US3624754A

US3624754A - Loom-picking device

Info

Publication number: US3624754A
Application number: US12001A
Authority: US
Inventors: Umberto V Tosti
Original assignee: North American Rockwell Corp
Current assignee: Draper Corp; Boeing North American Inc
Priority date: 1970-02-17
Filing date: 1970-02-17
Publication date: 1971-11-30
Anticipated expiration: 1988-11-30

Abstract

A picking device for a loom comprising a pick ball supporting stud and a cooperating locking element therefor for fixedly attaching it to and releasing it for disassembly from the loom''s pickshaft.

Description

United States Patent 414,652 11/1889 Meats. 2,868,234 1/1959 Nims FOREIGN PATENTS [72] Inventor UmbertoV.Tosti Miliord,Mass.

[21] App1.No. 12,001

22 Filed Feb. 17, 1970 .m .m m m m nt .ma mm uemw A600 6033 0482 9989 1111 l/l/ 720 l 1 01. 1791 ,3 5826 28 0 6 2 n 0 .U a m 0 C H e W m R I. a 7W 9e 0 A am v m 00 NNH de 4% 2. 3 PA .11 53 47 1.1

Primary Examiner]ames Kee Chi Anarneys.1ohn R. Bronaugh, George R. Powers and Floyd S.

nu w .W e L E mm F m M a r D E4 J Wm 0C L2 M U A picking device for a 100m comprising a pick ng stud and a cooperating locking element fixedly attaching it to and releasing it for disassembly from the looms pickshaft.

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1967 Urguhart..,...............

PATENTEuunv 30 IHII sum Inf 2 LOOM-PICKING DEVICE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention pertains to a picking motion for looms of the fly-shuttle type wherein a rotating pick cam acts upon a pick ball to actuate the looms pickshaft. As is well known to those conversant in the weaving art, the pickshaft is mechanically linked to a so-called picker stick, the latter of which provides the means for picking a shuttle across the loom through a shed formed by warp threads. In particular the invention pertains to the pick ball stud which rotatably supports the pick ball on the pickshaft in a position which enables it to track on the outer periphery of the pick cam.

The conventional means of assembling a pick ball stud in a pickshaft is that of a press fit and should it require replacement for such known reasons as becoming worn or broken, considerable time and expense is required to make such a replacement. To replace a pick ball stud, the pickshaft must be removed from the loom and with certain late model looms it presents many problems for the gauged settings of other loom components must be disturbed as well as in certain cases the removal of unrelated elements is required to enable the removal of the pickshaft. Machine shop time is required to press out and replace the pickshaft with a new pick ball stud after which said pickshaft must be reassembled to the loom in proper gauged position as well as resetting or reassembling other elements that had to be disturbed. Weaving mills consider the downtime of a loom for pick-ball stud replacement excessive as well as quite costly.

A form of a replaceable pick ball stud is shown and described in US. Pat. No. 3,332,449. This arrangement utilizes a collet device having a tapered rod that is adapted to cooperate with a sleeve that is split to form expandable fingers, the latter of which serve to fixedly assemble the pick ball stud to the loom's pickshaft.

Relative to the instant replaceable pick ball stud, the collettype arrangement requires a greater number of cooperating components and compared to the number of necessary machining operations required for its manufacture, it necessitates substantially more resulting in greater replacement cost to a weaving mill.

The replaceable pick ball stud according to the instant invention eliminates those undesirable factors prevalent with the known forms of pick ball studs by providing one which is relatively inexpensive to manufacture with a positive means for its assembly to a pickshaft and which is readily replaceable without removing said pickshaft from the loom or disturbing the gauged settings thereof and other closely disposed parts of a loom.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The pickshaft to which the replaceable pick ball stud of the present invention assembles, includes an integrally formed apertured boss through which said stud is adapted to extend. That portion of the stud which assembles within the boss, includes a generally longitudinally extending raceway on the outer periphery thereof into which a relatively slidable locking member or so-called wedge is receivable.

The aperture through which the stud extends is disposed transversely of the axis of the pickshaft and extending outwardly from each end of the boss one end of said stud is adapted to rotatably support the pick ball and the opposite end is threaded to receive a locking assembly nut. This locking assembly nut draws the pick ball stud into operating position on the pickshaft and the relative movement during this assembly between the stud and wedge causes the outer surface of the latter to bear against the inner surface of the aperture to fixedly position said stud in operating position.

To release the holding force of the wedge, one simply has to loosen the locking assembly nut and tap that end of the stud.

It is therefore a general object of the invention to substantially reduce the time element and expense for the replacement of a pick ball stud in the pickshaft of a loom.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide an improved pick ball stud which can be quickly and easily replaced in a loom pickshaft without removal of the latter from a loom.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. l is a perspective view of a portion of the left-hand side of a loom with a part of the pickshaft omitted to show the tracking position of the pick ball on the pick cam;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of part of the picking mechanism as seen looking from the inside of a loom;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view showing a portion of the looms pickshaft and the pick ball supporting stud according to the invention, and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of that portion of the pickshaft shown in FIG. 3 with the pick ball supporting stud assembled thereto.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings wherein only as much of a loom structure is depicted as is necessary for a complete understanding of the invention, there is shown in FIG. l the lefthand side of the loom and its end frame or so-called loomside I0 which is adapted to support the loom's picking motion generally indicated by numeral I l.

The invention is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 as applied to one side of the loom only; however, it should be understood that the invention is equally applicable to both sides of the loom and that the opposite side is provided with similar components to make it function in a like manner.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 the loom's picking motion includes a pickshaft 12 the ends of which are journaled in

bearing boxes

13 and 14 that are fixedly attached to the loomside 10 by means of

bolts

15 and 16 respectively.

The loom's camshaft is shown at 17 and carries for rotation therewith a pick cam 18 on the outer periphery of which a pick ball 19 is caused to track. The pick ball 19 is rotatably supported on the pickshaft 12 by means of a readily removable supporting stud or so-called pick ball stud generally indicated by numeral 20 and which will be more fully described hereinafter.

The pickshaft 12 also includes a depending pick arm 21 (FIG. I) and by means of a generally horizontally disposed lug connection 22 said pick arm is interconnected with a picker stick 23 which in a well-known manner provides the means for propelling a shuttle (not shown) across the width of the loom.

The pickshaft 12 is provided adjacent its rearward end with an integrally formed aperture boss 24 with the aperture therein being identified by numeral 25 in FIG. 3. This aperture 25 extends transversely of the axis of the pickshaft I2'and is counterbored as at 26 (FIG. 4) to conform to the configuration of that portion of the pick ball stud adapted to assemble therein.

As shown in FIG. 3 the pick ball 19 is assembled on one end of the pick ball stud with the inner end thereof disposed in close proximity with a thrust washer 27 that is pressed onto said stud to a position intermediate its ends.

That part of the pick ball stud which assembles within aperture 25 includes a cylindrical body portion 28 and in continuation thereof a necked portion 29 of a reduced diameter which is threaded as at 30 for the reception of a locking assembly nut 31.

The cylindrical body portion 28 of the pick ball stud is provided with a longitudinally disposed raceway 32 that extends from the necked portion 29 to the thrust washer 27. The depth of the raceway adjacent to the necked portion is in alignment with the outer periphery of the latter and extending toward the thrust washer 27 at a slight angle to the axis of the stud, it terminates on the outer periphery of the body portion at a position in close proximity with the side of said thrust washer.

A relatively slidable locking member or wedge 33 (FIGS. 3 and 4) assembles in the raceway 32 and is provided with a curved outer surface having a radius equal to that of the body portion 28 of the pick ball stud and a flat lower surface to facilitate relative movement within said raceway The end of the wedge identified by numeral 34 in FIG. 3 is slightly thicker than the depth of the raceway at that point adjacent to the necked portion 29.

In assembly the wedge is placed in the raceway in such a manner that a portion of the length of the thicker end extends for a portion of the length of the necked portion which makes the outer curved surface of that portion within the raceway concentric with the diameter of the body portion 28 of the stud. The stud is then inserted into aperture and the locking assembly nut 3l applied to the threaded end thereof. The thicker end of the wedge makes contact with the end of the counterbore within said aperture and as the nut 31 is tightened the relative movement between the pick ball stud and wedge causes the latter to be forced outwardly to bind and fixedly position said stud in the pickshaft.

The angular configuration of the wedge conforms to the angle at which the raceway is formed in the body portion of the stud so that in assembly the full longitudinal length of said wedge serves to provide the desired binding force for locking said stud in operating position.

To remove the pick ball stud from the pickshaft, one simply loosens the locking nut, then taps that end of said stud to free the wedge and it can then be quickly and easily taken out without removing the pickshaft from the loom.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. In a picking motion for a loom having a picker stick. a camshaft including a pick cam fixed thereon for'rotation therewith during loom operation, a pickshaft operatively linked to said picker stick and a pick ball for engaging said pick cam to activate said pickshaft, the improvement comprising: a detachable stud member carried by said pickshaft for rotatably supporting said pick ball; a relatively slidable locking member engageable with the pickshaft and stud member for fixedly positioning the latter to said pickshaft; said pickshaft including an integrally formed apertured boss through which said stud member is adapted to extend with a removable fastening member attached to one end of the latter for providing a means for its assembly to and disassembly from said pickshaft; said slidable locking member being a wedge element interposed between the inner surface of said apertured boss and said stud member; and said stud member including a longitudinally extending raceway on the outer periphery thereof into which said wedge element is receivable.

2. The picking motion according to claim I wherein said raceway has a depth at one end greater than at its opposite end whereby the relative movement between said raceway and wedge element is effective in producing a binding action for fixedly positioning said stud member when assembled to said pickshaft.

Claims

1. In a picking motion for a loom having a picker stick, a camshaft including a pick cam fixed thereon for rotation therewith during loom operation, a pickshaft operatively linked to said picker stick and a pick ball for engaging said pick cam to activate said pickshaft, the improvement comprising: a detachable stud member carried by said pickshaft for rotatably supporting said pick ball; a relatively slidable locking member engageable with the pickshaft and stud member for fixedly positioning the latter to said pickshaft; said pickshaft including an integrally formed apertured boss through which said stud member is adapted to extend with a removable fastening member attached to one end of the latter for providing a means for its assembly to and disassembly from said pickshaft; said slidable locking member being a wedge element interposed between the inner surface of said apertured boss and said stud member; and said stud member including a longitudinally extending raceway on the outer periphery thereof into which said wedge element is receivable.

2. The picking motion according to claim 1 wherein said raceway has a depth at one end greater than at its opposite end whereby the relative movement between said raceway and wedge element is effective in producing a binding action for fixedly positioning said stud member when assembled to said pickshaft.