Improved Machinery for Dyeing Textile Materials in Hanks.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Apr., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 11th Nov., 1891-Accepted, 12th Dec., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Machinery for Dyeing Textile Materials in Hanks.
I, EDOUARD DECOCK, of Roubaix, Nord France, Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to machinery for dyeing textile materials in hanks, so
arranged that all the operations are effected automatically, from the introduction of
the materials into the bath until their removal from the bath after the dyeing has
been completed, the materials being prevented from turning until they are
removed from the bath so that they are always held straight and are not liable to
felting.
For this purpose the machine is constructed as follows.
The textile material to be dyed in hanks is suspended from wooden bars forming
hank carriers, through which pass eccentrically situated tubular axes having at.
their ends toothed pinions receiving motion as will be presently explained, so as to
effect the rotation of the axes and the bar carried thereby, and thus produce a
movement of the hanks thereon in one direction or the other according to the
direction of rotation.
The hank carriers are placed one behind the other on the links of horizontal
endless chains with projecting stops, passing round two sets of pitch wheels
carried at the opposite ends of a framing, rotary motion being imparted to the one
set of the pitch wheels from the driving shaft of the machine by means of another
endless pitch chain and toothed gearing, so as to cause the pitch chain carrying the
hanks to travel forward to the other part of the machine.
When the hank carriers arrive at the one end of the frame they pass from their
chains on to sloping guides down which they slide till they are caught up by stops
on another set of inclined endless travelling chains which carry them up to the
upper part of the machine, where they are delivered on to other horizontal
travelling chains that carry them to the other end of the machine. Here they are
again caught up by stops on other vertical travelling chains that carry them down
into the dye vat in the lower part of the machine. Here they are again taken
up by horizontal travelling chains which carry them slowly along through the
bath so as to allow the dye to have a gradual and prolonged action on the hanks.
The hanks are thus brought back to the end of the machine whence they started,
and where they are again caught up by the inclined chains and carried up thereby
to the top of the machine again, so as to be subjected a second time to the above
described operations.
In order to present fresh portions of the hanks to the action of the bath at each
passage through the same, there is provided at the side of a portion of the upper
horizontal travelling chains a toothed rack, with which gear the pinions of the
tubular shafts of the bank carriers, as these pass along, and rotary motion being
thus imparted to the hank carriers for a certain length of time, the hanks are made
to travel a certain distance round on the same, thus gradually bringing the part of
the hank which was uppermost into the lowermost position.
When the above described operation has been repeated sufficiently for completing
the dyeing of the hanks, the part of the framing carrying the lower horizontal
chains and the hank carriers resting thereon is raised by a rack and pinion motion,
actuated by a worm and worm wheel gear from the driving shaft, so as to raise the
hanks out of the bath, and, as the upper horizontal chains continue to travel, the
hank carriers are delivered from the end thereof either on to other travelling chains
which carry them away to a frame where they are suspended for any further
treatment of the hanks that may be required, or the carriers may be delivered on to
inclined guides for the above purpose, down which they slide by gravity.

page_text: The above described treatment relates to hanks of cotton material; for treating
wool, the hank bearers are constructed and actnated as follows. The bearer
consists of two parallel wooden bars held a certain distance apart in metal sockets
at the ends, which sockets carry an eccentric trunnion.
In place of the toothed rack at the side of the upper travelling chains there
are provided three fixed plates with cam surfaces so formed that as the hank
carriers advance, the rectangular shaped sockets at the ends ride upon the cam
surfaces so as to be brought from the vertical to a more or less horizontal position
until they butt against vertically projecting stops on tumbling levers pivotted to the
cam plates; these levers, in having their stops pressed upon by the hank carriers,
are caused to turn over on their pivots, and thus to complete the reversal of the
position of the hank carriers. This operation being repeated three times by the
three sets of cam plates and levers, causes a corresponding shifting of the hanks
round the carriers.
If it be desired instead of having a continuous motion of the hanks through the
bath, to impart thereto an intermittent motion with intervening periods of rest, the
driving gear for imparting motion to the travelling chains is arranged as follows.
The driving pulley is loose on the shaft that imparts motion to the chains, and is
capable of receiving a slight lateral motion thereon whereby it is made to gear
with a clutch on the shaft so as to cause this to be carried round thereby. The
boss of the pulley has a neck which is embraced by a fork on a lever on a lever
which is acted upon by a weight tending to move the lever so as to bring the pulley
into gear with the clutch.
The lever has an extension which is in contact with a cam face fixed on a shaft that
receives a continuous slow rotary motion by a worm and worm wheel mechanism, the
cam being so formed that at one part of its revolution it moves the lever so as to
keep the pulley away from the clutch, during which time consequently the hank
carriers remain stationary, while at the other part of the cams revolution it allows
the weight to move the lever and consequently the pulley over so that the latter
gears with the clutch, so that during this time the hank carriers are made to travel
forwards.
When there is not sufficient space in the works for the employment of the first
described frame on which the hank carriers are first placed before entering the
machine, the hank carriers may be placed upon fixed supports, so placed relatively
to the before described inclined travelling chains which raise the hank carriers up
to the upper horizontal chains, that the studs on the inclined chains in rising lift
the hank-carrier off its supports and carriers it up as described.
When the dyeing process is completed and it is desired to effect the rinsing of the
hanks in fresh water filled into the dye vat, the above described toothed racks that
effect the rotation of the hank bearers when on the upper chains are lowered so as
not to gear with the pinions hereof, and other toothed racks, provided at the level
of the lower travelling chains, are raised, so that as the hank bearers are carried
along, moving the hanks through the water in the bath, their pinions in gearing
with the said racks effect the rotation of the hank bearers and consequently of the
hanks during such travel.
Dated this 30th day of April 1891.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Machinery for Dyeing Textile Materials in Hanks.
I, EDOUARD DECOCK of Roubaix, Nord France, Engineer, 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 :-
My invention relates to machinery for dyeing textile materials in hanks, so
5

page_text: arranged that all the operations are effected automatically, from the introduction of
the materials into the bath until their removal from the bath after the dyeing has
been completed, the materials being prevented from turning until they are
removed from the bath so that they are always held straight and are not liable
to felting.
The machinery is for this purpose constructed as shewn on the accompanying
drawings, in which
Fig. 1 shews a side elevation, Fig. 2 an end elevation and Figs. 3 to 7 separate
modified details.
In this machine the hanks descend vertically into the bath and are then conveyed
horizontally partly through the same at a quick speed by means of two small
chains O with fingers, after which they are taken by two larger horizontal chains
with fingers P which travel at a slower speed. By this means a more reliable
penetration of the dye into the body of the hank is obtained, as without the rapid
motion at the entrance into the bath, the dye only acts effectually on the surface of
the hanks, leaving the interior imperfectly acted upon. In other words, by the
rapid motion the hanks are opened out so as to allow the dye to come in contact
freely with all parts.
The transport of the hanks through the bath without rotary motion prevents
felting and entanglement of the threads, which occurs in other methods of dyeing,
while it insures the stirring up of the bath and gives a greater and more regular
yield for one and the same quantity of dissolved coloring matter.
The textile matter to be dyed in hanks is suspended and prepared on hank-
carriers of rectangular cross section which are made to slide down into the machine
upon two beams C supported by hinge-joints at D on uprights B fixed to the
framing of the machine. When the hank bearers arrive at the lower end of these
beams C they are seized firstly by projecting fingers or abutments of the vertically
rising chains L, then by the fingers of the horizontal travelling chains M, and lastly
by those of the vertically descending chains N which carry them down into the
bath. Here the carriers are again seized by the fingers of the horizontal chains O,
by which they are conveyed rapidly to the fingers of the horizontal travelling
chains P which, as before stated, move at a slower speed in order to insure a
gradual and enduring action of the bath upon the material to be dyed. On being
discharged from the chains P the hank bearers pass on to the circular guide R
where they are again taken up by the fingers of the chain L, which carry them up
to the chain M again, and thus cause the above described operation to be repeated.
In passing along with the chains M the toothed pinions on the ends of the hank-
carriers, come into gear with toothed racks S which in rotating the pinions as
they pass along, also effect the turning over of the hank bearers and thus alter the
position of the hanks upon them before the next immersion in the bath, so that the
portion of the hank which before was situated above the bath is now immersed in
the same.
This operation is repeated a sufficient number of times for effecting the
perfectly uniform treatment of all parts of the hank by the bath, after which, on
arriving at the left hand end the hanks are made to slide along the inclined plane Z
outside the machine.
The arrangement of pinions U, toothed racks T, fast and loose pullies A¹ B' C¹
worm wheel and worm E' D' allow of the raising up out of the bath of the whole
of the dyed hanks, when it is found that the dye of the bath is not sufficiently
effective, in order that the bath may be renewed, after which the hanks are again
lowered into the same.
The above described mode of treatment relates to hanks of cotton thread; for
woollen hanks the form of hank bearers shewn in elevation and cross section at
Figs. 3 and 4 is employed.
This consists of two parallel wooden trough-shaped bars a a', kept apart by metal
caps d d, through slots in which passes a spindle e, so that the bars a a¹ in being
turned round on the spindle alternately rest with their hollows upon the latter,
as shewn.

page_text: These bearers in being carried along by the upper chain M meet with a series of
three or more obstacles arranged and operating as shewn at Fig. 5, and which
take the place of the racks S of the first arrangement. The hank carrier in being
moved along by the chain in the direction from the right to the left, first comes in
contact with two fixed curved cam plates T' which raise it somewhat in an inclined
position, after which it comes in contact with cranked stops U U¹ pivotted at X'.
The hank bearer in being brought by the fingers of the chain in contact with the
vertical arm U', as shewn at the right hand end, cants this over as shewn at the
middle position, while at the same time the arm V, in rising into the position shewn
at the left hand end, completes the turning over of the hank bearer.
This operation being repeated three or more times, according to the number of
the stops, it will be seen that the hank will be made to travel round the bearer to a
corresponding extent.
The above described machine has continuous action.
If it be desired to render the action of the machine intermittent, that is to say,
with a period of rest for the hanks while in the bath, at a desired time, driving
gear arranged as shewn in end and side views at Figs. 6 and 7 can be employed.
In this arrangement a pulley I free to slide on a sleeve that is loose on the shaft K
has a neck and a serrated disc h, whereby it can be coupled at times with a
collar k fixed on the shaft K.
A fork e embracing the neck g and turning on a horizontal pivot o is urged by an
arm carrying a weight m so as to tend to keep the pulley I geared with the collar k
and consequently with the shaft. The fork has a horizontal arm / projecting with
its end into a cam groove in a disc Q, which is so formed that at a certain point
or points of its revolution it pushes the fork and with it the pulley to the left,
against the action of the weight, which rises, and the pulley is then disengaged
from the shaft, and runs loose thereon.
Thus the pulley I being driven by a strap and corresponding to the pulley I¹ in
Fig. 2, it will be seen that during the part of the revolution of the cam Q at which
it allows the pulley I to gear with its shaft K, the endless chains OP will be
driven by the latter, and the hanks will be made to travel through the bath, while
during the time that the cam throws the pulley out of gear with its shaft, the hanks
will remain stationary in the bath. The cam disc Q, the speed of which governs
the duration of the above named intervals, is driven at a slow speed from the boss
of the pulley by a worm 7 on the latter gearing with a wheel on a counter shaft
carrying a worm n gearing with a worm wheel p on the cam shaft.
In machines that require to give a large production, the chains P and M would
become too long if formed in one length as described, and in extending by wear
would produce irregularities in the working. They are consequently in such cases
divided into two or more separate endless chains, the contiguous ends of which pass
round two chain wheels fixed closely side by side on the same axis, the fingers of
the chains being so arranged that those of the one length take up the hank bearers
of the previous length as the two chains pass round the wheels.
If desired, there may be interposed between two successive endless chains P
having a slow speed, an endless chain O having a quick speed, in order thereby to
again effect the opening out of the hanks so as to increase the penetration of the dye
bath at an intermediate stage of the operation.
In order to insure the regular passage of the hank carriers from the chains P to
the circular guide R on issuing from the bath, bevil pinions 3, 4 on the shaft that
drives the pitch wheels of the chains impart motion to a spur wheel 2 which in its turn
drives a wheel 1, the shaft of which carries fingers which, in rotating, push the
hank carriers forward from the chains P into the circular path R, where they are
caught by the fingers of the chains L. When the requisite number of hank
carriers have been fed into the bath along the incline C as described, this is turned
up out of the way of its hinge joint D, and the curved guide R" is then turned up
on its hinge and secured by a pin so as to form a complete closed path in which the
hank carriers travel upwards on the chain L. In like manner, when the hank-

page_text: carriers require to be conveyed down into the bath again by the chains N at the
left hand end, the guides R₁ are secured in the position shewn, to form a closed
path, and when the treatment is completed and the hanks require to be discharged
down the incline Z as stated, the guide R' is unfastened and turned down on its
hinge-joint.
In order to insure that the motion and relative position of the chains shall always
remain identical notwithstanding the raising and lowering thereof previously
described, the shafts that drive the chains O and P are connected by bevil gear to
vertical shafts N¹ N¹ on which are bevil pinions 5 carried round thereby but
capable of sliding with a feather and groove vertically thereon, and which are kept
in gear, by their weight, with bevil pinions 6 fixed on the axes of the pitch wheels
that drive the chains N, which in their turn drive the pitch wheels of the chains M
and L. Thus in whatever raised or lowered position the chains may be, they will
always be kept correctly geared together by means of the pinions 5, and con-
sequently the fingers of the one chain cannot get shifted out of the correct position
relatively to the others.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. In machinery for dyeing textile materials in hanks, the use of endless
travelling chains such as O and P having fingers for conveying along the hank
bearers, the chains O being made to travel at a quicker speed than the chains P in
order that such rapid motion of the former may effect the opening out of the hanks
so as to ensure the penetration of the dye, while the slower motion of the chains P
insures the proper duration of the action of the bath on the hanks while preventing
the felting or entanglement of the thread, substantially as described.
2. The use in machinery for dyeing threads or yarns in hanks, of hank carriers
constructed as described with reference to Figs. 3 and 4, for operating in combina-
tion with the tumbling stops described with reference to Fig. 5.
3. In machinery for dyeing threads or yarns in hanks, the use of driving gear for
the travelling chains constructed and operating as described with reference to Figs. 6
and 7, for enabling the forward motion of the hanks to be alternated with periods
of rest.
Dated this 10th day of November 1891.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.