Textile machine apparatus for handling tubes having remaining yarn

In a textile winding machine of the type having a plurality of winding stations at which yarn is unwound from yarn packages, a delivery assembly for transporting tube support members on which yarn packages are individually supported for transport to the winding stations, and a discharge assembly for transporting tube support members with tubes supported thereon from the winding stations, an apparatus for handling tubes received by the discharge assembly from the winding stations with yarn remaining thereon comprising:

• branch path means defining a branch path for supporting tube support members for travel therealong having an entrance end operatively connected to the discharge assembly for the passage of tube support members from the discharge assembly to said branch path and an exit end operatively connected to the discharge assembly for the passage of tube support members from said branch path to the discharge assembly at a location upstream from said entrance end relative to the direction of transport of tube support members by the discharge assembly, the tube support members exiting said branch path through said exit end mixing with other tube support members being transported by the discharge assembly;
• a tube stripping device disposed along said branch path for performing a yarn stripping operation on those tubes having remaining yarn thereon while the tubes are supported upright on the tube support members on said branch path;
• discriminating means disposed along said discharge assembly for discriminating among tubes supported on tube support members being transported by the discharge assembly past a discriminating location upstream of said entrance end of said branch path and downstream of said exit end of said branch path, said discriminating means being operable to discriminate between empty tubes having no yarn thereon and tubes having remaining yarn thereon during the passage therepast of tubes supported both on tube support members which have not been previously handled by said tube stripping device and on tube support members which have previously been handled by said tube stripping device;
• and
• guiding means, operatively connected to said discriminating means, for guiding those tube support members supporting tubes having remaining yarn thereon from the discharge assembly to said branch path at said entrance end thereof in response to the identification of the tubes on such tube support members by said discriminating means.