Improvements in Gripping Tools for Leather and Textile Fabric Workers and others.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Sept., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 26th Feb., 1896-Accepted, 4th Apr., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Gripping Tools for Leather and Textile Fabric
Workers and others.
I STANLEY BETJEMANN Mechanician 21 Agate Road Hammersmith do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The purpose of this invention is-first-to provide an automatic gripper for
holding materials such as cloth, calico, leather &c. &c. while the operator
manipulates them-second-a means of clamping the gripper to the table or
work bench.
The gripper consists of a standard (to be fixed) with suitable shoulders or lugs-
pads or grippers moving on centres are so shaped as to bite or grip against the
lugs when turned and hold the object or material between the gripper and lug-
the radius of the gripper being just too long to pass the lug the tension of the
material increases the grip. The standard is fastened to a convenient place by any
suitable means.
For fixing it to a table I provide a clamp projecting from it to rest on the top of
the table, the standard continues downwards in a fork between which is a lever
turning on pivots or pins-this lever is forked and carries a presser centered away
from the lever centre, like one small coin partly covering another-by pressing the
handle of the lever down the presser is forced up against the under side of the
table when its centres have pass'd the lever centres it holds tightly.
Dated this 23rd day of September 1895.
Improvements in Gripping Tools for Leather and Textile Fabric
Workers and others.
I, STANLEY BETJEMANN 21 Agate Road Hammersmith London Mechanician
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
The object of this invention is to provide an automatic gripping appliance to
hold one part of a material, such as leather, canvas, textile fabrics, rope &c. while
the operators hands are manipulating it in sewing, plaiting, braiding, pulling, or
any process in which it is desirable to have the material at a tension.
The appliance consists of a rigid part or standard-preferably of metal-to be
fixed in any convenient way to the table, workbench or required place, having a
suitably shaped pad or jaw at one point or extremity against which the material
is held by a hand or presser moving freely on a pivot or pin placed nearly opposite
the pad or jaw and counterweighted so as to keep the presser in contact with the
pad so that when the material is placed between them it is loosely held, the grip
being obtained when it is pulled by the operator. This is caused by the biting

page_text: face of the presser being curved so that it is somewhat away from the pad in front
and takes closely on to it at the back, so that when the material is pulled, it pulls
the presser with it and wedges the material between the presser and the pad. To
release the material and shift it to a new position it is only necessary to pull it
behind the place of contact and it will freely slip as required, and hold at any
point when pull'd the reverse way.
By adapting the size and shape of the appliance it may be used to hold a fine
thread or a large rope, or the finest cambric or lace, or the thickest leather, canvas,
sacking, carpet &c.
The gripper shewn in the drawing Fig. 1. is such as would be used in ordinary
needlework. The rigid part or standard (A) being shaped like a flattened
letter G, which is fixed to the edge of a table, or workbench by an ordinary screw
clamp, which may be made part of it, which explains itself-the lower extremity
of the G (B) is forked to carry the presser (C) on a pin, on which it moves freely,
passing through it at (D)-the presser is continued downwards and finishes in a
lump of metal (E) which is the counterweight that tilts the curved face (F) of
the presser, against the rigid face of the pad (G) which is the upper terminal of
the G-a convenient form for this pad for the purpose named is vertically of any
convenient size; the presser that meets it is a plate to correspond, the curve of its
face being such that when it is tilted back so that its front edge is under the back
edge of the pad (G) there is space between, and when the back edges become
about even as it tilts forward it will come in contact and bite.
The open bow of the G is to allow space for material to pass through in
continuing the seam or work, and may be of any suitable size or form.
The presser may be pivoted at the upper end of the G-and the lower end
made the pad. The counterweight would then be behind the pivot to tilt it
forward.
To grip a cord or rope in a vertical line the appliance would be made
approximately like Fig. 3. which explains itself. For a horizontal position Fig. 2
would be suitable. For some purposes it may be advisable to use a spring to keep
the presser in contact with the pad.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
The use of the gripping device substantially as described and shewn in the
specification and drawings and any adaptations of similar mechanism for the
purposes nained.
Dated this 26th day of February 1896.
STANLEY BETJEMANN.