Burlington Industries, Inc.

Elbert F Morrison

D C Reece

Danny R Bradley

A method for spinning yarn produce the yarn having properties generally comparable to those of ring spun yarn. A rotatable hollow shaft having an entrance at one end and an exit at the other is rotatable about an axis extending in a direction A. A number of free fibers are fed in the linear direction A in a fiber mass, certain of the fibers having free trailing ends. The fiber mass is passed into the interior of the hollow rotatable shaft through the entrance. An air flow is established with respect to the shaft to effect separation of the free trailing ends of the fibers, preferably by establishing an air flow path that is initially substantially unidirectionally in direction A and then is deflected to move at an angle with respect to the direction A away from the shaft. The shaft is rotated at high speed about its axis so that the trailing ends of the fibers wrap around other portions of the fiber mass to produce a yarn, and the yarn is withdrawn through the exit of the shaft. The air flow may be provided by a vacuum which acts on the free fibers, and which may comprise the only source of force being applied to the fibers.

Spinning with hollow rotatable shaft and air flow

A fasciated yarn is produced that is suitable for making apparel fabric from predominantly non-thermoplastic staple fibers, and which approaches ring spun yarn in properties and appearance but can be produced much more quickly and simply. The fasciated yarn comprises vacuum spun yarn consisting of fibers including core fibers and wrapper fibers, the wrapper fibers being predominantly individual fibers although having some groups of wrapper fibers. The groups of wrapper fibers appear as non-uniform, non-consistent groupings and provide a relatively smooth appearance. The wrapper fibers are wrapped at a helix angle of about 30.degree. (e.g. about 30.degree.-50.degree.), and about 20-30 percent of the fiber mass comprises the wrapper fibers. The wrappers are essentially devoid of auger or corkscrew appearance. The core fibers are essentially parallel staple fibers. The wrapped and core fibers have the same dyeability. Vacuum spun yarn has a break strength comparable to a break strength of at least 500 grams break strength for a yarn produced from approximately 1/18's count fibers of 55 percent polyester and 45 percent wool, or at least 175 grams for 100 percent wool.

Fasciated yarn structure made by vacuum spinning

Method and apparatus are disclosed relating to forming yarn by 'vacuum spinning'. A spinning nozzle assembly is provided which includes two axially aligned sections, each formed with a through passageway. Adjacent facing surfaces of the sections define a continuous radial slot through which air flow may be directed. The axially aligned sections of the nozzle are, in one exemplary embodiment, telescopically received within a sleeve mounted for rotation within a housing. The nozzle sections may be adjusted axially relative to each other to alter the dimension of the radial slot as desired, for example, in accordance with a predetermined yarn count.

Vacuum spinning nozzle assembly

Disclosed are apparatus and methods for converting tow into sliver including cutter rolls for cutting fiber to length, a collector pan for passing the cut fiber from the cutting rolls to a drafting section and a pin roll in the drafting section for combing and debonding the fiber. The collector pan is shaped to dispose the opposite marginal edges of the cut fiber web in registration with the main body of the web to ensure proper presentation of the cut tow fibers to the drafting section. The pin roll in the drafting section includes a plurality of projections having leading and trailing edges terminating in a tip. Each leading edge is angled to enter the tow web prior to entry of the associated tip. The arrangement of the converter affords high weight delivery of combed and debonded fiber with minimal defects.

Apparatus and methods for converting tow into staple

Vacuum spinning of yarn produces yarns having good properties, and which may have a wide variety of different effects and constructions. A core filament yarn may be fed into operative association with a nipped sliver or roving, and then fed to a perforated rotating hollow shaft operatively connected to the vacuum. The core filament yarn may be a full stretched textured yarn, which is placed under tension and while under tension is dragged over a sharp edge of nonconductive material, and after the tension is relieved develops crimp. This causes individual fibers to be repelled, and provides for intermixing of the nipped sliver or roving fibers and the core filament yarn fibers. Alternatively the filament yarn may be acted upon by draft rollers before the entrance to, and after the exit from, the hollow rotating shaft, to apply a force that breaks up to about 20% of the fibers. The yarns produced utilizing the broken fibers has a spun-like appearance. As another alternative, filament yarn can be inserted with controlled overfeed directly into the inlet of the rotating shaft to produce a yarn having a loop or Boucle effect. As still another alternative, the sliver or roving is acted upon so that all of the fibers have short staple length and free ends, are transported in a linear direction A, and the loose ends are acted upon to provide a core formed of approximately 20-40% of the fibers, the core having real twist, and approximately 80-60% of the fibers are wrapped about the core to provide surface effects.

Yarn produced by spinning with vacuum

Vacuum spinning of yarn produces yarns having good properties, and which may have a wide variety of different effects and constructions. A core filament yarn may be fed into operative association with a nipped sliver or roving, and then fed to a perforated rotating hollow shaft operatively connected to the vacuum. The core filament yarn may be a full stretched textured yarn, which is placed under tension and while under tension is dragged over a sharp edge of nonconductive material, and after the tension is relieved develops crimp. This causes individual fibers to be repelled, and provides for intermixing of the nipped sliver or roving fibers and the core filament yarn fibers. Alternatively, the filament yarn may be acted upon by draft rollers before the entrance to, and after the exit from, the hollow rotating shaft, to apply a force that breaks up to about 20% of the fibers. The yarns produced utilizing the broken fibers has a spun-like appearance. As another alternative, filament yarn can be inserted with controlled overfeed directly into the inlet of the rotating shaft to produce a yarn having a loop or Boucle effect. As still another alternative, the sliver or roving is acted upon so that all of the fibers have short staple length and free ends, are transported in a linear direction A, and the loose ends are acted upon to provide a core formed of approximately 20-40% of the fibers, the core having real twist, and approximately 80-60% of the fibers are wrapped about the core to provide surface effects.

Vacuum spinning method

Vacuum spun yarn is produced that has strength property approaching that of ring spun yarn, and significantly greater than air jet spun yarn, and may be produced at speeds greatly in excess of production speeds for ring spun yarn. An elongated hollow shaft has a through-extending passageway from a first end to a second end thereof, with a portion of the shaft adjacent the first end being perforated (e.g. four equally spaced perforations). The perforations shaft in the direction of the second end from the through-extending passageway, and a generally spherical vacuum reservoir is formed in the shaft in communication with the passageway and perforations. The portion of the passageway between the shaft first end and the vacuum reservoir is significantly larger in cross-sectional dimension than the portion of the passageway from the vacuum reservoir to the second end of the shaft. A diffuser, in the form of a collar having elongated slots corresponding to the perforations, surrounds the shaft, and an annular opening is provided between the interior of the diffuser collar and the exterior of the shaft. The shaft is rotated about an axis at a constant high speed, and a vacuum is applied to the exterior of the shaft so that at least some of the fibers or free ends of fibers passing through the shaft will draw toward the shaft perforations, and will be caused to rotate with the shaft as fibers move generally linearly along the axis of rotation of the shaft. Formed yarn, having the desired properties, is withdrawn from the second end of the shaft.

Apparatus for vacuum spinning

Positive twist control and a gentle action on the yarn are provided by a vacuum texturizing process for yarn. Single filament and multi-filament yarns can be processed, including fine denier filaments and/or weak thermoplastic filaments. Yarn is fed by feed rolls to a heater block and then to the generally axially through-extending passageway and a spindle perforated cylinder. The spindle is mounted for rotation about an axis, and is rotated at a speed of several hundred thousand rpm, while a vacuum in the range of about 8-12 inches of mercury is applied to the exterior of the cylinder. The force of the vacuum holds the yarn against the interior wall of the passageway so that each rotation of the cylinder causes a twist of the yarn, which is backed up to the heater and set in a semi-permanent, false twist configuration. The yarn is withdrawn from the cylinder by output means, at which time the twist relieves itself and a textured, bulk, stretch-type yarn is produced.

Vacuum texturizing process

A novel roving, and spun yarn produced from the roving, have a core and a sheath arrangement with substantially 100 percent of a first type of fiber in the sheath, and for a second type of fiber having distinctly different properties than the first fiber, about 75-90 percent in the core and about 25-10 percent in the sheath. Yarns having a cheaper fiber in the center (e.g. polyester) and a more expensive fiber on the outside (e.g. wool), or one having a higher strength core fiber and a more luxurious sheath fiber, can be produced. A sliver of first fibers and a distinct sliver of second fibers are fed in generally parallel paths. The slivers are continuously drafted to produce two distinct drafted slivers, and the path of at least one of the drafted slivers is changed so that the two slivers proceed in intersecting paths, and at substantially the same speed. The first fibers are continuously caused to wrap around the second fibers, with an angle of intersection between the two paths in the range of 60.degree.-120.degree., to produce a composite drafted sliver-roving, which is twisted to produce a roving. The roving is ring spun to produce a spun yarn with about 75-90 percent of the second fibers in the core and about 25-10 percent in the sheath, and substantially 100 percent of the first fibers in the sheath.

Separation, and phasing of sheath sliver around a core

Yarn having properties approaching that of ring spun yarn is produced by vacuum spinning, including directly from sliver. The elongated hollow shaft of the vacuum spinning apparatus has a vacuum reservoir, or interior chamber, that is generally in the shape of a right circular cone, and the interior passageway of the shaft from the first end thereof to the interior chamber can have the form of a right circular cone frustum. The perforations operatively connected to the interior chamber have a generally wedge-shape. The perforations and the passageway sections between the first end of the shaft and the perforations are dimensioned so that they allow sufficient air flow to achieve optimum fiber wrapping action.

Vacuum spinning from sliver

An unusual spun yarn is produced by feeding fibers or a sliver or roving into the interior of a hollow shaft. The shaft includes a perforated portion, and a vacuum is applied at the exterior of the shaft. The shaft is mounted for free rotation about an axis coincident with the direction of movement of the fibers through the shaft, and blades extend radially from the perforated portion of the shaft. When the rotates at high velocity under the influence of the vacuum it produces the unusual spun yarns.

Growing community of inventors

Clarksville, VA, United States of America

Elbert F Morrison