Patents Assigned to Platt Saco Lowell
  • Patent number: 4236319
    Abstract: In a sizing process for a warp sheet of yarns, a drying chamber has an upper first region, substantially void of a drying medium, and a second region containing the drying medium. A transversable warp splitting device is provided in the chamber which is traversable from the first region, where a plurality of splitting bars can be inserted through the warp sheet so as to split it into sheets of lesser density, to a second region, where the warp sheet is acted upon by the drying medium.A cooling medium is provided between the first and second regions so as to prevent migration of the drying medium from the second region to the first region.The splitting device comprises a carriage driven for movement along a track which extends in a downwardly inclined direction from the first region to the second region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 2, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Keith R. Gillespy
  • Patent number: 4229285
    Abstract: In the opening and cleaning of fibrous materials apparatus is provided which includes a plurality of rotatable beaters within a housing, curved under grids beneath each rotatable beater, baffle plates above and between the beaters, a perforated screen positioned above and adjacent the beaters and a suction hood positioned over and embracing the whole upper surface of the perforated screen. The screen is inclined to the horizontal and the apparatus includes a suction duct extending across the lowermost edge for withdrawing air from an inlet slot along the opposite edge to create an air stream flowing over the whole surface of the screen such that dust and unusable fibres passing through the screen are carried away to a waste extraction duct.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 1978
    Date of Patent: October 21, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Gerald Wild
  • Patent number: 4228642
    Abstract: In a controlled stopping procedure for an open-end spinning machine the fibre feed roller and the yarn delivery rollers decelerate in synchronism. A detector senses a predetermined speed of the yarn delivery rollers after a period of time from starting the deceleration and initiates the stopping of the fibre feed roller. After a further period of time, determined by time delay means, the decelerating yarn delivery rollers are braked. Preferably the yarn delivery rollers have come almost to rest when they are braked.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 1978
    Date of Patent: October 21, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: John Dakin, Dennis O'Donnell, Christopher J. Copple
  • Patent number: 4221110
    Abstract: The invention relates to apparatus for piecing-up yarn on an open-end spinning machine.A yarn reserve forming member is movable between an extended position, in which it constrains the yarn to follow a prescribed reserve yarn path, and a retracted position, in which the yarn follows another prescribed and shortened path and the end of yarn and its length, which is the difference between the lengths of said prescribed paths, is permitted to return to the spinning means to contact fibres fed thereto.To achieve efficient piecing-up, the yarn moves between such prescribed pathways from one to the other under control of the reserve forming member while the reserve yarn path is in a sense depleted and the yarn is caused by yarn insertion means to be inserted in the delivery roller nip at a predetermined position in the course of movement by the reserve forming member when the latter moves to the retracted position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 1978
    Date of Patent: September 9, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Alan Smith
  • Patent number: 4219998
    Abstract: An apparatus for twisting a fibre strand to have repeated along its length alternating zones of opposite twist comprises a fluid vortex device having two fluid inlets and a valve controlling fluid flow to the inlets. The valve comprises a hollow cylindrical rotatable valve member and a sleeve having a number of outlet ports surrounding the member. Fluid supplied to the hollow member is distributed to the outlet ports by rotation of the member. Plastics dry bearings between the member and the sleeve act to prevent improper flow of air along the abutting surfaces. The vortex device comprises a member formed with a bore, the bore having a wide port into which the fluid is injected through the inlets and a restricted port forming a venturi of diameter of the order twice that of the yarn. A plug through which the yarn passes at the end of the bore remote from the venturi inhibits escape of air from that end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 1978
    Date of Patent: September 2, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: William M. Farnhill
  • Patent number: 4206589
    Abstract: A method of forming a self-twisted fibrous structure comprises twisting two strands of similar count such that each has repeated along its length alternating zones of opposite twist, converging the strands at a convergence point such that they partly untwist around one another to form a self-twisted structure and acting on the strands at or downstream of the convergence point by applying further alternating zones of opposite twist so as to modify the strand to ply twist ratio of the structure. The further twist is applied at a point not greater than one half cycle length from the first twist point and at a phase difference 20.degree. to 60.degree. following.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 1978
    Date of Patent: June 10, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: John J. Markey, William M. Farnhill
  • Patent number: 4204391
    Abstract: A frame construction for an open-end spinning machine includes an elongate plate extending along one side of the machine for supporting a first series of spinning unit housings and an elongate plate extending along the other side of the machine for supporting a second series of spinning unit housings. The plates are interconnected by transverse cross-members, which, preferably, do not project beyond the upper and lower extremities of the plates. Apertures equally spaced along the plates serve to receive and support the spinning unit housings.The plates are provided along their upper extremities with inwardly projecting flanges which abut against the cross-members so as to locate the plates.Preferably, the driving elements for the spinning elements supported by the spinning unit housings, and the suction ducts serving to provide vacuum at each of the spinning units are located between and within the upper and lower extremities of the plates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 1978
    Date of Patent: May 27, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: James W. B. Clayton, Douglas O. Clough
  • Patent number: 4199844
    Abstract: The draft imparted to sliver during regular operation of a sliver drafting apparatus is correctively varied in proportion to uniformity variations then detected in the sliver. During at least part of each period of start-up of the apparatus, the sliver is subjected to a prescribed correction draft approximately equal to an average of the draft corrections applied to the sliver over a relatively long time interval during the last-ensuing regular operation of the apparatus. During that initial part of each start-up period required for the apparatus to accelerate to substantially full operating speed, the prescribed correction draft is either not applied or, alternatively, is scaled in proportion to the speed of the apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 1978
    Date of Patent: April 29, 1980
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: David J. Goetzinger
  • Patent number: 4179773
    Abstract: In combination with a sliver coiler and can changer apparatus, a sliver compactor and severing device is provided which concurrently compacts coiled sliver and separates, parts or severs through attenuation the ultimate strand portion extending between the filled sliver can and the coiler.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 25, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Richard J. Savageau
  • Patent number: 4170102
    Abstract: A rotor for an open end yarn spinner is disclosed having a depending boss with a bore therethrough for interference fit with a supporting shaft, wherein the boss is formed with an annular concave recess proximal its juncture with the base of the cup portion of the rotor and its lower cup wall. Flexural distortion at high rotational speeds of from 45,000 to 60,000 or more r.p.m. occurs primarily at the area of the recess and is minimized at the region of interference fit such that the grip on the supporting shaft is not substantially loosened and the rotor mounted thereon is not shifted or dislodged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 1978
    Date of Patent: October 9, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: John Whiteley
  • Patent number: 4169348
    Abstract: A fibre opening apparatus for an open-end spinning machine includes a housing provided with a recess in which is mounted for rotation a fibre opening roller. The peripheral surface of the opening roller co-operates with a fibre locating surface defined by the recess to form a fibre-conveying passage. The tips of each of a plurality of needles protruding from the peripheral surface terminates in an imaginary cylindrical surface and at equal distances from the fibre locating surface. The generatrix of the peripheral surface is concave.Preferably, the opening roller has lateral side flanges and the generatrix is formed by an arc extending between the inner surfaces of the flanges and derived from a common radius. The chord of the arc may be co-incident with the generatrix of the imaginary cylindrical surface.The generatrix of the peripheral surface may be formed by an arcuate central region which is joined to the inner surfaces by arcuate side regions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 1978
    Date of Patent: October 2, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Reginald M. Blackburn, deceased
  • Patent number: 4167846
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method of manufacture of a rotor for the open end spinning of staple fibres into yarn which is formed of a steel and has hardened surfaces at its fiber contacting and collecting surfaces, wherein the rotor may be fashioned by machining from a block of steel or formed from sheet steel, then hardening its internal fiber contacting surfaces by induction heating or carburizing or nitriding or carbonitriding at least in the region of the rotor's maximum diameter, then quenching and thereafter stress-relieving the entire rotor. Such method provides a rotor with exceptional properties of wear resistance in the area most prone to abrasive wear which latter otherwise reduces the rotor's useful service life and substantially increases yarn processing costs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 1978
    Date of Patent: September 18, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: Jack Shaw, John Whiteley, Stephen Martin
  • Patent number: 4151706
    Abstract: Disclosed is a plate-like yarn stripper device for use in removing staple fiber yarns from rotatable elements of circular cross-section, such as in the removal of yarn wraps underwound beneath a spindle blade to anchor the yarn threadline in the doffing and donning of cops on a ring spinning frame. The stripper is formed with a central hole defining stripping edges at a surface of the plate, these edges being spaced from the yarn-wound element by a prescribed distance such that when the element is rotated the wound yarn will buffet the edges and be abraded, weakened and cut or otherwise severed in the stripping action. Personnel safety is enhanced in use of the stripper by the absence of peripheral sharp edges, bristles or other abrasive external surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 1978
    Date of Patent: May 1, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Frank E. Brooks
  • Patent number: 4146121
    Abstract: In a clutch or brake mechanism of the type comprising two parts in coaxial relationship and an armature co-rotatably coupled with one of the parts and movable under magnetic forces for frictionally engaging the other part, a resilient restoring member for biassing the armature out of engagement with the other part comprises a continuous planar loop having two lobe portions which engage lugs bent from the plane of the armature and interconnecting portions which engage shoulders provided on said one part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 1977
    Date of Patent: March 27, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: David Riley
  • Patent number: 4136835
    Abstract: All control components of the builder mechanism and its pick motion device are concentrically arranged about the builder shaft of a textile machine in such manner that the builder mechanism can readily be removed from the builder shaft as an entity for replacement, inspection, repair or substitution of parts, creating a compact construction of great durability and easy maintenance. Such concentrically disposed components include electromechanical control means for at prescribed times effecting directional reversals and stepped advancements of the points of movement reversals of the builder shaft with a differential gearing assembly which produces incremental angular advancements of switch components about the axis shaft when driven by pick-gear wheel and pick-gear pawl members thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 1978
    Date of Patent: January 30, 1979
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: Frank E. Brooks, Guenther C. Wunderlich
  • Patent number: 4122656
    Abstract: An opening roller for opening fibres fed to an open-end spinning machine has a cylindrical shell outwardly from which protrude a plurality of fibre-engaging teeth, each of which has a coating of wear-resistant ceramics or metallic material applied thereto. The teeth are formed as pointed ends of a plurality of pins passing through the cylindrical shell and the coating applied so as to cover the whole surface of each of the pins.The opening roller is provided with a flange extending from each end of the cylindrical shell and the wear-resistant coating may be applied to each of the protruding tooth portions, the outer surface of the cylindrical shell and the inner surface of the flanges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 1977
    Date of Patent: October 31, 1978
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Jack Shaw
  • Patent number: 4122655
    Abstract: A machine for the open-end spinning of yarns includes a machine frame which supports a plurality of side-by-side spinning units, each including a fibre opening roller and a spinning rotor, the arrangement being such that the rotational axes of the spinning rotors and opening rollers lie in respective first and second planes. The housings are mounted on the machine frame for pivotal movement about an axis transverse to the rotational axis of the spinning rotor and positioned between the first and second planes.A catch for holding against pivotal movement additionally acts to hold a cover extending over the housing in place. A second cover, which may be transparent, lies beneath the first cover and separately covers the opening roller. The supporting brackets for the housings are arranged such that each housing can be readily removed from the machine frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 1977
    Date of Patent: October 31, 1978
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: Gordon C. Anderson, James W. B. Clayton
  • Patent number: 4112662
    Abstract: Apparatus is disclosed for winding an elongate fibrous material, such as a sliver or roving, comprising: package tube mounting means to support first and second package tubes in winding positions in transversely spaced parallel relationship; a material delivery arm for delivering material first to one of the package tubes to form a first package and then to the other of the package tubes to form a second package; drive means for rotating the package tubes for winding on material; the delivery arm being arranged during the building of a package to contact the package at a winding-on point which lies in a plane containing the axes of rotation of the two package tubes and to deliver material at the winding-on point direct to the package under a winding tension localized in the region of the winding-on point by the delivery arm; first traversing means for causing relative traversing movement between each package tube and the delivery arm in the direction of the axis of rotation of the tube for building a parallel
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 1977
    Date of Patent: September 12, 1978
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventors: James Lappage, Neil Doggett, Stephen William Yates
  • Patent number: 4109877
    Abstract: Apparatus is disclosed for winding an elongate fibrous material comprising package tube mounting means to support first and second package tubes in winding positions in transversely spaced parallel relationship, a material delivery arm for delivering material first to one of the package tubes to form a first package and then to the other of the package tubes to form a second package, and variable speed drive means for rotating the package tubes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 1977
    Date of Patent: August 29, 1978
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell
    Inventor: Stephen William Yates
  • Patent number: 4095062
    Abstract: The apparatus is particularly adapted for detecting breakage, run-out or excessive slackening of running sliver strands passing from a creel to the drafting rolls of a textile drafting machine, and includes reed switches which are actuable by movement, into proximity therewith, of magnet-carrying members which normally are maintained distal from the switches by engagement with the sliver strands. The reed switches are protectively mounted and are so located with respect to the magnet-carrying members as to minimize the number of reed switches required for operation of the apparatus. The channelled mounting for the reed switches also provides separating vane guides for the adjacent running strands of sliver, the guide walls having rounded end protuberances to effect better separation; both the guide elements and magnet-carrying members being coated with a smooth plastic to obviate snagging of sliver.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 1976
    Date of Patent: June 13, 1978
    Assignee: Platt Saco Lowell Limited
    Inventor: Richard J. Savageau