US3046768A - Two by two rib knit fabric - Google Patents

Description

F. BARTON TWO BY TWO RIB KNIT FABRIC 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Rani/Se! 1 912 BY lad M4 KW July 31, 1962 Filed July 22, 1959 July 31, 1962 lll The present invention relates to a selvaged two by two rib knitted fabric having a run-proof edge and which can be produced on a conventional circular knitting machine having two banks of needles, that is, dial needles and cylinder needles, without requiring racking of the dial needles relative to the cylinder needles.

Heretofore, it has been the usual practice to provide United States Patent a run-proof edge for a two by two rib knitted fabric produced on a circular knitting machine by racking the dial needles relative to the cylinder needles which causes the locking of the loops along the edge of the rib knitted fabric. This racking of the dial needles, which are returned to their original positions after the formation of the first few courses at the start of knitting selvages on rib knitted fabrics, is the cause of substantial difiiculties encountered in both the design and operation of multiple feed circular knitting machines. More specifically, racking of the dial needles results in the slowing down of production, the necessity for accurate and intricate adjustment of the machine, and the unnecessary waste of material during production.

In view of the foregoing, circular knitting machines have been recently designed in which one bank of needles is not shifted, and the run-proof edge is formed through the use of the full number of needles at the front and a 2:1 division of the needles at the back, while the individual loops formed at the front are overhung to produce two by two ribs. in another proposed design, as disclosed in British Patent No. 773,546, both the dial and cylinder needles operate with a 2:1 ratio, and a simple single row of locking loops in knitted with one needle of each of the successive pairs of needles in the cylinder and dial banks of needles. Either a one by two rib row or, if required, so-called single face rows, are attached to the locking loops for completing the edge. In the first case, that is, where the edge is knitted with all of the cylinder needles and with a 2:1 ratio for the dial needles, a special apparatus is required to cause overhanging of the individual front loops formed by the cylinder needles and further the selvage is increased in width due to the loosening of the loops in the run-proof edge. In the second case, that is, in the machine as disclosed in British Patent No. 773,546, an exceedingly loose selvage is formed by reason of the excessively loose binding of the run-proof edge and of the following row.

In accordance with the present invention, a run-proof edge is provided for a two by two ribknitted selvage which corresponds to a conventional run-proof edge for a fiat knitted fabric, and which is shifted without racking of the bed or dial needles, and therefore without the previously mentioned difliculties resulting from the racking. The run-proof edge, contrary to that in previously formed selvages, consists of two courses the loops of which are formed either alternately, that is, by the first needles of the front andrear pairs of needles, or crosswise, that is, by the first needle of the front pair of needles and by the second needle of the rear pair of needles. The loops of these two courses are interlaced or wound around each other, that is, disposed alternately at the top and at the bottom of the knitted fabric with the result that, in each course, one or two closed loops are formed to provide the basis for a run-proof edge.

The above, and other objects, features and advantages of the invention, will be apparent in the following detailed description of a fabric embodying the same and of the method of producing such fabric, which description is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part hereof, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic View illustrating a run-proof edge formed of two courses having the loops thereof formed alternately and being interlaced or wound around each other at one side of each loop;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a run-proof edge formed of two courses having the loops formed alternately and being interlaced or wound around each other at both sides of the loops;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a run-proof edge formed of two courses with the loops thereof formed cross-wise and being interlaced or wound around each other at both sides of the loops;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a run-proof edge formed of two courses with the loops thereof formed cross-wise and being interlaced at only one side of the loops; and

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view showing two pieces of knitted fabric and the run-proof edge provided on the two by two rib knitted selvage of one of the pieces as in FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawing in detail, and initially to FIG. 1 thereof, it will be seen that the run-proof edge embodying the present invention, as there illustrated, is formed from two threads m and n. The needles of one bank are indicated at a, b, c and d and are arranged in pairs with sinkers s between the successive pairs of needles, while the needles of the other bank are indicated at A, B, C, D, E and F and are also arranged in pairs with sinkers S between the successive pairs of needles. The thread m is laid on needles A, a, b, C, c and d, while the other thread n is laid on needles B, b, D and d. The threads in and n are knitted in by casting the thread m off the needles b and d onto the loops of the thread 11, so that the two threads m and n are interlaced olr wound around each other at each of the points V, that is, at one side of each of the loops, and eyes or loops 0 are formed of the thread n.

It will be apparent that, in FIG. 1, the loops of the thread m are formed by the first needles of each pair of needles, that is, by the needles A, a, C, c and E, while the loops of the thread n are formed by the second needle of each pair of needles, that is, by the needles B, b, D, d and F. Thus, in FIG. 1, the loops of the two threads or courses are formed alternately and are interlaced or wound around each other during each transfer of the threads from the needles of one bank to the needles of the other bank.

The run-proof edge illustrated in FIG. 2 is also produced from two threads m and n which are alternately laid on the needles of the two banks of needles, but with the two threads being interlaced or wound around each other twice during each transfer of the threads between the needles of the two banks. Thus, in FIG. 2, the thread m is laid on all of the needles A, B, a, b, C, D, c, d and E, while the thread It is laid only on the needles B, b, D, d and -F. The threads m and n are knitted in by casting off or pressing the thread m from the needles B, b, D and d so that the threads m and n are interlaced or wound around each other at the points V, that is, at the opposite sides of each loop, and eyes or loops 0 are formed at both sides of each loop of the thread m, for example, by the thread n on needles B and b and on needles D and d.

The run-proof edge illustrated in FIG. 3 is produced by laying the thread m on the needles A, a, b, C, c, d and E, 'while the thread n is laid only on the needles B, a, D, c and F, with the thread m being cast or pressed off the needles a and 0 onto the thread n, so that the threads m and n are interlaced or wound around each 3 7 other at each point V, that is, once during each transfer of'the threads between the needles of one bank and the needles of the other bank, with eyes or loops being formed in the thread n at the engagement of the latter with the.

needles a and c. It will be seen that the thread m is engaged by the first needle in each pair of needles of one bank and with the second needle of each pair of needles in the other bank, while the arrangement of the thread 11 with respect to the paired needles of both banks is the reverse of that indicated with respect to the thread m so that the threads m and n have the loops thereof formed cross-wise in the embodiment of FIG. 3.

The run-proof edge illustrated in FIG. 4 is also produced from two threads m and n having the loops thereof formed crosswise, but with both threads being interlaced or wound around each other twice during each transfer of the threads between the two banks of needles. More specifically, the thread m is placed on all needles A, B, a, b, C, D, c, d, E and F, while the thread 11 is laid only on the needles B, a, D, c, and F, and the threads are interlaced by casting or pressing off the thread m from the needles B, a, D, c and F, with the result that the threads in and n are interlaced or wound around each other at the opposite sides of each of the loops formed from the thread m, with loops or eyes being formed in the thread n, for example, at the engagement of the thread nwith the needles B, a, D and c. 7

The edge embodying the present invention, as in any one of FIGS. 1 to 4, inclusive, has the desired runresisting qualities because both of the threads m and n from which the edge is formed are interlaced or wound around each other, and the fact that both threads are bent or looped imparts a considerable degree of elasticity to the run-proof edge. The manufacture of the above described run-proof edge on a knitting machine having a full number or array of needles, for example, on an eight cam knitting machine, merely requires that such machine be capable of the alternate ranging of three types of needles.

The separation of two successively produced pieces of knitted fabric provided with a run-proof edge of the kind illustrated in FIG. 1 can be effected, by way of example, in the manner illustrated in FIG. 5. More speciifically, after a piece of knitted fabric is finished with the course K, courses 1 and 2 of plain single face closing loops are knitted at the back, that is, on the dial needles. Then two courses 3 and 4 of rib stitches are knitted and the loops from the needles s at the back, that is, dial needles, are cast off. Courses 5 and 6 of closing single-face stitches are then knitted at the front, that is, on the cylinder needles, and, after knitting two separating courses 7 and 8 of rib stitches, all loops or stitches are cast off the cylinder needles. The front loops or stitches in the courses 7 and 8 are undone, thereby leaving the completed piece of knitted fabric suspended by the pulled out loops of the course 8 which remain engaged by the related dial needles.

Al After casting off the loops of the course 8, which loops are to be undone, a cam of the knitting machine causes knitting from the thread m of the course Z which is provided with simple loops by the needles A and C of the bank of cylinder needles and with double loops by the needles a, b, c and d of the bank of dial needles. A further cam of the knitting machine then causes knitting from the thread n of the course Z which is provided with simple loops at the needles B and D of the cylinder needles and at the needles I) and d of the dial needles. Casting off of the thread m from the dial needles b and d, that is, casting off of one-half of each thedouble loops provided in the thread m forming course Z onto the loops provided in the thread n at the needles b and :2 provides the required interlacing or winding around each other of the threads m and 12 forming the two courses Z and Z of the run-proof edge. After knitting of the runproof edge constituted by the courses Z and Z two courses 9 and 10 of single-face stitches are knitted on the front or cylinder needles, and a single course 11 of single-face stitches is knitted on the back or dial needles, whereupon the courses 12 of rib stitches forming the two by two rib knitted selvage are produced.

It is to be understood that the separating courses and the knitting in of the two courses forming the run-proof.

edge can also be effected, if required, at the other side of the knitting machine from that illustrated in FIG. 5.

Although illustrative embodiments of this invention have been described in detail herein with reference to A two by two rib knitted fabric of uniform yarn adapted to be produced .on a circular knitting machine without racking of the dial needles relative to the cylinder needles; said fabric having a selvage including threads forming first and second courses of loops at the beginning thereof, said first and second courses having loops thereof alternatingly disposed at the front and back, respec tively, of the fabric with said threads forming the first and second courses being wound around each other at least between the first and second rows of loops at the op-. posite faces, respectively, of the fabric to provide a runproof edge for the selvage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS,

2,696,095 Zieve Dec. 7, 1954 2,847,838 Minton Aug. 19, 1958 2,854,832 Morris Oct. 7, 1958

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