IMPROVEMENTS IN BATTENS USED IN WEAVING
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Thomas Cooke, of the Borough of Leicester,
Batten Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BATTENS USED IN
WEAVING."
Sealed the 7th November 1862, and dated the 10th May 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Thomas Cooke at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th May 1862.
I, JOHN THOMAS COOKE, of the Borough of Leicester, Batten Maker, do
bereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BATTENS
USED IN WEAVING," to be as follows:-
My improvements consist of a new arrangement of driving planks for
carrying the shuttles from side to side of their work, as hereafter described.
I use two driving planks, which are fitted with pegs in the ordinary way, and
which run on studs or in bearings. On one of the planks a stud is fitted,
which works in a slot in the other plank sufficiently long to allow for the rise
and fall of each plank; or one of the planks may be sufficiently long to allow
of a block being screwed on each end, the other plank just fitting in between
them. The object is to secure the planks together, so that they both may
travel the whole distance of the space and race, the motion being cut suffi-
ciently long to allow of their doing so, instead of one driving plank taking the
shuttle half the distance, and then standing still whilst the other plank takes it
the other half, as by the usual mode.

page_text: By my arrangement I am enabled to dispense with the driving bar and
driving hooks, as the slots or motion of the planks are cut so long that the
driving plank in work carries the shuttle at work half its distance, and then
falls from the shuttle and out of the way of the piece or warps, but runs along
with the other plank at work, each peg always keeping just under the hole in
which it works.
My planks never stand in the middle of their work, but traverse the whole
distance from side to side with the shuttle, thus preventing the jar and
sudden motion of leaving one plank at half the distance, and taking it up
again in the return course. My Invention is applicable to one, two, or more
tiers of shuttles.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Thomas Cooke in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
8th November 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
THOMAS COOKE, of the Borough of Leicester, Batten Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
John Thomas Cooke, Her special licence that I, the said John Thomas
Cooke, my exécutors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said John Thomas Cooke, my 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BATTENS USED IN WEAVING," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said John Thomas Cooke, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, 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 I, the said John Thomas Cooke, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
that is to say—
My improvements consist of a new arrangement of driving planks for
carrying the shuttles from side to side of their work, as hereafter described.
I use two driving planks or bars, which are fitted with pegs in the ordinary
way; one of the driving planks is sufficiently long to allow of a block being
fixed on each end so as to allow the other plank just to fit in between them,
so that neither plank has any lateral motion apart from or independent of the
other; or on one of the planks may be fixed a stud to work in a slot in the
other plank sufficiently deep to allow of the rise and fall of cach plank. The
object of this arrangement is to secure the planks together so that they both
may travel the whole distance of the space and race, the motion being arranged
in such manner as to allow them to do so, instead of one driving plank taking
the shuttle half its distance, and then standing still while the other plank
takes it the other half. The motion of my driving planks is cut and arranged
in such manner that the driving plank in work carries the shuttle at work
half its distance, and then falls from the shuttle sufficiently low to allow
the peg to run under the piece or warp, but keeps travelling with the other
plank at work, which rises into the shuttle at the same time the other is falling
from it; the pegs are always either in the shuttles, or just under the holes in
which they work.
My planks never stand in the middle, but traverse the whole distance from
side to side with the shuttle, and thus prevent the jar and sudden motion of
leaving one plank or bar at half the distance, and taking it up again in the
return course. My Invention is applicable to one or more tiers of shuttles.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a front view of a batten, con- .
structed according to my Invention, with the shuttle at one end of its course,
and Figure 2 is a similar view with the shuttle at the other end of its course.
a, b, are the two driving planks fitted with pegs c, c', the pegs c being
inserted in the plank a, and the peg c' in the plank b; e is a stud projecting
from a plate f, which is screwed to the driving bar g, and passes through a.
slot h, h', cut in each of the planks a, b, for communicating to-and-fro motion
to them; i, , are longitudinal curved slots or guides cut in the planks a, b,
as shown in the Figures; h, k, are studs passing through the slots i, ', and
prevented from leaving them by flat dises 1, 1, secured by a pin passed over
them, and through a hole in the studs k, k. Upon motion being commu-
nicated to the planks from the driving bar g, they are guided by the longi-
tudinal slots along the studs k, k', and have longitudinal as well as up-and-

page_text: down motions imparted to them by reason of the curves in the said longitudinal
slots. On starting the peg c of the plank a takes into a hole bored through
one end of the shuttle m, as shown at Figure 1, and carries the shuttle along
with it until the latter is at or about the centre of its course; the peg c and
plank a then retreat, and the peg c² and plank b advance, and the peg centers
a similar hole in the other end of the shuttle, whereby the shuttle is carried.
along to the end of its course into the position shown at Figure 2. On the.
return motion, the peg c¹ and plank 6 take the shuttle balf way back, when
they again retreat, and the peg c and plauk a advance, and complete the return.
course, and so on continuously.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I do not confine myself to
the precise details herein-before described, as variations may be made without
departing from the essential features of my Invention; but I claim the con-
struction, arrangement, and method of action of driving planks or bars in
such manner that they both travel together the whole distance of the
space and race, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Thomas Cooke, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of October, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-two.
JOHN THOMAS COOKE. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by
the above-named John Thomas
Cooke, in the presence of
EDW. TRUNDLE,
Clerk to Mr. G. Stevenson, Sol',
Leicester.