Patent GB-1142353-A (GB)
Title: Boarding range for knitted articles
IPC: D06C5/00
Filed: 1966-04-12
Abstract: 1,142,353. Conveyer systems. CHADBOURN GOTHAM Inc. 12 April, 1966 [16 April, 1965], No. 15865/66. Heading B7L. [Also in Division D1] A boarding range for knitted articles, e.g. stockings, includes a twin-railed track 129, Fig. 18, for carriers 3 on which are pivotally mounted boards 4 for stockings, each carrier 3 having a depending abutment, the carriers being constructed so that the abutments are spaced from one another when the carriers are arranged in contacting relation in a group (as at a board separating station 8, Fig. 1B) a drive chain 143 being provided along the track 129 and having pivoted dogs 150 spaced thereon and biased by springs 151, connected to the dogs, toward carrier abutment engaging position. Each spring 151 projects forwardly of the dog 150 in the direction of movement of the chain 143 and has a cam portion 153 projecting above the top of the associated dog 150 to contact the abutments of a group of carriers 3 to depress the dog 150 below abutment engaging level. The cam portions 153 are spaced in advance of the dogs 150 a sufficient distance to hold the dogs 150 depressed during movement beneath the group of carriers but to permit dogs to rise to engage the last carrier of the group in the direction of movement of the chain 143 to move and separate that carrier from the group. The end of the spring 151 remote from the dog 150 engages under a clip 152 on the chain 143. The complete boarding range comprises an endless path 2, Figs. 1A and 1B ,for the carriers 3, The latter, described in detail with reference to Fig. 38 (not shown) are advanced step-by-step along the path in predetermined order to bring each carrier 3 with its stocking board 4 sequentially to a plurality of operating stations located in spaced arrangement along the path. These stations include in order of sequence around the path a board loading station 5, a board accumulating station 6, a processing retort station 7, the board separating station 8, an inspection station 9, a stocking length-measuring station 10, and a stocking stripping area 11 which contains a plurality of stocking stripping stations 12 from which piles of stockings graded in lengths or as rejects fall on to a table 16. The empty boards 4 are returned in vertical dispositions from the area 11 to the loading station 5 on a track 19. Boards 4 on the track 19 are delivered to a transfer mechanism 20 described with reference to Figs. 5 and 6 (not shown) which alternately delivers the boards to a loading track 17 and a parallel loading track 18 Consequently the boards are spaced on the tracks 17, 18 at twice the spacing of the boards on the return track 19, to facilitate operators loading stockings on to the boards. The boards accumulate at the station 6 described with reference to Figs. 3, 4, 8 to 10 (not shown) at the ends of the tracks 17, 18 and are delivered alternately in close contacting groups into retorts 87, 88 where they are processed, e.g. dyed or steamed and dried. Each retort is of the general nature disclosed in U.K. Sepcification 990,674. The close contacting groups of carriers and their boards are delivered alternately to a track 94 of the path 2 from whence they are passed to the separating station 8 from which they leave in spaced relation and pass around the path 2 to inspection station 9. Before arriving at this station the boards are orientated to horizontal positions to facilitate visual inspection and for stocking length measurement at the station 10. The latter includes a scanning head comprising photoelectric cells and electric lamps as described with reference to Fig. 44 (not shown). The scanning head operates in conjunction with a logic circuit, Fig. 46 (not shown) and a memory drum 15 described with reference to Figs. 27 to 29 (not shown) to cause stocking stripping stations 12 described with reference to Figs. 30 to 33 (not shown) to be selectively operated according to the lengths of the stockings as determined by the scanning head. The latter can also select a reject stripping station After leaving the stripping stations the boards are orientated to vertical portions before entering the return track 19. The conveyer chains for the various sections of the path are operated by fluid piston and cylinder assemblies and are described with reference to Fig. 40 (not shown).