TWI582287B - Embroidery machine and operating method thereof - Google Patents

Description

Embroidery machine and its operation method

The present invention relates to an embroidery machine, in particular a shuttle embroidery machine, a quilting machine or a multi-head embroidery machine operated by a shuttle, the embroidery machine comprising a plurality of shuttle plates and a driver device, the shuttle can be walked in the plurality Reciprocatingly above the shuttle, the actuator means for reciprocating the shuttle above the work surface, and to the method of operation of the embroidery machine.

The shuttle embroidery machine operates using a two-wire system, i.e., has a needle thread and a shuttle thread, and the needle thread is wrapped around the shuttle thread during each stitching. A needle with a needle eye carries the needle thread through the material, which forms a loop as the needle returns through the material. A shuttle with a shuttle line then passes through this loop. In general, embroidery machines or quilting machines have a large number of stitching points and therefore have many needles and shuttles. A so-called drive track or the like is used for the reciprocating movement of the shuttle. In modern embroidery machines, the drive track is formed by a profile. The profile has holes into which the lower driver pin and the upper driver pin are inserted for each stitch point. With these drive pins, the shuttle moves up and down on the inclined working surface of the shuttle. In an embroidery machine that utilizes gravity acting on a shuttle, it is known to stop the shuttle if necessary. To do this, simply pull the lower drive pin so that it no longer drags the shuttle (EP 1 055 761). In the case of a quilting machine, the shuttle plates are usually arranged horizontally. In the embroidery machine and the quilting machine, the lateral guidance of the shuttle is provided on one side by the front needle plate and on the other side by the rear needle plate.

In recent years, the speed of the shuttle embroidery machine has been greatly improved. Machines that operate at 600 needles per minute and more are already available. However, various factors hinder the further increase in machine speed. For example, increased wear can be seen on the shuttle. This is not surprising when it is known that the shuttle is accelerating up to 5G. At high speeds, it is also noticed that the noise from the shuttle area is increased.

The high speed at which the embroidery machine operates today results in radial deflection as the needle passes through the base fabric. This may be caused by the base fabric itself, such as an embroidered segment (i.e., a plurality of sutures at one location), and/or caused by vibrations caused by high speed. If the needle is deflected to a considerable extent, it may happen that the shuttle tip travels under the needle rather than traveling over the needle. In this case, the needle will be deflected further by the shuttle and inevitably broken. However, due to the high suture speed, the needle will still produce further sutures until the machine perceives that the needle has broken and begins to brake from a high speed. Therefore, many stitches have not been formed correctly due to the broken needle, which may impair the quality of the embroidery. In addition, the base fabric is damaged by the broken needle because the needle stub partially breaks the fabric at the stitching point.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an embroidery machine, specifically a shuttle embroidery machine, and a method of operating the embroidery machine wherein the risk of needle breakage is reduced as compared to the prior art.

According to the invention, this is achieved in a shuttle embroidery machine or a quilting machine of the type described above, in which a needle guiding element is provided, which limits the transverse direction of the needle Deflect and push the needle back into the needle channel. Thus, the needle guiding element has the function of a needle deflector which directs the needle substantially back into the "normal" needle path, i.e. as if no lateral deflection has occurred. This has the significant advantage that the needle breakage due to collision with the shuttle does not actually occur. This reduces the downtime of the embroidery machine and improves the quality of the embroidery pieces.

According to a preferred embodiment, the driver element engages one or more shuttles during operation of the embroidery machine and is equipped with one or more needle guiding elements depending on the number of shuttles. In the context of the present invention, a driver element will be understood to mean those parts of the embroidery machine that are responsible for driving the shuttle, such as the drive track and the driver pin in the case of a large embroidery machine. It will be readily appreciated that in addition to the driver components, there are transmissions that are coupled to the driver components and that typically translate rotational motion of the drive shaft driven by the engine into reciprocating movement of the driver components. In the case of large embroidery machines, the needle guiding elements are preferably arranged on the drive track. In the case of a small embroidery machine, in particular in the case of a multi-head embroidery machine, the needle guiding element is likewise preferably arranged on the driver element or the driver device, in which case the driver element or driver device can be shaken A shuttle holder that reciprocates along the linear guide.

If the needle guiding element is arranged directly on the driver device, it is important that the needle guiding element is arranged in front of the shuttle as seen in the direction in which the shuttle moves forward. As a result, the needle guiding element acts like a plow, which eliminates any obstacles placed in the shuttle's path of travel.

Advantageously, the needle guiding element or the needle deflector has at least one inclined guiding surface that faces the shuttle plate at an angle surface. This serves as a deflecting surface of the needle that protrudes laterally from the needle passage. The needle guiding element is suitably arranged in such a way that the guiding surface is adjacent to the plane of the working surface. In other words, in the cross-sectional view, the guide surface forms a generally V-shaped opening with the shuttle plate that is capable of catching the needle exposed from the needle passage. Thus, during the embroidery operation, the needle projecting laterally from the needle channel is guided back into the needle channel.

According to an advantageous embodiment, one and preferably a plurality of needle guiding elements are arranged or formed on the profile and the profile is attached to the driver track. This has the advantage that all of the guiding elements can be aligned by adjusting the profile on the drive track.

The subject matter of the present invention also relates to a method of operating a shuttle embroidery machine in which a shuttle reciprocates over a working surface of a shuttle and synchronized with a shuttle movement, the needle moves to a needle passage of the shuttle in. This method is characterized in that the needle exposed laterally from the needle channel is deflected back into the needle channel during the embroidery operation.

In Figures 1 to 3, a plurality of shuttle holders 11 of a shuttle embroidery machine (not shown in detail) have a plurality of shuttle plates 12 for the shuttle 15 in a known manner. The shuttle plate 12 has a working surface 13 on which the shuttle 15 can reciprocate above and/or along the working surface 13. A drive track 21 is provided to drive the shuttle 15. In the case of a large embroidery machine, the drive track 21 extends over the entire length of the embroidery machine. The drive track 21 that can be moved up and down or reciprocating can be of any type, for example in EP 1 055 761 Shown in . It preferably consists of a profile 23 having a bore into which the driver pins 25, 27 are inserted. During operation at the suture point, in each case, the shuttle is held and guided between the driver pins, wherein a small amount of clearance between the driver pins 25, 27 and the shuttle 15 allows the needle to pass around the shuttle .

The shuttle plate 13 is usually disposed between the front needle plate 17 and the rear needle plate 19, and an embroidery machine that no longer has a rear needle plate is now known. Here, the front needle board 17 means a needle board on which an embroidery piece is placed during an embroidery operation. In the front needle plate 17, a distance from the needle is provided to provide a pinhole 30 through which the needle can penetrate during the suture. For each of the shuttles 15, as proposed by the same applicant in EP-A-1 881 098, the guiding element 31 for laterally guiding the shuttle can be attached to the drive track 21 by means of a screw 29 so that Reduce wear on the shuttle. The contents of EP-A-1 055 761 and EP-A-1 881 098 are incorporated herein by reference.

The individual shuttle plates 12 are formed from elongated profile segments 33, which are preferably made of plastic. The profile segment 33 is disposed at an angle to the shuttle holder track 35 to form a guiding path that is inclined from a vertical line on which the shuttle 15 moves up and down. In order to reduce wear on the shuttle and the work surface 13, the work surface is equipped with slides 37a, 37b.

A needle passage 39 is provided generally in the middle of the working surface 13, as a trough-shaped recess, preferably having a generally semi-circular or substantially U-shaped cross section extending generally transversely to the longitudinal extension of the working surface 13. The needle channel 39 is positioned below or behind the plane of the work surface 13, such that when a suture is formed, the shuttle can generally slide over the needle 43 without colliding with the needle 43. However, as mentioned in the introduction, it may happen that when passing through the base fabric, The needle 43 is deflected radially and exposed from the needle channel 39, i.e., from the plane of the working surface, as can be seen in Figure 4c. In this case, the needle will inevitably collide with the shuttle, and the break of the needle usually occurs.

In order to avoid needle breakage, it is now proposed according to the invention to arrange the needle guiding element 41 on the embroidery machine such that if the needle 43 emerges laterally from the needle channel 39, the needle is forced back before the shuttle 15 slides over the needle channel 39. Into the needle channel 39 (Figs. 4 to 8). In the case of a large embroidery machine, as seen in the direction of movement of the shuttle, the guiding element 41 is preferably arranged on the drive track 19 and in front of the shuttle tip. By arranging the guiding element 41 in front of the shuttle 15, the needle 43 emerging laterally from the needle channel 39 can be deflected back into the needle channel 39 by the guiding element 41. For this purpose, the guiding element 41 suitably has inclined guiding surfaces 45a, 45b adapted to guide the needle projecting laterally from the needle channel back into the needle channel. Advantageously, the guiding surfaces are inclined relative to the working surface in two mutually perpendicular directions, i.e. such that the distance from the working surface increases in the direction towards the needle and in the direction in which the shuttle moves forward. It is thus ensured that the needle protruding from the needle channel can be grasped and returned to the channel. Thus, the needle guiding element is arranged and configured in such a way as to ensure that the needle remains behind the working surface of the shuttle plate when the suture is formed as the shuttle tip is slid over the needle channel.

According to an advantageous embodiment, a plurality of needle guiding elements 41 are attached to the profile 47 or preferably formed on the profile 47 (Fig. 8). The needle guiding element 41 is arranged at a distance from the suture point such that when the profile 47 is fixed to the driver track 19, the needle guiding element 41 has been relative to the needle channel 39 and the shuttle 15 And adjusted. Preferably, the profile 47 is attached to the driver track by a screw 49, wherein a certain degree of clearance between the screw 49 and the aperture 51 enables adjustment of the profile relative to the shuttle.

In Figures 4a and 7, in the right half, in each case, it can be seen how the needle 43 can deflect laterally away from the needle channel 39 as it passes through the base fabric. If the needle is offset from the normal position by only a few tenths of a millimeter in the area of the pinhole, the distance at the tip of the needle has increased to a few millimeters. It may be considered here that the problem can also be solved by a deeper needle channel. However, this is not the case because for deep needle channels there is a risk that the shuttle tip will no longer reliably meet the line loop of the upper line. In this case, the suture will be missed, which will result in a lower quality of the embroidery segment.

The needle guiding member according to the present invention is used not only on a large embroidery machine but also on a small embroidery machine equipped with a shuttle. For example, such a small embroidery machine in the form of a multi-head embroidery machine is disclosed by the same applicant in the European patent application EP-A1-2 330 242. The contents of EP-A1-2 330 242 are incorporated herein by reference. Such a multi-head embroidery machine is characterized in that there are a plurality of needle positions for each embroidery head. The needle lifter and the needle bar assigned to the needle lifter are typically mounted in a carrier that is replaced during needle conversion to couple the desired needle lifter and associated wire rod to the stationary drive. The lower line unit of the embroidery machine is equipped with a shuttle and a shuttle guide. In contrast to large embroidery machines, each shuttle is assigned a separate transmission that, through a clutch or cam mechanism, converts the rotational movement of the common drive shaft into a reciprocating movement of the individual shuttles. Therefore, unlike in large embroidery machines, a continuous drive track with a drive pin is not required, but instead For the rocker lever, the rocker lever cooperates directly or indirectly with the shuttle holder 55 (Figs. 9a to c). The aforementioned shuttle holder 55 preferably has a C-shaped configuration that engages around the back of the shuttle. The shuttle holder 55 is linearly movable on at least one of the guide rods 57 and guided perpendicular to the needle path.

In order to avoid needle breakage, a needle guiding element is provided in a manner similar to the solution of a large embroidery machine, which needle guiding element is formed or arranged directly on the shuttle holder 55 as a lug 59. The lug 59 protrudes to some extent outside the tip of the shuttle so that any needle exposed from the needle channel 39 is returned to the needle channel 39 by the guiding surface not shown in more detail. In this way, the collision of the shuttle with the needle can be reliably prevented.

During operation of the machine, the needle guiding member 41 moves in synchronism with the shuttle holder 55 and/or the drivers 25, 27 of the drag shuttle 15. Since the front end of the needle guiding element 41 or 59 is positioned at least 2 mm in front of the tip of the shuttle, preferably at least 4 mm and particularly preferably at least 6 mm and up to 25 mm and preferably up to 20 mm and particularly preferably up to 15 mm So, it is possible to force the needle protruding laterally from the needle channel back into the needle channel. In order not to disturb the loop formation, it is important that the needle guiding element only overlaps the needle by a few millimeters at the maximum extent of the needle travel.

In summary, it can be stated that the shuttle embroidery machine has a shuttle drive for a shuttle, the shuttle drive having a transmission (not shown in detail) connected to the drive device, for example with a drive 25 , 27 drive track 21 to produce a reciprocating movement. a needle guiding element or a needle deflector that moves with the shuttle drive and is placed in front of the shuttle, forcing the needle back into the needle channel, The collision between the shuttle and the needle is reliably avoided. Since the needle guiding member 41 moves together with the shuttle 15 and is disposed in front of the shuttle 15, the needle can be pushed back into the needle channel before the shuttle reaches the needle channel. This improvement has proven to be useful in practice, as a result of which the number of needle breaks can be greatly reduced.

11‧‧‧ Shuttle Holder

12‧‧‧ Shuttle Board

13‧‧‧Working surface

15‧‧‧ Shuttle

17‧‧‧ front needle plate

19‧‧‧ rear needle plate

21‧‧‧Drive track

23‧‧‧Face of the drive track

25,27‧‧‧Drive pins

29‧‧‧ screw

30‧‧‧ pinhole

31‧‧‧Guide elements

33‧‧‧Face fragments

35‧‧‧ Shuttle Holder Track

37a, 37b‧‧‧ Skateboarding

39‧‧‧needle channel

41‧‧‧needle guiding element

43‧‧‧ needle

45a, 45b‧‧‧ oblique guiding surface of the needle guiding element

47‧‧‧Face with needle guiding element 41

49‧‧‧Spiral for profile 47

51‧‧‧ Holes in profile 47

55‧‧‧ Shuttle Shuttle Holder

57‧‧‧ Guide rod

59‧‧‧ lugs

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings in which: Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a shuttle holder of a known shuttle embroidery machine having a shuttle arranged on the shuttle Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the shuttle holder and the drive track of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a rear perspective view of the shuttle holder of Figure 1, but for clarity, the front plate and the rear The needle plate and the drive track are not shown; Figure 4a shows a plan view of the shuttle holder and the drive track of a large embroidery machine, wherein four conventional stitch points are shown on the right side of the figure and with the aid of the needle guiding element according to the invention Four stitch points are shown on the left; Figure 4b shows detail B in Figure 4a, which shows the needle, needle guiding element and shuttle tip in an enlarged scale; Figure 4c shows detail C in Figure 4a, which is shown on an enlarged scale Conventional suture point; Figure 5 shows a side view of a suture point in accordance with the present invention in Figure 4a, partially in section; Figure 6a shows a front view of the shuttle holder of Figure 4a with the front suture point Figure 6b shows the detail A in Figure 6a on an enlarged scale; Figure 7 shows a plan view of the arrangement in Figure 4a; Figure 8 shows the drive track in Figure 4a; Figure 9 shows the conventional seam of the multi-head embroidery machine a) side view of the line point b) a cross-sectional view through the needle channel and c) a perspective view; FIG. 10 shows a) a side view b) of the stitch point of the multi-head embroidery machine with the needle guiding element according to the present invention A cross-sectional view of the needle channel and a c-dimensional view.

23‧‧‧Face of the drive track

43‧‧‧ needle

Claims (9)

An embroidery machine, in particular a shuttle embroidery machine or a quilting machine or a multi-head embroidery machine, comprising: a front needle plate (17) having a pinhole (30), at least one shuttle plate (12) provided in said Behind the front needle plate (17) and having a working surface (13), the shuttle (15) is reciprocable above the working surface, a needle channel (39) provided in the shuttle plate (12) Within the working surface (13), and a shuttle drive having a driver element (21, 25, 27, 55) for generating a reciprocating shuttle movement, the shuttle drive providing a needle guiding element ( 41) and the needle guiding element (41) limits lateral deflection of the needle (43), characterized in that the driver element (21, 25, 27, 55) has a driver track (21) and the needle guide A lead member (41) is disposed on the driver track (21). An embroidery machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the driver element (21, 25, 27, 55) is engaged with one or more shuttles (15) during operation of the embroidery machine and is equipped with a Or more than one needle guiding element (41). An embroidery machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the drive rail (21) has a driver (25, 27) held therein for driving the shuttle (15). An embroidery machine according to item 1 of the patent application is characterized in that As seen in the forward movement direction of the shuttle (15), the needle guiding element (41) is arranged in front of the shuttle. An embroidery machine according to the first aspect of the patent application, characterized in that the needle guiding member (41) has at least one inclined guiding surface (45a, 45b), the guiding surface (45a, 45b) being at an angle Facing the working surface (13) of the shuttle board. An embroidery machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the needle guiding member (41) is arranged in such a manner that the guiding surfaces (45a, 45b) are adjacent to a plane of the working surface (13). An embroidery machine according to the first aspect of the patent application is characterized in that a plurality of shuttle plates (12) are provided, the plurality of shuttle plates (12) having a corresponding number of working surfaces (13). An embroidery machine according to claim 1 of the patent application, characterized in that one and preferably a plurality of needle guiding members (41) are arranged or formed on the profile (47), and the profile is attached to the driver track (twenty one). A method for operating an embroidery machine, in particular a shuttle embroidery machine, in which the shuttle (15) is placed on the shuttle by means of a drive element (21, 25, 27, 55) of the shuttle drive The working surface (13) of (12) reciprocates upwardly, and in synchronization with the shuttle movement, the needle (43) moves into the needle channel (39) of the shuttle plate (12), the method being characterized in that During the embroidery operation, the lateral deflection of the needle (43) is restricted by the needle guiding element (41) of the shuttle drive such that the needle is exposed laterally from the needle channel (39) (43) Being deflected back into the needle channel (39), the driver element (21, 25, 27, 55) has a drive track (21), and the needle guiding element (41) is arranged on the drive track (21).