IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING MACHINES
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Harris Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING MACHINES." A communication from abroad by
James Wood of Cohoes New York United States of Americe.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Harris Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 11th August 1880.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltinc, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING MACHINES."
[A communication from abroad by James Wood, of Cohoes, New York, United
States of America.]
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for carding wool and other
fibrous materials.
According to the said Invention I combine the "workers" of a carding stock
or machine with the "doffer" cylinder by such intermediate mechanism that a
change of speed between the workers and the "doffer may easily be produced
to suit the kind or quality of fibre to be carded, as will hereinafter appear, and
I vary the speed of the carding devices relatively to cach other according to the
kind or quality of the fibre, so that a greater or less degree of the carding action
may be produced in a given time during its passage through the machine. More-
over I combine the "workers" with the "doffer" cylinder by a positive mechanism
adapted to be varied as to speed, so that the relative speeds of the "workers" and
"doffer" may be varied as desired by the attendant to suit the various qualities of
the fibre, and that said speeds may be positively maintained as required as will
hereinafter appear.
It is well known that a proper relation between the feeding rolls of a carding
machine and the "doffer" must be maintained to do the work properly or to give
the best results, and therefore they have been combined by positive mechanism to
maintain such a relation of speeds.
A very great advantage may be obtained by so combining the carding elements
of the machine with the "doffer" or delivery devices, that on the same machine

page_text: "
the time of passing the material through the entire operation may be greatly
diminished, and this is accomplished by varying the movements of the "workers"
relatively to the " doffer or "doffers," as the case may be, according to the nature
of the fibre, as, for example, when the fibre is short and requires but little work
to thoroughly open it the "doffer" may be set to run at a high rate of speed,
and the workers may be set to run slow as compared with a longer fibre, and
consequently the feed may be increased without danger of nipping, and thus a
much greater amount of work may be produced successfully than would otherwise
be the case, and consequently I vary the relative speeds between the "workers'
and doffers in substantially the same manner as is now done between the feed
rolls and the "doffers," not for the purpose of uniformity alone but for the purpose
of varying the carding operation.
"
In carrying the said Invention into practice instead of running the belt for
driving the workers around a pulley on the doffer shaft as is commonly done, I
place a spur pinion on the doffer shaft, and this gears into a counter-wheel which
is supported on a stud on the arch of the machine. Upon the side of this counter
wheel is formed a bevel gear wheel which engages with a pinion on a shaft which
extends back to the other side of the arch, and has a corresponding set of bevel
gear and spur wheels, the last one of which is upon the axis of a "worker," and
thereby motion is given to the said "worker" directly from the doffer, and thence
motion is given to the other workers by a belt which may have a tightener to
maintain the speed between all the rest from the driver. The pinion on the doffer
shaft is arranged to be removed and another 'may be placed in its stead, and so
also a corresponding change in the first counter wheel, and thus a change of the
relative speeds between the "doffer" and the "workers" may be produced as may
be best adapted to the work.
It is evident that the same kind of or an equivalent change may be effected by
changing other wheels or by substituting a counter shaft of a different form.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Henry Harris Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th
February 1881.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN CARDING MACHINES."
A communication from abroad by James Wood, of Cohoes, New York, United
States of America.
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for carding wool and other
fibrous materials.
"
According to the said Invention I combine the "workers" of a carding machine
with the "doffer cylinder by such intermediate mechanism that a change of
speed between the workers and the doffer may easily be produced to suit the kind
or quality of fibre to be carded, as will hereinafter appear, and I vary the speed of
the carding devices relatively to each other according to the kind or quality of
the fibre, so that a greater or less degree of the carding action may be produced in
a given time during its passage through the machine. Moreover I combine the
workers with the doffer cylinder by positive gearing adapted to be varied as to
speed, so that the relative speeds of the workers and doffer may be regulated
as desired by the attendant to suit the various qualities of the fibre, and the said
speeds may be positively maintained as required as will hereinafter appear.
It is well known that a proper relation between the feeding rolls and doffer of
a carding machine must be maintained to give the best results, and therefore they
have been combined by positive mechanism to maintain such a relation of speeds.
A very great advantage may be obtained by so combining the carding devices
with the doffer or delivery devices, that in the same machine the time of passing
the material through the entire operation may be greatly diminished, and this
result is accomplished by varying the movement of the workers relatively to
that of the doffer or doffers, as the case may be, according to the nature of the
fibre, as, for example, when the fibre is short and requires but little work to
thoroughly open it the doffer may be set to run at a higher rate of speed, and
the workers may be set to run more slowly than when treating a longer fibre,
consequently the feed may be increased without danger of nipping, and thus a
much greater amount of work may be produced successfully than would otherwise
be the case, and I thus provide means for varying the relative speeds of the
workers and doffers in substantially the same manner as those of the feed rolls,
and the doffers are now varied not for the purpose of uniformity alone but for
the purpose of varying the carding operation.
In the accompanying Drawing,-
Figure 1 is an elevation of the arch of a carding stock or machine, and
Figure 2 is a plan of devices for connecting the workers to the doffer.
A represents the arch of a machine for supporting the workers B, the strippers C,
and the doffer D. Instead of running the belt E for driving the workers around a
pulley on the doffer shaft, as is commonly done, I place a spur pinion F on the doffer
shaft, and this gears into a counter-wheel G which is supported on a stud on the arch
of the machine. Upon one side of this counter wheel is placed a bevel gear wheel E[
which engages with a bevel pinion or gear wheel H' on the shaft K which extends
back to the other side of the arch, and has a corresponding set of bevel gear and
spur wheels, the last one of which L is upon the axis of a worker as at M, and
thereby motion is given to the said worker directly from the doffer, and thence
motion is given to the other workers by a belt E, which may have a tightener O
to maintain the speed between all the rest from the driver.

page_text: The pinion on the doffer shaft is arranged to be removed and may be replaced
by another, and a corresponding change may be made in the first counter wheel,
and thus a change of the relative speeds of the doffer and the workers may be
produced to suit the work.
It is evident that the same or substantially the same result may be effected by
otherwise changing the aforesaid wheels.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim,
-
First. In carding machinery means for varying the speed of the workers or
carding devices for the purposes specified.
Second. The combination of the workers with the doffer by intermediate
mechanism whereby a change of speed may be easily produced, as and for the
purposes set forth.
Third. The combination of the said workers with the doffer by positive gearing
adapted to be changed to vary the relative speeds of the parts of the machine,
substantially as described and for the purposes set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Harris Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eleventh day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty one.