IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CARDING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Lowry, of Salford, in the County of Lancaster
Machinist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
CARDING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,"
Scaled the 6th January 1863, and dated the 14th July 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Lowry at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th
July 1862.
1, GEORGE LOWRY, of Salford, in the County of Tancaster, Machinist, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR CARDING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
to be as follows :—
The first part of my improved Invention consists in adapting a brush with
an intermittent or continuous rotary motion, or with a reciprocating action, or
a to-and-fro movement, during the working operation of the main cylinder of
carding engines, together or in conjunction with a self-acting comb, cleared
of the motes and other impurities by a perforated or recessed plate or plain
plates or straight edges, depositing the same into a trough or other suitable
receptacle and removed therefrom, as described In the Specification of Letters
Patent granted to me, bearing date the Twenty-fifth November Oue thousand
eight hundred and sixty-one, No. 2954.
The second part of my Invention consists in making thic main cylinder of

page_text: carding engines with a flanged periphery projection at and above the points
of the wire clothing to prevent the fibrous material escaping over the edges of
the main cylinder.
The third part of my Invention is applicable to waste and other shaking
machines, and in performing this part of my Invention place the finger
shafts on an incline and at opposite sides of the machine, to which I apply a
self acting feed cloth or creeper with a fan to carry off the dust. By this
arrangement the material is continuously supplied and discharged, whereas in
machines of the present construction the material is supplied in quantities, and
removed when operated on by hand.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Lowry in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 14th
January 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
LOWRY, of Salford, in the County of Lancaster, Machinist, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Lowry, Her special license that 1, the said George Lowry,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
George Lowry, my 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 Ire-
land, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE.
MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR CARDING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George
Lowry, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, should particularly describe and
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 George Lowry, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-

page_text: formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say):-
The first part of my Invention consists in adopting a brush with an inter-
mittent or continuous rotary motion, or with a reciprocating action, or a
to-and-fro movement, during the working of the main cylinder of carding
engines, together or in conjunction with a self-acting comb, which is cleared
of the motes and other impurities by a perforated or recessed plate or plain
plate or straight edge, and deposits the same into a trough or other suitable
receptacle, from whence they are removed, as described in the Specification of
Letters Patent granted to me, bearing date November 25th 1861, No. 2954.
The second part of my Invention consists in making the main cylinder of
carding engines with a flanged periphery projecting above the points of the
wire clothing to prevent the fibrous material escaping over the ends of the
main cylinder.
The third part of my Invention is applicable to tow and waste shaking
machines, and in performing it I place the finger shafts at an incline and at
opposite sides of the machine, to which is applied a self-acting feed cloth or
creeper and a fan to carry off the dust. By this arrangement the material is
continuously supplied and discharged, whereas in machines of the ordinary
construction the material is supplied in quantities, and removed when operated
on by hand.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood, and readily
carried into operation, I will proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of
Drawings, reference being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Fig. 1 is an elevation, and Fig. 2, a side view, of part of a carding engine
of the usual construction to which the first and second parts of my improve-
ments are applied.
" is the licker-in; 6, the main cylinder; and e, the doffer. These and all
the other parts of the carding engine which are not shewn in the Drawing,
and not particularly referred to hereafter, are constructed in the usual manner.
Under the main cylinder is placed the revolving brush d, to which, in this
instance, a continuous rotatory motion is given by the pulley b', on the axis of
the maiu cylinder, and the crossed band e. The axle of the brush & revolves
in eccentric bushes, each of which is provided with an arm; these bushes
are supported in bearings fixed to the frame sides. The arms are connected
by connecting links g to the slotted rotatory arm c¹, fixed and moving with the
axle of the doffer c, so that every revolution of the doffer gives a to-and-fro
motion to the arms and bushes, thus, bringing the circumference of the
brush & alternately in and out of touching contact with the circumference of

page_text: the main cylinder. The surface periphery of the brush & revolves at a greater
velocity than the circumference of the main cylinder, consequently, when the
surfaces of the brush and cylinder are in contact the brush overruns the
surface of the main cylinder and strips or cleans it.
Having now shown the use of the brush, I wish it to be understood that I
propose, not only a plain filled brush, but a brush having segmental divisions,
that is, from end to end. as shewn at Fig. 1, or a spiral brush with one or
more tufts or small surface parts filled equally apart at every revolution in the
spiral form or length. The brush d is cleaned by the comb h, the teeth or
pins of which passing through perforations in the stationary plate when the
brush is out of touching contact with the main cylinder, the motes and other
impurities adhering to it are caught by the teeth of the comb h, and this comb
is drawn through the plate i at intervals by the elbow lever k, the upper end
of which is connected by the connecting links to the arms of the elbow
lever, and the lower end is jointed to the guide rods of the coinb h. This
moveable comb is described in the Specification of Letters Patent granted to me
on the Twenty-fifth day of November One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
one, No. 2954. The impurities from the coml drop on the floor or into a
trough or other suitable receptacle m, from which they are removed by hand
or in the self-acting manner, as described in the Specification of the former
Letters Patent above referred to.
Having described the operation of the self-acting comb, I wish it to be
understood that I also propose to have the comb stationary, and the perforated
plain or toothed plate attached to the elbow lever, which elbow lever gives
the to-and fro motion to the plate, similar to that received by the comb, as
before described. The dotted lines in Fig. I represent the position of the
brush & when the doffer has performed half a revolution. This motion of the
doffer moves the brush out of touching contact with the main cylinder b,
and at the same time brings the comb into interior contact with the bristics
of the brush d, in order to strip and clean it. By means of this improved
combination of mechanism the surface of the main cylinder is cleaned during
the working thereof, and without in any way interfering with the regular
working of the carding engine. I wish to observe that the brush d, instead of
having a continuous rotary motion, as above described; may have an inter-
mittent, a reciprocating, or a to-and-fro motion, imparted to it, in any
convenient manner. I would also remark, that instead of the perforated
plate i a recessed or toothed plate, or a plain plate, or straight edge, may be
employed.
The second part of my Invention is shewn best in Fig. 2. In this view the

page_text: main cylinder b is shewn with a flanged periphery 62 at each end projecting
above the points of the wire clothing; the object of these flanges is to prevent
the fibrous material from escaping over the ends of the main cylinder. The
roller n above the main cylinder represents one of the ordinary rollers which
work between the flanges b².
The third part of my Invention is illustrated by the Figs. 3 and 4, which
represent a side elevation and end view of my improved tow-shaking machine
for cleaning tow and other fibrous materials. o is a feeding cloth or creeper,
on which the fibrous material to be cleaned is spread by hand, in the usual
manner. This creeper passes around the rollers o' and o, the latter of which
is above the level of the finger shafts p, which are placed in a diagonal position
at each side of the machine. The angle of the shafts can be varied by the
segmental slot and bolt, shewn at the left-hand side of Fig. 3, for the purpose
of giving more or less incline; when more incline is given the material will
pass over quicker. To the shafts p are fixed the usual fingers 2', which
intersect each other, that is to say, the fingers fixed to one shaft pass in the
spaces between the fingers on the other shaft. The finger shafts » have a
vibrating motion imparted to them in the following manner:-To the driving
shaft 7 is fixed a crank or eccentric pin q' working in a slot in the cross bar r,
the ends of which are jointed to the levers 2 fixed to the finger shafts, conse-
quently every revolution of the driving shaft causes the fingers to rise into
the positions shewn in Fig. 4 and to drop into the position indicated by the
dotted lines. As the waste or fibrous material falls from the creeper o on to
the fingers p' it is agitated or opened by the action of the fingers, and the dust
or light impurities thereby loosened are carried off by a fan provided for the
same in the usual manner, the heavier impurities dropping underneath. The
diagonal postion of the finger shafts causes the fibrous material to descend
gradually, by its own gravity, until it falls over the last finger on to the
creeper 8, which conveys it to the next operation, or on to the floor, or into a
suitable receptacle. By this improved arrangement the fibrous material is
continuously supplied and discharged, whereas in machines of the ordinary
construction the fibrous material is supplied by hand, and removed by hand,
when sufficiently operated upon.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I declare that I claim,-
First, the construction and adaptation to carding engines of a brush with a
to-and-fro action for the purpose intermittently of cleaning the main cylinder
during the operation of carding; also the self-acting apparatus with the self-
stripping comb or plate, as herein described.

page_text: Secondly, the application of projecting flanges to the main cylinders of
carding engines for the purpose herein described.
And, thirdly, the placing of the finger shafts, one on each side of the
shaking machine and in a diagonal position, as herein shewn, for the purpose
of allowing the fibres to descend by their own gravity, and thus rendering the
supply and discharge self-acting.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Lowry, have hereto set my
hand and seal, this Twelfth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
GEORGE LOWRY. (L.S.)