Circular knitting machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9683321-B2
Application number	US-201414916620-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 26, 2014
Priority date	Oct 2, 2013
Publication date	Jun 20, 2017
Grant date	Jun 20, 2017

Abstract

A circular knitting machine ( 1 ) for knitwear or hosiery, comprising a bearing structure ( 2 ), a needle cylinder (C), a plurality of needles and a plurality of thread feeding points, or feeders ( 3 ), positioned circumferentially about the needle cylinder, in which the thread is supplied to the needles. Each feeder is provided with at least a thread guide group ( 4 ), comprising a body ( 5 ), a pneumatic supply inlet ( 6 ), a plurality of feeders, a plurality of pneumatic actuators able to move the feeders, and a plurality of solenoid valves ( 8 ) mounted and connected directly to the body ( 5 ), wherein each solenoid valve activate or deactivates the pneumatic supply to a respective pneumatic actuator of the thread guide group. Each feeder further comprises a mobile cam device ( 10 ) for command of the needles, comprising a body ( 11 ), a pneumatic supply inlet ( 12 ), one or more mobile command cams ( 13 ) able to interact with the needles, a plurality of pneumatic actuators which move the command cams, and a plurality of solenoid valves ( 14 ) mounted and connected directly to the body ( 11 ), wherein each solenoid valve activates or deactivates the pneumatic supply to a respective pneumatic actuator of the device ( 10 ). Each feeder comprises an electronic feeder command board ( 20 ), able to command at least the solenoid valves ( 8 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) and the solenoid valves ( 14 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ), with the aim of selectively activating the pneumatic actuators of the thread guide group and the mobile cam device ( 10 ). The knitting machine ( 1 ) comprises at least a pneumatic supply pathway able to supply the pneumatic actuators of the plurality of feeders ( 3 ) of the machine.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A circular knitting machine ( 1 ) for knitwear or hosiery, comprising:
a bearing structure ( 2 );
at least a needle cylinder (C) rotatably mounted in the bearing structure;
a plurality of needles supported by the needle cylinder (C) and mobile parallel to a rotation axis of the needle cylinder so as to produce a knitted fabric;
a plurality of feeders ( 3 ), wherein the thread is supplied to the needles of the machine, the feeders being positioned circumferentially about the needle-bearing organ and distanced angularly to one another;

wherein each feeder comprises at least:
a thread guide group ( 4 ) for feeding thread to the plurality of needles, comprising a body ( 5 ) of the thread guide group, an inlet ( 6 ) for pneumatic supply, a plurality of thread guides, arranged laterally to the needle cylinder (C) at the respective feeder, and a plurality of pneumatic actuators movably housed in the body of the thread guide group and configured so as to controlledly move the plurality of thread guides, the thread guide group comprising a plurality of solenoid valves ( 8 ) mounted and connected directly to the body ( 5 ) of the thread guide group, each solenoid valve ( 8 ) being configured and predisposed to activate or deactivate the pneumatic supply to a respective pneumatic actuator of the thread guide group ( 4 ), in order to selectively actuate the respective actuator;
a mobile cam device ( 10 ) for control of the needles, comprising a respective body ( 11 ) of the mobile cam device, a respective pneumatic supply inlet ( 12 ), one or more command cams ( 13 ) movably mounted to the body ( 11 ) and able to interact with the needles, and a respective plurality of pneumatic actuators movably housed in the body ( 11 ) and configured to controlledly move the one or more command cams, the mobile cam device comprising a respective plurality of solenoid valves ( 14 ) mounted and connected directly to the body ( 11 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ), each solenoid valve ( 14 ) being configured and predisposed to activate or deactivate the pneumatic supply of a respective pneumatic actuator of the device, in order to selectively actuate the respective actuator;
an electronic feeder command board ( 20 ), for example located on the thread guide group ( 4 ), configured and predisposed to command at least the solenoid valves ( 8 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) and the solenoid valves ( 14 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ), in order to selectively actuate the pneumatic actuators of the thread guide group ( 4 ) and the pneumatic actuators of the mobile cam device ( 10 );
the knitting machine ( 1 ) further comprising at least a pneumatic supply pathway ( 50 ) able to supply the pneumatic actuators of the plurality of feeders ( 3 ) of the machine.

2. The knitting machine ( 1 ) of claim 1 , comprising exactly a single serial pneumatic supply pathway ( 50 ) developing annularly about the rotation axis of the cylinder (C), the single pneumatic supply pathway comprising a pneumatic conduit or a sequence of sections of pneumatic conduit connecting, in series, all the feeders ( 3 ) of the knitting machine, in such a way that along the pneumatic supply pathway each feeder is pneumatically connected to the preceding feeder and to the following feeder.

3. The knitting machine ( 1 ) of claim 2 , wherein the sequence of sections of conduit of the single pneumatic supply pathway ( 50 ) of the knitting machine comprises a plurality of connecting conduits ( 51 ) between distinct feeders ( 3 ) and a plurality of internal conduits ( 52 ) in each feeder, arranged in series that are alternated with one another, in which each connecting conduit ( 51 ) is interposed and shared, between two adjacent feeders ( 3 ), connecting a pneumatic supply outlet ( 9 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) of a preceding feeder with the pneumatic supply inlet ( 12 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ) of the following feeder, or vice versa, and in which each internal conduit ( 52 ) connects a pneumatic supply outlet ( 15 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ) of a respective feeder ( 3 ) with the respective pneumatic supply inlet ( 6 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) of the same feeder ( 3 ), each internal conduit being comprised in the feeder, or vice versa, in which overall the connecting conduits ( 51 ) and internal conduits ( 52 ) connect in sequence, alternating with one another, the thread guide group and the mobile cam devices of the plurality of feeders ( 3 ), realizing the single pneumatic supply pathway ( 50 ) of the machine.

4. The knitting machine ( 1 ) of claim 2 , wherein the pneumatic conduit or the sequence of sections of pneumatic conduit connect, in series with one another, all the thread guide groups ( 4 ) of the feeders ( 3 ) and wherein the sequence of sections of the single pneumatic supply pathway of the machine further comprises a plurality of branching conduits ( 53 ) internal of each feeder ( 3 ) and each connecting a secondary pneumatic supply outlet ( 54 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) of a respective feeder with the respective pneumatic supply inlet ( 12 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ) of the same feeder ( 3 ), or vice versa wherein the pneumatic conduit or the sequence of sections of pneumatic sections connect in series all the mobile cam devices ( 10 ) of the feeders ( 3 ) and wherein the sequence of sections of the single pneumatic supply pathway of the machine further comprises a plurality of branching conduits ( 53 ) internal of each feeder and each connecting a secondary pneumatic supply outlet ( 54 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ) of a respective feeder with the respective pneumatic supply inlet ( 6 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) of the same feeder ( 3 ).

5. The knitting machine ( 1 ) of claim 1 , wherein the at least an electronic command board ( 20 ) of each feeder ( 3 ) is configured and predisposed to command all of the solenoid valves ( 8 , 14 ) present internally of the feeder ( 3 ), with the aim of selectively actuating all the pneumatic actuators of the feeder ( 3 ), and/or wherein each feeder ( 3 ) of the knitting machine comprises a single electronic command board ( 20 ) and/or wherein the knitting machine comprises a single electronic command board ( 20 ) for each feeder ( 3 ) or wherein the machine comprises a plurality of the electronic boards, each of which is configured and predisposed to command at least the solenoid valves ( 8 ) of the thread guide group ( 4 ) and the solenoid valves ( 14 ) of the mobile cam device ( 10 ) of at least two feeders, and/or wherein the electronic command board ( 20 ) of each feeder ( 3 ) is positioned on the respective thread guide group ( 4 ) of the feeder or on the respective mobile cam device ( 10 ) of the feeder, and/or wherein the knitting machine ( 1 ) comprises a compressed air source to which the at least a pneumatic supply pathway is connected so as to receive therefrom a compressed air flow.

6. The knitting machine ( 1 ) of claim 1 , provided with a first serial pneumatic supply pathway ( 61 ), developing annularly about the rotation axis of the cylinder, comprising a pneumatic conduit or a sequence of sections ( 61 a ) of pneumatic conduit connecting, in series, the thread guide groups ( 4 ) of all the feeders ( 3 ) of the knitting machine, in such a way that along the first pneumatic supply pathway each thread guide group ( 4 ) is pneumatically connected with the preceding thread guide group and with the successive thread guide group, and wherein the knitting machine comprises a second serial pneumatic supply pathway ( 62 ), developing annularly about the rotation axis of the cylinder, comprising a respective pneumatic conduit or a respective sequence of sections ( 62 a ) of pneumatic conduit connecting, in series, the mobile cam devices (

Assignees

• Santoni & C Spa

Inventors

• Lonati Tiberio
• Lonati Fausto
• Lonati Ettore

Classifications

• D04B15/322

  in circular knitting machines with needle cylinder and dial (cam systems specially provided for dials D04B15/34) · CPC title

• D04B15/99 Primary

  electrically controlled · CPC title

• D04B15/58

  for circular knitting machines; Thread-changing devices · CPC title

• D04B15/32

  Cam systems or assemblies for operating knitting instruments · CPC title

• D04B15/54

  Thread guides · CPC title