Spinning method and spinning frame for spinning blended yarns

Abstract: A method for manufacturing blended yarn and a manufacturing device for carrying out the method are disclosed which are suitable for a process on an industrial scale and provide a product which will impart a natural comfortable wear like that of a hand-spun yarn. In a blending and spinning process, 1/f fluctuation signals are used in order to impart a 1/f fluctuation to feed slivers or rovings (11, 12), wherein the blending ratio of the blended slivers, blended rovings or blended yarn (13) varies with a specific correlation, namely a correlation having a 1/f fluctuation.

Description: The invention relates to a spinning method and a spinning frame for spinning blended yarns. When blended yarns are made using conventional spinning means, different types of fibres are mixed in order to produce a yarn which combines the properties of each type of fibres. This is usually achieved by either of two spinning methods, namely a blending method in which different types of fibres are blended in a certain ratio of fibre lots, or a sliver drawing method in which slivers are combined in a fixed ratio during the drawing of different types of fibres which have been spun by individual routes. In conventional blended yarn spinning, whether by the blending method or the sliver drawing method, different yarns are mixed in a fixed ratio, wherein the blended yarn achieved thereby has an artificial feel of total uniformity with no variation in hand. Hence, with very little natural handle, such a product does not impart a comfortable feel to a user. The object underlying the present invention is to provide a spinning method and a spinning frame for spinning blended yarns which impart a natural, comfortable feel to the user or wearer. Another object underlying the present invention is to provide a spinning method and a spinning frame for spinning blended yarns which impart a natural, comfortable feel and can yet be manufactured on an industrial scale. In order to solve this problem, the invention provides a spinning method for spinning blended yarns wherein a plurality of different types of fibres are mixed which each other and wherein a 1/f fluctuation is imparted to the blending ratio of the different fibres. According to another aspect of the present invention, a spinning frame for spinning a plurality of different fibres into a blended yarn is provided, wherein the spinning frame comprises a separate feeding unit for each different type of fibre bundle and wherein each feeding unit is adapted and controlled so that the amount of fibre bundles being fed is varied in accordance with a 1/f fluctuation, whereupon the different types of fibre bundles are mixed with each other and spun together such that the blending ratio of the different types of fibre bundles varies with a 1/f fluctuation. According to another aspect of the present invention, a spinning frame for spinning a plurality of different fibres into a blended yarn is provided which comprises separate means for drafting each different type of fibre bundle and wherein the rotational speed of the feed rollers of each drafting means is varied in accordance with a 1/f fluctuation, whereupon the different types of fibre bundles are mixed with each other and spun together such that the ultimate fibre bundle produced thereby is of uniform thickness, but has a blending ratio varying with a 1/f fluctuation. Hence, the blended yarns obtained by the spinning method and the spinning frame according to the invention provide a natural and comfortable feel to the user or wearer wherein the ratio by which the different types of yarn are blended does not vary randomly, but instead varies with a specific correlation, namely a correlation with a 1/f fluctuation. In the present invention, the expression "1/f fluctuation" is defined and understood as a power spectrum, with a frequency component f, which is proportional to 1/f k , wherein k is approximately 1. With the spinning method and the spinning frame according to the invention, the object is solved in a satisfying and advantageous manner, wherein considerable advantages can be achieved in practice. According to one aspect, the blending slivers or mixed rovings obtained according to the invention ultimately form a blended yarn in which the blending ratio does not vary randomly, rather it varies with a specific correlation, in particular a 1/f fluctuation. Therefore, the yarn has a natural irregularity which provides a special aesthetic beauty and comfortable wear. Also, woven fabrics or knitted fabrics made from such a blended yarn achieved according to the invention in which the blending ratio varies with a 1/f fluctuation will also have a 1/f fluctuation. Such products have a special feel and colour density after dyeing that varies with a 1/f fluctuation, and provides a special aesthetic beauty and comfortable wear to the user or wearer. Another advantage according to the invention resides in that woven fabrics with a natural irregular feel of hand-spun yarn can be produced on an industrial scale and at low cost. In practice, a sound, a melody or a breeze of wind, the intensity of which varies with a 1/f fluctuation, can be used as a signal for controlling a spinning frame according to the invention in order to carry out the spinning of blended yarn with the advantageous properties outlined above. The invention will be explained in more detail below by means of preferred embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 shows an overview diagram of the principal components of the drafting units in a drawing frame; Fig. 2 is a block diagram of the control device for operating the respective driving motors of the drawing frame; Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the formation of blended slivers in which the ratio of the blended fibres will vary with a 1/f fluctuation; Fig. 4 is a schematic view illustrating the drafting process in which the blending ratio varies with a 1/f fluctuation. Overview of manufacture of blended yarn A drawing frame, a roving frame, a spinning frame or other frames are used in the manufacture of blended yarn. Fibre bundles used in these frames are formed from short fibres or filaments of natural fibres, regenerated cellulose fibres, or synthetic fibres, or mixtures thereof. Slivers are used for a drawing frame or a roving frame, while rovings are used for a spinning frame. Fig. 1 shows diagramatically the drafting units of a drawing frame for producing blended yarn. In such an apparatus, different types of fibre slivers are drafted separately using a base sliver drafting unit 1 and a sliver blending drafting unit 2, which are then combined to form blended slivers 13. The base sliver drafting unit 1 drafts base slivers 11 by means of base feed rollers 23 and a base front roller 21 cooperating with opposite pressure rollers. Similarly, the sliver blending drafting unit 2 drafts the blending slivers 12 by means of blending feed rollers 24 and a blending front roller 22 which cooperate with opposite pressure rollers. The blending slivers 12 so drafted are mixed with the base slivers 11 at the base front roller 21 and output as blended slivers 13. As schematically indicated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the frame is also equipped with a base front motor 211, a blending front motor 221, a base feed motor 231 and a blending feed motor 241 in order to control and drive the base front roller 21, the blending front roller 22, the base feed rollers 23 and the blending feed rollers 24, resp. These motors 211, 221, 231 and 241 are controlled in turn by means of a controller 3 wherein the speed of each motor is set by the motor speed setter 31, a 1/f fluctuation signal generator 32, and a blending ratio variation setter 33. Each of the motors 211, 221, 231 and 241 is operated and rotated in accordance with the set values thereof, wherein the speed is controlled precisely by feedback on corresponding drivers 34 which receive feedback signals from corresponding speed detectors 25 detecting the respective motors 211, 221, 231 and 241. Blended spinning can also be accomplished by a similar mechanism using a roving frame or a spinning frame at any arbitrary blending ratio. 1/f Fluctuation One of the inventors was the first in the world to discover that a 1/f fluctuation would impart a particularly comfortable feel to human beings. The results were published in "The World of Fluctuations", published by Kodansha Publishers in 1980. Also, the results were published in a paper entitled "Bioinformation and 1/f Fluctuation", Applied Physics, 1985, pp. 429 to 435, and in another paper entitled "Biocontrol and 1/f Fluctuation", Journal of Japan. Soc. of Precision Machinery, 1984, Vol. 50, No. 6, as well as in a recent publication called "The Concept of Fluctuations", published by NHK in 1994. The abstract of these publications reads as follows: "The 1/f fluctuation provides a comfortable feeling to human beings; the reason is that the variations in the basic rhythm of the human body have a 1/f spectrum. From another perspective, the human body eventually becomes tired of a constant stimulation from the same source, but conversely, the body feels uncomfortable if the stimulations were to change too suddenly. Therefore, a 1/f fluctuation is a fluctuation of the right proportion between these two extremes." In addition, an excerpt from "The World of Fluctuations" published by Kodansha Publishers, 1980, reads as follows: "For example, the rhythms exhibited by the human body such as heart beats, hand-clapping to music, impulse-release period of neurons, and alpha rhythms observed in the brain, are all basically 1/f fluctuations, and it has been shown experimentally that if a body is stimulated by a fluctuation like these biorhythmic 1/f fluctuations, it would feel comfortable." Fluctuations or variations exist in various forms throughout nature, but the murmur of a brook, a breeze of wind, and other phenomena that impart a comfortable feeling to human beings have a 1/f fluctuation, while typhoons and other strong winds that impart uneasiness do not have a 1/f fluctuation. 1/f Fluctuation Signals 1/f fluctuation signals are derived from a numerical sequence y1, y2, y3, ... formed by multiplying n coefficients a1, a2, a3, ... an, on a random sequence of numbers x1, x2, x3, ..... Generally, yj can be expressed by Equation 1 indicated below. It should be noted herein that the sequence of numerical values forming y1, y2, y3, ... has a 1/f spectrum. For further details, reference is made to "Biological Signaling", Chapter 10, in "Biological Rhythms and Fluctuations", published by Corona Publishers, Ltd.. In Equation 1, x is virtually any arbitrary random number, and n represents the n-th term which determines the lower limit of the frequency range of the 1/f spectrum. 1/f Fluctuation Signal Generator A sequence of numerical values having a 1/f fluctuation is obtained in two steps using the 1/f fluctuation signal generator 32 provided in the arrangement according to Fig. 2. In a first step, a computer, for example, generates a sequence of random numbers, x. In a second step, a certain number n of coefficients a , stored in a storage device, are successively multiplied on the random numbers, and then a sequence of numerical values y is obtained by linear transformation. This numerical sequence, y, has a 1/f spectrum and can be used as a sequence of numerical values having a 1/f fluctuation. An example of a numerical sequence with a 1/f fluctuation so obtained is shown in the numerical sequence indicated below. Other numerical sequences with a 1/f fluctuation can be derived, for example, from a sound, a melody or a breeze of wind, the strength of which vary with a 1/f fluctuation. Numerical sequence = {17, 12, 15, 15, 12, 14, 12, 8, 11, 12, 9, 9, 11, 7, 5, 2, 3, 0, 6, 7, 7, 8, 6, 3, 3, 6, 6, 3, 2, 4, 24, 2, 0, 5, 6, 7, 7, 5, 7, 9, 4, 1, 4, 8, 7, 5, 4, 6, 2, 0, 6, 3, 7, 8, 10, 10, 5, 5, 8, 9, 7, 11, 5, 7, 8, 10, 6, 10, 9, 10, 10, 8, 11, 13, 10, 8, 6, 7, 4, 9, 7, 8, 7, 8, 3, 5, 7, 10, 11, 8, 5, 7, 6, 3, 8, 11, 10, 12, 9, 6, 11, 12, 13, 11, 10, 6, 6, 9, 7, 6, 2, 7, 9, 4, 1, 6, 8, 11, 9, 12, 12, 11, 7, 11, 6, 3, 5, 6, 9, 11, 6, 10, 6, 5, 3, 4, 9, 7, 7, 3, 4, 5, 3, 1, 1, 2, 6, 8, 11, 8, 11, 14, 14, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 8, 10, 5, 6, 7, 3, 5, 7, 10, 7, 9, 11, 12, 11, 9, 10, 12, 15, 12, 11, 13, 13, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 17, 17, 12, 13, 16, 12, 15, 11, 12, 16, 15, 12, 14, 13, ....} Next, a blending spinning method will be explained in which the blending ratio of the different types of fibres will have a correlation of a 1/f fluctuation. Setting of the drawing frame At first the weight per unit length for the blended slivers 13 to be manufactured and a reference value "a" for the blending ratio of the base slivers 11 and the blending slivers 12 being fed are determined, and a 1/f fluctuation "b" is imparted on said reference value "a". For example, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, the reference value "a" is set at 50% for a blending of equal parts of base slivers 11 and blending slivers 12. Accordingly, the speed of each motor 211, 221, 231 and 241 is set in the motor speed setter 31 as a function of the weight per unit length of the base slivers 11 and the blending slivers 12 which are being fed and from the reference value "a" for the blending ratio. Then, a numerical sequence with a 1/f fluctuation is set in the motor speed setter 31, and a degree of variation "c" having a 1/f fluctuation for the blending ratio is set in the blending ratio variation setter 33. For example, a variation of ± 20% for a reference value of 50% is set, in other words, the degree of variation "c" is set between 30% and 70%. The relationship between the blending ratio and the position along with a fibre bundle is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Imparting a 1/f fluctuation to blended slivers The 1/f fluctuation signals are applied to the base feed motor 231, and then, as the base feed rollers 23 rotate, the base slivers 11 are drawn-in at a speed having a 1/f fluctuation and drafted at the base slivers drafting unit 1, wherein slivers having a 1/f fluctuation are output from the base front roller 21. In the meantime, 1/f fluctuation signals of reverse phase to those signals applied to the base feed motor 231 are applied to the blending feed motor 241. Hence, as the blending feed rollers 24 rotate, the blending slivers 12 are drawn-in at a speed having a 1/f fluctuation of reverse phase (corresponding to the 1/f fluctuation signals of reverse phase) to that of the base slivers 11 and are drafted by the sliver blending drafting unit 2. Therefore, blending slivers having a 1/f fluctuation of reverse phase to that of the base slivers 11 are output from the blending front roller 22. The drafting unit 1 and the drafting unit 2 are operated together in this manner in order to produce blended slivers 13 in which the proportion "d" of each type of fibre varies in accordance with the 1/f fluctuation signals. Also, the blended slivers 13 which have passed through the drafting unit 1 and the drafting unit 2 have a 1/f fluctuation of mutually reversed phase to ultimately produce the blended slivers 13 of a constant weight per unit length. The blending ratio of these blended slivers 13 is shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

Claims: A spinning method for spinning blended yarn in which a plurality of different types of fibres (11, 12) are mixed, wherein a 1/f fluctuation is imparted to the blending ratio of the different fibres (11, 12). A spinning frame for spinning a plurality of different fibres into a blended yarn, wherein the frame comprises a separate feeding unit (1, 2) for each different type of fibre bundle (11, 12), wherein at each feeding unit (1, 2) the amount of fibre bundles (11, 12) being fed is varied in accordance with a 1/f fluctuation, whereupon the different types of fibre bundles (11, 12) are mixed and spun together such that the blending ratio of the different types of fibre bundles (11, 12) varies with a 1/f fluctuation. A spinning frame for spinning a plurality of different fibres into a blended yarn, which frame comprises separate means (1, 2) for drafting each different type of fibre bundle (11, 12), wherein the rotational speed of the corresponding feed rollers (21, 23; 22, 24) of each drafting means (1, 2) is varied in accordance with a 1/f fluctuation, and wherein the different types of fibre bundles (11, 12) are mixed and spun together such that the ultimate fibre bundle (13) produced thereby is of uniform thickness, but its blending ratio varies with a 1/f fluctuation.

Inventors: MURAOKA KAZUYOSHI, MUSHA TOSHIMITSU, NIWA YUKI, YANAI YUICHI, MURAOKA, KAZUYOSHI, MUSHA, TOSHIMITSU, NIWA, YUKI, YANAI, YUICHI, MURAOKA, KAZUYOSHI, C/O NISSHINBO IND. INC. OSAKA, NIWA, YUKI, C/O NISSHINBO IND. INC. MIAI, YANAI, YUICHI, C/O NISSHINBO IND. INC. MIAI
Applicants: MUSHA TOSHIMITSU, NISSHIN SPINNING, MUSHA, TOSHIMITSU, NISSHINBO INDUSTRIES INC.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: D01H5
IPC codes: D01H7, D02G3, D01H5