Improvements in Sewing Machines.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Aug., 1891
Complete Specification Left. 11th May, 1892-Accepted, 11th June, 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Sewing Machines.
ALEXANDER Gass, of 17 College Street South in the City of Belfast and
County of Antrim in Ireland Sewing Machine Manufacturer do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to sewing machines employed in the production of shirts
and other articles in which seams that will only appear on the wrong side of the
material or what are known as secret seams are required.
For this purpose I construct the machine with a long arm which carries the
shuttle or a rotating hook and I provide the arm with a platform or plate projecting
in front of the needle for the operator to guide the work upon. The arm and
platform or plate are made of a size suitable to pass between the folds of the
material to be sewed and so as to avoid catching the front ply or plies thereof.
The machine is set at right angles to the front of the table or bench and the work
is fed along the arm in a straight line.
I enclose the feed of the machine in the needle arm and 1 employ an oscillating
lever with a wedge shaped end or foot to actuate the feed and an angle or other
lever for lifting the feed clear of the material on it's forward motion.
I actuate the shuttle by means of a bell-crank lever connected with an eccentric
on the shaft.
Dated 10th day of August 1891.
HYNDMAN & DICKSON,
6, Chichester Street, Belfast, Agents for Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Sewing Machines.
I ALEXANDER GASS of 17 College Street South in the City of Belfast and
County of Antrim in Ireland Sewing Machine 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 sewing machines employed in the production of shirts
and other articles in which seams that will only appear on the wrong side of the
material, or what are known as secret seams, are required.
For this purpose I construct the machine with a long arm which carries the
shuttle or a rotating hook and I provide the arm with a platform or plate projecting
in front of the needle for the operator to guide the work upon. The arm and plat-
form or plate are made of a size suitable to pass between the folds of the material
to be sewed and so as to avoid catching the front ply or plies thereof.
The machine is set at right angles to the front of the table or bench and the
work is fed along the arm in a straight line. I attach an angle plate to the side of
the arm to enable the operator when guiding the work to keep it stretched.
I enclose the feed of the machine in the head or needle arm and I employ an
oscillating lever, with a wedge shaped end or foot, to actuate the feed and an angle
or other lever for lifting the feed clear of the material on its forward motion.
I actuate the shuttle by means of a bell crank lever connected with an eccentric
on the driving shaft of the machine.
When I employ a rotating hook instead of a shuttle I substitute a shaft for the
shuttle rod and cause it to rotate by the aid of a disc connected by a rod with the
eccentric on the driving shaft.

page_text: In order that my said invention may be more fully understood I shall now proceed
to describe the figures on the sheet of drawings hereunto annexed the same letters
of reference, being used throughout all the figures to describe the same
corresponding parts of my improved machine.
or
Fig. I is a side clevation of the machine, in section, shewing the long arm which
carries the shuttle or rotating hook and is bolted to the frame and provided with a
-platform or plate projecting in front of the needle and feed for the operator to
guide the work upon and broken off, towards the frame, so as to expose the shuttle
rod connected with a bell crank lever & actuated by an eccentric on the driving
shaft of the machine: also the cam commonly employed for actuating the take up
lever; a disc by which the feed and needle bar are actuated, with a tappet to
actuate the lift lever; a foot or feeder, such as is employed in any top feed machine,
with an oscillating feed lever having a wedge shaped end or foot by which the work
is fed along the arm, instead of across it, and the point of an angle or lift lever by
which the feed is lifted clear of the material on its forward motion; a spring which
effects both the pressing and forward motions; and the usual appliances for actuating
the needle bar: all of which parts are enclosed in the frame and head of the
machine.
Fig. I is an end section of the arm showing an angle plate provided at one side
to enable the operator to stretch the work.
Fig. 1 is an end section of the head of the machine enlarged; shewing the
tension and exposing the disc which actuates the needle bar and feed motions, with
a tappet (in dotted lines) for actuating the angle or lift lever; the lift lever and
the feed lever, with the wedge shaped end or foot: a roller bearing on the disc to
give the feed motion; a spring to keep the roller in contact with the disc; and a
screw to regulate the length of the stitch also the usual lifter for the feed, when
removing the work, and the feeder: and
Fig. IV is a cross section of the head of the machine on the line A B, on
Fig. III, showing the wedge shaped point of the feed lever and the feeder.
u, is the long arm in which the shuttle or rotating hook is enclosed, and
which is bolted to the frame of the machine at one end and at the opposite is
provided with a platform or plate, b, for guiding the work upon; c is the shuttle
rod by which the shuttle is actuated and to which the shuttle carrier is attached
by a pivot or hinge; d is the bell crank lever with a knuckle joint, e, and a
connecting rod, f, strapped to the eccentric, g, on the driving shaft, h, of the
machine; is the cam, as commonly employed, for actuating the take up lever, k ;
I is the disc by which the feed and needle bar are actuated, and m is the tappet
actuating the lift lever, n, which raises the foot or feeder, o, by means of a pin
or bracket, p; 9 is the oscillating feed lever, having a wedge shaped end or
foot, g' and is the point of the angle or lift lever, n, by which the feed is
lifted clear of the material on its forward motion; s is the spring which effects
the pressing and forward motions; is the tension; is the roller bearing on
the disc, l, to give the feed motion; is the spring keeping the roller, u, in
contact with the disc, 1; w is the screw to regulate the length of the stitch;
is the lifter for the feed and y is the angle plate provided to enable the operator
to stretch the work.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I do
not claim as of my invention nor the exclusive use of shuttles or rotating hooks,
shuttle rods, bell crank levers, eccentrics or cams, take up levers, discs, feed and
needle bars, tappets, feeders, lift and feed levers, and springs nor any of the
separate parts commonly employed in the construction of sewing machines except
for the purposes of my said invention but what I do claim is
1, The use, in sewing machines, of levers operating the feed of the materials
being sewed, constructed, arranged and employed substantially in the manner and
for the purposes hereinbefore described and shewn in the drawings hereunto annexed.

page_text: 2, The use, in sewing machines, of shuttles, shuttle rods and bell crank levers
constructed, actuated and employed substantially in the manner and for the purposes
hereinbefore described and shewn in the drawings hereunto annexed.
3, The use, in sewing machines, of a shuttle arm provided with a projecting
platform or plate constructed and employed substantially in the manner and for
the purposes hereinbefore described and shewn in the drawings hereunto annexed.
+, The combination and arrangement of parts constituting my improved secret-
seam sewing machine, constructed and employed substantially in the manner and
for the purposes hereinbefore described and illustrated by the drawings on the sheet
hereunto annexed.
Dated this 10th day of May 1892.
HYNDMAN & DICKSON,
6, Chichester Street, Belfast, Agents for Applicant.