US3189235A - Trouser topping apparatus and pleatsetter therefor - Google Patents

Description

F. H. RICHTERKESSING ETAL 3, 35

June 15, 1965 TROUSER TOPPING APPARATUS AND PLEAT-SETTER THEREFOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 25, 1962 INVENTORS FRANK H PJCHTERKESS 1 N6 WALTER M lNGOLD BY [1L ATTORNEY June 15, 1965 F. H. RICHTERKESSING ETAL 3,189,235

TROUSER TOPPING APPARATUS AND PLEAT-SETTER THEREFOR Filed April 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS FRAN K H RKZHTERKE'SSNG WALTER M \NGOLD BY M, F. aw/MK ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,189,235 TRGIJSER TUFPING APPARATUS, AND PLEAT- SET'IER THEREFQR Frank H. Richterhessing and Walter. M. .Engold, both of Louisville, Ky., assignors to W. M. Cisseil Mannfactun ing Company, Louisviile, Ky., a corporation of Kentucky Filed Apr. 25, 1962, Ser. No. 19%,608 Claims. (Cl. 223--72) This invention relates to trouser topping apparatus and more particularly to such apparatus equipped with improved pleat setting devices.

Present day garment finishers, including trouser topping machines, embody many features contributing to improved. output by the operator of the machine, both as to quality and quantity of work, but the advantages expected from thesefeatures are frequently diminished when the work entails the topping of trousers having pleats. 'It is a purpose of the present invention to provide an apparatus which will permit the operator to top pleated trousers in an efficient manner and while taking full advantage of the inherent capabilities of the machine with which he is working.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved trouser topping apparatus adapted for finishing pleated trousers and with a reduced amount of exertion on the part of the operator.

Another object is to provide an improved pleat-setter for use with trouser topping apparatus.

A further object is to provide an improved mounting for a pleat-setter enabling the operator readily to accomplish necessary changes in clamping pressures.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent as the description proceeds and when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a trouser topping apparatus embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the right hand pleat-setter shown in relation to the top of the housing and while occupying its normal raised position.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the pleat-setter shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a face view of anassembled pleat-setter plate as viewed from the operators position.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 5A is a detail view to an enlarged scale showing the engagement of one foot of the brace with the plate.

FIG. 6 is a sectional View taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a view of the rear face of a guide for the counter balanced lever and FIG. 8 is an explodedview. showing to a larger scale the several parts of one form of adjustment employed in adjust-ing the clamping position of the pleat-setter upon thebuck.

In accordance with the invention there is provided a right hand and "a left hand pleat-setter of similar construction and pivotally mounted upon a trouser topping housing for movement by the operator from a first elevated position out of contact with the buck to a second lowered position in clamping contact with the pleats of the trousers emplaced on that buck. The pleat-setters are so mounted as to bring the pleat-engaging faces of their clamping plates to their final clamping position as they reach their lowered position and without requiring any supplemental latching or additional clamping movement which would entail a further effort on the part of the operator. The mounting of the pleat-setters, more over, provides for necessary adjustment of their clamping Ii,l89,235

plates in order to take care of variation in thickness of pleats or compression of the padding of the buck after continued use.

Referring first to FIGS. 1 to 3, the pleat-setter of the present inventionmay be employed with many types of trouser topping apparatus, but for purposes of illustration, and not by way of limitation, it is particularly well suited for use with the labor-saving topping apparatus disclosed and claimed in copending application Serial No. 184,627, filed March 12, 1962, and assigned to the same assignce as the present invention. Such an apparatus includes a generally vertical hollow housing with a base 10, side walls 11 and 12, a generally vertical back wall 13, a sloping front wall 14 and an air duct extending generally horizontally from the top of the vertical housing. The air duct includes right and left sidewalls 15 and 16, a curved front wall 17 confronting the operator at a convenient working height, an imperforate top 18, and a floor 1'9 which h-as a downwardly facing opening adjacent the front wall 17. Depending from that front wall is a buck and bag assembly which receives heated, air from a suit-able blower and heater mounted in the vertical housing, such air passing under suitable pressure control through the opening into the communicating mouth of the bag 20; The padded buck as indicated generally at 21 has a convex outer face comprising right and left abdominal portions with a crotch portion therebetween. A steam system furnishes steam for heating the buck, for conditioning the trousers prior to supply of heated air, and for heating the air. An arrayof controls as indicated at 22, 23, 24, is clustered on the front of wall 17; for ready hand-manipulation by the operator. Moreover, a waist-expander control member 25 also is located on this front wall and a damper-setting member 26 likewise is arranged within easy reach of the operator, as on a forward part of the side wall 15.

Passing now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the right hand pleatsetter is shownandthe left hand pleat-setteris omitted in the interest of clarity, it being understood that right hand signifies the member as related to the operators use of his hands and not to the pleats of the trousers. In producing quality work, it is desirable, that the pleats be set in close conformity to the tailored cut of the trousers, and this may best be achieved with a convex shaped buck in cooperation with a concave shaped clamping plate. The present invention recognizes this factor and each of the plates 30 and 31 seen in FIG. 1, and which have a size suitable for setting all of the pleats to one side of the fiyof the trousers, are so shaped. In order, however, to bring such a plate into proper juxtaposition with the pleats of the trousers a suitable adjustable mount-ing must be provided, as now to be. described with respect to platefil.

Upon a shelf 32, interiorly of the vertical housing, a stationary axle 33 is fixed and projects outwardly from side wall 15, as best seen in FIG. 2. A massive counter weight 34 having a boss 35-witha first cylindrical bore therethrough for receiving the axle 33, and journalled upon the axle by means of bushings 36 and 37 is provided. The boss also has a tubular portion 35A extending generally normal, to-the portion of theboss'enclosing the axle, and having a second bore 38 therethrough extending at right angles to the first bore and space therefrom for reception of the distal end ofthe lever arm 39. This lever arm is adapted for both axial and angular adjustment with respect to thc bore 38 in which it engages, for a purpose later to appear, and in a preferred form the lever arm comprises a hollow tube having an outer diam-- eter. giving a close fit with the inner diameter of bore 38. As seen in FIG. 8, an expander arrangement may be used and in which an axially threaded plug it) is posi- Patented June 15, 19565 i Q tioned within tube 39 adjacent the ent y of that tube into bore 33 and with that plug having a rear cam face 41 of a prescribed slope. The extreme end of the tube is formed with one or more axial slots 42. A removable hollow spacer 43 having a front cam face 44 of a different slope t an that of cam face 4-1, and a fiat back face 45 normal to the axis of the spacer, cooperates with the plug to cause an expanding action of the slotted end of the tube when a threaded bolt 46 is engaged in the thr ads of the plug and tightened thereon. The spacer has a bore 427 of substantially greater diameter than the bolt and also a washer 48 serves as an abutment for the head of the bolt in adjusting the expander assembly. Accordingly, the lever arm 39 may be adjusted both to vary the length of the radius on which the plate 31 moves and to vary the angular setting of the concave surface of the plate against the cooperating convex surface of the buck. Such adjustment, however, in no way interferes with the normal counter balancing action of the counter Weight.

The arm 39 is of substantial length to achieve optimum leverage about the fulcrum 33 and at a suitable distance from that fulcrum carries a tubular slide 50 having an outer diameter which engages with a close sliding fit in a slot 51 within an arcuate guide 52 rigidly fixed to the side wall 15 of the air duct. Suitable resilient latches 53 and 54 extending into the slot serve to engage the slide at its extremes of travel and to hold the pleat-setter either at its elevated first position as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1, or at its lowered second position.

At its proximate end the lever arm is bent downwardly and is furnished with a handle 55. Above this handle a short laterally extending member 49 having a ball 56 at its far end is rigidly but removably attached to the arm 39. As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the pleat-setter plate is formed of a metallic material having closely spaced small holes therethrough for passage of the steam and hot air issuing from the buck 21 and passing through the trousers interposed between the plate and that buck.

in a preferred form, the face of the plate which engages with the fabric of the trousers is provided with a chemically etched texturized surface which serves to effect a firm grip upon that fabric as the plate is moved to the clamping position. The actual method of forming this texturized surface forms no part of the present invention and may be accomplished by conventional photo lithographical chemical etching procedures.

An outwardly facing upstanding peripheral ridge 57 is formed on the plate and against this ridge a cruciform brace is anchored and serves as a resilient attachment of the plate to the ball 56. This brace is formed of metal and includes four feet 59, as, 61 and 62 with upturned ends pressing against the ridge of the plate as seen in FIG. 5A and with an elevated central section 63 having a hole therein to accommodate the ball 56. An inner ball retainer plate 64 and a corresponding outer ball retainer plate 65 are disposed upon opposite sides of the central section as and joined by three clamping screws 66, 67 and 63, as seen in FIG. 4. A pair of tension springs 69 and 7t; having their ends engaged in the ridge 5'7 and with the springs passing over the feet 59 and 61 in contact with the outer surface of the same thus serve to cradle the plate to the brace which itself is held upon the ball by means 5 the retainer plates. This cradling of the plate serves the useful purpose of permitting the pleat-engaging face of the plate to adjust itself to the lay of the pleat with which it engages. The brace is resilient and the extreme ends of its feet are held in movable contact with the eripheral ridge as seen in FIG. 5A. Also, the springs 69 and 76 are resilient and while holding the plate to the brace permit flexing movement of that brace such as occurs when the plate seats itself upon the laid pleats.

The above described plate and lever arm mountings form an important feature of the invention, since, as known, heavy pressure by the pleat-setter against the trousers may produce a hard finish on the fabric and show seam imprinting, while on the other hand a very light pressure may allow the pleat lay to shift during the application of air pressure and thus show wrinkles with an improperly shaped pleat. These dangers are substantially, if not entirely eliminated, by the plate and lever arm mountings herein described, particularly when employed with pleat-setter plates having a texturized surface as above described. For example, to adjust plate 31 with the texturized clamping surface to an optimum clamping relation with the buck, one merely loosens the screws 65d, 67 and and the bolt in in the counterweight. The lever arm 39 is then adjusted longitudinally and the bolt 46 is secured after which the screws are tightened. While the bolt as is loosened, the lever arm is, of course, moved angularly to its best clamping position, a clockwise rotation of the right hand arm serving to increase the pressure of plate 31 on the buck and a counterclockwise rotation serving to decrease that pressure. Furthermore, the cruciform brace itself is thin enough to provide a useful resilient backing for that plate when it is brought into clamping contact with the pleats of the trousers. The guide 52 located between the ends of the lever arm also will assure that after the plate is properly indexed with respect to the buck, movement of the lever arm will thereafter bring the plate into its predetermined position when that arm is lowered.

Having thus described a preferred form of pleat-setter, the utilization of the same in a normal trouser topping operation may be briefly noted as follows. With the trousers in place on the padded buck and with the pleats suitably preconditioned with steam and laid in place, the operator with one motion of his hand lowers the appropriate lever arm against the bias of its counterweight. The companion lever arm is then lowered and the automatic cycle of steam and air supply is effected after which the lever arms are raised and then held in elevated position by their counterweights. During movement of the ever arms from their elevated first positions to their lowered clamping or second positions, the inner faces of the pleatsetter plates 36 and 31' are always in confronting relation to the buck surfaces with which they are to cooperate. Of especial import rice, the travel of these plates on a fixed radius will completely position the pleat-setter with rcspcc to that buck and will completely clamp the pleats of the trousers against the buck as the normally uninterrupted movement of those plates from their first to their second positions is concluded. The use of toggle means, separate positioning and clamping motions or the like, as found in conventional apparatus, is thus avoided and serves to relieve the operator of fatigue and to increase his output of work. In the event that a laid pleat should shift, it is a simple matter for the operator to raise the plate slightly, relay the pleat, and then again lower the plate.

As further noted from FIGS. 1 and 2, the pleat-setters move in vertical directions to one side of the center line of the air duct portion of the apparatus and at no time interfere with the visual or manual access of the operator to the necessary controls of the machine.

With the above description in mind, it will be apparent that modifications may be made without departing from the invention and it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and variations as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a trouser topping apparatus, a buck having a convex outer surface adapted for removably supporting a pair of pleated trousers, said outer surface being convex both along its transverse vertical axis and along its transverse horizontal axis, a housing portion for supplying pr cessing fluids to said buck, said housing portion having forward and rearward ends and. side walls therebetween generally horizontally disposed at a convenient working height and supporting said buck at the forward end of said housing portion, a pair of pleat-setters each comprising an elongated lever arm with forward and rearward sections, means pivotally connecting said lever arms adjacent their rearward sections upon the respective side walls of said housing and adjacent the rearward end of said horizontal portion of said housing thereby to effect a substantial leverage for movement of said arms, and a pleat-setter plate adjustably attached to each of said lever arms adjacent the forward sections thereof, and with concave pleat-engaging faces, said pleat-engaging faces being concave both along their transverse vertical axis and along their transverse horizontal axis, said pleat-setters each being movable in a generally vertical direction between a raised first position out of contact with said buck and a lowered second position in which said pleat-setters areadapted to confine pleats of trousers between said buck and said plates, thereby to effect, during movement of either pleat-setter to its second position about a fixed radius equal to the distance between the pivotal axis of said arm and the point of attachment of the plate to the arm, the final clamping of said pleats against the buck.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said lever arms include counter weights at the rearward sections thereof arranged to bias said lever arms and pleat-setters toward said raised first position.

3. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 including means for adjusting the position of said lever arms longitudinally and angularly of said arms with respect to axes about which said arms are pivoted.

4. In a trouser topping apparatus, a buck having a convex outer surface adapted for removably supporting a pair of pleated trousers, said outer surface being convex both along its transverse vertical axis and along the transverse horizontal axis, a housing portion for supplying processing fluids to said buck and having a generally horizontal portion with forward and rearward ends and side walls therebetween disposed at a convenient working height and supporting said buck at the forward end of said housing portion, a pair of pleat-setters each comprising an elongated lever arm with forward and rearward sections, means pivotally attaching said lever arms adjacent their rearward sections upon the respective walls of said housing and adjacent the rearward end of said horizontal portion of said housing thereby to effect a substantial leverage for movement of said arms, and pleat-setter plates having means for adjustably attaching said plates to the lever arms adjacent the forward sections thereof and with concave pleat-engaging faces, said pleat-engaging faces being concave both along their transverse vertical axis and along their transverse horizontal axis, said adjustable attaching means each including a ball member rigidly attached to said lever arm and ball encompassing means carried by said plate thereby to provide a ball joint aiding in selfadjustment of the concave face of said plate to the lay of pleats of trousers, said pleat-setters being movable in a generally vertical direction between a raised first position out of contact with said buck and a loweredsecond posi tion in which said pleat-setters are adapted to confine pleats of trousers between said buck and said plate.

5. Apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein said plate includes an integral peripheral ridge portion formed on the side opposite the pleat-engaging face thereof, a brace separate from said plate and having feet engageable against said ridge and a central portion spaced from the central portion of said plate and attachable to said ballencompassing means, and means anchored to said plate and encompassing said brace thereby to cradle said plate and to assist in the self-adjustment thereof as it is brought into contact with trouser pleats.

6. Apparatus as defined in claim 5 wherein said brace is flexible and wherein said means anchored to said plate and encompassing said brace comprises springs.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,437,372 11/ 22 Walters 27730 X 1,597,707 8/26 Andree 223-57 X 2,453,488 11/48 Bowen 2237O 2,723,062 11/55 Rosenthal 223--73 2,772,039 11/56 Hoover et a1 22373 2,908,427 10/59 De Fino et al 22373 2,910,791 11/59 Behrstock 38-66 3,052,388 9/62 Mutolese 223-57 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

THOMAS J. HICKEY, Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. IN A TROUSER TOPPING APPARATUS, A BUCK HAVING A CONVEX OUTER SURFACE ADAPTED FOR REMOVABLY SUPPORTING A PAIR OF PLEATED TROUSERS, SAID OUTER SURFACE BEING CONVEX BOTH ALONG ITS TRANSVERSE VERTICAL AXIS AND ALONG ITS TRANSVERSE HORIZONTAL AXIS, A HOUSING PORTION FOR SUPPLYING PROCESSING FLUIDS TO SAID BUCK, SAID HOUSING PORTION HAVING FORWARD AND REARWARD ENDS AND SIDE WALLS THEREBETWEEN GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED AT A CONVENIENT WORKING HEIGHT AND SUPPORTING SAID BUCK AT THE FORWARD END OF SAID HOUSING PORTION, A PAIR OF PLEAT-SETTERS EACH COMPRISING AN ELONGATED LEVER ARM WITH FORWARD AND REARWARD SECTIONS, MEANS PIVOTALLY CONNECTING SAID LEVER ARMS ADJACENT THEIR REARWARD SECTIONS UPON THE RESPECTIVE SIDE WALLS OF SAID HOUSING AND ADJACENT THE REARWARD END OF SAID HORIZONTAL PORTION OF SAID HOUSING THEREBY TO EFFECT A SUBSTANTIAL LEVERAGE FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID ARMS, AND A PLEAT-SETTER PLATE ADJUSTABLY ATTACHED TO EACH OF SAID LEVER ARMS ADJACENT THE FORWARD SECTIONS THEREOF, AND WITH CONCAVE PLEAT-ENGAGING FACES, SAID PLEAT-ENGAGING FACES BEING CONCAVE BOTH ALONG THEIR TRANSVERSE VERTICAL AXIS AND ALONG THEIR TRANSVERSE HORIZONTAL AXIS, SAID PLEAT-SETTERS EACH BEING MOVABLE IN A GENERALLY VERTICAL DIRECTION BETWEEN A RAISED FIRST POSITION OUT OF CONTACT WITH SAID BUCK AND A LOWERED SECOND POSITION IN WHICH SAID PLEAT-SETTERS ARE ADAPTED TO CONFINE PLEATS OF TROUSERS BETWEEN SAID BUCK AND SAID PLATES, THEREBY TO EFFECT, DURING MOVEMENT OF EITHER PLEAT-SETTER TO ITS SECOND POSITION ABOUT A FIXED RADIUS EQUAL TO THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE PIVOTAL AXIS OF SAID ARM AND THE POINT OF ATTACHMENT OF THE PLATE TO THE ARM, THE FINAL CLAMPING OF SAID PLEATS AGAINST THE BUCK.

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