CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1827

page_text: ALL
1, 1, OHN
PLATT, of Salford, in the County of Lancaster, Fustian Shearer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain, bearing date at Westminster, the Eighth lay of November,
One thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven, in the eighth year of His
reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Platt, His especial licence that I, the said John Platt, my exors,
adiors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Platt, my exors,
adiors, or assigns, should at any time appoint and agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, an Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,"
which Invention I became possessed of by certain communications made to
me by a Foreigner residing abroad; in which said Letters Patent is contained
a proviso obliging me, the said John Platt, by an instrument in writing under
hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed and carried into
effect, and to cause the same to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and iminediately after the date of
the said in part above recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same,
reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear."
my

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Platt, do hereby declare that the aforesaid Improvements in Machinery
for Combing Wool and other Fibrous Materials, and the manner in which the
same are to be formed, constructed, or carried into effect and used, are herein-
after fully and particularly set forth and described, reference being had to the
explanatory Drawing hereunto annexed, which shows the form and disposition
of the several parts of the said machinery.
In first place, I hereby declare that the said improvements consist in a new
arrangement and mode of using circular combs, which combs have their teeth
standing nearly perpendicular or at right angles to the plane in which the said
circular combs are intended to move or revolve, but incline a little inwards.
Secondly, the improvements consist in the angular direction in which the
said circular combs are set and placed with respect to each other.
And, lastly, in the means which is employed for adjusting the distance of the
combs from each other, and diminishing that distance during the progress of
the work, or according to the nature of the material they may be employed to
operate upon, so as to perform the said work better and more effectually than
it has hitherto been done. And as these several objects form the basis of the
aforesaid Invention and improvements, so I consider that any combination of
machinery by which the said effects are produced, in such manner as will be
herein-after described, belongs to and appertains to my said Invention, because
I make no claim to the particular wheels, pullies, riggers, shafts, axles, and
levers, of which the machine is composed, except only in their state of com-
bination, for the purpose of producing the effects aforesaid. I shall therefore
describe that particular combination of machinery which I have used and
found to answer its intended purpose, of producing the proper angular motion
of the circular combs and regulating their distance as under and approach
towards each other while the combing proceeds.
Figure 1, in the Drawing, represents a side view or elevation of one of the
machines in a complete state for work.
Figure 2 a plan or view of the machine as seen from above;
And Figure 3 an end view of the said machine, or the appearance it would
make if viewed from the left-hand end of Figure 1.
In all the said Figures the same letters of reference are used to denote the
sanic parts wherever they occur. The framework of the machine is marked
Z, Z, Z, Z, in the Drawing, and is represented as being made of cast iron,
but may be formed of wood or any proper material for supporting the several
parts of the machine. A and A' are the circular combs before-mentioned,
which are placed upon the central axes a, a, and a¹ a¹, which axes are fixed

page_text: in proper bearings upon the frame Z, Z, Z, Z, to permit of their revolving,
The axis a, a, carries the circular comb A, and the axis a', a', carries the other
circular comb A, but neither of these combs are permanently fixed upon the
said axis, but have central holes bored in them, which exactly fit the said axes,
so that they will slide upon them, and may be fixed by the set screws a, a, at
B and B are fast and
any required distance from the frame of the machine.
loose pullies placed on the shaft or axle a', a', for the purpose of imparting
From
motion to the machine by means of a strap from any first mover.
the above account it will be seen that either of the said circular combs may
instantly be taken away from its shaft or axle by releasing the screws a, a,
which is a convenience, as will afterwards appear, but is not essential to the
machine, which would performits work equally well if both the said combs were
permanently fixed their axes.
upon
It is necessary that both the said circular
combs should revolve at the same time and in opposite directions, therefore the
motion communicated to the shaft a', a', by means of the fixed pulley B', must
be carried to the other shaft a, a, and this may be done by wheelwork, bands, or
straps, and I prefer the latter as being the most simple. Accordingly, C is a pulley,
rigger, or waive, fixed upon the shaft a', a', which, by means of the crossed strap
c, c, communicates such motion to a similar pully, rigger, or waive D, fixed upon
the shaft a, a, thereby causing both the circular combs A and A to revolve in
the direction of the arrows respectively placed against them in Figure 1. The
two shafts a, a, and a, a, are parallel to each other in plan, as will be seen at
Figure 2, but not so as to the horizon, because they cross or intersect each other
at that point which is about the middle of the teeth of the combs, where they
make an angle of about thirty degrees, as will be seen at the point b¹, in
Figure 3, and consequently they will produce an angular difference in the
planes of the two circular combs. This angular position of the circular combs
will require to be a little varied according to circumstances which I shall
afterwards explain, and is one of the essential points of my Invention, claimed
in right of my herein-before in part recited Patent. It is not only necessary
that the said circular combs should revolve as aforesaid, but that during such
revolution they should approach towards each other or be capable of being moved
to varying distances assunder, such motion being essential to the perfect working
of the said machine. This motion may be brought about in a variety of ways;
but the one which I use, as being simple and effective, is to keep the shaft
a', a', with its circular comb, in one fixed position, and to permit the other
shaft a, a, to move backwards and forwards towards it in an horizontal direc-
tion, which is effected by letting its two bearings y, y, move in the grooves or
dovetailed or other slots k, k, formed on the top bearing rail of the frame, as

page_text: may be distinctly seen in Fig. 2. The necessary motion of the shaft a, a, is pro-
duced as follows:-A rigger or pulley Y, Fig. 3, is fixed upon the shaft a, a,
and gives motion by means of a band or strap E, E, Figs. 1 and 2, to
another pulley F, which is loose upon the spindle in Fig. 2 and 3, but may.be
fixed thereto by the lever f, which drives it against the clutch 'w', and thereby
causes it to give motion to the said spindle, upon which is an endless screw
that drives the cogged wheel G at a slow speed. This wheel G. has only about
half its circumference furnished with teeth, so that the action of the screw
ceases at about half the revolution of the wheel, and it is then free from the
screw and can be moved. H is an eccentric or cam piece, which is fixed to the
inside of the wheel G, and moves with it for the purpose of acting upon a roller
h, which is attached to the lower end of a bent lever I, turning upon a pivot or
fulerum i, Fig. 1, the upper end of such lever being attached by a brass
bearing or coupling to the central part of the shaft or axle a, a, as best seen in
Fig. 3. By this train of movements, after a certain number of revolutions of
the driving pulley Y, Fig. 3, the cam piece H is elevated, and by its action
upon the bent lever I, the shaft or axis a; a, with its circular comb, is gradually
advanced towards the shaft a, a, and the two circular combs are permitted to
work almost in contact with each other, and will continue so to work for any
length of time if the pulley F is struck out of gear by the lever f. And when-
ever this is the case, the shaft a, a, with its circular comb, may be drawn back
again into its listant position from the circular comb A¹, by applying the hand
to the bow or handle V, which is united at its two ends to the two bearings
y, y, of the shaft a, a, and thereby insures their moving properly together in
the two groves or slots k, l, during the traverse or horizontal motion of the
shaft a, a.
The band or strap c, c, is kept in a proper state of tension by
means of the tightening pulley L, Figs. 1 and 2, which is guided by the lever
moving on its fulcrum m, and drawn downwards by a weight or spring,
should its own weight be insufficient for the purpose. In order to pre-
vent the tension of the strap c, c, from drawing the shaft and circular comb
a, a, A, forward quicker than the cam piece H would regulate, a counter
balance weight N is connected by a cord to the upper end of the bent lever
I, by which the drawing tendency of the stretching pulley L is counteracted.
The advancing motion of the circular comb A towards the circular comb A',
while the two are revolving, may be accomplished by several other means, as
will be evident to any mechanic. Thus, I have occasionally used a screw
turned by bevil wheels from the shaft a, a, and acting into a pair of clams in
the nature of dies for tapping screws, and which, by being fixed to the axle
a, a, will screw or drive it forward as long as any thread is formed upon the

page_text: worm, but may be made to cease to act as soon as the two circular combs are
brought sufficiently near together so as to permit them to revolve without any
further approximation; and by opening the clams the screw becomes released,
and the moveable comb may be drawn backwards by hand, as before described,
but I prefer the machinery which I have first described.
Having thus described the general nature and construction of the machinery
for combing wool and other fibrous substanees, I. shall conclude by an account
of its operation, and the manner of using the same.
At the commencement of the operation of combing by this machine, the
machine is made to stand still for charging by placing the driving strap on the
loose pulley B, and the operator fills the teeth of either of the circular combs
with wool by placing it regularly on the teeth and drawing it in a line from
towards the center, as it is usually fed by hand combers. The fibres of the
wool should be a little opened by jigging, or any other means; and it may be
applied to the circular combs by hand or any convenient machinery. Either
or both the circular combs may be thus charged or filled with wool, but I
will suppose that the comb A has only been charged; motion is then to be
given to the machine by shifting the driving strap from the loose to the fixed
pulley B; and I find that the operation of the machine is the best when a
motion of about one hundred and twenty revolutions in a minute is given to
the circular combs, but this velocity may vary according to the quality of the
wool, or the nature of the fibrous material to be operated upon, or the diameter
of the circular combs. The centrifugal motion caused by the swift motion of
the circular comb. will cause the wool upon it to radiate or fly out, as seen at
A; Figure 2; consequently, whenever the moving circular comb A comes
near enough to the other comb A', its teeth will take hold of the end of the
fibres of the wool with which A¹ has been charged, and will comb. and
straighten them; and from the oblique directions in which the perepheries of
the two combs intersect each other, the teeth of the comb A will insert them-
selves into the wool upon A', and gradually take off' a part of it, as the
approximation of the two combs proceeds, until at the time when the operation
of combing is completed, and the two combs are turning nearly in contact with
each other, the quantity of wool will be found very nearly equally divided
between them, and they will mutually comb the wool' contained on each other;
for this machine has a constant tendency to equalize the amount of wool on
both combs, and it is on this account not material whether one or both of them
are filled at the commencement of the operation; but inasmuch as it takes less
time to charge one comb than two, so I recommend that the wool should be
placed upon one only. If the wool is not equally and evenly fed or put upon the

page_text: first comb it will be an advantage to make the other comb run about a fifteenth
or twentieth part quicker than the first, as this tends to facilitate and quicken
the equal distribution. As soon as the wool has been sufficiently combed, the
machine is to be stopped by shifting the driving strap into the loose pulley B,
when the two combs are to be separated by drawing back the shaft a, a, as
aforesaid, and the two combs are to be taken off their shafts or axles by
releasing their central set screws a, a, when, if great expedition is required,
two other empty combs are to be substituted in their places. To begin a new
operation, the two combs that had been taken off charged with combed wool are
to be removed to a set or head of drawing rollers, which strip off their contents
and form it into a sliver, leaving the noil or short wool in the combs to be
removed by land, and when that is done the combs are ready to be replaced
again upon the machine, or may be charged with wool before they go to it;
so that by an additional number of circular combs to be charging or doffing
while others are at work, no other hindrance of time will occur in working
this machine than the very small one necessary for the removal and fixing of
the combs in succession. In the Drawing annexed hercto, the circular combs
are shown as having two rows of steel teeth, set in brass rings of three feet
diameter, but the dimensions of the machine may be varied, since they have
likewise been constructed of five feet diameter. If, however, the diameter of
the combs is increased, the angle of their intersection must be diminished
almost inversely as those diameters, for if large circular combs were constructed
and set to work at the angle shown in the Drawing, the wool would be driven
so hard into them as not to be easily removed; accordingly, in combs of five
feet in diameter, the angle of their intersection should not exceed from fifteen to
eighteen degrees, while those of three feet in diameter work very well at an angle
of about thirty degrees and from their being portable, and less subject to damage
by removal, are greatly to be preferred. It is scarcely necessary to observe,
that in order to produce this angular position of the combs to each other, it is
not necessary that both their shafts or axles should be inclined to the horizon,
as shown in Figure 3, because the machine will work equally well if one
shaft is horizontal, and such a greater degree of inclination given to the other
as will produce the proper position, which, if not found correct in the first
instance in the machine, it may always be obtained by making the bearings of
one or both of the shafts a, a, and a', a', adjustable in a vertical direction.
Having thus described the said machine, and its mode of operation, I shall
merely recapitulate what I have before observed, that it is not the wheels,
pullies, framework, and mode of putting together and imparting motion to the
said herein-before described machine that I claim as any part of the Invention

page_text: to be secured to me and my representatives and assigns by my aforesaid in
part recited Patent, but that I do claim the exclusive right and privilege of
of making and using and vending circular combs, to revolve in an angular
position with respect to each other, as above described, and which combs have
their teeth nearly upright or at right angles to the plane of their motion, and
which said angular circular combs are gradually drawn together by machinery
at the same time that they are revolving, and may be afterwards separated in
the manner and to produce the effect herein-before described, notwithstanding
any variation in the form and construction of the machinery used to produce
the same, it being the new principle of combining and using these particular
motions, and particularly of that of making the circular combs revolve in an
angular position with respect to each other for the purposes aforesaid, that I
consider as my Invention, and not the mere mechanical means of producing
them, which may be varied in many ways, as will be evident to any competent
mechanic.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Platt, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, the Seventh day of May, in the year of our Lord One