IMPROVEMENTS IN PLEATING OR KILTING MACHINES
Year: 1878

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Harrison at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 12th December 1878.
WILLIAM HARRISON, of 128, Portland Street, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PLEATING OR KILTING MACHINES."
My improved kilter is constructed with a box for hot pressing irons, and a bed
plate for the plates to be formed thereon, and passed forward between the box and
bed plate with a swing lever which rotates, supported upon two end brackets and
a parallel swivel or rocking bar or knife holder at the opposite end from the lever
handle. Upon the swivel bar I screw a long flat pleating knife. From the centre
of the swivel bar or knife holder I place a ratchet at right angles; a spiral spring
which is secured to the centre of the spring lever is stretched and attached to the
ratchet fixed at right angles from the centre of the swivelling bar or knife holder.
The spiral spring pulls the ratchet upwards, and thereby gives a pressure upon the
material to be kilted. Hitherto a great difficulty has been manifest in keeping the
pleates equidistant, consequent upon the continuous pressure of the kilting knife
upon the material to be kilted or pleated drawing and stretching the material
during the withdrawal or return of the knife to form the next and succeeding
pleates.
To obviate this defect I cause the knife to lift up off the material during or
while the kilting knife is returning to form the next and each succeeding plate by
a mechanical contrivance hereafter explained.
My improvements to cause the kilting knife to lift up for the purposes as
heretofore described and obtained by fixing another lever in a vertical position to
the swing lever handle which swivels upon a pin passed through a boss. The lever
upon this pin swivels outward and inward; I attach in a convenient place a piece
of metal in a vertical or upright position upon the swivel bar or knife holder, so
that when the knife lifting lever is pressed towards the swing handle lever it
causes the swivel bar or knife holder to swivel or rock in an opposite direction to
that which the spring is acting, and thereby takes the pressure off the material for
the purposes herein-before described. By simply substituting the vertical upright

page_text: with a piece of metal tapered, set at right angles to the knife holder, I produce the
the same result.
By making the swing lever handle hollow I then pass a vertical rod down the
centre of the swing lever handle with suitable shape at the top of the rod from the
thumb pressure, and to form a stop for a limited descent of the rod; I then place a
piece of metal at right angles from the swivelling bar or knife holder, so that when
a downward pressure is given to the rod it acts upon the piece of metal at right
angles to the knife holder, and causes the knife holder to swivel or rock, and so
takes the pressure off the material at any moment it is applied.
To obtain the same result I place a vertical piece of metal upon the knife holder
or swivelling bar, shaped like a wedge tapered at the upper end, I then simply
apply the rod as before with a thick end at the lower end of rod to press the
tapered end of wedge outwards to give the same swivelling or rocking motion to
the knife holder for the purposes as herein before described.
The object of this Invention may be obtained by different arrangements which
will secure the same result without departing from the principle of my said
Invention.