IMPROVE- MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Matthew Mirfield, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong,
near Bradford, in the County of York, Worsted Top Maker, and John
Scott, of the same Place, Overlooker, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS
"
Sealed the 5th April 1867, and dated the 9th October 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Matthew Mirfield and
John Scott at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 9th October 1866.
We, MATTHEW MIRFIELD, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong, near Bradford, in
the County of York, Worsted Top Maker, and JOHN SCOTT, of the same Place,
Overlooker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS
SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
One part of our Invention consists in feeding wool or other fibrous;
substances in continuous slivers on to a porcupine gill head, oscillating comb,
or other suitable feeding instrument, to which motion is given in such
manner as to cause the said slivers to be brought forward and projected there-
from at suitable intervals of time, and by means of a brush, comb, or other
suitable instrument one end of the said sliver is stripped out of the teeth of
5 the porcupine gill head, comb, or other feeding apparatus and fed into or
between the jaws of a revolving or oscillating nipper or nippers which draw,

page_text: the wool or fibre through the said teeth; detaching a portion from the sliver,
and thereby combing or cleaning one end of each detached tuft.
Another part of our Invention consists in the employment of an oscillating
transfer comb for detaching tufts from the revolving or oscillating nipper or
nippers, and placing the noil ends thereof through or between a pair of
stationary nippers to be cleansed or combed by a porcupine comb or other
suitable instrument, and at the return stroke the teeth of the transfer comb
are caused to pass through the ends of the tufts previously cleaned or combed,
thereby giving each tuft a second or additional operation.
Another part of our Invention consists in the employment of an endless
travelling apron for conveying the tufts from the ordinary nippers into a gill
box or on to a porcupine or other suitable apparatus for reforming the said -
tufts into a sliver or into a lap as may be required. And
Another part of our said Invention consists in the employment of a revolving
or oscillating comb or combs to seize the ends of the sliver as it is projected
from or. by the porcupine gill head or comb, and to detach a partially cleaned
tuft therefrom, leaving a cleaned fringe on the sliver to be taken hold of by
the revolving or oscillating nippers or other suitable drawing-off apparatus.
The tufts taken by the revolving or oscillating comb or combs are taken by
the transfer comb (previously named) and placed into or between the jaws of
the stationary nippers for the noil end to be cleaned or combed by a porcupine
or by a comb or other suitable instrument. The clean tufts are then deposited
on the endless apron along with the tufts detached by the revolving or
oscillating nippers.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed 2
by the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 9th April 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, MATTHEW
MIRFIELD, of Holme Lane Mills, Tong, near Bradford, in the County of
York, Worsted Top Maker, and JOHN SCOTT, of the same Place, Overlooker, 3
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of October, in the year
Lord One thousand cight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, Her special licence that
3

page_text: we, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Matthew Mirfield
and John Scott, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon
the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Matthew Mirfield and John
Scott, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our, or their, or one of our or their hands and scals, 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
Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Matthew Mirfield and John Scott,
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 and accompanying Sheets of Drawings (that is
:-
to say):-
One part of our Invention consists in feeding wool or other fibrous sub-
stances in continuous slivers into a porcupine gill head, oscillating comb, or
other suitable feeding instrument, to which motion is given in such manner as
to cause the said slivers to be brought forward and projected therefrom at
suitable intervals of time, and by means of a brush, comb, or other suitable
instrument one end of the said sliver is stripped out of the teeth of the
porcupine gill head, comb, or other feeding apparatus and fed into or between
the jaws of a revolving or oscillating nipper or nippers, which draw the wool
or fibre through the said teeth, detaching a portion from the sliver, and
thereby combing or cleaning one end of cach detached tuft.
Another part of our Invention consists in the employment of an oscillatory
transfer comb for detaching tufts from the revolving or oscillating nipper or
nippers, and placing the noil ends thereof through or between a pair of
stationary nippers to be cleaned or combed by a porcupine comb or other
suitable instrument, and at the return stroke the teeth of the transfer comb
are caused to pass through the ends of the tufts previously cleaned or combed,
thereby giving each tuft a second or additional operation.
Another part of our Invention consists in the employment of an endless
travelling apron for conveying the_tufts from the ordinary nippers into a gill

page_text: upon by an oscillatory comb G, which cleanses or removes the noil therefrom.
As the transfer comb returns from the nipper E its teeth are passed through
the cleansed end of the tuft, thus giving it a second operation, and at the same
time a travelling apron H is raised into position and the jaws E are opened,
5 when the tuft cleansed at both ends is received on the apron and carried away
to another apron I, where it is formed into a "lap." The noil is removed
from the transfer comb by a brush formed on an endless belt D', which is
cleansed by a rotary card roller D', which is stripped by a doffing plate D³.
The oscillatory comb G is cleaned by a rotary brush J, which is also cleansed
by another rotary card K, which is stripped by a doffing plate L. Fig. 2
shews the oscillatory nippers in the act of seizing the protruding end of the
sliver, the jaw C¹ being held for a time by the swell M coming in contact with
the lever N, which is pressed by a spring N¹ whilst the other jaw is moving
forward until they close upon the wool or fibre and the lever becomes a brake
upon them, keeping them closed until required to be opened. Fig. 3 shews
the nippers as having partially detached a tuft, and Fig. 4 shews a complete
detachment, and the jaws being liberated from the action of the lever upon
the swell will open and deliver the tuft upon the teeth of the transfer comb
which is in position to receive it. Fig. 5 shews the nippers returning to make
another detachment, and brush B in the act of brushing the end of the sliver
out of the teeth of the porcupine ready for the nippers to seize it when
arriving at the position. Figs. 6, 7, 8, and 9 are details of the nippers
shewing their construction with the brush attached to one part which is fixed
on the shaft, the other part being hinged on the said shaft. Motion is given
to the several parts of the machine by a belt o on the driving pullies P fixed
on the main shaft P¹, on which is a spur pinion P in gear with a cam plate
or wheel P³, on which is a stud Q, attached to which is a rod Q¹ connected to
in arm Q³ fixed on the shaft Q³, on which is also fixed a spur wecel Q' gearing
nto another wheel Q fixed on the shaft carrying the the comb G. On the
haft Q is also fixed a lever arm Q, to which is attached a rod Q', connecting.
vith another lever arm Qhinged on the shaft of one of the rollers A³
upporting the endless feeding apron A³, and on this shaft is a ratchet wheel A*
ato which a catch Q attached to the arm Q takes, and by which intermittent
notion is given to the endless feed apron. On the other roller A supporting
he feed apron is a spur pinion A' in gear with a wheel A' fixed on the shaft
f the porcupine, by which intermittent motion is given thereto. A pulley is
so fixed on the shaft P¹, which by belt and pulley on the shaft of the brush J
otion is given thereto, and by gear wheels to the comb K, and by crank rod
id lever to the doffing plate. At the other end of the shaft which carries
-

page_text: the cam plate or wheel P³ is another similar cam plate or wheel having a stud
therein, to which is attached a rod R connected to a lever arm R' fixed on
the axis of the endless brush D³, on which is also a spur wheel K* gearing
with another spur wheel K fixed on the axis of the oscillatory nippers, by
which motion is given thereto. Another lever arm S is fixed on the axis of
the endless brush, to which is attached a rod S¹ connected to the arm of the
transfer comb, also another comb S connected to an arm fixed on the axis of
one of the rollers carrying the endless apron I, and on the same axis is a spur
wheel S gearing with another spur wheel S fixed on one of the rollers
carrying the endless apron H, by which motion is given to these parts, also
another arm T is fixed on the axis of the transfer comb, and connected by a
rod T to the frame carrying the endless apron H gives motion thereto.
Sheet 2 illustrates our method of feeding slivers of wool or other fibre to an
oscillating comb to be taken by revolving nippers and combed by other suitable
instruments, and then to be reformed into sliver. Fig. 10 is a side elevation,
and Fig. 11 is a longitudinal section of the same. A is the feeding apron, and
B the oscillary feeding comb to which the wool or fibre is supplied, and
which is suspended above a pair of revolving comb nippers C and O¹, which
seize the end of the sliver as it is projected by or from the oscillatory comb,
and detaches a tuft cleaned at one end, which is carried forward and deposited
on a transfer comb D, by which it is transferred to a pair of stationary nippers
F and F, where the noil end is operated upon or cleaned by an oscillating
cleaning comb Gin the same manner as previously described, after which the
nippers open and the tuft is received upon an endless apron H and conveyed to
a set of screw gills H', which conduct it to a pair of drawing rollers I, by which
it is drawn out into a sliver, and it is then conducted by the drawing leather J
to the rotary funnel or conical tube K, through which it is drawn by a pair of
rollers L, which conduct it into the sliver can. After the nippers C and C
have detached a tuft from the oscillatory comb a cleansed fringe is left therein,
and the said comb then oscillates or moves into a position with another pair of
nippers M and M³, which scize the protruding cleansed end, and turning in
the direction of the arrow draws out and detaches a cleansed. tuft which they
carry and deposit on the gills H', which thereby is carried forward with tho
other tufts to form a sliver.
Figs. 12 and 13 (Sheet 1) shew the nippers O and M in detail drawn on a
larger scale, where it will be seen that the nippers C have comb teeth in one
jaw entering flutes on the other jaw so as to clean the end of the sliver whilst
detaching a tuft, and the nippers M have both jaws fluted so as to bite and
hold on the cleansed end of the sliver,

page_text: Fig. 14 (Sheet 3) is an end view of the oscillatory feeding comb; Fig. 15
is part of the side or front view; Fig. 16 is the underneath view; and
Fig. 17 is a cross section of the same. N is a shaft on which the comb is
suspended by arms N', to which are attached the combs P and P. Grates Q
and Q' are fixed on pins R, which are capable of sliding in bosses R₁ fixed to
the arms N¹ to such extent that the comb teeth may pass through the first
grate into the teeth attached to bosses S¹ capable of sliding on arms S³,
hinged on a shaft S³, carried on brackets S*, fixed in the arms N¹.
The operation of this machine is as follows:-Wool, china grass, flax, silk,
or other fibrous substances to be combed is laid upon the feed apron A, and
passing over a roller N* is passed betwixt the grates Q and Q at a time when
the comb teeth are withdrawn from the grates, as shewn at Fig. 14. The
comb S is shewn as being inserted into the fibre, and is held in its present
position by the action of elastic bands S³ and a catch S°; also another catch S
holds the grates of the comb teeth. The oscillating feeding head on the
combs P and P¹ are lifted by the action of a cam T fixed on the face of a plate
wheel T operating a bell-crank lever T, which is connected by a rod T³ to the
shaft N. Whilst the combs P and P¹ are being lifted the catch S° prevents
the comb from being lifted, consequently has the effect of pulling the slivers
of the fibre forward betwixt the gratings, and when lifted off the catch S7, the
head being then unsupported in that position, it oscillates into a line with the
centre of the revolving nipping comb, the jaws of which are open to receive
the tuft, when the head lowers and the nippers seize the protruding end and
detaches a tuft therefrom, which is carried forward and deposited on the
transfer comb, as previously described. The oscillatory heads then moves into
position for the other revolving nipper to seize the protruding end of the
sliver which has been previously cleansed by the comb nippers, and detach a
cleansed tuft therefrom which is carried forward to the gills.
Sheet 4 represents a double-action machine, constructed also according to
this Invention, for feeding through a double oscillatory hoad two sets of slivers,
which are detached in tufts by double oscillating nippers, and delivered to two
sets of cleaning and drawing-off rollers. Fig. 18 is a longitudinal section, in
which A is the oscillatory head, which is of similar construction to the head
previously described, but is double or formed so that two slivers are passed
imultaneously, the grates traversing from one side to the other, in order that
while one sliver is being drawn forward the other is having a tuft detached
herefrom cleansed at one end; B is the oscillating nippers, which it will be.
een have two sets of nipping jaws, so that when one set are detaching a tuft
he other may be delivering a tuft to one or other of the transfer combs ♥

page_text: and D, by which they are transferred to stationary nippers E and F, and held
whilst being operated upon by endless card sheets G and H, which cleanses
the other end of the tuft. Other endless card sheets I and J are employed to
remove the cleansed tufts in the place of gills to reform the sliver in the usual
manner. Motion is given to the machine by a pinion K on the main shaft
gearing with a wheel L, on which is a stud L', to which is a rod M. connecting
with a lever M¹³ fixed on the axis of a segment M³, which gears with a spur
wheel fixed on the axis of the oscillating nippers; on this segment wheel is a
stud, to which is attached a rod N connecting to a bar N¹, which is jointed at
each end to a lever N and N³, by which motion is given to the card sheets.
A tappet P is fixed on the axis of the stud wheel L, which acts on a sliding
bar P, to which is attached a lever P³ fixed on the axis of an oscillating
nipper R, which nips alternately on the two jaws R and R³ for holding the
tufts to be cleansed. The two sets of drawing-off apparatus S and S¹ are
similar to the apparatus previously described and in ordinary use.
These oscillating nippers are constructed in parts as shewn in Figs. 19, 20,
and 21, where Fig. 19 is the form of the two ends which are fixed on the
shaft, the other parts turning loose on the shaft; spring latches U are hinged
to the loose parts which drop into notches V in the end parts when brought
into position to nip. The loose parts are held by catches W attached to a
spring bar W¹, while the segment shell turns the fixed part up to the nip,
when the latches of that part drop into their notches, and holds the said
nipper in close contact, until by turning of the nippers the said latches are
brought into contact with a swell or projection ✗ on a cross rail of the
framing, which lifts the latches out of the notches, and the jaws are again
liberated on the reversion of the nipper, or similar action takes place, and this
mode of locking the jaws is the same as used in the machine illustrated on
Sheet 2, and in the details of the nippers referred to at Figs. 10 and 11 of
Sheet 1.
Figs. 22, 23, and 24 are details of the double feeding head drawn half size.
Fig. 22 is the end view, and Fig. 23 is part of a front view, and Fig. 24 is a
cross section of the same. A and B are the two sets or pairs of grates, cach
pair connected by bushes C, which are fixed in the central frame F, to
which the suspending arms G are attached; H is a lover for moving or sliding
the grates from one side to the other, and I are rollers for carrying the feed
apron; the arrows indicate the course of the slivers of wool or other fibre when
being fed to this machine. Oscillatory motion is given to the feeding head by
means of a lever Y attached thereto, which is acted upon by a cam Z fixed on
the shaft carrying the nippers, and the traverse or throw of the grates is

page_text: by the top end of the lever coming in contact with a projecting finger
on each of the brackets which support the head.
Sim
In witness whereof, I, the said John Scott, for and on behalf of myself
and the said Matthew Mirfield, have hereunto set my hand and seal,
this Sixth day of April, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
by the
(L.S.)
within-named John Scott in the
presence of
WM. TASKER,
Patent Agent,
Halifax.