HEDDLE FRAME WITH MULTI-DIRECTIONAL ADJUSTABLE BRACE
A heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles comprises a top rail separate from a bottom rail Each of the rails defines a front wall and a rear wall opposed to the front wall A carrying flange extends from the front wall of the top rail and toward the bottom rail Each of the rails carries a heddle bar disposed toward the back of the respective rail, and the top heddle bar is connected to the carrying flange The top rail defines a first cut out portion extending through a section of the carrying flange The heddle frame further includes at least one intermediate brace extending between the top rail and the bottom rail at a position aligned with the first cut out portion and configured for assisting in maintaining parallelism of the top and bottom rails.
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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTN/A
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention pertains to heddle frames for looms and in particular to heddle frames with adjustable intermediate braces for such heddle frames.
Intermediate braces for heddle frames are known. U.S. Pat. No. 4,349,052 to Yaji discloses a frame structure 10 with an intermediate stay 21 that is attached to the upper frame stave 12 by a threaded bolt 75 and nut 73 arrangement and attached to the bottom crosspiece by a connector bar 77 (FIGS. 12 and 13) fitting into a connector groove 80 on opposite sides of a hole 79. In this way, the intermediate stay 21 can be secured to the upper frame stave 12 via the threaded bolt 75, thereby avoiding the need for the person maintaining the frame to have access to the lower frame stave 13. This is advantageous because beneath the frames 10 in these types of looms there typically is trash as well as moving mechanical mechanisms that make it difficult for a person maintaining the frame 10 to access the lower frame stave 13 for purposes of turning a threaded bolt for example as is required from the upper frame stave 12 such as shown in FIG. 11.
An arrangement whereby a single bolt 28 is threaded through both the top rail 14 and the bottom rail 16 is shown in FIG. 1 of commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,399 to Kramer, which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference for all purposes. Another arrangement with a center brace 28 having a center portion 29 extending between a top rail 14 and a bottom rail 16 of a heddle frame 10 is shown in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,630,448 to Faase, which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference for all purposes. An arrangement that is adjustable side-to-side is shown in FIG. 5 of commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,147 to King et al, which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference for all purposes. The side-to-side movement is accommodated by providing elongated slots 66, 68 through rigid intermediate walls 88, 90 of the top rail 14. Commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,916 to Faase et al, which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference for all purposes, describes a heddle frame 10 with a drop-through bolted center brace 20 that may be located in alternative positions within the heddle frame.
Published U.S. Patent Application No. 2006/0090809 to Fumex discloses a heddle frame 2 with a plurality of intermediate braces 10 disposed between the cross-rails 4 and 4′ and arranged to clamp on opposite sides of the projections 45 and 46 on the inside faces of the partitions 42 and 43 of each cross-rail 4, 4′. However, as shown in FIG. 4, the heddles 6 mounted on the bar 5 cannot slide past the flattened portion 114 of the rod 11 of the intermediate brace 10. Additionally, the side-to-side adjustability of the intermediate braces 10 requires machining of the internal webs 49 (FIGS. 2 and 3), which requires additional machining operations, the result of which tends to increase the cost of manufacture and weaken the structural integrity of the cross-rails 4, 4′.
BRIEF OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIt is an object of the present invention to provide a heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising one or more intermediate braces wherein each intermediate brace is configured to permit the heddles (without yarn) to be moved past each installed intermediate brace.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising one or more intermediate braces wherein each intermediate brace is configured to be infinitely adjustable from left to right within the length of the locking clamp block of the intermediate brace.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising one or more intermediate braces wherein each intermediate brace is configured with an integral key that functions to retain the desired alignment of the intermediate brace and prevents turning of the intermediate brace.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising a pair of opposed profiles, one or more intermediate braces installed between the profiles, a pocket cutout defined in at least one of the profiles and a selectively removable stop block wherein such configuration makes it convenient to install an intermediate brace in the heddle frame and/or retain an intermediate brace in the heddle frame and/or position an intermediate brace in the heddle frame and/or remove an intermediate brace in the heddle frame.
It also is an object of the present invention to provide a heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising a pair of opposed profiles and one or more intermediate braces installed between the profiles, wherein the manufacturing costs are less because they are configured without elongated bolt holes for securing each intermediate brace in a manner that renders such brace moveable left to right within the heddle frame.
These objects and additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations described herein both in text and/or drawings and/or particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate at least one presently preferred embodiment of the invention as well as some alternative embodiments. These drawings, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention but by no means are intended to be exhaustive of all of the possible manifestations of the invention.
Reference now will be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, several examples of which being illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, which is not restricted to the specifics of the examples. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment, can be used on another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. The same numerals are assigned to the same components throughout the drawings and description.
A presently preferred embodiment of a heddle frame in accordance with the present invention is shown in
As schematically shown in
As shown in
The heddle frame 10 carries a plurality of heddles 14, the lengths of which extending vertically between the top rail 11 and the bottom rail 12 and thus generally transversely to the frame 10. As shown in
In the illustrative embodiment discussed herein, for purposes of simplifying the discussion, it is assumed that the top rail 11 and the bottom rail 12 are configured identically. However, when a top rail 11 and a bottom rail 12 are connected to form a heddle frame 10, they are oriented such that the top rail's longitudinal edge nearest the heddle bar 19 is facing toward the bottom rail's longitudinal edge nearest the heddle bar 19. Thus, the heddle bar 19 of each rail 11, 12 is oriented to face toward the interior of the heddle frame 10. Accordingly, since the top rail 11 and the bottom rail 12 are configured identically, then for the sake of brevity, only the construction of an embodiment of a top rail 11 will be described in detail.
A section of an embodiment of a top rail 11 is shown in
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In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
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In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
When considering the relative distances in the vertical direction in the front wall 21 and the rear wall 22 by which the first cut out portion 31 stops short of reaching the penultimate bottom internal web 25d, the first cut out portion 31 can be said to define a so-called shallow pocket 31, and the second cut out portion 32 disposed alongside the shallow pocket can be said to define a so-called deep pocket 32. In the embodiment shown in
In accordance with the present invention, at least one intermediate brace 15 is configured to assist in maintaining parallelism of the top rail 11 and the bottom rail 12. As shown in
As shown in
The locking clamp block 16 on one end of the intermediate brace 15 is configured to be connected to the top rail 11, while the locking clamp block 16 on the opposite end of the intermediate brace 15 is configured to be connected to the bottom rail 12. The manner in which the intermediate brace 15 is connected to each of the top and bottom rails 11, 12 desirably can involve the same kinds of components, and accordingly, for purposes of brevity, the following discussion will describe only the manner of connecting an intermediate brace 15 with the top rail 11.
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In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the keyed portion of the top pin and the entrance slot and chamber of the locking clamp block are configured in a complementary manner so that they are selectively, slideably disposable with respect to one another so as to selectively attach the top rail and the intermediate brace. As shown in
As shown in
In the embodiment shown in
When the head portion 35a of the top pin 35 is anchored to the top rail 11 by a washer 36 and a threaded nut 37 as schematically shown in
The deep pocket 32 can extend from the bottommost edge of the front wall 21 of the top rail 11 to the penultimate bottom internal web 25e of the top rail 11. The difference in depth between the deep pocket 32 and the shallow pocket 31 is attributed to the skirt flange portions 31a that extend vertically downwardly and away from the penultimate lower web 25d. These two skirt flange portions 31a and the penultimate lower web 25d define a groove 31c within which are received the flanges 16c that define the slot 17 in the locking clamp block 16 that is to be connected to the keyed portion 35d end of the top pin 35. As shown in
As shown in
In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the heddles 14 that are carried by the heddle frame 10 are free to move in the longitudinal direction 42 past the intermediate braces 15. This is accomplished because of the manner of connecting the intermediate braces 15 to the top rail 11 and the bottom rail 12 as well as the configuration of the intermediate brace 15 and the location of the intermediate brace 15 in front of the heddle bar 19. As shown in
The present invention is particularly applicable for heddle frames that have so-called thin profiles. The relevant measurement that determines whether a frame is a thin profile frame is called the pitch. The pitch of a heddle frame is measured in the direction of the arrow beneath the legend TO REED in
A typical heddle frame has a length (measured from left to right across the page in
As noted above, the configuration of the bottom rail 12 is merely the mirror image of the configuration of the top rail 11 described above. Thus, the bottom rail 12 would be connected to the opposite end of the intermediate brace 15 via a bottom pin 45 that was similarly configured to the top pin 35 described above. However, it is contemplated that differently configured locking clamp blocks 16 might be attached to each of the opposite ends of the intermediate brace 15. In such situations, the manner of connecting the respective second free end of each respective top pin 35 or bottom pin 45 would need to be configured in a complementary manner to interact with whatever configuration was presented by the locking clamp block to which the top or bottom connecting pin was to be connected.
Another alternative embodiment of the locking clamp block and associated brace and pin are shown in
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In this embodiment of
Another alternative embodiment of the locking clamp block is shown in
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Additionally, in the embodiment shown in
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Another alternative embodiment of the locking clamp block is shown in
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Another alternative embodiment of the locking clamp block is illustrated in
The second free end of each of the twin top pins 635, 635 is provided with a threaded tip 635d that is screwed into a separate threaded opening 616e that is defined in the second flat connector plate 616d. The bottom connector plate 616d has a recess 616c with a depth sufficient to receive therein the paddle member 15b. Each of the twin top pins 635 is threaded into a respective one of the threaded openings 616e in this bottom connector plate 616d. The recess 616c in this bottom connector plate 616d is longer in the longitudinal direction than the width of the paddle portion 15b of the intermediate brace 15 is wide in the same longitudinal direction. This relatively larger sizing of the recess 616c permits movement of the intermediate brace 15 with respect to the twin pins 635 to a certain extent to either side in the longitudinal direction indicated by the double-headed arrow 42 when the twin pins 635 are threaded into the bottom connector plate 616d. The
While several presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been described using specific terms, such descriptions are for illustrative purposes only, and it is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the following claims.
Claims
1. A heddle frame for supporting a plurality of heddles, comprising:
- a top rail extending longitudinally relative said frame and defining opposed top rail ends thereof, the top rail defining a front wall and a rear wall opposed to said front wall of said top rail;
- a top heddle bar configured for slidably carrying the plurality of heddles, said top heddle bar being carried by said top rail and disposed toward said back of said top rail;
- a bottom rail extending longitudinally relative said frame and parallel to said top rail and defining opposed bottom rail ends thereof, the bottom rail defining a front wall and a rear wall opposed to said front wall of said bottom rail;
- a bottom heddle bar configured for slidably carrying the plurality of heddles, said bottom heddle bar being carried by said bottom rail and disposed toward said back of said bottom rail;
- a first end member connecting a first top rail end of said top rail to a first bottom rail end of said bottom rail so as to form part of a generally rectangular frame structure therewith;
- a second end member connecting a second top rail end of said top rail to a second bottom rail end of said bottom rail so as to form part of a generally rectangular frame structure therewith;
- a carrying flange extending from said front wall of said top rail and toward said bottom rail, said top heddle bar being connected to said carrying flange;
- said top rail defines a first cut out portion extending through a section of said carrying flange; and
- at least one intermediate brace extending between said top rail and said bottom rail at a position aligned with said first cut out portion and configured for assisting in maintaining parallelism of said top and bottom rails, said intermediate brace having a first end connected to said top rail, said intermediate brace having a second end connected to said bottom rail.
2. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein said intermediate brace is configured to permit the heddles unimpeded longitudinal movement past said intermediate brace.
3. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein said first end of said intermediate brace is disposed between said top heddle bar and said front of said top rail.
4. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein at least one end of said intermediate brace is configured with a transition region having a ninety degree twist to permit heddles unimpeded longitudinal movement past said intermediate brace.
5. A heddle frame as in claim 4, wherein:
- said intermediate brace defines a rigid elongated rod having a main body portion defining a relatively narrow front edge and a pair of opposed, relatively wider side surfaces, said intermediate brace further defining on each opposite end thereof, a relatively flattened, thin-profiled paddle portion, each paddle portion defining a relatively wide rear surface and relatively wide front surface disposed opposite said rear surface, each said paddle portion defining relatively narrow side edges, each said main body portion of the intermediate brace extending generally to a transition portion that tapers from narrow to wide when moving in the direction away from the end of the main body portion and toward each respective paddle portion.
6. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein the pitch of the generally rectangular frame structure is no more than 20 millimeters.
7. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein the pitch of the generally rectangular frame structure is no more than 12 millimeters.
8. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein said intermediate brace is configured so as to be selectively, detachably connected to said top rail.
9. A heddle frame as in claim 1, further comprising:
- a locking clamp block selectively, detachably attached to said top rail and said intermediate brace to connect said intermediate brace to said top rail, said clamp block defining a first section and a second section, said second section of said clamp block defining a chamber internally thereof, said first section defining an entrance slot communicating with said chamber;
- a top pin defining a first free end and a second free end opposite said first free end, said top pin defining a head on said first free end thereof and a keyed section on said second free end thereof, said keyed section being configured to be received in said entrance slot and said chamber and slideably disposed in said entrance slot and said chamber, said keyed section defining a tip configured to be slideably disposed in said chamber and incapable of passing through said entrance slot so as to selectively, slideably connect said top pin to said locking clamp block and said intermediate brace.
10. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein said first end of said intermediate brace being non-rotatably connected to said top rail.
11. A heddle frame as in claim 10, wherein:
- said top rail defines a hollow extrusion between said front and rear walls, said hollow extrusion having a plurality of internal webs that extend between the front wall and the rear wall, one of said internal webs defining a top-most web, one of said internal webs defining a bottom-most web and another of said internal webs defining a penultimate web, said bottom-most web being said internal web disposed nearest to said penultimate web and farthest from said top-most web; and
- said first cut out portion in said top rail extending through said bottom-most internal web and defining a relatively shallow pocket between said bottom-most internal web and said penultimate internal web, said first cut out portion defining a pair of opposed skirt flange portions extending beneath said penultimate internal web, said pair of opposed skirt flange portions and the penultimate internal web defining a groove therebetween.
12. A heddle frame as in claim 11, further comprising:
- a locking clamp block being configured to selectively, detachably connect said top rail and said intermediate brace, said locking clamp block defining a first section and a second section, said first section of said locking clamp block defining a pair of opposed flanges, said flanges of said first section of said locking clamp block being configured to be selectively received non-rotatably in said groove of said shallow pocket.
13. A heddle frame as in claim 12, wherein:
- each flange of said locking clamp block having an interior-facing surface, said interior-facing surfaces defining an entrance slot, said locking clamp block further defining a chamber internally thereof, said chamber communicating with said entrance slot.
14. A heddle frame as in claim 13, further comprising:
- a top pin having a first free end and a second free end disposed opposite said first free end, said first free end of said top pin defining a head, said second free end defining a keyed section, said keyed section being configured to be received in said entrance slot and said chamber and slideably disposed in said entrance slot and said chamber, said keyed section defining a tip configured to be slideably disposed in said chamber and incapable of passing through said entrance slot so as to selectively, slideably connect said top pin to said locking clamp block.
15. A heddle frame as in claim 12, further comprising:
- a sealing block connected to the top rail; and
- wherein said top rail defines a second cut out portion extending through a second section of said carrying flange, said second cut out portion being disposed in communication with said first cut out portion, said sealing block being received by said second cut out portion.
16. A heddle frame as in claim 1, wherein said second end of said intermediate brace being disposed between said bottom heddle bar and said front of said bottom rail.
17. A heddle frame as in claim 9, wherein:
- said top rail defines a hollow extrusion between said front and rear walls, said hollow extrusion having a plurality of internal webs that extend between the front wall and the rear wall, one of said internal webs defining a top-most web, one of said internal webs defining a bottom-most web and another of said internal webs defining a penultimate web, said bottom-most web being said internal web disposed nearest to said penultimate web and farthest from said top-most web, each said internal web defining a hole through said web and each said hole through said internal web being aligned with each other said hole through each said other internal web, each said hole through said internal web being configured to allow the passage therethrough of said top pin, said head of said top pin being detachably connected to said top-most web of said top rail.
18. A heddle frame as in claim 10, wherein:
- said top rail defines a hollow extrusion between said front and rear walls, said hollow extrusion having a plurality of internal webs that extend between the front wall and the rear wall, one of said internal webs defining a top-most web, one of said internal webs defining a bottom-most web and another of said internal webs defining a penultimate web, said bottom-most web being said internal web disposed nearest to said penultimate web and farthest from said top-most web;
- each said internal web defining a first hole through each said internal web, each said first hole through said internal web being aligned with each other said first hole through each other said internal web; and
- each said internal web defining a second hole through each said internal web, each said second hole through each said internal web being aligned with each other said second hole through each other said internal web.
19. A heddle frame as in claim 18, further comprising:
- a locking clamp block connected to one end of said intermediate brace, said intermediate brace defining a rigid elongated rod having a main body portion defining a relatively narrow front edge and a pair of opposed, relatively wider side surfaces, said intermediate brace further defining on each opposite end thereof, a relatively flattened, thin-profiled paddle portion, each paddle portion defining a relatively wide rear surface and relatively wide front surface disposed opposite said rear surface, each said paddle portion defining relatively narrow side edges, each said main body portion of the intermediate brace extending generally to a transition portion that tapers from narrow to wide when moving in the direction away from the end of the main body portion and toward each respective paddle portion; and
- said locking clamp block defining a top plate and a connector plate, the top plate being fixed to the end of the paddle portion of the intermediate brace, the top plate having opposed end portions, near each of the opposed end portions of the top plate is defined an elongated slot that elongates in the longitudinal direction, the connector plate is connected to at least one of the side surfaces of the paddle member of the intermediate brace, the connector plate defines a threaded opening near each opposite end of the connector plate.
20. A heddle frame as in claim 19, further comprising:
- a first top pin having a first free end and a second free end disposed opposite said first free end, said first top pin being disposed through said aligned first holes that are defined in the internal webs of the top rail, said first free end of said first top pin defining a head that is selectively, detachably connected to the top rail, said second free end of said first top pin defining a threaded tip that is selectively, detachably screwed into one of said separate threaded openings that is defined in the connector plate so as to selectively connect said first top pin to said locking clamp block and said intermediate brace; and
- a second top pin having a first free end and a second free end disposed opposite said first free end, said second top pin being disposed through said aligned second holes that are defined in the internal webs of the top rail, said first free end of said second top pin defining a head that is selectively, detachably connected to the top rail, said second free end of said second top pin defining a threaded tip that is selectively, detachably screwed into the other one of said separate threaded openings that is defined in the connector plate so as to selectively connect said second top pin to said locking clamp block and said intermediate brace.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 16, 2008
Publication Date: Jan 21, 2010
Applicant: GTP GREENVILLE, INC. (Greenville, SC)
Inventors: Thomas A. Korbutt (Bluffton, SC), Ronald L. Perschall (Greer, SC), Charles F. Kramer (Greenville, SC)
Application Number: 12/295,399
International Classification: D03C 9/06 (20060101);