US3747373A

US3747373A - Needle mounting arrangement

Info

Publication number: US3747373A
Application number: US00132010A
Authority: US
Inventors: J Sedlecky; J Matejka; B Milichovsky; O Eisner
Original assignee: Statni Vyzkumny Ustav Textilni
Current assignee: Statni Vyzkumny Ustav Textilni
Priority date: 1970-04-10
Filing date: 1971-04-07
Publication date: 1973-07-24
Anticipated expiration: 1990-07-24
Also published as: CS152084B1

Abstract

Stitch bonding needles have slanted lateral anchoring portions projecting transversely from the respective shank end portion and being embedded in cast material filling a cavity in a holding member so that the needles are reliably secured against the forces acting on the needles during the piercing and retraction motions of the needles. The rear end of the hollow shank end portion of the needle is located outside of the cavity so that the cast material cannot enter the guideway for the latch slide part of the needle.

Description

Umted States Patent 11 1 1111 3,747,373 Sedlecky et' a1. July 24, 1973 [54] NEEDLE MOUNTING ARRANGEMENT 3,229,485 1/1966 Pesenl et a1 66/120 3,079,778 3/1963 Kubelka 66/85 [751 'f sgdlfckyi Maul; 3,439,386 4/1969 Spisak 19/129 Bohumll Millchovsky; Olrich Eisner, 3,344,482 10/1967 Mann et a1 19/129 all of Prague, Czechoslovakia 73 A Sta i v k U l T 1 l FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS g' zg j g n 1,503,142 12/1967 France 139/192 Filedl l"'- 7, 1971 Primary Examiner-Ronald Feldbaum 21 APPL No: 132 010 Att0rney-Michael S. Striker [30] Foreign Application Priority Data [57] ABSTRACT Apr. 10, 1970 Czechoslovakia 241 070 stitch bmlding needles have Slanted lateral ahchmihg portions projecting transversely from the respective 52 11.8. c1. 66/120 shank end P and being embedded in Cast malehial 51 Int. (:1 D04b 35/04 filling cavity in a holding member that the needles 58 Field of Search 66/120, 121, 123 are reliably Secured against the forces acting on the 66/86, 84 needles during the piercing and retraction motions of the needles. The rear end of the hollow shank end por- 56] References Cited tion of the needle is located outside of the cavity so that UNITED STATES PATENTS the cast material cannot enter the guideway for the latch slide part of the needle. 2,714,811 8/1955 Amidon 66/86 2,259,655 10/1941 Morton 66/114 12 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures NEEDLE MOUNTING ARRANGEMENT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the mounting of needles in holding means, and more particularly to the mounting of stitch bonding needles used in machines for stitch bonding a fibrous web, or any other textile fabric.

Conventional stitch bonding needles consist of two parts, namely a main part with a shank and hook, and a sliding latch reciprocable in a guideway of the main needle portion for opening and closing the hook.

It is known to embed the shank end portion in a holding member. In order to more reliably embed the shank end portion, notches are provided in the region of the back of the shank end portion. In order to improve the mounting of conventional needles, including bearded and latch needles, the extremity of the needles is divided into an upwardly and a downwardly bent part. It has been found that this construction is insufficient, particularly for stitch bonding needles, since a loosening of the needle in the holding member occurs due to the fact that stitch bonding needles have to pierce a fibrous web or mat, and then be withdrawn from the same, which causes great longitudinal forces acting on the stitch bonding needles. Particularly, the construction is not applicable to tubular stitch bonding needles which have an inner guideway for slidingly guiding a movable latch.

During a stitch bonding operation, the needle has to pass a fibrous layer, which offers considerable resistance to the piercing and return motions of the needle, particularly if the layer is made of asbestos, jute, or similar hard fibers. A stitch bonding method is known in which no thread is used by the stitch bonding needles, but fibers of the web are pulled by the needle hook, which produces considerable stresses on the needle. The longitudinal forces are transferred by the needle shank to the holding means so that the shank end portion is loosened.

Every time the shank end portion of a needle is loosened in the holding member, the same has to be replaced, which is a time-consuming job requiring stopping of the loom, and furthermore causes faults in the final fabric. Since each holding member mounts between two and ten needles, it is necessary to replace the holding member with all needles when one or two needles become loose. Even the recasting of a loosened needle is time-consuming and requires interruption of the loom operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is one object of the invention to overcome the disadvantages of the needle mounting arrangements according to the prior art, and to embed needles in holding means so that they do not become loose even after long use.

Another object of the invention is to increase the resistance of a needle against longitudinal impact forces occurring during piercing and return motions of a stitch bonding needle reinforcing a fibrous web or other textile sheet.

With these objects in view, a needle according to the invention has lateral anchoring projections, which are preferably slanted to the longitudinal direction of the needle, and are bent out from the back portion of the needle shank,at least on one side of the needle shank.

More than one anchoring projection can be provided on one side, or two or more anchoring projections can be provided on opposite sides of the shank end portion.

A needle mounting arrangement according to one embodiment of the invention comprises needle holding means having at least one cavity, at least one needle including a shank with a shank end portion having at least one transversely projecting anchoring portion; and cast material located in the cavity of the holding means in which the shank end portion and anchoring portion are located. In this manner, the shank end portion and anchoring portion are fixedly embedded in the holding means, and the anchoring portion reliably secures the needle in the holding means while the front and rear ends of the shank end portion are located outside of the casing.

Due to the strong anchoring effect of the transversely projecting anchoring portions, a stitch bonding needle can sustain the great forces developed during piercing of a fibrous web, and during retraction from the same, without becoming loose in the holding means.

By the anchoring projections of the invention, the resistance of the stitch bonding needles against loosening during repeated passages through a fibrous web is increased many times, and the life span of the needle is substantially extended.

The novel features of the invention which are considered as characteristic are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view illustrating a stitch bonding needle according to a first embodiment of the invention having two slanted anchoring projections on the same side;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the needle shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a modified stitch bonding needle having slanted anchoring projections on both sides thereof;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of the needle shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a set of four stitch bonding needles embedded in a holding member; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a plurality of holding members with sets of needles mounted on a needle bed to form a row of needles.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a stitch bonding needle includes a main part 1 with a needle head 4 ending in a hook 5 which has a point 6, and a latch slide part 2 slidably guided in a straight tubular inner guideway connecting the ends of main part 1, and movable between a position closing book 5 and a position opening the same. The latch slide part rearwardly projects from the rear end of the guideway. A stitch bonding needle of this type is disclosed in detail in the US. Pat. No. 3,229,485.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a first embodiment of a needle according to the invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 a sec ond embodiment. Corresponding parts are indicated by the same reference numeral, which are primed in FIGS. 2 and 3.

The needle has a shank '7 ending in a shank end portion 3, two

lateral faces

13 and 14 between a back portion 11 and a front portion 12, which is formed with a guideway for the latch 2. In the embodiment of FIGS. ii and 2, the back portion 11 of the shank end portion 3 has two rearwardly and laterally slanted anchoring projections 9 which define substantially the same angle with the longitudinal direction of the needle 1. Since the anchoring projections 9 are located only on one side of the needle, and in the back portion of the same, the lateral face portions along the front portion 12 remain continuous.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3, in which parts corresponding to the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2 are provided with primed reference numerals, the back portion 1 l of shank end portion 3 has slanted anchoring projections 9' one of which projects laterally and forwardly, while the other anchoring projection projects laterally and rearwardly. The lateral face portions of the front portion 12' remain continuous, since the anchoring projections are formed only in the back portion 11'. The forwardly and rearwardly projecting anchoring portions 9' are located on opposite sides of the shank end portion 3'.

Since the front portions l2, 12' are not used for the bent anchoring portions 9 and 9', the transverse strength of the needles is not impaired substantially.

FIG. 5 shows a holding member 8 which is provided with an inner cavity in which the shank end portions 3, 3' and the anchoring portions 9, 9 of a set of needles I or I is inserted. The rear ends la of the shank end portions 3, 3', from which the latch slide parts 2 rearwardly project, are located rearward of the rear wall bounding the cavity, and outside of the cavity. After insertion, the cavity is filled with a cast material, but no material can enter the guideway. Due to the laterally projecting anchoring portions, the contact area between the cast material and the shank end portion 3 is considerably increased as compared with constructions of the prior art. Since the anchoring portions 9 or 9' anchor the respective needles firmly in the cast material, longitudinal forces acting on the needles due to reciprocating movements of the needle heads 4 into and out of a fibrous web or mat, are absorbed and dampened, and the needle does not become loose in the material cast into the cavity of holding member 8. When the acute angles defined by the slanted anchoring portions 9 and 9' with the longitudinal direction of the needle are suitably chosen, and the arrangement of the anchoring portions 9 or 9' is selected in accordance with operational conditions, the span of life of each holder 3 with needles l or 1' is considerably increased.

The slanted lateral anchoring projections 9 or 9' of the back portion 11 of the needle shank 7, are made in a conventional manner in the press in which the needle is formed.

Each holding member s is usually provided with two to ten needles, and a row ,of needle holders 18 is mounted in a corresponding recess ofa needle bed 10, as shown in FIG. 6. Screws 18 secure each holder 8 to the needle bed l9. Since all holders d are of the same construction, a row of needles I is formed of the several sets of needles supported by the several holding members 8 which together constitute a holding means for the row of needles 1. The ends la of the shank end portions 3, 3 rearwardly project out of the cavities in holding members 8 so that the cast material cannot enter into the space formed by latch part 2 in the guideway of the needle main part 1.

As a casting material, composite metals are used, preferably a lead alloy, or any other alloy having a low melting point. A suitable thermoplastic synthetic material may also be used.

Stitch bonding needles mounted in accordance with the present invention are used in stitch bonding machines on the one hand for forming warp loops, and on the other hand to pierce the fibrous web which is to be reinforced by the warp knit. The U.S. Pat. No. 3,310,964, discloses mounting arrangements for stitch bonding needles, and describes the operation of the needles in great detail.

While the present invention is particularly advantageously used for stitch bonding needles which penetrate a fibrous web, the mounting arrangement of the invention may be applied to any knitting needle.

Itwill be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of needle mounting arrangements, differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a knitting needle having anchoring projections located in material cast into a cavity of a holding member, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. Needle mounting arrangement comprising needle holding means including walls bounding a cavity; at least one knitting needle including a main part and a straight latch slide part, said main part having at the front end a hook, and at the rear end a shank end portion and at least one anchoring portion transversely projecting from said shank portion, said shank end portion extending through said cavity so that said front and rear ends thereof are located outside of said cavity, said main part having a straight tubular inner guideway between said front and rear ends for guiding said latch slide part for reciprocating movement so that said hook is opened and closed by the front end of said latch slide part while the rear end of said latch slide part projects from said shank end portion rearward of said cavity; and cast material in said cavity fixedly embedding said shank end portion and said anchoring portion in said holding means whereby said anchoring portion secures said main part in said holding means while no cast material can enter said straight tubular inner guideway from the rear end of said shank end portion.

2. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shank end portion extend in one longitudinal direction; and wherein said anchoring portion projects laterally from said shank end portion.

3. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 2, wherein said anchoring portion is slanted to said shank end portion and defines an acute angle with said longitudinal direction.

4. Needle mounting arrangement comprising needle holding means including walls bounding a cavity; at least one knitting needle including a main part and a straight latch slide part, said main part having at the front end a hook, and at the rear end a shank end portion and at least one slanted anchoring portion integrally bent out from said shank end portion and transversely projecting therefrom, said shank end portion extending through said cavity so that said front and rear ends thereof are located outside of said cavity, said main part having a straight tubular inner guideway be tween said front and rear ends for guiding said latch slide part for reciprocating movement so that said hook is opened and closed by the front end of said latch slide part while the rear end of said latch slide part projects from said shank end portion rearward of said cavity; and cast material in said cavity fixedly embedding said shank end portion and said anchoring portion in said holding means whereby said anchoring portion secures said main part in said holding means while no cast material can enter said straight tubular inner guideway from the rear end of said shank end portion.

5. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein said shank end portion has said anchoring portion on one side, and a second integrally bent out anchoring portion at the other side thereof; and wherein said anchoring portions are slanted to said shank end portion and define angles with the longitudinal direction of said shank end portion.

6. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 5 wherein one of said anchoring portions projects laterally and forwardly, and the other anchoring portion extends laterally and rearward in relation to said knitting needle.

7. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 6, wherein said shank end portion has lateral faces on said sides, a back portion between said lateral faces, and a front portion between said lateral faces; and wherein said anchoring portions are laterally bent out of said back portion so that said front portion is laterally bounded by continuous lateral portions of said lateral faces.

8. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein said shank end portion has said anchoring portion on one side thereof, and another integrally bent out anchoring portion on the same side thereof; and wherein said anchoring portions are slanted to said shank end portion and define angles with the longitudinal direction of said shank end portion.

9. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 8 wherein said slanted anchoring portions are substantially parallel, and laterally and rearward slanted.

10. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 8, wherein said shank end portion has lateral faces on both sides, a back portion between said lateral faces and a front portion between said lateral faces; and wherein said anchoring portions are laterally bent out of said back portion so that said front portion is laterally bounded by continuous lateral portions of said lateral faces.

11. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 1, including a set of knitting needles; wherein said holding means include at least one holding member; wherein said holding member has at least one cavity for receiving the shank end portions of the knitting needles of said set of knitting needles; and wherein said cavity is filled with said cast material for embedding said shank end portions and anchoring portions of said set of knitting needles.

l2. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said holding means include front and rear walls bounding said cavity; wherein said shank portion extends through said front and rear walls; and wherein said rear end of said latch slide part projects from the rear end of said shank portion rearward of said rear wall.

Claims

4. Needle mounting arrangement comprising needle holding means including walls bounding a cavity; at least one knitting needle including a main part and a straight latch slide part, said main part having at the front end a hook, and at the rear end a shank end portion and at least one slanted anchoring portion integrally bent out from said shank end portion and transversely projecting therefrom, said shank end portion extending through said cavity so that said front and rear ends thereof are located outside of said cavity, said main part having a straight tubular inner guideway between said front and rear ends for guiding said latch slide part for reciprocating movement so that said hook is opened and closed by the front end of said latch slide part while the rear end of said latch slide part projects from said shank end portion rearward of said cavity; and cast material in said cavity fixedly embedding said shank end portion and said anchoring portion in said holding means whereby said anchoring portion secures said main part in said holding means while no cast mAterial can enter said straight tubular inner guideway from the rear end of said shank end portion.

12. Needle mounting arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said holding means include front and rear walls bounding said cavity; wherein said shank portion extends through said front and rear walls; and wherein said rear end of said latch slide part projects from the rear end of said shank portion rearward of said rear wall.