This application is a 35 U.S.C. 371 national stage filing from International Application No. PCT/SE2009/000506 filed Dec. 4, 2009 and claims priority to Swedish Application No. 0802577-7 filed Dec. 16, 2008, the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a weaving machine comprising a lay beam which by means of drive elements is movable between a rear position, in which the introduction of the weft thread into a warp arrangement can be realized, and a front position, in which a beat-up against a beating-up edge of the respective introduced weft thread can be effected.
Weaving machines of this type are previously known and reference can be made, inter alia, to the weaving machines marketed by the Applicant for the present patent application, TEXO AB, Sweden, under the designations TCR (TransCent Rapier) and TM, which are utilized for the production of wire. Compare SE 522719, SE 510772 and SE 508237.
Present drive systems for a wide weaving machine having a large number of inner stands (intermediate sections) consist of a thick and heavy main shaft (crankshaft) with couplings which couple together all the intermediate sections along the whole of the weaving width. The intermediate sections are in this way mechanically coupled and all join together in a synchronized rotary motion. At both outer ends of the machine, on each side, are seated an AC motor and a reduction gear.
There is a general aim to obtain simplifications and increased effectiveness in the construction and working of the weaving machine. For instance, there may be a desire for the weaving machine to be able to be made up of easily assembled modules or sections producible in lightweight material. Long, heavy elements should be able to be eliminated. Components with lower inertias should be able to be utilized. If so desired, higher weaving/pick speeds should be able to be achieved. More exact controls of the weaving process are often an expressed wish, as well as less critical functions. Fewer and more easily handleable parts and greater visual supervision and improved access into the weaving machine and its interior are often high on the list of requirements. There is also a desire for the modules and components of the weaving machine to be able to be standardized and for the ideas behind the invention to be implemented in the production process of the weaving machine and as complements to pre-existing weaving machines. The hitherto major adjustment requirements between the different parts of the known weaving machines should be able to be substantially minimized.
The object of the present invention is to solve the whole and parts of the specified problems, with the principal aim of achieving simplifications in the construction and working of the weaving machine. The drive system according to the invention is constructed such that each intermediate section is driven with at least one AC servo motor in a synchronized rotary motion. The one or more motors drive via a reduction gear preferably a short and light crankshaft, which in one embodiment makes one turn upon each starting occasion. Alternatively, if a mechanical arrangement is used for the purpose, only half a turn is performed with each beat-up. Once the band gripper (alternatively the shuttle, the projectile, etc.) has drawn a thread over the weaving width, the drivings of the sections commence and the crank makes a turn, i.e. shoots in the thread lying in the shed and then returns to the rear position ready for a new thread to be able to be drawn in. This drive system can be termed intermittent or sequential—once a motion is concluded, the next stage is started. The advantage with this drive system is that many large and heavy components are able to be removed and that the number of constituent components is minimized.
A weaving machine according to the invention can primarily be deemed to be characterized in that the drive elements comprise two or more crankshaft parts which turn or rotate along the width direction of the weaving machine and according to a common rotational center line. The crankshaft parts are situated in stands comprising modules or sections, here termed intermediate sections, which respectively also comprise a lay sword which is mounted rotatably on a lay sword shaft and is connected to a connecting rod belonging to the respective intermediate section. The intermediate section comprises at least one individual motor turning the crankshaft part of the intermediate section part and the weaving machine also comprises or is connected to a control system provided with a rotary motion control unit and arranged to control, via amplifying elements, the motors of the intermediate sections for mutual synchronous rotary motion of the crankshaft parts of the various intermediate sections.
In refinements of the inventive concept, the control system can comprise a computerized main control system comprising or connected to a master motion control unit, which in turn is connected to servo amplifiers forming part of the intermediate sections and connected to motors in the form of servo motors provided with reduction gears. The respective stand can comprise double walls, in which the crankshaft and lay sword shaft of the intermediate section are mounted on the inner sides of the walls. The respective motor which drives the crankshaft can be mounted on the wall in question on the outer side thereof. The lay sword and connecting rod of the respective intermediate section are mounted in front of a vertical plane extending in front of the shaft frames of the weaving machine. The stand can comprise a double-walled front part and a rear single-walled part, connected to the latter and extending rearward, which parts can be connected to one another via bolted joints. The lengths in the depth direction can be adjusted to the number of shaft frames with which the machine is wished to be provided. Both walls in the double-walled stand or the stand part can be provided with servo motors extending on the outer sides of the walls and provided with reduction gears. One wall in the double-walled stand or stand part can alternatively be provided with two servo motors extending on the wall side in question and provided with their own respective reduction gear. The weaving machine can have a weaving width of 2-35 meters, preferably 5-15 meters, and the number of sections is 2-25, preferably 4-10. The time for the introduction of the weft thread and stoppages, or substantial stoppages, in machines of, for example, 15-meter width is about 400 ms, and the time for a motion, brought about by the drive elements, from said stoppages and for the beat-up against the beating-up edge is about 200 ms. Said times are dependent on the width of the machine and are therefore lower in machines below 15 meters and higher in machines above 15 meters. The control system is arranged to determine and/or vary said time for the beat-up of the weft thread, as well as preceding and following stoppage times, in dependence on the effects. The motors preferably have small internal inertias, for example about 0.003 kgm2, and the weaving machine can operate, if so desired, at high pick speeds, for example 100-150 picks/min, including with high weaving machine widths of up to 15 meters. The crankshaft in the respective section preferably has a short length, for example 0.5-1.0 meter, and the crankshafts of the sections are situated 1-2 meters apart. The servo motors can be constituted by electric, hydraulic or pneumatic motors.
The modular unit per se can function in different contexts without being bound to the actual construction of the weaving machine. The modular unit is characterized by a double-walled stand or stand part, within which the crankshaft part is disposed and on which one or more motors for the crankshaft part are placed, together with a reduction gear, preferably via a mounting.
The above-stated provides a solution both to the specified main problem and to consequential problems arising therefrom. The sections can have substantially identical constructions, which substantially facilitate the adjustment between the sections. The crankshaft part in the respective section can weigh about 10 kg/meter, which represents a relatively small flywheel mass. The stand or stand parts and the motor/motors are low-weight and together weigh, for example, about 50-100 kg. A continuous shaft extending along the full width of the weaving machine can be avoided, as well as mountings and gearboxes for this. In this context, it can be pointed out that present continuous rotary shafts have 100 mm diameter with homogeneous construction, which implies weights of about 65 kg/meter. Added to this are the weights of the mountings and the gearboxes. Through the division of such a shaft into short and mutually spaced shafts in the sections, interspaces and crawl spaces appear, moreover, between the shafts, which increase access during installation and servicing of the machine. If so desired, it is also possible to exchange real angle transmitters for virtual angle transmitters integrated in the control function of the electronic unit, which can comprise and/or interact with a computer unit (PC). The electronic unit can also comprise microcomputers (CPU). The operational advantages are pronounced. The pick speed can be chosen, for example, at 150-250 picks/min, and the times for thread feed-in of the weft thread and beat-up can be optimized. The lay beam can be allotted an absolute stoppage position or a less oscillatory or lesser motion which is kept within the acceptable limit.
A currently proposed embodiment which has the distinctive features indicative of the invention shall be described below with simultaneous reference to the appended drawings, in which
a-4e show alternative motor placements from above,
It can be seen from
In
According to the invention, the weaving machine comprises a number of stands arranged side by side in the width direction, i.e. at right angles to the figure plane for
The stand/unit acting as a module/exchange module has double walls or wall parts, between which a connecting rod is mounted in wall recesses. The connecting rod in a stand 20, 21 is indicated with 22. The connecting rod has mounting shafts 23, by means of which the connecting rod is mounted in said wall recesses. The connecting rod is connected to an, in this embodiment, elbow-shaped lay sword 24, which is mounted between the walls of the stand, in recesses in these, by means of a lay sword shaft 25. The mounting of the connecting rod 22 in the lay sword is realized on the lower parts thereof and are indicated with 26. The center of rotation of the crankshaft lies at the point of intersection between indicated coordinate axes 27 and 28. The rotary motion is shown with a circle C. The crankshaft has a very short extent in the width direction of the weaving machine (for example 1-2 meters). The lay sword is connected at the top to the lay beam 29 of the weaving machine, which is actuable/movable between a rear position, see the position 29a indicated with unbroken lines, and a front position, see the position 29b indicated with dashed lines. In the rear position, a weft thread 29c is pulled in or pushed in with, for example, a shuttle or projectile, at right angles to the figure plane, between the shed 30 realized by the shaft frames. It is important that the shed is open and the lay beam is stationary or substantially stationary during the above-specified times. The lay beam has a reed/reed part 31, which, in the front position, actuates the weft thread against a beat-up edge 32 in the woven part 33 of the weave or cloth which is guided by and collected on the breast beams.
As is shown in
The embodiment according to
In
In
a shows the application of the motors according to
So-called double-driving can alternatively be used, examples of which are shown by
A stand or a modular unit for implementation in a newly built weaving machine or a weaving machine which is undergoing alteration is thus characterized by a double-walled stand in which a crankshaft is mounted inside the stand, and the servo motor with reduction gear is mounted on the outer side of one stand wall in mountings. These distinctive features are independent of the rest of the working of the weaving machine.
d and 4e show a case in which the crankshaft parts of the modules are mechanically coupled in order, together with the servo motors, to ensure a markedly synchronized or coordinated joint driving of the lay beam with modules which interact in the weaving situation. The embodiment is described in greater detail in the passage below.
It is important that the crankshafts in the stand or modular units which are set up side by side and are activated in the weaving situation can be synchronously driven for synchronous actuation of the lay beam.
d shows a weaving machine with coupling together of the crankshaft parts of the crankshafts. In this case, the servo motors are arranged such that their longitudinal axes coincide with a common center line 79. The mounting shafts 23 of the crankshaft parts are arranged along a further center line 80 parallel with the center line 79. The last-named center lines extend in the width direction of the weaving machine. The respective servo motor 66 is provided with a transmitter 78. The crankshaft parts of the modules are mutually connected with mechanical crankshafts 81, 82, 83, etc., which are connected to the crankshaft parts of the modules via couplings 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, etc. In relation to the longitudinal drive shaft of the prior art, and its gearboxes, the total weight is reduced down to 15-25% with the aid of the drive by means of the servo motors 66 and the indicated shaft parts 81, 82 and 83. Moreover, the advantages with the fact that the arrangement according to
e shows an arrangement in which the distance M1 can be reduced to 75-90%. The modular unit 20, 20b can here be arranged such that the motor 66 extending from the wall 20 is situated displaced in relation to the motor 66′ extending from the wall 20b, which displacement can be in the order of 90-180°. With a corresponding arrangement for the motors 66″ and 66′″ on the modular unit 20′ and 20b′, the motors 66′ and 66″ of the modular units concerned can extend partially side by side. With a similar arrangement of constituent modular units, the distance M1 between adjoining modular units can be shrunk to the distance M2, which can be 75-90% of the distance M1. The shaft parts 81′, 82′ and 83′ can be reduced in length, and hence in weight, in relation to the shaft parts 81, 82 and 83 in
In
In the embodiment according to
The invention is not limited to the above-specified embodiment, but can be subject to modifications within the scope of the following patent claims and the description.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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0802577 | Dec 2008 | SE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/SE2009/000506 | 12/4/2009 | WO | 00 | 6/16/2011 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2010/071536 | 6/24/2010 | WO | A |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20110247716 A1 | Oct 2011 | US |