US781596A - Feeding mechanism for sewing-machines. - Google Patents

Description

No. 781,596. PATENTED JAN. 31, 1905. Z. T. FRENCH & W. G. MEYER.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLIOATION FILED MAB.10,1900.

' 3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Hit l h FIEEIEES'I EFLFFSI 2 ZZZ"? No. 781,596. PATENTBD JAN. 31, 1905. Z. T. FRENCH & W. O. MEYER.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAE.10, 1900.

No. 781,596. PATENTED JAN. 31, 1905. Z. T. FRENCH & W. G. MEYER.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLIOATIOH FILED MAB.10,1900.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

T E u -UNTTED STATES Patented January 31, 1905 PATENT OFFICE.

ZACHARY T. FRENCH AND "ILLIAZYI C. MEYER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHU- SETTS; SAID FRENCH ASSIGNOE TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COM- PANY, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 781,596, dated January 31, 1905.

Application filed March 10, 1900. Serial No. 8,196.

To 111/ whom, it Uta/y concern;

Be it known that we, ZAOIIARY T. FRENCH and \Vtccmn C. MEYER, of Boston, county of Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Feeding Mechanism for Sewing-Machines, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention has for its object to improve and simplify the construction of feeding mechanism for sewing-machines, and is especially designed for use in connection with rapidlyoperating stitch-forming devices.

Feeding mechanism embodying this invention consists, essentially, ofa feeding-awl and a channel-guide located at one side of the work and a back-gage, which may also serve as a welt-guide, located at the opposite side of the work, which is adapted to cooperate with said channel-guide to hold the work at certain times during the formation of the stitches. The channel-guide is so disposed relatively to the needle-thread take-up that as said take-up rises to set the stitch the pull upon the needlethread will be resisted by said channel-guide, and consequently the work is firmly drawn toward or pressed into engagement with said channel-guide during the rising movement of the take-up, and while the work is thus held in engagement with said channelguide the feeding-awl is moved into engagement with the work, and said feeding-awl and channelgnide are then moved simultaneously to feed along the work. The feedingawl disengages the work as soon as it has accomplished its prescribed function,and then both the feedingawl and channel-guide return. The back-gage is moved rearward while the work is thus held in engagement with the channel-guide by the action of the take-up and also while the work is being fed along, but is afterward moved forward into engagement with the work at a proper time to cooperate with the channelguide in holding the work while the take-up descends. The feeding-awl and channel-guide are both located as close to the path of movel ment of the needle as possible and are moved i back and forth across said path of movement of the needle in performing their designated functions, and such location of the feedingawl and channelguide places the point of resistance for the needle-thread substantially in l line with the pull of said needle-thread, soas to obviate tilting thework when the needle-thread take-up rises and pulls the needle-thread taut and draws the work firmly into engagement with the channel-guide. The back-gage or welt-guide is adapted to engage the work with a yielding pressure and to be locked in fixed position when thus brought into engagement with the work and is adapted to properly engage the work regardlcss of its thickness or variations in its thickness, and means are provided for positively moving it rearward to disengage the work at proper times for the feeding operation.

Figure I is a left-hand-side elevation of a sewing-machine containing feeding mechan- 7o ism embodying this invention. Fig. 2 is a detail front elevation of the feeding-awl and channel-guide and means for operating them. Figs. 3 and 4 are details of the feeding-awl and channel-guide and means for moving them back and forth across the path of movement of the needle. Fig. 5 is an enlarged side elevation of the operating mechanism for I the backgage or welt-guide. Fig. (5 is a plan view and partial horizontal section of the same. Figs. 7, 8, and 9 are details of the clutch mechanism to be referred to, and Fig.

10 is a detail of the channel-guide to be referred to.

The sewing-machine which we have herein shown for the sake of illustrating this invention is the welt-sewing machine of our application Serial No. (555,165, to which reference may be had.

The mainframe comprises, essentially, the upright or column A, surmounted by a table A, having erected thereon several vertical uprights A which are constructed and arranged to afford bearings for the main shaft I3, which has secured to it several operating cams, and said uprights also afford bearings for a rod or bar C and for the other operatl ing parts of the machine.

on represents the take-up for the needlethread and is herein shown as comprising an arm having at its extremity a roll over which the needle-thread 2 passes, and said arm projects from a hub mounted upon the bar C and is adapted to oscillate thereon as required, and an arm m projects rearwardly from said hub, having at its rear extremity a stud, with or without a roll thereon, which enters a camgroove formed or provided in one side or face of a cam wheel or disk which is secured to the main shaft B.

p represents the channel-guide, (see Figs. 1, 4, and 10,) and it is herein represented as a short arm projecting in a lateral direction from an arm or other support 3), to which it is adjustably secured. The arm p extends upward and rearward and is screwed or otherwise secured to a horizontally-disposed feedslide r, supported in a guideway r, formed in the framework, and said slide a is adapted to be moved back and forth in the direction of the feed of the work. The feed-slide 0' has a vertical stud 3 projecting from its upper side or face, which enters and works in a slot 4, formed or provided in an arm 9' pivoted at r to the front side of said guideway or slidesupport r, and a stud o projects upward from the rear extremity of said arm 0 which enters a peripheral groove formed or provided in a cam wheel or disk D, which is secured to the main shaft B of the machine. As the arm 9 is swung to and fro on its pivot 1' by said cam-wheel D the feed-slide 0 will be moved back and forth in the guideway r provided for it, carrying with it the channelguide 19. The channel-guide 1) projects or extends into proximity to the path of movement of the needle and is designed to be moved back and forth across the path of movement of the needle when operated, as best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, wherein it will be seen in Fig. 3 that the point or engaging end of the channel-guide is at the right-hand side of the path of movement of the needle and in Fig. 4 that it is at the lefthand side of the path of movement of the needle, these two positions being the two extremities of the movement of the channelguide.

8 represents a feeding-awl which may have any suitable form of engaging point, and said awl is secured to the end of a curved arm 8', which is formed or provided with an oblique shank 8 which passes up through a bearing formed or provided for it and which is herein represented as formed integral with the support 1), which bears the channel-guide p, and said feeding-awl is operated in conjunction with said channel-guide to feed along the work. The feeding-awl will also occupy a position close to the path of movement of the needle and, like the channel-guide, will work back and forth across said path of movement of said needle, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, being represented in Fig. 3 as at the right of the path of movement of the needle and in Fig. 4 as at the left of the path of movement of the needle. The feeding-awl is operated to feed along the work in conjunction with the channel-guide by themovement of the feed slide 1', to which it is attached, and it is operated to engage and disengage the work by turning its shank s on its axis, and, as herein shown, the oblique shank s has secured to and projecting laterally from it a short arm 3 which is provided on its rear side with a swiveled block bearing ears 8*, to which is loosely attached the lower end of a link 8 the opposite end of which is loosely connected to the extremity of an arm .9 projecting froma hub mounted on the bar C, said hub having a rearwardly-projecting arm .9 (see dotted lines, Fig. 1,) which engages the cam D on the main shaft B. The axis of oscillation of the feeding-awl is herein shown as disposed at right angles to the movement of the feedslide and also as inclined rearward froma perpendicular, and by oscillating said awl on such an axis relative to the movement of the feed-slide it will be seen that its movement is toward and from the work and in a direction toward and from the vertical plane in which the needle works, and consequently when removed from the work will be swung to one side, so as to be out of the way of the stitchforming devices, and also when in such position will be less liable to interfere with the operator.

A back-gage a, which in this instance also serves as the welt-guide, is formed with an elongated throat for the passage of the needle tand has also a guideway for the welt, and said guide a is adapted to be moved back and forth or toward and from the work to serve as a rest for the work when in engagement therewith and cooperates with the channelguide at certain times to hold the work stationary. The back-gage or welt-guide a is adapted to bear upon the work with a yielding pressure regardless of the thickness of the stock, and thus when in engagement with the work will occupy diiferent relative positions, according to the thickness of the stock. Automatic mean-s are provided for intermittingly moving said back-gage or welt-guide u rearward or in a direction away from the work while the work is being fed along, and said automatic means is constructed and arranged to always move said back-gage or weltguide rearwardly a predetermined distance regardless of the position it occupies when in its forward positioni. 6., when in engagement with the work.

The back-gage or welt-guide a is herein shown as attached to a longitudinally-sliding bar a, supported in bearings provided for it, and said sliding bar a has at its rear end a said clutch mechanism to engage said pin or bar u but also moves said pin 01' bar rearward, so as to correspondingly move rearward the back-gage or welt-guide. The clutch mechanism is connected with and operated by an arm H", which projects downward from a hub 11", mounted on a stud a, and an arm if 3 projects upwardly from said hub If, which bears a stud so disposed as to enter a camgroove formed or provided in one side or face of a cam-wheel or disk D, being herein shown as formed in the right-hand side of said disk. The arm u is moved back and forth by said cam-wheel, and its stroke is of a predetermined length, so that the clutch mechanism which is operated by it will be moved rearward at predetermined distance each time it is operated to in turn correspondingly move rearward the back-gage or weltguide u. A spring it is attached at one end to the stud if and at the opposite end to the arm 1/, the function of which is to draw the back-gage or welt-guide forward or into position to engage the work, and said spring thus holds the back-gage or welt-guide at all times except when the clutch mechanism is operated and the back-gage or weltguide moved rearward against the action of said spring. The clutch mechanism has as a cooperative part of it a sleeve a", (see Fig. 7,) which fits loosely upon the pin or bar If, and said sleeve u" is formed or provided at its forward end with an end piece 14 which is loosely connected by a pin or otherwise to the lower end of the arm 1/, so that said sleeve may be moved back and forth by said arm. The sleeve a" is formed or provided at its rear end with two rearwardly-extended projections H, which are disposed diametrically opposite each other, and said projections a have their inner or adjacent faces inclined relatively to the pin or bar a, as shown in Figs. 5 and T. The sleeve 11. is made shorter than the pin or bar u, so that the latter not only extends entirely through it, but projects therefrom at each end, and a cap or flange 11 is secured to the forwardly-projecting end of said pin or bar, which is adapted to be engaged by the forward end of said sleeve 11 under certain conditions, yet during ordinary running of the machine said cap or flange will not be so engaged. A roller-bearing support or shell 1/ is provided, which also forms a cooperative part of the clutch mechanism, and said support or shell is made as a sleeve adapted to fit loosely upon or embrace the sleeve a". As

herein shown, said support or shell is composed of two like semicircular halves or pieces (see Fig. 8) having ears at their opposite sides, whereby they may be bolted or otherwise sccured together to form a circular sleeve-like portion which embraces the sleeve '1", and each halfor portion has a rearward extension which is formed or provided with a vertical guideway adapted to receive the ends of a pair of rollers H which are disposed one above and the other below the pin or bar a and arranged at rightangles to said pin or bar. \Vhen the two halves or portions of the support or shell u are secured together, it will be seen that the two rollers I! will be held in the vertical guideway provided for them and will bear loosely upon the pin or bar u The roller-bearing support or shell :1 is placed upon and supported by a sleeve 1/, and its circular portion which embraces said sleeve u" located between the projections u and the end piece H and said circular embracing portion is made shorter than the distance between said projections a and end piece a so that it can move longitudinally thereon a short distance, if desired, and when said roller-bearing support or shell I! is thus disposed on the sleeve 1/ its rearward extensions hold the rollers 1/ in close proximity to the inclined portions of the projections w in order that said rollers may be engaged by said inclined portions to in turn cause them to impinge upon the pin or bar (1.

A spring 1/ is connected at one end to the sleeve 11" -as, for instance, to one of the projections 1/" thereon-and at the other end to the roller-bearingsupportorshell u -as, for instance, to one of the ears thereon and the function of said spring 1/ is to normally keep the roller-hearing support or shell u in a fixed position on the sleeve H, orsubstantially so, and when said roller-bearing support or shell is thus held by said spring its circular embracing portion will occupy a position subst-antially midway between the projections H and end piece u", thereby providing a little space for play, in each direction. The spring 1/ serves as the operating device for returning or moving forward the roller-bearing support or shell 1/ and for holding it in its extreme forward position. The extreme forward position of the roller-bearing support or shell u is determined by a lug if, projecting therefrom, which engages a lixed stop on the frame.

It will be seen that when the sleeve it is in its extreme forward position and the rollerbearing support or shell u likewise in its extreme forward position the rollers will not impinge upon the pin or bar 1/, and consequently the back-gage or welt-guide is free to be moved rearward by hand against the action of the spring H", and it will also be seen that when the parts are in such relative position the back-gage or welt-guide u is held in its forward position by said spring a WVhen the arm if is moved rearward, the sleeve M9 is also moved rearward a distance corresponding to the stroke of said arm, and the inclined projections 24 will immediately engage the rollers a which impinge upon the pin or bar a and said pin or bar when thus engaged is also moved rearward a distance correspondingsubstantially to the stroke of the arm at and as said pin or bar is attached to the back-gage or welt-guide a it will be seen that said back-gage or welt-guide will be moved rearward a predetermined distance. WVhen the arm 24* returns or moves forward, the sleeve a is correspondinglymoved, and the projections 10 immediately relieve the rollers from impingement upon the pin or bar a and consequently said pin or bar and back-gage or weltguide connected with it is free to be immediately returned and brought into engagement with the work by means of the spring 14 and the roller-bearing support or shell a is also returned by means of the spring 10 to its extreme forward position d. 0., until a lug n strikes the stop. Thus it will be seen that rearward movement of theclutch mechanism 6., the sleeve a and roller-bearing support or shell it "is always a predetermined distance corresponding to the stroke of the arm 10* and that the forward movement of the sleeve 10 is determined by said arm a, while the forward movement of the roller-bearing support or shell a is determined by the lug a striking the stop. The forward movement of the back-gage or welt-guide, however, is more or less variable, depending upon the thickness of the work-as, for instance, while it is always moved rearward a predetermined distance regardless of whatever position it may occupy at the beginning of the stroke, yet when relieved it will be moved forward solely by the spring 215 until it engages the Worl and on account of variations in thickness it will consequently occupy different positions at the beginning of its rearward stroke. Thus it will be seen that when the work is thick the back-gage or welt-guide will occupy a farther rearward position when engaged by the clutch mechanism than when the work is thin, and vice versa.

Instead of having the back-gage or weltguide bear upon the work with a yielding pressure incident to the employment of the spring 16 it is usually preferred to hold it stationary or look it in such position, yet such position will be variable according to the thickness of the stock, and consequently we have herein provided a locking device which is constructed and arranged to lock the sliding bar a in any position that it may occupy when the back-gage or welt-guide is moved forward into engagement with the work. The locking device herein shown consists, essentially, of a plate o, having a serrated upper edge secured to one side of said bar a, and a dog 4/ is adapted to engage it, which is pivoted at o to the frame, and said dog 1/ has a projection 41 which is engaged by a detent c", projecting downwardly from a hub '0 mounted on a stud on the frame, said hub having an upwardlyeXtended arm 4;, which bears a stud which is adapted to enter a cam-groove formed or provided in one side or face of the disk D being herein provided on the left-hand side of said disk. The dog 1) is operated to engage the plate and hold the back-gage or welt-guide in fixed position except when the arm a is operating to move rearward said back-gage or welt-guide. An adjustable stop-pin u is provided, against which the plate '0 strikes, which limits the forward movement of the backgage or welt-guide, and the cap or flange a hereinbefore referred to, limits the rearward movement thereof independent of the clutch mechanism, so that in any event said backgage or welt-guide will move within certain prescribed limits.

The operation of feeding the work along is as follows: While the take-up m is rising to set the stitch and is drawing the needle-thread taut, the work is being pulled by the needlethread toward the channel-guide p, and the operator is thus assisted'in holding the work. After the stitch has been set and while the work is yet firmly held up against the channel-guide by the action of the take-up the feeding operation takes -place-that is to say, the feeding-awl moves into engagement with the work preparatory to feeding the work along and the back-gage or welt-guide a recedes just as or before the feeding movement takes place, and the channel-guide and feeding-awl then both move a short distance in a direction toward the left, moving from one to the other side of the path of movement of the needle and carrying the work along with it, and immediately after or as soon as the work has been thus fed along the back-gage or welt-guide u moves forward into engagement with the work, so as to retard any retrograde motion, and the feeding-awl disengages the work at or about the same time, and the channelguide and disengaged feeding-awl then move a short distance in a directiontoward the right preparatory to again operating to feed the work along. While it is preferable for many reasons to operate the feeding devices at such times and in the manner specified, yet we do not desire to thus limit our invention.

We claim- 1. In a sewing-machine, a needle, a feedingfinger and a channel-guide and means for moving both said feeding-finger and channel-guide crosswise the path of movement of the needle, from a position at one side of, to a position at the opposite side of said needle, substantially as described.

2. In a sewing-machine, a needle, a feedingfinger and a channel-guide and means for moving both said feeding-finger and channel-guide crosswise the path of movement of the needle, from a position at one side of, to a position at the opposite side of said needle, a backgage and means for reciprocating it in a direction toward and from said feeding-linger and channel-guide, substantially as described.

3. In a sewing-machine, the combination of a feeding-finger and a channel-guide, a takeup for the needle-thread operating on the same side of the work that the feeding-finger and channel-guide are located, and movable toward and from said feeding-finger and channel-guide and acting, by drawing the needlethread taut when setting the stitch, to hold the work firmly pressed into engagement with said feeding-linger and channel-guide, and means for moving said feeding-tinger and channel-guide from one to the other side of the path of movement of the needle, to feed along the work while the work thus held by the take-up, substantially as described.

I. In a sewing-machine, a feeding-linger and a channel-guide, means for moving them back and forth crosswise the path of movement of the needle, from one side to the other side of said needle, a needle-thread ta ke-up operating on the same side of the work that the feeding-finger and channel-guide are located for holding the work pressed into engagement with said feeding-finger and channel-guide by drawing the needle-thread taut when setting the stitch while said feeding-linger and channel-guide operate to feed along the work, and a back-gage cooperating with said channelguide, and means for moving it toward and from said channel-guide to engage and disengage the work, said back-gage disengaging the work while said feeding-finger and channel-guide operate to feed the work along, substantially as described.

5. In a sewing-machine, the combination of stitch-forming devices,a horizontally-reciproeating feed-slide movable toward and from said stitch-forming devices, and an oscillating feeding-awl borne by said slide having its axis ol" oscillation at right angles to the movement of said slide, substantially as described.

6. .In a sewirig-machine, the combination of stitch-forming devices, a horizontally-reciprocating feed-slide movable toward and from said stitch forming devices, an oscillating feeding-awl borne by said slide having its axis of oscillation at right angles to the movement of said slide and inclining rearward from a perpendicular, substantially as described.

T. In a sewing-machine, the combination of stitch-forming devices,a horizontally-reciproeating feed-slide movable toward and from said stitclrforming devices, the fecding-awl a, curved arm s hearing it having a shank s oscillating in a bearing provided on said slide, the axis of oscillation of said t'ceding-awl being at right angles to the movement of said slide, substantially as described.

8. In a sewing-machine, thecombination of stitch-forming devices, an oscillating feedingawl having its axis of oscillation at right angles to the axis of the needle, means for moving said feeding-ital upward and backward when disengaging the work, a feed-slide bearing said fe(.dingawl, and means for moving said feed-slide in the direction of the feed of the work, substantially as described.

9. In a sewing-machine, the combination of stitch-forming mechanism, an oscillating teeding-awl movable in an upward and backward direction, the axis of said t'ecding-awl being at right angles to the axis of the needle, and means for moving said 't'ecding-awl bodily in the direction of the feed ol the work, substantially as described.

In testimony whereot' we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ZACIIARY 'l. FRENCH. \VI IiLl AM (J. MEYER.

\Vitnesscs:

B. J. Norms, J. L. IIU'FCIIINSON.

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