US1702792A - Loop retainer for sewing machines - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 19, 1929.

J. R. MOFFATT LOOP RETAINER FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed April 2, 1925 .s Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 19, 1929. 1,702,792 J. R. .MOFFATT LOOP RETAINER FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed April 27, 1925 s Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 19, 1929. 1,702,792

J. R. MOFFATT LOOP RETAINER FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed April 27, 1925 s Sheets-Sheet Patented Feb. 19, 1929.

' UNITEDSTATES 1,702,792 PATENT OFFICE;

JAMES, R. MOFFATTy OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSI GNOR TO UNION SPECIAL MACHINE COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

LOOP RETAINER FOR SEWING MAonrNEs.

Application filed April 27, 1925. Serial No. 26,1529.

The invention relates to new and useful im provements in loop retainers. for sewing machines, and more particularly to a loop retainer used for holding the needle thread loops back on the looper inamultiple thread sewing-machine, wherein a single looper cooperates with aplurality of needles.

An object of the invention is to provide a loop retainer which is not only movable over the upper face of the looper but also longitudinally of the looper to aid in positioni'ng and holding back certain 01? the nee? dle thread loops on the looper so as to 'insure that the needles will enter their respec tive thread triangles in the forming of the stitches.

A further object of the invention is to provide loop retainers which derive their movement troma feeding mechanism, which provides a very compact mechanism which may be readily used in a cylinder bed machine, where the tubular articles are formed and led oil from the end of the arm.

These and other objects will in part be obvious and will in part be hereinafter more fully disclosed.

In the drawings which show by way of illustration one embodiment of the invention Figure Tie a View partly in section and partly in side elevation ofa portion of a sew in; machine embodying my invention Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a portion of the work supporting arm with portions of the feeding mechanism removed so as to show the loop retainers and'the manner of operating the same;

Fig. 4 is a detail in section showing the needles, the looper. the end of the "feed bar and the loop retainers and the means for sup-- porting and operating the same; the section is on the line 4t4t oi Fig. 5;

Fin. is a plan view with the parts shown "and looper posiin Fig. l, with the needleslion as shown in said figure 6. is a view similar to Fig. 4. but with the looper at the forward end o'f'its stroke the feed bar raised, and the loop retainers at the right-hand end of their movement, but not yet moved across the looper, the section in tl'iis figure is on the line 6 6 of 7, and,

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the parts as positioned in Fig. 6.

The invention has to do broadly with loop retainers for a multiple needle machine-v and preferably a three-needle machine, set abreast, and with which asingle thread carrying looper cooperates- This looper moves forward into the needle thread loo'psone'after another. It is then moved laterally for its needle avoidingmovement, and the needles enter their respeotive triangles.

Referring to the needles as needle-No. 1, which is next to the looper eye when the looper is at the forward end of its stroke; the

middle needle as No. 2', and the other needle as No. 3. Needle No. 1 should pass between the thread triangle formed by the loop of this needle on the looper and the thread of the looper extending from the eye to the previous concatenation-pt the needle thread loops and looper thread. Needle No. 21 should pass with certainty between its own needle thread loop on the looper, and the thread of the looper running from the eye thereof to the previous concatenation of the threads, and also in rear ofthe needle thread loop of needle No. 1. Needle No. should pass in front of its own needle. thread loop on the looper, and. in rear of the needle thread loop of" needle No; 2. It is well known that these needle thread loops on the looper, when the looper i-s retracted, are dragged bythe looper rearwardly, but there is no positive way of keeping the needle thread loop on the looper separated. Prior to my invention, loop retainers have been provided for holding these needle thread loops separated. One instance is shown in the patent toKaa'l. Maier #1,098,8:14, granted June 2, 1914.

The present invention has to do with. an improvement in the manner of mounting loop retainers o the type shown in this Maier patent, so as to enable the loop retainer to be used in connection with a cylinder machine;

and so as to enable the retainers tooperate to further separate the needle thread loops so as to give ample clearance space for the needles to enter their respective thread triangles even though the needles be set very closely together- The loop retainers are given four movernentsone a movement forward across the looper; then a movement rearwardly of the looper, that is. toward the-heel of the looper. wl'iieh carries the needle thread loops engaged llwreby liaclm'ard on the looper to a certain extent, and then a movement to a position where the needle thread loops may pass the loop retainers, and finally, a movement in a direction tori ard of the looper to its initial position for its next cycle of move ment. This loop retainer consists of an arm or bracket carrying linge s or projections which cooperate .vith the respective needle thread loops engaged thereby. This arm or bar is carried b a sleeve mounted to swing about an axis on which the looper oscillates as it moves into and out of the needle thread loops. This sleeve also moves endwise 01 its support, and thus the aour motions are imparted thereto.

'l'lie ese iilating movement of the sleeve carries the lingers backward. and forwardly longitudinally oi the looper. and the endwise moven'ient oi the sleeve carries said lingers across the looper and retracts it to a position clear of the looper. This sleeve is moved. by the arm which is connected with the feed bar. The up and down movements of the feed bar moving the feed dog into and out of engagement with the fabric. oscillate the sleeve, and the endwise movement of the feed bar moves the sleeve endwise on its support.

Referring more in detail to the drawings, my impro -ned loop retainers are shown as ap plied. to a feed-otT-the-arm mach ne which includes a work supporting cy. ..nder arm. 1 in, which is mount d a looper supporting; shaft 2. Above the looper supporting; shaft 2 is a feed bar 3 which is provided with a main feed dog l: and a differential feed dog 5. The feed bar 3 is moved endwise ot the work supportarm for imparting; feed movements to the food dogs and it is raised and lowered in the arm for moving the "feed dogs into and out of engagement with the fabric. The feed ing mechanism is in ,general of the type shown in. the palent to Joseph Berger alrLi-llQfiQS, granted August 12 L919, and further description lhereo'l is not thought necessary. Co- ()pfll'fllili'lg with these feed dogs is a presser foot 6 car fied by a. presser bar 7. The machine may be equipped with trimming devices tor trimming the fabric edges, which hibric edges are adapted to be abntted or overlapped and owed by a flat seam as disclosed in said patent To this end. the nmchine is provided with a reciprocating; needle bar 8 carrying three needles 9. l0 and ll. These needles are set abreast that is, in a plane at right angles to the line of feed, and cooperatin; with all t hree needles beneath the throat plate irulhiated at 12 is a thread carrying looper 13. This thread carrying looper 13 is mounted on the looper supporting shaft 9 and 1 s the shaft oscillates, it will move the looper first into the needle thread loop of the needle 9. then into the thread loop of the needle 10. and then into the thread loop ol the needle ll, so the t all three needle loops are engaged by this one looper. This is clear- 13 shown in Figure 4: and 6 or the drawings. The looper as it is retracted is moved laterally indicated in Fig. 5 of the drawings,

that the needles on their downward-movement. will pass on the other side of? the looper. The feed is oil the end oi? the arm, and therefore. the thread (it the looper running from the eye thcreoili, and to the previous coner. nation oi? the thread loops will extend toward the end of the arm. The needle thread loops on the looper will have their shanks also extending toward the end of the work supporting arm. In Figures l and 6 of the drawings, have shown diagrammatically the needle thre: d loops on the looper. in llip; 6., the looper is at the forward end of its st .ohe; while in Figures 4 and 5, the looper has been retracted and the retainers forming the present invention have engaged the two lelthand needle loops, and pushed them back on the looper. The looper thread is indicated at 14:. The needle thread loop of the needle 9 is indicated at 15; the needle thread loop of the needle 10 at 16; and the needle thread loop ot the needle 11 at 17. The needle thread loop 17 will be properly held bacl: on the looper by reason of the fact that the looper FlflJElGGlll) its eye is wlder or in? than farther back on the looper, and

while the loop mayslip forward on the looper as is retracted, it will be dragged back srrtliciently so that the needle 11 will with surety pass in front of the needle thread loop 1.7. and into the triangle formed by this needle thread loop 17. the body of the looper and the looper thread. ll (see Fig.

In order to hold the loops 15 on the looper, and to further crowd them. bacl: to a. certain extent so that they will he properly spaced from each other and from the needle thread loop 17, l have provided. two loop retainers l8 and The loop retainer 18 as clearly snown in ligrures 4- and 5 oi the drawing: is in front oi the needle thread loop 1.53. and deflecting or crowding the same rearward on the looper and thus opening: wide the triangle 'lorme... by this needle thread 18. the body oi the loop-er. and the looper thread '14-. l iiliewise. the reminer 19 engages a needle threadle-op l6. and holds the some baelr on the looper and well away from the needle thread loop so that the needle 10 will with certainly enter its triangle il orined by the needle thread loop ll), the body oil the loopor. and the. looper thread. 14:. The two retainers l8 and ll) also hold the thread loops 15 and 16 properly spaced from each. other, so that the needle 9 will pass between these needle thread loops 15 and 16. This insures a perfectly concatenate-d three-needle fiat seam, wherein the needle thread loops are all locked by a single looper thread.

In order to impart to these retainers ll-l an d 16 back and 19 their proper movements, said retainers or fingers are carried-by a member 20' which is integral with anarm'21 carried by a sleeve 22. The arni'21 is bent later-allyat its upper end to form themember 20, and at the outer end o'f'thisl arm, are the retainerfingers 1'8 and 19. The-sleeve 22 is mounted on the looper supporting shaft 2, and is free to oscillate thereon, and also to move endwise thereof, so that the loopersupporting shaft serves merely as a supportfor the sleeve.

Thesleeve has a laterally projecting arm 23 with ball head 24 on the end thereof. ls l'ounted. on the end of the main feed bar 3 is a bracket arm Said arm extendslaterally of thefeed to a position at one side of; the-'loo1: e 1-supporting shaft 2'. Said bracket armat its lower end has a recess which receives the ball 24, This bracket arm 25 moves withthefeed bar, and therefore, it has movement backward and forward in ad irection lengthwise ofthe work supporting arm, which is in a direction longitudinally of" the looper sup porting shaft, and at right angles tothe-plane of movement of the looper. It also has a movement up and down as-the feed dog is moved into and out of engagement; with the material, which is caused-by the up-an'd down movements of the end of the feed bar. The

up and down movements ofithe" feed bar, I

therefore, through the arm 23, will oscillate the sleeve 22, whi l'ethe backward and forward movements of the feed har,through this bracket 25' and the arm- 23, will move the sleeve in an endwi se direction, andthis,as. has been-stated, causes the retainer fingersto.

move across the loopertoa sufficient extent to engage the needle loops thereon, while the:

rocking of the sleeve moves the fingers.

toward the rear-end of the looper, and. this causes the fingers toengagethe needle thread loops on the looper and move the same toward the rear end of the l'ooper.

The operation ofthe improved loop-retai ncrs is as follows: WVhen the-looper moves.

into the needle thread-loops, itmoves forward tothe endofi ts stroke; At this time, the

looper is fully into the needle thread loops, and the needles are at: theiextreme upper end:

of their stroke. Asthellooper startsto re tract, it begins its lateral: movement, andthe lateral movement of the looper is toward the arm 21, and underneath the retainer- fingers 18 and 19. Just asthe-l'ooper is reaching the forward end of its streke,-' the feed: stroke 'oea ours and iscomplet'ed Thisfor-wardmovea. ment of the feed bar moved the sleeve 22 forward on the loopersupporting; shaft 2,

and moved the. retainers 118 and 19 over the.

looper, so thatthe combined". forward move: ment ofthe retainer fingers and lateral move ment' of the looper, moves.- these retainers in: between theneedle threaddo opson the looper, as shown r in Fig. fi-ofthe. drawings The bar, and thence downwardly feed; dog is now lowered for its retracting movement, and the lowering of the feed. dog

will oscillate the sleeve 22 to the. left as viewed in'Fig. &, and will movexthe retainers 18 and 19 toward the heel of thelooper- This not only brings the retainers which. were in front of the'needle thread'loopsin Fig. 6 backward into engagement with the loops, but will alsocrowd the loops back on the looper, or deflect the threads. between the shanks of the respective loops and the looper so as to'give ample room forthe needles 9 and 10 to enter their respective thread triangles as above described. During the retracting movement of the feed dog, the loop retainers are also'moved therewith frombetween the needles,-and after they are entirely clearof the needles, they are again oscillated: tov the right as viewed in Fig. 4, back to the position shown in Fig. 6, and this is broughtabout by the raising of the feed dog into engagement with the fabric.

From the above it-will be noted that I have:

needle; thread loops, and. positioning the.- same, and- Which are moved backwardly from over the loopersand then forwardly to their initial starting position intheir cycle of movement. vided: loop retainers especially adapted fora cylinder bed machine, which may be packed inthe endof a cylindrical arm and operated the feeding mechanism therein.

Likewise, I have pro when moving into engagement with the While I have describedlmy improved loop retainer operating mechanism. as especially adapted to be used? in connection with a, cylinder' bed machine, it will be understood that it may,-however, be used in other types of machines, such as a flat bed machine, in which case, of course, the looper would move at right angles tothe line of feed, as in the present case, and the retainers would be operated in conjunction with the loopers by the upand down movement of the feed oscillating the retainers or moving themtoward and from theheel of the looper, while the movement of these retainers towards and across the loopers and back therefrom would boderiveol'from the lengthwise or feedingv movements of the feed bar. While I have described the sleeve carrying the loop retain- .ers as mounted on the looper supporting shaft, itwill beunderstood'that this is mere .ly. a convenient support for said sleeve, and

said sleeve. mightbe mounted otherwise, In

other words, the fact that the present support of the sleeve also supports the looper, does not in any way affectthe function of the looper or affect the function of the loop retainers. It is merely a support for the loop retainers.

It is obvious that minor changes in the details of construction and the arrangement of the parts may be made without departing from. the spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, i s

1. in a sewing machine, the combination. of a feeding mechanism including a feed bar, a feed dog carried thereby, a'plurality of needles set abreast, an oscillating thread carrying looper cooperating with the needles, loop retainers, means independent of the feed bar for supporting said loop retainers, means operated by the up and down movement of the feed bar for moving said thread retainers in a plane parallel with the plane of oscillation of the looper, and means operated by the endwise movement of the feed bar for mov ing said retainers in a path substantially at right angles to the plane of oscillation of the looper.

2. Asewing machine inchiding in combination, a cylindrical work supporting arm, a

looper supporting shaft located in said arr and extending lengthwise thereof, a looper rigidly mounted on said shaft and adapted to oscillate transversely of the work supporting arm and move laterally in said arm for a needle avoiding movement, loop retainers associated with said looper, a sleeve mounted on the looper supporting shaft carrying said re;ainers, said sleeve being free to oscillate and move endwise on said shaft, and devices connected to said sleeve for moving the same endwise and oscillating said sleeve for imparting movements to the retainers carried thereby for causing said retainers to engage and. hold the needle thread loops on the loopor spaced and positioned for the needles to pass.

3. A sewing machine including incomhination, a cylindrical work supporting arm,

a plurality of needles sot abreast and operating at the end of said work supporting arm, a looper shaft extending lengthwise thereof, a loopsn' rigidly mounted on said shaft, :1 feed bar extending lengthwise of slid arm, and having a back and forth and an up and down movement, asleeve freely mounted on said looper supporting shaft, loop retainers mounted on said slecvc'and cooperating with said looper, an arm extending laterally from said sleeve, a bracket arm extending laterally from said feed bar and having adepending portion connected to said arm on the sleeve whereby the back and forth movements of the feed bar impart endwise movement to the sleeve carrying the retainers and whereby the up and down movements of the feed bar impart an oscillating movement to said sleeve.

4:. A sewing machine including in combi nation, a cylindrical work supporting arm, a looper shaft extending lengthwise thereof, a single thread carrying looper mounted on saidshaft and adapted to operate transversely of said arm and move sidewisefor a needle avoiding movement, a plurality of needles with which said looper cooperates,-a feed bar extending lengthwise of said work supporting arm and having a back and forth and an up and down movement, a sleeve mounted on the looper supporting shaft, loop retain ers mounted on said sleeve, an arm pro ect1ng late 'ally from the sleeve, a bracket arm projecting laterally from the feed bar and connected to said arm whereby when said feed bar is moved endwise for feeding the material along the work supporting arm, said retainers are moved toward and across the upper face of the looper, and whereby when said feed bar is lowered, said looped retainers are moved lengthwise of the looper, and caused to engage the needle thread loops on the looper for holding the same separated and properly positioned for the needles to pass.

5. In a sewing machine, a cylindrical work supporting arm, a feed bar extending lengthwise of the arm, a feed dog carried thereby, said feed bar having a back and forth and an up and down movement for imparting four motions to the feed dog, a needle, a thread carrying looper cooperating with the needle and movable in a plane substantially at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the feedbar, a loop retainer associated with said looper, and means whereby the back and forth and up and down movements of the feed bar impart movements to the retainer lengthwise of and transversely of the looper. I l

6. In a sewing machine, the combination of a feeding mechanism including a feed bar adapted to be moved back and forth and raised and lowered, a feed dog carried thereby, a plurality of needles set abreast, an oscillating thread carrying looper coperating with the needles, loop retainers, means for supporting said loop retainers whereby they may be moved ina direction substantially parallel with the path of the looper and in a direction substantially at right angles to the path of the looper, and means operated by the feed bar in its back and forth and up and down movements for imparting the movements to the retainers.

7. In a sewing machine, the combination of a feeding mechanism including a feed bar adapted to be moved back and forth and raised and lowered, a feed dog carried thereby, a plurality of needles set abreast, an .oseillating threadcarrying looper cooperating with the needles, loop retainers, means-for supporting said looped retainers whereby they may be moved in a direction substantially said retainers transversely of the looper and parallel with the path of the looper and in a rearwardly of the looper for engagement 1 direction substantially at right angles to the With the needle loops, and thence transversely path of the looper, and means operated by of the-looper and forwardly of the looper to 5 the feed bar in itsback and forth and up release said needle thread loops.

and down movements for imparting the move In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

ments to the retainers, said operating means. for the retainers being timed so as to move JAMES R. MOFFATT.

Images