IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING OR EMBROIDERING MACHINES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Gedge, of the Firm of John
Gedge and Son, of No. 11, Wellington Street, Strand, in the County
of Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN SEWING OR EMBROIDERING MACHINES."-A communication from
abroad by Antoine Bounaz, of 39, Faubourg St. Martin, Paris,
France.
Sealed the 22nd May 1869, and dated the 25th November 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Gedge:
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on.
the 25th November 1868.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son,.
of No. 11, Wellington Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex,
Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING OR EMBROIDERING MACHINES," a communication
to me from abroad by Antoine Bounaz, of 39, Faubourg St. Martin,
Paris, France, to be as follows:-
In making embroidery work on a sewing or embroidery machine.
the great difficulty occurs that in making curves, circles, or other.

page_text: intricate design, the entire cloth has to be turned constantly in con-
formity with the design to be made, and for this reason that description
of embroidery work is not only difficult to execute, but can be executed
with a very moderate degree of speed only. To avoid this difficulty I
have combined the several working parts of an embroidery machine in
such a manner that a universal feed motion causes the cloth to move in
any desired direction, and that the hooks or needles which make the
stitch move in combination with said feed motion so as not to change
their relative positions to each other; thus embroidery work of the
most intricate design can be made without turning the cloth.
For the better understanding of my Invention I will first explain the
manner in which the stitch is made.
I employ a hook c (represented at (Fig. 3, Sheet I.,) of the annexed
Sheets of Drawing forming part of this Provisional Specification), such
as is employed for making crochet work; said hook is secured to the
needle bar A, and has an up-and-down motion imparted to it; and in
piercing the cloth a, which is supported by the cloth plate b, it takes
the thread beneath the cloth plate (marked in red lines), draws it up
through the cloth, holds the thread while the feed takes place, and
then returns downward to make the succeeding stitch. To accomplish
this operation it is necessary that the thread below the cloth plate
should at each descending motion of the needle hook c be presented to
the latter in such a manner that the hook c can pull up said thread, or
else the machine will make drop stitches. This operation of presenting
the thread to the hook c is effected by means of an oscillating looper B,
which has a recess or notch 1, through which the thread passes; and
said looper after each descending motion of the needle hook turns about
270 degrees of a circle, and thus lays the thread around the needle, and
the hook con rising takes hold of the thread without fail and pulls it
up through the preceding loop. It is further necessary to the proper
performance of the work that when the needle hook rises the cloth
should be held down firmly on the cloth plate so as to prevent the hook
from pulling it up; this is effected by means of the nipple d, the interior
diameter of which is equal to that of the needle. While the needle
rises the nipple d remains stationary until the needle hook c is above
the cloth, after which the nipple d rises, so that the feed of the cloth
can take place. The feed is effected by means of the feed surface e,
which has a circular ring shaped, and which surrounds the needle and its
nipple; it has a vibrating horizontal as well as a vertical motion like

page_text: that of an ordinary sewing machine, besides its universal motion here--
after to be described.
In order that the machine may be better and more readily understood
I will first explain the modus operandi of the above-described elements:
or parts when the machine works on straight lines only, and afterwards
add to it the operation of said parts when the machine runs on curved
lines, and for producing sharp angular work.
C represents the driving wheel of the machine; it is secured to a
hollow shaft E. provided with a coupling. disk F, and which by means
of the coupling pin f drives the shaft D, and the latter operates on
eccentric I, whose pin a enters into the cam groove 6 of the needle bar
driver h, which holding, the needle bar carrier G. between two collars 2.
and 3 imparts to it. the desired up-and-down movement, the needle
bar A itself being, secured to the needle bar carrier G. by means of the
pressure screw 4. The movement of the nipple d is effected. by means
of the cam c, which acts upon the lever d², a pin e³ of which. acts upon
the nipple carrier H to raise the nipple, while on the cam c² re-
leasing the lever d², the spring I presses upon the nipple d down upon
the cloth.
The oscillating movement of the looper B is effected in the following
manner: The eccentric disk K imparts a vibrating motion to the
rod L and to the lever M which is pivoted to a bracket at 5; the long.
arm of the lever M vibrates the rod N, to the end of which is secured:
a horizontal endless screw k which acts upon the vertical endless screw /
on the shaft of the looper B, and thus at each motion of the needle hook
the screws, and act like a rack and pinion to turn the looper. B to
the extent required for throwing the thread into the path of the rising
needle hook c. The vertical motion of the feed surface e is effected by
means of the cam f on shaft D, which acting upon the lever g' the
latter raises the bar O, to which the feed bar O2 is hinged by means of a.
universal joint 6, 7; and when the action of the cam fceases the
spring P causes the bars O and O, and consequently the feed. surface e,-
to descend down upon the cloth plate.
The horizontal action of the feed surface e is effected in the following.
manner: The cam f of the shaft Bacts upon the lever h², and the latter
upon the pin of the rod Q. A nut or sleeve R is secured to the shaft G,,
and has a cam groove o in which the end of the small lever m slides...
When the sleeve R descends its cam groove acts upon the upper end: of

page_text: the lever m, and the lower end p of said lever acts upon and imparts a
horizontal movement to the nut m², which is adjusted within the circular
collar n, and which latter is secured to the feed bar 0%, which thus
imparts to the feed surface e the horizontal feed motion. As the nut m³
is adjusted upon the square part of the sleeve R it will forcibly turn
therewith and within the collar n as the sleeve R is turned, and thus
the direction of the feed is changed according to the position which is
given to the sleeve R.
Having thus described the operation of the several parts of the
machine for making straight lines I will proceed to shew the manner in
which any design of curved lines can be made without turning the cloth,
which is the essential feature of the machine. It will be observed that
the feed bar O is pivoted to the vertically sliding boy O of the machine
by means of a double or universal hinge 6, 7. S represents a crank
beneath the table of the machine, the shaft of which is supported by the
bracket T; a bevil pinion transmits rotary motion to pinions and to
the transversal shaft t, the other end of which is geared to pinion u by
means of pinion v. The sleeve 10 to which pinion u is fastened has
attached to it also the pinion ; the sleeve w turns with shaft N, but
the latter can freely slide within said sleeve to perform its horizontal
vibrating motion independently of sleeve w and its gearings.
Pinion x
is geared to pinion y on vertical shaft z, which carries on its upper end
pinion U gearing into pinion V of the horizontal shaft W, which carries
at its end pinion Y gearing with pinion Z, which latter is secured to the
needle bar carrier G. By turning the crank S a combined turning
movement will be given to the looper B, to the needle bar carrier G,
and to the cam grooved sleeve R, which control the feed motion, and
thus the three elements or parts of the machine which by their move-
ments produce the stitch are moved in combination. Thus on turning
the crank S to the right the sleeve R is turned with it to the desired
position, and the feed will take place in the same direction, byt as the
hook c must always stand in a direction parallel to that of the feed
motion it will at the same time turn with the sleeve R to the desired
position and the looper B makes an analagous movement. I have thus
established the means of producing a universal feed motion without
changing the relative position of the needle hook and of the thread looper
to the direction of the feed motion, and thus any design, no matter how
complicated, can be produced without turning the cloth and by simply
guiding the cloth by means of the crank S.

page_text: In making complicated embroidery work, and chiefly in embroidering
letters, it frequently occurs that sharp angles have to be produced; this
can only be made by arresting the motion of the machine instan-
taneously suddenly turning the crank the desired angle, and then
again starting the machine. To effect this in an easy and convenient
way I have organized the following coupling devices:-On working the
machine two treadles are applied to its stand, one for cach foot. By
means of the right-hand treadle the fly wheel is turned, the strap of
which passes in and around the groove of wheel C, and said wheel
therefore turns constantly. The left-hand treadle is connected by means
of a rod A¹ to the lever B', which is pivoted to the vertical rod D',
which slides in the block E¹. When the lever B' is raised up by
depressing the treadle of rod A' the rod D¹ is drawn downward (Fig. 2,
Sheet II.); in this position the lever G¹, the upper end of which is con-
nected with the cam groove 13 on the coupling disk K', can play freely
on its fulcrum G', and the spring H forces the coupling pin fof the
disk K' into a corresponding recess in the disk F which is connected
with the driving wheel C, and thus the shaft D is coupled to the driving
wheel C, and turns with the same; but as soon as the foot releases the
treadle of the rod A¹ the action of the spring F¹ throws the rod D'
upward (Fig. 12, Sheet IV.); the upper end of the rod D catches the
end 10 of the lever G, arrests the motion of the said lever, and the
friction roller on the end 12 of said lever acting upon the sides of the
cam groove 13 pushes the coupling disk F to the left, thus withdrawing
the pin from its recess in the disk F and uncoupling the shaft D, and
consequently the entire movement of the machine, while the wheel C
is turning constantly. When the machine is uncoupled the crank S can
be turned to change or to reverse the feed motion to produce a sharp
angle, and thus without arresting the motive power which drives the
machine a design, no matter how complicated, can be produced
without even touching the material and by merely turning the crank
handle S.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Edward Gedge in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 24th May 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of No. 11,
Wellington Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said William Edward Gedge, Her
special licence that I, the said William Edward Gedge, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Edward Gedge, my exccutors, 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, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING OR EMBROIDERING MACHINES," a communica-
tion to me from abroad by Antoine Bounaz, of 39, Faubourg St. Martin,
Paris, France, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
William Edward Gedge, 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 William Edward Gedge, 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, reference being had to the
accompanying Sheets of Drawing and to the figures and letters of
reference marked thereon:-
In making embroidery work on a sewing or embroidery machine the
great difficulty occurs that in making curves, circles, or other intricate
design, the entire cloth has to be turned constantly in conformity with

page_text: letters it frequently occurs that sharp angles have to be produced; this
can only be made by arresting the motion of the machine instantaneously
by suddenly turning the crank the desired angle and then again starting
the machine. To effect this in an easy and convenient way I have
organised the following coupling devices :-On working the machine
two treadles are applied to its stand, one for each foot. By means of the
right-hand treadle the fly wheel is turned, the strap of which passes in
and around the groove of wheel C, and said wheel therefore turns
constantly. The left-hand treadle is connected by means of a rod A' to
the lever B' which is pivoted to the vertical rod D¹ which slides in the
block E. When the lever B¹ is raised up by depressing the treadle of
rod A¹ the rod D¹ is drawn downward (Fig. 2, Sheet I.); in this position
the lever G', the upper end of which is connected with the cam
groove 13 on the coupling disk K' can play freely on its fulcrum G', and
the spring H forces the coupling pin f of the disk K' into a correspond-
ing recess in the disk F which is connected with the driving wheel C,
and thus the shaft D is coupled to the driving wheel C and turns with
the same, but as soon as the foot releases the treadle of the rod A¹ the
action of the spring F¹ throws the rod D¹ upward (Fig. 12, Sheet II.),
the upper end of the rod D catches the end 10 of the lever G, arrests the
motion of the said lover, and the friction roller on the end 12 of said
lever acting upon the sides of the cam groove 13 pushes the coupling
disk F to the left, thus withdrawing the pin ffrom its recess in the disk F
and uncoupling the shaft D, and consequently the entire movement of
the machine while the wheel C is turning constantly. When the
machine is uncoupled the crank S can be turned to change or to reverse
the feed motion to produce a sharp angle, and thus without arresting
the motive power which drives the machine a design, no matter how
complicated, can be produced without even touching the material and by
merely turning the crank handle S.
Having thus fully described the nature of my Invention as com-
municated to me from abroad, what I claim herein as new and desire
to secure by Letters Patent is,―
The combination of the needle looper and feed surface motions in
such a manner that they can be turned in any direction without
changing their relative positions to one another.
The combination of the several parts nerein described for producing
the combined movements of the needle looper and feed surface.

page_text: bar o, which thus imparts to the feed surface e the horizontal feed
motion. As the nut m² is adjusted upon the square part of the
sleeve R it will forcibly turn therewith and within the collar n as the
sleeve R is turned, and thus the direction of the feed is changed
according to the position which is given to the sleeve R.
Having thus described the operation of the several parts of the
machine for making straight lines, I will proceed to show the manner
in which any design of curved lines can be made without turning the
cloth which is the essential feature of the machine. It will be observed
that the feed bar o is pivoted to the vertically sliding bar O of the
machine by means of a double or universal hinge 6, 7. S represents a
crank beneath the table of the machine, the shaft of which is supported
by the bracket T. A bevil pinion r transmits rotary motion to pinion s
and to the transversal shaft t, the other end of which is geared to
pinion u by means of pinion v. The sleeve t to which pinion " is
fastened has attached to it also the pinion ; the sleeve wo turns with
shaft N, but the latter can freely slide within said sleeve to perform
its horizontal vibrating motion independently of sleeve w and its
gearings. Pinion x is geared to pinion y on vertical shaft z, which
carries on its upper end pinion U gearing into pinion V of the horizontal
shaft W, which carries at its end pinion Y gearing with pinion Z, which
latter is secured to the needle bar carrier G. By turning the crank S a
combined turning movement will be given to the looper B, to the
needle bar carrier G, and to the cam-grooved sleeve R which control
the feed motion, and thus the three elements or parts of the machine
which by their movements produce the stitch are moved in com-
bination. Thus on turning the crank S to the right the sleeve R is
turned with it to the desired position and the feed will take place in
the same direction, but as the hook c must always stand in a direction
parallel to that of the feed motion it will at the same time turn with the
sleeve R to the desired position, and the looper B makes an analogous
movement. I have thus established the means of producing a universal
feed motion without changing the relative position of the needle hook
and of the thread looper to the direction of the feed motion, and
thus any design, no matter how complicated, can be produced without
turning the cloth and by simply guiding the cloth by means of the
crank S.

page_text: In order that the machine may be better and more readily understood
I will first explain the modus operandi of the above described elements
or parts when the machine works on straight lines only, and afterwards
add to it the operation of said parts when the machine runs on curved
lines and for producing sharp angular work.
C represents the driving wheel of the machine; it is secured to a
hollow shaft E provided with a coupling disk F, and which by means of
the coupling pin f drives the shaft D, and the latter operates an
eccentric g, whose pin a³ enters into the cam groove 6 of the needle bar
driver h, which holding the needle bar carrier G between two collars 2
and 3 imparts to it the desired up-and-down movement, the needle bar A
itself being secured to the needle bar carrier G by means of the pression
screw 4. The movement of the nipple d is effected by means of the
cam c, which acts upon the lever d², a pin e² of which acts upon the
nipple carrier H to raise the nipple while on the cam c* releasing the
lever d', the spring I presses the nipple d down upon the cloth.
.
The oscillating movement of the looper B is effected in the following
manner-The eccentric disk K imparts a vibrating motion to the
rod L, and to the lever M, which is pivoted to a bracket at 5; the long
arm of the lever M vibrates the rod N, to the end of which is secured a
horizontal endless screw k which acts upon the vertical endless screw
on the shaft of the looper B, and thus at each motion of the needle
hook the screws k and act like a rack and pinion to turn the looper B
to the extent required for throwing the thread into the path of the
rising needle hook c. The vertical motion of the feed surface e is
effected by means of the cam f' on shaft D, which acting upon the
lever g², the latter raises the bar O to which the feed bar O' is hinged
by means of a universal joint 6, 7, and when the action of the cam f
ceases the spring P causes the bars O and O* and consequently the feed
surface e to descend down upon the cloth plate.
The horizontal action of the feed surface e is effected in the following
manner: The cam f of the shaft B acts upon the lever h, and the
latter upon the pin of the rod Q. A nut or sleeve R is secured to
the shaft G, and has a cam groove o in which the end of the small
lever m slides. When the sleeve R descends its cam groove acts upon
the upper end of the lever m, and the lower end p of said lever acts
upon and imparts a horizontal movement to the nut m³ which is adjusted
within the circular collar n, and which latter is secured to the feed

page_text: the design to be made, and for this reason that description of embroidery
work is not only difficult to exccute, but can be executed with a very
moderate degree of speed only. To avoid this difficulty I have combined
the several working parts of an embroidery machine in such a manner
that a universal feed motion causes the cloth to move in any desired
direction, and that the hooks or needles which make the stitch move in
combination with said feed motion so as not to change their relative
positions to cach other, thus embroidery work of the most intricate
design can be made without turning the cloth.
For the better understanding of my Invention, as communicated to
me from abroad, I will first explain the manner in which the stitch is
made. I employ a hook c, (Fig. 3 (Sheet I.) of the Drawing,) such as is
employed for making crochet work, said hook is secured to the needle
bar A, and has an up-and-down motion imparted to it, and in piercing
the cloth a, which is supported by the cloth plate b, it takes the thread
beneath the cloth plate (marked in red lines) draws it up through the
cloth, holds the thread while the feed take place, and then returns
downward to make the succeeding stitch. To accomplish this operation
it is necessary that the thread below the cloth plate should at each
descending motion of the needle hook c be presented to the latter in
such a manner that the hook c can pull up said thread or else the
machine will make drop stitches. This operation of presenting the
thread to the hook c is effected by means of an oscillating looper B,
which has a recess or notch 1, through which the thread passes, and
said looper after each descending motion of the needle hook turns about
270 degrees of a circle, and thus lays the thread around the needle, and
the hook c on rising takes hold of the thread without fail, and pulls it
up through the preceding loop. It is further necessary to the proper
performance of the work that when the needle hook rises, the cloth
should be held down firmly on the cloth plate so as to prevent the hook
from pulling it up; this is effected by means of the nipple d, the interior
diameter of which is equal to that of the needle; while the needle rises
the nipple d remains stationary until the needle hook c is above the
cloth, after which the nipple d rises so that the feed of the cloth can
take place. The feed is effected by means of the feed surface e, which
has a circular ring shape, and which surrounds the needle and its nipple,
it has a vibrating horizontal as well as a vertical motion, like that of an
ordinary sewing machine, besides its universal motion, hereafter to be
described.

page_text: The coupling and uncoupling device substantially as and for the
purposes set forth.
In witness whereof, 1, the said William Edward Gedge, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of May, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
nine.