Abstract:
A device ( 1 ) for uninterrupted winding of a continuously-fed textile material web ( 3 ) is provided, which includes four transport mechanisms ( 11, 21, 25, 27 ), which form a cage at a beginning of the winding process. The third and fourth transport mechanisms ( 25, 27 ) are moved radially away from the winding center as the diameter of the roll ( 17 ) increases, and the second transport mechanism ( 21 ) is removed.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    The invention relates to a device for the uninterrupted winding of a continuously-fed textile material web according to the preamble of claim  1 . 
         [0002]    Textile material webs, such as fleece, batting, and the like are produced in a continuous production process. The conditioning and/or further processing usually occurs not at the location of production but at another location and additionally this process is discontinuous. For this purpose, the continuously exiting material webs must be wound for transportation or intermediate storage. The continuous feeding of the material web to the winding device results that at the end of the winding process the finished roll must be removed very quickly and immediately the winding of a new roll must be started. 
         [0003]    It is known to introduce the leading edge of the material web into a cage formed by several rollers and to initiate a winding process this way. In this known process there is the latent risk that the leading edge of the material web fed is not deflected by the rollers in an arc as desired but accumulates in the wedge of two rollers and thus leads to an interruption of the production process. The interruption of the feeding at the end of the production process of the material web can have consequences for the entire production process and lead to discards. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0004]    One object of the present invention is to provide a device, which securely grabs the leading edge of a continuously fed material web without interruption after the separation of the material web when the winding process of a roll has concluded, in order to guide an empty core and begin another winding process. 
         [0005]    This object is attained by a device having the features of claim  1 . Advantageous embodiments of the invention are described in the dependent claims. 
         [0006]    The four cooperating transport means allow a winding of the material web onto a roll having an essentially constant winding thickness over its diameter. In particular, the finished roll can be removed from the device without interrupting the material feeding and the leading edge of the constantly fed material can be immediately wound onto a new core. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0007]    The invention is explained in greater detail using an illustrated exemplary embodiment. Shown are: 
           [0008]      FIG. 1  a schematic side view of the device at the beginning of the winding process, 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  an enlarged view of the winding area taken along a line III-III in  FIG. 1 , and 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  a plan view of the device according to  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0011]    In  FIG. 1 , only the elements necessary for understanding the device  1  for an uninterrupted winding of textile material webs  3  as well as the housing  5  of the production device and the cutting device  7  are shown. 
         [0012]    At the front end of the production device  5 , not shown or described in greater detail, supported by a transport element, e.g., an endless conveyer belt  9 , the material web  3  enters and is fed into the cutting device  7 , where the cutting device  7 , extending perpendicularly to the material web  3 , cuts the material web  3 . By the slightly higher traveling speed of a first transport means  11  in reference to the traveling speed of the transport element  9  in the production device  5 , it is possible to achieve, that after the cutting, the trailing edge  13  is separated from the leading edge  15  of the material web  3  exiting the production device  5  and a constantly increasing distance develops between these two edges  13 ,  15 . Thanks to this distance, as described in the following, a completed roll  17  can be removed from the device  1  without interrupting the production, an empty core  19  can be fed, and winding can be started. 
         [0013]    The material web  3  and/or its front edge, cut in the cutting device  7 , is transported by the upper belt run  11 ′ of the first transport means  11  in the direction of the arrow T and frontally contacts the belt  21 ′ of a second transport means  21 , which is located at an obtuse angle in reference to the upper belt run  11 ′, and is deflected upwards thereby. The leading edge  15  of the material web  3 , now deflected upwards, then wraps with its leading edge around the core  19  held between two vertical guiding rails and then contacts the lower belt run  25 ′ of a third transport means  25 . From here, the leading edge  15  in turn reaches the belt run  27 ′ of a fourth transport means  27  essentially head on and is deflected downwards thereby and is guided to the upper side of the approaching material web  3 . At the end of an entire wrapping of the core  19  the winding of the material web  3  onto the core  19  begins by friction of the material web  3  to the first transport means  11  and the third transport means  25 . Immediately after more than one layer of the material web  3  has been wound onto the core  19  the second transport means  21  is pulled downwards by a linear drive  29  (see the discontinuous line in  FIG. 1 ). The third transport means  25  is supported in a vertically displaceable manner and is successively pushed upwards thereby corresponding to the increasing diameter of the roll  17 . An adjustable pressure of the belt run  25 ′ of the third transport means  25  to the apex of the roll  17  causes the latter not to be wound loosely but compressed in a predetermined manner. With the increasing diameter of the roll  17  the fourth transport means  27  is laterally pivoted clockwise around a pivot axis A (cf.  FIG. 2 .) Using a suitable second linear drive  31  an adjustable pressure can be applied to the surface of the roll  17  by the belt run  27 ′ of the fourth transport means  27 . With an increasing diameter of the roll  17  the rotary axis H of the core is pushed vertically upwards. It is always laterally guided by the guiding rails  23 . 
         [0014]    Shortly before the predetermined diameter D of the roll  17  has been reached, the material web  3  that is being fed is cut by the cutting device  7 . As soon as the trailing edge  13  of the material web  3 , leading to the roll  17 , has reached the roll  17 , the guiding rails  23  are pulled upwards so that the lateral guidance  19  is removed. Using the second linear drive  31  and/or the fourth transport means  27  linked thereto, the roll  17  can now be expelled from the device  1  in a direction of the arrow S. Simultaneously to the expulsion of the roll  17  a new core  19 , which is held by two guiding rails  33 , is advanced in the direction T, the second transport means  21  is pushed upwards into the original position, the third transport means  25  and the guidance rails  23  are guided downwards. The fourth transport means  27  is already arranged in an essentially vertical position so that the material web  3  and/or its leading edge  15 , transported by the first transport means  11 , as shown at the outset, is guided around the new core  19  and a new winding process can be started. 
         [0015]    At least the two horizontally aligned first and third transport means  11 ,  25  of the four transport means  11 ,  21 ,  25 ,  27  provided are driven. Preferably, the two other transport means  21 ,  27  are also driven by motors, not shown, though. 
         [0016]    The distances of the initially opposing belts of the transport means can be adjusted to the thickness of the respective material web  3  to be wound, in order to achieve an optimum winding density from the start. 
         [0017]    For reasons of better visibility, the vertical guidance for the third transport means  25  as well as the elements allowing to adjust its pressure to the roll  17  are not shown.