Improvements in Picking-apparatus for Looms.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd July, 1899-Accepted, 5th Aug., 1899
Improvements in Picking-apparatus for Looms.
We, JOSEPH DE MINISZEWSKI and THEOPHIL. DE MOHL, both of I, Maximilian-
strasse 3, Vienna, Austria, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion 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 a loom whose shuttlo, is picked to and fro by com-
pressed air supplied by a compressor placed on the batten or a pump whose piston
is worked by any suitable moving part of the loom-for example, by the batton
or the shaft which gives the batten its reciprocating motion.
The compressed air flows through pipes located on the batten into cylinders
each of whose pistons throws the shuttle through the shed into the opposite
shuttle box or cylinder, whereby the picking-piston of such shuttle box or
cylinder, which is situated at its inner end position, is moved outwards, the com-
pressed air on the outer side of the piston acting as a buffer to reduce the shook.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings shows, in front elevation, as an example,
so much of a loom as is necessary to illustrate the application of the invention
thereto.
Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section taken centrally through the batten of the
loom.
Fig. 3 is a vertical cross section taken through another part of the loom.
Figs. 4 and 5 show in two sections perpendicular to one another, the air cut-off
mechanism (in this example a slide) for the cylinders containing the picking
pistons.
As will be seen, on the underside of the batten piece a, there is fixed a cylinder b
which is open at the bottom, and whose piston e is connected with a crosshead d
guided in a straight line in the usual manner. This crosshead is driven by any
suitable moving part of the loom. In the example shown, the piston is moved
to and fro by the batten itself, for which purpose the crosshead d is connected
through a link e with a suitable fixed part of the loom. When the batten
moves to and fro, the link e, as will be seen on reference to Fig. 2, causes the
movement of the crosshead d and the piston c: The motion of the latter might
also be transmitted by known means from the crank shaft that moves the
batten as will be readily understood.
and
The cover of the cylinder b is provided with an ordinary suction valve
with outlet unions for the compressed air, which passes through the pipes into
cylinders i arranged on opposite sides of the loom and fixed on the batten. The
two cylinders are placed at the outer ends of the shuttle boxes and in line
therewith.
At the inlet of each of these cylinders i, there is placed any desired air cut off
device for instance, as shown a slide, which is normally forced outwardly by a
spring 7. This slide has two openings 1 and 2, of which the former, when the

page_text: slide is in one end position (Figs. 4 and 5) corresponds to an aperture 3 in the
cylinder cover wherby the inside of the cylinder is put into communication with
the open air. If the slide, however, is moved against the action of the spring
into the second end position the second opening 2 in the slide corresponds to the
inlet 4 for the compressed air, whilst the opening 1 is closed.
Each of the cylinders i contains a piston m, which is forced towards the mouth
of the cylinder by the inflowing compressed air, causing the shuttle to be ejected
from the cylinder and thrown across the shed into the opposite shuttle box k
or cylinder. When this takes place the shuttle. drives the picking-piston m,
which will have been retained by the compressed air against the rubber buffer o
of the flange at the mouth of the cylinder i nearly to the bottom of the cylinder;
the compressed air acting as a buffer for the picking-piston so that violent shocks
are avoided.
The motion of the slide j, or the other air cut off device provided, can be advan-
tageously imparted by the crank shaft w. For this purpose there is fixed on each
end of this shaft a cam. disc or an eccentric p, which causes the movement of the
slide at the proper moment by means of known connecting parts, in consequence
of which the compressed air can enter the cylinder i and force the picking-
piston m towards the mouth of the cylinder.
The inflow of compressed air into the cylinder i should only occur, however,
when there is a shutilo in the shuttle box (or partly in the cylinder ). For this
purpose an arrangement similar to a weft detector is provided. This is com-
posed of a feeling lever which is held up by a spring and is secured, so as to
be capable of being swung, in front of the mouth of the cylinder, and one of
whose arms projects into the shuttle-race when there is no shuttle in the shuttle
box. The second arm of the feeling lever is provided with a flat bar s, which,
when in its highest position, is out of reach of the roller lever r, which is under
spring pressure and is under influence of the eccentric p, so that although the
lever is moved by the eccentric p, the bar s is not acted on (see the right hand
end of Fig. 1). If, however, there is a shuttle in the cylinder i, the feeling
lever q is swung into the position indicated by the broken lines in Figs. 3 and 4,
the bars being lowered to such an extent that it comes within reach of the
roller lever r, which therefore moves the bars and forces the slide against the
action of the spring into the position in which the compressed air can flow into
the cylinder and throw out the shuttle.
As will be readily seen, when the shuttle enters the one or the other of the
cylinders, the compressed air which is contained between the picking-piston
and the slide and which exerts the buffer action, is finally forced back into the
piping so that no appreciable losses of compressed air can occur.
The compressed air arrangement described enables the number of revolutions
of the loom to be considerably increased, as the picking occurs with more pre-
cision than heretofore, and the shed does not require to be opened so widely as
hitherto usual. The compressor also, being connected to the batten, has a brak
ing action upon it as soon as it moves out of the shed-i.c., towards the healds,
so that no shocks can occur.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said in-
vention and in what manñor the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. In a loom causing the shuttle to be picked to and fro by compressed air
supplied by an air compressor arranged on the batten or by a pump whose piston
is driven by a moving part of the loom.
2. In a loom of the kind referred to in Claim 1, providing at each side thereof
a cylinder for receiving compressed air from the air compressor or pump each
cylinder containing a piston which on the opening of the slide or other air cut
off device arranged to control the inlet into the cylinder of the compressed air
effects the picking of the shuttle and, subsequently receives the impaot of the

page_text: entering shuttle and transmits it to the compressed air acting as a buffer on tho
other side of the piston.
3. Picking apparatus for looms constructed arranged and operating substan-
tially as shewn in and described with reference to the annexed drawings.
Dated this Jud dav of Lul., 1900
F. WISE HOWORTH,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields; London, W.C.,
Agent for the 'Applicants.
F. WISE HOWORTH,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields; London, W.C.,
Agent for the 'Applicants.