Improvements in Knitting Machines.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Aug., 1889-Accepted, 28th Sept., 1889
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Knitting Machines.
1, CHARLES TERROT, of Cannstradt, near Stuttgart, Germany, Machine Maker,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention relates to improvements in knitting machines, and its object is to
adapt such machines to reverse the fabric or knitting operation between each row of
loops or meshes so that the said loops are alternately taken off in opposite directions.
The said improvements consist of the arrangements of circular or straight knitting
apparatus hereinafter described in which two sets or rows of knitting needles are
employed and the fabric alternately transferred from one to the other.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying sheets of drawings forming a part of
this specification in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in
each of the figures.
Figure 1, represents an elevation of the form of needle I employ and figure 1 A, is
a section of the same on the broken line a b. The parts forming the needle are
separately represented in figure 1 B.
Figure 2, is a vertical section of such parts of the machine as are necessary to
illustrate the application of my improvements to the circular type of knitting machine,
and figure 3, is a sectional plan of the same.
Figures 4 to 13 represent a single needle of each set and illustrate the different
relative positions they assume to pass the fabric from one set of needles to the other.
Figure 15 is a cross section of a straight type of knitting machine through the
carriage and illustrates the application of my improvements to this class of machine.
Figure 14 is a sectional elevation of such carriage.
Figures 16 to 22 are views of details hereinafter referred to.
The two sets of hooked needles m and n are provided with pointed slide pieces m¹
and n having tongues A on their under faces fitting guide grooves along the top of
said needles. Such needles have hooked ends e and i and are mounted in grooved
guide plates and are operated longitudinally by cam grooves engaging their projecting
heels D. The slides m¹ and n¹ have also projecting heels D₁ engaging similar cam
grooves which arrangement allows the needles and slides to be simultaneously or
independently operated.
In a circular knitting machine the radial grooves carrying said needles are formed
in concentric rings a' and a², in which a' represents the usual needle disc revolving round
the axis a³ and which also carries the taking off plates or sinkers P. The outer ring a',
carrying the duplicate set of needles, revolves upon rollers a* and is held concentric
with a by horizontal rollers a mounted upon pillars a. The pillars a are carried
by the platform a suspended by rods a³ from arms a projecting from the disc alo
rigidly secured to the axis a³. The needle rings a' and a² are rotated at the same
speed by the annular racks a¹¹ and a connected thereto and actuated by the bevel
wheels a¹³ and a mounted upon the shaft als operated by the winch handle a¹6.
The said needles and slides as they revolve are operated longitudinally by stationary
rings C and C, supported by rods a¹ and a connected to a and a¹ and having
guides or cam grooves in their under faces adapted to engage the heels D and D³ of
such needles and slides and operate them in the manner hereinafter explained for the
purpose of transferring the fabric from one set of needles to the other. By this
means the fabric may be transferred from one set of needles to the other between
every stitch or loop.
The cams E¹ to E operating the two sets of sinkers P and Q and the presser
bars F to F are fixed to the rings C and C³. The said cams operate the sinkers as

page_text: the latter pass in contact with them and the presser bars are operated in the usual
manner.
In figure 4, the outer row of needles n hold the fabric which is pressed by the
presser bar Fi on to the slides n'. A thread guide F now introduces the thread
or yarn in the usual manner into the hooks e of the needles n and such needles
are successively drawn back until the ends of the slides n¹ cover the said books,
and the sinkers or plates Q pressed forward by the cam E¹ passed which they
travel push the fabric W off the ends of n¹ and thus form a row of loops held by
the needles n as represented in figure 5. Then follows the transfer of the fabric to
the inner row of needles m. The needles n and slides n' are moved forward and
the fabric is pressed back by the presser bar F2 so that the loops are supported by n
(Figure 6). Both the needles n and m now move towards the left, the slides
remaining stationary and retaining the fabric until their points just cover the hooks i
of the needles m when the sinkers Q push the fabric off the ends of n' onto the hooks i
(Figure 7) and the needles and slides are returned to the position shown in
figure 8.
The fabric is now supported on the hooks i of the inner row of needles m and
the knitting process is continued on this set of needles. The fabric is pushed on
to the points of the slides m¹ by F3 (Figure 9) and the thread is introduced into
the hooks by F then m is withdrawn beneath m' and the sinkers P push the
fabric off m' thereby forming another row of loops supported by i (Figure 10) and
taken off in the reverse direction to the loops previously formed by the other set of
needles.
The fabric is now passed back again to the outer row of needles in the same
manner that it was transferred from the needles n to m. The loops last formed are
pushed on to the slides m¹ by the bar F (figure 11) both the needles n and m are
then moved towards the right until the books e of the needles n pass under the points
of the slides m¹ when the plates or sinkers P push the fabric off the slides m' onto the
hooks e of the needles n (figure 12) the needles are drawn back to the position
represented in figure 13 and the whole operation recommences as in figure 4.
Figure 1 represents on an enlarged section the fabric knitted in the above
described manner and reversed between each row of loops.
Referring to figures 14 and 15 illustrating the application of my improvements to
the straight type of knitting machines. The needles n and m are of the same con-
struction as those last described and are arranged in guide grooves t¹ formed in the
straight parallel needle beds A¹ and A' running the whole length of the machine.
The said beds are fixed to the frame V, V which has bevelled edges V₁ forming guides
along which the double carriage (2 is traversed by hand or power. Each half (³
and of said carriage is provided with projecting blocks having cam grooves
between them adapted to engage the heels D and D' of the needles and slides
and operating them so as to transfer the fabric from one set of needles to the
other in a similar manner to that described in reference to the circular type of
knitting machine. The cam grooves and y engage the heels D and operate the
needles m and n and the grooves t and 2 engage the heels D¹ and operate the slides m¹
and n¹.
The needles in both sets are each provided with a notch m² and n² and a catch k
along each edge of the frame is adapted to engage such notches and hold said needles
when they are thrust back or away from each other and not working. The said
catches project from the plates k¹ lying in longitudinal grooves k² formed along each
edge of the frame and such catch plates are pressed outwards by springs (omitted in
the drawing so as not to obscure the parts) and are connected to the pins k³ and
buttons k. U shaped guide bars and h' secured by their extremities to the needle
bars A¹ and A2 form inner guides for tongues b, b' projecting from the inner edge of
each half C3 and C4 of the carriage (2 and also form one edge of a portion of the
cam grooves engaging the heels of the slides m' and n'. The bars; and j¹ divide the
cain grooves operating the needles m and n from those operating the slides m¹ and n¹
and retain the latter when not in operation.

page_text: The presser bars or arms ƒ, ƒ¹ and ƒ³, ƒ³ (figures 16, 17 and 18) which press the
loops from the books of the needles on to the points of the slides are mounted in pairs
on arms or holders d³ and dª projecting from spindles & and d fitted in carriers d
and d'. The said carriers are mounted in guide grooves e', e² formed in ribs, ¹ of
the frame and are reciprocated by rods d³. Only one pair of presser bars is required to
be in operation at the same time, such presser bars are therefore arranged to be brought
into operation in the manner hereinafter described as they are in turn required and
this is effected as the carriage terminates each movement.
Assuming the carriage as represented in figure 14 to be moving from right to left
and the presser bars fand f¹ brought into position (f2 and 3 being moved away from
the needles) so as to push the loops of the fabrics on to the points of the slides n'.
A new thread is now introduced into the needle hooks e by the thread guide L. The
needles n are then drawn back through the loops suspended by n¹ drawing the new
thread with them through such loops in the form of new loops. The slides n¹ are now
drawn back and the bar x which is attached to and moves with the carrier d¹
pushes the fabric off the pointed ends of the slides and thus forms a new row of
loops. In order to transfer the fabric to the opposite row of needles, the needles n
are pushed towards the centre again whilst the slides n¹ remain stationary. Such
needles and slides are then both together moved nearer the centre whilst the fabric
is held by the arms f and f¹ so that the points of the slides n¹ enter the loops and
support the fabric. The slides n' are now still further moved and the fabric released
by fand is carried with them, the needles n remaining stationary until the points
of such slides stand over the hooks i of the opposite row of needles, when the fabric is
pushed off n by the projecting bar a¹ and the loops fall into the hooks i as represented
in figure 22, which shows the needles and slides employed in this machine on a larger
scale. The projections 2 and 3 carried by d are arranged to operate in a similar
manner to x, x during the next stroke of the carriage.
At the end of the traverse of the carriage (2 the sliding bar O (represented in
plan and elevation in figure 21) which during the above described operation has
engaged d carrying fand f' by means of its hooks or catches O¹ and O2 and held it
in position now comes in contact with a stop J (figures 19 and 20) mounted at
the end of the frame and is thereby moved away until the catches O¹ and 03
are disengaged and the presser bars are drawn out of operation in a similar
manner to 2 (figure 15) by a spring arranged like d'. Then the inclined nose P¹
on the presser bar holder d comes in contact with the arm J' pivoted to a projection on J
and oscillates such arm. The arm J is rigidly fixed to the pivot Ja which carries
at its other end an arm J' actuated by the movement of J¹ so that it engages the
arm Qmounted on the end of d carrying the presser bar f2 and f³ and by partly
turning moves such presser bars until de engages catches 0 and 0' on the
second sliding bar 03 which retain them in this position until the termination of the
stroke. When the catches 0 and 05 on the bar 03 release do which is drawn by
the spring d' into the position represented in figure 15, and an arm at that end of the
machine operated by the nose P in a similar manner to J' engages Q³ on d² and
brings the presser bars fand finto position where they are retained by O¹ and O'
until the termination of the next stroke of the carriage.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same
is, to be performed, I declare what I
claim is:
1. A knitting machine having two sets of needles exactly opposite to each other
provided with slide pieces and so arranged and operated that the knitting operation
is carried on by each set of needles independently and alternately transferred from
one set of needles to the other, substantially in the manner herein described and
illustrated.
2. In a knitting machine the combination of two sets of needles provided with slide
pieces capable of longitudinal motion thereon, substantially as herein shown and
described and for the purpose specified.

page_text: 3. In a knitting machine the construction and arrangement of parts consisting of
two sets of needles provided with projecting heels or operating catches, slides also
provided with similar heels or catches and grooved cams adapted to engage said heels
or catches and impart simultaneous or independent longitudinal motion to said needles
and catches, substantially as herein shown and described and for the purpose 5
specified.
Dated this 22nd day of A1000
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.