IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Baldwin, jun'., Manufacturer, Charles Wood,
Overlooker, and John Crossley, Machine Maker, all of Halifax, in the
County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
Sealed the 9th July 1861, and dated the 14th January 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Baldwin, Charles
Wood, and John Crossley at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 14th January 1861.
We, JOHN BALDWIN, jun"., Manufacturer, CHARLES WOOD, Overloooker, and
JOHN CROSSLEY, Machine Maker, all of Halifax, in the County of York, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in constructing, combining, and arranging mecha-
nism or apparatus in such manner that wool or other fibrous substances may
be partly combed or cleansed in passing through gill combs, and conducted
thence in a sliver to a circular or other carrying comb where the operation of
combing is completed in the ordinary manner. For which purpose an inter-

page_text: mittent motion is given to the gill combs and to the rollers alternately, also a
"striking down" or intersecting comb is alternately introduced betwixt the said
gill and rollers, by which the noil is placed and left in the sliver at intervals. An
endless cloth or apron is applied in front of the said rollers which conducts the
partly cleansed sliver betwixt other rollers to the circular or other carrying
comb, on to which it is lashed or attached by brush or other usual or suitable
means, and drawn off by rollers in a finished state or cleansed sliver in the
ordinary manner, leaving the noil in the comb to be afterwards removed by
usual means.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Baldwin, Charles Wood, and John Crossley in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 13th July 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JoHN
BALDWIN, junior, Manufacturer, CHARLES WOOD, Overlooker, and JOHN
CROSSLEY, Machine Maker, all of Halifax, in the County of York, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of January in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fourth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said John Baldwin, junior, Charles Wood, and John Crossley, Her special
license that we, the said John Baldwin, junior, Charles Wood, and John Crossley,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
John Baldwin, junior, Charles Wood, and John Crossley, our executors, admi-
nistrators, 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 MACHINERY FOR
COMBING WOOL OR OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon the condition, amongst
others, that we, the said John Baldwin, junior, Charles Wood, and
John Crossley, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our, 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

page_text: 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 we, the said John Baldwin, junior, Charles Wood,
and John Crossley, 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, that is to say :-
This Invention consists in an adaptation or combination of means or apparatns.
and mode of working for combing wool or other fibrous substances..
And that the Invention may be fully understood we will proceed to describe,
aided by the two accompanying Sheets of Drawings, means which we have
found to answer in carrying the same into effect..
Fig 1 is a side elevation of parts of a combing machine or apparatus with
our improvements applied; Fig. 2 is a plan, and Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section
of the same.
A aro gill combs conducting the fibre to be operated to the rollers G. These
gill combs are driven by screws in the ordinary manner, motion being com-
municated thereto by the shaft and gear wheels B as usual, except that the
motion of the gill bars in carrying out our improvements is rendered intermittent,.
as will be hereafter explained; C, are the driving pullies on the main shaft, on
which is also affixed a spur pinion D, gearing with a spur wheel E, on one side
of which are two sets or series of teeth e, each of which series of teeth e, is
adapted alternately to gear into the teeth of a spur wheel F, fixed on the axis.
of one of the drawing rollers G. It will thus be evident that as the wheel E
revolves, motion will alone be given to the wheel F, and the drawing roller to
which it is affixed, whilst teeth e, are in gear with the teeth of such wheel F,
and there will be rest to the wheel F, and rollers G, in the intervals, by which
an intermittent motion will be given to the said wheel F, and consequently
to the rollers G. These rollers G, will during their times of rotation take hold
of and draw out the fibre projecting from the front of the gill combs. And it
will be understood that according to the diameters of these rollers and the
number of teeth in the wheel F, so will be the draught or length of the fibres
or sliver drawn by the said rollers from the gill combs at each movement
thereof, therefore if it be required to draw a greater or lesser length we put on
a wheel with more or fewer teeth as the case may be, in place of the wheel
F, here shown. To admit of this change of gear the main shaft and the shaft
on which the wheel E is fixed, are mounted on sliding bearings capable of being
moved up or down with screws and bevil gear operated by a shaft Has
required; is a spur wheel mounted on a stud and gearing with an intermediate

page_text: or carrier wheel J, which gears with another intermediate or carrier J', and
this wheel J gears with a change wheel J', fixed on the shaft B. On one
side of the wheel I are formed or affixed a series of notches or teeth i, and on
the other side of the wheel E, opposite the teeth e, are formed or affixed two
pairs of teeth or nogging pins g, which as the wheel E revolves act
upon the teeth i and cause the wheel I thereby to move a distance equal to
that of two of the teeth or notches i, at each half revolution producing an
intermittent motion to the gill combs. The axis of the wheel I is mounted
in an adjustable bearing K, capable of being set in proper relative position and
there is a spring catch k, for holding the wheel i in position by friction
thereon during each partial revolution. L is an intersecting comb the teeth
of which pass down into the fibre between the foremost gill comb and the
rollers G. This comb I, is attached to arms L', from a shaft L³, on which is
also affixed another arm L³, in position to be operated by a tappet M, fixed
on a shaft M', when motion is given thereto to lift and lower the comb L.
On the end of this shaft M', is a wheel M', gearing with a carrier or inter-
mediate wheel M³, which gears into a wheel M', fixed on a shaft M³, on the
other end of which is a wheel N, gearing with the teeth of a wheel N¹, to
which is affixed a wheel N³, the teeth of which take into the teeth of the
wheel E, by which the desired motion is communicated to the intersecting
comb L, causing it to rise and fall between each draught of fibre. P, are a pair
of rollers deriving motion from the drawing rollers G, by gear wheels as indicated
by red lines in Fig. 1, and Q is an endless cloth or apron passing over the
lower roller P, and a roller R, and under a roller S. The object of this apron
is to receive and carry forward the partially separate fibre as it is drawn out
the intermittent action of the rollers G, and progressively deliver it to the
receiving combs. The roller R, is supported upon arms R', hinged at their
lower ends R, to the framing so as to be capable of oscillating thereon when
those arms are actuated by the tappets M', affixed to the shaft M'. The roller S
rests upon the apron, and its projecting ends are capable of sliding in guide
brackets S', whilst it has weights S³, suspended from the projecting ends for
giving tension to the apron. T is an ordinary circular or endless carrying or
receiving comb receiving motion by the pinion T', pullies and strap T, upright
shaft T, and horizontal shaft T', on which is a wheel T gearing with a carrier
or intermediate wheel and another wheel T fixed on a shaft T7, on which is a
pulley T* receiving motion by strap To from a pulley T, affixed on the main
shaft C; U is a brush such as is usually employed for "dabbing" the sliver
on to the teeth of the circular comb T as delivered by the apron Q. This

page_text: brush is affixed to the lever U₁, and is operated by a tappet or cam U³, from
the other end of the shaft on which the wheel E, is fixed by means of bevil
gear and shaft Us, as shown; affixed to this brush is a plate or blade * for
laying the wool, and V is another plate or blade attached to a boss fixed on a
short shaft V, which receives motion by bevil gear Vs, from the shaft M', for
turning the ends of the wool after it has been laid on to the teeth of the
circular comb, and thereby facilitate their, being taken hold of by the
drawing off rollers. These plates as shewn in front views at Figs. 4 and 5.
When wool or other fibrous substance has been carried forward by the gill
combs to the drawing rollers G, the gill combs will for a time remain stationary,
and the intersecting comb L, will be lowered into the end of the sliver
projecting in front of the gill combs. The rollers G, will now be put in motion,
and by holding on to the projecting end of the said.sliver will draw a portion
thereof partially out of the teeth of the gill combs, partly cleansing it, and leaving
the noil and dirt in the gills. The sliver thus partly drawn out will be taken
by the rollers P, and by them be carried forward on the apron Q. The rollers
G, will then for a time remain stationary and the gills will again have forward
motion given to them to move the fibre forward the distance required, when
they will again rest and the rollers will again be put in motion to draw a
fresh portion of sliver as before on to the apron, and so on in succession. And
the apron will then conduct the fibre so drawn out in a partially separated
state to the teeth of the circular carrying or receiving comb. To facilitate the
delivery of the fibre from the apron Q to the receiving or carrying comb the
tappets or cams Me, act against the arms R', and press or force the roller R
and with it that portion of the apron for the time passing over it into
contact with the teeth of the circular carrying or receiving comb at each
delivery thereto; and when the cams have passed or ceased to act on the
arms R', those arms are brought back by the weights S*, to allow of the blade
or plate V, to pass betwixt the apron and the carrying comb. The wool or
other fibres laid on to the endless or other receiving combs, as also the noil
therein, are drawn off therefrom in the usual manner. It will thus be seen
that the gills and the rollers have motion given to them alternately, that the
endless apron.carries the wool or other fibre forward to the carrying comb in
what may be called a "pushed" or partly connected sliver partly cleansed and
deliver it to the teeth of the carrying or receiving.comb.
Having thus described the nature of this our said Invention, and the
manner in which we have carried the same into effect, we would have it
understood that we do not claim the various mechanical parts separately

page_text: considered nor do we confine ourselves to the precise details shown and described
as these may be varied, but what we do claim is the adaptation or combination
of means or apparatus and mode of working for combing wool or other fibrous
substances substantially as explained.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Wood, for and on behalf of
myself and the said John Baldwin, junior, and John Crossley have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of July, One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the
within-named Charles
the presence of
W*. TASKER,
Wood in
CHARLES WOOD. (L.S.)
Patent Agent,
Halifax.