IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL, HAIR, SILK, COTTON, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES." SP
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Hargreaves, Whitesmith, and George
Henry Leather, Worsted Spinner, both of Bradford, in the West Riding
of the County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL, HAIR, SILK, COTTON, FLAX,
AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Hargreaves
and George Henry Leather at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 24th June 1862.
We, WILLIAM HARGREAVES, Whitesmith, and GEORGE HENRY LEATHER,
Worsted Spinner, both of Bradford, in the West Riding of the County of
York, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL, HAIR, SILK, COTTON, FLAX, AND
OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
The object of the Invention is to secure more simplicity, durability, and
economy in machinery for combing and cleansing wool and other fibrous
substances, and the apparatus consists of a frame on which is mounted a
revolving dial comb with its teeth or points projecting towards the centre.
Inside this comb a revolving roller or nipper is arranged with its axis not
coincident with the centre of the dial comb so that the wool or other fibrous
substance is pressed into the teeth of the dial comb at one point & there firmly

page_text: secured until the projecting part is cleansed of its noil, dirt, or short fibre by
means of a porcupine comb, card, or other contrivance, & as it progresses in
the dial comb it is drawn off by means of a pair of ordinary drawing off rollers
through the teeth of the dial comb, thereby delivering the sliver cleansed of
its noil, dirt, or short fibre. The feeder consists of a face plate mounted on a
shaft, on which also is fixed a creel, & these are arranged to move at the
same speed as the dial comb, but the face plate is set at an angle with the
dial comb, which angle may be increased or diminished to give a greater or
jess length of wool or fibre to the feed. The face plate is pierced with a series
of holes through which the wool or other fibrous substance to be combed
passes from the bobbins on the creel. By this arrangement the wool or other
fibrous substance is continuously pressed into the teeth of the dial comb at one
point where its projecting end is cleansed, it is afterwards drawn off through
the teeth of the dial comb & passed through the drawing off rollers in a sliver,
the portion of the fibre remaining in the teeth of the dial comb is raised
clear out of the comb in the further revolution thereof by inclined blades or
other means & then a further portion of fibre is pushed forward to be operated
on as before.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Hargreaves and George Henry Leather, in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd December 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
HARGREAVES, Whitesmith, and GEORGE HENRY LEATHER, Worsted Spinner,
both of Bradford, in the West Riding of the County of York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said William Hargreaves and George Henry Leather Her special
licence, that we, the said William Hargreaves and George Henry Leather,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
William Hargreaves and George Henry Leather, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to tinie 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

page_text: Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR COMBING WOOL,
HAIR, SILK, COTTON, FLAX, AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said William Hargreaves and George Henry
Leather, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 we, the said William Hargreaves and George
Henry Leather, 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:-
Our Invention relates to combing machinery in which the material to be
operated upon is drawn off in a continuous sliver of clean wool or other fibre
and also a continuous sliver of noil, dirt, and short fibre. The prin
ciple we proceed upon is to mount a 'revolving dial comb with its teeth
or pins all pointing towards the centre on an iron framework, and within
the dial comb we place a revolving roller or nipper having grooves turned in
it for the teeth or pins of the dial comb to travel in. The circular nipper
revolves upon its own axis which is firmly fixed to a sliding frame, and this frame
is acted upon by a spring and an adjusting screw so as to press the revolving
nipper against one side of the circular dial comb. When therefore the wool
or other fibre is brought by the action of the machine to this point of the
circular dial comb it is by this revolving nipper firmly pressed into the pins and
against the inner side of the comb, and whilst there the projecting end of the
wool or other fibre is brought within the action of a porcupine card or any
other suitable instrument revolving at a greater velocity than the dial comb
whereby it is cleansed of its noil, dirt, and short fibre. The noil, dirt, and short
fibre taken by the porcupine or card is passed from the porcupine by means
of a revolving brush and cleansing card (or by any other well known means),
in a sheet or sliver. By the further revolution of the dial comb the cleansed
portion of the fibre is released from the action of the circular nipper, and
passes under a set of stationary blades to prevent the fibre from rising above
the points of the teeth or pins of the comb when it approaches a pair of
ordinary drawing off rollers, by means of which it is drawn off through the
teeth of the dial comb. After passing by the drawing off rollers the portion
of fibre left in the teeth of the dial comb is brought by the further
revolution of the comb to a set of stationary inclined blades, by means of which

page_text: .
the fibre is raised clear out of the teeth or pins of the dial comb and remains
free from the teeth during a considerable portion of the revolution of the
comb, and during this period is pushed forward by the face plate. By the
further revolution of the dial comb the wool or other fibre becomes fixed in
the teeth of the comb and approaches the side of the comb against which the
circular nipper is pressed and its projecting end is there cleansed as before
described. The dial comb is fed or filled all round its circle of pins with the
fibre to be operated upon so that the different operations already described
are continuously carried on, producing a continuous sliver of cleansed fibre, and
a continuous sliver of noil, dirt, and short fibre.
We will now proceed to explain the face plate and creel for feeding the dial
comb. The face plate is made with a series of holes for the wool or other
fibre to pass through to be operated upon by the dial comb. The creel has
bobbins or cans to hold the wool or other fibre intended to be operated upon.
Both the creel and face plate are fixed on one shaft and geared to revolve at the
same speed as the dial comb. The iron frame which carries the shaft of the
creel and face plate is placed behind the dial comb and can be adjusted to an
angle with the dial comb so as to give a greater or less length of fibre to be
operated upon.
And in order that the several parts of our Invention may be fully understood
we have appended to this our Specification a Sheet of Drawings shewing
arrangements of mechanism by which the same may be carried into practical
operation and which we now proceed to describe.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of the dial comb and framework; Figure 2
is a side elevation of the dial comb, framework, and face plate; Figure 3 is
a horizontal section through the centre of the dial comb, circular nipper, and
face plate; Figure 4 is a vertical section through the centre of the dial comb,
circular nipper, face plate, and drawing off rollers.
a is the framework of the combing machine; b, the dial comb; c, the re-
volving porcupine or card; d, the drawing off rollers; e, the revolving roller or
nipper;f, the sliding frame for nipper; g, the face plate; h, the shaft on which
the face plate and creel is fixed; i, the main shaft; j,j, the fast and loose
driving pullies on the main shaft; k, the revolving brush for cleansing the
porcupine; l, a revolving card to cleanse the brush of its noil, &c., which may
be stripped from this card on to the travelling apron m; n is a set of sta-
tionary blades under which the fibre passes on its way to the drawing off rollers;
and o the stationary inclined blades for raising the fibre out of the comb.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we claim as being of

page_text: our Invention the use of the dial comb, with the revolving self-acting nipper
pressing the fibres into the teeth of the comb and holding them until the noil,
dirt, and short fibres are extracted, and the particular arrangement of the
feeding apparatus; but we do not confine ourselves to the exact mode de-
scribed, as the same may be varied by reversing the dial comb and nipper, and
in other ways.
In witness whereof, the said William Hargreaves and George Henry
Leather, have hereunto set their hands and seals, this Twenty-second
day of December in the year of our Lord 1862.
HARGREAVES.
(L.S.)
WILLIAM
GEORGE HENRY LEATHER. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered, by the
above-named William Hargreaves
and George Henry Leather, in
the presence of
H. F. KINICK,
Solicitor,
Bradford.