US2240421A - Circular knitting machine - Google Patents

Description

April 29, 1941. j s. 'SHELMJRE CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed March 27, 1940 4 SheetsS heet 1 m s a .1: Rw V|.5 mm N@ A T s lllmlllllll' LN; Ti :JL.

April 29, 1941.

- Ti: .2.. -W

IIHUUUIIIIHUUEIIJU GUI] s. R. SHELMIRE 2,240,421

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Shegt 2 Filed March 27, 1940 [n.verzZ-ar Z STANLEY R. SHELMIRE 5y his @iZfara eye April 29, 1941. s. R. SHELMIRE CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed March 27, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 TiuzrlE.

[ZZZ/6722B)"- STANLEY R. SHELMIRE 5; 712.2 a/Z-Zarne Z/F April 29, 1941. ,s; R. SHELMIRE 4 4 V CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed March 27, 1940 4 Sheets- Sheet 4 x STANLEY R.SHELMIRE 53/ 72219 ai'iarrzeys Patented Apr.,29, 1941 cmcumm xm'r'rmc. mounts Stanley ll. Shelmire, Laconia, N. 11., assignor to Scott .1; Williams; Incorporated, Laconia, N. IL, a corporation of Massachusetts Application March 27, 1940, Serial No. 326,282

(cl. cc-so) Claims.

This invention relates to independent needle circular knitting machines, and more particular- 1y to such machines when adapted to make patterned fabric by manipulation of the knitting elements. One object of the present invention is to produce a machine of the cross-over type in which the entire manipulation is caused without the use of a second cam race. It is characteristic oi the invention that the cross-over eflect and knitting wave are obtained in a single cam race and that all the needles are drawn down to the knocking-over point at each feed. The invention is intended for use in a multi-ieed machine and it can make either plain and tuck, or plain and iloat patterns. By the cross-over? system is meant the type of memory" system in which, for instance, certain needles make regular stitches at one ieed while the others make the special form of stitch at that feed, and at a subsequent feed the situation is reversed without interposition of the pattern selecting mechanism. The cross-over can be caused after knitting one or a plurality of feeds. The invention will be shown embodied in a machine containing electromechanical selecting means of the type shown in the application of Albert E. Page Ser. No. 201,650, filed April 12, 1938, now Patent 2,225,842, for Circular knitting machine, and using the needle oi the patent to Albert E. Page No. 2;l29,148, dated September 6, 1938. a

In pattern devices selecting individual knitting elements oi the memory type, it has heretofore been necessary to use a cam race for the selected jacks or needles separate from the knitting cam race, or to interfere with the knitting movements 3 of the needles. By means of the present invention the sliding butt needle the Page Patent 2,129,148 can be employed as a memory device in a cross-over type of mechanism with the use of a single cam race i'or the knitting and the memory means. According to this invention all the needles pass through the regular knitting wave at each feed, and all the needles are brought down to the knocking-over point at each iced. Thus, with one cam setup, certain needles can be caused to float at one or more successive feeds while the others mt regular stitches, and thereafter for one or more feeds the needles which'knit regular stitches can be caused to knit 'iioat stitches, while the ones which were making float stitches will now make regular stitches; All this is achieved in a single cam race by a simple cam needles only when clearing or taking the yarns.

In the drawing Fig. 1 is a view in elevation, partly broken away, of part of the needle cylinder and pattern mechanism of a revolving needle cylinder circular knitting machine embodying the new invention; v

Fig. 2 is a developed view in elevation of the sliding butt needles and a schematic single cam race layout of the machine oi-Fig. 1 with the needle b'utts being selected without the interpositioning oi pattern jacks, adjusted to make float stitch and plain stitch; the needles moving from left to right and the vertical arrows indicatin the knocking-over points of the two feeds shown;

Fig. 3 is a developed view in plan of the needles and cam race of Fig. 2;

Figs. 4 to 8 are views in vertical section through the needle cylinder of the machine shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the views being taken on the lines 4-4, 5-5, M, 1-1 and 8-8 respectively, of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the small arrows. Fig. 4 shows one needle at normal level just after its sliding butt has been depressed by the selecting hammer, and another needle whose butt was not depressed just after riding up the thin clearing cam at the first or left feed in Fig. 2; Fig. 5 shows a needle before and after being lowered by, the knocking-over cam at the first feed; flg.'6 shows needles raised to the dividing height from the knocking-over point at the first feed; Fig. 7 shows a needle with an extended butt returned to normal level by a thin dividing cam;

' Fig. 8 shows the extended butt needle of Fig. '7

system. making use of the sliding butts of the needles. There is vertical separation of the traveling under the clearing cam at the second or right'hand feed of Fig. 7, and also the depressed butt needle while-being raised by the clearing cam and after it has been completely raised and its butt reset;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a sliding butt cylinder needle suitable for use in the new machine;

Fig. 10 is a view in elevation from the right side of Fig. 1, showing the selecting hammer and associated parts;

Fig. 11 is a plan view of the hammer acting directly on the needle butts of Figs. 2 to 4, in-

elusive;

Fig. 12 is a development similar to Fig. 2, of a modified iorni of cam race embodying the invention, adjusted to make tuck and plain stitches, the needle selection being caused directly on the needle butts by a trick or notched wheel;

Fig. 13 is a developed plan view similar to Fig.

3, oi the needles and cams of Fig. 12;

. feed of Fig. 12;

Fig. 16 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the edge of the notched wheel of Fig. 12 engaging the needle butts, the arrows representing the directions of movement of the parts; while Fig. 17 is a view in radial vertical section through the needle of the modification of Fig. 12, taken on the line l|il, showing the notched the fabric is similar to that produced by an ortrick wheel and. its driving gear for engaging the needle butts.

In selecting needles for the forming of special stitches for pattern efiects on independent needle circular knittin machines having a multiplicity of feeds, it is necessary, for reasons of economy of space and simplicity, to make one pattern selecting mechanism efiective for a pinrality of feeds by means of a memory device such asa cross-over system in which after producing a pattern selection at one or more feeds, themachine will automatically switch or cross over to another selection without the use of asecond pattern mechanism. The present invention achieves this end in a very simple: manner without the use of pattern jacks, thus freeing a machine containing ,pattem jacks to use those elements for other purposes.

The embodiments of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 10 will be described first. In these embodiments the special stitch employedjis a float stitch and the special stitches are made on the cylinder needles. This machine is a rib knitting machine with a revolving needle cylinder in which the dial needles n knit at each feed but the cylinder needles may be so managed as to knit only once for each revolution of the machine or only once for each of a plurality of feeds. In Fig. 2 each cylinder needle knits once in each two feeds. The machine has a bedplate B supporting a rotary needle cylinder 2% in which independent cylinder latch needles N move vertically in slots, as usual. The needle cylinder is surrounded by a stationary cam cylinder or ring 21 I.

One of the objects of this invention is to produce .a machine which can knit large designs, that is to say, designs in which a large number of adjacent needles all knit the one pattern yarn. The other pattern yarns, of course, must be floated in back of these needles, and to preventsuch floats. which would be objectionable the machine contains in addition the following elements. There "is' a dial D containing dial needles n and actuating cams (not shown) there being as many dial needles as there are cylinder 5 I needles. As a result, rib fabric is obtained. .The dial needles knit at each feed, and since they take the floats which are formed by the cylimier dinary two-feed machine.

Carried above the needle cylinder 260 and the dial D my means of a bracket til, ring 32 and posts M, is a large pattern drum or cylinder 33 whose axis is coaxial, with that of the needle cylinder. Around the lower edge of. this pattern cylinder is a gear ring (not shown) which, through appropriate gearing, drives the pattern cylinder in synchronism with the needle cylinder.

In the example shown in Fig. 1, the two cylinders revolve in a clockwise direction. On the surface of the pattern cylinder is pasted or otherwise represented the design which it is desired to reproduce in the fabric. It is necessary that the representation of the design be colored in such manner and the rest of the machine arranged so that only the needles which are to take the pattern yarn at any given feed will be selected, and all the other will not be selected. For example, electrical apparatus may be so arranged that when a ray of light from a lamp or light source is reflected from a reflecting substance on the pattern cylinder, onto the plate of a photo-electric cell 36, current is transmitted through the wires 55 and the corresponding cylinder needle does not take the yarn at 5. The remainder of the pattern may be black which will not reflect enough light to cause the electrical apparatus to function and the cylinder needles corresponding to this part of the pattern cylinder will take yarn and knit. at 5 We will assume that we are making fioat stitch patterns by the use of the setup in Fig. 2, and that a pattern such as shown opposite the scanner 36 in Fig. 1 is to be produced. In this figure a shield shown with dotted portions 31 is superposed on a background indicated by cross-hatching 3B. The dotted parts 31 are colored silver and the cross-hatched parts 38, black. The pattern (dotted) or silver portions will be produced by the cylinder needles which knit at the second or right hand feed of Fig. 2, and the background (cross-hatched) or black portions will ,be produced by the yarn which is knit by the cylinder needles at the first or left hand feed.

The needles to be selected are constructed in accordance with the patent to Albert E. Page No. 2,129,148, above mentioned, and contain a needles, I'get twocourses of rib stitches for each course of cylinder stitches. The stitches 'knit by the dial needles appear on the inside 01' the fabric only and it is therefore immaterial if the k two courses ot-rib stitches are or diflerent colorsthey do not affect the pattern on the outside sliding operating butt. Butts of two diiierent lengths can be presented to the knitting'cams by the needle. The needle is shown in perspective in Fig. 9 and has a shank 22 and a fixed low operating butt 28 extending laterally from the shank, as usual. This butt projects laterally from the shank in the plane of the hook of they needle on the upper side of theshank, and is of considerable width in order that the novel sliding butt 26 may project through it. The sliding butt moves in the plane of the hook and the fixed butt in a slot 21 cut in one side of the shank of the needle and the fixed butt. The sliding butt is held in the slot in a frictioned manner by meansv of a spring finger 28 riveted to the fixed butt and overlying the slot 21 opposite the low butt. The length of the sliding butt is such that it either projects beyond the "back or lower edge of the shank of theneedle or beyond the low or fixed butt. 'When it is projected beyond the low butt, it is adapted to cause one manipulation ofthe needle, and when ,it is'depressed until it is flush with the fixed butt,-the needle receives adiflerent manipulation. It has been'iound possible to cause all the necessary movements 01' the sliding butt without rocking the needle or otherwise disturblng its longitudinal and knitting operations,

' The horizontal lacks 18 .rest on their lower edges, and these are curved so that the jacks can rock according to whether their inner or outer ends are pushed down. The end of the hammer or armature l8 overlies the outer ends oi the horizontal Jacks as they come around to or rounded end of the slidingbutt will not quite contact the bottom of the groove. The pushing upwardly, l. e., outwardly oi the sliding butt is obtained automatically without reference to any selecting me whenever the needle is pushed upward until the rounded end or the sliding butt contacts the bevelled upper end is of the groove 29 when it is cammed outwardly to its extended position (see Fig. 8). In the constructions of Figs. 1 to 10, certain needles must retain their knitting loops and pass below the knitting cams without taking yarn, i, e., welting or floating, and it is those needles whose sliding butts are thus selectively depressed which make the special stitch at the first ieed. After one or more feeds the cross-over takes place and it is the needle whose sliding butt was not tie-- pressed which makes the special stitch.

The selecting of the sliding butt may be done by various mechanisms such as an electro-mechanical hammer or a pattern wheel, but in the constructions shown in Figs. 1 to 10. the selecting is done by electro-mechanical hammers and mechanisms which will now be described. These selecting mechanisms comprise essentially a pattern scanning device having rotary movement relative to the pattern, electric means operated by that scanning device which in turn may cause a single element to have mechanical movement directly on the all butts or other individual a point radially outward irom the needle cylinder. and this hammer Id, operating through a notch in the cover II, can depress the outer ends of thejacks. The cap or cover Ii does not revolve. The hammer I8 is pivoted at 54 with tension spring 52 tending to keep the hammer in retracted position. There is an electromagnet 6.3 adjacent the end-of the hammer opposite the operating end, this electromagnet being adapted to turn the hammer about its pivot point. There is a stationary cam plate I1 fastened on the lower sideof the cover H which is adapted to act on the horizontal jacks to complete the selection started by the hammer id. This camplate also assists in repositioning the jacks for their next selection by the hammer. When the horizontal jacks are projected, the rotation of the horizontal wheel causes the Jacks to move in through an opening 16 in the cam ring into engagement with the corresponding sliding butt and depresses same to the position shown in Figs.

A 1 and d.

elements which are moving past this single ele-f ment with the same angular speed as that at which the pattern is moving. The element which has mechanical movement directly on the individual elements to depress them can he the magnetically-operated hammer 5d 01 Figs. 2, 3 and l l, which has been found to move fast enough to select a single needle or a group of needles in accurate accordance with the pattern passing the scanning device and with suillcient force to drive the sliding butts inward until they are flush with the fixed low operating butts.

' The scanning device is an electric eye or photoelectric cell it moved vertically by a screw shaft 4d. The revolutions oi the-shalt 39 are determined bythe driving gear Bil on the bottom of the shaft, which driving gear is driven by a train of gears 8B, 89, ill, from the main gear ring it for the needle cylinder.

In the mechanism shown in Figs. 1 and 10, a hammer i8 is used which does not act directly on the butts oi the needles. Driven from the main gear ring is a horizontal'wheel 10 carrying a plurality of small horizontal lacks II arranged in radial grooves on the wheel and held in position by a cap it. The connection between the- As mentioned above, it will be obvious that the electro-magnetic hammer could operate directly on the sliding butts rather than through the intermediary oi the horizontal jacks 15, and this simplified arrangement'is the one indicated diagrammatically in Figs. 2 and 3, and more specifically in Fig. 11. Inthis form of the invention the hammer 58 is plvotally carried on a frame M with a tension spring tending to keep the operating end of the hammer .50 in retracted position. There is an electromagnet adlacent the other bent end of the hammer op- I posite to the operating end, as in the construction. of Fig, 10, this electromagnet being located in suflicient proximity to turn the hammer about its pivot point, and bring the operating and into engagement with a slidingbutt whenever the electromagnet is energized (see Fig. 11).

main gear ring it and the wheel I0 comprises f a gear ill meshing with the main gear ring, and a vertical spindle, 12 carrying the gear '14 and the wheel Ill. The drive for this horizontal wheel I! and the spacing of the horizontal locks 15' therein are such that as the needle cylinder revolves and the horizontal wheel turns, a'horlzontal jack comes opposite the sliding butt of each needle in the needle cylinder. v

The sliding butts can also be selected by means which are wholly mechanical, such for instance as the trick wheel construction shown in Figs. 16 and 17, and; incidentally, shown in Figs. 12 and 13. Referring to Figs. 16 and 17, the low fixed butts 23 as well as the sliding butt 26 project radially from the walls of the needle cylinder, and advantage is taken of this fact to use a trick wheel 19 mounted on a vertical axle til revolving at the level of the high butts. There are flat-ended teeth 86 on the periphery of this trick wheel, spaced in accordance with the pattern. Wherever there is such. a tooth, revolution of the wheel will depress the corresponding sliding butt to a position flush with the low or Whenever such a tooth is cut fixed butt 23. ofi, the sliding butt 26 will remain in its uppermost position, 1. e., projected beyond the fixed butt. For the purpose of turning this trick wheel in timed relation with the needles, there is a gear wheel 82 mounted just above the trick wheel on the same axle, having teeth 88 around its periphery which are slightly longer than those on the trick wheel. The teeth on the gear wheel are offset with relation to the trick wheel teeth so-that they overlap and inter-mesh with the low or fixed butts 23 01' the needles. As a result, the turning of the needle cylinder will cause timed relation with them. The teeth on the gear wheel will fall in the space between the needles, and the teeth on the trick wheel will be opposite the needles, as above described. The

. ing needs, the sliding butt needles and their selecting mechanisms and cams could be used in the dial of the machine.

The com ring layout for taking advantage of the selectively distinguished positions of the butts of the needles to provide the peculiarly simple and elastic construction of this invention is shown in Figs. 2 and 3. In these two figures the needles are moving from left to right and two feeds are shown, the knocking-over points being indicated by the two vertical arrows. It might be stated at the outset that with the exception of cams I30 and I33, the cams are all of such a depth that they extend inwardly toward the needlecylinder far enough to engage the fixed low butts. 'The upper part of cam I30 at the left hand feed as viewed in Fig. 2 functions as a clearing cam but does not clear those needles which are to be left at the special stitch level. This special stitch level may be any level which does not clear the latch but produces a special stitch, e. g., tuck or float. The upper part of cam I30 is thin and while it extends inwardly from the cam ring 2' far enough to engage the extended sliding butts, it is spaced from the needle cylinder far enough to miss the fixed low butts of the needles. In the example shown in Fig. 2, the non-clearing needles at the left hand feed are being left at a welting level which will result in a float stitch, and the shoulder on cam I30 for holding the needles with depressed sliding butts therefore occurs atthe elevation marked I36, which is the normal level of the needles.

The butts of the needles travel in a single or of all needles whose sliding butts project and therefore took yarn and knitted at the left hand feed. Such needles passing under the clearing cam I are engaged by the knocking-over cam I30 at the right hand feed and are drawn down to the knocking-over level along wtih the needles with depressed sliding butts, which in the meantime have passed the special thin lowering cam I33 without being affected by it, have been cleared by cam I34 and taken yarn.

It will be noted that the raising cam I32 serves to raise the low butt needles to a level where they will subsequently be engaged by'the clearing cam I34. This clearing cam I30 raises the low butt needles to a higher level than the cam i30'raised the high butt, needles at the left hand closed cam path, all the needles goingthrough exactly the same movement except during the time when latches are being cleared and yarns taken in the hooks of the needles. Thus according to the present invention the knocking-over cam III at the left hand feed and the knockingover cam I30 at the right hand feed engage all the needles and bring them down to the knocking over level, and the selection as to the sliding butts occurs when the needles are all at one level. As already explained, the needles with project'- ing sliding butts, i. e., those whose sliding'butts were not pushed radially inward by the hammer 00, will engge the'ithin portion of the cam I30 unease-up to the clearing point, after which -they will take yarn, be drawn down by the knocking-over cam I3I and knock over their stitches. The needles whose sliding butts were depressed by the hammer" will ride along the ledge I30 at the welting or float level and will not take yarn but will be drawn down to the knockingover level by the cam I3I, all the needles then being raised together by their fixed. butts enga ing the raising cam I32. In Fig. 2 the projecting sliding butts are shown solid. and the depressed sliding butts in outline only. As the needles come to the end of the high portion of the raising cam I32, the actual cross-over is started by the low or thin cam I33. This is a lowering cam which precedes the clearing cam at the right- .hand feed and it is adapted to push down below feed, because the lowbutt needles must be raised high enough to reset their sliding butts in the manner shown in Fig. 10 of the Page Patent 2,129,148. The high butt needles which rode up the cam I30 remain projected to the full extent throughout their passage through the cam path and therefore do not need to be raised to this. level. It will be noted that the two cams which engage the high butt needles only. namely, the clearing cam I80 and the lowering cam I33, differ only in that the clearing cam I30 moves the high butt needles up so that they can knit at the left'hand feed, and the lowering cam I33 movesthem down so that they will not knit at the secondfeed. The sliding butt cross-over arrangement above described can be used to take care of the knitting at several different numbers of feeds. Thus while in the drawings I have shown the arrangement taking care of only two feeds, the cross-overneed not occur at the second feed. On a four-feed machine, for example, the first two or three feeds could be provided with a cam like cam I30 and the cam I33 could be placed at the .third and fom'th, or at the fourth feed only. If a cam I33 were placed at both the third feed and the fourth feed, then it would be p the low butt needles which would knit regular stitches at the third and fourth feeds. In this case the clearing cam I30 would be at the fourth feed and a clearing cm of the height of cam I30. would be used at the third feed. Repetition of the selection at the first feed would be obtained at the second feed by the use of another cam I30 and elimination of cams I33 and I34. It will also be obvious that. if desired, the thin cams I30 and I33 canbe made radially movable out of operative relation with the high butt 'needies, so that regardless of pattern selection, all needles would knit regular stitches at the feeds where cams I33 were withdrawn and all needles would float or welt at the feeds where cams I30 were withdrawn. If it was desirable to knit. on all needles at feeds where cams I30 were used, this cam might be moved in so that it would contact and raise the needles by their solid butts,

and yet the selective patterning described would i be resumed at any feed where such special or low cam was not retracted to miss high sliding butts or moved into contact and raise solid butts. It is also possible to introduce areselection of the butts after a, cross-over, as shown for instance by the cam I31 and the second selecting armature 00 shown at the right of'Fi'g. 2. The cam I31 serves to lower the needles to the normal level where the sliding butts can be selected out by thenext armature or hammer II. In

this case the machine would have several feeds in addition to those-shown in Fig. 2, and these the lower end of the clearing cam I34 the butts "other feedswouid be located between th m arsenal ture'lif, and the armature ll, in the direction of movement or the needles as they appear in Fig. 2.

In Fig. 12 I have shown a cam layout in ac- COI'dBJlCe with the present invention, adapted to make a somewhat difierent type of special stitch, l. e., a tuck stitch instead of a float stitch. In this form ,a selective tucking cam I88 is substituted for the clearing cam I" of Fig. 2, and a tucking cam lfl is placed in a position below the clearing cam I34. With these two cams I30 and I39, tuck stitches instead of float stitches will occur at the needles which do not knit at that particular feed. The cam I38 has a normal thickness up to the tuck height, where there isa' setback ledge along which the needles will pass when their sliding butts have been depressed. At com In those needles which rode all the way up cam I38 because their sliding butts were still projected, will be lowered'toescape the clearlng cam I36 and will then be elevated to tuck level by cam I39 so that they will take yarn at the second feed without casting their loops, therer by producing the open tuck oi modern knitting,

as distlngulshed from what is sometimes called a tight or closed tuck. It will be seen that b making the tucking cam lw'retractable or by splitting the cam I38 vertically so that the ledge portion is movable vertically from tuck to float level and back, it is possible to change one or the other of special stitches produced by this cross-over from tuck to float or vice versa. As in the case of Fig. 2, however, all needles are brought down at each feed to the knocking-over level, which is slightly below the normal level at which j their butts are selected by the armatures, trick wheels or the like.

As an example of how this new invention can be employed, attention is called to the use oi color. the twofeeds, as ior example, one color at the left hand iced and another at the right hand feed (as in Fig. 2), a pattern of one color can be made at the left hand iced and a background of another color at the other feed. The yarn which floats or tucks at the cylinder needles will be taken in by the dial needles.

The construction of the machine having been described, its operation will be set forth in connection with Figs. 1 and and the needle cams of Figs. 2 and 3. when the scanner we scans a cross-hatched or black portion of the cylinder, i. e., the background, which is to be knit by the cylinder needle at the left hand feed, no electric current is transmitted to the armature l8 and the horizontal jack 'lb does not have its inner end tipped up into contact with the cam ll which would cause projection of the jack. Thus the horizontal jack, not having been selected, will not be projected; the sliding butt of the needle will not be depressed and will ride all the way up cam it! to the top, cl ing the needle and insuring that it takes yarn at the left hand ieed. Whenthe scanner 38 scans a silver or dotted portion of the pattern, it transmits an electrical impulse to the armature I8, whichdepresses the outer end of the pattern jack, rocking the inner end upwardly into contact with its operating cams, as shown in the issued Page Patent 2,139,148, which will cause projection of this horizontal jack in time to depress the sliding butt of the corresponding needle. This needle then will not rise above the special stitch If yarns of different colors are used at elevatedat all. As a result the needle ls' not cleared and does not take yarn at this feed but is drawn down to the knocking-over level along pressed sliding butts do not engage this thin cam ltd and ride up the clearing cam Wland take yam at this right hand feed. All the needies are drawn down to the knocking-over level by the cam i355 acting on the low butts. Thus at the right hand feed the cylinder needles which are knitting the pattern knit in their yarn, comlevel Ill which is substantially at the normal level of the needles as shown in Fig. 2 and therefore in this particular example will not be pleting the patterning operation. The needles .are raised to normal level, or slightly above it. and then lowered into accurate line for reselection by means of cam lii. If instead of the hammer acting onthe pattern jacks the con .struction is used in which there are no pattern jacks, then the initial selection will be by hammer W and the reselection. by hammer 50' of Fig. 2. If there are only two feeds in the machine, the cycle of operations will repeat itself as necessary, and if the maclme is a four-feed one, the other two feeds may be interspersed in any order desired.

Many other modifications. of this invention which do not depart from the scope thereof will occur to those skilled in the art.

What I claim is:

, l. A knitting machine having a needle bed, a plurality of independent needles therein, said needles being provided with sliding butts so that butts of two dltferent heights may be presented to the knitting cams, means to selectively move cer tain butts so that certain needles have high and others low buttsea plurality of feeds, and cams at-said feeds to give the needles diilerent manipulations according to whether they present high or low butts, so that at the first feed following a selection those needles having high butts function in one manner and those needles having low butts function ina diiierent manner, and a at the second feed following said selection the actions of the needles are reversed.

2. A knitting machine having a needle bed, a

plurality of independent needles therein, said needles being provided with sliding butts so that butts of different heights may be presented to the knitting cams, means to selectively move certain butts'so that certain needles have high and others low butts, a plurality of feeds, and cams at said feedsto give the needles diflerent nianipu iations according to whether they present high.

or low butts, so that at the first feed following a selection those needles having butts of one height will knit while those needles having butts oi the other height will not knit and at a feed i'ollowing said selection those needles which knit at the first feed will notknit and those needles which did not knit at the first feed will knit.

Va. A knitting machine having a needle bed, a

the fixed butt in the plane of the hook or to be buried therein, means to selectively move certain sliding butts to the level of the fixed butts. a plurality of feeds and a single cam path to give the needles different manipulations according to whether they present a high or a low butt so that at the first feed following a selection,

selected needles will function in one manner and to knit and to cause the needles with the other butt heights to fail to knit at the one feed and to reverse said functioning at another feed.

5. In a multi-feed circular knitting machine, a. series of independent needles, a single cam path for said needles, operating butts on said needles which slide with relation to the shanks of the needles so that butts of different heights may be presented to the cams, said cam. path comprising a knitting cam and a clearing cam at each feed; the clearing cam at one or more feeds being adapted to select the needles into two groups by moving upwardly to. clear level the needles presenting butts of one height, and a cam at one or moreother feeds adapted to select downwardly so that they pass below the next clearing-cam those needles which were cleared on passage by the preceding upwardly-selecting clearing cam, thereby giving a cross-over effect.

6, A multi-feedcircular knitting machine with independent needles, sliding operating butts on a plurality of said needles and a single closed cam path for engaging said operating butts compris ing a cam at each feed adapted to knock over all needles, a thin cam at one feed adapted to divide the needles into two groups according to butt height by clearing one of said groups, in combination with a thin cam at another feed adapted f to lower the needles raised by the first-mentioned thin cam, and a clearing cam at said secondmentioned feed adapted to clear the needles missed by-the second thin cam and to miss the butts of the needles lowered by said second thin cam, whereby a cross-over eflect is obtained in V the knitting cam path.

7. A multi-feed circular knitting machine with bination with other cams forming a single closed cam path forsaid needles and comprising raising and lowering cams adapted to cause needles with butts of one height to clear and knit at certain feeds while needles presenting another butt height do not knit, and to reverse the selection at other feeds. a

8. A multi-feed circular knitting machine having independent needles therein, sliding operating butts on a plurality ofsaid needles and a selecting element adapted to arrange said butts to present high and low butts at one feed, in combination with a set of knitting cams for said operating butts comprising a knitting cam at each feed adapted to lower all needles to the knocking-over point, a selective clearing cam leaving low butt needles at a special stitch level at that feed, and selective cam means for lower ing high butt needles to' the special stitch level at another feed and below the clearing cam at that feed.

9. In a multi-ieed circular knitting machine, independent needles, a needle bed, sliding operating' butts on a plurality of said needles, a select-.

ing element adapted to arrange said butts to present high and low butts at one feed, said sliding butts being of sumcient size to project below the shank when its needle preesnts a low butt, and a set of knitting cams for said operating butts comprising a selective clearing cam I leaving low butt needles at a special stitch level at said one feed, and selective cam' means for lowering high butt needles to the special stitch level at another feed, in combination with a clearing cam at said second feed permitting the high butt needles to pass below it, and camming means associated with the needle bed adapted to cam back to high-butt position the sliding butts of needles rising on the clearing cam at the second feed.

19. A multi-feed circular knitting machine. having'a needle bed, a plurality of independent needles therein having hooks, shanks and fixed operating butts, in combination with a butt inside said fixed butt on each of a plurality of needles adapted to slide with relation to the shrink and to project beyond the fixed butt in the plane of the hook or to be buried therein, means to selectively move certain sliding butts to the level of the-flxed butts, a cam path for said needle"iiiitts comprising a cam adapted to conindependent needles, sliding operatingbutts on a plurality" 'of 'said needles, selecting means adapted to move said butts to produce diiferent iated butt heights, and a knitting cam at each of a plurality of feeds adapted to draw all of said needles down to the knocking-over level, in comtact the high butts to clear those needles at one feed, and a cam adapted to lower said high butts at another feed, in combination with cams to complete the knitting waves at both said feeds by contact with the fixed or low butts.

STANLEY R. SHZELMIRE.

Images