IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED FABRICS, AND IN THE MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Luke Barton, of the Town and County of the
Town of Nottingham, Machinist, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED FABRICS, AND IN THE MACHINERY
EMPLOYED THEREIN."
Scaled the 15th December 1874, and dated the 3rd July 1874.
'
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION loft by the said Luke Barton at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd July 1874.
I, LUKE BARTON, of the Town and County of the Town of Notting-
ham, Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED FABRICS, AND IN THE
MACHINERY EXPLOYED THEREIN," to be as follows:-
:-

page_text: And 2ndly. My Invention relates to improved arrangements of
machinery for the production of such knitted fabrics.
My Invention also consists in improved methods of fashioning hosiery,
videlicet, shaping, narrowing, or widening; also in striping and splicing
knitted fabrics.
Great uniformity of knitted fabrics is obtained by reason of the
improved method I employ in forming the loops, increased speed being
also obtained in the production of such fabrics. For this purposo in
forming the loops of fabrics in accordance with my improvements in
place of the ordinary slur cock or other means heretofore employed
I employ a cylinder having a series of projecting surfaces arranged
thereon which act in succession upon the jacks as the cylinder revolves,
and each of such projecting surfaces comes into operation so as to act
in regular succession upon the jacks and sinkers. As each sinkor
deprosses its loop the adjoining needles are gradually withdrawn for
the loops to pass under the beards which are pressed in the ordinary
manner for the work to be knocked over the heads, as is well understood.
Half a revolution of the cylinder which depresses the jack performs
one course, its continuated revolution performing the return course
ready to repeat successive courses by its continuous revolution. Cam
surfaces are formed upon the cylinder for the purpose of allowing
the whole scries of jacks to rise and fall during the working of each

page_text: the loop across the space of the empty needle, the empty needlo being
liable to break the loop unless such loop is depressed so as to pass under
the empty needlo. The loop sinker and dividing sinker are attached
to the same jack.
Moveable fingers or filling pieces carried by a bar are arranged near.
the selvage needles according to my improvements, such fingers being.
interposed between the acting surfaces on the revolving cylinder to
cause it to increase the depression of the jack sinkers at the selvages.
to enlarge the loops which have to be shifted. Such moveable fingers,
or filling pieces may be arranged and applied so as to give additional
length of loop at any part of the width of the knitted fabric if
required.
"
Plain ribbed or other work may bo produced in carrying out my
improvements.
According to another part of my improvements the throad carriers.
are arranged in tiers one above another, each carrier having inde
pendent motion, so that each carrier can be brought into position to
lay the required colored or other thread in correct position upon the
needles.
.:.
The thread carriers are moved into and out of position by suitable
wheelwork, jacguard or other mechanical contrivances, as is well under-
stood. Splicing is also effected by the above means.

page_text: Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto mc, the said Luke Barton, Her special license
that I, the said Luke Barton, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Luke Barton, 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, excrcise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ircland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF KNITTED FABRICS, AND IN THE MACHINERY EMPLOYED THEREIN,” upon tho
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Luke Barton, my executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one
of their hands and seals, should particularly describo and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the samo was to be
performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Scal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date

page_text: separately full size. The same letters indicate corresponding parts in
all the Figures.
A, A, is the framing of the machine; a being the driving shaft which
gives motion by bevil gear 1 and 2 to the main cam shaft b, which
is connected by bevil gear 3 and 4 with the vertical shaft c which
transmits motion by bevel gear 5 and 6 to the horizontal axis d on
which the drum or cylinder & is mounted, arranged with spiral bars
or surfaces d³ for actuating the jacks e and sinkers e³, as herein-after
described in accordance with my Invention. 7 is the slur cock bar
on which the slur cocks g', g', slide to and fro; h is the presser;
i and are inclines or curved surfaces carried by the arm & fixed
to the slur bar g to move the jacks and needles j, j', backwards and
forwards; are stays to steady and support the slur bar g; k is
a rocking shaft having levers h, k, mounted thereon, and connected
to the slur bar g by the links ; is a comb bar, and m is a needle
bar to carry the jacks j on which the needles are mounted. The comb
bars o and p carry the sinker jacks e' having nebs e³, e³, attached
thereto, and the comb or sliding bar q carrics the jacks e. The
comb bars o and p are employed to keep the sinker jacks e¹ in their
places.
The thread carriers r, s, t, have sockets attached to them which
slide upon the rods 7', 8', and ', and the bar u drives the thread
carriers by means of projections or fingers ¹³ when brought into
position by the vertical rods mounted on the front of the frame,
having brackets * on their ends in which the rods 7', s', t¹, aro
mounted. w is a ratchet wheel, on the axis of which the cam w' is
mounted to actuato the thread carriers by means of the vertical rod v;
x is a spindle bar mounted on centres carried by the brackets x³, x³,
and the spindle bar has arms 2 on which the axis of the drum
or cylinder dis mounted. The rod y having a set screw at its lower
end is employed for regulating the tightness or slackness of the work.
The thread carrier bar is moved by a lever fixed to the front end
of the rocking shaft in the same manner as the léver actuates the
slur bar.
The cylinder & for acting upon the jacks e in place of the ordinary

page_text: jecting cam surfaces arranged so as to act upon the jacks in succession as
the cylinder revolves, or a plain spiral bar or bars without notches may
be mounted thereon, as represented in the Drawings (which arrange-
ment I have found most advantageous), the surface of the bar or
bars d'acting upon the jacks e in regular succession as the cylinder d'
revolves. The bars & wind half way around the cylinder d¹ to the
right, and then back around the opposite half to the left, thus forming
parts of a right and left handred screw thread around the cylinder a,
half a revolution of which depresses the jacks e to perform one course,
its continued revolution performing the return course, the continuous
revolution of the cylinder & causing successive courses to be worked
upon the needles. A cylinder d' is required for each width of fabric
froma

page_text: Moveable fingers or filling pieces d* carried by the bar q* are
arranged above the needles whero the widening takes place, such filling
pieces being interspersed between the acting surfaces d³ on the revolving
cylinder & to cause it to increase the depression of the jack sinkers e¹
where the widening takes place, in order to enlarge the loops which
have to be shifted. The moveable fingers or filling pieces may bo
arranged and applied so as to give additional length of loop at any
part of the width of the knitted fabric if required. The bar q* which
acts to shift the fingers to and fro sideways is actuated by the appa-
ratus employed for narrowing, or by other convenient means, as will
be readily understood by persons acquainted with this class of machinery.
In widening knitted fabrics in accordance with my improvements
I employ two shifting points in place of one, as heretofore, the extra
point serving to depress the needle or loop from which the loop is
shifted to the needle to which the loop is transferred, such shifting
causing the loop to be brought across the space of the empty needle.
By depressing the needle next to the empty needle the loop is caused
to pass under such empty needle, and thereby prevented from being

page_text: motion, so that each carrier can be brought into position to lay the
required colored or other thread in correct position upon tho needles.
The thread carriers are moved into and out of position by suitable
wheelwork, jacquard or other mechanical contrivances, as is well under-
stood. Splicing is also effected by means of a sliding bar applied below 5
the needles actuated by means of a cam carried and actuated by the
driving shaft, as is also well understood.
It should be understood that the operations of the machine previously
described are consecutive in place of simultaneous, each loop being
formed independently from each other. After each loop has been 1
formed it is divided, pressed, and knocked over as the process of
loop making proceeds on adjoining needles, so that when the slur
cock arrives at the end of its action the whole course of loop making
and finished work is completed ready for a new course to be commenced
without loss of time.
In working a course the slur cock depresses the nebs of the loop
sinkers in succession down near to the needles, leaving sufficient space
for the thread carrier to pass between the point of the neb and the
stems of the needles. The cylinder & then acts upon the jacks e to
depress the loop sinkers down to the required depth, thus forming 2
an independent loop before the neb of the succeeding loop sinker
impinges upon the thread or acts to sink the next succeeding loop.
The loop thus far formed, the needles draw back, thus causing the
thread between them to be sunk or divided by coming in contact
with the dividing sinker neb ³, then by the continued backward a
movement of the needles the beards pass under the presser / and
receive the old loops on the surface of the boards into a position to
be knocked over by coming in contact with the knocking-over bar m*.
The needles now move towards the front, and the jack sinkers aro
depressed by a secondary slur cock g', whereby the sinkers' nebs
down between the needles, and thus hold the work back on the stem
of the needles preparatory to the working of a new course.
pass 3
The change of action for effecting the narrowing course is as follows:—
The drawing cam * is thrown out of action by the clutch box a*
being actuated by a bell-crank lever acting on a suitable cam on the

page_text: cam shaft b, when the bevil wheel 1 is in gear with the clutch box a*
the drawing cam * is caused to rotate, and thus actuate the slur cock
bar and parts connected therowith.
The cylinder & when not required to act upon or depress the jacks
5 is raised by rods and levers (which are not represented in the Drawings)
connected with suitable cams on the cam shaft to the arms which
support the cylinder & in order to raise it sufficient to prevent it from
depressing the jacks c whilst revolving. And in order to prevent the
bevil gearing 5 and 6 from being thrown out of action by the elevation
) of the cylinder d', the bevil wheel 5 is arranged to slide up and down its
axis on a key, and by means of the crank arm x* attached to the arm x³
the bevil wheel 5 is raised up in conjunction with the cylinder d².
The operations of narrowing and fashioning being similar to such
operations in other knitting frames it will not be necessary for me
to enter into a more particular description theroof, the frame being
so constructed that the sinkers are capable of being raised or depressed
as required for the operations of narrowing or widening when required.
The raising or depressing of the sinkers e' is effected by cams and
mechanism, as is well understood.
The jacks and needles are moved to and fro by means of the locker
bar j* from time to time as may be required.
When desired I introduce splicing or thickening threads in the
manner well understood for making hosiery; this I accomplish by
means of a sliding bar placed in front of the frame below the ncedles,
suitable carriers being attached to the bar for laying on the thickening
or splicing threads. The sliding bar and carriers are actuated by a
suitable cam on the driving shaft. Insteps are also produced by similar
means when required.
Apparatus known as ribbed machinery for producing ribbed work
may be readily arranged and combined with the improved knitting
machinery herein-before described.
Knitted fabrics made in accordance with my improvements, and by
the means and apparatus herein-before described, are superior to those

page_text: Having thus described the nature of my improvements, and the
manner of performing or carrying the same into practice, I would
have it understood that I do not confine myself to the exact details
herein described so long as the essential character and novel features of
my Invention are retained; what I claim is,—
First. The improved arrangement and application of the cylinder d¹
and depressing bars or surfaces & designed to act substantially in tho
manner and for the purpose heroin-before described and represented in
the Drawings hereunto annexed.
Secondly. I claim the improved arrangement and combination of the
loop sinker with the dividing sinker and jack, to which both are attached
and designed to act substantially in the manner and for the purpose
herein-before described and represented in the Drawings annexed:
Thirdly. I claim the improved arrangement and application of the
pressing instrument acting substantially in the manner and for the ]
purpose herein described and shown in the Drawings annexed.
Fourthly. I claim the improved arrangement and application of
two or more slur cocks ¹³ acting substantially in the manner and
for the purpose herein-before described and represented in the Drawings
annexed.
Fifthly. I claim the improved mode and apparatus for fashioning or
shaping, narrowing, or widening knitted fabrics, substantially in the
manner herein described and shown in the Drawings annexed; I
also claim the application of the improved arrangements of machinery
hercin-before described in combination with apparatus for producing a
ribbed knitted fabrics.
Sixthly. I claim the improved method of arranging means of
actuating the thread carriers for the purpose of producing plain or
colored stripes in knitted fabrics, substantially in the manner herein-
before described and represented in the Drawings annexed.
Seventhly. I claim the arrangement and application of instruments
for producing independent loops of extra length for the purpose of
fashioning knitted fabrics, substantially in the manner hercin-beforo
doscribed.

page_text: Eighthly. I claim the improved general arrangement and combi-
nation of machinery for the manufacture of knitted fabrics arranged to
act substantially in the manner herein-before described and represented
in Sheets 1, 2, and 3 of the annexed Drawings.
Ninthly. I claim the improved manufacture of knitted fabrics, sub-
stantially in the manner and by the means herein-before described and
represented in the Drawings annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Luko Barton, have hercunto
set my hand and seal, this Second day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.
Witness,
J. G. TONGUE,
Patent Agent,
34, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane,
W.C.
LUKE BARTON. (L.S.)