IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF PAPER CLOTH, KNOWN AS ARTIFICIAL LEATHER, AND IN COATING OR COVERING THE SURFACE THEREOF WITH COLORING MATTER, SAID COLORING PROCESS BEING ALSO ADAPTED TO THE COLORING OR STAINING OF PAPER."
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Eugène Carless, of Stepney, in the County of
Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF PAPER CLOTH, KNOWN AS ARTIFICIAL LEATHER, AND IN COATING OR
COVERING THE SURFACE THEREOF WITH COLORING MATTER, SAID COLORING
PROCESS BEING ALSO ADAPTED TO THE COLORING OR STAINING OF PAPER."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Eugéne Carless at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
16th February 1855...
I, EUGENE CARLESS, of Stepriey, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF PAPER CLOTH, KNOWN AS ARTIFICIAL LEATHER, AND IN COATING OR COVERING THE
SURFACE THEREOF WITH COLOURING MATTER, SAID COLOURING PROCESS BEING ALSO
ADOPTED TO THE COLOURING OR STAINING OF PAPER," to be as follows :—
The first part of this Invention relates to the manufacture of paper cloth,
and is designed for the purpose of facilitating the operations of pasting, or
otherwise securely connecting paper to a woven or textile fabric, and for drying
the same. The mode heretofore commonly practised has been to make paper
cloth by hand, the paper being laid on in sheets, and afterwards removed and
hung up to dry; and the improvement in this part of my Invention consists

page_text: in adapting certain mechanism for performing the above-mentioned operations
of connecting together the paper and the cloth, and for afterwards drying the
same, without removing it from the machine for that purpose; and should it be
desired to dye or otherwise color the paper cloth or artificial leather thus made,
I then pass the same through another part of the machine, by which I either
dye or only coat or cover the surface of the paper, and then pass it over drying
cylinders; after which, and without removing it from the machine, I pass it, if
desired, between a pair of glazing rollers, and if it is required to enamel the
same, I afterwards pass it under a circular brush, and finally wind the finished
cloth upon a roller. The mode of arranging the above machine will be better
understood by the following description thereof, that is to say:-Between the
side framings of the machine I place rollers one above the other, around which
I roll respectively the paper and the cloth which are to be connected together.
The cloth and paper are then brought together and passed between a pair of
pressure rollers, the woven fabric being kept stretched from selvage to selvage
by passing the same over a roller, upon which is wound in a helical direction
pieces of list or other suitable material; and I arrange a trough (containing
an adhesive mixture) across the machine and between the cloth and the paper,
so that when the machine is in motion the adhesive mixture will be distributed
over the surface of the cloth, and when the cloth and paper come into
contact they are forcibly pressed between the before-mentioned rollers, after
which the paper cloth is partially dried, by passing it over one or more hollow
cylinders into which steam. is admitted; the paper cloth in this dried state then
passes under another trough containing colouring matter, then between another
pair of pressure rollers and over other drying cylinders, and from thence
it passes between a pair of glazing rollers, and if necessary under a circular
enamelling brush, and, finally, on to the finished work roller. Thus it will be
seen that a machine thus constructed is capable of being used either as a
simple machine for making and drying paper cloth, or as a compound machine
for making paper cloth, and afterwards colouring the same, and if necessary
for glazing and enamelling the same; or the colouring parts of this machine
may be advantageously employed in and for the colouring or staining and
drying paper at one operation, and will be found a great improvement upon
the modes heretofore generally practised of colouring or staining paper by
hand.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Eugène Carless in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
16th August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EUGÈNE
CARLESS, of Stepney, in the County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Eugène Carless, Her special licence that I, the said Eugène
Carless, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Eugène Carless, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF PAPER CLOTH, KNOWN AS ARTIFICIAL
LEATHER, AND IN COATING OR COVERING THE SURFACE THEREOF WITH COLOURING
MATTER, SAID COLOURING PROCESS BEING ALSO ADAPTED TO THE COLOURING OR STAIN-
ING OF PAPER," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Eugène
Carless, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should parti-
cularly 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 Eugène Carless, 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):-
The first part of my said Invention relates to the manufacture of paper
cloth, and is particularly designed for the purpose of facilitating the operations
of pasting or otherwise securely fixing or connecting the paper to a textile or
felted fabric, and of subsequently drying and calendering the same. The
method heretofore commonly practised has been to make such paper cloth by
hand, the paper being pasted and laid on to the cloth in sheets and hung up
to dry. The improvement in this part of my Invention consists in adapting a
certain arrangement of mechanism for performing the above-named operations
of connecting the paper and the cloth together and afterwards drying the same

page_text: without removing it from the machine for that purpose; and if it should be
desired to dye or otherwise color the paper cloth or artificial leather thus made,
I then pass the same through another part of the said machine, by which I
either dye or only coat or cover the surface of the paper with the desired colour,
and afterwards pass it over drying cylinders; after which, and without remov-
ing it from the machine, I pass it (if desired) between a pair of glazing or
calendering rollers, and if it is required to enamel the same, I previously pass
it under a circular revolving brush, and finally wind the finished material on
to a roller. The arrangement of mechanism which I propose to employ for
effecting the above operations may be described as follows:-Between the side
framings of the machine I place two rollers (one above the other), upon which
are respectively rolled the paper and the cloth which are to be connected
together. The paper or the cloth passes under a trough containing paste or
other adhesive mixture; the bottom of the said trough being perforated or
covered with wire gauze (or other suitable fabric, the paste or adhesive mixture
falls on to the surface of the paper or cloth, and becomes evenly spread or
distributed thereon by passing between a pair of rollers, the upper one of
which is covered with felt. The paper or the cloth or both (as may be found
necessary) must be kept distended breadthwise, by passing over rollers upon
which pieces of list or other suitable material are wound in a helical or
spiral direction, or by means of a rail or rails having diagonal grooves (running
outwards from the centre) cut or formed on the surface thereof, or by any
other similar contrivance. The surfaces of the paper and cloth thus distended
are then brought into close contact, and whilst in that position they are passed
between a pair of pressure rollers, thus causing them to be more perfectly
united, and removing or squeezing out the superfluous paste or other adhesive
mixture. The paper and cloth thus united are then partially dried by passing
over one or more hollow cylinders into which steam is admitted. If it is
desired to stain or color the paper cloth, it then passes under another trough
containing the requisite colouring matter, and after passing between two rollers
(the upper one of which is covered with felt) it passes over a rail or narrow
table under a set of soft brushes, to which a rapid horizontal circular motion
is given. These brushes distribute the colouring matter perfectly even and
smooth over the whole surface of the paper cloth, which then passes over other
heated drying cylinders, and from thence it passes (if necessary) under a
circular revolving enamelling brush, and between a pair of glazing or calender-
ing rollers, and finally on to the finished work roller. Thus it will be evident
that a machine thus constructed is capable of being used either as a simple
machine for making and drying paper cloth, or as a compound machine for

page_text: causing the more perfect adhesion of their surfaces. These rollers may, if
preferred, be heated with steam. k,,, kare hollow drying cylinders,
heated by means of steam admitted into their interior by means of the pipes
1,1,1,1; m, m, m, m, are guide rollers; n, n, is the color trough. This trough
is open at the bottom, and rests upon the roller o, which, as it revolves,
furnishes the colour to the surface of the paper. p,p, is a table, above which
are placed a series of soft brushes q, q, to which rapid horizontal circular
motion is imparted by means of cranks r, r. The enamelling brush is not
shewn in the Drawing, but is merely an ordinary cylindrical revolving brush
placed in front of the calendering rollers. s,s, are the glazing or calendering
rollers, and t is the work roller. The gearing for driving the various rollers
is shown at Figure 2, the red circles indicating spur wheels. u is the first
or main driving shaft, which communicates motion by means of spur gearing
direct to the pressure rollers i, i, and drying cylinder k'. The upper pressure
roller i drives the pasting roller f, f, by a band v; tho coloring roller o is driven
by means of the strap w; the brushes q, q, are driven by means of the straps
x, x, and bevil gearing y; the shaft u also drives the shaft z by means of a
strap 1, 1. The shaft drives the drying cylinders k³, k³, k by means of spur
gearing, and the glazing rollers s, 8, by means of the strap 2, 2. The work
roller t is driven by the band 3, 3, (see Figure 1).
Having thus described the nature and object of my said Invention of
"improvements in the manufacture of paper cloth, known as artificial leather,
and in coating or covering the surface thereof with coloring matter, said color-
ing process being also adapted to the coloring or staining of paper," together
with the best means I am acquainted with for carrying the same into practical
effect, I would remark, in conclusion, that I claim as my Invention,―
Firstly, the manufacture of paper cloth, known as artificial leather, by the
mechanical means above described.
And, secondly, the use or application of brushes revolving or moving in an
horizontal direction over a table or other plane surface, for the purpose of
coloring or staining paper or paper cloth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Eugène Carless, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of August, in the year of our
Low One thousand sight hundead and filter five
EUGENE CARLESS. (L.s.)
Witness,
ALEX. PRINCE, Patent Agent,
4, Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross.