JPH0649752A - Selection of needle of knitting machine and apparatus therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a needle selection method and provide an extremely compact apparatus therefor capable of transmitting driving power in high efficiency to a guide needle or heald needle of a knitting machine even at a small displacement and freely transmitting the power to effect the opening and closure of the needle. CONSTITUTION:A laminated piezoelectric actuator is placed in contact with or close to a guide needle or heald needle and the displacement of the guide needle or heald needle is directly or indirectly controlled by the displacement of the actuator moving in linear direction by the individual selection signal transmitted to the actuator. The needle selection apparatus has a sliding bar connected to the guide needle or heald needle and drives the bar by the linear displacement of the piezoelectric actuator via an action lever and a hook utilizing the principle of the lever or controls the needle selection by directly applying the displacement of the piezoelectric actuator to a guide needle.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention replaces a conventional jacquard mechanism with a thread, and selects a guide needle or a heald needle using a laminated piezoelectric actuator as a drive source. And the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a cloth making machine such as a loom or a knitting machine, it is necessary to individually control the ground yarn or the pattern yarn in order to give a pattern or a pattern to the cloth. The controller for that purpose has been called Jacquard for a long time, and recently, an electronic Jacquard machine using an electromagnet has become popular. Therefore, the guide needle or the heald needle is controlled by the command signal from the computer without using the pattern paper,
It is possible to add patterns and patterns to the fabric.

However, the jacquard device is arranged on the upper part of the machine frame of a loom or a knitting machine, and is connected by a thread between the guide needle or the heald needle and the jacquard device,
The needle selection command from the jacquard device is executed through this thread. Therefore, the same number of threading threads as the number of guide needles or heald needles are suspended from the jacquard on the upper part of the machine. This is a significant drawback in terms of machine simplification and speed.

Originally, a mechanism capable of directly and individually driving the guide needle or the heald needle is desired, but a conventional electromagnet or the like is too large to tightly incorporate the drive mechanism in a limited space.

Therefore, the applicant has proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 61-234127 as a means for solving the above-mentioned drawbacks. The content of this is that a bimorph type is used as a piezoelectric actuator. Due to the operating properties of this actuator, the bending action is repeated without endurance, and the deterioration of the material progresses due to the internal stress generated by bending.
Although there is a problem in terms of durability, and a satisfactory amount of displacement can be obtained, it is unavoidable that the acting force is weakened, and thus there is a drawback that the reliability of operation is lacking.

[0006]

The problem to be solved is that the driving force is extremely small and the driving force can be efficiently transmitted to the guide needle or the heald needle even with a small displacement amount, and the transmission / opening can be freely selected. A needle method and apparatus are provided.

[0007]

The present invention adopts a laminated type piezoelectric actuator as a piezoelectric actuator.
The characteristics of the needle are used to select the guide needle or the heald needle.

As the needle selecting method, in a cloth making machine provided with a plurality of individually controllable guide needles or heald needles, a laminated actuator is connected or close to each of the guide needles or heald needles. -Provided
The displacement of the guide needle or the heald needle is directly or indirectly controlled by the displacement amount of the actuator itself, which is displaced in the linear direction by an individual selection signal given to the actuator.

As the needle selecting device, a sliding rod connected to a guide needle or a heald needle through which a thread is inserted, and an engaging portion such as a hole or a step provided in a part of the sliding rod are engaged. A driving member that has a hook that fits the reciprocating movement of the sliding rod, a working lever that engages and disengages the hook and the engaging portion, and a driving lever that uses the principle of leverage. It is composed of a laminated piezoelectric actuator which transmits force.

As another needle selecting device, a laminated piezoelectric actuator is provided so as to be connected to the guide needle so that a portion of the guide needle through which the thread is inserted has an engaging or abutting portion, and is laminated. The displacement amount in the linear direction when the piezoelectric actuator is energized can be directly converted into the bending displacement of the guide needle.

[0011]

According to the needle selecting method of the present invention, the displacement of the laminated piezoelectric actuator in the linear direction can be converted into the displacement of the guide needle or the heald needle.
The installation space of the data can be minimized. Therefore, the maximum number of guide needles or heald needles to be installed can be provided, and a cloth-making machine that does not require threading is realized.

Further, since this actuator is of a laminated type, the reaction speed of the piezoelectric actuator corresponding to the control electric signal is fast, and the response can be made in the unit of .mu.sec.
Since the speed is 10 times higher than that of the machine, the number of revolutions of the cloth making machine can be improved.

According to an example of the needle selecting device of the present invention, the drive member is reciprocated in synchronization with the cloth making motion of the machine, and when the control signal to the actuator is off, the sliding rod does not move. In the case of the guide needle,
The dropper, which is locked to the sliding rod, acts on the convex portion of the francine guide to move the tip of the guide needle by 1 gauge. Further, the heald needle is at a position where no opening movement is performed. Next, when the signal of the actuator is turned on, the driving force is transmitted from the actuator to the action lever through the force point, and the action lever is bent around the fulcrum axis, whereby the driving force acts on the action point of the action lever. The hook is pushed into the hole, and the sliding rod is pulled up by the pulling force of the driving member. As a result,
In the case of a guide needle, the dropper is pulled up and the dropper acting on the convex part of the francine guide is released,
The Frantin guide moves one gauge back to its original position due to its elasticity. In addition, the heald needle is moved upward to perform the opening movement.

According to another example of the needle selection device of the present invention,
Since the laminated piezoelectric actuator is provided so as to have the engaging or abutting portion on a part of the guide needle, the displacement in the linear direction based on the control signal of the actuator is
Since it directly acts on the bending displacement of the guide needle, the device can be made compact and an accurate displacement amount can be obtained without the accumulated error of the displacement amount.

[0015]

1 is a side sectional view of a warp knitting machine of a needle selecting device based on the needle selecting method of the present invention, which is an embodiment of the device.
Reference numeral 1 denotes a furantin guide, which is an example of a guide needle, and has a hole 2 at the tip thereof for inserting a handle thread.
A dropper 3 smoothly slides in a groove formed in the top 4. Explaining the relationship between the francine 1 and the dropper 3, the upper end of the francine guide 1 is fixed to a part of the hook 4 at the end 5 and is arranged so as to be flush with the dropper 3 as shown in FIG. ing. When the dropper 3 slides down in the groove of the hook 4 and descends, the furantin guide 1 is pushed leftward and moves leftward by a predetermined length from its original position (see FIG. 3). A slide rod 6 is attached to the upper part of the dropper 3 and slides up and down in the groove portion 8 of the slide support plate 7. Further, there is a hole portion 9 for needle selection on the upper part of the sliding rod 6, and a sliding hook plate 10 as a driving member which slides in opposition to the hole portion 9 is provided. To form the hook 11. The mechanism for pressing the hook 11 is composed of a working lever 12 and a base 13. In this embodiment, the mechanism works with a width of 1 inch, and the lever 12 has a comb shape (see FIG. 6). In order to apply the principle of leverage, the fulcrum 14 is formed with a notch 16 and the force point 15 is provided with a shallow recess so that the tip of the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 can be held. Metal pieces 18 and 19 are adhered to both ends of the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17, and a screw 20 gently presses against the force point 15 to prevent a gap. The notch 16 is provided so that the fulcrum 14 has a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.2 mm. Further, since the fulcrum 14 must maintain elasticity, the material used may be Shinchu, phosphor bronze, steel, shape memory alloy or the like, but phosphor bronze was used in this embodiment. In the above embodiment, the same operation as described above can be achieved by providing a step portion at the same place instead of the hole portion 9 and engaging with the hook portion 11a of the hook 11.

The above-described mechanism is constructed, and the furantin guide 1 is constantly pressed downward by the soft spring 21 to move the sliding hook plate 10 up and down as shown by an arrow. Although the mechanism for exercising is not particularly described, the operating condition synchronized with the knitting timing is given. When this sliding hook plate 10 is located at the lowest position, the hook portion 1 of the hook 11
Reference numeral 1a corresponds to the front surface of the hole 9, and a DC voltage of 100 V is applied to the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 at this time. The laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 used is manufactured by Tokin Co., Ltd., and has a length of 18 mm based on NLA-1.4 × 3 × 9. Although the displacement amount is as small as 13 μm, it has a generated force of 14 kg, and the length between the fulcrum and the force point is 1 mm, and the action point of the action lever 12 is placed at a position 30 mm above the fulcrum point 14. The force of action is 4
The stroke is 66 g, but the stroke is about 0.4 mm. The sliding hook plate 10 is made of steel with a width of 1 inch and has a thickness of about 0.2 mm (see FIG. 7). The hook 11 ascends while being pressed by the action lever 12, enters the hole 9 of the sliding rod and hooks it to ascend. As a result, the dropper 3 rises, and the hole 2 in the tip portion, through which the handle thread is inserted, can be moved to the position shown in FIG. In addition, fulcrum 14, power point 1
Each part of No. 5 is enlarged and shown in FIG.

Each of the fulcrum 14 and the force point 15 can also be used by bonding an action lever 23 to a thin plate 22 having elasticity as shown in FIG. The thin plate 22 is caulked and attached to the base 24. The elastic thin plate 22 can be formed using a material such as steel, shape memory alloy, Shinchu, stainless steel, or phosphor bronze.

8 to 12 show another embodiment of the needle manufacturing device. Reference numeral 25 is a guide needle called a furantin guide made of a spring material having a width of 4 mm, a thickness of 0.4 mm and a length of 80 mm, and a hole 30 for inserting a thread is provided at one end thereof. The other end is fixed to the upper end 26a of the hook 26, and a groove 27 is formed in the lower end 26b of the hook 26 so that the width of the groove 27 regulates the lateral movement of the francine guide 25. There is. Dimension is 1.4 × 3 × 18mm (change amount 13μ
As shown in FIG. 8, the pedestal 2 in which the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 of FIG.
The protrusion member 28 is abutted against the fixed end of the furantin 25 at a suitable size (30 mm in this embodiment) from the fixed end, and the upper and lower ends of the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 are sandwiched without a gap. When the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 is energized in this state, the piezoelectric actuator 1
One end of 7 acts to push down the protrusion 28, and the amount of displacement thereof results in bending the frantin 25. Considering the case where the front end of the frantin 25 moves by one gauge on a machine with 24 gauges / inch, when the tilt angle is calculated with the fixed side of the frantin 25 as the base point, it is approximately 0.6. .About.1.0 degree, and when the tilt angle is 1 degree, the amount of displacement of the protrusion 28 is 30 mm × (1-cos1 ⁰ ).
= 0.0045 mm or 4.5 μm. Therefore, the displacement amount of the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 may be 4.5 .mu.m, but in this case, the frantin 25 strongly pushes one side surface of the groove 27. In this embodiment, it is possible to use up to 18 gauges / inch due to the margin of displacement. or,
As a method of forming the protrusion 28, as shown in FIG. 10, a part of the furanthine may be punched out by a press to form the protrusion 33. Reference numeral 31 is a lead wire, which penetrates the side surface of the comma 26 and is collectively connected to a control portion (not shown) by a unit member 32 on the rear surface.

Further, as shown in FIG.
It is possible to use by bending a U-shaped portion 34 like a and inserting a laminated piezoelectric actuator into it. Further, as shown in FIG. 12, a window is cut out in the U-shaped portion 34 of the francine guide 25b, and one surface 17a of the laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 is cut into the francine guide 2.
5, the dimension W can be made as narrow as possible, and the U-shaped portion has a curved shape for mounting the laminated actuator 17 by sandwiching it. There is. Therefore, the space for installing the actuator can be reduced, which is advantageous for making a fine gauge. In these cases as well, the lateral displacement of the furantine on the threading side can be calculated in the same manner as in the above embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of an embodiment of a needle selecting device in a loom. Reference numeral 50 denotes an action lever, which is internally provided with a laminated piezoelectric actuator 17 and has an upper end 17a.
Becomes a force point, and the displacement portions 37a and 37b move in the left and right directions with the two constricted portions 36a and 36b in the central portion of the action lever 50 as fulcrums, and the contact point 38 provided on the displacement portion 37a moves to the fixing member 39. The upper end of the hook is pressed, and the fulcrum at this time of pressing is 40, and as a result, the hook 11 is pressed by the displacement portion 37b. Further, the displacement portions 37a and 37b are urged to be attracted to each other by a spring 41 so that the displacement portions 37a and 37b can follow the contraction of the actuator 17 due to the cutoff. The drive hook plate 10 having the hook 11 is moved up and down by another mechanism, but when the hook 11 is pressed, the hook portion 4 at the upper end of the sliding rod 42 is moved.
3, the sliding rod 42 is raised, and the heald 44 connected thereto is also raised to open the vertical thread 45.
The action lever 50 is fixed to the bracket 51 at the lower end. Although the working lever 50 is integrally formed in this embodiment including the fixing member 39, it goes without saying that the fixing member 39 may be formed as a separate member. The sliding rod 42 is vertically slidably mounted in the hook 52.

[0021]

As described above, according to the needle selection method of the present invention, the needle can be selected by utilizing the displacement in the linear direction caused by the application of the voltage using the laminated piezoelectric actuator.
The size can be made extremely small, and the driving force can be efficiently transmitted to the guide needle and the heald needle even with a slight displacement amount. Also, because the actuator displacement is linear,
The device itself has a simple structure, and the reaction speed of the piezoelectric actuator that responds to electric signals is in the unit of μsec. Therefore, it is possible to achieve a speed 10 times faster than the conventional Jacquard mechanism and increase the number of revolutions. It can greatly contribute to the improvement of machine productivity.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of an example device showing a case of a guide needle of a warp knitting machine for an example needle selecting device based on the needle selecting method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a relationship between a francine guide and a dropper, showing an inoperative state of the dropper.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a relationship between a francine guide and a dropper, showing an operating state of the dropper.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing an engagement relationship between a working lever and a laminated piezoelectric actuator.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing the engagement relationship of another example of the working lever and the laminated piezoelectric actuator.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an example of an action lever.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of a sliding hook plate.

FIG. 8 is a side view of an example needle selecting device showing an example in which a laminated piezoelectric actuator is directly acted on a guide needle (frantin guide).

9 is a side sectional view of the needle selection device of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another example of a francine guide.

FIG. 11 is a front view showing another embodiment of the needle selection device.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a modified example of a francine guide.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view showing an example of a needle selection device in a loom.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Frantin Guide 6 Sliding Rod 9 Hole 10 Sliding Hook Plate 11 Hook 12 Working Lever 17 Multilayer Piezoelectric Actuator

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A fabric-making machine comprising a plurality of individually controllable guide needles or heald needles through which threads are inserted,
A laminated piezoelectric actuator is provided so as to be connected to or close to each of the guide needles or the heald needles, and the displacement amount of the actuator itself which is linearly displaced by an individual selection signal given to the actuator, directly or A needle selection method for a cloth making machine, which indirectly controls displacement of a guide needle or a heald needle. 2. A hook for engaging a sliding rod, which is connected to a guide needle or a heald needle through which a thread is inserted, with an engaging portion such as a hole or a step provided in a part of the sliding rod. A driving member for reciprocating the sliding rod, a working lever for engaging and disengaging the hook and the engaging portion, and a driving force transmitted to the working lever using the principle of leverage. A needle selecting device for a fabric-making machine, comprising: a laminated piezoelectric actuator. 3. A laminated piezoelectric actuator so that a portion of a guide needle through which a thread is inserted has an engaging or abutting portion.
Is connected to the guide needle to provide a laminated piezoelectric actuator.
A needle selecting device for a fabric-making machine, which is configured so that the amount of displacement in the linear direction when electricity is applied to the sewing machine can be directly converted into the bending displacement of the guide needle.