GB773599A - Improvements in or relating to a method and apparatus for crimping the filaments of a tow of extendable artificial filaments - Google Patents

Abstract

773,599. Crimping filaments. IMPERIAL CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES, Ltd. Feb. 18, 1955 [June 4, 1954; Sept. 22, 1954], Nos. 16580/54 and 27371/54. Class 120 (3). In a process for crimping or crinkling artificial extendable filaments by wetting, stretching, relaxing, and drying, a wet tow is passed through a gripping delivery zone, and at a remote position there is applied a timed succession of pulls each of which moves away from said zone to an ultimate fixed position where it stops so as to remove the tow from the zone at a faster rate than that at which it is delivered by the zone while maintaining the contractility of the tow, and wherein the time interval between the application of the successive pulls at the first-mentioned position is such that the next pull is applied before the foremost pull stops and releases the tow at the ultimate position. As shown, a tow 1 of insolubilised peanut protein filaments is passed over a guide roller 2, under rollers 3 and 4 submerged in cold water in a bath 5, and through a system of gripping mangle rollers 6, 7, and 8 driven at a controllable speed and (with further moistening if necessary) fed to a gripping apparatus which applies the timed succession of pulls. The apparatus shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings accompanying the First Provisional Specification comprises meshing gear wheels 9 and 10 carrying steel plates 13 and 14 which mount spring-loaded arms 15 and 15' in such manner that, as the wheels rotate, stationary cams 27 bearing on rollers 25 cause slidable members 21 within the arms to advance or allow them to withdraw so that a pad 29, which may be a resilient sheath of rubber on - a solid cylindrical core, and a corresponding pad 29', which may be a non-resilient block, with a narrow ridge 40 successively contact and grip the tow therebetween at 16, maintain such grip with uniform compression, and then part to release the tow at 17 immediately following the next grip at 16: the stretch between roller 6 and position 16 is maintained to the position 17 but the release of tension only affects that portion of the tow previously held between these positions. In the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings accompanying the Second Provisional Specification the tow 1 is fed from the mangle rollers, under a guide roller 9, between guide posts 10, 11, into a device comprising a frame 12 supporting a driven shaft 13 to which are rigidly secured plates 17 and 18, the former mounting bearings 19 in each of which a member 21 is caused to advance and allowed to retract by a cam 23 bearing on a roller 22 so that a disc 25 co-operates with a resilient clamping pad 32 on the disc 18 to grip the tow passing over a rod 24, retain the grip for the major part of its travel in a circular path, and release the tow in a series of contiguous lengths at 37 while it is still gripped at positions 38 and 39 : in order to process parallel tows, the frame 12 may be widened and provided with further sets of plates with their clamp means through which project rods as at 24 each carrying two or more discs as at 25.