US2497231A - Sewing machine - Google Patents

Description

Feb.14,1950 T E. MQNROE 2,497,231`

SEWING MACHINE original Filed ,Ja-n. 1o, 1941 3 sheets-sheet 1 Feb. 14, 1950 Y y T. E, MONROE 2,497,231

SEWING MACHINE Original Filed Jan. l0, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 'r E MONROE SEWING MACHINE Original Filed Jan. l0, 1941 Feb. 14 1950 Patented Feb. 14, 1950 Thomas E.' Monroe; New'- one-lialf to William R. i Y, N'. Y.. andone-fouith to William Rl Donaldson, asf trustee; Williamit. Donaldson administrator ofsa'id Thomasv E'. Monroe, d'cealsed cation. Serial No. 37329746, This application October 20', 1944', Se'raIiNo. 559,579'

January 1'0, 1941?.A

This .invention relatesI to improvements in sewing machines..

It is anobject.. of. the..inventionv to provide a portable sewingmachine of. an improvedt'ype and in this aspect.the:inventionconstitutes an. iinprovement upon the disclosures of my Patent No. 2,152,203, issued.V March.. 28,. 1939, and. upon. my Patent No. 2,206,484@ issuedI July 2, 1940. The present applioationis acontinuation of. my earlier iilerlfY co-pending. application.. for United States Letters Patent, Serial. No.2 3'.'I3',9T7`6,,iiled`V January 10, 1.94.1.. The method eof. stitching disclosed herein` is. the subjectof myfco-rpending application frfor United States..Letters.Patent,.Serial No.. 559,580, filed October 20, 1944;

A- further objectof. the, invention is .to.provide, in a rportable sewing. machine, `means f orforming astitchhaving locking. charaeteristics` more closely.v approximating those of full size'conventional machines', while; avoidingI the complex mechanism: common `to such machines.

A. further. object of: the` invention .is to. provide mechanismadaptedto the-:production of a-double loop. stitch, or stitch in-.whichrthe loopsfare--taken alternately from two'threads; with a singleneedle.

Aafurther objectoff the; invention is to provide improved means for makingsuchfadouble loop stitch with alternate loops of different lengths, producing an'y improvedlocking' action.

Withthese and other objects which will appear in the following description" in mind,.the invention consists in the combinations and arrangements. of parts. and. details of .construction which will now. be describedinconnection withthe accompanyingv drawingand. then pointed out .more particularly inthe appendedclaims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a-y sidefe1evation...of. a'portablesewing machine.. embodying. the invention. in: a preferred form and with. the upper. portion vbroken. 4away to show the drive mechanism in4 central. vertical an-enlargedfscale:

Fig. .4 is a Horizontal section-.takenonftheiine AL-AoFig; 3

Donalison,. Northport;y

Fig. 5-isa horizontal section-taken' on theline 5225? ofFig; B-vand showing particularly the'lower pai-tof. tliemachine; .comprising the thread holdihgan/dfloop.forminglmechanism Figs?. 6 and; 7. are fragmentaryl Views vsimilar to Fig; 5 andsnowingtherpartsin different-,positions assumed in operation:ofthe-'device Fig; Sois a verticalcross'section taken on' the lined-Stofzlig. 3';

Figi 9" is a'horizontal'sectionltakenV on the'line STL-9' of4A Fig; 8` and' showing4 the constructionA of the shuttle ;Y

Figs'.A ioto' 14inc1usive'are-views ofpart ofthe thread' handling` mechanism shown in Figs, 5* to ''on an enlargedseale and showing theparts in the. positionsassumed at' diie'rent stages of the operatiom. A

Eig. 15 is. a schematic showing ofthe stitch formed bythe machine asv seen from the top or obverse side. of. the .fabric Fig: 16 is a-sideview of. the stitch offlig".l 15, th'eflayers of fabricA being indicatedby dot'. and dashjlines';

Fig. .17 is a View. similar to Fig. 16 but-showing al .modified -forrn' Vof stitch; 4and Figi... 18 l`is: a plan'viewoff aY portion of theiabric table, showing particularly. the. apertures for accommodating the needle andfeeding foot;

Referring-1 particularly` to: Figs. 1- and 3 the machine ofthesinvention comprisesra U-'frame A; to one arm of which is attached a needle operating headV B; athread-handling head C- being similarlyattached to the: otherarrn.. The" fabric being placedupon the table D-forming'the top' of the threadlhandling head C' is heldthereon by presser foot E andadvanced" along the table D bya' feedingv foot F, cooperating with an inclined extension of thetable D". Needle'meclianism similar to that of my aboveementioned copending application is employed'and" comprises generally a hooked or barbed' needle attached to a plunger and a pin J. recipr'ocablev within the needle.. and. serving. together with' the barbed end tofiorman. eye in the tip yci the needle. Thread from spoolsKfandL.1is:.supplied to theneedle by meansof a shuttle- M having a cam-surfaceN, and .ashoe .O supported by a spring. Pl and. adapted to: be operated by feedingefoot-F.

. ing the tension on the spools.

Method of stitching The method of stitch formation will be best understood from Figs. to 16 inclusive and involves the production of alternate and interlocked loops from the respective threads 7c and Z taken from spools K and L, in the following manner: The machine being threaded and the threads passed through the small holes o, o, or thread guides in shoe O as shown in Fig. 10, the descending feeding foot F in advancing the fabric pushes the shoe O against cam N into the position of Fig. 11 so that the descending needle H enters the shoe to the right of thread k as shown in Fig. 11, the motion of the pin J being retarded so that the eye in the needle H is open. At this stage, the pressure of the feeding foot F against the shoe is relaxed so that the shoe returns to the position of Fig. 10 as shown in Fig. 12, forming a loop in thread k within the eye of the needle. The needle upon being drawn upwards through the fabric carries the loop with it. On the next downstroke of the needle it passes through the previously formed loop and the sequence of events is repeated. The tension in thread 7c produced by the needle pulling on the loop, however, .moves shuttle M across so that the shoe O, on being moved toward the shuttle by the feeding foot F, now encounters the vopposite side of the cam N, pushing the shoe into the position of Fig. 13 so that the needle enters the same to the left of thread Z, as shown in that gure. Upon relaxing of the pressure of the feeding foot F against the shoe, the shoe returns to the position of Fig. 14 with a loop from thread l caught by the needle. Theupstroke of the needle thus draws a loop from thread Z (instead of thread lc) upward through the fabric and through the loop previously formed from thread k. Repetition of this operationV results in the formation of the stitch;y

shown schematically in Figs. and 16 in which each thread, k or Z, passes through the fabric at alternate stitches, so that the loops on the top or obverse side of the fabric, as shown in Fig. 15, present the appearance of a simple chain stitch but with the loops of the chain coming alternately from the two spools. On the reverse side the stitch presents the appearance, as shown in Fig. 16, of parallel straight courses of thread, two stitches in lengthY and staggered as shown. By using threads k and Z of different colors, as indicated in Fig. 15, a stitch of decorative character is readily produced.

As will be seen,.the stitch of the invention possesses locking characteristics not to be found in ordinary chain stitches. In an ordinary open chain stitch, it is often possible for the loops to 1 disengage successively when tension along the ployed, is largely obviated in the stitch of the invention, in which the loops come alternately from different threads so that tension on one thread results rather in catching and rmly holding the other, than in assisting it to unravel.

In certain cases and particularly where very heavy fabrics are being sewed, it is desirable to increase the locking effect of the stitch by vary- As shown in Fig-v ure 17, the application of greater tension to thread Z than to thread k results in the formation of shorter loops in the former, producing a reverse bend in the loops of the latter, as shown. As shown to the right of Fig. 1'7, when the thread starts to unravel the long loop from the thread lc falls back and catches the short loop of thread Z, thus stopping the unraveling.

Drive mechanism The machine for producing the stitch as described is operated entirely by the up and down motion of a needle plunger body which reciprocates through apertures 2 and 3 in a frame 4 fastened within the outer casing 5 of the needle operating head B. This reciprocating motion is produced through a pitman 6 attached to the upper end of plunger I by a pin 'i and driven through wrist pin 8 by crank 3 mounted on a shaft I0, journaled in a bushing or bearing at the upper end of the head B. Shaft I!! is preferably driven by an electric motor (not shown) through a flexible shaft I2 in a casing I3 as shown, it being understood that these terminate in an electric motor which may be plugged in at any convenient outlet. Shaft I0 carries on wheel l5 an annular gear wheel i6 driven by the shaft I2 vthrough a pinion Il. To permit hand operation of the machine when desired, the wheel l5 is formed with arirn I3 and carries the annular gear wheel |6 loosely within a recess formed in the wheel l5 and between the wheel and a face plate i9 aixed thereto. As best shown in Fig. 2, a gear wheel IB is formed with apertures having radial faces 20 and cam faces 2| and receiving balls or discs 22, this arrangement constituting a unidirectional clutch. As will be understood, counterclockwise rotation of wheel l5 by hand unclutches the gear wheel i6 by carrying the balls or discs 22 against the radial faces 2Q, thus permitting hand operation. On the other hand, counterclockwise rotation of the gear wheel I6 forms a driving connection between gear wheel I6 and the shaft Il] through the cam faces 2| and discs 22. Y

Variation in the stitch 4produced is provided for by mounting the crank 9 upon a shaft 23 aixed thereto Yand passing eccentrically through shaft IG. Afxed to the other end of the shaft 23 is an arm 24 having a boss 25 adapted to enter any of a number of indentations 26 in face plate I9 and to remain therein by reason of the spring of arm 2d. By means of this arrangement, seating of the arm 24 in any of the various angular positions provided for varies the effective length of crank 9 and thus varies the length of the stitch produced.

Needle operatingY and fabric feeding mechanism The needle plunger I bears the needle H fastened to it by means of block 2'! and screw 28, and has, by reason of the crank arrangement just described, a simple reciprocatory movement. This plunger also serves, through mechanism about to be described, to impart the required movements to the feeding foot F and the needle pin J. Needle pin J terminates at its upper end in a T-head 29 within a cutout 30 in the plunger I and feeding foot F is carried by a body portion 3| formed with an angle 32 adapted for engagement by the lower end of plunger I and with a crosswise abutment 33 adapted to seat under an abutment 34 formed on the plunger I as shown in Fig. 3. The body portion 3| includes also a projection 35 adapted to limit its stroke and wings 3Sk passing .around'plunger I and formed with enea-esi Atsthe'commencement of the downstroke of pjlunger'I, the feeding' foot F; through angle3-2 and` abutment 33, is positively carriedA` along; with it and the needle pin. J; through T--head 29-and rise 31; is also carried withthe plunger;l ABy-reason of4 the*I incline of table G'the'feeding foot* is urged to the left during' thisdownwardl move"- ment', so thatY the angle` 32-disengages from the lower end ofthe piungerI. At thistimeorshort'- lythereafter, Tehead 2S?` encounters a rise' 40 formedV in' the casing 5; disengaging abutments 33 and 34 by pressing the feeding footbody 3i back'Y against spring 38. Continuing` motion of the plunger I brings the'upperend of cutout' 30 'against I`head 29, carryingthel same over the rise 4U intov a recessY 4I where it stops. At" this point the lower end of-- the pin. J1 will'be slightly below thelevel of the fabric. Meanwhile the plunger I; continuing to move, will have carried the lower end 42 of spring 33, which is. slanted as shown, over the: corresponding slant ofv the boch/3,31 of feeding footF just above theV angle 32, and the lower end of the plunger engaging the curve of feeding foot Fbelow the angle Y32 will have wedged' the feeding foot tothe left out of pressing contact with the fabric.

As the upstroke of'the needle commences the barb Hof needle I-I` engages the lower end ofV pin JV closing` the eye of the needle with a loop of threadtherein and' thereafter returns the. needle pin J to the position of, Fig. 3. The feeding foot vrises directly upward with the plunger I, being heldA against the same by the lower end 42' of spring 38` (at this time below the angle32), until projection engages an adjustable stop 45. on

the wall of casing 5, which engagement stops .the movement of the feeding foot. The. plunger I, however, continues to move upward. until. it reaches the position of Eig. 3, yat which pointthe abutment 34 slips back under abutment. 33 andV the angle 32 slips back under the lower endv of the plunger I under the influence of` spring 3B, thus returning the parts to starting position'for the next stitch.

To coordinate the stroke of the feeding foot F with the stroke of the plunger I for various lengths of stitches, the stop 45 is. carried on a pin 46 within a vertical slot Min the casing 5T andi is postionable by means of a thumb nut 43 atvarious heiglfits'thereonA to correspond with the various strokes of the' plunger I produced by setting of the arm 24 as described above.

The fabric is conveniently held on the table D bythe presser foot E urged downward by a weight 49- and slidably mounted' on a track 50 attached -to the headB by means of clips 51' and guide pins 52, the presser foot being formed with an opening 53 to permit passage therethrough of the needle and feeding foot as described;

Thread v.handling mechanism Oiscarried on aspringPlfastened byV means of' screw 5b to a frame member 51.' imbedded' in the casingj body 580il the head C andv is formed with a grooved upper surface T1'extendingdownwardly atan-incline somewhat less. than thatofthe table. AGso'that'the fabricmoving d'ownlthesame under the feeding'foot urges the shoe Oi inwardly. (to the `right in Fig; 3)', the-rounded: end or noseof shoe Oi accordingly-` engaging the cam N so. that the shoe is wedged toionesideinto the position o-fFig. 6 or 7, depending.` upon the-position of; the camN. Cam Nfis controlled; through-.the shuttle IVI-upon which it'iscarried, bythe tension ofthe threads andl passing' through openings 59. and 60? atithe ends of-shuttle MY. Theshuttle Mis'lides 0 back and forth on a frame 5I formed on 0r attached to the frame member 51 and having a cutout 621 limiting, themovement. of shuttle M- by means of apinupon thelatter. To lower friction, a wheel 54 may be mounted upon the pin 53 to :furnisha riding surface for. the nose of the shoe O after ithas been pushed to one. side or the other4 by the point of cam N.

With. this arrangement, it will be understood that, starting. in the position of Fig, 5, for example, the shoe will'engage the left side of camN (looking towardlthev cam) so that the shoe will be deilected'sidewise into the position of Fig. 6, the needle picking up a loop from the thread lc. When the shoereturns'to the position of'Fig. 5,

25. and the needle risesv and draws theloop with it,

the tension created upon thread, 7c moves the shuttle M over. to the left (looking toward.. the shuttle) so, that the cam N is positioned on the opposite side oftheshoe O- in. preparation for V30 the next operation. On the next downstroke of the feedingy foot, the shoe O" accordingly engages the opposite` side. of the cam N and`is deected into the positionofFi'g. 7 so thatv the needle now picksup-.a loop from .the threadl. By this. means the stitch described above, and havingv loops formed alternately fromztwothreads, is produced.

Thread" tensioning arrangement Theinvention contemplates avery simple, but

40. nevertheless, eiective method off thread tensioning. Asbest shown in. Figs. 3 and. 5 to 8, the

spools. K. and ,-Lare carried,ingenerallycylindrical recesses-Y formed in the body 58. ofv the. head C and-the threads 7c and l passing upwardly over guide surfaces 65 are given therequiredslight tensionby reason of their wraparound the guide surfaces ,f and. the consequent friction produced. The spools are held within the. recesses byv means of, a cover plate k(it.I attached.`V to the. body 58 by hinges 61 and having formed'. with itan upper mately Vthe .proper longitudinal-position by means of; bosses Iii-and 'Il onthebody-BB and cover- E6 respectively.

Asit may bedesired under. certain conditions to produce. a .single chainstitch, I .have provided 60 meansfor immobilizing shuttle-Mty when desired,

thesetaking the form of slides. 12 carried by means of. pins. 13 and slots-14 on the'depending portions B-Qofthe cover B6. Either of theseslides, by means of a button 1.5.-attached to thepin 13,

may` be. set inithe position of.- Fig'. 5..so. asnotto interfere Iwith the. motion ofthe shuttleM ormay be slid.. over so. as. to.. hold. theshuttlein either of its extreme positions.. Asv will. be. apparent, when the shuttle'is. so held .the shoe O. will always engagethe same side of. cam.N and.. accordingly a stitch willbe formed from.a.single one ofthe threads 7c and. l.

Thisaction ofthe slides 12," controlledfbyhutton 15,'would obviously permitof-the producing. of, a

"numb'er of'stitclies from one of" thev s110015 0f 7 thread which may be of one color, then the stitches may be shifted by this mechanism to the thread from the other spool, which may be of another color; in this manner the slide mechanism 'i2 permits of decorative sewing in any manner desired, using any number of stitches of one color `as against any number of stitches of the other color. This produces the possibility of distinctive decorative combinations in the sewing.

Operation In preparing to operate the machine, the frame A, provided with a felt or rubber surfaced base 'I6 for that purpose, is clamped to a chair arm or table edge or other convenient location and the motor (not shown) is plugged in. Spools K and L are placed in the thread holder and the respective threads are brought through the notches 59 and 60 and passed through the holes in the nose of the shoe O. Wheel I is now turned by hand to pick up both threads and the loops above the table are pulled out with a needle or other instrument so as to bring the loose thread ends above the fabric table D, G. The fabric is now inserted under presser foot E and feeding foot F and the machine is in condition for operation.

The length of stitch is selected by setting arm 24 to a desired position and stop 45 by means of thumb nut 48 is set to adjust the feeding foot motion correspondingly by means of suitable indicia (not shown) on the outside of the casing.

`Stop 45 may also be set with relation to the plunger l' by trial, when the latter is at the upper end of its stroke. In operation the needle plunger moves downwardly to a point where the needle is about to enter the fabric, at which time the needle pin J, being held back by rise 40 as described, opens the eye of the needle I-I (this releasing any loop of thread about the needle). Shortly thereafter the feeding foot, which has been moving downwardly and to the left and thus advancing the material under the needle, is freed from its engagement with the lower end of the plunger I and the abutment 34 so that the fabric is stationary at the time the needle point enters it. The needle, continuing to move, enters the fabric and passes through it and through the aperture 54 ,into the shoe O which by this time, through the action of the feeding foot F and the cam N, h-as been positioned to one side as shown in Fig. 11. Continued motion downward of the needle plunger I results in the feeding foot F being shoved aside, permitting the shoe O to return to the position of Fig. 12 and results further in the needle pin J, through its head 29 and the upper edge of the cutouts 30, following the needle through the fabric to a point just above shoe O. Upon the return stroke, the hook of the needle picks up the loop of thread and the barb 44 of the needle encounters the lower end of the needle pin J thus closing the eye of the needle about the thread. Further motion lifts the needle pin J along with the needle so that T-head 29 passes out of depression 4l over the rise 4D and returns to the position of Fig. 3. The feeding foot F, in the manner described above, follows the needle plunger I vertically upward to the point Where projection 35 engages stop 45 and then stops, coming back to engagement with the plunger I under the bottom of the plunger and abutment 34 upon the plunger completing its upward stroke.

If .it is desired to make the stitch of Fig. 17 for increasing the locking effect, either spool (L,

as shown in Fig. 8) may be reversed end for end "so that it unwinds in the same direction as the other spool (counterclockwise in Fig. 8) the path of travel in this event being shown in broken lines at l'. The resulting sharper bend around the guide 65 increases the tension on spool L as compared with spool K. In consequence, the loop formed from spool L having first had the succeeding loop from spool K formed through it is then drawn back by the tension on the thread as the cloth is advanced and by the tension produced in forming the second succeeding loop resulting in the stitch as shown in Fig. 17.

The above described mechanism, as will be seen, is capable of forming stitch patterns which are variable depending not only on the physical characteristics of the threads employed but on the selective operation or control of the thread carrier or shoe O by means of the members 15. Thus a line or a portion of a line of stitches may be formed of a single thread from one of the spools K or L depending on which of the members 15 is in position for controlling the selective actuation of the thread carrier, or a second line of stitches or a second portion of a given line may be formed from thread from the other spool by the reverse operation of the members 15, all as described above. Also when desired, the stitches of one type or character of thread may be formed alternately with stitches of a different thread, the latter stitch pattern resulting from the operation of the machine with both members 15 in the positions shown in Figure 5. Such variations of the stitch pattern may be effected without rethreading the machine to effect'a change from one pattern or order of stitches to another, since the thread carrier O retains the ends of the threads in position for selective engagement by the needle mechanism in regularly recurring order or in a different selected order, as mentioned, depending on the position of the cam N which can be controlled operatively by means of the members 15. The improved machine thus enables an operator, when desirable, conveniently to vary selectively in a desired order the physical charr acteristics of the stitches whether those characteristics relate to color of thread, length of stitches, or form thereof, and while mechanism illustrative of the invention has been shown and described it will be apparent that variations of such mechanism may be utilized within the spirit, and embodying the principles, of the present improvementsty What is claimed is:

1. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermittently along said table, a reciprocable hooked needle, means for reciprocating said needle through the fabric to a point below said table during each dwell in the said intermittent movement, means for holding two sources of thread supply below said table, and means for positioning thread for engagement by said needle alternately from the said sources of supply, comprising a thread carrier positionable to place a thread from either of r said sources of supply at the said point, and actuating means for the said thread carrier comprising a member adapted to be yieldably pressed against the lower side of the fabric in the path of movement of the said fabric advancing means.

2. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermittently along said table, a reciprocable hooked needle, means for reciprocating said needle through said fabric to a point below said table during each dwell in the said intermittent movement, means the fabric after the said needlehas descended into position for engagementwith athreadl` 3-. A sewing machine according to claim 2,v in which the said means for positioning thread include a cam positionable to eitherside of the said member, and thread guiding means at each side 1 of the said camwhereby tension'on athreadfrom eithersource of thread supply when engaged by said needle is adapted to move the said camfto deect -the thread carrier into position for engagingthreadff-romthe other source of thread'supply 1 with the'said needle.r

4. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermittently alongsaid tableja reciprocable hooked needle, means for reciprocating said' needlethrough said fabric to a point below said table during each dwell in the said. intermittent movement, means for holdingtwo sources of thread supplyv below said table and means for positioning thread" for engagement by said needle alternately from the said sources of.' supply, the last said meansv comprising a member having a needle engaging surface and a thread' guideon each side thereof, means for moving said mem-ber'to` bring threads carried by both said guides to either side of said needle, and means for pressing said. member toward' saidk needle to bring said surfacezin contact with said needle and engage thenearer'thread therein. f

5. A sewing machine comprising a. reciprocable needle operating'member, a fabric supportv beneath said member, aneedle' having: a threadV engageable portion operable by said member to and from a thread engaging position beneathA said support', a thread retainingA and releasing member; reciprocable with respectto the needle during portions of the reciprocating movements of; the

' latter; amovable thread-carrier beneath said support. and having a 'thread-end' receiving portion arrangedv to: receive the; threadI engaging portiom of the needle on 'each downward stroke thereof, means. cooperating with said carrier for causing the latterfto move relative to-saidneedle in a direction to effect engagement of theendgportionzof the thread inthe carrier bysaid thread engaging; portion of the needle while the. latter is within said carrier, and means -for eiectingoperating-1V of said thread retaining and; releasing member for retaining the engaged portion ot the thread in the thread engaging portion. of the'. needleduringl the upward. stroke of the-latter. and for releasing said thread: above-,the fabric during the.- initial portion of the subsequent downwardy stroke of the needle.

6. A sewing machine adapted to*` form suc-- cessiveA inter-engaging loop stitches on: the obverse sidefof a fabric comprising a support for the fabric, a reciprocable. needle carrier above the support, a needle carried thereby provided with means for engagingv thread beneath. the support and! drawing successive thread loops. up-

. vvardly .through the fabric. andz through4 the respective previously Aformedgloops.- and releasing each loopl about-the needle, 4,a plurality of. sources of thread of different physical characteristics, a movable: lthreadi-carrien beneath, saidi support adapted' to. receive; and; retain; end portions- Oi thread off. said sourceszandi moat/.edi ini of, PQS'ffOIl for receiving the threadengaeibg portion` offthe needle, on. each downward: stroke. thereohmeans for actuating; said'. threadicarnier` in'L timed relationfwitn respect tothemovemerrts-poi said thread engaging portion. of the; needle fori directing.y ene gagement of one on said:` threadV portions-*with saidY needlee portion.t whereby# upon'L each, upward strokeof the needlea: loop of sad'engagedthread is4 drawn upwardly., through, the fabric,Y and through. the previously.: formed loop and is;v re.- leased-I about? saidineedleonithe succeed-ingA down;- ward'Y stroke thereof,- andimeansf. forf effecting the selective actuation. of said; thread:A carrierrelative to the thread engaging; portion: of the needle.L for causing engagement. ofi said` threads. by: said thread. engaging portioni of" the needle inf` a; se.- lected: order to: providef ai stitch pattern: de terminedv byv said' orderV ofi selection..

7. A sewing machine adapted: to:- form successive interengaging; loop stitchesonz the obverse side of" a fabricl` comprising ai. support: fors-*the fabric, a. reciprocable needle carrier above.-y the support; a needle-carried thereby provided-with means forengagi-ng thread beneatnjtha sup.-

por-t and' drawing successive. threadg loops; upwardly through the fabric and:l throughf the respective previously fior-medi loops and: releasing each loop aboutthe needle, aplurality oisources off thread of diferentphysical characteristics; a movable thread'-carr-ierl beneath saide support adapted'A toreceive and? retain: end: portionscf threado said`r sources and located:j in: a. position forl receiving' the: thread? engagingl portion of the needle on each-vv downward stroke-f thereon, Vmeans for actuating said.'v threadi-carrier' to different 'positions in regularlyI recurring orderfand. in timed'relation/.with respectI to 'the downward strokes of' the needlefon'effecting' engagement by the needle ofsaidthreadfportionsiwithinf said carrierin a given4 order' to: forniy a. stitch pattern corresponding.` to' the order of engagementv of' the threads by said needle portion', and' means for controlling theo-poration. of said thread-carrier actuat'i'ngA means'Y forvarying the. order of thread engagement by said thread engagingportion` of the needle for correspondingly varying said stitch pattern.

8. A sewing machine adapted to form successive interengaging loop stitches ony the obverseV side of a fabric@ comprising a support for ythe fabric, a reciprocable needle-carrier above the support, a needle carried thereby provided with means for engaging thread beneath the support and drawing successive threadvloops up- SQ Wardly through lthe fabric and through 'the respective previously formed' loops and; releasing each. loop about the needle, av plurality of sources of thread of. different physical characteristics,

a movable, thread-carrier beneath said support 65 adapted to receive and retain, endz portionsl of thread of said sources and located in` a position for receiving the threadengaging portion of the needle on. each downward stroke thereof'.means for actuating said thread-carrier into said posi- 70..tions. in, a given. sequence for effecting` engagement bysaid thread engaging. portion of, the

needle, of said threadk portions in.. a given order to provide, al stitch. pattern determined by said order of eng-agement and a. plurality ot selec- 75 tively operablemembers, eachy movable to an l1 operative position for varying characteristically the order of movement of said thread-carrier to thread engaging positions for correspondingly modifying the stitch pattern.

9. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for adancing a fabric intermittently along said table, a reciprocable hook needle, mean for reciprocating said needle through said fabric to a point below said table during each dwell in the said intermittent movement, means for holding a source of thread supply, a shiftable hollow thread carrier having an open upper end and an internal needle engaging surface and a thread guide offset laterally from said surface, means biasing said carrier to a position wherein said surface is in axialV alignment with said needle, releasable means operable against the action of said biasing means during each down stroke of the needle in shifting the carrier laterally to a position wherein the needle enters the carrier on the side of the thread guide remote from said surface, and means for effecting the release of said shifting means while said needle is in said last mentioned position whereby said biasing means moves said vcarrier laterally to effect engagement of the thread in said guide by said hook and effects contact of the needle with said surface prior to the succeeding upward stroke of thel needle.

10. In a sewing machine, a fabric support, a reciprocable hooked needle above the support, means for reciprocating the needle to Vcause the hook thereof to pass through the support to a position beneath the same, a source of thread supply, a shiftable hollow thread carrier beneath the support provided with a needle engaging surface and a laterally oiT-set thread guide for directing thread from said source of supply into said carrier, means for shifting said carrier laterally from a normal position `during each down stroke of the needlefor causing the latter to enter the carrier at the'` side of the thread therein remote from said'suriace, and means for restoring said carrier to normal position to move the thread in the carrier into engagement by the needle and to move said surface into contact with said needle priorto the succeeding upward stroke of the needle.

11. In a sewing machine, a fabric support, a reciprocable hooked needle above the support, means for reciprocating the needle to cause the hook thereof to pass through the-support to a position beneath the same, means for holding two sources' of thread supply, a shiftable hollow thread carrier beneath said support provided with an internal needle engaging surface normally aligned with said needle when the carrier is in an intermediate position,'said carrier having a pair of thread guides each positioned at one side of said surface for directing thread into said carrier from one of said sources, mechanism for effecting the shifting of said carrier laterally during each down stroke of the needle to a position wherein the needleV hook yenters thecarrier on the side of one of said threads remote from said surface, means for restoring said carrier prior to the succeeding upward stroke of the needle to move the adjacent thread into engagement by said needle hook and to move said surface into contact with the needle, and means for controlling the shifting of said carrier in one lateral direction or the other for eiecting the engagement by the needle selectively with one of said threads or the other.

l2. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermit- 12 tently along said table, a reciprocable needle having a hook in one side thereof, means for reciprocating said needle through said fabric to a position below said table during each dwell in said intermittent advancement, means for holding two sources of thread supply below said table, and selectively operable means for causing said hook to engage thread from either of said sources, the last said means comprising a looping member provided with a guide for each of said threads located normally on the side of the needle axis opposite the hook side thereof. means for moving said looping member relative to the needle axis toa position wherein the guide of the selected thread directs a portion of said thread transversely of the hook side of the needle, and means for moving said looping member to normal position while the needle is in lowered position and thereby moving said portion of the thread against the needle for engagement by the hook thereof for forming a series of stitches in a pattern determined by the operation of said selectively operable means.

13. In a sewing machine, a frabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermittently along said table, a reciprocable needle having a hook in one side thereof, means for reciprocating said needle through said fabric to a position below said table during each dwell in said intermittent advancement, means for holding two sources of thread supply below said table, and selectively operable means for causing said hook to engage thread from either of said sources, the last said means comprising a looping member provided with a guide for each of said threads located normally on the side of the needle axis opposite the hook side thereof, means for moving said looping member relative to the needle axis alternately to positions wherein the guides of said threads direct portions of the respective threads transversely of the needle side of the hook, and means for moving said looping member to normal position while the needle is in lowered position and thereby moving the respective portions of the thread against the needle for engagement by the hook thereof for forming alternate loop stitches of the respective threads.

14. In a sewing machine, a fabric supporting table, means for advancing a fabric intermittently along said table, a reciprocable needle having a hook in one side thereof, means for reciprocating said needle through said fabric to a position below said table during each dwell in said intermittent advancement, means for holding two sources of thread supply below said table, means comprising a looping member providing a guide for each of said threads located normally on the side of the needle opposite the hook side thereof, means for moving the looping member relative to the needle axis to positions wherein one of said guides or the other directs a portion of the respective threads transversely 0f the hook side of theA needle, means for moving the looping member to normal position while the needle is in lowered position during each reciprocation of the needle and thereby moving the said respective thread portion against the needle for engagement by the hook thereof, and manually operable selector means for controlling said movements of the looping member for forming successive stitch loops of one of said threads.

15. In combination, in a chain stitch sewing machine comprising a fabric feeding means, a pair of thread sources, a reciprocable needle provided with a hook for engaging the thread from 13 either of said sources to form interengaged stitched loops, thread guide means for thread from said sources operable to two positions in each of which a section of thread from one of said sources is positioned for engagement by the needle hook, means for controlling the operation of the thread guide means for eiecting movement thereof to said positions alternately whereby the needle forms alternate stitch loops of thread from said sources, and means for producing a tension differential on said threads from said sources for shortening the stitch loops formed of one of said threads and elongating the stitch loops formed of the other thread indef pendently of said fabric feeding means.

THOMAS E. MONROE.

l14 REFERENCES CITED The; following references are of record in the "Number Nmher u 188 me of this patent: UNITED STATES PATENTS

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