IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR WINDING YARN
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Knowles, of Bolton-le-Moors, in the County
of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR WINDING YARN."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Knowles at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th August 1880.
WILLIAM KNOWLES, of Bolton-le-Moors, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton
Spinner. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR WINDING YARN."
My said Invention, which has reference to the machinery employed in the
winding of yarn, relates, in the first place, to an improved method of winding the
yarn upon bobbins so as to enable the yarn so wound to cohere and retain its
shape when deprived of the support of the bobbin upon which it has been wound.
This is effected by winding the yarn in such a manner as to cause the successive
layers built upon the bobbin to cross each other at an angle, and according to my
Invention I obtain this result by the employment of a traversing guiding arrange-
ment, whereby the yarn as it is wound on the bobbin is quickly traversed
backwards and forwards in the direction of the bobbin axis, the speed of traverse
being so arranged relatively to the bobbin speed as to result in the crossing of the
Yarn wound in this
successive layers of yarn as they are built on the bobbin.
manner can be removed from the bobbins and packed for transportation without
change of form. The oscillation of the traversing guide may be effected by a cam,
crank, or other suitable means. Instead of driving the bobbins from a frictional
drum as is usual I prefer to employ a revolving shaft, and to interpose between the
said shaft and the bobbin an intermediate roller or bowl, the periphery of which is
preferably covered with flannel or other suitable material, and which when
revolved by the shaft imparts motion in its turn to the superposed bobbin. The
roller and bobbin are carried in inclined slides on a bracket or other part of the
framing. A double lever is centred behind the revolving shaft, and one end of
the said lever is jawed and bears upon the under side of the axle of the said inter-
mediate roller so as to be capable of lifting it at times out of contact with the
revolving shaft. The other end of the lever is weighted and is attached by a
LD 671

page_text: connecting rod to the free end of another foot lever or treadle which is centred in
its length upon a stud or pivot, so that when pressure is applied by the foot of the
attendant the free end of the lever is raised, lifting with it the weighted end of the
first referred to lever, and as a consequence allowing the intermediate roller or
bowl to bear upon the revolving shaft, thus receiving and imparting motion to the
bobbin. To retain the weighted lever in its depressed position, I provide a stop
which when thrust forward by the attendant engages with a projection or notch
on the aforesaid connecting rod, so that when the foot is removed from the treadlo
the weighted lever end is supported and the bobbin continues to revolve. The
advantage of the foregoing treadle arrangement is that thereby the attendant is at
liberty to employ both hands to hold and guide the yarn in adjusting and starting
the bobbin. When it is desired to stop or remove the bobbin the stop is drawn
out of gear with the connecting rod, and the levers in falling raise the roller and
bobbin out of contact with the shaft. In order that the bobbin may be stopped
as quickly as possible I arrange a pin or projection upon the supporting bracket
so placed as to bear at times upon the axle or periphery of the intermediate roller
(or it might be upon the axle of the bobbin). When the roller and bobbin are
raised by the lever the said pin or projection by its retaining influence performs
the functions of a brake. The herein before referred to sliding stop is further
utilized as a means of automatically stopping the bobbin when the yarn end
breaks. With this object I prolong the said sliding stop towards the front of the
machine, and at its outer end is a guiding eyelet, the prolongation or shank of
which passes loosely through the end of the stop. The yarn is led from the cop
over a guide bar, and thence through the eyelet to the traversing guide above. So
long as the yarn end remains unbroken the eyelet is supported at a certain height,
but should the thread break the eyelet drops so as to bring its shank within the
range of an oscillating lever, which strikes it and pushes the stop forward so as to
disengage the weighted levers and thus arrest the rotation of the bobbin. By a
modification the hereinbefore referred to intermediate roller may in certain cases
be dispensed with, and the bobbin driven direct from the revolving shaft; one
revolving shaft may also be used in place of the usual drums, as I propose to make
the bobbins without Blanches or heads.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Knowles in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 17th
February 1881.
WILLIAM KNOWLES, of Bolton-le-Moors, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton
Spinner. 'IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR WINDING YARN."
My said Invention, which has reference to the machinery employed in the
winding of yarn relates in the first place to an improved method of winding yarn
upon tubes or bobbins, so as to enable the yarn so wound to cohere and retain its
shape without the support of the end flanches of the ordinary bobbin upon which
it is usually wound. This is effected by winding the yarn in such a manner as to
cause the successive layers built upon the bobbin to cross each other at an angle;
and according to my Invention I obtain this result by the employment of a quickly
traversing guiding arrangement. Yarn wound in this manner can be packed for
transportation without change of form. Instead of driving the bobbins from a
frictional drum as is usual, I prefer to interpose between the driving shaft and the
bobbin an intermediate roller or bowl, the periphery of which is preferably covered
with flannel or other suitable material, and which when revolved by the shaft
imparts motion in its turn to the superposed bobbin. The roller and bobbin are
carried in inclined slides or guides on a bracket or other part of the framing. To.
arrest the movement of the bobbin when the yarn breaks I employ a weighted
forked lever, which is mounted behind the revolving shaft. The loaded end of the
said lever is sustained by means of a prop-rod, which is supported by means of a stop-
rod. The yarn ends pass through drop guides carried by or connected with the said
stop-rod. When an end breaks the guide drops and an oscillating lever strikes
it and thereby moves the stop-rod, and the weighted lever being no longer sustained
raises the bobbin. The forked ends of the lever act in conjunction with fixed
surfaces to brake the bobbin. When the broken end has been pieced the bobbin
is lowered by placing the foot upon a treadle which raises the aforesaid prop rod,
the stop rod at the same time moving into position to sustain the said prop rod. I
may dispense with the said treadle and raise the said prop rod by hand. The inter-
mediate roller may be dispensed with, and the bobbin be driven direct from the
revolving shaft, in which case one revolving shaft may be used in place of the usual
drums, as I am able to use bobbins or tubes made without flanches or heads.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood I will now refer to a
Sheet of Drawings marked with letters of reference which I have attached hereunto.
In the said Drawings, Fig. 1, made to a scale of about three inches to the foot,
represents a cross sectional elevation of part of a doubling winding frame fitted
with my Invention, and Fig. 2 represents a front elevation of the same, ordinary
details not necessary to the illustration of my Invention not being represented. In
the said Figs. a is the bobbin: b, the intermediate roller; c, the driving shaft;
and d, the weighted lever. The shaft c, which is fitted to revolve in suitable
bearings, extends from end to end of the frame and drives a number of bobbins.
The intermediate roller is provided with gudgeons which enter grooves in
brackets e, one of which brackets is seen on a larger scale in Fig. 5. The gudgeons
or axle or spindle ends of the bobbin a also enter inclined grooves in the said
brackets. The yarn guides fare attached to a traversing guide bar g. One of the
said guides is represented on a larger scale by Figs. and 3a, Fig. 3 being a plan
or top view of the guide. The said guide projects beyond the bar g and partly
over the roller b, the projecting end being brought as near as conveniently possible
to the point of contact between the yarn upon the bobbin and the roller b. This
is an important feature of my Invention, as the yarn could not be guided to build
up a firm roll not requiring bobbin beads to keep it in form if the guides were at
the ordinary distance from the bobbin. A groove extends from the front to the

page_text: point of the guide, and the yarn lies in this groove, so that the yarn is held right
up to the said point. The bar g is traversed quickly to and fro by means of a
crank or cam or by any suitable means, so that each layer makes only a com-
paratively few turns around the bobbin, as, for example, I have caused the said
bar to traverse so quickly as that the yarn makes less than three turns around the
bobbin when passing from one end to the other. It will be readily seen that each
layer crosses the preceding layer, the result being that as the bobbin fills a cylin-
drical mass of yarn cohering sufficiently to enable it to be packed and transported
from place to place is formed. The intention in inclining the grooves in the
bracket e is that as the diameter of the cylindrical coil of yarn increases the part
of the said coil which is in line with the point of the guide f shall continue
to be at about the same distance from the said point. Instead of the said
grooves being straight I may make them of a suitably curved form, or I may
control the movements of the bobbin by means of a swing frame, or of radius
links, as indicated by Fig. 7. By means of this inclination of the said grooves
I am enabled to bring the ends of the yarn guides nearer to the point of contact of
the coiled yarn with the roller b, than I otherwise could. The lever dis
represented on a larger scale in side view and plan by Fig. 4. The said lever is
pivoted at to any suitable bracket or part of the framing. The ends of the
fork are formed with curved surfaces, which are adapted to fit upon necks formed
upon the roller b.
A load is suspended from the lever, and to the loaded end of
the lever is jointed one end of a prop rod k. Upon the said rod is mounted a
link l; which is jointed to the inner end of a stop-rod m, which end is sustained by
a prop n which is jointed to the said rod and rests in a hollow in a rail o.
So long
as the prop n is vertical it sustains the end of the stop rod, which in its turn
sustains the prop-rod k, and thereby keeps the lever d out of contact with the
roller b. The front end of the stop-rod is arranged to slide in a rail p, and is
provided with a head represented on a larger scale by Fig. 6, which head carries
drop guides, corresponding in number to the number of ends which the frame is
required to wind together. Each end of yarn passes through one of the said
drop guides on its way to the yarn guide f, and sustains the said drop guide as in
the cases of similar stop motions. Upon a rocking shaft a vibrating finger s is
fixed. As this finger vibrates to and fro, its end clears the lower ends of the drop
guides, so long as they are sustained by the yarn, but when an end of the yarn
breaks, the corresponding guide drops, and the finger s then strikes it, and by so
doing slides the stop rod m towards the front of the frame, whereby the prop n is
moved from its perpendicular position, and no longer sustains the inner end of
the stop rod. The prop rod thus losing its support permits the loaded end of
the lever d to be lowered, whereby the ends of the lever fork move upwards and
lift the roller d from contact with the driving shaft or roller. Upon the brackets e
are formed curved ribs t, and when the roller b is lifted, the roller necks are forced
into contact with these ribs. The roller necks being thus tightly gripped between
the fork ends and these ribs the revolution of the roller is quickly arrested. To
render the brake action of the parts more effective the roller necks may be made
polygonal or be corrugated or fluted, the forked ends of the lever d and the ribs t
being formed to correspond. So soon as the winding ceases it is advisable that the
yarn shall be lifted out of the groove in the guide f. For this purpose I employ a
lever u which is pivoted at to a part fixed to the framing. The short arm of
this lever bears against the under side of a collar upon the rod k, the longer and
heavier arm of the lever being thereby sustained. Upon the end of the longer arm
is formed or fixed a cross bar, which during the winding remains below the yarn
and out of contact therewith. When the rod k drops, the said cross bar is raised
and lifts the yarn out of the groove. The lower end of the rod k is connected by
means of a link w with a treadle x, the connection permitting the lowering of the
said rod. In the example the upper end of the link w is slotted to permit the said
rod to drop without affecting the treadle. When the piecing of the broken end has
been effected, the attendant presses with the foot upon the outer end of the treadle,

page_text: and the rod is thereby raised, whereby the loaded end of the lever d is raised,
and the roller b is thereby lowered into contact with the driving shaft. When the
rod k is thus raised the projecting arm of the link which acts as a weight causes
the said link to draw inwards the stop rod until the prop n assumes a vertical
position. When the foot is removed from the treadle the rod k is again sustained
and the winding of the yarn is resumed. The front of the guide f is formed with
two inclines as seen in Fig. 2. These inclines guide the yarn into the groove, when
the attendant releases the yarn after piecing an end. I may dispense with the use
of the treadle, in which case the attendant can raise the rod k by pressing with the
hand upon the cross-bar upon the lever u. Although I have termed the part upon
which the yarn is wound a bobbin, it is or may be a tube of wood, paper, or
other suitable material mounted upon a spindle. Arrangements may be made for
rotating the bobbin in the reverse direction to the indication in the Drawings, in
which case the guides would have their ends in contact with the coil of yarn, and
be arranged to deliver the yarn above the bobbin instead of below it, and would be
hinged so as to rise as the bobbin filled, as indicated by Fig. 8, or the traversing bar
might be raised during the formation of the cylindrical coil. The method of forming
the said coil may be used without the arrangements for arresting the winding, and
without the method of driving by means of an intermediate roller. The form of
the guide may be varied, so long as it guides the yarn to a point close to the
point where it is wound upon the coil. The arrangements for supporting the rod k
by means of the stop rod may be varied, as for example, the end of the sliding stop
rod might simply extend below a collar upon the rod k, which would drop when
the end of the stop rod would be withdrawn from below the said collar on the
breakage of an end. The lever d may be loaded by means of a spring instead of a
weight if preferred. In the foregoing description I have referred only to the
winding of two or more ends together upon a bobbin, but parts of my Invention
are equally applicable to the winding of single threads or ends upon a bobbin.
Having now fully set forth and indicated the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which I carry the same into practical effect, I would have it to be
understood that I claim,-
First. The combination of parts, substantially as set forth and indicated.
Secondly. So constructing the guides which control the position of the bobbin or
tube, as that the yarn guide shall from the commencement to the completion of the
winding be as close as is practically possible to the point of contact of the coil of
yarn with the driving roller or shaft, substantially as and for the purpose herein-
before set forth and indicated.
Thirdly. Arranging for the yarn guide to be in contact with the coil of yarn at
all times during its formation, substantially as and for the purpose indicated.
Fourthly. The use of an intermediate roller between the driving shaft and the
bobbin or cylindrical coil of yarn.
Fifthly. The forked loaded lever d to raise the intermediate roller on the
breakage of an end, and the arrangements for arresting the rotation of the bobbin
or cylindrical coil, substantially as set forth and indicated.
And, Lastly. The arrangements for releasing the lever & on the breakage of an
end, substantially as set forth and indicated.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Knowles, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Fifteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty-one.
WILLIAM KNOWLES. (L.S.)