US234535A - clarke - Google Patents

Description

4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

H. CLARKE. Feed Mechanism for Circular Knitting Machines. No. 234,535. Patented Nov. 16, 1880-.

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4 Sheets-Sheet 2. H. CLARKE.

Feed Mechanism for Circular KnittingMaJchines. No. 234,535. Patented Nov. 16, I880.

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H. CLARKE. Peed Mechanism for Circular KnittingMaohines. No. 234,535. Patented Nqv. 16,1880.

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UNrTEn STATES PATENT @EETQE.

HENRY CLARKE, OF LOUGHBOROUGH, ENGLAND.

FEED MECHANlSiVl FOR CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 234,535, dated November 16. 1880.

Application filed June1 2, 1879. Patented in England November 19, 1878.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HENRY CLARKE, of Loughborough, in the county of Leicester, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Feed Mechanisms for Circular- Knitting Machines, for which I have obtained a patent in Great Britain, No. 4,685, bearing date November 19,1878, and of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a feed attachment for circular-knittin g machines.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of the attachment embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a like view of another side of said attachment. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a detached portion of the same. Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, are detail views, Fig. 5 being a section taken on the line :0 m, Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a side elevation of a portion of a circular-knitting machine with my improvement applied thereto. Fig. 9 is a top or plan view of the same. Fig. 10 is a detail sectional view through the bracket B and the swinging or vibratory arm O.

The circular-knitting machine to which my improvement is applied is provided with the usual latch-needles for making ribbed looped fabrics, and with the needle-cylinder in which the frame-needle bits slide. This machine is of ordinary and well-known construction, and hence I have only referred to certain parts thereof which are directly connected with the present improvement.

The letter A refers to the cam-cylinder of the machine, which covers the needle-cylinder, a portion only of said cam-cylinder being represented.

The letter A refers to a bracket, the outer arm, a, of which is slotted, to admit of the sliding to and fro of a screw, A the head of which is tapped, to receive the screwed end of a lever, A. The screw enters into a hole tapped to receive it in the under side of the foot of a vertical bracket, B, which slides and is capable of adjustment upon the bracket A, its position on which and its distance from the cam-cylinder A being regulated by a set-screw, B, at its outer end. On the inner end of said bracket B is secured a thread-guide, G. This guide will terminate above the machine-needles and in front of the frame-needles. The outside nearest the feeding end has a troughlike portion, which projects and forms a receptacle, in which the feeding end of a second guide, 0, lies. This guide is secured to a vibratory arm, C by a washer and screw, G which projects at the back of the arm and forms a smooth pin, which slides on a cambit, E referred to hereinafter. The end of the uide 0 carries a. U-sha ed s irin uide- D b b bit, 0 secured to it. The bit is shown at Fig. 8 in the position it takes while a splicingthread, (1 is being supplied to the needles. The arm 0 swings upon an axle, 0 secured in the front face of the bracket B. Near its lower end, on one side of the arm 0 a bracket, 1), projects backward and carries a setscrew, 0 which rests upon a stud, I), in front of the bracket B, which is shown in Fig. 10. The set-screw G regulates the position of the feeding-guide G with respect to the guide 0, since the adjustment of the said set-screw determines the extent to which the arm 0 is allowed to move toward the cam-cylinder A, the set-screw being arranged to have its inner end rest against the stud b. Between the guide 0 and the axle U the arm 0 is slotted a portion of its length, in the slot of which a stud, cl, slides, being provided with a washer on the front side and being screwed into a bracket, J, at the back, Figs. 1 and 5. A portion of the bracket is grooved at the back, and the bracket projects at the left side and carries an axle for a truck, I. (Shown at Figs. 1 and 2.)

In the groove j at the back of the bracket J, the pointed front of a slidable stud-plate, E lies. The stud-plate slides upon the front of the bracket B and up and down in a slot in the bracket, the stud being secured in aplate or collar, E, carried by a slotted arm, E, near the bottom of which a stud, c, is secured, which passes through and slides up and down in the slot in the bracket B. The stud c terminates in the front of the bracket B in a double-incline cam-bit, E

The upper end, 0, of the arm E has a rod, E projecting up from the back, upon which a coiled spring rests. The upper end of this spring presses against the under side of an arm, f, of the bracket B, said arm having formed thereon a cam-boss, B on its upper side. The shape of the circumference of the cam-boss is shown spread out at Fig. 7.

The rod E passes through and slides up and down in the arm f and cam-boss B and is screw-threaded at its upper end to receive two lock-nuts, B between which and the camsurface the rod is provided with a star-wheel,

B having a stud, B, on its lower side, which rests on one or other of the cam-runs. By such means the height of the arm E, cam-bit E and stud-plate E are adjusted as required, the contour of the cam-surface allowing the workman attendant on the machine to adjust the star-wheel where required by turning it to the right, without having occasion to turn it backward. The stud-plate E taking into the groove at the back of the bracket J, raises or lowers the bracket J and truck I to the required positions.

At Fig.8 the stud B is shown on the lowest portion ofthe cam B The arm E, being pressed down by the spring on the rod E holds the truck I at the requisite height to be actuated by a cam, H, of the knittingmachine. When the said stud rests upon either of the intermediate runs of the cam B the spring guidebit 0 and guide 0 are held away from the guide 0 by the cam-bit E pressing upon the screw-pin C", the pin resting upon the point of the cam-bit, in which position neither of the camsHnor H can operate the truckI; butwhen the star-wheel stud rests upon the highest run of the cam B as in Figs. 1 and 2, the truck is in position to be actuated by the cam H.

Between the spring guide-bit C and the vibratory arm 0 is a rod, D, covered for a portion of its length with india-rubber, or other suitable material, as at D. The rod is held by an arm, D secured to the left edge of the bracket B.

The cams H and H have a toothed wheel, K, interposed between them, the three being secured to, carried by, and revolving with the extension of cap-plate of the dial-needles.

The cams H H and cap-plate of the dialneedles are caused to revolve by a toothed wheel, L, gearing into the wheel K, and the wheel L slides upon a keyway cut in an axlerod, G, which revolvesin two brackets secured to the framing of the machine, one of which, G, is shown in Fig.8. A like wheel to the wheel L will be secured to the lower end of the axle-rod, so as to gear into the teeth of a wheel, K, secured to and revolving with the flange of the driving-wheel of the frame-head in the usual way.

At the back of the bracket 1) carrying the set-screw O is a pin, 0, against which the lower hooked end of a rocking lever, F, presses, being held thereto by a spring, F hooked on it and on a stud or other projection at the back of the foot of the bracket B. The upper end of the rocking lever F carries a pin, F which lies between two plates, B which form the upper end of the bracket B. These plates have each a guide-hole, through which the splicingthread is passed. It is then put through a guide-loop, (1- and through an eye, h, of the spring guide-bit G down between the spring end and top of the guide 0, through the guide 0 to the needles. The feeding-thread G is passed through a guide-loop, then through the hole in the guide 0, and through the guide 0 to the needles.

The thread 0 is the thread usually employed to make the fabric, and constantly feeds the needles.

The splicin g-thread O is an additional thread fed to the needles only when certain portions of the fabric are required to be strengthened, which is effected by the improved machinery and apparatus above described in the following manner:

In the drawings, at Figs. 8 and 9, the usual feedingthread and the splicing thread are shown in the positions they occupy when they are both feeding the needles, the splicingthread being drawn to the needles by the feedingthread, except when retained by the operation of either of the cams H and H, or when the screw-pin O rests upon the point of the cam-bit E In the retention of the splicing thread in either of these cases the following takes place: The vibratory arm C is moved to the right, taking with it the guide 0 and causing the spring end of the guide-bit C to be pressed against the rubber-covered rod 1), thus nipping the splicing-thread between the springguide-bit and the guide G, thereby preventing it being drawn along by the feedingthread C and causing it to be severed at or near to the needles. lVhilc so severed the usual feeding-thread makes the fabric unspliced; but immediately the splicing-thread is set free by the rising or falling of the cam-bit E allowing the arm 0 to resume the position shown at Fig. 1, the splicing-thread is carried along by the usual feeding-thread, and a spliced portion of fabric is made, the fabric being also spliced while the cams H and H allow the arm to assume the position shown at Fig. 1; but upon either of the outer runs of the cams forcing the arm 0 outward the splicing-thread is severed, as above described. \Vhile the splicing-thread is feeding, the pin F carried by the rocking lever F, is held clear of the splicing-thread; but upon the arm being forced outward the spring -guide-bit secures the splicing-thread, and the pin F assumes the position shown at F, causing the splicingthread to be doubled, as shown by the dotted lines at Fig. 1, thus causing a slackness of the splicing-thread, which slackuess is taken up by the feeding-thread as soon as the splicingthread is set free to be carried along with it.

In the drawings illustrating my improvements I have only shown my apparatus as ap plied to a circular machine with one threadfeeder for making ribbed looped fabrics but if either circular machines making ribbed or plain fabrics are employed having more than one feeder a set of apparatus, as above described, is applied to each feeder, but only one set of cams are employed to operate the whole of the splicing apparatus.

In further illustration of the operation of the mechanism described, let it be supposed that the stud B rests upon the lowest run of the cam-boss B If, now, the star-wheel B be turned so as to raise this stud into the next highest notch of the cam-run, such movement will raise the rod E, which, in turn, lifts the vertically-sliding arm or bar E, which arm or bar raises the cam E at its lower end. As this cam rises its upper beveled face, acting upon the stud or pin 0 causes the slotted arm 0 to swing upon its pivot 0", thereby bringing the spring 0 closely up against the rubber-covered part D of the rod 1). As the arm E rises in the above movement it also causes the truck or wheel I to rise, since its stud-plate E which projects into the groovein the bracket J, which carries said truck, causes said bracket to be raised. Also, during said movement of the bar or arm E, the bracket 1) carried thereby also rises, and, acting against the lower end of the lever F, vibrates the said lever. If, now, the star-wheel B is turned still farther, so as to raise the stud B to the highest point of the cam-run B, the cam IE will be raised above the pin 0 as shown in Fig. 6, and the action of the spring F upon the lower end of the lever F will cause said lower end of the lever to bear upon the bracket 1), so as to force said bracket toward the stationary bracket B, and

cured upon the bracket A, the thread-guide 0, carried by the bracket B, the thread-guide O, the swinging or vibratory arm 0 carrying the thread-guide O, the stud (1 also carried by said swinging arm, the vertically-movable cam E arranged to act. upon said stud, the spring-guide 0 carried by the guide 0, and the set-screw 0 all constructed substantially as described.

2. The combination, in a knitting-machine, of the cams H H with the vertically-movable bracket J, carrying a truck, I, and grooved along a portion of its rear side, and the slidin g stud-plate E substantially as described.

3. Thecombination, with the vertically-movable slotted arm E, of the collar E, the studplate E the double-inclined cam E the rod E a coiled spring surrounding said rod, the arm 6 of the arm or bar E, and the arm f of the bracket B, the cam-boss B and the starwheel B with a stud, B all constructed and arranged to operate substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the swinging or vibratory arm 0 having the pin G. at the back of the said swinging or vibratory arm, of the plates B forming the upper end of the bracket B, the pivoted lever F, and the guide-loop 0 substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the lever F, of the pin F, the spring F the arm (J and the ver tically-slidable bracket J, and the truck I, substantially as described.

HENRY CLARKE. Witnesses:

J. H. Gonen, H. W. GOUGH, O. E.

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