IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING NARROW FABRICS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Burrows, of Leicester, for the Invention
of IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING NARROW FABRICS."
Sealed the 10th May 1859, and dated the 10th February 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Burrows at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th February 1859.
I, BENJAMIN BURROWS, of Leicester, do hereby declare the nature of the
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING NARROW FABRICS," to be
as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in looms for weaving narrow
fabrics. For these purposes, where looms for weaving narrow fabrics are
constructed in a suitable manner to weave with two shuttles to each slcy or
reed, and so that one shuttle is ordinarily used to introduce its weft on the
front side of the fabric, and the other shuttle to introduce its weft at the
reverse side of the fabric, apparatus is applied in such manner that the warp
may be divided into two parts or sections, each capable of producing a distinct
but narrower fabric than the sley or reed is capable of producing when the
whole width of the warp passing through it is made up into one wider fabric,
and is shot with weft on both sides, or different sleys may be introduced into
the same opening of the batten when the two fabrics are desired to be of
different degrees of fineuess. The two sections or parts of the warp which

page_text: passes through each of the reeds of a loom are worked by suitable heddles or
harness, and one of the sections is kept down, so that the sheds opened thereiu
may be at all times in a position for the passage of the lower shuttle and
admitof the passage of the upper shuttle over such section or part of the warp.
The sheds opened in the other of the sections or parts of the warp are kept up
to such a position that the upper shuttle may pass through them and admit of
the lower shuttle passing under such section of the warp. By these means the
same loom may be used to produce opposite each reed or sley or opening in
the batten either a fabric having the wefts of two shuttles, one on one side
and the other on the other side, or two fabrics of lesser width, each having the
weft of only one shuttle introduced therein. In looms for weaving narrow
fabrics it is well known that although each loom is arranged to make several
fabrics edge to edge, yet the loom works as a single machine, and one part or
section cannot be worked independent or separate from another, it consequently
follows that if a warp thread of any one of the narrow fabrics which is being
woven therein breaks, or when from any other cause it is desired to stop the
weaving of one of the narrow fabrics, it is necessary to stop the making of all
the fabrics which the loom is capable of producing, by which many of the
advantages otherwise consequent on having a wide loom are lost.
Another of my improvements consists in arranging or constructing such
descriptions of looms insections or parts, all capable of being worked together
as an ordinary loom so long as the whole of the sections are working well, yet
so that any one section or part, or more than one section or part, may be
stopped by being for a time disconnected from the driving or actuating
mechanism of the loom, whilst other sections or parts continue in connection
with and actuated by the driving mechanism of the loom, and are thus caused
to work. This construction of such description of looms is applicable to looms
which work with one or more shuttles to each fabric made therein.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Burrows in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
10th August 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BENJAMIN
BURROWS, of Leicester, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of

page_text: Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Benjamin Burrows, Her special licence that I, the said Benjamin
Burrows, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Benjamin Burrows, my executors, administrators, and assigns, shouldatany
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Treland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE.
MENTS IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING NARROW FABRICS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Benjamin Burrows, 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 Inven-
tion, 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 1, the said Benjamin Burrows, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say: -
This Invention has for its object improvements in looms for weaving narrow
fabrics. For these purposes, where looms for weaving narrow fabrics are
constructed in a suitable manner to weave with two shuttles to each slay or
reed, and so that one shuttle is ordinarily used to introduce its weft on the
front side of the fabric, and the other shuttle to introduce its weft at the
reverse side of the fabric, apparatus is applied in such manner that the warp
may be divided into two parts or sections, each capable of producing a distinct
but narrower fabric than the slay or reed is capable of producing when the
whole width of the warp passing through it is made up into one wide fabric,
and is shot with weft on both sides, or different slays may be introduced
into the same opening of the batten when the two fabrics are desired to be
of different degrees of fineness. The two sections or parts of the warp which
passes through each of the reeds of a loom are worked by suitable heddles or
harness, and one of the sections is kept down, so that the sheds opened therein
may be at all times in a position for the passage of the lower shuttle and
admit of the passage of the upper shuttle over such section or part of the
warp. The sheds opened in the other of the sections or parts of the warp
are kept up to such a position that the upper shuttle may pass through them
and admit of the lower shuttle passing under such section of the warp. By
these means the same loom may be used to produce opposite each reed or

page_text: slay or opening in the batten either a fabric having the wefts of two shuttles,
one on one side and the other on the other side, or two fabrics of lesser
width, each having the weft of only one shuttle introduced therein. In
looms for weaving narrow fabrics it is well known that although each loom is
arranged to make several fabrics edge to edge, yet the loom works as a single
machine, and one part or section cannot be worked independent or separate
from another, it consequently follows that if a warp thread of any one of the
narrow fabrics which is being woven therein breaks, or when from any other
cause it is desired to stop the weaving of one of the narrow fabrics, it is neces-
sary to stop the making of all the fabrics which the loom is capable of
producing, by which many of the advantages otherwise consequent on having
a wide loom are lost.
Another of my improvements consists in arranging or constructing such
descriptions of looms in sections or parts, all capable of being worked together
as an ordinary loom, so long as the whole of the sections are working well,
yet so that any one section or part, or more than one section or part, may be
stopped by being for a, time disconnected from the driving or actuating
nechanism of the loom, whilst other sections or parts continue in connection
with and actuated by the driving mechanism of the loom, and are thus
caused to work. This construction of such description of looms is applicable
to looms which work with one or more shuttles to each fabric made
therein.
And in order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto
annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a portion of a loom, such as is com-
monly employed for weaving narrow fabrics when two shuttles are employed
for each fabric, the one to introduce weft on the face of the fabric, and the
other on the back or reverse side thereof, the said loom having apparatus
applied to it according to my Invention, so that each pair of shuttles working
with the portion of the warp passing through one opening in the batten may
make two narrow fabrics in place of one fabric with a front and back weft
as heretofore. A plan and a transverse section of the batten and breast beam
are shown at Figures 2 and 3, and a front view of the batten is shown at
Figure 4; a, a, is the framing of the loom; bis a portion of the batten
which receives motion from a crank c and a connecting rod d; e, e, are the
reeds fitted into the openings in the batten ff; and 1,, are the shuttles of

page_text: the upper and lower tier respectively; they have rack teeth formed on them,
as is shown at f*, which gear with pinions g, g, and these receive motion from
two leather racks h and h¹, moved to and fro by levers and tappets on the
cam shaft; i, i, are the warp threads; these threads, in place of passing
through one set of heddles as heretofore, are caused to pass through two sets
and I, the first set j, which is nearest to the batten, takes the warp threads
which pass through the reeds on the left-hand side of each of them, and the
other set k takes the warp threads, which pass through the right-hand sides of
the reeds. It will be seen that the eyes in the harness of the set jare at a higher
level than the eyes of the set k. The warp threads actuated by the heddles j
work with the shuttles fof the upper tier, whilst those actuated by the heddlesk
work with the shuttles fl of the lower tier. In Figure 1 both the upper and
lower sheds are shown open, and it will be seen that the arrangement of the
heddles is such that the threads in the bottom of the upper shed are above
those in the top of the lower shed; and thus two separate fabrics may be
woven with the warp threads passing through each opening in the batten. In
order to bring the angles of the two sheds near together, without which two
fabrics could not conveniently be woven from the warp threads passing through
each opening of the batten as described, the two pieces of work are, as soon
after they are woven as possible, brought together by the guide l, of which
there is one for each opening in the batten; this guide brings the two fabrics
exactly to the same level, the left-hand fabric passing under a projection ",
which prevents it rising, as it has a tendency to do, and the right-hand
fabric passes over a projection 2, which prevents it falling; * is a pin, under
which the right-hand fabric passes; it keeps it down to the projection /²; a
similar pin may be employed, passing under the left-hand fabric, if found
desirable. The two sets of heddles j and k are actuated by top levers and
tappets on the cam shaft in the ordinary manner; the number of heddles in
each set may be varied according to the description of fabric to be manu-
factured. In some cases I employ but one set of heddles with double eyes;
that is, one row of eyes above the other, and then the corresponding warps of
the upper and lower sheds are actuated by the same leaf of heddles, the
warp of the upper shed passing through the upper eyes of the heddles and
the warp of the lower shed through the lower eyes. When it is desired to
weave one fabric with a front and back weft for each opening of the batten,
as is usual, ordinary harness should be applied with suitable tappets on the
cam shaft to actuate it, and the guides should be removed.
Figure 5 is a front view of a loom for weaving narrow fabrics, arranged
according to my Invention. This loom, as shown, is arranged to weave eight

page_text: fabrics (each with a front and back weft), and the loom is constructed
in sections, so that on a warp thread breaking, or any other cause rendering it
necessary, one section only need be stopped. The construction of the two
sections on the right-hand side of the machine is somewhat different from that
of the other two sections, thus showing two separate methods of carrying
my Invention into effect.
Figure 6 is a section taken at the line A, A, at the right-hand end of the
machine.
Figure 7 is a section taken at the line B, B, at the left-hand end of the
machine; a, a, is the frame carrying an axis b, actuated in any convenient
manner; 61, 61, are drums on this axis, one for each section of the loom; over
these drums belts pass to pulleys c, c, on shafts d, d, of which there is one for
each section of the loom; c', c', are loose pulleys on the axes d, d. And in
order to stop a section of the loom, the driving belt of the section to be
stopped is shifted by means of a belt fork from its pulley o to the loose
pulley c'; the ends of the axes d, d, are carried by intermediate frames a¹, a¹,
which each serve to carry the ends of two shafts d; the shafts d, d, are cranked
to actuate the sections e, e, of the batten, which are each suspended from a
shaft f. Each of the shafts also has a pinion mounted on it to drive a
tappet or cam shaft g; h, h, are work beams, of which also there is one for
each section of the loom, together with mechanism of the ordinary description
for giving motion to it; thus all the moving parts of the loom are made in
sections in place of passing from end to end of the loom, as is usual.
In the two sections at the right-hand end of the machine the shuttles are
actuated, as heretofore has been common, by means of two racks gearing with
pinions i, such as are shown in dotted lines, and the two racks are connected
with and actuated by straps passing over pulleys j, j, mounted on axes, as
shown; this construction renders it necessary that the working parts of one
section should be at a different level to that of the parts of the section next to
it, in order that the projections on the batten to receive the ends of the racks
may be able to pass each other; thus the working parts of the section 1 are
raised above those of the section 2, and the fabric of the section 1 is kept up to
the required height above that of the section 2 by passing it over bars k,
carried by standards fixed on the breast beam. At the left-hand side of the
machine the racks which actuate the shuttles are arranged in a somewhat diffe-
rent manner; in place of having projecting teeth, as is usual, they have recesses
to receive the teeth of the pinions, and they made endless, and passed over
pulleys,j, mounted on horizontal axes; the racks are connected by straps
with levers, by means of which they are actuated in the usual manner, or

page_text: way,
otherwise, as may be convenient. When the shuttles are actuated in this
manner, the racks themselves passing round the pulleys, and thus out of the
the arms projecting from each end of the batten to receive the ends of
the racks, as is shewn in the sections 1 and 2, become unnecessary, and the
working parts of all the sections may then be arranged on the same level.
Although the loom represented by the Drawings consists only of four
sections or parts, yet it will be obvious that looms containing a larger or lesser
number of sections may be constructed when required. Also each section
may be arranged to work only one fabric, or any other number, as may be
thought desirable, instead of two fabrics, as shown.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Burrows, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
BENJAMIN BURROWS. (L.S.)