IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES FOR HACKLING OR DRESSING JUTE ROOTS OR HEADS
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Soutar, of Dundee, in the County of
Forfar, Scotland, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES
FOR HACKLING OR DRESSING JUTE ROOTS OR HEADS."
Sealed the 16th May 1871, and dated the 10th March 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Soutar at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th March 1871.
I, DAVID SOUTAR, of Dundee, in the County of Forfar, Scotland,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINES FOR HACKLING OR DRESSING JUTE ROOTS OR HEADS," to be as
follows:-
My improvements refer to machines used for hackling or dressing
jute roots or heads, sometimes called in the trade a snipping machine,
and consists, first, in placing the feed apparatus used in such machines
higher than heretofore, and in such way that the strick of jute passes
through the rollers to the cylinder in a direction nearly tangential to it

page_text: and lays upon or nearly upon the top of the cylinder, by which arrange-
ment the action or hackling of the said cylinder is more gentle or tender
upon the jute roots or heads and a greater yield of what are termed
middles is obtained than when the feed rollers are, as heretofore, placed
but slightly above the axes of the cylinder and so that the strick passes
between them in a direction nearly radial to it.
My improvements also consist in combining with such a machine a
self-acting reversing feed apparatus which can be adjusted to allow a
longer or shorter length of the jute to pass on to the cylinder according
to the quality of the jute being dressed or to the amount of dressing or
hackling it is desirable to give the jute. I prefer to mount on the
driving axis two belt pulleys receiving driving straps running in opposite
directions, and by friction clutches one or other of these pulleys is
caused to give motion to the driving axis which is geared with the feed
rollers. From the driving axis a screw also takes motion, and as it
revolves a nut traverses along it which on its arrival at either end
of its course reverses the clutches and at the same time the direction
of motion of the driving axis, the feed rollers, and the screw.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said David Soutar in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 9th September 1871.
.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, DAVID
SOUTAR, of Dundee, in the County of Forfar, Scotland, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of March, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said David Soutar, Her special license that
I, the said David Soutar, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said David Soutar, my executors, adininistrators,
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, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,

page_text: and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES F. R
HACKLING OR DRESSING JUTE ROOTS OR HEADS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said David Soutar, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINES F. R
HACKLING OR DRESSING JUTE ROOTS OR HEADS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said David Soutar, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 David Soutar, 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 thereof, that is to say:-
My improvements refer to machines used for hackling or dressing
jute roots or heads, sometimes called in the trade a snipping machine,
and consist, first, in placing the feed apparatus used in such machines
higher than heretofore and in such way that the strick of jute passes
through the rollers to the cylinder in a direction nearly tangential to it
and lays upon or nearly upon the top of the cylinder, by which arrange-
ment the action or hackling of the said cylinder is more gentle or tender
upon the jute roots or heads and a greater yield of what are termed
middles is obtained than when the feed rollers are, as heretofore, placed
but slightly above the axes of the cylinder and so that the strick passes
between them in a direction nearly radial to it.
My improvements also consist in combining with such a machine a
self-acting reversing feed apparatus which can be adjusted to allow a
longer or shorter length of the jute to pass on to the cylinder according
to the quality of the jute being dressed or to the amount of dressing or
hackling it is desirable to give the jute. I prefer to mount on the
driving axis two belt pulleys receiving driving straps running in opposite
directions, and by friction clutches one or other of these pulleys is
caused to give motion to the driving axis which is geared with the feed
rollers. From the driving axis a screw also takes motion, and as it
revolves a nut traverses along it which on its arrival at cither end
of its course reverses the clutches and at the same time the direction
of motion of the driving axis, the feed rollers, and the screw.

page_text: In the Drawings hereunto annexed I have shewn a hackling or
dressing machine having both of the improvements above described
combined in it. Figure 1 is a side elevation, Figure 2 an end elevation,
and Figure 3 a plan of the machine.
A is the framing; B, the cylinder; C, the feed rollers; D, the feed
shect; E, the driving pulleys; F, the driving belt. a is the cylinder
shaft is a shaft for giving forward and backward motion to the feed
rollers; c and c¹ are internal friction pulleys revolving loosely on the
shaft b; d is a double external friction pulley sliding laterally on a feather
key let in the shaft ; e and e' are two belts, one open and the other
crossed, for driving in continuous contrary directions the pulleys e and e¹.
On the shaft ba pinion f is fastened driving the wheels f¹, ƒ³, and ƒ³,
through which wheels motion is communicated to the feed rollers C.
The pulley g on the driving axis of the cylinder B drives through the
belt the pulley i which is fastened on the screw shaft j. On this shaft
or screw j a nut k is fitted having two projections ¹ and ², one on the
back side, which fits into a slotted plate / to keep it from turning with
the screw, and one on the front side, which come in contact alternately
with two fingers m and m³, which fingers are mounted and fastened
with screw (and are adjustable) on a sliding bar n. This sliding bar is
connected with a jointed swivel lever o mounted on a stud p. At the
other end of this lever a clip or swivel q is attached and works into a
groove in the double friction pulley d.
When the machine is in operation the attendant adjusts the fingers m
and m¹ on the rod n to suit the length and quality of jute requiring
to be operated upon.
The strick of jute is then placed upon the feed
table, and when it has passed through the feed rollers a sufficient length
to be dressed or hackled as far as is desired the nut on the screw comes
in contact with the fingers on the sliding bar, and through the swivel
lever the friction pulleys and the feed rollers are reversed and the jute
is withdrawn from contact with the cylinder, and the operation of
feeding with a fresh strick is repeated.
I would remark that although I have particularly described the above
arrangement of self-acting reversing motion I do not confine myself
to this particular arrangement, as other arrangements of self-acting
reversing motion capable of being adjusted to allow of a longer or

page_text: shorter feed motion being given to the feed rollers might similarly be
employed.
In witness whereof, I, the said David Soutar, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixth day of September, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
DAVID SOUTAR. (L.S.)