US3291161A

US3291161A - Weft stop motion for narrow ware loom

Info

Publication number: US3291161A
Application number: US407477A
Authority: US
Inventors: Wagner William Frank
Original assignee: Crompton and Knowles Corp
Current assignee: Leesona Corp
Priority date: 1964-10-29
Filing date: 1964-10-29
Publication date: 1966-12-13
Anticipated expiration: 1983-12-13

Description

Dec. 13, 1966 w. FQWAGNER 3, 9 5

WEFT STOP MOTION FOR NARROW WARE LOOM Filed Oct. 29, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 40 u s4 IO 3320 I8 $2 8 8 F|G.|

INVENTOR WILLIAM F. WAGNER QW/JWA ATTORNEY Dec. 13, 1966 w. F. WAGNER WEFT STOP MOTION FOR NARROW WARE LOOM 2 Sheets-fined 2 Filed Oct. 29, 1964 F l G. 9

cmcunr T INVENTOR WILLIAM F. WAGNER B ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,291,161 WEF'I STOP MOTIUN FUR NARROW WARE LOOM William Frank Wagner, Cheltenham, Pa., assignor to (lrornpton & Knowles Corporation, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Oct. 29, 1964, Ser. No. 467,477 3 Claims. (Cl. 139-371) This invention relates to means to stop a narrow ware loom in the event the weft breaks or becomes unduly slack.

The lay of a narrow ware loom usually has mounted on it a gang of shuttle blocks to receive shuttles each of which is moved from one block to an adjacent block and then back by a reciprocating rack rod. Because of the number of shuttles in a loom it has not been thought practicable in the past to equip a loom with a stop motion for each shuttle. This is due partly at least to the cost of such stopping devices as have been proposed.

It is an important object of the invention to provide a simple elongated closing element on a shuttle effective when unsupported by a welt thread to fall to a position where it can close an electric switch on the shuttle block when moving with the shuttle and thus close an electric circuit which will stop the loom.

The shuttle block of a narrow ware loom ordinarily has a pinion mounted for rotation thereon and for engagement with shuttles and the reciprocating rack rod. Part of the block extends forwardly from the pinion to hold the stud on which the pinion turns. The stud eX- tends through the lower part of the block and is usually screw threaded into a metal bar running lengthwise of the lay behind the block.

It is a further object of the invention to secure a socalled micro precision electric switch on the front lower part of some at least of the blocks and connect one side of each switch to the associated stud and the bar and connect the other side to an insulated conductor running the length of the lay and connected to electric loom stopping means which is also connected to the aforesaid bar. Closure of any switch will be effective to stop the loom.

It is another object of the invention to provide the shuttle with a wall located at one side of the weft quill space and located to position the detector when the latter is unsupported by the thread so that it will engage a closing arm of the switch. The wall serves as a stop for the detector to prevent it from moving out of arm engaging position.

A further object is to provide a detector mounted on a shuttle so that when a weft fault occurs it will fall around a shuttle carried pivot and be in position to depress a switch arm under the pivot.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide a shuttle and a block for it made as a unit which will have aligned surfaces one of which serves as a stop for the detector and the other of which serves as a guide for the arm which closes the switch. The detector and arm are thus held in positions favorable for cooperation when a weft defect occurs.

This invention is an improvement on' the stop motion shown in US. patent to A. S. Hutchins No. 2,512,428, Class 139, Subclass 371, which is the closest art known to me.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation of part of the lay of a narrow ware loom having the invention applied thereto,

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged front elevation of one of the "ice shuttles and shuttle blocks with a stop switch attached thereto,

FIGURE 3 is a View similar to FIGURE 2 but with the parts in loom stopping position,

FIGURES 4 and 5 are enlargements of a portion of FIGURES 2 and 3 respectively showing the relationship of the detector arm and switch arm,

FIGURES 6 and 7 are sections of the shuttle on line 66 and '77 of FIGURES 2 and 3 respectively,

FIGURE 8 is a vertical section on line 88, FIG- URE 3, and

FIGURE 9 is a diagrammatic view of a stopping electric circuit which can be used with the invention.

Referring particularly to FIGURE 1, the loom lay L has a beam 4 in which a rack 6 is mounted for horizontal reciprocation by well known means not shown herein. The rack 6 meshes with a series of pinions which in turn mesh with the shuttles. As shown in FIGURE 1 four

spaced shuttle blocks

8, 9, 10 and 11 are mounted on the lay and each shuttle block has rotatable therein one of the sheaves 12 meshing with the rack 6. Each block has shuttle guiding slots or

grooves

14 and 16 and the blocks are so arranged that the curved slot 14 of one block will beconcentric with the curved slot 16 of an adjacent block. The rack 6 is reciprocated to cause the shuttles to move from one block to another across warp spaces 18 in which are located beat-up reeds 20. In FIGURE 1 shuttles S1, S2, S3 and S4 are shown in the blocks 8 to 11 respectively, in readiness for movement to the left.

Each shuttle, one of which is shown more particularly in FIGURE 6, has a quill space 22 across which extends a pin 23 on which is rotatably mounted a quill or spool 24. Weft W is wound on the spool and is fed out under a detector arm 26 and out through a delivery eye 28 to be incorporated into the cloth.

The lower portion of each shuttle has a lower fiat surface 30 into which the ends 3434 of an elongated U-shaped pivot 32 are driven so that the elongated portion 36 between the ends 34-34 is spaced from the surface 30. Swingably mounted on the pivot 32 is the detector arm 26 which is in the form of a U-shaped elongated bar with bent ends 3838 having aligned holes 4747 through which the pivot 32 passes. As the weft W is drawn from the spool the detector arm 26 is held in the raised position shown in FIGURES 4 and 6 away from surface 30.

Mounted on lower flat surfaces 31 of some of the shuttle blocks are switches 33 having operating arms 35 pivoted at 37 and effective, when moved in the direction of arrow a, FIGURE 5, to depress a spring loaded plunger 39. Switch closing arms 35 are substantially flush with and movable in a direction parallel to their respective surfaces 31.

Each of the shuttle blocks is secured to upper and lower

metal cross bars

40 and 41 by upper and

lower studs

42 and 43 respectively. These bars run lengthwise of the lay. Each switch 33 has a lead 45 connected to its lower metallic stud 43 which makes an electrical contact with the metal cross bar 41 which provides a common ground connection for all the switches.

Running along the beam 4 just under the shuttle blocks is an insulated wire 44 which connects electrically at 46 to the side of all the switches 33 opposite the side connected to bar 41.

A switch may be placed on every block to indicate a broken or slack thread for every beat-up of the lay beam 4, but it may be deemed sufiicient to put a switch on only every other shuttle block. As seen in FIGURE 1, there is a switch on both

blocks

8 and 10, but none on 9 and 11. Shuttles S1 and S3 are in positions where they can effect stopping if necessary, but shuttles S2 and S4 are in blocks 9 and 11 which have no switches attached thereto and cannot cause stopping. On the next beat all the shuttles S1S4 will move to the left in FIGURE 1 from slots 14 into slots 16, shuttles S1 and S3 into blocks 9 and 11 and shuttle S2 will move into block 10, shuttle S4 will move to a block at the left of FIGURE 1 (not shown but similar to block in positions to indicate a broken or slack thread and stop the loom. On the following beat shuttle S1 and S3 will swing back to

blocks

8 and 10 respectively, where they will again be in indicating position and shuttles S2 and S4 will swing back to blocks 9 and 11 respectively to be in non-indicating position. Each switch serves two shuttles and the loom can be stopped on any beat. The detector arm 26 will pass over switch arm 35 without moving it as long as the weft is kept at a certain tension and holds the detector arm in the raised position shown in FIGURES 4 and 6.

Since all the shuttles are alike and operate to indicate a slackened thread, it is only necessary to describe the indicating operation of one of the shuttles, namely S1, acting with the block 8 to form a shuttle and shuttle block unit. As seen in FIGURES 3, 5 and 6 the weft W had broken before the shuttle S1 reached the position shown in FIGURE 3, allowing the detector arm 26 to fall by gravity and also centrifugal force to the position shown in FIGURE 6 to rest against the flat surface 30 of shuttle S1. Since surface 30 of shuttle S1 and surface 31 of block 8 are vertically aligned, detector arm 26 is placed in a path causing it to engage switch arm 35 and depress it as shown in FIGURE 5 thereby closing switch 33 to energize an electric control circuit causing the loom to stop.

An example of circuit means in which switches 33 can cause the loom to stop is shown in FIGURE 9. The circuit includes a power source 48 which supplies low voltage direct current to a loom control circuit generally indicated at 50 connected across power lines L1 and L2 by line 54.

Also connected across lines L1 and L2 are the previously mentioned switches 33 which are normally open and arranged in parallel. When any one of the switches 33 is closed due to the slackening of weft in any of the shuttles, as previously described, current will be allowed to flow through line 44 to energize relay R1. Energization of relay R1 will cause a normally closed contact 52 to open, thus cutting the flow of current through line 54 to the loom circuit 50 causing the loom to stop. FIGURE 9 is an example of circuit which can be used with the invention, but is not a specific part of the invention. The

loom circuit 50 can be as shown, for instance, in US. Patent No. 2,981,295.

I claim:

1. An electric weft detecting system for a narrow ware loom having a lay provided with a shuttle and a shuttle block having a surface which is substantially vertical when the lay is in forward position, and comprising, in combination:

(a) an electric switch on said surface secured to said block;

(b) a switch closing arm mounted for pivotal movement relatively to said switch extending along said surface and depressible to close said switch;

(c) pivot means on the shuttle having an axis extending lengthwise and over said arm when the shuttle is moving in said block;

(d) a detector comprising an elongated generally U- shaped member having end portions substantially perpendicular to said pivot means and aligned holes through which the pivot means passes, the portion intermediate said end portions generally diverging from said pivot means to a point fartherest removed from said pivot means thereby forming a yarn guiding surface on the side near said pivot means and a camming surface for said closing arm on the side remote from said pivot means; and

(e) means to stop the loom when the switch is closed.

2. The system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said point is generally centrally located between said end portions.

3. The system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the lay has a lengthwise metallic member forming part of said last named means and the block is fastened to the member by a metallic stud connected electrically to one side of said switch and the means is electric and connected electrically to the other side of said switch.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,512,428 6/1950 Hutchins 139371 2,661,028 12/1953 Siegel 139371 2,746,490 5/1956 Hall 139371 2,788,025 4/1957 Waterhouse et al. 139-371 2,969,814 1/1961 Heym 13937l 3,103,236 9/1963 Bowser 139371 FOREIGN PATENTS 401,650 1/1943 Italy. 568,869 11/1957 Italy.

MERVIN STEIN, Primal Examiner.

J. KEECHI, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. AN ELECTRIC WEFT DETECTING SYSTEM FOR A NARROW WARE LOOM HAVING A LAY PROVIDED WITH A SHUTTLE AND A SHUTTLE BLOCK HAVING A SURFACE WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL WHEN THE LAY IS IN FORWARD POSITION, AND COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: (A) AN ELECTRIC SWITCH ON SAID SURFACE SECURED TO SAID BLOCK; (B) A SWITCH CLOSING ARM MOUNTED FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT RELATIVELY TO SAID SWITCH EXTENDING ALONG SAID SURFACE AND DEPRESSIBLE TO CLOSE SAID SWITCH; (C) PIVOT MEANS ON THE SHUTTLE HAVING AN AXIS EXTENDING LENGTHWISE AND OVER SAID ARM WHEN THE SHUTTLE IS MOVING IN SAID BLOCK; (D) A DETECTOR COMPRISING AN ELONGATED GENERALLY USHAPED MEMBER HAVING END PORTIONS SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO SAID PIVOT MEANS AND ALIGNED HOLES THROUGH WHICH THE PIVOT MEANS PASSES, THE PORTION INTERMEDIATE SAID END PORTIONS GENERALLY DIVERGING FROM SAID PIVOT MEANS TO A POINT FARTHEREST REMOVED FROM SAID PIVOT MEANS THEREBY FORMING A YARN GUIDING SURFACE ON THE SIDE NEAR SAID PIVOT MEANS AND A CAMMING SURFACE FOR SAID CLOSING ARM ON THE SIDE REMOTE FROM SAID PIVOT MEANS; AND (E) MEANS TO STOP THE LOOM WHEN THE SWITCH IS CLOSED.