At the recent semi-annual meeting of the New England Cotton
Manufacturers' Association, held at the Institute of Technology, Boston,
the following paper on the Harris system of revolving ring spinning was
read by Col. Webber for the author:
It is well known that one of the most serious difficulties in ring
spinning is the variable pull upon the traveler, caused by the
difference in diameter of the full and empty bobbins, and this is
especially noticeable in spinning weft, or filling, when the diameter of
the quill at the tip is not over 3-16 of an inch, while that of the base
of the cone, or full bobbin, is from an inch to an inch and one-eighth.
This variation in diameter causes the line of draught upon the traveler,
which, with the full bobbin, forms nearly a tangent to the interior
circle of the ring, to be nearly radial to it with an empty one, and
this increased drag upon the traveler not only causes frequent breakage
in spinning, but also stretches the yarn, so that it is perceptibly
finer when it is spun on the nose of the bobbin than when it is spun on
the bottom of the cone.
Endeavors have been made to compensate for this difficulty by making
a less draught at that period of the operation; but we believe the
principle of curing one error by adding another to be wrong, and aim by
our improvement to avoid the cause of the trouble, which we do by giving
a revolving motion to the ring itself in the same direction as that of
the traveler, at a variable speed, so as to aid its slip, and reduce its
friction on the ring. This we accomplish by means of a shaft with whorls
on it, located directly over the drum for driving the spindle, from
which bands drive each ring separately; and attached by cross-girts to
the ring-rail, and moving up and down with it.
This shaft is driven by a pair of conical drums from the main cylinder
shaft, and is so arranged with a loose pulley on the large end of the
receiving cone as to remain stationary while the wind is on or near the
base of the bobbin, or nearly parallel to the path of the traveler.
When the cone of the bobbin begins to diminish to such a point as to
materially increase the radial pull on the traveler, these conical drums
are put in operation by a belt shipper attached to the lift motion,
which moves the belt on to the cones, and gives a continually
accelerated motion to the rings, so that when the wind reaches the top
of the bobbin the rings will have their maximum speed of about 300
revolutions per minute, or about one-twentieth the number of revolutions
of the spindle at this point, if the latter make 6000 revolutions per
minute, and this we find in actual practice to produce results which are
highly satisfactory.
As the lift falls again, the belt is moved back on the cones, giving a
retarding motion to the rings, until it reaches the point at which it
began to operate, and is then either moved on to the loose pulley, and
the rings remain stationary, or for very fine yarn are kept in motion at
a slow speed. We are often asked if this does not affect the twist, but
answer that it does not in the least, as the relative speeds of the
rolls and spindles remain the same, and the only thing that can be
affected is the hardness of the wind upon the bobbin, and this is
adjustable by the use of a heavier or lighter traveler, according to the
compactness of cop required.
We claim by means of this improvement the ability to use a much smaller
quill or bobbin, and consequently holding as much yarn in a less outside
diameter, enabling us to use a smaller ring, thus saving power both in
the weight of bobbin to be carried and in the distance to be moved by
the traveler; and we believe the power to be saved in this manner and by
the diminution of the dead pull on the traveler, when the wind is at
the tip of the bobbin, to be more than sufficient to give the necessary
motion to the revolving rings. We are as yet unable to answer this
question of power fully, as we have not yet tested a full size frame,
but we propose to do this in season to answer all questions at the next
meeting of your association.
The same invention is also applicable to warp spinning, by giving the
ring a continuous accelerating and retarding motion, in which the
maximum speed is given to the ring at the first start of the frame when
the bobbin is empty, sufficient to diminish the strain on the yarn,
and gradually reducing the motion at each traverse of the rail, as the
bobbin is filled; but we claim the great advantage of our invention to
be the capability of spinning any grade of yarn on the ring frame that
can be spun on the hand or self-operating mule, and in proof of this we
call your attention to the model frame now in operation at the fair of
the New England Manufacturers' and Mechanics' Institute, where we are
spinning on a quill only 5-32 inches diameter at top, and where we can
show you samples of yarn from No. 80 to No. 400 spun on this frame from
combed roving from the Conant Thread Company and Willimantic Linen
Company, which we believe has never before been accomplished on any ring
frame.
We invite you to examine this invention at the fair, and also call your
attention to the adjustable roller beam, by means of which the rolls can
be adjusted at any desirable angle or pitch, so as to throw the twist
more or less directly spinning, and an improvement in the quality of the
yarn from the same cause, which will increase the production from the
loom, and finally eradicate other objectionable features of the labor
question, which so often disturb the peaceful harmony between labor and
capital.
Mr, Goulding asked if it had been demonstrated whether more or less
power was required for the same numbers than effect of running the
machine a little out of true, and the reply was that the advantage of
the new method over the old would be more apparent in such a case than
with a perfect frame. In regard to speed, the inventor proposed as
a maximum rate, when the wind was at the tip of the bobbin, 300
revolutions per minute, but from this point the speed would diminish.
Conant Thread Company and Willimantic Linen Company, which we believe
has never before been accomplished on any ring frame.
We invite you to examine this invention at the fair, and also call your
attention to the adjustable roller beam, by means of which the rolls can
be adjusted at any desirable angle or pitch, so as to throw the twist
more or less directly into the bite of the rolls, according to the
character of the yarn desired, or the quality of the stock used.
Finally, we claim, by the use of this invention, to be able to spin any
fibrous material which can be drawn by draught-rolls, of any required
degree of softness of twist, such as can be spun by any mule whatever,
and to do this with the attention only of children of from twelve to
fourteen years of age.
We also claim an increased production, owing to less breakage of ends,
from the yarn not being overstrained in spinning, and an improvement in
the quality of the yarn from the same cause, which will increase the
production from the loom, and finally eradicate other objectionable
features of the labor question, which so often disturb the peaceful
harmony between labor and capital.
Mr. Goulding asked if it had been demonstrated whether more or less
power was required for the same numbers than by other methods, and Col.
Webber replied that no more power was required to move the rings than
was saved by friction on the ring and the saving of weight of the
bobbins. He thought it required no more power than the old way.
_The method of lubricating the ring_.--The inventor, who was present,
stated, in response to a query, that he claimed an advantage for his
ring in spinning all numbers from the very coarsest up, both in quality
and quantity, and especially the former.
Mr. Garsed inquired of Col Webber what would be the effect of running
the machine a little out of true, and the reply was that the advantage
of the new method over the old would be more apparent in such a case
than with a perfect frame. In regard to speed, the inventor proposed
as a maximum rate, when the wind was at the tip of the bobbin, 300
revolutions per minute, but from this point the speed would diminish.
It was suggested by a member that the only advantage of a revolving ring
was to relieve the strain on the traveler just to the extent of the
ring's revolutions. If the ring were making 300 revolutions per minute,
and the traveler 6,000, the strain on the latter would be equal to 5,700
revolutions on a stationary ring. Col. Webber, however, thought that the
motion of the ring gave the traveler a lift that prevented its stopping
at any particular point, and cited the fact that all numbers up to 400
could be spun with this ring as proof of its superiority over the old
method.
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