Patent GB-797871-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to straight bar knitting machines
Inventor: START ERNEST
IPC: D04B11/00
Filed: 1953-11-10
Abstract: 797,871. Knitting. COTTON, Ltd., W. Nov. 8, 1954 [Nov. 10, 1953; May 29, 1954], Nos. 31121/53 and 15965/54. Class 74 (2). A separately-made piece of (rib) fabric F is applied to a point bar 2 of a straight-bar machine, the empty needles of the machine and the point bar are manipulated, to transfer the piece of fabric to the needles, and fabric is knitted on to the piece, in the production of a blank, whilst applying draw-off tenison to the piece. At a suitable time during the production of a blank, loops F<SP>1</SP> of the fabric F are placed by hand on the row of points 1 and may be thrown over the point bar, as shown in Fig. 1. The blank, when finished, is pressed off, but may be left attached to the draw-off hooks; and the machine is stopped and adjusted for the next blank. Now, by means of a cam 13, an arm 3 carried on a shaft 15 and carrying the point bar 2 is rocked counter-clockwise and, by means of a cam 21, an arm 16, carrying the shaft 15, is similarly rocked about an axis 17 until an extension 22 engages a stop 23. Extensions 1c of the points 1 are now against the non-beard sides of the needles in their lowest positions, Fig. 4. Thereafter, the needles rise, through channels 1d in the points, to their full height, piercing the loops F<SP>1</SP>, which are held down by noses 1f, the point being moved up and/or down, as necessary, by cam 21. The loops may remain engaged by the points 1 which, as fabric is produced in continuation of the ribbed piece, operate as draw-off means, under the action of weights 8, the cam 13 allowing a lever 9 to yield for this purpose. During this time, the conventional draw-off hooks (if not brought into action right away) may be attached to the fabric F; and the arm 3 will then be raised, to extract the points 1 from the fabric, being thereafter returned, by the action of both cams, to the inoperative position. One side of the extensions Ic of the points may be omitted, Fig. 5, leaving a tip 1n, which cooperates with the needle groove G; and the crank part 1j then has a groove 1l, which cooperates with the needle head, and a projection 1k corresponding to nose 1f. After running on of the fabric, these points can be made to clear the needles, by a suitable movement, and then moved through the needle line, to draw off the fabric. Fig. 6 shows horizontally arranged points 1, having downwardly turned tips, the assembly being advanced and retracted horizontally along a guideway 102, under the influence of a cam 108 and weight 111. The knockover bits have down-turned noses KO1 to avoid fouling the points. In the arrangement of Fig. 8, the rib fabric is put on the points 1 whilst they are in the inoperative (chain-line) position, being located on their stems by cranks la thereof, and is hooked up to hooks 113 borne on straps 112 and biased by weight 116 towards stops 117. When the next blank is to be begun, the needle pressing control truck is shifted on to a cam which causes the needles to be more than usually spaced from the presser edge 49 as they rise. A handle 36 is now operated to swing arms 32, 33, carrying the point assembly, into the operative position, and loop transfer takes place as the needles rise, the points being then returned empty to inoperative position. The hooks 113 are ultimately replaced by the normal draw-off hooks, and the blank is knitted. The necessary transfer movements of the point bar 2 may be provided by a cam, acting through connections including arm 32 or 33; or the arms 32, 33 may be interconnected with the needle bar 122. In Fig. 12, a plurality of lengths of rib fabric are placed, at any convenient time, on the points 1, the bar 2 being borne by a structure 50 pivoted on the narrowing machine. The uppermost length is elevated on the points and held taut by hooks 58 carried by a draw-off stick 56. The whole structure 50 is swung downwardly, so that the stick 56 is disposed over the front inclined edge of the nose 60 of an arm 58 pivoted at 59. The narrowing machine is then lowered so that the points 1 co-operate with the beard side of and transfer the first length of rib fabric to the needles N; and the stick 56 is delivered into a slot 61 in arm 58 which, under the influence of a spring 62, moves the stick from A to B, to draw off the fabric as knitting of the blank begins. The stick 56 is then delivered by the arm 58 to a ramp or shoot, whereafter the drawoff is by gravity. Alternatively, the stick 56 may be hooked up to conventional draw-off hooks (if desired, after the initial draw-off by arm 58); or it may be delivered directly to a ramp or shoot. Specification 552,275 is referred to.