EP3775342B1

EP3775342B1 - Distance fabric, a method of forming the distance fabric and a weaving machine for performing the method

Info

Publication number: EP3775342B1
Application number: EP19720027.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Petr Karel; Miroslav Blaha; Ales BILKOVSKY; Ondrej Marek; Jiri Mlynar
Original assignee: Vuts AS
Current assignee: Vuts AS
Priority date: 2018-04-06
Filing date: 2019-04-03
Publication date: 2023-06-07
Anticipated expiration: 2039-04-03
Also published as: WO2019192631A1; CZ2018169A3; TWI732202B; CN112204182B; EP3775342A1; TW201943907A; CN112204182A; CZ307840B6

Description

Technical field

The invention relates to a method for forming a distance fabric including two outer fabrics and a plurality of binding threads connected to the outer fabrics and arranged between them, in which the distance fabric is formed from two warp systems, one of which serves to weave the two outer fabrics and the other to form binding threads during the interruption of the weaving process by pulling out of a shed into a gap between the outer fabrics by means of a pulling means of the binding warp threads.
Furthermore, the invention relates to a weaving machine for performing the above-mentioned method, comprising two systems of warp threads, one of which is intended to weave outer fabrics and the other to form loops of binding threads, and further comprising a system of heald shafts for forming a shed associated with a picking mechanism, and a beating-up mechanism to push the inserted weft to a beat-up point from which the distance fabric is taken up by a take-up roller.

Background art

US 8 015 999 B2 discloses a weaving machine for producing a three-dimensional distance woven fabric, hereinafter referred to only as a distance fabric, including two outer fabrics and a plurality of inter-yarns connected to the outer fabrics and arranged between the outer fabrics. The weaving machine includes two warp systems, one of which serves to weave the two outer fabrics and the other to form the inter-yarns during the interruption of the weaving process, whereby during weaving, its warp yarns are woven into the outer fabrics. The inter-yarns are formed after the interruption of the weaving process by the crossing of the warp yarns intended to form the inter-yarns in the shed area and a raising means of the inter-yarns is inserted into the shed parallel to the weft insertion direction. In order to form the inter-yarns, the raising means moves from the shed forward between the two outer fabrics, whereby, depending on the speed of the pulling of the inter-yarns, it is necessary to release the respective warp at a speed twice as high as the speed of the pulling of the inter-yarns. Once the desired length of the inter-yarns has been pulled, the weaving process is started again. After a subsequent interruption of the weaving process, the inter-yarns raising means is first pulled from the space between the outer fabrics and then placed again in the shed to pass through the inter-yarns between the two outer fabrics. An example of an embodiment of the raising means is shown in US 8 015 999 B2 in Fig. 1' and is formed by a bar arranged in the shed, whereby the bar is inserted into the shed from both sides and its length is greater than the width of the outer fabrics of the distance fabric. After the inter-yarns are pulled upwardly, the raising means is ejected from two ends of the shed. Although the loops of the inter-yarns which have been pulled are clamped between the outer fabrics, they can get loose outside the edges of the outer fabrics due to the impacts during weaving. Moreover, it is problematic to wind such a distance fabric onto a cloth beam, since the outer fabrics may move relative to each other due to the overall thickness of the distance fabric.
In US 8 015 999 B2 , a movable back rest is used to release the warp for pulling the inter-yarns, whereby the desired length of the warp yarns is released due to the back rest which is swung by a specified angle. This solution is very difficult to implement on the weaving machine, especially when considering the dynamic conditions of the back rest with its weight and arm length. Another problem is to maintain the warp tension during the reverse motion of the back rest after pulling the inter-yarns and resuming the weaving process when in the warp system of the inter-yarns it is necessary to create a reserve to pull other inter-yarns, while maintaining the weaving tension, the weaving time until the next interruption being usually 5 to 20 seconds.
Since the weaving process is interrupted to pull the inter-yarns, the steps of inserting and pulling the inter-yarns raising means, pulling the inter-yarns, as well as releasing the warp for forming the inter-yarns, can be performed manually.
The fabrication of the distance fabric by the method described above enables to produce a distance fabric with a length of the inter-yarns of up to 100 cm, but with low productivity and a need for service personnel of at least three persons.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of automatic formation of a distance fabric using only the weaving machine means and to provide a weaving machine for performing efficiently this method.

Principle of the invention

The object of the invention is achieved by a method for forming a distance fabric consisting of two outer fabrics and a plurality of binding threads connected to the outer fabrics and arranged between them, in which the distance fabric is formed from two warp systems, one of which only serves to weave the two outer fabrics and the other to weave the two outer fabrics and, during the interruption of the weaving process, to form binding threads by pulling the binding warp threads out of the shed into the gap between the outer fabrics by means of a pulling means of the binding warp threads, whereby the principle of the method consists in that during the interruption of weaving, after crossing the binding warp threads in the shed, the manipulating bar of the means for pulling out the binding warp threads is inserted into the shed from one side. To form the loops of binding threads the manipulating bar is displaced in the gap between the upper outer fabric and the lower outer fabric in the fabric take-up motion direction by one half of the pre-defined length of the binding threads by means of electromagnets above the upper outer fabric and the weaving cycle of forming the upper and lower outer fabrics is started. During the weaving cycle the manipulating bar moves in the direction of the take-up motion of the distance fabric at the same speed as the distance fabric. being taken up. After a predetermined set number of inserted and woven wefts, the weaving cycle is interrupted and the manipulating bar of the means for pulling out the binding warp threads returns into the shed moving against the direction of the fabric take-up motion, whereupon the manipulating bar is taken out from the shed on one side and, after the crossing of the binding warp threads, it is reinserted into the shed. This method allows to form a distance fabric only by the weaving machine means, including a distance fabric with the loops of binding threads with selvedges closing the hollow part with the loops of binding threads and a distance fabric with selvedges closing the hollow part with the loops of binding threads, whereby the selvedges are connected to each other by the outer selvedges closing the hollow part of the distance fabric.
Releasing the binding warp threads during the movement of the pulling means when forming the loops of binding threads is achieved by rotating the respective warp beam at an increased speed, the speed of the releasing motion being twice the speed of the motion of the manipulating bar.
In a preferred embodiment, selvedges are formed during the weaving cycle at the edges of the hollow part of the distance fabric on the two outer fabrics, between which there is a hollow part of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads.
In the aforementioned preferred embodiment, the two outer fabrics are joined behind the selvedges to form outer selvedges, the length of the pulling means of the binding warp threads being less than the distance of the outer selvedges and greater than the width of the hollow part of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads.
Depending on the requirements for the distance fabric, the length of the loops of binding warp threads can be variable both during the weaving cycle and in selected weaving cycles and can be constant during the weaving cycle.
The principle of the weaving machine for performing the method according to the invention consists in that against the picking mechanism, the shed is associated with an insertion mechanism of the manipulating bar for inserting it in the shed and pulling it out of the shed, the manipulating bar being part of the means for pulling the warp threads into the gap between the upper outer fabric and the lower outer fabric and in the shed position can be coupled to at least two electromagnets which are mounted above the upper outer fabric reversibly displaceably between the position above the shed and a selected position above the gap between the outer fabrics according to the desired length of the loops of binding threads, whereby an upper pressure breast beam bar is arranged above the upper outer fabric reversibly displaceably towards the upper outer fabric.
The above-mentioned insertion mechanism of the manipulating bar into the shed and pulling it out of the shed comprises a supporting profile mounted on the machine frame, on which a bracket is mounted reversibly displaceably. On the bracket are arranged manipulating tweezers terminated by gripping arms for gripping the manipulating bar, coupled to a clamping device. In a preferred embodiment, the bracket is coupled to a linear drive which includes a linear motion unit, on which a support is mounted reversibly displaceably towards the shed and back and on the support a bracket is mounted.
To guide the manipulating bar in the insertion mechanism, stabilizing guides are provided on the supporting profile.
To guide the manipulating bar in the shed, lamellas are arranged on the batten, which by their upper surface constitute a guide track of the manipulating bar.
The manipulating bar is in its position in the shed coupleable to at least two electromagnets mounted on a cross member whose ends are mounted on mutually synchronized linear drives arranged along the sides of the machine outside the weaving area and outside the distance fabric take-up area, whereby the linear drives serve to secure the reversible motion of the cross member in the fabric take-up motion direction and back to the shed.
To enable synchronization and increase the accuracy of the motion control, the linear drives comprise a linear motion unit with a precision ball screw. The linear motion unit is coupled to a synchronous servo motor by means of a transformer belt unit. The synchronous servo motor is coupled to a control system of the weaving machine to synchronize the speed of the cross member motion with the speed of the warp threads being released from the warp beam when pulling the loops of the binding warp threads into the gap between the outer fabrics and to synchronize the speed of the cross member with the speed of the distance fabric during weaving.
The electromagnets are in a preferred embodiment arranged above the selvedges closing the hollow part of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads.
The manipulating bar is at the points in which it is coupleable to the electromagnets provided with at least one ferromagnetic member or permanent magnet.
In a preferred embodiment, the upper pressure breast beam bar is mounted by means of pressure pneumatic cylinders on the upper beam extending across the full width of the weaving machine, whereby on the upper beam are mounted detent pneumatic cylinders, to which detent pins are attached to secure the position of the manipulating bar, in which holes for the detent pins are provided.

Description of drawings

Embodiments of the invention are shown schematically in the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 shows a geometry of the shed in a crosss-sectional view, Fig. 2 shows a general view of the machine, Figs. 3 to 17 show phased positions of the mechanisms of the weaving machine during the entire operating cycle, Fig. 18a is a view of the shed section of the machine with the manipulating bar ejected, Fig. 18b is a view of the shed section of the machine with the manipulating bar inserted, clamped in the gripping arms of the tweezers, Fig. 19 is a view of the upper beam with the detent pins and the upper pressure breast beam bar, Fig. 20 is a view of the means for pulling out the binding warp threads by the manipulating bar, Fig. 21a, b show the insertion mechanism of the manipulating bar, Fig. 22 is a view of the distance fabric with selvedges, Fig. 23a is a longitudinal sectional view of a distance fabric during the formation of the loops of binding threads, Fig. 23b is a longitudinal sectional view of a distance fabric in an unfolded state, Fig. 24 is a longitudinal sectional view of the manipulating bar, or a cross-section of the distance fabric in a position with pulled loops of the binding warp threads and Fig. 25 is a view of the part of the manipulating bar with an end piece.

Example of embodiments

In an embodiment shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the weaving machine for weaving a distance fabric comprises an upper warp beam A0 with a system of ground warp threads 1 arranged in a ground warp. The upper warp beam A0 is coupled to an upper warp beam driven by a known electronic warp controller (not shown). Below the upper warp beam A0, a first rotary back rest roller A2 of the ground warp and a second rotary back rest roller A4 of the ground warp are arranged, between which a full-width sensing bar A3 of the tension of the ground warp threads 1 is arranged. The ground warp threads 1 are guided from the second rotary back rest roller A4 to heald shafts L1, L2, L3 and L4 for forming a shed P to weave an upper outer fabric T1 and a lower outer fabric T2. The heald shafts L1, L2, L3 and L4 are mounted on the machine in a known manner and coupled to a known dobby loom (not shown).
In the lower part of the machine is arranged a lower warp beam B0 with a system of warp threads 2 arranged in a binding warp. The lower warp beam B0 is coupled to a lower warp beam driven by an electronic warp controller (not shown), which is adapted to two modes of operation, i.e., weaving and for releasing the warp threads 2 at a high speed as they are pulled into the gap between outer fabrics T1, T2. Above the lower warp beam B0 is arranged a rotary back rest roller B2 of the binding warp, from which the binding warp threads 2 are guided to a rigid connecting bar B4. Between the back rest roller B2 of the binding warp and the rigid connecting bar B4, the full-width sensing bar B3 of the binding warp threads 2 is arranged. Between the back rest roller B2 of the binding warp and the rigid connecting bar B4, the full-width sensing bar B3 of the tension of the binding warp threads 2 is arranged. From the connecting bar B4, the binding warp threads 2 are guided to the heald shafts L5 and L6. During the weaving process, the binding warp threads 2 are woven together with the ground warp threads 1 into the upper and lower outer fabrics T1, T2 and during the interruption of weaving they are pulled by the means described below into the gap between the outer fabrics T1, T2 and form the binding threads 200 of the distance fabric T. The arrangement of the system of the binding warp threads 2 above the lower warp beam B0 appears to be more advantageous, since the consumption of the binding warp threads 2 is greater than the consumption of the ground warp threads 1 and replacing the lower warp beam B0 is easier than replacing the upper warp beam A0. However, the systems of the ground warp threads 1 and of the binding warp threads 2 can be arranged the other way round.
In the particular exemplary embodiment described, six shafts referred to as L1 to L6 are used, wherein the first four shafts L1 to L4 serve to guide the ground warp threads 1 to form the shed to weave the upper outer fabric T1 and the lower outer fabric T2, whereas the last two shafts L5 and L6 are used to guide the binding warp threads 2. However, the designation of the shafts is arbitrary, for example, the first two sheets can be used to guide the binding warp threads and the remaining sheets to guide the ground warp threads. The number of the shafts can be greater than six, whereby the additional shafts can serve to form outer edges or outer selvedges connecting the two outer fabrics and to prevent their relative movement, or to create more complex weaves of the outer fabrics T1 and T2. The six-shaft embodiment is a basic embodiment for forming an open distance fabric T with loops of binding threads 200 without selvedges or with selvedges of the hollow part of the distance fabric T. This embodiment of the invention is described first for better understanding of the principle of the invention.
The shed P is associated with a known picking mechanism 3, consisting of an air jet picking nozzle and relay nozzles along the length of the shed P, and with a batten 42 having a known profile weaving reed for the beating-up of the inserted weft 5 to the beat-up point 6 by the beating-up mechanism 4. In an embodiment shown, lamellas 41 are arranged on the batten 42 between the relay nozzles. The lamellas 41 are formed by a shaped wire or flat lamellas which, by their upper surface, form a guide track 410 of the manipulating bar 71 in the shed P. From the beat-up point 6, the distance fabric T is taken up by an electronically controlled take-up roller C3 over the breast beam 61 and the rigid connecting bar C1, C2. From the take-up roller C3 the distance fabric T passes over the pressure rotary roller C4 and the rotary roller C5 to a known large fabric winding roller (not shown). The means 7 for pulling the binding warp threads 2 into the gap T0 between the upper outer fabric T1 and the lower outer fabric T2 during the interruption of weaving comprise a manipulating bar 71 made of a lightweight and high strength material, which is arranged prior to the start of the pulling of the binding warp threads 2 in the shed P before the crossing point of the binding warp threads 2, which were woven into the upper outer fabric T1 and the lower outer fabrics T2. The manipulating bar 71 is coupleable to at least two electromagnets 72 which are mounted displaceably according to the width of the fabric and length of the manipulating bar 71 on the cross member 73 arranged above the upper outer fabric T1, as shown in Fig. 20. The ends of the cross member 73 are mounted on linear drives 74, which are disposed on the sides of the machine outside the weaving area or, more specifically, outside the distance fabric T take-up area. The linear drives 74 are synchronized with each other. In the specific embodiment shown in Fig. 3, the linear drives 74 are formed by a linear motion unit 741 with a precision ball screw, the linear motion unit 741 being coupled to a synchronous servo motor 743 by means of a transformation belt unit 742. The synchronous servo motors 743 are coupled to the means of the control system of the weaving machine to synchronize the speed of the motion of the cross member 73 during the pulling of the loops of the binding warp threads 2 into the gap T0 between the outer fabrics T1, T2 with the speed of the binding warp threads 2 moving from the warp beam B0 and to synchronize the speed of the motion of the cross member 73 with the speed of the take-up motion of the distance fabric T during weaving. The above-described specific embodiment may be replaced by another suitable embodiment which ensures precise synchronization of the motion of the linear drives 74 and provides adequate force to pull the binding warp threads 2.
The electromagnets 72 are controlled with pulse width modulation and coupled to the means of the control system of the weaving machine.
The manipulating bar 71 is provided with at least one ferromagnetic member or permanent magnet (not shown in detail) at the points where it can be coupled to the electromagnets 72, which allows the handling bar 71 to be caught by the electromagnets 72. At one end, the manipulating bar 71 is provided with an end piece 711 to be gripped by manipulating tweezers 84 of the insertion mechanism 8 of the manipulating bar 71. It is theoretically possible to produce the entire handling bar from a ferromagnetic material to ensure coupling with the electromagnets 72, but since this would significantly increase its weight, such an embodiment is not suitable for real production process.
In an illustrated exemplary embodiment, the insertion mechanism 8 of the manipulating bar 71 is rigidly mounted on the machine frame against the shed P on the side opposite to the picking mechanism 3 and is shown in Figs. 2, 18 and 21. The insertion mechanism 8 comprises a supporting profile 81, which is rigidly mounted on the machine frame by any of the known methods. A linear drive 82 is mounted on the support profile 81, which in the exemplary embodiment described is formed by a linear motion unit 821 and a support 822. An energy chain 89 is provided on the supporting profile 81 next to the linear motion unit to guide the compressed air supply to the pneumatic cylinder 87 of a clamping device 85. The linear motion unit 821 is coupled to a synchronous servo motor 823 via a coupling not shown. A bracket 83 is connected to the support 822 of the linear unit 821, which is reversibly displaceable towards the shed P and back. Mounted on the bracket 83 are the manipulating tweezers 84 which in the front part are provided with gripping arms 841, 842 which are controlled by the clamping device 85, which is in the illustrated embodiment via a Bowden cable with a steel cable 86 coupled to a control pneumatic cylinder 87. Stabilizing guides 88 of the manipulating bar 71 are formed on the support profile 81 to stabilize the manipulating bar 71 as it moves from the shed P or to the shed P. This specific embodiment may be replaced by another suitable embodiment that reliably provides the desired functions.
An upper beam 9 extending across the entire width of the machine, as shown in FIG. 2, 18, 19, is arranged in the upper part of the machine above the upper outer fabric T1. An upper pressure breast beam bar 91 is mounted reversibly displaceably on the upper beam 9 towards the upper outer fabric T1 and back. In an embodiment shown, the upper pressure breast beam bar 91 is controlled by means of pressure pneumatic cylinders 92 which are mounted on the upper beam 9 together with detent pneumatic cylinders 93 to which are attached detent pins 94 to secure the precise position of the manipulating bar 71 before it is gripped by the tweezers (84) and extended out of the shed P and after it is reinserted into the shed P, before being caught by the electromagnets 72. The pressure breast beam bar 91 serves to press the upper outer fabric T1 towards the breast beam 61.
At the first start of the weaving of the distance fabric T, the two outer fabrics T1 and T2 are woven from the ground warp threads 1 and the binding warp threads 2 and at least a basic length corresponding to one half of the length of the binding threads 200 of the distance fabric T is woven, this length being at start-up usually greater. After the basic length has been woven, the weaving process is interrupted, the shed P opens, the binding warp threads 2 are crossed and the manipulating bar 71 is inserted into the shed P by the insertion mechanism 8 onto the guide track 410. After the insertion, the position of the manipulating bar 71 is secured by inserting detent pins 94 into fixing holes 712 formed in the manipulating bar 71. In the next step, the electromagnets 72 are displaced above the manipulating bar 71, and as soon as their pole pieces reach over the receiving points of the manipulating bar 71, an electric current is supplied to them and the electromagnets 72 draw up the manipulating bar 71 to themselves. Synchronously, the detent pins 94 are extended back upward and the manipulating bar 71 is released. The electromagnets 72 carried by the cross member 73, which is on both sides thereof coupled to the linear drives 74, start moving in the direction of the fabric take-up motion and, through the electromagnetic force bond, carry with them the manipulating bar 71, which, from the crossing point of the binding warp threads 2 catches these binding warp threads 2 and starts to pull them between the upper outer fabric T1 and between the lower outer fabric T2 and form loops of binding threads 200 therebetween. Simultaneously with the movement of the electromagnets 72, synchronous releasing of the binding warp threads 2 is initiated, whereby the releasing speed being twice that of the motion of the electromagnets 72. The system of fast releasing the binding warp threads, not shown in detail, must unwind up to 500 mm of the binding warp threads 2 in a short time interval of about 2 seconds, while at the same time in the weaving mode it must ensure the required tension of the binding warp threads 2, sensed by the full-width sensing bar B3 and controlled by the electronic warp controller (not shown) and the control system of the weaving machine, so that the binding warp threads 2 can be successfully woven into the respective outer fabrics T1, T2. Once the electromagnets 72 have reached the pre-set position from the control system of the weaving machine, or from a pre-programmed pattern of the distance fabric T, they stop but still firmly hold the manipulating bar 71.
In the next step, the upper pressure breast beam bar 92 removed into contact with the upper outer fabric T1 and weaving is initiated, whereby it is advantageous to position the heald shafts L1 to L6 and perform one beating-up cycle of the beating-up mechanism 4 prior to weaving. The weaving process takes place in a known manner by weaving two fabrics arranged one above the other or by weaving a hollow double fabric. The two outer fabrics T1, T2 are woven from the ground warp threads 1 and half of the binding warp threads 2 are woven into each of them. The weaving process is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, wherein Fig. 3 shows weft 5 insertion and Fig. 4 shows the weft being beaten up to the beat-up point 6. During weaving, the electromagnets 72 are displaced in the fabric take-up motion direction T at the same speed as that of the take-up motion of the distance fabric T while weaving and still retain the manipulating bar 71, which holds the binding threads 200 in an extended position and prevents them from being returned or tangled.
After weaving the pre-set length of the distance fabric T, the outer fabrics T1, T2, set from the pre-programmed pattern or after the preset number of picked and woven in wefts 5, the weaving process is interrupted. At the end of the weaving, at least one stabilizing beat-up may be performed. The upper breast beam bar 91 is spaced apart from the upper outer fabric T1 and the shed P is opened by displacing the reed 43 of the beating-up mechanism 4 and the heald shafts L1 to L6 to the desired position, in order to create a free space between the manipulating bar 71 and the reed of the beating-up mechanism 4 for the reversible motion of the manipulating bar 71, see Fig. 5.
The electromagnets 72, which still hold the manipulating bar 71, move from the position at the end of weaving, shown in Fig. 5, to the space of the shed and displace the manipulating bar 71 above the guide track 410 formed on the batten 42 of the beating-up mechanism 4, as shown in Fig. 6. At the same time, the outer parts T11 of the upper outer fabric and a part of the warp threads, from which the upper outer fabric was woven, remain clamped between the manipulating bar 71 and the electromagnet 72 and are held below the level of the upper outer fabric T1 and the respective warp threads. The binding threads 200, which were pulled by the manipulating bar 71 between the two outer fabrics T1, T2, remain in their places.
By lowering the fixing pins 94 into the fixing holes 712 in the manipulating bar 71, its position is secured as shown in Fig. 7, the manipulating bar 71 is synchronously released from the electromagnets 72 and the manipulating bar 71 is placed onto the guide track 410. The electromagnets 72 are displaced in the direction of the fabric T take-up motion to a standby position in which they allow the upper pressure breast beam bar 91 to move towards the upper outer fabric T1, as shown in Fig. 8.
In the next step, shown in Fig. 9, the insertion mechanism 8 of the handling bar 71 is actuated, the tweezers 84 grip the manipulating bar 71 by a lock of the end piece 711 and, after raising the detent pins 94, pull the manipulating bar 71 out of the shed P, as shown in Fig. 10.
Subsequently, see Fig. 11, by means of the respective heald shafts, in the exemplary embodiment the heald shafts L5, L6, cross the binding warp threads 2, which have been previously woven into the upper outer fabric T1 and into the lower outer fabrics T2, and positional stabilization of the warp threads can be performed by beating up the weaving beam 43 of the beating-up mechanism 4.
In the next step, see Fig. 12, the insertion mechanism 8 returns the manipulating bar 71 back into the shed onto the guide track 410, where the position of the bar 71 is secured by means of the detent pins 94, see Fig. 13, the bar 71 is released from the tweezers 84 and the tweezers 84 of the insertion mechanism 8 return to the stand-by position.
The upper pressure breast beam bar is lifted, see Fig. 14, thereby straightening the upper outer fabric T1 and a gap is formed between the upper and lower outer fabrics T1, T2.
In the next step, see Fig. 15, the electromagnets 72 are displaced above the manipulating bar 71, and once their pole pieces have reached the position above the receiving points of the manipulating bar 71, an electric current is supplied to them and the electromagnets 72 draw up the manipulating bar 71 to themselves. Synchronously, the detent pins 94 are extended back upward and the manipulating bar 71 is released.
The electromagnets 72 together with the manipulating bar 71 are displaced to the crossing point of the binding warp threads 2 and subsequently they are displaced by a determined distance between the upper and lower outer fabric T1, T2, forming loops of binding threads 200 between them, as described above and as shown in Fig. 16.
In the next step, shown in Fig. 17, the upper pressure breast beam bar 91 is displaced to the upper outer fabric T1, pushes it towards the breast beam 61 and another weaving cycle is started.
As mentioned above, the exemplary embodiment described so far only related to the actual production of an open distance fabric T including two outer fabrics T1, T2 and a plurality of loops of binding threads 200 connected to the outer fabrics T1, T2 and arranged between the outer fabrics T1, T2, in which the distance fabric T is formed from two warp systems, one of which only serves to weave the two outer fabrics T1, T2 and the other to weave the two outer fabrics and during the interruption of the weaving process to form the loops of binding threads 200 by pulling the binding warp threads 2 out of the shed P into the gap T0 between the outer fabrics T1, T2. Of course, this product according to the invention can be produced, but its drawback is the fact that it has open edges through which the loops of binding threads can protrude outside the outer fabrics and the two outer fabrics can move relative to each other as they are wound onto a large fabric winding roller, as described in the background art evaluation.
Therefore, in the actual embodiment, the distance fabric T, shown in a view of Fig. 22 and in a cross-sectional view of the width of the fabric of Fig. 24, is formed between the outer fabrics T1, T2 as a hollow part TA of the distance fabric including loops of binding threads 200 interlaced with the outer fabrics T1, T2, which at their outer sides terminate with rigid edges TB that extend the cavity of the hollow part TA of the distance fabric. The selvedges TB extending the cavity of the hollow part TA of the distance fabric are at the edges joined to each other to form outer selvedges TC, which close the cavity. The interlacing points of the binding threads 200 with the upper outer fabric T1 are schematically indicated in Fig. 22 by solid lines and are in spacing TD according to the programmed distance fabric pattern. The length of the binding threads 200 is twice the spacing TD and is either constant or variable according to the programmed distance fabric pattern. In the case of varying lengths of the binding threads 200, the length of the following row of the binding threads 200 may be up to a maximum of twice the previous spacing TD.
The selvedges TB and the width of the hollow part TA of the distance fabric comprising loops of binding threads 200 define the space between the upper outer fabric T1 and the lower outer fabric T2, within which the manipulating bar 71 moves when pulling the loops of binding threads 200 out of the shed P into the gap T0 between the upper and lower outer fabrics T1, T2 and in its return motion to the shed P. The length of the manipulating bar 71 is therefore a selected value less than the sum of the width of the hollow part TA of the distance fabric and the two selvedges TB, i.e. (TB + TA + TB). The electromagnets 72 are, in the illustrated embodiment, arranged above the upper outer fabric T1 above the selvedges TB. This arrangement has the advantage that the electromagnets 72 draw up and carry the manipulating bar 71 over the upper outer fabric T1 only where there are no loops of the binding threads 200. The selvedges TB are part of the cavity, firmly and precisely defining the width of the hollow part TA of the distance fabric including the loops of binding threads 200 which, in the final product, after cutting a part of the selvedges TB and the outer solid edges TC, constitutes the distance fabric T.
The outer selvedges TC close the cavity on both sides, reinforce the product and serve to guide and extend the fabric in a manner known in the art, being part of the resulting fabric until processed into the final product. However, they are not cut off until during further processing in the production of products from the distance fabric T.
To produce the above-described distance fabric with selvedges, the weaving machine is provided with additional heald shafts L, at least with four for weaving selvedges TB closing the hollow part TA of the distance fabric and at least with two, preferably with four, heald shafts for weaving the selvedges TC closing the cavity on both sides. No additional heald shafts are needed in the case of weaving the selvedges TB only from the ground warp threads 1.
In an unillustrated embodiment, the hollow part TA of the distance fabric including loops of binding threads 200 may be terminated only by selvedges TB and therefore it is produced as a hollow distance fabric with selvedges TB, between which there are no loops of binding threads 200.
Fig. 23a shows the distance fabric T during the process of its formation, when the loops of binding threads 200 are formed into the gap T0 between the upper outer fabric T1 and the lower outer fabric T2 by the motion of the manipulating bar 71 in the fabric take-up motion direction. The resulting distance fabric T is shown in Fig. 23b in an unfolded state, when the binding threads 200 are stretched between the outer fabrics T1, T2.

Industrial applicability

The invention can be used for manufacturing distance fabrics on weaving machines exclusively by the means of the weaving machine.

List of references

A0: upper warp beam
A2: first rotary back rest roller of ground warp
A3: sensing bar of tension of ground warp threads
A4: second rotary back rest roller of ground warp
L1-6: heald shafts
P: shed
T1: upper outer fabric
T2: lower outer fabric
T0: gap between upper and lower outer fabrics
T: distance fabric
TA: hollow part of distance fabric
TB: selvedge of hollow part of distance fabric
TC: outer selvedge
B0: lower warp beam
B2: rotary back rest roller of binding warp
B3: sensing bar of tension of binding warp threads
B4: connecting bar
C1, C2: connecting bar of distance fabric
C3: take-up roller
C4: pressure rotary roller
C5: transfer rotary roller
1: ground warp threads
2: binding warp threads
200: binding threads of distance fabric
3: picking mechanism
4: beating-up mechanism
41: lamella of guide track
410: guide track of manipulating bar in shed
42: batten
43: reed
5: weft
6: beat-up point
61: breast beam
7: means for pulling out binding warp threads
71: manipulating bar
711: end piece of the manipulating bar
712: fixing holes of the manipulating bar
72: electromagnet
721: core of electromagnet
722: winding
723: lower pole piece
7231: working part of lower pole piece
724: upper pole piece
725: lower sliding surface
726: front vertical part of upper pole piece
7261: front working part
727: manipulating bar loss sensor
73: cross member
74: linear drive
741: linear motion unit
742: transformation belt unit
743: synchronous servo motor
8: insertion mechanism
81: supporting profile
82: linear drive of manipulating tweezers
821: linear motion unit
822: support
823: synchronous servo motor
83: bracket
84: tweezers of insertion mechanism
841, 842: gripping arms of manipulating tweezers
85: clamping device
86: Bowden cable with steel cable
87: pneumatic cylinder of clamping device
88: stabilizing guide of manipulating bar
89: energy chain
9: upper beam
91: bar of upper pressure breast beam
92: pneumatic cylinders of bar of upper pressure breast beam
93: pneumatic cylinders of detent pins
94: detent pins
73: cross member
74: linear drive
741: linear motion unit
742: transformation belt unit
743: synchronous servo motor
8: insertion mechanism
81: supporting profile
82: linear drive of manipulating tweezers
821: linear motion unit
822: support
823: synchronous servo motor
83: bracket
84: tweezers of insertion mechanism
841, 842: gripping arms of manipulating tweezers
85: clamping device
86: Bowden cable with steel cable
87: pneumatic cylinder of clamping device
88: stabilizing guide of manipulating bar
89: energy chain
9: upper beam
91: bar of upper pressure breast beam
92: pneumatic cylinders of bar of upper pressure breast beam
93: pneumatic cylinders of detent pins
94: detent pins

Claims

A method of forming a distance fabric (T) including two outer fabrics (T1, T2) and a plurality of binding threads (200) connected to the outer fabrics (T1, T2) and arranged between the outer fabrics (T1, T2), in which the distance fabric (T) is formed from two systems of binding threads, whereby a system of ground warp threads (1) only serves to weave the two outer fabrics (T1, T2), while a system of the binding warp threads (2) serves to weave the two outer fabrics (T1, T2) and, during the interruption of the weaving process, serves to form the binding threads (200) by pulling the binding warp threads (2) out of the shed (P) into the gap (T0) between the outer fabrics (T1, T2) with the aid of a manipulating bar (71) of means for pulling out the binding warp threads (2), characterized in that during the interruption of weaving, after the crossing of the binding warp threads (2) in a shed (P), the manipulating bar (71) of the means (7) for pulling the binding warp threads (2) is inserted into the shed (P) from one side, whereby the manipulating bar (71), to form the loops of binding threads (200), is displaced into the gap (T0) between the upper outer fabric (T1) and the lower outer fabric (T2) in the fabric take-up motion direction by one half of the predefined length of the binding threads (200) by means of electromagnets (72) arranged above the upper outer fabric (T1) and the weaving cycle of the formation of the upper and the lower outer fabrics (T1, T2) is started, whereby the manipulating bar (71) moves during the weaving cycle in the direction of the take-up motion of the distance fabric (T) at the same speed as the distance fabric (T) being taken up, and the weaving cycle, after the pre-set number of wefts (5) being picked and woven is interrupted and the manipulating bar (71) of the means (7) for pulling out the binding warp threads (2) returns into the shed (P) moving against the direction of the take-up motion of the distance fabric (T), whereupon the manipulating bar (71) of the means (7) of the binding warp threads (2) is taken out from the shed (P) on one side and after the crossing of the binding warp threads (2) in the shed (P), the manipulating bar (71) of the means (7) for pulling out the binding warp threads (2) is reinserted into the shed (P).
The method according to claim 1, characterized in that during the motion of the manipulating bar (71) when forming the loops of binding threads (200) the binding warp threads (2) are released from a respective warp beam (B0) at a speed twice the speed of the pulling means by rotating the respective warp beam (B0) at an increased speed.
The method according to any of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that during the weaving cycle, selvedges (TB) are formed at the edges of the hollow part (TA) of the distance fabric on the two outer fabrics (T1, T2), between which there is the hollow part (TA) of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads (200).
The method according to claim 3, characterized in that during the weaving cycle, the two outer fabrics (T1, T2) behind the selvedges (TB) are joined to form the outer selvedges (TC), whereby the length of the manipulating bar is smaller than the distance of the outer selvedges (TC) and greater than the width of the hollow part (TA) of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads (200), the manipulating bar (71) moving within the cavity of the distance fabric (T).
The method according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the length of the loops of the binding warp threads (2) varies according to a pre-prepared pattern, the length of the following row of the loops of the binding warp threads being greater by a maximum of the pitch (TD) between the points at which the binding threads (200) are interleaved with the outer fabrics (1, 2).
The method according to claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the length of the loops of binding threads (200) is constant.
A weaving machine for producing a distance fabric (T) by the method according to any of claims 1 to 6, comprising two systems of warp threads, one of which is intended to weave outer fabrics (T1, T2) and the other to weave the two outer fabrics (T1, T2) and, during the interruption of the weaving process, to form the loops of binding threads (200), and further comprising a system of heald shafts (L) for forming a shed (P), which is associated with a picking mechanism (3) and a beating-up mechanism (4) for beating up the inserted weft (5) to a beat-up point (6), from which the distance fabric (T) is taken up by a take-up roller (C3), characterized in that opposite the picking mechanism (3) the shed (P) is associated with an insertion mechanism (8) for inserting the manipulating bar (71) into the shed (P) and pulling out of the shed (P), whereby the manipulating bar (71) is part of the means (7) for pulling out the binding warp threads (2) into the gap (T0) between the upper outer fabric (T1) and the lower outer fabric (T2) and in the shed (P) position is coupleable to at least two electromagnets (72) which are mounted above the upper outer fabric (T1) reversibly displaceably between the position above the shed (P) and a selected position above the gap (T0) between the outer fabrics (T1, T2) according to the desired length of the loops of binding threads (200), whereby an upper pressure breast beam bar (91) is mounted reversibly displaceably above the upper outer fabric (T1) towards the upper fabric (T1).
The weaving machine according to claim 7, characterized in that the insertion mechanism (8) of the manipulating bar (71) into the shed (P) and out of the shed (P) comprises a supporting profile (81) disposed on the machine frame, on which a bracket (83) is mounted reversibly displaceably with manipulating tweezers (84) mounted on it, the manipulating tweezers (84) being terminated by gripping arms (841, 842) of the end piece (711) of the manipulating bar (71) which are coupled to a clamping device (85).
The weaving machine according to claim 8, characterized in that the bracket (83) is coupled to a linear drive (82).
The weaving machine according to claim 9, characterized in that the linear drive (82) includes a linear motion unit (821) on which a support (822) is mounted reversibly displaceably towards the shed and back, with a bracket (83) arranged on the support (822).
The weaving machine according to any of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that on the supporting profile (81) are provided stabilizing guides (88) of the manipulating bar (71) for its motion out of the shed (P) and into the shed (P).
The weaving machine according to any of claims 7 to 11, characterized in that lamellas (41) are arranged on the batten (42) to guide the manipulating bar (71) in the shed (P), whereby the upper surface of the lamellas (41) form a guide track (410) of the manipulating bar (71).
The weaving machine according to claim 12, characterized in that the manipulating bar (71) is coupleable to at least two electromagnets (72) mounted on a cross member (73), whose ends are mounted on mutually synchronized linear drives (74) arranged along the sides of the machine outside the weaving area and outside the distance fabric (T) take-up area, whereby the linear drives (74) serve to provide a reversible motion of the cross member (73).
The weaving machine according to claim 13, characterized in that the linear drives (74) comprise a linear motion unit (741) with a precision ball screw which is by means of a transformation belt unit (742) coupled to a synchronous servo motor (743) which is coupled to means of the control system of the weaving machine system for synchronizing the speed of the cross member (73) with the speed of the warp threads of the binding warp threads (2) released from the warp beam (B0) when pulling the loops of the binding warp threads (2) into the gap (T0) and for synchronizing the speed of the cross member (73) with the speed of the take-up motion of the distance fabric (T) during weaving.
The weaving machine according to any of claims 7 to 14, characterized in that the electromagnets (72) are arranged above the selvedges (TB) closing the hollow part (TA) of the distance fabric with the loops of binding threads (200).