US2591563A - Loom harness with slidable heddle bar support - Google Patents

Description

April 1, 1952 LEVEQUE LOOM HARNESS WITH SLIDABLE HEDDLE BAR SUPPORT Filed Feb. 27, 1947 I l a) (T FIG ,2 a

BNVENTCR V ATFDRNEYS Patented Apr. 1, 1952 UNITE ATES PTET OFFICE LUQRI HARNESS WITH SLIDABLE HEDDLE BAR SUPPORT Application February 27, 1947, Serial No. 731,269

4 Claims.

This invention relates to harness frames such as areused in looms for weaving.

Ordinarily such loom harness frames have been made of wooden top and bottom members which are often called staves, connected at the ends by end pieces or bars, the whole forming a rectangular frame which is carried by straps and associated with other similar loom harnesses each of which carries a certain number of heddles through each of which heddles extends a warp thread and all of which are carried by heddle bars.

7 Formerly warp threads were drawn through i dividually by hand but more recently automatic drawing in machines have been produced which were efiective on drawing in the threads where the heddles were made of textile fabric and still more recently metal heddles usually of steel have taken the place of the textile heddles.

In the usual harness frame, the heddles,

place.

In a long harness frame, these heddle bars are usually supported not only by being assed through the end pieces but also by hooks or hangers which connect with the adjoining stave member to prevent sagging. a

It is desirable that the heddles should have a greater or less chance to slide along the heddle bars so that the warp threads will be equally spaced by the reed when it beats up and that such hooks, hangers or heddle bar supporting members should be able to slide along the heddle bars and that they should not bind or jam but should still be as thin as possible to separate adjoining heddles as little as possible.

To allow such sliding there has been used one or more additional or auxiliary heddle bar hanger supporting bars, attached to each stave by various kinds of devices, on which the heddle bar hooks or hangers could slide, as shown in patent to Kaufmann, No. 1,168,308, of January 18, 1918, and others. This has been called an auxiliary supporting bar. I do away with such auxiliary supporting bar and combine it with a stave as an integral all metal assembly which permits the heddle bar supports to move the entire length of the frame if desired.

This" integral combined stave and supporting her preferablyis an homogeneous strip of metal rolled with suitable flanges and a web' in one operation.

In my preferred form I provide an outer and a middle supporting flange by which the combination stave is attached to end pieces.

I have found that by using an integral homogeneous all metal combination stave member and supporting track at the top and at the bottom each with or without supporting. flanges, these v stave members can be connected by the end pieces to form a frame and by providing a web which extends inward and by forming an integral track by means of two flanges or ribs at the inside of this web, the heddle bar supporting. members for each heddle bar at the. top and at" the bottom can slide freely on such track thus avoiding any possible sagging or swaying such as occurs with many constructions.

It is desirable that the heddle bar supporting member should be readily slidable upon such integral inside flanges or ribs which form the track, without jamming and for that reason I find it desirable that the outer faces on each side of the web should be flat, preferably in a plane at right angles to the adjoining faces of the inwardly extending web, and that in addition to the parts which fit around the flange or ribs there should be steadying fingers which rest on this outer surface and which also come close to the web, both in easily slidable contact therewith. All such contacting faces shouldbe smooth.

In the drawings.

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of one form of my improved loom harness frame.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged end view in section or the integral combined stave and supporting bar of my device showing the heddle bar and heddle bar supporting member.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the portion of my loom harness frameillustrated in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view from the front of a heddle bar and one type of hedd which may be used with my device.

Fig. 5 is a side view of a. modified form of heddle bar supporting member showing. how it may be stamped or formed from one piece of material.

Fig. 6 is a front view and Fig. '7 a side view of the heddle bar supporting member shown In Fig. 5 after the fingers have been bent into position.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged plan view of the heddle bar supporting member of Figs. 5-7 with the web of my supporting bar shown in section.

Fig. 9 is an end view in section similar to Fig. 2013 another formofmy device and Fig. is a front view of the device shown in Fig. 9.

In the drawings there are shown the top and bottom staves A, A, each of which, as shown, is made of a single integral strip or piece of metal preferably with a back or base 1 together with an outside and a middle flange 2 and 3 and an inside web 4. Each stave is substantially the full length of the frame and is attached at each end to an end piece B which, as shown, in each case is made up of two strips of metal 10 and ll, each having a straight middle portion I2 or l3 and right angular bent ends 14 and [5 which by means of screws C are fastened one outside of an outside flange 2 and the other inside of an inside flange 3.

There is also shown a heddle bar D of the usual type on which heddles E each having a warp eye and a loop 2| at each end are carried.

As shown, each heddle bar extends at 22 through a hole 16 in each end piece B and each has a latch hole 23 engageable by a spring latch F, one bent end 24 of which can enter this hole 23, the construction being well known and being such that by releasing this releasing latch F, a heddle bar D can be moved lengthwise either against the other latch at its other end or the other latch can also be released so that either one or both heddle bars D with their heddles E can be removed.

Each of my staves A is made of a single piece "of metal, preferably of a light type such as aluminum, magnesium or of some alloy and extending out on each side at the inner side of the inwardly projecting web 4 are the two flanges 5 and G, the outside face of each of which is flat and lies in a straight flat plane at a transversely right angle to the faces of the inside web 4.

These flanges 5 and 6 form a track 'I for the heddle bar supporting members G, G.

In the preferred construction, shown in Figs. 1 to 4, I provide heddle bar supporting members G, each of which is formed of relatively thin metal with a hook which'supports or helps to support a heddle bar D, a shank 32 and the three contact fingers 33, 34, and 35, which, as shown, consist of a middle finger 34 which is bent around the face of one flange and then around over its top until it is in slidable contact with a side face of the web 4 and two other fingers 33 and 35 bent in the other direction in contact with the side face of the other flange and then around over its top and in contact with its other side face of the web 4.

It will be seen that with this construction there is provided sufficient contacting surfaces between the three fingers and the outer faces of the track to prevent buckling and to allow the supporting member to slide lengthwise of the track while at the same time if the ends of the fingers are correctly made, they prevent any objectionable back and forth side swing, because they engage the side faces of the supporting web.

In Figs. 5 to 8 is shown another type of supporting member H with a hook cut from and carried by a shank 4|, the sliding part including a recess 42 which flts snugly around the track T at its bottom, on both sides and partly at the section, but as shown in Figs. 9 to 10, I can use a track K of substantially cylindrical form or in the form of two half round flanges 49, 49, which form a round bead 50 at the end of web 5| and with it, I can use a heddle bar supporting member L made of a single piece of sheet metal, which has a hook 52 to help support the heddle bar, a shank 53, which extends straight and then is formed with three fingers 54, 55, 56, of which the middle one 55 extends around one side of the rounded track 50 and then up along one face of the web at 51, and on the other side the fingers 54 and 56 extend around the other side of the rounded track 50 and then up along the web 5| on its other side 6|.

In this case, there is very little chance of front and back swaying and, if it is wide enough, this type of heddle bar supporting member L will slide freely without jamming or buckling, but I find the substantially rectangular track is on the whole more satisfactory.

My slidable heddle bar supporting members are made of thin sheet metal and if web 4 is shorter than the back or base I, I provide screw stops 1 at each end near the bottom of web 4 to prevent the heddle bar supporting members from slipping off especially when the heddle bars D, D, and heddles E, E are removed for repairs or changin the number of heddles. Two or more such stops can be used to limit the space in which each bar supporting member can slide.

I claim:

1. A harness frame for looms, comprising a rectangular frame formed by end pieces and top and bottom stave members at right angles there to each stave member being formed of a single integral piece of metal with a back from which top and middle longitudinal flanges extend the full length of the stave member, an inwardly extending web of less length than that of the stave member with a track formed by continuous flanges on each side along its inside edge having flat outer faces in a straight, flat plane at a transversely right angle to the faces of said web; slidable heddle bar supporting members each including a heddle bar supporting hook, a shank and fingers extending along each outer face and the top of said track and being in slidable contact therewith and with both the adjoining faces of the web; and two heddle bars supporting a plurality of heddles threaded thereon, said heddle bars extending through each end piece and through the hook of a heddle bar supporting member.

2. A harness frame for looms, comprising a rectangular frame formed by end pieces and top and bottom stave members at right angles thereto each stave member being formed of a single integral piece of metal with a back from which top and middle longitudinal flanges extend the full length of the stave member and an inwardly extending web of less length than that of the stave member with a track formed by continuous flanges on each side along its inside edge; slidable heddle bar supporting members each including a heddle bar supporting hook, a shank and fingers extending along and engaging each side and the top of the track and engaging part of the web; two heddle bars supporting a plurality of heddles threaded thereon, said heddle bars extending through each end piece and through the hook of a heddle bar supporting member.

3. A harness frame for looms, comprising a rectangular frame formed-by end pieces and'top and bottom stave members at right angles thereto each stave member being formed of a single integral piece of metal with a back from which top and middle longitudinal flanges extend the full length of the stave member and an inwardly extending web with a track formed by continuous flanges on each side along its inside edge; slidable heddle bar supporting members each made of sheet metal bent at one end to form a heddle bar supporting hook, having a shank in the middle and at the other end bent to form three fingers, the middle one bent one way and the others bent the other way, the fingers extending along and engaging each side and the top of the track and each finger slidably engaging a side of the web two heddle bars supporting a plurality of heddles threaded thereon; each of said heddle bars extending through the book of a heddle bar supporting member.

4. A harness frame for looms, comprising a rectangular frame formed by end pieces and top and bottom stave members at right angles thereto each stave member being formed of a single integral piece of metal with a back from which top and middle longitudinal flanges extend the full length of the stave member and an inwardly extending web with a track formed by continuous flanges on each side along its inside edge; slidable heddle bar supporting members each made of sheet metal at one end having a heddle bar supporting hook, having a shank in the mid- 6 dle and at the other end bent to form fingers extending along and engaging each side and the top of the track and each finger slidably engaging a side of the web; two heddle bars supporting a plurality of heddles threaded thereon, each of said heddle bars extending through the hook of a heddle bar supporting member.

BERNARD T. LEVEQUE.

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

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,142,290 Wagner June 8, 1915 1,567,102 Balderston Dec. 29, 1925 1,686,073 Colman Oct. 2, 1928 1,866,908 Robertson July 12, 1932 2,216,682 Zurcher Oct. 1, 1940 2,287,739 Johnston June 23, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 195,045 Switzerland Mar. 16, 1938 2,703 Great Britain of 1912 412,706 Great Britain July 5, 1934 649,602 Germany Aug. 28, 1937 834,737 France Aug. 29, 1938 846,893 France June 19, 1939

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