IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING OR ORNAMENTING FABRICS AND ARTICLES OF DRESS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn
Fields, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING OR
ORNAMENTING FABRICS AND ARTICLES OF DRESS."-A communication
from abroad by Leopold Salomons, of Paris, in the Republic of
France, Manufacturer.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 8th December 1874.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING
OR ORNAMENTING FABRICS AND ARTICLES OF DRESS," a communication to me
from abroad by Leopold Salomons, of Paris, in the Republic of France,
Manufacturer, to be as follows: —
This Invention relates to machinery or apparatus to be employed for

page_text: motion to lovers which are supported on a centre, and so arranged
in connection with a longitudinal bar carrying appliances termed
"dividers," the function of which will be herein-after described), that
such bar is caused to move to and fro longitudinally under the action of
the levers. Behind the bar there is provided a longitudinal cross
piece which is fixed to the table and carries guides for the bar. On the
cross piece there are also secured shaped plates arranged in pairs
which carry spring blades arranged in double pairs, one pair slightly
overlapping the other, and with spaces between them for the passage of
the thread which carries the beads. The height of one plate of the pair
slightly exceeds that of the other, and the difference may be varied at
will, but should not greatly exceed the height of the beads to be attached.
Each of the "dividers" is bent to an angle on the top and carries a
tube in which the beads arrive, and at its lower end it is provided with a
hook which guides the thread before its arrival at the needles.
The "dividers" operate in the following manner, taking one of them
as an example to illustrate the operation of the whole :-From the bead
bobbins which are placed behind and at the top of the frame the thread
is conducted over guide pullies and thence between the spring blades to
the needles. The beads fall in a string into the tube of the " divider,"
which "divider" under the action of the to-and-fro motion imparted to
the bar carrying it causes the beads to slide first on to one set of blades,
then to leave those blades to fall on to the others, and then, say from
right to left to enter between the blades, and finally leaving the blades
to fall on to the hooked guide. At this moment the bead is discharged
by mechanism herein-after described and directed on to the cloth. This
mechanism is composed of a longitudinal rod on which are fixed devices
of a suitable shape termed "bead drivers" which propel the bead on to
the cloth. The rod is mounted on the extremity of two levers which are
actuated by cams or eccentrics on the cam shaft before mentioned, and
alternately impart a to-and-fro motion to the "bead drivers" and leave
them at the required time to the action of helical springs placed under
the table, the arrangement being such that the drivers cause a bead to
descend from above the guides on to the material to be ornamented.
The bead having arrived on the fabric, the needles which are above at
the top of their stroke descend, take with their hook the thread, and
conduct it with them through the fabric, by which means the sewing of
the beads thereto is effected. The needles slide through a plate attached

page_text: to the table, a spring being provided in order to cause the hook of the
needles to enter its recess for the purpose of preventing injury to the
material. Before the needlo reascends the material has been fed along
by the motion of a roller covered with leather or other suitable substance
and mounted on the axis of a ratchet wheel. This wheel is caused to
advance one or more teeth under the action of a pawl carried on a lever,
which lever is actuated by means of a projection fitted on a crank arm
fast on the cam shaft, the position of the projection being capable of
variation. In order to regulate the feed a spring detent is employed to
prevent the return motion. Guides for the material are provided, such
guides being placed in front of the needles and receiving the trimming
or fabric from bobbins arranged below the table. These guides are
formed of two plates, one of which is fixed to the table whilst the other
is adjustable, so as to leave the requisite space between the two for the
passage of the material being operated upon.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 8th June 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the 38th
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I,
the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others. as I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, admi-
nistrators, or assigns, should at any time agrée 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 Ireland, the Channel.
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS POR TRIMMING OR ORNAMENTING FABRICS AND ARTICLES OF DRESS,"

page_text: a communication to me from abroad by Leopold Salomons, of Paris, in the
Republic of France, Manufacturer, upon the condition. (amongst others)
that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and scal, 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 John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to
say:
The said Invention relates to machinery or apparatus to be employed
for sewing by self-acting means beads, bugles, or other similar orna-
mental articles on to lace, ribbon, tape, braid, or other trimmings
to be applied to articles of wearing apparel, or on to the garments
themselves, or on to woven and other fabrics to be used for manu-
facturing garments and other purposes in order to produce on such
garments or fabrics any desired variegated. or other ornamental devices
or designs.
The Invention consists essentially in stringing the beads (for example)
on a thread which serves for the securing or sewing of such beads with
the chain stitch to the article or fabric, and so arranging the mechanism
that the beads are distributed automatically one by one or in any
required number at a time uniformly, such bead or beads being
conducted at the desired moment to the place required, and the space or
distance between any two beads being determined and varied at the will
of the operator. The machine is also so constructed as to be capable of
sewing the beads, either on to one piece in one line or row at a time or
on to a number of bands or strips, or in a number of lines or rows on a
fabric simultaneously as desired.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed two Sheets of Drawings,

page_text: Figures.
Figure 1 (Sheet 1) of the Drawings represents a front clevation of a
machine constructed in accordance with this Invention; Figure 2 is an
end view of the same; Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, are details of the
principal parts which will be herein-after referred to; Figure 8 (Sheet 2)
is a side elevation, and Figure 9 is an end view shewing a modification
of the arrangement, Figures 1 to 7.
The machine in the example illustrated in Sheet 1 of the Drawings is
arranged to work with six needles. It is composed of a frame a of wood
or metal, and of suitable form and dimensions, which frame carries at its
front part pedestals or bearings 1, supporting a double cranked shaft b
for actuating the machine, either by the hand or with treadles, or the
machine may be driven from any suitable "prime mover". by any
convenient mcans. The crank shaft is provided at one end with a
toothed wheel 2 which by means of the endless chain c imparts motion
at a given speed to another toothed wheel 3 keyed on to the extremity of
the shaft d which extends the whole length of the machine, and is
mounted in bearings 4 (one only of which is shewn in the Drawings)
secured to the frame a. At each end of the shaft d there is mounted
a small spur wheel 5, which wheels transmit motion to two similar
wheels e, e, carried on stud centres in the frame of the machine, and
arranged in the same horizontal plane as, but in front of, the shaft d.
The spur wheels e, e, are provided on their inner face with an axis e¹
arranged eccentrically or with a crank, to which axes or cranks there are
jointed one end of the connecting rods ff, respectively, the opposite end
of such rods being attached to the bar g which supports the six needles h, h.
The shaft d by its rotary motion is thus caused to impart an up-and-
down motion to the bar g, and consequently to the needles h, h, such
bar working below the table along grooves which are provided in the
frame at each end and in which it slides. The shaft d also carries a
grooved cam i and two cams j, j, having the respective functions herein-
after mentioned. In the groove of the cam i works a stud formed on
one end of the lever k, which lever is mounted on a fixed centre at so
as to be capable of turning around the same under the action of the cam,
and is attached at the opposite end to that carrying the stud to the
bar m, whereby a longitudinal to-and-fro motion is imparted to the bar.

page_text: ""
On the bar m there are mounted appliances n termed "dividers" (the
function of which is herein-after described), and behind the said bar is a
longitudinal bar or beam o. (Figures 3, 4, and 5) fixed to the table t, and
carrying guides for the moveable bar m. The bar or beam o has secured
to it plates p, p³, formed of a 7 shape, and provided with spring
blades r, r, and 71, 71, respectively, which are arranged with spaces
between them for the passage of the thread 12 carrying the beads.
The plates p are placed at a greater elevation than the plates p¹, and the
difference in their height, and consequently the size of the space between
the spring blades and those ¹ which are slightly covered or overlapped
by the former is capable of being varied at will, but it should not
greatly exceed the height of the bead or beads to be sewn to the
material. This adjustability of the space between the blades which
may be obtained by means of slots formed in the plates p, p', through
which the tightening screws p² pass admits of the number of beads to be
attached at one time being varied as desired. The "dividers" n are
bent round at their upper end to an elbow shape, and are provided with
a space or opening 6 (Figure 5), into which the string of beads 7 is
introduced, and to the lower end of the "dividers" there is fitted a rod
or wire having a U shaped extremity for guiding the thread before its
arrival at the needles.
The "dividers." operate in the following manner (taking one of them
as an example of the operation of the whole):-From the bead
bobbins q, q, which are placed behind and at the top of the frame the
threads are conducted over guide pulleys 8, 8, and thence between the
blades, ¹, to the needles h, h. The beads fall in a string into the space
or opening 6 of the divider n, the motion of which from left to right has
the effect of causing the string of beads to first slide along the blades r,
then to leave these blades and fall on to the blades r², and moving from
right to left to cause, say, one bead to enter between the blades and r¹,
and finally leaving the blades to fall on to the guide . At this
moment the bead is acted upon by the mechanism next herein-after
mentioned and directed on to the material to be ornamented. This
mechanism is composed of a longitudinal rod or bar u on which are fixed
devices termed "bead drivers" shewn in plan on an enlarged scale in
Figure 7, such devices consisting of a piece of wire x bent round at
right angles to an L shape which is brought into contact with the thread
and projects the bead on to the material. The rod or bar u is mounted

page_text: on one extremity of two levers y, y, which are jointed at their lower end
to supports bolted to the frame. These levers which have an advancing
and receding motion under the action of the cams j, j, impart a back
motion to the bead drivers x, and leave them at a given moment to the
action of helical springs placed beneath the tablet which cause the
bead drivers to make a sudden thrust upon the threads, which action
effects the descent of the bead from above the guides on to the material
to be ornamented. The bead having arrived on the material the needles
which are at the top of their stroke descend, take with their hook
(Figure 6) the thread and conduct it with them through the material in
order to effect the sewing or attaching of the bead thereto with the chain
stitch. The needles slide through a plate z attached to the table t, and
a spring ¹ having a curved extremity is provided in connection with
each needle for the purpose of forcing the hook into a groove or channel
adapted to it in the side of the needle so as to prevent injury to the
material. Before the needle reascends the material is fed along the
requisite distance by the motion of a roller (covered with leather or other
suitable substance) mounted on the axis of the ratchet wheel R. This
ratchet wheel is caused to advance to the extent of one or more teeth as
desired under the action of the pawl 8 carried on the lever L, which
lever is actuated by means of a projecting stud 9 fitted on a crank arm M
keyed at the extremity of the shaft d, the position of such stud being
adjustable nearer to or further from the centre of rotation of the arm M
for the purpose of varying the feed, and consequently the space between
the beads. A spring detent N is employed in order to prevent the
return motion of the ratchet wheel R. G are guides which are placed in
front of the needles and receive the material from the bobbins B on
which it is wound. These guides consist of two plates, one of which is
attached to the table whilst the other is adjustable so as to leave the
required space between the two for the passage of the material being
operated upon.
In the modification shewn in Figures 8 and 9 (Sheet 2), only one
needle is employed, which is operated by a cam e carried on the main
shaft d, and having a pin which engages in a curved slot e² formed in
the arm g' of the needle bar g. The shaft d is mounted in bearings in
brackets 01 a² attached to the table £ and is onerated by a stran 10.

page_text: shaft d also carries the cam i for imparting the longitudinal motion to
the dividers n, which motion is obtained through the intervention of the
connecting rod k which has its fulcrum at in the frame a, and is
jointed at its upper end to the rod m carrying the dividers n. In this
modification an additional set 2, 7, of separating spring blades is
employed, which auxiliary blades are disposed vertically, and so arranged
as to separate one or more beads on the thread 12 from the remainder
before their arrival at the final separating blades r, . For this purpose
the thread 12 is caused to pass before it reaches the roller s over a
pulley 13 carried at one end of a rocking lever 14 which is mounted on
a fixed centre 15, and is jointed at its opposite end to links 16 carried on
the extremity of the bar m. Under the action of the lever 14 a bead is
caused to first descend along the blade ², and then ascend between the
blades 7ª and 7ª³, whence it is conducted on the thread 12 over the roller S
to the dividers n and the blades r, r¹. It is not essential that both sets
of blades should be employed, but either set may be dispensed with if
desired.
The bead driver 'x is mounted at one end of a spindle which passes
through the sleevo u³, and carries at its opposite end a cam lever 17 by
means of which it is operated as next herein-after explained. To the
cam lever 17 there is attached one end of a spiral spring 18, the opposite
end of which is connected to the sleeve ¹ which spring has a tendency
to draw the cam lever 17 towards the plate 19 carried by the bar m in
such a manner that when the bar m is moved back and the plate 19
escapes, the cam lever 17, the latter being solicited by the spring 18, will
cause the driver x to turn suddenly and project the bead on to the cloth,
after which the driver x is restored to its normal position on the return
of the bar m by the plate 19 forcing back the cam lever 17 during its
traverse. The driver x in this arrangement also serves to cast the thread
around the hook of the needle h.
The cloth or other material to be ornamented is unwound from the
roller B as the operation of sewing proceeds, and fed along over the
roller 20 which is actuated by means of the pawl 8 carried on the lever L
and engaging with the ratchet wheel R. The lever L receives its motion
from the shaft d through the intervention of the rod M which is
adjustably hinged to a vibrating lever M³, such vibrating lever carrying
a pin 9 which engages in a cam groove 21 formed in the wheel 11. The
material so fed along is finally taken up on the roller 22.

page_text: It is obvious that the details of the apparatus may be modified.in
different ways without departing from the principle of the Invention;
also that the number of needles employed may be varied as required
according to the nature or particular class of work to which the machine
is to be applied. The machine may also be arranged so as to produce a
double thread or lock stitch in lieu of a chain stitch as described.
By means of the said Invention any desired ornamental design may
be produced upon an article or fabric by draughting or marking
thereon the required outline and sewing the beads along the line thus
indicated.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to
be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First. The application and use to and with a sewing machine of
apparatus for distributing beads, bugles, or other similar ornamental
articles strung upon a thread, such apparatus being arranged to effect
automatically and uniformly the supply of any desired number of such
beads, bugles, or similar articles at a time, substantially in the manner
and for the purposes herein-before described and as illustrated by the
accompanying Drawings.
Second. The employment of drivers or apparatus arranged for pro-
jecting the beads, bugles, or similar articles on to the material to be
ornamented, and operating substantially in the manner herein-before
described and illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
Third. The peculiar mode of arranging and operating the needles for
sewing the beads, bugles, or similar articles to the material to be
ornamented, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by
Sheet 1 of the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth. The peculiar mode of feeding the material to be ornamented
and of varying the feed as required, substantially as and for the
herein-before described and as illustrated by the accompanying
purpose
Drawings.
Fifth. The combination of apparatus for supplying, distributing, and

page_text: the required distance apart to the material to be ornamented, sub-
stantially in the manner and for the purposes herein-before described
and as illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
".
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this
my Specification set my hand and seal, the Seventh day of
June, Oné thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.s.)