IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Shakespear, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, Sewing Machine Manufacturer, and George
Illston, of Birmingham, aforesaid, Machinist, for the Invention of
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the. said Thomas Shakespear
and George Illston at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 20th December 1869.
We, THOMAS SHAKESPEAR, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Sewing Machine Manufacturer, and GEORGE ILLSTON, of Birmingham,
aforesaid, Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
Our improvements consist, firstly, of the following arrangement of
parts for working the shuttles of sewing machines:-Upon an axis
parallel to the principal shaft of the machine we fix an arm or plate,
to the upper part of which the shuttle is fixed or geared. By a rocking
or vibratory motion communicated to the said arm or plate the motion

page_text: of the shuttle is effected. The said vibratory or rocking motion is
communicated to the said arm or plate in the following manner:-A
radial slot is made in the said plate, and a crank pin fixed in the face of
a crank plate engages in the said slot. The crank plate is fixed on the
end of the principal shaft of the machine. By the rotation of the said
crank an irregular rocking motion is given to the said arm or plate, the
motion being rapid when the crank pin is in that part of the slot near
the axis, and slow when the said pin is most distant from the axis. The
shuttle is advanced by the rapid motion in one direction of the rocking
arm or plate, and its return motion is effected by the slower motion of
the said arm or plate in the opposite direction. In consequence of the
rapid advance motion of the shuttle we are enabled to actuate the needle
by a lever and excentric instead of by the ordinary arrangement, which
arrests the motion of the needle at one part of its stroke to give time for
the passage of the shuttle.
Our improvements consist, secondly, of the following arrangements of
parts for tightening the driving bands of sewing machines and rendering
it unnecessary when the said bands have become slack to remove and
shorten them. We make the axis of the driving wheel of larger diameter
at that part on which the driving wheel works than at the part which
takes into the standard or frame supporting it. The two parts are
excentric to one another. By means of a set screw in the standard or
frame the axis may be fixed in any position to which it has been turned.
Owing to the excentricity of the two parts of the axis the turning of the
said axis through a greater or less angle may be made to raise or lower
the driving wheel to the required degree. The turning of the axis is
effected by a screwdriver inserted in a nick or notch on the outer end
of the axis. When the band has become slack it is only necessary to
loosen the set screw and turn the axis until the band is sufficiently tight,
and by driving home the set screw to fix the said axis in its place; or
we arrange the parts for tightening the band in the following manner:-
We make near the end of the driving wheel axis a square part which
takes into a vertical slot in a bracket on the side of the standard. The
extreme end of the axis has a screw thread cut on it, on which a screw
nut at the back of the said bracket takes. A vertical screw in the
middle of the slot described passes through the square part of the axis,
which is properly tapped to receive it. By turning the said screw the
axis can be raised or lowered, and by means of the screw nut on the end

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Shakespear and George Illston in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th June 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, THOMAS
SHAKESPEAR, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Sewing
Machine Manufacturer, and GEORGE ILLSTON, of Birmingham, aforesaid,
Machinist, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto us, the said Thomas Shakespear and George
Illston, Her special licence that we, the said Thomas Shakespear and
George Illston, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said Thomas. Shakespear and George. Illston, our executors,.
administrators, and assigns, should. at any time- agree with, and. no.
others, from time to time 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 Invention for. "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SEWING. MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,. the said
Thomas Shakespear and. George Illston, our executors or. administrators,
by an instrument in writing under our or their hands-and seals, or under
the hand and seal of one of us or them, 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 Thomas Shakespear and George
Illston, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described. and
ascertained in and by the following. statement thereof, that is to say :-
Our Invention consists of the following arrangements of parts for

page_text: tightening the driving bands of sewing machines, and rendering it
unnecessary when the said bands have become slack to remove and
shorten them.
According to one of our arrangements we make the axis of the driving
wheel of larger diameter at that part on which the driving wheel works
than at the part which takes into the standard or frame supporting it.
The two parts are excentric to each other. By means of a set screw in
the standard or frame the axis may be fixed in any position to which it
has been turned. Owing to the excentricity of the two parts of the axis
the turning of the said axis through a greater or less angle may be made
to raise or lower the driving wheel to the required degree. The turning
of the axis is effected by a screwdriver inserted in a neck or notch on
the outer end of the axis. When the band has become slack it is only
necessary to loosen the set screw, and turn the axis until the band is
sufficiently tight, and by driving home the set screw to fix the said axis
in its place.
According to another of our arrangements we make near the end of
the driving wheel axis a square part, which takes into a vertical slot in a
bracket on the side of the standard. The extreme end of the axis has a
screw thread cut on it, on which a screw nut at the back of the said
bracket takes. A vertical screw in the middle of the slot deseribed
passes through the square part of the axis, which is properly tapped to
receive it. By turning the said screw the axis can be raised or lowered,
and by means of a screw nut on the end of the axis the said axis can be
fixed in the position to which it has been brought.
Having explained the nature of our Invention we will proceed to
describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawings, the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in end elevation, and Figure 2 in side elevation
(partly in vertical section) a portion of a sewing machine constructed
according to one part of our Invention; Figure 3 is a horizontal section
of the same, and Figure 4 is a portion of the same. The same letters of
reference are employed to indicate the same parts in Figures 1, 2, 3,
and 4.
a is the standard or frame of the machine; b. is the driving wheel, and
c, c³, is the axis of the said driving wheel supported by the standard a;
d is the pulley on the shaft e, from which the several motions of the
machine are taken, as is well understood, the said pulley d receiving

page_text: motion from the driving band f passing over the said pulley d and
driving wheel b, as represented in the Drawing. The parts c, c², of the.
axis of the driving wheel 6 are excentric to one another, the front part c
on which the driving wheel works being of larger diameter than the
bind part which takes into a hole a in the frame a. The axis c, c²,
is fixed in the standard a by the set screw g. The axis c, c³, is represented
separately in Figure 4. By the excentricity of the two parts of the axis
the turning of the said axis through a small angle in one or other
direction raises or lowers the driving wheel 6, as will be understood
by an examination of the Drawing. The turning of the axis c, c³, is.
effected by a screwdriver inserted in the neck or notch c³ on the outer
end or head of the said axis. When it is required to tighten the driving
band the set screw g is first loosened so as to permit of the rotation
of the axis c, c². The said axis is then turned by a screwdriver in the
direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 1, so as to raise the driving
wheel 6 until the said band fis sufficiently tight. By then driving"
home the set screw g the axis c, c³, is again fixed in its place. The.
loosening of the band is effected by turning the axis c, c, in a direction'
contrary to that indicated by the arrow, so as to lower the driving
wheel b.
Figure 5 represents in end elevation, and Figure 6 in side elevation
another arrangement of our Invention. In this arrangement the axis c'
of the driving wheel 6 is provided with a square part c³, which takes
into a vertical slot d made in the bracket e fixed on the side of the
standard a of the sewing machine. In the middle of the said slot d a
vertical screw f is supported, the said screw being capable only of a
rotatory motion. The middle of the square part .c of the axis c is
tapped so as to form a screw box, in which screw box the screwf works.
By turning the said screw f by a screwdriver the said screw box c³
travels on the screw fand thereby raises or lowers the axis c and driving
wheel b. The extreme end c³ of the axis c is screwed, and, on the
screwed end a screw nut g at the back of the bracket e takes. By
means of the said screw nut g the axis c is fixed to the bracket e. When
it is wished to tighten the driving band of the sewing machine the screw
nut is loosened, so as to permit of the sliding of the axis c;
the
screw is then turned by a screwdriver so as to raise the screw box c³,'
axis c, and driving wheel b, and thereby tighten the driving band. By
then driving home the screw nut g the axis c is fixed in the position to-
which it has been brought.

page_text: Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that
we do not limit ourselves to the precise details herein described and
illustrated, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature
of our Invention; but we claim as our Invention of improvements in
sewing machines,―
Firstly. The arrangement or combination of parts herein-before
described and illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the accompanying
Drawings for tightening the driving bands of sewing machines, that
is to say, making that part of the axis upon which the driving wheel
works excentric to and of greater diameter than the other part which
takes into the standard or frame supporting it, so that by turning the
said axis through a greater or less angle the said excentric part is made
to raise or lower the driving wheel, substantially as described and
illustrated.
Secondly. The arrangement or combination of parts herein-before
described and illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying
Drawings for tightening the driving bands of sewing machines, that is
to say, raising or lowering the axis upon which the driving wheel works
by means of a vertical screw working in a screw box made across the
said axis, the said screw box being capable of a rising and falling motion
in a slot in a bracket fixed to the standard or frame of the machine,
substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, we, the said Thomas Shakespear and George
Illston, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Ninth day of!
June, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
Covent
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
THOMAS SHAKESPEAR. (L.s.)
GEORGE ILLSTON.
(L.S.)