IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR LONGITUDINALLY FOLDING AND ROLLING UP WEBS OF FABRIC
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Simon, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester,
in the County of Lancaster, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR LONGITUDINALLY FOLDING AND ROLLING UP WEBS OF
FABRIC." A communication from abroad by Ernst Webers & Co., in Rheine,
German Empire.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Simon at the Oflice
of the Coinmissioners of Patents on the 1st April 1880.
HENRY SIMON, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR LONGITUDINALLY FOLDING AND
ROLLING UP WEBS OF FABRIC." [A communication from abroad by Ernst
Webers & Co., in Rheine, German Empire.]
This Invention relates to the folding and rolling up of wide textile fabrics which
for convenience sake are folded or doubled in their width before rolling up.
Heretofore such folding has been done mostly by hand, and the present Invention
consists in the employment of machinery for effecting this operation constructed as
I will now describe.
The piece of cloth or other fabric to be folded in its width is first laid upon a
board, by preference folded backwards and forwards in its length. At soine height
above such board is a second board, in which is a triangular hole, two sides of
which (forming by preference an acute angle between them) are each somewhat
greater in length than half the width of the widest piece of fabric to be operated
upon. Within this holo is a correspondingly shaped triangular frame of such a
size as to leave narrow spaces between it and the two before mentioned sides of
the hole, while at the third side the frame is hinged to the board, and it is held in
its position within the hole by means of a lever, by which it can be raised upon
its hinges.
The end of the cloth is passed up from the first named board through the narrow
space between the frame and the hole in such manner that one half of its width is
on cach side of the triangle, its edges being passed through adjustable guides or

page_text: temples on the frame, which insure its passing through the board in the correct
position. Thus the cloth in being passed through the said board becomes partly
folded together to an acute angle corresponding to that of the hole, so that on then
passing it up between two rollers in contact with each other the two parts are
completely folded together, pressure being exerted on the top roller by weights or
springs for this purpose. From these rollers the fabric is passed over tension rails
and over a measuring cylinder of known construction to a spindle, on which it is
wound up either by hand or by power. This spindle slightly tapers in its length,
and has a screw thread formed upon it, so that after the length of fabric has been
rolled upon it it can be readily removed by turning the spindle so as to screw it 1
out of the roll.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patont filed by
the said Henry Simon in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th September
1880.
HENRY SIMON, of No. 7, St. Peter's Square, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR LONGITUDINALLY FOLDING AND
ROLLING UP WEBS OF FABRICS." A communication from abroad by Ernst
Webers & Co., in Rheine, German Einpire.
This Invention relates to the folding and rolling up of wide textile fabrics which
for convenience sake are folded or doubled in their width before rolling up.
Heretofore such folding has been done mostly by hand, and the present Invention
consists in the employment of machinery for effecting this operation constructed as
I will now describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings, in which Fig. 1
shews a side elevation, and Fig. 2 a sectional plan of the machine.
The piece of cloth or other fabric a to be folded in its width is first laid upon n
board A, the cloth being by preference folded backwards and forwards in its length
thereon. At some height above such board is a second board B, in which is a
triangular holo G, two sides of which (forming by preference an acute angle
between them) are each somewhat greater in length than half the width of the
widest piece of fabric to be operated upon. Within this hole is a correspondingly
shaped triangular frame or board I of such a size as to leave narrow spaces
between it and the two beforementioned sides of the hole, while at the third side
I' the frame is hinged to the board, and it is hold in its position within the holo
by means of a lever C, by which it can be raised upon its hinges. The end of the
cloth is passed up from the first named board A through the narrow space between
the frame I and the hole G in such manner that one half of its width is on cach
side of the triangle, its edges being passed through adjustable guides or temples
K, K, on the board B similar to those used in looms, which insure its passing
through the board in the correct position. Thus the cloth in being passed
through the said board becomes partly folded together to an acute angle corre-
sponding to that of the hole, so that on then passing it up between two rollers D, E,
in contact with each other the two parts are completely folded together, pressure
being exerted on the top roller by weights L or springs for this purpose. From
these rollers the fabric a is passed over tension rails M and over a measuring
cylinder H of known construction to a spindle F, on which it is wound up either
by hand or by power. This spindle slightly tapers in its length, and has a screw
thread formed upon it, so that after the length of fabric has been rolled upon it it
can be readily removed by lifting the spindle out of its bearings and then turning
it in the roll in a direction so as to screw it out of the roll.
Having thus described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondents,
I do not claim generally the construction of machinery for longitudinally folding
webs of fabric, but I claim,-
Constructing machinery for longitudinally folding webs of fabric, wherein the
fabric is caused to pass through a narrow angular slit in a board, plate, or fraine,
whereby it is partly folded together, and is then passed between rollers, by which
the folding is completed, substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Simon, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty.
HENRY SIMON. (L.S.)