An Improved Machine for Preparing Soles for the Boot and Shoe Manufacture.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 14th July, 1897-Accepted, 28th Aug.,
1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Machine for Preparing Soles for the Boot and Shoe
Manufacture.
We JOHN KEATS of Bagnall near Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, Mechanical
Engineer, and WILLIAM STEPHENS CLARK, of Street, Somerset, Boot Manufacturer,
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:-
This invention has for its object an improved machine for so preparing boot and
shoe soles, that the seams (when the uppers are sewn to the soles) will form a close
and practically water-tight joint. The machine is intended to produce, near the
edge of the sole, and at any desired distance therefrom, a raised portion, forming
a rib, to which the "upper" may be subsequently sewn.
66
By reason of this raised portion, which we obtain by means of our machine, the
upper" is not sewn flat to the sole, but vertically against the raised rib.
To make the following description as clear as possible, we have represented our
improved machine in the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the improved machine.
Fig. 2 is a plan view; and
Fig. 3 is an end view of the same.
Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of the operating parts of the machine, with a sole under
treatment.
Fig. 5 shews a leather sole; and
Fig. 6 a felt sole, after passing through the machine.
Mounted in bearings in the frame A is the driving shaft H of the machine, which
receives its movement from hand or other motive power.
This shaft H has keyed to it, at its left hand extremity, a coned roller T, having a
slightly swelled portion or bead at t. This roller T serves to support the sole during
the operation of moulding the rib which is to receive the stitches, and to impart a
traversing motion to the sole through the machine.
In front of the coned roller T (see Fig. 1) is an adjustable support or rest Q, for
guiding the sole to the roller.
This support Q is secured to the frame A by a clamping screw 9, which passes
through an elongated hole q' in the guide Q, and enters a tapped hole in the
frame.
Keyed to the shaft H, is a conical toothed wheel I, which engages with a similar
conical toothed wheel K, keyed on the end of a shaft G, which has its bearings in a
rocking frame B. This shaft G lies, when in its acting position, at an angle of some
30 degrees or thereabouts to the horizontal shaft H, for the purpose to be presently
explained.
The shaft G has fixed upon its left-hand end (see Fig. 1) a pressing roller G¹,
formed with two annular ribs, the outer one of which is milled to take a good hold
of the work. This roller G', with the roller T, assists in moulding the sole and
feeding it forward while under treatment.
Upon the shaft G is keyed a bevil wheel L, which engages with bevil wheel M,
arried by a short vertical shaft M. On this shaft M₁ is also keyed a spur wheel N.

page_text: This wheel N engages with the wheel O on a shaft O¹, which carries, at its upper end,
a block I fitted with a crank pin F¹. This crank pin is adjustable in a radial groove
in the block by means of a traversing screw. E is a square-ended rod formed with
an eye, which fits over the crank pin F¹, and is secured by a nut F2. By this
connection of the rod E with the crank pin, it will, at each rotation of the wheel O,
receive a rapid to and fro movement in the direction of its length, and be driven
into contact with the sole, for the purpose of moulding the marginal rib thereon.
This rod E, as will be seen hereafter, constitutes the chief acting part of the
machine, and it is controlled in its movements by a radius arm R, pivotted to the
frame A.
The rocking frame B which carries the shaft G, is supported on screwed centres B',
projecting inwards from the opposite sides of the frame A, and it receives a tendency
upwards from a strong spring S and underlying rock lever R2 for the purpose of lifting
the pressing roller G₁ and holding it off the work, as shewn in the dotted position
at Fig. 4.
This
Upon the frame A is fulcrummed a hooked lever C, from which depends a rod C¹,
connected, at its lower end, to a pedal operated by the foot of the workman.
hooked lever C overlies, and bears upon, a vertical piece D, carried by the movable
frame B.
Normally, when the workman is not pressing upon the pedal, the conical roller G¹
of the shaft G will retain the dotted position of Fig. 4. But when the workman
presses on the pedal connected to the rod C¹, the hooked lever C causes the
depression of the roller G¹, and the gripping of the work firmly between it and the
roller T.
Having thus described the parts which constitute our improved machine, we will
now describe its action, but we would first remark that the work which it is intended
to perform is to produce the raised vertical portion or rib indicated on the sole
at X, Fig. 5. It is to this raised rib that the edge of the upper, after it is made up,
is sewn, either by hand or machinery.
The leather sole to be treated is first of all slit, for a slight depth on its edge, by
any appropriate instrument. This done, the workman, using the guide Q as a
"point d'appui," introduces the sole between the roller G¹ and the cone T, placing
it so that the grip of the roller G¹ may gauge the finishing point of the raised rib.
At this moment, he presses on the pedal, so as to bring the roller G' down upon the
sole, which is thus tightly gripped between it and the cone T.
The workman then sets the machine in motion. Consequent upon the rotation of
the gripping rollers, the sole is drawn in, and the workman holding it there with his
hands, guides it while the roller G₁ describes a line round the sole equidistant
from its edge, pressing down the leather so as to mould the inner side of the rib, at
its root, to correspond with the angle formed between the bead t of the conical
roller T and the end of the pressing roller G'. The exact lateral position of the sole
with respect to the feed rollers, is determined by an adjustable guide P carried by
the frame A.
During the feeding forward of the sole under the action of the roller G¹ and the
cone G, the rod E moves with an oscillating backward and forward motion, under the
influence of its revolving crank pin, and repeatedly and violently strikes the edge of
the raised portion of the sole against the inner end of the roller G', and moulds it
into a raised rib.
By reason of the oscillatory movement of this rod, caused by its connection with
the radius arm R, it does not strike directly against the rib, but rather tangentially,
thus aiding in the feeding of the sole. Under these conditions, it will be understood
that it is necessary that the rapidity of the oscillatory movement of the rod E shall
be such, that its end, when in contact with the leather, shall move forward at the
same rate as the feed rollers, as otherwise the leather will be torn. Again, as the
rod E leaves the sole for a certain period of time, to retire, it is necessary that its acting 5
end should have a sufficiently broad surface to strike all points of the raised rib, in a
uniform manner, several times.

page_text: The rapidity of movement of the rod E depends naturally upon the relative
proportions of the gears which control the revolution of the crank pin connected
to the rod, and we therefore reserve the right to modify the gears according to the
material of which the sole may be made.
When the workman, after having guided the sole by hand, comes to the terminating
point of the course, that is to say, to the place where the raised rib shall cease, he
releases the pedal, the shaft G rises, and he can then easily withdraw the sole from
the machine.
The required depth and position of the raised rib produced by the machine
depend naturally upon the mode of attaching the upper to the sole, and will vary
according to its shape.
Our machine will manufacture soles of felt or leather, as above stated, and the
pressure, and the form of the roller G₁, and the length of travel of
the rod E, may vary according to the nature of the material employed. These are
the only alterations necessary to suit the work; all other parts remain the same,
whatever may be the material employed.
As the thickness of the sole under treatment varies, the adjustment of the height
of the rod E must also vary. For this purpose, the rod is passed through the
adjustable guide P, which is capable of being raised or lowered." Furthermore, this
guide P admits of slight lateral adjustment, to suit the varying width of the flanged
portion of the sole.
In the case of felt soles, we do not split the edge first, it being unnecessary to do
this, to obtain the raised rib, but we heat the roller G¹ and the pushing instrument E,
so that when the rib is moulded, the heated pressure causes it to retain its rib or
guide line shape.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
The improved machinery above described for moulding a marginal rib on boot and
shoe soles, for the purpose above set forth.