JP2002248290A - Embroidering machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To respectively hold needle bars and cloth pressers in an upper dead center position without using a needle bar spring and a cloth presser spring, and to stably rotate a spindle motor. SOLUTION: A head part 5 of an embroidering machine is composed of a head body 6 provided with a needle bar driving part and a cloth presser driving part, and a needle bar case 7 arranged on the front side of the head body 6, and laterally movable to the head body 6. A plurality of needle bars 19 and the cloth pressers 22 are arranged in the needle bar case 7 so as to be vertically movable. A holder 49 is installed on the lower end side of the needle bar case 7 for holding the respective needle bars 19 and the respective cloth pressers 22 in the upper dead center position. This holder 49 is provided with a plurality of slide keys 53 displaceably supported by a holder frame 52, and energized by a spring 54. These slide keys 53 are engaged with the needle bars 19 and the cloth pressers 22 so as to be engageable and disengageable.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an embroidery machine suitably used for forming a multicolor embroidery pattern on an embroidery cloth or the like, and more particularly, to a needle bar and a cloth presser which are respectively held at a top dead center position or the like. The present invention relates to an embroidery machine having a holding mechanism for performing embroidery.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a multi-colored embroidery pattern is realized on an object to be embroidered such as a cloth by using a multi-colored upper thread (embroidery thread) by controlling the drive of a main shaft of an embroidery machine according to embroidery data or the like. Such embroidery machines are known.

[0003] An embroidery machine according to the prior art of this type includes an embroidery machine body having a drive source for rotating and driving a main shaft.
A head unit provided on the embroidery machine main body and having a drive unit driven by rotation of the main shaft; and a plurality of head units provided reciprocally on the head unit and driven up and down by the drive unit of the head unit. A needle bar, a plurality of sewing needles respectively attached to the distal end side of each of the needle bars, through which an upper thread (embroidery thread) is inserted, and winding the respective upper threads to supply the upper thread to the respective sewing needles The upper thread storage section accommodated in the state, and the upper section is provided on the head section corresponding to each sewing needle to send out and tighten the upper thread supplied from the upper thread storage section to the sewing machine needle. , A plurality of balances, etc., which are swung downward.

The head of the embroidery machine has a color changing mechanism for selectively driving any one of the plurality of balances and the needle bar according to the embroidery data and the plurality of needle bars. A needle bar holding mechanism that allows the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism to be driven in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft, and that holds a non-selected needle bar stopped at the top dead center position or the like. Is provided.

The needle bar holding mechanism according to the prior art is
A needle bar case which supports the needle bars so as to be relatively movable and is moved together with the needle bars in the left and right directions of the head by the color changing mechanism; and a needle bar case is provided between the needle bar case and each needle bar. And a plurality of needle bar springs for individually urging each needle bar to the top dead center position.

In this case, the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism is moved together with the needle bar case to the position of the drive unit provided in the head unit, and automatically engages with the drive unit, thereby causing the main shaft to move. It is driven to reciprocate up and down according to the rotation. During this time, the needle bar spring is compressed and deformed as the needle bar reciprocates, and constantly urges the needle bar toward the top dead center position. The remaining needle bars not selected by the color changing mechanism are kept stopped at the top dead center position by being urged by the respective needle bar springs.

The head portion of the embroidery machine has a plurality of cloth pressers extending substantially parallel to the needle bars and selected by a color changing mechanism to press a cloth or the like to be embroidered on the base side of the embroidery machine. And a presser foot holding mechanism that allows the presser foot selected by the color changing mechanism among the respective presser feet to be driven in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft, and holds each non-selected presser foot at the top dead center position. Is provided.

The presser foot holding mechanism in this case also comprises a presser foot spring or the like provided between the needle bar case and each of the presser feet, and the presser foot springs each of the presser feet individually. At the top dead center.

[0009]

By the way, the above-mentioned prior art needle bar holding mechanism is configured to bias each needle bar to the top dead center position by using a needle bar spring.
While the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism is reciprocated up and down by the driving unit of the head unit in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft, the needle bar spring repeats the compression deformation as the needle bar reciprocates.

For this reason, the main shaft of the embroidery machine receives a large load torque when driving the needle bar toward the bottom dead center against the urging force of the needle bar spring, and conversely moves the needle bar toward the top dead center. When the needle bar is lifted, the urging force of the needle bar spring acts in the same direction, and the needle bar spring is rotated with almost no load. As a result, there is a problem that the torque fluctuation per rotation of the spindle motor is increased, and the durability and life of the motor are reduced.

[0011] Further, the speed change of the main shaft during one rotation is caused by the fluctuation of the torque of the main shaft motor. Such a speed change not only increases the vibration of the embroidery machine but also causes the occurrence of thread breakage and the like. Problem.

On the other hand, the presser foot holding mechanism also has a structure in which each presser foot is continuously urged to the top dead center position by using the presser foot spring. There is a problem in that the life of the embroidery machine is shortened, and vibration of the embroidery machine, thread breakage, and the like occur.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to prevent the needle bar holding mechanism from applying an extra load to the spindle motor, thereby improving the durability and life of the motor. An object of the present invention is to provide an embroidery machine which can be improved and can reduce the occurrence of mechanical vibration and thread breakage.

Another object of the present invention is to prevent an extra load from being applied to the spindle motor by the presser foot holding mechanism, thereby improving the durability and life of the motor.
An object of the present invention is to provide an embroidery machine capable of reducing the occurrence of vibration and thread breakage.

[0015]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a head portion provided with a plurality of needle bars together with a sewing needle for performing multicolor embroidery; A color changing mechanism provided in the head portion for selectively driving any one of the needle bars together with the sewing machine needle; and a needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the plurality of needle bars is a main shaft. The present invention is applied to an embroidery machine including a needle bar holding mechanism that allows the needle bar to be driven in accordance with the rotation and holds a non-selected needle bar in a stopped state at a predetermined position.

A feature of the structure adopted in the first aspect of the present invention is that the needle bar holding mechanism is provided with an engaging portion provided on each of the plurality of needle bars, and each of the engaging portions provided on the head portion. Mooring means for engaging each of the needle bars at a predetermined position by engaging with an engaging portion, and an engaging portion of the needle bar provided on the head portion side and selected by the color changing mechanism among the needle bars And an engagement releasing means for releasing the engagement with the mooring means.

With this configuration, the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the plurality of needle bars is disengaged from the mooring means by the disengagement means, so that the needle bar rotates with the rotation of the main shaft. The sewing machine is driven upward and downward, the sewing machine needle is moved toward an embroidery object such as an embroidery cloth, and sewing and embroidery work using the upper thread selected by the color changing mechanism can be performed. Further, the remaining needle bars not selected by the color changing mechanism are held in a stopped state at a predetermined position such as a needle bar top dead center by the engagement of the mooring means with the respective engagement portions. When any one of these needle bars is selected by the color changing mechanism, the engagement between the selected needle bar and the mooring means is released by the engagement releasing means. The needle bar can be driven up and down by a needle bar drive unit or the like.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the head portion includes a head body provided with a needle bar driving portion driven by the main shaft, and supports each needle bar so as to be relatively movable with respect to the head body. A needle bar case which is moved together with each needle bar by a replacement mechanism, wherein the anchoring means for the needle bar is provided on the needle bar case side, and the engagement disengaging means for the needle bar is provided on the head body side. .

Thus, the mooring means provided on the needle bar case of the head unit uses the color changing mechanism to move the needle bar case with respect to the head main body, for example, in the left and right directions together with the needle bar case. Moved left and right. The disengagement means provided on the head body releases the engagement between the selected needle bar and the mooring means as the needle bar case is moved left and right together with the mooring means by the color changing mechanism. To allow the needle bar to be moved up and down by the respective drive units.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the mooring means is provided on the needle bar case and extends along the direction traversing the plurality of needle bars. A plurality of engagement members respectively removably engaged with the engagement portions of the needle bar, and each of the engagement members provided between the engagement members and the engagement member holder and individually biased toward the engagement position. And a disengaging means for displacing the engaging element corresponding to the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the engaging elements to the disengaging position against the urging member. It is constituted by a guide member to be made.

Thus, the engaging element holder of the mooring means can movably support the plurality of engaging elements, and hold the needle bars at predetermined positions by engaging the engaging elements with the needle bars. Can be. For the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism, the corresponding engaging element is displaced against the urging member by the guide means on the head main body side. The engagement can be automatically released, and can be driven up and down by the respective drive units.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of head portions extend substantially parallel to each needle bar and are selected by a color changing mechanism to press an embroidery object against the base side of the embroidery machine. The presser foot and the presser foot selected by the color changing mechanism among the plurality of presser feet are allowed to be driven in accordance with the rotation of the spindle, and the non-selected presser foot is stopped at a predetermined position. And a holding mechanism for holding the presser. The presser holding mechanism engages with each of the engaging portions provided on the plurality of presser sides and the respective engaging portions provided on the head portion side. A mooring means for mooring each of the cloth pressers at a predetermined position, and an engagement between the mooring means and an engaging portion of the cloth presser selected by the color changing mechanism provided on the head portion side. And engagement releasing means for releasing the pressure.

[0023] With this arrangement, with respect to the plurality of presser foot, the presser foot selected by the color changing mechanism is disengaged from the mooring means by the disengagement means.
When the sewing machine is operated, the cloth holding operation for pressing an embroidery object such as an embroidery cloth toward the base can be automatically performed. Further, the remaining presser foot not selected by the color changing mechanism is held in a state of being stopped at a predetermined position such as, for example, the top dead center of the presser foot by the engagement of the mooring means with each engaging portion. You.

Further, according to the fifth aspect of the invention, the mooring means for the needle bar also serves as the mooring means for the presser foot, and the disengaging means for the needle bar also serves as the disengaging means for the presser foot. Thus, the needle bar and the presser foot can be respectively held at predetermined positions such as the top dead center by using the same mooring means, and the needle bar, the presser foot and the mooring means can be held together by using a single disengagement means. Cancellation can be performed.

[0025]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which an embroidery machine according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a multi-head embroidery machine will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 17 show the first embodiment of the present invention.
Is shown. In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes a base constituting the main body of the embroidery machine, and side frames 2 and 3 are erected on the base 1 so as to be separated to the left and right. Is left,
A head support 4 extending rightward is fixedly provided.

Reference numerals 5, 5,... Denote embroidery machine heads provided on the front side of the head support 4. A total of three of these heads 5 are provided on the base 1, for example, a three-head type. This constitutes a sewing head. Note that this is only an example, and there is a model in which three or more, for example, 15 head units 5 are provided on the base 1.

These head portions 5 are provided on the front side of the head main body 6 as shown in FIG. 2 and are located on the left and right sides of the head main body 6 (arrows A in FIG. 1). ,
(B direction) and a needle bar case 7 provided on the needle bar case 7, and a thread tension table which is moved leftward and rightward integrally with the needle bar case 7 by a color changing mechanism 11 described later. 8 and the like.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, on the upper side of the needle bar case 7, there are provided balance support frames 7A, 7A comprising a pair of left and right frame members. The frame 7A protects the balances 17 from external obstacles and the like by sandwiching the balances 17 described later from both the left and right sides. Both ends of a balance support shaft 18 described later are attached to each balance support frame 7A by means such as fitting.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the needle bar case 7 is provided with support portions 7B and 7C which are separated upward and downward and extend leftward and rightward, respectively, to support each needle bar 19 described later. ing. Each of the needle bars 19 is attached to the support portions 7B and 7C.
Are provided at predetermined intervals (corresponding to the interval W shown in FIG. 11) in the left and right directions. Thus, the support portions 7B and 7C support the needle bars 19 so as to be slidable in the upward and downward directions.

On the other hand, the head body 6 of each head section 5 has
A later-described sector gear 46 (balance driving unit), a needle bar driving unit 28, and a cloth presser driving unit 38, which are driven via the main shaft 10 by the main shaft motor 9 shown in FIG. 1, are provided. , The needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 are driven upward and downward, respectively. Further, a guide plate 55 described later is provided on the front end side of the head main body 6.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a color changing mechanism provided above the head body 6, and the color changing mechanism 11 is provided above the head body 6 as shown in FIGS. The color changing operation described later is performed by integrally moving the tone table 8 to the left and right (in the directions indicated by arrows A and B in FIG. 1).

The color changing mechanism 11 is provided only in, for example, only the rightmost one of the three heads 5, 5,... Shown in FIG. The needle bar cases 7 of the respective head portions 5 are connected to each other by connecting rods 57 described later, whereby the needle bar cases 7 are integrally moved in the directions indicated by arrows A and B in FIG. is there.

Numeral 12 denotes a thread stand which serves as an upper thread storage section disposed on the rear side of the head support 4, and has a plurality of upper thread bobbins 12A, 12B as shown in FIG. , 12
C,... Are provided, and these upper thread bobbins 12A, 12A
B, 12C,... Are wound with upper threads (hereinafter referred to as embroidery threads S) of a plurality of colors such as red, blue, yellow, white, and black.

During the embroidery operation, the embroidery thread S selected by the color changing mechanism 11 from the upper thread bobbins 12A, 12B, 12C,. Embroidery is performed on an embroidery object (not shown).

.., 13,...
The thread tensioners 13 are disposed on the upper side of the thread tension table 8 at intervals from each other, for example, nine in total, as shown in FIG. Reference numerals 14, 14,... Indicate, for example, nine thread tensions provided on the thread tension table 8 under the respective thread tensioners 13.

The upper thread bobbin 12 of the thread stand 12
The embroidery thread S drawn from A, 12B, 12C or the like is guided to each thread tension 14 via a thread tensioner 13, and is supplied with a low friction toward the balance 17 side by the thread tension 14. It is. In this case, the thread tension 14 is, for example, 10
A tension of about 50 g is applied to the embroidery thread S, and when the embroidery thread S is pulled beyond the tension by the sewing needle 21 or the like described later, the embroidery thread S is supplied toward the balance 17 side. It has a configuration.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a thread guide provided on the thread tension table 8 below the thread tension 14, and the thread guide 15 is
It is formed of a plate-like metal fitting extending leftward and rightward along the lower end side of the thread tension table 8, and, for example, a total of nine thread insertion holes (not shown) are arranged in a row on the left and right sides at intervals. One embroidery thread S is inserted into each thread insertion hole of the thread guide 15 between the thread tension 14 and the balance 17.

Reference numeral 16 denotes another thread guide provided below the balance 17 and provided on the front side of the needle bar case 7. The thread guide 16 is provided in the width direction (left and right directions) of the needle bar case 7. ), For example, a total of nine thread insertion portions 16
A (only one is shown in FIG. 5) is arranged in substantially the same manner as the respective thread insertion holes of the thread guide 15.

As shown in FIG. 5, the thread guide 16 has a total of nine thread hooking portions 16B corresponding to the respective thread insertion portions 16A.
Are provided. After the embroidery thread S guided from the upper thread guide 15 is passed through the thread hooking portion 16B of the thread guide 16, the embroidery thread S is routed toward a thread insertion hole 17C of a balance 17 described later, and the thread is passed through the thread insertion hole 17C. The guide 16 is guided toward the sewing machine needle 21 through the thread insertion portion 16A.

Numerals 17, 17,... Are balances provided so as to protrude from the needle bar case 7 of the head portion 5 to the front side. These balances 17 are left inside the needle bar case 7 as shown in FIGS. , Are arranged in parallel to the right, and a total of nine are arranged, and are rotatably supported by a balance support shaft 18. And
Both ends of the balance support shaft 18 are attached to the respective balance support frames 7A of the needle bar case 7 by means such as fitting.

As shown in FIG. 5, a balance gear 17A made of a circular gear and an engagement projection 17B that engages with a balance holding spring 47, which will be described later, are provided on the base end side of the balance 17. The balance 17 swings up and down according to the rotation of the main shaft 10 when the balance gear 17A meshes with a sector gear 46 described later.

On the other hand, a thread insertion hole 17C is formed at the tip (projection end) of the balance 17, and an embroidery thread S is inserted into the thread insertion hole 17C. And in this state, the balance 17
When the embroidery thread S is driven downward from the top dead center to the bottom dead center, a slight slack is given to the embroidery thread S between the embroidery thread S and the embroidery thread S and the embroidery thread S is supplied to the sewing machine needle 21 side.

When the balance 17 is driven upward, the embroidery thread S is pulled up between a thread (not shown) formed on the embroidery cloth or the like by the sewing machine needle 21 and the thread tension 14 or the like. Then, tension is applied to the embroidery thread S to perform thread tightening of the seam and feeding of the embroidery thread S.

Reference numerals 19, 19,... Are, for example, nine needle bars provided in the needle bar case 7 located below the balance 17 and these needle bars 19 are, as shown in FIG. The supporting members 7B and 7C are slidably supported in the upward and downward directions. As shown in FIGS. 10 to 13, the needle bars 19 are arranged so as to be separated from each other in the left and right directions of the needle bar case 7 with an interval W and extend in parallel with each other.

A needle bar dowel 20 is fixedly provided on an upper side of each needle bar 19, and a sewing needle 21 is detachably mounted on a lower end side of each needle bar 19, respectively.
The needle bar 19 is moved by the color changing mechanism 11 to the drive arm 36 of the needle bar drive unit 28 described later.
Is engaged with the main shaft 1 by the needle bar drive unit 28.
It is driven so as to reciprocate up and down together with the sewing needle 21 according to the rotation of 0.

In this case, a total of nine needle bars 19, 19,.
Is a fixed distance W with each needle bar doki as shown in FIG.
Are juxtaposed. When the color changing mechanism 11 performs the color changing operation by moving the needle bar case 7 to the left or right, the needle bar 19 together with the needle bar case 7 is indicated by arrows A, A based on the interval W. It is moved in parallel in the direction B, and any one of the needle bar dowels 20 is selectively engaged with the drive arm 36 at the position of the center line OO shown in FIG.

When one of the nine needle bars 19 is selected by the color changing mechanism 11, only the selected needle bar 19 is moved upward by the needle bar drive unit 28. , Driven down. The remaining needle bar 19 that has not been selected is held at a top dead center position illustrated in FIG. 5 and the like by a holding device 49 (needle bar holding mechanism 50) described later, and is thereafter selected by the color changing mechanism 11. Until then, it stops at this top dead center position.

On the lower side of the needle bar 19, an engagement recess 19A as an engagement portion is formed by cutting a side surface into a substantially U-shape as shown in FIGS. 19
A constitutes a part of a needle bar holding mechanism 50 described later.
The engagement recess 19A is for positioning the needle bar 19 at a top dead center position as a predetermined position by engaging with a slide key 53 described later.

Are a total of nine cloth pressers provided in the needle bar case 7 so as to extend substantially in parallel with the respective needle bars 19, and each of the cloth pressers 22 is shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 10, the upper end side is attached to the needle bar 19 via a cloth retainer dough 23 described later so as to be relatively movable. The cloth presser 22 extends vertically upward and downward along the lower side of the needle bar 19, and a cloth or the like to be embroidered is provided on the lower end of the base 1 of the embroidery machine.
There is provided a cloth applicator 22A that presses against the side.

At the upper end side of the presser foot 22, there is provided a connecting portion 22B which is bent so as to form a U-shape as a whole, and the bottom side of the connecting portion 22B is on the outer peripheral side of the needle bar 19. It is a flat spring receiving portion 22C that is inserted with a gap. The connecting portion 22B of the presser foot 22 is hooked on an engaging pin 23A of the dowel 23 to be described later, so that the entire presser foot 22 is driven up and down in conjunction with the dowel 23. Things.

As shown in FIG. 9, an engaging recess 22D as an engaging portion is formed on the lower side of the presser foot 22 at a position corresponding to the engaging recess 19A of the needle bar 19. 2
2D constitutes a part of the cloth presser holding mechanism 51 described later. The engaging concave portion 22D is formed as a substantially U-shaped notched concave portion as shown in FIG. 15, and is engaged with a slide key 53 described later to bring the cloth presser 22 to the upper dead center position as a predetermined position. It is for positioning.

Reference numerals 23, 23,... Denote cloth pressing dowels which are slidably fitted on the outer peripheral side of each needle bar 19, and each of the cloth pressing dowels 23 is an engagement pin projecting left and right. 23A, and a connecting portion 22B of the cloth presser 22 is engaged with the engaging pin 23A. And these cloth presser doki 23
When the color changing mechanism 11 engages with a drive arm 44 of the presser foot drive unit 38 described later, the presser foot drive unit 38 reciprocates up and down together with the presser foot 22 according to the rotation of the main shaft 10. It is driven so that

The lower surface of the dowel 23 and the presser
A cushioning spring 24 that constantly presses the cloth presser 22 downward is disposed between the cushion spring 24 and the spring receiving portion 22C.
Is to buffer the reaction force from the cloth applicator 22A generated during the embroidery operation.

That is, the cloth presser 22 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 presses the cloth or the like to be embroidered on the base 1 of the embroidery machine using the cloth applicator 22A on the lower end side. At this time, the embroidery cloth and the like on the base 1 are moved in the horizontal direction (front, rear, left and right) according to the movement of the moving frame 58 described later. The presser 22 receives an upward reaction force from the cloth applicator 22A side.

The buffer spring 24 allows the presser foot 22 to be displaced up and down relative to the presser dowel 23 and absorbs such a reaction force. In this case, the pressure bar 22 and the pressure foot
9, only the selected presser dowel 23 is reciprocated up and down together with the presser 22. The remaining presser foot 23 which is not selected by the color changing mechanism 11 is moved together with the presser foot 22 in FIG.
And remains at the top dead center position until it is selected by the color changing mechanism 11.

Reference numerals 25 and 26 denote slide guides for the needle bar case 7 extending in the left and right directions of the head portion 5. The slide guides 25 and 26 are connected to the head main body 6 and the needle as shown in FIGS. It is disposed above and below with a distance from the rod case 7,
It compensates for the needle bar case 7 sliding smoothly to the left and right with respect to the head body 6 during the color changing operation by the color changing mechanism 11.

Reference numeral 27 denotes a rotation stopper plate provided between the slide guides 25 and 26 on the back side of the needle bar case 7. The rotation stopper plate 27 covers the head main body 6 from the front side as shown in FIG. The slide guide 2
5 and 26 extend upward and downward. The rotation stopper plate 27 constitutes a part of the needle bar case 7, and is left and right with respect to the head main body 6 when the color changing mechanism 11 performs a color changing operation.
It slides to the right.

6 and 7, guide holes 27A, 27A,..., Which are elongated holes extending upward and downward, are provided at regular intervals W (the needle bar shown in FIG. 11). 19 (corresponding to an interval W of 19). And these guide holes 2
A needle bar dowel 20 and a cloth presser dough 23 are inserted into 7A so as to be slidable upward and downward, whereby the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22 are held in a detented state. In addition,
10 and 13, the rotation stop plate 27 is omitted.

Reference numeral 28 denotes a needle bar driving unit provided in the head main body 6. The needle bar driving unit 28 includes a main shaft 10 as shown in FIG.
And a circular cam plate 29, which is fixed to be eccentric with respect to the main shaft 10 and rotates integrally with the main shaft 10, and is provided on the outer peripheral side of the cam plate 29 via bearings 30 so as to be relatively rotatable. And a cam lever 29 that converts the motion into an upward and downward motion together with a cam plate 29, and a swing lever 33 and a drive arm 36, which will be described later.

The cam lever 31 includes a circular ring portion 31A on the inner peripheral side of which the cam plate 29 is inserted via a bearing 30, and a projecting portion 31B projecting downward from the ring portion 31A. A swing lever 33 is rotatably connected to the distal end side of the protruding portion 31B via a pin 32.

Reference numeral 33 denotes a swing lever whose base end side is swingably connected to the head main body 6 via a support shaft 34. The swing lever 33 has a cam lever 31 at a longitudinal middle portion via a pin 32. And a distal end side is rotatably connected to a drive arm 36 described later via a link 35.

When the cam plate 29 rotates integrally with the main shaft 10, the swing lever 33 is moved up and down with respect to the cam plate 29 via the bearing 30. In FIG. 7, the swinging mechanism is swung up and down about the support shaft 34 between the position indicated by the solid line and the position indicated by the two-dot chain line.

A support shaft 37 is provided on the front side of the head body 6.
A drive arm on the side of the needle bar 19 movably provided up and down through the
When the swing lever 33 swings up and down, the position shown by a solid line in FIG. 8 (top dead center position) and the position shown by a two-dot chain line ( (At the bottom dead center position) along the support shaft 37.

The drive arm 36 has a needle bar
Is provided with a gripping portion 36A which is detachably engaged with the gripping portion.
The needle bar 1 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 as described above.
9 engages with the grip portion 36A of the drive arm 36 as shown in FIG. 8, and moves the needle bar 19 to the top dead center when the drive arm 36 is moved to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. Displace to position.

When the drive arm 36 is moved to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8, the needle bar 19 is driven together with the needle bar doki 20 to the lower dead center position. The drive arm 36 is arranged at the position of the center line OO shown in FIG. 11, and engages with the needle bar doki 20 at this position.

Numeral 38 designates a presser foot driving section provided in the head main body 6. The presser foot drive section 38 is fitted and fixed to the main shaft 10 as shown in FIG. It is composed of a cam plate 39 as a rotating plate, a swing lever 40 and a drive arm 44, which will be described later.

On the front side of the cam plate 39, the spindle 10
And a cam groove 39A extending in a substantially elliptical shape around the periphery of the main shaft 10 and eccentric with respect to the center of the main shaft 10.
Is engaged with a cam follower 42 described later. And
When the cam follower 42 rolls along the cam groove 39A, the rotation of the cam plate 39 is converted into upward and downward movements of the swing lever 40.

Reference numeral 40 denotes a swing lever provided at the base end side of the head main body 6 so as to be swingable via a support shaft 41. A cam groove 39A of the cam plate 39 is provided at a longitudinally intermediate portion of the swing lever 40.
A protruding portion 40A protruding toward the side is provided, and a cam follower 42 that is rotatably inserted into the cam groove 39A of the cam plate 39 is attached to the protruding portion 40A.

The swing lever 40 is provided with the cam groove 39A.
Following the cam follower 42 which rolls inside, it is swung up and down about the support shaft 41 between the position shown by the solid line and the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The swing lever 40
A drive arm 44 to be described later is rotatably connected via a link 43 to the distal end of the drive arm 44.

A support shaft 45 is provided on the front side of the head body 6.
The drive arm 44 is connected to the swing lever 40 via a link 43 so that the swing lever 40 can swing up and down. In accordance with this, following along the support shaft 45 between the position shown by the solid line and the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG.
It is driven down.

The drive arm 44 is provided with
3 is provided with a gripping portion 44A which is detachably engaged. Then, the presser dowel 23 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 as described above is applied to the grip portion 44A of the drive arm 44 as shown in FIG.
When the drive arm 44 is moved to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 9, the presser foot 22 is lifted to the top dead center position.

When the drive arm 44 is moved to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 9, the presser foot 22 is driven together with the presser dowel 23 to the bottom dead center position. The support shaft 45 on the side of the presser foot driving unit 38 shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the support arm 37 is disposed in parallel with the support shaft 37 on the needle bar drive unit 28 side, and the drive arms 36 and 44 are both slidably mounted on the support shafts 37 and 45. I have.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a sector gear which constitutes a balance driving section. The sector gear 46 meshes with the balance gear 17A of the balance 17 as shown in FIG. 5, and rotates the balance 17 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 as described above. It swings up and down according to the rotation of 10.

Reference numeral 47 denotes a balance holding spring constituting a balance holding mechanism. The balance holding spring 47 extends in the form of a comb tooth toward the engagement protrusion 17B of each balance 17 as shown in FIG. By pressing (biasing) the projection 17B downward, the balance 17 is held in a stopped state at the top dead center position as a predetermined position.

Reference numeral 48 denotes a disengagement fitting fixedly provided on the upper surface side of the head main body 6. The disengagement fitting 48 is formed by bending a metal plate such as a steel plate into a mountain shape. . The disengagement fitting 48 comes into contact with the balance holding spring 47 from the lower surface side, and releases the engagement between the balance 17 and the balance holding spring 47 selected by the color changing mechanism 11, whereby the balance 17 is moved to the sector gear. 46 to be driven.

Reference numeral 49 denotes a holding device which serves both as a needle bar holding mechanism 50 and a cloth presser holding mechanism 51. The holding device 49 is provided on the front surface of the needle bar case 7 as shown in FIGS. A holder frame 52 as an engaging element holder fixedly provided at the lower end of the side, and slide keys 5 to be described later, each of which is displaceably provided on the holder frame 52 as shown in FIG.
, 53,... And a spring 54, a guide plate 55, etc., which will be described later.

Here, the holder frame 52 is formed as a slender rectangular frame as shown in FIG. 16, and has a length substantially corresponding to the width dimension of the needle bar case 7. The holder frame 52 extends in the left and right directions of the needle bar case 7 so as to cross each needle bar 19, and a total of nine sliding holes 52A,
Are formed at intervals W.
And a receiving plate portion 52C as a spring receiving frame which is provided in a protruding manner on the front side of the support plate portion 52B and has an elongated substantially U-shape.

The holder frame 52, together with the slide keys 53 and the springs 54, constitutes mooring means for the needle bar holding mechanism 50 and the cloth holding mechanism 51. The holder frame 52 is moved integrally with the needle bar case 7 in directions indicated by arrows A and B in FIG.

Reference numerals 53, 53,... Denote slide keys as engaging elements which are respectively slidably held in the holder frame 52. These slide keys 53 are inserted into the respective sliding holes 52A of the holder frame 52. The head 53A on the base end side is held between the support plate 52B of the holder frame 52 and the receiving plate 52C in a retaining state.

The slide keys 53 extend parallel to each other so as to intersect the lower end portions of the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22 projecting downward from the needle bar case 7 in the front and rear directions. The distal end side is a contact portion 53B that comes into contact with a surface side of a guide plate 55 described later.

An engaging projection 53C which engages with the engaging recess 19A of the needle bar 19 in a longitudinal direction is provided at a middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the slide key 53 in the lateral direction (the direction indicated by the arrow A in FIG. 16). And another engaging projection 53D that removably engages with the engaging recess 22D of the presser foot 22 in the direction of arrow A between the engaging projection 53C and the contact portion 53B. It is provided so as to protrude.

Then, each slide key 53 is connected to each needle bar 1
9 are displaceably attached to the holder frame 52 with an interval corresponding to the interval W of the engaging projections 53C, 53D.
Are engaged or disengaged so as to slide from the side into engagement recesses 19A and 22D between the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22.

In this case, the engagement projection 5 of the slide key 53
3C, together with the holder frame 52, the engagement recess 19A of the needle bar 19, and the like, constitute the anchoring means of the needle bar holding mechanism 50. The engagement projection 53D of the slide key 53 is
2, together with the engaging recesses 22D of the presser foot 22 and the like, constitute a mooring means of the presser foot holding mechanism 51.

Are springs as urging members for urging the respective slide keys 53 toward the guide plate 55 side.
And the head 53A of the slide key 53 in a compressed state. And spring 5
Numeral 4 is for individually biasing each slide key 53 to an engagement position where the engagement projections 53C, 53D of the slide key 53 engage with the engagement recesses 19A, 22D between the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22. is there.

Reference numeral 55 denotes a guide plate provided on the front side of the head body 6 as a guide member. The guide plate 55 has a guide surface whose lower end side facing each slide key 53 extends in the left and right directions of the head body 6. 55A
An intermediate portion of the guide surface 55A is a guide protrusion 55B projecting in a trapezoidal shape as shown in FIG.

The guide projection 55B is disposed at a position substantially corresponding to the center line OO shown in FIG. 16, and the slide key 53 of each slide key 53 which is close to the center line OO is spring-loaded. An engagement release means for displacing the engagement release position to the engagement release position is provided.

That is, the guide projection 5 of the guide plate 55
5B, each slide key 5 held in the holder frame 52 is provided.
3, the needle bar 19 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 and the contact portion 53B of the slide key 53 corresponding to the cloth presser 22 are brought into sliding contact with each other so as to ride up.

Thus, the guide projection 55B pushes the slide key 53 back toward the holder frame 52 against the spring 54, and the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 2 located on the center line OO.
The engagement projections 53C, 53D of the slide key 53 are disengaged from the engagement recesses 19A, 22D with the slide key 53, and the engagement between the slide key 53, the needle bar 19, and the presser foot 22 is automatically released.

Reference numeral 56 denotes a thread guide mounted on the holder frame 52 from the upper side as shown in FIG. 5. The thread guide 56 is provided with a total of nine thread insertion portions in the same manner as the upper thread guide 16. The embroidery threads S guided from the guides 16 are individually guided to the respective sewing needles 21. Also,
The thread guide 56 also serves as a cover that covers the holder frame 52 from above.

Numerals 57, 57 denote each head 5 as shown in FIG.
The connecting rods 57 are connected between the needle bar cases 7 in the left and right directions, and when the color changing mechanism 11 performs a color changing operation, for example, three needles are connected. The rod case 7 is integrally moved in the directions indicated by arrows A and B in FIG.

Reference numeral 58 denotes a moving frame such as an embroidery frame disposed on the base 1 of the embroidery machine, which is located below each head 5 as shown in FIGS. For example, an embroidery cloth (not shown) or the like is held in a stretched state under a total of three head parts 5, and the frame is horizontally moved forward, backward, left and right on the base 1 together with the embroidery cloth. Is to be moved.

When the moving frame 58 is moved as described above, the sewing needle 21 of each head section 5 is moved up and down substantially in conjunction therewith, so that the embroidery cloth or the like is embroidered. An embroidery pattern corresponding to the data is realized for each head unit 5.

, 59 are moving frames 5 as shown in FIG.
A lower thread bobbin (not shown) or the like is mounted in each rotary hook 59. Each rotary hook 59 is connected to each head 5
, For example, at a position corresponding to the center line OO shown in FIG.

The multi-head embroidery machine according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration. Next, the operation thereof will be described.

First, when the main shaft 10 is rotated by the main shaft motor 9 and the needle bar driving unit 28 of the head unit 5 and the cloth presser driving unit 38 are operated, the needle bar of the needle bar 19 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 is moved. The dowel 20 engages with the drive arm 36 of the needle bar drive unit 28, and thereby the needle bar 19
At the same time, the sewing machine is driven up and down to move the sewing needle 21 relative to the embroidery cloth.

Further, with respect to the presser foot 22 selected by the color changing mechanism 11, the presser dowel 23 is
8 and is driven up and down in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft 10, whereby the drive arm 44 is repeatedly moved up and down between a top dead center position and a bottom dead center position.

The embroidery thread S of the desired color selected by the color changing mechanism 11 is moved up and down the balance 17 to move the upper thread bobbins 12A, 12B, 12C and 12C on the thread stand 12 shown in FIG.
Are supplied to the sewing machine needle 21 via the thread tensioner 13, the thread tensioner 14, and the like.

During this time, the embroidery thread S is sewn on the embroidery cloth on the moving frame 58 side by the movement of the sewing needle 21, and every time the sewing needle 21 forms a stitch on the embroidery cloth, the embroidery thread S is sewn. The embroidery pattern is formed on the basis of the embroidery data. Then, the cloth presser 22 presses the embroidery cloth against the base 1 side of the embroidery machine with the cloth applicator 22A on the lower end side to stabilize the movement or posture of the embroidery cloth when the sewing needle 21 moves. To keep.

Here, each needle bar 1 by the color changing mechanism 11
9. The operation of selecting the presser foot 22 will be described with reference to FIG.
The needle bar dowel 20 of the selected needle bar 19 is engaged with the drive arm 36 of the needle bar drive unit 28 at the position of the center line OO as shown in FIG. Driven together with 20.

Also, with respect to the presser foot 22 selected by the color changing mechanism 11, the presser dowel 23 is
8 and is repeatedly driven by the drive arm 44 between a top dead center position and a bottom dead center position.

At this time, the holding device 49 for holding the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 at the top dead center position includes a slide key 53 approaching the center line OO as shown in FIG. Riding on the guide projection 55B, the spring 54 is slid and displaced toward the holder frame 52 so as to compressively deform the spring 54.

As a result, the engagement projections 53C and 53D of the slide key 53 are aligned with the needle bar 19 located on the center line OO.
The needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 are disengaged from the engaging recesses 19A and 22D of the presser foot 22, and the slide key 53 is disengaged from the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22. It is driven to move up and down according to the rotation.

Further, the remaining needle bars 19 and the cloth pressers 22 not selected by the color changing mechanism 11 are held in a state where they are stopped at the top dead center position by the slide key 53 of the holding device 49. In this case, the unselected needle bar 1
9. As shown in FIG. 14 to FIG. 16, the lower end side engaging recesses 19A and 22D of the cloth presser 22 are engaged with the slide keys 53, and are stopped at the respective top dead center positions by the slide keys 53. Will be retained.

Next, in this state, the color changing mechanism 11 is operated in order to select the next embroidery thread S.
1. Place the needle bar case 7 in the direction of arrow A in FIG.
9, when moved together with the presser foot 22, at a stage before the moving amount at this time reaches the moving amount corresponding to the interval W between the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22, as shown in FIG. Needle bar doki 20 of bar 19 and needle bar doki 2 of next needle bar 19
The drive arm 36 of the needle bar drive unit 28 is placed at an intermediate position between 0 and 0.

Each slide key 53 of the holding device 49
About the needle bar 19 selected last time as shown in FIG.
The guide projection 55B of the guide plate 55 is placed at an intermediate position between the slide key 53 on the presser foot 22 and the next needle bar 19 and the slide key 53 on the presser foot 22, and the engagement with the slide key 53 until the previous time. The corresponding slide key 53 (the slide key 53 located on the center line OO in FIG. 17) of the released needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22 is urged toward the guide plate 55 by the spring 54, and Projection 53
C, 53D begin to engage with the engagement recesses 19A, 22D.

The movement amount is determined by the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 2.
At the stage when the movement amount corresponding to the interval W of 2 has been reached, FIG.
The drive arm 36 of the needle bar drive unit 28 engages with the needle bar dowel 20 of the next needle bar 19, and the drive arm 44 of the presser foot drive unit 38 engages with the cloth presser 23 of the next presser foot 22 as shown in FIG. Come together.

Thus, as shown in FIG. 13, the slide key 53 of the holding device 49 corresponding to the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22 newly selected by the color changing mechanism 11 has the contact portion 53B on the distal end side of the guide plate 55. Of the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 are released, and the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 are released. It is driven to move down.

At this time, the other needle bars 19 and the cloth pressers 22 which are not selected by the color changing mechanism 11 are engaged with the respective slide keys 53 via the engagement concave portions 19A and 22D. Each is held at the top dead center position, and waits at this top dead center position until the next color change operation (selection operation).

Thus, according to the present embodiment, each head unit 5 of the embroidery machine is connected to the head body 6 provided with the needle bar drive unit 28 driven by the main shaft 10 and the cloth presser drive unit 38.
The needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 are supported so as to be relatively movable with respect to the head body 6.
9, the needle bar case 7 and the like which are moved to the left and right along with the presser foot 22.

At the lower end of the needle bar case 7, a holder frame 52 of a holding device 49 is fixedly provided, and before and after the holder frame 52 intersects with each of the needle bars 19 and each of the cloth pressers 22. A guide plate 55 having guide projections 55B for disengaging the slide keys 53 extending in the directions so as to be slidably displaceable from each other and disengaging the slide keys 53 from the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22, The head body 6 is provided so as to be fixed to the front side with bolts or the like.

Thus, the plurality of needle bars 19 and the presser foot 22, which are not selected by the color changing mechanism 11, are held by the holding device 49 including the holder frame 52, the slide keys 53, the springs 54, the guide plates 55, and the like. Can be held at the respective top dead center positions, eliminating the need for needle bar springs, cloth presser springs and the like used in the prior art.

The holder frame 52 of the holding device 49 provided on the needle bar case 7 of the head unit 5, each slide key 53, and the like use the color changing mechanism 11 to move the needle bar case 7 to the left with respect to the head body 6. , Right and left together with the needle bar case 7, it is not necessary to extend the holding device 49 from the needle bar case 7 in the left and right directions. The needle bar case 7 (head portion 5) can be formed in a size corresponding to that of the needle bar case 7 and compact.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the needle bar 19
The use of the holding device 49 which is used for both the presser and the presser foot 22 eliminates the need to use a needle bar spring and a presser foot spring as in the prior art, thereby preventing the spindle motor 9 from being subjected to an extra load. As a result, the durability and life of the spindle motor 9 can be improved.

Further, the occurrence of a speed change or the like in the rotation of the main shaft 10 can be satisfactorily suppressed, whereby the vibration of the embroidery machine can be surely reduced, and the occurrence of thread breakage can be reduced. Operability and reliability can be improved.

When the needle bar 19, the cloth holder 22, the holder frame 52 of the holding device 49, the slide keys 53, and the like are assembled to the needle bar case 7, the assembly of the needle bar case 7 is mounted on the head. The needle bar 19, the cloth presser 22 and the like can be attached to the main body 6 side in this state, and the needle bar 19, the presser foot 22 and the like are previously held at the top dead center position.

Further, since the holder frame 52 of the holding device 49, the slide keys 53, and the like do not protrude from the head portion 5 in the left and right directions, the interval between the head portions 5 is reduced to reduce the size of the entire embroidery machine. And can be made compact.

Next, FIGS. 18 to 20 show the second embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

However, the feature of this embodiment is that FIG.
As shown in FIG. 20, the needle bar 61 has an engagement protrusion 6 as an engagement portion.
1A, and an engagement protrusion 6 as an engagement portion is also provided on the pressure foot 62.
2A, each slide key 64 serving as an engaging element of the holding device 63 is provided between the head portion 64A and the contact portion 64B as shown in FIG.
The configuration is such that engagement recesses 64C and 64D that engage with A in a detachable manner are provided.

The needle bar 61 and the presser foot 62 have the same construction as the needle bar 19 and the presser foot 22 described in the first embodiment, except for the engaging projections 61A and 62A. Also, regarding the holding device 63, the engagement recess 64 of the slide key 64 is provided.
Except for C and 64D, the configuration is the same as that of the holding device 49 described in the first embodiment.

Thus, in the present embodiment thus constructed, the needle bar 61 and the presser foot 62 are moved upward by using the slide keys 64 in substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment. Can be held at the dead center position. The needle bar 61 and the presser foot 62 selected by the color changing mechanism 11 are
The engagement with the slide key 64 can be released by the guide projection 55B of the guide plate 55 or the like.
Can be smoothly moved up and down following the rotation of the main shaft 10.

Next, FIGS. 21 and 22 show a third embodiment of the present invention.
This embodiment is characterized in that the needle bar and the presser foot are held at a predetermined top dead center position or the like using a stocker. Note that, in the present embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

In the figure, reference numeral 71 denotes a head portion of the embroidery machine. The head portion 71 has substantially the same configuration as the head portion 5 described in the first embodiment, and includes a head main body 72 and a head main body 7.
A needle bar case 73 that is provided on the front side of the needle bar case 2 and that can move to the left and right (directions indicated by arrows A and B in FIG. 21) with respect to the head main body 72; It is constituted by a thread tension table 74 and the like which are moved in the left and right directions integrally with the needle bar case 73 by the color changing mechanism 11.

Further, on the upper side of the needle bar case 73,
Balance support frames 73A, 73 consisting of a pair of frame members spaced to the right
3A is provided below the balance support frame 73A.
As shown in FIG. 2, support portions 73B and 73C are provided to support the needle bars 19 and the like so as to be able to move up and down, and to extend leftward and rightward while being separated upward and downward.

On the other hand, the head main body 72 of each head unit 71 has a balance driving unit, a needle shaft driving unit, and a cloth presser driving unit which are driven via the main shaft 10 by the main shaft motor 9 shown in FIG. (Not shown) and the like, and the balance 17, the needle bar 19, and the presser foot 22 are respectively driven up and down by these drive units. These drive units are configured in substantially the same manner as the needle bar drive unit 28, the cloth presser drive unit 38, and the like described in the first embodiment.

Reference numerals 75 and 76 denote thread guides, respectively. These thread guides 75 and 76 are substantially the same as the thread guides 15 and 16 described in the first embodiment. In this case, since fifteen balances 17, needle bars 19, sewing machine needles 21, cloth holders 22 and the like are provided, fifteen thread insertion holes and the like are provided correspondingly.

Reference numeral 77 denotes a needle bar doki (only one is shown) fixedly provided on the upper side of each needle bar 19, and these needle bar dokis 77 are the needle bar doki 20 described in the first embodiment. When engaged with the needle bar drive unit, the needle bar drive unit reciprocates up and down together with the needle bar 19 and the sewing machine needle 21 in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft 10. Driven.

In the present embodiment, the needle bar dowel 77 of each needle bar 19 is engaged with a needle bar guide 81 described later to hold the needle bar 19 at the top dead center position. The needle bar dowel 77 constitutes a holding mechanism, and also serves as an engaging portion provided on the needle bar 19.

Reference numerals 78 denote dowels provided on the upper end side of each of the pressers 22 (only one is shown). These dowels 78 are substantially the same as the dowels 23 described in the first embodiment. When engaged with the presser foot drive unit, the presser foot drive unit is driven to reciprocate up and down in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft 10.

In this embodiment, the presser foot 78 of each presser foot 22 engages a presser foot guide 82, which will be described later, to hold the presser foot 22 at the top dead center position. The holding mechanism is constituted, and the presser dowel 78 is also used as an engaging portion provided on the presser foot 22.

Reference numeral 79 denotes the support portions 73B, 7 of the needle bar case 73.
The guide rod 79 is provided between the 3Cs and extends upward and downward. The guide rod 79 slidably supports the needle bar dowel 77 and the cloth retainer dowel 78 upward and downward, respectively.
The needle bar dowel 77 and the cloth presser dowel 78 are held in a detented state.

Reference numeral 80 denotes a stocker plate constituting a stocker for the needle bar 19 and the cloth presser 22. The stocker plate 80 is located between the head main body 72 of the head portion 71 and the needle bar case 73. 72 is fixedly provided on the front side. The stocker plate 80 is provided with a needle bar guide 81 and a cloth presser guide 82 which are separated upward and downward and extend leftward and rightward of the needle bar case 73, respectively.

Here, the stocker plate 80 is
As shown in the figure, the needle bar guide 81 and the cloth presser guide 82 are formed to extend from the needle bar case 73 in the left and right directions (directions indicated by arrows A and B). The needle bar guide 81 engages with the needle bar dowel 77 of each needle bar 19 as shown in FIG. 22, thereby constituting a mooring means of a needle bar holding mechanism for holding the needle bar 19 at the top dead center position. ing.

Further, the presser foot guide 82 is
By engaging with the presser foot dowel 78 as shown in FIG. 22, the mooring means of the presser foot holding mechanism for holding the presser foot 22 at the top dead center position is constituted. Then, the presser foot guide 82
A notch (not shown) serving as a disengagement means is formed in the middle portion in the length direction.

In this case, for example, a total of 15
When any one of the presser foots 22 is selected by the color changing mechanism 11, the notch 78 of the selected presser foot 22 is disengaged from the presser foot guide 82 by the notch. Only the presser foot 22 is moved up by the
Driven down.

The remaining presser foot 22 not selected by the color changing mechanism 11 is moved by the presser dowel 78 to the presser guide 8.
By continuing to engage with No. 2, it is held at the top dead center position, and then stops at this top dead center position until it is selected by the color changing mechanism 11.

On the other hand, a notch (not shown) serving as a disengaging means is also formed in the middle portion in the length direction of the needle bar guide 81. Then, also in this case, when any one of the plurality of needle bars 19 is selected by the color changing mechanism 11,
The needle bar dowel 77 of the selected needle bar 19 is disengaged from the needle bar guide 81 by the cutout, and only the needle bar 19 is driven up and down by the needle bar drive unit.

The remaining needle bar 19 not selected by the color changing mechanism 11 is held at the top dead center position by the needle bar dodge 77 continuing to engage with the needle bar guide 81, and thereafter, the color changing mechanism is stopped. Until the selection is made at 11, the vehicle will continue to stop at this top dead center position.

Thus, in the present embodiment configured as described above, similarly to the first embodiment, the needle bar case 7 is provided.
Is moved in the left and right directions with respect to the head body 6 by the color changing mechanism 11, using the needle bar guide 81 and the cloth presser guide 82 provided on the stocker plate 80, each needle bar 19 and each The presser foot 22 and the presser foot 22 can be selectively held at the respective top dead center positions, thereby eliminating the need for the needle bar spring and the presser foot spring used in the prior art.

In the first embodiment, the case where a total of three heads 5 are provided on the base 1 of the embroidery machine has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Not
For example, the present invention may be applied to a single-head type embroidery machine having a single head unit 5, or may be applied to a multi-head embroidery machine having two or four or more head units 5. And this point is the second
The same applies to the third embodiment.

[0141]

As described above in detail, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the needle bar holding mechanism is provided with the engaging portions provided on the needle bar side and the engaging portions respectively engaged with the engaging portions. A mooring means for mooring each needle bar at a predetermined position, and an engagement releasing means for releasing the engagement between the engaging portion of the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the needle bars and the mooring means. Therefore, it is not necessary to use a needle bar spring or the like as in the related art, and it is possible to prevent an extra load from being applied to the spindle motor of the embroidery machine, and to improve the durability and life of the motor. Further, it is possible to satisfactorily suppress a change in the rotation speed of the spindle, thereby reliably reducing the vibration of the embroidery machine, reducing the occurrence of thread breakage, etc., and improving the operability and reliability of the embroidery machine. Can be enhanced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the head portion is constituted by a head body and a needle bar case, the needle bar anchoring means is provided on the needle bar case side, and the needle bar disengagement means is provided. Is provided on the head body side, so that the anchoring means of the needle bar can be prevented from extending left and right from the needle bar case. Can be miniaturized and formed compact.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the anchoring means comprises an engaging element holder, a plurality of engaging elements and a biasing member, and the disengaging means is selected by a color changing mechanism among the engaging elements. Since the engaging member corresponding to the set needle bar is constituted by a guide member for displacing the engaging member to the disengagement position against the urging member, the engaging member holder, the respective engaging members, the urging member and the like are attached to the needle bar case. In the assembled state, the needle bar case assembly can be easily attached to the head main body. In this state, each needle bar and the like are held at the top dead center position in advance,
The work of attaching the needle bar case and the like can be easily performed, and the maintainability can be improved.

Further, in the invention according to claim 4, a plurality of cloth pressers and a cloth presser holding mechanism are provided in the head portion, and the cloth presser holding mechanism includes an engaging portion provided on the cloth presser side and each of the engaging sections. Mooring means for engaging with the engaging portions and mooring the respective presser foot at a predetermined position; and releasing the engagement between the engaging portion of the presser foot selected by the color changing mechanism and the mooring means. Since it is constituted by the engagement releasing means, there is no need to use a cloth presser spring as in the prior art, which can also prevent an extra load from being applied to the spindle motor and improve the durability and life of the motor. In addition, the vibration of the embroidery machine can be reduced, and the occurrence of thread breakage and the like can be suppressed well.

Further, according to the fifth aspect of the present invention,
The mooring means for the needle bar also serves as the mooring means for the presser foot, and the disengaging means for the needle bar also serves as the disengaging means for the presser foot. Can be held at predetermined positions such as the top dead center, and the engagement between the needle bar, the presser foot and the mooring means can be released using a single engagement releasing means.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a multi-head embroidery machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a right side view of FIG. 1 with a part of the embroidery machine cut away.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view showing a head unit in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway side view showing the head section from the direction of arrows IV-IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing a needle bar case and the like in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a front view of the rotation stop plate in FIG. 5 as viewed from the front side.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the rotation stop plate as viewed from the direction of arrows VII-VII in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view showing a needle bar driving unit provided in the head main body.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating a cloth presser driving unit provided in the head main body.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a needle bar dowel, a cloth presser, a cloth presser dough, and the like together with three needle bars.

11 is a cross-sectional view showing the drive arm of the needle bar drive unit and each needle bar doki from the direction of arrows XI-XI in FIG.

12 is a cross-sectional view at a position substantially similar to FIG. 11 showing a state in which the engagement relationship between the drive arm of the needle bar driving unit and each needle bar doki is changed.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a state where a needle bar different from that of FIG. 10 is selected for color change.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged sectional view showing an engagement portion between the needle bar and the slide key in FIG. 10;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged sectional view showing an engagement portion between the cloth presser and the slide key in FIG. 10;

FIG. 16 shows a holding device for the needle bar and the presser foot as indicated by an arrow in FIG.
It is sectional drawing expanded and shown from XVI-XVI direction.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view at a position substantially similar to FIG. 16 showing the needle bar and the holding device for the cloth presser in a state in which color change is being performed;

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a needle bar and a presser foot holding device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 19 is an enlarged sectional view showing an engagement portion between the needle bar and the slide key in FIG. 18;

20 is an enlarged sectional view showing an engagement portion between the cloth presser and the slide key in FIG. 18;

FIG. 21 is a front view showing a head section of an embroidery machine according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a partially cutaway side view showing the head portion from the direction of arrows XXII-XXII in FIG. 21;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Base 2, 3 Side frame 4 Head support 5, 71 Head part 6, 72 Head main body 7, 73 Needle bar case 8, 74 Thread tension base 10 Main shaft 11 Color change mechanism 17 Balance 19, 61 Needle bar 19A Engage Concave portion (engaging portion) 20 Needle bar doki 21 Sewing machine needle 22, 62 Fabric holder 22D Engaging concave portion (engaging portion) 23 Fabric holder doki 28 Needle bar drive unit 36 Drive arm 38 Fabric retainer drive unit 44 Drive arm 49, 63 Holder 50 Needle bar holding mechanism 51 Fabric holding mechanism 52 Holder frame (engager holder) 53, 64 Slide key (engager) 53C Engagement projection (needle bar side mooring means) 53D Engagement projection (on fabric retainer side) Mooring means) 54 Spring (biasing member) 55 Guide plate (engagement releasing means) 55B Guide projection 61A, 62A Engagement projection (engagement part) 64C, 64D Engagement concave part (mooring hand) ) 77 Needle bar dowel (engagement part) 78 Fabric holding doki (engagement part) 80 Stocker plate 81 Needle bar guide (needle bar side mooring means) 82 Fabric presser guide (mooring side mooring means) S Embroidery thread ( Upper thread)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A head section provided with a plurality of needle bars together with a sewing machine needle for performing multi-color embroidery, and one of the plurality of needle bars is selectively driven together with the sewing machine needle. Therefore, a color changing mechanism provided in the head portion, and a needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the plurality of needle bars is allowed to be driven according to the rotation of the main shaft, and a needle bar which is not selected is set in advance. An embroidery machine comprising a needle bar holding mechanism for holding the needle bar at a predetermined position in a stopped state, wherein the needle bar holding mechanism includes an engaging portion provided on each of the plurality of needle bars, and the head side. Mooring means provided on the head for mooring the respective needle bars at predetermined positions, and a needle bar provided on the head side and selected by the color changing mechanism among the respective needle bars. And an engagement releasing means for releasing the engagement with the mooring means. Embroidery machine, characterized in that the configuration Ri. 2. The head unit includes a head body provided with a needle bar driving unit driven by the main shaft, and each of the needle bars supported to be relatively movable with respect to the head body. The needle bar case which is moved together with the needle bar, wherein the anchoring means of the needle bar is provided on the needle bar case side, and the engagement disengaging means of the needle bar is provided on the head body side. The embroidery machine described. 3. An anchor holder provided in the needle bar case and extending in a direction traversing the plurality of needle bars, wherein the anchoring means is movably attached to the holder and engages with each of the needle bars. A plurality of engagement members respectively removably engaged with the portion, and an urging member provided between each of the engagement members and the engagement member holder to individually urge each of the engagement members toward the engagement position. A guide member for displacing the engaging element corresponding to the needle bar selected by the color changing mechanism among the engaging elements to the disengaging position against the urging member. The embroidery machine according to claim 2, wherein the embroidery machine comprises: 4. A plurality of cloth pressers extending substantially parallel to the needle bars and pressing an embroidery object against a base side of an embroidery machine by being selected by the color changing mechanism, A presser foot holding a presser foot selected by the color changing mechanism among a plurality of presser feet in accordance with the rotation of the main shaft, and holding an unselected presser foot at a predetermined position in a stopped state. A mechanism for holding the presser foot, wherein each of the presser foot holding mechanisms is provided with an engaging portion provided on each of the plurality of presser sides, and each of the presser feet provided on the head portion side to engage with each of the engaging portions. And a disengagement mechanism for disengaging an engaging portion of the presser foot provided on the head side and selected by the color changing mechanism and disengaging from the mooring means. The embroidery according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the embroidery means comprises: . 5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the mooring means of the needle bar also serves as the mooring means of the presser foot, and the disengaging means of the needle bar also serves as the disengaging means of the presser foot. Embroidery machine.