IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING OR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES."
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Isaac Ambler, of Manningham, near Bradford,
in the County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PREPARING OR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Isaac Ambler at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 1st October 1858.
I, ISAAC AMBLER, of Manningham, near Bradford, in the County of
York, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN PREPARING OR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES" to be as
follows:-
This Invention consists of causing a sliver of wool or other fibres to
be moved at intervals on or between a surface or surfaces either per-
forated or so formed as to admit of points or teeth passing thro' or
between the same, and entering into the fibres. The movement of the
sliver takes place when the teeth or points are out of the fibre, and the
movement causes a quantity of the fibre to protrude beyond the ends
or edges of the surfaces, and such protruding quantity may be removed
by a comb or other instrument, by which the shorter fibres will remain in

page_text: amongst the holding teeth or points passed thro' or between the surfaces,
and the short fibres so retained or held back for a time will, together
with the ends of longér fibres, at the next movement of the sliver be
moved forward and be protruded, and will, together with such ends of
the longer fibres, be taken by the comb or other instrument, the
remainder of the lengths of the longer fibres being drawn out from
amongst the holding teeth or points.....
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Isaac Ambler in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 1st April 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I.
ISAAC AMBLER, of Manningham, near Bradford, in the County of
York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent- Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the First day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the
seventeenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and grant unto me, the said Isaac Ambler, Her special
licence that I, the said Isaac Ambler, my executors,. administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Isaac Ambler, my executors,
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 PRE-
PARING OR COMBING WOOL AND OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that I, the said Isaac Ambler, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, 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 im-
mediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Isaac Ambler, do hereby declare

page_text: 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):
This Invention consists of causing a sliver of wool or other fibres to
be moved at intervals on or between a surface or surfaces either per-
forated or so formed as to admit of points or teeth passing through or
between the same, and entering into the fibres. The movement of the
sliver takes place when the teeth or points are out of the fibre, and the
movement causes a quantity of the fibre to protrude beyond the ends
or edges of the surfaces, and such protruding quantity may be removed
by a comb or other instrument, by which the shorter fibres will remain
in amongst the holding teeth or points passed through or between the
surfaces, and the short fibres so retained or held back for a time will,
together with the ends of longer fibres, at the next movement of the
sliver be moved forward and be protruded, and will, together with such
ends of the longer fibres, be taken by the comb or other instrument,
the remainder of the lengths of the longer fibres being drawn out from
amongst the holding teeth or points.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, I will proceed
to describe the manner of performing the same.
The machine is so arranged and combined that two combs are used;
the teeth or points of one comb enter a sliver of wool or other fibre in
such manner that an end or a quantity of the sliver is caused to pro-
trude beyond the end of the comb; this end of the sliver is lashed or
entered on to the taking or carrying comb, and by the two combs
separating those fibres which have their ends in the taking or carrying
comb are drawn out from the sliver, and between the points or teeth
of the first-mentioned comb which I will call the working comb, and
which comb is peculiar in its action by reason of its being self-feeding
or filling and self-clearing, and requires no feeding or filling head. The
moil or short fibre of that portion of the sliver which has been so lashed
or entered into the taking or carrying comb remains with the sliver,
and in the teeth or points of the working comb, such noil or short fibre
in the next lashing passing into the taking or carrying comb, together
with the ends of the next quantity of the longer fibre protruding

page_text: beyond the working comb, the noil or short fibre of such next quantity
being left with the sliver, and amongst the points or teeth of the work-
ing comb. Hence it will be understood that all the oil will, by the
working of the machine, get into the carrying or receiving comb, whilst
the longer fibre projecting from the points or teeth of the taking or
receiving comb will have been worked or combed out by the points or
teeth of the working comb, from which the fibre is taken by the
taking or carrying comb. The fibre is drawn from the taking or
carrying comb in the ordinary manner, by which the noil or short fibro
will be left in the taking or carrying comb as is well understood. The
peculiarity of the combination consists in lashing or depositing fibre
into a taking or carrying comb by another comb or instrument (which
I have called a working comb), with points or teeth acting in the
manner of a comb, in such manner that it has the property of feeding
and clearing itself, and the noil of each succeeding quantity of the
longer fibre taken by the taking or carrying comb is retained back in
the end of the sliver by the points or teeth of the working comb
through which the sliver first passes. The comb or instrument with
points or teeth by which the noil or short fibre is held back, as above
explained, supports the sliver of fibres, and so moves in respect to
such sliver that at each time of the working comb moving away from
the taking or carrying comb a quantity of the end of the sliver is
caused to protrude beyond the working comb, so that when the teeth of
such working comb again enter the sliver they hold the same, and
carry it forward towards the taking or carrying comb, and such pro-
truding quantity (together with the noil retained back from the previous
protruding quantity) is taken by the taking or carrying comb. The
working comb in its movement back leaves the longer fibres of the
previously protruding quantity in the taking or carrying comb. The
teeth or points of the working comb move the sliver back till the
protruding part taken by the taking or carrying comb is separated from
the sliver; the teeth or points of the working comb then pass out of the
fibres of which the sliver is composed, and the sliver is moved back still
further when the teeth are out of the fibres, such movement of the
sliver being caused by the supporting surfaces, which move back with

page_text: the working comb; but in order that a quantity of the sliver may be
caused to protrude beyond the working comb that comb moves back
further than the sliver does, and this is accomplished by holding points.
or instruments which take hold of the end of the sliver, and retain it
from moving back so far as the points or teeth go back, so that when.
the points or teeth again enter amongst the fibres of which the sliver is
composed they will have a quantity of the sliver protruding beyond
them, such quantity so protruding consisting of the noil of the previous
protruding quantity and a quantity of the longer fibres. From the.
above description of the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, a workman will readily understand that the
details of construction of a machine according to my Invention may
be greatly varied; therefore, although I now proceed to describe the
best arrangement I am acquainted with, I wish it to be understood
that I do not intend to confine myself to the details shown.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
The Drawings shew various views of a machine constructed according
to my Invention, and as the nature of each is written thereon it will
not be necessary to repeat the same here. a, a, is the framing of the
machine; b, is the taking or carrying comb; c, c, are the working
combs, the teeth of which pass through perforations or openings in the
plates d, d, into the sliver or slivers of wool or other fibrous substance
between them.
The working combs c, c, are from time to time withdrawn from
the fibrous substance between the plates d, d, so as to allow of their
moving back together with the plates d, d, over a portion of the fibrous
substance, which is for the time retained by the holding points or
instruments f, and produce a protrusion of a portion of the fibrous
substance beyond the working comb, which is in two parts. The two
parts of the working comb c, c, are then introduced, and so actuated as
to carry forward the fibrous substance, and to deposit the protruding
portion into the taking or carrying comb b, and then recede from it so
as to separate the portion of fibrous substance deposited into the
taking or carrying comb b, at the same time the long fibres retained by

page_text: the taking or carrying comb being drawn through the parts of the
working combs c, c, which will also collect and retain back the short
fibres or noil in a suitable position to be deposited (together with the
ends of the longer fibres) into the taking or carrying comb b, after the
next protrusion of the end of the sliver. The fibrous material is after-
wards drawn off from the taking or carrying comb b, by suitable
drawing off rollers, as is well understood.
The working combs c, c, and plates d, d, are caused to advance and
recede from the taking or carrying comb b, by the following means:
d', is a stud on the crank plate , fixed on the axis d, to which motion
is communicated from a steam engine or other motive power; the
stud d' is connected by the connecting rod d to the lever d³ fixed on
the axis d. On this axis d is fixed the toothed quadrant d', which
takes into a rack formed on the under surface of the sliding table d
to which is attached by means of a pin joint at d frame do, to which
are fixed the plates d, d.
The parts of the working comb c, c, (which always tend by means of
the springs c¹, c', to withdraw themselves from the slivers of fibrous
substance between the plates d, d,) are governed in their action by the
surfaces, e, of the levers e, e', acting upon the levers in their
receding motion, and immediately after the parts of the working
combs c, c, have been withdrawn from the fibrous material the rods d
will come in contact with the short arms of the cranked levers f', to
the longer arms of which are attached the points or holding instru-
ments f, which will be moved into the fibrous material, so as to hold it
until the further receding motion of the plates d, d, and the parts of
the working comb c, c, ceases, when they will be released and brought
back to their original position against the stops e³ by the springs f
attached to the fixed rod et, on which the levers f¹ move, the moveable
pieces fallowing the rods d to pass in their return movement. At
the commencement of the forward motion the parts of the working
comb c, c, are introduced into the fibrous material by the moveable
surfaces acting upon the projections on the levers, so as to
introduce the points of the working comb c, c. The projections con
the levers are inclined so as to lift the surfaces c' in their receding

page_text: movement. During the advancing motion, and shortly after the intro-
duction of the working comb c, c, into the fibrous material between the
plates d, d, a motion towards the side of the machine is given to the
working comb c, c, the plates d, d, and the apparatus connected there-
with, in the following manner, is a cam fixed on the axis g', to
which motion is communicated from the axis d by the bevilled toothed
wheels m, m; and g, is a lever (attached by the link g' to the levers e,)
which is acted upon from time to time by the cam g. When the cam
ceases to act upon the lever the weight h, attached by a cord h¹ to the
levers e, comes into operation to draw the working comb c, c, the
plates d, d, and apparatus connected therewith on one side, so that the
portion of fibrous material protruding beyond the working comb c, may
be brought by their advancing motion into a suitable position opposite
the teeth of the taking or carrying comb b, to be deposited therein by
means of the cam g, acting upon the lever g, at the same time the
fibrous material is pressed into the chambers of the taking or carrying
comb by the blades i, which are actuated, as shewn in the Drawings,
by the lever arm i¹ fixed to the levers e¹.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner of performing the same, I would have it understood that I
make no claim to any of theparts separately; but what I claim is, the
mode herein described of combining what I have called a working and
self-feeding comb with a suitable taking or carrying comb from which
the fibres may be drawn, leaving the short fibre or noil in such taking
or carrying comb, as explained.
In witness whereof, I, the said Isaac Ambler, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
Witness,
J. G. TONGUE.
ISAAC AMBLER. (L.S.)