US2736071A

US2736071A - Apparatus for coiling sliver in cans

Info

Publication number: US2736071A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1956-02-28
Anticipated expiration: 1973-02-28

Description

Feb. 28, 1956 Filed May 31, 1952 G. FORSYTHE ET AL 71 APPARATUS FOR COILING SLIVER IN CANS 2 Sheets-Sheet l George 5/65/299 Ham/0 14/. /PA/88// a ar/b7660 Feb. 28, 1956 FRSYTHE 2,736,071

APPARATUS FOR COILING SLIVER IN CANS Filed May 31, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Gav/ye fb/vyf/ve Ham/0 14/. /PU886// b w l United States Patent 2,736,071 APPARATUS FOR COILING SLIVER IN CANS George Forsythe, Ballardvale, and Harold W. Russell, Andover, Mass., assignors to Pacific Mills, Lawrence, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application May 31, 1952, Serial No. 291,016

4 Claims. (Cl. 19-159) The present invention relates to apparatus for coiling textile sliver, such as wool sliver, in cylindrical cans and is more particularly directed to apparatus for supporting the cans and moving them in a desired pathas they are being filled.

An object of the invention is to provide such apparatus which will automaticallyremove the filled can from the filling station assoon as it has been filled and immediately replace it by an empty can without interruption of the delivery of sliver to the apparatus, as from a worsted card.

A further object is to provide such an apparatus in which the filled can removed from the filling station is displaced to a position in which it is readily accessible for removal by the operator.

A further object of the invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the periodic removal and replacement of cans at the filling station is automatically timed with the delivery of sliver into the can at the filling station.

A further object is to provide such an apparatus in which the cans are continuously given an orbital motion in a horizontal plane to provide for laying of the sliver uniformly in the can from top to bottom of the can, and in which the cans are periodically removed from and fed to a filling station without interference with said orbital motion.

In accordance with the invention, a plurality of cylindrical cans are supported at spaced positions in a circle on a horizontal table, one of the cans being located at a filling station immediately below a rotary coiler head through which sliver is fed into the can. Said table is supported upon a rotary supporting member which carries the means for imparting to the table the desired orbital motion and which, in turn, is independently rotatable periodically to displace the entire assemblageof the table and its driving means a fraction of a revolution to remove a filled can from the filling station and replace it by an emptycan.

Means is provided for timing the periodical rotation of the supporting member with the rotation of the calender rolls which feed the sliver to the can at the filling station, so that when a can becomes full it is promptly removed and replaced by an empty can.

-An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. l is a front elevation, partly broken away, of the entire machine with three cans in position therein;

Fig. 2 is a vertical central section through the lower part of the apparatus of Fig. 1, and,

Fig. 3 is a detail horizontal sectional View taken on line 3-3 of Fig. l.

- Referring to the drawings, our presently preferred apparatus comprises a base plate 2 on which is supported by means of standards, one of which is shown at 4, a head plate 6, as by securing the head plate at 8 against stop 7 shoulders on the standards 4. On the head plate 6 is carried the rotating coiler head 10 through which the sliver is fed into the can, and a pair of calender rolls 12 which receive the sliver continuously delivered to the apparatus and feed it at a controlled speed to' the coiler head 10, to-

2,736,07l Patented Feb. 28, 1956 gether with associated supporting, driving and auxiliary apparatus later to be described in detail.

The cans 14 are supported on a can table beneath the head plate 6 with one of them 14a positioned at the filling station beneath the coiler head 10. In the embodiment shown there are 3 such cans supported on a can table in the form of a horizontal plate 16 and equally spaced thereon apart.

Supported on the head plate 6 by means of a suitable pillow block and bearing 20 is a horizontal main drive shaft 22. The outboard end of shaft 22 is supported by a bearing 24 carried at the upper end of a vertical standard 26 resting on and rigidly connected to the base plate 2.

Power for operating the machine is supplied by a chain drive from a suitable source (not shown) to a sprocket 28 fast on shaft 22. Preferably the sprocket 28 is driven from a shaft which carries one of the calender rolls of the card, gill, etc. from which sliver is supplied to the machine, to simplify timing of the calender roll pair 12 with the rate at which sliver is supplied to the apparatus.

The main drive shaft 22 is connected through a manually operable clutch 36 to drive shaft 32 which is supported in pillow blocks and bearings 34. A bevel gear 36 pinned or keyed to shaft 32 meshes with a bevel gear 38 which is journaled in a bearing supported on the head plate 6 and carries for rotation therewith a spur gear 40. The spur gear 49 drives the coiler head 10 by engagement with teeth on its periphery, as shown. The coiler head 10 may be supported in the head plate 6 for rotation about its own axis by an annular rib on its lower face which seats in and is guided by a corresponding groove in the head plate 6. Also fast to the drive shaft 32 is a sprocket 42 which drives, by means of a sprocket chain 44, a sprocket 46 fast on a shaft 48 journaled in

bearings

50, 52 supported on the head plate 6. The shaft 48 is rigid with one of the rolls of calender roll pair 12 the other of which is driven at the same surface speed by means of spur gearing at 54. These calender rolls may be plain surfaced or may be a tongue and grooved pair, as desired. Thus the rotation of the calender roll pair 12 is timed with the rotation of the coiler head 10. The coiler head 10 is provided with an eccentric opening, i. e., an opening displaced from the axis of rotation of the head, through which the sliver delivered by the calender roll pair 12 is passed downwardly into the can immediately below the coiler head at the filling station. The continuous rotation of the coiler head causes the sliver to be discharged into the can along a circular path. The simultaneous orbital motion of the can provided by table 16, as Will be described, progressively displaces successive circles, so that the sliver is laid in the can uniformly from top to bottom. The coiler head, calender rolls and their associated parts so far described, as well as the orbital motion of the can support, and the manner in which the sliver is laid into the can, are disclosed in greater detail in copending application Serial No. 790,158 filed December 6, 1947, now Patent 2,598,738.

The horizontal orbital motion of the table 16 in timed relation with the rotation of the calender roll pair 12 and the coiler head 10 is provided by a vertical shaft 56 journaled in the head plate 6, and in a bearing 58 (Fig. 2) supported on the base plate 2. Shaft 56 is driven from drive shaft 32 by means of a worm 60 fast on said shaft and a cooperating Worm gear 62 fast on shaft 56. A sprocket 64 fast on shaft 56 below the table 16 drives a sprocket 66 journaled on a stub shaft 68 carried on a rotary supporting member 76. A stud 72 depending from table 16 is journaled in a disc '74 fast to sprocket 66, so that the stud is disposed eccentrically of the sprocket. The table 16 is provided with a large opening for the passage of the shaft 56 and is supported solely by stud 72 and two other similar studs spaced 120 apart, one of which is shown at 76, journaled eccentrically in a disc 78 supported for rotation on stub shaft S on supporting member 70. Thus rotation of shaft 56 by the drive shaft 32 causes the

studs

72 and 76 to move in circular paths, imparting to the table 16 a motion such that all points thereof move in horizontal circular paths of equal radii. This we refer to herein as bodily revolving the table in a horizontal orbit in its plane to move the can being filled about an axis displaced from the axis of the can. This orbital motion, in combination with the rotation of the coiier head It), causes the sliver to be uniformly deposited in the can in overlapping eccentric coils, as described in more detail in Wilkie Patents No. 2,478,960 and No. 2,598,738.

The plate forming the table 16 on which the cans are carried is periodically given a step by step indexing motion to remove the filled can from its position at the filling station into a position from which it can conveniently be taken out of the machine by the operator, and simultaneously move an empty can into filling position at the filling station. For this purpose, means are provided for periodically rotating the supporting member 7 ii a fraction of a revolution about the shaft 56. This periodical stepping of supporting member 70 is timed with the calender roll pair 12 (and with the coiler head ill) so that the desired removal of the filled can takes place promptly when the can becomes full.

Referring now to Fig. l, a vertical shaft 82 journaled in

bearings

84, 86 carried by standard 26 is driven from the main drive shaft 22 by a worm 88 thereon which meshes with and drives a worm wheel 90 fast on shaft 82. A shaft 92 directly below and in alignment with shaft 82 and supported in

bearings

94, 96 carried on the standard 26, is driven from the shaft 82 through a one-revolution clutch indicated generally at 98. At its lower end shaft 92 carries a sprocket which, through sprocket chain 102, drives a sprocket 104 which is bolted at 106 to the supporting member 70 in a position coaxial with shaft 56 on which the supporting member "ill is journaled for free rotation by the bearing 1%.

The one-revolution clutch indicated generally at 98 may be any suitable commercially available clutch of this type such as the well-known Hilliard single-revolution clutch described in Patent No. 2,l40,737. In general the clutch' 98 comprises a driving member 110 fast on shaft 82 and a driven member 112 fast on shaft 92. The driven member normally remains stationary as the driving member 110 continuously rotates, but the clutch periodically may be actuated to cause the driving member to pick up the driven member, turn it one revolution and then release it.

Operation of clutch 93 is under the control of a counter 114 which is driven by the shaft 48 to count the revolutions of the calender roll pair 12. The counter 114 may be an indicating and recording counter as shown. When the counter 114 has counted a number of revolutions predetermined to correspond to the filled condition of the can 14:: at the filling station, it energizes (through electrical connections not shown) a solenoid 116 causing the solenoid plunger 118 (Fig. 3) to exert a pull on the clutch locking dog 120 which is pivoted on the standard 26 at 122. This locking dog 12% is normally urged by spring 126 into locking position so that its free outer end engages a shoulder 124 on the clutch driven member 112 to prevent rotation of the latter and, consequently, of the shaft 92 which effects the periodically stepping motion of plate 16. Upon retraction of locking dog 12% by the solenoid, its free end disengages from shoulder 124 permitting the clutch to operate and begin to turn the driven member 112. The solenoid is energized only momentarily so that locking dog 120 promptly drops back, under the influence of spring 126, against the spiral surface on driven member 112 so that at the end of one revolution of shaft 92 it again engages the shoulder 124 to arrest rotation of shaft 92.

Desirably, a notched disc 128 is provided, fast on shaft 92 and having a notch in its periphery into which a tooth on spring-pressed dog 130 drops when shoulder 124 comes in contact with locking dog 120. This engagement of the tooth on dog 130 in the notch of disc 128 serves to prevent back-lash of the driven member of the clutch.

It will be understood that the ratio of the connections between main drive shaft 22 and the rotary supporting member 70 is such that one revolution of the'clutch 98 will step the table 16 forward the fraction of a revolution which is represented by the reciprocal of the number of cans which the can table is designed to carry.

When the table 16 is advanced, at the moment when the can at the filling station has been filled, the filled can is moved on into a position from which the operator can remove it at his convenience at any timein the case where three cans are employed, before two succeeding cans have been filled. When the operator removes a filled can he replaces it by an empty can. Consequently, each can as it is filled is automatically removed from the filling station and replaced by an empty can, into which the machine immediately begins to fill the advancing sliver in the manner described in said Patent No. 2,598,738.

We claim:

. In an apparatus for coiling sliver in a cylindrical can, the combination of a table for supporting a plurality of such cans, rotary calender rolls located above said cans to deliver sliver to fill one of said cans, means to drive said calender rolls, means'for bodily revolving said table in a horizontal orbit in its plane to move the can being filled about an axis displaced from the axis of the can, and means operating in timed relation to the rotation of said calender rolls periodically to rotate said secondrnentioned means a fraction of a revolution in a horizontal plane to displace the can being filled and replace it by an empty can.

2. In an apparatus for coiling sliver in a cylindrical can, the combination of a table for supporting a plurality of such cans, a rotary coiler head located above said cans at a filling station and having an eccentric opening therein for the delivery of sliver into a can at said filling station, rotary calender rolls to deliver sliver to said coiler head, means for rotating said calender rolls, means for rotating said coiler head in timed relation with the rotation of said calender rolls, means for bodily revolving said table in a horizontal orbit in its plane to move the can being filled about an axis displaced from the axis of the can in timed relation with the rotation of said coiler head, and means operating in timed relation to the rotation of said calender rolls periodically to rotate said third-mentioned means and said table a fraction of a revolution in a horizontal plane and about a different axis to displace from the filling station the can being filled and replace it by an empty can.

3. In an apparatus for coiling sliver in a cylindrical can, the combination of a table for supporting a plurality of such cans, rotary calender rolls located above said cans to deliver sliver to one of said cans, means to drive said calender rolls, means for bodily revolving said table in a horizontal orbit in its plane to move the can being filled about an axis displaced from the axis of the can, and means operating in timed relation to the rotation of said calender rolls periodically to rotate about a different axis said second-mentioned means and said table in a horizontal plane the fraction of a revolution represented by the reciprocal of the number of cans to periodically displace the can being filled and replace it by an empty can.

4. In an apparatus for coiling sliver in a cylindrical can, the combination of a table for supporting a plurality of such cans, a rotary coiler head located above said cans having an eccentric opening therein for. the delivery of sliver into one of said cans, rotary calender rolls to deliver sliver to said coiler head, means to rotate said calender rolls, means for rotating said coiler head in timed relation with the rotation of said calender rolls, means for bodily revolving said table in a horizontal orbit in its plane to move the can being filled about an axis displaced from the axis of the can in timed relation with the rotation of said coiler head, a one-revolution clutch driven by the apparatus, and means for actuating said clutch in timed relation With the rotation of said calender rolls periodically to rotate said third-mentioned means and said table a fraction of a revolution in a horizontal plane and about a different axis to displace the can being filled and replace it by an empty can.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,355,071 Hendrickson Aug. 8, 1944 6 Hinson Oct. 16, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain of 1914 Great Britain Ian. 20, 1927 Switzerland Sept. 16, 1942 Germany Sept. 24, 1923 Germany Feb. 1, 1934 France Sept. 4, 1933