Tufting machine

• US 4,384,538 A
• Filed: 08/20/1981
• Issued: 05/24/1983
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/1981
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Spencer Wright Industries, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Spencer Wright Industries, Inc.
• Inventors: Slattery, Ian
• Primary Examiner(s): Feldbaum, Ronald
• Application Number:
  US06/294,458
• Time in Patent Office: 642 Days
• Field of Search: 112/79, 112/79 A, 112/79 FS
• US Class Current: 112/80.3
• CPC Class Codes: D05C 15/12 in more than one row

Abstract

A staggered needle cut pile tufting machine having needle plate backing support fingers oscillated in timed relationship with the hooks and the needles of the machine to support the backing material during needle penetration and to withdraw from the needle path as the hooks move across the needle path to seize respective loops. The support fingers are substantially straight parallel members with alternate fingers being elongated relatively to the remaining fingers so that the fingers provide support of the backing material adjacent the penetration points of the respective staggered needles in the front and rear rows. The straight parallel fingers provide clearance for the needle plate to be withdrawn from the needle array so that a path is provided for the hooks to be closely adjacent the backing material for forming very low fine gauge cut pile fabrics. The fingers are mounted in a modular block member within which they are cast, the modules being mounted on a rocker arm carried by a common rock shaft with the rocker arm on which the hooks are mounted so that the fingers oscillate in opposition to the oscillation of the hooks.

Claims

1. In a tufting machine including means for supporting a backing fabric moving in one direction, first and second rows of yarn carrying needles supported on one side of said backing material, each row having a plurality of laterally spaced needles, the needles in one row being spaced from the needles in the other row in the direction of movement of said backing and the needles of one row being laterally staggered relatively to the needles in the other row, means for reciprocating the needles for penetrating the backing material and forming loops therein, first and second rows of hooks supported on the opposite side of said backing material from said needles, there being one hook corresponding to and cooperating with each needle, means for oscillating said hooks toward and away from the path of the respective needle in timed relationship with the reciprocation for ceasing said loops in succession, a knife cooperating with each hook for severing loops on said hooks in succession, said means for supporting said backing material comprising a plurality of laterally spaced fingers, each of said fingers being of substantially straight members having a free end extending in the direction of movement of said backing material, the spacing between adjacent fingers accommodating said needles, alternate fingers being of a first length for supporting said material adjacent the penetration of said first needles, remaining fingers being of a second length differing from said first length substantially by the spacing between the needle rows for supporting said material adjacent the penetration of said second needles, and means for oscillating said fingers in timed relationship to said hooks from a disposition in the path of reciprocation of respective needles for supporting said material during penetration thereof to a disposition withdrawn from said path as said hooks move toward said path.

2. In a tufting machine as recited in claim 1, wherein a plurality of said fingers are fixedly cast in a modular body member, and said means for oscillating said fingers comprises means for oscillating said body member.

3. In a tufting machine as recited in claim 1 or 2, wherein said means for oscillating said hooks includes means for oscillating said fingers.

4. In a tufting machine as recited in claim 1, wherein each of said hooks comprise a bill for holding a seized loop to be cut, said bill having an upper surface disposed during loop seizure in substantially the same plane as the plane of backing material support of said fingers.

5. In a tufting machine as recited in claim 4, wherein each of said fingers is in substantially the same lateral plane as respective hook.