Towel cutting machine

A towel cutting machine for cutting the entire transverse fringe portion connecting generally rectangular towel sections in a continuous strip of towel material, the fringe portion being generally linear and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the strip of towel material, said towel section having two opposed, parallel thickened edges generally perpendicular to the linear fringed portion comprising:

• a frame means for housing a control means, a drive feed means, a pull slip-clutch means, a braking-sensing means, and a cutting blade means;
• said control means for automatically controlling and repeating the cycle of operation of feeding, sensing, braking, and cutting of said machine connected to said frame;
• said drive feed means connected to said frame and said control means for drive feeding the strip of towel material longitudinally downstream along a pathway through said machine with the fringe portions generally perpendicular to the direction of feeding;
• said pull slip-clutch drive means for centering and pulling the strip of towel material through said machine connected to said control means, said pull slip-clutch drive means for retaining each rectangular towel section of the strip of towel material in a centered and tensioned position thereby permitting cutting of the entire linear fringe portion generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the strip of towel material;
• said cutting blade means and braking-sensing means connected to said frame means and said control means between said drive feed means and said pull slip-clutch drive means, said cutting blade means located between said slip-clutch drive means and said braking-sensing means;
• said braking-sensing means for locating the linear fringe portion between each towel section on the strip of towel material and for fixing the position of the fringe portion generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the strip of towel material on said machine between said braking-fringe sensing means and said pull slip-clutch drive means adjacent to said cutting blade means;
• said control means for first operating said drive feed means into a towel strip material engaging position and moving the strip material through said machine and into said pull slip-clutch means with said cutting blade means and said braking-sensing means in open nonengaging position and for thereafter engaging said pull slip-clutch means;
• said control means for then operating said drive feed means and said braking-sensing means into an engaging position and feeding the towel strip material until the braking-sensing means senses the fringe portion and engages the fringe portion;
• said control means for thereafter activating said cutting blade means while said pull slip-clutch drive means in a slip condition maintaining non-slip tension on the towel strip material without rotating to cut the fringe portion of a towel section of the towel strip material;
• and
• said control means for automatically returning said cutting blade means to the nonengaging position and for activating said drive feed means if desired another cycle of operation.