US40993A - Improvement in knitting-machines - Google Patents

Description

. @site Sterns IV. CLAY, OF NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND.-

lMPRCVEMENT IN KNITTING-MACHHN ES.

Speeilieation forming part of Letters Patent N0. 410,993, dated December 22, 1863.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, W. WV. CLAY, of Nottingham, in the county of Nottingham, Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, but now residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Knitting- Machines 5 and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates to certain improvements in what are known as circular-knitting machines7 my said improvements, which are fully described hereinafter, having been designed with the view of dispensing with the self-acting needles generally used in conne-c- Vtion with machines of this class, and in place of these needles substituting the common hooked or bearded needles,l thereby enabling me to produce a much finer fabric than can be knitted in circular machines with self-acting needles.

In order to enable others skilled in this class of machinery to make and use my invention, I will now proceed to describe its construction and operation.

On reference to the accompanying' drawings, which form a part of this specitication, Figure l is avertical section of my improved circular-knitting machine; Fig. 2, a view of the needle-guides and needles with the stationary cams for operating the latter. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are views drawn to an enlarged scale of the upper ends of the needles, and the spring-pressers in dit'terentpositions, Fig. G, a perspective view ot' the upper ends ofthe needles; Fig. 7, a modification of my im- ]roved knitting-maehine; Fig 8, a sectional plan on the line l 2, Fig. l; and Fig. 9, a pian view of part ot' the machine, showing a modiiied presser-wheel.

Similar letters refr-r to si milar parts throughout the several views.

Before I proceed to describe my invention, it would be well to remark that in most of the circular-knitting machines hitherto used the needles have been of the class generally termed self-acting-that is, needles provided at the ends with tumblers or pawlsalthough many attempts have been made to introduce the ordinary bearded or hooked needles into circular-knitting machines, with the view of producing a much finer fabric than can be knitted with. self-acting needles.

The great difficulty hitherto in the way ot making a circular machine with bearded or hooked needles has been the constant breakage of the latter-a difticulty which I have succeeded in overcoming by the invention which I will now proceed to describe.

A, Fig. 1, is a hollow vertical cylinder, arranged to turn on a stationary pin, B, attached to a frame, C, which, with the head a ofthe pin, serves to maintain the cylinder in its proper vertical position, the cylinder being` provided with or forming a part of the bevelwheel D, gearing into a driving-wheel, which it has not been deemed necessary to exhibit in the drawings. In the cylinderA are cut vertical grooves throughout its entire diameter, each groove being arranged for the reception of one ofthe needle-bars E, and each bar being provided at the upper end with a bearded or hooked needle, F, of the form best observed in Fig. 3, and at the lower end with a projection, c, which will be especially alluded to hereinafter. At the top ofthe cylinder A is a tiange,], beveled on the outside, as shown in the drawings, the tlange meeting the cylinder andbeing in contact with the same loetween the points .r At this point of junction of the cylinder to the tiangej'are a series of openings, w, which may be considered a continuation of the grooves above alluded to as being ont in the cylinder, and through each of these openings passes the upper end of one of the needles F. To the side ot the liangej" ofthe cylinder are secured a series of springs, G, one spring being directly opposite to and arranged to bear against the beard of one ot' the needles, as best observed in the enlarged view, Fig. 4, where the torxn ot' the spring, as well as that otl the needle, is distinctly shown.

H is a plate forming the segment'y of a hollow cylinder concentric with the cylinder A, this plate being secured to any convenient part of the frame of the machine. To the inside of this segmental plate are secured two blocks, which are of the form represented by red lines, Fig. 2, and which I term the stationary cams, theirobject being to operate the needles in the manner which may be described as follows:

The view Fig. 2 represents an exterior view ofa portion of the cylinder with its needles,`

the vertical line y representing the center of rotation. As the cylinder revolvesin the drection of the arrow, Fig. 2, the projections e ot' some of the needles will be in the act of gradually ascending the inclined edge m of the stationary cam J, while the projections or others are gradually descending as they bear against the curved edge n of the stationary cam I. It will be evident, therefore, that the upper ends of the needles as they pass a given point in each revolution of the cylinder must take the course indicated by the line q.

K is a presser-roller hung to a pin on the stationary frame of the machine, and arranged to bear against the springs G, in the manner and for the purpose which will be rendered apparent hereinafter.

L is an adjustable bar projecting from the frame-work toward the needles and grooved at the end, so as to guide the thread to its proper position, as seen in Figs. 3, 4,- 5, and 6, by reference to which views I will now proceed to describe the manner in which the loops of the knitted fabric are formed.

In Fig. 3 the needle F has reached thelimit of its upward movement, the beard t being freefrom the influence of the spring G, and the latter from the influence of the roller K, and the previously-formed loop surrounding the needle and resting on the upper edge of the cylinder A, while the feedthread w', shown in blue, is directed by the guide L to its proper position. As the needle descends, the thread w takes its place between the stem and beard of the needle, at the same time the beard comes in contact with the spring G, and the latter, being acted on by the roller K, causes the sp1-in g to press the beard against the stem of the needle, (see Fig. 4,) so that as the latter continues to descend both needle and beard pass through the previously-formed loop," which is permitted to escape after having become interlocked with the thread w', as seen in Fig. 5,. Every needle in succession has the above-described movement, and performs the same duty, so that when one complete revo lution of the cylinder has been made a new row of loops has been added to the fabric. It will be understood, however, that several stationary cams vmay be arranged at given points throughout the diameter of the cylinder, the number of feed-threads and presser-wheels corresponding to the number of cams, so that the above-described movements of the needles may be going on at the same time at different points, the number of which will depend upon the diameter of the cylinder A. As the fabric is formed, it passes downward in the first instance from the upper edge of the cylinder A, under a ring, M, and upward as usual in ordinary circular-knitting machines 5 or the machine may be arranged in the manner shown in Fig. 7 on reference to which it will be seen that the cylinder, instead of revolving on a stationary pin, turns in a frame, X, so that the fabric can pass downward through the cylinder, below which it may be collected by being coiled round a take-up roller. In this case the ring M may be dispensed with.

By using a separate spring, G, for each needle, and by the peculiar arrangement of this spring, I am enabled, through the intervention of the presserwheel, to close the'beards of the needles without putting them out of form or breaking them.

rlhe guide-bar L, with its grooved end, performs an important duty-namely, that of holding the feed-thread in the proper position to be caught by the beard of the descending needles, as bestobserved on reference to Fig. 6.

Owing to the successful employment, in the manner described, of common hooked needles in circular-knitting machines, I am enabled to produce a finer fabric than can be made by self-acting needles.

A great variety of patterns may be produced by notching the presser-wheel K at given intervals, so that the beards of some of the needles will not be acted upon by the springs, and consequently some of the loops will be slipped.

This device, to which I lay no claim, will be readily understood by those familiar with knitting-machines on referring to Fig. 9.

I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent- The system of reciprocating hooked needles F and the system of springs G, or their equivalents, applied to a revolving cylinder, in combination with the presser-wheel K, or its equivalent, the whole being arranged for joint action, substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. y

WILLIAM W. CLAY.

Witnesses HENRY HowsoN, J oHN WHITE.

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