Abstract:
A cloth cutting and border applying machine for manufacturing mattresses starting from a roll wound sheet, comprising a framework, a cloth moving device, two sewing machines arranged upstream of the moving device to form longitudinal stitch lines for stitching a strip supported on a roll support along lateral edges of the cloth, a cloth finishing assembly arranged downstream of the moving device and having a sewing machine with at least two needles for providing parallel transverse stitch lines and mounted on a carriage slideable on guides to join a band to the cloth along transverse stitch lines, a cutter for cutting between the parallel stitch lines to separate a cloth portion lying downstream of the assembly from one lying upstream, a carriage actuator, and a band cutter to cut the band and the cloth transversely between the two stitch lines.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a machine for cutting cloth and for applying borders and a peripheral band to cloths used to manufacture spring mattresses. 
     It is known (see in particular FIGS. 1,  2  and  3 ) that a spring mattress is constituted by a rectangular prism-like metallic body  1  which is composed of a plurality of biconical springs  2  which are connected one another and are covered by one or more layers  2   a  of insulating material such as felt, foamed rubber and the like. 
     The upper and lower faces of the body  1  are covered by two rectangular cloths or quilts  3  and  4  whose edges are joined by a band  5  which peripherally closes the mattress. 
     Each cloth or quilt  3  and  4  is constituted, for example, by a panel  6  of soft material which is covered above and below by sheets of fabric  7 ,  7   a  or the like, the panel and the sheets being joined by a more or less ornamental quilting. A band  10  is fixed to the inner edges of the quilts  3  and  4  by means of two parallel stitch lines  8  and  9 , so as to form a flap  11  which protrudes from the stitch lines  9  and is thus spaced from the stitch line  8 . 
     When the quilts  3  and  4  are applied to the opposite faces of the body  1 , the flaps  11  are first folded outwards and then under the first turn  12  of the springs  2  and finally fixed thereto with metal staples  13 . 
     In this manner, the quilts  3  and  4  are fixed to the body  1 , while their borders between the stitch lines  8  and  9  remain free so that they can be connected to the peripheral band  5  by an operation for final application of a border for closure, as shown in FIG.  3 . 
     Currently, the band  10  is fixed to the quilts  3  and  4  manually, at high cost, also because it requires additional operations for positioning and trimming the cloths or quilts. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The aim of the present invention is to provide a machine which allows to apply a peripheral band while the cloths are being cut and a border is being applied thereto. 
     Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a machine which can be combined with an apparatus for forming a quilt constituted by one or more sheets unwound continuously from rolls. 
     This and other objects are achieved with a machine whose characteristics are defined in the appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Further features and advantages of the present invention will become better apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein the invention has been applied to an apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,913,277 by the same Applicant, which is highly effective in the manufacture of quilts for covering spring mattresses. In the drawings: 
     FIGS. 1-3 show the constructional structure of a prior art mattress; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the known apparatus and of the machine according to the invention associated therewith; 
     FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of the machine and of the apparatus of FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the lateral guides of the quilt; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the region of the apparatus where the machine for transversely stitching and cutting the quilt before cutting is arranged; 
     FIG. 8 is a view of the same region of FIG. 7 after cutting has been completed; 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the means for transversely cutting and stitching the quilt; 
     FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a unit for cutting the transverse band. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, an apparatus according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,913,277 is disclosed comprising a framework, generally designated by the reference numeral  14 , which is composed of four vertical columns  15 ,  16 ,  17  and  18  arranged at the corners of a rectangle. The columns  15 ,  16  and  17 , 18  are connected, at the top, by a pair of longitudinal beams  19 ,  20 , while two additional transverse beams  21  and  22  connect one another the tops of the columns  15 ,  16  and  17 ,  18 . 
     Two longitudinal members  23  and  24  lie between the transverse beams  21  and  22 , are parallel to each other and to the beams  19  and  20  and constitute the track for the sliding of a carriage  25  that supports one or more sewing machines. 
     The carriage  25  is composed of a double pair of horizontal and parallel beams  26  and  27  which lie above and below the plane of arrangement of the cloth P to be quilted and have opposite ends which are rigidly connected to each other. The carriage  25  is suspended from a pair of shoulders  28  and  29  which rest on the track  23 ,  24  by means of rollers  30 . 
     The carriage  25 , is movable along the track  23  and  24  in the direction X, actuated by means of an appropriate and conventional motor drive not shown in the drawings. 
     The heads for moving the needle of two sewing machines  31  are mounted on the pair of upper beams  26  and the corresponding hook assembly is mounted on the pair of lower beams  27 . It is also possible to provide a different number of sewing machines. In a known manner, by means of an additional motor drive, the sewing machines  31  are actuated in the direction Y, which is perpendicular to the direction X, so that by actuating the carriage  25  and the sewing machines  31  it is possible to trace the intended paths on the quilt. 
     Two guides  32  and  33  lie between the pair of upper beams  26  and the pair of lower beams  27  of the carriage  25  and are adapted to guide the lateral edges of the cloth P to be quilted. As shown in FIG. 6, each guide is composed of a U-shaped beam  34  which is longitudinal (i.e., lies in the direction X) and whose opposite ends are fixed on supports  35 ,  36  located at the columns  15 ,  17  and  16 ,  18 , respectively. The beams  34  define supporting surfaces on which profiles  37  provided with a C-shaped cross-section and open onto each other are arranged. The C-shaped cross-section of the guide  32  lies opposite the C-shaped cross-section of the guide  33 . 
     Each profile  37  is movable between the outer vertical wing  38  and the inner vertical wing  39  of the beam  34  by means of pneumatic jacks  40  whose cylinders are flanged to the outer wing  38  of the beam  34  and whose stem is rigidly coupled to the profile  37 . 
     The jacks  40  that relate to the guide  32  are actuated in opposition to the jacks of the guide  33 , so that the profiles  37  of the guides are simultaneously moved towards and away from each other with respect to the longitudinal central plane of the apparatus. 
     The reference numeral  41  designates additional pneumatic jacks whose cylinders are mounted vertically above the profiles  37 . A bar  42  is coupled to the stems of the jacks  41  and extends inside the profile  37 . The bar  42  constitutes the movable jaw of a clamp which is designed to engage the longitudinal edge of the cloth to be quilted and to clamp it against the fixed jaw, which is constituted by the lower wing  37   a  of the profile  37  that rests on the beam  34 . 
     In the illustrated example, the cloth P to be quilted is produced by superimposing a set of three sheets T 1 , T 2 , T 3  which, in a manner which is known and therefore not described in detail, are taken from respective rolls B 1 , B 2 , B 3  supported by a framework  43 . The number of sheets and their thickness can of course be any according to requirements. 
     The sheets T 1 , T 2 , T 3  unrolled from the rolls B 1 , B 2 , B 3  are joined between a pair of superimposed bars  44  and  45  which lie transversely to the direction X on the support  35  and are inserted in the guides  32  and  33  between the bars  42  and the wings  37   a  of the profiles  37 . 
     The upper bar  44  is movable vertically with respect to the lower bar  45  by means of pneumatic jacks (not shown), so as to provide a transverse clamp which is adapted to transversely lock the cloth P to be quilted upstream of the guides  32 ,  33 . 
     It is evident that the longitudinal clamps  37   a,    42  and the transverse clamp  44 ,  45  delimit on three sides the quilting region, which is delimited on the fourth side by a pair of traction rollers  46 ,  47  located at the output of the guides  32  and  33 . The rollers  46 ,  47 , by means of respective motors, are actuated so as to rotate in opposite directions, so as to pull in the direction X the cloth P inserted between them. 
     Between the outlet of the guides  32 ,  33  and the traction rollers  46 ,  47  there are two laterally arranged stitching and cutting devices  48  and  49 , each of which comprises a sewing machine and a cutter in order to join, with stitch lines at the lateral edges of the quilted cloth, two respective longitudinal strips  10   a  and in order to cut the borders of the cloth or quilt that lie outside the stitch lines. 
     The longitudinal strips  10   a  are made of fabric or the like and are taken from respective rollers  10   b  rotatably supported on brackets  10   c  (see FIG. 5) which are fixed to the support  36  below the devices  48  and  49 . The sewing machines of the devices  48 ,  49  have a double needle, so as to allow to fix the longitudinal strips  10   a  to the cloth or quilt P with two stitch lines, as shown by  8  and  9  in FIG. 2, and provide flaps  11  which lie inside the lateral edges of the quilt. The cutters of the devices  48  and  49  are arranged downstream of the needles of the respective sewing machines, and each one is constituted for example by a rotating blade (not shown in the drawings but known in the art), which cuts the lateral edges of the quilt outside the longitudinal stitch lines  8  and  9 , forming two strips of waste P 1 , P 2 . 
     The stitching and cutting devices  48  and  49  are an integral part of the machine, which according to the invention performs the transverse cutting of the cloth or quilt P, stitches the edges upstream and downstream of the provided cut, and applies two additional strips  10   d  (which lie transversely to the strips  10   a ), with which the edges upstream and downstream of the cut are provided. 
     As shown in FIGS. 7,  8  and  9 , the machine is generally designated by the reference numeral  50  and comprises a finishing unit  50   a  composed of a box-like carriage  51  which, by means of four free wheels  52 , slides on a pair of parallel rails  53  whose opposite ends are fixed to side walls  54 ,  55  (FIG. 4) of the framework of the machine  50 . A sewing machine  56  of the type with four needles  57  is fitted on the carriage  51  and can therefore produce four parallel stitch lines. 
     The sewing machine  56  is moved in the direction Y, which lies transversely to the direction X, by means of a movement system which comprises a chain  58  having a portion which is fixed to the carriage  51  and being closed in a loop on a pair of sprockets  59 ,  60  which are fitted in a cantilever fashion on the sides  54 ,  55 . The sprocket  59  is free, while the other sprocket  60  receives its motion from a gearmotor  61  which is flanged to the side  54 . The gearmotor  61  is controlled by a pair of stroke limit switches  62  and  63  which determine the points of inversion of the back-and-forth strokes. Two arms  64  cantilever out in front of the carriage  51  (FIG. 9) in order to rotatably support a roll  65  of a band  10   e  which, cut longitudinally in half, provides the two strips  10   d  which, at the output of the machine  50 , will be associated with the front and rear transverse edges of the finished quilt. The four transverse stitch lines are formed only during the outgoing stroke of the sewing machine  56  while the quilt is cut in the region between one pair of sewing lines and the adjacent one. 
     In order to produce the separation cut, there is a rotating circular blade  66  which is rotatably supported in the carriage  51 . 
     The rotating blade  66  is actuated by an electric motor being accommodated in the carriage  51  or, by means of an appropriate transmission, by the same motor that drives the sewing machine  56 . 
     The rotating blade  66  protrudes, with an upper sector, from the upper face of the carriage  51  through a slot formed in the latter. 
     A unit, generally designated by the reference numeral  67  in FIGS. 4,  5 ,  7 ,  8  and  9 , is further fixed on the sewing machine  56 ; said unit, as will become apparent hereinafter, is designed to cut the transverse band  10   e  after it has been joined to the quilt P. 
     As shown more clearly in FIG. 10, the unit  67  comprises a frame which is composed of a post  68  which is rigidly coupled to the body of the sewing machine  56  and on which a sleeve  69  is slideable. 
     Another sleeve  70  is rigidly coupled to the sleeve  69 , is perpendicular thereto, and a first arm  71  is guided therein. A second arm  72  and an L-shaped element  73  for coupling the stem  74  of a jack, whose cylinder  75  is fixed to the sleeve  70 , are rigidly coupled to the end of the arm  71 . 
     The axis of the jack  74 ,  75  is parallel to the axis of the sleeve  70 , so that by activating the jack it is possible to move the second arm  72  towards or away from the sewing machine  56 . 
     The second arm  72  is substantially normal to the first arm  71 , and a cutter  76  is supported at its lower end; said cutter is composed of an electric motor  77  which drives a rotating blade  78  below which there is a feeler  79  which is designed to collect the two strips  10   d  that slide on the sliding surface  83  of the sewing machine  56  and to raise them against the blade  78  in order to produce cutting and thus separate them from the remaining band  10   e,  which has not yet been cut in half by the blade  66 . 
     The stem  80  of a jack is further rigidly coupled to the sleeve  69  and its cylinder  81  is fixed to the top of the post  68 . Accordingly, by actuating both jacks  74 ,  75  and  80 ,  81 , the cutter  76  can perform perpendicular movements which allow to position it with respect to the sewing machine  56 . In particular, by moving the cutter  76  towards the sewing machine  56  the feeler  79  can engage in a slot  82  of the quilt sliding surface  83  which is located behind the blade  66 , so as to facilitate the insertion of the strips  10   d  between the feeler and the blade  78 . 
     The operation of the described machine  50  and apparatus  14  is as follows. 
     Assume that the apparatus  14  is in an operating condition such as the one shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in which the cloth or quilt P is locked upstream between the bar  44  and the beam  45  and downstream between the rollers  46  and  47 , while the lateral edges of the cloth are locked in the guides  32 ,  33  by the bars  42 . In practice, the lateral guides  32 ,  33 , the bar  44  and the beam  45  and the rollers  46 ,  47  form a frame which keeps the cloth or quilt P stretched both transversely and longitudinally. 
     Assume also that the sewing machine  56  is in the lateral position shown in FIG. 7, with the cutter  76  in the inactive position, spaced from the sewing machine  56 . 
     With the cloth P in this condition, quilting is performed by moving the carriage  25  in the direction X and the sewing machines  31  in the direction Y. 
     As quilting proceeds, the machine  50  produces the four transverse stitch lines and transversely cuts the quilt downstream of the rollers  46  and  47 . 
     Due to the transverse stitching of the cloth or quilt P, the band  10   e  is applied under said quilt and, by simultaneously performing the cutting operation by means of the blade  66 , is divided into two transverse strips  10   d  upstream and downstream of the cut. When the carriage  51  has crossed the quilt, thus moving from the position of FIG. 7 to the position of FIG. 8, the two stitch lines upstream of the cut close the front edge of the quilt P which is locked peripherally between the lateral bars  42  and the wings  37   a,  the bar  44  and the beam  45  and the rollers  46  and  47 , while the two stitch lines located downstream of the cut close the rear edge of the previously quilted quilt, which is now designated by the reference letter M in FIG.  8 . 
     At this point, by actuating the jacks  74 ,  75  and  80 ,  81 , the cutter  76  is made to approach so that the feeler  79  enters the slot  83  below the strips  10   d  that the blade  66  has already formed by cutting the band  10   e  in half. By causing the advancement of the cutter  76  under the body of the sewing machine  56 , the strips  10   d  are cut. Then the jacks  74 ,  75  and  80 ,  81  are actuated so as to disengage the feeler  79  from the slot  82  and move the cutter  76  into the inactive position. 
     Once the quilting of the stretched cloth P has been completed, the two longitudinal bars  42  and the transverse bar  44  are raised and, by releasing the lateral edges and the upstream edge of the quilt, allow the rollers  46 ,  47  to unroll from the rolls B 1 , B 1 , B 3  new portions of sheets T 1 , T 2  and T 3  and form a new quilt P. 
     It should be noted that during unrolling, the two devices  48  and  49  sew the lateral edges of the quilt that leaves the guides  32 ,  33  and cut the strips of waste P 1 , P 2 . In order to remove the strips of waste P 1 , P 2  (see FIGS. 4 and 5) a transfer roller  84  and two smaller rollers  85  and  86  are provided being actuated so as to rotate in opposite directions; the waste is guided between said smaller rollers. The actuation of the smaller rollers  85  and  86  can be derived from the actuation of the traction rollers  46 ,  47 . 
     Once the rear edge of the quilted cloth, which was located below the bar  44 , has arrived at the stitch line of the sewing machine  56 , the rollers  46 ,  47  are stopped and the jacks  41  that lower the bars  42  and the jacks that lower the bars  44  are actuated sequentially, locking the lateral and rear edges. Then, by actuating the jacks  40 , the lateral edges of the quilt P are spaced so as to subject the quilt to transverse traction, while longitudinal traction is determined by continuing the rotation of the rollers  46 ,  47  after the bar  44  has transversely locked the cloth P against the beam  45 . 
     At this point, quilting is performed and the steps of the process are repeated in the manner described above. 
     It is evident that the described invention fully achieves the intended aim and objects. In particular, it is noted that the machine allows to automate the application of the transverse strips  10   d  and longitudinal strips  10   a,  thus providing a considerable cost saving. 
     The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. BO2000A000033 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.