Patent ID: 8172170

Claim:
A portable creel for organizing yarn packages and directing yarn to a tufting machine, the portable creel comprising: an outer frame comprising a plurality of substantially upright support members and defining an enclosure, the enclosure being open at one end, and defining an interior volume, wherein the outer frame further comprises a plurality of casters configured to enable the outer frame to roll; a header mountable thereon a portion of the outer frame, the header defining a plurality of openings configured to direct yarn to a predetermined position on the tufting machine; a plurality of tubes, each tube having a proximal end mounted thereto at least a portion of at least some of the substantially upright support members, wherein each of the tubes extends to and is in communication with a respective opening on the header; and an inner frame matingly positionable within the interior volume of the enclosure, the inner frame having at least one substantially upright element and a plurality of yarn holders extending therefrom the at least one upright element, each yarn holder configured to hold a yarn package, wherein each of the yarn holders is substantially collinear with and spaced therefrom the proximal end of a tube mounted on a substantially upright support member when the inner frame is operably positioned within the interior volume of the enclosure.