Atraumatic fiber guide
AssigneeALung Technologies, Inc.
InventorsScott W. Morley, William Kucic
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention discloses a fiber guide that can be used to feed delicate fibers into a machine, for example, the feeding of hollow fibers into a knitting machine. The disclosed guide utilizes dynamic friction and provides for horizontal and front-to-back positioning of the delicate fiber, keeping the delicate fiber vertically aligned while being fed into a machine. Utilizing dynamic friction and maintaining vertical alignment prevents damage to the delicate fiber. The guide also provides for the delicate fiber to be fed from a plurality of overhead angles from a feeding mechanism.
Claims22
A device for guiding a delicate fiber into a machine, said device comprising a bottom guide and a top guide, the bottom guide and top guide being joined by a connecting means which allows both guides to move together as one unit;
- the top guide comprising a top support with a means for attaching to the machine and at least two pairs of freely rotating rollers attached to the top support, one roller pair being lowermost and having rollers narrowly spaced apart to aligned the delicate fiber with the bottom guide and for orienting the delicate fiber in a front-to-back position relative to the bottom guide and a second roller pair being uppermost and orienting the delicate fiber in a side-to-side position, and the second roller pair having rollers sufficiently spaced apart to allow for an overhead access of the delicate fiber from a plurality of angles, wherein the device moves back and forth as one unit in a side-to-side orientation relative to the overhead access while guiding the delicate fiber into a machine, wherein movement of the freely rotating rollers is generated by dynamic friction of the delicate fiber passim through the device, the lengths of the freely rotating rollers are long enough to allow for maintenance of alignment of the delicate fiber while passing through the device, and wherein the delicate fiber is unaltered while passing through the device.
A method for guiding a delicate fiber from a feeding mechanism into a knitting machine that comprises:
- providing a device comprising a bottom guide and a top guide, the bottom guide and top guide being joined by connecting means which allows both guides to move together as one unit and allows the top guide to sit at a plurality of angles relative to the bottom guide, the top guide comprising a top support with a means for attaching to the machine and at least two pairs of freely rotating rollers attached to the top support, one roller pair being lowermost and having rollers narrowly spaced apart to aligned the delicate fiber with the bottom guide for orienting the delicate fiber in a front-to-back position relative to the bottom guide and a second roller pair being uppermost and orienting the delicate fiber in a side-to-side position, and the second roller pair having rollers sufficiently spaced apart to allow for overhead access of the delicate fiber from a plurality of angles;
- and
- feeding said delicate fiber via a feeding mechanism into the top guide from an overhead access, having the delicate fiber pass through the freely rotating rollers of the top guide into the bottom guide, the delicate fiber being aligned with the bottom guide, and the bottom guide then directing the delicate fiber into the knitting machine;
- wherein the device moves back and forth as one unit in a side-to-side orientation relative to the overhead access while guiding the delicate fiber into a machine, wherein the means for attaching cooperates with the connecting means to allow the top guide to sit at a plurality of angles relative to the bottom guide, wherein movement of the freely rotating rollers is generated by dynamic friction of the delicate fiber passing through the device, wherein the lengths of the freely rotating rollers are long enough to allow for maintenance of alignment of the delicate fiber while passing through the device, and wherein the delicate fiber is unaltered while passing through the device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.