Rieter Machine Works, Ltd.

Maschinenfabrik Rieter Ag

Sulzer Brothers Limited

Daniel Hanselmann

Walter Schlepfer

Rolf Binder

Robert Demuth

Jost Aebli

Jurg Faas

Christoph Staeheli

Urs Keller

Walter Hefti

Martin Kyburz

Thomas Gloor

Paul Staheli

Peter Anderegg

Peter Fritzsche

Rene Waeber

Christoph Staheli

Alfred Rentsch

David Egloff

Max Tenger

Christof Grundler

Eduard Nuessli

A bale opening machine is provided with a safety apparatus, by means of which there are produced safety barriers or fences parallel to lengthwise sides of a row of bales to be opened and/or substantially perpendicular to the direction of movement of the bale opening machine. The safety apparatus moves in conjunction with the bale opening machine. The safety apparatus can comprise mechanical and/or sensory protective structure. The sensory protective structure comprises one or more electro-acoustical transducers arranged in a sonic chute together with one or more reference reflectors such that transmitted acoustical signals are split into a measuring signal and a reference signal. The reference signal is reflected at one of the reference reflectors, whereas the measuring signal is reflected at a deflection reflector into the monitored area and back again by an object located in the monitored area.

Safety apparatus for a traveling unit of a textile machine and method of

A fiber bale opening machine having an inclined opening roller (1) is provided with conveying apparatus (100) for stepwise displacement of fiber bales in the direction of the opening roller. The roller is movable transversely with respect to the direction of the displacement. The conveying apparatus includes at least one stationary support for supporting the bale and at least one shifting device for performing a repetitive movement cycle starting from an initial position and returning back to it. In the initial position, the lifting device is lower than the stationary support and the bale is supported on such support. Later the lifting device moves up to take over support of the bale and during this time it shifts in the direction of intended bale displacement.

Fiber bale opening apparatus

A bale removal machine having sensory control protective apparatus and a process for the sensory control of the protective apparatus. During at least an initial pass of the bale removal machine along a row of bales, at least one control sensor scans and monitors an area located in the feed direction of the removal member of the machine. If the evaluating unit connected to the control sensors detects a bale, the protective curtains are deactivated immediately before a bale is detected by same. In subsequent removal passes, the protective curtains are activated and deactivated as a function of the known bale profile and/or the control sensor or sensors. If presence of a foreign object, particularly a person, is detected, protective measures are initiated by the protective curtains.

Bale removal machine with sensory control protective mechanism

A fiber bale opening device (1.1) with a bale opening organ (30) moves in the direction of the arrow A over a row of bales (4) to open fiber flocks from the surface of the bales by means of the opening rollers 6a and 6b. The opening rollers are inclined in such a way that the bales are opened with an angle .gamma. to the horizontal. The opening rollers (6a and 6b) are moreover adjustable to incline in such a way that the depth of penetration (T.1) of the leading opening roller correspond substantially to half the penetration depth (T.2) of the trailing opening roller. These penetration depths can, on the one hand, be effected by the setting of the opening rollers. Movement of the opening organ (30) in direction (D) sets of the opening rollers in order to retain the opening depth (T.1).

Method and apparatus for the opening of fiber flocks from fiber bales

Individual fiber components are blended in accordance with the properties of a required intermediate product such as a card sliver or an end product such as a yarn. The fiber bales are combined into component groups and the fiber components in the groups are accurately supplied by metering devices to a blender in which the components are uniformly mixed. The product from the blender may be cleaned and thereafter carded into a sliver. The characteristics of the sliver, such as the color, fiber, fineness and quantity, are tested and adjustments made in the blending in dependence upon any deviation from preset values for the characteristics.

Method of blending textile fibers

The bearing unit comprises a plurality of bearing elements rotatable relative to each other. A shell encircles the plurality of bearing elements. A body of resiliently compressible material is located between the shell and the plurality of bearing elements and possesses a predetermined compressibility. This body of resiliently compressible material retains the plurality of bearing elements relative to the shell and permits free adjustment of the plurality of bearing elements relative to the shell within limits determined by the predetermined compressibility of the resiliently compressible material.

Bearing unit, especially for use in a bobbin tube and package support

The extraction arm of a fiber bale opening machine is provided with an adjustable grid made up of spaced apart grid bars between which driveable fiber removal members project to detach tufts of fiber from the bales. The depth of projection of the fiber removal members through the grid is adjustable by adjustment of the positions of the grid bars. The grid bars are mounted at their two ends on respective pivot spindles and at least one lever mechanism rotates a pivot shaft to move the pivot spindles up or down to lift or lower the grid bars. Also, the grid bars are restrained against undesired movements in the direction of their lengths by suitable stops or slots.

Adjustable grid for fiber bale opener

The removal roll carrier can be inclined at an angle while the carrier is simultaneously moved vertically and while the removal apparatus moves over the line of fiber bales. This has the advantage that flocks can be removed from the bales not only in the horizontal direction but also in an inclined direction. A microprocessor controls the pivoting of the removal apparatus into a predetermined inclined position while simultaneously moving the removal apparatus vertically during movement of the machine frame along the path of the fiber bales.

Apparatus for removing fiber flocks from a line of fiber bales

An adjustable grid for the extraction arm of a bale-opener machine for adjusting the depth of penetration of drivable fiber extraction elements extending between the grid bars which are substantially tranversely arranged relative to the longitudinal direction of the extraction arm, has the grid bars biased by the spring devices into an abutment position corresponding to a minimum depth of penetration of the extraction elements. The spring force is selected such that the moveably arranged grid bars are displaced, in accordance with the bale hardness, in the direction of increasing depth of penetration of the extraction elements into a position which at least approximately corresponds to the appropriate depth of penetration of the extraction elements.

Adjustable grid for the extraction arm of a bale-opener machine

In an apparatus for opening bales of textile fibers, a deflecting member for the fiber flocks is arranged within the housing and extends in the longitudinal direction of the opening roll. This deflecting member deflects fiber flocks supplied on the one side of the roll into the conveying shaft, at least largely prevents leakage air coming from the other side of the roll, and is able to shift in position under the action of blows which act on it during bale opening, for example blows caused by foreign articles. The deflecting member is pivotally secured in the region of its longitudinal edge adjacent the roll, to respective links for executing pivotal movements about an axis which extends parallel to such longitudinal edge. The opposite ends of the links are in turn pivotally journalled on the housing. Moreover, an extendible and retractable unit is provided for changing over the direction of the deflecting member in accordance with the direction of rotation of the opening roll.

Apparatus for opening bales of textile fibers

A flock extraction apparatus includes a pair of ducts which extend along a track for conveying fiber flock and a diverter chamber at one end of the ducts for directing the flock into one or the other of a pair of transport ducts extending from the diverter chamber. Plates are used to block communication between the diverter chamber and the respective transport ducts as well as to sub-divide the diverter chamber for communication with a respective duct extending along the track.

Flock delivery systems

The method provides for the replenishment of fiber bales to at least one row of fiber bales disposed on a spinning floor in operative positions extending along a path of a reciprocally mounted fiber bale opening machine. The bales are assembled in groups and delivered to a standby position on the spinning floor. When required, each fiber group is moved from the standby position into an operative position.

Method for replenishing fiber bales in an opening machine

The flock delivery system employs a microcomputer with a storage cell for each marker and a storage cell for each stretch of path (containing one or more bale groups) between the markers. The control system is conditional selectively to 'permit' or 'inhibit' extraction of flocks from bales in each block individually. Various flock bending combinations can be obtained from time-to-time by programming of the control system.

Flock delivery system

The fiber flock removal apparatus has a pair of removal rolls which may be adjusted in height relative to each other to obtain different depths of penetration into the fiber bales. The removal rolls may rotate codirectionally with the direction of travel or may operate in contra-direction with respect to the direction of travel. The rolls may be mounted individually for vertical movement relative to each other or may be mounted in a common removal means which is pivotal about a horizontal axis to achieve adjustability in the relative heights of the removal rolls. In one embodiment, the rolls are maintained in a common horizontal plane while grid bars are angularly adjusted to obtain different depths of penetration of the removal rolls into the fiber bales.

Method and apparatus for removal of fiber flocks from fiber bales

The flock delivery system employs a microcomputer with a storage cell for each marker and a storage cell for each stretch of path (containing one or more bale groups) between the markers. The control system is conditional selectively to 'permit' or 'inhibit' extraction of flocks from bales in each block individually. Various flock blending combinations can be obtained from time-to-time by programming of the control system.

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Winterthur, Switzerland

Daniel Hanselmann