US2112939A - Conversion of continuous filaments into yarn containing staple fiber - Google Patents

Description

April 5, 1938.

w. z. TAYLOR CONVERSION OF CONTINUOUS FILAMENTS INTO YARN CONTAINING STAPLE FIBER Filed March 3, 1936 9 Main M ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 5, 1938 CONVERSION OF CONTINUOUS FILAMENTS INTO CONTAINING STAPLE FIBER William Ivan Taylor, Spondon, near Derby, Eng-' land, assignor to Oelanese Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Application March 3, 1936, Serial No. 68,868 In GreatBritain March 6, 1935 This invention relates to a method and apparatusfor the conversion of continuous filaments directly into yarn containing staple fiber.

According to the invention, a bundle of fila-' 5 ments is caused to pass between two positively driven surfaces .moving in the same general di-' rection as the filaments, at least one of them,

however, having a peripheral speed different from the speed of the filaments, and preferably also from. the other, at least one of the surfaces being driven through flexible means permitting the two 'surfaces to be pressed against each other with but light pressure, and yet at the. same time allowing the surfaces to move at predetermined speeds. At

least one of the surfaces has a cutting action, so.

that by reason of the passage of the filaments be tween the surfaces and the light pressure exerted between the surfaces, the filaments in the bundle;

are transformed-into staple fibers,'and the -fllaments leave the surfaces as yarn containing 'sta-i pla fiber.

The operation of convertingcontinuous fila- 4 ments in the bundle into staple fibersas described .above does not substantially afiect the degree'oi twist which the bundle may possess. However, when the bundle has little or no-twist, the prod? not should be collected; after the conversion oi' the filaments into staple fibers, bya twisting and winding operation to' impart to it a twist which so may be the amount of twist in the final product, or may need to be'augmented by fur-,

ther twisting. In either case, the twist so imparted during winding maintainsthe coherenceof the product. Alternatively, the coherence may 35 be maintained by reason of a substantial initial degree of twist in the continuous filament bundle', which twist, as previously stated, is practically unafi'ected by the conversion. The surfaces should together make pressure 40 contact preferably substantially at a point in-the length of the bundle, but while a pair of'rollers 50 be adjusted in accordance with the nature of the,

material under treatment and .the

desired in the final product. {The invention per-,-

mits-the necessary adiustmentoi speed to be e'fiiected while" allowing substantially .independent the diiference of speed between the controh-pf the pressure exerted between them:-

aplain surface. v v .It is advantageous to allow the weight of one faces to be maintained, and so readily permits the use of greater or lesspressure' where necessary,

vas with the treatment of bundles of greater or less denier. 7

Other factors governing the nature of the final product, which factors may be varied as required, are the nature of the cutting surface. the speed of progression of the filament bundle through the apparatus, the, difference between the speed of the surface or surfaces and the filaments, the 10 fineness of the individual filaments in the bundie, and the amount of twist in the bundle.

The cutting surface may be of an abrasive nature, e. g. a roller surfaced with or made of abra-' sive material. It is, however, advantageous to 18 employ a cutting roller provided with fine sharpedged flutes running'either helically or substantially parallel to the axis of the roller, a roller of this type providing for greater control over the properties of the final product. Both surfaces may have a cutting action, for example a pair of fluted cutting rollers may beused, the flutes of the two rollers runningin such directions as to cross each other at the point of contact be.- tween the rollers. One roller. however, may have 2 of the rollers to provide the necessary light pressure between the surfaces',-whether such pressing roller has or has not s cutting action.

The 'inventionis applicable to the treatment of diiferent kinds ofcontinuous filaments, e. g. eel;-

- lulose derivative filaments such as cellulose ace taterfilaments, cellulosic filaments such as viscose filaments, and natural silk filaments. By way of example, a form of apparatus pro vided withdriving means according to the'inven tion will now be'describ'ed in greater detail with referenceto the accompanying drawing in'whlch 1. Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus driven by means according to? the present invention for converting a bundle of continuous filaments into astapleflber yarn, and

2-5 give alternative forms of the driving mechanism according to'the present invention.

'InFig. ltheapparatusisshownas comprising generally twopair'sofsrollers i,-I, 3,4,therollers.

landtbeingmountedonpositivelydrivenshaits .landlwhiletherollersi'andlarecsrrledona bracket I suspended froma stationary shaft I so abovethe rollers. The roller 1 iscarried inslotted bearings in'a'member iI secured to the bracket I by means of s ut and bolt ll passing through a slot in the bracket! so that the positio oithe. ll may be musty/Vania? The roller 5 is mounted in bearings carried in a slot I3 in the lower end of the bracket I.

Yarn I4 consisting of continuous filaments is supplied horizontally to the upper pair of rollers I, 2 and passing over the roller I'proceeds downwards to the rollers 3 4. The roller 3 is grooved so that it grips the filaments with the aid of the roller 4 and is driven at a higher speed than the roller I. In consequence the bundle of continuous filaments I4 is caused to slip over the surface of the roller I. The roller I is provided with flutes making sharp edges with the surface of the roller so that the rollerl exerts a cutting action on the filaments and converts the bundle of continuous filaments I4 into a continuous bundle of staple fibers I5. This bundle proceeds downwards to the guide I6 of a cap-spinning device IT by means of which it is twisted and spun into a staple fiber yarn and wound on the package I8 which is driven by means of the band I9.

In order to bring about the cutting of the contin ous filaments in the bundle I4 between the rollers I and 2 the roller 2 is allowed to press downwards on the roller I with its own weight,

a clearance 20 being allowed at the bottom of the slotted bearing 3 to permit the weight of the roller 2 to be effective. The roller 2 is positively driven at a speed which may be the same as, or

different from, that of the roller I by means of a flexible driving shaft 2| attached at one end to the roller 2 and having at the other end 'a bevel gear 23 engaging with a bevel gear 24 on a driving shaft 25. The shaft 25 is driven in any desired speed relationship with the shafts 5, 6 so that the speed of the roller 2, like those of the rollers. I and 3, is positively controlled. The flutes in the surface of the roller I by means of which the filaments, pressed into sliding contact with the roller I, are periodically severed to form staple fibers, are shown more clearly at 28 in Figs. 2-5.

In Figs. 2 and 3 means are shown for driving the roller 2 from the roller I; In Fig. 2 gear wheels 21, 28 are secured to the rollers I and 2 respectively. The teeth of the gear wheels 21 and 28 are longer than is usual so that any vertical movement of the roller 2, which is freely allowed by the slotted bearings 9, does not interfere with thedriving of the roller 2. The gears 21 and 28 are equal in size so that the rollers I and 2 are driven at equalspeeds. In Fig. 3 gear wheels 29 and 30 are shown which are different in size, the gear wheel 29 being smaller than the gear wheel 30 so that the roller 2 is driven more slowly than the roller I.

In Fig. 4 a further method of driving the roller 2 from the shaft 5 of the roller I is shown, in which the shaft 5 is provided with a bevel gear 3i engaging with a bevel gear 32 carried on 9.

countershaft 33 mounted in bearings 34, 35. Splined to the countershaft 33 is a friction wheel 36 which is held downwards against a spring 31 on the shaft 33 by means of a lock nut 38 engaging on a screwed portion 39 of the shaft 33.

The friction wheel 36 engages with a friction disc 40 secured to the shaft H of the roller 2. By these means the roller 2 is driven from the shaft 5 of the roller I and the speed ratio between the roller 2 and the roller I may'be adjusted by means of the locking means 38 with the aid of which the friction wheel 36 may be caused to engage with any desired radius of the friction disc 40.

In Fig. 5 another form of apparatus is shown in which the roller 2 is driven independently of the roller I from a shaft 42. Between the positively driven shaft 42 and the shaft H of the roller 2 are interposed coupling means comprising two discs 43, 44 secured to the ends of the shafts 4I and 42 respectively, the discs being provided with feathers 45, 45 respectively proceeding diametrically across their faces.

The two' feathers 45, 46 engage in diametral grooves in to secure by Letters Patent is:-

Apparatus for the production from a bundle of continuous filaments of a continuous product containing staple fibers, said apparatus comprising a pair of rollers, one at least of said rollers having a cutting surface, means for drawing a bundle of continuous filaments through said pair of rollers at a speed different from the peripheral speed of at least one of said rollers, means for pressing said rollers together was to exert a light pressure upon the bundle of filaments passing between them, a driving shaft positively connected to one of said rollers, a further driving shaft and a coupling including discs secured to said further shaft and said other roller, diametrally disposed feathers on the faces of said discs, and an intermediate disc between said I WILLIAM IVAN Tampa.

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