Improvements in Sewing Machine Attachments.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Feb., 1893-Accepted, 1st Apr., 1893
COMPLETE DIEULT ALION.
[Communicated from abroad by GEORG NEIDLINGER, of 79, Admiralitätstrasse,
Hamburg, in the Empire of Germany.]
Improvements in Sewing Machine Attachments.
I, ALEXANDER ANDERSON, Manager of the Singer Manufacturing Company's
Works, Kilbowie, Dumbartonshire, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed (as communicated to me) to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to sewing machine attachments for trimming or scolloping
the edges of the fabric or material passed through the sewing machine, such as
boot or shoe uppers, and also for feeding and guiding the buttons in machines for
sewing on shank buttons on such uppers or on fabrics.
The purpose of the attachment or appliance for trimming or scolloping which
can easily be fixed to any sewing machine, is to cut off automatically, whilst sewing,
the edges of the material which hang over, by means of a knife which swings to
and fro. This appliance is adjusted in such a manner as to allow its being put out
of use any moment whilst sewing.
In Sheet 1 of the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 shows a longitudinal section and Figure 2 a plan of the front part of a
sewing machine fitted with such an appliance.
Figure 3 show's the knife as seen from below.
Figure 4 shows the same as seen from the side.
Figure 5 as seen from above and Figure 6 a front view.
Figures 7 and 8 show in plan the driving mechanism of the knife in various
positions.
Figures 9 and 10' are respectively a plan and a latéral section of the throat plate,
which has to be specially shaped.
Figures 11 and 12 are respectively a longitudinal section and a view from above
of the working parts of the appliance when at work, i.e. when cutting the edges of
a lining sewn to the fabric by the machine.
The knife itself c¹ which is interchangeable is fixed to a lever c which is hinged
horizontally on a stud b of the machine. Through a slot d in the lever enters the
pin e' of
swing g (hinged underneath the bed plate a on a screw-stud f) which
swing is moved for one part by a cam k fixed to the shuttle driver shaft i, for the
other part by a spiral spring h fixed to the bed plate a, in consequence of which
each stitch corresponds with a swinging of the knife c'. (If necessary this swinging
movement of the knife can be derived also from some other part of the sewing
machine, which can be adapted for the purpose). The knife moving in this manner,
the vertical edge of same which passes through a slot in the throat plate / slides
along the edge of the throat plate, thereby cutting, like a pair of scissors, through
the material which is moved on by means of the feed m towards the rounded fore
edge of the knife c', the material being supported by the surface n on the side of
the slot. The movement of the knife which serves for the cutting operation
takes place whilst the feed is out of action, whilst the roller presser o rests on the
fabric p (which at the time lies fast) and whilst the needle g passes through
the fabric. The portion of the fabric p' which is cut off, is passed between the
knife and the bed plate a.
In order to adjust the edge of the knife c' so as to fit exactly the edge of the
throat plate, the stud b of the lever is bored through eccentrically and is held by
means of a screw which latter in the present case-catches in a shields fixed to
the bed plate a. Thus if the pin 6 (which at the top is screwed) is turned, the
position of the lever c is thereby changed as also the position of the knife c¹ with
respect to the (fastened) throat plate.

page_text: The lever t serves to put the appliance out of use. It is provided with a
bevelled face t¹ and provided with a handle t2 and is hinged on a study of the bed
plate a. By means of an angular piece w which can be adjusted on the bedplate
by means of a screw, the movement of the lever t is regulated. If the bevelled.
part t' is pressed under the knife or its bearer so far that the spring his not able
to overcome the friction or resistance produced, the swing g remains fixed in its
furthermost position, as shown in Figure 7. Therefore no movement of the knife
can take place, which for instance can be dispensed with when a straight seam
has to be sewn.
If, however, the first and last portion of the edge of the knife,-in carrying out:
the to and fro movement-is to be changed, this can easily be done by means of
the adjusting screw g³, which will alter the position of the spring plate g', of the
swing (against which the cam k works) towards the swing g'or the pine by which
the movement is transmitted to the knife.
Lastly, by not turning the levert so far and fixing same by means of the
piece (which is prevented from turning by the pin to') the bevelled pin t¹ can be
put to work at each swinging of the knife, in consequence of which the edge of the
knife will move in a vertical direction.
In the Specification of Letters Patent No. 8802 of 1892, I have particularly set
forth the mode of sewing on shank buttons to fabrics by attaching at the time one
button to the presser foot or a spring operated grasping device combined with the
presser foot. This however is somewhat troublesome and I therefore obviate such
disadvantage by employing an automatic supply of the buttons. To this end
I attach to the cloth presser a button raceway forming a reservoir and being
adapted to bring the buttons received therein successively in such close proximity
and position to the fabric on the needle plate and within the reach of the needle as
to cause the latter to sew on either button to the fabric with the aid of any suitable
.stitch-forming device beneath the needle plate and to release each button when
sewed on while the fabric on the needle plate is shifted a certain way, but to arrest
the subsequent button by a spring operated gate in front of the lower open end of
the race way at the very moment the sewed on button has left the latter.
A device operating in the manner described is illustrated on Sheet 2 of the
accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a side elevation of such device in the form of a race way and
connected to the presser foot bar of a sewing machine of known construction having
a horizontally oscillated shuttle; Figure 2, the lower part of Fig. 1 in enlarged
scale Figures 3 and 4 represent a front and rear view, and Figure 5 a cross
section of the said race way detached from the sewing machine.
The inclined arranged race way M is composed in the usual manner of the
properly curved body m and the two rails m' m' adjustably attached to the former
by means of the screws n about which are wound helical springs v which serve to keep
the rails in a certain distance from the body m. This race way is attached the upper
end to the rod P of the presser foot d by an arm pand at the lower end by an arm p¹.
The rails m' m' are so adjusted to each other that a button-shank guiding slot m
is formed through which the shanks f of the buttons may extend, while the heads
of the buttons are guided within the race-way by the body m. The race-way M is
curved in such a manner that the eyes of the buttons on their way from the upper
end of the race-way are turned successively from their inclined position, so that at
their arrival at the lower end of the same the eye of the lowermost button will
come in the reach of the needle c in a horizontal position. The lowermost of the
automatically descending buttons is held in the race way M by means of a spring q
laterally connected to the race way and extending beyond the lower mouth of the
latter until it occupies the horizontal position in which it is sewed on to the
fabric e. On pulling the latter after the needle has arrived at its highest position
the spring which may be preferably guided at the lower end of the race way by
a guide g, is caused to properly yield and to release the button sewed on to the
fabric as is shown by the dotted lines in Figures 3 and 4. The spring 9 which is
प

page_text: accordingly bent will thus instantaneously return into its position of rest, thereby
retarding the subsequent button which has meanwhile replaced the sewed-on
button within the race way and holding the same in proper position upon the
fabric e.
In using this arrangement it is obviously necessary to provide the presser foot d
with a recess for holding the button shank, but it will be sufficient to form the
same in such a manner that it will not come into the way of the button-shanks in
the race-way. After a button has been sewed on, the race way M is simultaneously
raised with the presser foot so that the fabric may be properly moved for sewing
on the following buttons.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed (as communicated to me)
I declare that what I claim is :-
1. A trimming or scolloping attachment for sewing machines, constructed and
arranged to operate substantially as described.
2. In combination with a machine for sewing on shank buttons provided with
a horizontally oscillating shuttle, a race way M adapted for the reception and auto-
matical supply of the buttons, which is provided with a laterally arranged spring
extending beyond the lower end of the race-way substantially as and for the
purpose set forth.
Dated this 16th day of February 1893.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.