Sewing machine work support and feed control

Claim 1

An attachment kit for coverting a sewing machine having a throat plate, a lower oscillating feed dog, and an upper walking pressure foot into a pattern-following sewing machine, comprising: a support table for replacing the conventional throat plate, said table having a receiving opening in central portions thereof, with said opening including transverse guide means; stock feed and orienting means for replacing the conventional lower feed dog on the conventional oscillating crank of a sewing machine, and cooperable with a rotatable walking pressure foot, including a support reciprocable on said guide means, a stock feeding and orienting platform having a needle receiving orifice therein and pivotally attached to said support for reciprocation therewith to feed stock relative to a needle and for controlled pivoting with respect thereto about the axis of said needle receiving orifice to orient stock relative to said needle; said support having a fixed reference surface and said platform having a reference surface cooperable with said fixed reference surface during movement of said platform toward said fixed reference surface to forcefully pivot said platform and stock thereon until said reference surfaces are fully engaged; biasing means between said platform and said support arranged to bias said platform to a rotated position away from said fully engaged condition; and pattern sensing means on said platform adapted to limit the biased rotation of said platform in response to sensing of a pattern, whereby said pattern sensing means will allow said platform to pivot away from said fully engaged condition a controlled amount such that reverse forceful pivoting will rotate stock about said needle said controlled amount.