US3048990A

US3048990A - D moyer

Info

Publication number: US3048990A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1962-08-14
Anticipated expiration: 1979-08-14

Description

Aug. 14, 1962 J. D. MOYER 3,048,990 YARN FEED CONTROL MEANS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 24, 1959 I 2 Sheets-Sheet l l INVENTOR. 32 v /0 7 James Q Ma er BY Mdfi Aug. 14, 1962 J. D. MOYER 3,048,990

YARN FEED CONTROL MEANS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 24, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet .2

FILE QL IN V EN TOR. v James Q Myer United States Patent Office 3,048,999 Patented Aug. 14, 1962 3,048,990 YARN FEED CONTROL MEANS FOR KNITTING MACHINES James D. Meyer, Wyomissing, Pa., assignor to Textile Machine Works, Wyomissing, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Dec. 24, 1959, Ser. No. 861,842 Claims. (Cl. 66138) This invention relates to multifeed circular knitting machines for forming pattern areas in stockings and more particularly to means in such machines for controlling the operation of yarn fingers.

In circular knitting machines having a multiplicity of feed stations means are commonly provided for feeding yarns and reciprocatorily knitting the same on a group of needles adapted to knit at each of the stations to form suture joined solid color pattern areas in tubular fabrics such as for stockings and the like. Where the number of pattern areas requires only a single yarn finger at each of the feed stations, all of the feed stations are in simultaneous operation to form such pattern areas. However, where the number of different pattern areas to be formed require the use of two or more difierent yarn fingers at some or all of the feed stations provided in the machine, one of the yarn fingers at each of the stations is in operation to feed its yarn to one part of the needle group selected at the station to form alternate pattern areas and the other fingers at the stations are subsequently operated to feed their yarns to a different part or parts of the needle group associated with each station to form intervening pattern areas, one method of operating the yarn fingers at the stations in this manner being disclosed in Patent No. 2,759,946, issued November 15, 1960, and being generally referred to as the fillin system of knitting.

Heretofore, in order to operate the yarn fingers at the various feed stations, a pair of yarn fingers required to knit at each of the knitting stations were simultaneously moved to active yarn feeding positions by pattern means provided at each station and the fingers were then alternately moved to inactive position during pairs of reciprocatory strokes of the machine to form pairs of courses in the different pattern areas. Where the design of the pattern areas required a further change of the yarn fingers at each station, one or a pair of different yarn fingers were substituted for the fingers of the first pair and the substituted fingers were likewise alternately moved to inactive positions. In one form of mechanism for operating the yarn fingers according to this procedure, fingers positioned to the left of the center of each of the stations were permitted to remain in feeding position for a pair of knitting strokes while the fingers positioned to the right of the center of each station were moved to inactive position and the active and inactive position of the fingers were reversed for the next pair of knitting strokes. Where the feeding of the yarns associated with each station remains within the needle selection of the station that is, the area formed by the yarn of the right finger at one station remains to the left of the left area formed by the yarn of the adjacent left finger at the adjacent station no confilict occurs between the yarns as they are formed into the alternate groups of pattern sections. However, where adjacent pattern areas of a pair formed at adjacent stations cross each other and are formed within the needle selection associated with the adjacent stations, that is the area formed by the right finger at the one station is formed to the right of the area formed by the left finger at the adjacent station, the feeding path of the yarns cross each other causing them to become entangled, resulting in the formation of objectionable floats in these pattern areas.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide means in a circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations for overcoming the above mentioned and other objections in the feeding of the yarns at the knitting stations to form tubular patterned fabric such as for stockings.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means in a multi-station circular knitting machine for controlling the operation of the yarn fingers at the stations whereby a yarn associated with one station is caused to knit within the needle selection at an adjacent station without becoming entangled with the yarn fed at the adjacent station.

A further object of the invention is the provision of means, in a circular knitting machine having a plurality of feeding stations, for controlling the feeding operation of a plurality of yarn fingers at each of the stations including a main pattern means for simultaneously positioning a pair of yarn fingers in feeding position at each of the stations and an oscillatable ring member which acts to move a leading finger of each pair of fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of the stations and to move a trailing finger of each pair of fingers out of feeding position at another opposed pair of the stations during each oscillating movement of the ring member.

With these and other objects in View which will become apparent from the detailed description of the illustrative embodiment of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings, the invention resides in the novel elements, features of construction and cooperation of parts, as hereinafter more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a portion of a multifeed circular knitting machine having mechanism for controlling the operation of the yarn fingers in accordance with the instant invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale taken substantially on the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an elevatlonal view of mechanism as seen from the left of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a plan View of a portion of the operating means for the yarn finger controlling mechanism of the invention.

The mechanism of the instant invention is preferably associated with a circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations of the type disclosed in British Patent No. 790,141 issued to Benjamin Franklin Coile, published February 5, 1958, hereinafter referred to as the Coile Disclosure, to which reference may be made. The machine of the Coile Disclosure is adapted for both rotary and reciprocatory knitting and includes means for feeding a plurality of yarns to selected groups of needles at each of the stations with certain of the needles selected at each station also being adapted for selection at each of the other stations.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the machine shown includes a stationary sinker cap 10 having sinkers 11 mounted therein for radial movements in cooperation with latch needles 12 mounted for vertical movement in slots in a needle cylinder 15. The cylinder 15 is adapted for both rotary and reciprocatory movements, the latter movements being generally 360 degrees in each direction. The machine is also provided with four circumferentially spaced knitting stations generally indicated at 16, 17, 18 and 19, respectively, and each station includes a plurality of pivotally mounted yarn fingers which are moved individually into and out of feeding position by a control drum 21. The yarn fingers, five in number at each of the stations, are similarly indicated at 25, 26, 27, 28 and 29 at the stations. Each control drum 21 is adapted to be selectively indexed by ratchet and pawl mechanism indicated generally at 31 under the control of main pattern drums (not shown) of the machine;

The yarn fingers 25 to 29 at each of the knitting stations are supported for pivotal movement on a shaft 39 mounted in the end walls of a housing 32 secured to a portion of the sinker cap 10. Also supported in the housing 32 are lifters or levers 33 one for each of the yarn fingers, the levers 33 being pivotally mounted on a pin 35 carried in the housing. The levers 33, individually associated with the yarn fingers, are adapted to selectively move the fingers under the control of individual rows of buttons 36 on the drum 21, the buttons being spaced in accordance with the yarn finger selections desired. A button 36 will move a lever 33 to raise its associated yarn finger to inactive position which is the highest level indicated in FIG. 2 and in the absence of a button, the yarn finger is moved to a lower active position, which is the position of finger 29, by a spring (not shown). Hence, at each of the knitting stations 16 to 19, the drum 21 constitutes the main pattern means for controlling the positions of the individual yarn fingers 25 to 29.

Yarn fingers which are moved to active position by the drums 21 at each of the knitting stations are also adapted to be individually moved between active and inactive positions, the latter position being indicated by finger 25 in FIG. 2, to form a plurality of suture joined patterned areas in a tubular fabric as hereinafter set forth. For this purpose the yarn fingers are operated by mechanism of the type generally set forth in Patent No. 2,948,- 131, issued August 9, 1960, covering the alternate operation of a pair or pairs of fingers at each of the knitting stations for forming pattern areas in a tubular fabric. The mechanism of said Patent No. 2,948,131 includes a ring member 37 which is mounted on the sinker cap 10 within bearing surfaces 40 suitably formed on the inner faces of the housing 32 (FIG. 2) at each of the knitting stations. The ring member 37 is adapted to be intermittently oscillated by mechanism hereinafter set forth.

Mechanism is provided for oscillating the ring member 37, according to said Patent No. 2,948,131, whereby the ring member is moved once for each two successive knitting strokes, that is, the ring member is oscillated in one direction during a forward and a reverse knitting stroke of the needle cylinder and thereafter the ring member is oscillated in the opposite direction during the next forward and reverse strokes of knitting after which the operating sequence of the ring member is repeated. The mechanism for this purpose includes a shaft 41 which corresponds to the shaft 176 of said Coile Disclosure and which makes one complete revolution during the time the needle cylinder moves through two successive strokes of reciprocatory knitting, that is a stroke in a forward direction and a stroke in the reverse direction. Mounted on the shaft 41 for rotation therewith is a spur gear 72 which is in meshing engagement with a spur gear 75 having a pitch diameter twice that of the gear 72. The gear 75 is mounted for rotation in fixed position in relationship to the gear 72 and is provided with an upwardly projecting off-center pin 76. The pin 76 is adapted to alternately engage cam faces and 51 formed on a pair of

rocker arms

52 and 53, respectively. The

rocker arms

52 and 53 are adjustable relative to each other and with a member 56 are secured by screws 57 to a hub 68 which is rotatably journalled on a shaft 61. The member 56 has an extension 62 which is provided with a slot 65 for receiving a pin 66 extending upwardly from the ring member 37.

As hereinbefore set forth, the shaft 41, and with it the gear 72, makes one complete revolution for each two reciprocatory strokes of the needle cylinder 15. The gear 75, on the other hand, moves at half the speed of gear 72 and makes one complete revolution for each four reciprocatory strokes of the needle cylinder during which the pin 76 alternately engages the

rocker arms

52 and 53 to oscillate the ring member in one direction for a pair of successive reciprocatory strokes of the cylinder to form a pair of courses and then to oscillate the ring member in the opposite direction for a pair of reciprocatory strokes of the cylinder to form a second pair of courses. The gear 75 is also adapted to be moved axially in its mounting whereby the pin 76 will not engage the rocker arm 53 but will engage the arm 52 to thereby maintain the

arms

52 and 53 and the ring member 37 in one position to idle the ring member.

The mechanism for oscillating the ring member 37 once for each two successive reciprocatory strokes of the cylinder forms no part of the instant invention and is only shown in such detail as to provide a clear understanding of the mechanism of the instant invention and its operation.

In said Patent No. 2,948,131, fingers of a pair, such as

fingers

25 and 29, are alternately moved between active and inactive positions at the knitting stations 17 and 19 during oscillating movements of the ring member 37. Finger 25 which is to the left of the group of fingers is adapted to feed its yarn to the left portion of the needles of the group of needles selected to knit at stations =17 and 19 and finger 29 which is to the right of the group of fingers is adapted to feed its yarn to the right portion of the needle selection at these stations. For alternately moving the fingers between active and inactive positions the ring member is provided with suitably spaced cams 67 which are adapted to engage pins 71 carried on the fingers so that during an oscillation of the ring member 37 in the counterclockwise direction, the fingers 25 at stations 17 and 19 are moved to inactive position while the fingers 29 are in active position at these stations and during a clockwise oscillation of the ring member the fingers 29 are moved to inactive position While the fingers 25 are in active positions at the stations 17 and 19.

In said Patent No. 2,948,131, the

yarn fingers

25 and 29 at the

stations

16 and 18 are also alternately moved from active to inactive positions by means of cams 67 during alternate oscillating movements of the ring member 37 to feed their yarns to the needle selection at

stations

16 and 18 in the same manner, as above set forth, that the

fingers

25 and 29 feed their yarns at the stations 17 and 19. Hence, in the device of said prior patent the finger 25 is moved to inactive position and the finger 29 remains in active position at each of the stations 16 to 19 to feed their yarns during an oscillation of the ring member 37 in one direction to form a pair of courses of the alternate pattern areas and during an oscillation of the ring member in the opposite direction the positions of the

fingers

25 and 29 are reversed at each station to fill in and form pairs of courses of the intervening pattern areas. Where the area formed by the yarn of the finger 29 associated with one station and the adjacent area formed by the finger 25 at the adjacent station are fed to needles within their respective needle groups to knit at these stations, although the areas are formed in different pairs of knitting strokes, the feeding paths of the yarns will not cross each other. However, When a yarn normally forming a pattern area at one station, during a pair of knitting strokes crosses the yarn normally forming an adjacent pattern area at an adjacent station during a different pair of knitting strokes and is knit within the needle selection associated with tht adjacent station to form its pattern area, that is, when the yarn of finger 29 is knit within the needle selection normally associated with the yarn of finger 25 and vice versa, the feeding paths of the yarns cause the yarns to continuously cross and twist around each other and result in the formation of floats between the adjoining sutures and the outer suture of the pattern areas formed by these yarns.

In accordance with the invention, in order to prevent the twisting of the yarns and the formation of floats at such times, the movement of yarn fingers at the opposed pairs of knitting stations is reversed, that is the fingers 25 are in active position at one opposed pair of stations and simultaneously at the other opposed pair of stations, the fingers 29 are in active position. This reversing action of the fingers at the opposed pairs of stations results in the formation of a pair of adjoining pattern areas by adjacent fingers at each of an adjacent pair of the stations during the same knitting strokes and as each of the yarns forming the pair of adjoining areas are knitted within the needle selection at the station with which it is associated the feeding paths of the yarns will not cross each other. Likewise, when it occurs that the position of the adjoining pattern areas formed by the yarns of the adjacent at the adjacent pair of stations 14S reversed in relationship to each other, as above set forth the feeding paths of the adjacent yarns also cross each other, but inasmuch as both yarns form their respective areas in the same knitting strokes the yarns merely cross each other without twisting.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the means for reversing the action of the fingers 25 and 2% at the

knitting stations

16 and 18 includes the cams 67 which are carried in suitably spaced relationship on the ring member 37. At the knitting station 16, the right cam 67 is adapted to engage a follower 8t) rotatably mounted in the free end of an arm 81 of a lever 82 which is pivoted on a stud 85 secured in the right wall of the housing 32. A second arm 86 of the lever 82 has fixed thereto by means of a screw 87, a bridge member 96 which extends across the fingers 25 to 29 and which is provided with a downwardly projecting portion 91 for engagement with the finger 25 (FIG. 3) which is the left finger of the group of fingers 25 to 29 as viewed in FIGS. 1 and 3. The left cam 67 similarly engages a follower 8t} rotatably mounted in the free end of an arm 92 of a lever 95 which is mounted on a stud 96 carried in the left wall of the housing 32. A second arm 97 fixedly carries a bridge member 108 which extends from left to right across the fingers 25 to 29 and is provided with a downwardly extending portion 161 for engagement with the finger 29. As shown in FIG. 1 a similar lever 82 and bridge member 90 is provided for controlling the finger 25 and a similar lever 95 and bridge member 160 is provided for controlling the finger 29 at the knitting station 18, the position of the levers and bridge members at the

stations

16 and 18 being, however, in reversed order.

In operation, to form the pair of pattern areas within the needle selection at each feed during pairs of reciprocatory strokes of the needle cylinder 15, an oscillation of the ring member 37 in the clockwise direction will move the finger 25 at each of

stations

16 and 18 and the finger 2? at each of stations 17 and 19 to inactive position and the finger 29 at stations and 18 and the fingers at stations 17 and 19 will remain in active positions to form courses of alternate adjacent pairs of suture joined pattern areas during alternate pairs of successive knitting strokes. During the oscillation of the ring member in the counterclockwise direction, the positions of the fingers are reversed at the stations and the fingers 25 at

stations

16 and 18 and fingers 29 at stations 17 and 19 are in action during the intervening pairs of knitting strokes to fill in the intervening adjacent pairs of pattern areas. Hence, in relation to the direction of each osciiiation of the ring member 37, a leading finger is in action at stations 16 and 1S and a trailing finger is in action at the stations 17 and 19 to form the adjacent pairs of pattern areas.

As herein set forth, the ring member 37 is oscillated once for each two successive knitting strokes of the needle cylinder to alternately move the

fingers

25 and 29 to active position at each knitting station to form two courses of the respective pattern areas. However, when it is desired to form single courses in the respective pattern areas the

fingers

25 and 29 may be moved between their active and inactive positions during single knitting strokes by oscillating the ring member 37 once for each knitting stroke of the cylinder, the means for oscillating the ring member in this manner also being shown and described in said Patent No. 2,948,13l.

It will be understood that the improvement specifically shown and described by which the above described results are obtained can be changed and modified in various ways without departing from the invention herein disclosed and hereinafter claimed.

I claim:

1. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of yarn feeding positions at each of said stations, an intermittently oscillatable ring member operatively associated with and adapted to alternately move a pair of fingers out of yarn feeding position at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding position by said pattern means, and means cooperating with said ring member to move a leading one of said pair of fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of said stations and to move a trailing one of said pair of fingers out of feeding position at each of another opposed pair of said stations during each oscillating movement of said ring member.

2. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding position at each of said stations, an intermittently oscillatable ring member operatively associated with and adapted to move fingers out of yarn feeding position at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding position by said pattern means, and means cooperating with said ring member to move a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at certain of said stations and to move a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position at others of said stations during each oscillating movement of said ring member.

3. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of yarn feeding positions at each of said stations, an intermittently oscillatable ring member adapted to operate on yarn fingers moved into feeding position at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding position by said pattern means, means for oscillating said ring member, means on said ring member for moving a leading one of the fingers out of feeding position at certain of said stations during each oscillating movement of said ring member, and means operated by said ring member at others of said stations for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position during each oscillating movement of said ring member.

4. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, and means for intermittently moving yarn fingers out of feeding position at each of said stations which have been moved to feeding position by said pattern means including an oscillatable ring member, means for oscillating said ring member, means on said ring member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at certain of said stations during each oscillating movement of said ring member, and means operated by said ring member for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding positions at others of said stations during each oscillating movement of said ring member.

5. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, and means for intermittently moving yarn feeding fingers out of feeding positions at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding positions by said pattern means including an oscillatable member, means for oscillating said member, means on said member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of said stations during an oscillating movement of said member in one direction, and means operated by said member for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of another opposed pair of said stations during an oscillating movement of said member in said one direction.

6. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, and means for intermittently moving fingers out of feeding positions at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding positions by said pattern means including an intermittently movable ring member to control said fingers at each of said stations for individual strokes of reciprocatory knitting, means for moving said ring member in one direction for alternate strokes of reciprocatory knitting, means on said ring member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of said stations during each movement of said ring member, and means operated by said ring member for moving a trailing one of said fingers at each of another opposed pair of said stations during each movement of said ring member.

7. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, and means for intermittently moving yarn feeding fingers out of feeding positions at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding positions by said pattern means including an oscillatable member, means for oscillating said member, means on said member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of said stations during an oscillating movement of said member in one direct-ion, and means for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of another opposed pair of said stations during said oscillating movement of said member in said one direction, said last mentioned means including a cam on said member, a lever operated by said cam, and means on said lever for engaging said trailing finger.

8. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of fingers for feeding yarns at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, and means for intermittently moving fingers out of feeding positions at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding positions by said pattern means including an oscillatable member, means for oscillating said member, means on said member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of an opposed pair of said stations during an oscillating movement of said member in one direction, and means for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position at each of another opposed pair of said stations during said oscillating movement of said members in said one direction, said last mentioned means including cam means on said member, a lever operated by said cam means and positioned adjacent to the leading one of said fingers at each of said other sta tions, and means on said lever for engaging said trailing finger.

9. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of feeding positions at each of said stations, an intermittently movable member associated With and adapted to move fingers out of yarn feeding position as each of said stations which have been moved into feeding position by said pattern means, and means cooperating with said member to move a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at one of said stations and to move a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position at another of said stations during each movement of said member.

10. A circular knitting machine having a plurality of knitting stations and adapted to reciprocatorily knit at said stations, a plurality of yarn feeding fingers at each of said stations, pattern means to selectively move said fingers into and out of yarn feeding positions at each of said stations, an intermittently movable member adapted to operate on yarn fingers moved into feeding position at each of said stations which have been moved into feeding position by said pattern means, means for moving said member, means on said member for moving a leading one of said fingers out of feeding position at one of said stations during each movement of said member, and means operated by said member at another of said stations for moving a trailing one of said fingers out of feeding position during each movement of said member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,115,128 Swinglehurst Oct. 27, 1914 2,092,347 Candle et al. Sept. 7, 1937 2,143,952 Lawson et a1 Jan. 17, 1939