US1790214A - Weft-feeler mechanism for looms for weaving - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 27, 1931. DJ M. HOLLINS 7 14 WEFT FEELER MECHANISM FOR LOOMS FOR WEAVING' Filed March 1, 1929 67/ zfioeqj'ofl Denis JIIHolZins nmnmnmmlmmIHNHHHHIIHII i v B 2- I Patented "Jan. 27, 1931.

* I m-ED ST mam ra-Nr mnns MAoHELr. HOL'LINS, or rrnoxenmr, ENGLAND; ns'sreuon. 'ro be n conrjonamron, or soreness, ranssnceznsnrrs; Aconrcnarron or- AINE WEFT-F L R MECHANISM son Looms r03 'wEAvIne a lication filed 1Zarch.1, 1929, Serial no; 343,672., and in Great Britain mm hiaieas.

Lhe invention relates to mechanism employed in looms 'for'weaving to detect sub stantial. exhaustion of the weft in a shuttle and, on such detection, to initiate stoppage of 'the loom for replenishment of the weft either by substituting a full bobbin for the substantially exhausted bobbin in the shuttle, or by. replacement of the shuttle by one-containing a full bobbin.

Two general classes of weft detector or feeler mechanism have hitherto been generally employed, one dependingupon mechanical action and the other upon electric action.

Both thesetypes of feeler mechanismhave 2 been open to objection. I In the purely mechanical type of mechanism, the mechanical connections necessary to convey the indications of substantial weft exhaustion to the loom stoppingor weft replenishing mechanism' have had to beft-aken into account in locating the feeler on the loom, and have sometimesrendered it'diflic'ult or impossible to locate the feeler inthe position desired,

and such mechanical connections have also givenrise to undesirable lost motion between the feeler and the stopping or replenishing mechanism. In the purely electric type of feeler mechanlsm, as usually constructed, it

has been necessary to provide the bobbin with a metal sleeve with which, on substantial exhaustion of the weft, the end of the feelerspindle or a part carried thereby may be contact of the detecting member with the 7 last few turns of weftoverlaying the sleeve, andcause thereby a stoppage of the loom.

A further disadvantage appertaining to the use of 'an electric feeler ofthis type is that it necessitates the use. of special bobbins which, owing to the metallic sleeves, are considerably more costly than the ordinary bobbins. j Attempts have been made to provide feeler mechanisms-which are partly'mechanical and partly electrical in their action, but these havedependedupon impactpbetweena mov-- V able. member and the yarn mass onthe bobbin,

inord'er thatwhen substantial exhaustion ,occurs the ,movab le inember may penetrate to thefsur'face of the bobbin andcbe-given by the latter. such a movement as; will complete-an electric circuit for the purpose of initiating loom stoppage or weft replenishment.

- The general object of the 'present invention is to provide an improved form or construction of weft. feeler mechanism which,

whilst being primarily mechanicalin its action and having no detrimental effect upon the weft, will transmit its indications ofweft' exhaustion by electrical means'and thus avoid.

anyilost motion in its connections to the stop or change mechanism, whilst at the same t me permlttmg of the 'feeler being'disposed m any desired position. A'further object is to-so construct the mechanism as to facilitate.

the accurate adjustment which is'requisit'e to etficient operation.v

Feeler mechanism according to the inven tion is characterized in that a mechanical feel'er of the known fsideeslip type, but o' fxxa improved construction as compared with those-hitherto employed; is arranged, by its side-slip action orlm'overnentwhen Weft exhaustion is :detectedlto complete an electriccircult and to transmit thereby to stop or 5;:

change mechanism an indication of su'chex haustion. p j

The accompanying drawing illustrates-in plan. view at Fig; 1v a fee-ler mechanism according to the invention with the lidor cover of the enclosing. casing removed, the parts being shown in the normal running positions. V V

Fig. 2 is a .similar view to Fig. 1, but shows the parts in the positions they assume when substantial" exhaustion of weft has been de tected. v

Referring tothe drawing, a represents a box or casing adapted to bes'upporte'd either on the movingpart of the lay or on thebr'ea st beam according to the type orconstruction ofloom concerned.

Within this casing there is p'ivotally mounted at b a: lev'er-or arm b arrangedto swing in aFlIOTlZOIltHk plane and longitudinally of the loom. On this lever b there is c which is slidably mounted in hearings in flanges 6 Z1 onthe lever b. The rear end of this member is preferably in the form of a fiat plate 0 of suitable width, having its rear extremity 0 serrated or otherwise fashioned toform a weft-engaging surface. The portion 0 of the feeler member is offset a short distance from the centre line of the body 0. and shank c and the latterare themselves offset from the centre lineof the lever b. A

coiled sm-ir c confined on the shank 0 be i .L I tween :1 shoulderon said feerer and the flange 6 on the lever 7), acts to hold thefeelermember normally in a rearwardly pro1ected position." The stops 6 and b are shown as being constituted by upturnedlugs on the lever b, and they form guidesthrough which the body and the shank can respectively slide.

A rod 03, mounted on the casing a to slide in a directionfrontwardly and rearwardly of the loom, has itsrea r endfashioned to form, or to carry, an abutment cl which, as the lay heats up, is adapted to be struck by a convenient part d on the lay, such asa part of the shuttle or of theshuttlebox wall. This assumes that the feeler mechanism is mounted on [the breast beam. -A counter balancing spring e, confined between the front end of the casing a and an adjustable stop onthe rod Z, normally holds said rod projected rearwardly. The stop may take conveniently, and isshown ,as taking. the form of the boss f of a member 7, said boss being located on a threaded portion of the rod.

The end of the member [is forked as at 7, and is arranged to straddle a horizontal spindle g,'journalled at its ends in the easing a and passing through an opening in an upstanding lug b on the pivoted arm I), said lug being, as shown, offset from the pivot centre of the arm; An arm actuating spring h, confined between the lug Z2 and a stop h adjustably positioned on the spindle 9, tends to swing the arm 7) towards the right in Fig. 1, but is restrained normally from so doing by the act-ion of the counterbalancing spring 0. which is of suitable greater strength than the springh.

.A lug b upstanding from the arm b,carries a spring blade or plate 71, which is suitably insulated from the lug and has mounted upon it two contacts 2" and i which, when the arm is swung towards the right, as shown in Fig. 2. areadapted to be carried intoabutment with two fixed contacts 7" and j mounted on an insulating block k secured to the casing a and connected by respective leads m and m to an electro-magnet or other device'forming partof or included in an electric circuit controlling the actuation of the weft change mechanism or stop mechanism of the loom.

If, asthe lay beats up, a working quantity of weft is present on the bobbin, as indicated in Fig. 1, the feeler member is engaged by the weft mass and, as the lay completes its movement, is slid frontwardly. end of therod (Z is then engaged by its 00- operating abutment and the rod is moved frontwardly,carrying themember f frontwardly away'from the lug'b on the lever b, but theengagement of the surface 0 of the feeler memberwith the weft mass prevents i148 spring h from operating to swing the lever b.

If the weft supply is substantially exhausted, then when the feeler member has been moved forwardly by contact with the denuded bobbin B and the rod (Z has been moved by contactwith' its abutment, the feeler member will not be held by the weft mass against svingingmovement, and the spring It will operate to swing the lever b, and with it the feeler member, to the right and thus carry thecontacts i, i into abutment with the fixed contacts j, y' tric circuit is thus completed through the contacts j, and j and the stop or weft change mechanism put into action.

As the lay goes back, the counterbalano ing spring 6 acting-011 the rod d overcomes the arm-actuating spring 72 acting from the arm 6, with the result that. the latter, and with it the feeler'me'mber, is swung back to normal position, this being conveniently determined by the abutment of the feeler lever against aprojection'a on the ca'singz It will thus be seen that I have provided a sideslip feeler of simple construction which owing to the relatively broad weft engaging The rear The elec the weft, and that I utilize the lateral or side-slip movement of the feeler member to close directly an electric circuitgoverning the actuation of the'weft change or stop mechanism of the loom. During such time as an ample supply of weft is present, the feel er member is subjectedto no lateral urge until it has fully engaged the weft mass, but as substantial exhaustion approaches the feeler member is subjected tolateral urge as'its engaging surface approaches'the bobbin, so that if an insufficient weft supply is present the feeler may swing laterally and initiate electrically a weft change'or a stoppage of the loom. Adjustment of the feeler action is efiected simply by turning inone or the other direction the sliding rod (l and the horizontal' s indle g to vary the pressure of the springs, respectivelymounted thereon, that on the spindle ensuring closing of the electric circuit on a lateral or sideslip? movement of the feeler, and that on the sliding rod ensuring return of the 'feeler lever'to normal position. i

It will be apparent that various changes may be made in the construction and arrangement ofthe parts employed in carrying out the invention, the essential feature being the employment of a mechanically operating feeler, of the general construction described, arranged to initiate by electrical means a weft change or stoppage of the loom.

upon indication ofsubstantial weft exhaustion. v i r 7 Having thus described my invention,

what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent is 1. A feeler for looms comprising a cas ing, a feeler armpivotally mounted thereon,

a feeler yieldably mounted on said feeler arm and having means to engage the weft'upon a bobbin, a spring mounted on said casing engag ng said arm and tendlng to swing the same laterally, a counter-balancing spring mounted on said casing and acting normally to overcome the force of the spring acting upon the pivoted feeler arm, means acting upon each beat-up of the lay to relieve the force of said counter-balancing spring to swing said feeler arm laterally upon detectionof exhaustion of filling, and means operable by the'lateral movement of said feeler arm to complete an electric circuit operable to effect a change in. the operationof the loom. i y Y 2. A feeler for looms comprisin a casing, a feeler arm, pivotally mounted thereon, a spring-actuated feeler slidably mounted on said feeler arm having means to engage the weft upon a bobbin and movable in a direction out of alinement with the pivot of said feeler arm, a spring mounted on said cas ing and engaging sald arm tending to swing said arm laterally, a counter-balancing spring amounted on said casing in substantial parallelism with the spring acting upon said pivoted feeler arm and acting normally to.

overcome the force thereof, means acting upon each beat-up of the lay to relieve the force ofsaid counter-balancing spring, thereby permitting said feeler arm-actuat'ng spring to swing said feeler arm laterally upon detection of exhaustion of filling, and means operable by the lateral movement of said feeler arm to complete an electric circuit operable to effect a change in the operation of the loom.

3. Afeeler forlooms compris'ng a pivotally mounted feeler arm, a feeler yieldably mounted thereon having means to eng'age'the weft upon a bobbin, an abutment on said feeler arm, a spring acting upon said abutment tending to swing said feeler arm laterally, a counter-balancingspring acting upon said abutment, and means operable upon each beat-up of the layto rel eve the force of said counter-balancing spring'upon said abutment, thereby permitting said armn n c upon said abutment, means for ad usting thespring, thereby permitting said feeler arm-actuating actuating spring to swing-said feeler arm laterally upon detection .of exhaustion, of fill ing, and-means operable by the lateral movement of said feeler arm to ,completeran electric circuit operableflto eater achange in the operation of the'loom;

A feeler for looms compr sing'a- PIVOC? ally-mounted feeler arm, a feeler yield-ably mounted thereon having nieans' to engage.

the'weft upon a bobbin, an abutment on saic feeler arm, a sprin acting u'pon saidxabutment tendingEto swing saidfeeler a1-m-;1 eral'ly, a counter-balancingspring ac relativeforces of said springs uponsaid abutment, and means operable upon each beat-upofthe lay to relieve the force of said counter-balancing spring upon said abutmejnt, thereby permitting saidarm-actuating spring to swing said feeler arm laterally upon detecton OfBXhLUSlJlOll of filling, and ,means operable by the lateral movement of said feeler arm to complete an electric circuit operable to effect a, change in the operation Off/116100111." w i v ,5 j

5. feeler for looms comprisingacasing, a feeler arm pivotal'lymounted upon sa'd :casing, a feeler yieldably mounted'on said armhaving means to engage the weft upon-a -bobbin, an abutment on said. feeler, arm, a

feeler, arm-actuating. spring and alcounten balancing spring arranged in substantial "parallel sm and hav1ng ;1neans actlng upon- ;opposite s1desofsa1dabutment, and means acting upon e ach beatup of the lay torelieve the force of said counter balanoin'g spring upon said abutment, thereby permitting said feeler arm -actuating spring-Itov swing the feeler arm laterally upon detection o'fexhaustion of filling, and meansoperable bythe lateral movement ofsaid feeler arm to complete an electric circuit operable to effect a change in the operation of the loom.

6. A feeler for looms comprising a'casing,'

the abutment on said arm and its opposite end mounted upon said rod and engaging the nut thereupon, a counter-balancing spring intermediate of saidmember and said casing acting normally to hold said rodin forwardly extending position and to hold said member in engagement with said nut and to overcome the force of said arm-actuating spring ISO whereby said feeler Will be maintained normally in position to engage the weft upon a bobbin, butupon substantial exhaustion of filling by the engagement of said rod with the memberupon the lay upon beat-up Will cause a compression of said counter-balancing spring, thereby permitting said arm-actuating sprlng to cause lateral swinglng 'movement of saidrarm, and meansoperable b the lateral movement of said arm to comy L plete an electric circuit operable to efiect a change in the operation of the loom.

7. A feeler for looms comprising a casing, a feeler arm pivotally mounted in said casing, a i'eeler yieldably mounted on said arm having means to engage the Weft upon a bobbin, an abutment on said arm located in pronimity to the pivot thereof, a spindlemounted in said casing having a screw threaded end portion With a'nut mounted thereon, an arm-actuating spring intermediate of said nut and said abutment, a rod slidably mounted in said casing having means to engage a part carried by the lay and having a screw threaded portion provided With a 'nut, a member having one end engaging the abutment on saidarm and its opposite end mounted upon said rod and engaging the nut there upon, a counter-balancing spring intermediate of said member and said casingacting normally to hold said rod in forwardly eX- tending position andto hold said member in engagement with. said nut and to overcome the force of said arm-actuating spring Where i by said' feeler will be maintained normallyin positionto engage the Weftupon a bobbin, means for rotating said rod to adjust the nut thereon and thereby to adjust theforce 0 said counter-balancingspring. 1

In tes-tlmony whereof I afiix my s gnature.

DENIS MAGHELL HOLLINSQ

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