Patent Grant
11214921
The present invention generally relates to the formation of tufted fabrics such as carpets, and in particular to a system and method for forming patterned cut/loop tufted fabrics, carpets or other articles, which can be formed with a woven appearance.
Patterned tufted articles such as carpets have long been in use in commercial and home settings. It further has been known to form such patterned tufted articles with a variety of different pattern effects, including the use of cut and/or loop pile tufts, the formation of varying pile heights, and the use of different color yarns to form multi-colored graphic and other pattern designs. As styles and consumer preferences have changed, it has been important that newer and wider varieties of patterned carpets be developed to meet market demands. For example, carpet patterns with floral or other varying, free flowing designs have become increasingly popular in recent years, and while more traditional, geometric designs or patterns remain in demand, consumers are also looking for crisper or cleaner appearances in such pattern designs, including more precision or definition, and/or textures, such as patterns with intermixed cut and loop pile tufts. Systems have been developed that enable the formation of tufted carpets having free flowing and/or geometric patterns or designs having enhanced precision and repeatability in the patterns. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,141,505 and 8,359,989, assigned to Card-Monroe Corp., disclose systems for forming tufted carpets that can include multiple different colors formed in a wide variety of designs or patterns, and with substantially enhanced precision and clarity. Such systems, while providing much greater precision and control and enabling a more expansive array of pattern designs to be tufted, can, however, be more expensive than standard cut pile, loop pile, and/or cut/loop pile tufting machines that can form conventional graphics and/or geometric style patterns, but which may be limited in the types, designs and precision of patterns being formed thereby.
It therefore can be seen that a need exists for a system and method for forming tufted articles, such as carpets, that addresses the foregoing and other related and unrelated problems in the art.
Briefly described, the present invention generally relates to a system and method for forming tufted fabrics or articles such as carpets, rugs and the like, having a generally woven appearance or style, and which can include cut pile and loop pile tufts of yarns intermixed within substantially the same longitudinal tuft rows. The system and method of the present invention can be operated to form such patterned tufted articles in a cost-effective manner while still enabling the formation of desired patterns with enhanced precision and clarity.
The system of the present invention generally will include a tufting machine having a tufting machine controller and a frame supporting a pair of longitudinally spaced first and second or front, upstream and rear, downstream needle bars, each of which includes a series of needles arranged at a desired gauge spacing mounted therealong. The needles can be arranged in in-line or offset rows. The needles of the front and rear needle bars further generally will be longitudinally spaced apart across the tufting zone of the tufting machine by a desired longitudinal spacing or stagger along upstream and downstream sides of the tufting zone. The needles are reciprocated into and out of a backing material being conveyed through the tufting zone, each carrying a yarn therewith for forming tufts of yarns in the backing material. The backing material generally will be fed through the tufting zone at a desired stitch rate under the control of backing feed rolls, which can be linked to the tufting machine controller.
The tufting machine further will include front and rear yarn feed mechanisms that feed a series of yarns to each of the needles of the needle bars. The yarn feed mechanisms utilized in the present invention generally can include standard straight yarn feed rolls driven by one or more motors and which feed the yarns to their associated needles. The yarn feed mechanisms thus do not require the use of pattern yarn feed attachments such as roll, scroll, single or double end yarn feed pattern attachments, and/or the use of tube banks, although the system and method of the present invention can be carried out utilizing tufting machines including such additional types of yarn feed pattern attachments. The front and rear yarn feed rolls can be controlled by the tufting machine control to slow or simply stop the yarn feed to the needles of the front and rear needle bars, respectively, at desired intervals during the formation of a tufted pattern, with patterning effects created by controlled shifting of the needles and utilizing a desired needle threading sequence for the different yarns used to form the tufted pattern.
A bed plate or rail further generally will be mounted to the frame on opposite sides of the tufting zone, defining a surface over which the backing material is fed. The bed plate can be adjustable so as to adjust the pile height of the tufts of yarns being formed in the backing material, and each section of the bed plate can include a needle plate having a series of reeds, fingers or wires arranged in spaced series along the width thereof, and which extend partially into and/or through the tufting zone. The fingers or wires of the needle plates will be arranged at selected spacings, defining a series of gaps through which the needles can pass as they are reciprocated into and out of the backing material.
A series of gauge parts are mounted beneath the tufting zone, with each of the gauge parts generally being reciprocated into engagement with one of the needles of the needle bars as the needles are reciprocated into and out of the backing material. In one embodiment, the gauge parts can include a series of loop pile loopers, typically mounted along the upstream side of the tufting zone, and a series of cut pile hooks mounted along the downstream or opposite side of the tufting zone, each of which will generally have a knife or cutting blade associated therewith. The cut pile hooks, and the loop pile loopers as needed or desired, further can be arranged at a different gauge spacing from their associated needles—e.g., the needles can be arranged at a first gauge spacing such as 1/16″, 1/10″, 5/32″, etc. . . . gauge with the cut pile hooks and loop pile loopers accordingly arranged at a second gauge spacing, which can be a multiple of the needle gauge spacing, such as a double gauge spacing of ⅛″, ⅕″, 5/16″, etc., or other increased gauge spacing. As the needles penetrate the backing material, the loop pile loopers and cut pile hooks will engage the needles, picking the yarns therefrom in order to form loop and/or cut pile tufts within the backing material.
In addition, a shift mechanism, such as a Smart Step™ shifter as manufactured by Card-Monroe Corp., will be connected to at one or both of the needle bars, typically at least the rear, or second needle bar, the needles of which are engaged by the cut pile hooks, although the first or upstream needle bar, whose needles are engaged by the loop pile loopers, also can be shifted. The needle bar(s) can be shifted as the tufted pattern is being formed to provide various graphic pattern effects, such as the formation of checkerboard type patterns of different colors and/or yarns arranged in the same longitudinal tuft rows, and/or other, different patterns.
In operation of the method of the present invention, as the backing material is fed through the tufting zone, the needles will be reciprocated into and out of the backing material, where they will be engaged by associated ones of the loop pile loopers and cut pile hooks to form loop and/or cut pile tufts. When only pile tufts are to be formed/shown at specific pattern fields or areas, the rear or second needle bar along the cut pile side of the tufting machine will be shiftable to an off-gauge position wherein the needles of the second or rear needle bar become misaligned with the cut pile hooks so as to prevent the pick-up of yarns from the needles by the cut pile hooks. At the same time, the yarn feed roll(s) feeding the yarns to such needles can be controlled to minimize the yarn feed such that the yarns on the cut pile side can float on the back or rear surface of the backing material. The yarn feed control further can be simplified by substantially stopping or starting the operation of the yarn feed rolls so that the yarn feed to the needles along the cut pile side can be run at approximately 100% feed rate or at a minimal feed amount or an approximately 0% feed rate, when the needles of the second needle bar are shifted to their on-gauge and off-gauge positions, respectively.
Similarly, when the cut pile tufts are to be formed/shown in the backing material, the yarn feed roll(s) feeding the yarns to the needles of the first or front needle bar which are engaged by the loop pile loopers for forming the loop pile tufts, can be controlled to cause the loops of yarns to be pulled low of the needle bar(s), including substantially stopping the yarn feed so that the loops are pulled out of the backing material and the yarns allowed to float on the rear surface of the backing material. As a result, enhanced, varying graphic patterns can be formed in the backing material with greater precision, including the formation of patterns having a woven appearance and which can include varying amounts of cut and loop pile tufts in the same pattern, using shift control without requiring use of expensive pattern attachments, and which patterns further are not limited by the longitudinal stagger between the needles of the first and second needle bars.
Various features, advantages and objects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a review of the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The embodiments of the invention and the various features thereof are explained in detail below with reference to non-limiting embodiments and examples that are described and/or illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the features illustrated in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and features of one embodiment may be employed with other embodiments as the skilled artisan would recognize, even if not explicitly stated herein. Descriptions of certain components and processing techniques may be omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments of the invention. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the invention may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments of the invention. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments herein should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined solely by the appended claims and applicable law.
Referring now in greater detail to the drawings in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the present invention is generally directed to a system and method for forming patterned fabrics or other articles such as carpets, and in particular relates to a system and method for forming tufted carpets having a woven style or appearance, including the use of loop pile tufts and cut pile tufts, which loop pile tufts and cut pile tufts further can be formed in the same longitudinal tuft rows, as illustrated in
The tufting machine T can include tufting machine controller 20, such as a “Command Performance™” tufting machine computer control system as manufactured by Card-Monroe Corp. Such a tufting machine controller generally will include a computer controller or processor that can be programmed with pattern information for forming various desired patterns, and typically will include an operator interface 21, such as a touch screen as indicated in
As illustrated in
In addition, at least one of the needle bars, i.e., at least the second and downstream needle bar 26, will be laterally shiftable in the direction of arrows 28/28′ so as to move transversely across the tufting zone. As will also be understood, both needle bars can be shifted, or one of the needle bars, such as the first or upstream needle bar 25, can be operated without shifting. A shift mechanism 29 (
As further indicated in
The front and rear or first and second yarn feed rolls 36A/B on the opposite sides of the tufting machine feed the yarns Y1 and Y2 to the needles 27 of the first and second or front and rear needle bars 25 and 26, with the yarns typically passing through yarn guides 38 and puller rolls 39. The needles of the front and rear needle bars will be threaded with the various different color or type yarns in accordance with a threading sequence, such as indicated at 40 in
As generally illustrated in
Each of the loop pile loopers 51 generally will include an elongated body 55 having a shank 56 mounted within a holder or block 57, which in turn can be mounted on a looper bar 58 attached to a reciprocating arm 59. The body of each loop pile looper further will include a forwardly projecting throat 61 that extends toward the tufting zone and thus the needles from the shank, terminating in a pointed bill or frontal end 62. The loop pile loopers 51 will be reciprocated in the direction of arrows 63 and 63′ toward and away from engagement with the needles of the upstream or first needle bar 25 as the needles have penetrated the backing material to a desired depth, so as to pick and pull loops of yarns therefrom for forming the loop pile tufts 16.
As also illustrated in
The cut pile hooks, and additionally the loop pile loopers as desired, can be arranged at a gauge spacing that is different from the first gauge spacing of the needles 27 arranged along the front and/or rear needle bars 25/26. In one embodiment, the cut pile hooks and loop pile loopers can be arranged at a second gauge spacing that is a multiple of the first gauge spacing of the needles, such as a double gauge spacing wherein the second gauge spacing between the cut pile hooks and loop pile loopers can be approximately double the first gauge spacing of the associated needles carried by the front and rear needle bars. For example, if the needles are arranged at a first gauge spacing of 1/16″, the cut pile hooks and loop pile loopers can be arranged at a second gauge spacing of ⅛″. Similarly, for gauge spacings of ⅛″, 1/10″, 5/32″ for the needles, the cut pile hooks and loop pile loopers can be spaced at corresponding gauge spacings of ¼″, ⅕″ and 5/16″, respectively. Other, differing spacings, for example spacings that are greater than the spacings between the needles, also can be provided.
As further illustrated in
In operation of the tufting machine T (
For the portions of the pattern being formed wherein loop pile tufts are to be retained or shown, the rear or second needle bar 26, along the cut pile side of the tufting zone, can be shifted in a direction transverse to the feeding of the backing materials by an amount sufficient to move the needles from an on-gauge position as shown in
Typically, to move the needles to their off-gauge position, the needle bar will be shifted a distance that is less than the second gauge spacing between the cut pile hooks. In one embodiment illustrated in
With the needles shifted to their off-gauge or misaligned position, the rear or second yarn feed roll 36B feeding the yarns Y2 to the needles of the second or rear needle bar will be controlled by being slowed to a substantially minimal amount or stopped (i.e., run at approximately a 0% or other minimized feed rate), so that as the needles 27 of the second or rear needle bar 26 along the cut pile side of the tufting zone are reciprocated out of the backing material, the yarns Y2 carried with these needles remain therewith, without loops of these yarns being picked and/or formed or captured by the cut pile hooks. With the formation of cut pile tufts thus substantially being prevented, the first or front yarn feed roll 36A on the upstream or front side (the loop pile side) of the tufting machine, which is feeding the yarns Y1 to the needles of the first or front needle bar 25 can be operated at a substantially full feed rate (i.e., fed at an approximately 100% feed rate) or controlled to feed its yarns at any other desired feed rate as needed to form loop pile tufts of a desired pile height. The first or front needle bar 25 also can be shifted laterally across the backing material as needed to place loop pile tufts of different color, texture or type yarns in different areas of the pattern, as indicated in
As a result, with the feeding of the yarns Y2 to the needles of the second or rear needle bar being substantially minimized or stopped, only the loop pile tufts being formed will show along the front surface of the backing material, without the danger of overtufting or previously formed loops of yarns engaged by the cut pile hooks being shown. Instead, as the backing material is indexed further forwardly, the feeding of the yarns Y2 is substantially stopped or minimized to an extent that the yarns Y2 are allowed to substantially float on the rear or back surface 90 of the backing material B, as indicated by back stitches 91 in
Upon reaching a pattern step wherein cut pile tufts are to be formed in the backing material, the second, rear or downstream side yarn feed roll 36B for the yarns Y2 (
As the cut pile tufts are formed, the first, front or upstream side yarn feed roll 36A feeding the yarns Y1 to the needles 27 of the first or front needle bar 25 (along the loop pile side of the tufting zone) can be substantially slowed to a minimum feed rate or stopped (i.e., fed at an approximately 0% or other minimal feed rate) to cause the yarns Y1 carried by the needles of the first or front needle bar to be substantially withdrawn from the backing material, including being pulled low to an extent sufficient to be hidden or buried among the higher tufts formed in the backing material, or potentially be pulled out of and allowed to float along the rear surface of the backing material while the cut pile tufts are being formed in the backing material. The front needle bar 25 additionally can be shifted so that its needles are moved to an off-gauge position (as shown at dashed lines in
Accordingly, the method of the present invention enables the formation of cut and loop patterns with the formation of a wide variety of differing amounts of cut and loop tufts being formed in the same fabric and/or in the same longitudinal tuft rows without being limited by the stagger between the needles of the front and rear needle bars. Since the formation and/or location of the cut and loop tufts is not dependent on the stagger between the needles of the needle bars, the present method further provides additional flexibility in the patterning of cut and loop tufts within the same longitudinal tuft rows, for example enabling the formation of varying graphic and/or geometric pattern designs by controlling the shifting of one or both needle bars and a simplified control of the yarn feed (i.e., a substantially on/off feed control), without requiring additional yarn feed pattern attachments. The present invention further is capable of utilizing a standard straight yarn feed for forming both loop pile and cut pile tufts, each of which yarn feeds can be run at a high or low rate, including being fed at substantially a full or 100% feed rate, or can be substantially minimized, including being stopped or run at an approximately 0% feed rate. The resultant tufted fabrics thus can have a 100% surface density appearance while sewing only one-half the yarns being fed to the needles, with the remaining yarns being permitted to float along the rear surface of the backing material. The present invention thus enables selective sewing of desired amounts of cut pile and loop pile tufts, including running sections of substantially all cut pile tufts or substantially all loop pile tufts to form various patterned tufted articles having both loop and cut pile tufts in the same longitudinal tuft rows and a substantially woven appearance without substantially limiting the pattern and the formation of the loop pile and cut pile tufts based on the selected stagger between the needle bars.
It further will be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular methodology, devices, apparatus, materials, applications, etc., described herein, as these may vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is used for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It must be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art in the field to which this invention is directed, and it will be understood that any methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or construction of the invention.
The foregoing description generally illustrates and describes various embodiments of the present invention. It will, however, be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the above-discussed construction of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as disclosed herein, and that it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as being illustrative, and not to be taken in a limiting sense. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure shall be construed to cover various modifications, combinations, additions, alterations, etc., above and to the above-described embodiments, which shall be considered to be within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, various features and characteristics of the present invention as discussed herein may be selectively interchanged and applied to other illustrated and non-illustrated embodiments of the invention, and numerous variations, modifications, and additions further can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims.
The present patent application is a continuation of previously filed, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/897,396, filed Feb. 15, 2018, which is a continuation of previously filed, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/560,505, filed Dec. 4, 2014, which is a formalization of previously filed, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/912,209, filed Dec. 5, 2013, by the inventors named in the present application. This patent application claims the benefit of the filing date of the cited Provisional Patent Application according to the statutes and rules governing provisional patent applications, particularly 35 U.S.C. § 119(e), and 37 C.F.R. §§ 1.78(a)(3) and 1.78(a)(4). The specification and drawings of each of the above-referenced patent applications are specifically incorporated herein by reference as if set forth in their entireties.
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