APPARATUS FOR METERING AND DELIVERING YARN BITS TO TUFTING NEEDLES OR OTHER UTILIZATION DEVICES

• US 3,554,147 A
• Filed: 12/18/1967
• Issued: 01/12/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/1967
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Spanel International, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Abram N. Spanel, George J. Brennan
• Inventors: Spanel, Abram N., Brennan, George J.
• Application Number:
  US04/697,268
• Time in Patent Office: 1,121 Days
• US Class Current: 112/80.07
• CPC Class Codes: D03D 39/02 Axminster looms, i.e. wherein pile tufts are inserted during weaving
• CPC Class Codes: D05C 15/18 Thread feeding or tensioning arrangements

Abstract

Tufting machines in which the feed of yarn to individual tufting stations from one or more yarn sources controlled in accordance with a program which may be based, for example, on yarn color and/or yarn composition and/or number of plies or strands.

Claims

1. An arrangement for producing yarn bits comprising:

a device having a passage for receiving yarn;

yarn-cutting means acting across said passage to detach a yarn bit from said yarn;

valve means operable to admit flow of air through said passage for transport of the yarn beyond said yarn-cutting means; and

said valve means including a movable member which normally obstructs flow of air through said passage and which is shaped to serve as a knife member of the yarn-cutting means. CM,2Rangement for producing yarn bits comprising;

a device having a passage for receiving yarn;

yarn-cutting means acting across said passage to detach a yarn bit from said yarn;

valve means operable to admit flow of air through said passage for transport of the yarn beyond said yarn-cutting means; and

said valve means including a movable member normally obstructing flow of air through said passage and exerting braking pressure against the yarn therein.

3. An arrangement for producing yarn bits comprising:

a device having a passage for receiving yarn;

yarn-cutting means acting across said passage to detach a yarn bit from said yarn;

valve means operable to admit flow of air through said passage for transport of the yarn beyond said yarn-cutting means;

a series of brakes spaced along the path of the yarn to said yarn-cutting means;

the movable element of said valve means also serving as the last brake of said series of brakes;

a series of yarn-pullers respectively disposed between brakes of said series to produce slack in the yarn; and

means for operating the individual brakes of said series in such timed relation to each other and to said yarn-pullers that formation of slack from yarn in said device is precluded.

4. An arrangement for producing yarn bits from different yarn sources and delivering them to a station comprising:

a group of selectors, each having a passage for receiving yarn from a corresponding one of said sources and communicating with said station;

yarn-cutting means acting across each selector passage;

valve means for each selector operable to admit flow of air through its passage for advance of the corresponding yarn therein by a bit-length beyond the path of said yarn-cutting means and for transport of the subsequently detached yarn bit to said station;

means for actuating the yarn-severing means of the group of selectors; and

yarn-metering means between said group of selectors and said yarn sources.

5. An arrangement for producing yarn bits from different yarn sources and delivering them in desired sequence to a station comprising:

a collator having a plurality of inlet passages extending to a common outlet passage;

a group of selectors, each having a passage for receiving yarn from a corresponding one of said sources and communicating with a corresponding inlet passage of said collator;

each of said selectors having;

cutting means acting across that selector'"'"''"'"'s passage to detach a bit from the yarn therein;

valve means operable to the exclusion of the valve means of the other selectors of the group to admit flow of air through said passage for advance of the corresponding yarn therein by one bit-length beyond the path of the corresponding cutting means and for transport of the subsequently detached yarn bit through the corresponding inlet passage of the collator to said common outlet passage thereof;

means for actuating the cutting means of all selectors of said group concurrently and at intervals to detach in each of successive intervals only a single yarn bit as advanced in one of said selectors; and

metering means between said group of selectors and said yarn sources for maintaining ahead of each of said selectors a slack loop of yarn.

6. An arrangement for producing yarn bits from different yarn sources and delivering them in desired sequence to a single station comprising:

a collator having a plurality of inlet passages extending to a common outlet passage;

a group of selectors, each having a passage for receiving yarn from a corresponding one of said sources and communicating with a corresponding one of said inlet passages of the collator;

yarn-cutting means actuated periodically to traverse said passages; and

a plurality of valve means selectively operable in the interval between successive actuations of said cutting means for admission of air to the corresponding selector passage to advance one of said yarns a bit-length beyond the cutting means and to transport the resulting yarn bit to said common outlet passage of the collator.

7. An arrangement for producing yarn bits from diFferent yarn sources and delivering them in desired sequence to a single station comprising:

a collator having a plurality of inlet passages extending to a common outlet passage;

a group of selectors, each having a passage for receiving yarn from a corresponding one of said sources and communicating with a corresponding one of said inlet passages of the collator;

a group of knives, one for each of said selectors and actuated in unison periodically to traverse said passages, and a group of valves, one for each of said selectors and selectively operable in the interval between successive actuations of said knives for admission of air to the corresponding selector passage to advance one of said yarns a bit-length beyond the corresponding knife and to transport the resulting yarn bit to said common outlet passage of the collator.

8. An arrangement as in claim 7 additionally including:

yarn-feeding means disposed between said group of selectors and said yarn sources, said yarn-feeding means including;

a group of members repeatedly moved in unison and respectively crossing the paths of the individual yarns from its source to its selector to maintain in advance of each selector a slack loop of yarn;

a plurality of pairs of brakes for engaging the respective yarns on opposite sides of the corresponding yarn loop; and

means for operating said pairs of brakes in timed relation to said members to preclude reverse pulling of yarn from said selectors.

9. A tufting machine comprising:

a loading station having a passageway for flow of air;

a reciprocable bit-applying element movable across said passageway from a loading position to a bit-applying position;

structure having a passage for receiving a yarn strand, said passage and said passageway providing a path for the yarn strand;

yarn-cutting means adjacent said bit-applying element movable across said path to detach a yarn bit from said strand;

pneumatic means operable while said bit-applying element is in the loading position to effect pneumatic feeding of the strand in said path; and

the distance between, and the relative timing of, said yarn-cutting means and said bit-applying element provide that the yarn as pneumatically fed beyond said yarn-cutting means extends uncut across the path of the bit-applying element and a bit-length thereof is detached therefrom as loaded in said bit-applying element.

10. A tufting machine as in claim 9 in which the yarn-cutting means is timed to detach the discrete yarn bit before movement of the loaded bit-applying element from its loading position.

11. A tufting machine as in claim 9 in which the yarn-cutting means is timed to detach the discrete yarn bit during movement of the loaded bit-applying element from its loading position.

12. In a tufting machine for forming tufts on a backing:

reciprocable tufting-needle means movable through the backing toward and from a threading position;

pneumatic means extending transversely of said tufting-needle means for repeatedly transversely threading said tufting-needle means with tufting material upon successive movements of said tufting-needle means to said threading position;

strand-severing means adjacent said threading position operable repeatedly to cut said tufting material during or after its threading of the tufting-needle means to form bits; and

means for operating said tufting-needle means for applying said bits in turn by said tufting-needle means to the backing to form tufts by passage of said tutting-needle means through said backing to a tufting position.

13. In a tufting machine for forming tufts on a backing:

reciprocable tufting-needle means movable through the backing to and from a threading position on one side of the backing;

strand-severing means adjacent said tufting-needle means for cutting bits from a strand of tufting material;

a multi-strand selector arrangement including means to releaSe a selected strand and restrain the remainder;

pneumatic means for feeding the selected strand to and beyond said strand-severing means and into transverse threaded relation with said reciprocable tufting-needle means; and

means for operating said strand-severing means to cut the selected strand to leave a bit in said reciprocable tufting-needle means preparatory to movement thereof through the backing to the other side of the backing to form said tufts.

14. In a tufting machine for forming tufts on a backing:

reciprocable tufting-needle means movable through the backing to and from a threading position on one side of the backing;

strand-severing means adjacent said tufting-needle means for cutting bits from a strand of tufting material;

pneumatic means for feeding said strand to and beyond said strand-severing means to transversely thread said reciprocable tufting-needle means with said strand; and

means for actuating said strand-severing means to cut the strand after threading of said tufting-needle means and before the threaded tufting-needle means moves from its threading position through the backing to a tufting position.

15. In a tufting machine for forming tufts on a backing:

reciprocable tufting-needle means movable through the backing to and from a threading position on one side of the backing;

strand-severing means adjacent said tufting-needle means for cutting bits from a strand of tufting material;

pneumatic means for feeding said strand to and beyond said strand-severing means to transversely thread said reciprocable tufting-needle means with said strand; and

means for actuating said strand-severing means to cut the strand after threading of said tufting-needle means during movement of the threaded tufting-needle means from its threading position toward a tufting position on the opposite side of the backing.

16. A tufting machine comprising:

a loading station having a passageway for flow of air;

a reciprocable bit-applying element movable across an intermediate portion of said passageway from a loading position therein to a bit-applying position;

an entrance portion of said passageway receiving a yarn strand, and providing a path for movement of the yarn strand to load said bit-applying element;

suction means connected to said passageway at a location beyond said bit-applying element and operable while said bit-applying element is in the loading position to move said strand lengthwise of said passageway to load said bit-applying element;

yarn-cutting means adjacent said bit-applying element movable across said passageway to detach a yarn bit from said strand;

the distance between, and the relative timing of, said yarn-cutting means and said bit-applying element provide that the yarn as it is moved to load said bit-applying element extends uncut across its path and means for operating said yarn-cutting means to detach from said yarn a bit-length and for operating said bit-applying element through a backing to apply thereto said bit-length of yarn.