CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING ROPE OR CORDAGE
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Vincent Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughts-
man, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
MANUFACTURING ROPE OR CORDAGE."-A communication.
Sealed the 16th December 1856, and dated the 2nd July 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Vincent Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
2nd July 1856.
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
MANUFACTURING ROPE OR CORDAGE," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, firstly, to an improved method of driving the strand
flyers of the laying machine, when they are arranged to rotate upon their own
axes and revolve around a common axis, in the fashion of what is termed the
sun and planet motion. The flyers are driven by means of cone pulleys, which
travel over the inner periphery of a stationary band or ring, capable of adjust-
ment in a line parallel with the axes of the flyers. The bearings of the flyers
are pressed outwards by springs, in order to keep them properly in contact with
the stationary ring. By raising or lowering this ring it will be brought into
contact with a larger or smaller diameter of the cone pulleys, and thus the
speed of the flyers and the twist of the strands may be varied while the machine
is in operation.

page_text: Secondly, to an improved method of securing the strand cans in flyers,
whereby great facility is afforded for replacing the empty cans by full ones.
The cans are made of a polygonal form, to fit snugly between the pillars or
side pieces of the flyers, and a springing collar is applied to fit over the top of
the can and hold it steadily in position.
Thirdly, to certain improved means of stretching the rope as fast as it is
laid. For this purpose two conical grooved rollers are employed, their smaller
or truncated ends being set opposite each other. One of these rollers receives
a constant rotary motion from a pulley on the driving shaft of the machine,
but the other roller is turned by the friction of the rope as it passes round it.
Both rollers are grooved in a similar manner to receive the rope as it is
formed, and over these rollers it is laid, passing from groove to groove of the
rollers. The bite or friction of the rope is increased by a ridged pressure
roller, which is pressed down upon the driven roller by springs, and thus
prevents the possibility of any slipping of the rope upon, the said roller.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alfred Vincent Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 2nd January 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
VINCENT NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her- Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Alfred Vincent Newton, Her special license that I, the said Alfred Vincent
Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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 "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING ROPE OR CORDAGE," being à
communication from abroad, upon the condition (amongst others)-that-I, the
said Alfred Vincent Newton, by an instrument in writing under my hand and
seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Inven-

page_text: tion, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, 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 the Drawing hereunto annexed, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-
This Invention, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent,
relates, firstly, to an improved method of driving the strand flyers of the laying
machine, when they are arranged to rotate upon their own axes and revolve
around a common axis, in the fashion of what is termed the sun and planet
motion, which improved method affords facility for varying at pleasure the
speed of rotation of the flyers upon their own axes relatively to that of their
revolution around the common axis, for the purpose of varying the twist of
the strands without the necessity of stopping the machinery to do so.
Secondly, to an improved method of securing the strand cans in flyers,
whereby great facility is afforded for replacing the empty cans by full ones.
Thirdly, to certain improved means of stretching the rope as fast as it is
laid.
The Invention is illustrated in the accompanying Drawing, in which
Figure 1 is a vertical central section of a laying machine with all the improve-
ments applied thereto; Figure 2 is a horizontal section of the same, taken in
the line, x, of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an inverted plan view of the device for
driving the flyers; Figure 4 is an elevation of one of the strand flyers and its
can, partly in section; Figure 5 is a horizontal section of the flyer in the
line y, y, of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a horizontal section of the same in
the line z, z, of Figure 4; Figure 7 is a front view of the apparatus for
stretching the rope. Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in the several Figures.
A is the base; B, B, are uprights; and C, a top frame, the whole con-
stituting the framing of the machine; D is a vertical rotary shaft in the centre
of the machine, carrying two discs or circular tables E, E', in which there are
radial slots a, a, to contain the journal boxes b, b, of the spindles c, c, which
carry the strand flyers. The flyers shown are adapted to receive cans con-
taining the strands. These flyers are composed each of a sole piece d, secured
to one of the spindles c, two small pillars e, e, secured in the sole piece, and a
head 9, which contains a pair of spring. nippers f, f, (see Figure 4,) and is
secured to the pillars e, e. Each flyer spindle c carries an inverted cone

page_text: pulley h, and the whole of these pulleys are encircled by a stationary metal
ring F, which has a conical interior, whose face corresponds in taper with the
cone pulleys h, h. These pulleys are forced out in contact with the conical
interior of the ring F by sprigs i, i, and rods j, j, applied to the journal
boxes b, b, the said springs and rods being placed in suitable cavities bored in
the tables E, E, at the back of the slots a, a. As the shaft D and the
tables E, E, revolve, carrying with them the flyers, the pulleys h, h, being
forced outward by the springs i, i, against the inner face of the cone ring F,
the pulleys are caused to rotate on their own axes, and thus to give motion to
the flyers. In order to vary the speed of the flyers, and thus vary the degree
of twist given to the strands of the rope, the stationary driving cone ring F is
made adjustable, higher or lower, to come in contact with a larger or smaller
part of the cone pulleys h, h, and thus give a greater or less speed to the
rotation of the flyers on their axes, without increasing the speed of their
revolution around the axis D, and hence giving more or less twist to the
strands, as may be desired; and for this purpose the ring is supported at
opposite points by two upright screws G, G, the lower ends of which rest in
step bearings in the base A of the machine, and the upper parts of which
liave journals fitting to bearings in the top frame C, the said screws fitting to
female screws cut in the ring. The two screws are geared together at the top
of the machine by two pairs of bevel gears k, k, and a horizontal shaft 7, so that
both may always turn simultaneously and correspondently, and raise all sides
of the ring alike. The springs i, i, force out the pulleys h, h, or yield to allow
them to approach each each other as the ring F is lowered or raised, so as
always to keep the pulleys in contact with the ring. It will be readily under-
stood that this manner of driving the flyers enables their speed and con-
sequently the twist of the strands to be varied while the machine is running,
as the raising and lowering of the ring by turning the screws does not
interfere with any other parts of the machine. The flyers maintain their
upright position in all positions of the ring F, as they are held by the springs
i, i, both above and below the said ring, and as the sides of the cone pulleys
and the interior of the ring are straight from top to bottom, the bearing of
the pulleys against the ring is always in the same direction. Instead of using
a rigid metal band or ring F, and applying springs to the flyer bearings, an
elastic band, or a band having springs applied to draw it tight, may be used,
and the flyer bearings may be stationary, which will be equivalent to the rigid
band and movable bearings. This method of driving the flyers is applicable
either to can flyers or to bobbin flyers.
H, H, are the cans, which, instead of being cylindrical, like the cans in

page_text: common use, are of the form of polygonal prisms. They are represented
hexagonal, but may have eight, or any other even number of sides. This is
to enable them to be readily put in and taken out of the machine to change
full ones for empty ones. By being made to fit snugly between the pillars e, e,
of the flyers, as shown in Figures 4 and 6, they are prevented turning in the
flyers, and caused to turn with them. Each can is secured in place by a
collar I, which drops easily over its head, the said collar having two holes in
it to fit and slide on the pillars e, e, of the flyer, and the pillars e, e, being each
provided with a shoulder n (see Figures 1 and 4) for the said collar to rest
upon when in place to confine the can, and having spiral springs m, m, coiled:
around them between the collar I and the flyer head g, to force the collar
down to the shoulders n, n. When the can is to be removed, the attendant
raises the collar I and draws the can from between the pillars e, e. When it
is replaced, the collar I is held up high enough for the can to slide under it;
the can is then pushed in between the pillars e, e, and the collar allowed to
drop down over it and secure it in its place.
.
The centre shaft D of this machine is made hollow throughout to receive at
its lower end a yarn o to form the centre of the rope, and near the top there
are a number of holes p, p, corresponding with the number of flyers, each to
receive one of the strands, which are represented in red color, coming from the
flyer head, to be laid together in passing from the holes to a single hole q in a.
cap J, which is screwed on the top of the shaft, as shown in Fig. 1. Abové
the shaft D there is a pulley r, over which the rope passes to the stretching
apparatus.
The stretching apparatus consists of two conical grooved rollers K, L,
arranged in suitable bearings at one end of the machine, with their smaller or
truncated ends, opposite each other. The roller K receives a constant rotary
motion by a belts, running to a pulley N on its shaft from a pulley P on the
driving shaft Q of the machine, but the other roller L is arranged to turn by
the friction of the rope as it passes round it. Both rollers are grooved in a
similar manner. The rope passes from the pulley r, round the first groove at
the small end of the roller K, and then round the first groove at the cor-
responding end of the roller L, and then from one to the other of the rollers,
till it arrives at the large end of the rollers, from which it is taken up; the
bite or friction of the rope upon the roller K is increased by a ridged pressure
roller M, which is pressed down upon it by springs t, t, and prevents the
possibility of any slipping of the rope upon the said roller K.
Having now set forth the nature and object of the Invention of "Certain
Improvements in Machinery for Manufacturing Rope or Cordage," as com-

page_text: municated to me by my foreign correspondent, and explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above
in part recited Letters Patent I claim,-
First, driving the flyers by means of cone pulleys h, h, and the stationary
band or ring F, either the said band or ring, or the bearings 6, 6, of the flyers
having springs applied to keep them properly in contact with each other at all
times, and the band or ring, being movable in a direction parallel with the
axes of the flyers, to come in contact with a larger or smaller part of the cone
pulleys, and thus vary the speed of the flyers and the twist of the strands
while the machine is in operation.
Second, making the cans H, H, of polygonal form, to fit snugly between
the pillars on side pieces e, e, of the flyers, in combination with the springing
collar I, applied to fit over the top of the can, whereby the cans are enabled to
be quickly taken from the flyers and replaced.
Third, the grooved conical stretching rollers K, L, applied and operating
substantially as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Vincent Newton, have hereunto
hand and seal, this Second day of January, in the year of our
.set my
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
A. V. NEWTON. (L.S.)