US3423807A

US3423807A - Apparatus for the layering of tow

Info

Publication number: US3423807A
Application number: US527905A
Authority: US
Inventors: Georges Couturier; Charles Gauthier
Original assignee: Crylor SA
Current assignee: Crylor SA
Priority date: 1965-02-19
Filing date: 1966-02-16
Publication date: 1969-01-28
Anticipated expiration: 1986-01-28
Also published as: ES323286A1; FR1441502A; NL6601782A; BE676739A; DE1510221A1; CH441918A; GB1101765A

Description

,1969 G-COUTLIJRIER ET AL 3,423;s07

APPARATUS FOR THE LAYERING OF'TOW Filed Feb. 16, 1966 nve llors j Attorneys United States Patent 3,423,807 APPARATUS FOR THE LAYERING 0F TOW Georges Couturier and Charles Gauthier, Lyon, France, assignors to Crylor, Paris, France, a French body corporate Filed Feb. 16, 1966, Ser. No. 527,905 Claims priority, application France, Feb. 19, 1965,

6,315/ 65 U.S. Cl. 28-21 3 Claims Int. Cl. B65h 54/78 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an apparatus for the reciprocal rectilinear layering of a tow, a sliver or any other similar assembly of textile filaments or fibers, all of which will be simply referred to as a tow in the following text, in a receptacle of large dimensions such as, for example, those employed for the handling of tows between two discontinuous operations, treatment baskets or packing cases or boxes.

Layering consists in depositing a tow in such a receptacle in horizontal parallel layers with regularly disposed folds or undulations in each layer. It is important to effect a good layering, i.e. to obtain a regular deposition and a good presentation of the tow, which makes it possible later to withdraw it without tangling or twisting, even when the layered tow has been compressed to ensure good stability during transport and increase the density of the packing and so save space.

Generally speaking, a layering device comprises a receptacle which is carried by a support, which is either fixed or movable in one or more directions, and a tow-distributing device or arm which may also be movable in one or more directions.

In principle, three types of layering are known:

(a) Layering in a folded sheet,

(b) Layering in loops,

(c) Reciprocal rectilinear layering.

The present invention concerns a method of the last type. In this type of layering the movement of the tow is rectilinear and reciprocal. The tow is deposited in the form of folds, each fold having a length equal to that of the receptacle. In order that each fold may be offset from the preceding one, it is necessary for the receptacle or the point of distribution of the tow to be actuated with a slow lateral movement which renders possible complete filling of the receptacle, but in describing generally the invention, this essential slow lateral movement will be disregarded and only the rapid movements at right angles thereto will be considered.

It is known to layer tows with a reciprocal rectilinear movement, using a fixed receptacle and a reciprocating distributing arm. This method gives satisfactory results at low speeds, but at speeds above, for example, 50 m. per minute, accurate deposition is impossible, because the tow is alternately shifted to either side of the distributing arm by inertia, so that irregular loops are produced in- 3,423,807 Patented Jan. 28, 1969 stead of regular folds. Moreover, the movement of the tow is interfered with by air resistance.

It is also known to use a movable receptacle and a fixed di.tributing arm. In this method, the relative movement of the tow with respect to the receptacle is the same as before, but the advantage is obtained that the tow is constantly falling vertically and, consequently, the deposition remains accurate. However, for reasons of productivity, it is desirable to use packing receptacles of large dimensions, and it is then necessary to move reciprocally, with high precision, a receptacle-carriage unit of considerable total weight, which may be 50 kg. or more even when the receptacle is empty. This movement must take place at relatively high speeds, for example of the order of m. per minute, and this involves considerable inertial forces at the points of reversal, and thus necessitates costly mechanical means and poses serious problems with regard to the mechanical stability of the WhOle assembly. Moreover, the sudden change of direction is likely to displace and even to tangle the folds of tow already layered.

Therefore, while both these methods give satisfactory results at low layering speeds, this is not so at high speeds, at which the layering becomes irregular.

It has surprisingly been found that the above disadvantages and difficulties can be overcome, and regular layering can be obtained even at high feed speeds, by a method of working in which the point of distribution of the tow and its place of reception are each simultaneously actuated with a reciprocal rectilinear movement, these two movements being parallel, complementary (as hereinafter defined), absolutely synchronous and carried out in a common vertical plane, but always in opposite directions, and in addition the point of distribution of the tow and its place of reception are reciprocated slowly relative to each other at right angles to the direction of the first two said movements.

The word complementary, in the sense in which it is used here, means that, in the course of each half-reciprocation, the sum of the absolute values of the movements of the point of supply of the tow on the one hand and of the place of reception of this tow on the other hand is constant and equal to that dimension of the receptacle which is parallel to the path of the point of supply of the tow.

The invention also provides an apparatus for carrying out the above method, comprising a tow-distributing device, means for imparting thereto a reciprocal rectilinear movement, a receptacle support below the tow-distributing device, means for imparting to the said support a reciprocal rectilinear movement which is complementary and parallel to the said movement of the tow-distributing device, and in the same vertical plane and synchronous therewith but opposite in direction thereto, and means for causing the tow-distributing device and the receptacle support to reciprocate slowly relative to each other at right angles to the first two said movements.

Any ratio between the speeds of the distributing device and the receptacle support may be chosen. Advantageously, the speed of the distributing device is higher than that of the receptacle support, for example twice as high. On the other hand, it is obvious that these speeds, in absolute values, must correspond to the speed of supply of the tow. The necessary adjustment of the machine is within the ability of any person skilled in the art.

The method and the apparatus of the invention make it possible to apply the same relative movement to the tow in relation to the receptacle as in the hitherto known methods and apparatus for reciprocal rectilinear layering, but they have the advantage that they render possible a high speed of deposition of the tow with relatively low speeds of the receptacle and of the distributing arm, respectively. Moreover, it is possible by the method of the invention to obtain a more regular folding than with the earlier methods, because it combines, on the one hand, the advantage of layering with a fixed distributing arm in producing an accurate deposition of the tow, and on the other hand the advantage of a limited degree of displacement of the receptacle, which represents an appreciable saving of energy and a great advantage from the viewpoint of mechanical stability.

As the tow-distributing device, there may be used a simple vertical guide hopper or any conveying device such as rolls, an endless belt or the like, so designed that the path followed by the tow in the part serving as the delivery means remains constantly vertical during the reciprocating movement of the device.

Great care must be taken in the construction of the device for the synchronization of the movements of the distributing device and of the receptacle, so that these two movements are continuously absolutely synchronous and in opposite directions.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying draw- A ing, in which the figure represents in vertical section a form of layering apparatus.

Referring now to the drawing, the apparatus is disposed at two levels one above the other.

At the lower level, a base 1 supports, on rails (not shown), a carriage 2 capable of rapid reciprocal rectilinear movement imparted by a laterally attached chain 3 driven by a motor 4 coupled to a variable-speed gear 5. The carriage 2 has on its upper surface rails 2A at right angles to its direction of movement, on which there is movably mounted a second carriage 6 which in use supports a packing box or other receptacle 7; this second carriage is moved by crossed-thread screws 8 with a slow reciprocal rectilinear movement produced by a reducinggear motor 9 attached to the carriage 6. The receptacle 7 is therefore simultaneously subjected to two movements at right angles, that of the carriage 2, which is a rapid reciprocating movement, and that of the carriage 6, which is a slow lateral reciprocating movement.

At the higher level, immediately above the receptacle 7, is situated a hopper 10 attached to a movable carriage 11 actuated by a laterally attached chain 12 which imparts thereto a reciprocal rectilinear movement. The hopper 10 receives tow 13 coming from take-up rolls 14.

The movement of the carriage 11 is coupled to that of the carriage 2 through gearing 15 so that the two movements are synchronous. The lateral attachments of the carriages 2 and 11 to the

chains

3 and 12, respectively, are so positioned that the movements of the two carriages are always opposite in direction. The length of travel of the carriage 2, and therefore also its speed, are, for example, half that of the carriage 11.

The ends of the respective travels of the hopper 10 and of the receptacle 7 are indicated in chain lines in the drawing, a common chain like corresponding to simultaneous positions at 7' and 10 on the one hand and at 7" and 10 on the other hand.

In this particular device the reciprocal rectilinear movements are obtained either by a laterally attached chain or by crossed-thread screws. However, any other appropriate device may be used for this purpose, such as cams, for example frame-type cams, disc-type cams, drum-type cams, grooved cams, etc. Moreover, in order to reduce the work supplied by the cams or other devices, use may be made of known damping and energy-recovering devices such as, for example, metallic or pneumatic springs.

Again, while in the particular device illustrated the movements of the carriages 2 and 11 are synchronised by a belt and gearing transmission, the transmission may very well be effected by means of chains or other equivalent transmission means.

The device illustrated can be modified, for example, by eliminating the second carriage 6, so that the carriage 2 carries the receptacle, and providing means for imparting the slow lateral reciprocation to the hopper 10.

We claim:

1. An apparatus for the reciprocal rectilinear layering of tow, comprising a first carriage mounted for rectilinear reciprocation, a second carriage mounted on the first carriage for rectilinear reciprocation at right angles to the movement of the first carriage and adapted to carry a receptacle for layered tow, a tow-distributing device above the second carriage positioned so as to deposit tow in a receptacle carried by the second carriage and mounted for rectilinear reciprocation parallel to and in the same vertical plane as that of the first carriage, means for causing the first carriage to reciprocate, means for causing the tow-distributing device to reciprocate, means for actuating both the said reciprocation-imparting means in correlation such that the movement of the tow-distributing device is complementary but in the opposite direction to, and synchronous with, that of the first carriage, and means for causing a slow reciprocating movement of the second carriage.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, in which the reciprocation of the tow-distribution device is controlled and synchonised with that of the first carriage by gearing between the respective reciprocation-imparting means.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, in which the towdistributing device is constructed to reciprocate at a higher speed of movement than the first carriage.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 348,421 8/1886 Schofield 19-163 3,123,889 3/1964 Watts et al 28-21 3,281,913 11/1966 Morehead et a1 28-21 3,339,244 9/1967 Van Deusen 19-l60 FOREIGN PATENTS 658,121 2/1963 Canada.

670,341 9/ 1963 Canada.

855,924 12/ 1960 Great Britain.

ROBERT R. MACKEY, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.*R.