GB610805A - Improvements in and relating to knitting machines - Google Patents

Abstract

610,805. Knitting-machines. MELLOR, BROMLEY, & CO., Ltd., and MONK, S. A. July 6, 1944, Nos. 12904/44 and 12136/45. [Class 74(ii)] A knitting-machine comprises a hydraulic pump 4 supplying fluid, via a traverse-varying valve 50 and a distributor 51, to any selected one of a number of hydraulic piston-and-cylinder devices 8 each for traversing at least one member (e.g. a carrier or carrier rod 11) to and fro along a line of needles. Each plunger valve 57 of the distributor is operated through connections 60 from a row of studs or the like on a patterning device 61: at least three of the plunger valves are controlled by the threecarrier selecting device for making ringless hosiery. The traverse varying valve comprises a plunger 69 movable between a lower position, in which the flow of oil to the distributor is uninterrupted, and an upper position, in which such flow is interrupted and the fluid is by-passed from one end of the pump cylinder to the other. The plunger 69 is operated by cams 31, 32, comprising selvedge cams 31a, 32a and setting-in cams 31b, 32b (to provide the carrier lead over the slurcock), which are adjustable with the carrier stops, and which act through coaxial trucks 79, 80 (carried on a truck lever 78) and a bar 81 supported on levers 2. In addition, home cams 31c, 32c are provided by which carriers are taken out of or brought into action. The selvedge cams may be aligned and the setting-in cams aligned, as in Fig. 4; and to ensure that the truck 79 runs up or down the appropriate cam, the cam assemblies are carried by a bar 86 supported on levers 87. The bar 86 is displaced laterally at the required times by a spring 96 opposed to a cam 89 acting through linkwork 90, 91, 92 and a link 93 having a slot 94 in which works a pin 95 on one of the levers 87. In Fig. 10, each selvedge cam is aligned with the opposing setting-in cam and the bar 86 is stationary. The truck 79 carries followers 37a, 37b, through which it is movable axially by side ramps 31d, 32d, for transfer between selvedge and setting-in cams; and by movable intermediate cams 38a, 38b for homing. The double acting piston of the pump 4 is connected to the tie bar 2 or like part. The tie bar and slurcock, or slurcocks, may be reciprocated by a piston and cylinder device 8', Fig. 12, supplied with oil by a rotary pump 6' via cam-controlled valve 39. The valve admits oil to either end of the device 8', to drive the piston 12 thereof to right or left, opening the other end of the device to the pump sump 40; and by-passes the device 8<1>, to hold the slurcock stationary at each end of the draw. An additional carrier or carriers (e.g. for splicing and plating) may be driven from the selected carrier through mechanical connections, or by its own piston and cylinder device, which may be drawn from an additional pump. The first Provisional Specification describes an arrangement in which the pump is connected to each end of a second double-acting piston-and-cylinder device connected to the main carrier drive and thence to the selected carrier. The flow of fluid is controlled by two valves, each operated through a lever and truck by two spaced cams on the bar or other part reciprocated with the pump piston. To vary the stroke of the carrier unit, the valves are adjustable towards and away from each other by a screw or screws racked with the carrier stop screw or screws. The splicing and heeling carriers may each have individual hydraulic drive systems. For normal splicing, the valves are fitted one on each main rack screw and one on the splicing rack screw, but for plaited splicing, plating cams on the tie bar are used, thereby giving a later movement to the carrier with constant lead at full speed. For the heeling carrier, a slow draw may be produced by having a larger diameter piston and cylinder.