Improvements in Button Hole Sewing Machines.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Apr., 1887.
Specification Accepted, 14th June, 1887.
Improvements in Button Hole Sewing Machines.
1, FREDERICK EGGE, residing at 107, Park Avenue, in the City of Bridgeport,
County of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, one of the United States of America,
Manufacturer, 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 :-
My invention relates to certain novel and useful improvements in machines for
sewing button holes and has for its object to provide means for cutting the button
hole simultaneously with the stitching of either side without any interference whatever
with the barring and with these ends in view my invention consists in the details of
construction and combination of elements hereinafter fully explained and then speci-
fically designated by the claims; in order that those skilled in the art to which my
invention appertains may more fully understand the same I will proceed to describe
it in detail.
Referring by letter to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specifi-
cation, in which I have shown my improvement applied to the button hole sewing
machine illustrated and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 206768,
granted August, 6, 1878, to S. J. Baird.
Figure, 1, is a perspective showing my improvement attached to what is known as
the "Universal" Button Hole Sewing Machine.
Figure, 2, a side elevation showing the relative position of the several parts of my
improvement immediately prior to stitching a button hole.
Figure, 3, a similar view after one side has been sewed.
Figure, 4, a similar view after the other side of the button hole has been stitched
far enough to bring the cutter within the row of barring stitches, the cutter head
being shown as barely resting on the pin.
Figure, 5, a similar view showing the cutter dropped and the position of the head
thereof relative to the needle bar.
Figure, 6, a side elevation partly in section of a modified form of my improvement
showing the relative position of certain actuating pawls tho feed bar and shifting
plate when the cutter is constructed and adapted to be operated directly from the
shaft as the machine is about to commence the operation of stitching a button hole.
[P1171

page_text: Figure, 7, a bottom perspective of this modification with the bed plate removed.
Figure, 8, a detail side elevation of the same showing the relative position of the
shifting plate feed bar actuating pawls and cutter frame just after the machine has
finished barring and preparatory to the operation of the cutter and,
Figure, 9, a view similar to fig. 8, but showing the position of the actuating pawls
and cutter while in operation.
Similar letters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing.
I have shown my improvement applied to the button hole sewing machine illus-
trated and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 206768, granted
August, 6, 1878, to S. J. Baird and it is not deemed necessary therefore to show by
the drawings and herein specifically describe the parts of the machine which form the
subject matter of said patent, such as the means employed to effect the oscillation and
feeding, or to hold the fabric while the button-hole is stitched, or the devices instru-
mental in operating the shifting plate, said parts and mechanisms being fully set forth
in said patent and forming no part of my present improvement.
A, is the oscillator, and, B, the shifting plate constructed and arranged as in the
aforesaid patent. C, is the cutter frame pivoted to the oscillator as seen at, D, so as
to be capable of a vertically reciprocating movement.
E, is a lever formed integral with or rigidly secured to the heel of the frame and
projecting rearward therefrom. F, is a bow spring secured to the lever for the
purpose presently explained. The shifting plate, B, immediately prior to the stitching
of the button hole from front to rear, that is during the outward feed, is embraced by
said lever and spring as shown at, fig. 2, the object of this being, to depress the lever
to a horizontal plane and thereby elevate the cutter frame for the purpose presently
explained.
H, is a flat spring secured to the turret, I, and extending in normal position a
slight distance beyond the frame when the latter is elevated to a horizontal pláne as
shown at, fig. 2. This spring may be adjusted to a greater or less distance from the
frame by means of the screw, J, which passes through said spring into the turret.
K, is the cutter head secured at the outer extremity of the frame, and, L, is the
cutter secured within said head. M, is the needle bar.
The relative position of the needle bar and the cutter. head is such that when the
frame shall have dropped down, the head will be within the field of operation of
the needle bar screw, N, in a vertical plane as shown at, fig. 5, and when the frame
shall have been elevated the said head will be without the field of operation of the
needle-bar screw as seen at figs. 2 and 3. In this connection I wish to remark that
the needle-bar may be shouldered, or a collar or similar attachment secured thereto,
which shall perform the office of the needle-bar screw in operating on the cutter-head,
the screw being brought into service merely for the sake of convenience.
O, is a pin secured to the feed-bar, P-When the button hole has been stitched
during the outward feed of the bar, P the pin, O, will have been brought directly
underneath the cutter head as shown at, fig. 3, and after the barring has been effected
the shifting plate B will have been carried beyond the lever E, so that the action
of the spring, F, will force the cutter head down on the pin as also seen at fig. 3.
Now when the feed-bar moves backward the stitching of the other side of the button
hole commences, but the cutter does not operate since it is upheld by the pin and it
will not operate until the feed bar has moved backward sufficiently to withdraw the
pin from under the cutter head. The reason for this is obvious, since if the cutter
was operated simultaneously with the commencement of the stitching during the
backward feed, the barring stitches would be cut through since the cutter is in rear
of the needle.
Therefore during the initial backward feed, the cutter head rests on the pin until
the operating field of the cutier is within the row of barring stitches, when the pin
is withdrawn and the cutter frame drops forward against the spring H, thus bringing
the cutter head within the field of operation of the needle bar screw as seen at fig. 5.
Now as the needle bar descends the screw will strike against the cutter head and force
the cutter against the resiliency of the spring H, within the fabric, and when the

page_text: needle-bar rises the action of the spring, H, will force the cutter frame upward and
thereby cause the cutter to be lifted clear of the fabric so as not to impede the feeding
movement and in position to be again operated.
When the button-hole is barred at the outer end, after the backward feed has been
accomplished, the shifting plate, B, will be again thrown between the lever, E, and
spring, F, the said plate being beveled or cut away as seen at, Q, to facilitate this
movement, and the cutter frame will be thereby elevated to its normal position as
seen at fig. 2. The spring, F, has a constant bearing against the plate, B, and is
longer than the lover, E, so that when said plate has been shifted clear of the lever,
the spring will tend to force the cutter frame down.
The spring, H, has a double function; it acts as a stop to prevent the forcing of
the cutter within the fabric by the action of the spring, F, after the pin, O, has been
withdrawn from underneath the cutter-head, and it lifts the cutter from the fabric
during the upstroke of the needle bar after the latter has operated the cutter.
It is of course obvious that the cutter may be so arranged as to cut the button-hole
during the stitching of either side thereof, or the cutter may be made to operate in
advance of the stitching, whereby the button-hole may be sewed immediately after the
successive operations of the cutter.
I will now proceed to describe the manner in which my improved cutter may be
operated directly by the shaft of the sewing machine.
W, are stops (one only being shown) projecting from the frame against which
pawls Tabut so that the latter in their normal position are in a vertical plane as
shown in fig. 7. L, is the cutter knife, and, K, the head thereof which latter in its
normal position is outside the field of operation of the needle bar screw, N, as seen
at fig. 6.
The feed bar, P, is provided with a trip, Y, which during the forward movement of
said bar strikes the cross-piece, U, and throws the pawls, T, forward against tho
resiliency of the spring, V, and keeps them out of their normal or vertical position
during the barring of the forward end of the button hole and until the cutter has
passed within the barring stitches, for the purpose presently explained.
Z, Z, are the round reciprocating driving rods or shafts and, A, is the adjustable
cross-bar or connecting piece, set forth and described in the aforesaid patent. B', are
ears projecting from said crosspiece and to these ears are pivoted pawls, C¹, having
their upper edges, V-shaped as shown in figs. 6, 7, 8, and, 9, of the drawing. D', are
flat springs secured to the forward edge of the cross-piece and bearing against the
forward faces of said pawls so as to keep them in their normal position inclined
backward out of a vertical plane as shown in fig. 6. E¹, is the ordinary cam on the
shaft of the sewing machine, and it operates to cause a vertical reciprocation of the
cross bar, A', and rods, Z, Z, in precisely the same manner as in the aforesaid
patent.
The relative positions of the pawls, C, T, are such that when they are both at a
perpendicular, their inner edges will be in the same longitudinal and cross vertical
planes, so that it will be readily understood that the vertical reciprocation of the cross-
bar, A', will force the pawls, C, against the pawls T, and thereby cause the forward
end of the cutter frame to be depressed against the resiliency of the spring, R.
This action is so timed with the movement of the needle bar, that the needle screw
of the latter will in its downward course strike the head, K, and force the cutter
downward within the fabric. It will then be seen that the head, K, is brought
within the field of operation of the needle bar screw by the upward movement of the
cross bar, A', when the pawls, T, C, are in vertical alignment. I will now proceed
to describe the function and operation of those parts of the button-hole sewing
machine that I have shown, which parts by their operation directly affect the relative
positions of the pawls, and consequently the operation of the cutter. When the feed
bar, P, commences to move forward to feed the fabric outward, thereby enabling one
side of the button-hole to be stitched, there is no movement of the cutter for the
reason that the pawls, C¹, are inclined rearward out of the vertical plane of the

page_text: pawls, T, as shown at fig. 6, and consequently there will be no engagement of said
pawls. When said sido has been stitched and the barring is begun, the trip, Y, on
the feed bar will have been forced against the cross-piece, U, so as to throw the
pawls, T, forward while at the same time the shifting plate, B, will have been forced
against the pawls, C³, so as to bring them in a perpendicular position, all as shown at
fig. 8, so that it will be readily understood, that during the barring the pawls being
out of vertical alignment, the cutter will not operate.
When the feed-bar commences to move backward, the pawls, T, will gradually
follow the retraction of the trip until they are in vertical alignment with the pawls, C,
as shown in dotted lines, in fig. 8. During this initial retraction of the trip the
cutter will of course not operate until the pawls, T, (, are brought into vertical
alignment and in the meantime the fabric will have been fed backward a distance
sufficient to cause the cutter to operate within the barring stitches so as not to cut
the latter. In other words the cutter is behind the needle as shown in fig. 8, and it
is obvious that if the cutter were allowed to operate immediately after the needle has
completed the barring stitches, the latter, as the fabric is fed backward would be cut
through therefore the throw of the pawls, T, is such that they will not have been
brought into operative position by the retraction of the trip until the fabric shall have
been fed backward a distance sufficient to bring the field of operation of the cutter
within the barring stitches. When the pawls are in vertical alignment the upward
movement of the cross-bar, A', will cause the lower pawls, C, to strike against the
upper pawls, T, and thereby depress the cutter as shown in fig. 9; this movement of
the cross bar is so timed as to bring the head of the cutter forward within reach of the
needle-bar screw, N, in its downward course so that the latter will assist in the
depression of the cutter and thereby partially relieve the strain on the pawls.
out
On the downward movement of the cross-bar, the needle-bar will be elevated and
the cutter-frame returned to its normal position by the action of the spring, R. This
operation of the cutter will continue until the barring again commences, when the
shifting plate, B, will again be operated and thrown backward thereby releasing the
pawls, C, which latter will immediately be thrown backward by the springs, DT,
of vertical alignment with the pawls, T; the cutter will accordingly now cease to
operate, and moreover will not again operate until the pawls, T, U, shall have been
again brought into vertical alignment by the action of the feed-bar, P, and the
shifting plate, B, as hereinbefore fully set forth.
It is not absolutely necessary that the needle bar screw should assist the pawls, T, C',
in depressing the cutter since the throw of the lower pawls is high enough to effect
the result aimed at. My improvement is adapted for use on any button-hole sewing
attachment, it being necessary only to pivot the cutter frame to the oscillating
mechanism in order that the cutter may always be in the same vertical longitudinal
plane with the space between the rows of side stitches, it being a matter of mere
mechanical skill to cause the depression of the cutter within the fabric simultaneously
with the stitching of either side of the button hole, the gist of my invention resting
in the broad idea of a cutter pivoted to the oscillating mechanism and adapted to be
vertically reciprocated to cut the buttonhole only during the stitching of either side
thereof and within the barring stitches.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :-
1. In a button hole sewing machine, a cutter pivoted to the oscillating mechanism
and capable of being operated only during the stitching of either side of the button
hole substantially as set forth.
2. In a button hole sewing machine, cutting mechanism adapted to be vertically
reciprocated by means controlled directly or indirectly by the movement of the feed
bar, or shifting mechanism and substantially as set forth.
3. In a button hole sewing machine, the cutter frame having secured therein the
cutter and pivoted to the oscillating mechanism in combination with means, as the

page_text: driving shaft or the needle-bar for operating said cutter, and means controlled directly
or indirectly by the action of the feed bar or the shifting mechanism, for determining
said operation of the cutter whereby the latter may be depressed within the fabric to
cut the button hole during the stitching of either side thereof, substantially as and for
the purposes hereinbefore set forth.
4. The cutter frame having secured therein the cutter and pivoted to the oscillator
in combination with spring pawls pivoted to the rear end of said frame beyond the
pivotal point and connected by a cross-piece, feed bar having on its face a trip adapted
to abut against said cross-piece and throw the pawls against their resiliency, cross-bar
attached to the vertically reciprocating driving rods and having pivoted thereto spring
pawls, shifting plate adapted to force the latter pawls to a vertical position, and means
as a cam on the driving shaft for causing the vertical reciprocation of the said cross
bar, substantially as shown and described.
5. The combination of the oscillator, the cutter frame pivoted thereto and having
secured therein the cutter, pawls T, pivoted to the rear end of said frame, cross-
piece, U, connecting said pawls, spring, V, secured to said frame and bearing against
said cross-piece, stops, W, feed-bar having on its face the trip, Y, adapted to strike
against said cross-piece and throw said pawls forward, vertically reciprocating
rods, Z, Z, cross bar, A', attached to said rods, pawls, C¹, pivoted to said cross bar
and having their upper edges, V-shaped, springs, D', secured to the cross-bar and
bearing against the latter pawis shifting plate, B, adapted to strike against the
pawls, C, and force them to a vertical position, operating cam, E', adapted to effect
the vertical reciprocation of the cross-bar, spring, R, secured at one end to the
oscillator and with its free end bearing against the bottom of the cutter frame whereby
the latter is elevated in its normal position, and stop, S, all substantially as shown,
and for the purposes herein before set forth.
6. In a button-hole sewing machine, the cutter frame having secured therein the
cutter and pivoted to oscillating mechanism and adapted to be vertically reciprocated
by primary or secondary mechanism, in combination with means, dependent upon the
feeding or shifting movements, for timing the depression of the cutter whereby the
latter will operate within the barred ends of the button-hole and during the stitching
of either side thereof, substantially as specified.
7. A new process of making button-holes by machine, the same consisting in
cutting the button-hole within the barring stitches simultaneously with the stitching
of either side of the button hole.
8. A new process of making button-holes by machine, the same consisting in
forming the stitches in two parallel rows of equal length, and barring the ends
thereof, and automatically cutting the space between the said rows simultaneously
with the formation of either row.
9. The cutter frame pivoted to the oscillator and having secured in the forward
extremity the cutter, in combination with means, dependent on the feeding and
oscillating movements for elevating and depressing the cutter at predetermined times
and the vertically reciprocating needle-bar provided with a screw or other analogous
device, substantially as set forth.
10. The combination with the cutter frame pivoted to the oscillator and having
secured in the forward extremity the cutter, of the lever secured to or formed with
the frame, the how spring secured to said lever, means as the shifting mechanism or
the parts controlled thereby for elevating said frame to its normal position, a spring
adapted to raise the cutter from the fabric during the operation of cutting and at the
upstroke of the needle bar, and means carried or controlled by the feed bar for
keeping the cutter head without the field of operation of the needle bar screw until
the barring stitches have been carried without the field of the cutter, substantially as
shown and described.
11. In a button hole sewing machine the combination with a frame pivoted to the
oscillator and having secured in its forward extremity the cutter, and a lever secured
to or formed with said frame and projecting rearward therefrom, of means, as the

page_text: oscillator or mechanism controlled thereby, for depressing said lever and thereby
elevating the frame, a spring adapted to throw the frame forward when the latter is
not held in an elevated position, thereby bringing the cutter head within the field of
operation of the needle bar screw or other analogous device, a spring adapted to raise
the frame after each successive operation of the needle bar screw or analogous device
against the cutter head whereby the cutter will not interfere with the feeding of the
fabric, and means as, a pin or other device carried or operated by the feed-bar for
keeping the cutter head without the field of operation of the needle bar screw or other
analogous device, until the barring stitches have been carried by the feed-bar without
the field of operation of the cutter, substantially as shown and for the purposes
herein before described.