GB2206133A

GB2206133A - Sewing apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2206133A
Application number: GB08715076A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Garry Walton
Original assignee: Goldsmith Crewe & Co
Current assignee: Goldsmith Crewe & Co
Priority date: 1987-06-23
Filing date: 1987-06-23
Publication date: 1988-12-29
Also published as: GB8715076D0

Abstract

Sewing apparatus includes a sewing machine with a guide (26) upstream of a sewing position. A core and tape (14) are fed to the guide. The shape of the guide (26) successively wraps the tape (14) around the core whereafter the assembly is sewn to form piping. A puller is positioned downstream of the sewing machine to pull the assembly through the guide and machine. <IMAGE>

Description

SEWING APPARATUS This invention relates to apparatus for sewing piping for the trimming of, for example, cushions and the like. Piping is made by folding a band of fabric about an elongate core such as a length of cord or string,:and sewing the two facing parts of the band together.

Heretofore this process has been carried out by skilled machinists who manually arrange the core and band in their desired interrelationship and then feed them to a sewing machine. The stitch can be simple chain stitch for normal fabric or a zig-zag or overlock stitch for fabrics such as velvet likely to fray or unravel before incorporation in an article. This process is slow and inaccurate. Quality of product often falls because the tasks is tedious and repetitive. An object of the present invention is to provide sewing apparatus whereby the above disadvantages can be reduced or minimised.

Accordingly the invention provides sewing apparatus comprising: a sewing machine; respective supplies for a fabric band and a core; and a guide, upstream of the sewing machine, the guide providing a deflecting surface arranged and disposed to receive the band and fold it around the core and supply the so assembled components to the sewing machine ready for sewing.

The guide can have its band deflecting surface in two or more parts arranged sequentially, but desirably there is a single surface which receives the band in a flat condition and deflects it to a U-shaped configuration.

Simultaneously the core is fed into the U-shaped band and the two sides of the band urged towards each other, the whole assembly assuming a keyhole-shaped configuration.

A downstream end of the guide can be disposed very close to the sewing machine needle(s) to discourage departure from the desired configuration.

A puller nip can be synchronised with the sewing machine and disposed downstream of it to draw the piping through the guide and machine.

"Break" switches can be arranged in the path of the band and core to signal when a break, or, more likely, the end of a length occurs.

The invention will be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is an end elevation of a first sewing apparatus of the invention; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine of Fig.

1; Fig. 3 is an end elevation of a second sewing apparatus of the invention; Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the machine of Fig.

3; Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of a guide of the apparatus; Fig. 6 is a plan view of the guiding; and Fig. 7a and 7e are respective cross-sections on the lines a-a to e-e in Fig. 6.

The apparatus 10 of Figs. 1 and 2 comprise a table 11 a chain stitched sewing machine 12, driven by a motor 13.

Fabric band or tape 14 is stored on a roll 15 and deflected around a post 16 to a guide 17 immediately adjacent needle 18. Similarly a core in the form of a cord 19 comes from a cone 20 round a post 21 to the guide 17.

Completed piping 22 is drawn from the machine 12 by a puller nip 23 driven from motor 13 and synchronised with machine 12 by a variable gearbox 24. A length measuring instrument 25 measures the length of piping produced.

The apparatus of Figs. 3 and 4 is comparable in a warp to that of Figs. 1 and 2 and therefore will not be described in more detail. The only difference from the apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2 is the fact that the machine 12 is an overlock machine. This is suitable for material which can fray or unravel at the edge of the piping, eg velvet and the like.

In either apparatus a trimming knife (not shown) can be positioned to trim excess fabric outside a desired line of stitching. Each of the cord and band passes a 'break' switch which switches the machine off if a break occurs or at the end of a roll of band or cord. Meter 25 can also be adapted to switch off the apparatus when a desired length has been produced.

Guide 17 is described in detail in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. The guide can be formed from sheet metal by bending and pressing or can be a moulding or a casting in metal or plastics. Guide 17 has a main folding surface 26 which is lowermost in Fig. 6. The surface 26 is planar at its upstream end 27 (Fig. 7a) and progressively attains a shallow C-shape (Fig. 7b) a deeper V-shape (Fig. 7c), a U-shape (Fig. 7d) and finally a keyhole shape (Fig. 7e). End 27 is vertical as illustrated, and the downstream end 28 will normally need to have the "leg" of the keyhole horizontal to feed to a normally mounted sewing machine. However, if a horizontally acting sewing machine was available the 'leg' of the keyhole could be vertical.

The core cord 19 enters the guide at a spigot 29 which supports the cord and guides it into the bight of the U-shape between the c-c and d-d cross-sections. Between d-d and e-e the folded wings 30 of surface 26 are grooved to form the keyhole shape, whose "eye" dimensions are determined by the size of cord and thickness of fabric.

Instead of a spigot integral with the main body of guide 17 a separate tube with its own mounting could be used.

The apparatus of the invention can operate almost without supervision. After starting it an operator needs only to check its correct operation periodically, and change reels, cones and output receptacles at spaced invervals. A single operator can supervise several apparatuses.

The piping is produced faster than a machinist can produce it and the product is much more consistent in quality.

Claims

1. Sewing apparatus comprising: a sewing machine; respective supplies for a fabric band and a core; and a guide, upstream of the sewing machine, the guide providing a deflecting surface arranged and disposed to receive the band and fold it around the core and supply the so-assembled components to the sewing machine ready for sewing.

2. Sewing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the guide has its band-deflecting surface in two or more parts arranged sequentially.

3. Sewing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein there is a single surface which receives the band in a flat condition and deflects it to a U-shaped configuration.

4. Sewing apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein means are provided whereby the core is fed into the U-shaped band and the two sides of the band urged towards each other, the whole assembly being caused to assume a keyhole-shaped configuration.

5. Sewing apparatus as claimed in claims 2, 3 or 4 wherein a downstream end of the guide is disposed very close to the sewing machine needle(s) to discourage departure from the desired configuration before sewing.

6. Sewing apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a puller nip is synchronised with the sewing machine and disposed downstream of it to draw the sewn piping through the guide and machine;

7. Sewing apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim wherein "break" switches are arranged in the path of the band and core to signal when a break, or the end of a length occurs.

8. Sewing apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

9. Piping made by the apparatus of any preceding claim.