IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ELASTIC FABRICS SUITABLE FOR GUSSETS
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Miller and James Miller, junior, of No. 38,
Clifton Road, Peckham, in the County of Surrey, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ELASTIC FABRICS SUITABLE FOR
GUSSETS."
Scaled the 8th November 1870, and dated the 13th May 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION. left by the said James Miller and James
Miller, junior, at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 13th May 1870.
We, JAMES MILLER and JAMES MILLER, junior, of No. 38, Olifton
Road, Peckham, in the County of Surrey, do hereby declare the naturo
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ELASTIC
FABRICS SUITABLE FOR GUSSETS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of
clastic fabrics suitable more especially for being cut into gussets to be
used in the manufacture of boots.
In the manufacture of elastic leather gussets numerous parallel springs
of india-rubber are now commonly attached to leather and to an inner

page_text: 'lining by means of cement, and gussets are cut from elastic fabrics so
formed, or elastic gussets are formed of threads of india-rubber inserted
between rows of stitches which connect a lining to leather, as described in
the Specification of a former Patent granted to us on the 31st December
1866 (No. 3451).
According to our present Invention we cement threads or tapes of
india-rubber when in a distended state between the leather and the
lining, as is now usual, and before corrugating the compound fabric so
formed, whilst allowing it to contract, we further secure the lining to
the leather by parallel rows of stitches in, between, and parallel with the
several springs of india-rubber. To effect this the leather with the india-
rubber springs and lining cemented to it is by preference wound in a
distended state around a roller, and is subsequently wound off therefrom
with a step-by step motion on to another roller, and whilst it passes from
one roller to the other a row or it might be rows of stitches are formed
upon it by any ordinary sewing mechanism, and subsequently either by
reversing the motion of the mechanism or by changing the roller on to
which the fabric had been wound into the position of the rollor from
which the fabric was previously unwound, and repeating the operation,
another row or rows of stitches may be formed, and so on until the
requisite number of rows of stitches is produced. The elastic fabric may
then be allowed to contract and form into corrugations. Elastic fabrics
of other material than leather may be manufactured in the manner above
described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Miller and James Miller, junior, in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 12th November 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES.
MILLER and JAMES MILLER, junior, of No. 38, Clifton Road, Peckham,
in the County of Surrey, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said James Miller and James Miller, junior, å
{

page_text: Her special licence that we, the said James. Miller and James Miller,
junior, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we,
the said James Miller and James Miller, junior, our executors, adminis-
trators, 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 THE MANUFACTURE
OF ELASTIC FABRICS SUITABLE FOR GUSSETS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that wo, the said James Miller and James Miller, junior, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of
one of us or them, 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 immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Miller, junior, on behalf of
myself and the said James Miller, 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
thereof (that is to say) :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture
of elastic fabrics suitable more especially for being cut into gussets to
be used in the manufacture of boots.
In the manufacture of elastic leather gussets numerous parallel springs
of india-rubber are now commonly attached to leather and to an inner
lining by means of coment, and gussets are cut from elastic fabrics
so formed, or elastic gussets are formed of threads of india-rubber
inserted between rows of stitches which connect a lining to leather,
as described in the Specification of a former Patent granted to us on
the 31st December 1866 (No. 3451).
According to our present Invention we cement threads or tapes of
india-rubbor when in a distended state between the leather and the
lining, as is now usual, and before corrugating the compound fabric so
formed, whilst allowing it to contract we further secure the lining to
the leather by parallel rows of stitches in, between, and parallel with the
several springs of india-rubber. To effect this the leather with the

page_text: india-rubber springs and lining cemented to it may be wound in a dis-
tended state around a roller, and be subsequently wound off therefrom
with a step-by-step motion on to another roller, and whilst it passes from
one roller to the other a row or it might be rows of stitches are formed
upon it by any ordinary sewing mechanism, and subsequently either by
reversing the motion of the mechanism or by changing the roller on
to which the fabric had been wound into the position of the roller from
which the fabric was previously unwound, and repeating the operation,
another row or rows of stitches may be formed, and so on until the
requisite number of rows of stitches is produced. For forming the
several rows of stitches we however prefer to employ the arrangement
of mechanism herein-after described. The elastic fabric is afterwards
allowed to contract and formed into corrugations. Elastic fabrics of
other material than leather may be manufactured in the manner above
described.
In the Drawings hereunto annexed we have shewn a machine con- 2
structed in the manner we prefer for stitching between the several
springs of the compound fabric whilst it is in a distended state.
Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine; Figures 2 and 4 are front
and end elevations; and Figure 3 is a side elevation of the same.
In these Figures a is a table carrying a sewing machine b, which may 2
be of any suitable construction; c, c, are rollers at the front and
back of the table over which the compound fabric to be stitched is led,
as shewn by the Drawings. The roller c at the back of the table is
roughened or covered with cloth or other material to cause it to bind
against the fabric to be stitched. This roller is employed for giving a 3
step-by-step motion to the fabric, it receives motion from the axis of
the sewing machine by a cam or a crank pin or eccentric which gives
a to-and-fro motion to the connecting rod d, and this rod at its end is
connected to the lever of a friction ratchet working in a groove formed
around the centre of the roller, or the friction ratchet might be placed 3
at the end of the roller. The groove in the roller is covered over by a
bent plate where the fabric passes over it. This plate is carried by the

page_text: table a. The lever of the friction ratchet is capable of turning around
the centre of the roller when turned in one direction, but is fast with
the roller when it is turned in the opposite direction. A step-by-step
revolving motion is thus given to the roller c.
The compound fabric we form, as is now usual, by winding a band of
leather or other suitable fabric together with the fabric which is to form
the lining on to a roller, the india-rubber threads being placed between
the two and kept distended whilst they are being wound up on to the
roller;
the surfaces of the leather and fabric which are to be united
together are previously coated with a solution of india-rubber or suitable
cement, as is usual. The combined fabrics are afterwards passed between
pressing rollers and again wound on to a roller, and this roller is placed
on to the supports e, e, at the back of the machine, and is drawn from
it and led under the guide roller e*, then over the guide rollers c, c, on
the table of the sewing machine, and after being passed over other guide
rollers and a roller g on the top of a weight his brought to the back of
the machine, and its two ends are there attached together by sewing or
otherwise; the band to be stitched is thus formed into an endless band,
and is kept distended by the weight A. As the band is thus being led
over the several rollers the axis of the roller from which it is being
unwound is kept from turning too freely by a friction break, and the
end of the band is drawn over the several rollers by being attached to
the band which was previously in the machine, and which having been
stitched was ready to be taken off the machine. This band is wound up
on to a roller carried in the bearings k. The sewing machine for forming
the lines of stitching on the band is driven by a treadle, as shewn, or
it might be otherwise driven, and when one row of stitches has been
formed around the band the attendant presses the band sidewise as it
comes up to the sewing machine, and so guides it into the required
position for the next row of stitches, and so on, until the requisite
number of rows of stitches have been made, the band is then taken out
of the machine in the manner before described, and is afterwards cor-
rugated by passing it between corrugating rollers, as is now usual for
corrugating compound fabrics where the india-rubber threads are held
between two fabrics simply cemented together. In place of the fabric
to be stitched being first formed into an endless band previous to its
being stitched, as above described, it might, as before stated, be wound
from one roller to another, we however prefer the arrangement above
described.

page_text: Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
of performing the same, we would state that other arrangements than
those above described may be adopted for forming rows of stitches
between the india-rubber threads of the elastic band whilst it is kept
distended, we do not therefore confine ourselves to the precise arrange-
ments described; but what we claim is, the manufacturing elastic fabrics
suitable for gussets by cementing distended india-rubber threads between.
two fabrics, and afterwards whilst the compound fabric is held distended
forming rows of stitches between the parallel india-rubber threads,
substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Miller, junior, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
JAMES MILLER, JUN. (L.S.)