IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING, STEAMING, AND PREPARING COTTON OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS TO BE SPUN
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Daniel Collinge, of Oldham, in the County of
Lancaster, Cotton Spinner and Manufacturer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING, STEAMING, AND
PREPARING COTTON OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS TO BE SPUN."
Sealed the 12th May 1868, and dated the 28th February 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Daniel Collinge at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 28th
February 1863.
I, DANIEL COLLINGE, of Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner
and Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "Iм-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING, STEAMING, AND PREPARING
COTTON OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS TO BE SPUN," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of attaching to the machine, generally known as the
Oldham willow, the ordinary fan, with additional apparatus for the purpose
of more effectually cleaning and steaming the fibrous materials preparatory to
spinning. I arrange to the willow two endless bands, made of laths or other
suitable material, one of the said bands to act as a feeder, and the other as a
deliverer, both of which are self-acting by suitable gearing. An attendant is
required (a mere child will be sufficient) to feed the material to the willow,
which falls on the feeders, and passing through the willow to the delivery band
is conveyed to a fan in motion, which is surrounded by a grid to allow the
dirt or refuse extracted by the quick motion or revolution of the blades to fall
through it. The material thus cleaned and opened passes through the fan into
a wire tube, which conveys it into a steam chamber, any remaining refuse or

page_text: dirt falling through the said tube giving the fibrous material an additional
cleaning. I cause a supply of steam to the steam chamber by means of pipes,
so that as the fibrous material enters the chamber from the wire tube, the
steam from any convenient number of pipes in different directions penetrates
and saturates it, thus cleaning and steaming the fibrous material in one
continuous operation.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Daniel Collinge in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
26th August 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, DANIEL
COLLINGE, of Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, Cotton Spinner and
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Daniel Collinge, Her, special license that I, the said Daniel
Collinge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Daniel Collinge, 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
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CLEANING, STEAMING, AND PREPARING COTTON OR
OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS TO BE SPUN," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Daniel Collinge, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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 Daniel
the nature of my said Invention, and in what
performed, to be particularly described and
following statement (that is to say) :-
:-
Collinge, do hereby declare
manner the same is to be
ascertained in and by the
This Invention consists in attaching to the machine, generally known as the

page_text: Oldham willow, the ordinary fan in connection with additional apparatus for
the purpose of more effectually cleaning and steaming the fibrous materials. I
arrange to the willow two endless bands or aprons made of laths or other
suitable material. One of the said bands or aprons to act as a feeder and the
other as a deliverer, both of which are self-acting by suitable gearing. An
attendant is required to feed the material to the willow, which falls on the
feeder and passes through the willow to the delivery band and is conveyed 'to
a fan in motion, which is surrounded by a grid to allow the dirt or refuse
extracted by the quick motion or revolution of the blades to fall through it.
The material thus cleaned and opened passes through the fan into a wire tube
which conveys it into a steam chamber, any remaining refuse or dirt falling
through the said tube giving the fibrous material an additional cleaning. I
supply steam to the steam chamber by means of pipes, so that as the fibrous
material enters the chamber from the wire tube, the steam from any convenient
number of pipes in different directions penetrates and saturates it, thus cleaning
and steaming the fibrous material in one continuous operation.
These improvements will be clearly understood by referring to the figures
and letters on the accompanying two Sheets of Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is
a side elevation, and Fig. 2 a back elevation, and Fig. 3, a plan of an Oldham
willow having my improvements attached, and Fig. 4 a detached view of part
of the same.
a represents the framework of the willow; b, the toothed cylinder; c, the
shaft to which it is fixed; d, the fast and loose pulleys for driving and stopping
the cylinder; e, the feeding apron or lattice; f, the feed rollers; h, the door in
the case which surrounds the toothed cylinder; i, the delivery apron or lattice;
k, the fan; and 7, the steam chamber. The feeding apron e is carried by the
rollers m, n, on the shafts o, p, and has intermittent travelling motion imparted
to it by causing the roller m to have intermittent revolving motion. The
bearing of the roller n works in a slide 9 acted upon by the screw » for giving
the proper tension to the apron. To the shafts of the feed rollers fare fixed
the toothed wheels 8, t, gearing into toothed wheels u, v, on the studs w, x.
The shaft of the upper feed roller works in blocks fitted in slots, so that it can
rise up and down according to the thickness of the material. At one end of
the shaft of the lower feed roller is fixed the toothed wheel y, Fig. 3, gearing
by means of the carrier wheel z with the toothed wheel a' fixed to the shaft o
of the roller m, and when revolving, motion is given to the feed rollers corre-
sponding motion is given to the roller m, and travelling motion to the feeding
apron e. At one end of the cylinder shaft c there is a pulley b' connected by
the strap c with the pulley d' on the stationary shaft or stud e'. To the

page_text: 21
pulley d', or to its boss, is fixed the pulley f¹ connected by the strap g' with
the pulley working on the stationary shaft or stud k¹. To the pulley h¹ is
fixed the pinion gearing into the external teeth of the wheel m', also seen in
Fig. 4, which bas in the interior of its rim the internal toothed segment n',
gearing as it revolves into the upper part of the toothed wheel o' fixed to the
shaft of the lower feed roller outside the wheel s. To the wheel m¹ is fixed
an external toothed segment p', having one, two, or more teeth, which as
it revolves, gears into the lower part of the wheel o¹, and to the wheel m¹ is
also fixed a tappet q', Figs. 1 and 3, in contact with the bracket r¹; on one
end of the bar s', jointed at the other end to the lever t', fixed to the shaft u',
which carries the door h in the casing surrounding the toothed cylinder b. To
the ends of the shaft u are fixed the band or chain pulleys w', to which are
attached the bands or chains a¹, each supporting a weight y'. The toothed
cylinder is made to revolve in a reverse direction to those generally in use,
in order that the material may be delivered at the opposite side to which it was
fed, and when motion is given to the cylinder the pulley b₁ transmits continuous
revolving motion by means of the straps c', g', and intermediate pulleys d, f, to
the pulley h', the pinion I, the wheel m³, and the toothed segments n³ and p'.
As the wheel m¹ revolves, the toothed segment n¹ gears into the wheel o' on
the lower feed roller shaft, and turns the roller in proportion to the length
of the toothed segment n', the upper roller turning the same distance by means
of the toothed wheels t, u, v. At the same time the wheel y on the lower feed
roller shaft transmits its motion to the wheel a¹ on the shaft of the roller m,
and causes the feeding apron to travel onwards and carry the material in the
apron to the feed rollers, which feed it to the toothed cylinder, and as the
toothed segment n' is only at intervals in gear with the toothed wheel o', the
feeding apron and feed rollers supply the material to the toothed cylinder at
intervals, and thereby allow time for the material to be acted upon efficiently.
The toothed segment p' is placed later or behind the toothed segment n', and
gears into the lower part of the wheel o¹ as the wheel m¹ revolves, so that
after the material has been delivered to the cylinder the feed rollers and apron
shall be turned back a short distance and remove the loose ends of the fibrous
material out of the way of the toothed cylinder. As the material is being acted
upon by the cylinder, the wheel m¹ turns onward and carries with it the
tappet 2', and when the cylinder has made the required number of revolutions
the tappet pushes back the bracket ¹, the bar s', and the vertical arm of the
lever t¹, which turns the shaft u', and opens the door h for the discharge of the
material, which then falls upon the transverse delivering apron or lattice i, aud
when the projecting part of the tappet has passed clear of the bracket the door

page_text: is closed by means of the weights y', bands a¹, and pulleys w', the bracket being
balanced by the weight z'. The delivering apron is carried by a roller on the
shaft a working in bearings, and a roller on the shaft c³, Figs. 2 and 3, to
which continuous revolving motion is given by the gearing & from any
revolving shaft. The delivering apron is caused to travel at a speed corres-
ponding with the number of times the door h is opened. When one length of
the material has travelled the length of the door, the said door is opened and
another length of material falls upon the apron, and as these operations continue
as long as the machine is at work, there is a continuous layer of material on
the delivering apron, which thereby carries forward the opened and partially
cleansed material in a very efficient manner to the feed rollers e, which supply
it to the fan k in the case, which has an aperture for the admission of air
and a passage g for the exit of the material. The fan revolves at a great
speed and blows the material through the passage 9* and through a wire pipe or
cage h² into the steam chamber l. The bearings 6s of the shaft a' are formed in
screws fitting screwed holes in the framework, so that turning the screws the
bearings can be shifted and enable the delivering apron to be maintained at its
proper tension. The feed rollers are provided with spur wheels k², which
are driven by means of the spur wheel, gearing into the spur wheel m², for
giving the revolving motion to the rollers. At the upper part of the case of
the fan there are spikes or pins for assisting the agitation of the material, and
at the end n³, and bottom o³, there is a grid, through which the dust and refuse
pass to the lower part of the case, there being a cover q', which is taken off,
when required, for the removal of the refuse. The wire pipe or cage h³ is
inclosed in a box, having a pipe s' for leading the dust to the main fans of
the building.
The steam for the steam chamber is supplied through a number of tubes t²
connected to the pipe u communicating by other pipes with the boiler. The
tubes t3 are inclined upwards and placed in diagonal or other suitable positions
for incorporating steam with the material as it is blown into the chamber. On
the floor of the chamber there are pipes which carry off the condensed water
and also allow the droppings from the tubes t2 to fall upon them, and re-
convert the droppings into steam. When the desired quantity of material
has been blown into the steam chamber, and it has been acted upon by the
steam, the motion of the fan and willow is stopped, the steam shut off, and the
door of the stean chamber opened, and then the material is removed in a
cleansed and steamed condition.
Thus it will be seen that all the operations of this machine are performed in
a regular and self-acting manner, and that the cotton or material is fed and

page_text: delivered without any approach of the hands of the operative to the toothed
cylinder of the willow, which revolves continuously, as shewn by the arrow,
Fig. 1, namely, in a contrary or opposite direction to those generally in use,
so that the cotton or material shall be acted upon in the first instance by the
top of the cylinder, and teeth fixed in the cover and fall down at the end
furthest from the feed rollers, either with or without a delivering apron, which
arrangements not only prevent accidents, but also enable a much larger
quantity of material to be cleansed in a given time than by the old method.
In some cases the delivering apron or lattice fan and steam chamber may
be dispensed with, and the material collected on a table or in a basket after it
has passed through the door in the case surrounding the toothed cylinder.
Or the delivering apron may be employed to lead the material to any place
required, and the steam chamber dispensed with, or the delivering apron may
deliver the material directly from the willow to the steam chamber without
the intervention of a fan, or the delivery apron may be placed in front of the
willow to carry the material direct to another preparing machine to undergo
further cleaning or other process, the arrangements being varied according to
the kind of material operated upon.
Having now fully described the nature and particulars of my said Invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I desire it to be
distinctly understood that I claim,-
First, the improved arrangement of mechanism for giving intermittent
motion to the feed rollers in willows, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the giving a backward motion to the feed rollers for removing the
ends of the cotton or other material clear of the sweep of the toothed
cylinder.
Thirdly, the use of an intermittent self-opening and self-shutting door, to
allow the material under operation to discharge itself at intervals from the
willow on to the travelling apron.
Fourthly, the employment of an endless apron or lattice working transverse
or crossways with the toothed cylinder of the willow for carrying the cotton or
material from the willow to a fan or other preparing machine or other required
place.
Fifthly, the use of a fan partially surrounded by a grid between the
operations of willowing and steaming.
Sixthly, the use of a wire pipe or cage between the fan and the steam
chamber, so that the cotton or other material may undergo an additional
cleaning process as it is blown into the chamber to be saturated with
steam.

page_text: Seventhly, and lastly, I claim the general combination and arrangement of
the self-acting machinery as herein-before described, as applied to the ordinary
willow, for more effectually feeding, opening, cleaning, and steaming fibrous
materials preparatory to spinning.
In witness whereof, I, the said Daniel Collinge, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the
within-named Daniel Collinge, in
the presence of
E. J. HUGHES,
Patent Agent,
Manchester.
DANIEL COLLINGE. (L.S.)