IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING AND DOUBLING
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Wrigley, of the Firm of Messieurs Cryer,
Lees, and Company, of Dukinfield, in the County of Chester, Machine
Makers, and Thomas Hiram Wrigley, of Mossley, in the County of
York, Overlooker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING
MULES FOR SPINNING AND DOUBLING."
Sealed the 17th December 1859, and dated the 27th June 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Wrigley and
Thomas Hiram Wrigley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 27th June 1859.
We, GEORGE WRIGLEY, of the Firm of Messieurs Cryer, Lees, and
Company, of Dukinfield, in the County of Chester, Machine Makers, and
THOMAS HIRAM WRIGLEY, of Mossley, in the County of York, Overlooker,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING AND DOUBLING," to be as follows:-
The nature of our Invention consists in certain improved combinations of
parts for winding the yarn on the spindle during the running in of the carriage,
and for governing the winding on. It has hitherto been customary to connect
the radial arm to the winding-on barrel by means of a chain, and this chain,
when the carriage is going in, causes the barrel and the spindles to revolve.
Now, in performing our Invention, when the radial arm and winding-on barrel

page_text: are used, the chain is only employed to govern the winding on, but the
spindles are driven almost entirely by a strap from the countershaft acting
on a pulley on the rim band shaft, the said pulley being connected to the said
shaft by a friction cone, or a fast and loose pulley, or other equivalent means
may be used. When the carriage is nearly in, the friction cone or other
apparatus is released by a lever acted upon from the carriage.
We also propose to dispense entirely with the radial arm, winding-on barrel,
and parts connected therewith, and to.effect the winding on entirely from the
rim band shaft. In this case the winding on is governed by a break
acting on a friction pulley; this break is in communication with the counter-
faller.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Wrigley and Thomas Hiram Wrigley in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 27th December 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, GEORGE
WRIGLEY, of the Firm of Messrs. Cryer, Lees, and Company, of Dukinfield,
in the County of Chester, Machine Makers, and THOMAS HIRAM WRIGLEY,
of Mossley, in the County of York, Overlooker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
George Wrigley and Thomas Hiram Wrigley, Her special licence that we, the
said George Wrigley and Thomas Hiram Wrigley, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said George Wrigley and Thomas
Hiram Wrigley, our 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
SELF-ACTING MULES FOR SPINNING AND DOUBLING," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said George Wrigley and Thomas Hiram Wrigley, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our or their,
or one of our or their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascer-
tain 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

page_text: Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said George Wrigley and Thomas
Hiram Wrigley, do hereby declare the nature of our 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):-
The nature of our Invention consists in certain improved combinations of
parts for winding the yarn on the spindles during the running in of the
carriage, and for governing the winding on. It has hitherto been customary
to connect the radial arm to the winding-on barrel by means of a chain, and
this chain, when the carriage is going in, causes the barrel and the spindles
to revolve. Now, in performing our Invention, when the radial arm and
winding-on barrel are used, the chain is only employed to govern the winding
on, but the spindles are driven almost entirely by a strap from the counter
shaft acting on a pulley on the rim band shaft, or by a pinion on the backing-
off shaft gearing in a wheel on the rim band shaft, the said pulley or wheel
being connected to the rim band shaft by a friction cone, or a fast and loose
pulley, or other equivalent means may be used. When the carriage is nearly
in, the friction cone or other apparatus is released by a lever acted upon from
the carriage. We also propose to dispense entirely with the radial arm,
winding-on barrel, and parts connected therewith, and to effect the winding on
entirely from the rim band shaft. In this case the winding on is governed by
a break acting on a friction pulley; this break is in communication with the
counterfallers.
And in order that our Invention may be fully understood and readily
carried into effect, we will proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of
Drawings, reference being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the principal parts of a self-acting mule, to
which our improvements are applied; Fig. 2 is an end elevation; and Fig. 3,
a plan of the same. a is the rim band shaft; b, the cam shaft; c, the backing-
off shaft; d, the drawing rollers; e, the carriage; e¹, the winding-on barrel;
f, the radial arm; and f', the winding-on chain. The parts above enumerated
and all the others requisite to complete the mule, which are not particularly
referred to hereafter, are made in the usual manner, with this exception, that
the shafts a and c must be rather longer than usual. To the rim band shaft a
is fixed the friction cone g; the friction box g¹, of this cone is attached to the
wheel g, which is loose on the shaft a. The pinion c, fixed to the backing-
off shaft c, gears into the wheel g²; to the cam shaft 6 is fixed the cam h,
which acts on a stud or bowl projecting from the lever i, the other extremity

page_text: of which is forked, and takes into a groove in the boss of the wheel g²; to the
lever i is fixed a stud , to which is attached one end of the cord or chain ..
This cord or chain, after passing over the pulley j, is attached to the
lever, which vibrates on a stud 7, fixed in the frame of the headstock.
To the stud is also attached one end of the spring k, the other end of which
is secured in a bracket k¹; to the end of the carriage e is fixed the stud 1,
which acts on the lever j³ when the carriage approaches the drawing rollers d.
The mode of operation is as follows:-The Drawing represents the parts in
the positions they occupy when the carriage is running in, during which time.
the friction box g¹ is supposed to be held in contact with the friction cone 9,
by the spring k acting on the lever i; the pinion c then gearing into, the
wheel g², imparts the requisite motion to the rim band shaft a for winding the
yarn on the spindles, the winding-on chain f acting only as governor to
regulate the number of revolutions required to be given to the spindles. As.
soon as the spindles marked m, in Fig. 1, arrive within a few inches of the
front drawing roller, the stud / cones in contact with the lever 1, and,
gradually moves it from the position indicated by the full lines to the position
shewn by dotted lines; in so doing, the cord or chain 2, acting on the stud i¹
and lever i, disconnect the friction box g¹ from the cone g to stop the rim
band shaft a, and at the same time to draw the stud or bowl on the lever i
out of contact with the cam h, in order to relieve the cam shaft prior to the
next change in its position, which takes place in the usual manner as soon as
the carriage is home. While the carriage is going out, all the motions of the
mule are performed as now customary, but as soon as the carriage begins to
return towards the drawing rollers, the cam h, acting on the lever i, presses
the friction box g' against the friction cone g, thereby causing the pinion c',
gearing into the wheel g, to drive the rim band shaft, and through it the
spindles, as before described.
The object of these improvements is to relieve the strain upon the winding-
on chain, which in mules of the usual construction, with a great many spindles,
is very severe, as all the spindles have to be turned round for winding on the
yarn by the holding back of the chain, which causes the winding-on barrel to
revolve during the running in of the carriage. When our improvements are
applied the winding-on chain may be much lighter than now requisite. We
wish to observe, that the motion, instead of being transmitted to the friction
cone g by gearing from the backing-off shaft, may be derived by a strap from
a pulley on the countershaft passing around the friction box 9', or a fast and
loose pulley, or other equivalent means, may be used. We also propose to
dispense entirely with the radial arm, winding-on barrel, and parts connected

page_text: therewith, and to effect the winding on entirely from the rim band shaft; in
this case the winding on is governed by a break acting on a friction pulley,
and this break is in communication with the counterfallers.
Having thus stated the nature of our Invention, and described the manner
of performing the same, we declare that we claim the improvements in self-
acting mules, herein-before shewn and described, whereby the winding of
the yarn on to the spindles is effected either entirely or to a great extent
from the rim band shaft, or any modification of machinery for effecting the
same object.
In witness whereof, we, the said George Wrigley and Thomas Hiram
Wrigley, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-third
day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and fifty-nine.
GEORGE WRIGLEY.
(L.S.)
THOMAS HIRAM WRIGLEY. (L.S.)