Improvements in the Manufacture of Carding Engine Flats, Card Filletting, and Card Clothing.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Apr., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 1st Jan., 1890-Accepted, 1st Feb., 1890
ROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Carding Engine Flats, Card
Filletting, and Card Clothing.
1. FREDERICK WILKINSON of 13 India Buildings Cross Street Manchester in the
County of Lancaster Yarn Agent do hereby declaro the nature of this Invention to be
as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of flats for travelling flat
carding engines and also to improvements in the manufacture of card filletting and
card clothing used to cover the cylinders and rollers of carding engines and for other
analogous purposes.
My invention, broadly stated, consists chiefly in dispensing with the ordinary
carding surface made up of wire teeth set in an india rubber or other suitable
foundation, and in substituting therefor a carding surface composed of the teeth or
prongs of a series of toothed metallic plates or combs each of which combs is stamped
punched or otherwise formed out of thin sheet metal, preferably steel although
phosphor bronze aluminium bronze or other suitable metal might be employed.
These toothed metallic plates or combs can be connected together in any convenient
and suitable manner to form flats or fillets or clothing and I do not wish to limit
myself to any particular method of uniting and combining the individual combs into a
carding surface but in order that there may be no difficulty in comprehending my
Invention I will proceed to give examples of the various ways in which this building
up of the carding surface may be effected.
To make a flat for a travelling flat carding engine I take a number of the toothed
metallic plates or combs which have been made of a suitable length and form and
with say three holes in the solid metal forming the plate or back of the comb and
I also provide a number of other thin plates or equivalents smaller than the combs
and made without teeth but having holes in them corresponding to the holes in the
combs. I then thread the combs and the other plates alternately on to three rods or
wires so that the plates without teeth come between the toothed plates or combs so as
to give the necessary space between each row of teeth. I employ suitable end pieces
to work on the flat course or path and the rods or wires may be passed through these
end pieces and then after the wires have been strained perfectly tight and the ends of
the rods or wires rivetted up to the end pieces the plates, both the toothed and
insertion pieces, may be brazed or soldered together.
The toothed and insertion plates can be made of suitable form and a series built
up as described or in an equivalent manner can be brazed or soldered to a cast
iron flat such as that ordinarily used with wire filletting.
The teeth can either be hardened and tempered before being built up or afterwards
and in either case the teeth can be hardened more at the points than in the parts
nearer the base or point of junction with the solid metal foundation. Again the
teeth can either be made simply tapering to a needle point or each tooth can have
two or more prongs projecting from the knee or bend in the tooth or a little
above it.
Both the toothed plates or combs and the insertion plates may be made the full
ength of the flat and the plates he then rivetted or otherwise secured together
either with or without rods or wires. The plates could either be made of suitable
hape so as to dispense with the ordinary cast iron flat; or by being made flat they
ould be secured to and used in conjunction with an ordinary flat. The teeth in
his case could be either single teeth or pronged as described but as the teeth
ould have to be punched or cut out in straight lines somewhat like the comb in

page_text: a musical box it would be necessary to bend the teeth so as to set them to the
required angle.
The intermediate plates might be dispensed with by corrugating or bending the
toothed plates so as to separate the rows of teeth.
The mode of building up card filletting or card clothing for cylinders according
to my invention would be substantially the same as the mode of constructing the
flats already described.
Dated this Fifth day of April 1889.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Carding Engine Flats, Card
Filletting, and Card Clothing.
I, FREDERICK WILKINSON, of 13 India Buildings, Cross Street, Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Yarn Agent, 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 improvements in the manufacture of flats for travelling flat
carding engines and also to improvements in the manufacture of card filletting and
card clothing used to cover the cylinders and rollers of carding engines and for other
analogous purposes.
My invention, broadly stated, consists chiefly in dispensing with the ordinary
carding surface made up of wire teeth set in an india rubber or other suitable
foundation, and in substituting therefor a carding surface composed of the teeth or
prongs of a series of toothed metallic plates or combs each of which combs is stamped
punched or otherwise formed out of thin sheet metal, preferably steel, although
phosphor bronze, aluminium bronze, or other suitable metal might be employed.
These toothed metallic plates or combs can be connected together in any convenient
and suitable manner to form flats or fillets or clothing, and 1 do not wish to limit
myself to any particular method of uniting and combining the individual combs into
a carding surface but in order that there may be no difficulty in comprehending my
invention will proceed to give examples of the various ways in which this building
up of the carding surface may be effected.
To make a flat for a travelling flat carding engine I take a number of the toothed
metallic plates or combs which have been made of a suitable length and form and
with say three holes in the solid metal forming the plate or back of the comb and I
also provide a number of other thin plates or equivalents smaller than the combs and
made without teeth but having holes in them corresponding to the holes in the combs.
I then thread the combs and the other plates alternately on to three rods or wires_so
that the plates without teeth come between the toothed plates or combs so as to give
the necessary space between each row of teeth. I employ suitable end pieces to work
on the flat course or path and the rods or wires may be passed through these end
pieces and then after the wires have been strained perfectly tight and the ends of the
rods or wires rivetted up to the end pieces the plates both the toothed and insertion
pieces may be brazed or soldered together.
The toothed and insertion plates can be made of suitable form and a series built up
as described or in an equivalent manner can either be used alone or can be brazed
or soldered to a cast iron flat such as that ordinarily used with wire filletting.
The teeth can either be hardened and tempered before being built up or afterwards
and in either case the teeth can be hardened more at the points than in the parts nearer
the base or point of junction with the solid metal foundation. Again the teeth can
either be made simply tapering to a needle point or each tooth can have two or more
prongs projecting from the knee or bend in the tooth or a little above it.
Both the toothed plates or combs and the insertion plates may be made the full
·length of the flat and the plates be then rivetted or otherwise secured together either with

page_text: or without rods or wires. The plates could either be made of suitable shape so as to
dispense with the ordinary cast iron flat; or by being made flat they could be secured
to and used in conjunction with an ordinary flat. The teeth in this caso could be
either single teeth or pronged as described but as the teeth would have to be punched
or cut out in straight lines somewhat like the comb in a musical box it would be
necessary to bend the teeth so as to set them to the required angle.
The intermediate plates might be dispensed with by corrugating or bending the
toothed plates so as to separate the rows of teeth.
The mode of building up card filletting or card clothing for cylinders according to
my invention would be substantially the same as the mode of constructing the flats
already described.
In the accompanying two Sheets of Drawings Fig. 1 represents a comb a made
according to my invention by stamping out teeth from a strip or riband of steel or
other suitable metal.
Fig. 2 shows a comb b for a travelling flat which is produced by stamping the
same out of the comb a, the comb & being formed of the required length and shaped
at the ends to fit into grooves in a flat as hereinafter explained.
Fig. 3 shows a similar comb b the only difference between this and that shown in
Fig. 2 being that the teeth are formed with a knee whereas in Fig. 2 the teeth are
simply inclined without a knee.
Fig. 4 shows an insertion plate c which may be of metal, compressed paper,
india rubber, or other suitable material and is used to divide and spaco the
combs b.
Figs. 5 and 6 are two views of a travelling flat d for a carding engine constructed
of alternate series of combs band insertion plates c. In this case instead of forming
holes in the combs and corresponding holes in the insertion plates c and threading
these pieces alternately upon rods or wires as hereinbefore described the projecting
ends of the combs bare formed to fit into grooves d'in the flat d which is similar to
the ordinary cast iron travelling flat now generally employed. The insertion plates care
also formed to fit into the grooves d' and the flat is built up of combs 6 and insertion
plates c arranged alternately these pieces being held in their positions in the flat by
means of a transverse pin e rivetted to the sides at each end as shown or any other
suitable means may be employed to secure the combs b and plates c in their places.
Instead of forming grooves in the flat as shown the combs 6 and insertion plates c
might be suitably shaped and fitted upon a steel riband the edges of which are turned
over so as to form a groove or channel to receive and hold the combs and insertion
plates or vice versa the combs and insertion plates might be grooved to fit over a plain
steel riband; in either case the riband with its combs band insertion plates e thus
forms a fillet which may be secured to a flat or to a cylinder or roller in any
convenient manner.
Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate another mode of building up a flat according to my
nvention. In this case each comb 6 see Fig. 8 and each insertion plate c is formed
with a groove or recess adapted to fit over a correspondingly shaped projection formed
on the flat d.
Fig. 9 shows another form of comb b with straight teeth constructed according to
ny invention. This form of comb which has a small hole near each end is particu-
arly adapted for the manufacture of card fillet as shown in Fig. 10 the combs b and
he insertion plates c (which have holes corresponding to those in the combs) being
breaded upon two wires f which are soldered or otherwise secured at their ends to.
ny suitable end pieces. In this case the straight teeth of the combs b would have
be bent as shown in Fig. 10 to the required angle for carding purposes. The fillets
aus produced may be secured to the cylinders or rollers of carding engines in any
onvenient manner.
Fig. 11 is a view of another form of comb b and Fig. 12 is a view of part of
carding engine cylinder or roller g illustrating the mode of clothing the same to
rm a carding surface with combs 6 similar to that shown in Fig. 11. In this case
e back of each comb b is formed with a dovetail adapted to fit into a groove of

page_text: corresponding section formed in the surface of the cylinder or roller g. Insertion
plates c would be employed to space the combs as in the preceding arrangement and
the combs and plates would be secured in the grooves by pins or soldered end pieces
or other convenient means.
Again instead of forming grooves in the cylinder, barsh with bevelled edges as
shown in Fig. 13 might be secured to the cylinder so as to form grooves into which
the combs and plates c would be fitted and secured.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1. A carding surface composed of a series of toothed metallic plates or combs each
formed out of thin sheet metal.
2. The combination with a series of toothed metallic plates or combs, of a series of
insertion or spacing plates, the two series being united and combined in either of the
modes herein specified or in any equivalent manner to form carding engine flats or
cylinder or roller clothing.
Dated this 31st day of December 1889
H. B. BARLOW,
17, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agent for Applicant.