Patent GB-770670-A (GB)
Title: A method of and means for felting, shrinking and if desired otherwise treating felt and other fabric materials
IPC: D04H17/00
Filed: 1954-05-17
Abstract: 770,670. Finishing fabrics. FREDERICK, R. D. L. May 17,1954 [May 20,1953; March 22, 1954], No. 14393/54. Class 42 (1). [Also in Group XIII] A method of treating felt and other fabric materials so as to effect felting and shrinking (together with, if desired, one or more of the operations of hardening, scouring, washing, rinsing and dyeing) of the material in open width form includes the steps of feeding the material to be treated between a first set of conveyer devices operable to effect the felting operation, subjecting the material to gradually increasing pressure during the felting operation so that the process is cumulative and to provide for a hardening of the material, feeding the felted material between a second set of conveyer devices operable to effect lateral and also longitudinal shrinking and subjecting the material to gradually increasing pressure during the shrinking operation, the material passing from one set of conveyers to the next being arranged in the form of a loop and the loop being used to control the drive speed of an adjacent set of conveyer devices. In the apparatus shown, for treating material by the above method, a roll of material 22 is supported in supports 21 mounted on a machine frame 20. The material is fed by means of aprons 31 and 37 first through a series of roller sets indicated generally in Fig. 1A at 42 which constitutes the felting and hardening section of the machine. Each roller set 42 consists of an upper roller 43 and two lower rollers 44 and 46 with means for driving at least one of the rollers, means for applying pressure between the rollers, means for moving at least one of the rollers in an oscillatory manner and means for heating at least one of the rollers. The material then passes about a guide roller 91 and then drops in the form of a loop 92 to provide a manner of controlling the relative speed of a further series of roller sets indicated generally by the reference 93, depending on the length of the loop 92. A loop control means is provided after each roller set 93 to control the speed of the successive set. Before the first roller set 93 the material is sprayed with a shrinking liquid such as a soap solution from a spray 106. The roller sets 93 constitute the shrinking section of the machine and each roller set is generally similar to the roller sets 42 except that a single belt 137 drives all three rollers and is tensioned by a spring-loaded roller 131. Adjacent the last of the roller sets 93 is a water-spray pipe 152 and a pair of squeeze rollers 153. The material is then rolled up into a roll 158 by driving rollers 159. Beneath the series of roller sets 93 is a third series of roller sets 162 which are generally similar to those at 93 and which may be used for any further desired treatment such as dyeing, scouring, rinsing and further shrinking. At the output end of the series of roller sets 162 is a water spray 164, a pair of squeeze rollers 166 and a further set of winding rollers 159. In a second embodiment, endless conveyers are used to effect shrinking of the material instead of the roller sets 93. The conveyers are driven at different linear speeds. The rollers and the conveyers have a a grooved or otherwise roughened surface construction to provide for adequate gripping of the material under treatment.