IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Abraham Bowen, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING
MACHINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Abraham Bowen at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 20th
June 1866.
I, ABRAHAM BOWEN, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SEWING MACHINES," to be as follows, that is to say:-
I form a casting or standard to receive a horizontal shaft, upon one end
of which is a driving pulley by which the machine is worked by treadle
or hand or steam power, upon this end of the shaft are the cams working
the shuttle bar and also the feed motion. The cams working the shuttle bar.
are two, each operating upon a friction roller fixed at the opposite ends of a
bar oscillating upon a centre hung in a bracket upon the casting or standard;
this oscillating bar is attached at its upper end to a vertical rod, which is. again
attached at its lower end to a jointed shuttle bar, and thus an intermittent
or dead stop to-and-fro action is given to the shuttle, allowing it to rest whilst
the loop is being formed by the needle, and again whilst the needle ascends
to pull up the shuttle thread. A third cam upon the shaft works the feel

page_text: motion, which in this instance consists of a moveable plate working between the
cloth presser and the shuttle; the action of this feed motion is gained from the
cam by means of a bent lever having its fulcrum on the standard, its head resting
on the cam, in which position it is maintained by an outward pressing spring upon
the standard; the lower end of this lever carries an adjusting screw by which the
length of stitch is regulated. A second bent lever governed by its returning
spring works on a centre under the shuttle race, and at its one end is actuated by
the first bent lever and cam, at the other end is the feeder of a peculiar form
slotted on its upper surface and clamping or embracing the shuttle case, and
moving alternately to and fro upon it. The slot upon the top allows for the
passage of the needle and also for the varying length of stitch. To allow the
feeder to return to its original position before advancing the cloth for a fresh
stitch it is necessary to remove the presser, and this I effect by a cam upon
the fore end of the shaft at the back of the cam working the needle slide.
A pawl working in the projection of the cam and governed by an adjusting or
regulating screw enables the presser to be set to suit any thickness of material.
My next improvement consists in inserting common beads into the thread
lever and thread lifter and all other apertures through which the thread must
pass in its passage to the needle as a preventive of abrasion of the thread. I
propose also to make the shuttles for these and other sewing machines in one
piece by stamping them in dies out of solid metal, instead of brazing several
parts together, or they may be cast in malleable iron and afterwards converted
into steel.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Abraham Bowen in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
20th December 1866.
. TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ABRAHAM
BOWEN, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Abraham Bowen, Her special license that I, the said Abraham Bowen, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Abraham
Bowen, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during

page_text: 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SEWING MACHINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Abraham Bowen, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
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 Abraham Bowen, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to
the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
I form a casting or standard to receive a horizontal shaft upon one end
of which is a driving pulley by which the machine is worked by treadle or
hand, or steam power, upon this end of the shaft are the cams working the
shuttle bar and also the feed motion. The cams working the shuttle bar are
two, each operating upon a friction roller fixed at the opposite ends of a bar
oscillating upon a centre hung in a bracket upon the casting or standard; this
oscillating bar is attached at its upper end to a vertical rod, which is again
attached at its lower end to a jointed shuttle bar, and thus an intermittent or
dead stop to-and-fro action is given to the shuttle, allowing it to rest whilst
the loop is being formed by the needle, an 1 again whilst the needle ascends to
pull up the shuttle thread. A third cam upon the shaft works the feed motion,
which in this instance consists of a moveable plate working between the cloth
presser and the shuttle; the action of this feed motion is gained from the canı
by means of a bent lever, having its fulcrum in the standard, its head resting
on the cam, in which position it is maintained by an outward pressing spring
upon the standard; the lower end of this lever carries an adjusting screw by
which the length of stitch is regulated. A second bent lever governed by its
returning spring works on a centre under the shuttle race, and at its one end
is actuated by the first bent lever and cam, at the other end is the feeder of a
peculiar form slotted on its upper surface and clamping or embracing the
shuttle case and moving alternately to and fro upon it. The slot upon the top
allows for the passage of the needle and also for the varying length of stitch.
To allow the feeder to return to its original position before advancing the
cloth for a fresh stitch it is necessary to remove the presser, and this I effect
by a cam upon the fore end of the shaft at the back of the cam working the

page_text: as seen at Figure 7, and at Figure 5 in dotted lines, and clamping or embracing
the shuttle case (¹), and moving alternately to and fro upon it, this slot allows
for the entrance of the needle as well as the varying length of stitch. In
order that the feeder (7) may return to its original position before advancing
the cloth for a fresh stitch, the presser (m) must be raised, and this is
effected by means of a cam (u) fixed upon the fore end of the shaft (6) at the
back of the cam which works the needle slide, a pawl (v) working on the
projection of this cam (u), and governed by an adjusting screw (w) admits of
the presser being set to suit any thickness of material.
My improvements further consist of inserting common beads into the thread
lifter, and thread lover, and all other apertures through which the thread has
to pass in its passage to the needle, which improvement acts as a preventive
of abrasion of the thread. The beads are denoted in the Drawing and are
lettered (a). I also make the shuttles for these and other sewing machines
in one piece by stamping them in dies out of solid metal, instead of brazing
the several parts together, or they may be cast in malleable iron and afterwards
converted into steel.
Figure 8 exhibits in top, bottom, and side views the form of shuttle I prefer
to use with my improved machine, and it is so constructed that the thread
after leaving the shuttle reel (y) passes through a hole (1) in the bottom of
the shuttle along a groove as shewn, and again through a hole (2) in its
passage through this second hole (2), a spring ($) regulated by a small set
scrow presses upon it, thus providing the means of adjusting various degrees
of tension to the thread.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I claim without limiting myself to the
exact details of the various parts or their precise form as herein described and
illustrated, the several improvements in sewing machines as herein more fully
set forth and specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Abraham Bowen, have hereunto set my
band and seal, this Eighteenth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
ABRAHAM BOWEN. (L.S.)