US3160923A

US3160923A - Crimping apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3160923A
Application number: US83565A
Authority: US
Inventors: Leo W Rainard; Ewart H Shattuck
Original assignee: Joseph Bancroft and Sons Co
Current assignee: Joseph Bancroft and Sons Co
Priority date: 1956-12-24
Filing date: 1961-01-18
Publication date: 1964-12-15
Anticipated expiration: 1981-12-15
Also published as: FR1192453A; DE1410357A1; CH354890A; NL222543A; BE563224A; NL107077C; US3058167A; DE1410357B2; GB837573A

Description

Dec. 15, 1964 1 w. RAINARD ETAL. 3,160,923

CRIMPING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet l Original Filed Dec. 24, 1956 Dec. 15, 1964 L.. w. RAINARD ETAL. 3,160,923

CRIMPING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Dec. 24, 1956 `1NVENTOR5 A TTR/VEY L. W. RAINARD ETAL CRIMPING APPARATUS Dec. 15, 1964 Original Filed Dec. 24, 1956 45C .lummllllm 5 Sheets-She i I c 56 T INVENTORS 'En/Aer H. SHA Track Dec. 15, 1964 l.. w. RAINARD ETAL 3,160,923

CRIMPING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed Dec. 24, 1956 INVENTORS E0 Vif. @AM/,42o 7A/ART H. .SHA f77/cg Dec. l5, 1964 L. W. RAINARD ETAL CRIMPING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Dec. 24, 1956 United States Patent fice 3,160,923 PatentedV Dec. 1 5, 1964 z ciaims. (ci. 19-66) This application is a division of coi-pending application Serial No. 630,152 filed December 24, 1956, now U.S. Patent No. 3,058,167.

This invention relates to an apparatus for crimping fibers, filament tow, yarn or thread and more particularly to apparatus of the stutter crimper type wherein the material to be crimped is fed between feed rolls into a conned chamber against the pressure of a mass of crimped material in said chamber.

A feature of the invention is the provision of a setting chamber which is formed by a pair of moving conveyor belts positioned to receive the mass of crimped material 'from the crimping chamber or from the feed rolls and to hold the mass compacted While it is being subjected t setting treatment. Heat may be applied through the conveyor belts for heatingthe mass to a setting temperature. The belts may be formed of a pervious material such as wire mesh in which case a setting agent such as steam, or a resin setting agent, or hot air may be passed through the pervious belt or belts into the mass of crimped material held compacted therebetween. in certain instances a portion of the path of the compacted material may be cooled or the compacted material may be discharged from a heated belt to a cooled belt which may be driven at a different speed so as to open up the material for cooling.

The invention is applicable to the treatment of textile fibers in the form of slubbing, roving, spun yarn, continuous filament tow or yarn, or thread.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a broken top plan view of a crimping apparatus embodying the present invention; j

FlG. 2 is a section taken on the line 2 2 of FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a broken top plan View of an apparatus embodying the present invention showing the use of a wire mesh conveyor belt;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view similar to FIG. 4 illustrating on a reduced scale a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a broken top plan view of an apparatus embodying the invention wherein the axis of the feed rolls is disposed normal to the plane of the conveyor belts;

FIG. 7 is a section taken on the line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view similar to FIG. 6, illustrating the use of a separate conveyor belt for the cooling section;

FIG. 9 is a section taken on the line 9 9 of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of an apparatus using a belt conveyor for confining the crimped bers while passing through a treating tank land drying and setting zones;

FIG. l1 is a section taken on the line 111-11 of FIG. 10; and

PIG. 12 is a detail View illustrating a further type of control device.

Referring to the drawings more in detail the invention is shown in FIGS. l and 2 as comprising a pair of

feed rolls

10 and 11 mounted on shafts i2 and i3 respectively and having intermeshing gears 14 and l5 respectively by which they are driven in synchronism. The shaft 13 of the roll 11 is shown as mounted on pivoted arms 47 and held in pressure engagement with the roll 10 by a spring 48 the tension of which is adjustable by a nut 49. .The shaft 13 is driven by a belt i8 through a speed changing pulley 19, and an adjustable spring-pressed clutch 20 which is adapted to limit the maximum driving force which can be applied to the shaft 13. The maximum force can be adjusted by means of an adjusting nut Z1 which varies the tension of a spring 22. The clutch 20 may be of the hysteresis type, if desired, in which case the maximum torque is controlled electrically.

Textile fibers 25 are fed to the bite of the

feed rolls

10 and 11 through a tension device 26 and a guide 27. The rolls 1li and 11 discharge into a tube 30 forming a crimping chamber. The entrance end of the tube 30 conforms to the bite of the feed rolls and is adapted to receive and retain a mass of crimped fibers.

The crimped fibers are discharged from the discharge end of the tube 3G between a pair of

conveyor belts

35 and 36.

The conveyor belt 35 passes around rollers 37 andy 38 mounted on the

shafts

46 and 46a respectively and the conveyor belt 36 passes around

rollers

39 and 40 mounted on

shafts

42 and 42a respectively. The rollers are `so positioned that the space between the

conveyor belts

35 and 36 forms a continuation of the passage within the crimping chamber 3) so that the mass of crimped fibers is held compacted between the conveyor belts as the mass is advanced thereby to a discharge point. In order to insure that the compacting force is maintained on the mass of fibers throughout their passage between the

belts

35 and 36 the belts are so disposed Vthat their spacing de creases from the entrance end of the treating chamber where the fibers are received from the crimping chamber 3i? to the exit end of the treating chamber where the fibers are released by the belts.

The shaft 42 carrying the roller 39 is driven by a motor 43 and carries a variable speed pulley 44 by which the beit 18 is driven. The pulleys 19 and 44 may be of any variable speed type such as a Reeves drive to permit adjustment of the speed ratio between the belt roller 39 and the feed roll 11. The shaft 42 carries a gear 45 meshing with a similar gear 45a on the shaft 46 carrying the roller 37 so that the two

belts

35 and 35 are driven in synchromsm.

The

belts

35 and 36 may be heat resistant material such as silicone rubber or Teflon and may be heated by suitable means, indicated as heaters 59 and 51 which are disposed to heat the respective belts on opposite sides of the setting zone. Heat is thus transmitted to the crimped material as it advances along between the

belts

35 and 36. The heaters 50 and 51 may be disposed along the first portion of the setting chamber so that the fibers are heated for aportion of their travel between the

belts

35 and 36. During the remainder of theV travel between the belts and prior to discharge the fibers may be cooled to a temperature to hold the crimp permanently therein. The members Si) and 51 also serve as guides to hold the

belts

35 and 36 in pressure contact with the fibers as they advance.

v The crimped fibers if compacted of continuous 'ilaments are removed from the end of the setting zone by a suitable take-up device, shown as a guide roll 56, through a tensioning gate 55which may be adjusted to maintain a predetermined tension on the yarn and to remove any slubs or kinks which may be pulled out of the setting zone as the fibers are released by the

belts

35 and 36. If thev fibers are in the form of a slubbing or roving they may be discharged from the end of the conveyors into a suitable receiver or carding device.

It is to be understood of course that the

belts

35 and 36 advance at a slow rate with respect to the

feed rolls

10 and 11. This rate may be adjusted relative to the rate of the feed rolls to correspond to the rate at which the crimped fibers are fed through the crimping chamber 30 due to the action of the feed rolls. The relative rate may be adjusted, however, to control therebythe back press ure of the mass of lcrimped fibers on the fibersbeing fed into the crimping chamber by the

feed rolls

10 and 11.

If the relative rate of the belts is increasedfor example, the fibers are removed 'from the end of the crimping chamber at a more `rapid rate with a consequent reduction in theback pressure exerted on the fibers which are being fed into the ,chamber 30 by the

feed rolls

10 and 11. On the other hand if the relative rate of the belts is decreased the back pressure is correspondingly increased.

If moisture is required for setting, the fibers may be premoistenedV before being fed into the crimping chamber. `The heat supplied by the heating devices 50 and 51 may be controlled in a manner toefiect the necessary setting while the fibers remain in the setting zone between the belts35 and 36.

In the case of thermoplastic fibers which are relaxed by heat it is usually preferable to cool the fibers below the relaxing temperature while they are still held compacted. VThis may be accomplished in the above described embodiment by providing the unheated portion of the conveyor flight beyond the heating members 50 and 51. The rate of the heating zone to the cooling zone is le designed as to produce the desired temperature con- In order to wind the crimped yarn on a take-up device without producing kinks or slugs it is usually prefe-rable to pull the yarn fromv the discharge end of the setting zone under tension by the take-up roll 56 before the mass of crimped yarn has been released by the

conveyors

35 and 36. v The embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is generally similar to the embodiments of FIGS. 1 and 2 and the corresponding parts have been given the same reference characters.A In this embodiment, however, the

conveyor belts

35a and 36a are made of a pervious material such as wire mesh orparallel wires which may be electrical resistance type wires so that one or both of the belts may be heated bythe passage of an electric current therethrough. Such heating current may be applied for example from leads 60 andv brushes 61 and 62 whichY engage conducting rings 63 and 64 respectively on the

shafts

46 and 46a of the

rollers

37 and 38. It is to be' understood that the shafts arewelectrically isolated from ground for this purpose and the

rollers

37 and 38 are made of conducting material toI feed current through the wire belt 35a. A setting agent may be introduced through the pervious belt 35a from a hood 6 5.

If desired, the electrical heating means may be omitted and a setting agent, such as steam, a liquid setting agent or hot air, may be introduced into the mass of fibers between the

belts

35a and 36a from the hood 65. The belt 35a may inthat case be made of a non-conducting pervious material such as perforated rubber or the like. The operation of this embodiment of the invention is otherwise similar to that above described.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5 the arrangement is generally similar to that above described with the exception that the upper belt 35b is made considerably shorter than the lower belt 36h and heatror other setting agent is supplied frorn a hood 68 through the belt 3511 to the mass of crimped material in the setting zone. Heat may also be applied from the heating device 69 through the belt 36b. The element 69 also serves as a guide to hold the lower belt 36b in pressure contact with the fibers.

It will be noted that in this embodiment the fibers are lirst fed by the yfeed rolls and 11 into the crimping chamber in the tube 30 from which they are discharged onto the lower belt 36b, where they are unconined for a short distance in advance of the upper belt 35h. This permits the fibers to open up slightly and to correspondingly increase their bulk.

They are then engaged and confined by the upper belt 35h while being subjected to setting conditions. The fibers then advance on the belt 36b beyond the zone of the belt 35b in an unconined condition for cooling or drying before they are discharged at the end of the upper flight of the belt 36h. By releasing the pressure on the fibers in this manner during the cooling stage the passage of cooling air through the fibers is facilitated and the fibers tend to open up and become fuller or fluier. The belt 35b may be made of pervious material to permit passage of the setting agent therethrough into the mass of crimped fibers.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 6 and 7 the general arrangement is similar to that above described except that the crimping chamber is formed by pairs of conveyor belts which are disposed in a plane parallel to the end faces of the feed rolls 10 and 11 and extend past the bite of the feed rolls. The back pressure on the material in the crimping v chamber is controlled by varying the drag on the conveyor belts.

,Referring more in detail to FIGS. 6 and 7 the feed roll 10 is driven by motor 43 through shaft 42a and bevel gears 70. The feed rolls 1t) and 11 are driven in synchronism by intermeshing

gears

14 and 15 as in FIG. 1.

The

belts

35e and 36e extend over the end faces of the feed rolls 10 and 11 so as to lform with the rolls a confined crimping chamber. The belts 35e` and 36e pass forwardly around rollers 37a and 39a on shafts 46c and 42C which are coupled by meshing gears 45b and 45C, and pass rearwardly around

rollers

38 and 40. Belts 35e and 36C may be adjusted in position by

adjustable shoes

71 and 72 respectively.

Suitable heating members

68a and 69a are disposed on opposite sides of the setting zone as above described for applying heat to the confined mass of fibers as they advance between the belts.

The belts 35e and 36C are free to be advanced by the pressure exerted by the material being fed between the feed rolls 10 and 11 into the crimping chamber formed in the space enclosed by the bite of the feed rolls and by the belts adjacent thereto. In order to control the back pressure exerted on this material an adjustable friction drag 73 is associated With the shaft 42C. This drag is shown as comprising a friction disk 74 keyed to the shaft 42e anda fixed disk 75 held in friction contact with the disk 74 by a spring 76, the tension of which can be adjusted by a nut 77. Adjustment of the drag 73 controls the crimp characteristics.

The

belts

35e and 36e are driven in unison -by gears 45b and 450. These gears may beomitted if desired and a similar friction drag applied to the belt 36e to control independently the movement of-the two belts. Of course the belts may be coupled to be driven by the motor 43 as in FIGS. 1 and 2 if the free running feature is not required in any particular instance.

In order to confine the sides of the mass of crimped material advancing with the

belts

35e and 36e ya third belt 78 is disposed between the belts35c and 36e in a plane normal thereto to bear against the third side (in FIG. 6) of the mass of crimped material in the setting zone. This belt 78 passes around rollers 79 and 80. The roller 79 is disposed as close to the feed roll V11v as possible so as to leave a minimum amount of unconfined area for the crimped material.

The fourth side of the mass is shown as confined by a, fixed plate 81 which is disposed between the belts Y 35e and 36C with its forward end close to the periphery The crimped and set product is withdrawn from the lsetting zone between the belts above described by roll 56 and tension drag 55 as in FIG. 1.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 8 and 9 the position of the feed rolls 10 and 11 and the crimping chamber 30 is similar to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and the same reference characters have been applied.

In this embodiment the belts 35d and 36d provide the heating zone and a second pair of

belts

35e and 36e provide the cooling zone. Roller 38 is driven with roller 37 by chain 83 and sprockets 84 and 85. The

belts

35e and 36e are passed over

rollers

86 and 87, respectively, which are driven by intermeshing

gears

88 and 89, respectively. The roller 86 is driven from the roller 38 by means of gears 90 and 91 through an idler gear 92. The

gears

88 and 89 may be selected in accordance with the ratio desired between the belts 35d and 36d and the

belts

35e and 36e. A fixed guide tube 93 is provided between thedischarge end of the belts 35d and 36d and the entrance end of the

belts

35e and 36e so as to form a continuous confined passage for the crimped fibers during their entire travel from thefeed rolls to the discharge end of the

belts

35e and 36e.

In this embodiment suitable setting agents such as heat, hot air, steam or a setting liquid may be applied to the fibers in the heating zone between the belts 35d and 36d from a source indicated as a hood 94, and suitable cooling means such as cold air may be passed through the crimped fibers between the

belts

35e and 36e from a source indicated as a hood 95. It will be understood that in this embodiment the fibers are fed by the feed rolls into the crimping chamber 30 and are removed from the crimping chamber 30 into the setting zone between the belts 35d and 36d which discharge the fibers into the guide tube 93. The fibers are removed from the guide tube 93 into the cooling zone between the

belts

35e and 36e by which they are conveyed to a discharge point where they are removed under tension as previously described. It may be desirable to advance the

belts

35e and 36e constituting a cooling zone at a slightly higher rate than the belts 35d and 36d so as to open up the fibers slightly in the cooling zone and facilitate the passage of the cooling air therethrough. This also serves to increase the uffiness of the fibers which are finally discharged. v

In all of the above embodiments the fibers are maintained compacted between the conveyor belts so that the original crimp is maintained during the setting and cooling stages. The final crimp can be accurately controlled by varying the original crimping conditions, that is the temperature and back pressure on the fibers at the bite of the feed rolls.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the yarn 100 to be crimped is fed through tension device 101 and guide 102 to feed

rolls

103 and 104 which discharge the yarn into a mass of crimped yarn in a tube 105 forming a crimping chamber as in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. The

rolls

103 and 104 are geared together to be driven in unison, and the roll 103 is driven by belt 106 and cooperating pulleys from shaft 107 of a motor 108. A friction device 109 limits the torque applied to the shaft of roll 103, as described in connection with the embodiment of FIG. 1.

The tube 105 discharges the crimped fibers between conveyor belts 110 and 111 which are adapted to confine the mass of crimped fibers therebetween and to convey them through treating and setting zones.

The belts 110 and 111 pass around guide rollsI 113 and 114 respectively at the discharge end of the tube 105, thence into a treating liquid 115 in a treating tank 116 around guide rolls 117 and 118. The liquid 115 may be of a type to condition the fibers for setting, such as hot Water, a chemical setting agent, or a resin composition, as set forth in Rainard United States application Serial No. 570,145 filed March 7, 1956, now

6 Patent No. `2,854,701. A preheater 119 may be disposed in advance of the tank 116 to preheat the fibers. The belts and 111 with the fiber mass therebetween are passed between squeeze rolls 120 and 121 to remove excess treating agent and between heating and setting the crimp or curing and setting the crimp in the fibers, thencev around rolls 122 and 123 respectively Where the belts separate to discharge the fibers and return to the rolls 113 and 114 respectively.

The

rolls

122 and 123 are geared together to be driven -in unison and the roll 122 is connected to lbe driven from the motor 108 by a belt 124 and reducing gears 125. The belt 124 may pass around adjustable drive pulleys 126 and 127 for adjusting the driving ratio between the feed rolls 103 and 104 and the belts 110 and 111.

The crimped filament or yarn is withdrawn from the compacted mass at the discharge end of the belts 110 and 111, under tension by a Winder 130 having a driven roll 131, a traversing guide 132 and a tension device 133. The Winder is driven by a motor 134.

For controlling the rate of withdrawal by the winder the roll 123 is mounted on a pivoted arrn 136 which is biased by spring 137 to hold the belt 111 in pressure engagement with the mass of fibers in the discharge zone between the

rolls

122 and 123. The arm 136 is adapted to actuate a microswitch 138 which is connected to control the driving circuit of either the motor 108 or the motor 134.

If `the belts 110 and 111 are constantly driven by the motor 108 the switch 138 will be connected to stop the Winder motor 134 when the roll 123 shifts toward the roll 122 as a result of yarn being withdrawn from between the

rolls

122 and 123 at too rapid a rate with respect to the feed of crimped yarn to the discharge zone by the belts 110 and 111, and will restart the motor 134 when the

rolls

122 and 123 again separate as more material is fed therebetween.

The friction drive 109 limits the amount of yarn fed into the crimping tube 105 to the amount withdrawn by p the'belts 110 and 111.

Alternately, the winder may operate continuously and the switch 138 may be connected to control the operation of the feed motor 108 so as to maintain a predetermined quantity of material at the discharge zone between the

rolls

122 and 123.

In this embodiment the crimped fibers are held compacted throughout their passage through treating and setting zones which may be the length necessary to provide the required time of treatment. At the same time the crlmping chamber may be maintained relatively short so as to limit the back pressurein accordance with the crimping requirements of the fibers being treated.

FIG. 12 illustrates a further means to control the feed of the fibers. In this embodiment the

rolls

122 and 123 are mounted in fixed relationship and a plunger 140 rests- The plunger 140 is slidably held in brackets 141 and is formed with an axial bore 142 through which the yarn is withdrawn as in FIG. l0. The plunger 140 is adapted` to actuate a switch 143 which is connected to control the operation of either the feed motor or the winder motor so as to maintain the plunger 140 at a constant level.

When treating low denier continuous filaments it is usually advantageous to impart a low twist to the filaments prior to crimping. This reduces the breakage and improves the yarn characteristics.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for crimping filaments comprising a tubular member forming a confined crimping zone; a pair of feed rolls disposed to feed said filaments into one end of said member to be folded over and crimped against a mass of previously crimped filaments held compacted in said member and discharged from the other Aed f said member and a pair of conveyor belts disposed at said other 'end of said member `and spaced Vapart'' receivetherebetv'veen the mass 4of crimped iil'amentsidischarged from'said member and to form a Vcontinuation of said crimping zone, said conveyor belts convergirigtvvard each other to form a progressively tapered vcpmpac'ti'ng zone ,therebetween so as to maintain the mass of lilaments therebetween under a compacting pressure throughout their path of traveling, means driving said conveyor belts 'and vsaid feed rolls at predetermined adjustable relative' rates for thereby coritrollin'g the back pressure f the, mass of crimped `iil ments in said member, ,means heating 4'sa-id 'lamelts throughout at least 'a portion `of their travel between 'said belts, and, delivery means disposed .to withdraw the crimped filaments from the mass of filaments between said belts at a predetermined discharge point.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 whereink said heat means comprises plates disposed to engage said belts on opposite sides of the mass of crimped, filaments thereber2() tween, said plates being adapted to'hold said belts 'in pressure engagement with said lilaments as they advance.

SiS-533.216`

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED 'STATES PATENTS- ila'nnan 2`8-72 Pfau '---a V194--66 Herde fer a1. 28-72 Lawrence 28f-72 .Hentschel 28-72 X ,Billio'nu 28--72 Whitney L 19-6'6 Russo e't a1. 19-66 sk ik 213-72 Kasse V1,9-66 R's's' etal 19-66 :List i- :Foa-EIGN PATENTS Italy.

Claims

1. APPARATUS FOR CRIMPING FILAMENTS COMPRISING A TUBULAR MEMBER FORMING A CONFINED CRIMPING ZONE; A PAIR OF FEED ROLLS DISPOSED TO FEED SAID FILAMENTS INTO ONE END OF SAID MEMBER TO BE FOLDED OVER AND CRIMPED AGAINST A MASS OF PREVIOUSLY CRIMPED FILAMENTS HELD COMPACTED IN SAID MEMBER AND DISCHARGED FROM THE OTHER END OF SAID MEMBER AND A PAIR OF CONVEYOR BELTS DISPOSED AT SAID OTHER END OF SAID MEMBER AND SPACED APART TO RECEIVE THEREBETWEEN THE MASS OF CRIMPED FILAMENTS DISCHARGED FROM SAID MEMBER AND TO FORM A CONTINUATION OF SAID CRIMPING ZONE, SAID CONVEYOR BELTS CONVERGING TOWARD EACH OTHER TO FORM A PROGRESSIVELY TAPERED COMPACTING ZONE THEREBETWEEN SO AS TO MAINTAIN THE MASS OF FILAMENTS THEREBETWEEN UNDER A COMPACTING PRESSURE THROUGHOUT THEIR PATH OF TRAVELING, MEANS DRIVING SAID CONVEYOR BELTS AND SAID FEED ROLLS AT PREDETERMINED ADJUSTABLE RELATIVE RATES FOR THEREBY CONTROLLING THE BACK PRESSURE OF THE MASS OF CRIMPED FILAMENTS IN SAID MEMBER, MEANS HEATING SAID FILAMENTS THROUGHOUT AT LEAST A PORTION OF THEIR TRAVEL BETWEEN SAID BELTS, AND DELIVERY MEANS DISPOSED TO WITHDRAW THE CRIMPED FILAMENTS FROM THE MASS OF FILAMENTS BETWEEN SAID BELTS AT A PREDETERMINED DISCHARGE POINT.