US2317375A - Method of treating fabric, and fabric - Google Patents

Description

April27, 1943. cfr. GRAHAM METHOD oF TREATING FABRIC AND FABRIC- Filed Jan. 27, 1958 MM5 @M lon to the next dot.

Patented Apr.l 27, 1943 Marilou or TREATING FABRIC, AND FABRIC Clarence T. Graham, North Attleboro, Mass., as-

signor, by mesne assignments, to Defiance Manufacturing Company, Barrowsville, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application January 27, 193s, semi No. 187,136.

(ci. 2li-74) 3 Claims.

'Ihis application is a continuation in part of my application, Serial No. 4,643, filed February 2, 1935, for Fabric and method and apparatus for its manufacture, the subject matter of which application is now claimed in Letters Patent 2,128,516, dated August 30, 1938, and 2,155,127, dated April 18, ,1939.

This invention relates to the method of and apparatus for applying a finishing material, such as starch, dye, or lthe like, to a fabric and to the fabric that results therefrom.

It is common practice forthe textile mills that Weave fabrics to have the finishing of these fabrics accomplished in a separate finishing mill. In such a finishing mill, the Vfabrics are either bleached, or have applied thereto, finishes such as dye, starch, or the like.

One type of the fabrics that are received by the finishing mill consists of a base fabric, that is, one consisting of warp and weft threads alone. Another type consists of such a base fabric and a raised design which in certain instances is produced in the textile mill by interengaging rovings with the base fabric. In some instances these design rovings are clipped or sheared to form a raised figure of any desired or overall design. As this fabric is received by the finishing mill, usually in bales, the design rovings are unfluifed. I have illustrated, in the drawing, one form of such fabric that is received by the finishing mill for the application of a finish such as starch, dye, or the like. In this form the base fabric, as I have said, consists of the usual warp and weft threads and of design rovings that are arranged to form what I shall term fluff dots. In the textile mill these fluff dots are formed by interengaging the rovings from -which the fluff dots are to be formed with the threads of the base fabric at spaced points and looping these rovings back and forth between these points, and then passing The rovings that are thus looped back and forth are then cut away between the points at which these rovings are engaged with the base fabric. 'I'his operation produces the fluff dots, with the free ends of the rovings extending somewhat away from the obverse side of the base fabric, the rovings being in somewhat of a U-form; but these fluff dots are, at this time, unfluffed, and lie more or less fiat against the base fabric. When it is desired to apply the finish to the fabric, as by starching or dyeing, for

instance, without applying the finish to the rovings, o1' fiuif dots, or other raised portion, the treatment must be carried 'on to the exclusion of such raised portions and yet must be so effectively applied to the base fabric as to impart to it the desired finish. Moreover, the fluff dots or other raised figures must be handled in such a manner that they will be out of the zone of the finishing treatment.

My present invention seeks to accomplish the uthe application of the results that are indicated above as desirable and to accomplish related results that are not above pointed out, but that will appear as the description progresses.

In the drawing I have illustrated in more or less conventional representation, a mechanism for carrying out my process, but it is to'be understood that the process may be carried out by other instrumentalities or by hand and that the details of the steps of the process may be varied. I therefore am not to be limited to the specific disclosure of either the process or the apparatus, but only insofar as is made necessary by the claims.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of an apparatus for carrying out the method that forms one part of this invention,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary view of the mechanism for projecting the pressure fluid onto the fabric after the finish has ben applied and dried,

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view showing the condition of the rovings prior to the "roughing treatment.

Figure 4 is a similar view showing the condition of the rovings after the roughing has been accomplished, and

Figure 5 is a detail of the rougher, and

Figure 6 is a detail of the fabric advancing clamps.

'I'he method includes advancing a fabric in the direction 'of either its length or breadth While maintaining the same under tension, raising the rovings so that the portions thereof that are visible on the obverse side of the fabric extend away from the fabric, applying a finish to the reverse side of the fabric, arresting the penetration of -the finish before it encounters that portion of the rovings that are visible from vthe obverse side of the fabric, and thereafter subjecting the fabric to such action thatA the allover effect of the fabric and rovings such as uif dots will be uniform, as well as certain other related steps which will appear as the description progresses.

-The apparatus that I have chosen to illustrate method includes an ap plicator roll I that is rotatably mounted within a reservoir 2 adapted to contain the finishing material such as the starch or dye material, which material may be heated, when desired', by any suitable means.

In order that the fabric to be finished may be Passed across /and in Contact with the surface of the applicator roll I, I have provided a series of guide rollers 3, 4, v5, 6, 1, 8 and 9 which include the usual commercial type of cloth guider that is used in the finishing art.

In order that the applicator roll I may be driven by the advancing fabric and at variable speeds, I have provided the following mechanism:

A drive roller ill freely rests upon the reach of the fabric which lies betweenV the guide rollers 6 and 1 and is provided with a pulley II over which a belt I2 passes. This belt I2 passes over a, variable speed pulley i3, which is suitably supported for rotation on its axis. A second belt I4 passes over this pulley I3 and around a pulley I5 on the applicator roll I. Thus the advancing fabric rotates the driving roller IIJ which, through belt I2, rotates pulley I3 and in turn, the applicator roll I, through the belt I4 and the pulley I5. It is obvious that the speed of rotation of the applicator roll I may be varied by means of the variable speed pulley I3 and that in any event, and regardless of its particular speed of rotation, this speed bears a definite ratio to the speed of travel of the cloth over the surface of the applicator roll I. The purpose of this variation of speed of the applicator roll I i s so that variable quantities of the finishing liquid may be applied to the cloth as the cloth travels over and in contact with the face of the roll as will later more fully be described.

The guide rollers B and 9 are mounted for vertical adjustment by means of adjusting members i6 so that the arc of contact between the advancing fabric and the surface of the applicator -roll I may be varied or in other words, so that the fabric may have a greater or lesser surface contact with the roll.

In order that the design rovings that form the fluff dots may be arranged to extend away from the obverse side of the fabric so that they may be free from application of the finishing material or so that the extent of penetration of the finishing material into Vthe rovings or fluff dots may be controlled, I have provided what l shall term a rougher i1. which is arranged above the adjustable roller' 9 in the construction as L have shown it, but which may be arranged above the adjustable roller 8. ln fact, whether or not it is arranged above one or the other is of little importance. One or the other of these rollers 8 and 9 may be dispensed with and in that event, the rougher will be mounted above the remaining roller. This rougher is adapted to engage with the design rovings as the fabric advances, with the result that the rovings which later become the fluff dots or other raised de- A sign are loosened, softened and iluffed, and the matted condition of the rovings is relieved. At the same time the rovings are raised so that they extend away from the obverse side of the fabric and out of contact therewith save for the portion of the rovings that are actually interengaged with the threads of the base fabric.

-n the drawing, I have illustrated this rougher as being what may be termed a brush form consisting of a transverse backing I8 that extends longitudinally above the roller 9. The brush member I3 may be made up of a series of elements such as wires, bristles or the like. These elements extend. preferably, in acute angular relation to the. advancing fabric and in the direction opposite to that in which the fabric is moving. This arrangement of the brush elements causes them to engage beneath the design rovings, which, as has heretofore been stated, lie more or less flat on the obverse side of the fabric and in a matted condition, and raises them so that they extend away from the base fabric, at the same time, loosening, softening. fluiilng, and destroying the. matted condition of the rovings. As will be seen, this operation on the rovings, such as the fluff dots, or other raised design, takes place before the fabric` passes over the applicator roll I.

This form of roughing element I1 is adjustably mounted so that it may be adjusted with and in relation to the roller with which it cooperates.

'it is to be understood that this roughing action may be accomplished by various means other than that illustrated. For instance, the rougher may include a device with a rotary motion in one direction or the other, or in both, or with a lateral motion combined with any or all of the above motions so that the figure can be roughed in any desired direction to create the desired shapes, such as, oblong, round, high, low, flat, etc.

Arranged in spaced relation to the mechanism that applies the finishing material is a dryer 2U which may be either of the conventional open, or contact, constructions, and includes a suitable housing which may be supplied with a heating medium, such as hot air, through a duct 2l. It is a part of the method to regulate the temperature within this dryer.

The dryer includes a. series of clamps 2I arranged te grip, automatically, each salvage of the fabric as illustrated in Figure 6. These clamps are moved in a direction away from the applicator roll l at a given and controllable speed by operating mechanism which is conventionally represented by sprockets 22 and chains 22'.

The function of this dryer is to dry the finishing material whether it be starch, dye, or some other finishing material, after the, finishing material has penetrated the fabric to the desired n. and predetermined extent. This, of course, means a4 control of the rapidity of movement of the fabric to and through the dryer aswell as a temperature control within the dryer or, in other words, a control of the time element intervening between the application of the finishing material and the drying of that material.

From the dryer, the fabric is drawn through a housing 23, that is located within the dryer 20, by means of the advancing mechanism 22'. Arranged within the housing 23, preferably, in a horizontal plane are a plurality of manifolds 25 which are provided with control valves 26 and are connected to a source of supply of fluid under pressure. From these manifolds, perforated pipes or nozzles 21 extend, also, preferably, in the same horizontal plane. The perforationsin these pipes or nozzles 21 open downwardly over a platen 28 above which the fabricpasses. It will be noted that the arrangement of these pipes or nozzles 21 is such that as the fluid under pressure is ejected from the openings or jets therein, the entire surface of the fabric will be subjected to a uniform treatment which will result in the complete fiufflng of the rovings such as the fluff dots or other raised design.

I have found that steam or air under pressure are admirably adapted as a fluid for accomplish lng the results that I have above pointed out.

When the fabric issues from the housing it will haveI had the finishing material applied thereto so that the base fabric is compietely treated by that material and the rovings such as the fluff dots or other raised design lack such treatment, either to the full extent, or to any desired extent, and will be in an unmatted. fluffy, condition, which is the condition that it is desired to attain.

Following now the movement of the fabric through the various mechanisms that I have described, after passing over the guide rollers, it

- or "unfiuff the rovings.

passes over the applicator rol1 I, so that its reverse side, that is to say, the side opposite to that which carries the rovings engages with the surface of the applicator roll I. The rotation of this roll caused by the driving of the roller I by the movement of the fabric, picks up the finishing material and applies it to the lower surface of the fabric. By convection, the finishing material penetrates the fibers of the fabric and moves toward the obverse side. It is to be here noted that the increasing of the speed of rotation or the decreasing of the speed of rotation ofthe applicator roll controls the amount of finishing material that is applied to the fabric, or otherwise stated, the faster the rotation of the applicator roll, the greater the application of the material, and conversely, the lesser the speed of rotation of the applicator roll, the less the application of the finishing material. It is also to be noted that the surface contact of the fabric with the roll I may be varied by raising or lowering the rollers 8 and 9, or if only one of these is used by raising and lowering that one. Ihus the extent of contact and consequently the time of contact of the fabric with the surface of the roller may be varied, which varies the period of pressure between the applicator roll and the fabric, and consequently, the rapidity of penetration of the nishing material into the fabric.

As the fabric passes from the roller I to the dryer 20, the finishing material 'continues to penetrate and does so until it is dried within the dryer 20. Therefore, the period intervening between the application of the finishing material and the drying of that material controls the amount of penetration of the finishing material into the fabric. This degree of penetration may therefore be controlled by means of the advancing clamps 2l, that is to say, they may be speeded up in their movementor slowed down in their movement to cause the quicker or slower entry and passage through of the fabric in the dryer. This, of course, makes it possible to nicely control the penetration of the finishing material. It may be possible to dry it within such a period after the application oi' the finishing material that the one side of the fabric will have the nishing material applied thereto, or this period may be varied so that the nishing material may be permitted to penetrate all of the fibers of the base fabric without penetrating the fluff dots, so that the result is a finished fabric with no finishing material applied to the raised designs. 'I'hen again, the period may be so nicely controlled that the finishing material may be permitted to penetrate partially into the raised design and to any degree desired, so that in the case of dye, for instance, the raised design may have two different hues.` It is to be noted that after the rovings such as the nuff dots or other raised designs have been fiufied by the rougher.

. the entire operations are carried on without the rovings again having positive contact with any element or mechanism that would tend to crush Thus the integrity of the raised design, having once been established, is preserved.

The projection of ilud under pressure onto the obverse face of the fabric completes the flufl'- ing of the raised design and results in an overall. uniform, effect.

It ls'of course to be understood that certain changes in the details of the method and apparatus'used in carrying out the vsame may be made within the scope of the claims. F01' instance, the applicator roll i8 may be dispensed with and a pressure spray form of applicator used instead, in which event the amount of finishing material applied to the fabric will be controlled by the adjustment of the spray.

It is here pointed out that certain `phases of the invention are applicable to fabric that carries fluff dots, or raised designs that are formed of yarn as distinguished from rovings.

I claim:

l. The method of finishing a woven textile fabric that includes an unnished, plain, relatively opte. mesh ground, spaced raised pattern or figure forming portions on the obverse side .of said ground constituted by roving or yarn fibers having bight portions interengaged with threads of said ground and end portions lying substantially fiat on the obverse side of said ground, to form a fabric having a finished ground, and unfinished, substantially upstanding and artificially fluied, spaced, raised pattern or figure forming portions on the obverse side of said ground, including .the steps of: applying a liquid nishing material to the reverse side only of said fabric ground: drying said finishing material before it substantially penetrates the said end portions of the ibers; and flufling the pattern or figure forming portions by substantially separating the fiber ends and causing them to assume an upstanding attitude away from the fabric ground.

2. The method of nnishing a woven textile fabric that includes an unfinished, plain, relatively open mesh ground1 spaced raised pattern or guxe forming portions on the obverse side of said ground constituted by roving or yarn bers having bight portions interengaged with threads of said ground and end portions lying substantially flat on theobverse side of said ground, to form a fabric having a finished ground, and unnnished.

substantiauy upstanding and artinemiy mined.

spaced. raised pattern or figure forming portions on the obverse side oi.' said ground, including the steps of: ufiing the pattern or figure forming portions by substantially separating the fiber ends and causing them to assume an upstanding attitude away from the fabric ground; moving the fabric in sheet form through a liquid applying and drying zone: applying a liquid finishing material to the reverse side of said fabric as said fabric enters said zone; at a time interval thereafter drying said fabric to produce the desired penetration of said ilnishing material into said fabric ground; and controlling the depth of penetration of said liquid finishing material into said raised portions by regulating the amount of liquid applied to a unit area of said fabric and 'the time interval between the application of the finishing material and the drying of said fabric with respect to each other, whereby said fabric is finished without substantially affecting the raised pattern forming or :ligure portions thereof.

3. A treated fabric. including a base of warp and weft threads, raised spaced pattern or figure forming portions formed of rovings extending through and engaged with several threads of the base, the free ends of said rovings having an upstanding attitude away from the base, fiuiled up and in substantial separation from each other, the base of'the fabric and the portions ofthe rovings engaged therewith being starched and the fluiiiness of the pattern or figure forming portions being substantially unaffected by the starch.

CLARENCE T. GRAHAM.

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