JPS5929707B2 - Knitting pattern scanning method on knitting machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a knitting machine in which a scanning member scans a recording medium, such as a card, on which a knitting pattern representing a pattern to be knitted is recorded, and a sampling pulse is obtained every time the scanning member runs for a predetermined length. relates to a knitting pattern scanning method for reading the knitting pattern as a binary electric signal, the purpose of which is to omit wasteful travel of the scanning member and quickly perform effective scanning over multiple stages of the recording medium without wasting time. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a knitting pattern scanning method that can be used to scan patterns.

Below, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a hand knitting machine will be described in detail.

The entire scanning device is installed in a frame 5, which mainly consists of a recording medium transport mechanism for loading and transporting the organization program card 1, which is a storage medium, and a scanning mechanism for scanning the card 1 horizontally in a straight line. It consists of a scanning member traveling mechanism that automatically travels the member c.

First, to explain the recording medium transport mechanism, a card feed roller 6, which is a recording medium support body and has sprocket wheels 61 and 6 on the left and right sides, is horizontally mounted on the frame 5 so as to be freely rotatable.

The sprocket wheels 61, 6 are provided with sprockets 6' protruding from their outer circumferential surfaces at regular intervals to fit into the left and right perforations 1', 1'' of the organization program card 1, and these left and right sprocket wheels 61, Insert the card 1 through the pattern card slot 9 facing on the upper cover 2 between the pattern card slot 9 facing the top cover 2 and the card guide plate 8 having a U-shaped cross section and arranged below between the card guide plate 6 and the card guide plate 8. , perforations 1', 1'' are fitted to the sprocket 6', the sprocket wheel 61,
6, the card 1 can be supported in a U-shaped bent state, and in this supported state, it is rotated by a pulse motor a, which is a drive source of a drive mechanism disposed on the right side of the frame 5. The card 1 can be transferred in the perforation direction in the 1" direction.

That is, the card feed roller 6 is linked to the pulse motor a by having a gear 10 fitted on its shaft 7 meshing with a gear (not shown) fitted on the shaft of the pulse motor a.

Therefore, the pulse motor a is capable of forward and reverse rotation, and the forward and reverse direction of the card feed roller 6 is determined depending on whether the pulse motor a is driven forward or reverse.
It is decided whether to send '1 in the forward direction (lower side of Figure 1) or in the reverse direction. A finger wheel 13 whose portion protrudes upward through the window hole of the upper cover 2 is fitted onto the shaft 7 of the card feed roller 6, and the finger wheel 13 is hooked on the cover 2. By turning the handle, the card 1 can also be transferred manually.
As mentioned before, the car pin 1 is inserted from the pattern card slot 9 on the cover 2;
is constructed by arranging a transparent plate 15 on the front side of the raised part 14 of the cover 2 so that an appropriate gap is created between the raised part 15' at the rear end and the front surface of the raised part 14 to allow the card 1 to pass through. The card 1 inserted through the insertion slot 9, bent along the card guide plate 8, and entered under the cover 2 is transported to an exit 16 formed at the rear end of the cover 2 (see Fig. 3). ) are now being derived more outward.

Next, a scanning member traveling mechanism for automatically traveling the scanning member c will be described.

Two upper and lower guide rods 17 and 18 are horizontally suspended in parallel to each other on the frame 5, and a scanning member c is mounted on these so as to be able to slide left and right.

That is, the scanning member c has left and right through holes provided in the main body of the running body 19 slidably fitted into the upper guide rod 17, and a bobbin integrally provided on the lower side of the running body 19. 20 is slidably fitted to the lower guide rod 18.

A coil 21 is wound around the bobbin 20, and a horizontally long permanent magnet 22 is placed slightly below the lower guide rod 18 in parallel therewith.

The permanent magnet 22 has, for example, an N pole on its upper full length and an S pole on its lower full length, and the lower guide rod 18 is made of a magnetic material, and is turned on by passing a current through the coil 21. The current crosses the magnetic field that is constantly applied by the permanent magnet 22, and the magnetic force acting between them causes the traveling body 19 to
, Therefore, the scanning member c automatically moves to the left or right along the guide rods 17 and 18 as a guide means depending on the direction of the current flowing through the coil 21. In other words, the coil 21 and the permanent magnet 22 means permanent magnet 22
This constitutes a type of linear motor with a stator.

The scanning member c is always at the left stroke end (
1), and can run between the left stroke end and the right stroke end whose position can be adjusted as described later.

Accordingly, the scanning member c moves rightward from the left stroke end in relation to the travel of the gear ring (not shown) (for example, when the gear ring reverses its travel), and moves to the right from the left stroke end to the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30, which will be described in detail later. When the stroke reaches the reflection plate 36, it is reversed and moves to the left stroke end, and this point is the focus of the present invention, which will be described in detail later.

A spring seat piece 24 is fixed to the upper guide rod 17 at a position corresponding to the left stroke end of the scanning member c, and the guide rod 17 is horizontally supported on the frame 5 so as to be slidable left and right. At the same time, the scanning member c is urged rightward to a predetermined position by a spring 26 wound around the guide rod 17 between the left end wall of the frame 5 and the spring seat piece 24. Although it collides with the spring seat piece 24 during the backward movement (leftward movement), the spring 26 absorbs the impact. and so on, the scanning member c
When the spring 26 collides with the spring seat piece 24, the spring 26 is compressed by the force of the collision, and the guide rod 17 is displaced to the left with respect to the frame 5 together with the scanning member c. 40 is activated, and even with this activated stopper 40, the scanning member c is prevented from moving to the right due to the reaction after the spring 26 is compressed. This will be explained in detail with reference to Figure 4.

The stopper 40 is plate-shaped and is pivotally mounted on a stopper 41 attached to the left end wall of the frame 5 by a pivot 42 so as to be horizontally rotatable.

The stopper 40 has one side extending from its pivot point (pivot 42) to a position facing in front of the scanning member c at the position where it collides with the spring seat piece 24,
A hook portion 40' is formed at the tip of one side, while the other side extends rearward.

The stopper 40 is given a force to rotate clockwise in FIG. The rear end 40'7 is constantly engaged with the left end 17' of the guide rod 17 passing through the left end wall of the frame 5, and the hook part 40' is retracted to a position where it does not normally hit the scanning member c. I'm starting to do that. However, after the scanning member c reaches the reflection plate 36, it is reversed,
When the spring seat piece 24 is returned to the left stroke end (original position) and collides with the spring seat piece 24, as described above, the guide rod 17 slides slightly to the left due to the collision force, and the guide rod 17 is moved slightly to the left. The handle stopper 40 is pushed at the left end of the rod 17 and rotates counterclockwise in FIG. enters the travel range of the scanning member c.

In this way, the scanning member c moves to the right due to the reaction of colliding with the spring seat piece 24 and contracting the spring 26, but when it moves slightly to the right, it engages with the hook portion 40' of the stopper 140 and cannot move further. The driver is blocked from moving to the right and has to stop.

On the other hand, as the scanning member c moves to the right due to the reaction, the guide rod 17 slides to the right to return to its original state, so the stopper 40 immediately rotates back and scans due to the action of the spring 43. Move away from member c. Therefore, stopper 14
0 engages the scanning member c for only a short time, and the scanning member c is immediately allowed to move to the right after being stopped by the stopper 140. As a result of the above, the scanning member c immediately stops at a certain position (original position) without making a large reactionary movement after reaching the return position (original position), and immediately starts the next scanning after reaching the above-mentioned position. It is possible to take a posture and perform multi-stage scanning smoothly without erroneous scanning.

Further, the pulse motor a is energized and the card 1 is transferred only when the scanning member c is in the original position.

Now, on the rear side of the scanning member c, as shown in FIG. In order to scan one side of the card, a reading element,
That is, a so-called photoelectric sensor d consisting of a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element that receives reflected light reflected off the surface of the card and converts it into an electrical signal is attached.

As the scanning member c moves, its photoelectric sensor d optically scans the surface of the card horizontally in a straight line, and hereinafter the photoelectric sensor d will be referred to as the scanning sensor 1. Note that the card 1 is scanned by the scanning sensor 1d during both the forward (rightward) and backward (leftward) strokes of the scanning member c, and the electrical signals associated with the scanning in both the forward and backward strokes are , only those related to the outgoing stroke of the scanning member c are taken out as valid. Next, card 1 will be explained with reference to FIG. The function information recording area, that is, the function mark entry field 1f, which is the area where the function mark is recorded, is set to a color that is the same as the emission color of the light emitting element of the scanning sensor 1d and that the light receiving element does not discriminate (for example, the above-mentioned color). When a red light emitting diode is used as a light emitting element, grid dividing lines (red) are created by displaying them in advance using an appropriate display method such as printing.

In the above-mentioned knitting pattern entry column 1p, among the grid dividing lines composing it, the vertical lines are the dividing lines between the stitches, and the horizontal lines are the dividing lines between the knitting rows.

To be more specific, in the knitting pattern entry field 1p, one minimum section, that is, a reporter grid corresponds to one stitch,
Its horizontal arrangement, or row, corresponds to one knitting needle, and its vertical arrangement, or row, corresponds to a knitting stage (wale), and it is a so-called unit in which n horizontal rows of stitches constitute one group. When knitting a pattern, consider the vertical line at the left edge and the vertical line n vertical lines to the right as the boundary line, and draw the picture (knitting pattern) corresponding to the unit pattern to be knitted between them. ) is drawn solidly in black, for example, using an appropriate writing instrument such as a pencil.

For example, when knitting a unit pattern of 12 horizontal stitches by selecting 12 knitting needles as a group, the left vertical line and the 12th vertical line It is intended to draw a picture within the range.

At this time, as long as the outline of the picture is within the above range, the inside of the picture may be filled in solidly without filling in the reporter grid one by one.

This is because the reading is performed by sampling each reporter grid, and this will be explained in detail later. In addition, the horizontal line of the function mark entry field 1f is on the same line as the horizontal line of the knitting pattern entry field 1p, and the vertical line is parallel to the vertical line of the knitting pattern entry field 1p. The mark entry field 1f is used to mark an arbitrary reporter grid when performing a required function operation such as activating the notification means for notifying thread exchange or determining the feeding direction of the card 1 itself. In this example, two of the column grid columns (vertically arranged) are used, one for programming the forward feeding of card 1, and the other for programming the forward feeding of card 1. It is used to program reverse direction feeding.〇As mentioned above, in the knitting pattern entry column 1p of card 1, the knitting pattern representing the unit pattern to be knitted is drawn solidly. The scanning sensor 1d of the scanning member c is usually a reporter grid 1
Each row is scanned horizontally in a straight line, and the electrical signal associated with one stage of scanning is a square wave corresponding to the form of the knitting pattern in one stage of the reporter grid, that is, the form of one horizontal scan of the knitting pattern. The electrical signal obtained by scanning is one-on-one with the knitting needle to be selected.
Furthermore, the function mark entered in the function mark entry field 1f is also read by the scanning sensor 1d before reading the knitting pattern and receives an electrical signal in the same electrical system. However, these two types of electrical signals are separated from each other, and the electrical signal related to reading the knitting pattern is converted into a binary electrical signal corresponding to the knitting needle in a one-to-one relationship, and the funk The electrical signals involved in reading the function mark are also separated for each grid column (vertical arrangement) in the function mark entry field 1f.Next, we will explain the sampling mechanism that performs this operation, that is, the sampling operation. .

The frame 5 is located behind the traveling body 19 of the scanning member c.
, the horizontally long plate-shaped linear encoder 28 is connected to the guide rod 17.
, 18, and is suspended horizontally.

The linear encoder 28 inserts a predetermined plurality of knitting pattern sampling slits 28p in each grid column of the knitting pattern entry field 1p for sampling the knitting pattern drawn in the knitting pattern entry field 1p on the card 1.
A predetermined plurality of function mark sampling slits 28f are bored in a one-to-one relationship, and a predetermined plurality of function mark sampling slits 28f are provided for sampling the function marks.
The holes are drilled in one-to-one correspondence with each reporter grid row in the function mark entry field 1f. On the other hand, scanning member c
The two types of slits 28p,
A photoelectric sensor for optically reading 28f,
That is, a sampling sensor e is attached, which includes a light emitting element that illuminates the front surface of the linear encoder 28 and a light receiving element that receives the reflected light and converts it into an electrical signal. As the scanning member c travels, the sampling sensor e outputs a pulse corresponding to the slits 28f and 28p, that is, a sampling pulse, and the sampling pulse is an electrical signal related to the scanning of the scanning sensor 1d. As in the case of , both the reciprocating strokes of the scanning member c (the left stroke end which is the original position and the reflection plate 36 attached to the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 mentioned above)
), only those related to the outbound journey are extracted as valid ones, and two types of sampling pulses are extracted after that, namely, the sampling pulse for sampling the knitting pattern, and the funk pulse. The sampling pulses for sampling the cut marks are separated from each other. Thus, the electrical signals associated with one-stage scanning of the knitting pattern entry field 1p and the function mark entry field 1f are sampled for each reporter grid, but such sampling is performed for each reporter grid in relation to the card 1. In order to accurately perform each grid, the card guide plate 8 has a knitting pattern entry field 1p along the scanning line of the scanning sensor 1d.
8 slits corresponding to each reporter grid row in a one-to-one relationship
and 1 in each reporter grid column in the function mark entry field 1f.
Corresponding slits 8f are bored in a one-to-one relationship, and the scanning sensor 1d picks up the presence or absence of a mark on the card 1 for each slit through these slits.

Therefore, the electrical signals related to reading the knitting pattern are
Each bit corresponds to each reporter grid and therefore one knitting needle,
Also, depending on whether or not there is a mark on each reporter grid, the binary number “
It is converted into a binary electrical signal that determines whether it is ``1'' or ``O'' and is stored sequentially from left to right in a predetermined memory MEM (Figure 7) for storing knitting patterns, from which it is read out. The number of bits of the binary electric signal can be determined by moving the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 and moving the needle 31.
By matching the scale of a scale plate 32 provided below the transparent plate 15, the number indicated by the pointer 31 determines the number, and the number of needle selection units is determined thereby. Next, a needle selection unit number setting mechanism for setting the number of needle selection units will be explained.

The needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 is mounted on a rack rail plate 33 horizontally suspended on the frame 5 so as to be able to slide from side to side along the upper surface thereof.

That is, the rack rail plate 33 is provided with a plate spring 34.
(Fig. 5) and sandwich the sliding body 35 from above and below.
is mounted so as to be slidable left and right, and the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 is fixed on the upper plate 351 of this sliding body 35.

The sliding body 35 is a vertical plate 35 that is bent and hangs down from the front end of the upper plate 351 and located in front of the rack rail plate 33! A horizontal plate 353 is integrally formed to extend rearward from the lower end (FIG. 6), and this horizontal plate 353 is pressed against the tooth tip surface of the rack rail plate 33 by the action of the leaf spring 34. Along with that, there are 35 vertical plates! A locking pawl 354 formed to protrude from the left end engages between the teeth of the rack rail plate 33, and this engagement prevents the sliding body 35 and therefore the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 from sliding against the rack rail plate 33. It is becoming more and more like this.

The needle selection unit number setting instructing member 30 has an upper portion that is of a size suitable for being pinched with one's fingers, and protrudes upward from the long groove formed in the upper cover 2. By tilting the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 to the left as shown by the chain line in FIG. To move it, tilt it to the left like this.

Further, the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30 is provided with a reflecting plate 36 that is in pressure contact with the front surface of the card guide plate 8, and the right side of the horizontal plate 353 of the sliding body 35 is shown in FIG. As shown, the scanning sensor 1d extends further rearward into the movement range of the scanning member c, and the scanning sensor 1d is connected to the reflecting plate 3.
A stopper 35 is provided to prevent further forward movement of the scanning member c after reaching the point 6.

The front surface of the reflecting plate 36 has a mirror finish and has a much better light reflectance than the front surface of the card guide plate 8 and the card 1 side.

Therefore, the scanning sensor 1d is connected to this reflecting plate 36.
When this happens, the output voltage of the scanning sensor 1d (specifically, the output voltage of the light receiving element) suddenly increases.

Therefore, if the voltage at this time is determined experimentally in advance, and a voltage slightly lower than that is used as a reference voltage to detect when this voltage is exceeded, the scanning sensor 1d will be able to touch the reflector plate 36 as a result. It is clear that it is possible to detect what is happening. In FIG. 7, 50 and 51 are a light emitting element and a light receiving element of the scanning sensor 1d, and
The output voltage of the light receiving element 51 is determined based on the reference voltage predetermined based on the above experimental results and the analog comparator 5.
2, the voltages are compared.

Therefore, a predetermined electrical signal is obtained from the comparator 52 when the scanning sensor 1d approaches the reflecting plate 36.

On the other hand, the sampling pulses from the sampling sensor e are input to a needle selection unit number setting circuit 53 including a counter and a memory, and a counter therein removes a predetermined number of pulses for function mark sampling. Only pulses for knitting pattern sampling are counted. The counter is adapted to stop counting when the comparator 52 outputs a predetermined electrical signal as described above, and the counted value (digital electrical signal) at this time is used to set the number of needle selection units. It is designed to be stored in a count value storage memory in the circuit 53.

In other words, as described above, the needle selection unit number setting instruction member 30
By moving the needle 31 to match the scale of the scale plate 32, the set number of needle selection units is electrically stored in the memory. Note that the scale on the scale plate 32 is based on the card 1.
The columns are made to correspond to the rows of the reporter lattice in the knitting pattern entry field 1p. The digital electrical signal of the count value storage memory of the needle selection unit number setting circuit 53 is input to the knitting pattern storage memory MEM that stores the binary electrical signal related to reading the knitting pattern as described above ( In detail, the knitting pattern storage memory receives timing pulses, which are generated each time the gear ring moves one pitch of the knitting needles arranged in a row, although not shown. The binary electric signal stored in the knitting pattern storage memory is set to the count value stored in the count value storage memory in accordance with the timing of the timing pulse, that is, in accordance with the running timing of the gear ring. The bits whose number of bits have changed are sequentially and repeatedly read out.

This read binary electric signal is supplied through a cord or the like to one of the electromagnets that is to be effectively operated in the knitting needle selection mechanism installed on the back side of the gear ring, and thereby the knitting needles are read out. According to the contents of each bit of the binary electrical signal received, needles are selected (either 1 or O), and so-called unit pattern knitting is performed. The number of needle selection units is determined as described above, and the scanning member c moves to the right by a distance corresponding to the determined number of needle selection units until it reaches the reflection plate 36 and reaches the stop. After colliding with 1355, the vehicle immediately returns to its original position, and this point is the focus of the present invention, and its configuration will be explained next.

When knitting is performed by operating the gear ring, an electrical signal is obtained by detecting the reversal of the gear ring or by detecting that the gear ring approaches a predetermined member on the needle bed. In response to the electric signal, the card feed command circuit 54 in FIG. 7 outputs a card feed command signal as an activation signal as shown in FIG. As shown in [ ], a predetermined number of pulses (in this example, one pulse) are output, whereby the pulse motor drive circuit 56 drives the pulse motor a and the card 1 moves in accordance with the card feeding direction. It is designed to be transferred one stage at a time in the direction indicated by a circuit 57 that outputs a signal.

When the one-stage transfer of the card 1 is completed, that is, when the pulse output from the pulse generator 55 is completed, the flip-flop 58 for forward movement of the scanning member is set, and its output [1V]
Accordingly, the scanning member drive circuit 59 biases the coil 21 of the scanning member c so that the traveling body 19 moves to the right (biasing in the forward direction), thereby causing the scanning member c to move to the right.

Due to this right row, the sampling pulse from the sampling sensor e passes through the AND 60 as shown in FIG. The pulses for knitting pattern sampling among the sampling pulses are counted, and the counted value is determined by the needle selection unit number setting circuit 5.
When the counted value stored in the counted value storage memory in step 3 matches the set number of needle selection units (Fig. 8 [ ]), the comparator circuit 61 performs the calculation as shown in the same figure [ ]. It is designed to output a match signal.

In response to this coincidence signal, the flip-flop 58 for forward movement of the scanning member is set, while the monostable multivibrator 62 for backward movement of the scanning member is operated, and its output []
Accordingly, the scanning member drive circuit 59 drives the scanning member c
The coil 21 is biased so that the traveling body 19 moves to the left (return direction is applied), so that the scanning member c immediately reverses its running from the right to the left. When switching to the left, the traveling body 19 is prevented from excessive forward travel due to inertia by a stopper 355 that is a part of the sliding body 35.

Therefore, the stopper 355 serves as the left stroke end for the scanning member c. Also,
The pointer 31 of the selected needle unit number setting instruction member 30 not only indicates the number of selected needle units, but also indicates the knitting pattern entry field 1 of the card 1.
This also indicates how far p is actually scanned and read as a needle selection signal.

The operating time T of the monostable multivibrator 62 is defined as the time required for the scanning member c to always return to the left stroke end (original position) even if it is located at the right travel limit position (the chain line position in Figure 1). As a result, the scanning member c will always return to its original position even if a reversal command (from right to left) is received at any position.

In this way, the scanning member c moves away from the original position and moves to the right at the moment when the transfer of one stage of the card 1 is completed, and the number of sampling pulses for sampling the knitting pattern from the sampling sensor e reaches the point indicated by the pointer 31. When the scanning sensor 1d detects the reflecting plate 36, the scanning sensor 1d immediately turns around and returns to the original position. Therefore, the knitting pattern entry field 1p of the card 1 is scanned by the same number of grid grid rows (12 in this example) as the number of needle selection units indicated by the pointer 31, and the knitting pattern entry field 1p on the right side is scanned. Report grids that do not need to be scanned will not be scanned.

By the way, if the reciprocating movement of the scanning member c does not reach the reflection plate 36, if only the above-mentioned configuration is used,
This means that no reversal command is applied to the scanning member c.

Therefore, in order to prevent such a situation, when the pulse output of the pulse generator 55 is finished, the safety monostable multivibrator 63 is activated, and the eighth
When a coincidence signal as shown in the figure [] is not obtained, the flip-flop 58 is set and the monostable multivibrator 62 is set using the output of the monostable multivibrator 63 (see [l] in the figure). It's getting old.

The operating time t of the monostable multivibrator 63 is the time sufficient for the scanning member c to travel from the original position to the right stroke end. In this case, the time chart in FIG. 8 extends as shown by the dashed line. Further, while the scanning member c is biased to travel, the scanning display flip-flop 64 is opened as shown in FIG.
is set, and during this time the scanning display light emitting element 65 installed on the upper cover 2 etc. is turned on.
Furthermore, when a card feed command signal is output from the card feed command circuit 54 while the scanning member c is being biased to run, the signal is outputted to the AND66 as shown in FIG. 8 [X].
For example, a buzzer 67 is actuated through the card, so as to warn of erroneous card feeding.

As is clear from the above description, the knitting pattern scanning method of the present invention involves counting sampling pulses while automatically moving the scanning member forward, and setting the counted value by the needle selection unit number setting means. When the number of needle selection units is reached, the scanning member is automatically moved backwards, and the scanning member is moved as far as the necessary scanning points on the recording medium such as a card. Therefore, unnecessary running of the scanning member can be omitted and effective scanning of the recording medium over multiple stages can be quickly performed without wasting time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a front view, FIG. 2 is a plan view, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line I-1 in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is an original view of the scanning member. FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway front view showing the installation configuration of the needle selection unit number setting instruction member; FIG. 6 is a cross-section taken along the line - in FIG. 5. 7 is a program diagram showing the electrical and electronic configuration, and FIG. 8 is a time chart for the above program diagram. 1...Organization program card as a recording medium, c
... Scanning member, e ... Sampling sensor, MEM ... Memory for storing knitting patterns, 53 ... Needle selection unit number setting circuit, 30 ...・
... Needle selection unit number setting instruction member, 33... Lack rail plate, which is the trajectory of the needle selection unit number setting instruction member, 355
・・・・・・Stotsupa first.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. By scanning a recording medium in which a knitting pattern representing the pattern to be knitted is recorded with a scanning member and receiving a sampling pulse every time the scanning member runs for a predetermined length, the knitting pattern is read as a binary electric signal and stored in a memory. Then, the stored binary electric signal is read out in relation to the carriage travel only for the number of bits corresponding to the number of needle selection units set in advance by the needle selection unit number setting means, and its contents are read out. In a knitting machine that performs needle selection, the sampling pulses are counted while automatically moving the scanning member forward, and the counted value is set by the needle selection unit number setting means. 1. A knitting pattern scanning method in a knitting machine, characterized by automatically causing a scanning member to travel backward when a number corresponding to the number of knitting patterns is reached.