US1166057A - Split-foot-knitting machine. - Google Patents

Description

1-. LAWSON.

SPLIT FOOT KNITTING MACHIVE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 2', 1911.

Llfifififi? Patented Dec. 28, 1915.

WITNESSES- JOHN LAWSON, OF CENTRAL FALLS, RHO DE ISLAND.

Application filed March 2, 1911.

To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN LAWSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Central Falls, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Split-Foot- Knitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The improvement forming the subject of this application for U. S. patent relates to full automatic stockin -knitting machines for producing split-foot stockings. The patent to Hemphill, No. 933,443, of Septemher 7, 1909, discloses an example of stockingknitt-ing machine in which the prior art of knitting is embodied, and in which the applicants improvements are capable of being successfully employed.

The object of the invention is to increase the efficiency of automatic double-feed stocking knittin machines in a simple, inexpensive and e ective manner.

To that endthe invention consists essentially in constructing the secondary knitting-cams whereby they may be temporarily positioned or moved outward from the face of the reciprocating cylinder to a much less extent than heretofore practised during the production of the split-foot portion of the stocking, thereby at the same time correspondingly increasing the degree of engageable area of the buttportion of the longbutt needles with the thus positioned secondary knitting-cams, while the secondary thread is being knitted into semi-courses of stitches. At the same time, too, the other or main thread is also being converted into semi-courses by means of the normal operative engagement of the short-butt needles with the main knitting-cams; the butts of these needles then moving freely and idly in the space. formed'between the temporarily outwardly positioned secondary knittingcams and cylinder during each reciprocation of the latter.

In the accompanying sheet of drawings,

Figure 1 represents a partial top plan view of a double-feed stocking-knitting machine,

showing the main and secondary knittingcams and lmitting-cylinder, the latter being indicated in horizontal section; the major portion of the operative devices being omitted. Fig. 2 is'a combined transverse sectional view and end elevation, viewed from the left end. of the machine. Fig. 3' is a partial front 'side elevation correspond ng Specification of Letters l'atent.

SPLIT-FOOT-KNITTING" MACHINE.

Serial No. 611,826.

with Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents, in enlarge-1'1.

scale, an inner elevation of the radially movable secondary cam-block provided with stitch-cams embodying my im rovement;

ment, viewed from the left of Fig. 4.

In a co-pending application, filed by me Patented Dec. 28,1915.

in the U. 8. Patent Ofiice, January 10, 1911,

Serial No. 601,894, is illustrated and described a double-feed knitting-machine, the

same being also adapted to produce splitfoot stockings, and including in its construction main and secondary knitting or stitchcams. My present invention, as before stated, relates more particularly to improve ments in the secondary knitting-cams, such for example as are adapted to be moved toward and from the needle-cylinder and used in knitting-machines of the doublefeed type.

In the accompanying drawings a designates the table of the machine, portions being omitted; the table is surmounted by a cam-plate H capable of short'vertical movements. On the cam-plate are mounted the cam-block D provided with the pair of main stitch-cams arm, the radially movable caniblock D carrying-the pair of secondary stitch-cams :0 m and the sectional needlesupporting ring-cam M The central hole or bore 7 of the cam-ring and table and also the inner concave faces of both sets of knitting-cams correspond to andhave substantially the same inner diameter as the outer diameter of the needle-carrying knittingcylinder N, the latter being represented in horizontal section, 72. indicating the needles.

The secondary cam-block D is mounted so as to be moved bodily in a horizontal plane toward and from the cylinder N by means soon to be described. The opposite sides of the block (see Fig. 4) are beveled at an angle of about -l5- and have secured thereto apair of right and left stitch-cams :0 m the cam portion proper is substantially wedge-shaped, its point 6 being at the top end. Upper and lower vertically alining center guide members 127. m, respective1y. a.

are located with respect to the cams :u and secured to the inner face of the block; these form, in connection with the side cams ai grooves or paths adapted, when in use, to receive the butts of the needles, substantially as usual. The lower broken parallel lines indicate the path of the butts needles are in the normal. working plane,

and the upper broken linesit the path ofthe butts of the long-butt needles when the latter are moved upward out of knitting' action. g p v When both the mainand secondary knitting-threads are being simultaneously knitted into continuous circular courses of stitches, as in plain double-feed knitting,

the secondary ca1n-block D is in the nward position, all the needles of the cylinder then being in the normal or lower plane; so that the rotation of the cylinder causes the butts to successively engage the outer inclined face a of one of the cruns, say the right stitch-cam of the auxiliary cam-block, see Fig. l, thereby guiding the needles upward until their respective butts engage the adjacent inclined side of the upper guide member of, located intermediate the said upper and lower parallel needle-paths t 6, respectively; the resulting co-action successively deflects the needles back into the lower path t until they engage the lower inclined side of the left stitch-cam, which latter in turn defiects the butts. downwardfpast the heel of the cam to successively cast off the loops from the needles in producing the stitches, followed by moving the needles upward to the lower or knitting plane-again. 1

shown in the outwardly or laterally moved mid-position with respect to the knitting cylinder. In the represented position of'the main and secondary cams the machine is adapted to produce the split-foot portion of the stocking from the corresponding knitting-threads, the cylinder being actuated in a rotary-reciprocatory manner. The posi-- tion of the a n-controlling means shown in Figs. 2 and corresponds with the position of the cam-block D represented in Fig. l.

The upper portion of the inner or vertical face 0 of each of the stitch-cams a" is cut away to form a lateral recess or notch n the lower edge of the latter being in substantial horizontal alinement with the lower portion of the said normal butt-path 2, and the upper end of the lower guide member m. The depth of said recessed portion is about one-half the width of the inclined surface a, as clearly shown in Fig. As thus devised, the butts of all the needles will, even then, in moving along the surface n extend suiiiciently beyond the recess, when the block 1 is inward against the cylinder, to be normally acted upon by the stitch-cams and guide members. Whem'however, the secondary thread is to be inactive, as during the knitting of the heel and toe pockets, the block l) is moved outward the maximum distance so that the butts of the short-butt needles of the then reciprocatin, cylinder will travel "freely and idly past the of secon.-:lary str: .-h--can1s, the lo:

In Fig. 1 the secondary cam-block D is meanwhile moving idly in the upper path 25 The advantages derived by the employment of my improved stitch-cams m are that when the cam-block D is positioned so as to cause the long-butt needles to be engaged by the cams m to knit the secondary thread into semi-courses of stitches, in cooperation with the knitting of the other thread by the short-butt needles and the cams or" the main canrblock, in producing. the split-foot portion of the stocking, the block D is lo cated much nearer the cylinder than heretofore thereby providing correspondingly increased cani surface for supporting the longbutt needles when they are in knitting action. As thus devised, the wear upon the long-butt needles is materially reduced, whereas, formerly the relationof theblock D to the cylinder when producing split-foot knitting" was necessarily such that the dis: tance between the normal vertical inner face, as 0', of the stitch-cams and the face of the cylinder exceeded the length of the butts of the shortloutt needles, and the long-butts were necessarilymaterially longer than with the present arrangement.

The innnediately following description relates to the construction,arrangement and manner of operation of. the means repre sented for controlling the movements of the secondary cam-block D To an intermittingly actuated cairn-shafts is fixed. a barrel-cam or drum f having a narrow sectional cam-like raised rib B secured to its periphery. Coiiperating therewith is a light pivotally mounted lever f having its front or free end disposed in the path of and arranged to frictionally engage said rib. and having its opposite or'rear end jointed to a vertically extending link f in turnjointed to the bent horizontal memberof the bell-crank lever pivoted at f to an ear of the table The other arm of lever f is attached to a link i jointed to a bent lever h pivoted at it to the can'rplate, H; the other end of lever 7t b jo' lt-connected .to the base of the secondary cam-block l Thus it is obvious that the swinging levers 7, etc, are adapted to impart a lateral sliding movement to the cam-block -D the construction and arrangement of the parts being such that when the free end of the lever f engages the periphery of the drum 'xitself, the block will thereby be moved to the inward position, close to the cylinder, as in normal double-feed knitting, but. when in engagement with the highest portions 2') and b of the rib B, as in producing the heel and toe pockets, respectively, the block will. be moved to the maximum outer position, the inactive or long-butt needles then oscillating idly past the secondary cams. In producing the split-foot portion of the stocking, the main cam-bloc l: engaged by is in position so are: needles t.

the corresponding thread into semi-circular courses of stitches. At the same time, the

" courses and joined to the first-named semiother thread is also being knitted into semishow 'most clearly the then working relation of the .lever f to the intermediate camsection 0. In this mid-position of the secondarycam-block the butts of the short-butt needles reciprocate in the lower plane 25 (Fig. 4). Asthus temporarily positioned, the outer ends of the butts of the short-butt needles will clear the bottom or back end of the lateral recesses 71. of the two stitch-cams w. At the sameftime, too, the construction is .such thatupon deflecting the long-butt needles downward from the inactive plane t to the working plane t, the butts are adapted to slideupwardly on the inclined surface n of the cam m (bridging the recess n past the point e and contact with theadjacent beveled side of the upperneedle-guide m the resulting action upon the long-butt needles being substantially the same as in normalknittin'g.

The maximum lateral width of the inclined butt-engaging surface n is slightly portion of the butts projecting from the outer face of the needle-cylinder when the cams-are in the inward position, and having the lateral depth of the recessed or cut-away portion 11. somewhat less than the length of the butt portion of the short-butt needles extending outward from the cylinders face. Thus, it will be apparent that provision is made for the coiiperative engagement of the butts of all the needles with the stitch-cam s :0 when the cam-blockl) is positioned inward, as in plain double-feed knitting, but when the said cam-block is in the outward .positiomas in producing the heel and toe pockets, none of the butts can engage the cams, whereas in knitting the split-foot portion of the stocking, the last-named camblock then being in the mid position, the

butts of-the long-butt needles will opera moving its stitch cams out ofknitting action.

I claim as my invention 1. In a knitting-machine adapted to produce a split-foot stocking, the combination with the needle-carrying cylinder, of a pair of cam-blocks, a pair of oppositely disposed stitch cams secured to the inner end portion of each of said cam-blocks, and means for automatically moving one of said cam-blocks radially toward and from the face of the cylinder at predetermined points during the knitting of the stocking, the upper portion of the normal inner vertical faces of the stitch-cams of the said movable cam-block being cut away or laterally recessed a limited extent, to form thereacross an unobstructed passage for the butts of certain needles.

2. In a circular stocking-knitting machine provided with a revoluble needle-cylinder carrying needles having. butts varying in length, the combination therewith of substantially diametrically opposed main and secondary cam-blocks arranged with relation to the cylinder, a pair of oppositely dis-' posed stitch-cams fixed to the inner end of the secondary cam-block, the vertical inner faces of the said stitch-cams being recessed thereacross to form a passage for the butts of the short-butt needles, means for moving the last-named cam-block whereby the shortbutt needles are adaptedto reciprocate idly past in the recessed portion of the stitchcams, as when the split-foot part of a stocking is beingproduced, said stitch-cams at substantially the same time adapted to be 'in' normal working engagement with the butts of theother needles, substantially as hereinbefore described.

3. A knitting machine having in combination a needle-cylinder, a. main cam-block, a secondary cam-block movable with relation to said needle-cylinder, stitch-cams fixed to the last named cam-block, said stitch-cams being recessed on their inner faces to receive the butts of certain needles, a cam-shaft, and means for operating the secondary camblock from said cam-shaft.

4. A knitting machine having in combination a needlecylinder, main and secondary cam-blocks, a pair of oppositely disposed stitch-cams fixed to said secondary cam-block, each of said stitch-cams being provided with a lateral recess in its inner .face to receive the butts of certain needles, a

cam-shaft, and means operated from said cam-shaft for moving the said secondary cam-block radially with relation to the needle-cylinder.

5. A cam-block capable of being mounted for endwise' movement in a stocking-knitting machine, a pair of oppositely inclined stitch-cams secured to the inner end of the cam-block, and having the upper portion of each of said stitch-cams provided with a lateral notch or recess in alinement with each other, andwhen the cam-block is normally mounted in the machine, having said recessed portions in horizontal alinement with and forming a continuation of the lower track or guiding path for the butts of the working needles.

6. In a rotary stocking-knitting machine having a needle-carrying cylinder, a main cam-block, a secondary cam-hlock, a pair of oppositely disposed stitchcan1s fixed to the inner end portion of said secondary camblock, said stitch-cams having a portion of their inner faces recessed to provide a path for the free passage of certain temporarily inactive needles, said path also being in horizontal alinement With the normal knitting plane, and means for moving said secondary cam-block radially with relation to the cylinden 7. In a knitting machine, the combination, With a series of long butt needles and a series of short butt needles, of main stitch cams and secondary stitch cams, each of said secondary stitch cams being provided with a recess through which the short butt needles may pass Without being actuated when said secondary stitch cams are in position to engage the long butt needles.

8. In a knitting machine, the combination, with a series of long butt needles and a series of short butt needles, ofmain stitch cams and secondary stitch cams, each of said secondary stitch-cams being provided with a recess through Which the short butt needles may pass Without being actuated when said secondary stitch cams are in position to engage the long butt needles, and means for moving said secondary stitch cams radially. i

In testimony whereofI have afiixed my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

JOHN LAWSON.

Witnesses v CALVIN H., Brown,

Geo. H. REMINGTON.

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