IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING MACHINERY FOR FLAX. Tow, JUTE, AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Lawson and Edward Gerrard Fitton, of Leeds,
in the County of York, Machinists, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN PREPARING MACHINERY FOR FLAX. Tow, JUTE, AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIALS."
Sealed the 19th January 1866, and dated the 31st July 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Lawson and Edward
Gerrard Fitton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 31st July 1865.
WC, JOHN LAWSON and EDWARD GERRARD FITTON, of Leeds, in the
County of York, Machinists do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING MACHINERY FOR FLAX, TOW, JUTE
AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as follows:-
These improvements relate to the roving frame, and consist in a new and
simple method of arranging the draft gearing. The plan usually adopted for
transmitting motion to the retaining rollers and screws has been by a train of
wheels, called the draft gearing, betwixt the front or drawing roller, and in
screw gill frames what is termed the back shaft, the studs supporting the
intermediate or carrier wheels in the said train of wheels being fixed generally
to the end stand or carriage plate, and sometimes to the gearing brackets on
[Price 8d.1

page_text: the frame end or beam. In our improved method we dispense entirely with
this train of wheels and attain our object, viz., driving the back shaft, by
obtaining motion from a pinion on one of the carrier wheels in the train of
wheels betwixt the main driving shaft and the front roller, commonly called
the twist gearing, and thus, whilst the number of wheels is reduced, the fixing
of the studs is inore secure, and less room is occupied by dispensing with the
aforesaid train of wheels. The change wheel on the end of back shaft is
keyed on to a slip box having a serrated face at one end and sliding freely on
the said back shaft. A boss with a corresponding serrated face is keyed on
the inside of back shaft; the two serrated faces being held together by a
spiral spring and a nut screwed on the outer extremity of back shaft. The
slip box in question revolves in the bearing which supports the back shaft,
the serrated faces being on the inside and the change wheels on the outside
of bearing. By this arrangement the change or draft wheel can be removed
without affecting the clutch spring.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Lawson and Edward Gerrard Fitton in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 31st January 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
LAWSON and EDWARD GERRARD FITTON, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Machinists, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said John Lawson and Edward Gerrard Fitton, Her special liceuce that
we, the said John Lawson and Edward Gerrard Fitton, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John Lawson and
Edward Gerrard Fitton, our 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 "IMPROVE
MENTS IN PREPARING MACHINERY FOR FLAX, Tow, JUTE, AND OTHER FIBROUS-
MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John
Lawson and Edward Gerrard Fitton, our executors or administrators, by an

page_text: instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
or under the hand and seal of one of us or them, 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 Edward Gerrard Fitton, on behalf of
myself and the said John Lawson, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be par-
ticularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof,
that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in preparing machinery for
flax, tow, jute, and other fibrous materials, and the first part of our
improvements relates to the roving frames; these frames for flax and similar
fibres are constructed with back or retaining rollers through which the fibre
first passes; also with a screw gill or other travelling toothed surface which
receives the fibre from the retaining rollers and delivers it to the front of
delivery roller, from whence it passes to the spindle and flyer. Our improve-
ment consists in a new and simple method of arranging the draft gearing.
The plan usually adopted for transmitting motion to the retaining rollers aud
screws has been by a train of wheels called the draft gearing betwixt the
front or drawing roller, and in screw gill frames what is called the back shaft,
the studs supporting the intermediate or carrier wheels in the said train or
wheels being supported or fixed generally to a part of the framing called the
end stand or carriage plate, and sometimes to the gearing brackets on the
frame end or beam. In our impro ed method we dispense entirely with this
train of wheels and attain our object, viz., driving the back shaft by obtaining
motion from a wheel or pinion on one of the carrier wheels in the train of
wheels betwixt the driving shaft and the front roller, commouly called the
twist gearing, because it is in this train that the change wheel is introduced
which regulates the relative speed of the delivery rollers and the flyer, and
consequently the amount of twist put on the roving, and thus whilst the.
number of wheels is reduced the fixing of the studs is more secure and less
room is occupied by dispensing with the aforesaid train of wheels.
In the Drawings Figure 1 is an end elevation, Figure 2 a plan, and Figure 3
a sectional elevation of such parts of a roving frame as are necessary to
3
illustrate our improvements. Figures 1 and 2 are drawn to a scale of, say,
inches, equal one foot; and Figure 3 is drawn full size. The same letters of
reference represent the same parts in each of the Drawings. A is framing;

page_text: a, the driving shaft; C, the driving wheel; D, the socket or twist wheels, so
called because the smaller of the two is capable of being changed for a wheel
of a different size when it is desired to alter the speed of the delivery rollers,
so that more or less twist may be put on the roving. It will be seen that the
axis of the socket or twist wheels is a stud, capable of being set in any
required position on a slotted arc in the frame, which arc is concentric with
the driving shaft a ; is the intermediate wheel; F, the front roller wheel;
G, the wheel upon the boss of the intermediate wheel E; H, an intermediate
wheel communicating motion to the draft wheel I on the back shaft; this
wheel I is capable of being changed for one of larger or smaller size to regn-
late the draft, and the wheel H is made adjustable along
an arc concentric
with the axis of the wheel G in order that it may correspond; J is the wheel
on end of cone shaft, from which a strap passes in the usual manner to
regulate the speed of the differential wheels, and consequently the winding on
of the bobbin; b is the front roller; cis the back shaft; dis the cone shaft.
When the driving shaft is put in motion it revolves in the direction of the
arrow and communicates motion to one of the wheels D, and the other
wheel D, which is the twist wheel, takes into and drives the intermediate
wheel E, which communicates motion to the front roller b. The wheel G.
which is attached to the intermediate wheel E, is the driving wheel for driving
the change or draft wheel I; which it does through the intermediate wheel H.
By this arrangement we drive the back shaft without transmitting the power
requisite for so doing through the front roller, and we dispense with the train
of wheels usually employed between the delivery and back rollers ou the other
side of the frame A, and with the wheel covers used for covering this train of
wheels, so that less space is occupied, and besides an additional bearing is
given to the back shaft. The back shaft. c gives motion to the gill screws by
bevelled wheels asis usual, and also as heretofore it drives the retaining rollers
by spur wheels at the further end of the frame. The wheel 1 is not rigidly
fixed on the back shaft, but it drives it through a slip box, so that breakage
is avoided should the gill fallers or other part of the apparatus become
deranged.
Our second improvement relates to the construction of this slip box. The
change or draft wheel I is keyed on to a slip box or tube, having a
serrated face at one end and capable of turning and sliding freely on the said
back shaft. A b ss with a corresponding serrated face is keyed or fastened on
the back shaft, the two serrated faccs being held together by a spring and a
nut screwed on the outer end of back shaft. The slip box in question
revolves in a bearing, which supports the back shaft, the serrated faces being

page_text: on the inside and the change wheels on the outside of the bearing. The
spring which holds the serrated faces together is contained within the slip
box or tube. By this arrangement the change or draft wheels can be
removed without affecting the clutch spring, which heretofore has had to be
removed and replaced and readjusted each time a change is made in the
draft.
In the Drawings c is the back shaft ; fis the slip box or tube upon which
the change or draft wheel I is mounted; g is the boss, with serrated face
keyed or fastened on the back shaft; e is the spiral spring fitting upon the
end of back shaft and within the tube or slip box; h are the nuts which
tighten the spring against the slip box; o is the nut which fastens the
change or draft wheel on the slip box f. When the frame is in operation the
draft wheel I drives the back shaft screws and back rollers. In case of any
derangement taking place in any of the parts thus driven, which will require
additional power, the slip box f will resist the spring, and the parts thus
driven will stop and prevent the machinery from breaking. The utility of this
arrangement depends upon the proper adjustment of the spiral springs. It
has been customary heretofore when a slip box has been used to place the
spring in the boss of the draft wheel I, which arrangement, as before
mentioned, causes the springs to be removed when the draft wheels are
changed. In our improvements the draft wheels can be changed without
altering the spring, so that when properly adjusted it can remain so.
It is obvious that the second part of these improvements is applicable also
to drawing and spreading frames, as such frames are identical with roving
frames so far as relates to the driving of the gill screws and back or retaining
rollers from the back shaft.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Gerrard Fitton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
EDWARD GERRARD FITTON. (L.S.)