US2623264A

US2623264A - Apparatus for guiding flexible tubular fabrics

Info

Publication number: US2623264A
Application number: US143716A
Authority: US
Inventors: Dungler Julien
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1949-11-18
Filing date: 1950-02-11
Publication date: 1952-12-30
Anticipated expiration: 1969-12-30

Description

Duc. 30,1952 2,623,264

APPARATUS FOR GUIDING FLEXIBLE; TUBULAR FABRICS Filed Feb. 13., 1950 J. DUNGLER 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

J. DUNGLER 2,623,264

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. 30,1952

APPARATUS FOR GUIDING FLEXIBLE TUBULAR FABRICS Filed Feb. 11, 1950 Dec. 30, 1952 J. DUNGLER 2,623,264

. APPARATUS FOR GUIDING FLEXIBLE TUBULAR FABRICS Filed Feb. 11, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. Mil/0V AMI 6Z5? Patented Dec. 30,- 1952 APPARATUS FOR GUmINGsnExmn-E TUBULAR FABRICS J ulien Dungler, Basel Switzerland Application February 11, 1950, Serial Nd. 143,716 :InFrance November 18, .1949

is oiai'ms. (01. was;

The present 'inyentiomrelates to an apparatus for guiding flexible-tubular fabrics and similar fibrous articles or objects.

In the apparatus :aocording to, mycopending application Serial No.- 138;6 84,,filed; January 1 1950, the flexible or stretchable tubular fabric or article is in oontact'at its lateral folded ends with external guide means .rotatably held at a fixed location and with internal ,guide means freely rotatable inside the tubular fabric, the apparatus further including means acting'upon the internal guide 1 means through the tubular article to hold the internal- .guide ,means in. a position in'whicnthe latter cooperatesthrough the tubu lar articleflwith the externalrguide means.

It has .been foundithat, in certain instances, the performance of suchan apparatus can be further improved and-extended tofurther utilization, particularly where theaapparatus is used for the enlargement of tubular articles inxa'direction transverse torthelongitudinal axis thereof.

It has further been found that undesirable wrinkles or creases sometimes occur :along the diverging edges of the tubular article" between the point or location wherethe'ai'ticle leaves the 1 guiding apparatus andrthe point of positive entrainment by" asucceedingtreading-"or"pick-up device. H

It is, therefore; arrobjectbf the-:present'i'nvention to provide means :ensuringzavoi'dancerof the heretofore mentioned :draiwbacksrin:guiding apparatus .for tubular textile articles.-

Another obj ect' of this invention is to provide means facilitating 5a; considerable simplification of the apparatus by holdingrinaplace the external guide means without ":the need of "separate retaining means therefor; V

A further object of z the .invention ,is to ,pro-

vide means keepin the; tubularzarticle in-shape p r-s ay ofthe tubulararticle,thereby, enamly locking the inner. member between the tubular article and the outer member.

According to another feature oi the invention, the apparatus also 1 includes supporting means positioned externally of the tubular article to pr v de a estiom e inner-mee a r of h inner member, positioned remotest from the outermember. H V H W :7

T e e nal u p t nameans rr d o ay include, according to a I iurther A feature of the invention, an outer roller cooperating with an inner roller which in turn is associated with the internal guide means, the tubular, article in passingbetween the rollers causing them to rotate so Accordin to still another feature of the invention internal supporting means are contemplated to; which the inner roller may be attached, the internal supporting means having preferably securedthereto rotatable inner membersg spaced in longitudinal,.directionof the tubular article, the nternalsup ortinam nsbei e a apte to guide the tubular artie sub tan iall be ond its point of contact with thelastone qf the rotatable inner members, .Each inner member may in this case consist, of, two rotary, elements disposed on opposite sides of the. internal supporting means and having a common pivot secured thereto.

Accordingto a further feature of theinvention, slitting means are preferably providedon the internalguide meanafl, 01 the internal supporting means forming :part thereof.

, he above andother objects, features and advantages will become, apparent from the following descriptionreference beinghadto the accompanying drawingsin which: N

.Fig. 1 ;isafront elevation, partly in section, oi an apparatus embodying one form of the inventionn Fig. 2, is-a section taken alonglineZ-Jpt 1;

Fig. 3 is a view similarto 2 taken on the line 3 -3; of Fig. 4, showing another embodiment of theinvention; V g m Fig. 4 is a viewsimilar to -one half of Fig. 1 b tish n i t a aratusmo fiedr Fig. 5 isg a-top plan view of the apparatus shown in Figs. 3 and fi; and l Fi .6, is a se t n pm large s a e thr u h an inner rotatable member used according to Figs. 3-5. 1 7

Referring ncw more particularly to th draw-- ings, there is disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2 a pair of carriages 2, 2' mounted on a common guide rail (not shown) for relative displacement in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis of the tubular article to be treated, thereby allowing adjustment of the apparatus to articles of different width. The two carriages 2, 2' support identica1 assemblies arranged symmetrically to each other, of which only the one supported by the carriage 2 will be more fully described.

Extending upwardly from the carriage 2 is an elbow-shaped member 3| carrying the shafts 32 and 33, respectively, of two rollers I3 and I9. These rollers are preferably provided with a peripheral cover or strip of elastic material, such as indicated at Ifia for the roller I8. The shaft 32 of the roller I8 is fixed upon the elbow member 3| while the shaft 33 of roller I9 is slidable in the direction of arrows 31a, 31b in a slot 34 provided in member 3|. The shaft 33 may be affixed in a selected adjusted position by means of a handle 35 which is screwed upon the threaded outer end of this shaft 33; tightening of the handle 35 causes a should-er 36 to bear upon the underside of the portion provided with slot 34. The dis- The left-hand fold line, as viewed in Fig. 1, is

formed by a portion of the fabric which passes between the rollers I8, I9 and a freely movable and floating hollow inner ring member 6, preferably provided with a slit to to increase its resiliency; analogously, the right-hand fold line is formed bya portion of the fabric which passes between the roller I8, I9 and a similar hollow inner ring member 6'. I 7

It will be noted that, in contradistinction to the apparatus disclosed in the above-identified application, the ring 6 engaging the fold line of the fabric is held against outward displacement by the fabric itself and is held against inwarddisplacement by the rollers I3 and IS, without the need of any additional retaining means.

The innermost portion of the floating ring member 6, opposite to the one cooperating with the rollers I8 and I9, rests on a table M which is supported by an arm 43 integral with the carriage 2.

The arrangement just described is used in the following manner: The rings 6, 6 are inserted into the tubular fabric. The

handles

35, 35 of the two roller adjustment devices are loosened, and the rollers I9, I9 are displaced in the direction of arrow 311; into an extreme position in which they are temporarily retained upon tighteningof the handles. Thereupon, the tubular fabric 3 is put into place so that the rings 6, 6' occupy the position shown in the drawings.

The handles are then again loosened and the rollers I9, I9 placed in the position as illustrated, by displacing them according to arrow 31b and in abutment with stops 38, 38', so as to cause said rollers to cooperate with the fixed rollers I8, I23 at the inner peripheral portions of the rings 6, 6', thereby maintaining the rings 6, 6' in place and insuring the proper guidance of the tubular fabric 9 between the rollers I6, I3 and I9, I9 on the one hand and the rings 6, 6' on the other hand.

The modification shown in Figs. 3-6 is particu- 4 lar-1y applicable to elastic tubular textile objects or articles which are to be guided over a considerable length of their path, as, for example, up to a location in immediate proximity of a feeding or pick-up device.

In this form of the invention each of the removable internal guide means, respectively, located at the two fold lines of thetubular fabric or article 9, comprises two coupled; freely and loosely

rotatable members

43, 44 spaced apart with respect to the longitudinal direction of the fabric, these members being journaled upon a common support 45. In order to prevent the fabric 9 from making contact with the support 45, each of the

rotatable members

43, 44 is subdivided into two parts or elements disposed symmetrically with respect to the support 45, respectively above and below the latter, as best seen in Fig. 6 illustrating in greater detail member 44. This member consists of two halves 44a, 44b positioned on opposite sides of the support 45 which latter, as shown, is preferably in the form of an elongated, thin plate provided with cutouts to reduce its weight. The elements 44a, 44b are rotatably supported on the plate support 45 by means of ball bearing 39 lodged in a circular cutout 4B of the plate support.

Each of these elements is provided with a hub, 44c and 44d, respectively, from which arm-s or spokes extend toward its periphery as indicated at 44c (Fig. 5) for the upper member'half 44a, thus affording the necessary mechanical connection and unity. The two halves are held together by a threaded stud 54 and a pair of nuts 53.

The elements of ring 43 corresponding to the parts Mar-44c of ring '44 have been indicated at 43a.-43e, respectively.

The rotatable

inner ring members

43 and 44 are adapted to cooperate with the outer rollers I8a, I9a and I31), I322, respectively, in manner similar to rollers I8, I9 and ring 6 (Figs. 1 and 2); rollers I9a, I9b being adjustably mounted'as already described withres-pect to roller I9.

The two pairs of outer rollers I8a, Ida and I82), I92), respectively, associated with the

ring members

43 and 44, mountedon their common support 45, are carried upon a base-42 fixed to the carriage 2 which is transversely slidable in the manner mentioned above. The base 42is furthermore provided with vertical lugs 41 inwhich is journailed a hori'zontalshaft '48 carrying an idler roller 49, the latter being adapted to cooperate with a roller 50' freely rotatable upon a shaft 5| which is rigid with the support 45. As explained with respect to the former embodiment,there will be a separate guiding assembly (such as shown in Figs. 3-6) comprising each a pair of-

rotary mem bers

43, 44, freely movable inside the tubular fabric article with their support 45, and two pairs of outer rollers-mounted on the'stationary base 42 for engagement with thefold-lines of the tubular fabric 9.

The plate45 supporting the ring members 43,

'44 is provided with an extension 52 designed to placement of the-upper rollers 19a and I922 into their extreme positions, is placed in. posmtn illustrated in Fig. 4, whereupon the upper rollers are brought into engagement therewith as previously described. These rollers are retained in this position by suitably manipulating the handles 35a, 351), as isself-evident fromFig. 4

If a feeding movement is imparted to the article 9 by, say, a set of draw rollers (not shown) provided in the device 51, the article is enlarged to an extent determined by the position of the carriages 2 upon their guide rail. The article 9 by its movement causes the ring members 43 and M as well as the rollers [8a, [911 and I81), I96 tor'otate and to reduce friction with the fabric-to a minimum, inward displacement of the ring members being again prevented by the outer rollers whereas outward displacement thereof is prevented by the articleil. H e s s s The lower portion of the tubular ai ticle 9 passes between the idler rollers Mi, 50 which are set in rotary motion thereby, thus avoiding slipping off or glidingmovement of the fabric articlebetween these idler rollers; the plate support 45 carrying the

rings

43, 44 rests upon the roller 49 through the intermediary of roller 50, as explained hereinabove. s

It is to be noted that the guide extension 52 positively maintains the spread of the fabric throughout substantially the entire zone extending between the second ring member 43 and the pick-up device 51, thereby preventing the formation of any wrinkles or creases as the article 9 passes from the guiding apparatus to the pick-up device.

The arrangements described-may be utilized for a number of purposes. Thus; they may be embodied in an apparatus for simply guiding a fabric or other tubular piece of material along a predetermined path, for example across a drying rack. In this case, a number of devices of .the character described may be positioned in alignment with one another, along each of the two fold lines, throughout the path traversed by the material.

The invention, particularly in the form described in Figs. 3 to 6, may further be utilized in apparatus for enlarging a tubular fabric or other material to a predetermined width. In this case, the common support 45 with its ring members 43, M may be disposed at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the travel of the tubular article treated.

The apparatus described may also be utilized to sever the tubular fabric along one or more of its fold lines. Suitable cutting means may for this purpose be provided on the internal guide means; thus the guiding extension 52 may removably carry, for example, a cutting edge 56 as indicated in dot-dash lines in Fig. 5. A similar effect may be obtained by equipping, for example, the ring 6 of Figs. 1 and 2 with a peripheral sharp cutting edge (not shown).

It should be understood that the embodiments of the invention described above and shown on the drawings have been given merely by way of illustration and not of limitation, and that the arrangement, nature, form and connection of the different instrumentalities may be modified in various ways without exceeding the scope of the invention. Thus, the

ring members

43 and 44 may be interconnected by a steel belt or other linkages for the purpose of insuring uniform traction and guidance at both of these members. Also, it will be possible to provide a larger number of assemblies (such as shown in Figs. 3-5) e. g. three assemblies, disposed in planes extending at, say, 120 degrees to one another, so as to provide three end fold lines formed on 'a tubular article of triangular cross section. Cutting meanssuch as 56, may then be used to divide and out the fabric artioleor other textile material in three or more portions of equal or different width or dimensions; Furthermore, the

ring members

43 and 44 may have different diameters, and the guide extension 52 may be provided with roller means to substitute rolling engagement for sliding engagement. 7

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Let'- ters Patent,is:' s

1. In a guide apparatus for flexible tubular textile articles, in combination, a support, a lower and an upper roller mountedon said sup port, adjusting means for varying the separation of said rollers and for fixing said rollers in a relatively inclined position, a ring member adapted for horizontal position with its inner periphery in engagement with both said rollers when the latter are in said relatively inclined position, and an extension on said support forming a rest for a portion of said ring member when engaged by said rollers.

2. In an apparatus for guiding a flexible tubular fabric article, in combination, a support, a pair of rollers mountedon said support, adjusting means for varying the separation of said rollers and for fixing said rollers in a relatively inclined position, a plate independent of said support, and a ring member journalled upon said plate, said ring member comprising two annular elements positioned on opposite sides of said plate and being adapted for position with the inner peripheries of said annularelements, respectively, in engagement with said rollers when the latter are in said relatively inclined position.

3. In an apparatusfor guiding a flexible tubular article, in combination, a support, pairs of rollers mounted on said support, adjusting means for varying the separation of the rollers of each of said pairs and for fixing the rollers of each pair in a relatively inclined position, a plate independent of said support, and a plurality of ring members journalled upon said plate, said ring members being positionable with their inner peripheries in engagement with the rollers of respective pairs when the latter are in said relatively inclined position.

4. The combination according to claim 3, wherein said plate is provided with an extension forming guide means substantially aligned with the peripheries of said ring members and extending beyond an outermost one of said ring members.

5. The combination according to claim 3, wherein said support is provided with an extension forming a rest for a portion of said plate.

6. The combination according to claim 5, wherein said portion is provided with a rotatably supported first roller, and said extension is provided with a rotatably supported second roller positioned to cooperate with said first roller.

7. The combination according to claim 3, wherein each of said ring members comprises a pair of annular elements being engaged by a respective roller of the associated pair of rollers.

8. A guide apparatus for tubular textile articles comprising internal guide means each having an inner peripheral portion and arranged for location inside said tubular article and adapted to loosely and fioatingly engage the latter, and external guide means positioned to bear through said tubular article against and to coact with said internal guide means at said inner peripheral portions, to thereby guide said internal guide means from therewithin toward said tubular article and to thus effectively maintain said tubular article in position between said internal guide means and said external guide means.

9. A guide apparatus for moving tubular textile articles comprising internal guide ring means arranged for location inside said tubular article and adapted to loosely rotate therein, said internal guide means being each provided with an inner peripheral portion and movable substantially in the same plane in which said tubular article moves, and external guide means positioned to engage through said tubular article said internal guide means at said inner peripheral portions and to retain said internal guide means against said tubular article, thus eflectively maintaining said tubular article in position remote from said external guide means.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, comprising a stationary support fixedly mounted externally of said tubular article, said internal guide means being substantially horizontally disposed with a portion thereof and remote from said external guide means, resting upon said support when said internal guide means is engaged by said external guide means.

11. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said internal guide means is provided with a cutting edge positioned to penetrate said tubular article when the latter is engaged by said internal and said external guide means.

'12. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said internal guide means is provided with a guide extension having an edge extending substantially tangentially of said internal guide means.

13. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said extension is provided with a cutting edge projecting outwardly from said tending edge.

14. An apparatus according'to'claim 9; comprising a stationary support fixedly mounted relative. to said external guide means and externally of said tubular article, said internal guide means including a supporting element provided with a portion resting upon said support when said internal guide means is engaged by said external guide means.

15. An apparatus according to claim 14', wherein said portion comprises a horizontal shaft, and a first roller rotatable on said shaft and engageable with said support.

16. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said support comprises a second roller positioned to cooperate with said first roller.

17. In a guide apparatus for flexible tubular textile articles, in combination, a support, a lower roller and an upper roller mounted on said support, and a ring member arranged for location within said tubular article and loosely rotatable therein, said lower and upper rollers being positioned for engagement with the inner periphery of said ring member, to thereby guide said tubular article past said ring member.

18. In a guide apparatus according to claim 17, including a guide extension associated with said ring member and tangentially extending therebeyond.

tangentially. x

J ULIEN DUNGLER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 769,648 Gove Sept. 6, 1904 2,391,547 Cohn et a1 Dec. 25, 1945 2,415,185 Moon Feb. 4, 1947