JPH04343751A - Multicolor embroidery machine with color-changing mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve workability of the title machine by streamlining threading in yarn breakages and applique sewing operations. CONSTITUTION:When a yarn breakage is detected at step 11, embroidery pattern making operation is stopped at step 12, embroidery needles are stopped at the relevant positions representing their set values at steps 14-16, thus making a threading operation. And, when determined as the time for applique's application at step 21, embroidery making operation is stopped at step 22, the embroidery needles are stopped at positions for other set values at steps 23-25, thus ensuring the applique to be applied.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multicolor embroidery machine having a color changing mechanism, which is suitable for creating embroidery patterns in multiple colors on a single piece of cloth, for example.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, an embroidery machine main body is provided with a drive source that rotationally drives a main shaft, a head section is provided on the embroidery machine main body and reciprocates a drive section by rotation of the main shaft, and the head section is provided with a drive source that rotates a main shaft. A plurality of needle shafts are movably provided and are selectively driven by the drive section of the head section, and a plurality of needle shafts are attached to the distal end side of each needle shaft, each having a different color of embroidery thread inserted therein. The color of the embroidery thread is changed by selectively engaging one of the needle shafts of the embroidery needle and the needle shafts provided in the head portion with a drive portion of the head portion. A multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism is known.

[0003] In this type of multicolor embroidery machine, when changing the color of embroidery thread, the color change mechanism is operated, and the needle shaft of the embroidery needle through which the embroidery thread of the desired color is inserted is selected. The needle shaft is then engaged with the drive section of the head section. In this state, while rotating the main shaft by the drive source, the drive section of the head section is reciprocated, and the drive section drives the selected needle shaft in the vertical direction, thereby moving the embroidery needle against the embroidery cloth. By moving the needle, an embroidery pattern using the embroidery thread of the desired color is created on the embroidery cloth.

In this case, the embroidery needle of the selected needle shaft is shown in FIG.
As shown in the above example, each time the main shaft rotates, it reciprocates vertically with the needle shaft, and while it reaches from the top dead center to the bottom dead center, it is embroidered into the embroidery cloth, and the embroidery thread of the desired color is combined with the bobbin thread. While intertwining
The embroidery thread is sewn onto the embroidery cloth and is pulled out from the embroidery cloth while the thread reaches the top dead center from the bottom dead center.

[0005] When the embroidery thread breaks or the like occurs during the movement of the embroidery needle and the creation of an embroidery pattern is interrupted, the drive is stopped in order to stop the embroidery needle in the middle of movement at the top dead center position. The spindle is configured to be stopped at a predetermined rotational position by a source. In addition, each non-selected needle shaft that is not engaged with the drive unit of the head section is biased to the standby position by a spring or the like so that each embroidery needle waits at the top dead center position. When the color change mechanism is operated at a standby position, the color change mechanism switches to the drive section of the head section and waits for engagement.

[0006]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above-mentioned prior art, when a selected embroidery needle is moved by the color change mechanism and a thread breakage occurs during movement, the selected embroidery needle is moved to a non-selected embroidery needle. Like all embroidery needles, it is configured to stop at the top dead center position, so even if you try to insert new embroidery thread into a broken embroidery needle, other embroidery needles at the top dead center position will get in the way. Therefore, it is very difficult to thread the thread.Even if the embroidery thread is inserted into the needle hole of the embroidery needle, the operator's fingertips will hit other embroidery needles and it will take a lot of effort to pinch and pull the thread tip out of the needle hole. There's a problem.

[0007] Also, when you want to check the needle drop point of the embroidery needle when sewing an appliqué, etc., the embroidery needle stops at the top dead center position, which is far away from the surface of the fabric, so the tip of the needle does not touch the fabric. It is difficult to accurately check the needle drop point because it is too far away from the surface, and in some cases it may be necessary to manually rotate the main shaft to lower the needle tip of the embroidery needle close to the fabric surface. especially,
In multi-head embroidery machines that have multiple heads, the main shaft that is manually rotated is located about 2 to 3 meters away, and each time the operator checks the needle drop point, the operator must walk to the manual rotation position of the main shaft. The problem is that you have to go.

The present invention has been developed in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art.The present invention is capable of stopping an embroidery needle in the middle of its movement at a desired position when the thread breaks or when pasting an appliqué. It is an object of the present invention to provide a multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism that allows easy threading and checking of needle drop points.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The features of the configuration adopted by the present invention in order to solve the above-mentioned problems include: stop position storage means for storing the stop position of the embroidery needle; a signal output means for outputting a stop signal in order to stop the embroidery needle driven together with the needle shaft by the drive section of the head part in the middle of needle movement; The embroidery needle is further provided with an automatic stop means for driving the embroidery needle via the drive section of the head section to a stop position by the means, and stopping the embroidery needle together with the main shaft and the drive section at this stop position.

The stop position storage means may be configured to store the position of the needle tip from the embroidery cloth when the embroidery needle stops as the rotational position of the main shaft.
The stop position storage means may store the position of the needle tip from the embroidery cloth as the rotational position of the main shaft by external numerical setting, or the stop position storage means may store the needle tip position from the embroidery cloth as the rotational position of the main shaft by manually rotating the main shaft. The previous position may be stored as the rotational position of the main shaft.

On the other hand, the signal output means may be constituted by a thread breakage detector that detects when the embroidery thread threaded through the embroidery needle breaks. It may be constituted by an appliqué pasting signal that is part of the data, or furthermore, it may be constituted by a positioning switch that is provided in the embroidery machine body and stops the embroidery needle at a predetermined position during needle movement.

Further, the embroidery machine main body is provided with a plurality of head sections, and the embroidery needle of the head section where thread breakage occurs among the head sections is configured to be stopped at the stop position during needle movement. preferable.

[0013]

[Operation] With the above configuration, when a stop signal is output from a signal output means such as a thread breakage detector or a positioning switch due to a break in the embroidery thread, the stop signal is set in advance and stored in the stop position storage means. The embroidery needle can be driven to the desired position, and the needle can be stopped when the needle tip is lowered to the desired height from the surface of the embroidery cloth, and other embroidery needles waiting at the top dead center position can be stopped. You can thread a broken embroidery needle without being disturbed by the thread.

[0014] Also, when pasting an applique, the embroidery needle can be stopped at a desired height position from the cloth surface, and the embroidery needle can be stopped at a desired height position from the fabric surface, so that the needle drop point of the embroidery needle can be easily checked. It becomes possible to set the position arbitrarily.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Examples of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8, taking a multi-head embroidery machine as an example of a multi-color embroidery machine having a color changing mechanism.

1 to 7 show a first embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 indicates an embroidery machine main body constituting the main body of a multi-head embroidery sewing machine. 3, a display 4, a head holder 5, etc., and each head section 11, which will be described later, is arranged in rows in the left-right direction at predetermined intervals on the head holder 5. The main shaft motor 3 of the embroidery machine main body 1 rotates a main shaft 6 extending in the left and right directions, and the rotation of the main shaft 6 reciprocates each embroidery needle 29, which will be described later, upward and downward. Further, a lighting fixture 7 is provided at a relatively high position on the head holder 5 to brightly illuminate each head portion 11, the top of the support base 2, and the like.

Reference numeral 8 indicates a movable frame located below each head portion 11 and provided on the support stand 2. The movable frame 8 holds the embroidery cloth 9 shown in FIG. 2 in a stretched state. The frame movement actuator 45 moves the frame on the support base 2, for example, in the front, back, left, and right directions (hereinafter referred to as X and Y directions) based on the stitch data. Then, the embroidery cloth 9 is moved in the X and Y directions together with the moving frame 8 on each throat plate 10 shown in FIG. 2, and a predetermined embroidery pattern is created based on the stitch data according to the movement of each embroidery needle 29. Ru. Further, each bobbin (none of which is shown), etc., located below each needle plate 10 and around which a bobbin thread is wound, is disposed on the support base 2.

Reference numerals 11, 11, . . . indicate a plurality of heads located above the movable frame 8 and arranged in a row at predetermined intervals on the head holder 5, and each of the head portions 11 is a head, as shown in FIG. The head body 12 is generally composed of a head body 12 extending forward from the holder 5, a cover 13 that covers the front side of the head body 12, and a reciprocating mechanism 14 disposed between the cover 13 and the head body 12. , the reciprocating mechanism 14 has a main shaft 6
Rotation in the direction of arrow A of the rotating shaft 15 connected to the sliding shaft 1
6 into a reciprocating motion in the direction of arrow B.

That is, a crankshaft 18 is provided at the tip of the rotating shaft 15 via a rotating plate 17, and the crankshaft 18 is connected to a slider 20 via a connecting rod 19. The sliding shaft 16 is slidably displaced in the vertical direction along the sliding groove 12A, and the sliding shaft 16 is reciprocated in the direction of arrow B between the bushes 21 and 22 due to this sliding displacement of the slider 20. A driving pawl 23 as a driving portion is fixed to the sliding shaft 16 and is located between the slider 20 and the bush 22. , this needle shaft 26 is reciprocated in the direction of arrow B in synchronization with the sliding shaft 16.

24 is a bush 2 on the lower surface side of the head portion 11.
As shown in FIG. 3, the stem 24 is rotatably attached through the stem 1, and as shown in FIG. . Further, an auxiliary stem 25 is integrally provided on the stem 24 as shown in FIG.
It is designed to be rotated in the direction. And stem 2
A lever 24B is integrally provided on the rear end side of 4, and the lever 24B is connected to a color change actuator 46 (described later) via a link (not shown) or the like, and this color change actuator 46 is connected to the stem 24, etc. Together, they constitute a color changing mechanism.

Reference numerals 26, 26, . . . indicate a plurality of needle shafts that are slidably supported by the stem 24 and the auxiliary stem 25 and are arranged at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction of the stem 24. As shown in FIG. 2, it vertically passes through the stem 24 and the auxiliary stem 25, and is constantly urged upward by springs 27 and 28. Further, embroidery needles 29, 29, . . . are attached to the lower end side of each needle shaft 26,
Embroidery threads 30 of different colors are inserted into needle holes (not shown) of each embroidery needle 29. And each needle shaft 26
By rotating the stem 24 in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 3 using the color change actuator 46, any one needle shaft 26 is selectively engaged with the drive claw 23, and the selected needle shaft By driving the 26 embroidery needles 29 in the direction of arrow B by the driving claw 23, embroidery is performed using the embroidery thread 30 of a desired color.

In this case, the embroidery needle 2 of the selected needle shaft 26
9 is a characteristic line shown in FIG. 4, for example, when the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 is between 0° and 180°, the tip of the embroidery needle 29 is inserted into the throat plate 10 from the top dead center position shown in FIG. The main shaft 6 is driven to the bottom dead center position, and is returned from the bottom dead center position to the top dead center position again when the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 is between 180° and 360°. Then, the moving frame 8 is moved together with the embroidery cloth 9 in the X and Y directions until the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 is about 90 degrees, and this frame movement is 90 degrees.
After being stopped within the range of about 270°, for example 27
It starts again when the angle exceeds about 0°. In addition, when changing the color of the embroidery thread 30, the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 is 0°.
or 360°, and when the tip of the embroidery needle 29 reaches the top dead center position, rotate the stem 24 in the direction of arrow C,
Needle shaft 26 to which the embroidery needle 29 of the next embroidery thread 30 is attached
This is done by engaging the drive pawl 23 with the upper end of the .

Reference numeral 31 designates a cloth presser that is slidably inserted and attached to each needle shaft 26. The upper end of the cloth presser 31 is disposed between the springs 27 and 28, and the embroidery needle 29 is disposed on the lower end.
An insertion hole 31A is formed through which the embroidery thread 30 and the embroidery thread 30 are inserted. The presser foot 31 is pushed downward together with the needle shaft 26 from the top dead center position shown in FIG. By compressing the spring 28, it is pressed onto the embroidery cloth 9 and only the embroidery needle 29 is allowed to be inserted into the embroidery cloth 9.

Reference numeral 32 designates a jump solenoid as an engagement release means for temporarily releasing the engagement between the needle shaft 26 and the drive claw 23 selected by the color changing mechanism. Provided on the upper end side,
The forked engagement arm 3 is attached to the protrusion 33A of the rotary lever 33 which is slidably inserted into the upper end side flat part 16A of the sliding shaft 16.
2A is engaged. The jump solenoid 32 is activated by rotating the engagement arm 32A to the position shown in FIG.
3 at the position shown by the solid line, and move the drive claw 23 to the needle shaft 26.
the upper end of the

On the other hand, when the jump solenoid 32 is excited by an external power supply, it rotates the engagement arm 32A in the direction of arrow D in FIG. 16 to the position shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 3, the engagement between the drive claw 23 and the needle shaft 26 is released. In this state, even if the drive pawl 23 is driven in the vertical direction (in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 2) due to the rotation of the main shaft 6, the engagement with the needle shaft 26 is released. is in the standby position, and each embroidery needle 29 is in the standby position as shown in FIG.
The hand movement is maintained at the top dead center position shown in . Note that even when the sliding shaft 16 reciprocates in the direction of arrow B, the rotating lever 33 waits for the jump solenoid 32 to operate at the position shown in FIG.

Reference numerals 34, 34, .
4 stores each bobbin (not shown) wound with embroidery threads 30 of a plurality of colors, and allows each embroidery thread 30 to hang downward while inserting into the insertion hole 34 of the stem 24 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. ,3
4, . . . into the needle hole of each embroidery needle 29. 3
6, 36, . . . are indicators located below each storage section 34 and provided on each head section 11. Each indicator 36 is constituted by a light emitting diode or the like, and is used to indicate when a thread breakage occurs, which will be described later. A light emitting diode or the like is turned on to notify the operator when the thread is broken or when the applique is being applied.

Next, in FIG. 5, 37 is a stop switch 38.
1 also shows a start switch provided on the embroidery machine main body 1,
The activation switch 37 is manually operated by an operator,
When it is closed, the main shaft motor 3 etc. are started. Also,
By pressing down the stop switch 38, the main shaft motor 3 and the like are stopped. Reference numeral 39 indicates a rotation angle detector for detecting the rotation angle of the main shaft 6, and 40 indicates a keyboard consisting of a numeric keypad or the like.The keyboard 40 commands the position of the needle tip when stopped by setting numerical values using the numeric keypad or the like. Reference numeral 41 indicates a tape reader for reading out stitch data written on a tape or the like.

Reference numeral 42 indicates a thread breakage detector provided in each head section 11. The thread breakage detector 42 detects when the embroidery thread 30 breaks while the embroidery needle 29 is moving, and outputs a detection signal. It is output to a control device 47, which will be described later. Reference numeral 43 indicates a color change switch that is manually operated by the operator, and the color change switch 43 is manually operated when thread breakage occurs or when the embroidery thread 30 is replaced. Reference numeral 44 indicates an applique switch, and the applique switch 44 is manually operated when pasting the applique.

Reference numeral 45 indicates a frame moving actuator provided on the support base 2, and the actuator 45 moves the moving frame 8 together with the embroidery cloth 9 in the X and Y directions. 46 indicates a color change actuator that constitutes a part of the color change mechanism;
The actuator 46 is connected to the lever 24B of the stem 24 via a link or the like, and rotates the stem 24 about the sliding shaft 16 in the direction of arrow C in FIG. , any one needle shaft 26 is driven by the driving claw 23.
The embroidery thread 30 is engaged with the embroidery thread 30 to change the color of the embroidery thread 30.

Reference numeral 47 indicates a control device including a microcomputer etc. provided on the support base 2, and the input side of the control device 47 includes a start switch 37, a stop switch 38, a rotation angle detector 39, a keyboard 40, a tape reader 41,
It is connected to each thread breakage detector 42, color change switch 43, applique switch 44, etc., and the output side is connected to the main shaft motor 3.
, the display 4, each jump solenoid 32, each display 36, a frame movement actuator 45, a color change actuator 46, and the like. Then, the control device 47 operates the main shaft motor 3, the frame movement actuator 45, the color change actuator 46, the jump solenoid 32, etc. based on the stitch data etc. read from the tape reader 41, and moves the embroidery cloth 9 together with the movement frame 8. By moving the selected embroidery needles 29 of each head section 11 while moving, an embroidery pattern creation process for embroidering the embroidery cloth 9 is performed.

Furthermore, the control device 47 stores programs shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 in its memory circuit, and performs operation preparation processing prior to the embroidery pattern creation processing and needle position control processing intervening during the embroidery pattern creation processing. etc. The memory circuit of the control device 47 also has a memory area 47.
Setting values and the like, which will be described later, are stored in the area A in an updatable manner, and the storage area 47A constitutes stop position storage means for storing the stop positions of each embroidery needle 29.

The multi-head embroidery sewing machine according to this embodiment has the above-described configuration, and there is no particular difference from the prior art in that it performs embroidery pattern creation processing based on stitch data from the tape reader 41.

The operation preparation process performed prior to the embroidery pattern creation process will be explained with reference to FIG.

First, by operating the stop switch 38 or the like, the main shaft 6 is stopped at a rotation angle of 0° as shown in FIG.
9 is stopped at the top dead center position (see Fig. 2), and when the processing operation starts, in step 1, it is determined whether or not the needle position setting at the time of thread breakage has been selected by operating the keyboard 40, etc. If it is determined as ``YES'', the process moves to step 2 and it is determined whether or not numerical value setting has been selected.

If the determination in step 2 is ``YES'', the process moves to step 3 where the operator operates the numeric keypad or the like on the keyboard 40 to determine the stop position on the embroidery cloth 9 where the embroidery needle 29 should be stopped when thread breakage occurs. The needle tip position from the cloth surface is set, for example, to about 5 mm (corresponding to point E in FIG. 4). As a result, when the setting completion key on the keyboard 40 or the like is pressed in step 4, the rotation angle as the rotation position of the main shaft 6 corresponding to the point E shown in FIG.
For example, it can be stored in the storage area 47A as a set value of about 95°, and the process returns in step 5.

If the determination in step 2 is "NO", the process moves to step 6, and the operator manually rotates the main shaft 6 which is stopped, so that the tip of the embroidery needle 29 is at a distance of, for example, about 5 mm from the cloth surface. When this occurs, the teaching operation is performed by stopping the rotation of the main shaft 6. and,
In step 7, the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 at this time (for example, about 95°) is read from the rotation angle detector 39, and by pressing the setting completion key in step 4, this rotation angle is stored as a set value, and in step 5 Return with .

On the other hand, if the determination in step 1 is "NO", the process moves to step 8, and it is determined by operating the keyboard 40 or the like whether or not the needle position setting at the time of applique pasting has been selected. Then, when the determination in step 8 is "YES", the processes in steps 2 to 7 are performed again, and in this case, since the applique is being pasted, the needle drop point of the embroidery needle 29 on the applique can be easily confirmed. For example, the needle tip position is set to about 1 mm from the fabric surface (corresponding to point F in FIG. 4), and the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 at this time is set to, for example, 100°, corresponding to point F shown in FIG. It is stored in the storage area 47A as a setting value of the degree. Also,
If the determination in step 8 is "NO", the process returns to step 5 because the setting values stored in advance in the ROM or the like constituting the storage area 47A are to be used.

As a result, when a thread breakage occurs, the setting value corresponding to the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 corresponding to point E shown in FIG. 4 is stored as the stop position of the embroidery needle 29, and when pasting the applique, the set value corresponding to the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 corresponding to the point E shown in FIG. The set value corresponding to the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 corresponding to F is stored as the stop position of the embroidery needle 29.

Next, the needle position control process performed during the embroidery pattern creation process will be explained with reference to FIG.
Among the thread breakage detectors 42, any one of the thread breakage detectors 4
Step 2 determines whether thread breakage is detected or not, and if it is determined as YES, thread breakage has occurred in one of the head sections 11, so the process moves to step 12 to interrupt the creation of the embroidery pattern. The main shaft motor 3 etc. are automatically stopped, and each head part 1
The first embroidery needle 29 is temporarily stopped at the top dead center position illustrated in FIG. 2, and the thread breakage is displayed on the indicator 36 of the head section 11 where the thread breakage has occurred.

Then, in step 13, except for the head section 11 where the thread breakage has occurred, the jump solenoids 32 are activated in all the other head sections 11 where the thread breakage has not occurred, and the respective drive claws 23 are operated as shown in the figure. 3, the engagement between the drive claw 23 and the needle shaft 26 is released by rotating it from the position shown by the solid line to the position shown by the imaginary line. Further, in the head section 11 where the thread breakage has occurred, the jump solenoid 32 continues to be stopped at the position shown by the solid line in FIG. Next, in this state, proceed to step 14 to automatically drive the main shaft motor 3.
In step 15, it is determined whether the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 has reached the set value corresponding to the point E shown in FIG.

Then, when the determination is ``YES'' in step 15, the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 is the rotation angle corresponding to the set value of point E, so the process moves to step 16, where the main shaft motor 3 is automatically stopped. Head section 11 where thread breakage occurred
Stop the embroidery needle 29 so that the needle tip position is, for example, about 5 mm from the cloth surface, and stop each of the other embroidery needles 29 of this head part 11 (for example, after the needle tip position is about 20 to 30 mm from the cloth surface). (waiting at the dead center position). Next, in this state, the process moves to step 17 to thread the thread through the needle hole of the embroidery needle 29 that has broken the thread, closes the start switch 37 in step 18, and proceeds to step 19 for each head in which the thread has not broken. Part 11 jump solenoid 3
2 and re-engages the driving claws 23 of each head section 11 with the needle shaft 26, thereby restarting the creation of the embroidery pattern.
Return at step 20.

If the determination in step 11 is "NO", the process proceeds to step 21, where it is determined whether or not there is a function signal serving as an appliqué pasting signal in the middle of the stitch data read from the tape reader 41.
If the determination is "YES", the process moves to step 22, where the main shaft motor 3, etc. are automatically stopped to interrupt the creation of the embroidery pattern, and the embroidery needles 29 of each head section 11 are temporarily moved to the top dead center position as shown in FIG. At the same time, the display 36 of each head section 11 displays an instruction to paste the appliqué.

Then, in step 23, the main shaft motor 3 is automatically driven, and in step 24, it is determined whether the rotation angle of the main shaft 6 has reached the set value corresponding to point F shown in FIG. However, when the determination is "YES", the embroidery needles 29 of each head section 11 are placed at a distance of, for example, 1 m from the cloth surface of the embroidery cloth 9.
Since the needle tip position is approximately m, step 25 is performed to stop the embroidery needles 29 of each head section 11 at this position.
Then, the main shaft motor 3 is automatically stopped. As a result, the needle tip position of each embroidery needle 29 in the middle of needle movement is at a height of about 1 mm from the cloth surface, making it possible to easily check the needle drop point when pasting the appliqué.

Therefore, the process moves to step 26 to instruct the operator to paste the applique, and after pasting the applique, the start switch 37 is closed in step 27 to re-drive the main shaft motor 3, and the process returns to step 20. . Further, when the determination in step 21 is "NO", there is no instruction to paste the appliqué and no thread breakage has occurred, so the process returns to step 20 to continue creating the embroidery pattern.

Thus, according to this embodiment, when thread breakage occurs during the creation of an embroidery pattern, the main shaft motor 3 etc. are automatically stopped to temporarily interrupt the creation of the embroidery pattern, and each head section 11 is automatically stopped. With the embroidery needle 29 placed at the top dead center position,
Among the head sections 11, the jump solenoid 32 of each head section 11 in which thread breakage has not occurred is activated, and the engagement between the needle shaft 26 and the drive claw 23 of each of these head sections 11 is released, and the thread breakage is prevented. Since only the embroidery needle 29 of the head section 11 where thread breakage occurred is lowered from the top dead center position by the drive of the main shaft motor 3 to perform threading, the color changing mechanism The selected embroidery needle 29 that has broken the thread can be clearly distinguished from the other embroidery needles 29 waiting at the top dead center position, and the thread can be cut without being disturbed by these other embroidery needles 29. Broken embroidery needle 2
9 can be easily threaded.

Furthermore, when pasting the applique, the main shaft motor 3 etc. are automatically stopped to temporarily interrupt the creation of the embroidery pattern, and then the main shaft motor 3 is driven to move each head part 11.
The embroidery needle 29 is lowered to a position close to the cloth surface of the embroidery cloth 9, and the main shaft motor 3 is stopped until after the applique is pasted, so the applique can be pasted while checking the needle drop point. The appliqué can then be sewn in the correct position.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, the embroidery needles 29 of each head section 11 that are in the middle of needle movement can be stopped at desired positions when thread breaks or when pasting an appliqué.
In addition to being able to easily thread the thread and check the needle drop point, the entire embroidery pattern creation process can be done more efficiently and the quality of the embroidery pattern can be improved, among other effects. .

Next, FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the same components as in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their explanations will be omitted. In short, the feature of this embodiment is that the program shown in FIG. The embroidery needle 29 is stopped at a desired position by manually operating the color change switch 43 or the appliqué switch 44 after the embroidery needle 29 is stopped at a desired position.

[0050]The needle position control process by the control device 47 will now be described with reference to FIG.

First, after carrying out the operation preparation process shown in FIG. 6 in the same manner as in the first embodiment, when the embroidery pattern creation process is started, it is determined in step 31 whether or not the stop switch 38 has been pressed. If the determination is ``YES'', the main spindle motor 3 and the like are stopped in step 32 to interrupt the creation of the embroidery pattern, and the process proceeds to step 33, where it is determined whether the color change switch 43 is closed. Then, when it is determined "YES" in step 33, among each head section 11,
Since a thread breakage or the like occurs in one of the head sections 11 and the operator manually closes the thread change switch 43, the processing of steps 34 to 38 is performed as shown in FIG. 7 described in the first embodiment. The process is performed in the same manner as steps 14 to 18 shown in FIG. 3, and the process is returned to step 39 to restart the creation of the embroidery pattern.

In this case, without activating the jump solenoid 32 in each head section 11, the color change mechanism selects the head section 11 where the thread breakage has occurred as well as the other head sections 11 where the thread breakage has not occurred. Each embroidery needle 29
is lowered from the top dead center position to a position corresponding to point E. However, since each embroidery needle 29 of each head part 11 that has not been selected by the color change mechanism is in a waiting state at the top dead center position, the thread-broken embroidery needle 29 and each of the other embroidery needles 2 that are not selected by the color change mechanism are in a waiting state at the top dead center position.
9 can be distinguished from the embroidery needles 29, and threading can be performed smoothly without being hindered by these non-selected embroidery needles 29.

Further, when the determination in step 33 is "NO", the process moves to step 40 and the applique switch 44 is turned on.
It is determined whether or not the appliqué is closed, and when the determination is "YES", it means that the operator has manually operated the appliqué switch 44 in order to paste the appliqué, so steps 41 to 44 and step 38 are performed. The processing is performed in the same manner as steps 23 to 27 described in the first embodiment, and the process returns at step 39.

[0054]Thus, this embodiment configured in this way can also obtain almost the same effects as the first embodiment, but in particular, in this embodiment, the stop switch 3
8, Thread change switch 43 and applique switch 44
Since the needle position control is performed when the sewing machine is manually operated, the thread breakage detector 42 shown in FIG. can.

In each of the above embodiments, steps 11, 21 (steps 31, 33, 40) of the program shown in FIG. 7 (FIG. 8) are specific examples of the signal output means which is a component of the present invention. , steps 14-16, step 2
3-25 (steps 34-36, steps 41-43)
is a specific example of automatic stopping means.

Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, in the operation preparation process illustrated in FIG. Although it has been described that the teaching operation is performed by rotating the robot, the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, the needle position at the time of thread breakage, the needle position at the time of pasting the appliqué, etc. may be stored in advance as predetermined set values in a ROM or the like forming the storage area 47A.

On the other hand, in the first embodiment, the jump solenoid 32 is activated when thread breakage occurs, and the engagement between the drive pawl 23 and the needle shaft 26 is released in each head portion 11 where no thread breakage occurs. However, instead of this,
The jump solenoid 32 does not necessarily need to be activated when yarn breakage occurs, and in this case, the processes of steps 13 and 19 shown in FIG. 7 can be omitted.

[0058]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, when a stop signal is output by the signal output means, the embroidery needle is driven to a pre-stored stop position and automatically stopped at this stop position. Therefore, for example, when a thread breakage occurs, the selected embroidery needle can be lowered lower than the non-selected embroidery needles by the color change mechanism and stopped at the above-mentioned stop position, and the embroidery needle where the thread breakage has occurred can be replaced by the other embroidery needles. Threading can be done smoothly without being disturbed by the threading, improving work efficiency. In addition, when pasting the applique, you can easily check the needle drop point and sew the applique accurately.
It has various effects.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

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

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view in the direction of arrow II-II in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the stem, drive pawl, jump solenoid, etc. shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a characteristic diagram showing the relationship between the rotation angle of the main shaft and the needle tip position of the embroidery needle.

FIG. 5 is a control block diagram according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing operation preparation processing.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing needle position control processing according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing needle position control processing according to a second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Embroidery machine main body 2 Support stand 3 Main shaft motor (drive source) 6 Main shaft 8 Moving frame 9 Embroidery cloth 10 Needle plate 11 Head section 12 Head main body 13 Cover 14 Reciprocating mechanism 16 Sliding shaft 23 Drive claw (drive section) 24 Stem (Color change mechanism) 26 Needle shafts 27, 28 Spring 29 Embroidery needle 31 Presser foot 32 Jump solenoid (engagement release means) 36
Display 37 Start switch 38 Stop switch 39 Rotation angle detector 42 Thread breakage detector 43 Color change switch (positioning switch) 44
Applique switch (positioning switch) 45 Frame movement actuator 46 Color change actuator 47 Control device

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An embroidery machine main body including a drive source that rotationally drives a main shaft; a head section provided on the embroidery machine main body that reciprocates a drive section by rotation of the main shaft; and a head section that is capable of reciprocating movement. A plurality of needle shafts are provided on the head portion and are selectively driven by a driving portion of the head portion, and a plurality of embroidery needles are attached to the tip side of each needle shaft and each has a different color of embroidery thread inserted therein. and a color changer provided in the head section, for changing the color of the embroidery thread by selectively engaging any one of the needle shafts with a drive section of the head section. A multi-color embroidery machine having a color changing mechanism comprising: a stop position storage means for storing the stop position of the embroidery needle; a signal output means for outputting a stop signal in order to stop the embroidery needle in the middle of needle movement; 1. A multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism, characterized in that the machine is provided with an automatic stop means that is driven through a drive section of the main shaft and stops the embroidery needle together with the main shaft and the drive section at this stop position. 2. The multicolor embroidery having a color changing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the stop position storage means stores the position of the needle tip from the embroidery cloth when the embroidery needle stops as the rotational position of the main shaft. Machine. 3. The multicolor embroidery having a color changing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the stop position storage means stores the needle tip position from the embroidery cloth as the rotational position of the main shaft by external numerical setting. Machine. 4. The color changing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the stop position storage means stores the needle tip position from the embroidery cloth as the rotational position of the main shaft by a teaching operation of manually rotating the main shaft. Multicolor embroidery machine. 5. The color changing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the signal output means comprises a thread breakage detector that detects when the embroidery thread threaded through the embroidery needle breaks. A multicolor embroidery machine with 6. The signal output means is constituted by an appliqué pasting signal forming a part of stitch data for creating an embroidery pattern on an embroidery cloth.
Or a multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism according to item 4. 7. The signal output means is provided in the embroidery machine main body, and comprises a positioning switch that stops the embroidery needle at a predetermined position during needle movement.
Or a multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism according to item 4. 8. The embroidery machine main body is provided with a plurality of head sections, and the embroidery needle of the head section where the thread breakage occurs is stopped at the stop position during needle movement. A multicolor embroidery machine having a color change mechanism as described in .