IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING NETS FOR FISHING AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine,
Lake, & Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING NETS FOR
FISHING AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."-A. communication from abroad
by Benjamin Arnold, of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, United
States of America..
Sealed the 11th September 1874, and dated the 19th June 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lako
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,.
on the 19th June 1874.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co.,
Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, do hereby declare the
nature, of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING
NETS FOR FISHING AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES," a communication, to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to a machine which has a series of stationary
bobbins made thin and flat, and standing side by side on their edges,

page_text: being kept upright and separate from each other by means of grooves in
the front, back, and bottom of the support that holds them. Also a
series of hooks corresponding in number with the flat stationary bobbins
combined with the latter, and so moved and guided as to convey a loop
of twine taken from a separate set of bobbins on a reel over each flat
bobbin and leave it on the under side, so that when the loops are drawn
up they shall have passed around the flat bobbins.
I combine two bars, one having a row of pins on its edge corre-
sponding in space or distance from each other with the flat bobbins, and
the other bar having on its edge a row of longer pins with holes or eyes
in their outer ends, corresponding in space with the pins in the first bar.
To form loops of the twine to be drawn out and passed over the flat
bobbins two rolls are geared together and placed near each other with
a bar or loose roll placed on top so as to rest on both of them. These
rolls are combined with certain mechanism, as herein-after described, for
operating them to feed the netting or twine through the machine. I
employ a roll with staples set in its surface through which the twines
from the large bobbins. or reel pass in combination with guides so placed
as to cause the twines to wind up on themselves and draw up the loops
and knots when the roll is turned. A guide plate with vertical slots
made in it is placed between the pin bars and the flat bobbins to
guide the twines from the large bobbins and to draw off slack twine
from the flat bobbins. I employ a series of points to open the loops of
twine formed by the pins before mentioned and drawn out by the hooks,
as herein described. I combine with the above parts suitable devices to
give the proper motions to the same...
The said machine has two end frames connected together by beams at
the front, back, and bottom. The main shaft turns in bearings in each
end frame. On this shaft I secure a cam near the left end and another
cam with a gear wheel at the other end, and a loose sleeve extends on the
shaft nearly the whole distance between the two cams. The first cam
moves in succession three levers. One lever operates the said sleeve;
the second lever turns a tie roll, and is kept back against the cam by a
weight or otherwise; the third lever operates the feed rolls.
Another cam moves a lever, which pushes the pin bar back and for-
ward. This cam also moves a lever, which raises and lowers the guide

page_text: plate. The said cam also moves a lever which raises and lowers the
pin bar.
The said gear wheel on the main shaft drives another gear wheel,
which turns on a stud fastened to the end frame. A cam attached to
this gear wheel produces those motions that are required to be the reverse
in tying one row of knots of what they were in the row next previous.
The said cam also moves a lever which moves the eye bar endwise. The
shape of one half of each groove on both sides of this cam is made the
reverse of the other half of the same groove for the purpose of tying
the knots right and left to make the meshes diagonal to the sides of the
netting. The said cam also moves a lever which gives endwise motion
to the pin bar.
Arms on the aforesaid sleeve are connected to a bar whereon a row of
curved hooks is set, agreeing in numbers and distance apart with the flat:
bobbins, for the purpose of drawing the loops formed by the pins over
these bobbins. The said bar is guided in curved ways by an arm and
groove, which oblige the hooks to catch the loops on the pins, draw
them over the bobbins, and cast them off below.
A trough is supported at each end over the front of the roll to hold
the extra bobbins to replenish the machine with, and also to support the
devices for opening the loops as they are about to pass over the bobbins.
These devices may be placed below, so as to come up between the hooks
and the bobbins high enough to open the loops before they reach the
bobbins, and be drawn down out of the way as the hooks descend to cast
off the loops. Large bobbins are provided to hold the twine of which
the loops are made that are passed over the flat bobbins.
A lever pivoted at one end to the frame is pushed down when the tie
roll has taken up most of the slack of the knot to cause the feed rolls to
draw the row of knots that are being made away from the eyes a little,
so that they may be properly drawn up tight without being drawn into
the eyes.
The guide plate is placed on knee levers or the like, so that it may be
raised for the purpose of drawing slack twine from the flat bobbins
to form a part of the knot, and it has slots made in it to receive the
twine from the large bobbins so as to guide them properly without
drawing on them when the plate is raised to get slack from the flat
bobbins.

page_text: The aforesaid flat bobbins are placed on a support and held separate
from each other by ridges, forming grooves in the front, bottom, and
back of the support on which the bobbins stand on their edges.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 19th December 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand, cight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence
that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, 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
66 IM-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING NETS FOR FISHING AND FOR OTHER PUR-
POSES," a communication to me from abroad by Benjamin Arnold, of East
Greenwich, Rhode Island, United States of America, upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said William Robert Lake, 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 William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the

page_text: same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawing forming a part of this Specification.
This Invention relates to a. machine which has a series of stationary
bobbins made thin and flat, and standing side by side on their edges,
being kept upright and separate from each other by means of grooves in
the front, back, and bottom of the support that holds them. Also in a
series of hooks corresponding in number with the flat stationary bobbins
combined with the latter, and so moved and guided as to convey a loop of
twine taken from a separate set of bobbins or a reel over each flat
bobbin and leave it on the under side, so that when the loops are drawn
up they shall have passed around the flat bobbins.
I combine two bars, one having a row of pins in its edge corresponding
in space or distance from each other with the flat bobbins, and the other
bar having on its edge ȧ row of longer pins with holes or cyes in their
outer ends, corresponding in space with the pins in the first bar, to form
loops of the twine to be drawn out and passed over the flat bobbins.
Two rolls are geared together and placed near cach other, with a bar or
loose roll placed on top so as to rest on both of them, and combined
with certain mechanism, as herein-after described for operating them to
feed the netting or twine through the machine. I employ a roll with
staples set in its surface, through which the twines from the large
bobbins or recl pass in combination with guides so placed as to cause the
twines to wind up on themselves and draw up the loops and knots when
the roll is turned. A guide plate with vertical slots made in it is placed
between the pin bars and the flat bobbins to guide the twines from the
large bobbins and to draw off slack twine from the flat bobbins. I
employ a series of points to open the loops of twine. formed by the pins
before mentioned and drawn out by the hooks as herein described. I
combine with the above parts suitable devices to give the proper motions.
to the same.

page_text: looking to the right.
Figure 4 is a vertical cross section on the line c¹, c", Figure 1, looking
to the left.
Figure 5 is an elevation of the right-hand end of Figure 1.
Figure 6 shows a perspective view of the said machine.
Figure 7 is an elevation of the upper part of the left-hand end of
Figure 1 with the driving pulley removed.
Figure 8 is a back view of a part of the trough showing the devices
for opening the loops on the hooks.
Figure 9 shows the arrangement of the knee levers that hold and move
the pin bars.
Figure 10 shows how the guide bar holds the twine so that it shall
bind on the tie roll.
Figures 11 to 17 inclusive show the positions of the said pin bars, the
twines, and the hooks in making the knots.
A, A, are two end frames connected by the beams c¹, c", c¹¹, at the
front, back, and bottom (see Figure 2); B is the main shaft turning in
bearings in each end frame. On this shaft are secured the cam C near
the left end and the cam D with the gear wheel E at the other end, and a
loose sleeve J extends on the shaft nearly the whole distance between
the two cams. To this sleeve the arms m¹ are fastened. The cam C
moves in succession the three levers a, b, c. The lever a operates the
said sleeve J by means of the arm connecting bar d attached to an arm
on the sleeve. The lever turns the tie roll F by means of the segment
gear on its upper end and the gear wheel e on the tic roll. This lever is
kept back against the cam by the weight i, or in some other suitable
way. The lever c operates the feed rolls G, H, by means of the con-
necting rod g, lever j, rod k, gear rack h, and gear wheel 7. The latter
is fast on a sleeve, to the outer end of which the arm k¹ is fastened which
drives the ratchet wheel I fastened to the back feed roll by means of
pawls on the outer end of the arm k³, see Figure 7.
The cam D, Figures 3 and 5, moves by the outer groove, on its inner
side, the lever 1, which pushes the pin bar K backward and forward by
the connecting rod n, knee lever o, bar p, and knee levers t. By the

page_text: inner groove on the same face of cam D it moves the lever S, which
raises and lowers the guide plate j¹ by means of the rod q, knee lever”,
and bar m, Figure 9.
The cam D by the groove in its outer disc moves the lever N, which
raises and lowers the pin bar o* by the connecting rod v, knee lever W,
rod u¹, and knee levers x.
The gear wheel E fast on the main shaft drives the gear wheel P,
which turns on a stud fastened to the end frame. The gear wheel P is
twice as large as the wheel E that drives it, and consequently it makes
but one half of a revolution to every whole turn of the main shaft or .to.
every row of knots made, and the cam attached to this gear wheel P gives
those motions that are required to be the reverse in tying one row of
knots to what they were in the row next previous to the same.
The groove on the inside of the cam Q moves a lever R, which moves
the
eye bar O endwise by means of the connecting rod y, knee lever or
rocker shaft z, and bar z¹.
•
The shape of one-half of each groove on both sides of this cam Quis
made the reverse of that of the other half of the same groove for the
purpose of tying the knots right and left to make the meshes diagonal
to the sides of the netting.
The groove in the outside of the cam Q moves the lower lever S,
which gives motion endwise to the pin bars K by the rod y', kncc
lever x³, and the connecting bar w¹.
The arms m¹ on the sleeve J, Figure 4, are connected to the bar V
by the rod v. In this bar V a row of curved hooks are set, agreeing
in number and distance apart with the flat bobbins S₁ for the purpose of
drawing the loops formed by the pins over these bobbins. The said
bar V, Figure 4, is guided in curved ways u by the arm W, which
has a friction roll near its lower end running in the groove M. These
oblige the hooks to catch the loops on the pins, draw them over the
bobbins, and cast them off below.
✗ is a trough supported at each end over the front of the roll G to
hold the extra bobbins to replenish the machine with, and also to support
the devices for opening the loops as they are about to pass over the
bobbins S¹. Those devices consist of the knee levers q³, see Figures 7
and 8, pivoted to the back of the trough, and connected by the strips o¹

page_text: to the bar p¹, which is made with a row of V shaped points agreeing in
number and space with the hooks . The other ends of the knee
levers q¹ are pivoted to the bar X, operated by means of the knee
lever i¹, connecting rod h¹, and lever z", which is moved by a pin d' in
the wheel B. The points on the bar p' spread the sides of the loops
apart to enable them to pass down each side of the flat bobbins S¹. The
devices for opening the loops may be placed below, so as to come up
between the hooks and the bobbins high enough to open the loops before
they reach the bobbins, and be drawn down out of the way as the hooks
descend to cast off the loops. The large bobbins n' hold the twine of
which the loops are made that are passed over the flat bobbins S¹.
The lever D¹ is pivoted at one end to the frame A and connected at
the other end to the arm ¹ by the rod r. It is pushed down by the
pin d in the wheel B¹ when tho tie roll has taken up most of the slack
of the knot to cause the feed rolls to draw the row of knots that are
being made away from the eyes a little, so that they may be properly
drawn up tight without being drawn into the cycs.
The guide plate j¹ is placed on knee levers or their equivalents, so that
it may be raised for the purpose of drawing slack twine from the flat
bobbins to form a part of the knot, and it has slots made in it to receive
the twine from the large bobbins so as to guide them properly without
drawing on them when the plate is raised to get slack from the flat
bobbins. This guide plate is operated by the lever S, rod q, knee
lever v, and bar m, and the inner groove or cam plate D.
ว
The twine a is threaded in as shown in Figure 4, that is to say, 2
from the large bobbins n' back over the bar ¹, then up to the guides
on the front of the bar H', thence through the staples in the tie roll F
and through the guides on the top of bar H³, then through the
slots in the guide plate j¹ and the eyes in the bar O to the bottom
of the front feed roll, then up between the rolls, over the bar e¹ on 1
top, and down between the rolls out under the back feed roll.
The flat bobbins S₁ are placed on a support, see Figure 7, and held
separate from each other by ridges forming grooves in the front, bottom,
and back of the support on which the bobbins stand on their edges.
The twine c¹ from these bobbins goes up through the feed rolls in the same
manner as the twine from the large bobbins, or they may be tied to those
twines in front of the feed rolls in putting in twine to start the machine,

page_text: •
to give the feed rolls a hold on the twine until the web of netting
reaches them. The machine is driven by means of a belt on the pulley B,
which is fast on the main shaft.
The knots are formed as follows:-The pin bar K comes forward and
the eye bar O drops down, see Figure 11, then the pin bar moves side-
wise and the eye bar rises a little, see Figure 12, then the pin bar draws
back far enough for the pins to clear the eyes and moves laterally and
forward to its first position, and the eye bar drops down, see Figure 13.
The pin bar now comes forward over the eyes and a little sidewise, so
that when the eyes rise a little they are behind the lower part of the
twine around the pins, see Figure 14; then as the pin bar moves
back the eyes rise inside of the hoop around the pins, see Figure 15,
and the hooks t¹ enter under that portion of the twine that extends from
the eye to the pin farthest from it and catch it, the eyes dropping down
a little to draw the twine on the hooks, which then draw back and carry
the loops which are opened by the points on bar p¹ down over the flat
bobbins, casting them off at the bottom by passing under the ledge on
which the bobbins stand. The tie roll F now begins to turn, and draws
the loops up back of the bobbins S¹ and around the twine c', as seen in
Figure 16, the pin bar K meantime having drawn back and left the
twines around the eyes; then the eye pin drops out of the knot and it
is drawn up tight, see Figure 17, by a further turn of the tie roll.
.
The large bobbins twines tie rows of knots alternately with the flat
bobbins to the right of them and with those on their left. This move-
ment is accomplished by reversing the endwise motions of the two pin
bars K, O, in the alternate rows. The other motions remaining the
same this makes the meshes diagonal to the sides of the netting. At
this time (when the knots are drawn up) the cam C has moved around
so as to press on the lever c and turn the feed rolls G, H, by the con-
necting bars and levers, as above described, to draw the row of knots just
made back from the pins, the distance they are drawn back being the
size of the mesh, and it is regulated by sliding the clamp g' on the
lever j towards the pivot of that lever, to diminish the amount of draw
motion on the rack to lessen the size of the mesh, and the clamp is
moved towards the outer end of the lever to increase the motion of the
rack and make the meshes larger.
The arrangement of the guides on the bar H' whereby the twine is
allowed to draw freely through the staples in the tie roll when that roll

page_text: is turned in to its furthest point and the loop is being made, and the
way one portion of the twine binds on another portion of it when the
roll turns out, so as to both draw up the loop and knot and at the same
time draw off the necessary amount of twine from, the large bobbins for
the next mesh are shewn in Figure 10.
In Figure 3 is shown the manner of gearing the feed rolls G, H, so
that the back one which is driven by the rack h shall turn the front
one.
The rod u, Figure 2, connects the lever a to the lever c through the
lever j, so that when either one is operating it will draw the other back
to the cam.
At S", Figure 4, a small rod or wire may be laid on the twines between
the roll F and bar H' to make friction on the twines, and another rod
may be put on the twines between the roll F and bar to take up the
slack twine when the roll turns back.
Having thus fully described the said Invention, as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the
same, I wish it understood that I do not limit myself to the exact form
or number of the above-described parts, but would vary them according
to judgment, keeping in view the accomplishing of the same results by
the use of substantially the same means, and I claim in a machine
for making nets for fishing and other purposes in which a knot is
made,―
First. A series of stationary flat bobbins arranged side by side on their
edges in combination with knot-forming mechanism, as herein described
and for the purpose specified.
Second. The combination of the feed roll G, H, and e¹ operating in
combination with knot-forming mechanism, as herein described and for
the purpose set forth.
Third. The combination of the bar K and its pins with the bar O
and its eye pins moving in concert with each other, as herein set
forth.
Fourth. The tie roll F, constructed and operating substantially as
specified and for the purpose set forth.

page_text: Fifth. In combination with a series of the flat bobbins above
described a series of hooks A, operating as set forth and for the purpose
specified.
Sixth. The combination of the lever j, clamp g¹, rack h, gear wheel 1,
and ratchet wheel I, as herein described and for the purpose set
forth.
Seventh. The guide plate j¹ in combination with the bobbins S¹ and
hooks t, as herein set forth.
Eighth. The bar p¹ with its V shaped points in combination with the
bobbins S¹ and hooks t¹, as herein specified.
Ninth. The combination of the guide bar H¹ and tie roll F, arranged
and operating as above described and for the purpose set forth.
Tenth. The combination of the cam C with the loop hook lever a,
tic roll lever b, and feed roll lever c, arranged and operating as herein
set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of December, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
-
four
Witness,
HENRY JAMES NOONE.
- W. ROBT. LAKE. (L.S.)