US972918A - Automatic weft-replenishing loom. - Google Patents

Description

A. E. RHOADES. AUTOMATIC WEFT REPLENISHING LOOM. APPLICATION TILED NOV. 23, 1907.

Patented 001;. 18, 1910.

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A. E. RHOADES.

AUTOMATIC WEFT REPLENISHING LOOM.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 23, 1907.

Patented Oct. '18, 1910.

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ALONZO E. RHOADES, HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO DRAPER COM- PANY, 0F PORTLAND,

VIVIAINE, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

AUTOMATIC WEFT-REPLENISHING LOOlVL Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 18, 1910.

Application filed November 23, 1907. Serial No. 403,551.

,bin, cop, spindle or the like) for the spent weft-carrier in the working shuttle, it is important that' the shuttle should be correctly located with respect to the incoming freshweft-carrier at the time replenishment is to take place. Heretofore automatic weftreplensihing looms of this character have been provided with a shuttle-feeler which renders the transferring mechanism inactive is case the shuttle is misplaced too far inwardly toward the middle of the loom when a change of weft-carriers is called; and an inclined bridge within the shuttle has been employed to secure proper registration between the shuttle and the incoming weftcarrier in case the shuttle is misplaced too far outwardly away from the middle of the loom, this latter expedient being open to some objection on account of the occasional breakage of weft-carriers due thereto.

The object of the present invention is to provide mechanism independent of the transferring mechanism for correctly locating the shuttle with respect to the holder for the spare weft-carrier next to be inserted in case the shuttle is misplaced too far outwardly away from the middle of the loom.

The improved mechanism is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure l, is a longitudinal section through a portion of the end of the lay at the weftreplenishing side of the loom and through a portion of the weft-replenishing mechanism. Fig. 2, is a view looking toward the rear of the same end of the lay showing the mechanism which acts to correctly position the outwardly misplaced shuttle. Fig. 3, is a horizontal section along the line 3, in Fig. 2, this section being a horizontal one passing through the picker stick and showing the shuttle positioning mechanism in lan. p The drawings illustrate so much of the mechanism of the well-known Northrop or Draper loom (illustrated, for example, in

United States Letters Patent No. 529,940, November 27, 1894) as is necessary for an understanding of the present improvement.

A, is a portion of the lay at the replenishing side of the loom; B, is a self-threading shuttle having weft-carrier spring jaws a; C, C, are weft-carriers each having projecting annular rings 12, cooperating with the spring jaws a, D, is a portion of the holder for the fresh weft-carriers, such holder being a rotary magazine in the Draper loom; E, is the fixed stand supporting the magazine or weft-carrier holder; F, is the transferrer which, when a change of weft-carriers is called, descends and forces the fresh weft-- carrier occupying the transferring position into the shuttle and concurrently ejecting downwardly the spent weft-carrier; G, is the picker at the replenishing side of the loom; H, is the picker stick; and I, is the shuttle-feeler which, in case the shuttle is misplaced inwardly and too near the middle of the loom when'the change is called, encounters the shuttle and prevents the action of the transferrer. The shuttle-feeler may be arranged to operate as in United States Letters Patent N 0. 664,790, dated December 25, 1900. All of these parts cooperate in the same way as in the Draper loom.

The added parts illustrated in the drawings relate to the devices for moving the shuttle longitudinally into correct position relatively to the fresh weft-carrier next to be supplied in case the shuttle is too far out (that is, away from the middle of the loom) at the moment when a transfer of weft-carriers is to take place. These added parts act to move the picker inwardly a sufficient distance to properly locate the shuttle with respect to the incoming weft-carrier. As shown in Figs. 1, and 2, there is a depending bracket K, secured to the outer end of the lay at the replenishing side of the loom. A shuttle placer L, is adjustably pivoted at 0, to this bracket and extends horizontally outside of the picker-stick, as shown in Figs. 2, and 3. The outer end of this shuttleplacer is pivoted at (Z, to the outer end of a horizontal link M, which at its inner end is pivoted to a pintle N, which is adjustably secured to a fixed bracket 0. As the lay swings back and forth the shuttle-placer L, is swung in and out relatively to the pickerstick, as illustrated by the full and dotted lines in Fig. 3, which indicate the position of the shuttle-placer, the lay and the picker stick at different portions of the swing of the lay. hen the shuttle-placer occupies the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, it is positioned so far outwardly that it does not interfere with the customary outward stroke of the picker-stick. When, however, the lay swings to its forward position the shuttle-placer, through its link connection with a stationary part of the loom, swings to its position shown in full lines in Fig. 3, thereby moving the picker-stick inwardly a definite and certain distance. This inward movement of the picker-stick carries the picker with it and, if the shuttle then occupies a position too far out relatively to the fresh weft'carrier next to be inserted, the shuttle is moved longitudinally inward a definite distance, so as to locate it with its contained weft-carrier immediately below the fresh weft-carrier next to be inserted.

This shuttle-placing mechanism is independent of the weft-replenishing mechanism and not only has the merit of placing the shuttle, when a change is called, in correct position, but it tends to preserve uniformity of picking action, since the shuttle ordinarily occupies a definite position in the shuttle-box at each pick. This is due to the fact that the shuttle placer L is operatively connected with constantly moving parts of the loom, namely the lay and the link M, so that the shuttle placer performs its correcting oflice each time that the shuttle is in the shuttle box at the replenishing side of the loom. The shuttle is positioned by the shuttle-placer before the incoming fresh weftcarrier comes in contact with any part of the shuttle or with the spent weft-carrier, so that in its descent it squarely encounters the spent weft-carrier while eject-ing it downwardly, so that there is no breakage of weftcarriers and no improper grasping of the fresh weft-carrier by the shuttle jaws. The shuttle placer acts positively by virtue of positively actuated mechanical connections so that the shuttle is positively moved into place irrespective of any variations in the force with which it is driven or in the effectiveness of the appliances which retard or check its flight. The shuttle-placer acts to correctly locate the shuttle in case it is driven too far out. In case the shuttle is too far in when a change is called it is encountered by the shuttle-feeler and the transferrer is thereby prevented from action in the manner customary in the Draper loom. The shuttle placer may be shod with leather where it touches the picker-stick, as indicated at e, in Fig. 3.

I claim:

1. An automatic weft-replenishing loom, wherein replenishment is effected by substituting a fresh weft-carrier for the spent weft-carrier in the shuttle, having, in combination, a shuttle; weft-replenishing mechanism; a shuttle-placing mechanism independent of the weft-replenishing mechanism and acting to move the shuttle inwardly and into registration with an incoming fresh weft-carrier.

2. A loom having, in combination, a lay; a picker-stick; a shuttle-placer pivoted to the lay and outside of the picker-stick; and a link connecting the other end of the shuttleplacer to a fixed part of the loom.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALONZO E. RHOADES.

Witnesses GEORGE OTIS DRAPER, ARTHUR S. BRowNE.

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