THE AUTOMATIC WIDENING MACHINE—EXPLANATION OF MECHANISM USED
WE have explained what fashioned work is and how it is done by hand.
Fig. 53 shows a machine built by Dubied & Co., which does this work by
widening the fabric automatically in the knitting operation. It is
called an automatic widening machine, and is particularly adapted to
making sleeves. It overcomes the principal objection knitters have to
making shaped work—that is, the extra labor involved, and has the
advantages before-mentioned—namely, no material to be cut away to get
the shape, a selvedge edge which means a small neat seam, and the proper
shape for a proper fit.
[Illustration: Fig. 53. Automatic Widening Machine, Dubied.]
The Widening Device
To the casual observer, the widening machine would look to be a very
complicated piece of mechanism, but as a matter of fact the widening
device is surprising in its simplicity.
[Illustration: Fig. 54. Widening Mechanism, Dubied Automatic Widening
Machine.]
Fig. 54 shows the principle of the method used. The drawing does not by
any means reproduce the parts as made, but only shows the principle
employed to secure these results, with all superfluous parts eliminated.
The machine proper is a full automatic machine, practically the same as
we have just finished with in the last article, with the exception of
the needle plates and the needles that are used, and the addition of the
widening mechanism. The needle plates are made almost twice as wide as
the regular plates, with a gib running through the middle of the lower
part as shown. The needles used for the narrowest part of the fabric,
and which are never used in the widening operation, are shown by the
letter _a_ in Fig. 56, and have one butt only as indicated at _b_. The
needles used in widening have one butt at the same distance from the
hook as the regular needles, as at _c_, and in addition to this they
have a second butt at the lower end of the shank extension which reaches
down under the narrow gib to the lower half of the plate, as indicated
at _d_.
The slot in the needle plate, at the lower edge, is cut all the way
through the plate up to a point which would about equal the distance
between the needles up in working position and the needles down. There
are needle springs, shown at _n_ in Fig. 54, below each needle which,
when the needles are down, project just below the bottom edge of the
plate, and when pushed up to hold the needles in working position would
have their lower ends about where the lower butts of the widening
needles are when down, as shown. The needle spring is shown in Fig. 56,
at _e_, in its position relative to the needle, the upper portion at _e_
fitting in the needle slot below the needle, while the lower part acts
as a clamp on the under side of the plate.
The lever shown at _f_ in Fig. 54, together with the slide _g_ and the
stop _h_, is enclosed in a cast block and they, together with the yarn
carrier stop _i_, move freely lengthwise of the small shaft _e_. There
is attached to this block a cord _q_, which runs over the small pulley
_o_ with a weight attached as at _p_.
It naturally follows that this weight would pull the block, lever,
carrier stop and all, over to the extreme right if there were nothing in
the way to stop it. The stop _h_ is for this purpose. It is stationary
in the block and extends up to the plate, while the slide _g_ is cut
back far enough to clear the lower ends of the springs _n_ which are
below the needles.
Pushing Needle Into Working Position
Inasmuch as these springs extend a trifle below the plate when the long
needles are down and the stop _h_ comes up in close proximity to the
bottom edge of the plate, this stop will engage the left side of the
spring and prevent the block, together with the lever _f_ and slide _g_,
from moving toward the right. Now in order to widen the fabric one
stitch or wale it is simply necessary to push the needle _r_ up into
working position. This is done by moving the cam block, _a_,
longitudinally, which would necessarily raise the lever _d_, which,
through the rocker shaft _e_ and lever _f_, would push the slide _g_,
together with the spring _n_ and needle _r_, up high enough to put this
needle into working position.
It should be understood that there are four of these widening mechanisms
as shown in Fig. 54, one on each end of both front and back needle
plates, but as they are all operated in the same manner it will be
necessary to describe and explain but one.
Now to explain how this is done automatically we will refer to Fig. 55,
which shows the cam side of the carriage of the automatic widening
machine. It will be noted that on the ends of the four fixed extensions
_b_1, _b_2, _b_3 and _b_4, there are rollers _a_1 to _a_4, attached with
shouldered screws whose heads are flush with the end of the rollers. As
we are dealing with only one we will select _a_1, which is the one that
would operate on the block _a_, Fig. 54, when turned over and placed on
the machine.
This roller is in the proper position to engage the cam _b_ (Fig. 54)
when the carriage is at the right end of the machine, and when the
carriage is at the end of its travel the roller would be at about the
point _B_.
It naturally follows that inasmuch as cam _b_ is attached to the block
_a_ on an inclined plane, and the block _a_ is attached to the frame of
the machine in such a manner that it cannot move lengthwise of the
machine, but may be moved freely in an up-and-down direction, when the
roller moves through the camway between cam _b_ and cam _c_ the block
must move upward, thereby pushing up one needle. Upon the return of the
carriage the roller coming in contact with cam _c_ will return the block
to its first position.
When the block _a_ is moved down by the roller, after pushing up the
needle, it must necessarily draw the slide _g_ back to the position
shown, and inasmuch as the lever _f_ slides freely lengthwise on the
shaft _e_, and there is nothing to prevent, the weight _p_ will draw all
of this part of the mechanism over one needle or until the stop _h_
comes in contact with the next needle spring _n_.
[Illustration: Fig. 55. Under or Cam Side of Carriage, Dubied Automatic
Widening Machine.]
Now, it should be understood that, as a rule, a fabric is not widened a
needle each round, therefore the block _a_ (Fig. 54) is arranged so it
will drop below the plane of travel of the roller _a_1 (Fig. 55) when
widening is not desired. Perhaps it would be more correct to say that
the normal position of block a is below the plane of travel of the
roller _a_1, therefore out of operation and is raised up in the path of
this roller by a stud on the widening chain _A_, Fig. 53, at the proper
time to push the needle up into operation. Upon the return of the
carriage it drops down to its normal position until another needle is to
be added to the fabric. The position of the block _a_ in Fig. 54, in
relation to the rest of the machine, may be seen at _B_ in Fig. 53.
Returning the Needles
As stated before, a fabric to be shaped on this machine must be started
at its narrowest part, therefore when the garment or part of a garment
is finished, these needles which have been pushed up to widen it must be
returned to their lowest position where they are out of operation, in
order to start a new piece. This is where the second and lower butts of
the needles come into use. They are operated on by the cams _c_1 to
_c_4, and _d_1 to _d_4, Fig. 55.
[Illustration: Fig. 56. Needles and Needle Springs Used in Automatic
Widening Machine.]
These cams are arranged so that normally they are raised up in the cam
plate and pass over the lower butts of the needles, but they may be
lowered to operate the needles and raised again, all automatically, at
the proper time and place by slides and levers similar to those
described in a previous article on the automatic machine. The manner of
returning the widening needles to their lowest position so they will be
out of operation should be obvious to the reader after the foregoing
explanations and a study of the illustrations.
When the time comes to cast off these added stitches in order to start a
new sleeve or fabric, the plate on which cams _c_1 and _d_1 are attached
is automatically lowered when the carriage is over to the extreme right.
Then upon its return the lower needle butts of the widening needles will
come in contact with the left side of cam _d_1, and moving up over the
top of this will, of course, raise the needles to a point where the
latches are above the stitches. As the carriage moves farther along, and
the butts come in contact with the left side of cam _c_1, they will
slide down and cast the stitches off over the latch and hook, and at the
same time be drawn down to a point so low that the knitting or upper
cams cannot operate on the upper butts.
At the same time that the cams _c_1 and _d_1 are lowered to cast off and
draw out of operation the widening needles, a plunger, which is attached
to the carriage, drops down and engages a recess on the under side of
the yarn carrier stop _i_, Fig. 54, and through the lug _j_ moves the
lever _f_, together with the slide _g_ and stop _h_, back to its first
position where the plunger is disengaged by an inclined stop. The stop
_h_ will hold this part of the mechanism in this place by contact with
the first needle spring as explained before.
It should be understood that while this explanation covers only one of
the four corners that must have the needles pushed up to widen the
fabric, the method applies to all of them. Also in the manner of casting
off the widening needles and returning them to their lowest positions
preparatory to starting a new fabric, we have confined ourselves to the
right end of the front plate only in order to present the matter in the
simplest possible manner. In actual practice the pair of cams on the
left, indicated by _c_3 and _d_3, together with _c_4 and _d_4, are put
into operation first by a medium stud on the widening chain while the
carriage is at the extreme left end. Upon the return movement of the
carriage these cams would cast off and return the widening needles to
their lowest point on the left end of both front and back plates.
Immediately this is done the cams are released by means provided, and
they again rise up into the plate out of the working position, thus
passing over the right side widening needles without effect.
After putting on one full round the cams _d_1 and _c_1, together with
cams _d_2 and _c_2, are put into operation at the extreme right end of
the machine by a high stud on the widening chain, and these cast off and
draw down out of operation the front and back widening needles on the
right in the same manner as heretofore explained.
Yarn Carrier Stop
The reader will realize from what has gone before that when there are
needles added to or taken from the edge of a fabric, while in the
process of knitting on a machine, it would be necessary to arrange to
change the stopping position of the yarn carrier in order to prevent it
from stopping too far away from or too close in to the fabric as the
widening operation progresses. This is done by the simple expedient of
having the yarn carrier stop mounted on its bar or way so it will slide
freely, and providing the lugs _j_ and _k_, Fig. 54, on both sides of
the lever _f_, so that it, with the lever _f_, and slide _g_, with stop
_h_, will at all times move together. Therefore the needle on the edge
of the fabric and the yarn carrier stops are always in the same relative
position.
If the reader has stopped to ponder on the working of this machine, with
the resultant fabric, he may realize that there should be more pull or
tension on the fabric during the last part of it than when it is
started. As there have been needles added it is wider. This has been
provided for so that by placing high studs on the main chain at the
proper point they will increase the tension on the take-up rollers where
and as much as needed. When the widening needles are cast off, and the
width of the fabric is reduced to its narrowest portion, this extra
tension may be automatically released and the pull reduced to the proper
strain for the narrower fabric.
These machines are made only in the double lock type, but there are
means provided through the before described levers and slides to change
automatically to single lock by raising one pair of the locks up out of
operation. This is quite an advantage where one wishes to make some
style of garment with a rack showing on both sides of the fabric such as
the turned-up cuff on ladies’ sweaters, etc.
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