US2036144A - Spring needle knitting machine and individual presser therefor - Google Patents

Description

m W o H K SPRING NEEDLE KNITTING MACHIEE AND INDIVIDUAL PRESSER THEREFOR Filed Aug. 27, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l Patented Mar. 31, .1936

UNITED STATES PATENT-OFFICE.

seams NEEDLE 2,036,144 v KNITTING MACHINE AND INDIVIDUALQPR ESSER THEREFOR Kenneth Howie, Norristown, Pa... assignmto Wildm tion of Pennsylvania,

an Mfg. 00., Norrlstown, Pa. a corpora-' Application August 27, 1935, Serial No. 38,123 InGreat Britain APl'il 23, 1934 Claims.

of a knitting machine embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of cam means and associated means for controlling the pressers, and with said cam means in retracted position.

Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig-2 but with the cam means in advanced position to act on certain of the needle pressers. I

Fig. 4 is a face-view of apart of the machine showing the .cam' organization in elevation.

Fig. 5 shows pressers.

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view of a wall of the needle cylinder and the dial and cam box.

Fig. '7 is a view similar to the upper part of Fig. 1, but with the upper presser cam held in retracted position relative to the upper end of the presser. I

Fig. 8 is ablan view of part of the means shown in Fig. 1 for adjusting and holding the upper presser cam.

Fig. 9 is a front view of the parts of Fig. 8.

In the drawings l indicates the pressers, there being one of these for each spring beard needle.

These pressers are arranged in vertical slots cut in the needle cylinder 2, wherein they are held by spring bands 3, 4. These bands. are in the form of a closely coiled spiral spring. v

The spring band 3 serves as a fulcrum upon which the pressers may rock and the other band 4 serves as means by which the pressers are rocked to normal position after having been operated by cam means hereinafter described. The spring beard needles arelocated in the vertical grooves or slots of the needle cylinder or carrier.

The pressers are of spcial formation at their lower ends in that they are provided each with a recess la at its outer edge} the upper part of said recess being defined at its upper end by an overhanging projection lb of curved ,form providing an edge curved on the arc of a circle to furnish a seat on the under side of said projection for contact with the spring band 3. This '55 curved edge of this seat is struck from the center (Cl. Bit-101) of the circular cross section of the spring band, so that the presser may turn on the band as a pivot. The recess Id of 'the presser is defined at its lower end by an outwardly curved end to of the presser shank. This curved end furnishes 5 a seat for the lower spring band 4.

The pressers are moved into position for performing their pressing actions on the needle beards by cam means and as shown in Fig. 5

the pressers at their outer edges have different 10 formations relative to each other so that the cam means when set to operate certain of the pressers will miss others. Thus regular stitches will be formed on some of the spring beard needles while,

in the same course, tuck stitches will be formed on certain others of the needles, it being understood, as in the patent above referred to, that the row of pressers and the cam means have relative traversing movement in a direction along the. presser row, the machine being of either the type in which the needle cylinder or carrier moves while the cam organization is relatively fixed or the type in which the reverse is true.

The different formation of the pressers whereby some are operated by the cam means and others miss the cam means is provided by variably cutting away portions of the outer margins of the pressers. Thus in Fig. 5 the first presser counting from the right is cut away to the point 3;,

leaving a relative high part or butt at this part for contact with the cam means. The next presser to the right has an edge formation differing from that of the first presser, thus leaving a high part or butt disposed at a different level y from that of the high part a:, and so on throughout the series. r

Reverting to the first presser at the left of Fig.

5 we will suppose that the cam means is adjusted so as to engage the high part or butt. This presser and all similar presers having high parts or butts at the same level will be operated by the cam means when adjusted into line therewith so that all the needles individual to these particular pressers will be operated to press the needle beards for making regular stitches while the other pressers of the 'row individual to the other needles will not be operated by the cam means and hence the beards of the corresponding needles will not be pressed and regular stitches will.

not be formed, but on the contrarytuck stitches will bejormed on these needles whose pressers have been missed by the cam means. and thus the fabric will have regular knit stitches interspersed with tuck stitches.

In Fig. 2'is shown cam means consisting of a ,edge 6 to cooperate with the edge formation of the pressers, so that certain of said pressers will be operated towards'the needle bed to assume a position for pressing the beards oi the needles individual thereto and certain other pressers, due

to their'edge formations, will miss being operated by the cam, those pressers which are intended to cooperate with their needles for making regular stitches being operated by the high parts or their edge formations, contacting the cam, and those pressers whose needles are intended to make tuck stitches missing the cam.

Where it is desired to increase the capacity of the machine for making a great number oi-variations in the .iabric the cam means may consist of a plurality of sections, these being shown in edge view Fig. 1 arranged in-a bank, one above another. Each oi these sections is slidably mounted in a support or bracket in, and each is operated by a. cam bar or slide I, which are also mounted one above the other in said bracket 5a. These cam slides I may be operated by hand, the attendant using'any suitable hand implement or rod contacting the end portions of the slides to set them either in active or inactive position. when any one of these sliding cam plates'is set in position into the path or movement or high parts of the presser edge formations, the correpressers will be swimg ontheir fulcrums and set in position to press the beards oi the corresponding needles for forming regular stitches, whereas those pressers which have low parts in their edge formations at the level or this particular part -or plate of the cam organization will be missed by said cam and thereiorethese pressers will remain in their outermost positions respecting their corresponding needles, and tuck stitches will be formed on these needles.

The slide bars I for operating the parts the presser cam organization are controlled by triction detents 8, under spring pressure. V

I! it should be desired that the machine be used for producing a iabric having only regular knit stitches, a presser cam 9 may be brought into play which will operate all the pressers of the machine to set them in position to press the beairds of all the needles. This presser cam will be held in its advanced position ready to operate allthepressersbyalatch ill, engaging afiange ii of a sleeve ll screw threaded on a rod I2. when the latch is lifted, which may be done by hand, the rod 12 will be retracted by spring 43, immediately associated with the main presser cam to retract it away from the path of the pressers, and thus the cam means for the variable control of the pressers may be rendered active. The arrangement can be such that the action 01' the lower cam organization for variably controlling. the pressers may be nullified by the upper cam member l which, as above stated, would operate all the pressers oi the whole row for making regular stitches.

All needles can knit by placing in action the entire lower cam organization, that is, the cam section 5 and all the other cam sections associated therewith and arranged below it, but in mill practice the sinker cap presser cam would be used edge readily will seat itself on the spring band.

' the guide walls for the needles.

a notch of the flange.

insertable into place. It will be noted in this connection that the lower outwardly curved end of the presser is slightly tapered and ends in a rounded point directed laterally and downwardly. Hence the presser readily may be thrust into 5 place back of the spring bands. The overall width oi this lower portion 01 the presser isless than the width 01' the presser shank above the recess and this reduction in the width of the lower terminal portion of the presser shank contributes to the ease with which it may be inserted into place. As the upper curved edge defining the' upper end or the recess at the lower outer edge of the presser races downwardly this lin making replacements the presser readily can be removed by drawing it upwardly, it being noted as above pointed out that the lower reduced end of the presser curves downwardly and outwardly, thus presenting no abrupt shoulder obstructions to the withdrawal of the presser.

The upper overhanging projection of the presser defining the upper end of the recess therein tends to maintain the upper spring band properly seated in thenotches oi the walls deilning the slots in the needle cylinder. All the spring bands, including the one shown at I! for holding the needles slidably in place are seated in notches in the guide walls of the cylinder.

It will be noted also that the' lower terminal end of the presser lies in a vertical plane betweenthe vertical planes of the inner and outer edges of the main shank of the presser above the recess which also contributes to the ease with which the presser may be inserted or removed.

By the construction disclosed herein the pressers are iulcrumed independently oi. the needles.

there being no contact between the presser and is on the spring band which is seated in not'ches in 40 Itwill he understood that in order to increase the capacity of the pressers for making the variations in the fabric the. low parts of the edge formations may be formed as shown both above and below the plane of the high parts 01' said formations.

Reverting to the latcharrangement tor the upper presser cam 8: when the latch II is released from the position shown in Fig. l, and the spring l3 forces the bolt 12 with the sleeve M with its flange ll outwardly, the said flange will come against the head llb oi stop screw lid in which position the sleeve will be held by a latch Ila against being pushed inwardly towards the center of the machine until such time that the operator desires to set the presser cam in action. The operator then releases the latch Ila, which pivots on the screw I Id, and then he can push the rod or bolt inwardly to set the presser cam in operative position, whereupon the parts will be held by the latch Ill engaging over the edge of the flange i I, as shown in Fig. 1, said latch fitting in A nut ll having a knurled finger piece I1 and a lock nut I I allow adjustment oi the screw rod relative to the sleeve l4.

Operators on regular machines, 1. e. machines not having thereon the present subsidiary cam means for producing tuck stitches are alert to avoid running the machine it the usual presser cam 9 is in retracted position because damage to the fabric will result ii this cam is not in its working position when the machine is put in operation.

The natural tendency or habit is tor the operator, when he notices that presser cam such as 8 is in idle position, to press the presser caminwardly to its operative position. This action in the present machine having the improved pressers and the special cam means would result in the upper usual cam 9 nullifying the action of the cam means 5. The latch Ha will prevent this by engaging flange H to prevent the rod It being pushed in, it being noted that rod I2 is associated with the sleeve l4, carrying the flange I i.

I claim:

11. An individual presser for a spring needle adapted to have rocking movement relative to said needle, said presser having at its upper part an inclined inner edge to contact the needle beard, and having at its lower part a recess facing outwardly, said recess at its upper end being defined by the curved under edge of an overhanging projection which curved edge has its concave facing downwardly and affording a fulcrum point upon which the presser may rock, said presser below said fulcrum being of reduced width and terminating in a laterally downwardly and outwardly curved end, the concave edge of which faces the recess and affords a seat for a spring band, substantially as described.

2. In combination in a spring' needle knitting machine, spring beard needles, individual pressers for the needle beards, said pressers having recesses at their lower portions facing outwardly and defined at the upper and lower portions thereof by curved edges facing each other, and

a pair of spring bands, one above the other in therecess seated against said curved edges, the upper band serving as a fulcrum upon which the presser may rock and the lower band serving to rock the presser to inactive position, substantially as described.

' 3. An individual presser for spring beard needles having at its upper part an inner edge to contact a needle beard and having at a lower part of its outer edge a recess facing outwardly, which recess at its upper end has a downwardly extending projection spaced apart from the bottom of the recess to engage a fulcrum and thus hold the presser from contact with the needle, said recess being of a length to receive below said fulcrum a spring band for returning the presser after being operated, substantially as described.

4. A knitting machine having spring beard needles, pressers having at their upper part inner edges to contact the needle beards and each having at a lower part of its outer edge a recess facing outwardly, which recess at its upper end has a downwardly extending projection spacedjapart from the bottom of the recess, a fulcrum member at the upper end of said outer recess contacting with the said presser and the inner side of said projection to hold the presser out of contact with the needle, and a spring band in said outwardly facing recess below the fulcrum to return the presser to normal position.

5. An individual presser for a spring needle, said presser having at its upper part an inclined inner edge to contact the needle beard, and having at its lower part a recess facing outwardly,

said recess being defined at its upper end by a curved downwardly facing edge and downwardly KENNETH Ho.

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