Improvements in Sewing Machines for use in the Manufacture of Boots and Shoes.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Feb., 1891-Accepted, 27th June, 1891
Improvements in Sewing Machines for use in the Manufacture of
Boots and Shoes.
I, FELIX DOUCET of 15 Drolet Street, Montreal, Province of Quebec, in the
Dominion of Canada, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of my invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object to provide a simple and effective lock-stitch wax
thread sewing machine adapted to stitch uppers to soles of turned boots and shoes,
and to stitch welts to uppers and inner soles of welted boots and shoes, and to this
end it consists in the improvements which I will now proceed to describe and
claim.
Of the accompanying drawings forming a part of this Specification,
Figure 1 represents an elevation of one side of a wax thread sewing machine
embodying my invention.
Fig. 2 represents an elevation of the opposite side of the same.
Fig. 3 represents a front end elevation.
Fig. 4 represents an enlarged side elevation of the fixed thread case and the
rotating ring surrounding it, the cap covering the side of the said thread case being
removed.
Fig. 5 represents a section on line 5 5, Fig. 4.
Figs. 67 and 8 represent perspective views showing different steps in the opera-
tion of forming the stitch.
Fig. 9 represents a detached view of the loop spreader and its operating
devices.
Fig. 10 represents a detached view of the needle and the means for operating
it, and
Fig. 11 represents a perspective view of the feed dog.
In the drawings-
a represents a suitable supporting frame or head having bearings for the driving
shaft which is rotated by power applied in any suitable way.
c represents a curved needle which is attached to an oscillating arm & mounted on
a bearing e and is oscillated by means presently described to cause the needle to
alternately penetrate and recede from the work.
represents a looper which is adapted to present the needle thready to the barb
of the needle when the latter is projected.
The needle and looper may be arranged and operated in any suitable way, and
they form, of themselves, no part of my invention. In fact all the parts of the
stitch-formning mechanism of a curved needle sewing machine, excepting as herein-
after provided, may be the same as in many of the well-known machines now in
use, and my present invention resides mainly in the rotating ring or case enclosing
the thread case or the cap or coil when no thread case is used, the devices for
supporting and rotating said ring, the loop spreading device and the feed dog which
enters the channel of a boot or shoe sole and is adapted to feed the work, all as
hereinafter fully described.
m represents a rotary ring or case which is formed to receive the supply from
which the lower thread g' is drawn. The supply of lower thread may be in the
form of a coil inserted without a thread case in the cavity in the ring or case,
although in the present instance I have shown a thread case i adapted to contain
the coil and formed to be contained in the cavity or interior of the ring Said
thread case is of cylindrical form and is provided with a removable cover
1171
which

page_text: holds the said coil in place and is secured to the side of the thread case in any
suitable way, said cover having an orifice at its centre for the passage of the
thread from the centre of the thread case. The said thread case is preferably
held from rotating with the ring or case m by the engagement of a tooth or pro-
jection (Figure 5) on its outer side with a recess in the supporting frame.
The ring mis rotated by means of a spur wheel' p which is driven by a con-
- uection with the driving shaft b and is provided with teeth p' entering. recesses q.in
the periphery of the ring.
The ring m is provided with hooks which are formed to engage the loop
drawn through the work by the needle, as shown in Figure 8.
s represents a loop-spreader which is oscillated in such a path that when moving
in one direction it engages one strand of the needle loop, as shown in Figure 7, and
spreads the loop and holds it in substantially the position shown in Figure 8, so
that the hooks are caused to engage the needle loop and carry it around the
.thread case, the needle loop being thus interlocked with the thread of the said
thread case.
The work to be stitched, which is here shown as a boot or shoe mounted on a
last, is presented to the machine by the operator, who, in this case, holds the
stitch-receiving channel or groove in the outer face of the sole, against a dog t sup-
ported by the frame or head of the machine, said dog being formed to enter the
channel in the sole, and to engage the material of the sole sufficiently to enable
it to feed the work as presently described. The work being held in this position,
the needle advances and penetrates the upper and the portion of the sole known as
the "between substance," and emerges from the channel as shown in Figure 6. The
looper then moves to press the needle thread against the hook side of the needle,
so that when the needle is retracted it draws a loop through the between substance
and the upper, as shown in Figure 7. The loop-spreader moves in the direction
indicated by the arrow in Figure 7 while the loop is held by the retracted needle,
and is thus caused to spread the loop just as the hooks are brought by the
rotation of the ring m into position to enter the loop. Said hooks engaging the
loop carry it over the ring in and around the rear side of the thread case the loop
being disengaged from the hooks and tightened or taken up by the take up
mechanisms presently described, while the hooks are moving downwardly toward
the lowest point of their movement. The loop is thus carried around the thread
case and interlocked with the thread of the same.
The ring or case m is held in engagement with its driving wheel by means of
suitable idle rolls u v bearing at different points on its periphery. The roll.v.is
journalled in fixed bearing in the frame a. I prefer to employ a series of rolls u
mounted on the end of a pivoted arm we which is inovable so that the rolls u may be i
adjusted to bear against and support the ring or case m, or to be depressed to
permit the removal of the said ring or case¸ m. The arm is here shown as
attached to the frame a by a clamping. screw to which when tightened rigidly
supports the arm and when loosened permits the arm and the rolls it to be lowered.
The arm w may have but one roll instead of a series. The peripheries of the
rolls u are cut away to permit the revolving movement of the hooks.
Any suitable mechanism for giving motion to the devices above described may
be employed, and I will now describe suitable operating devices, although I do not
limit myself thereto.
The needle is oscillated by means of a cam groove in a disk 2. on the driving
shaft, a lever 3.pivoted at 4 to the supporting frame and having a trundle roll 6
entering said cam groove, and a connecting rod 7 which connects the lever 3 with
the needle arm d.
The looper is attached to rock shaft 19 which is adapted to oscillate and to
move endwise in bearings 10 10 on the supporting frame. Said shaft is moved.
end wise by means of a lever 12 which is pivoted at 13 to the supporting frame, and
a cam groove 14 engaged with a trundle roll 15 on the lever 12. The swinging
end of lever 12 has a slot which receives a stud 9' on the shaft 9. The said shaft

page_text: s oscillated by means of a pivoted lever 10¹ engaged at one end with a cam groove
and at the other end with an arm 12' affixed to the shaft 9. These two motions
iz. the longitudinal and oscillating motions of the rock shaft are timed to give
the looper f the movements required to cause it to present the thread to the barb
of the needle.
The wheel p which rotates the ring m is connected by a rod or pitman 16 with a
lever 17 which is attached by the pin 18 to the supporting frame, and is provided
with a trundle roll 18*, entering a cam groove in a disk 19 on the shaft. The
lever 17 is oscillated by the rotation of the disk 19, and imparts a reciprocating
motion to the rod 16. Said rod has a trundle roll 20 which enters a cam groove in
another disc on the shaft b, said cam groove being formed to give the rod 16 an
oscillating movement while it is being reciprocated, the combined movement thus
imparted to the rod 16 causing it to rotate the wheel P.
The loop spreaders is a curved arm attached to a rock shaft 24 which is adapted
to turn in fixed bearings 25, 25 (sec Fig. 9). Said rock shaft has an arm 26
provided with a trundle roll 27 engaged with a cam groove in one of the disks on
the driving shaft. Said cam groove is timed to give the loop spreader its required
operative movements.
The feed dog is provided with a point or spur 1 (Figs. 1 and 11) which is
adapted to enter the channel 2 of a sole and is formed to penetrate the "between
substance" at the bottom of the channel so that said feed dog will be engaged with
the work and feed the same. The depth of the penetration of the point or spur t
into the work is limited by a shoulder t on the dog t (Fig. 11), said shoulder being
broad and thin so that it can enter the channel and bear on the bottom thereof and
by its extended bearing on said bottom prevent the point or spur t' from passing
entirely through the between substance and into the upper. The feed dog this
attached to a hub or collar t3 which is adapted both to oscillate and move laterally
on a horizontal stud t on the frame a. t represents lever pivoted at to the
frame a and provided at one end with a trundle roll engaged with a cam
groove to (Fig. 3) in a disk 12 on the driving shaft. The other end of said lever
is forked and provided with studs which enter grooves in the hub or collar t³.
The lever tis oscillated horizontally by the cam groove to and imparts lateral
reciprocating movements to the hub 3 and feed dog t
Said hub has an upwardly projecting arm 13 which has teeth at its upper end
engaged with rack teeth on a slide 1. Said slide is movable horizontally in a
fixed guide and is reciprocated by means of a lever which is pivoted at 7 and
has a trundle roll 18 engaged with a cam groove (not shown) in the disk (2. The
upper end of the lever is engaged with the slide so that the oscillating move-
ments of the said lever reciprocate the slide horizontally and cause its teeth 14
engaged with the teeth of the arm 3 to oscillate the hub t and thus give the feed
dog a movement at right angles to its work feeding movement, the feed dog being
thereby caused to enter and withdraw from the channel. The described feed dog
operating mechanism is so timed that the feed dog is moved forward into the
channel, and is withdrawn sufficiently from the bottom of the channel to disengage
the point or spur from the between substance during the movement opposite to
that which feeds the work. The length of the feed movement may be varied to
regulate the length of stitches by changing the position of the pivot to that connects
the lever with the frame of the machine.
A. represents the back gage which supports the work against the inward pressure
exerted on it by the operator. Said gage is attached to a slide A' which is movable
in a guide in the frame a, and is normally pressed outward toward the feed dog by
a spring B (when the back gage is not retracted by the mechanism presently
described), so that the gage is adapted to conform to the surface of the boot or
shoe which requires a varying distance between the back gage and the feed dog.
The back gage is locked during the operation of forming the stitch by means of a
locking dog C on an arm of a bell crank lever D. The other arm of said lever has

page_text: When
a trundle roll E which is pressed by a spring F against one side of the disk 12.
Said disk has a cam projection G which co-operates with spring F in oscillating
bell crank lever D. The dog C is thus alternately raised and lowered.
raised it engages one of a series of teeth H on the slide A' and locks said slide and
the back gage to enable the latter to firmly support the work during the formation
of a stitch. The back gage is retracted while the work is being fed, by means of a
lever I pivoted at J to frame a, and connected at one end by a rod L with a cam
groove (not shown) in the edge of the disk on the driving shaft. The other end of
lever I is adapted to play between two shoulders M M' on slide A', and strikes the
shoulder M to retract the back gage.
と
The take up mechanism consists of two parallel slides OO' having thread
receiving pulleys P P arranged as shown in Fig. 1, the pulley P being on one end
of slide O, and the pulley P on the opposite end of slide O. Said slides are
adapted to move in guides on frame a, and are provided with rack teeth Q on their
adjacent edges with which a pinion R is engaged, said pinion being mounted on a
bearing affixed to frame a. The slide O is connected by a rod S with a lever T
which is pivoted at T to frame a, and has a trundle roll T2 (Fig. 2) engaged with
a cam groove (not shown) in one of the disks on the driving shaft. The slide O is
reciprocated by the lever T and imparts a movement in the opposite direction to
the slide O through the pinion R. The thread pulleys P P are thus caused to
alternately approach and recede from each other, the needle thread g being taken
up by the movement of said rolls away from each other and loosened by the move-
ment of said rolls toward each other. The pulley P₁ is mounted on an arm P
which is pivoted at P4 to an car on slide O₁ and is acted on by a spring P³ so that
pulley Pexerts a yielding tension on the thread. This take up mechanism is
simple and is adapted to be operated with less expenditure of power than any other
of which I am aware, the taking up movement being divided between the two
slides OO¹ so that the lever T that gives motion to said slides has to move only
half as far as it otherwise would. The needle thread passes from the usual wax
pot (not shown) around the pulley P', and from thence back over the pulley Pand
then over a guiding pulley P on a fixed bearing and through a fixed guiding
eye P7 to the looper.
It will be seen that the ring or case m holding the lower thread is arranged with
its axis about parallel with the direction of the feed movement of the work and well
back of or behind the feed dog. The said ring being narrow does not obstruct the
space around the back gage and feed dog, hence the boot or shoe being stitched
may be freely moved to any position that the convenience of the operator may
require, without obstruction by the ring or case m. The freedom of movement of
the work is further increased by the arrangement of the feed dog and its operating
mechanism, the feed dog carrying hub or collar 3 being elevated considerably above
the point where the stitches are formed, while the shank of the feed dog is inclined
from said hub as shown in Fig. 3, so that there is plenty of room at the right of
the feed dog for the boot or shoe sole to be inclined upwardly or in any other
direction required. I am enabled by the described improvements to use a lock
stitch in sewing turned and welted shoes; the stitch forming mechanism being
arranged as stated to permit all the freedom of movement of the work that can
possibly be desired. I am not aware that prior to my invention the stitch forming
mechanism of a lock stitch sewing machine has ever been arranged so that it can be
used in combination with a back gage to support the upper and a dog or finger to
enter the channel of a turned or welted boot or shoe. I am aware that chain stitch
forming mechanism has been used in connection with a back gage and a channel
gage, as in the well known Goodyear sewing machine, but in such machines the
advantages of a lock stitch cannot be secured: The machine is here shown as
adapted to connect the upper and sole of a turned boot or shoe, but it will be
readily seen that the machine may be adapted for sewing a welt to an upper and an
inner sole by providing a suitable welt guide.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:-
-
1st. The combination of a rotary ring or case adapted to contain the lower thread
and provided with hooks projecting outside of its periphery to engage the needle
loop, a spreader for the needle loop, idle rolls supported in position to bear on and
support the ring, and means for rotating the ring, as set forth.
2nd. The combination of a rotary ring or case adapted to contain the lower
thread, and provided with hooks projecting outside of its periphery to engage the
needle loop, a spreader for the needle loop, means for rotating said ring, idle rolls
bearing on the periphery of the ring, and a movable support for one or more of said
rolls whereby the ring is adapted to be removed from the machine, as set forth.
3rd. The combination of a rotary ring provided with hooks projecting outside of
its periphery to engage the needle loop, a spreader for the needle loop, a thread
case removably inserted in said ring, idle rolls supported in position to bear on and
support the ring, as set forth.
4th. The combination of a non-rotating thread case a rotary ring surrounding
said thread case and provided with hooks projecting outside of its periphery to
engage the needle loop, the positively rotated driving wheel engaged with the
periphery of the ring, and idle rolls bearing on other portions of the periphery of
the ring.
5th. The combination with a back gage and suitable stitch forming devices, of
the feed dog formed to enter the channel in a sole, and provided with a penetrating
spur and with a shoulder to limit the penetration of said spur into the between
substance, and mechanism for operating said dog, as set forth.
6th. The combination with a back gage and lock-stitch forming mechanism
substantially as described, of a feed dog, a hub or collar elevated above the feed
dog and secured to the shank of said dog and mechanism for oscillating said hub
and for moving it laterally on a support or bearing, as set forth.
7th. The combination with a back gage and lock-stitch forming mechanism
substantially as described, of a feed dog, a hub or collar elevated above the feed
dog and secured to the shank of said dog, the toothed arm (13 on said hub, the
reciprocating rack engaged with said arm, and the oscillating lever to engaged with
the hub, as set forth.
8th. The combination with a back gage and a feeding device or dog adapted to
enter a channeled sole, of lock-stitch forming mechanism including a rotary ring or
case adapted to contain the lower thread and arranged with its axis substantially
parallel with the feed movement, said ring or case being located back of the
feeding device, as set forth.
9th. The combination with stitch forming mechanism, of a take up mechanism
consisting of two parallel slides each having a thread engaging pulley, and
mechanism for simultaneously reciprocating said slides in opposite directions, as
set forth.
10th. The combination with stitch forming mechanism, of the take up slides
having thread engaging pulleys, and provided with rack teeth on their adjacent
edges, the pinion located between said slides and engaged with the teeth thereof,
and means for reciprocating one of said slides, as set forth.
Dued
GHIS TAM
day of Januar
D1901
FELIX DOUCET.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.