US1471501A - Length-determining device for drying forms - Google Patents

Description

G. O. MORTON LENGTH DETERMINING DEVICE FOR DRYING FORMS Fi led Aug. 16. 1919 fx ji Patented Get. 23, jggg' knairsa stars ari GUST 0. MORTON, oraooxroan, ILLINOIS.

LENGTH-DETERMINING 'nnvron non erms Forms.

Application filed August 16,1919.

reference to the holding of knitted articles on dryingforms, as for example, the holding of hosiery or mittens the drying process.

In the course of preparing knitted arti cles, such as stockings and mittens for the market, it is necessary to dry them on appropriate forms. The knitted article in a moist condition is drawn onto the shaping form, which is either heated internally or passed through a drying compartment. In large knitting factories the drying rooms are of considerable size and each attendant takes care of a large number of forms, that is, places the stockings or other knitted articles on and removes them from the forms. Since articles originally of a common size are very frequently drawn onto the forms to unequal lengths, due to the haste of the attendant and also to thelack of proper gages for determining the length, the articles do not dry to uniform lengths. Consequently they must be later matched or paired which takes up considerable extra time. But perhaps the greatest cause of unequal lengths is the shrinking and drawing of the article onto the form during the drying process.

It is the purpose of the present invention to provide a simple and practicalmeans for insuring drying of stockings, socks, mittens and other similar knitted articles to uniform lengths and to permit the attainment of this object without imposing such attention and care on the part of the operator as would delay his work in handling a given number of drying forms. I

In furtherance haveaimed to provide in co-operative rela tion with each drying form a pair of spring pressed members adapted to yieldingly engage the opposite sides of the article near the bottom thereof to so hold the article in connection with the form as to prevent shrinking, drawing or shortening in any manner during the drying process. These gripping or article engaging members are on forms during of this general object, I"

Serial No. 313,065.

arranged in a novel manner to effectually perform thedesired function and permit of quick actuation to and from their operative and inoperative positions. I have also aimed to provide a simple means for actuating the presser members for si 'nultaneously returning a plurality of them to inoperative position to permit quick removal of the articles from the forms.

Other objects and attendant advantages will be appreciated as the invention becomes better understood by reference to the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in Which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a drying and shaping form provements; I H p A F g. 2, an end view, partly in section, of my mprovements; and

equipped with an article-gripping means embodying my im- Fig. 3, a plan sectional view taken on the 7 line 3 3 of Fig. 1. k

My improvements are designed for use in connection with drying and shaping forms .5 c I of'the kind employed in knittingfactories for drying knit-ted articles of various descriptions. The forms are made to suit the particular size, shape and configuration of the articles to be dried, it being obvious that so far as the present invention is concerned, it is immaterial whether the form be for a stocking, sock, mitten or any other similar article of a kind that is open at one end and adapted to be drawn onto a form for drying and shaping. In the present exemplificat-ionof my improvements, a form such as illustrated and claimed in my-United States Letters Patent No; 1,323,642, Dec; 2, 1919, is shown. It consists of a hollow body having curved opposite walls 4 joined by a coupling 5 which constitutes a'sh'apin'g and guiding edge. The heating medium. is delivered to the form through the base 6 there of, and the upper portion"? is shaped to rearticle is drawn onto the; form in 'a mois tened condition, and so far as am aware, heretofore employed or in all equipment provided for drying rooms, there have been no simple and practical means provided for insuring against uneven shrinking and drawing of the articles while on the forms.

My invention contemplates equipping each form with a simple devicefor engaging article for and against the dryin take up the attendants time or decrease the here in engagement with the movement of the gripping members.

work capacity of a drying room.

With the foregoing in mint l have provided a pair of gripping members 8 and 9 each having one or more serrated gripping edges 11 shaped to conform to the periphcry of the drying form and engage opposite sides of the article evenly at spaced points throughout substantially the entire periphery of each article. I have now mounted these gripping members so that they may be quickly and easily moved to and from operative and inoperative positions and have provided means for yieldingly and continuously urging or holding the memarticle to prevent its movement lengthwise on the form. To these ends, the gripping or holding members 8 and 9 are carried respectively on the outer ends of levers 12 and 13 pivotally mounted at 14 on a suitable supporting frame 15, which in this instance is removably mounted on the base of the drying form. The levers 12 and 18 in this instance are in the form of bell cranks, the opposite arms 16 and 17 01 which are connected by rods 18 and 19 respectively. The arms 16 and 1'? are so arranged that when the gripping members are in the operative position shown in full lines in Fig. 2, the rods 18 and-.19 will be disposed in a horizontal plane above the pivots 14. The gripping members in this position are urged by a spring pressure against the form to hold an interposed article against movement thereon. This yielding pressure is imposed in this instance by contractile springs 21 connecting the rods 18 and 19. The springs also serve to hold the gripping members in an inoperative position as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, in which the arms 12 and 18 after having been swung outwardly, bringing their rods 18 and 19 respectively below the horizontal plane of the pivots 1 1, will be limited by contact against the steps 22 formed in this instance on the upright portions of the sup porting frame 15. .ln order to move. the gripping members to and from their several posit by means of a link 23 which is adapted be moved vertically by actuation of a rod 2 1 connected medially to the link. The rod 24: in turn may be operated. either by a. foot pedal or suitable hand lever to enable quick Ur, if desired, crank may be employed for moving the gripping members to inoperative position. As shown in Fig. 2, a crank 25 fixed to a shaft 26 mounted on the frame ions in unison, l have connected thenr ate an arm 15 is adapted to oscill fixed to the sh 26 and posed the rods 18 and 19. Upon mo crank in a counterclcc i levers 12 will be drawn operative position, and by swing crank in the opposite direction until engages the rod 19, the levers it w be swung to inoperative position. it actuating device of this kind the rock 1 26 may be eiltended to cooperate series of gripping devices or th chain mind, and by mounting an a shaft 26 in CO-OPQI'tliZlYQ gripping device all oi the inter ipping bers on one side or the terms may be drawn by one operation of the c those on the other side; may be si 2 ly withdrawn by reverse movement of the crank. it will thus be seen that my vention contemplates the provision or a. common operating member adapted actuating the grippers of av plurality of gripping devices to quicken the work.

When the forms are empt the grippin members are in the inoperative positio shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. The tendant places a knitted article on the for draws the article down until a certain or mark is reached, whereupon he will swin the gripping arms inwardly to hold t or the article in the desired position. result is that the article will not draw upwardly on the form during the crying process, but will be positively held to a given length, thus obviating the necessity of afterwards assorting and mating the articles is now the common practice. Since the forms are generally arranged in rows, certain series of forms would be connected by l single shaft 26 or an operating member connected with the several members 2% 0 said series, it operating members of latter type are used. Thus, when articles in this series have been dried the l attendant will withdraw all the gripping members by quick actuation of the crank or other operating i'nember employed, so that the articles of this eries may be removed with the same speed and dispatch and in the same order as though no gripping device had been employed. Thus, a gripping vice of this character requires but very little additional time on the part of the operator and insures drying of the articles to uniform or given lengths.

it is believed that the foregoing conveys a clear understanding of my invention and of the objects pretaced'above, and wh T have illustrated and described but a su practical working embodiment of my provements with the exception or operating means of which two shown, it should be understood that varic upon which a knitted so'that the the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed infthe-appen'ded claims, in Which- I claim: .1. The combination,

be drawn, gripping members adapted to hold the article on' opposite sides of the form,-bell crank levers, carrying said gripping members, and spring actuated meansarranged springpressure will hold the bell crank members in ope'rative'and inoperative positions. V V r 2. The combination of a hollow form over which a garment to be dried is adapted'to be stretched of a clamp at each "side of the form for preventing a garment from creepthe f0 lever, means for swing} ing "said lever into and out of I garment- 1 clampingvpositiomva connection between the of a drying form. article is adapted'to clamps for causing them'to move in unison,

and a spring for holding the clamps both in" I and outof said garment-clamping position. 3." The combination with aholloW form over which a garment to be driedlis adapted to be stretched, of a clamp ,at each side of rinfi for. preventing the garment from creeping thereon, means for; moving said clamps into and outof a holding the clamps both in and out of said garment-holding position. 1 i e garment clamping position, and spr ng actuated means for ing thereon, one of said clamps being in the form of abell crank GUST o. MORTON. i

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