of the cam, within certain limits, and the "feed," or length of the
stitches, can thereby be varied. When, by long usage, this part of the cam is worn
out, it can be replaced by a new piece. I thus provide for very readily and
cheaply repairing or renovating the said cam.
When a machine runs at a speed much greater than that which is now usual,
the reciprocating motion of the whirl and its long line of connections occasions
loss of power and is liable to injuriously affect the stability of the said machine.
To obviate these inconveniences in the improved machine (which runs at a much
higher speed than the machines heretofore employed) and, at the same time, to
provide for laying the thread around the barb of the needle with the desired
rapidity without irregular movements, I connect the whirl to the main shaft of the
machine by means of a train of gearing and rotating rods, so arranged that the
whirl will be continuously rotated in one direction, during the operation of the
machine, and' will make two revolutions during every complete up-and-down
stroke of the needle-bar. During one revolution of the whirl the thread is laid
around the barb of the needle; the succeeding rovolution is effected while the
needle is out of the work, and brings the thread into the proper position to be
again laid around the barb of the needle.
I provide an improved tension-device having a pulley around which the thread
is made to pass after leaving the cop-pin or peg on which it is wound. The said
pulley is fitted loosely on a pin or bolt between the head of the said bolt and a
face on a bracket; elastic washers are placed on each side of the said pulley, and
friction is produced to retard its movement by means of a spring adjustable by
a nut to regulate the amount of such friction. To permit the thread to be easily
drawn off, whenever it may be necessary, without disturbing the adjustment of the
tension (as, for instance, when a boot is put on, or taken off, the machine), I provide
a hand-lever whereby the spring may be compressed to temporarily relax the
tension.

page_text: I provide for obtaining a very even delivery of the thread as follows, that is to
say, the thread is not wound on a bobbin or spool, as heretofore, but on a pointed.
cop-pin or peg having a conical base; this cop-pin, after the thread is wound
thereon, is fixed to the horn of the machine, or to a bracket attached thereto, in
such a manner that it will rotate with the said horn. The thread is wound on the
cop-pin by a special winder hereinafter described, each layer of thread being
parallel with the surface of the said conical base, so that the thread will be freely
and evenly delivered.
"
The said Invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a machine commonly known as "The
Blake Sole Sewing Machine," with some of the parts removed.
Figure 2 represents a side elevation of the improved feed-cam, and
Figure 3 an edge view of the same.
Figure 4 represents a section on the line x, a Figure 1, shewing the tension
device and other parts.
Figure 5 represents a plan of the improved thread-winder,
Figure 6 is a side elevation of the same, and
Figure 7 is a central transverse section of the driving wheel.
Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the drawing
A represents the frame of the machine, B the needle-bar, C the needle-lever,
D the link connecting the needle-lever with the needle-bar, and E the driving
wheel. In order to diminish the weight of these parts and increase the practicable
speed of the machine, I construct the said parts as follows, that is to say, the
needle-bar B is made in the form of a tube, having its lower end closed with the
exception of an aperture to receive the needle a, which is secured therein by a
set-screw or other suitable means; the pins b in the needle-lever are made tubular;
and the link D is made of skeleton form. The driving wheel E is constructed with a
thin metal rim E' having fixed on each side of it a ring E2 of light wood or similar
material, the hub and spokes being of metal; this mode of construction diminishes
the weight of the said wheel, but, at the same time, permits the operative to gripe
the rim in order to stop the machine when necessary.
The feed-cam F is provided with a removable piece o which has two holes fitting
the pins or studs d, upon which the said piece is secured by the set-screws e.
When the piece c becomes worn, or when it is desired to alter the length of the
stitches, the set-screws e are slackened and the piece c is adjusted laterally by
means of the set-screw f. By slackening the set-screws e and withdrawing the
screw f, the piece c can easily be removed and a new piece fitted in its place.
In the said machines as heretofore constructed, the whirl has a reciprocating
motion, that is to say, it makes a part of a revolution in one direction and then in
the other direction, alternately. In the present improved machine, the whirl has a
continuous rotary motion and is preferably operated as follows, that is to say :-On
the shaft G is fixed a toothed wheel H gearing with a pinion I on the shaft K, as
shewn in dotted lines in Figure 1. On the shaft K is fixed a bevel wheel L from
which motion is imparted, by means of the bevel wheels M and shafts N; to the
shaft O. On the upper end of this shaft is fixed, or formed, a bevel pinion P which
gears with the whirl Q and transmits motion to the same. The shafts N are carried in
suitable bearings, and the said toothed wheels and pinions are of such relative size
that the whirl makes two revolutions during every complete stroke, that is to say,
every up-and-down stroke, of the needle-bar, thereby laying the thread around the
barb of the needle, and then, while the needle is out of the work, bringing the
thread into the proper position to be again laid around the barb when the needle
descends.
My improved tension-device is represented in Figures 1 and 4; g is a pulley
over which the thread passes; this pulley is free to rotate on the bolt / between
the head of the said bolt and the face of the bracket i fixed to the horn-plate k.
The bolt his secured in the bracket i in the following manner, that is to say, after
the said bolt is passed through a hole in the bracket, a loose ring or washer 1,

page_text: and a spiral spring 4, are placed upon it; the said spring is retained in place, and is
capable of being adjusted by a thumb-nut m fitted upon the end of the bolt h which
is screw-threaded to receive it. Between the head of the bolt h and the pulley g,
and between the said pulley and the bracket i, are placed washers of india-rubber
or other suitable material. The tension of the thread is regulated by means of the
thumb-nut m. The extremity of the bolt h is bevelled or inclined, and a band-
lever n is pivotted at o to the bracket i and has a bevelled or inclined face opposite
to the extremity of the bolt h. The spiral spring p is arranged between the
lever in and the bracket i, and retains the lever n out of contact with the said bolt.
When it is desired to permit the pulley g to rotate freely on the bolt h and thus
temporarily relax the tension on the thread, the hand-lever n is moved so that its
inclined face acts upon the bevelled end of the said bolt and thereby compresses
the spring and takes the pressure off the pulley g.
The cop-pin or peg R, for carrying the waxed: thread to be used by the machine,
is attached in any suitable manner to the bracket S which is secured, to the
rotating horn, as shewn in Figures 1 and 4, but the said cop-pin can be removed
from the bracket in order to wind the thread upon it as hereinafter. set forth. The
cop-pin or peg. is made with a conical base, and the thread is wound upon it in
such a manner that each successive layer of thread lies parallel- to the surface of
the cone, thus forming a number of conical layers, as shown in section in Figures 4
and 6 of a. diameter not exceeding that of the base of the. cone on; the pin; it
follows, therefore, that a cylindrical, or approximately cylindrical; cop is formed;
having a conical end and of a diameter equal, or nearly equal, to that of the base
of the cone, which cop.may be of any length less than that of the pin, but which
will always present a conical surface from which the thread may lead off, freely
and regularly.
The winder, or apparatus for winding the thread upon the cop-pin, is shewn in
Figures, 5 and 6, and is constructed as follows, that is to say, the spindle T is. carried.
in suitable bearings and is arranged to be rotated by means of the toothed hand-
wheel U, which gears with a pinion upon the spindle T. This spindle is.provided.
with an endless screw or worms which gears with a worm-wheel V, Figure 6.
The said: worm-wheel is fixed on the shaft t, and has, on one side of it, a heart-
shaped cam W. The shaft t enters the slot u in the rod v, which is, therefore, free
to slide on the said shaft. The rod is also free to slide within the standard w
3. and has a-pin or stud.v² provided with a friction roller which is caused to bear
upon the cam W by the action of the spring ³, one end of which is attached to the
shaft t and the other end to the sliding rod v. One end of the rod: vis coupled to
the lever or thread-guide a' which is secured. at one end to the standard a³. by. the
pin ³ passing through the slot, and forming a fulcrum for the lever or thread-
guide. At the other end of the said lever or thread-guide is a. hook or eye y,
through which the thread is conducted. At one end of the spindle T is fixed a
collar t having a circular. slot or groove into which fits the projection & on the
sliding pieces. This sliding piece is made with rack-teeth, and rests in grooves in.
the brackets 8, 8, in which it is free to move longitudinally, and from which it can
be removed in order to replace it, by another sliding piece having teeth of finer, or
coarser, pitch according to the size of the thread to be wound. A pawl t³, carried
by one arm of a lever pivotted to the bracket &³, engages with the teeth on the
sliding piece 8'; the other arm of the lever projects into the path of the pin or
stud u fixed to the worm-wheel V, on the opposite side thereof to the heart-shaped
cam W, and the said lever is held in position by the spring to. The pinion and
worms are fixed upon the spindle T by keys fitting into a slot in the said spindle,
so that the latter is free to slide longitudinally in its bearings.
The operation of the said winder is as follows, that is to say:-The cop-pin
or peg R is temporarily attached to the free end of the spindle T. The end of
the thread is then passed through the eye y. of the thread-guide or lever x³,
and is fastened to the cop-pin at either the large or the small end of the cone.
The hand-wheel U is then rotated and, as the thread is wound upon the cone

page_text: of the cop-pin. the heart-shaped cam W and the spring v³, in each revolution
of the wheel V, cause the thread-guide or lever a¹ to oscillate to and fro upon
its pivot through a space equal to the length of the surface of the said cone
and in a plane parallel to the same. By reason of the movements of the thread-
guide as above described, the thread is wound evenly over the surface of the
cone and back again; the pin u¹ on the worm-wheel V then acts, by means of the
lever pawl and sliding piece 81, upon the spindle T and alters the position
of the cop-pin relatively to the thread-guide by moving the cop-pin, which is
attached to the spindle T, through a space equal to the thickness of two layers
of thread, measured. in the direction parallel to the axis of the - cop.
Other
two layers of thread are then wound evenly upon the cop-pin, and so on until
the said cop-pin is full, when it is removed from the winder and again attached
to the bracket S.
The spindle T, instead of being driven by hand, may be driven by other
power in any suitable manner.
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, in a sewing machine for the manufacture of boots and shoes or for
similar purposes :-
First. The improvements whereby I provide for diminishing the weight of the
reciprocating parts and increasing the practicable speed of the machine by the
employment therein of the needle-bar B, the link D, the pins b, and the wheel E
constructed in the peculiar manner above described.
Second. The feed-cam having the removable piece adjustably secured by screws
or other suitable means, substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Third. The whirl connected to the main shaft of the machine by means of the
bevel wheels, pinions and shafts arranged to transmit continuous rotary motion to
the whirl in such a manner that, during every complete up-and-down stroke of the
needle-bar, the whirl will make two revolutions, substantially as, and for
the purposes, set forth.
Fourth. The tension-device consisting essentially of the pulley free to rotate
upon the pin or bolt, the elastic washers and the spiral spring adjustable by
means of a thumb-nut, or the like, to produce and regulate the friction between
the said pulley and the elastic washers, all substantially as set forth.
Fifth. The combination, with the said tension-device, of the hand-lever for
compressing the spring of the said device to temporarily relax the tension on the
thread, substantially as set forth.
Sixth. In combination with the horn and the stitching mechanism, the pointed
cop-pin or peg constructed and arranged substantially as above set forth for carrying
the waxed thread to be used by the machine.
Seventh. The winder, or apparatus for winding the thread regularly and
uniformly upon the cop-pin, constructed and arranged to operate substantially as
above set forth.
In witness whereof I the said William Robert Lake have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Eleventh day of January in the year of our Lord One

page_text: The decision of the Chief Examiner, acting on behalf of the Comptroller, of the
1st day of September 1894, allowed, under Section 18 of the Patents, &o.
Act, 1883, an Amendment of this Specification.
[LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake of the firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London for an invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES, CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR THE
Communicated to him from abroad
MANUFACTURE OF BOOTS AND SHOES
"
by William H. Alden of Boston, Massachusetts United States of America.]
[PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th July 1882.]
I WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co, Patent
Agents, Southampton Buildings, London do hereby declare the nature of the said
invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES CHIEFLY DESIGNED FOR
[A communication to him from
THE MANUFACTURE OF BOOTS AND SHOES
abroad by William H. Alden of Boston, Massachusetts United States of America]
to be as follows:-
"
This invention consists in improvements adapted principally, but not in all cases
exclusively, to the machine for sewing the soles on boots or shoes commonly known
as "The Blake Sole Sewing Machine," which improvements are intended to
improve the quality of the work and materially increase the speed of the machine.
One object of my improvements is to increase the practicable speed of the
machine by diminishing the weight of the working parts, especially those which
have reciprocating movements. For this purpose I make the needle-bar and neeille-
lever pins tubular; I make the needle lever and the link coupling it to the needle-
bar, of a skeleton form; and construct the balance wheel with a rim of light wood
or similar material on a metal frame. I also improve the construction of the feed
cam by making the same composite, that is to say, a loose piece is introduced at
that part of the cam whereby motion is given to the feed lever. This piece is
attached adjustably to the body of the cam, by screws or other suitable means in

page_text: such a manner that the said loose piece can be moved in or out to alter the throw
of the cam within certain limits and the "feed" or pitch of the stitches can thereby
be varied. When, by long usage, this part of the cam is worn out it can be replaced
by a new piece. I thus provide for very readily and cheaply repairing or
renovating the said cam.
When the machine runs at a speed much greater than that which is now usual,
the reciprocating motion of the whirl and its long line of connections occasions loss
of power and affects the stability of the said machine. To obviate this difficulty,
and at the same time to provide for laying the thread around the barb of the needle
with the desired rapidity without irregular movements, the whirl is connected to
the main shaft of the machine by means of a train of gearing and revolving rods so
arranged that for every complete stroke of the needle-bar the whirl makes two
revolutions, during one of. which the thread is laid around-the-barb, the needle
being down, while during the other revolution the needle is up and out of the
work.
I provide an improved-tension-device which. has a pulley around which the
thread is made to pass after leaving the cop-pin or peg on which it is wound. The
said pulley runs loose on its spindle between a collar and a face on a bracket and
friction is produced to retard its movement by means of a spring adjustable by a
nut that confines it between the said collar and face. To permit the thread to be
drawn off whenever it may be necessary, without disturbing the adjustment of the
frictional tension, as for instance-when a boot is put on or taken off the machine, a
hand lever is arranged to take off the whole pressure of the spring and temporarily
relax the tension.
I' provide for obtaining a very even delivery of the thread as follows; that is to
say, the thread is not wound on a revolving bobbin or spool as heretofore but on
arstationary pointed cop-pin or peg fixed at one end to the machine frame or a
bracket thereon. The part of the peg adjacent to its fixed end is enlarged and
conical. The thread is wound on the cone by means of a winder hereinafter
described in such a manner that each successive layer of thread lies parallel to the
conical surface, and as the base of each of such conical layers is confined within
the diameter of the base of-the cone on the pin it follows that a cylindrical cop
is formed of a diameter equal to that of the base of the cone, and of any length
less than that of the peg, but whose extremity is always a cone similar to that
upon which the cop was started; from this conical surface the thread leads off freely
and regularly.
To wind the cop upon the cop-pin a special winder is required. This consists in
the first place of a rotating spindle, which may be driven either by: hand or by
power, to the end of which spindle the cop-pin is temporarily attached. This
spindle. gears with a toothed wheel provided with a heart-shaped cam which gives
.to-and-fro motion to a thread-guide through a space equal to the length of the side
of the cone on the cop-pin and in a plane parallel to its surface. The wheel
carrying the heart-shaped cam is furnished with a pin or tooth, which, by means of
a lever and pawl, once in every revolution alters the relative positions of the cop-
'pin and the thread-guide by moving the cop-pin through a space equal to the
thickness of two layers of thread measured in the direction parallel to the axis of
the cop.
The operation of the said winder is as follows, that is to say:-The end of the
thread having been passed through the eye of the thread-guide is attached to the
cop-pin either at the large or the small end of the cone. The machine is then
started and by means of the moving thread-guide the thread is wound evenly over
the surface of the cone and back again, the said pin or tooth then comes into action
and alters the relative positions of the thread-guide and cop-pin so that other two
layers of thread are placed evenly upon those already there, and so on until the
pin is full, when it is removed from the winder for use in the sewing-machine.

page_text: [SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters acent med oy
the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office. !on the
13th January 1883.]
TO ALL TO WHOм these Presents shall come I WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE.
of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co, Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings,
London, send greeting
executors
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria by Her Letters Patent
bearing date the Fourteenth day of July in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty two in the forty-sixth year of Her reign did for Herself
Her heirs and successors give and grant unto me the said William Robert Lake
Her special licence that I the said William Robert. Lake my
administrators and assigns or such others as I the said William Robert Lake 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 SEWING MACHINES, CHIEFLY DESIGNED
FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
AND SHOES "-A communication to me
from abroad by William H. Alden, of Boston, Massachusetts, United States of
America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I the said William Robert
Lake my executors or administrators by an instrument in writing under my or
their or one of their hands and seals 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 to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent
BOOTS
Now KNOW YE that I the said William Robert Lake do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this
Specification.
This Invention consists in improvements adapted principally, but not in all cases
exclusively, to the machine for sewing the soles on boots or shoes, commonly
known as
"The Blake Sole Sewing Machine," and the said Invention is designed
to improve the quality of the work and materially increase the speed of the
machine.
One object of the said improvements is to / increase the practicable speed of the
machine by diminishing the weight of the working parts, especially those which
have reciprocating movements. For this purpose, I make the needle-bar and the
needle-lever pins tubular; I make the link connecting the needle-lever to the
needle-bar of a skeleton form; and I construct the driving wheel with a rim of
light wood or similar material on a metal frame. I also improve the construction
et make the feed-cam by making the-same composite, that is to say, a removable piece
is introduced at that part of the cam whereby motion is given to the feed-lever.
This piece is attached adjustably to the body of the can, by screws or other
suitable means, in such a manner that the said piece can be moved laterally to
alter the throw of the cam, within certain limits, and the "feed," or length of the
stitches, can thereby be varied. When, by long usage, this part of the cam is worn
out; it can be replaced by a new piece. I thus provide for very readily and
cheaply repairing or renovating the said cam.

page_text: When a machine runs at a speed much greater than that which is now usual,
the reciprocating motion of the whirl and its long line of connections occasions
loss of power and is liable to injuriously affect the stability of the said machine.
To obviate these inconveniences in the improved machine (which runs at a much
higher speed than the machines heretofore employed) and, at the same time, to
provide for laying the thread around the barb of the needle with the desired
rapidity without irregular movements, I connect the whirl to the main shaft of the
machine by means of a train of gearing and rotating rods, so arranged that the
whirl will be continuously rotated in one direction, during the operation of the
machine, and will make two revolutions during every complete up-and-down
stroke of the needle-bar. During one revolution of the whirl the thread is laid
around the barb of the needle; the succeeding revolution is effected while the
needle is out of the work, and brings the thread into the proper position to be
again laid around the barb of the needle.
I provide an improved tension-device having a pulley around which the thread
is made to pass after leaving the cop-pin or peg on which it is wound. The said
pulley is fitted loosely on a pin or bolt between the head of the said bolt and a
face on a bracket; elastic washers are placed on each side of the said pulley, and
friction is produced to retard its movement by means of a spring adjustable by
a nut to regulate the amount of such friction. To permit the thread to be easily
drawn off, whenever it may be necessary, without disturbing the adjustment of the
tension (as, for instance, when a boot is put on, or taken off, the machine), I provide
a hand-lever whereby the spring may be compressed to temporarily relax the
tension.
I provide for obtaining a very even delivery of the thread as follows, that is to
say, the thread is not wound on a bobbin or spool, as heretofore, but on a pointed
cop-pin or peg having a conical base; this cop-pin, after the thread is wound
thereon, is fixed to the horn of the machine, or to a bracket attached thereto, in
such a manner that it will rotate with the said horn. The thread is wound on the
cop-pin by a special winder hereinafter described, each layer of thread being
parallel with the surface of the said conical base, so that the thread will be freely
and evenly delivered.
The said Invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a machine commonly known as
Blake Sole Sewing Machine," with some of the parts removed.
Figure 2 represents a side elevation of the improved feed-cam, and
Figure 3 an edge view of the same.
"The
Figure 4 represents a section on the line, Figure 1, shewing the tension
device and other parts.
Figure 5 represents a plan of the improved thread-winder,
Figure 6 is a side elevation of the same, and
Figure 7 is a central transverse section of the driving wheel.
Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the drawing
A represents the frame of the machine, B the needle-bar, C the needle-lever,
D the link connecting the needle-lever with the needle-bar, and E the driving
wheel. In order to diminish the weight of these parts and increase the practicable
speed of the machine, I construct the said parts as follows, that is to say, the
needle-bar B is made in the form of a tube, having its lower end closed with the
exception of an aperture to receive the needle a, which is secured therein by a
set-screw or other suitable means ;. the pins 6 in the needle-lever are made tubular;
and the link D is made of skeleton form. The driving wheel E is constructed with
a thin metal rim E¹ having fixed on each side of it a ring E of light wood or
similar material, the hub and spokes being of metal; this mode of construction
diminishes the weight of the said wheel, but, at the same time, permits the operative
to gripe the rim in order to stop the machine when necessary.
The feed-cam F is provided with a removable piece c which has two holes fitting
the pins or studs d, upon which the said piece is secured by the set screws c.

page_text: When the piece c becomes worn, or when it is desired to alter the length of the
stitches, the set-screws e are slackened and the piece is adjusted laterally by
means of the set-screw f. By slackening the set-screws e and withdrawing the
screw the piece c can easily be removed and a new piece fitted in its place.
In the said machines as heretofore constructed, the whirl has a reciprocating
motion, that is to say, it makes a part of a revolution in one direction and then in
the other direction, alternately. In the present improved machine, the whirl has a
continuous rotary motion and is preferably operated as follows, that is to say:-On
the shaft G is fixed a toothed wheel H gearing with a pinion I on the shaft K, as
shewn in dotted lines in Figure 1. On the shaft K is fixed a bevel wheel L from
which motion is imparted, by means of the bevel. wheels M and shafts N, to the
shaft O. On the upper end of this shaft is fixed, or formed, a bevel pinion P which
gears with the whirl Q and transmits motion to the same. The shafts N are carried in
suitable bearings, and the said toothed wheels and pinions are of such relative size
that the whirl makes two revolutions during every complete stroke, that is to say,
every up-and-down stroke, of the needle-bar, thereby laying the thread around the
barb of the needle, and then, while the needle is out of the work, bringing the
thread into the proper position to be again laid around the barb when the needle
descends.
My improved tension-device is represented in Figures 1 and 4; 9 is a pulley
over which the thread passes; this pulley is free to rotate on the bolt h between
the head of the said bolt and the face of the bracket i fixed to the horn-plate k.
The bolt h is secured in the bracket i in the following manner, that is to say, after
the said bolt is passed through a hole in the bracket, a loose ring or washer I,
and a spiral spring ", are placed upon it; the said spring is retained in place, and
is capable of being adjusted by a thumb-nut m fitted upon the end of the bolt /
which is screw-threaded to receive it. Between the head of the bolt and the
pulley g, and between the said pulley and the bracket i, are placed washers of india-
rubber or other suitable material. The tension of the thread is regulated by
means of the thumb-nut m. The extremity of the bolt is bevelled or inclined, and
a hand-lever n is pivotted at o to the bracket i and has a bevelled or inclined face
opposite to the extremity of the bolt h. The spiral spring p is arranged between
the lever and the bracket i, and retains the lever n out of contact with the said
bolt. When it is desired to permit the pulley y to rotate freely on the bolt h and
thus temporarily relax the tension on the thread, the hand-lever n is moved so that
its inclined face acts upon the bevelled end of the said bolt and thereby compresses
the spring and takes the pressure off the pulley g.
9
The cop-pin or peg R, for carrying the waxed thread to be used by the machine,
is attached in any suitable manner to the bracket S which is secured to the
rotating horn k', as shewn in Figures 1 and 4, but the said cop-pin can be removed
from the bracket in order to wind the thread upon it as hereinafter set forth. The
cop-pin or peg is made with a conical base, and the thread is wound upon it in
such a manner that each successive layer of thread lies parallel to the surface of
the cone, thus forming a number of conical layers, as shewn in section in Figures 4
and 6 of a diameter not exceeding that of the base of the cone on the pin; it
follows, therefore, that a cylindrical, or approximately cylindrical, cop is formed,
having a conical end and of a diameter equal, or nearly equal, to that of the base
of the cone, which cop may be of any length less than that of the pin, but which.
will always present a conical surface from which the thread may lead off freely'
) and regularly.
The winder, or apparatus for winding the thread upon the cop-pin, is shewn in
Figures 5 and 6, and is constructed as follows, that is to say, the spindle T is carried
in suitable bearings and is arranged to be rotated by means of the toothed hand-
wheel U, which gears with a pinion upon the spindle T. This spindle is provided
with an endless screw or worms which gears with a worm-wheel V, Figure 6.
The said worm-wheel is fixed on the shaft t, and has, on one side of it, a heart-
shaped cam W. The shaft t enters the slot u in the rod e, which is, therefore, free.

page_text: to slide on the said shaft. The rod is also free to slide within the standard w
and has a pin or stud provided with a friction roller which is caused to bear
upon the cam W by the action of the spring v³, one end of which is attached to the
shaft t and the other end to the sliding rod v. One end of the rod is coupled to
the lever or thread-guide which is secured at one end to the standarda by the
pin passing through the slot at, and forming a fulcrum for the lever or thread-
guide. At the other end of the said lever or thread-guide is a hook or eye y,
through which the thread is conducted. At one end of the spindle T is fixed a
collart having a circular slot or groove into which fits the projection ** on the
sliding pieces. This sliding piece is made with rack-teeth, and rests in grooves in
the brackets,, in which it is free to move longitudinally, and from which it can
be removed in order to replace it by another sliding piece having teeth of finer, or
1.oarser, pitch according to the size of the thread to be wound. A pawl t³, carried
by one arm of a lever pivotted to the bracket s³, engages with the teeth on the
sliding piece s'; the other arm of the lever projects into the path of the pin or
stud u fixed to the worm-wheel V, on the opposite side thereof to the-heart-shaped
cam W, and the said lever is held in position by the spring to. The pinion and
worm a are fixed upon the spindle T by keys fitting into a slot in the said spindle,
so that the latter is free to slide longitudinally in its bearings.
The operation of the said winder is as follows, that is to say :-The cop-pin
or peg R is temporarily attached to the free end of the spindle T. The end of
the thread is then passed through the eye y of the thread-guide or lever *',
and is fastened to the cop-pin at either the large or the small end of the cone.
The hand-wheel U is then rotated and, as the thread is wound upon the cone
of the cop-pin, the heart-shaped cam W and the spring v³, in each revolution
of the wheel V, cause the thread-guide or lever to oscillate to and fro upon
its pivot through a space equal to the length of the surface of the said cone
and in a plane parallel to the same. By reason of the movements of the thread-
guide as above described, the thread is wound evenly over the surface of the
cone and back again; the pin u² on the worm-wheel V then acts, by means of the
lever t, pawl and sliding piece s', upon the spindle T and alters the position
of the cop-pin relatively to the thread-guide by moving the cop-pin, which is
attached to the spindle T, through a space equal to the thickness of two layers
of thread, measured in the direction parallel to the axis of the cop. Other
two layers of thread are then wound evenly upon the cop-pin, and so on until
the said cop-pin is full, when it is removed from the winder and again attached
to the bracket S.
The spindle T, instead of being driven by hand, may be driven by other
power in any suitable manner.
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, in a sewing machine for the manufacture of boots and shoes or for
.similar purposes :-
First. The improvements whereby I provide for diminishing the weight of the
reciprocating parts and increasing the practicable speed of the machine by the
employment therein of the needle bar B, the link D, the pins b, and the wheel E
constructed in the peculiar manner above described.
Second. The feed cam having the removable piece adjustably secured by screws
or other suitable means, substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Third. First. The whirl connected to the main shaft of the machine by means of
the bevel wheels, pinions and shafts arranged to transmit continuous-rotary motion
to the whirl in such a manner that, during every complete up-and-down stroke of
the needle-bar, the whirl will make two revolutions, substantially as, and for the
purposes, set forth.
Fourth Second. The tension-device consisting essentially of the pulley free to
rotate upon the pin'or bolt, the elastic washers and the spiral spring adjustable by -

page_text: means of a thumb-nut, or the like, to produce and regulate the friction between:
the said pulley and the elastic washers, all substantially as set forth.
Fifth Third. The combination, with the said tension-device, of the hand-lever
for compressing the spring of the said device to temporarily relax the tension on the
thread, substantially as set forth.
Sixth. Fourth. In combination with the horn and the stitching mechanism, the
pointed cop-pin or peg constructed and arranged substantially as above set forth.
for carrying the waxed thread to be used by the machine.
Seventh Fifth. The winder, or apparatus for winding the thread regularly and
uniformly upon the cop-pin, constructed and arranged to operate substantially as.
above set forth.
In witness whereof I the said William Robert Lake have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Eleventh day of January in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty three.
W*. ROB³. LAKE (L.S.)