US2576962A - Circular multifeed hosiery knitting machine and method of operating same - Google Patents

Description

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16 Sheets-Sheet l m rlfl Filed April 26, 1948 zvenor JOHN J. MCDONOUGH CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HCSIERY KNITTING MACHINE Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 2 mlE/z/z.: 5

/l/ .z Mvc/ c bmw inventor JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH y his avrney Dec. 4, 1951 J. J. MGDONOUGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD 0F OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 3 l IllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllIlllIlllll! llllll IIIHIIIIIIIIIIII I llllllllllllllllllf Inven'or JOHN J. Mc. DONOUGH y his' aorneya- MMM Dec. 4, 1951 J. J. McDoNoUGH CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME 16 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 26. 1948 Inf/en Zar' JOHN J. McDONOUGH Dec. 4, 1951 1. J. MCDONOUGH CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME 16 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 26, 1948 NMNV :z El-:53E:-

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Dec. 4, 1951 J. 1. McDoNoUGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIEEEC HCSIERY KNITTINC MACHINE ANC METHOD 0E OPERATING SAME Filed April 2e. 194e 16 Sheets-Sheet 6 Zzvnr JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH Dec. 4, 1951 J. 1. MCDONOUGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 7 frm/enlar- JOHN J. MCDONOUGH Dec. 4, 1951 J. J. MCDoNouGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHD OF OPERATING SAME Filed April ze, 194e 1e sheets-sheer e .Irzvenar JOHN J. MCDONOUGH y zz's a/ZZor'neys 'Alb-MMM Dec. 4, 1951 Filed April 26, 1948 J. J. MCDONOUGH CIRCULAR MULTIFEIED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE 16 Sheets-Sheet 9 AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME Invegnor- JOHN J. MCDONOUGH y his aar n eye De@ 4, 1951 J. .1. McDoNouGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIEEED HosIEEY KNITTINC MACHINE AND METHOD 0E OPERATING sAME 16 Sheets-Sheet l0 Filed April 26. 1948 Jnvenor JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH NNTP huw

Dec. 4, 1951 J. J. MoDoNouGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD oF OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 1l u I I l l l l l Invenor JOHN J. MC DONOUGH y hzls' a'of'neys MMM Dec. 4, 1951 J. J. McDoNousH 2,576,952

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 12 IIIIIIIIIIIllllllllIIIIIllllllllllllllllllllllllIIIII Inv/enfer JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH ay his atar'neys J. J. MDoNouGH 2,576,962 CIECCLAP` MULTIEEEU HosIERY KMITTINC MACHINE AND METHOD CF OPERATING SAME Dec. 4, 1951 16 Shee t s-Shee t l5 F i led Ap ri 1 26 1948 www.

` )@525- JOHN J. McDONOUGH y his aZZar-neys Dec. 4, 1951 J 1 MCDONOUGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULT'IFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME 16 Sheets-Sheet 14 Filed April 26, 1948 Jaz/anim" JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH y his attorneys MMM DCC 4, 1951 J. J. McDoNouGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD 0F' OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 15 5. .25. N6 N5 E C` N' N N* T we.

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JOHN J. MCDONOUGH MMM Dec. 4, 1951 J. 1. MDoNouGH 2,576,962

CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME Filed April 26, 1948 16 Sheets-Sheet 16 JOHN J. Mc DONOUGH Patented Dec. 4, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CIRCULAR MULTIFEED HOSIERY KNIT- AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME Application April 26, 1948. Serial No. 23,284

(Cl. (i6-41) TING MACHINE s claims. l

This invention relates to circular multi-feed hosiery knitting machines and method of operating same, and more particularly to such machines when adapted to knit at a plurality of feeds on both rotary and reciprocatory movements of the needle or the cam cylinder. On modern line-gauge, high-speed, circular knitting machines for making ladies hosiery, only the sheerest yarns are used. The resulting exacting conditions tend to slow down production and to decrease the speed of the machine. These iactors cause an increase in cost, while the needs of the times are increased production and lower costs.

According to my invention, the needs of the times are met by a basic reselection and rearrangement of the fundamental parts of the circular knitting machine, so that for the rst time, an entire stocking can be knit on a multifeed basis, starting from the bare needles, making an automatic inturned welt and making the heel and toe with gussets. Where I speak of gusset heels and toes, I refer to heels and toes in which some segments are united by a singlesided suture. One of the difficulties in multifeed knitting throughout is the necessity for changing yarns. In knitting fine-gauge hosiery it is essential to change yarns. For example, it is desirable to use relatively heavy yarns in the welt, heel and toe, and to use relatively light yarns in the leg and instep. The difficulty is much increased when it is desired to make reciprocatory knitting by multi-feed. It should be understood that my invention is useful not only when making circular knit hosiery on the ordinary machine with a single cylinder or in multiple or inverted cylinder machines, but also when making a stocking of split foot fabric. While the invention will be described in an embodiment where the needle cylinder revolves, it should be understood that many of its features are equally applicable to circular machines with revolving cam cylinders.

It is characteristic of the multi-feed circular knitting machines made in accordance with my invention that they contain a movable raise cam adjacent to one of the center stitch cams adapted to raise needles going under that center stitch cam in order that they may knit at a side stitch cam and that the raise cam is withdrawn during the making of the welt of the stocking in order that some or all of the needles may temporarily take a non-knitting path at at least one center stitch cam. It will be noted that this makes it possible for the cams to remain stationary and unchanged during the make-up of the stocking.

Machines made in accordance with my invention may have a novel juxtaposition and shaping of needle and sinker cams and throat plates which, in cooperation with the movable raise cam, make it possible to knit multi-feed in 4rotary and reciprocatory knitting in integral succession throughout. In the embodiment shown and described, the machines are adapted to make an entire stocking multi-feed starting up from the bare needles, making an automatic inturned welt and gusset heel and toe with yarn changes.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a developed view of certain parts of a Scott 8: Williams machine adapted to make two-feed ladies hosiery according to my invention, including the throat plates and the needle and pattern jack butt paths. The cams shown in dotted lines are movable;

Figure 2 is a developed view of the needle cam ring and throat plates of Fig. l, showing the adjustment of the parts when the machine is starting up from the bare needles during the half revolution before the yarns have started to knit, the arrow indicating the direction of movement of the needles;

Figure 3 is another developed view of the same cam ring, showing the relations of the parts during the first three and one-half revolutions after yarn begins to be fed (i. e., the make-up), the arrow indicating the direction of movement of the needles;

Figures 4, 5 and 6 are similar views showing the relation of the parts after the make-up; during the welt and leg; and during transfer, respectively;

Figure 7 is a plan view of the transfer jack dial, dial make-up and transfer cams adapted to cooperate with the cams of Figs. l to 6.

Figure 8 is a perspective phantom view of the fabric resulting from Figs. 2 to 6 during welt transfer;

Figure 9 is an inverted plan view of the sinker cap carrying the sinker retracting cams used in connection with the needle cams shown in Fig. 1;

Figure 10 is a view in vertical sections of the inverted sinker cap of Fig. 8, taken on the line Ill-Ill of that figure;

Figures 11 and l2 are views in side elevation of a sinker, needle and fabric; Fig. l1 showing them when the needle is riding over the hump on the top center cam in Fig. 1 with the sinker retracted; and Fig. 12 showing them after the needle has been lowered again by the dropper levelling cam;

Figure 13 is a plan View of the transfer jack dial of my machine showing some jack butts and the special slackening cam for the second throat plate in action during make-up, the singleheaded arrow showing the direction of movement of the transfer jacks and also the direction of movement of the floating ring which moves the special slackening cam into action;

Figure 14 is a view in perspective of the sinker cap and dial showing the parts for moving the special slackening cam of Fig. 13. The parts are in the same position as in Fig. 13;

Figure l is a perspective view of the bedplate of my novel machine, showing the connections from the pattern chain to a special sinker slackening cam and to the switch cams for the needles;

Figure 16 is a partial view of the two controls from the main pattern drum of my machine for the connections of Fig.

Figure 17 is a view in elevation of tripping means for the loop slackening means, this being controlled from the crank shaft of the machine;

Figure 18 is a developed view of the needle butts, knitting cams and part of the sinker cam cap of the needle of Fig. 1, the parts being shown on the last rotary or forward movement of the needle cylinder before beginning reciprocatory knitting to make the toe, as indicated by the arrow, the first of the group of inactive needles raised by the switch cam being shown rising over the hump on the center stitch cam and raising the fabric above the nebs of the adjacent sinkers;

Figure 19 is a partial view similar to Fig. 18, showing only part of the knitting cams and needles, the needles moving on a forward stroke after reciprocatory knitting has commenced, the two leading active needles being shown in the act of rising out of action on a narrowing or up-pick before knitting;

Figure 20 is a view similar to Fig. 19, taken while the needles are moving in the reverse direction, as indicated by the arrow;

Figure 21 is a view similar to Fig. 18 taken while the needles are moving in the reverse direction. as indicated by the arrow. showing the first needles of the inactive group passing above the hump.

Figure 22 is a developed view of the cam ring, throat plates and needle butts of the same machine. showing the path of the needles on the first stroke in reciprocatory knitting where the dropper pick is in action, the arrow showing the direction of movement of the needles;

Figures 23 to 26 are diagrammatic views looking from the inside of the needle cylinder of fabric being formed on the needles during reciproeatory knitting on my two-feed machine where the end needles are raised in pairs producing tieacross yarns. The figures show the making of four successive courses. Fig. 23 shows the fabric after a stroke of the needles in the counterclockwise or rotary direction. with needles Nl, N2 raised out of action by the up-picks on the next or reverse stroke after knitting at both feeds (see arrow); Fig. 24 shows the condition of the fabric and needles after knitting at the left-hand feed on the reverse stroke; Fig. 25 shows the conditions after knitting at both feeds on this stroke with the tie-across yarns appearing opposite needles N1. N2; and Fig. 26 shows the situation after one feed has knit on the next forward or rotary stroke;

Figure 27 is a perspective view of the mechanism on the bedplate of the machine for changing the rate of picking needles out of action from two needles to one needle, or vice versa;

Figure 28 is a detail view in perspective of an up-pick post such as used in Fig. 27;

Figure 29 is a perspective view similar to Fig. 28 but of a modified make-up in accordance with my invention in which the transfer jacks are not projected until the fifth course. The dotted outline indicates a welt presser;

Figure 30 is a diagram showing in solid lines the angles of the yarns from the two throat plates at the end of an oscillation. The dotted lines indicate the angles of the yarns while the active needles are drawing yarn at both feeds and the dot-and-dash line the angles of the yarns when drawing from the first feed has stopped at that feed and is about to stop at the second feed;

Figure 3l is a perspective view of a throat plate and a needle being picked up, showing the latch riding above the bevel of the throat plate;

Figure 32 is a perspective view of a throat plate from a different angle showing the needle of Fig. 31 after it has passed beyond the throat plate and its latch is in contact with the usual latch opener;

Figure 33 is a skeleton side elevation of a throat plate showing a depending lip or latch guard while Fig. 34 is a diagram of a needle arrangement in connection with which the invention will be described.

For the last half century of the circular knitting machine art, the most valuable space on the machine has been the circle represented by the periphery of the needle cylinder. It is only around this circle that the needle movements can be affected and in that 360 must be placed everything directly affecting the needles or sinkers. Some inventions are primarily concerned 7 with the interconnecting of the connections for the parts directly affecting these knitting elements, and such inventions have an interesting cyclic history. However. the present invention concerns a quite radical rearrangement and manipulation of the elements right at the periphery. and in that sense it is a fundamental invention.

General construction The invention will be shown and described embodied in the well-known Scott & Williams model K circular hosiery machine for making ladies' hosiery. That machine has a revolving needle cylinder with independent latch needles and independent sinkers with stitch-holding nebs, as well as transfer jacks. This machine is adapted to start up from the bare needles making a selvedge and to make an automatic inturncd welt and also to knit in both rotary and reciprocatory movements in the making of a stocking. characteristically, the machine knits only one course per revolution of the machine. which, of course, is a great limitation on the amount of fabric that can be manufactured by the machine in a given time. Many efforts have been made heretofore to increase the production by incorporating two or more feeds in the machine and using them during rotary knitting. Eilorts have also been made recently to build a multi-feed machine for ladies hosiery in which a multiplicity of feeds are used during reciprocatory knitting, but in no instance of which I am aware has a circular machine been designed in which a ladys stocking could be knit multi-feed throughout.

I have been able to achieve this and yet so arrange and shape the parts that the changing of yarns by pivoted fingers in throat plates can be obtained. I have shown only two such fingers in each throat plate in the drawings but it will be obvious that more can be used if desired. I have been able to do this changing of yarns in spite of the multi-feed reciprocatory knitting in the heel and toe. The changing of yarns is essential in the extremely fine gauges of stockings produced on the modern circular hosiery knitting machine such as 75 gauge etc., and using such very fine yarn as 10 denier nylon.

My machine is further able to start up from the bare needles and to produce an automatic turned welt. Hereafter, where I refer to making up it should be understood that I include not only starting up from the bare needles but also the placing of bights of yarn on transfer jacks as the first stage in the manufacture of automatic turned welts.

Many complications have arisen in designing a machine with these characteristics adapted to run at the high speed of 200 revolutions a minute demanded of modern machines. To accomplish all this on an all-multi-feed basis gives rise to tremendous difficulties. The concatenation o movements arising from the long-established sequence of knitting successive stitches in a wale on the same needle in successive courses at the same point in the machine had to be eradicated completely in order to establish the horizontal course sequence arising from the placing of a multiplicity of knitting points around the needle circle and using them in succession throughout the entire stocking. This destruction of established concatenation has been particularly damaging in the make-up and welt of the stocking, as well as in reciprocatory knitting and in the making of what are called gusset heels and toes. As a result, my invention concerns not only the rearrangement of all the cams affecting the needles, particularly at or near the knitting wave. but also a number of novel arrangements of cams for handling the sinkers and needles to avoid destructive interaction. I provide the necessary new interactions principally during the make-up, welt and reciprocatory knitting. The various changes and the manner in which they coordinate to produce the result above referred to will be set forth after a brief statement of the general construction of the machine.

Many basic parts of the machine are unchanged from the above-mentioned Scott & Williams model K machine, the needle cylinder 260 rotating or reciprocating inside of the cam ring 21| in which the butts of the needles N are controlled (see Fig. l). The cam ring and needle cylinder are supported in the bedplate and are driven from the standard driving parts. As heretofore, the machine is under the general control of a pattern chain 85 which, in turn, operates a main pattern drum |20 (Figs. 16 and 1'1). On the surface of the main pattern drum are drum cams 50|, 502, 503, etc., whose indications are transmitted by means of the usual thrust -bars 46|, 462, etc.. to the region of the bedplate, whence they are distributed around the needle cylinder 260'and cam ring 21| to cause the necessary changes in manipulations of the knitting elements of the machine. The usual web-holding sinkers S carried on the upper end of the needle cylinder 260 are controlled in their independent radial movement by their butts which contact cams on the inside of the usual sinker cap 300. There are the usual sinker spring bands (Fig. 9). The sinkers have the usual nebs W1 for holding the fabric down when the needle is rising through the stitch. The transfer jacks T are carried in a dial located axially opposite the upper end of the needle cylinder, this dial including the necessary cams for actuating the transfer jacks in the novel manner hereinafter set forth.

In order to obtain the necessary selection of needles for my novel all-multi-feed knitting of a ladys stocking starting from the bare needles and with the automatic inturned welt, I prefer to employ a pattern jack system such as shown in the U. S. Patent to Ivan W. Grothey No. 1,678,385, dated July 24, 1928. As can be seen in Fig. l of the drawings of the present application, this system has pattern jacks 136 whose coming into action is initiated from the main pattern drum, the pattern chain, or a trick wheel, as desired. Short or intermediate jacks 132 located above the pattern jacks are adapted to transmit selections to the needles at appropriate times. Both pattern and short jacks are located in the cylinder slots which contain the needles N themselves. The yarns are shown fed to the needles by pairs of pivoted yarn fingers FR, FR, FLI, FU from two throat plates 560, 55|, whose exact construction, location and interaction with the other parts are hereinafter set forth. It should be understood that while I will show and describe my invention embodied in a machine having only two feeds, the invention is equally applicable to a machine having a greater number of feeds or knitting points. Except as specifically limted in the claims or specification, my description should be so understood.

Knitting cam group The knitting cams in the ordinary revolving needle cylinder independent needle hosiery knitting machine include the stitch and associated cams. They are sometimes described as the cam box, but they will be referred to in the present specification as the knitting cam group.

Since the knitting wave in the sinkers must bear a trailing relation to the draw-down points of the stitch cams, it is necessary to oscillate the sinker cam cap 300. This oscillation is known as the "throw. In order that this throw may not be greater than necessary, and for other reasons, the stitch cams of my multi-feed machine are kept as close together as possible and the functions of the cams are somewhat changed. I have found it possible to get my cam group in a space only about 50% greater than the length of the cam group of the Scott 8a Williams model K single-feed automatic inturned welt machine (see Robert W. Scott Patent 1,282,958, dated October 29, 1918). This increase in length is due principally to the necessity for having side raise cams adjacent the double center knitting cam and to the length of the bottom of the double center stitch cam as described in the paragraphs immediately following.

In my novel machine, I provide a plurality of throat plates equal in number to the number of feeds. In the machine shown in the drawings. the so-called auxiliary throat plate 560 appears 7 at the left side of the figures of the drawings while the regular throat plate 55| is at the righthand side. Owing in part to the totally diierent functions of the knitting cams above referred to, the cams bear different relations to the various knitting waves at different times. By this I mean that the stitch-drawing point of a knitting cam always follows or trails the throat plate from which it receives yarn. As a result, the knitting of a multiplicity of courses from those same two throat plates in rst the rotary direction and then the reciprocatory or reverse direction requires that the throat plates cooperate with different stitch cam surfaces according to the direction in which the needle cylinder is turning. I therefore provide one more stitchdrawing cam or two more draw-down or stitchdrawing surfaces than there are throat plates in the two-feed mechanism shown. According to my invention there are one-half as many throat plates as there are stitch-drawing surfaces. I so arrange the parts of my machine that the leading stitch-drawing cam on each direction of movement is adapted to act as a clearing cam when it is the leading stitch cam, but draws stitches when it trails. Specifically, in the embodiment shown in the drawings the cam box or group has an intermediate or center stitch cam 55 of unique design, and left and right- end stitch cams 360 and 36| associated therewith, one on either side. This cam 50 is a double one sloping downwardly toward the center from each side. The two slopes I, 52 are both at about 45 from the horizontal and each slope constltutes an operating or stitch-drawing face. In t the example to be described the faces happen to be in fixed radial relation to each other though this is not essential to my invention. These two cam or stitch-drawing surfaces 5|, 52 do not meet at the bottom of the cam but each terminates at a separate point 53 or 54. The two points are separated from each other a distance equal approximately to say the width of seven or eight needles as they are mounted in the needle cylinder. For example. in a G-needle, 3%" cylinder machine, these two points would be approximately 1A of an inch apart. In the stitch cam of the ordinary single-feed Scott & Williams model K machine, the back face of the cam, i. e., the raising side, is sloped only about 23 from the horizontal. This gives time for the sinkers to be reinserted after the draw-down point to hold the stitches down by meansof the nebs of the sinkers before the friction on the rising needles can force the fabric above the nebs of the sinkers. However, in the new double stitch cam both those sloping surfaces must be used as stitch-drawing surfaces, so each face is of necessity close to from the horizontal. Since with the double stitch cam the rising face of necessity is close to 45 from the horizontal, it follows that the needles rise faster than in a single-feed machine, and unhooking of the stitches sometimes occurs. The separation of the two points 53, 54 relieves this by giving the sinkers time to come in and hold the stitches down before they get above the nebs. With these separated points the first point met acts as the draw-down point and the second point met acts as the knocking-over point. It will be noted that the second point is located after the knitting has left the robbing area, which is normally considered as existing immediately after the draw point. The relief on the bottom of the main stitch cam between the two points 53 and 54 is a further development of the high-speed, fine-gauge art. It has been found that in knitting fine gauges at high speed with fine yarns, any infinitesimal increase downwardly between the two points might cause cutting of the yarn. The bottom of the cam has, therefore, been shown relieved between the two points. In order to be sure the needles do not by any chance fail to take advantage of this relief, a hump 55 has been put on the bottom center cam 56 directly underneath the double-pointed stitch cam so that the needles necessarily have to give some relief to the yarn. It will be noted that the needles, in passing under the second point after a slight relief, bring the stitches back to the draw-point level momentarily, tending to make uniform again any irregularities which may have occurred since the first draw point was passed. The double stitch cam 50 also has shoulders 51, 5B on each side above the stitch-drawing faces 5|, 52 which serve as a check or cover cam when the needles are rising. This prevents the needles jumping over the next stitch cam.

One of the great difficulties in starting the make-up from the bare needles in fine-gauge, modern machines making ladies hosiery with an automatic inturned welt arises from the high speed of the machine. Other difficulties tied in to this are the necessity for special sinker pressures at special times on special stitches and the necessity for the utmost simplicity in the movements of the parts which control the needles and sinkers. I have invented a combination of parts which are concatenated with the other requirements of the make-up and welt in the Simplest possible way and which actually simplify the knitting manipulations as compared to the old single-feed make-up. I will describe each of these features separately.

Make-u1) cams It is of the greatest importance in high-speed knitting that the knitting cams be undisturbed throughout the make-up. I have also found it to be essential that the motions of the cams affecting the needles be simplified. As one element in this picture, the following should be noted with regard to the right-hand feed or throat plate 56| and the left-hand feed or throat plate 560. The make-up and welt are produced while the machine is turning in a rotary or forward direction, i. e.. counter-clockwise. Thus in Fig. 1 the needles are moving from right to left, which is in the rotary direction. At this time the right-hand throat plate 56| is feeding yarn in a trailing manner to the needles at the main double stitch cam 50 while the left-hand throat plate 560 is feeding its yarn in a trailing manner to the left-hand stitch cam 380. On forward movements, the right-hand stitch cam 36| acts as a clearing cam and to bring needles to the double stitch cam at two levels. I so arrange the other parts of the machine that throughout the entire start-up and also the makeup, the machine will knit at the right-hand or first throat plate 56|. Also the transfer jacks will take their bights of yarn at this feed. At the left-hand throat plate 56|) all the needles will knit throughout the entire make-up and weltknitting operation. There is absolutely no movement of the three knitting cams during the startup or make-up or the making of the welt. This is of great advantage.

It is important that the machine be able to knit

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