US1811120A - Skein lacing machine - Google Patents

Description

June 23, 1931.

s. A. GASDA ET AL 0 SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filepl Dec. 26', 1928 7 Sheets-Sheet l V/ZI/ j gwuntow .Danw 12- 6 June 23, 1931. s. A. GASDA ET AL 1,811,120

SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1928 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ii Mum I n mlgyggggggn June 23, 1931.

s. A. GASDA ET AL SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1928 h t 3 June 23, 1931. s. A. GASDA ET AL 1 ,1 0

SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, .1928. 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 June 23, 1931. Y s. A. GASDA ETAL 1,811,120

SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1928 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 i i! IN June23, 1931. 5;. A. GASDA ET AL 1,311,120v

SKEIN LACING MACHINE Filed De c. 26, 1928 Y 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 314mm: A. Gas fiaizl'el 3. CW5.

Patented June 23, 1931 STEPHEN A -GASDA AND DANIEL a. CAI-IILL, or.BE'rHLnHEmrnivNsYLvANIA1 ennui LACING MACHINE Application filed December 26, 1928. Serial No. 328,356.

Our invention relates to an apparatus for lacing skeinsor hanks of various'kinds of threads or strands. j

'It should be understood that in certain of the textile industries it is necessary to reel the threads of material into skeins preparatory to certain operations. This is particularly so in the artificial silk industry wherein the raw extruded strands of cellulose have to be chemically treated, dried, and dyed. In order that the windings of the skeins are kept in their correct relation to one another, and I do not become entangled in shipment or during the handling in said operations, it is nectel-7a 1n Fig.7; 1

essary to lace groups-of strands together at intervals around the skein or hankp Thus the strands are kept in order and may be readily wound from the skeins for any purpose desired.

Prior to our invention it was customary to lace skeins of yarn by'hand. However this operation is slow, tedious and costly.

Furthermore, in hand lacing, unless care is taken by the operator, the yarn becomes entangled, thus defeatin the purpose of the lacing.

' It is therefore one of the objects of our invention to provide a machine to lace ske'ins of yarn and knot the lace to retain'it'in position. Another object of our invention is to pro- 7 vide a unitary mechanism for lacing a skein and utilizing, substantially, the same m'echa V nism for knotting the lace as'is used for the V V "15-45 in Fig. 7 ,illustrating-the knife for i 'A. still further object of our invention is to provide a mechanism comprising a set of lacing operation.

lacing and knotting units so arranged and operated to simultaneously lace a plurality of skeins and simultaneously knot the laces to retain them in position on their respective skeins. 1

Further objects of our invention will more fully appear from the following specification and claims taken with the accompanying drawings, in which;

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a skein lacing machine embodying our invention;

' Fig. 2 is a front view of the machine shown Fig. 3 illustrates a portionof' one formof knotting device Flg. 4: 1s a rear" machine illustrating the driveffor rotating 'the rolls for propelling the lace carrier;

-mechanism' for operating ourlacing and view of a portion of the V Fig. 5 is an'enlarged view of certain of'the gears shown in Fig Fig. 6 is an enlarged View of a portion of the lacing and knot Fig. 2'

ting mechanism shown in :Fig. is an enlargedview of the guideways and drive means for the lace carrier;

Fig. (a is a cross section taken on-the line Fig. 8 is a View of the handwheel for operating themanually the lace carrier;

operate d roll vformoving Fig. 9 is a. longitudinal section through the of the wheel;

10-10 in Fig. 6;

Fig. 11 is a plan viewfor pressingthe carrier against the rollers positive step positions Fig. 10 is a cross section taken on the line of the leaf springs to increase their tractive eifort; v

Fig. 12 is a Fig;

guideway taken on Fig. 14 isa cross section taken on the line '1414in Fig. 7;

side view ofthe carrier' guide- 13 is a cross section through the carrier the line. 13l3 in Fig. 7

Fig. 15 is a cross section .taken on the line cutting the lace;

Fig.16' is a plan view of the lace carrier;

Fig. 17is a diagrammatic View of the lacing of the skein showing the formation of the Fig. .18 is' a diagrammatic view of the lacing after the knot istightened; I F ig. 19 is a diagrammaticview of the lac-' ing after the lace is cut Fig. 21 is a modified form of guideway for the lacecarrier; I Fig. 22 is a cro 22'22 in Fig; 21 5 ss section taken on line rotating the reel.

Fig. 23 is a partial cross section taken on the line 2323 in Fig. 21;

Fig. 24 is a partial cross section taken on the line 2424 in Fig. 21;

Fig. 25 is a partial cross section taken on the line 2525 in Fig. 24;

Fig. 26 is a modified form of guideway for the lace carrier at the portion which guides the latter about the outside group of the separated strands of the skein;

Fig. 27 is a side elevation of the guide member shown in Fig. 21; and

Fig. 28 illustrates diagrammatically a manner in which our guide member may be arranged to lace more than three groups of strands of yarn.

Referring to the drawings and particularly to Figs. 1 and 2: The numeral 10 designates the frame of a skein lacing machine having a cross bar 11 supporting a plurality 38 of skein lacing and lace knotting devices indicated generally by the numeral 12. Vhile we have shown three of such devices, it should be understood that our invention is not limited to a particular number of these devices, but, any number may be employed depending on the number of skeins it is desired to lace on a single machine.

A common mechanism may be used to operate a plurality of skein lacing and lace knotting devices, whereby a plurality of skeins may be laced simultaneously. The devices are preferably all similar to one another as to their manner of construction and operation, so'it is deemed that a description of one of these devices will suffice to give a thorough understanding of our invention.

The numeral 13 represents the usual form of skein reel mounted on supporting arms 14 which are pivoted, as at 15, to the frame 10. The arms 14 are counterbalanced by the weights 16 so that an operator grasping the handle 17 may easily raise the reels toward the lacing devices 12, as hereinafter set forth. The arms 14 are held in the lower position by means of a releasable spring pressed latch member 17 slidably mounted in a bracket attached to the frame. A lace supporting reel 18, of usual construction, is journaled at the top of the frame and the shaft 19 of said reel extends beyond the side of the frame. The extending end of the shaft 19 is provided with a handwheel 20 for the purpose of manually The skeins of lacing thread are wound on the reel 18 in a manner well known to the art, therebeing one of such skeins provided for each lacing device. Be-

.low each of the lacing skeins is a tube 21, supported by the cross bar 22, having an upwardly flaring funnel 23 adapted'to receive a comprises a bent tube 26 which is provided with a funnel portion 27 at its receiving end, and is provided with a truncated cone portion 28 at its delivery end. The lace feeder 25 is pivotally supported on the cross bar 11, as at 29, and is constrained to its upper position, see Fig. 10, by means of the extension spring 30, the latter being anchored at one end to the cross bar 11 and at its other end to the feeder 25.

As the lace emerges from the discharge end of the feeder 25 it is caught in the slot 31, formed in the side of the carrier 32, see Fig. 16, in a manner hereinafter described.

When the skeins, mounted on the reel 13, are raised to their position for lacing they are pierced by the dividing fingers 33 and thus the strands of said skeins are divided in groups as indicated in Fig. 6 by the numeral The fingers 33 are formed in a pair of 0ppositely disposed plates 35 and 36, respectively, which are rigidly attached at their upper ends to the cross bar 11. The plates 35 and 36 are spaced apart and converge toward each other at their lower ends as shown in Fig. 10.

The front plate 35 is somewhat shorter'than the rear plate 36 and it terminates short of the latter a sufiicient distance to allow a lace to pass from between the plates. The fingers 33 are substantially parallel at their upper end, but, they are gradually tapered toward their lower ends to constitute tapered points, and they are spaced apart to define slots 37 which receive the groups of yarn 38 about which the lace is to be tied. While we have shown two such fingers for dividing the skein into three groups it should be nevertheless understood that we may provide a lesser or greater number of these fingers to divide the skein into any desirable number of groups without departing from the spirit of our invention.

The reel 13 is raised so that when the skeins are in their position to be laced the groups 38 are confined in the extreme upper end of the slots 37. In order to confine the outside groups of yarn 38 we provide guide fingers 33 which are-preferably somewhat shorter than the dividing fingers 33.

We shall now describe the mechanism for guiding and propelling the lace carrier 32 in a predetermined path so that it carries the lace about the divided groups of yarn and in continuity of the lacing operation forms a series of loops or convolutions about the lace to constitute a knot. Referring to Figs. 7, 12, 13 and 15, the guide member, indicated generally by the numeral 39, is of rectangular cross section provided with a slot 40 receptive of the lace carrier 32, and it opens, as at 41, to the inner face 42 of the guide member, so that, while the latter 'directs the lace carrier in a. predetermined path the lace is free of the guide member and may be led or directed to a desired shape or position independently of the position or shape of the guide member. Inother words, while the carrier is confined to a fixed path during its passage through the guide member 39 the lace being free to pass through the opening at 41, is drawn direct from the feeder about the aforesaid groups of yarn and about itself to form the knot. The guide member. may be constructed in any well known manner, such as by casting, or it may be built-up construction, that is,formed of.

a plurality of shaped parts attached together by suitable fastening means. The guide member is attached between the plates 35 and 36 at its lower end and at its upper end to the cross bar 11 by any well known fastening means.

The slot 40 extends throughout the length of the guide member 39 and it constitutes, for all intents and purposes, a continuous passageway, but, in order to provide means for propelling the lace carrier through-its course and allow the lace and skein to be re- .moved from the machine, it has been found desirable to interrupt it at certain places, as hereinafter described.

The guide member 39 comprises a magazine portion 43 in which the lace carrier lies dormant while theskein is being placed in lacing position or. being removed from the machine after it has been laced. From the magazine portion 43, the guide member is continued to substantially encircle the lefthand outside group of strands of yarn to be laced and continues in a curved path beneath the intermediate group of strands of yarn.

. as desired. 1

The guide member extends upwardly from the lacing unit 44, loops downwardly and then upwardly intersecting the first mentioned up- I ward extension. This latter convoluted part of the guide member constitutes the first loop forming portion 45 in the knot forming unit 46. The guide member then continues upwardly and is bent again downwardly, but is -warped transversely, as at 47 in Fig. 12, and

brought to the front of the loop portion 45 aforementioned; this convolute constitutes the second loop forming portion 48 ofthe knot forming unit 46. The guide member is again bent upwardly and then bent horizontally and continued, intersecting the second loop portion 48, to join and register with the magazine portion 43; this convolute constitutes the third loop forming portion 49 of the knot forming unit 46. In order for the lace carrier to traverse the aforesaid curved pathway, we prefer to make it of flexible material sothat it easily bends to conform to the shape of the guideways as it moves through the guide member.) 7

e For propelling the lace carrier throughthe guide member, we provide a hand roller 50 and a set of power driven rollers 51. These rollers may be of-any suitable material which will afford the necessary frictionaltractionwith the carrier, such as metal rollers having rubberized surfaces. The power driven rollers each have ashaft 52 journaled in the cross bar 11 geared to the driving pinion 53 which is keyed to shaft 54'journaled in the cross bar 11. A bevel pinion 55 is keyed to shaft 54, and is meshed to a second bevel gearf56 which is keyedjto the power shaft57. The latter extends longitudinally of the cross bar 11 and is journaled in brackets 58 attached to the-latter. A motor 59 is mounted on the bracket 60 attached to the cross bar 11 and operatively drives the power shaft 57 through the medium of a worm reduction gear 61. There are a number of gears 56 mounted on the power shaft 57 corresponding to the number of lacing and knotting units and each gear is operatively geared toits respective units, so that, the operation of the power shaft simultaneously drives the power driven rollers of each of the units. Springs 62 are provided to press the lace carrier against the rollers so as to provide traction for driving the carrier through the guide member. A pair of these springs are placed opposite each roller and are spacedapart, as shown in Fig. 11, to allow the lace to pass therebetween. 1 Each hand 7 roller 50 is provided with a-shaft 63 journaled in the crossbar 11 and a pinion 64 is keyed to the other end of said shaft. I A rack 65 is slidably mounted onsaid cross bar and engages each of the pinions 64. Acoil spring 66 is disposed intermediate a lug 67, attached to the rack 65, and the cross bar 11, and constrains the rack toward'the left of the machine.

Referring to Figs. 3, 6 andf2: Rotatab'ly mounted on the rack 65 is a trunnion block 68 having trunnions 69 which pivotally engage the bifurcated end of the lever 70 which is fulcrumed to the. bracket 71 attached to the end of the cross bar 11. The lower end of the lever 7 0 is provided with a transversely extending pin having a roller 72 rotatably mounted thereon. This roller engages in a cam groove 73 formed in the periphery of the drum. 74. The latter is keyed to a shaft .7 5 journaled in the end of the cross bar 11. .Also keyed to the shaft 75 is a disc 76 h aving the cam 77 formed on its periphery. A roller 78 is rotatably mounted on the lower end of a adapted to engage the cam 77. The upper end of the lever 79 is operatively connected by means of the link 81 to a shaft 82 which is journaled on the top of the cross bar 11 and extends longitudinally thereof. A plurality of cams 83 are keyed to shaft 82 and insuch spaced relation that there is one of said cams in engagement with the lace feeder 25, see Fig. 10, so that when the disc 76 is rotated the cam 83 tilts the lace feeder for the purpose hereinafter described. The extending end of the shaft 75 has keyed thereto a handwheel 84. The latter is normally free to rotate but a spring pressed plunger member 85 extends through the handle 86 of the handwheel 84 and is adapted to engage in the slots 87, 88 and 89, respectively, which are formed in the circular plate 90 to positively hold the handwheel in a definite angular position with relation to the lace carrier in the guide member as hereinafter set forth. The circular plate 90 is fixed to the cross bar 11 and when the plunger It will thus be seen that when the handwheel 8 1 is rotated the levers and 79 are rocked about their respective fulcrums with a predetermined angular movement. The rocking of the lever 70 rotates the hand roller 50 and the rocking of the lever 79 rocks the lace feeder 25.

Referring now to Fig. 6: Assuming the motor 59 is driving the rollers 51 and the lace carrier 32 lies in the magazine portion of the guide member. The lace is caught in the wedge shape slot 31 formed in the edge of the lace carrier 32. The operator rotates the handwheel 20 and unwinds only sufficient lace to lace the skeins of yarn. The operator then raises the latter to' divide their strands into groups by means of the dividing fingers 33. The operator now depresses the plunger 85 until the groove 86 registers with the plate 90 and rotates the handwheel 84 in a clockwise direction until the plunger 85 registers with slot 88. The plunger 85 having been released by the operator during the rotation of the handwheel is held solely in its depressed position by the engagement of the groove 86 with the edge of the plate 90, but as the plunger 85 registers with the slot 88 i it springs into its locking position to lock the handwheel.

This rotation of the handwheel causes the rotation of the drum 7 4 and theside of the cam groove 73 rocks the lever 70, which reciprocates the rack 65. This movement of the latter rotates the hand roller and propels the lace carrier into the grip of the power driven rollers. The length of the lace carrier and the spacing of the power driven rollers is such that the lace carrier is propelled through the guide member in a continuous movement until the front end of the carrier comes within the operating sphere of the hand roller. The rotation of the hand roller as aforementioned brings the stop pin 91 into the position in Fig. 7 and when the carrier is ejected from the live rolls it is brought to a definite position against said pin. It will be noted the profile of the cam 73 which operates during the movement of the handwheel from stop 87 to 88 takes a quick drop, as at 92, and then is continued parallel to a plane at right lines to the axis of the drum, as at 93. The shape of the cam at 92 allows the spring 66' to act quickly to rotate the hand roller, so that the stop pin 91 will be brought to its position to'stop the lace carrier, while the latter is' being rapidly propelled through the guide member by the power driven rollers.

During the rotation of the handwheel from the stop 87 to 88, the cam 77 engages the roller and rocks the lever 79. The rocking of the lever 7 9 rocks the lace feeder and depresses its discharge end into the position shown in full lines in Fig. 7 or broken lines in Fig. 6.

As the lace carrier is received from the magazine portion of' the guide member in the first power driven roller the lace is drawn from the lace feeder and as the latter is depressed, to the position shown by full lines in Fig. 7, the front side of the guide member being open and sloped transversely, as at 94, the lace is brought to the front of the guide member.

The lace carrier is propelled through the guide member and the lace is drawn direct from the lace feeder as represented in Fig. 17 by the numeral 95 and follows the path of the lacing portion of the guide member as indicated by the numeral 96. It will be noted that the nose 97 of the lace carrier is eccentrically disposed, so that it pushes the lace, which has been previously drawn about the yarn to the side opposite the slot 3 1, at the intersecting points 98 and 99 of the guide member respectively. After encircling the righthand group of yarn the'carrier passes through loop forming portion 4.5 and carries the lace about the lace emerging from the feeder and about the feeder and forms the transversely, as at 102, see Figs. 7 and 13..

The carrier then passes through the second loop forming portion 48 of. the guide member'and the lace is drawn to the rear of the latter by virtue of it being open and sloped transversely, as at 103 in Figs. 7 and 14. By the passage of the carrier through the portion 48 the lace is formed into a second loop about the lace as it emerges from the feeder as indicated by the numeral 104. Vhen the lace-makes its last mentioned convolution it is drawn over the resilient hanger 105 and is temporarily held by the latter. It should be noted that said hanger is bent downwardly toward the front of the guide member so that the lace hangs toward'the front. offthe guide member. The carrier passes through the third loop forming portion 49 of the guide member and the lace is formed iuto'a third loop 106 about itself. In the formation ofthe latter loop the lace passes to the front. of the first loop and in between the strands of the second loop as clearly indicated in Fig. 17. Prior to the forming the major portion of thethird loop the carrier has been ejected fromthe last of the power driven rollers and is positioned by the stop pin 91, as shown in Fig. 7. be noted the handzroller is somewhat flattoned, as at 107, soias to allow a clearance for the lace carrier to, easily come within the operating sphere of the hand roller. In order to assure traction between the hand roller and the carrier at this last position the hand roller is provided with a pin 108 adapted to engage in the hole 109 at the nose end of the carrier member.

he operator now depresses the plunger 85 and rotates the handwheel 84 from the stop position 88 to the stop position 89. This angular movement of the handwheel reciprocates the rack 65, by virtue of the rise in the cam groove '73, as at 110, engaging the roller 72. the hand roller to movethe lace carrier from its position shown in Fig. 7 to a position in the magazine portion of;the.guide member so that the tail end of the lacecarrier clears the slot 111 which is cut through the first and third loop forming portions of the guide member. The operator now rotates the handwheel 20 in a counter-clockwise direction and winds in the slack lace. This draws the lace back through the feeder and, the free end of the lace being held in the carrier, the loops illustrated in Fig. 17 are drawn substantially tight about the'lace as illustrated in Fig. 18. In this operation the tension on It willv This reciprocation of the rack rotatesthe lace, by the pull back, is suflicient to pull the second loop off the hanger 105. I The handwheel 84 is rotated from stop position 89 to stop position 87. It will be noted that the portion of the cam groove 73, at 112, is parallel to a plane at right lines to the axis of the drum 74, so that, there is not any rocking motion imparted to the lever 70 during the initial movement of the handwheel as it is rotated from stop 89 to87. While the roller 72 engages in the portion 112, the disc 76 rotates sufficiently whereby the roller 78 leaves the cam 77 and allows the spring 30 to rock the lace feeder 25 so thatits discharge end is raised through the slot 111 to a posi tion above-the carrier passageway formed in the third loop forming portion of the guide member. This movement of the lace feeder also tends to tighten the knot. The remaining portion 113 ofthe cam groove 73'is so formed that duringthe final movement of the handwheel 84 from stop 89 to 87, the hand roller is rotated in a clockwise direction'and then n the reverse dlrectlon and again in a clockwlse direction. This movement of the hand roller moves the lace carrier forwardly tighten the knot. "The carrier is then moved to its position shown in full lines in Fig. 20. Dur ng the latter movement the edge of the carrier passes across the laceas it emerges from the lace feeder and the lace at this point v1s agalnengaged in the slot 31, as illustrated in broken lines in Fig; 19, and is drawn over the knife 114. which severs the lace between the knot and the point of its engagement with the lace carrier, as illustrated in Fig. 20.

The knifeis so positioned that it is clear of r the lace when the carrier is in the position shown in Fig. 18, but, in its final movement the carrier is brought somewhat beyond said position, so that lace is drawn over the knife. Furthermore, when the carrier is in the position shown in Fig. 18, the lace is drawn over the extreme end of the carrier, and is therefore more remote from the knife than it is when it extends directly from the slot 31 to the knot, as shown in Fig. 20. y I

Thus the, skein is laced, the lace knotted and cut, thereupon the operator lowers the reel out of the dividing fingers. The bottom of the third loop forming portion of the guide member is slotted transversely as at to allow the lace to pass therethrough. And the bottom part of the lacing portion of the guide member is removed, as at 116, Fig. 7a, also for the purpose of allowing passage of the lace. The reel supporting the skeins of yarn is rotated and the next side is presented forlacing, in the manner well known in the openings 121. The dividing fingers 122 are formed integral with the plates or are formed separately and fastened thereto. A continuous passageway 123 receptive of the flexible carrier member, above described, is formed in the guide member 117. A slot 124 is formed in the plates 118 and 119 to provide a clearance for the lace feeder.

There is provided a set of power driven rollers and a hand roller for propelling the lace carrier through the passageway and such rollers are very similar in character and operation to those described above.

It will be noted in this modified form of guide member that the passageway is dis- .posed in one plane through its length, so

that the various loops or convolutions of the passageway intersect one another at certain points. In order to assure that the lace is held at the correct side of the intersection as the carrier passes therethrough during the loop forming operations we provide resilient retaining members 125, which operate in pockets 126 formed in the plates 118 and 119, see Figs. 22 to 25 inclusive. As the lace passes the sections illustrated in the last mentioned figures it drags over the member 125 which is sloped in the direction required to direct the lace and the latter isyieldingly retained in position, by virtue of the curved portion 127 formed at the free end of the retaining member. However the latter is sufiiciently yieldable, so that when the lace is rewound on its reel to tighten the knot as described above, the lace'slips off said retaining member.

Thus it will be seen from the foregoing description that we have'devised a novel ma chine, which is extremely simple in its construction and operation, for lacing-a skein of yarn and in continuity of the lacing operation the mechanism operates to knot the lace.

While we have shown our invention in a plurality of forms it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited but is susceptible to various other changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof, and we desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall beplaced thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specifically set forth in the appended claims.

Vhile we have shown one form of knot which can be tied in the lace by'the mechanism embodying our invention it should be understood that several other kinds of knots 2 may be formed with a slight modification to the guiding and the feeding means of the above described mechanism. For instance a so-called weavers knot may be formed in the lace by modifying the guiding means to direct the lace in a loop across the front of the lacing emerging from the feeder, then, from the rear, about the portion of the lace leading from the lacing portion of the guide member, and then into another loop which passes across the front of the first loop and across the rear of the lace emerging from the feeder to the front of the loops thus formed.

Then again the guiding means and the feeding means may easily be modified to direct the lace to form a reef knot. To form the latter knot, the lace is first looped, from above, about the lace emerging from the feeder across the front and around the portion of the lace from the lacing portion of the guide member. The lace is then looped, from beneath, about the lace emerging from the feeder and through the first loop from the front of the latter.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for dividing the strands of the skein into groups, a lace feeder, a lace carrier, means to guide the carrier in a predetermined path above, below, and between said groups and also about the portion of the lace emerging from said feeder remote from said skein and means to propel said carrier along said guide means.

2. As :an article of manufacture a carrier which is flexible through the major portion of this length adapted to flex into changing sinuous formation and adapted to carry the lace in a skein lacing machine.

3. In a machine for lacing a. skein of material, means'for supporting the skein, means for dividing the strands of the skein into groups, a lace feeder, a lace carrier, means for guiding said carrier through an intersecting path about said groups and in a convolute path about said feeder, and means for propelling said carrier through said guiding means.

4. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for supporting a skein, means for dividing the strands of a skein into groups, a lace feeder, a movable carrier adapted to hold a lace, means for moving said carrier, means for guiding the carrier 1 between and across said groups in an intersecting path, means to guide said carrier in a'convolutedjp'ath about-the lace emerging from the-feeder so that when the lace is tensioned a knot will form therein, means to move the carrier to release the lace, means to move the carrier to engage the lace, and means for cutting the lace.

5. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for dividing strands of a skein IJI into groups, a flexible lace carrier, means for guiding said carrier between said groups and inalooped pathway remote from said groups, and means to propel said carrier along said guiding means.

6; In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for dividing the strands of a skein into groups, a movable carrier adapted to hold a lace, means to guide said carrier, and meansto move said carrier through said guiding means whereby the lace is carried between and across said groups and continued in a pathway to form convolutio-ns constituting a knot.

7. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a movable carrier adapted to hold a lace, a cutter member, a guide member constituting a continuous passageway for said carrier, and means to move said carrier through said guiding means whereby the skein is laced, a knot formed in-the lace and the lace is cut solely by the movement of the carrier through said passageway.

8. In a machine for lacing a skein of ma- .terial, a movable carrier adapted to hold a lace, a cutter member, means to guide said carrier constituting a passageway, and means to move said carrier through said guiding means whereby the skein is laced and the lace formed into loops constituting a knot and the lace is released'from the carrier and the carrier is again caused to engage the lace and the lace is cut solely by the movement of the carrier through said passageway.

9. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a carrier which is flexible through the major portion of its length adapted to hold a lace, and means to guide the carrier in a sinuous path.

10. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a flexible carrier adapted to hold a lace, and guide member having curved portions adapted to direct said carrier through the mass of material constituting the skein, acr'osstheskein, over the edge of the skein, across the skein, again through said mass, across the skein, and over the opposite'edge of the skein.

11. In a machinefor lacing a skein of material, means to support a skein of yarn, means to divide said skein into groups of yarn, a curved guiding member about at least one of said groups of yarn,-a lace feeder, a

cutter member, a plurality of curved guiding members about said feeder, a flexible carrier member adaptedto hold a lace, said guiding members being disposed in alignment for the passage of the carrier member from oneto theother, means to move said carrier through the-passageway constituted by said guiding members to'lacethe skein and form a knot' in the lace and move said carrier to release the lace and move-thecarrier to engagethelace and cause thecutter to cut the lace, means means tomove the two first mentioned means 1 lace a skein, means to move and flex said carrier to knot the ends of the lace, means to move the carrier to release the lace, and

means to cut the lace. 13. In a machine for lacing a skem of material, a source of lace supply, means for carry-- ing a lace, means for guiding said carrier means through a mass of material constituting a skein and about the portions of the skein thus divided and continuing in a pathway to loop the lace about itself,-means to motivate said carrier means along said guide means, means to tighten the loops thus formed about the lace, means to release the lace from said carrying means, and means to cut the lace from the source of lace supply.

14. In a machine for lacing a skein of mate rial, means for supporting a skein, means for dividing the strands of the skein into groups, guideways adapted to be placed about said groups, a lace feeder, a plurality of curved guideways about said feeder, a flexible carrier adapted to hold a lace, said guideways being aligned so as toconstitute an extended passageway for said carrier, means to move saidcarrier forwardly through said passageway,vmeans to movethe carrier rearwardly to'release the lace, means to move the carrier forwardly to engage the lace emerging fromsaid feeder, and means to out the lace during one of the aforesaid movements of said car;-

rier.

15. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for supporting a skein of yarn, means to divide the strands of said skein into groups, means to carry a lace between and across said groups, means adapted to cast a loop about a lace, means adapted to cast a secondloop about said lace so that it crosses the first loop, and means adapted to cast a third loop about said lace so that the latter passes through the second loop. v

16. In a machine for lacing a skein of'material, means adapted to carry a lace through andacross amass of strands constituting a skein of yarn, means adapted to-supply' a-lace for said carrylng means, means adapted to cast a loop about said lace, means adapted to cast a second loopabout said'lace so that it crosses the first loop,- means adapted to cast a third loop about said lace so that the latter passes through the second loop,.means' adapted to tighten theloops thusformed to form a knot, and means adapted to out said lace.

17 In a machine for tying a knot, a flat elongated flexible string carrier means adapted to guide said carrier'to cast a loop in string, meansadapted to guide said carrier to cast a second loop in said string and across the first loop, means adapted to guide said carrier to cast a third loop in said string so that the latter is passed through the second loop, and means for moving said carrier.

18. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a movable lace car ier, guiding means constituting a passageway, and means to move said carrier through said passageway whereby the skein is laced and the lace is looped in the form of a knot solely by the movement of the carrier through said passageway.

19. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a curved guide member adapted to be placed about a skein, a second curved guide member in continuity with the first guide member, a third curved guide member in continuity with the second guide member, a fourth curved guide member in continuity with the third guide member and also the first guide member, a flexible lace carrier, and means to move said carrier along said guide members.

20. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a curved guide member adapted to be placed about a skein, a lace carrier, and means to move said carrier along said guide member.

21. In a machine for tying a knot, a curved guide member having intersecting passageways disposed in a common plane, a flexible carrier member, and means to move said carrier member along said guide member.

22. In a machine for tying a knot, a curved guide member comprising a first loop form ing portion, a second loop forming portion,

a third loop forming portion, a portion interconnecting the first and last mentioned portion, a flat elongated flexible carrier member, and means to move the latter along said guide member.

28. In a machine for tying a knot, a curved guide member comprising a first loop formlng portion, a second loop form ng portion, a third loop forming portion, sa1d portions being disposed in a common plane, means for conveying a lace or strmg along sa1d guide member, means for directing the lace to one side of the guide member as it passes along the first loop forming portion, means for d1- recting the lace to the other side of the guide member as it passes along the second loop forming portion, means for sustaining the lace as itpasses along the latter port1on,means for directing the lace to the first mentioned side of the guide member as it passes along the third loop forming portion of the guide member and means engaging the conveying means intermediate its ends for moving it along said guide member.

242. A machine for lacing a skein of material, a support, a plurality of unitary lacing and lace knotting devices mounted on said support, a means adapted to support a plurality of skeins in aligned relation to said devices respectively, means adapted to move said supports'relatively 'to each other, and means to operate said devices in unison.

25. A machine for lacing a skein of material, a lacing device and a lace knotting device of unitary construction, and an element common to both devices for carrying the lace in the lacing operation and to complete knotting operation.

26. A machine for lacing a skein of material, a lacing device and lace knotting device of unitary construction comprising curved guideways, and a flexible element for carrying a lace common to said devices adapted to coact with said guideways.

27. A machine for lacing a skein of ma terial, means for dividing the strands of a skein into groups, a guide member having a looped intersecting passageway adapted to be placed in lacing operative position with respect to said groups and having a looped intersecting passageway in the same plane as the first mentioned passageway adapted to be placed in knotting operative position with respect to a lace, an element adapted to coact with said guide member to lace a skein and not a lace, and means to actuate said element.

28. A machine for lacing a skein of material comprising, a guide member formed of a pair of oppositely disposed spaced members having a groove formed in each opposed face thereof constituting a looped intersectlng passageway, a. lace carrier adapted to operate in said passageway, and means to guide and temporarily hold a lace at the side of the passageway.

29. A machine for lacing a skein of material comprising, a guide member, said guide member being formed of a pair of oppositely disposed spaced members having a groove formed in each opposed face thereof constituting a looped intersecting passageway, and a lace carrier adapted to operate in said passageway.

30. A machine for lacing a skein of material comprising, means for dividing the strands of a skein into groups, a lace feeder, a lace carrier, a guide member, a plurality of power driven devices for moving the carrier along said guide member, a manually operated device for moving the carrier along the guide member, and means to cut the lace.

31. A machine for lacing a skein of material comprising, means for dividing the strands of a skein into groups, a lace feeder, a lace carrier, a guide member, a cutter element, a power driven device for moving the carrier along said guide member about said groups and in convolutions about a lace, a manually operated device for moving said carrier along said guide member to complete said convolutions to form convolutes in a lace to constitute a knot, means to operate the manually operated device to move the carrier to release the lace, means to operate the i as latter device to move the carrier to engage the lace, and means to operate the latter device to move the carrier whereby it coacts with the cutter element to cut the lace. 32. A machine for lacing a skein of material a plurality of lacing and lace knotting units each comprising, a guide member, a lace carrier, a cutter member, and means to move the lace carriers of the units simultaneously along the respective guide members, whereby a plurality of skeins are laced simultaneously and whereby the several laces are knotted simultaneously and whereby the several laces are cut simultaneously.

33. A machine for lacing a skein of material, a lacing device, alace knotting device, a lace carrier common to both of said devices, a guide means receptive of said carrier for directing the lace to lace the skein and form a knot in the lace, and means to propel the carrier along said guide means.

34. A machine for lacing a skein of material, alace carrier, a guide means for directing the carrier in a closed circuit, and

means to propel the carrier along said guide means.

35. A machine for lacing a skein of material, a lace carrier, a guide means receptive of said carrier for directing the lace in a lacing operation, a guide means receptive of sald carrier in continuity with the first mentioned means for directing the lace in the lace knotting operation, and means to propel the carrier along said guide means.

36. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, means for dividing strands of a skein into groups, a lace carrier, means for guiding said carrier between said groups to lace the skein and in a looped pathway remote from said groups to form a knot in the lace, and means to propel said carrier along said guiding means.

37. In a machine for lacing a skein of material, a lace carrier, means to guide the carrier through and across the skein whereby the lace carried by said carrier laces the material of the skein into groups, means in continuity with the first mentioned means to guide said carrier whereby said lace is formed into a loop remote from said skein, means to guide said carrier whereby said lace is directed through the loop thus formed, and means to move said carrier along the two first mentioned guide means.

38. In combination, a guide member hav ing intersecting passageways disposed in a common plane, a lace carrier, and means to elongated lace carrier, and a roller adapted to engage the sideof said carrier and propel signatures.

STEPHEN A. GASDA. DANIEL R. CAHILL.

propel said carrier along said passageways.

39. In combination, a guide member having a curved surface, a flat elongated flexible lace carrier, and means to engage said carrier intermediate its ends'to propel it along said guide member.

40. In combination, a guide member hav- 65 ing a passageway open at its side, a flexible

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