US2417479A - Needle latch guard - Google Patents

Description

March 18. 1947. o, FREGEQLLE NEEDLE LATCH GUARD Filed Dec. 21, 1945 2 sheets-Sheet .1

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Patented Mar. 18, 1947 2,417,479 NEEDLE LATCH GUARDu Oscar Fregeolle, Central Falls; R; assignor to Hemphill Company, Central Falls, R. I., a corporation of Massachusetts l' Application December 21, 1945, Serial No. 636,441

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a new and useful im.. p'rovement in knitting machines of the circular, independent needle, type having superposed axially aligned needle cylinders. Its object is to provide means for controlling the latches of certain needles at a certain critical time.

As is well known, a machine of this type is well adapted for production of true rib fabric widely used in hosiery and still more widely in the tops of stockings having plain legs and feet. The machine is provided with double ended needles capable of knitting in either the upper or lower cylinder. When knitting in the lower cylinder they produce typical plain fabric and if associated with needles knitting in the upper cylinder they produce true rib fabric, the outstanding and depressed wales of which are knit by needles operating in the lower and upper cylinder, respectively. All of the needles are operated by sliders positioned in the corresponding cylinder slots so as to be engageable with the idle hooks of the needles.

Assuming that some of the needles have been operating in the upper cylinder in the production of a .true rib sto-cking top, for example, and that the leg is to be of plain fabric, it is necessary that the needles which have been working in the upper cylinder be transferred to the lower cylinder before plain knitting begins. To trans-v fer these needles to the lower cylinder, it is necessary to uncouple them from the upper cylinderrsliders and to couple them to the corresponding sliders of the lower cylinder. Touncouple the sliders they are swung out radiallyv of the cylinder slots by a suitable mechanism calledV a needle divider until their hooks are clear of the needle hooks to which they have been connected.

As is ,well known, the latches of the needles should be controlled by some positive means to keep themfrom opening or closing as the case may be except at such' times as their free action is required. For this purpose, the machine may L beprovided with a latch' ring or guard sufficiently close to the cylinder so that the needle latches will be retained substantially in their open or closed position as the case may be. However, during transfer the necessary outward movement of the upper cylinder sliders to uncouple them from their needles causes them to project considerably beyond the cylinder adjacent the point of transfer. Therefore, the latchgguard has to be omitted or withdrawn at this point with the result that the latches of the lower cylinder needles in this area may be left without control Aand may open or close and in so doing may be damaged or rendered unsuitable for the subsequent knitting operation.

This diiculty has been minimized in some two cylinder machines such, for example, as that disclosed in the application for U. S. Letters Patent #559,136, filed October 18, 1944, by Closing which the-latch guard should be. wholly satisfactory in all cases because the outward swing of the sliders may be so great that this section of the latch guard may be withdrawnv so far that'some of the needle latches will'miss it entirely or strike it when they are in a hori-' zontal position so that it is not always effective: to keep the latches open or closed as desired'. or to prevent damage to them. The primary'y object of this invention is to provide simple and positive means of keeping open the latches of lower cylinder needles while needlesl whichY have been Vworkingin the upper cylinder are being" transferred to the lower cylinder. The needles being transferred require no special control with respect to their upperlatches because `theusual upper slider is long enough to1 cover the 1atch so that it is prevented from closing.

The machine' selected for illustration herein without any intentionof limiting the invention: thereto, is substantially that 'of the patent Aap-V plication referred to above. It is also shownin the drawing of which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a cylinder surrounded:

by a latch guard having a resilient element spanning the gap in the area of needle transfer;

Fig. 2 is a 4detail ofthe same cylinderand latch ring showing how.` the resilient element is distorted` outwardly by the outward swing of the sliders when they are uncoupled from their' the sliders being shown partly in: s'ecfi v'isla detailed view of a needle 4showing the needle circle oherwise formed by ring I.

3 der 2. The gap in latch ring I is shown at 3. Thisis spanned by a resilient element Vshown as four springs 4 in Figs. 3 and 4, the upper one of which is also shown in Figs. 1 and 2. These springs substantially complete the circle around A needle 5,1gassumed' vto have been operating in upper cylinder 2 yby means of its slider Ii, is 1 Vshown in Fig. 3. An adjacent needle I assumed to have ybeen operating in the lower cylinder 8 and a corresponding upper cylinder slider 9 1s shown in Fig. 4. A slider 9 should be provided' in the upper cylinder for each of the needlesL'I operating in the lower cylinder .which 'are 1n the transfer area represented by gap 3 while any` upper cylinder needle 5 is beingtransferred to.

the lower cylinder. Y

Whenl such transfer .occurs upper .cylinder slider 6, still connected to its needle 5, 1s moved down until its end Illengages a suitable device,... lsuchfasneedledivider II, whereby it is swung. out

radially of upper cylinder 2-until itis disengaged fromthe needle as shown in` Fig. 3. When this occurs springs 4 which normally.- eXtend straight across .gap 3 as shown in Fig. 1 are swungA out by the divider asV shownin Figs'2, 3V and'g4, The

latchofA adjacent needle I'assumed to bejoperat-r ingr in lower cylinder 8 which should'vbe vopen at thistime would, wereit not for slider 9,. be un. protected withthe result that the latch might.. Vswing-up'and strike thewithdrawn springs 4 in such ai way as to be damaged or theymight evenV passfcompletely Vby springs 4 and close.

. Slider-`9 may be identical to slider El and may beoperated by the` same cam with, the exception that. its shank. should `be shorter than that 0i slidery E so that when slider Bhas reached itslow-V 'ermost position during transfer as shown inFig; 3. tlie .tipqIZ of slider 9 will cover latch I3 of needle'l and will not descend far enough sov that itsv hook .I4 will. connect with hook I5, of'Y needle" 'If asshownin Fig. 4..k Slider 9 and itsl operating de-` vice: maybev of-any construction other than thatr just suggested. so longas it meets the-above operating requirements- Y i wayrthe latches. of the. lower cylinder needlesV are. positively. controlled during; transfer of Vneedles fromr the upper to the lower cylinder'V whenever springs 4.. cannot serve effectively for thispurpose... As' a. matterof fact, asfar as this invention iis; concerned, springs 4A or their equiv.-4

alentmay be omitted since the latches of the. transferred.l needles are. controlled by. sliders 61 and the latches of theV lower cylinder 'needles by'v sliders 9. The number of sliders 9i Which should be used; will vary with the character ofthe machine-i andthe judgment of. the operator. suiiicient. that ay slider 9 be provided for each Ydles during the knitting of the full complement of sliders 9 and 9 would, kpre-l v sumably, be used. For other work, fewer sliders 9 might be sufficient. The necessary number and arrangement of both kinds of sliders will depend upon the nature of the work being done. -Alfthough, as already stated, springs 4 may be omitf ted withoutaffecting theoper'ation of thisinven-l ton; something of: this sort-isl usuallynecessary to control the latches of the instep group of vnee- Y heel and .toe by the shortbutt needles. y

1. In. avcircular Yknitting machine of the superv i posed, coaxial. cylinder type provided with nee` Y dles adapted` to Vknit in either cylinder, sliders in each cylinderA for operating the needles which knit therein, Vmeans for disconnecting from upper cylinder needles the corresponding upper cyl- Y inder sliders so that said needles can be transferred to the lower. cylinder and means-ferrontrollingf the latches 'of v adjacent lower cylinder needles only during such transfer.. y s.

2.y In. acircular knitting Vmachiner of thesuper-A l posed coaxial cylinder type provided Awith. needlesY sliders so' that said needles'can betransferred :.O' the lower cylinder and'r means for controlling thek f during such transfer comprising a slider in theV f upper Ycylinder yforv each said adjacent .needlerv adaptedY to overlay the latch ofl the correspond' v 2,313,642- Holmeset a1 1-- Mar. 9. 1943..`

adapted to knit in Veither cylinder, sliders in eachcylinder for operating theY needles which knit therein, means for disconnecting fromupper cyl-, 1

inder needles the.corresponding.upper cylinder latches oi adjacent lower cylinderY needles only` ing lower cylinder-needle during transfer.

3.,.In a circular knitting machine ofv the-.supere posed, coaxial cylinder type provided Wi'thnee.-

dles adapted to knit inveithercylinder, sliders.. .j in'l each cylinder for operating the needles, whichV knit therein, cams for operatingI the sliders,`

means for disconnecting vfrom upper cylinder needles the correspondingvupp-er cylinder sliders so that said.Y needles cany be. transferred to the y lower'cylinder and means for vcontrolling thek y latches of adjacent lower cylinder needles only during such transfer, said last mentioned means-j consisting of corresponding sliders positioned in the upperl cylinder slots, said sliders being long..

enough to overlie thelatches. of` thecorrespondingy lower cylinder needleswhen adjacent upper.:A

cylinder fneedles are being transferred to the.

lower cylinder buttoo short toreach needle en.-.

gagingy level when the sliders ferring areat that'level. f

' Y OSCARv FREGEOLLE.;

` REFERENCES CITED involved in-ftrans- The following references are ofi record in theV ii'le ofl this patent:

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