IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Haseltine, of the United States of America,
now of 4, Southampton Buildings, Holborn, in the County of Middlesex,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES."
Sealed the 27th May 1859, and dated the 5th April 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Haseltine at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 5th
April 1859.
I, GEORGE HASELTINE, of the United States of America, now of 4, South-
ampton Buildings, Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEWING MACHINES," to
be as follows:
Said improvements relate to superiority of machinery for stitching or sewing,
as regards cheapness, simplicity, and durability, and also to superiority of the
work performed. The different parts of my improved sewing machine are so
constructed and arranged that I am enabled to make the double lock shuttle
stitch and a peculiar knot stitch without any change of the parts or readjustment
of the machine. This peculiar knot stitch is of such a character that it is im-
possible to rip a single stitch of the work. The change from the double lock
shuttle stitch to the knot stitch, or the reverse, may be made on the same piece
of work, without in any degree injuring the appearance of the stitch or the
stability of the work, simply by rotating the machine in an opposite direction.
The external appearance of the two kinds of stitches is very similar, the knot

page_text: stitch as well as the double lock shuttle stitch being alike on either surface of
the material. This knot stitch is peculiarly adapted to all work in which
great strength is required, and when this stitch is employed, no hand labor or
back stitches are necessary to perfectly secure the ends. The double lock
shuttle stitch is the same as that made by the best shuttle machines, though
the shuttle is not employed in ny machine.
The stitches are formed by two arms or hooks in connection with the needle
attached to a pinion which revolves within a receptacle in front of the needle.
These arms or hooks are very easily adjusted in such a manner, that the
machine will very rarely, if ever, "miss" a stitch.
This device has other advantages over the shuttle, it works much more
quietly, with less wear of the parts, and it permits the employment of a much
shorter needle, which is especially important when the material is heavy or
hard to pierce; the needles used in this machine very rarely breaking, even
when performing the most difficult work. At the same time the machine has
no superior in sewing or stitching the thinest material, or in rapidity of
exccution.
The base plate, pressure and needle bars, are similar to those now in use,
the fulcrum of the needle bar is situated below the base plate, and extends
forward to the excentric, which gives the required motion to the needle in a
steady and quiet manner. The rim of this excentric or cam is so constructed
and connected with the said pinion as to give the requisite motion to the arms
or hooks which form the stitch. The feed motion is obtained by a self-adjusting
cam, which produces the feed while the needle is descending, in whichever
direction the machine may be rotated. By this arrangement the feed is always
produced when the thread is slack, at which time only a perfect feed can be
obtained. Without change of principle, this arrangement can be applied to
feeds now in use, though designed for a novel feed, which will be fully
described in my Complete Specification.
In the receptacle in front of the needle is situated the under spool or bobbin.
A small projection extends over one side of this receptacle with a perforation
for the needle to enter for the purpose of steadying it while the thread is
carried around the bobbin by the arms or hooks. These hooks or arms are so
constructed and arranged that they take the thread from the side of the needle
opposite the bobbin. This arrangement is a peculiarity of my Invention, and
is important in forming the knot stitch. This stitch is formed by the hooks
taking the thread and carrying it around the bobbin in the direction opposite
to that in which the material is moved. To form the double lock shuttle stitch
the hooks. are rotated in the opposite direction. The hooks are connected with

page_text: an adjustable piece, so that they may be adapted to any size needle, simply by
turning a screw. When the needle has passed through the material, the hook
or arm takes the thread as stated, and by its rotation carries it nearly around
the bobbin, and then casts it off. It is thus coiled around the thread from the
bobbin, either with a single turn forming the double lock stitch, or a perfect
knot is tied forming this peculiar knot stitch. Two hooks or arms are necessary,
and they are situated nearly opposite each other. The machine rotates equelly
well in either direction, the result of the different rotations being the different
kinds of stitches; any convenient device may be used for giving the requisite
tension to the upper and lower threads, and the ordinary device for guiding
the material.
-
I am now perfecting an improved hemmer or folder, which will be fully
described in my Complete Specification. This machine may be furnished and
mounted in any desirable style, and rotated by the ordinary means. The
machine being simple and substantial in its construction, is durable, not liable-
to get out of repair, and but little experience or skill is required to operate it.
successfully, as there are no difficult adjustments. The sewing or stitching
may be perfectly performed with silk, linen, or cotton thread.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Haseltine in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th October 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, J, GEORGE
HASELTINE, of the United States of America, now of 4, Southampton Buildings,
Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
George Haseltine, Her special licence that I, the said George Haseltine,, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George..
Haseltine, 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 SEWING MACHINES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Haseltine, mv.

page_text: executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain tho
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, 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 I, the said George Haseltine, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed;
that is to say:-
'The said "Improvements in Sewing Machines" consist in making a fast.or
knot stitch in addition to the ordinary shuttle stitch by a simple construction
and peculiar arrangement and combination of parts. Both stitches may be
made by the same machine (simply by reversing the rotation of the shaft),
and some parts of my Invention are especially designed to accomplish this
object, while other parts are necessary to make the shuttle stitch or knot stitch
seperately, while the chief peculiarities of my Invention consist in the manner
of producing the knot stitch, and the arrangement for producing both stitches
by the same machine; it has novel features when fitted for making the shuttle
stitch only. The knot stitch is very similar in external appearance to the
shuttle stitch, being the same on either surface of the material. The Drawings
represent a machine fitted with a curved needle, and for making both stitches.
The modifications desirable when the machine is designed to make either stitch
seperately, and the application of the straight needle, and other modified
devices, will be explained in connection with the description of the Drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of said machine; Figure 2 is a
plane of the under side; Figuro 3 is also a vertical longitudiual section;
Figure 4 is a vertical cross section through the stitch-forming parts; Figures
5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, are views of detached parts of the machine; Figures 11
and 12 are views of a hemmning guide, and of a hemmer or folder. Like.
characters designate corresponding parts in all the Figures.
The machine may be mounted in any convenient manner, with the working
parts above or below the table, and rotated by the ordinary means.
The
shape of the machine may be modified as found most convenient, the con-
struction and arrangement of the parts being such as to permit the base plates
being constructed. with a narrow arm, which construction is very deserable for

page_text: Power is
stitching some kinds of work. The arm should project over the table or be
sustained above by two or more standards fixed on the base plate a.
applied to the machine through the driving wheel &', and the required motions
obtained by one or more excentrics on the shaft b, Figure 2. The the base
plate a, pressure arim a', and needle arm c¹, are similar to those now employed:
The fulcrum c' of the needle arm, as represented, is situated below the base
plate a, and from thence the lower arm c³ runs forward, and bears on its end a
wrist pin with a friction roller, which works in a circular groove c' in the face
of a cylindrical peice fixed excentrically on the shaft. This arrangement gives
the required motion to the needle arm in a quiet manner, and the construction
is very simple. The manner represented for giving the movements to the
sliding rack d', Figures 1 and 2, is by banding the excentric, which band
forms one piece with the shackle bar d³, said bar being connected to the
sliding rack by means of a loose pin or screw. The same object is attained.
simply by extending the sliding rack d' back to the excentric, and then turning
it upward at right angles, a pin being fixed on this arm to work in the
groove c. There should be a rest near the excentric for the sliding rack, on
which it should be confined. The grooved circle c³ must be of sufficient size
to give the required throw both to the sliding rack and needle arm, and to
prevent the wrist pin of the one interfering with that of the other. Should tho
needle arm be out of line with the rack, it will be found best to curve the
needle arm to bring it up to the face of the excentric. Communicating.
motion directly to the sliding rack from the groove c is descrable, especially in
heavy machines, as this construction is very substantial. The sliding rack d'
works in the pinion d', Figures 5 and 6, and on this pinion are firmly secured
the hooks d, d. These hooks, shown in Figure 6, receive a reciprocating
motion from the sliding rack d* moving on the axis d'. Another excentric f³
serves to produce the feed motions, being connected with the slide f* by the
shackle bar f, which passes around the excentric. On the slide fare situated
two wedge cams f, Figure 2, and one sunk in the slide, as shown in Figure 3.
By extending the slide f* and turning it upward, it may be made to work in a
groove, in the face of the excentric, which obviates the necessity for the shackle
bar f. The wedge cam f³ coming in contact with the pin f, gives the forward
movement to serrated surface (situated on the plate f, Figure 2), which moves
the material. The backward motion is given to the feed plate by spring ₤10,
the downward motion by spring f, and the upward motion by the wedge cam
Figure 3. But this arrangement may be changed so as to give the forward
motion by a spring and the backward motion by a wedge cam. The length of
the stitches is regulated by an excentric or screw acting against the end of the

page_text: plate f. This feed arrangement is substantially the same as that employed in
other machines, and a serrated wheel or other convenient device may be
substituted without essentially changing the character of my Invention. In
order to obtain the feed motion at the proper time, the excentric f* is made
adjustable by means of a loose collar f", Figures 2 and 3, with a slot f',
through which the pin f³ enters the shaft; when the shaft is turned the
pin f³ comes in contact with the collar at one end of the slot, according to
the direction the shaft is rotated, thereby giving the forward feed motion at
the same relative time, whichever way the machine is rotated, and when
the thread is slack. This double feed motion is a peculiarity of my In-
vention as applied to sewing machines, and is especially important in machines
constructed to work in either direction. And while the device described
for, attaining this result is simple and convenient, other mechanical devices
may be employed without essentially changing the character of my machine.
The adjustable plate do, Figures 2 and 5, is fastened to a rest on the
plate a by a screw d, the other end being held by the set screw d³. The
rod d is firmly secured on this plate and the "receiver "e or bobbin caso
holder is firmly fixed on the upper end of this rod. The pinion d, which
sustains, the hooks d, d, revolves on the rod d', consequently by turning
the set screw d³, which is connected with one end of the plate do, the hooks aro
easily and accurately adjusted to bent or otherwise imperfect needles, or to
needles of various sizes. By this simple adjustability is precluded the
possibility of missing stitches. On the "receiver" e is placed the bobbin case,
Figure 10, which contains the bobbin for the lower thread. This case
remains stationary while the machine is operated, being kept steady by means
of a spring, constructed to bear lightly on a pin fixed in the bottom of
the case, so as not to prevent the loop passing between the spring and tho
casc. On this pin the bobbin revolves. The bobbin caso contains several
perforations for the thread to pass through, as shown in Figure 10, to give it
the requisite tension. The receiver e has a perforation e', Figures 5 and 7,
which the needlo enters, for the purpose of steadying it, while the hook
is carrying the loop over and around the bobbin case. The bobbin caso
is placed horizontally, as shown in Figure 4. This disposition of the bobbin
case enables it to be removed easily, an aperture being left in the plate a,
and is found more convenient than a vertical bobbin case, especally when
machines are fixed on benches for manufacturing purposes. The lower thread
bobbin moves only on its axis d'. The hooks should be constructed in such a
manner as to enable them to catch the thread, and wide enough at the back
to extend the loop sufficiently to cause the lower part of the loop to pass

page_text: under the bobbin case, and the upper part to pass over easily. To form the
knot stitch and the shuttle stitch, without change of parts or readjustments,
two hooks are necessary, and they should be situated as shown in Figures 5
and 6, or nearly so. Both stitches may be made by the same machine,
by using one hook and replacing it by the other, when a change of stitches is
desired. By the use of both hooks, the change from one stitch to the other
causes no delay, and may be done on the same piece of work without injuring
the appearance of the stitching; and the knot stitch is especally adapted to
stitching thick heavy material, and to finishing the seams of thin fabrics.
When the machine is fitted for making the knot stitch or the shuttle stitch
only, the use of two excentrics is avoided by uniting the sliding rack to the
slide f, the two forming one piece. They are cast or forged with a wide slot
in the rack part, through which extends a portion of the standard on which
the sliding rack rests. This is for the purpose of guiding the slides, and also
to present a surface on which to secure one end of the plate d. The wedge
cams on the slide f* must be located in position to produce the feed motion at
the proper time. The only change required to make a knot stitch machine
a shuttle stitch machine is to change the position of these wedge cams, and
to turn the hook in an opposite derection. The devices for guiding and
restraining the threads, including the spring to draw back the slack thread,
are not new. They are shown in Figure 1, and may be replaced by other
convenient devices. The arms of the hooks pass beyond the needle, and catch
the upper thread when the needle has descended on the side of the needle
opposite the bobbin case. The shape of the hooks is shown in Figures 5 and 6.
The hook having caught the upper thread, it carries it around the bobbin, and
casts it off; taken by one hook in a derection opposite to that in which the
material is moved, gives the knot-stitch; taken by the other hook in the
opposite direction gives the shuttle-stitch. This method of taking the thread
is important in forming the knot stitch. The pressure foot g, Figuro 4, and
devices connected therewith, are similar to those now in use, and need
no description, being shown in Figures 1 and 4.
My Invention permits the use of a straight needle, fixed in a slide working
perpendicularly. The slide can be worked conveniently and efficiently by an
arm moved as above described. Very little change of construction is required
to make the machine with a curved or straight needle. The needle slide may
be moved by a seperate cam, if found desirable. When the straight needle is
used, it should be cut away a little above the eye, to enable the books to catch
the thread with certainty. The machine fitted for a straight needle may have
the arrangement for producing the feed above the plate a, the fabric being

page_text: moved forward by a serrated pressure foot, while it rests on a smooth surface.
But this method is not new, and the means of moving the pressure foot need
not, therefore, be described.. Figure 11 is a.view of a hemming guide, and
Figure 12 a view of a hemmer or folder, both of which may be secured in any
convenient manner to the base plate a.
Having thus fully described my Invention, and shown how the same may
be successfully carried out in practice, I wish it understood that I do not
confine myself to the details mentioned; and I mako no claim to the
mechanism for moving the material, excepting the cam f, or its equivalent;
nor do I claim the devices for producing the tension on the two threads,
either in themselves or in combination with the novel parts of my machine,
for other devices may be substituted without essentially changing the character
.of my machine. But what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,—
First, constructing, combining, and arranging the different parts of a
sewing machine substantially as herein set forth.
Second, I claim the construction and arrangement of the stitch forming
parts of sewing machines, so as to produce a knot stitch and shuttle stitch
without change of parts, substantially.as specified.
Third, I claim the stationary bobbin case when placed in a horizontal
.position, and used in combination with one or two reciprocating hooks,
as herein specified.
Fourth, I claim the method of giving the requisite motions to both the
.needle arm and sliding rack directly from the groove c³, as herein specified.
Fifth, I claim adjusting the hooks d, d, to the needle, for the purpose and
in the manner substantially as described.
Sixth, I also claim taking the needle thread from the back of the needle (or
the side opposite the bobbin case), and then looping it around the bobbin case
in a direction opposite to that in which the material is moved, for the purpose
of forming the knot stitch, substantially as specified.
Seventh, I claim the self-adjusting feed excentric fe, constructed and
operating in the manner and for the purpose as herein specified.
i
In witness whereof, I, the said George Haseltine, bave hereunto set-my
hand and seal, this Fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
GEORGE HASELTINE. (L.S.)