Abstract: A flat knitting machine has a blower that is connected to a nozzle via a plastic tube, a base duct and a joint. The base duct is mounted on a rear cover of the flat knitting machine parallel to a needle bed and is rectangular in section. A long slit covered by a belt is provided on top of the base duct. The joint has three rollers, two of which make the belt contact the slit. The third roller peels the belt from the slit to connect the nozzle and the base duct. When the nozzle is connected to the carriage and travels over the needle beds, the needle beds are cleaned.

Abstract: Grooves for receiving a movable loop forming plate are made in both front and back needle beds at the top ends thereof on the trick gap side, and movable loop forming plates are mounted in the grooves. A loop forming edge is provided at the top end of each movable loop forming plate, and the plate is energized by a spring in a direction that the plate moves away from the trick gap, and the plate is made to move forward or backward by a movable loop forming plate control means, around a fulcrum that is provided on the needle bed in the bottom of the trick gap.

Abstract: A widened loop is formed by using a flat knitting machine which has at least a pair of needle beds and one of the needle beds can be moved sideways. A widening needle is made to be empty, and yarn is fed from one end of the knitting range to a needle short of the widening needle. Next, yarn is not fed to the widening needle but to a needle next to the widening needle. The yarn feeder is reversed and yarn is fed to the widening needle. Then the yarn feeder is reversed again and yarn is fed to a needle next to the needle to which yarn has been fed. According to the method loops 21, 23 on both sides of the widened loop 11 are connected together by a cross-over yarn 25, and the widened loop 11 is held by a loop 13 of the previous course. Therefore it will not be pulled up. Because of these arrangements, an open gap will be hardly generated around the widened loop 11.

Abstract: Each stitch of the last course of a front knitted fabric of a tubular knitted fabric is overlapped with a stitch, one stitch interior, of an immediately preceding course of the front knitted fabric. Each stitch of the last course of a back knitted fabric is overlapped with a stitch, one stitch interior, of an immediately preceding course of the back knitted fabric. Prolongations of each stitch of the last course of the front knitted fabric crosses with prolongations of a stitch of the last course of the back knitted fabric.

Abstract: Compound needles, each comprising a needle proper having a hook at the top end thereof and a slider including two thin plates put together are arranged in a pair of needle beds, and the needle proper and the slider of each compound needle can be moved forward and backward independently of each other. The needle proper of the compound needle of the first bed is moved forward into the trick gap. Then the slider is removed forward further to move the stitch loop from the hood of the needle proper onto the tongue of the slider. Both the hook and tongue of the compound needle of the second bed are inserted into the stitch loop being kept on the tongue of the slider of the first bed. Then the slider of the compound needle of the first bed is moved backward to deliver the stitch loop onto the tongue of the slider of the second bed.

Abstract: A yarn feeding system of a flat knitting machine having needle beds. Each needle bed having a plurality of needles. A plurality of yarn carrier rails extend in parallel to the needle beds in a longitudinal direction of the needle beds. A cam carriage reciprocates over the needle beds while yarn carriers caught/released by a yarn carrier catcher mounted on the cam carriage travels on a yarn carrier rail to feed yarn to the needles of the needle beds. The yarn feeding system has shifting members that extend along and in the longitudinal direction of the yarm carrier rails. A shifter reciprocally shifts the shifting members in the longitudinal direction of the yarn carriers. An engager engages the yarn carriers to the shifting members such that the yarn carriers are disengaged and released from the shifting members when catching and carrying is affected by the catcher.

Abstract: In a broadening course, a yarn feeder of which front and back agree with the front and back of a fabric is used as a preceding yarn feeder, and a yarn feeder of which front and back are reverse is used as the succeeding yarn feeder,(a) the preceding first yarn feeder is used to knit the first fabric, and to newly feed yarn to needles of the opposing needle bed on the lower side of the knitting direction of the course, and to needles of the original needle bed, and(b) the succeeding yarn feeder is used to knit the first fabric, and to feed yarn again to either one of needles to which yarn was newly fed by the first yarn feeder in the above-mentioned step a.

Abstract: Plural carrier rails are arranged radially relative to a trick gap, and yarn carriers are made to run on the rails. In the yarn carrier, a feeder rod is mounted on a yarn rod guide so that the the rod can slide up and down. The feeder rod is pushed up by a spring coil, and the feeder rod is pushed down by a catching member toward the trick gap.

Abstract: When a new yarn is received by a hook to form a new stitch loop, to prevent old stitch loops from going beyond the top end of the slider and being knocked over, the advanced position of the slider into the trick gap is maintained, and the new stitch loops are pulled into the old stitch loops. Next, the hook of a compound needle of the opposing needle bed is inserted into the old stitch loop, and said slider is lowered and retracted, and at the same time, the old stitch loops are transferred onto the hooks of the opposing needle bed to make split knit.

Abstract: The center line of an embroidery region is determined. Starting from one point on the center line, search is made to search for end points and branch points on the center line. At branch points, bisectors for spaces between branches are generated to divide the embroidery region into plural closures. Near the end point, the orientation of the embroidery lines is determined to be perpendicular to the center line. Near the branch point, the orientation of the embroidery lines is determined to be parallel to a line connecting the intersection points of the bisectors and the outline. Embroidery data are obtained by fill operation, and the orientations of the respective embroidery lines are set to interpolate the above-mentioned two orientations. The needle points are determined on the outline. Near the branches, the needle points are determined on a closer side on the outline or said bisector.

Abstract: A compound needle, of which slider and needle body can be moved forward and backward independently of each other, is guided by a cam lock into four routes, knit, tuck, transfer and receiving. As for the slider, the knit route is branched from the tuck route, and branching from the tuck route to the transfer route is made by a movable cam at the center of the cam lock. As for the needle body, the knit route is branched from the tuck route to reach the knit level then joining the tuck route. The transfer route is branched from the knit route and the needle body is retracted to a point between the tuck level and an inactive position, and the receiving route advances the needle body from the center of the cam lock to the tuck level.

Abstract: A tubular knitted fabric is broadened while fully preventing generation of open gap. Yarn is hooked on a needle of a second needle bed and twisted to form a loop, and this loop is transferred onto a first needle bed to become a broadening loop. A subsequent stitch is formed on the broadening loop and transferred back to the second needle bed. Yarn is hooked again on a needle of the second needle bed and twisted to form a loop, and this loop is transferred to the first needle bed to become a broadening loop.

Abstract: In joining fabrics on a flat knitting machine, more specifically joining sleeves to a body, stitch courses are formed on both of the body and the sleeves. A stitch of the edge portion of a sleeve is overlapped with a stitch of the edge portion of the body. Stitch courses are formed on the body and on the edge portions of a sleeve. At least one stitch of the edge portion of the sleeve is overlapped with at least one adjacent stitch of the sleeve. With the decrease in knitting width, when joining the body and sleeve, double stitches are formed in two wales, on the edge portion of the body and on the edge portion of the sleeve.

Abstract: The wale of a collar closest to the body side is transferred from a front body to a back body, then the wale is moved towards the neck hole side. Next, said wale is moved further towards the neck hole side, and a new wale of the collar is transferred onto the needle of the back body before said move. Each wale of the collar that has been transferred is moved towards the neck hole side. In a similar manner all the wales of the collar are transferred.

Abstract: On needle beds, an outer fabric and an inner fabric are arranged to oppose each other. Each of the outer fabric and the inner fabric comprises a back body and a left half and a right half of the front body that are arranged on both sides of the back body. The inner fabric and the outer fabric are knitted in a single tubular form from the hem part up to the bottom of armhole. At and beyond the bottom of armhole, it is divided and knitted into three tubular forms; the back body, the right half of the front body, and the left half of the front body. Armholes are provided between tubular forms. At the shoulders, the three tubular forms are united back to one single tubular form, and the back body and the right and left halves of the front body of the outer fabric are joined, and similarly, the back body and the right and left halves of the front body of the inner fabric are joined.

Abstract: A needle proper is formed to have a hook at the tip, a slider groove formation part, a needle proper center that follows the slider groove formation part, and a rear that allows a control butt to sink into the needle groove. A slider comprises a first slider and a second slider. The first slider is formed by overlapping two thin plates, and tongues are formed on the tips of these plates, and the rear parts of the plates are exposed in the needle proper center, and these exposed portions are coupled with an under arm of the second slider. The second slider is formed to have a head that contacts the upper edge of the slider groove formation part to support the slider, a rear part that allows a control butt, that is protrusively formed on a part extending backward beyond the needle proper center, to sink into the needle groove, and an under arm in the middle for coupling the first slider.

Abstract: A flat knitting machine comprising: at least a pair of front and rear needle beds defining a gap therebetween; and a set-up device disposed below said gap, said set-up device including: a plurality of setting-up needles, each having a setting-up needle base member and a setting-up needle slider member, the setting-up needle slider member being movable relative to the setting-up needle base member to selectively hold and release a set-up portion of a knitted fabric; a setting-up needle bed supporting the plurality of setting-up needles so that the plurality of setting-up needles are juxtaposed to one another and that each of the setting-up needles is movable in both a fabric pull-down direction and a direction opposite thereto; first biasing means for biasing each of the setting-up needles in the fabric pull-down direction relative to the setting-up needle bed; and setting-up needle hold and release means for moving the setting-up needle slider member relative to the setting-up needle base member to thereby co

Abstract: Stitch loops are securely pressed down and retained. The pressing and retaining position of the loop presser is properly adjusted according to the tension in the stitch loops. The loop presser 460 of a flat knitting machine is stored in a groove 445 of an auxiliary bed, and the loop retainer 462 is energized downward by an arm 465 and a cam 422. The loop retainer is swung downward by the cam 422 when it is advanced, and the retainer is swung back to the initial position when it is retracted. The top end of the loop retainer 462 is made to move forward to and over the opposing needle bed.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for knitting a seamless tubular fabric of 2.times.1 rib stitch uses a flat knitting machine having at least one front needle bed and at least one back needle bed. The beds extend sideways and abut against each other in a front-back relationship with a trick gap between them. The needles are preferably arranged in units consisting of six needles on the front needle bed and six needles on the back needle bed. The first and sixth needle on both the front and back beds are used to form face stitches. The second and forth needles of one needle bed and the third and fifth needles of the other bed are used to form back stitches. The remaining needles are used to align the stitches. At least one of the needle beds is preferably capable of racking sideways and transferring stitches between the needle beds. The resulting tubular fabric is especially suited for rib hem parts and similar fabric components.

Abstract: Each stitch of the last course of a front knitted fabric of a tubular knitted fabric is overlapped with a stitch, one stitch interior, of an immediately preceding course of the front knitted fabric. Each stitch of the last course of a back knitted fabric is overlapped with a stitch, one stitch interior, of an immediately preceding course of the back knitted fabric. Prolongations of each stitch of the last course of the front knitted fabric crosses with prolongations of a stitch of the last course of the back knitted fabric.