Patent GB-1254123-A (GB)
Title: Method and apparatus for processing open width fabric
Inventor: COHN EUGENE
IPC: D06C3/02
Filed: 1969-01-03
Abstract: 1,254,123. Tentering fabrics; textile treating apparatus. SAMCOE HOLDING CORP. 3 Jan., 1969 [18 Jan., 1968], No. 625/69. Headings D1L and D1S. Apparatus for treating a fabric web comprises a rotatable drum 39, Fig. 3, supported within a housing 46 and having a perforate cylindrical outer wall 98, Fig. 5; means to cause air to flow generally radially through the wall 98; a pair of tenter chains 105, Fig. 3, arranged to travel about a substantial portion of the drum circumference; a circular chain guide 110, Fig. 5, for each of the tenter chains disposed about the wall 98 and supported to rotate with the drum 39; and fabric width control means on the housing 46, disposed radially outward of the drum and engaging the chain guides 110, for adjusting the guides 110 axially with respect to the wall 98. As shown in Fig. 2, a wet tubular knitted fabric 21, in rope form, is drawn out of a supply container 20, passes over a roller 22 and into a slitting and opening apparatus 23 having a slitting knife 24 and a pair of tenter chains (25), (26), Fig. 1 (not shown), to engage and separate the slit edges of the fabric. The flat open width fabric passes around rollers 28, 29, 30 and into a padder 31, floating roller 29 acting as a speed control roller. The padder 31 comprises a series of rollers 32 submerged in a bath of treating liquid. The fabric passes through a pair of extracting rollers 33 and around guide rollers 35, 36 and a floating control roller 37 to a stage 38 at which the fabric edges are over fed onto the pins of spaced tenter chains. The fabric, whilst pinned on the chains, is passed around the drum 39 and subjected to high velocity streams of heated air directed radially inwardly of the drum. The dried fabric passes through a cooling stage 40, through a depinning stage 41, around guide rolls 43, 44 and a floating control roll 45 and is folded or wound up at a stage 42. In the housing 46 air is heated by gas burners 61, Fig. 5, and is circulated by blowers to be driven through chambers 52a, 53a, 54a, 55a into chambers 48, 49. Nozzles 80, Fig. 3, extend transversely entirely across the chambers 48, 49 and direct the heated air through the fabric and radially into the drum 39, the arrangement being such that each given area of the fabric passing around the drum is subjected repeatedly to the action of separate and distinct high velocity air streams. The perforate wall 98 of the drum 39 is preferably made of stainless steel wire mesh which may have its exterior surface covered by an open mesh of fibre glass yarns coated with polytetrafluoroethylene, the openings of the inner mesh being larger than those of the outer. Pre-heating and post-heating chambers 82, 83, Fig. 3, are provided and contain air nozzles 84, 85 to act upon both sides of the fabric. The upper nozzles 84 are adjustable in opening size by a lever 87 to provide a net upward pressure of air from the nozzles 85 so that the fabric does not sag between its supported edges. Air is supplied to the chambers 82, 83 through openings 88 the size of which is adjustable by a lever 90. Each of the adjustable openings 84, 88 comprises a section slidable relative to a fixed section.  Each tenter chain 105, Fig. 8, comprises plates of tenter pins 108, or tenter clips, mounted on off-set extension arms 107 of link bodies 106. Sheaves 109, 118, Fig. 3, guide the chains 105 about the drum 39 and telescopic fabric supporting drums (139), Fig. 13 (not shown), extend between pairs of the sheaves. The chains 105 are guided on the drum surface by channels 110, Fig. 5, supported within the drum by rods 111, Fig. 3, and adjustable along axial slots 115, Fig. 5, by rotation of threaded shafts 120, Fig. 3, in guide tubes 119. To effect this adjustment, an extension (124), Fig. 14 (not shown), of a tongue (122) on a slide block (121) threaded on each shaft (120) carries a pair of wheels (125) which embrace the outer flange of the channel (110). The sheaves 109, 118, Fig. 3, are supported at each side of the drum by a carriage 127 having wheels 127 running between rails 134, 135 for adjustment of the distance between the sheaves 109, 118. The carriages 127 are provided with arms 137, 138 engaged by elements (139), Fig. 14 (not shown), on the slide blocks (121) for simultaneous adjustment of the sheaves 109, 118 and the channels 110. The input section 72 of the tenter comprises guide channels 150, 151, Fig. 6, supported by the carriages 127, Fig. 3, at their inner ends and by at least one adjusting shaft 152 rotatable in synchronism with the shafts 120. Fabric received from the padder 31, Fig. 2, passes through a set of spiral de-curling rollers 156, around a pair of overfeed rollers 157, Figs. 6 and 7, and between air jet uncurlers 158, 159 carried by edge-seeking tenter sections 160, 161 forming the entry ends of the channels 150, 151. Edge sensing controls 162 each comprise a light source 163 and a pair of photocells 164, 165. If neither of the photocells is covered by the fabric edge, the respective section 160, 161 adjusts inwardly until the inside photocell 165 only is covered by the fabric edge. If both photocells 164, 165 are covered by the fabric the respective section 160, 161 adjusts outwardly until the photocell 164 is uncovered. Each uncurled fabric edge passes between a driven roll 166 and a pinch roll 167 which overfeed the fabric onto the chains 105. Driven brushes 168 having their bristles projecting slightly below the tips of the tenter pins 108 impal the fabric edges upon these tips. Non-driven brushes 171 press the fabric downwards into fully pinned condition. The rollers 157 are driven at a preset but adjustable percentage of the tenter chain speed by a tach-follower control (not shown). Similarly, the rollers 166 and the brushes 168 are controlled by separately adjustable tachfollower controllers related to the speed of the rollers 157. The sections 160, 161 are secured to the channels 150, 151 by constant-length flexing sections 173, 174 each comprising flexible plates 175, 176, Fig. 11, flexible strips 177, 178, 179, 179a and spacers 180, 181. The arrangement is such that the sections 160, 161 may be flexed outwardly relative to the principal longitudinal axis of the channels 150, 151. Switches 200, 201, Fig. 6, on a plate 202 on each channel 150, 151 limit the angular extent of the flexing of the sections 173, 174 and are tripped by an arm 203 on each section 160, 161 to cause motors to rotate shafts 204, 205 to shift the sections 160, 161. A slide block 208, Fig. 8, is threaded onto the shaft 205 and has secured thereto a flat plate 210 carrying a block 214 for limited rotational movement about the axis of a bushing 215 secured to the block 208. The discharge side of the tenter comprises guide channels 220, Fig. 15, supported at their inner ends by the carriages 127 and at the outer ends by carriages 221 having wheels 222 which run along a tubular support 223. In order to tension the chains 105, each is provided with stationary and movable sheaves 231, 232. The movable sheaves 232 are acted upon by air cylinders 235 to pivot them in an anticlockwise direction, Fig. 15. Fabric pickoff rollers 236, 237 are provided with gripping surfaces and are driven through an adjustable tach-follower control at a speed referenced to that of the chains 105. The tenter chain drive motor (not shown) is connected to a shaft 228, Fig. 15, slidably keyed to one chain sprocket and is rotatable relative to the other chain. The driven tenter chain rotates the drum 39 by frictional contact therewith and the second chain is driven by the drum. Each chain link comprises a leg 241, Fig. 17, which extends between spaced legs 242 of the adjacent link. Successive links are connected together by a split roll pin 244, each split 246 providing, in effect, a "flat" in the plane of the links to facilitate a degree of lateral deviation of one link relative to another in this plane.