IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1874

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATON left by James Warwick at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 13th
October 1874.
I, JAMES WARWICK, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows:-―
This Invention is principally applicable to that class of sewing
machines wherein spools are employed for carrying the sewing thread,
and consists of a simple arrangement applied to the fly wheel of the
machine whereby the spools can be wound without either turning the
machine or removing the thread from the needle, and thus saves trouble
and wear and tear of the machine whilst winding spools, but it also at
the same time prevents the possibility of the machine being propelled in
the wrong direction, which breaks the thread and injures the machine, and
for this purpose it is also equally applicable to other sewing machines.
The Invention consists principally in mounting the fly wheel by which
the machine is driven loosely upon the driving shaft, but so connecting

page_text: it thereto, that when the fly wheel is turned in the ordinary or proper
direction it drives the machine, but when it is turned in the opposite
direction it slips round on the shaft without driving it, so that no
alteration or adjustment is required for spooling. Thus, so long as the fly
wheel is turned in the right direction the machine is driven as usual, but
when it is desired to wind the thread on to spools the fly wheel is turned
in the opposite direction and drives the spool, but the machine remains
at rest. This arrangement also possesses this advantage, that if a
learner or other unskilful person should by accident or design turn the
fly wheel in the wrong direction, it has no effect whatever upon the
machine.
Various methods of connecting the fly wheel to the shaft so that it
will only drive in one direction might be adopted, as will readily be
understood by any competent mechanic, but one of the simplest methods
is to key or fix a disc on to the shaft and to provide the said disc with
a peg or pegs, which are projected by means of spiral or other springs,
but can be pushed in flush with the surface of the disc. In the boss of
the fly wheel opposite to this peg a circular inclined groove is cut, which
commences flush with the surface, and is graduated down to a depth
of about one-eight of an inch or thereabouts.
It will be evident that as the fly wheel is turned in one direction the
inclined groove will merely alternately force in the peg and allow the
spring to force it out again, but on turning it in the opposite direction
the peg will catch in the bottom of the groove and drive the shaft. Of
course if preferred the peg or pegs may be fixed in the boss of the fly
wheel, and the inclined groove or grooves be cut or formed in the face
of the disc, which will have the same effect. Or, as before mentioned,
any other known mechanical arrangement for effecting the engaging and
disengaging of the fly wheel by the mere fact of reversing its direction
of rotation without any further adjustment may be employed for this
purpose.