Patent GB-1185607-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to Pattern Mechanism for Knitting Machines
IPC: D04B15/66
Filed: 1968-08-12
Abstract: 1,185,607. Knitting machines. NORTH AMERICAN ROCKWELL CORP. 12 Aug., 1968 [24 Aug., 1967], No. 38537/68. Heading D1C. Patterning mechanism for a straight-bar knitting machine comprises first members 101 each movable into a position between an oscillating member 70 and one of a series of actuating levers 60 so that movement of the oscillating member in one direction causes selected first members 101 to engage the corresponding actuating levers 60 each of which operates a pattern lever 42 controlling some function of the machine, second members 157 being provided which, when selected, engage between an actuating lever and the oscillating member 70 so that movement of the oscillating member 70 in the opposite direction returns the actuating lever to non-operative position. A mechanism to shift main cam shaft 20 lengthwise comprises cams 32, 33 on the cam shaft 20 engaged by a follower 35 mounted on a shaft 36 axially movable in a bracket 37 is controlled by latch member 40 operated by levers and links 41 controlled and operated by pattern lever 42. Loose course mechanism comprises a lever carrying buttons of different heights corresponding to different lengths of courses at one end, the other end engaging a rod operated by a pattern lever 42. Other mechanisms are operated by further rods actuated by levers 42. Member 40 and levers 42 are pivoted on a shaft 51 and each has a nose piece 56 of suitable width to be engaged by one or more arms 57 of levers 60 carried on a shaft 61, the number of levers corresponding to a particular lever 42 depending on the number of positions to which it is to be moved. The second arm 62 of each lever 60 is positioned between surfaces 65, 71 of the oscillating member 70 which is pivoted on shaft 61 and biassed by spring 73. Member 70 is oscillated through levers by a cam on shaft 20. Corresponding to each lever 60 is a lever 101 pivoted on a shaft 102 and having a slot in its arm 105 to which is pivoted one end 106 of a spring biassed member 107 whose other end forms a nose portion 111. Each lever 101 is biassed so that its other end 120 engages one of a series of selector levers 122 mounted on a shaft 125. Levers 122 have pins 127 offset on alternate levers 122 and are selected by engagement of the pins in openings provided in a pattern element 132 according to the pattern required. A lever 136 lifts levers 122 out of engagement with element 132 when solenoid 50 is energized. The nose portions 111 of selected levers 101 engage between surface 71 and the arms 62 of levers 60 to move levers 60 to their active position when the member 70 is moved back by cam 86. Following each selection, levers 122 are lifted by lever 136 and cam 86 oscillates member 70 to release nose portions 111 and levers 101 return to inactive position against stop 116. One arm 161 of one of the spring-biassed pivoted levers 157 is moved between surface 65 of member 70 and lever 60 while the other arm 162 engages the associated lever 122 when in its inactive position or resting on the pattern element so that the corresponding lever 60 is returned to its inactive position. If lever 122 is selected arm 161 would be moved out of the path of member 70. Pattern element 132 is of synthetic material and has openings to engage sprocket portions 175, 176 and (177) (Fig. 3, not shown) on a drum 167 carried on a stub shaft 171 and having openings to receive any pins 127 projecting through openings in element 132. Drum 167 has ratchet portions 181, 182 with teeth of the same pitch as portions 175, 176, 177 and a portion with V-shaped notches 186 also of the same pitch. Biassed against ratchet portion 181 is a pawl 187 pivoted on the arm 190 of a lever 191 pivoted on the stub shaft 171 on the side of ratchet portion 182 away from portion 181. Lever arm 190 is biassed against stop with its free end in the path of a member 196 on an axially slidable rod 197 operable through a lever under the control of solenoid 250 by a cam on the main cam shaft 20 to rack drum 167 round one tooth at a time. Biassed against ratchet portion 182 is by spring biassed pin 256 is a stop pawl 257 pivoted in bracket 126 and normally held out of engagement with portion 182 by an arm of lever 191 but released during movement of rod 197 to limit movement of drum 167 to one tooth. The free portion of pattern element 132 is loosely supported in a container 271 and as it is withdrawn it passes over and is held against a freely rotatable drum 275, with openings engaging a sprocket portion. Drum 167 may be manually rotated by a handle rotating gears 317, 320, pawls 187, 252 being inactivated by cam surfaces 326, 327 on a manually operated member 330. Levers 335 also pivoted on shaft 125 each have a pin 127 to read openings in element 132 and these pins are offset in alternate levers. Levers 335 are spring-biassed to their active position and lower inactive position and are lifted to their upper inactive position by one arm 342 of a pivoted lever 345 whose second arm 346 is connected by link 347 to one arm 350 of a lever 351 mounted on a shaft 352. Shaft 352 is secured to a shaft 352 carrying a lever 357 with a follower 356 engaging member 196 so that movement thereof when drum 167 is moved on causes levers 355 to be raised to their inactive position. Lever 136 is prevented from releasing levers 122 during indexing of drum 167 by a set screw 365 on lever 345. Levers 122 and 335 may be raised manually to inactive position by cam member 366. Arms 367 on alternate levers 335 engage an upper bank of normally open micro-switches whereas arms 371 on the intervening levers engage a lower bank of normally open micro-switches. Electric controls. Counting devices 381, 385 (Binary Coded Decimal System type) are each connected through a set of normally open micro-switches 380, 385 each set controlled by one group of levers 335 to set up course counting which may be followed by operation of one or more levers 42 to institute fashioning or some other function, solenoid 250 being inactivated to idle the pattern mechanism. Devices 381, 385 may either start to zero and be increased by ones or may start at the required count and be reduced by ones to zero as described. The lead from the device 381 through normally open switch 386 and normally closed contractor 387 of relay 390, switch 386 being closed by a cam once for each revolution of shaft 20 to reduce the count by one in device 381. Switch 386 is also connected through normally open contractor 396 of relay 390 to device 385 and the count is reduced by one in device 385 during each rotation of shaft 20 if switch 396 is closed. The coil 395 of relay 390 is in a circuit including relays 397, 401 with normally open contactors 400, 402.