US2447291A - Thread separator for weft replenishing looms - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 17, 1948. R. e. TURNER THREAD SEPARATOR FOR WEFT REFLENISHING LOOMS Filed Feb. 15, 1946 INVENTOR. V RICHARD 6. TURNER ain-m ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 17, 1948 THREAD SEPARATOR FOR WEFT REPLENISHING LOOMS Richard Turner, Worcester, Mass., asslgnor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application February 15,1946, Serial No. 647,954

6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in weft replenishing looms and it is the general object of the invention to provide improved and simple means for separating the weft ends extending from a reserve bobbin magazine. When a pneumatic thread holder is used with a magazine having several stacks of bobbins wound with coarse yarn difficulty is sometimes experienced in getting the weft ends into the intake mouth due to the fact that the yarns cling together. This condition exists not only at the intake mouth, but also in the several groups of threads leading from the magazine to the holder. It is an important object of my present inven tion to provide the magazine with a thread separator which will hold the Weft ends of the several thread slots are necessarily narrow and because of this factthe two groups interfere with each other, particularly if the shuttle corresponding to one group is more active than the shuttle for the other group. It is another object of my present invention to provide a thread separator ,ex-

tending along the thread slot and so constructed as to cause a wide spacing of the weft ends of the two corresponding stacks of .bobbins.

It is another object of the invention to make the intake mouth of the thread holder of such shape that the groups of weft ends leadingfrom the separators will enter the mouth at different points, thereby avoiding interference of the threads of each group with respect to the threads of the other groups. This'feature of the -inven-. tion is effected by the use of some such means as a baffle plate within the thread holder toward which all the weft ends converge, the baffle being spaced far enough from the intake mouth beyond the magazine to permit the groups of weft ends to occupy their own zones along the length of the intake mouth. I

With these and other objects in view. which will; appear as the'description proceeds, my invention resides inthe combination of. arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth. In the accompanying drawings, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. l 'is'a side elevation of part of the 100m 2 having my invention applied thereto, parts being in section, v

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged front elevation, parts being in section, looking in the direction of arrow 3, Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a detailed view of one of the separators looking in the direction of arrow 4, Fig.3 and showing the support therefor in section,

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the thread holder on .an enlarged scale, looking in the direction of arrow 5, Fig. 3, and

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on line 6--6, Fig. 5.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the loom frame l0 supports a magazine M of the multicolor type provided with four groups of reverse'bobbins designated in Fig. 2 at I, II, III and IV. The magazine has an outside or end plate ll formed with a bobbin tip guideway l2 for each stack of bobbins. The plate II is provided with two thread slots the forward of which indicated at I3 corresponds to the front pair of stacks I and II, and the rear of which indicated at [4 corresponds to the back pair of stacks III and IV.

Weft ,ends extend from the bobbins through their respective thread slots, the weft ends WI and W2 for the front pair of stacks passing through slot [3 in a direction away from the loom, while weft ends W3 and W4 extend similarly through the rear thread slot l4. As successive transfer operations occur the bobbins descend toward a common central transfer position in the usual manner.

The upper part of frame II is provided with two horizontal bobbin slots I5 and I 6 corresponding respectively to the front and back pairs of bobbin stacks, and front and back vertical rods [1 and I8 are securedat their upper ends to the end frame II and extend downwardly across their bobbin slots and are spaced a short distance from and substantiall parallel to their corresponding thread slots. When bobbins are placed in the magazine theyare inserted butt end first through one or the other of the horizontal bobbin slots IE or I6 and their weft ends are drawn outwardly away from the loom in the general manner suggested in Figs. 2 and 3.

The pneumatic thread holder to bedescribed in detail hereinafter is supplied with a partial vacuum by. means of an air pump 20 fixed to the loom frame and having a piston 2| operated by a lever 22 connected by rod 23' to the lay L of the loom. As the lay reciprocates backwardly and forwardly the lever 22 causes movement of the piston, and the pump is so constructed that on backward movement of the lay a partial vacuum is created in front of the piston. A pneumatic pipe 25 extends forwardly from the pump to the top of ahollow threadv collector Zfimountedona fixed bracket 21-: A thread holder designated generally at H is connected pneumatically to the interior of the thread collector and is the means,v by which the weft ends are kept taut and also the means by which a weft end of a transferred bobbin can be drawn into the thread collector 26. subsequent to cutting at the selvage.

Except as noted hereinafter,,more particularly with reference to the vertical separator rods and the thread holder, the matter thus far described may be of common construction and formed as set forth in my prior Patent No. 2,199,353.

In carrying .my present invention into effect I provide means associated with the vertical rods for effecting a considerable separation of the groups of weft ends, and also alter the thread holder in such manner that the separation provided at the magazine can be preserved atthe intake mouth of, the thread holder. Referring more particularly to Figs. 2, 3 and 4, each of the vertical rods I1 and I8 is provided with a pair of vertically extending wings or vanes serving as thread guides. Thus, rod I! has front and back vanes3ll and 3|, respectively, which are disposed as shown in Fig. 2.and have thread guide surfaces or edges 32 and 33, respectively, which are spaced apart. a. considerable distance. This distance may be equal at least to the spacing of the bobbins of. thetwo front stacks as shown in Fig. 2. In similar manner, the rear rod l8'is provided with front and back wings 35 and 36, respectively, having vertically. extending thread guiding edges 3'! and 38. The Wings of each vertical rod extend away from each other and preferablyaway from the associated thread slot, and the thread guide edges 32,33, 31 and 38 serve as shown in Fig. 2'to space thegroupsof weft ends of the several stacks of bobbins.

The thread holder H is somewhat different from those heretofore proposed in that it is formed with an elongated horizontal intake mouth 4!) facing themagazine andhas aninterior, thread chamber- 4! inwhich is locatedavertical baffle 42 projecting in the present instance diagonally forwardly as set forth more particularly in Fig; 6. The rear part of the holder H is provided'with an orifice 43which communicates with the interior of the thread collector 26. A narrow front horizontally extendingthread slot M in front wall 4513f .theholder communicates with the upper part OfzthG-fOTWBJ'd endof the intake mouth 40 and extends along the rear wall 46 of the holder H.

The groups WI.- W4 of weft ends lead outwardlyfrom the guide edges of their respective separators and extend into the elongated mouth 40 and converge toward the outer end of the bafiie 42, after. which they are drawn rearwardly through the orifice 43 toward or into the thread collector 26. Thesegroupsof weft ends are therefore separatedfrom each other along the intake mouth,

7 eachgroup having its own zone, and when the bottom-bobbin of any given stack is released for transfer its weft end will move downwardly from the associated grouptoward the bottom of the intake mouth 40 andwill be detachednot only from its own groupbut also from all the other groups leading into theintake mouth. Because of, this: relationship creation of subatmospheric pressures within the thread chamber 4! will draw vertical guide edge, but when the bobbin moves to transfer position its weft end will move below thelassociat'edi guide edge and extend directly to the. thread holder. It will be understood that magazines of the. type set forth herein operate with a bobbinreleasing mechanism, such as the cradle 5D,.at, the bottom of each stack of bobbins.

The superposed bobbins in a stack rest on the corresponding cradle as they await transfer, and when a reserve bobbin is called from a selected stack in well-known manner the cradle thereof will rock to permit the bottom bobbin of the stack to move down to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 3 where the tip end of the bobbin will be held by well-known supports one of which is shown at 5!.

The bottom of eachthread guiding edge terminates at a point between the weft end of the bobbin resting on the cradle and the weft end of a bobbin resting on the support 5|. The pneumatic suction within the thread holder will tend to draw the Weft end of a bobbin in transfer position in't'o mouth 48 and hold the thread taut,.with the result that the weft end is not only moved downwardly in the intake mouth 4!! but is also moved along the latter away from its group toward a central position.

I find that the relation between the bottom of the thread guiding edges and the threads of'the bobbins on the cradle and support 5| is of particular importance with respect to the front and back stacks I and IV, but it also has the beneficial effect on the threads from the inner stacks II and'III. An inspection of Fig. 2 will showthat each group-of weft ends is deflected from a straight line by the corresponding wing, and as each bobbin drops from the bottom of'its stack to transfer position its thread will be straightened and caused to move with respect to the other threads of the corresponding groupof weft ends.

From the foregoing it will be seenthat I'have providedan improved threadiholder and control mechanism for the weft ends of ,a reserve bobbin magazineso' constructed thatthe weft ends-approach an elongated intake mouth along separated paths. The separation of the paths is effected by thefins on the vertical separators, and these fins terminate at their lower ends in such position that when. the bottom bobbin. of any stack moves to transfer position its weft end will be straightened from its previously deflected or bent path and thereby be moved relatively to its group of.weft ends. The baffle 42, the intake mouth 40, andthe thread separators are so related that the weft ends of the several groups of bobbins enter the intake mouth at. different points distributedalong its length andconverge toward the baffle 42; The combination of the. magazine, thread holder and separatoris not claimed'herein but is claimed in my copending application Serial No. 626,462, filed November 3, .945, now Patent No. 2,427,538, September 16, 1947.

Havingthus described my invention it willbe seen that changes and modifications may be made thereinby those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. A thread separator for a reserve bobbin magazine having a thread slot extending vertically therein, said separator having a central rod formed at the upper end thereof for attachment to the magazine and having a forwardly extending wing provided with a front thread guide edge and having also a rearwardly extending wing provided with a rear thread guide edge, said rod when attached at the upper end thereof to the magazine holding said guide edges substantially parallel to the thread slot.

2. A thread separator for a reserve bobbin magazine have a vertically extending thread slot, said separator comprising two vertically extending wings, one of said wings extending forwardly and having a front thread guide edge and the other wing extending rearwardly and having a rear thread guide edge, and said separator having means for attaching the same to the magazine with the front thread guide edge forward of the thread slot and with the rear thread guide edge rear of the thread slot.

3. In a reserve bobbin magazine provided with a pair of vertically extending stacks of reserve bobbins, the upper part of the magazine having a horizontally extending bobbin slot through which bobbins are passed for placement in said stacks, and the magazine having a vertically extending thread slot intermediate the stacks, a rod secured at the upper end thereof to the magazine above said bobbin slot and extending downwardly across the latter, and forwardly and backwardly extending thread guiding wings secured to said rod and extending substantially parallel to the thread slot and having their upper ends terminating below said horizontal bobbin slot.

4. In a magazine having a pair of vertical spaced stacks of reserve bobbins, one in front of the other, the magazine having a. horizontally extending bobbin slot common to said stacks 6 said bobbin slot intermediate the ends thereof and substantially parallel to the thread slot, and thread guiding wings secured to said rod below the bobbin slot, one of said wings extending forwardly and having a thread guide edge forward of the thread slot and the other wing extending rearwardly and having a thread guide edge rearward of said thread slot.

5. In a magazine having a pair of vertical spaced stacks of reserve bobbins, one in front of the other, the magazine having a horizontally extending bobbin" slot common to said stacks and having a vertical thread slot extending downwardly from the bobbin slot and through which extend the weft ends of the bobbins, a thread holder for weft ends, and a thread separator secured to the magazine and havin a narrow upper part extending across the bobbin slot intermediate the stacks and having a wider lower part located between the magazine and the thread holder and providing front and back guide edges for the weft ends of the corresponding stacks.

6. A thread separator for a reserve bobbin magazine having a thread slot extending vertically therein, said separator having a rod formed at the upper end thereof for attachment to the magazine and a forwardly extending wing extending lengthwise of and secured to the rod and having a front thread guide edge the upper part of which is inclined upwardly and toward the rod and the lower part of which is substantially parallel to the rod, said rod when attached at the upper end thereof to the magazine holding said lower part of the guide edge substantially parallel to the thread slot.

RICHARD G. TURNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the L0 file of this patent:

through which bobbins may be passed for place- 1 ment in the stacks, the magazine also having a vertically extending thread slot intermediate the stacks, a rod secured to the magazine above the bobbin slot and extending downwardly across UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,495,717 Ryon May 27, 1924 2,199,353 Turner Apr. 30, 1940 2,326,905 Turner ...,Aug. 17, 1943 2,401,593 Wakefield June 4, 1946

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