IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WOVEN FABRICS
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Ward, of the City of Manchester, Manu-
facturer, and Thomas Travis, of Royton, in the County of Lancaster,
Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF WOVEN FABRICS."
Sealed the 8th May 1868, and dated the 19th November 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Ward and Thomas
Travis at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 19th November 1867.
We, ROBERT WARD, of the City of Manchester, Manufacturer, and THOMAS
TRAVIS, of Royton, in the County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF WOVEN FABRICS," to be as follows:-
Our Invention is particularly applicable to the manufacture of the cotton
fabrics known as moleskins and beaverteens, and it consists in making such
fabrics with a ribbed or twilled face instead of plain as heretofore.
In performing our Invention we employ a loom of the ordinary construction
having four or other greater number of shafts or healds. When six shafts
are employed, and this number has been found by experiments to give a good
result, we work them in the following succession:-The first, second, fourth,
and fifth shafts are raised for the first back pick; then the second shaft is
raised for the first face pick; then the fifth shaft is raised for the second face
pick; then the second, third, fifth, and sixth shafts are raised for the second
back pick; then the second shaft is raised for the third face pick; then the
fifth shaft is raised for the fourth face pick; then the first, third, fourth, and

page_text: sixth shafts are raised for the third back pick; then the second shaft is raised
for the fifth face pick; and, lastly, the fifth shaft is raised for the sixth face
pick, thus completing the round. In this tie-up the face weft is floated over
five warp threads. We wish, however, to observe that we do not intend to
limit ourselves to the above details, as the desired ribbed or twilled face may
be obtained by a different arrangement of the tie-up or order of succession of
working the healds.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Ward and Thomas Travis in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 16th May 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ROBERT
WARD, of the City of Manchester, Manufacturer, and THOMAS TRAVIS, of
Royton, in the County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Robert Ward and Thomas Travis, Her special license that we, the said
Robert Ward and Thomas Travis, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said Robert Ward and Thomas Travis, our
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 THE MANUFACTURE OF WOVEN
FABRICS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Robert
Ward and Thomas Travis, our executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under our, or their, or one of our or their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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 we, the said Robert Ward and Thomas Travis,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement (that is to say) :-

page_text: Our Invention is particularly applicable to the manufacture of the cotton
fabrics known as velveteens, beaverteens, or moleskins, and it consists in
making such fabrics with a ribbed face instead of plain, as heretofore.
In performing our Invention we employ a loom of the ordinary construction
having four or other greater number of shafts or healds.
And in order that our Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into practical operation by a competent weaver we will proceed to describe
the accompanying Sheet of Diagrams, which represent various tie-ups or drafts
for producing our improved fabrics.
In the Diagrams the horizontal lines indicate the shafts or healds for
raising the warps, and the vertical lines are the weft.
Figure 1 is the tie-up for weaving a fabric known as a velveteen, beaverteen,
or moleskin, but having a ribbed face, in an ordinary single shuttle loom with six
shafts or warp threads, in combination with nine weft threads; in this tie-up the
shafts are raised and lowered in the following succession (that is to say):-The
first shed for the first back pick is made by raising the first, second, fourth, and
fifth shafts and lowering the third and sixth shafts; the second shed for the first
face pick is made by raising the second shaft and lowering the others; the
third shed for the second face pick is made by raising the fifth shaft and
lowering the others; the fourth shed for the second back pick is made by
raising the second, third, fifth, and sixth shafts, and lowering the first and
fourth shafts; the fifth shed for the third face pick is made by raising the
second shaft and lowering the others; the sixth shed for the fourth face pick
is made by raising the fifth shaft and lowering the others; the seventh shed
for the third back pick is made by raising the first, third, fourth, and sixth
shafts, and lowering the second and fifth shafts; the eighth shed for the fifth
face pick is made by raising the second shaft and lowering the others; and
the ninth shed for the sixth and last face pick is made by raising the fifth
shaft and lowering the others, thus completing the round. In this tie-up the
face weft is floated over five warp threads.
The tie-ups marked Figures 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 are for producing a similar
fabric to that produced by Figure 1, but with some slight variations in the
order of succession of the healds.
Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 are tie-ups corresponding with the above,
but arranged so as to produce the same fabrics with four shafts.
The tie-ups marked Figures 13 to 22, inclusive are for producing similar
fabrics in a loom with fifteen shafts or warp threads in combination with nine
weft threads; in these tie-ups the face weft is floated over four warp threads.
Figures 23 and 24 are tie-ups for producing similar fabrics with nine shafts.

page_text: The tie-ups marked Figures 25, 26, 27, and 28 are for producing similar
fabrics in a loom with twelve shafts or warp threads in combination with nine
weft threads; in these tie-ups the face weft is floated over three warp threads.
Figures 29, 30, 81, and 32 are tie-ups for producing similar fabrics with
nine shafts.
Figure 33 is a tie-up for producing similar fabrics in a loom with twelve shafts
or warp threads in combination with twelve weft threads, the face weft floating
over three warp threads.
Figure 84 is a tie-up for weaving the same fabric in a loom with nine
shafts.
The above particulars will be sufficient to illustrate the nature of our
improvements in the manufacture of velveteens, beaverteens, or moleskins with
a ribbed face; but we wish to observe that by slightly varying the arrange-
ment of the tie-ups or order of succession in which the shafts or healds are
worked and the number of shafts similar results may be obtained.
Having thus stated the nature of our Invention, and described several
modes of performing the same, we declare that we claim the manufacture of
velveteens, beaverteens, or moleskins with a ribbed face, as described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Robert Ward and Thomas Travis,
have hereto set our hands and seals, this Fifteenth day of May, One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
ROBERT WARD. (L.s.)
(L.S.)
T. TRAVIS.