Tufting apparatus for preventing sew-thru and tagging
AssigneeSpencer Wright Industries, Inc.
InventorsBilly E. Inman, Wheeler E. Phillips
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An oscillating wiper for a tufting machine has a bristle brush for sweeping loops shed by the looper away from the needle path and prevents the loops from springing back into the needle path thereby preventing sew-thru and tagging. The wiper is operatively carried by the knife shaft and oscillates therewith in timed relationship with the formation, seizing and shedding of the loops by the looper. The tufting machine disclosed is a level cut/loop machine in which the looper has a selectively pivotable gate member which opens to allow loops thereon to be cut by the knife and is selectively closed to shed loops to form uncut pile. The bristles of the wiper act on the uncut loops.
Claims9
In a tufting machine, means for feeding a base fabric in one direction, at least one yarn carrying needle supported on one side of the base fabric, means for reciprocating said needle for penetrating said fabric to present loops of yarn therein, looper means disposed on the other side of said fabric, and means for oscillating said looper means in timed relationship with said needle toward and away from cooperation with said needle for seizing successive loops of yarn presented thereby and for shedding at least some of said loops, the improvement comprising, a wiper disposed on said other side of said fabric and facing in said one direction, means for oscillating said wiper in timed relationship with said needle in a path transverse to the path of said needle for sweeping loops shed by said looper into said one direction away from the path of the needle and for precluding said shed loops from entering the path of said needle as the needle penetrates said fabric, said wiper comprising means readily deflectible when engaged by said needle.
In the method of tufting pile fabric including the steps of supporting and feeding a base fabric in one direction, actuating a needle in a reciprocating path to stitch a yarn continuously through said base fabric as the fabric moves to form a row of successive yarn loops on one side of said fabric, and supporting upon said one side of said fabric an oscillating looper having a free end for entering and seizing loops in succession and for shedding at least some of said loops, the improvement comprising supporting upon said one side of said fabric a wiper pointing in said one direction and oscillating said wiper across said path of said needle to sweep each shed loop in succession in said one direction and to maintain said shed loop out of said path of said needle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.