US2762107A - Inching control operator for warpers - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 11, 1956 R. w. ANDRES ETAL 2,752,107

INOHING CONTROL OPERATOR FOR WARPERS Filed July 15, -1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 1N V EN TOR.

fczph IV. Andres TTORNE )f5 Sept. 11, 1956 R. w. ANDI'QES ET AL INCHING CONTROL OPERATOR FOR WARPERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept' 11, 1956 I R. w. ANDRES ET AL 2,762,107

INCHING CONTROL OPERATOR FOR WARPERS Filed July 15, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 l ATTORNEYS Sept. 11, 1956 R. w. ANDRES ETAL 2,762,107

INCHING CONTROL OPERATOR FOR WARPERS 4 sheets-sheet 4 Filed July 15, 1954 INVENTOR. fzph PK Andres Fran/0m Townsend ATTORNB/.S'

INCHING CONTROL OPERATOR FOR WARPERS Ralph W. Andres and Franklin L. Townsend, Rockford, Ill., assignors to Barber-Colman Company, Rockford, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application July 15, 1954, Serial No. 443,462

9 Claims. (Cl. 28-39) This invention relates to machines for winding threads such as warpers, in which the threads are wound on a beam. The latter may be turned by a drum in frictional driving engagement with the beam periphery in which case the beam is mounted to move away from the drum as the mass of yarn on the beam builds up. In a machine of this type, a let-off mechanism may operate to hold the beam against the drum with a predetermined pressure while still permitting the beam to move away from the drum as its diameter increases.

vThe general object of the invention is to provide in a warper of the above character a new and improved mechanism which manually controls the turning of the beam so that the beam may be inched around when looking for the end of a broken thread and which, regardless of either the size or the position of the beam, is always accessible to the operator.

A more detailed object is to control the turning of the beam through a pedal which is located under the outer edge of the beam and which moves outwardly with the beam in response to the build-up of yarn on the beam.

Another object is to move the control pedal in response to the increasing mass of yarn on the beam by utilizing movable parts of the let-off mechanism to shift the pedal.

A further object is to shift the pedal through a connection which automatically is released when the beam reaches the full position so that the pedal stops when the beam moves beyond the full position to the dolng position and does not interfere with the removal of a full beam.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a side elevation of a warper incorporating the novel control mechanism of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. l but illustrates the positions of the parts when the beam is in the full position. s

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 3 3 in Fig. 4.

Fig. 4 is a plan view with parts broken away and shown in section.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the control mechanism.

' Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the releasable connection.

As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the invention is embodied in a warper in which a plurality of warp threadsl are drawn from a Creel (not shown) and are wound on a horizontally disposed Warp beam 11. The latter is supported between and journaled on the upper ends of two parallel generally upright arms 12 (Figs. l and 4) which are pivotally connected at their lower ends to a base 13 to swing about a horiaten-t yto motor 16 mounted on the base turns the drum throughA a belt 17 (Fig. 4) and a clutch 18, which may be of the type disclosed in the Colman Patent No. 2,207,051.

The drum 14 is disposed adjacent the arms 12 in contact with the mass 19 of threads on the beam and, due to this peripheral driving engagement, the drum draws the threads from the creel at a constant rate. As the threads build up on the beam, the arms swing away from the driving drum from the empty position at the left of the vertical as viewed in Fig. l across the vertical to the full position as illustrated in Fig. 2; The threads from the creel are guided to the beam by a comb 20 which is supported between spaced parallel plates 2l. The later are pivotally connected to extensions 22 of the arms 12 and to the upper ends of links 23 which parallel the arms and are pivoted at their lower ends to the base, the arms, the links and the plates constituting a parallelogram linkage whichr swings the comb back with the beam while maintaining the comb horizontally disposed.

During winding of the beam 11, the latter is held in driving engagement with the drum 14 by two elongated links 24 extending transversely of the beam on opposite sides thereof and pivotally connected at one end to the arms 12 adjacent the beam axis. The links pull the beam toward the drum, the pulling force being derived from a cluster of contractile springs 25 disposed on one side of the warper and acting through a force multiplying linkage 26. The latter includes a short arm'27 projecting downwardly from a stub shaft 28 journaled on a bracket 29 on the base 13, the lower free end of the arm being pivotally connected to the outer end of the link 24. The outer end of a horizontal arm 30 fast on the stub shaft is connected through a vertical link 31 to a shorter horizontal arm 32 rigid with a shaft 33 which is journaled in spaced brackets 34 and extends across the base where on the opposite side of the base it is connected to the other link 24 through corresponding arms 27, 30 and 32 and a link 31. Depending from the shaft 33 is an arm 35 whose lower end is anchored to one end of the cluster of springs 25 thus completing the connection between the springs and each of the links 24. With the foregoing arrangement, the springs 25 acting through the linkage 26 urge the links 24 to the left as viewed in Fig. l and this holds the beam 11 against the driving drum 14. If desired, the force exerted by the springs may be modiiied as the beam builds up and, for this purpose, a cam 36 is secured to the lower end of the parallelogram link 23 to turn with the latter and varies the tension of the springs through a follower 37 journaled on one arm of a bell crank lever 38, the other arm of the lever being connected to the springs.

Preferably, the links 24 are extensible and are elongated as the yarn mass 19 builds up on the beam 11 so that the tension of the springs 25 is varied only by the cam 36 and not by swingingof the arms 12. Thus, the links constitute a part of a let-oi mechanism which also includes a means for extending the links inresponse to the increasing diameter of the yarn mass. Herein, the links are made extensible by forming each from a screw 39 threaded into a nut 40 which is fast on the end of a tube 41 telescoping with the screw. The screw is turned to extend the link by a reversible motor 42 which is connected to each screw by a belt 43 (Fig. 4), a clutch 44 and a chain 45 extending around a sprocket wheel 46 on the driven shaft of the clutch and a second sprocket wheel 47 on the screw. The motor is operated con- 3. tinuously in the direction to extend the links and the clutch 44 normally is disengaged but is engaged periodically during the winding operation. When the clutch is disengaged, a brake 48 is engaged andY holds the-clutch shaft against turning. The clutch and the brake may be f the electromagnetic type and energized or deenergized by a switch 49. The latter is actuated by the arm` 32 in the linkage 26 so that theV links V24 are extendedat a rate correlated with the build-up of the yarn mass 19 on the beam 11.

When one of the threads V breaks, it is necessary for the operator to'lind the broken end .on the beam 11 and tie this end to the corresponling end from the -creel. Finding the end of the beam may require turningthe beam, especially when the mass .19 becomes rather large. For this purpose, a manually operated control element S0, which herein is Yan elongated pedal, is disposed adjacent the beam where it may be depressed by thev op-v erator and acts through the clutch 18 to inch the'beam around. Preferably, the pedal parallels the beam and is disposed under the latter so that it may be depressed easily by the operator whilepicking the broken thread end off the beam.

In order that the pedal 50 is accessible to the operator regardless of the size of the yarn mass 19 and the angular position of the arms 12, the present invention contemplates mounting the pedal in a novel manner tomoveV is shifted a short distance Aeach time `the screw 39 is turned.

As illustrated in the drawings (seeespecially Figs. 5

and 6), the pedal 50 may be a at bar secured to lat.

. moves the linkage 26 thus turning the arm 32 and closing the switch 49. The latter `deenergizes the brake 48 and energizes the clutch 44 4so that, through the clutch and the chains 45the screws 39 are turned. As a result, the tubes 41 are moved forwardly carrying the pins 55 with them. Movement of the Vpins is transmitted through the blocksl to the levers 62 which are swung about their fulcrums thereby 'shifting the links 64 endwise. Such shifting rolls the shaft 53 forward moving the pedal 50 out toward the outer edge of the beam.

. shaft-53 adjacent one end thereof and journaled in a bracket67 (Fig. '4) which isY supported on the shaft 53;l

The two shafts are connected by a finger 68 projectingrearwardly from the adjacent collar 52 and engaging the underside of a second finger 69 that projects later- 'ally from the shaft 66. Thus, when the pedal 50 .iside pressed,the shaft 53 is turned and this turns the shaft 66- through the ngers 68 and69.

AGenerally coaxial Vwith the shaft 66 is a square shaftfl which is coupled to the former by a universal jomt 71.

' and slides through webs 72 (Fig. 3) on the base 13. The

erally projecting arms 51 on spaced collars 52. The

latter are fast on a shaft 53 whichthus turns when the pedal is depressed. The shaft parallels the pedal and is supported at opposite ends by rollers 54 journaled on the shaft and rolling on the floor. Through the medium of the rollers, the shaft and the pedal are adapted for horizontal edgewise movement.

To move the shaft 53 and the pedal 50 in response vto elongation of the links 24, the shaft is connected tothe tubular parts 41 of the links so that, as theseY parts are threaded outwardly on the screws. 39, the shaft and the pedal also are moved outwardly. In the presentV instance, the connection between eachV tube 41 and the shaft 53 includes a pin 55 projecting through the spaced horizontal shaft 63 (Fig. 5). r The latter extends transversely across the warper and is journaled at opposite ends on the stationary brackets 29. An elongated link 64, which in this case is generally L-shaped for clearance purposes, is pivotally connected at one end tothe llower end of the lever 62 and at the other end to the shaft 53 thus completing the connection between onelink 24 and j one end of the shaft. As illustrated in Fig. 5, a duplicate linkage'connects the second link and the other endof the shaft. Y

With the foregoing arrangement, thedrum 14 drives the beam 11 and,as the yarn mass 19-increases in diameter, the links tend to be pulled forwardly. This movement, which is against the action of the springs 25,

square shaft constitutes one part of thesliding connection4 65 the other part of which is a cam 73 formed with a square hole 74 receiving the shaft 70 so that the latterA may slide axially relative to the cam butin any position, i it is operable .to turn the cam.

75 on the cam engages a follower roll 76 carried on the end of one arm 77 of a bell crank lever 78 which is fulcrumed on an upright post 79. The other arm 80 of the. lever is coupled through a pin and slot connection 81 to :the operator 82 of the clutch 1S. Thus, regardless of the position of the pedal 50, the latter is operable to en-` gage the clutch, this being effected throughthe shafts 53,

66 and 7 0, the sliding connection 65, the camand followerv 75Vand 76 and the bell crank lever 7S. l After the beam 11 has been filled, he clutch y44 isen:

gaged independently of ythe switch 49 to turn thes'crews timeit is removed from the arms.

nection between the links and the pedal is such that it is broken when the beam reaches the .full position. As a result, the pedal' moves only to the position shown in Fig.

2 and does not continue to move during dofng. Be. cause of this, the beam as it is dotted swingsY clear of the.

pedal.

are utilized to form the releasable connection between Ythe.V links 24 and the pedal 50.' For this purpose,.the` f length of the block is such that, when the parts reachV thev full beam position shown in Fig. 2, the pin engages the block adjacent the lower end thereof. movement of the tube 41 such as occurs during dotiing,

the pin passes under the block and, therefore, the cou;

nection is released so thatv the pedal does not move further. After the full beam 11 has been doffed and an empty beam loaded on the arms 12, Vthe motor 42 is reversed to shorten the links 24 and to return the arms 12 andtheengages an inclined surface 84 (Fig. 6) on theforward edge of the block 61 and this surface cams the pin back` against the action of the spring 59. When the pin passes An axially facing surface` In the presentiustance, the pin 55 and the block 6I.'

UponV further This turns the clear of the block, it snaps back into operative position and all the parts are ready for the next windingoperation.

It will be observed that, with a warper constructed as described above, the pedal 50 for manually controlling the clutch 18 always is disposed near the front of the beam regardless of the position or size of the latter. Thus, at any stage in the winding operation, the pedal is accessible to the operator as he stands in front of the beam and the pedal is, therefore, easily used to inch the beam around when looking for the end of a broken thread. Since a releasable connection is used between the links 24 and the pedal, however, the pedal does not move with the beam to the do'ing position and hence it does not interfere with the removal of the iilled beam.

We claim as our invention: l

l. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis and adapted to carry a warp beam, a clutch having a driven element, a friction driving drum connected to said element and engaging the periphery of said beam to turn the same thereby to wind threads on the beam, means holding said beam against said drum while permitting said arm to swing away from the drum as the threads build up on the beam, a pedal disposed beneath said beam, mechanism responsive to swinging of said arm to shift said pedal laterally away from said drum to maintain a substantially constant relation between the pedal and the beam, a rst part movable when said pedal is depressed, and a second part movable with said iirst part and operable when moved to operate said clutch, said iirst part being shiftable with said pedal and relative to said second part while remaining operatively connected to said second part.

2. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm pivotally supported at its lower end to turn about a horizontal axis and adapted to carry a warp beam, a device operable when actuated to turn said beam and wind threads thereon, said arm swinging said beam about said axis during such winding, a control element disposed adjacent said beam and mounted to move along a linear path in generally the same direction as said arm swings, means operable to move said element with said arm whereby the relation of the element and the mass of threads on the beam remains substantially constant, and a connection between said device and said element to permit the element to actuate the device, said connection including parts slidable relative to each other during movement of said element while remaining in operative engagement with each other.

3. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis between first and second positions and adapted to carry a warp beam, a driving drum frictionally engaging said beam to turn .the beam and wind threads thereon, mechanism operable to hold said beam against said drum while permitting said arm to swing out as the threads build up on the beam and including a part movable with the arm, a pedal disposed beneath said beam for outward movement away from said drum and operatively connected to the drum to control the turning thereof, a movable member linked to said pedal, and opposed abutments supported respectively by said part and said member and engaging each other to move the member and hence said pedal in response to swinging of said arm, said abutments passing clear of each other when said arm is in said second position to permit the arm to be turned beyond the second position without moving said pedal and one of said abutments being yieldably supported to pass back around the other when said arm is returned to said rst position.

4. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis between rst and second positions and adapted to carry a warp beam, a driving drum frictionally engaging said beam to turn the beam and windg Athreads thereon, mechanismoperable to hold-said beam beam for outward movement away from said drum .and v operatively connected to the drum to control the turning thereof, a movable member linked to said pedal, and

opposed abutments supported respectively bysaid partV and said member and engaging each other to move the member and hence said pedal in response to swingingv of said arm, said abutments passingclear of each other when said arm is in said second position to permit thev arm to be turned beyond the second position without` moving said pedal.

5. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm adapted to carry a Warp beam and pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis between rst and second positions, means for turning said beam to wind threads thereon, said arm swinging toward said second position as the threads are Wound on said beam, a pedal disposed beneath said-beam and supported for horizontal movement with said arm, means responsive to said pedal to control the turning of said beam, and mechanism operable to move said pedal outwardly with said arm to maintain the pedal accessible during winding of the threads, said mechanism including a connection releasable when said arm reaches said second position thereby to permit the arm to be moved beyond the second position without further movement of the pedal. l

6. In a warper, the combination of, a generally upright arm pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis and adapted to carry a warp beam, a driving drum frictionally engaging the periphery of said beam and operable to turn the beam to Wind threads thereon, mechanism operable to hold said beam against said drum while permitting said arm to swing as the threads build up on the beam, an elongated pedal parallel to and disposed beneath said beam, rollers supporting said pedal for edgewise movement away from said drum, a member movable in response to outward swinging of said arm, a link connecting said member and said pedal and operable to roll the pedal outwardly as said arm swings said beam away from said drum, and means connecting said pedal and said drum to control the turning of the drum selectively in response to depressing the pedal.

7. In a warper, the combination of, a friction driving drum mounted to turn about a horizontal axis, a generally upright arm adapted to support a warp beam in peripheral engagement with said drum and pivotally supported at its lower end to swing about a horizontal axis away from said drum as threads are wound on said beam, an extensible link connected at one end to said arm, means yieldably acting on said link to urge said beam against said drum, mechanism operable to extend said link as said arm swings away from said drum, a manually operable control member disposed beneath said beam and operatively connected to said drum to control the rotation of the latter, said member being mounted for movement away from said drum, and means responsive to the length of said link to move said member away from said drum as the thread builds up on said beam.

8. In a warper, the combination of, a base, a generally upright arm pivotally connected at its lower end to said base to swing about a horizontal axis and adapted to support a warp beam, a friction driving drum engaging the periphery of said beam to turn the same thereby to wind threads on the beam, yieldable mechanism operating on said arm to hold said beam against said drum and having a part movable to permit the arm to swing away from the drum as the threads build up on the beam, a pedal disposed beneath said beam and operatively connected tofs'aidlgglrtimv `iJ'Jicontrol the rotation of t'hesame, and a connection vbetween said pedal and said part operable to move the pedal away from said drum with said beam inV response to movement of the part whereby the pedal is accessible regardless of the position and size of the beam.

9. In a machine for Winding threads on a beam, the combination of,l a base, a generally upright arm supported at its lower end on said base to swing about a horizontal axis and adapted to carry a warp beam adjacent its upper end, mechanism for turning said beam to wind threads thereon, said arm swinging in a predetermined direction about said axis as the threads build up on the beam, an elongated manually operable control memberk generally 8 Y paralleling said axis and disposed alongside said beam, a device operable bysaid member to activate said mechanism and thereby stop and start theturning of the beam,

means supporting said member independently of said armV and for generally horizontal edgewise movement, and a connection between said member and said arm operable to move the member with and in the same general direction as the arm to maintain the member in an accessible position.

References Cited in the le of this patent FOREIGN PATENTS 186,237 Switzerland Dec. 16. 1936

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