Improvements in or connected with Loom Harness Mechanism.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 7th May, 1889
Specification Accepted, 8th June, 1889
Improvements in or connected with Loom Harness Mechanism.
I WILLIAM WATTIE, residing at Worcester in the County of Worcester and State
of Massachusetts one of the United States of America, Manufacturer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement
My Invention relates to the well known Knowles Loom as shown and described in
Letters Patent of the United States No. 134,992 of January 20, 1873, and more
particularly to the harness mechanism of said looms
The object of my Invention is to secure greater ease of action of the harness
mechanism, and also to so shift the harness frame heddles, that the warp threads, in
passing from one line of the shed to the other do not all pass the centre at the same
time.
And my Invention consists in certain novel features of construction of the cylinder
gears, and vibrator gears, of the harness mechanism of said Knowles Loom, as will
be bereinafter fully described, and the nature thereof indicated by the claims.
Referring to the Drawing
Figure 1 represents, largely diagramatically the relation of the parts of the harness
actuating mechanism to which my invention is applied.
Figure 2 shows the connection to the harness frames and,
Figures 3, 4, and 5, are detail views of cylinder gears of my improved con-
struction.
In the accompanying drawing, the part marked 1, (Fig. 2), is a portion of the arch
or loom frame, on which are supported the harness jacks or levers 2, and 3, of
ordinary construction, and connected by cords 4, and 5, passing over sheaves 6,
and 7, to the harness frames 8 and 9.
Said harness frames 8 and 9 carry heddles 10 and 11, through the eyes 12 and 13
of which pass the warp threads, all in the usual way, and as heretofore used.
The return cords 14 and 15, extend from the lower side of the harness frames to
the other end of the harness levers 2, and 3, not shown, and are arranged in the
ordinary manner
Referring to Fig. 1, the lower cylinder gear 16, and the upper cylinder gear 17,

page_text: are driven in the usual manner, in opposite directions, as indicated by the arrows,
and as fully set forth in the letters patent before referred to.
The vibrator gear 18 is pivoted at 19 on the lever -0, and said lever 20 is pivoted
at its outer end at 21.
The vibrator connector 22 is pivoted at one end to the crank 23 on the vibrator
gear 18, and at the other end to hai ness lever 2, all in the usual way.
I have shown in Fig. 1 only a single vibrator gear, lever, and connector, but in
practice there are a series of them placed side by side
The operation of the harness mechanism is well known and briefly is as follows:
The pattern chain 25 acts on the vibrator lever 20, through fork 26, to throw
vibrator gear 18 into mesh with either of the cylinder gears 16, and 17, at will.
A roll on the pattern chain lifts said vibrator gear 18 into mesh with cylinder
gear 17, and a bar 28 allows said vibrator gear 18 to drop into mesh with cylinder
gear 16.
I have shown in Fig. 1, the fork 26 resting on a bar 28, and cylinder gear 16 18
Just beginning its act on on vibrator gear 18, which when completed has rotated
crank pin 23 about half a revolution, and thrown the harness lever from position 2 to
position 3, Fig 2, which drops the harness frame connected to that lever.
This operation has brought the open space 29 in vibrator gear 18, opposite the
point of contact with cylinder gear 16, so that no further action takes place until a
roll 27 on the pattern chain, acts on the vibrator lever 20, through fork 26, to raise
said lever, and fift the vibrator gear 18 into mesh with the cylinder gear 17, when the
revolution of said cylinder gear will rotate the vibrator gear 18, and through the
vibrator connector 22, draw the harness lever back from the position 3, to position 2,
(see Fig. 2.) and cause it to lift its harness frame, all in the usual way.
Heretofore teeth 30 on the cylinder gears 16 and 17 have been made straight and
parallel to the axis of revolution of the cylinder gears, so that the initial tooth of the
cylinder gear has engaged at the same instant all the vibrator gears which have been
indicated to turn on a given revolution The resistance to thus suddenly starting the
whole series of vibrator gears at the same instant is considerable, and recurring at
regular intervals causes a great deal of vibration and consequent unsteadiness in
running, which has been disadvantageously felt in many ways
And furthermore, the vibrator gears being all started at once as above described, all
reach the centre of their half revolution at once, so that all the harness levers, pait of
which may be going in one direction and part in the opposite, meet in the centre of
the movement, thus making all the warp threads which are going down on a given
pick, meet and pass in the centre of the shed all the threads which are going up.
Each warp thread in shifting has to pass not only its neighbor threads, which are
drawn into different harnesses, but also the heddle eyes which carry its neighbor
threads, in all the different frames. The effect of this is to cause great friction on the
warp threads, and consequent breakage, which is greatly augmented with tender yarn,
and in fine patterns.
I avoid the difficulties above set forth, by my improved construction of the cylinder
gears, which consists in making the teeth thereon extend at an angle to the axis of
revolution of the cylinder gears, and to so arrange them that the initial tooth will
engage the vibrator gears, to be operated, successively, and not all at one instant as
above described.
In the drawing Figure 3, I have shown the teeth 30, on the cylinder gear, made on
a spiral instead of parallel to the axis of revolution of the cylinder gear.
By this construction of the teeth I cause the initial tooth to engage the vibrator
gears successively, the effect of which is to do away with the shock incident to
engaging them all at the same instant, and to separate the warp threads in passing
the centre of the shed, a distance equal to the pitch of the spiral between the points
of contact of their respective vibrator gears
This distance I have found by experiment can be made sufficient to greatly relieve
the friction in the warp threads, without interfering with the proper working of the
parts in the Knowles head motion as heretofore used.

page_text: Instead of making the teeth on the cylinder gears spiral, as shown in fig. 3, I can
make them extend angular, see Fig. 4, diverging from the centre towards the ends, or
zig-zag, or broken, see Fig. 5, and accomplish substantially the same result
Instead of changing the teeth on the cylinder gears to cause the vibrator gears to
be engaged successively, I can set the teeth of the vibrator gears over to one side or
the other with reference to the crank pin 23, and stop slot 31; but though this
method is equivalent to that which I have described, I prefer to change the con-
struction and arrangement of the teeth on the cylinder gears, as it enables me to
make the vibrator gears all alike, thus avoiding confusion in putting up the harness
mechanism, and in replacing parts.
I prefer to make the teeth of the cylinder gears on a spiral, as shown in Fig. 3,
for convenience in making the cylinders.
The cylinder gears could be made up of sections, and the line of the teeth thereon
made to follow angular, or zig-zag shapes, while effecting the results I have
described.
And further it might be desirable in
some cases to arrange the vibrator
gears in two more series, instead of one, in which case the first vibrator gear in each
series would be engaged simultaneously by the cylinder gears.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim 19:
1. In a loom harness mechanism, a cylinder gear provided with teeth arranged at
an angle to the axis of revolution of said gear, for the purpose stated, substantially
as set forth.
2. In a loom harness mechanism, the cylinder gear, or gears, having teeth thereon
extending in a line not parallel to the axis of revolution of said gear, or gears, for
the purpose stated, substantially as shown and described.
3. In a loon hirness mechanism, the cylinder gear, or gears, having teeth extending
in a broken, or zig-zag line, for the purpose stated, substantially as set forth.
4 In a loom, the pattern indicators controlling vibrator levers, and the vibrator
levers, vibrator connectors, and harness levers, in combination with vibrator gears,
and cylinder gears adapted to engage successively the vibrator gears in the series
for the purpose stated, substantially as shown and described.
5. In a loom, the combination with the pattern indicators, the vibrator levers, the
vibrator connectors, and harness levers, of the vibrator gears, and cylinder gears, the
cylinder gears provided with teeth adapted to engage successively the vibrator gears
for the purpose stated, substantially as set forth.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, Saint Vincent Street, Glasgow,
Agents.