GB2181751A - Knitting needle - Google Patents

Abstract

A knitting needle comprises a needle body which includes a needle shank (2) made of bamboo, wood, plastics or metal, and a separate front end member (1) made of ceramic and fixed to one end of the needle shank in alignment therewith. The member (1) may be pointed or hooked and is attached by screwing, adhesive or brazing. A projection (3) may be provided on either member (1) or (2) or a connector rod may engage bores in both members. The other end of the needle may have a second ceramic end member, a stitch stopper or a flexible cord. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Knitting needle This invention relates to a knitting needleformanually knitting yarns and the like, and more particularly to such a knitting needle which is improved in surface slipperiness and abrasion resistance at its front orworking end portion.

Generally, knitting needles are required to have good surface slipperiness, high abrasion resistance and lightweightforfacilitating a knitting operation andforprovidingalongerservicelife. Particularly,a front or working end portion ofthe knitting needle, which is functionally most important, needs to have good surface slipperiness and high abrasion resistance.

Conventional knitting needles in general use equally comprise an integral needle body made of bamboo, plastic or metal. Each ofthese materials, though providing advantages of its own, gives rise to thefollowing limitations and disadvantages when used for such conventional knitting needles.

As is well known, bamboo stalks are hollow and have a limited wall thickness with a density or hardness of the wall gradually decreasing from the epidermis (outer surface) to the endodermis (innersurface). Thus, a bamboo knitting needle of a largedia- meter inevitably becomes softer on one side of its needle body than on the other side, which results in that a frontorworking end portion of the needle body is more liable to abrasion on the softer side.

Further, a bamboo knitting needle with a hooked working end has a problem that the hooked end is easily damaged upon overload.

A plastic knitting needle, though light in weight, is also poorin abrasion resistance and thus liableto local abrasion at its front orworking end portion.

Metallic knitting needles currently available in the marketincludethoseofsmallerdiameters(lacing needles) which are made of steel wires and those of largerdiameterswhich are made of aluminum wires in consideration ofweight reduction. For increase in surface slipperiness, the steel knitting needle is usually plated with nickel, whereas the aluminum knitting needle is usuallytreated in surface to havesul- phuric acid oxidation coating orchromic acid oxida- tion coating.However, as is well known in the field, such sulphuric acid oxidation coating and chromic oxidation coating are relatively poor in abrasion re resistance to result in such disadvantage that when a front orworking end portion of the needle comes into repetitive contact with a front end portion of a count- erpart needle during a knitting operation, the coatingswill be gradually abraded awayto exposethe inside aluminum core. This not only causes deterioration in surface slipperiness ofthe front end portion ofthealuminum-made needle but also results in soil ing of yarns dueto contactthereofwith theexposed aluminum core.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a knitting needle which, while retaining the advantages ofthe conventional needle material, has excellent surface slipperiness and abrasion resistance at its working end portion.

According to the present invention,there is provided a knitting needle comprising a needle body, characterised in that the needle body includes a needle shank made of bamboo, wood, plastic or metal, and a separate front end member made of ceramic and fixed to one end ofthe needle shank in alignment therewith.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure lisa side elevation showing a knitting needle, with an intermediate portion cut away, emb odying the invention; Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevation, with parts broken away for better clarity, showing an example of joint structure between a needle shank and a working end member in the knitting needle; Figure3 is a viewsimilarto Figure 2 showing a modification of the joint structure; Figure4is a view also similarto Figure 2showing another modification of the joint structure; and Figure5is a viewagain similarto Figure 2 showing a modified working end member.

Referring nowto Figure 1,a knitting needlegenerally represented by reference numeral 10 is illustrated as havine one needle body which comprises a needle shank 2, a separate working end member 1 fixed to one end oftheshank2 in alignmenttherewith, and a stitch stopper 6 provided atthe other end oftheshank2.

The shank2 is circularin cross section and constank in diameterthroughoutthe entire length thereof according to the illustrated example. The shank may be made of bamboo, wood, plastic or metal such as aluminum.

The stitch stopper 6 may be integral with the shank 2. Alternatively, the stopper may be a separate member which is attached to the shank. In the latter case, the stopper 6 may be made of the same material as the shank or of a different material such as synthetic resin rubber. The stopper serves to prevent loopsofyarnfrom coming offtheshank.

In accordance with the present invention, the working end member 1 is made of ceramic. According to the illustrated example, the working end member is generally conical to resemble a bulletwith its larger diameter end connected to the shank 2.

In Figure 1, reference charactersA, Band Cindicate those parts which are most liableto abrasion in a knitting needle. Thus, the working end member 1 should advantageously have such a length that covers all ofthe partsA,Band Coftheknitting needle 10 although a modified working end member (not shown) covering onlythe partsA and B can provide an intended effect to an acceptable extent.

The working end member 1 may be fixed to the shank 2 in various ways as described below.

In an example shown in Figure 2, the largerdiame trend of the working end member 1 is formed with an integral axial projection surrounded by an annular end face 5a, whereas the adjacent end of the shank 2 is provided with a complementary axial bore 4 sim ilarlysurrounded by an annular end face 5b. The axial projection 3 is inserted into and adhesively bonded to the axial bore4with the opposing annularend faces 5a, 5b adhesively bonded together to form a smoothly continuous connection between the working end member 1 and the shank 2.

In case the shank 2 is made of metal, the working end member 1 may be advantageously connected to the shank by brazing to ensure a stronger connection therebetween. In fact, such a brazing technique between ceramic and metal was recently developed.

According to a modification illustrated in Figure 3, the larger diameter end of the working end member 1 is formed with an internally threaded axial bore 24 surrounded by an annular end face 5a, while the adjacent end ofthe shank 2 is formed with an externally threaded axial projection 23 similarly surrounded by an annular end face 5b. Thus, a detachable connection is obtained between the working end member and the shank by screw engagement of the threaded projection 23 into the threaded bore 24 with the an annular end faces 5a, 5b kept in intimate contact. Such a detachable connection enables ready replacement of the bullet-like end member1 by a hooked working end member as illustrated in Figure 5 and as will be also described hereinbelow.

Figure 4 illustrates another modification in which thelargerdiameterend oftheworking end member1 and the adjacent end of the shank 2 are respectively formed with similar axial bores 14a, 14b respectively surrounded by annular end faces 5a, 5b. Aconnection between the working end member and the shank is established buy a connector rod 13 fitted in and adhesively bonded to both ofthe axial bores 14a, 14b with the annular end faces 5a, 5b adhesively bonded together.

The bullet-like working end member shown in each of Figures 1 to 4 may be replaced by a hooked working end member, as illustrated in Figure 5. More particularly, the working end member 1 in this particularexample is also conical in general configuration but has a hook 1a at its smallerdiameterend.

The hooked working end member is illustrated as fixed to the shank 2 in a mannersimilarto the example of Figure 3.

According to the present invention, the working end member 1 made of ceramic is excellent in surface slipperiness and abrasion resistance, so that the knitting needle 10 ensures ready knitting free of unexpected unravelling ofyarn and provides prolonged use. Further, employment of bamboo, wood or plastic as a material for the needle shank 2 contributes to an overall weight reduction without inviting the disadvantages inherentto these materials since the working end member 1 itself is made of ceramic.

The present invention is also significant in that it enablesthe use, as a materialfortheshank2,ofwood which has been hitherto considered unapplicableto knitting needles because of its excessive softness.

The invention thus being described, it will be ob viousthatthesame may be modified in various ways in addition to the previously described modifications. For instance, the stitch stopper 6 illustrated in Figure 1 may be replaced by a second working end memberwhich is also made of ceramic. Alternatively, a non-working or rearend ofthe needle shank2 may be connected to one end of a flexible cord on which is mounted a stitch stopper. Further, the other end of such a flexible cord may be connected to a second needle body which similarly comprises a needle shank and a separate working end member, thus providing a so-called circular knitting needle.

Claims (9)

1. A knitting needle comprising a needle body, characterised in that said needle body includes a needle shank made of bamboo, wood, plastic or metal, and a separate working end member made of ceramic and fixed to one end of said needle shank in alignmenttherewith.

2. A needle according to claim 1, wherein said end member is generallyconical in shapewith its larger diameter end fixed to said one end of said shank.

3. A needle according to claim 1, wherein said end member is integ rally formed with a hook.

4. Aneedle according to claim 2or3,wherein said one end of said shank is formed with an axial bore surrounded by an annular end face, and said larger diameter end of said end member is integrally formed with an axial projection surrounded by an annular end face, said projection being closely inserted into said bore with bore of said annular end faces kept in contact with each other.

5. A needle according to claim 2 or 3, wherein said one end of said shank is integrally formed with an axial projection surrounded byanannularend face, and said largerdiameterendofsaidend member is formed with an axial bore surrounded by an annular end face, said projection being closely inserted into said bore with both of annular end faces kept in contact with each other.

6. A needle according to claim 4 or 5, wherein said projection and said bore as well as said annular end faces are adhesively bonded together.

7. Aneedleaccordingto claim 40r5,wherein said projection is externally threaded for removable screw engagement into said bore which is internally threaded.

8. Aneedleaccordingto claim 20r3,wherein said one end of said shank is formed with an axial bore surrounded byan annularendface, and said larger diameter end of said end member is also formed with an axial bore surrounded by an annular end face, a connector rod being inserted into and adhesively bonded to both of said bores with both of said annularendfaces kept in contactwith and adhesively bonded to each other.

9. A knitting needle substantially as herein described with reference to any of Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings.