US2825214A - Stop mechanism control means for knitting machines - Google Patents

Description

D. PERNICK STOP MECHANISM CONTROL MEANS FOR KNITTINGMACHINES March 4, 1958 Filed May 25, 1955 INVENTOR. 24/40 PA /Wm 2,825,214 Patented Mar. 4, 1953 STOP MECHANISM CONTROL MEANS FOR KNITTING MACHINES David Pernick, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application May 25, 1955, Serial No. 510,920

8 Claims. (Cl. 66-163) The present invention relates to knitting machines of the flatbed type, such as Tricot and Raschel knitting machines and the like, having thread guides for moving the threads about the needles to form loops and, more particularly, to control means for a knock-off or stop mechanism for such machines, which .control means are an improvement over the control means disclosed in co-pending application for Letters Patent of the United States, Serial No. 434,725, filed June 7, 1954, by me and another, which application has matured into Patent No. 2,752,767, of July 3, 1956.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide such control means which are more readily associated with the thread guides.

Another object is to provide such control means which respond more readily to actuate the stop mechanism under the influence of oscillation upon loss of tension in the threads caused by breakage or otherwise.

Another object is to provide such control means which prevent the threads from slipping behind the control member or feeler.

Another object is to provide control members or feelers which are readily assembled to and removed from the thread guides.

A further object is to provide such control means which are simple, practical and economical in construction and are reliable in operation.

Other and further objects will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front elevational view of a guide bar and thread guides equipped with control means in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 on Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3-3 on Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 on Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating another embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6-6 on Fig. 5.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 4 of the drawing in detail, the thread guide section of a straight knitting machine of the Raschel or Tricot type, for example, is shown which includes a guide bar 10, a switch contact element 11 adjacent the guide bar and out of electrical connection therewith, adjacently spaced thread guides 12 carried by the bar, each having an aperture 14 at its lower end through which a thread T is adapted to pass and be maintained in a predetermined path, and loss of thread tension feeler for each thread guide serving as control means for the stop mechanism in the manner about to be described.

In this embodiment of the invention, feelers 15 are shown which are mounted for pivotal movement adjacent the thread guides 12. These feelers are formed of stilt wire, and have an upper end portion 16, adapted to contact the element 11, an intermediate arcuate portion 17, and a horizontal lower end portion 18 adapted to move between adjacent thread guides and terminating in a fork-like head 19 formed with outwardly extending tips 20.

The thread passes between the prongs of this fork-like structure, as shown in Fig. 2, and, while the thread is under tension, it maintains the feeler in a position whereby the portion 16 cannot contact the element 11. The

tips 20 engage the front edges of the guides adjacent thereto and act as stops to limit the movement of the feelers inwardly and between the guides. These tips also confine the thread in a manner to prevent the same from getting in back of the feeler. the tips of adjacent feelers from interfering with each other, the fork is inclined sidewise with respect to a plane parallel to the longitudinal axis of the bar 10 (Fig. 1), whereby adjacent tips-are in overlapping relation (Figs. 1 and 4).

Another feature of the feelers 15 is that they are removably mounted. This is accomplished by forming the upper ends of the thread guides 14 with aligned apertures through which a rod or wire 21 extends, and rotat ably mounting bushings 22 on the rod adjacent each guide. The bushings 22 are grooved or recessed (Fig. 3) at 23 about their periphery for receiving the arcuate section 17 of the feeler which resiliently grips the bushing to mount the feeler for movement therewith. An advantage of this arrangement is that the feelers can be removed while rethreading the guides adjacent thereto and can be readily snapped back into place.

The rod 21 serves as an electrical conductor and the bushings 22 serve to place the feelers in electrical connection therewith, whereby the feeler portions 16 serve as switch means between the element 11 and the rod 21.

In Figs. 5 and 6, another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, wherein feelers are slidably mounted on the guides 12. This arrangement comprises a horizontal tube 25 secured at one end thereof to the guide 12 near its aperture 14 and having an upwardly facing slot 26 at its other end, and a feeler 27 having a shank or stem portion 29 slidably mounted in the tube 25 and formed with an upwardly projecting portion 30 at one end adapted to ride in the slot 26 and engage the contact element 11 upon movement of the feeler caused by loss of thread tension. The other end of the shank portion 29 carries a bifurcated thread receiving head 31 provided with tips 32 for engaging the front edges of the guides adjacent thereto. These heads function in the same manner as the heads 19 to prevent the threads from getting in back of the feelers.

In operation, when the threads T are normally tensioned and pass through the apertures 14 the guides 12,

the feelers 15 (Figs. 1 to 4) and 27 (Figs. 5 and 6) are prevented by the threads from moving in a direction to make contact with the element 11 or 11', respectively. However, should a thread lose its tension because of breakage or otherwise and fail to so restrain its feeler, the feeler is free to move into contact with the element 11 under the influence of the guide bar oscillation, whereby a circuit (not shown) is closed for effecting stoppage of the machine.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the present invention provides novel and improved feelers for eifecting stoppage of a knitting machine or the like.

As various changes may be made in the fonn, construc- In order to prevent- 3 tion, and arrangement'ofthe parts herein, without departingsfrom.thesspiritandscope of-the.invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, it is to be understood that all matters are to be interpreted as illustrative and not in any limitingsense;

What is claimed is:

1; In a-knitting machine of the class described, thecombinati'orr of an oscillating bar, a switch contact element adjacent' said bar and out of electrical connection therewith, apertured thread guide means carried by said bar through which a thread isadapted to pass and be maintained thereby ina =predetermined path, and a member mounted for movement adjacent said guide means constructed and arranged for'oscillation with said bar and said guide means thereon and for movement in a path to engage said contact-element, said member havingstop means for engaging said' thread guide means to limit the extent of movement of'said member with respect to said guide means and hav ing a thread'guide groove adjacent said stop means which is engaged by the thread while maintained in its predetermined path to restrain said member against movement into contact with said element and which when released upon failure of the thread being maintained in its predetermined path causes said member to be influenced by the oscillation thereof to move into contact with said element, said thread guide groove and said stop means cooperating to prevent the thread from slipping behind said member.

2. A knitting machine according to claim 1, wherein said member is pivotally mounted.

3. A knitting machine according to claim 1, wherein said thread guide groove and said stop means are constituted by a U-shaped head having laterally outwardly extending tips;

4. A knitting machine according to claim 3, wherein said head is inclined sidewisc with respect to a plane parallel to the longitudinal axis of said bar.

5. A knitting machine according to claim 1, wherein said guide means include a plurality of thread guides mounted in adjacently spaced relation on said bar, and one of said movable members is provided for each of said guides and said thread guide groove and said stop means are constituted by a U-shaped head having laterally out- 4. wardly extending tips adapted to engage adjacent thread guides, at the. forward edges thereof.

6. In a knitting machine of the class described, the combination of an oscillating guide bar, a switch contact element adjacent said bar and out of electrical connection therewith, a thread guide carried by said bar, laterally extending shaft means on said thread guide, a bushing mounted for rotation about said shaft means having a peripheral recess, and a lever constructed and arranged for oscillation with said-guide bar and thread guide having an arcuate section extending into said recess to attach the same to said bushing, said lever having a portion adapted to contact said element upon loss of tension in a thread passing through said thread guide, said lever portion being normally prevented from contacting said element by the thread.

7. In a knitting machine of the class described, the combination of an oscillating guide bar, a switch contact element adjacent said bar and out of electrical connection therewith, a plurality of thread guides carriedby said bar in adjacently spaced side by side relation, shaft means extending through said thread guides, bushings mounted for rotation about said shaft means each adjacent one of said thread guides having a peripheral groove, and loss of thread tension feelers constructed and arranged for oscilla tion with said guide bar and thread guides each of said feelers having an arcuate section for mounting the same on the groove of one of said bushings to attach said levers to said bushings, said levers each having a portion adapted References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,942,524 Welch et al. Jan. 9, 1934 2,400,064 Bassist May 14, 1946 2,436,438 Kyner Feb. 24, 1948

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