Spencer Wright Industries, Inc.

Tuftco Corporation

Tapistron International, Inc.

Other

The Singer Company

Textile Corporation of America

Gary L Ingram

Jerry T Green

George Leonard Caylor

Ian Slattery

Steven L Frost

Jimmie D Scott

Randel P Smith

Paul E Jolley

Kevin C Parks

Edward J Harshman

A hollow needle tufting apparatus is provided with swivel mounted knives and an improved needle design directed to improve cutting efficiency and the life of the hollow needles and associated knives.

Hollow needle cutting apparatus

A yarn tensioning apparatus is supplied with a yarn clamping position and a positive yarn engaging position to precisely meter yarns to tufting machine needles and especially to more uniformly advance pneumatically supplied yarns to hollow needles.

Yarn tensioning mechanism

A narrow gauge hollow needle tufting apparatus is provided with longitudinally aligned yarn feed openings, longitudinal funnel slots, self aligning hollow needles, and a castellated backing support bar.

Narrow gauge hollow needle tufting apparatus

A portable toilet comprises two sets of leg members connected at a joint at top ends of the leg members. The legs preferably pivot between a closed configuration wherein the legs are substantially parallel to an open position where the legs are spaced apart at one end and joined at the pivot at the top ends. Seat members are supported by the legs in a spaced apart and parallel relationship. In some embodiments, the seat members are removable to assist in portage of the toilet.

Portable toilet

Lateral pins () are used to provide a tufting machine modular gauge assembly that allows damaged or broken gauge elements () to be replaced individually. The modular gauge assembly consists of a gauge bar () with a plurality of modular blocks () removably attached to the bar. The modular blocks are six sided with a detent () and fastener mechanism () for attaching the block to the gauge bar. The gauge elements may be attached to the block by dedicated screw-pins () or by a lateral pin () that passes through all the gauge elements within a block. The lateral pin may either pierce the gauge elements (at) or abut the gauge elements. Abutting pins may be malleable and segmented and secured in position by set screws.

Modular gauge block assembly with secure lateral pins

A needle plate module is provided with fingers having a bent portion received in a lateral channel portion enabling standard screw sizes to the fingers into the module over a wide range of finger gauge spacings.

Needle plate modules

Lateral pins are used to provide a tufting machine modular gauge assembly that allows damaged or broken gauge elements to be replaced individually. The modular gauge assembly consists of a gauge bar with a plurality of modular blocks removably attached to the bar. The modular blocks are six sided with a detent and fastener mechanism for attaching the block to the gauge bar. The gauge elements may be attached to the block by dedicated screw-pins or by a lateral pin that passes through all the gauge elements within a block. The lateral pin may either pierce the gauge elements or abut the gauge elements. Abutting pins may be malleable and segmented and secured in position by conical ended bolts.

Modular block assembly for tufting machine

Apparatus for use in rehabilitation of a patient with a weight bearing restriction on one or both legs includes a pair of vertically movable horizontally elongated platforms and a pair of corresponding vertically fixed platforms. The movable platforms are connected to a mechanism which applies an upwardly directed preselected force so that as the patient walks with a foot on the movable platform, the movable platform will descend if the patient places a greater weight corresponding to the preselected force. A patient may walk with both feet on movable platforms in which case the weights may be selected for each platform or the patient may walk with one foot on the movable platform and one foot on a fixed platform. The platforms move in a vertical plane arcuately in one embodiment and in a vertical plane linearly in a second embodiment. The weights may be moved relatively to the pivot point and, in addition, the movable platform may be locked in its upward position in this latter embodiment.

Rehabilitation apparatus

A method for producing tufted fabric in a hollow needle tufting machine having transversely spaced apart needles including apparatus for shifting a backing material into which the tufts are inserted by the needles. The backing material is fed continuously in the feed direction longitudinally through the machine and is fed a number of steps laterally between adjacent needles and penetrated by the needles after each shift. The sequencing of the shifting and the feeding of the backing is such as to provide a row of tufts in the backing material along a line inclined relative to the direction the backing material is fed to the machine. The nominal number of tufts inserted between lateral ends of each row of tufts is equal to the spacing between adjacent needles divided by the selected stitch gauge. The sequencing of the shifting is such that certain rows of tufts have a number of tufts equal to the nominal number while alternate rows have more than the nominal number of tufts so that the lines of tufts have ends transversely offset relative to the adjacent lines of tufts. The sequencing additionally is such that the rows of tufts produced by each needle forms a chevron pattern which is repeated periodically. In this manner streak lines between adjacent needles are substantially eliminated.

Fabric produced by hollow needle tufting apparatus

Fabric shift sequencing for pattern producing hollow needle tufting

Tufting apparatus for producing textile goods includes a plurality of hollow needles which are reciprocated vertically to penetrate a backing. A selected yarn is fed pneumatically through a respective passageway into a yarn exchanger and through a respective needle and implanted into the backing, the backing being shifted transversely so that a transverse row of tufts is implanted across the backing. There are a series of passageways, each carrying a different yarn, communicating with each yarn exchanger. The selected yarn is fed by a yarn feed system and carried by high pressure air flowing in the passageway of the selected yarn, the yarn exchanger and the needle, while air flows in the other passageways under a lower pressure. The yarn exchanger has a funnel shape configuration and when a particular yarn is selected to be fed to the needle, another yarn is withdrawn from the needle to the inlet of the funnel. In order to prevent tangling of yarn within the funnel to preclude clogging at the inlet of the nozzle, an air jet is supplied within the funnel directed toward the inlet of the needle, the air jet being a nozzle positioned within the funnel.

Hollow needle tufting apparatus for producing patterned fabric

Tufting apparatus for producing textile goods includes a plurality of hollow needles which are reciprocated vertically to penetrate a backing. Yarn is fed pneumatically through the needles and implanted into the backing, the backing being shifted transversely by an amount corresponding to the space between adjacent needles so as to implant a transverse row across the backing. A knife blade is associated with each needle and positioned on the opposite side of the backing from a presser foot. The knife blade engages a point forming flat angled surface of the needle, the angled surface being formed with an upwardly and inwardly extending slot which serves to capture and center yarn exiting the needle and provides a sharp edge which cooperates with the knife blade for cutting the yarn. The presser foot includes a conduit disposed for blowing air under pressure toward the needle penetration opening to blow the limb of yarn severed from the needle down into the backing so that not only is the backing prevented from lifting when the needle is withdrawn, but the air acts to prevent the backstitch from standing up above the backing by reducing excess yarn as a result of the slot in the needle.

Presser foot for hollow needle tufting apparatus

Apparatus for producing tufted textile goods employs a plurality of hollow needles which serve as backing openers, the backing openers being carried on a widthwise extending member which is reciprocated in a vertical direction to cause the backing openers to penetrate a backing. Yarn is transported pneumatically through the backing openers and implanted into the backings as yarn tufts, the backing being shifted in the transverse direction by an amount corresponding to the spacing between adjacent backing openers in order to implant a transverse row of tufts. Each yarn is trained about a feed roller which is selectively moved into peripheral engagement with a drive roller when the yarn is to be fed to the needle. The yarn transverses a path from the feed roller to the needle which includes a yarn clamp and a yarn pullback mechanism. When yarn is being fed the clamp is released and the pullback mechanism provides a first path for the yarn to travel to the needle, but when that yarn is no longer to be fed to that needle, but when that yarn is no longer to be fed to that needle, the clamp is actuated to clamp the yarn and the pullback mechanism thereafter draws the yarn back from the needle into a second and longer path, and the feed roller is disengaged from the drive roller. A knife blade is associated with each backing opener and positioned on the opposite side of the backing so as to engage the flat angled surface of the backing opener which forms its pointed tip.

Apparatus for producing tufted goods using yarns of different color or

Apparatus for producing tufted textile goods employs a plurality of hollow needles which serve as backing openers, the backing openers being carried on a widthwise extending member which is reciprocated in a vertical direction to cause the backing openers to penetrate a backing. Yarn is transported pneumatically through the backing openers and implanted into the backing as yarn turfts, and backing being shifted in the transverse direction by an amount corresponding to the spacing between adjacent backing openers in order to implant a transverse row of tufts. A knife blade is associated with each backing opener and positioned on the opposite side of the backing so as to engage the flat angled surface of the backing opener which forms its pointed tip. The angled surface is formed with an upwardly and inwardly extending slot which serves to capture and center yarn exiting the opening in the angle surface, and which provides a sharp edge which cooperates with the blade for cutting the yarn. The cutting mechanism results in little or no wasted yarn.

Tufting apparatus

A tufting machine has apparatus for feeding the backing material at a first speed for forming tufts having a backstitch of a first length and periodically selectively increasing the feeding rate to a second speed to form tufts having a backstitch of an increased length. The longer backstitch may be a plurality of stitches slightly longer than the first length or a single elongated backstitch. The fabric produced may have a series of tufts projecting from the surface of the backing material in areas having one or more yarn densities and separated by gaps where no tufts project above the surface, the gaps resulting from the elongated backstitches on the reverse side of the material. The apparatus for providing backstitches including the gaps has an intermittent drive which provides an output only during a small portion of the input. A drive shaft is drivingly connected to the feed rollers of the tufting machine and is connected to the input of the intermittent drive through a first one-way clutch and through a second one-way clutch to a driveable member on a control shaft driven by the output of the intermittent clutch. A pattern controlled air operated tooth clutch selectively couples the driveable member to the control shaft. Another pattern controlled air clutch may be utilized to drive the control shaft for providing backstitches slightly longer than the first length.

Growing community of inventors

Ooltewah, TN, United States of America

Gary L Ingram