CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING, BEETLING, OR FINISHING TEXTILE FABRICS, SUCH AS COTTON, WOOL, LINEN, OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Garforth and James Garforth, of Dukinfield,
in the County of Chester, Engineers, for the Invention of " CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING, BEETLING, OR FINISHING TEXTILE FABRICS,
SUCH AS COTTON, WOOL, LINEN, OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Sealed the 19th January 1864, and dated the 23rd July 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Garforth and
James Garforth at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition on the 23rd July 1863.
We, WILLIAM GARFORTH and JAMES GARFORTH, of Dukinfield, in the
County of Chester, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING, BEETLING, OR FINISHING TEXTILE
FABRICS, SUCH AS COTTON, WOOL, LINEN, OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," to be as
follows:-
Our improvements consist in a peculiar arrangement of mechanism whereby
a rapid and direct action is imparted to the beetlers or hammers in beetler
machines, also the general arrangement of such machines for preparing,
finishing, and dressing textile fabrics. The arrangement of our apparatus mny
be described as follows:-Situated and arranged in a suitable frame are a
series of steam cylinders, each cylinder being supplied with double piston rods,
one working through each end of the cylinder covers, such piston rods being

page_text: formed at their extremities into boetlers or hammers for the purpose of acting
upon a roller supplied with the material to be acted upon, such rollers being
conveniently placed at either end of the machine in such a manner that as
each rod or beetler is impelled by the piston alternately with each stroke from
the opposite ends of the cylinders, such stroke shall cause in its action a direct
blow to be given to the surface of the cloth on the afore-mentioned rollers;
these rollers as they revolvo have a lateral motion given to them equal to the
width of the blow received by means of inclined discs secured to their ends
coming in contact with fixed bowls in the framing, such peculiar action
continually altering and moving the cloth in a manner that no two blows are
received upon the same surface. This machino is supplied at either end with
two rollers of this class arranged and secured upon a swivel in the framing, so
that when the roller submitted to the action of the beetlers is full the swivel is
reversed, bringing the other rollers, supplied with unfinished cloth, imme-
diately under the action of the afore-mentioned beetlers; by this peculiar
arrangement of machino a greater amount of work is effected in a shorter
space of time than by the ordinary machine employed for the same purpose.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Garforth and James Garforth in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 22nd January 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
GARFORTH and JAMES GARFORTE, of Dukinfield, in the County of Chester,
Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
William Garforth and James Garforth, Her special license that we, the said
William Garforth and James Garforth, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said William Garforth and James Garforth,
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 "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PRE-
PARING, BEETLING, OR FINISHING TEXTILE FABRICS, SUCH AS COTTON, WOOL, LINEN,

page_text: OR OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said William Garforth and James Garforth, our executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 we, the said William Garforth and James Gar-
forth, 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 and accompanying Drawings (that is to say):-
Our improvements consist in a peculiar arrangement of mechanism whereby
a rapid and direct action is imparted to the beetlers or hammers in beetler
machines, also the general arrangement of such machines for preparing,
finishing, and dressing textile fabrics. The arrangement of our apparatus may
be described as follows:-Situated and arranged in a suitable frame are n
series of steam cylinders, each cylinder being supplied with a piston rod
working through each end of the cylinder covers, such piston rods being
formed at their extremities into beetlers or hammers for the purpose of acting
upon a roller supplied with the material to be acted upon, such rollers being
conveniently placed at either end of the machine in such a manner that as
cach rod or beetler is impelled by the piston alternately with each stroke from
the opposite ends of the cylinder such stroke shall cause, in its action, a direct
beat to be given to the surface of the cloth on the afore-mentioned rollers;
these rollers, as they revolve, have a lateral motion given to them equal to the
width of the blow received by means of inclined discs secured to their ends
coming in contact with fixed bowls in the framing, such peculiar action
continually altering and moving the cloth in a manner that no two blows aro
received upon the same surface. The machine is supplied at each end with
two rollers of this class arranged and secured upon a swivel in the framing, so
that when the roller submitted to the action of the beetlers is full the swivel
is reversed, bringing the other roller, supplied with unfinished cloth, imme-
diately under the action of the afore-mentioned beetlers; by this peculiar
arrangement of mechanism a greater amount of work is effected in a shorter
time than by the ordinary machine employed for the same purpose.
In order that the Invention may be better understood and explained in
detail we have hereunto attached a Sheet of Drawings made upon a scale of
about one inch and a half to the foot, similar letters of reference being marked
upon corresponding parts of the apparatus.

page_text: Fig. 1 represents a plan view of a machine to effect the process, now well-
known, called "beetling," which is shewn as when twelve double beaters or
hammers are employed, for example; Fig. 2 is an end view, shewn in section,
the lower portion of the framing being removed; this view exhibits the
interior of the steam cylinders and the arrangement of eccentrics for actuating
the steam slide valves.
In Figs. 1 and 2, a, a, is the framing of the machine; b is the main steam
pipe supplying steam to the cylinders c through the slide valves d, which are
actuated by the eccentrics e as in steam engines, in such a manner as to cause
the hammers f,f,f, to strike or beat the fabric on the rollers or cylinders 9, 9, 9,
alternately either in rapid succession, as shewn, or simultaneously (the former
being preferred). The pistons h, h, are acted upon by the steam as in an
ordinary steam engine, and the piston rods attached thereto are connected to
the hammers or benters f. f. f, which thus receive the reciprocating motion
and power for percussion. The eccentrics actuating the slide valves are
worked from the shaft i, which may be driven by a small engine attached to
the framing or by a pulley on the shaft and a strap from a detached engine.
Upon the shafts k, k, are mounted the bearings 1, 1, for the rollers or cylinders
9, 9, upon which the fabric is wound to be submitted to the action of the
beaters. These bearings 1, 2, are made to turn upon the shafts so that one
pair of rollers may be acted upon by the beaters whilst the others are being
replenished with or divested of the fabric. The said rollers are caused to
rotate upon their axis by toothed gearing or other ordinary driving mechanism,
and also a reciprocating movement imparted to them by means of a recipro-
cating stud acting in the groove n, so that the surface of the fabric is con-
stantly altering its position beneath the beaters which produces regularity in
the finish.
We would here remark that we are aware that one steam cylinder con-
taining a piston and having one large hammer at each end of the piston rod
has already been used for a similar purpose, but has been found impracticable
and detrimental.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, together with the
method of carrying the same into practical effect, we wish it to be distinctly
understood that we claim,—
First, the novel employment and uso of a series of beaters or hammers
actuated by a series of steam pistons and cylinders in such a manner as
to produce a rapid succession of blows upon the fabrics submitted
thereto.
And, secondly, we claim the general arrangement of the apparatus, an

page_text: example of which has been herein-before described, set forth, and fully illustrated
in the Drawings attached.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Garforth and James Gar-
forth, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Seventh day of
January, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-four.
W. GARFORTH.
(L.S.)
JAMES GARFORTH. (L.s.)