US2155146A - Knitting machinery - Google Patents

Description

April 18, 1939. J. MORTON ET AL KNITTING MACHINERY Filed Nov 16, 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet l AT ORA/[K7 April 18, 1939.

J. MORTON ET AL KNITTiNe MACHINERY 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 16, 1936 "WI/ oks J, M07770 BY K55 /v/va I ATTORNEYS April 18, 1939. J. MORTON El AL 5,

KNITTING MACHINERY Filed Nov. 16, 1936 e Sheets-Sheet 3 April 18, 1939. J. MORTON ET AL KNITTING MACHINERY Filed Nov. 16, 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 18, 1939. J. MORTON ET AL 2,155,146

KNITTING MACHINERY Filed Novv 16, 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 1N VENTOR s April 18, 1939. J. MORTON ET AL 2,155,146

KNITTING MACHINERY Filed Nov. 16, 1956 e Sheets-Sheet 6 Patented Apr. 18, 1939 UNITED STATES xm'rrmo mommy James Morton and Robert Stewart Erskine Hannay, Carlisle, England, assignors to F. N. F. Limited, Purley Way, Croydon, England, a British company Application November 16, 1936, Serial No. 111,154

In Great Britain February 21, 193

11 Claims.

This invention relates to warp knitting ma chines. In such machines the knitting operation is effected by a number of elements, including knitting needles, which act on a number, of warps. Usually the elements also include a number of warp guides which are arranged to undergo cyclic motion so as to lap the warps over the needles, thereby enabling the needles to draw loops in the warps.

In existing warp knitting machines it is usual to mount batches of warp guides in blocks which are detachably mounted side by side upon somewhat heavy carrying bars. These bars are called warp guide bars or more usually, guide bars. A warp knitting machine may have only one of these bars but generally two, three or more such bars are provided. When there is more than one guide bar, each bar, of course, carries a group of warp guides (i. e. a number of the aforesaid blocks) all the warp guides in each group being disposed side by side along their respective bar. Further, when more than one guidebar is incorporated, the several guide bars are slidably mounted Qnrockerarms pivoted about an axis remote from the bars. The arrangement is such that, in the operation of the guides to lap the warps around the knitting needles, the several guide bars with their guides are oscillated or rocked rapidly as a unit about the said axis. This oscillation of the warp guides takes place in vertical planes between the needles. In addition to this oscillating motion, the warpv guides are arranged to be reciprocated or shogged" sideways independently' and as a rule selectively. This motion results in the warps being carried across the needles and the combined shogging and oscillating motion serves to lap the warps upon. the needles. The reciprocating or shogging motion is imparted to the warp guides by causing the guide barsto be reciprocated longitudinally. By varying the extents of the reciprocating movements, corresponding pattern effects of a varying nature can be produced in the fabric being knitted.

In these existing machines the warp guide assemblies, which include the warp guides and the guide bars, are heavy and have comparatively high moments of inertia. Thus, attempts to operate the machines at speeds materially higher than heretofore, have proved unsuccessful in practice on account of the great stremes set up, due to the rapidly moving masses, in the parts directly associated with. the guide bars and in other parts of the machines.

The invention aims at providing warp knitting machines in which the warp guide assemblies are inherently capable of being made to undergo oscillatory motion at very high speeds without objectionable stresses being set up and without dangerous vibration occurring in the machines.

In accordance with the present invention a guide bar has its own pivotal mounting, that is to say, instead of being carried on rocker arms and swinging with these arms about a remote axis as has hitherto been the case, a guide bar is independently mounted so as to be rockable about its own pivotal axis. Thus, one object of the invention consists in a warp knitting machine comprising in combination a plurality of warp guides, a warp guide bar to which said warp guides are fixed, supporting means for said guide bar arranged to permit said guide bar to be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar and means for oscillating said guide bar about said axis.

Another object of the invention is a warp knitting machine comprising in combination a warp guide assembly including a warp guide bar and a plurality of warp guides fixed to said bar and disposed at right angles to the longitudinal axis of said bar, supporting means for said assembly arranged to allow said assembly to be oscillated about an axis parallel to said first-mentioned axis 0 and passingin close proximity to the centre of mass of said assembly and means for oscillating said assembly about said second-mentioned axis.

If a warp knitting machine has, as is usual, more than one guide bar, then in accordance with the invention, each bar has its own pivotal mounting. This arrangement enables the moments of inertia of the several warp guide assemblies to be kept low so that the stresses set up during operation are materially less than in the usual arrangement in which all the bars with their rocker arms are rocked as a unit about an axis remote from the'bars. Accordingly, a further object of the invention consists in a warp knitting machine comprising in combination a plurality of warp guide bars, supporting means for said warp guide bars arranged to permit each warp guide bar to be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally therethrough, means for oscillating each warp guide bar about its respective axis, and as many groups of warp guides as there areguide bars, said groups of warp guides being fixed respectively to said guide bars.

By virtue of the invention, certain constructional features can be adopted which materially facilitate the attainment of efllcient high speed operation.

One of thase features consists in providing, in

combination with a guide bar or with a number of guide bars, a rockable or rotatable shaft (hereinafter termed a back shaft) through the medium of which the associated guide bar or guide bars are oscillated. An advantage of such an arrangement is that the back shaft can be designed to be strong enough to resist torsional deflection and can be fitted so as to act on the guide bar at various points throughout its length, thus enabling the guide bar of light weight construction to be moved with precision and without undesirable twist. Such twisting-is a serious factor in high speed operation and if there is more than one guide bar fitted to the machine, it is found to be impossible to provide the requisite strength to resist torsion in the guide bar itself, owing to limitations of space. By using a back shaft further removed from the knitting centre than the axis of oscillation of the guide bar it is possible to provide a shaft of sufficient size to withstand the torsion, and being supported by a strong and rigid structure, may be caused to act with precision at high speeds without additional load on the moving parts.

' Another of the aforesaid features consists in providing for the guide bar or for each guide bar supporting means extending over the length of the bar. For example, such supporting means may consist of a long bearing or several coaxial bearings arranged at intervals, said hearing or bearings being provided in the aforesaid station-v ary supporting structure. An advantage of this feature is that the guide bar is efiiciently supported throughout its length so that deflection of the bar, also a serious factor in high speed operation, can be practically prevented. Another advantage is that the guide bar can be made to move longitudinally to and fro within the bearings so as to provide the necessary shogging movements for the warp guides, while the guidebar can also be turned about the axis of the bearing or bearings.

A further object of the invention therefore is a warp knitting machine comprising in combination a plurality of warp guides, a warp guide bar to which said warp guides are fixed. journal members fixed to said guide bar, and a supporting structure extending over the whole length of said guide bar and formed with journal bearing surfaces arranged to permit said guide bar to be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar.

Yet another object of the invention consists in a warp knitting machine comprising in combination a plurality of warp guides, a warp guide bar to which said warp guides are fixed, segmental journal members secured to said guide bar, and supporting means for said guide bar, said supporting means comprising journal bearings em bracing said journal members and the arrangement being such that said guide bar may be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally therethrough.

The invention further comprises the elements and combinations of the. parts set forth in the annexed claims.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, some constructions in accordance therewith will now Figure 4 shows a constructional detail, as

viewed in the direction of the arrow IV in Figure Figures 5 and 6 are views of another constructional detail, Figure 5 being a section on the line VV of Figure 2 and Figure 6 being a section on the line VIVI of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a sectional elevation of mechanism for rocking a warp guide bar, the section being approximately on the line VIIVII of Figure 3;

Figure 8 is a view corresponding to a portion of Figure 2 but showing a modification, and Figure 9 is a plan of Figure 8; and

Figures 10 to 12 respectively, are views corresponding to Figure 8 but showing further modifications.

Referring firstly to Figure 1, the knitting elements therein shown consist of hook needles a, co-operating tongues b,,sinkers c and two warp uides 11. Each of these elements constitutes one of a long series carried by a bar, the needle bar being denoted by 20, the tongue bar by 2|, the sinker bar by 22 and each warp guide bar by 23. Each series is composedv of groups, or sections, of elements embedded in blocks removably attached side by side to the respective bar, a needle block being denoted by 24 a tongue block by 25, a sinker block by 26 and guide blocks by 21. The

manner in which the guide blocks are arranged side by side along a warp guide bar 23 is shown in Figure 3. The various blocks are preferably made of light-weight mouldable material, for example, a synthetic resin such as Bakelite or other light-weight organic plastic material, or

alternatively a light-weight fusible alloy.

Although two warp guide bars are shown, it is to be understood that only one of such bars or any other practical number thereof may be provided in a machine.

The manner in which the knitting elements are arranged and operated is briefly as follows:

As regards the needles a, the needle bar'20 is carried by several short arms 28, of which one is shown, and these arms are adapted to oscillate about the axis of a supporting shaft 29 arranged directly below theknitting centre. As regards the tongues 17, the tongue bar 2| is carried 'by several short arms 30, of which one is shown, and these arms are also adapted to oscillate about the axis of the shaft 29. guided in a groove in the arcuate shank of the associated knitting needle. As regards the sinkers c, the sinker bar 22 is carried by several short arms 3|, of which one is shown, and these arms are secured to a rock shaft 32, about whose axis they are adapted to oscillate. regards the warp guides d, each guide bar 23 has its own com- Warp threads f are led through the upper and lower guides d and looped round the hooks ofthe knitting needles a.

In the operation of the machine; during which Each tongue is slidably all the elements a, b, c and d oscillate in timed relationship, the tongues b co-operate with the hooks to cast off the loops from the needles and thus form stitches, the sinker-s serve to control the formation and length of the stitches, and the warp guides serve to lap the threads I round the needles preparatory to each successive stitchforming operation. Shogging movements imparted to the warp guide bars by mechanism described below, assist in the needle-lapping operation and also serve to produce pattern effects in the knitted fabric, indicated by g. If desired, cross wefts as indicated by h may be supplied in known manner for incorporation in the fabric.

The manner in which the warp guide bars are supported and operated will now be described in greater detail.

The journals 35 consist of segmental members preferably made of self-lubricating material secured (for example, by screws) in pairs to the respective thin flat bar 23. The segmental members composing each pair are arranged at oppo site sides of the respective bar (see Figure 2) and their surfaces together present portions of the surface of a cylinder. These pairs are arranged at intervals throughout the length of the bar, the arrangement being illustrated at the middle of Figure 3. The members 35 are journalled in part circular bearings provided in the top and bottom halves of the casings 33,34, which are partly hollow and extend from side to side of the machine, each casing being formed with annular ends 40 mounted in supporting brackets 4| on the frame of the machine. In Figure 3, as regards the upper warp guide bar casing 33, only the right hand end thereof and the supporting bracket 41 at that end are shown. The casings 33, 34 constitute normally stationary supports for the guide bars and parts of their operating mechanism.

Each warp guide bar is of comparatively nar- The self-lubricating materialof which the seg-.

mental members 35 are preferably made may be a metal or alloy impregnated with oil or graphite or a light-weight organic plastic material incorporating graphite.

For the purpose of rocking the guide bars 23, there areprovided in the respective casings 33, 34 two rockable back shafts 42, 43 which extend alongside the respective guide bars and are journalled at spaced intervals in bearing bushes 44 fitted into the interiors of the casings. At intervals along each of the back shafts 42, 43, arms 45 are provided in pairs, one pair of these arms being shown in Figure 3 and other views of the arms being given in Figures 2, 5 and 6. As shown, each pair of arms extends from a boss 46 secured to the respective back shaft. Distance pieces 41 are provided on each back shaft between the bearing bushes 44 and the bosses 46 and also between successive bushes 44 (Figure 3). Each pair of arms 45 is connected to one of a plurality of spaced eye-pieces 48 on the respective guide bar 23 by an eccentric device, which consists of an eccentric 49 with end trunnions 50 (Figures 5 and 6), the eccentric having a neat turning and sliding fit in the eye-piece 43 and the trunnions having a neat turning fit in extensions 5| rigidly bolted and pinned to the arms 45. The arrangement is such that, when the back shafts 42, 43 are turned in their bearings, the guide bars 23 are also forced to turn in their bearings, the rocking force being transmitted through the eccentric devices 49, 59, which turn relatively to both the eye-pieces 48 and the arm extensions 5 to compensate for variations in the distance between these parts.

It will be manifest that the two warp guide bars described and illustrated are each rockable relatively to the other with the journals 35 arranged at intervals along the middle of the bar itself, the axis of said journals extending through the body of the bar; that rocking forces are applied to each of the guide bars at intervals throughout its length; and that the bearings in which the journals 35 turn constitute also the guideways along which the shogging movements of the bars take place.

Each of the back shafts 42, 43 has its own mechanism for rocking it, the mechanisms for the respective shafts being substantially similar and being enclosed in casings 52, 53 at opposite sides of the machine (Figure 3). The rocking mechanism of the upper back shaft 42 is shown in Figure 7, such mechanism involving the use of two eccentrics. As shown, eccentrics 54, 55 are keyed to parallel shafts 56, 51. The eccentric-carrying shafts 56, 5'! are driven from the shaft 58 through pairs of gear wheels 59, 6B and 6 I, 62. The wheels 59 and 50 have the same number of teeth and the wheel 6| has twice as many teeth as the wheel 62, so that the shaft 51 rotates at the same speed as the shaft 58, and the shaft 56 rotates at twice that speed. The ends of the respective eccentric rods 63, 64 are coupled together by a floating link 65, and this link is coupled between its ends to a lever 66 having a stationary fulcrum 61. The lever 66 isconnected at opposite ends by links 68 to a lever 69 secured to a shaft 10 sleeving the back shaft and detachably coupled thereto by a coupling 10a (Figure 3),

The coupling between the back shaft 43 and its mechanism differs from the foregoing in that a shaft 1|, rocked by mechanism corresponding to that shown in Figure 7, is coupled at Ila to the back shaft 43.

If desired, provision may be made for adjusting e axis of connection between the floating link and the lever 66 and/or for adjusting the phase relationship of each eccentric to the other.

The guide bars derive their shogging motions from pattern cams secured one above the other to a rotary cam shaft. In Figure 3 the cam shaft is denoted by I2 and one of the pattern cams by 13. The cam follower consists of a roller 14 on a lever 15 which is attached by an adjustable link 16 to the adjacent end of the respective guide bar. The roller is maintained against the cam by a strong tension spring I5 acting on the lever 15 against the pull of a steadying tension spring 11 acting on the far end of the guide bar.

To facilitate the operation of threading the guides d, provision is made for pivoting the upper casing 33 and its guide bar into -a raised position, such being possible by virtue of the nature of the mounting of the annular bar ends 40 in the brackets 4|. The aforesaid provision includes a handle 18 (Figures 1, 3 and 4) which can be turned rearwardly and downwardly until it has displaced and has become locked by a self-locking manually-releasable catch I8 which is pivotally mounted on a plate I8 on the adjacent bracket 4| and which normally rests upon a stop I8 In Figure 4, the handle 18 is shown locked by the catch I8 Prior to raising the casing 33 by the handle I8, th'e coupling Illa between the shafts 42 which is a fixture, by means of a screwed clamping pin 19 (Figure 1) adapted to be passed into a slot I3 (Figure 3) in the upper casing and screwed into the lower casing.

Various modifications in constructional fea tures can be adopted. For example, various forms of mechanisms are suitable for transmitting the requisite rocking movement to the warp guide bars, and different forms of such mechanism will now be described with reference to Figures 8 to 12, which are more or less diagrammatic.

According to Figures 8 and 9, a warp guide bar 23 is rocked by arms 80 forming parts of a lever structure, the ends of these arms being joined by a transverse forked bar 8| which engages the head 82 of a projection on the bar. The arms 80 are secured to a sleeve 80 on a spindle 80 constituting the fulcrum of the lever structure. The arms '80 are rocked through the intermediary of a short countershaft 83 which is geared to the back shaft 42 and has two countercams 84, 85 respectively engaging follower rollers 86, 81 carried by lever arms on the sleeve 80 The back shaft 42 is rotatable by any appropriate rotary shaft of the machine, but if desired the arrange ment could be such that the shaft 42 is rocked.

Obviously, the fork device constituted by'the forked bar 8| and head 82 could be replaced by an equivalent device such as a pin-and-slot.

According to Figure 10, both warp guide bars 21 have their bearings in a single supporting casing 30 and receive their rocking movement from a single back shaft 42 The shaft 42 has countercams SI, 92 whose followers are rollers 93, 94 on levers 95, 95 which are fulcrumed on the easing 90 and are connected by eccentric devices similar to those shown in Figures 2, 3, 5 and 6, to the respective guide bars. A spring 91 maintains the rollers in contact with their cams. In this construction, the bearings for the segmental members 35 are provided in a structure 98 carried by brackets 99 constituting caps for the bearings of the shaft 42 According to Figure 11, both guide bars are rocked from a single back shaft 42 through forked arms I08 thereon which engage the heads of projections llll on the respective guide bars.

According to Figure 12, both guide bars receive their rocking movement from a single back shaft 42 through the intermediary of a vertically slidable block H0 which is constrained by pin-andslot guides Ill, H2 and is raised and lowered by countercams H3, ill on the back shaft, the followers of said cams being rollers H5, H6 on the block. The heads of extensions H1, H8 on the respective guide bars are engaged by forks on the block. The pin-and-slot guides could be replaced by parallel arms pivotally connected at one end to the block H0 and to stationary points on the surrounding casing.

It will be understood that the rocking mechanisms according to Figures 8 to 12 would pref- 1 erabl'y be applied to the guide bars at several longitudinally spaced places to distribute the rocking forces throughout the length of the bars.

As an alternative to eccentric devices, or fork connections, between the rocking arms or the equivalent and the guide bars, all as-hereinbefo're ,described, simple pin joints may be provided. In

any such arrangement, lilowever, the guide bar would be laterally displaced alternately towards and away from the rock shaft during the rocking movement and accordingly the bar would not be rigidly secured to the segmental members 35 but would be laterally displaceable relatively thereto.

If desired, instead of providing as the guide bar journals segmental members 35 made of selflubricating material, these can be made of any good journal metal and provision can be made for the application of lubricant. The casing constituting a supporting bearing for a guide bar, or guide bars, may be made as a receptacle for lubricant, in which event some form of seal would be provided between adjacent segmental members to prevent egress of the lubricant. For example, absorbent material such as felt or cotton could be packed into the spaces between adjacent segmental members, and such material would serve to lubricate the bearing surfaces during the shogging movements of the guide bar. Figure 10 shows a construction of easing which constitutes a suitable receptacle for lubricanti In the arrangement illustrated by Figures 1 and 2, the knitting needles act approximately horizontally and the axis of oscillation of the needles is located directly below the knitting centre. The invention is not confined to such an arrangement, as the same'can be modified for example by re-arranging the needles to work substantially vertically and conformablyre-arranging the other knitting elements and associated parts, including the so-called back shaft.

We claim:

1. In a warp knitting machine, in combination, an assembly including firstly a warp guide bar and secondly a plurality of journal members located laterally of said guide bar and distributed along the length thereof, a plurality of warp guides fixed to said guide bar, and supporting means for said guide bar extending along the length thereof, said supporting means comprising journal bearings embracing said assembly, and the arrangement being such that said guide bar may be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally within said journal bearings.

2. In a warp knitting machine, in combination, a warp guide bar, a plurality of warp guides fixed to said guide bar, a plurality of segmental journal members secured laterally to said guide bar, and

supporting means for said guide bar and distributed along the length thereof, said supporting be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally within said journal bearings.

3. In a warp knitting machine, in combination, a warp guide bar, a plurality of warp guides fixed to said guide bar, a plurality of journal members mounted laterally at points along the length of said guide bar, a supporting structure formed with journal surfaces embracing at each of said points said journal members and arranged to .permit said guide bar together with said journal members to be oscillated about an axis within'said guide bar and to be reciprocated longitudinally along said axis, means for oscillating said guide bar about said axis, and means for reciprocating said guide bar longitudinally.

4. In a warp knitting machine, in combination,

a warp guide bar, a row of warp guides mounted bracing said joiunal members and arranged to permit said guide bar to be oscillated about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar.

5. In a warp'knitting machine, the combination of a warp guide bar mountedfor oscillation about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar, plurality of warp guides carried by said guide bar, a back shaft disposed parallel to said guide bar, and mounted for oscillation about an axis passing longitudinally through said back shaft, means for oscillating said back shaft about said last-mentioned axis, a radial arm fixed to said back shaft, a radial arm fixed to said guide bar and a connecting member pivotally connected to said first-mentioned radial arm about an axis parallel, to said previously mentioned axes and pivotally connected to said second-mentioned radial arm about a further axis parallel to said previously-mentioned axes, said connecting member permitting and transmitting rocking movement from said first-mentioned radial arm to said second-mentioned radial arm.

6. In a warp knitting machine, the combination of a plurality of warp guide bars mounted for oscillation respectively about parallel axes passing respectively longitudinally through said guide bars, a plurality of groups of warp guides, each of said groups of warp guides being carried by one of said guide bars, a cam shaft disposed parallel to said guide bars and mounted for turning movement about an axis passing longitudinally through said cam shaft, means for turning said cam shaft about said last mentioned axis, a plurality of oscillatable members operatively associated with said cam shaft and in engagement with said guide bars at points distributed along the length thereof, said cam shaft being operative to impart oscillating motion to said guide bars about said first-mentioned axes through the medium of said oscillatable members.

7. In a warp knitting machine, the combination of a warp guide bar mounted for oscillation about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar, a plurality of warp guides carried by said guide bar, a cam shaft disposed parallel to said guide bar, supporting means for said cam shaft arranged to allow said cam shaft to be turned about a longitudinal axis passing longitudinally therethrough, means for turning said cam shaft about said second-mentioned axis, a plurality of intermediate members operatively associated with said cam shaft and distributed along said guide bar whereby said guide bar is oscillated about said first-mentioned axis by said cam shaft.

8. In a warp knitting machine, in combination, two guide bars mounted for oscillation about two parallel axes passing respectively through said guide bars, two groups of warp guides fixed respectively to said guide bars, a cam shaft bearing two cams and disposed parallel to said axes, said cam shaft being mounted for undergoing turning motion about a longitudinal axis, means for turning said cam shaft about said last-mentioned axis and two rockers in engagement respectively with said cams and operatively associated respectively with said guide bars, the arrangement being such that turning motion of said cams causes oscillation of said guidebars in timed relationship about said first-mentioned axes.

9. In a warp knitting machine, the combination of a warp guide bar mounted for oscillation about an axis passing longitudinally through said guide bar, a plurality of warp guides carried by said guide bar, a back shaft disposed parallel to said guide bar and mounted for oscillation aboutva longitudinal axis, multi-eccentric mechanism including at least two eccentrics adapted to be rotated at different speedsand links operatively connected between said eccentrics and said back shaft for oscillating said back shaft about said last-mentioned axis and means operatively associated with said back shaft and with said guide bar whereby oscillating motion about said firstmentioned axis is imparted from said back shaft to said guide bar. a I

10. In a warp knitting machine, a low inertia guide bar assembly comprising in combination, a light weight guide bar of small cross sectional area in relation to its length, a continuous row of warp guidessecured along said guide bar, and supporting meansvfor said guide bar extending adjacent thereto in sliding engagement therewith and organized to support said guide bar at .a plurality of points intermediate the ends of said row of warp guides to hold said guide bar against deflection while permitting said guide bar to be rocked about an axis extending along said supporting means and to be reciprocated longitudinally relatively to said supporting means.

11. In a warp knitting machine, a plurality of low inertia guide bar assemblies, each comprising in combination a light weight guide bar of small cross sectional area in relation to its length, a continuous ,row of warp guides secured along said guide bar, and supporting means for said guide bar extending adjacentthereto in sliding engagement therewith, and organized to support said uide bar at a plurality of points intermediate the ends of said row of warp guides to hold said guide bar against deflection while permitting said guide bar to be rocked about an axis passing through said supporting means and to be reciprocated longitudinally relatively to said supporting means.

JAMES MORTON.

ROBERT STEWART ERSKINE HANNAY.

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