# US 2009/0260554 A1 · Stitch distribution control system for tufting machines

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- Number: US 2009/0260554 A1
- Document ID: US20090260554A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 12/495,016
- Filed: 2009-06-30
- Published: 2009-10-22
- Earliest claimed: 2008-02-15
- Assignees: Card-Monroe Corp.
- Inventors: Wilton Hall; William M. Christman, JR.
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20090260554A1

## CPC

- D05C 11/00: Devices for guiding, feeding, handling, or treating the threads in embroidering machines; Machine needles; Operating or control mechanisms therefor
- D05C 15/18: Thread feeding or tensioning arrangements
- D05C 15/30: by moving the tufting tools laterally
- D05C 15/34: by inserting loops of different nature or colour
- D05C: EMBROIDERING; TUFTING (making non-woven fabrics D04H; sewing D05B)

## Abstract

A stitch distribution control system for a tufting machine for controlling placement of yarns being fed to the needles of the tufting machine by yam feed mechanisms to form a desired pattern. A backing material is fed through the tufting machine at an increased stitch rate as the needles are shifted according to calculated pattern steps. A series of loopers or hooks engage and pick loops of yarns from the needles. The yarn feed mechanisms further can be controlled so that selected loops of yarns can be back-robbed so as to be hidden from view in the finished patterned tufted article.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A tufting machine for forming patterned tufted articles including multiple different yarns, comprising:
at least one needle bar having a series of needles mounted therealong;
backing feed rolls for feeding a backing material through a tufting zone of the tufting machine;
a yarn feed mechanism for feeding a series of yarns to said needles;
a series of gauge parts mounted below the tufting zone in a position to engage said needles of said at least one needle bar as said needles are reciprocated into the backing material to form tufts of yarns in the backing material; and
a stitch distribution control system adapted to receive a pattern image and perform a series of pattern steps for controlling said yarn feed mechanism to control feeding of the yarns to said needles and said backing feed rolls to control feeding of the backing material to form the patterned tufted article.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said stitch distribution control system comprises a tufting machine controller adapted to control at least one said yarn feed mechanism and said backing feed rolls.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The tufting machine of claim 2 and wherein said stitch distribution control system comprises an imaging device for input of pattern information, and said tufting machine controller further comprises image recognition programming for processing images input from said imaging device.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said gauge parts comprise level cut loop loopers.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said gauge parts comprise loop pile loopers.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said gauge parts comprise cut pile hooks.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said gauge parts comprise cut/loop hooks.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and wherein said yarn feed mechanism comprises at least one of a scroll, roll, single end or double end yarn feed pattern attachment.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The tufting machine of claim 1 and further comprising at least one shifter linked to said at least one needle bar for shifting said at least one needle bar transversely across the tufting zone.

### Claim 10

A method of operating a tufting machine to form a patterned article including multiple different yarns, comprising:
receiving a pattern including a series of pattern steps for forming the patterned article;
determining an effective process stitch rate for the patterned article based upon a desired fabric stitch rate for the patterned article;
feeding a backing material through the tufting machine at the effective process stitch rate;
as the backing material is fed through the tufting machine, reciprocating a series of needles to deliver the yarns into the backing material; and
controlling feeding of the yarns to the needles in accordance with programmed pattern instructions to retain a tuft of a desired yarn for each stitch being formed in the backing material.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The stitch of claim 10 and wherein receiving a pattern comprises inputting an image, photograph, drawing, or design with an imaging device.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and wherein receiving a pattern comprises downloading or uploading an image file into a tufting machine controller for the tufting machine.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and wherein calculating a series of pattern steps comprises creating a pattern map including a series of pattern pixels each corresponding to a stitch location at which at least one tuft of yarn will be placed.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The method of claim 13 and wherein each pattern pixel is defined by the desired fabric stitch rate and a desired density of the pattern.

### Claim 15 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and wherein determining an effective process stitch rate for the patterned article comprises increasing the desired stitch rate for the pattern by a multiple approximately corresponding to a number of colors of yarns used to form the patterned article.

### Claim 16 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and further comprising determining a shift profile for the patterned article, and shifting the needles in accordance with the shift profile.

### Claim 17 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and further comprising assigning pattern colors of the pattern image to corresponding yarns of a yarn supply for the tufting machine.

### Claim 18 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and further comprising varying movement of the backing material on a stitch-by-stitch basis.

### Claim 19 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and further comprising determining a shift profile for the shifting of the needles including single shift steps, double shift steps or combinations thereof.

### Claim 20 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and further comprising selectively actuating a series of clips of a series of level cut loop loopers for forming cut or loop pile tufts according to the pattern steps.

### Claim 21 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 and wherein controlling the feeding of the yarns further comprises selectively pulling back yarns as needed for forming cut and loop pile tufts in the backing material.

### Claim 22

A method of tufting a patterned article, comprising:
determining a desired fabric stitch rate for the patterned article;
feeding a series of yarns to a series of spaced needles;
feeding a backing material through a tufting zone;
as the backing material is fed through the tufting zone, reciprocating the needles carrying the yarns into and out of the backing material;
shifting at least some of the needles transversely with respect to the backing material;
at selected stitch locations, presenting a number of different yarns for insertion into the backing material and controlling the yarn feed to the needles so as to retain at least one desired yarn of the different yarns presented for each selected stitch location;
wherein feeding the backing material comprises moving the backing material through the tufting zone at an effective stitch rate approximately equivalent to the desired fabric stitch rate increased by the number of different yarns presented at a stitch location being tufted.

### Claim 23 (depends on 22)

The method of claim 22 and further comprising engaging the yams carried by the needles with a series of loop pile loopers, cut pile hooks, level cut/loop loopers, cut/loop loopers or combinations thereof, as the needles are reciprocated into and out of the backing material.

### Claim 24 (depends on 22)

The method of claim 22 and wherein presenting a number of different yarns and controlling the yarn feed to the needles comprises presenting a yarn of each color that could be tufted at a particular selected stitch location and feeding the yarn for a color corresponding to the selected stitch location to form a tuft, while controlling feeding of the yarns of remaining colors to pull such yarns low or remove them from the selected stitch location.

### Claim 25 (depends on 22)

The method of claim 22 and further comprising receiving a pattern image and calculating a series of pattern nap including a series of pixels corresponding to the stitch locations at which the tufts of yarns are placed.

### Claim 26 (depends on 22)

The method of claim 22 and further comprising determining a shift profile for the shifting of the needles including single shift steps, double shift steps or combinations thereof.

### Claim 27 (depends on 22)

The method of claim 22 and wherein determining an effective process stitch rate for the patterned article comprises increasing the desired stitch rate for the pattern by a multiple approximately corresponding to a number of colors of yarns used to form the patterned article.

### Claim 28

A method of forming tufted patterns in a backing, comprising:
determining a desired fabric stitch rate for a pattern to be formed;
feeding the backing through a tufting machine;
as the backing is fed through the tufting machine, reciprocating a series of spaced needles carrying a series of yarns into and out of the backing to form a series of tufts in the backing; and
at selected stitch locations of the pattern being formed in the backing, presenting a desired number of yarns for insertion into the backing and selectively withholding non-retained yarns from such stitch locations;
wherein selectively withholding the non-retained yarns comprises controlling at one or more yarn feed mechanisms feeding the non-retained yarns to the needles so as to pull back such yarns; and
wherein feeding the backing through the tufting machine comprises feeding the backing at an effective process stitch rate approximately equivalent to the desired fabric stitch rate increased by a number of different yarns being used to form the pattern.

### Claim 29 (depends on 28)

The method of claim 28 and wherein presenting a desired number of yarns comprises shifting at least some of the needles carrying the yarns transversely with respect to the feeding of the backing.

### Claim 30

A method of tufting a patterned article including a series of tufts of different color yarns, arranged according to pattern instructions for the article, comprising:
determining a desired fabric stitch rate for the patterned article;
moving a backing through a tufting zone at an effective process stitch rate based upon the desired fabric stitch rate increased in view of the number of different colors of yarns of the patterned article;
as the backing moves through the tufting zone, reciprocating a series of spaced needles to present a selected series of yarns to stitch locations in the backing; and
at each stitch location, controlling feeding of the series of yarns presented at each stitch location and selectively retaining a desired yarn of the series of yarns presented at each stitch location based upon the pattern instructions.

### Claim 31 (depends on 30)

The method of claim 30 and wherein selectively retaining a desired yarn of the series of yarns presented comprises retaining none of the yarns presented.

### Claim 32 (depends on 30)

The method of claim 30 and wherein selectively retaining a desired yarn of the series of yarns presented comprises retaining one or more of the yarns presented.

### Claim 33 (depends on 30)

The method of claim 30 and further comprising shifting at least some of the needles transversely with respect to the backing.