Sewing machine and presser foot device

A sewing machine including:

• a sewing mechanism that performs sewing on a sewing workpiece by moving up and down a sewing needle with an upper thread passed therethrough and rotating a rotary hook, having a lower thread housed therein, in synchronism with up-and-down movement of the sewing needle to thereby entwine the upper thread around the lower thread;
• a feed mechanism that displaces a holding member, holding the sewing workpiece, relative to a needle drop position to thereby cause a stitch to be formed in a desired direction on the sewing workpiece;
• and a pressing member that holds down the sewing workpiece in place around the needle drop position,
• the sewing machine comprising:
• a guide member provided at a lower end of the pressing member, the guide member having an opening section formed therein in such a manner as to enable the upper thread to pass therethrough substantially in a rotating direction of the rotary hook, the guide member also having a restricting section provided thereon in such a manner as to restrict movement of the upper thread in a direction opposite to the rotating direction of the rotary hook;
• determination means that determines whether or not a next-stitch forming direction belongs to a predetermined area in which a hitch stitch is formed;
• and
• control means that, upon determination that the next-stitch forming direction belongs to the predetermined area, performs detouring movement of the holding member by actuating the feed mechanism, the detouring movement including moving the holding member in such a direction as to cause the upper thread, extending downward from the sewing needle, to move out of the opening section of the guide member and then moving the holding member to a target position corresponding to the next stitch in such a manner that the upper thread having moved out of the opening section abuts against the restricting section.