US1838299A - Tension indicator - Google Patents

Description

, Dec. .29, 1931.' R w k. 1,838,299

TENSION INDICATOR Filed Sept. 19, 1929 1520 6433??? 3 V fgwsi' 2? 62916. I W"- 777 Patented Dec. 29,1931

UNITED STATES IPA-TENT. orrics ERNEST 2. COOK, OF BERLIN/NEW HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGNOB T0 BROWN COMPANY, .OF

BERLIN, NEW HAMPSHIRE,

A conronA'rIoN or MAINE TENSION INDICATOR Application flied September 19, 1929. Serial No. 393,648.

This inventionrelates to a portable device for testing the tension on a stationary or.

moving strand. While the invention is applicable to strands in general, it is hereinafter described more particularly with reference to a wet thread movin upwardly from a bath of acid or other liqui as for'example a rayon filament emerging from the initial setting bath in the course of manufacture.

One of the many methods of -manufacturing so-called artificial silk comprises the extrusion of fine filaments of viscose through the holes of a spinneret into an acid solution which sets the liquid viscose at once. The

are usually from forty to sixty in number, are collected together after passing through the setting bath and are thereafter handled as a single thread. It has been found that if the filaments are stretched immediately after setting, this stretching materially increases the strength of the thread. The filaments may be stretched by passing the thread through the setting bath over two successive feed rolls, the second feed roll having a greater peripheral speed than the first. This results in a drawing or stretching action on the stretch of thread between the two rolls. The amount of stretch can be regulated by controlling the relative peripheral' speeds of the rolls. In order to obtain a uniform product having the highest available" strength, it is necessary that the tension on the thread between the two rolls be carefully regulated.

The present invention is intended to su ply a portable testing device which may e quickly and easily applied to astretch of thread between the feed rolls to determine whether the tension on the thread is of desired magnitude. A further object of the invention is to provide a tension-indicating device particularly adapted. for use with strands Wet with acid or other corrosive liquid. To this end. the parts are shaped and arranged to avoid as far as possible communication of the acid from the thread-err gaging elements of the device to the other parts. In the construction of the device, furthermore, delicate parts liable to be rendered inoperative or inaccurate by corrosion are avoided. Thedevice illustrated as an embodiment of the invention comprises a handle having a forked extension on an end thereof, this forked extension comprising'a pair of parallel disks carryin a rotatable drum between them. A pair 0 glass contact members of suitable shape are mounted on the edges of the disks in a line parallel to the axis of the drum. A third glass member is mounted on the periphery of the drum and is movable by a finger piece to a position wherein a stretch of thread is receivable so as to be .111 contact with the three balls simultaneousfine filaments from .a single spinneret, which 1y. In order to guide the thread as it is tested, each contact member is provided with a peripheral groove. A spring is provided to actuate the drum so as to move the middle member to bend the thread iii contact there with. The extent of bend depends upon the tension of the thread and is a measure thereof, this extent of bend being indicated by a suitable scale which may be carried either by the drum or by one of the disks.

For a complete disclosure of the invention, reference is had to the description thereof which follows and "to the drawings, of which,-

Figure 1 is a plan view of a device embodying the invention. 7

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Figure l.

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the. device.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of a portion of the device.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the axle of the drum.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a spring for rotating the drum.

The device includes a suitable handle member 10 having a forked extension at one end comprising a pair of arallel disks 11, 12, these disks being suita ly spaced to receive a drum l3 therebetween. These members may be made of any suitable material, such as a phenolic condensation product, which is resistant to corrosion by acidsor other chemicals. A pivot member 14 is screw-threaded centrally through the disk 11 with a tight fit. A second pivot member 15 is screw-threaded with a ti ht fit in a suitable bushing 16 which extends t rough a central aperture in the disk 12. As shown in Figure 2, a portion of the disk 12 and of the neck connecting the disk with the handle member 10 is slotted as at 17. A draw screw 18 extends across the slot 17, the purpose of this screw being to draw the elements on either side ofthe slot together to clamp the bushing 16 tightly in place. The drum 13 may be hollowed as at 19. An axle is mounted within the drum 13, this axle having a squared portion within the hollow 19, and recessed ends to receive the pivot points of the members 14 and 15. A. helical spring 21 is housed within the hollOw of the drum 13, the turns of this spring being large enough to pass around and to clear the axle 20. The spring is preferably made of as heavy stock as possible within the limitations imposed on length, size of coils, and tensions to be measured, to minimize the effects of surface corrosion on its action. The spring, axle, and pivot members are preferably made of a suitable metal or metals, such for example as bronze or Monel metal, which are resistant to corrosion by the acid or other liquid which the instrument is liable to encounter in service. One end of the spring 21 is formed in square shape as at 22 so as to fit closely on the squared portion of the axle 20. The opposite end of the spring 22 is preferably secured to the bushing 16 as by soldering. Rotation of the drum is thus yieldingly opposed by the spring 21, since one end of the spring is anchored to I the fixed bushing 16, while the other end is turned by the squared portion of the axle which rotates with the drum 13. In order 3 'to limit the angle of rotation of the drum 13, a pair of suitable pins 23 and 24 are provided, these pins extending radially from the periphery of the drum in such a way as to engage the handle portion 10 as shown in Figure 1. The bushing 16 may be provided with a slot 25 in the outer end thereof by whichthe bushing may be adjustably turned, the draw screw 18 being backed off sufficiently for this purpose. The screw 18 is thereafter set up tightly when the bushing 16 has been suitably adjusted. Angular rotation of the bushing 16 regulates the tension of the spring 21 exerted on the drum 13 when the drum is in the position illustrated in full lines in Figure 1. V,

Mounted on the edges of the disks 11 and 12 are a pair of thread-engaging members 26 of substantial axial length and diameter. These members may be in the form of glass balls or equivalent shapes, each having a peripheral groove 27. The members 26, as shown on the drawings, may be fixed to bronze bolts 28 which are in screw-threaded engagement with the disks so as to permit removal and replacement of the balls 26. The members 26 are arranged in a line substantially parallel to the axis of the pivots 14, 15 and the drum 13. Between the members 26 a preferably similar member 29 is carried by the drum 13. This member also has a peripheral groove 27 The grooves 27 are prefer ably arranged as shown in planes which are perpendicular to the radially extending bolts carrying the respective members. The pin 24 is preferably so arranged that when it is against the handle 10, the member 29 occupies the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1, and the members 26 and 29 are then capable of receiving in their grooves a stretch of thread. When the members are in this position, they also overlap slightly so that when the stretch of thread is introduced into the grooves 27, it will be stopped therein. The members 26 and 29 are designed for use with a traveling strand or thread which is wet with acid or other corrosive liquid. These members are therefore shaped in such a way as to prevent as far as possible communication of acid to the other parts of the device whem the device is in its usual position of use and when it is hung up. When in use, the members 26 and 29 are one above another. Thus the wet strand contacts with a side of each of the members. Since the members illustrated on the drawings are so shaped that the point of contact is substantially removed from the pin or bolt which supports the member, and the member is of considerable diameter so that its lowest point is well below the supporting pin, liquid which rubs off the thread is led to the lowest point of the member and drips off without going near the pin. This tends to keep the liquid confined to the contact members. The surfaces of the members 26 and 29 remote from the drum 13 project from the grooves 27 so that when the mechanism is ready to receive a filament for testing, these surfaces cooperate to form a converging guide to facilitate the introduction of the filament into the grooves 27, as in icated in Figure 1. These surfaces also serve to lead away liquid from the grooves when the device is hung up after use, and to facilitate dripping of such liquid therefrom. The spherical form illustrated on the drawings is an effective and desirable shape for the members 26 and 29, but it is understood that this shape may be varied without exceeding the sco e of the invention. The spring 21 is pre erably so adjusted as toimpress a torque on the drum 13 tending to rotate the drum from the dotted position shown .in Figure 1 to the full line position illusnesaaea preferably adjusted so that it will be balanced by tension on the thread when the drum is substantially in the position illustrated in Figure 1 in full lines.

The device is designed for use on vertically traveling threads so-that the weight of the movable member29 need not be considered.

m In using the device, the handle 10 is gripped in the hand, a finger being used to press the pin 24: against the end of the handle member so as to rotate the drum into the position illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 1. The device is then held in such a position that the vertical stretch of thread is in contact with the grooves 27. The pin 24 is then released by the finger permitting the drum 13 to rotate under the action of the spring 21 until the spring is balanced by the tension of the thread acting on the balls 26, 29 in a direction opposed to the torque of the spring. After use, the device is adapted to be hung up to let acid or other liquid which may be on the members 26, 29 drip therefrom,,an aperture or eye 30 being provided for this purpose. In order to indicate the amount of tension on the thread, a suitable scale 31 may be the furcations respectively,-

marked on the drum to cooperate with an index 32 on. one of the disks 11, 12. If preferred, the scale may be on the disk and the index on the drum, The device illustrated is designed for testing tensions of relatively small magnitude, for example tensions ranging from 10 to grams. 'lBy the selection of stronger springs 21, it is obvious that greater tensions can be measured similarly.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated and described herein is subject to such modifications and changes as may fall withclaims.

][ claimza v 1. A device of the class described, comprising-a handle having a fork at one end, a hol low drum pivotally supported in said fork so "as to turn about its axis of symmetry, a air of spaced thread-engaging members fixe on a third threadengaging member mounted on said drum and movable between said pair of members, a

spring within said drum tending to rotate it in one direction, and a finger piece on said drum to facilitate rotation thereof against said spring.

2. A device of the class described, comprising a handle having a fork at one end, a pair of-pointed pivot members adj ustably mounted in said fork, a hollow drum rotatably supported by said members to turn about its axis of symmetry, a pair of ping projecting from the periphery of said drum and engageable with said handle to limit the angleof rotation of. said drum, a pair of thread-engaging members mounted on the furcations respec-.

tively, a third thread-engaging member mounted on said drum and movable between said pair, and a spring within said drum tending to rotate said drum.

3. A device of the class described, comprising a handle having a forked extension at one end thereof consistingof a pair of spaced disks in parallel planes, central pivot mem-'' bers extending through said disks, a hollow drum rotatably mounted on said pivots between said disks, spring means within said drum forimpressing a torque on said drum, a pair of angularly spaced pins projecting from the periphery of said drum and engageable with said handle to limit the rotation of said drum, a pair of peripherally grooved signature.

ERNEST COOK.

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