CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING, AND IN THE MODE OR METHOD OF PRODUCING PLAIN OR FIGURED GOODS OR FABRICS
Year: 1842

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
WILLIAM SIEVIER, of Henrietta Street, Cavendish Square, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Thirteenth day of October, in the sixth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Robert
William Sievier, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Robert William Sievier, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, and such others as I, the said Robert William Sievier, my executors,
administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales,
the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and
Plantations abroad, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and
Man, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING, AND
IN THE MODE OR METHOD OF PRODUCING PLAIN OR FIGURED GOODS OR FABRICS;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said
Robert William Sievier, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled
in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as
in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, 1, the said
Robert William Sievier, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference
being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures
marked thereon, that is to say:-
My "Improvements in Looms for Weaving, and in the Mode or Method of
Producing Plain and Figured Goods or Fabrics," consist, firstly, in a peculiar
mode of producing and raising the terry or loops of such fabrics as Brussels
carpeting, coach lace, velvets, or other fabrics that are woven with a terry loop,
or raised surfaces, which is effected by me without the aid of intervening wires
or taggs, as commonly employed to form such terry, or loops, or raised surfaces.
And secondly, in certain modifications or improvements in the construction of
looms to render them capable of effecting that object.
The mode by which I produce the loops or terry, is, in the first place, by partially
beating up certain picks of the shoot or weft threads as they are woven into the
warps (that is, leaving a considerable space between two of the picks or shoots)
and then following with a number of close shoots, and after that has been done
sliding or driving the whole of these successive shoots of weft firmly up upon
the base or foundation threads to the previously formed work, by means of
which the terry parts of the warp occupying the space between the open picks
will be puckered up in loops on the surface of the fabric, and form that raised
portion of the warp heretofore produced by passing those parts of the warp
threads over transverse wires or elevated ribs of metal or other materials.
The first feature of my improvements is effected by employing three or more
distinct warps. The first portion of warp, which I call the draw warp, is to
form the base or foundation of the work; the second portion of warp is.to
constitute the terry or loops on the surface; and the third portion of warp is
to effect the binding of all the threads when woven together. The warps are
all to be held firmly with a uniform tension during a series of successive picks
of weft, but on the beating up home of each series of partially beaten-up weft
thread the terry warps should be relaxed in order to allow the portion of terry
warp between the two open picks to pucker or run up into loops, at the same
time the draw warps and binding warps, one or both, should receive .an
increased tension for the purpose of allowing the terry warp freely to slide
forward on the draw warp, and to be there secured firmly by the binding warp.
These operations of the warps may be performed in various ways to effect
the above object; I do not, therefore, intend to confine myself to any precise
mechanism, as the weaving of terry and similarly raised fabrics, by means of

page_text: occasional open spaces left between the picks, and afterwards beaten up to
produce the loops, constitutes in itself, however performed, the first and most
essential feature of my Invention.
The second feature of my Invention consists in certain novel mechanism or
machinery, whereby the above objects may be conveniently carried into effect,
which improvements are fully set out in the accompanying Drawings, and
will be clearly understood by the followingexplanation thereof, viz*:-
Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a small ware loom, to be worked by rotary
power; Fig. 2 is an elevation of the left-hand end of the same; Fig. 3, a
vertical section, taken transverseley through the loom, looking towards the
right-hand end; and Fig. 4, a horizontal view of a part of the loom as it
would appear from above, showing the work, beam, reeds, shuttles, warps,
and other parts, as will be further described; the same letters of reference
pointing out similar parts in all these Figures. A, A, A, are the standards
and ordinary square framework of the loom; B, B, the batten or lathe;
C, C, the swords or arms, by which it vibrates upon centres on the top
of the loom; D, the breast beam; E, the taking-off or work roller; F, the
roller, on which the draw warp is wound; G, the roller carrying the terry
warp; H, the roller carrying the binding warp; I is the driving or crank
shaft, actuated by a band from any first mover passed round the driving
pulley K. The draw warp is shewn at a, passing from the roller F through
the mounture of the jacquard and through the reed b; the terry warp is
shewn at c, c, c, proceeding from the roller G through the mounture and
reed; and d, d, is the binding warp, led off from the roller H through the
mounture and reed in like manner; the shuttles are shewn at e, e, e. Rotary
motion being given to the main shaft I, the cranks thereon work the arms
L, L, by which the batten B is made to vibrate for the purpose of beating up
the weft threads. Upon the left-hand end of the main shaft an excentric
toothed wheel M is affixed, taking into an elliptical wheel N mounted on a
stud fixed to the end of the frame best seen in Fig. 2. Through this wheel N.
there is a radial slot to receive the adjustable pin connected with the rod f, the
upper end of which rod is attached to a lever g at the outer extremity of a
longitudinal rod h, shewn in the front view, Fig. 1 Hence, by the rotation of
the wheels M and N through the rod f, vibrating motion is given to the shaft h,>
which, by the agency of the arm i and rod k, works the levers 7 above, that
actuate the jacquard P, whereby the mounture is raised for shedding the warps
according to the pattern to be woven, as is well understood by weavers. The
slot in the wheel N is for the purpose of placing the adjustable pin of the rod f
at any required distance from the centre, according as the opening of the sheds

page_text: may be desired for the passage of the shuttle; the shuttles are driven through the
âgency of a toothed wheel Q fixed upon a longitudinal shaft R in the lower part
of the loom, which wheel derives its motion from a pinion m on the main crank
shaft I. This wheel Q takes into a small wheel n mounted upon a standard,
as shewn in Fig. 2; and the axle of this wheel n has two cranks p, p, standing
opposite to each other. To these cranks are connected the rods q, q, leading
upwards to the end of two vibrating levers r, r, turning upon a studs fixed in
the end of the framework. From the reverse ends of these levers 7, 1, cords
t; t, descend to a pulley S mounted at the end of the batten B, see Figures 1
and 2. Upon the end of this pulley S there is a toothed wheel u; taking into a
longitudinal rack w, w, w; extending along the batten, as shewn in Fig 1; and
hence as the wheel n and cranks p, p, revolve, the levers 7, 1, are made to
vibrate alternately, and through the cords t, t, the pulley S is made to rotatate
with a reciprocating action, thereby driving the rack w, w; w, to and fro. To
each of the shiittle races there are attached two small pinions a, a, taking into
the rack w, and also into a small rack affixed to the under part of each shuttle;
hence, as the rack w is moved to and fro by the means described, the shuttle is
made to pass in the front of its reed between the opening of the sheds of the warp:
I now proceed to explain the means by which I occasionally shorten the
length of the stroke of the batten to leave the space between the two picks or
shoots of weft so as to prevent the weft being beaten 'home, as before said, until
the proper number of shoots or picks have been given to bind and secure the
terry warp, after which the batten takes a longer stroke toward the breast
beam D for the purpose of beating the whole of the shoots up securely to the
previously made work; and producing the terry loops, as before described. The
rotation of the crank on the shaft I drives the crank arm L, which forces the
batten B forward in the act of beating up the weft, and as long as the pin
which connects the batten and the armi L together remains at the bottom of
the slot in the plate T the batten will beat up the weft at every stroke to an
equal distance, but when the arins L, L, are raised by the connecting pin
passing to the upper part of the slot in the plate T they will cause the arc in
which the batten swings to be extended further toward the breast beam, and
consequently at such times to beat the work up further, that is home. This is
effected by the agency of cams U, U, on the longitudinal shaft R, which,
revolving, as before described, at certain intervals, causes the lever V to be
depressed, and thereby to draw down the rod T, the upper end of which rod is
attached to a lever W above, and by the movement of this lever the rod z is at
such times raised, which lifts the pin with the end of the arm L into its elevated
position in the slot of the plate T. By these means, supposing the longer
stroke of the batten to have been just given and the work to. have been beaten

page_text: up home, the longer radius of the cam U then passing off from the lever V, the
rod y will immediately rise and the rod z be brought down by the weight of
the appended arms L, which arms L and the pins having fallen to the lowest
position will restrain the swing of the batten to its shorter distance and leave a
space between the next weft thread and the previously beaten-up work, which
I call the open shoot; several picks or shoots of weft are then given, and
when a sufficient number has been thrown into the work, the cam U coming
round again causes the arms L to rise and the advanced stroke of the batten
again to take place, by which the several shoots or picks are forcibly driven up,
and the portions of the terry warp occupying the open space of the weaving
will be puckered up into loops, and thereby form the terry or rib in the
woven fabric. I have before said it is necessary to relax the tension of the
terry warp, and also to tighten the draw warp, and, in some cases, the binding
warp, when the beating up home is performed. These effects are produced by
cams X, X, fixed upon the shaft R, which, at the proper time, depresses the front
ends of their levers Y, Y, causing their reverse ends to rise, and by means of small
bands attached to a roller Z to turn that roller a short distance round. From
the periphery of this roller Z there are two cords, extending, the one to the
roller F of the draw warp, the other to a vibrating pressing lever 1; acting upon
the terry warp. When the roller Z is turned by the rising of the back end of
the lever Y it causes the cord leading to the draw warp roller F to bring down
the weighted cord 2, and thereby increase the tension of the draw warp a; at
the same time the roller Z also brings down the cord 3, attached to the pressing
lever 1, which vibrates upon an axle, and causes the front end of that lever to
pinch the terry warp c against the guide roller 4, by which means the pendant
weight 5 is raised a trifle, and that part of the terry warp laying between
the guide roller and the breast beam is in a small degree slackened, in order
to allow of its being more readily beaten or puckered up into a loop. On the
outer extremity of the shaft R, at the left end of the machine (see Fig. 2), a
tappet with arms 6 is affixed. These tappet arins, as the shaft revolves, act
upon the lever 7, mounted on a standard, and at the reverse end of this lever,
in front, a vertical driver 8 is attached, which, as the lever rises, takes into a
ratchet wheel 9, and drives that wheel one or more teeth onward at every
action. This wheel 9 is fixed upon a horizontal shaft, having a screw
thread 10, which takes into the worm wheel 11; on the end of the taking-up
or work roll E (having pins on its periphery as usual,) consequently, by this
action, the work is taken up as it becomes woven. It may be necessary here
to remark, that I do not intend to confine myself to three or any particular
number of beams or bobbins of warp.
I now proceed to describe the construction of loom suited for weaving

page_text: carpets and other broad fabrics having a terry or looped surface, upon my
improved principle.
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation, taken vertically through the loom. A, A, A,
points out the framework; B is the draw warp roll; C, the binding warp
roll; D, the terry warp roll; E, the taking-off roll; F, the roll for winding up
the work when woven; G, the batten swinging on centres, as usual; H, the
mounture of the jacquard, leading to the harness in the ordinary way; I,
the breast beam. The jacquard not shown in this Figure is to be worked by
the means described in reference to the small-ware loom, Figures 1, 2, and 3.
The main horizontal rotary shaft, or crank axle, is shewn at K, from whence
proceeds the crank arm L, which connects the crank with the end of the sword
of the batten, the joint pin being inserted through a slot in the plate at the end
of the sword, as in the previously described machine. M is the cam shaft
below, upon which the cam N is fixed, acting as it revolves against the tail of
a bent lever P, P, hanging upon a fulcrum pin fixed in the side of the frame-
work. The upper arm of this bent lever P supports the pin at the end of the
crank arm L, and, consequently, as the cam N revólves, the joint pin of the
crank arm is occasionally raised in its slot for the purpose of lifting the arm L
and advancing the stroke of the batten toward the breast I of the loom, in the.
act of beating up the terry or loops, as before described. At the same time
that this beating up takes place, the warps are acted upon by a cord Q,
attached at the lower end of the bent lever P, which cord also being connected
to the weighted friction bands of the draw warp roller B and terry warp-
roller D, when the lower end of the lever N is pushed forward at the time of
beating up the terry, the draw warp becomes tightened, and the terry warp
slackened, for the purpose before explained. The method of performing my
improved mode of weaving terry or looped fabric in an ordinary hand-loom
is shewn in Fig. 6, which represents an elevation of the loom in longitudinal
section. A, A, A; is the framework; B, the draw warp roll; C, the terry
warp roll; D, the binding warp roll; and, if required, E may be a silk warp
roll; F is the breast beam; G, the breast roll; H, the batten; I, the taking-
off roll; and K, the work roll. The warps all pass through the harness, which
are acted upon by a jacquard or other mounture placed above. The stop of
the batten is a lever L, turning upon a fulcrum pin set in the frame, which
stop lever is raised into a horizontal position by a weight M attached to its
front end. There is also a stationary stop N affixed to the frame, which is
somewhat shorter than the lever stop when the batten H beats up to the stop N,
as it would be permitted to do at the time that the lever stop L is depressed;
then the work is driven home, and the terry thrown up; but when the lever

page_text: stop is raised to the horizontal position, then the batten makes only the short
beat. Supposing the harness to be worked by a jacquard above, a rope P, con-
nected to one of the hooks of the jacquard, is brought down under
guide
pulley Q, and attached to the under part of the lever stop L. When the terry
loops are to be beaten up home, the jacquard draws up the rope P, which de-
presses the lever P, and the batten then beats up to the stationary stop N; but
when the open or distant picks of weft are to be thrown into the warps, the
jacquard does not act upon the cord P, and the weight M raises the lever stop
Linto its horizontal position. At the same time the jacquard also acts upon a
rope R, connected to the warp rollers, and produces the tension and relaxation
of the warps, as before explained.
From the foregoing explanation, and the accompanying Drawings, I consider
that my Invention will be fully understood; but that no difficulty may arise in
putting the looms to work, I will explain the method of making some of the
ties, though I wish it to be understood that I do not intend to confine myself
to any particular way of lifting the warps to make such ties, as that may be
left to the will of the weaver, who may also alter the ties in any way he may
desire to produce a different style of work. In the small-ware loom (Fig. 1),
supposed to be producing coach lace, the ties may be entered so as to make the
following lifts of the warp by the jacquard machine, or any other means well
known to experienced weavers, which may be entered in different ways,
according to their wish or preference. The lifts of the warp, that is the opening
of the shed to let the shuttle pass for weaving coach lace, may be made
either by a jacquard or treadles, and may be effected by the following order of
arrangement: The first lift of the warp or opening of the shed is the draw
warp alone; when the shuttle is to be passed through the second lift or opening
of the shed, is to be the figuring part of the terry warp and draw warp, the
shuttle then passes through; the third, the figuring part of the terry warp
and the binder warp is raised, and the shuttle is passed through; the fourth,
the figuring part of the terry warp and draw thread warp is raised, and
the shuttles passed through; the fifth, the whole of the terry warp and
draw thread warp being raised, the shuttle passes through; the sixth, the
figuring part of the terry warp and the binder warp are raised, and the
shuttle passed through. After this shoot of the weft, the battens come forward
by the arrangements already shewn, and the whole of the weft of the six
shoots are beaten up, and the loop or terry thereby thrown up. For selets or
one-sided looped or terry fabrics, the lifts of warp are as follows, the shuttles
passing through each time :-First, the draw and terry warp rises; second,
the binder warp and the terry warp; third, draw thread warp; fourth, draw

page_text: thread warp and terry warp; fifth, terry warp and binder warp. The five shoots
of weft which have passed through are then driven up as before stated. For a
double-sided fabric the lifts of the warp are as follows:-First, draw thread.
warp and half the terry warp; second, binder warp and the same terry warp;
third, all the terry warp and binder warp; fourth, draw. thread warp; fifth,
draw thread warp and half the terry warp as before; sixth, whole binder warp
and terry warp as before. The batten then strikes up the whole, as before
stated, to produce the loops on both sides of the fabric.
Having now described the particular features of my improvements in looms
for weaving, and the mode or method of producing plain or figured goods or
fabrics, I desire it to be understood that I claim as my Invention, under the
above in part recited Letters Patent,-
Firstly, the novel mode or method of producing plain or figured goods or
fabrics having terry or looped surfaces of the kinds above described, by partially
beating up certain picks of the shoot or weft threads, and afterwards further
beating up or driving home those picks or shoots, in order to cause certain
portions of the terry warp to pucker up in loops.
And, secondly, certain improved constructions of looms capable of carrying
that object into effect in the manner above described, viz, those parts of the
mechanism of the looms by which the forward stroke of the batten is occasionally
varied to produce the open or close beating up of the weft, and at the same
time the tension of the several warps are altered in order to afford the means
of driving up the terry warps to form the loops on the face of the fabric..
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert William Sievier, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of April, One thousand eight
hundred and forty thro