US1986746A - Automatic cloth roll winder - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 1, 1935. H QUICK AL 1,986,746

AUTOMATIC CLOTH ROLL WINDER Filed Dec. 20, 1952 2 Pau/ /7. Qa 1'0 6 I far/'Mgj INVENTORS.

v ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 1, 1935 UNITED STATES AUTOMATIC CLOTH ROLL WINDEB Paul H. Quick and Earl W. Simpson, Gloversville N. Y., assignors to Gloversville, N. Y.

Kingsboro Silk mun, Inc;

Application December 20, 1932, serial No. 648,130

20. Claims.

This invention relates to an automatic cloth roll winder for warp knitting machines, and particularly to means for rotating the cloth roll at proper speed to wind up the cloth as produced and to maintain a proper tension on the fabric as formed and on its travel from the knitting mechanism to the cloth roll.

The roll winding mechanism usually employed is weight-operated, a weight being fastened to one end of a rope or cable-which passes intermediate its ends over a pulley at a suitable elevationand is fastened to and wound at its opposite end about a drum having a pawl and ratchet connection with the cloth roll for driving the roll positively in one direction for a take-up action and permitting the roll to be turned in the opposite direction independent of the driving mechanism when it is desired to unroll the cloth. At intervals this mechanism runs down and must be wound up,-for which purpose an actuating handle is provided upon the drum, and during thisaction "one hand of the operator must be used to grip the roll while the other hand operates the actuating handle.

The use of such weight-operated winding mechanisms is open to many objections. Because it must be wound up from time to time, during which the cloth roll is either held inactive by or turned by hand, it'limits the speed of the machine and is unsuitable for this and other reasons hereinafter stated upon fast working machines,.and the quality of cloth produced is liable to be impaired because of the presence of stop marks". It is irregular in action and as its pull or turning force varies inversely to that required for efllcient action due to the increasing weight and diameter of the roll as the cloth is formed and taken up, the tension on the cloth undesirably varies and cannot be regulated to any fixed degree and maintained substantiallyconstant during a run of the machine, which is essentialin making difierent grades of fabrics. Furthermore, such mechanism, because of its faulty action, limits the speed and output of the machine, and, because of the constant attention it requires, adds to thecost of operation of the machine and accordingly to the cost of production of the fabric.

The main object of my invention is to provide a roll driving or winding machine which is to a high degree smooth, regular and even i119! eration, which isconstant in its working action and does not require rewinding, which may be regulated in its action to govern its pull and the tension on the fabric as required in making any fabric, which permits winding of the fabric over or under the roll as best suited in making different fabrics, which is to a large extent automatic in action and does away with a large proportion of manual labor required in the operation of a weight-operated driving mechanism, and which in these and other respects overcomes the well known objections to weight-driven cloth roll winders.

a A further object of the invention is to provide an electrically driven cloth roll winding mechanism which is operative to drive the roll at the desired speed and power to secure a uniform winding action and uniform tension on the fabric.

The invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts; hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary end elevation of a warp knitting machine embodying my invention, showing only so much of the machine as is necessary to illustrate the invention.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the adjacent end portion of the machine showing the cloth roll and its driving connections.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, 1 designates the frame of a fast'warp knitting machine of known type, 2 the cloth beam, 3 elements of the knitting mechanism of the machine, 4 the warp beam, 5 a thread tension and guide rod, and 6 thread guiding means between the rod 5 and the knitting elements 3, all of which parts are or may be of ordinary construction. The warp threads 7 pass from the beam 4 over the rod 5 to and down through the guiding means 6 to knitting mechanism 3, by which the cloth fabric 8 is formed, the fabric being wound under tension on the roll 2.

In accordance with our invention, the roll 2 is driven by a sprocket wheel or gear 9, suitably mounted at one end of the roll 2, through the medium of a clutch connection comprising a pawl 10 and ratchet 11, whereby the roll is positively driven in winding direction by the gear 9 but is free to turn independently of the gear in the opposite or unwinding direction, when pawl 10 is lifted, to allow the cloth to be removed. The pawl and ratchet connection may be of double or reversible type so that either direction of rotation of the roll may be made the winding direction to allow the cloth to be wound onto the roll by either an over-wind or an under-wind action, according to the character of the cloth which is being made. In the present instance a pivoted reversible pawl is shown.

The gear 9 is driven from a torque motor 12 of special type. This motor is a slow speed motor having a 10:1 gear reduction unit 13 built into -its driving end, including a small sprocket wheel or pinion 14, from which driving motion is transmitted to the sprocket wheel 9 by means of a sprocket chain 15, The motor is so designed that it runs at a substantially steady speed and exermitted and varied within a wide range as occasion requires, which extreme flexibility of power transmission is permitted by the use of a motor drive sprocket 14 which is much smaller than the sprocket 9. The motor may be driven from any commercial electric line or other source of current of proper voltage, and in its circuit, besides the rheostat, there is included an ordinary switch 17 for cutting it in or out of the supply circuit, and a capaoitator 18 or device to prevent overheating of the field units. The motor is so wired as to be reversible in action so that the cloth roll may be driven in the opposite direction to that commonly employed, that is to say, for winding the cloth from under the roll instead of from over the roll, which is sometimes necessary in manufacturing various types of fabrics. In practice the electrical instruments mentioned are preferably mounted upon the frame of the machine and the circuit wiring run through insulated tubing 19.

In the operation of the winding means, the knitting machine being in action and the switch 1'7 turned on, the rheostat 16 is adjusted to proper position to regulate the driving pull of the motor, whereby the cloth roll is driven at the proper winding speed and under sufficient torque to turn it according to the load conditions, that is, the winding resistance due to weight and character of the fabric which is being made and wound upon the cloth roll, and the size of the roll. It will be understood, of course, that as the size of the roll increases and its weight increases, due to the increasing amount of cloth wound upon it, its speed of rotation and the power supplied to rotate it must be varied, which is smoothly and exactly effected by adjustment of the rheostat to regulate its resistance and the action of the motor. The rheostatjmust also be adjusted as circumstances may require to govern the operation of the winding roll in accordance with the speed of production and character of the fabric which is being formed. This operation of adjusting therheostat must be manually performed, which requires in any run of the machine the occasional attention of an attendant, but in all other respects the winding mechanism is entirely automatic and does away with the time and labor required in periodically rewinding a winding motor, as in the case of the use of a weight motor, and also avoids the numerous objections noted ,in the use of a motor of this type. The continual or sustained service of an attendant is not therefore necessary, and an attendant may supervise the operation of a number of machines and perform other duties in the mill, thus reducing labor expenses. Also it will be evident that, as the roll driving operation is continuous as long as the machine is in action, the necessity of stopping or manually turning the cloth roll, as is necessary in rewinding weight-driven cloth rolls, is obviated as well as the stop marks on the fabric produced thereby, and a better grade of fabric may be made because of the substantially uniform tension which may be maintained by the uniform winding action of the cloth roll. As the winding mechanism may also be operated at any given winding speed, to perform such function in a regular and uniform manner, there is practically no limit to the speed at which the machine may be operated, so that a greater amount of fabric may be turned out within a given time than is possible in the use of weight-driven winding mechanisms. As stated, the motor is reversible and the winding roll may be driven in either direction for a winding action, and may be operated in the reverse direction for an unwinding action, so that the cloth may be run under the roll for a winding action instead of over it, which is sometimes necessary in manufacturing certain types of fabrics.

From the foregoing description, the construction, mode of operation andadvantages of our improved automatic cloth roll winder for warp knitting machines will be readily understood and appreciated by those versed in the art without a further and extended description. While the construction disclosed is preferred, it will, of course, be understood that changes in the form, proportions and details of construction of the parts, within the scope of the appended claims, may be made without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

What we claim is:

1. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction drive unit, a high-low speed ratio driving connection between the reduction drive unit'and the roll, a feed circuit for the motor, and variable resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor.

2. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor, a drive connection between the motor and the roll comprising a reduction gear unit including a small sprocket wheel driven by the motor, a larger sprocket wheel driving the roll, and a sprocket chain connecting said gears, a feed circuit for the motor, and a resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor.

3. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction gear unit, a high-lowspeed-gear ratio drive gearing driven by the reduction gear unit, and a clutch connection between said drive gearing and the roll.

4. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor, a gear element having a .pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, and a drive connection between the motor and said gear element.

5. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction drive unit including a gear pinion, a gear wheel having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, and a drive connection between said gear pinion and the said gear wheel.

6. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor, a gear element having a pawl and ratchet connection'with the roll, and a chain drive con motor having a reduction gear unit, and a driving connection between said gear unit and the roll, said connection having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll.

9. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor, and a drive connection between the motor and the roll comprising a reduction gear unit including a small sprocket gear wheel driven by the motor, a larger sprocket gear wheel driving the roll, said gear having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, and a sprocket chain connecting said ears. 10. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction gear unit, a sprocket pinion driven thereby, a sprocket wheel having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, and a sprocket chain connecting said pinion and sprocket wheel.

11. In-a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination, with a cloth making mechanism, of a roll for winding up the cloth and maintaining a predetermined tension on the cloth forming material in process of formation, a gearing for driving the roll operative to positively drive the roll in one direction for a cloth winding action and to permit rotation of the roll in the opposite direction for a cloth unwinding action, a torsion motor for driving said gearing in roll winding direction, and an electric feed circuit including said motor embodying means governing the current supply to the motor to vary its pull to regulate the winding speed of the roll with regard to its increasing diameter to maintain such predetermined tension on the material.

12. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination, with cloth supplying means, of a winding roll for the cloth, a reversible torque motor, a drive gearing for the roll operabletherebyxand a reversible clutch connection between said gearing and the roll.

13. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination, with cloth supplying means, of a winding roll for the cloth, a reversible torque motor, a drive gearing for the roll operable thereby, a reversible clutch connection between said gearing and the roll, an electric circuit including the motor, and means governing the supply of current to the motor to regulate its ull. p 14. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction gear unit, a driving connection between said gear unit and the roll, said connection having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, an electric circuit including the motor, and means governing the supply said gears, an electric circuit including the motor, and means governing the supply of current to the motor to regulate its pull.

l6. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth supplying mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction gear unit, a sprocket pinion driven thereby, a sprocket wheel having a pawl and ratchet connection with the roll, a

sprocket chain connecting said pinion and sprocket wheel, an electric circuit including the motor, and means governing the supply of current to the motor to regulate its pull.

17. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth producing mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction drive unit, a driving connection between the roll and the reduction drive unit of the motor, a feed circuit for the motor, and variable resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor proportionate to the winding resistance of the cloth being wound on the roll.

18. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a. cloth producing mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor, a high-low speed ratio sprocket and chain drive gearing actuated by the motor, a pawl and ratchet connection between the said sprocket and chain drive gearing and the roll, a feed circuit for the motor, and variable resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor proportionate to the winding resistance of the cloth being wound on the roll.

19. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth producing mechanism, of a cloth roll, a torque motor having a reduction drive unit, a feed circuit for the motor, a high-low speed ratio drive connection between the motor and roll embodying a sprocket pinion driven by the motor, a sprocket gear for driving the roll, a chain connecting said pinion and gear, and a variable resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor proportionate to the winding resistance of the cloth being wound on the roll,

20. In a cloth winding mechanism for cloth making machines, the combination with a cloth producing mechanism, of a cloth roll for winding up the cloth, a reversible torque motor having a reduction gear unit, a high-low speed ratio drive gearing actuated by said gear unit, a pawl and ratchet I connection between said drive gearing and the roll reversible for connection with the motor and drive gearing to efiect an over-winding or under-winding direction drive of the roll in the rotation, of the motor in opposite directions, a feed circuit for the motor, and a' resistance means in said circuit for varying the pull of the motor.

PAUL H. QUICK. EARL W. SIMPSON.

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