Improvements in Apparatus for Stretching Woven Material.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 21st May, 1889
Complete Specification Left, 20th Feb., 1890-Accepted, 22nd Mar., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Stretching Woven Material.
We JAMES WADSWORTH of Hawthorn View, Levenshulme, Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Finisher, and JOHN HADDOW of 7 Barlow Terrace in the
same place, Mechanic, do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as
follows:-
Our Invention relates to apparatus for stretching cloth or woven material in the
direction of its breadth in order to restore the original width of the material which
has become reduced in the bleaching or other treatment of the fabric or for other
reasons as is well understood. Previously to our Invention sectional rollers sliding
bars and other constructions of so termed stretching rollers have been used for the
purpose but such appliances have been complicated in construction and not always
efficient in operation and have been open to objection in consequence of having to be
lubricated at places within the length which operates upon the cloth so that there has
been risk of damage to the cloth arising from the cloth coming into contact with parts
to which the lubricant might find its way. The object of our Invention is to simplify
the construction of the stretching rollers used and at the same time to obtain greater
or a suitable degree of efficiency. We employ two rollers which are corrugated or
grooved on their peripheries the grooves running around the rollers. Each roller
may be cast or formed in one piece or may consist of a number of rings or sections
threaded upon a shaft or fitting or screwed together or some of the sections may be
secured upon a shaft the other sections fitting or locking together or the roller or the
end sections may be formed or provided with gudgeons or journals. The two rollers
are mounted to revolve the rollers being so relatively formed or mounted as that each
projecting ring upon one roller is opposite to a groove between two rings upon the
other roller. One or both of the rollers is adjustable toward the other. When in
operation the rings of one roller enter the grooves of the other roller to a greater or
lesser extent according to the relative adjustment of the rollers the degree of stretch-
ing of the cloth when passed between the rollers depending upon the extent to which
the cloth is bent to and fro out of a straight line across the width of the cloth. The
rollers may be positively revolved or be revolved by contact with the cloth or one
roller only may be positively revolved as found to be most suitable. The rollers may
be made of brass iron wood earthenware or other suitable material. We may make
one or both of the rollers or sections or parts of the same of vulcanised caoutchouc.
The rings and grooves of the rollers may run concentrically around the rollers or they
may be of a spiral form in which latter case the rollers should be geared together so
as to ensure that the rings will occupy their proper relative position in the grooves.
The rings and grooves may increase in height and depth toward the outer ends of the
rollers. The rollers or sets of rollers on each side of the machine may be arranged in
line or they may be set at an angle to each other.
Dated this 20th day of Ma.. 1000
DUTTON & FULTON,
1, St. James Square, Manchester, Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Stretching Woven Material.
We JAMES WADSWORTH, of 3 Hawthorn View, Levenshulme, Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Finisher, and JOHN HADDOW, of 7 Barlow Terrace, in the same
place, Mechanic 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 and accompanying drawings:
-
Our said Invention relates to apparatus for stretching cloth or woven material in

page_text: the direction of its breadth in order to restore the original width of the material which
has become reduced in the bleaching or other treatment of the fabric or for other
reasons as is well understood. Previously to our Invention sectional rollers sliding
bars and other constructions of so termed stretching rollers have been used for the
purpose but such appliances have been complicated in construction and not always
efficient in operation and have been open to objection in consequence of having to be
lubricated at places within the length which operates upon the cloth so that there has
been risk of damage to the cloth arising from the cloth coming into contact with parts
to which the lubricant might find its way. The object of our Invention is to simplify
the construction of the stretching rollers used and at the same time to obtain greater
or a suitable degree of efficiency. We employ two rollers which are corrugated or
grooved on their peripheries or provided with projecting rings or ribs.
The two rollers are mounted to revolve the rollers being so relatively formed or
mounted as that each projecting ring upon one roller is opposite to a groove between
two rings upon the other roller the fabric to be operated upon being passed between
the two rollers.
In order that our Invention may be clearly comprehended we will describe the
same more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. 1 is a
front elevation Fig. 2 a plan view and Fig. 3 an end elevation of a stretching apparatus
constructed in accordance with our Invention. In the said Figs. A A are the two
stretching rollers which are formed with projecting rings running around their
peripheries as aforesaid. In practice we have built up these rollers upon a foundation
consisting of a suitably light wrought iron tube. Upon this tube we have threaded
annular brass castings each formed with two or more of the projecting rings and so
formed as that when all are in position upon the tube a roller having alternate grooves
and projecting ribs or rings is constituted somewhat as indicated in the drawing. In
each end of the tube is fixed a gudgeon which is turned to form a journal b and the
two journals are mounted to revolve in blocks c which are fitted to slide in slots in the
two end standards d of the framing. These two standards are connected together by
means of rods and cross bars ee or the framing is otherwise suitably constructed to
suit the circumstances of the case. It will be seen that the projecting rings are so
arranged upon the two rollers as that each ring upon one roller comes opposite to the
space between two rings upon the other roller. In practice we have made each roller
to taper slightly from each end toward the centre of its length so that the roller is a
little less in diameter at the centre than at the two ends. This is apparent in the
drawings but the tapering is a little exaggerated. The object of this tapering of the
rollers is to obtain an effect increasing from the centre of the width of the fabric in
each direction toward the selveges. This increased effect at the edges of the cloth may
Le also obtained by varying the distances between the projecting rings which in such
a case may be all of the same diameter. A convenient way of constructing such a
roller would be to thread a suitable number of disc rings upon a tube or plain roller
alternately with distance or separating rings of less diameter such distance rings
being broadest in the centre and becoming gradually narrower toward the two ends of
the roller. We make one of the two rollers adjustable toward and from the other roller.
In the example the bearing blocks which carry the lower roller are sustained by means
of screws ff and these two screws are connected together by means of coupling
shaft g and of bevel gearing h. It will be seen that when the shaft h is rotated the
lower roller is raised or lowered according to the direction in which the said shaft is
rotated. In some cases it may be convenient to provide means for operating
the said screws from one end of a machine to which the apparatus may be
applied.
The dotted lines at i indicate such means. When the lower roller is raised an
increased effect upon the fabric results a lowering of the roller decreasing the effect
upon the fabric so that any required degree of stretching can readily be obtained.
The degree to which the fabric is stretched will depend upon the extent to which
the fabric is bent to and fro out of the straight line across the width of the cloth by the
action of the projecting rings upon the rollers. We prefer to arrange for one of the

page_text: two rollers to be capable of yielding so that there shall be an amount of elasticity in
the pressure of the roller upon the fabric. In the example the bearing blocks of the
upper roller are suspended by means of spiral springs. If preferred the lower roller
might be mounted to yield and the upper roller be adjustable. The fabric to be
stretched passes between the two rollers as indicated by the dotted line and arrows in
Fig. 3. In the apparatus as illustrated a plain leading roller is provided at the
front of the apparatus and a pair of inclined conical rollers m m at the back the latter
rollers being intended to pass the fabric forward in a smooth and even condition.
These rollers and m do not however constitute a necessary part of our Invention.
The two rollers A. may be mounted in a suitable position in a sizing machine or other
machine used in the treatment of woven fabrics suitable provision being made in the
framings of such machines for the bearings of the rollers. In the example the rollers
are free to revolve on their bearings and are intended to be revolved only by the
forward movement of the fabric but in some cases we provide suitable means whereby
the rollers may be positively rotated so that if necessary the fabric may be fed through
by the motion of the two rollers or if considered to be advisable only one roller may
be positively rotated. The rollers or rings may be made of brass iron wood earthen-
ware or other suitable material. We may make one or both of the rollers or the rings
sections or parts of the same of vulcanised caoutchouc. The rings upon the rollers
may run concentrically around the rollers as in the example or they may be wholly or
partly of a spiral form in which latter case the rollers should be geared together so as
to ensure that the rings shall maintain their proper positions relative to the grooves or
spaces between the rings. A machine may have more than one pair of rollers. Each
roller may have a central portion not provided with projecting rings. We might
arrange to have two rollers in the width of the apparatus instead of one roller extend-
ing across the fabric so that four rollers would be required to act upon the fabric one
pair upon each side of the fabric. In such a case the axes of the two rollers which
would be upper rollers or lower rollers as the case would be might be in line or be
inclined with relation to each other as preferred. It might be possible to produce a
stretching effect by the employment of a single roller acting in concert with a fixed
grooved bar roller or surface but we prefer the two revolvable rollers.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. The two rollers formed and adapted to act in concert in the stretching of fabrics
substantially as set forth and indicated.
2. The rollers A A mounted to revolve and carried by suitable bearings and frame-
work and adjusted relatively to each other so that when a fabric is passed between
the rollers it becomes extended in width substantially as set forth.
3. The rollers each formed with projecting rings or ridges which are opposite
to the spaces in the other roller one of the rollers being adjustable toward and from
the other roller substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
4. The rollers having raised rings or ridges tapering or becoming less in diameter
rom the ends toward the centre substantially as and for the purpose set forth and
ndicated.
Dated this 10th day of Febrne 1800
DUTTON & FULTON,
1, St. James Square, Manchester, Agents.