Improvements in or Connected with Apparatus Used for Punching Jacquard Cards.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Nov., 1886.
Complete Left, 12th Aug., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 16th Sept., 1887.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or Connected with Apparatus Used for Punching
Jacquard Cards.
I, BENJAMIN TOONE, of 2 Russell Street Mills, Nottingham, in the County of
Nottingham, Pattern Reader and Card Perforator, do hereby declare the nature of
this Invention to be as follows, that is to say :—
My said Invention relates to apparatus which is to some extent of the kind described
in the Specification of my Patent No. 634 of 1881, and it has for its object to improve
the method or system of "reading" patterns and manipulating the apparatus used for
punching Jacquard cards, and to adapt and modify the apparatus to suit such improved
method or system.
The apparatus as hitherto made may be briefly described as comprising the follow-
ing parts, namely:-A long horizontal framing at one end of which is fixed the punch
block containing the set of punches which are selected, according to the pattern, and
pushed out and into the movable block which is transferred to the actual punching
press. Near the punch block there is a selecting frame or block carrying the selected
needles which act on the punches, and which have springs applied to them and pressing
them sufficiently to cause them to move the punches when the selecting block is moved
towards the punch block, but allowing those of them to be drawn back which are not
to act on the punches. The selecting needles have attached to their inner ends threads
or strings which pass through a sley plate or hole board fixed on the framing and are
by it guided so as to pull the selecting needles in the directions of their lengths, the
threads or strings diverging more or less backwards from the sley plate. The threads
or strings which have their front ends attached to the selecting needles, have their back
ends attached to the front ends of a set of intermediate needles carried and guided in
an intermediate block; the number of intermediate needles is however considerably
smaller than that of the selecting needles, each intermediate needle being connected
by threads or strings to two or more selecting needles according to the number of
repeats of the pattern or of any portion of the pattern that have to be punched on each
card. The back ends of the intermediate needles have threads or strings attached to
them and these threads or strings (hitherto known as wales or wale strings) pass back-
wards through a sley plate or hole board, which guides them so as to pull the inter-
mediate needles in the directions of their lengths; and they extend thence to the back
end of the framing. Hitherto for every card of a set or pattern a cross string known
as a lash has been interlaced transversely through the wale strings to separate the
strings corresponding to the punches which are to be selected for each card from the

page_text: others; and the operator taking each lash string in succession as a guide passes a lash
roller through between the selected and unselected strings and by means of a lever
acting on the lash roller depresses the unselected strings so that they draw back the
corresponding selecting needles and prevent their acting when the selecting block was
moved forward. The primary reading of the pattern and placing the lash strings to
suit it through the wale strings has hitherto been performed apart from the machine
that has been partly hereinbefore described, and by aid of separate apparatus at the
expense of labor and time. By my present Invention however I am enabled to do
without this separate primary lashing, and to effect the reading directly from the
design on pattern paper to the threads or strings which are attached to the back ends
of the intermediate needles, saving in this way time labor and cost of apparatus.
In carrying out my Invention the strings or threads attached to the back ends of the
intermediate needles, and which may be permanently attached instead of being hooked
or otherwise attached so that they can be easily disconnected as they have to be for
each pattern according to the old system, are passed through a back hole board or sley
plate fixed at a little distance inwards from the back end of the framing, and at their outer
ends loops or hooks are formed or fixed on them. These loops or hooks are provided
for being placed on hooks or pins which are fixed in a transverse bar or beam (here-
inafter called the back bar) and one operator stationed at the back end of the framing
and having the design placed in front of him just over the back sley plate or hole
board, places on the hooks or pins the loops or hooks of the threads or strings corre-
sponding to the unselected punches for the next card. This operation can be effected
if anything more quickly and easily than the old operation of inserting a lash string,
and it can be done whilst another operator is shifting the movable punch block to the
punching press, punching the card, and returning the movable punch block to the
machine. As soon as the strings or threads are all hooked for a card the back bar or
equivalent part is moved backwards or otherwise so as to draw back the hooked strings
or threads and with them the unselected needles for the next card.
The parts or details for bringing about the movements that have been herein before
described or referred to may obviously be arranged in various ways; but in a con-
venient arrngement in which the intermediate needle block is carried on lateral sliding
bars moved as hitherto along with the selecting needle block by means of a treadle at
the front end of the framing or in any other convenient way, the back bar is carried upon
a pair of lateral sliding bars connected to the other sliding bars by slots and pins; or the
back bar may be formed with projections at its ends which projections extend through
slots in the main sliding bars. The slots allow the back bar to be moved back, as
hereinbefore mentioned, a certain distance, and then when the main sliding bars carry
forward the selecting needle block and the intermediate needle block they also draw
forward the back bar.
The operator at the back end of the framing changes the hookings of the back
strings or threads for each different card. In some cases it will be best to disengage
all the strings or threads, whilst in other case sa few changes of single strings or threads
may be sufficient. To facilitate such partial changes pins with notches in them may
be fixed on the back bar, each pin having notches for ten, twelve, or other convenient
number of hooks. Then for example the first pin may serve for strings numbered 1
to 10 the second pin for strings numbered 11 to 20 and so on in regular order, and it
will with such an arrangement be quite easy to disconnect or connect any one hook on
a pin without disturbing the other hooks on the same pin. Or instead of the notched
pins there may be vertical pins or wires crossed by horizontal wires; and each hook
may be formed with its shank extending beyond the outer end of the hook sufficiently
to project through between the wires even when unhooked to enable the operator to
take hold of it beyond or at the outer side of the back bar.
Dated this Eighteenth day of November 1886
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or Connected with Apparatus Used for Punching
Jacquard Cards.
I, BENJAMIN TOONE, of 2 Russell Street Mills, Nottingham, in the County of
Nottingham, Pattern Reader and Card Perforator, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say :-
My said Invention relates to apparatus which is to some extent of the kind
described in the Specification of my Patent No. 634 of 1881, and it has for its
object to improve the method or system of "reading". patterns and manipulating
the apparatus used for punching Jacquard cards, and to adapt and modify the
apparatus to suit such improved method or system.
The apparatus as hitherto made may be briefly described as comprising the
following parts, namely: A long horizontal framing at one end of which is fixed
the punch block containing the set of punches which are to be selected according to
the pattern and pushed out and into the movable block which is transferred to the
actual punching press. Near the punch block there is a selecting frame or block
carrying the selecting needles which act on the punches, and which have springs
applied to them and pressing them sufficiently to cause them to move the punches
when the selecting block is moved towards the punch block, but allowing those of
them to be drawn back which are not to act on the punches. The selecting needles.
have attached to their inner ends threads or strings which pass through a sley plate
or hole board fixed on the framing and are by it guided so as to pull the selecting
needles in the directions of their lengths, the threads or strings diverging more or less
backwards from the sley plate. The threads or strings which have their front ends
attached to the selecting needles, have their back ends attached to the front ends of
a set of intermediate needles carried and guided in an intermediate block; the
number of intermediate needles is however considerably smaller than that of the
selecting needles, each intermediate needle being connected by threads or strings to
two or more selecting needles according to the number of repeats of the pattern or of
any portion of the pattern that have to be punched on each card. The back ends of
the intermediate needles have threads or strings attached to them and these threads
or strings (hitherto known as wales or wale strings) pass backwards through a sley
plate or hole board, which guides them so as to pull the intermediate needles in the
directions of their lengths; and they extend thence to the back end of the framing.
Hitherto for every card of a set or pattern a cross string known as a lash has been
interlaced transversely through the wale strings to separate the strings corresponding
to the punches which are to be selected for each card from the others; and the
operator taking each lash string in succession as a guide passes a lash roller through
between the selected and unselected strings and by means of a lever acting on the
lash roller depresses the unselected strings so that they draw back the corresponding

page_text: selecting needles and prevent their acting when the selecting block is moved forward.
The primary reading of the pattern and placing the lash strings to suit it through
the wale strings has hitherto been performed apart from the machine that has been
partly herein before described, and by aid of separate apparatus at the expense of
labor and time. By my present Invention however I am enabled to do without this
separate primary lashing, and to effect the reading directly from the design on
pattern paper to the threads or strings which are attached to the back ends of the
intermediate needles, or directly to the intermediate needles, saving in this way time,
labor, and cost of apparatus.
In carrying out my Invention according to one modification the strings or threads
attached to the back ends of the needles herein before termed the intermediate needles,
and which may be permanently attached instead of being hooked or otherwise
attached so that they can be easily disconnected as they have to be for each pattern
according to the old system, are passed through a back hole board or sley plate fixed
at a little distance inwards from the back end of the framing, and at their outer
'ends loops or hooks are formed or fixed on them. These loops or hooks are provided
for being placed on hooks or pins which are fixed in a transverse bar or beam
(hereinafter called the back bar) and one operator, stationed at the back end of the
framing and having the design placed in front of him just over the back sley plate
, or hole board places on the hooks or pins the loops or hooks of the threads or strings
corresponding to the unselected punches for the next card. This operation can be
effected if anything more quickly and easily than the old operation of inserting a
lash string, and with less probability of mistakes, and it can be done whilst another
operator is shifting the movable punch block to the punching press, punching the
card, and returning the movable punch block to the machine. As soon as the
strings or threads for a card are all hooked the back bar or equivalent part is moved
backwards or otherwise so as to draw back the hooked strings or threads and with
them the unselected needles for the next card.
The operator at the back end of the framing changes the hookings of the back
strings or threads for each different card. In some cases it will be best to disengage
all the strings or threads, whilst in other cases a few changes of single strings or
threads may be sufficient. To facilitate such partial changes pins with notches in
them may be fixed on the back bar, each pin having notches for ten, twelve, or other
convenient number of hooks. Then for example the first pin may serve for strings
numbered 1 to 10 the second pin for strings numbered 11 to 20 and so on in regular
order, and it will with such an arrangement be quite easy to disconnect or connect
any one hook on a pin without disturbing the other hooks on the same pin. Or
instead of the notched pins there may be vertical pins or wires crossed by horizontal
wires; and each hook may be formed with its shank extending beyond the outer end
of the hook sufficiently to project through between the wires even when unhooked
to enable the operator to take hold of it beyond or at the outer side of the back bar.
Or, again, by a further simplification the needles hereinbefore termed the intermediate
needles may be extended sufficiently backwards for the pattern-reading operator to
take hold of them, and they may be formed with hooks or notches by means of which
any drawn back may be retained, as hereinafter particularly explained.
The parts or details for bringing about the movements that have been hereinbefore
described or referred to may obviously be arranged in various ways; but on three
accompanying sheets of explanatory drawings there is represented an arrangement of
apparatus which is practically convenient; and, as I at present believe the best for
carrying out my Invention.
Figure, 1, on sheet, 1, of the accompanying drawings is a plan of the apparatus
but without various details which are well understood or more fully shown in other
figures. Figure, 2, on sheet 2, is an enlarged detail view hereinafter explained.
Figure, 3, is a longitudinal vertical section of the back end of the apparatus; and
figure, 4, on sheet, 3, is an elevation of the back end. In these drawings the
same reference numerals are used to mark the same or like parts wherever they are
repeated,

page_text: In figure, 1, the front end of the machine is at the right hand end. The movable
punch block or frame, 5, is shown as placed on the guide pins, 6, ready to receive
the selected punches from the stationary punch block, 7, for the purpose of
transferring them to the actual punching press which is a separate machine. At a
short distance inwards from the stationary punch block, 7, is the selecting-needle
block, 8, carrying the selecting needles, 9, these parts being constructed, arranged,
and worked in the ordinary way. To the inner ends of the selecting needles, 9,
are attached the wales or strings, 10, which pass through a sley plate or hole
board, 11. In all cases any part herein termed a sley plate may consist of a plate
or board perforated with holes for strings or needles or a grating formed by
horizontal and vertical wires held in a suitable frame. The sley plate, 11, is fixed to
the longitudinal side bars, 12, which move the selecting-needle block, 8, and which
are moved by means of a treadle, 13, at the front end of the machine as in my earlier
machine. From the sley plate, 11, the strings, 10, diverge as they extend backwards.
to another sley plate, 14, which is also fixed to the side bars, 12; and whilst the first
sley plate, 11, guide the forward parts of the strings, 10, so as to be in line with
the selecting needles, 9, the second sley plate, 14, guides their after parts so as to '
be in line with back needles, 15, to which they are attached and which correspond to
some extent to the intermediate needles of my earlier machine.
The back needles, 15, are carried and guided in inner and outer sley plates, 16, 17;
and two of the back needles, 15, with portions of the sley plates, 16, 17, are shown
enlarged in figure, 2. Each back needle, 15, is connected by a rubber or other
suitable spring, 18, to the inner sley plate, 16; and each needle is formed with a
notch, 19, on its under side to engage with the bottom edge of the hole in the
outer sley plate, 17, whenever it is drawn out. The outer sley plate, 17, constitutes
what has hereinbefore been termed the "back bar." The inner sley plate, 16, is
fixed to transverse horizontal angle-iron bars, 20), forming with vertical bars, 21, a
frame which is fixed to the longitudinal side bars, 12; and the outer sley plate, 17, is
fixed to transverse horizontal bars, 22, forming with vertical bars, 23, a frame which
is fixed to inner side bars, 24, and which is stiffened by bars or straps, 25, 26,
(not shown in figure, 1, connecting it to the bars, 24, at points some distance
inwards. Springs, 27, connect the bars, 24, to the framing and cause the outer sley
plate, 17, to move to its innermost position when it is free to do so. The outer
longitudinal side bars, 12, run upon rollers, 28, and between guides formed on the
blocks in which the rollers are carried. The inner sley plate, 16, which as herein-
before mentioned is fixed to the side bars, 12, is additionally supported by rollers, 29;
and the outer back ends of the side bars, 12, are additionally supported by a
transverse horizontal bar, 30, which is fitted with rollers, 31, running on frame
bars, 32. This transverse horizontal bar, 30, is fixed to the inner side bars, 24,
and its ends, which are reduced in depth, pass through slots, 33, formed near the
outer ends of the outer side bars, 12, and both the outer and inner side bars, 12, 24,
with what they carry are consequently supported at their front ends by the
transverse bar, 30, whilst the slots, 33, limit movements taking place between the
parts as hereinafter explained.
Above the outer sley plate, 17, there are fixed parts for holding the design
sheet, 34, to be read by the operator when manipulating the back needles, 15, these
parts consisting of vertical side bars, 35, connected at the top by a wire, 36, and
clamping bars, 37, between which the design sheet, 34, is secured by means of screw
nuts, 38. Below the clamping bars, 37, there is fixed a bar, 39, having marked
on it divisions corresponding to the vertical rows of holes in the sley plate, 17. The
outer clamping bar, 37, has on it two rows of scale divisions each division also
corresponding to a vertical row of holes, that is, of back needles, 15. The scale
divisions also each measure or extend across as many small squares or points of the
design paper as there are needles in a vertical row; and the row of divisions are
numbered one from left to right and the other from right to left to facilitate
the reading of a pattern either way.
The operator draws outwards those back needles, 15, which correspond to the

page_text: punches which are to be unselected for a particular card, and engages them by means
of their notches, 19, upon the bottoms of the holes in the outer sley plate, 17. At
this stage a very small movement of the needles requires to be made so that the
operator can do the reading very quickly; as soon however as he has engaged all
the needles required for a card, he by means of a treadle, 40, connected by cords, 41,
to two bell-crank levers, 42, moves the outer sley plate, 17, further outwards so as
to increase the distance between the ends of the unselected and of the selected
needles, 15, to an extent limited by the slots, 33, in the outer side bars, 12. On this
movement being made spring catches, 43, jointed to the outer side bars, 12, fall
over the transverse bar, 30, and for the time prevent the inner bars, 24, being drawn
inwards by their springs, 27. The operator at the other end of the machine next, by
means of the treadle, 13, draws the outer longitudinal side bars forwards moving
with them altogether the sley plates, 17, 16, with the back needles, 15, the strings, 10,
and the selecting-needle block, 8, with the selecting needles, 9, the unselected
needles being held back by the action on them of the sley plate, 17, at the back end
of the machine so as not to transfer the corresponding punches from the stationary
block, 7, to the movable punch block, 5. In some cases the action of the back
treadle, 40, may be dispensed with, the outer sley plate or back bar," 17, being
held back by stops when the inner sley plate, 16, is moved forward by means of the
front treadle, 13.
In order to prepare for the next card the catches, 43, are raised by means of
cords, 44, passing over pulleys, 45, to a handle, 46; and then by raising a lever, 47,
an inclined bar, 48, connected by rods, 49, passing through guides to the lever, 47,
acts on the outer ends of the back needles, 15, and lifting them so as to disengage
their notches, 19, allows them to be drawn inwards by their springs, 18. The inner
side bars, 24, with the outer sley plate, 17, are drawn inwards by their springs, 27,
whilst the outer side bars, 12, with the parts moved by them are drawn backwards by
springs, 50, 51.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :—
1. Arranging and combining together the parts of apparatus used for selecting
punches for punching Jacquard cards substantially in the improved manner
herein before described and as shown in the accompanying drawings.
2. Reading directly from the design paper and correspondingly adjusting parts
permanently connected to and operating on the selecting needles without a preliminary
arranging of "wales" and "lashes," but by means of improved apparatus substantially
such as is bereinbefore described.
3. The construction of the back needles (15) in combination with their supporting
and guiding sley plates (16, 17) and with means for hooking or engaging and holding
back such of them as are not to act on the punches substantially as hereinbefore
described.
Dated this Eleventh day of August 1887
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent