US2967026A - Quills or bobbins - Google Patents

Description

1961 c. VAN DEVENTER m 2,967,026

QUILLS OR BQBBINS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 9, 1956 I l| 1 l 1 i m M INVENTOR CHRISTOPHER VAN DEVENTER ZZZ ATTORNEYS m 3., 1961 c. VAN DEV-ENTER m 2,967,025

QUILLS 0R BOBBINS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 9, 1956 INVENTOR BY a ATTORNEYS United States Patent QUILLS on BOBBINS Christopher Van Deventer III, Knoxville, Tenn., assignor to National Plastics, Inc., Knoxville, Tenn., 21 corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 9, 1956, Ser. No. 570,632

7 Claims. (Cl. 242-11831) This invention relates to quills or bobbins adapted to carry masses of thread or yarn thereon. Such quills or bobbins are used in spinning, weaving, winding, and other types of machinery.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my application Serial No. 322,986, filed November 28, 1952, now abandoned.

For many years the standard quills or bobbins ordinarily used in commercial operations have been made principally of wood. However, it has been recognized that wood has certain qualities which are undesirable for this service. In particular, wood lacks dimensional stability, and it is subject to rapid wear and splintering. As a result of this recognition of the deficiencies of wood as a material for use in the making of quills and bobbins,there have been proposals that these articles be made of plastic. It is with this type of plastic quills or bobbins that the present invention is concerned.

An object of this invention is to provide a plastic quill or bobbin which will be strong and which will meet the requirements imposed on such articles by the machinery in which they are used.

Another object of this invention is to provide a plastic quill or bobbin molded of thermosetting plastic reinforced with fibers, and shaped so as to produce uniform distribution of the fibers during the molding operation. In particular, this invention contemplates a novel configuration for the joint between the body portion and the butt portion of a plastic bobbin.

' Still another object of this invention is to provide a plastic bobbin of minimum weight by the inclusion of air spaces therein.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a plastic quill or bobbin having a metallic sheath attached to the butt portion and a part of the body portion thereof during the molding operation.

Another object of this invention is to provide a plastic quill or bobbin which will not be crushed or distorted materially by the thread wound thereon.

The foregoing objects are' accomplished according to this invention by a combination of features. The outer surface of the bobbin is shaped in such a way that the The weight of the plastic quills or bobbins according to the present invention may be minimized by forming the plastic portion of the structure as two elements adapted to fit together to provide a unit in which the desired inside diameter and the desired outside diameter for the bobbin are maintained. However, there preferably are air spaces between the inner and outer plastic members. Another technique which may be employed in reducing the weight of a plastic bobbin is to form air spaces along the inner surface of the bobbin by providing lands and grooves on that surface. The lands may form an interrupted bore of a shape such as to assure proper cooperation between the bobbin and a spindle, while the grooves will provide longitudinally extending air spaces in the bobbin.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of certain embodiments thereof, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a plastic quill or bobbin according to this invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of the quill or bobbin shown in Fig. 1, taken along line 2-2 in Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vcross sectional view taken along the axis of another typeof quill or bobbin embodying certain of the features of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of a modification which includes a metallic sheath on the bobbin;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of the quill or bobbin of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is an end view of the butt portion of the quill or bobbin of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is a transverse cross sectional view similar to Fig. 3, but showing still another modification of the invention.

The quill or bobbin 2, shown in Fig. 1, is a filling bobbin, formed almost entirely of reinforced plastic. The plastic employed preferably is phenol furol formaldehyde, but other thermosettting plastic compounds or butt portion and the body portion thereof are connected are no grooves or edges which may trap or interfere with the thread carried by the bobbin. The sheath also may include circumferential ridges for cooperation with holding means disposed in a shuttle, and these ridges may be filled with plastic material during the molding operation.

polyester resins, such as well known urea, or alkyd compounds may be used for this purpose. The plastic material preferably is reinforced with fibers of glass, cotton, hemp, etc.

The quill or bobbin 2 shown in Fig. 1 includes a butt portion 4, a body portion 6about which a mass of the thread 8 may be wound, and a tip portion 10. The mass of thread 8 is shown in dot-dash lines in Fig. l in the interest of clarity. T

It should be noted also that the inside surface of the bobbin 2 of Fig. 1 is shown in dotted lines. These lines represent the surfaces which cooperate with the spindle when the bobbin is in use. Therefore, it will be seen that in its overall outside and inside shape, the bobbin of Fig. 1 is very similar to the bobbins of the prior art. It will be evident also that this bobbin meets the requirements imposed upon quills or bobbins .by the spinning machinery and by the looms, etc., in which they are used. The body portion 6 of the bobbin 2 may have exactly the same shape and external dimensions as conventional bobbins, and the inner surface of the bobbin 2 may have the same shape and dimensions as the inner surface of conventional bobbins.

In spite of the overall similarity of Fig. 1 to the prior art, oneof the features of this invention is illustrated in Fig. 1. This is the novel joint or junction 12 between the butt portion 4 and the body portion 6 of the bobbin. This junction'is formed as a' reversed curve, and itis free of any sharp turns, corners, or the like. Byiu'sing 'a' compound radius it is possible to prevent turbulence of the glass fibers and to prevent disintegration of these ifibers during the molding operation. In this respect, a bobbin according to the present invention is superior to plastic bobbins of the prior art because, since the fibers are distributed in a desired fashion, the structure is much stronger.

v Turning now to Fig. 2, it is pointed out that the bobbin 32 actually comprises two separately formed plastic memibers 14 and 16. The plastic member 14 has an outer isurface shaped to give the bobbin 2 the desired external "configuration, while the plastic member 16 has an inner surface shaped to give the bobbin 2 the desired internal configuration. The external configuration of the bobbin has been discussed in connection with Fig. 1. The internal configuration now will be described in connection with Fig. 2.

It will be seen that the inner surface of the bobbin 2 .inciudes a converging zone 18 near the end of the butt portion 4 for guiding the bobbin relative to a spindle as the bobbin is being placed upon the spindle. The inte- :rior of the bobbin also includes a circumferential ridge ':2() in the butt portion 4 of the bobbin. This ridge 20 :assures proper coaction between the inner surface of the bobbin and the springs which protrude from the spindle. 'In the body portion of the bobbin, the interior surface is tapered so as to be substantially parallel with the outer surface. In the tip portion of the bobbin, the interior surface of the member 16 becomes cylindrical, as shown in the zone designated 22 in Fig. 2. This cylindrical bare cooperates with the upper end portion of a spindle .and serves to align the bobbin with the axis of the spindle.

The plastic members 14 and 16 are so related to each other as to leave air spaces extending longitudinally through a substantial part of the length of the bobbin 2. This relationship can be best understood by reference to .Fig. 3. This view shows that the outer plastic member 14 has a plurality of teeth, lands, ribs, or radial proiec- 'tions 24 protruding inwardly from its inner surface 26. These lands are relatively long in Fig. 3 because only a few of them have been shown. However, it will be understood that any suitable number of lands 24 may be provided, and that they may be of any desired length. The inner plastic member 16 also includes a number of ribs, lands, teeth, or radial projections 28 protruding from its outer surface 30.

The radial projections 24 and 28 interlock, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the two members 14 and 16 must rotate together at all times. This longitudinal interlocking is of substantial extent so that the loads imposed upon the radial projections are minimized. It should be noted also that the radial projections 24 and 28 are shorter than the distances between the inner surface26 of the outer plastic member 14 and the outer surface 30 of the inner plastic member 16 so that air spaces 32 and 34 are formed be tween the members 14 and 16. These air spaces 'materially reduce the overall weight of the quill or bobbin 2.

In the preferred form of the invention, the outer and inner plastic members 14 and 16 are provided with radial projections over the central portion of their lengths. Within the butt 4 and within the tip 10, the two members may be in radial contact with each other. This construction gives the bobbin a certain amount of radial flexibility, which is important when threads such as nylon are wound thereon. The central, yarn carrying body portion 6 of the outer plastic member 14 may flex inwardly slightly without disturbing the inner diameter of the bobbin 2 in any way. Hence, even if the outer surface of the bobbin is deflected somewhat, there is no danger that the bobbin may become frictionally locked upon the spindle. il:11f pla'sfi members 14 and 16 may be assembled simply by inserting the inner member 16 into the butt end of theouter member 14 and sliding the two members together. The parts may be removably held in the assembled position by a metallic ring 36, which can be sprung into grooves 38 and 40 on the inner and outer surfaces of the members 14 and 16, respectively. Any other suitable fastening means may be employed, if desired.

Fig. 4 illustrates a warp bobbin 42, which incorporates certain of the features of the filling bobbin 2 shown in Figs. 1 to 3. The warp bobbin 42 includes an outer plastic member 44, and an inner plastic member 46, connected together by a metallic spring 48, or other suitable means. The outer plastic member 44 has an external surface which includes a yarn carrying body portion 50 and a butt or base portion 52. The external shape may be the same as that of the prior art bobbins of this type. The inner surface of the inner plastic member 46 preferably conforms in shape with the inner surfaces of the bobbins of the prior art.

The plastic members 44 and 46 are in radial contact near their ends, but they are spaced apart along their central portions. The central portion of the inner member 46 includes ribs, teeth, lands, or radial projections 54, projecting from the outer surface 56 thereof, and the central portion of the outer member 44 includes ribs, teeth, lands, or radial projections 58 protruding from its inner surface 60. The radial projections 54 and 58 are interlocked in the manner indicated in Fig. 3 to prevent relative rotation between the two plastic members 44 and 45.

The fact that the plastic members 44 and 46 are not permitted to rotate relative to one another is particularly significant in connection with the warp bob-bin structure shown in Fig. 4, in that it eliminates my problem which might arise in connection with the driving notches 62 in the butt portion of the bobbin if such relative movement did occur. The notches. 62 must, of course, extend through both the outer and the inner plastic member 44 and 46.

Fig. 5 illustrates a filling bobbin 63 which may be used in automatic looms, for example. in some looms of this type the presence or absence of a supply of thread on the bobbin is detected periodically by a feeler element which moves into contact with an area of the bobbin which normally is covered by thread. If, however, the thread has been exhausted, or nearly exhausted from the bobbin, the feeler comes into contact with a metallic element on the surface of the bobbin to produce an electrical signal which initiates replenishment of the exhausted bobbin.

In the embodiment of Figs. 5, 6, and 7, such metallic element is in the form of a thin metallic sheath64 of stainless steel, chrome steel, brass or the like. The sheath 64 surrounds adjacent zones of the body portion 66 and the butt portion 68 of the bobbin, and it conforms precisely to the contour of the portions. -Conformation in shape between the sheath 64 and the plastic member 70 thereb'eneath is assured by reason of the fact that the two are connected together during the molding-operation.

It is pointed out that the plastic member 70, which constitutes the main structural element of the bobbin or quill shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, isprovided with radially extending shoulders 72 and 74 in its outer surface adjacent the ends of the sheath 64. These shoulders 72 and 74 actually abut against the ends of the sheath, and they are of an extent equal to the thickness of the sheath so that smooth joints are formed between the sheath and the plastic member 70. There are no grooves or projec tions which might interfere with the movements of the thread carried by the bobbin.

The metallic sheath 64 includes several grooves 76 in the part thereof encircling the body portion 66 ofjt he plastic member 70. These grooves serve to lock the sheath in the desired position and to hold the initial turns wound thereon.

In the butt portion of the bobbin the metallic sheath 64 is providedwith circumferential ridges 78 which are adapted to cooperate with means within a shuttle to hold ase'aoae the bobbin in place during a weaving operation. In the prior art, bobbins have been provided with rings around their butt portion for a similar purpose. However, these rings usually have been in the form of strips of wire, and the rings have been interrupted because of the necessity for springing the wire into place on the butt portions. The protrusions 78 of this invention, however, may be continuous so that no gaps, which might accidentally snag a thread, are present. r

The protrusions 78 in the metallic sheath 64 are completely filled, as shown in Fig. 6, by the plastic material of which the plastic member 70 is made. This is accomplished during the molding operation. Thus, the forma tion of the rings for cooperation with the shuttle is completed without an additional step, such as the attaching of wire rings to a formed body. 7

The plastic member 70 has a novel internal configuration. In the butt portion 68, and in the tip portion 80, the plastic member 70 is provided with a number of radial grooves 82 which reduce materially the overall weight of the quill or bobbin. These grooves 82 correspond in a general way with the spaces between the projections 24 on the interior surface of the plastic member 14 shown in Figs. 2 and 3, although it will be seen that they do not occupy precisely the same positions. The function in both cases is to provide longitudinally extending air spaces within the plastic bobbins,

The lands 84, i.e., the portions intermediate the grooves 82, have their innermost surfaces shaped so as to give an interrupted bore to the bobbin, which bore is of a configuration which adapts it for cooperation with a spindle. In this connection, it is intended that the configuration of the interrupted bore be the same as that found in conventional bobbins.

Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view generally similarto the cross sectional view shown in Fig. 3, but it illustrates still another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, a metallic sheath 86 is associated with a plastic bobbin 87 which includes outer and inner plastic members 88 and 90, respectively. The plastic members 88 and 90 are related to each other in the same way that the plastic members 14 and 16 of Figs. 2 and 3 are related to each other. The purpose, again, is to minimize the weight of the quill or bobbin. It should be noted that the achievement of this objective is even more compelling in the case of a bobbin having a metallic sheath than it is with a bobbin such as that shown in Fig. 2.

Fig. 8 also illustrates another variation of the invention in that it shows a much larger number of projections, ribs, lands, or teeth 92 and 94, on the outer and inner plastic members 88 and 90, respectively, than the corresponding illustration of the embodiment of Figs. 1 to 3. This difference will serve to emphasize that. the actual number of radial projections and the arrangement of these projections are factors which may be varied somewhat without departing from the principles of the invention.

Still other variations and modifications will be obvious to persons skilled in the art. For example, the outer plastic member or shell of the bobbin might have a smooth inside surface, and the inner plastic member or core might have lands projecting from its surface into direct contact with the smooth inside surface of the shell with a press fit. Moreover, where both the inner and the outer plastic members are provided with lands and grooves, as in Figs. 3 and 8, one of the sets of lands may project into radial contact with the adjacent face of the other member, leaving only one set of air spaces instead of two.

It is intended, therefore, that the foregoing detailed description of certain embodiments of the invention should be considered as exemplary only, and that the scope of the invention should be ascertained from the following claims.

I claim:

1. A quill or bobbin comprising a first elongated hollow member having an outer surface shaped to provide a .body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound and an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a second elongated hollow member disposed within said firstmember and having an inner surface shaped to receive and to cooperate with a spindle and an outer surface having portions to engage and support said first member, the inner surface of said first member and the outer surface of said second member being radially spaced along a portion of their lengths and being provided along the last-mentioned portion of their lengths with radial projections and recesses for receiving such projections so as to lock said members against rotation relative to each other, the positional relationship of said projections and recesses being such as to leave air spaces between the ends of the projections and the bases of the recesses.

2. A quill or bobbin comprising a first elongated hollow plastic member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound and an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a second elongated hollow plasticmember disposed within said first member and having an inner surface shaped to receive and to cooperate with a spindle and an outer surface having portions to engage and sup port said first member, the inner surface of said first member and the outer surface of said second member being radially spaced along a portion of their lengths and at least one of them being provided along the lastmentioned portion of its length with longitudinally extending radial ribs and grooves between said ribs so as to leave longitudinally extending spaces in said bobbin.

3. A quill or bobbin comprising a first elongated hollow member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound and an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a second elongated hollow member disposed within said first member and having an inner surface shaped to receive and to cooperate with a spindle, said first and second members each being formed separately in one integral piece of thermosetting plastic material having glass fibers distributed therethrough, the inner surface of said first member and the outer surface of said second member being radially spaced along a portion of their lengths and being provided along the last-mentioned portion of their lengths with longitudinally extending radial ribs disposed in interlocking relationship to prevent rotation of said first member relative to said second member, the ribs on at least one of said members projecting radially distances less than the radial distance between said members so as to leave longitudinally extending air spaces in said bobbin.

4. A quill or bobbin comprising a first elongated hollow plastic member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound, an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a tip portion at the other end of said body portion; an a second elongated hollow plastic member disposed within said first member having an enlargement at one end and a tip portion at the other end and having an inner surface shaped to receive a spindle; the outer surface of the enlargement and the tip portion of said second member engaging and supporting the inner surface of the enlargement and the tip portion of said first member, the inner surface of said first member and the outer surface of said second member being spaced apart along substantially the entire portions thereof positioned opposite said body portion and being provided with radial ribs extending longitudinally along substantially the entire lengths of said last-mentioned portions thereof; said ribs being disposed in interlocking relationship to prevent relative rotation between said members and having radial extents .less than the radial distance between the surfaces from which they project so as to leave longitudinally plastic member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound, an enlargement at one end of said body portion,

and a tip portion at the other end of said body portion;

and a second elongated hollow plastic member disposed within said first member and having an inner surface shaped to receive a spindle; the outer surface of said second member supporting against radial deflection the inner surface of said first member at positions opposite said enlargement and said tip portion; said inner surface of said first member and said outer surface of said second member being spaced apart along substantially the entire portions thereof positioned opposite said body portion and being provided with radial ribs extending longitudinally along substantially the entire lengths of said last-mentioned portions thereof; said ribs being disposed in interlocking relationship to prevent relative rotation between said members and having radial extents less than the radial distance between the surfaces from which they project so as to leave longitudinally extending air spaces in said bobbin opposite said body portion.

6. A quill or bobbin comprising a first elongated hollow plastic member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound, an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a tip portion at the other end of said body portion; a second elongated hollow plastic member disposed within said first member and having an inner surface shaped to receive a spindle; and fastening means for holding said second member within said first member; the outer surface of said second member supporting against radial deflection the inner surface of said first member at positions opposite to said enlargement and said tip portion; said inner surface of said first member and said outer surface of said second member being spaced apart along substantially the entire portions thereof positioned opposite said body portion and being provided with radial ribs extending longitudinally along substantially the entire lengths of said last-mentioned portions thereof; said ribs being disposed in interlocking relationship to prevent relative rotation between said members and having radial extents less than the radial distance between the surfaces from whichthey project so as to leave longitudinally extending air spaces in said bobbin opposite said body portion. I v

7. A quill or bobbin comprising afirst elongated hollow plastic member having an outer surface shaped to provide a body portion upon which a mass of thread may be wound, an enlargement at one end of said body portion, and a tip portion at the other end of said body portion; a second elongated hollow plastic member disposed Within said first member and having an inner surface shaped to receive a spindle; and means for removably connecting said first and second members together; the outer surface of said second member supporting against radial deflection the inner surface of said first member at positions opposite said enlargement and said tip portion; said inner surface of said first member and said outer surface of said second member being spaced apart along substantially the entire portions thereof posi- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Land July 12, 1904 2,311,613 Slayter Feb. 16, 1943 2,585,999 Bunch Feb. 19, 1952 2,654,549 Rappleyea Oct. 6, 1953 2,656,127 Bunch Oct. 20, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 963,831 France July 21, 1950

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