Abstract: A tufting needle construction in which the mounting shank is offset from the axis of the blade and the yarn guide groove which extends to the eye and point portion of the needle. The yarn guide groove extends from a yarn entry mouth spaced from the shank so that yarn entering the groove from the mouth lies entirely within the groove and does not feed into the groove at an angle. Accordingly, when the needle pierces a backing material during the tufting process, the yarn is not crushed between the blade and the backing material. In one embodiment the shank is perpendicular to the blade. In another embodiment the shank has a first portion perpendicular to the blade and another portion parallel to the blade.

Abstract: A water treatment tank for use with water purification apparatus including an ultra-violet lamp within a bulb onto which incoming water is directed to provide a 360 degree thin laminar flow about the bulb so that all of the incoming water receives the ultra-violet rays even when water is dispensed in a fast refill fashion. The tank may have two compartments, one above the other, formed by a separating baffle. The lower compartment has cooling coils about the walls for cooling the water therein relative to the water in the upper compartment. The ultra-violet lamp and a bulb extends through both compartments and the baffle to purify the water. Each compartment communicates through a conduit to a respective dispensing faucet of the water purification apparatus. The conduit from the upper compartment is a transparent tube formed from polytetrafluorethylene so that the ultra-violet rays act on water within the tube.

Abstract: A tufting machine has a head, including a plurality of push rods reciprocably driven through push rod seals having a housing connected to the head of the tufting machine. The push rod seals include a driver connected to and moveable relative to the housing, a stack of oil seals is located between the driver and a ledge within the housing. A pressure bearing is located between the oil seals and the housing and the driver respectively. The push rod seal system allows for reciprocatory movement of the push rods therethrough while preventing oil leakage past a reciprocating push rod.

Abstract: An individually controlled needle tufting machine has a reciprocable latch bar for latching and unlatching selective needle holders, each needle holder being guided between a pair of guide plates and carrying a respective needle so that each needle selectively may be driven by the latch bar. The guide plates each include a plurality of curvilinear ridges and the edges of the needle holder are curvilinear and are received within a respective spaced apart pair of ridges within which they are guided as the needle holder reciprocates. The plates include vertically spaced apart inserts within which the ridges are formed. The needle holder has a yarn clamp mounted internally adjacent the bottom and a leaf spring has a leg mounted externally of the holder and has a leg entering internally to act upon and urge the yarn clamp.