IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SEWING BOOts and SHOES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn
Fields, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SEWING BOOts and
SHOES." A communication from abroad by Charles Goodyear, the
younger, of New Rochelle, Westchester County, in the State of
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 18th September 1875.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County
of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SEWING
BOOTS AND SHOES," a communication to me from abroad by Charles
Goodyear, the younger, of New Rochelle, Westchester County, in the
State of New York, United States of America, to be as follows: —
This Invention relates especially to certain improvements in that class

page_text: of machines in which a circular or rotary curved needle is used, and
more particularly to certain modifications of the machine in respect of
which Letters Patent were granted to me 4th April 1872, No. 996, the
said machine having been especially designed to sew turned shoes.
The object of this Invention is not only to improve the general
construction of the machine in its adaptation to sewing turned shoes or
in seams for welted work, but also to adapt it especially to the stitching
of out soles to welts..
In order that one particular feature of this Invention may be more
clearly understood, I would state that in all machines of this character:
hitherto made, the awl was made to pierce the work, entering from below
or upon the welt side of the work, and the needle from above or through
the channel side of the sole, consequently bringing the loop formed by
the chain stitch in the channel in the bottom of the sole. This plan has
been found to be attended with certain objections, as for instance, a 1
tendency of the single thread to cut into the welt, also a great difficulty
in covering the loop in the channel and making a well finished bottom.
These difficulties are overcome by reversing the above arrangement of
the awl and needlo in such a manner as to bring the loop side of the
chain stitch upon the welt, and the single thread in the channel in the
solc, it being obvious that in tightening the stitch there is no danger in
this way of cutting the welt, while the single thread in the channel is
covered without any difficulty so as to make a perfect finish.
One important feature of the improvements consists in mounting the
awl, stock, and channel gauge upon a vibratory oscillating plate or disc,
which turns upon a central stud or pivot instead of being mounted upon
a reciprocating sliding head, as described in the Specification of the
Letters Patent aforesaid. The method of mounting these parts is a great
improvement upon the-slide-motion, as it relieves the machine of much
wear and.is-much-more-durable.
In carrying out_this_Invention-a-head or frame is provided, upon
which are-mounted-the-cams-and-working parts of the machine. To
this head or frame there is attached a three-armed bracket or support
for the awl stock, the channel gauge, and its locking device and their
actuating levers. The needle segment is actuated by a double-jointed a
lever pivoted to the bracket and operated by a-cam. The needle is
dh a brace or onide for supporting the same, and protecting
B

page_text: it from being bent or broken, and a looper is also employed for
carrying the thread round the needle. A straight awl is employed,
which is mounted in the present arrangement in a plunger or awl
stock, which slides up and down in lugs upon the oscillating lever
or plate before referred to, which is preferably fornied like an armed
disc having an arm extending from its periphery, and being pivoted
upon a screw stud passing through the centre of a stationary disc or
bracket, which is fastened to the front of the three-armed bracket
before referred to. The arm projecting from the awl, stock, or disc is
slotted, and it is connected by means of an adjustable stud with an
oscillating lever mounted upon a rocking shaft, supported in stationary
bearings in a bracket situate above. A reciprocating motion is imparted
to this rocking shaft from a cam by means of a suitable lever, and

page_text: One side of the bar to which the foot of the channel guide is attached
is provided with a toothed rack operating upon a pinion, which is made
fast to the disc before-mentioned. The disc is provided with fine teeth
upon a portion of its periphery, in gear with which works a detent
arranged and positively actuated by suitable mechanism in such a
manner that when the detent is lifted out of contact with these teeth,
the disc with the pinion can revolve or turn freely with the channel
_ guide when the same-is-moved up or down; but at the moment when
the needle is about to make its upward thrust the detent by a suitable
mechanism is caused to drop upon the toothed periphery of the disc, and
then the same is rigidly locked until the detent is again lifted by its
actuating mechanism.
The rest or support for the work consists of a stationary table fastened
by screws to a suitable bracket, and rendered adjustable out and in with
reference to the needle, so as to regulate the distance of the stitch from
the edge of the shoe, or from the edge of the welt, and also to admit of
such adjustment with reference to different sizes of needles. The top of
the table is so formed that at the point where the awl descends upon it
in piercing the work, it forms a solid support for the work, as the awl
does not pass clear through the sole and welt, but is set so as nearly to
touch the top of the table, and then feeds the work over until the awl
and needle are point to point where the table is open. The needle used
in this machine is hooked and arranged so as to operate without the
employment of a cast off as described in the Specification of Letters
Patent granted to W. R. Lake, 23rd May 1870, No. 1491.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 17th March-1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of 30
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her --
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the

page_text: thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and grant unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special
licence that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, admini-
strators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Henry Johnson,
my executors, administrators, or 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 MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SEWING BOOTS AND SHOES,”
a communication to me from abroad by Charles Goodyear, the younger,
of New Rochelle, Westchester County, in the State of New York,
United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said John Henry Johnson, my executors or administrators, 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 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 John Henry Johnson, 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 Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon,
that is to say :-
-
The said Invention relates especially to certain improvements in that
class of machines in which a circular, or rotary, curved needle is used,
and more particularly to certain modifications of the machine in respect
of which Letters Patent were granted to me the Fourth April, One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, No. 996, the said machine
having been especially designed to sew turned shoes.
Now the object of this Invention is not only to improve the general
construction of such machine in its adaptation to sewing turned shoes
or in seams for welted work, but also to adapt it especially to the
stitching of out soles to welts.
In order that one particular feature of this Invention may be more
clearly understood I would state that in all machines of this character

page_text: hitherto made the awl has been caused to pierce the work entering from
below or upon the welt side of the work, and the needle from above or
through the channel side of the sole, consequently bringing the loop
formed by the chain stitch in the channel in the bottom of the solc.
This plan has been found to be attended with certain objections, as, for
example, a tendency of the single thread to cut into the welt, also a
great difficulty in covering the loop in the channel and making a well
finished bottom. These difficulties are overcome by reversing the above
-arrangement of the awl-and-needle-in-such-a-manner_as_to_bring_the_
loop side of the chain stitch upon the welt and the single thread in the
channel in the sole, it being obvious that in tightening the stitch there.
is no danger in this way of cutting the welt, while the single thread in
the channel is covered without any difficulty so as to make a perfect
finish.
One important feature of the improvements forming the subject of
this Invention consists in mounting the awl stock and channel gauge
upon a vibratory oscillating plate or disc which turns upon a central
stud or pivot in lieu of their being mounted upon a reciprocating sliding
head, as described in the Specification of the Letters Patent aforesaid.
This novel method of mounting these parts is a great improvement upon
the slide motion as it relieves the machine of much wear and is con-
siderably more durable.
Having indicated generally the main features of this Invention I
shall now procced to describe more fully and particularly the nature of
the said Invention and the manner in which the same is or may be
carried into effect by reference to the accompanying Drawings, in
which,-

page_text: Corresponding letters indicate corresponding parts in the several
Figures.
˚ A, A, represents the head or frame upon which are mounted the cams
and working parts of the machine; B, B, is a three-armed bracket or
support for the oscillating plate I and awl stock L, the channel
gauge J and its locking device K and their actuating levers, such three-
armed bracket being bolted to the head A, A, by the bolts or screws
C, C; D is the needle segment actuated by the jointed lever E, E, and
the cam F; G is the needle brace or guide for supporting the needle n
and protecting it from being bent or broken; H is the looper for
carrying the thread round the needle n; a is the awl mounted in the
present arrangement in a plunger or awl stock L, which slides up and
down in the lugs o, o, upon the oscillating lever or plate, which is by
preference formed liked an armed disc, such disc (represented in the
Drawings by the letter I) having an arm o' (Figure 4) extending from
its periphery, and being pivotted upon the screw stud m passing through
the centre of the stationary disc or bracket N which is fastened to the
front of the three-armed bracket B, B, by the screws b, b. The arm o¹
projecting from the plate or disc I is slotted, and it is connected by
means of the adjustable stud with the oscillating lever P mounted
upon the rock shaft P¹ supported on stationary bearings in the
bracket 2. A reciprocating motion is imparted to this rock shaft by
the cam R (shewn clearly in Figure 2) through the intervention of the
lever S, and thence to the awl stock.
. The length of the feed motion is regulated by moving the stud i up
or down in the slotted arm o². The up-and-down motion is imparted
to the awl by means of the crank lever T and the link U operated by a
cam, as shewn clearly in Figure 3.
One of the essential features in this machine is the arrangements of
the presser foot or channel guide J with its locking device K, which is
mounted upon and partakes of the motion of the plate or disc I. One
of the functions of the channel guide J is to act as a clamp or jaw to
hold the work properly, and it is necessary that it should adjust itself to
varying thickness of this work with a light yielding pressure upon the
work while moving backwards and forwards with the awl in effecting
the feed motion, but it should hold the work with increased pressure
while the awl is piercing the work; and .be. rigidly locked during

page_text: the upward thrust of the needle. These requirements are all effected
by the arrangement shewn in the detail Drawing, Figure 4. The
channel guide J is provided with two slots k, k, and slides freely up and
down upon the pins or studs which have flat heads or collars projecting
over each side, and serve as sliding ways. The channel guide and the
awl are connected with each other by a spiral spring p, fastened at the
ends by a pin or screw in each piece, or (which produces the same.
effect) by a pin or screw in the awl plunger, and a pin fastening
the upper end of the spring to the periphery of the disc (the latter
-arrangement-being-the-one-shewn-in-the-Drawing), so that when the
awl descends the spring is distended and brings the channel guide down
upon the work with increased pressure, it is then rigidly locked during
the upward thrust of the needle in the manner herein-after described.
By reference to the Drawing, Figure 4, it will be seen that one side
of the bar to which the foot of the channel guide J is attached is
provided with a toothed rack operating upon a pinion q which is made
fast to the disc r. This disc is provided with fine teeth upon a portion
of its periphery, in gear with which works a detent S, arranged in such
a manner that when the latter is lifted by means of a lever a¹ and cam,
or equivalent devices, out of contact with the teeth the disc” with the
pinion q can revolve or turn freely and follow the motion of the channel
guide J when the same is moved up or down, but at the moment when
the needle is about to make its upward thrust the detents is caused
under the action of a spring S¹, or other suitable mechanism, to drop
upon the toothed periphery of the disc r, whereby the latter is rigidly
locked until the detent is again lifted by its lever a¹ or other actuating
mechanism.
The rest or support for the work is indicated in the Drawings by the
letter t, and consists of a stationary table fastened by screws to a suitable
bracket, and rendered adjustable out and in relatively to the needle so
as to regulate the distance of the stitch from the edge of the shoe or
from the edge of the welt, and also to admit of such adjustment with
reference to different sizes-of-needles.-The-top-of-the-table-is-so-formed-
—that at the point where the awl.descends upon it in piercing the-work-it
forms a solid support for the work as the awl does not pass clear through
the sole and welt, but is set so as nearly to touch the top of the table
and then feeds the work over until the awl and needle are point to
point. The needle used in this machine hooked and arranged.so-as-to

page_text: operate without the employment of a cast-off, as described in the
Specification of Letters Patent granted to W. R. Lake, Twenty-third
May, One thousand eight hundred and seventy, No. 1491.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider
to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured
to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First. A sewing mechanism with a circular needle combined with a
suitable rest or support for the work, adapted to unite the out sole to the
welt of a boot or shoe in such a manner that the loop or chain formed
by the stitch shall lie upon the welt instead of in the channel in the
outsole.
Second. A sewing mechanism having an awl and circular needle
arranged in combination with and relatively to the channel guide and a
suitable support for the work, and adapted to unite the out sole to the
welt of a boot or shoe in such a manner that the loop or chain formed
by the stitch shall lie upon the welt instead of in the channel in the
out sole.
Third. A sewing mechanism in which a straight awl and a circular
needle are combined with a suitable rest or support for the edge of the
welt and sole to slide upon, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth. Mounting the awl and channel gauge or presser foot upon an
oscillating plate or lever in such a manner that the feed is effected by
the vibratory motion of the said plate or lever, substantially as herein-
before described.
Fifth. The combination of the oscillating vibratory awl with the
channel gauge and an intermittent locking device, so arranged that the
channel gauge shall be intermittently rigidly locked and released at
the proper intervals.
' Sixth. The use of an automatically adjustable toothed segment and a
positively actuated detent pawl or ratchet as applied to the jaws or
gauges in boot and shoc sewing machines for the purpose of inter-
mittently locking and releasing the said jaws or gauges.

page_text: Seventh. In a sewing mechanism for stitching soles of boots and
shoes to welts the combination of a piercing instrument or awl for
feeding the work with a table or support for the work which is solid
beneath the piercing point of the awl but open at the point where the
awl and needle meet, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.S.)