US3001388A - Pile fabric formation with varying height - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 26, 1961 R. s. MacCAFFRAY, JR 3,001,338

PILE FABRIC FORMATION WITH VARYING HEIGHT Filed June 13, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORN EYS 25 V 90 V (RI- g; TRECTIFIER INVENTOR zPfX a? MAC CAMP/1r 1x.

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FILE FABRIC FORMATION WITH VARYING HEIGHT Filed June 13, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR W J. mc arm; 16

TTORNEYS Sept. 26, 1961 R. s. MacCAFFRAY, JR 3,001,388

FILE FABRIC FORMATION WITH VARYING HEIGHT Filed June 15, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 II III III INVENTOR mm". Maw; m

United States Patent fOfiice 3,001,388 Patented Sept. 26, 1.961

3,001,388 PILE FABRIC FORMATION WITH VARYING HEIGHT Rex S. MacCalfi-ay, Jr., Boiling Springs, Pa., assignor to C. H. Masland and Sons, Carlisle, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed June 13, 1958, Ser. No. 741,810 Claims. (Cl. 66--84) The present invention relates to the production of high, low and intermediate pile in pile fabrics, and to the production of high and low pile in warp knitted pile fabrics.

A purpose of the invention is to permit the production :of high, low and intermediate pile in pile fabrics formed of successive stitches, such as tufted pile fabrics formed by a gang of needles passing through a backing, and warp knitted pile fabrics, by feeding the pile yarn to the pile fabric making machine selectively by a yarn feed which operates at a high speed or a speed less than the high speed, and during the stitch forming period selectively to maintain the operation of the yarn feed at either the high speed or the speed less than the high speed for a long time interval, an intermediate time interval, or a time interval less than the intermediate time interval.

A funther purpose is to subdivide at least some of the individual pattern elements (directly related to an individual stitch in the fabric) on the drum of the switch mechanism for controlling the pile height in a pile fabric produced by successive stitching into increments of individual pattern elements less than a full pattern element for one stitch, maintaining the switch energized in some cases fora major portion of the individual pattern elements, in some cases for an intermediate portion and in some cases for a minimum portion of an individual pattern element which is less than the intermediate portion.

A further purpose is to subdivide the switch mechanism for controlling the pile height on a pile fabric produced from successive stitches into increments less than a stitch in length, maintaining the switch energized in some cases for a longer period, in some cases for an intermediate period and in some cases for a time less than the intermediate period.

A further purpose is to subdivide the contact making elements on a pattern control pickup drum into contact elements less than a stitch period in length.

A further purpose is to drive a high speed feed roll or a low speed feed roll selectively for a short time interval to make high or low pile on a warp knitting machine, controlling one of a group of pile ends individually.

Further purposes appear in the specification and in the claims.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate a few only of the numerous embodiments in which my invention may appear, selecting the forms shown from the standpoints. of convenience in illustration, satisfactory operation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic perspective showing a warp knitting machine and associated electrical circuits, for producing a warp knitted pile fabric of three dilfereut heights according to the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a development of the pattern pickup drum according to the invention.

FIGURE 3 is a diagrammatic sectional end elevation showing a tufting machine which may be used instead of the warp knitting machine in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a walewise section of a warp knitted pile fabric produced in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal section of a tufted pile fabric produced in accordance with the invention.

Describing in illustration but not in limitation and referring to the drawings:

In the prior art high and low pile has been produced in tufted fabric where a gang of needles carry pile yarn ends through the backing fabric by electrically controlling the pattern on each stitch to determine whether a high speed yarn feed roll or a lower speed yarn feed roll shall be effective to feed the individual yarn end during that stitch. This has involved the utilization of a pattern drum which for one stitch is conductive or makes contact throughout the stitch, and on another stitch is insulated or fails to make contact throughout the stitch. The selective feed has been made effective by pulling back the previous stitch as well known in pattern tufting.

I have discovered that gradations in pile height can be produced by modifying the electric contact mechanism so as to provide a long, a short or an intermediate interval of yarn feed per stitch period.

I have also discovered that I can produce pile projections of two or three or more heights by applying an electrical pattern control of the character described, to the pile yarn ends fed to the pile yarn guide bar or guide bars of a warp knitting machine.

Considering now the form of FIGURE 1 in detail, I there illustrate a Raschel warp knitting machine of the character well known in the art, having a trick plate 20, needle bar 21, latch needles 22, plush point bar 23 and plush points 24 of well known character, cooperating with a sinker comb 25.

A swing bar 26 carries a series of transversely reciproeating or shoggable guide bars, comprising a guide bar 27 having eyes 28 which receive kniting yarn 30 from knitting yarn feed rolls 31 as well known in the art. The swing bar also carries a guide bar 32 having eyes 33 which receive a laid-in binding weft 34 from feed rolls '35. The swing bar also carries a guide bar 36 which has eyes 37 which carry face yarn ends 38 from feed roll mechanism to be described. The swing bar also carries a guide bar 40 which carries eyes 41 which guide backing yarn 42 from feed rolls 43.

The individual pile yarn ends of a set or group, each pass over a separate set of feed rolls, of which a few of the many required across the loom are illustrated.

It will be evident of course that the same set of feed roll mechanisms can take care of the feeding of a number of different pattern repeats of yarn across the loom.

The feed rolls of an individual set comprise a roll 44 which is suitably keyed on a shaft 45 and a roll 46 which is suitably keyed on a parallel shaft 47, the shafts being mounted on suitable bearings, not shown, and the yarn desirably passing under one roll and over the other roll of the set to obtain firm frictional engagement with the roll surface. The two shafts 45 and 47 are intergeared and driven at the same speed by gears 48 and S0.

The selective speed drive of the rolls 44 and 46 is accomplished preferably by clutches. A main drive shaft 51 has keyed thereon a large sprocket 52' and a small sprocket 53. The sprockets are connected by chains 54 and 55 to a set of sprockets 56 and 57 which are coaxial with but freely turn on the shafts 45 in nonengaging clutch position, the sprockets 56 and 57 being mounted on one of the normally free but electromagnetically engaged cooperating clutch members of electromagnetic clutches 53 and 60, the opposite clutch elements being keyed on the shafts 45 as well known. The electromagnetic clutches may be of any suitable character, an example being the Warner Electric Brake Company clutches.

The electromagnetic clutches have eleotromagnets which are grounded at one side internally, and have actu- The pattern control is accomplished by an electrically 3 conducting drum 63, suitably of copper, which is turning at a uniform rate keyed on shaft 64, driven by a motor not shown.

Contact to ground is maintained on the drum by a ground contact finger 65 mounted on an insulating mounting strip 66 and grounded at 67.

The drum has a plurality of contact paths 68 of which only a few are shown, and of which the arrangement is best seen in the development of FIGURE 2. The arcuate travel of the drum 63 in a predetermined distance which will ordinarily be one stitch, is illustrated at 70, and provides a pattern control distance which may be selectively conducting as at 71, or nonconducting as at 72, or partially conducting as at 73 and partially nonconducting as at 7 4, all in the distance of one stitch.

The manner of achieving the insulation, so as to prevent the contact fingers 75 on the insulating strip 66 from making contact at particular intervals, is not critical in the present invention, although a very convenient procedure is to place insulating tape patches, such as pressure sensitive tape patches 76 across the entire space of one longitudinal path, and one stitch or a portion thereof as desired. This method has the advantage that it permits ready change of pattern by simply removing or relocating the insulating patches.

The energizing of the electric clutches is accomplished by leads 77 connected to the individual contact fingers 75, which pass to one terminal of relay coils 78, the opposite side of the relay coils being connected to lead 80 which is connected to one side, preferably the low voltage side 81, of rectifier 82 which is connected to an alternating current power source 83, at commercial voltage and frequency. The frame of the rectifier is grounded at 84. The opposite or high voltage terminal 85 of the rectifier is connected by lead 86 to two fixed contacts 87 and 88 which are selectively connected by the movable contact 90 of the relay either with fixed contact 91 which energizes or causes to grip the high speed magnetic clutch, or with fixed contact 92 which energizes or causes to grip the low speed magnetic clutch.

In operation, it will be evident that in accordance with well known procedure in a Raschel warp knitting machine, backing weft yarn is laid in, and following the procedure of my copending application Serial No. 682,926, filed September 9, 1957, for Knitted Fabric Having Lay-in Weft, now abandoned, I lay in binding weft, wrap pile yarn around plush points and eventually bind the backing yarn, and the laid-in weft in stitches of knitting chain as well known.

It will of course be evident that the same principle will apply with any other warp knitting construction.

During the cycle of the warp knitting machine, depending upon the feed, the loops, when cast off by the plush points or when out on the plush points, will have a low tension if the high speed feed has been used, or a higher tension if the low speed feed has been used. Furthermore, if the high speed has been used for only a portion of the stitch duration and the low speed feed has been used for another portion of the stitch duration, the pile loop will be formed under a higher tension than if the high speed feed had been used throughout the stitch duration. Likewise, if the low speed feed were used throughout the stitch duration, the loop tension will be higher than if the high speed feed had been used for some part of the stitch duration.

As a consequence, depending upon the relative proportion of the stitch period during which the individual pile yarn end is supplied by the high speed feed compared to the portion of the stitch duration through which the individual pile yarn end is supplied by the low speed feed, the loop as cast off or as cut by the plush point will have a more. or less pronounced tendency to pull back or pull down, and so. the final pile will be of varying height.

This is made effective according to the present invention by the presence and location or absence of the in- 4 sulating areas 76 in the pattern control path for the particular pile yarn end on the pattern drum 63. When the contact finger 75 encounters a contact area, and for so long as it encounters the contact area, it energizes the appropriate relay 78 which closes fixed contact 87, movable contact and fixed contact 91 to energize electromagnetic clutch 58 which includes the fast moving sprocket, which then drives shafts 45 and 47 at the higher speed for so long as the contact finger 75 makes contact.

As soon as the contact finger 75 ceases to make contact (and this may happen at the end of the stitch or of a subsequent stitch, or once or several times during the stitch), the relay 78 deenergizes and contacts 88, 90 and 92 close, which energize electromagnetic clutch 60 which includes the slow moving sprocket drive for the corresponding shafts 45 and 47.

Actually in the preferred embodiment there will be the following three conditions encountered:

(1) In the first condition, the entire stitch length of a particular pattern path on the drum 63 is conducting and therefore the fast feed operates for the entire time of the stitch, and a high loop is produced.

(2) In the second case, a portion of the stitch length on the pattern path is conducting and a portion is nonconducting, so that there will be a part of the stitch time during which the fast feed operates and a part of the stitch time during which the slow feed operates. This produces a pile projection of intermediate height.

(3) In the third case, the entire stitch length of the pattern path is nonconducting and the entire feed of yarn to the stitch is at the slow speed, producing a pile projection which is low.

In some cases, however, it will be evident that advantage can be obtained by applying the invention to a warp knitting machine even where only two conditions prevail, for example, either a conducting condition or a nonconducting condition through the stitch length of the pattern path.

The result in accordance with the present invention is the production of a warp knitted pile fabric of FIGURE 4 which has knitting chain 93 which grips laid-in backing weft 94 and binding weft 95 to form a'tuft bind for pile yarn 96 which exists in this case in four heights, high pile projections 97, secondary high pile projections 98, lower pile projections 100, and still lower pile projections 101. While these pile projections are shown as uncut loops, there are dot-and-dash lines showing the tufts to illustrate that the loops may be out if desired.

The principles of the invention are applicable to other forms of stitched pile fabric manufacture, for example as illustrated in the tufted pile fabric of FIGURE 3.

In this construction it will be understood that all the features of FIGURE 1 apply except the detail of the Warp knitting machine, which is substituted by the tufting machine of FIGURE 3. Backing fabric 102 such as burlap or Osnaburg is drawn from a suitable source over guide rolls 103 and fed across a needle plate 104 by a take-up mechanism 105 as well known, the backing fabric being held down by a guiding foot 106.

A needle bar 107 carries a gang of needles 108 arranged in line, the needle bar being reciprocated by an eccentric 110 which is acting on an eccentric strap 111 which is pivotally connected at 112 with reciprocating rod 113 which is guided at 114 on the frame. Thepile yarn 38 is taken from the feed mechanism as shown in FIGURE 1 through guiding eyes 115 and 116 on the frame and a guiding eye 117 on the needle bar to the eyes 118 on the needles 108.

After the loops are formed, they are engaged by synchronized loopers 120 which are oscillated as well known on a looper shaft 121. The operation in the device of FIGURE 3 is the same as that of FIGURE 1 except that the pull-back action which produces variant loop heights,

depending upon the extent of feed during the "stitch, is

made effective on the previous loops which have been formed in the last previous stitch. The resulting product as shown in FIGURE 5 comprises a backing fabric 122, which has high loops 123, intermediate loops 124 and low loops 125 of suitable pile yarn 38. The loops may be cut as shown.

It will be evident that the high loops are formed when contact is made during all or a large part of the stitch distance on the pattern drum 63, the intermediate loops are made when contact occurs during a lesser but appreciable part of the stitch length of the contact path, and the low loops result when the insulation is present for all or a substantial part of the stitch length of the contact path. Of course it will be evident that the device can be arranged so that either the contact on the pattern drum causes the relay to energize the fast clutch or the slow clutch, and if the reversal is accomplished, then the presence of the contact throughout the stitch length will produce a low pile projection rather than a high pile projection in either of the forms.

It will be evident of course that it may be convenient in some cases to use incremental insulation strips of a standard size, and to apply none, one, two or several such strips to the contact path as desired. Where this is done it will of course be understood that it is immaterial whether the contact areas in the stitch length are adjoining or spaced.

It will be evident that the feed rolls of the difierent sets Will extend across the machine, and be duplicated where the width of the machine is so great that the feed roll length becomes excessive. There will normally be a pattern repeat length widthwise of the machine which will be uniform. For example, if the pattern repeat length is pile yarn ends, then the first, the 21st, the 41st and the 61st ends etc. will be carried over the same feed roll set, and the 2nd, 22nd, 42nd and 62nd etc. pile yarn ends will be carried over another feed roll set, and the 3rd, 23rd, 43rd, 63rd etc. pile yarn ends will be carried over another feed roll set and so on. Of course, if two ends in the repeat behave alike throughout, for example the first and the 19th, then they can be fed by the same feed roll set.

In view of my invention and disclosure variations and modifications to meet individual whim or particular need will doubtless become evident to others skilled in the art to obtain all or part of the benefits of my invention without copying the structure and method shown, and I therefore, claim all such insofar as they fall within the reasonable spirit and scope of my claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A mechanism for forming pile loops of difierent heights from the yarns of a pile warp comprising a united series of aligned, cyclically moved pile loop formers receiving said yarns and adapted each to form one of a row of pile loops with each cycle of its movement, a plurality of variable speed yarn feeding mechanisms for feeding yarn to said loop formers, a high speed and a low speed drive means, a pair of electrically operable clutches for each yarn feeding mechanism adapted to selectively engage the associated feeding mechanism with said high or low speed drive, a circuit to energize each said clutch, a relay connected to selectively energize the pair of circuits to each said pair of clutches accordingly as said relay is actuated or not, an actuating circuit for each said relay and timing means for selectively closing said actuating circuits for various intervals all of which are shorter than the cycle period of said loop formers.

2. A mechanism of claim 1, in which said united series of aligned, cyclically moved pile loop formers comprise the pile loop formers of a knitting machine.

3. A mechanism of claim 1, in which said united series of aligned, cyclically moved pile loop formers comprise the needles of a tufting machine.

4. A mechanism of claim 1, in which said timing means closes said actuating circuits selectively for long, intermediate and short times all within the cyclic period of said loop formers.

5. A device of claim 1, in which said timing means comprises pattern drum means which advances a predetermined distance for each cycle period of said loop formers and which includes contact means which is relatively long, short and intermediate in contact duration as the case may be, and contact fingers which contact said pattern drum means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 510,958 Cond Dec. 19, 1893 510,959 Cond Dec. 19, 1893 2,781,007 Thompson Feb. 12, 1957 2,782,905 Smith Feb. 26, 1957 2,810,471 Shattuck Oct. 22, 1957 2,853,034 Crawford Sept. 24, 1958 2,862,465 Card Dec. 2, 1958 2,876,183 Parlin Mar. 3, 1959 2,932,181 MacCallray Apr. 12, 1960 2,935,037 Card May 3, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 735,019 Great Britain Aug. 10, 1955

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