US3509745A - Cloth treating apparatus - Google Patents

Description

May 5, 1970 JOHNSTON 3,509,745

CLOTH TREATING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 22, 1968 ATTORNEY 4 Sheets-Sheet 8 L. L. JOHNSTON CLOTH TREATING APPARATUS I QEE N N9 om May 5, 1970 Filed May 22. 1968 mvsmon.

LAWTON L. JOHNSTON fidfi ATTORNEY May 5, 1970 L. JOHNSTON CLOTH TREATING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 22. 1968 INVENTOR.

" LAWTON L. JOHNSTON BY WWW ATTORNEY Ilium..-

L; L. JOHNSTON CLOTH TREATING APPARATUS May 5, 1970 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed May 22, 1968 R N O 0 T N S E N V H m0 J L N O m A L la-II I I I I I I II I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Z I I ATTORNEY United States Patent M 3,509,745 CLOTH TREATING APPARATUS Lawton L. Johnston, Graniteville, S.C., assignor to Graniteville Company, Graniteville, S.C., a corporation of South Carolina Filed May 22, 1968, Ser. No. 731,032 Int. Cl. D06f 21/00, 23/00, 25/00 US. Cl. 68175 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention is directed to an apparatus for subjecting lengths of cloth to a liquid treatment in a vat, and more specifically to a device in which lengths of cloth may be unwound from one roll and wound again upon another roll within the vat as they are subjected to a suitable liquid solution, the process being accomplished without reversing the position or rotational direction of the rolls and thus without interrupting the continuous processing of the cloth.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The apparatus comprising the present invention and described in the following specification is capable of being employed in many different stages during the processing of raw cloth, such as in dyeing, bleaching and the like, however it will be described in connection with What is known as the boilout stage. During this operation the cloth is subjected to a caustic boiloff to make the fabric more absorbent among other things in preparation for bleaching and dyeing. Before the cloth may he bleached or dyed, there are several essential prerequisites as to the condition of the cloth, one of which is this boilout treatment wherein the goods must be exposed to a treating fluid for a sufiicient length of time while in an open width, free from wrinkles and creases.

Initiall, kiers were employed for boiling off cloth, however the cloth is not in open width in a kier and therefore it is objectionable in that creases and wrinkles created in the cloth during such treatment cause unsatisfactory subsequent bleaching or dyeing of the cloth. It was then found that jigs could be employed for treating cloth in open width, whereupon the cloth was unwound from one roll and drawn through a vat containing a suitable solution before being wound again upon another roll. When the second roll became filled, the cloth was drawn in the reverse direction through the fluid and again wound upon the first roll. These steps were repeated until the cloth was sufficiently saturated with or subjected to the desired solution, and such a process would in time result in an acceptable material. However the drawback in this type of cloth treating apparatus is obvious, since it is impossible to carry on any semblance of a continuous process due to the fact that the direction of cloth flow has to he repeatedly reversed, and when the cloth has been sufliciently treated, the rolls must be removed and other rolls inserted in their place.

Subsequently, the inventor of the present invention devised an apparatus for treating cloth in a continuous process which is described in US. Letters Pat. No. 2,217,534, issued Oct. 8, 1940. That patent describes an apparatus for subjecting lengths of cloth to treating fluids comprising a tank or vat including a plurality of parallel pairs of rolls positioned thereover and having a portion of their peripheries normally immersed in the fluid. As a length of cloth is wound onto the front roll of the first pair of parallel rolls, another length is unwound from the adjacent rear roll of the first pair onto the front roll of the second pair. When the first roll is completely wound and the second roll completely unwound, the rear and 3,509,745 Patented May 5, 1970 front rolls are capsized and reversed or their positions exchange, so that the front filled roll becomes the rear roll, and the rear empty roll becomes the front roll. So positioned, the winding process resumes and the original cloth length moved on to the front roll in the second pair.

The applicant later became aware that such an apparatus and process, although an improvement on prior machines, was still not entirely satisfactory, since the winding rolls had to be hoisted and capsized in the exchanging or reversal step.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention, on the other hand, eliminates the necessity of capsizing and exchanging the rolls after the first roll is filled with the result that the cloth treatment is more of a continuous process, production may be increased, the work load on machine operators is decreased, a lower machine maintenance cost is required, and less floor space is required.

In summary, the present invention comprises a vat having a series of rolls or beams positioned in parallel relation to each other and journaled between a pair of endless conveyors encircling the longitudinal periphery of the vat, said rolls preferably being partially immersed in the treating solution. The conveyor system according to the present invention provides a means for indexing the rolls through predetermined stations or positions within the vat as the rolls are filled and emptied of cloth as opposed to the capsizing or reversal means described in applicants prior Patent No. 2,217,534. The process is accomplished by winding a length of incoming cloth onto an empty roll at a first station within the vat while cloth is being unwound from a filled roll at a second or next adjacent station and taken up on an empty roll at a third station within the vat. Meanwhile, cloth is being unwound from a filled roll occupying a fourth station in the vat and taken up at a remote point for subsequent processing. There may be as many winding and unwinding stations as is desired, but at least four such stations are preferred so that the leading edge of the cloth entering the vat is the leading edge leaving the vat. When the roll at the first station becomes desirably filled, and the roll at the second station is desirably empty, the winding is halted, the incoming sheet of cloth severed, and the conveyor is activated to advance the rolls one position, whereupon the first filled roll advances to the second station, and a new empty roll replaces the first filled roll at the first station to continue processing of the incoming cloth.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a more efficient and economical apparatus for subjecting lengths of cloth in open width to a liquid treatment.

It is another object of this invention to provide an apparatus for subjecting lengths of cloth to a liquid treatment whereupon the cloth is sequentially wound upon and unwound from a series of rolls or beams journaled at spaced positions between a pair of endless conveyors which extend around the longitudinal periphery of the vat.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a means for repeatedly subjecting lengths of cloth to a fiuid treatment without requiring an exchange or capsizing of the rolls upon which the cloth is wound.

It is another and more specific object of this invention to provide an apparatus for subjecting sheets or lengths of cloth to fluids comprising a tank with a plurality of rolls disposed in parallel spaced relation thereover and having a portion of their periphery normally immersed in the fluid, means for winding the lengths of cloth onto the front roll and onto alternate rolls while the adjacent second roll and alternate rolls are being unwound, and means for progressively moving said rolls from one position to the next when the rolls being wound become full and the rolls being unwound become empty.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated,

other objects will appear as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a side schematic view with parts broken away of the improved cloth treating apparatus, showing its relation to other cloth treating devices ina continuous line of operation;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the improved cloth treating apparatus according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional elevation view taken along the line 33 in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIG. 1, during the processing of raw or greige fabric preparatory to bleaching and dyeing, a continuous length of cloth S is subjected to singeing and desizing operations, foliowed by a period wherein the cloth is held in a scrag while the enzyme added during desizing converts the size, usually starch, to a soluble sugar. Subsequently, the cloth is subjected to a washer and caustic bath as generally indicated at C in FIG. 1 and including washer vat 12 and caustic tub 14 through which the cloth S is passed by means of rolls 16 and squeeze rolls 18, which direct the cloth in a zig-zag path. Upon leaving the caustic bath, the sheet of cloth S passes over guide roll 19 and onto the boilout operation.

According to the present invention, the incoming length of cloth 8 passes under a second guide roll 114 (FIG. 2) and is initially wound upon a beam or roll at the first winding station or position 20 at the front end of boilout apparatus generally indicated at B. The lower periphery of beam 20 is preferably immersed in the boilout solution contained in vat 60. Subsequent winding stations 22, 24, and 26 are spaced along the length of the vat 60. All of the beams or rolls at winding stations 20, 22, 24, and 26 are journaled between a pair of continuous conveyors which envelop each side of vat 60 and which will be more fully explained hereinafter.

Simultaneously with the windin g of sheet 12 at position 20, a second length or sheet of cloth S is unwound from a beam at station 22 onto the beam at position 24, and a third length of cloth S is being unwound from the fourth or rear position 26 at the rear of boilout unit B from whence it passes into a subsequent washing operation. It is evident that as many positions or stations as desired may be used in carrying out this process. FIG. 1 schematically shows an arrangement where only four stations are used, however this arrangement is representative only and could be extended, depending upon the number of immersions in the boilout solution as is felt necessary.

As the cloth S is received initially from caustic bath C and wound upon the roll at station 20, it is severed when the roll reaches a convenient size, approximately 3-4 feet in diameter. Then, when the cloth sheet S" unwinds from the roll at the rear station 26 of boilout unit B, it is necessary to sew the various lengths together to again make the cloth into a continuous sheet. This sewing proc ess is carried out by a sewing apparatus, not shown. After sewing the ends of the layers of cloth together, the continuous length of cloth passes squeeze rolls 124 and 126, beneath guide roll 30, over rolls 32 and 34 and down into wash box 36. This box contains a suitable hot water solution for washing the cloth after it has been treated with the solution in the boilout unit B. The cloth passes through a series of rolls 38 and 40 in a zig-Zag course until it has been washed sufficiently to prepare it for bleaching.

Turning now to FIGS. 2-4, the boilout unit itself comprises as a base a pair of longitudinally extending lbeams 50 which support the framework and vat above the surface of the floor. A plurality of cross members 52, 54, 56 and 58 are spaced along and extend between I-beams 50 and provide a mounting surface for securing tub or vat 60 thereto.

A framework for supporting the conveyor system extends longitudinally along either side of vat 60 and comprises horizontally extending bottom 62 and top 64, which are vertically spaced from each other by diagonally ex tending ends 68 and 70, and are reinforced by vertically extending braces 72, 74, '76, and 78. FIG. 2 shows one side of vat 60 only, however, it is to be recognized that the conveyor and framework is identical on the opposite side.

A pair of sprockets are suitably journaled for rotational movement to a bracket 81 secured to the upper surfaces of the forward ends of I-beams 50, one sprocket being on either side of vat 60, and slightly forward of the front wall 61 of the vat. Similarly, a second pair of sprockets 82 are journaled on either side of the vat to brackets 83 at the forward end of top frame member 64. A third pair of sprockets hereinafter known as drive sprockets 84 are positioned to similar brackets 85 at the rear end of top member 64, and a fourth pair of sprockets 86 are suitably journaled to brackets 87 which are in turn secured to the upper surface of I-beam 50 at the rear end thereof slightly rearward of back wall 62 of vat 60. A conveyor chain 88 extends between and around the sprockets 80, 82, 84, and 86 along either side of vat 60. Chains 88 are so assembled that the links thereof are engaged by the aforesaid sprockets, and when drive sprocket 84 is activated as hereinafter described, the chain is progressively moved in a clockwise direction as shown by FIG. 2.

A series of rolls or beams 90 are journaled at either end to brackets 92, which in turn are secured around said conveyor chain 88, and spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between the beams in the winding position along the top of the vat. In order to provide a means for advancing the conveyor from station to station, a motor 94 is suitably positioned on a platform 95 which extends between the rear portions of I-beams 50. A drive chain 96 connects the motor to an auxiliary sprocket 98 mounted on a drive shaft to which sprocket 84 is also mounted.

Upon activating motor 94, drive chain 96 causes sprocket 84 to rotate and sets the conveyor chain 88 in motion. Such action continues until winding rolls 90 have progressed from one position to the next along the top edge of vat 60. As the unwinding of the roll in the rear station is finished, it passes around sprocket 84 whereupon it progresse beneath vat 60 and around the front end where it will eventually return to station 20 again.

The present invention utilizes the technique of surface winding to wind and unwind rolls 90, said surface winding technique being well-known in the art, with the mechanism comprising the following configuration. Two pairs of A-frames 100 and 102 are supported by top members 64 of the framework, one of each pair of A-frames 100 and 102 being attached on opposite sides of vat 60. A- frame 100 rises above the second roll position 22 along the vat, and A-frame 102 rises above the fourth or rear roll position 26. The purpose of these A-frames is to support the surface winding mechanism in position adjacent winding stations 20 and 24. More particularly, a bracket 104 is secured to the upper extremity of A-frames 100 and 102, to which the winder frame 106 is pivotally attached.

Winding motor 108 is supported atop one end of winder frame 106, and is preferably a 5 horsepower, 240 volts DC, 144 rpm. type motor. Puily 110 connects the shaft of motor 108 with a shoulder on bearing roll 112, which in turn is journaled between the sides of the other end of winding frame 106.

Associated with hearing roll 112 is guide 114 which is journaled between the sides of winding frame 106 adjacent the bearing roll 112. The cloth sheet S arrives from the caustic bath and proceeds beneath guide roll 114 and under bearing roll 112 where it is wound upon beam 90 at winding station 20 in a counterclockwise direction. One end of air cylinder 118 is secured to a gusset 101 on A-frame 100, and the piston of the cylinder is pivotally attached to a side member of winding frame 106, thereby providing a cushioning effect for the winder frame, as the cloth on beam 90 at winding station 20 begins to build. A second winder frame 106' is mounted atop A- frame 102 and includes elements identical to those associated with winder frame 106, and numbered a such. A-frame 102, however, is slightly different in that it further includes a rearwardly extending, horizontal extension 120, upon which is mounted a squeeze roll assembly 122. As the cloth sheet S" is unwound from the rear winding station 26 on the boilout mechanism, it passe between rollers 124 and 126 of squeeze roll assembly 122, before commencing to the washer W.

In operation, a cloth sheet S proceeds from the caustic bath under the guide roll 114, from whence it is fed between bearing roll 112 and a roll 90 at the first .winding station 20 in a clockwise direction as shown inFIG. 2. When motor 108 is activated, bearing roll 112 is caused to turn in a counterclockwise direction, and since it is in bearing relationship to the cloth built upon the corresponding roll 90, it urges the cloth sheet S onto the roll. This winding action continues until the beam is filled to a convenient diameter of approximately three to four feet. Whereupon the winding motors are shut down and the cloth sheet S is severed from the incoming continuous length of material.

At this time, referring to FIG. 1, the cloth from the roll at winding station 22 has been wound onto the roll in station 24, and the cloth from the roll at winding station 26 has been fed into the washing station W. Motor 94 is then activated to transfer the conveyor 88 in a clockwise direction until the beams or rolls 90 have been advanced one position or station.

The material running from the new roll at station 26 is then sewed to the rear portion of the material which has just been unwound from station 26 and the boilout machine is ready for operation again.

A new sheet of material S is wound onto a new winding roll positioned at station 20, the end of the full roll at station 22 is fed onto the empty roll at station 24, and motors 108 are restarted.

It is thus seen that the boilout operation, as described in the foregoing specification, can be carried on in substantially a continuous operation, without requiring hoisting equipment as shown by applicants prior Patent No. 2,217,534, and with a substantial savings in time and cost. Where it is desired that each section of cloth have its leading and trailing ends in an unreversed position when leaving the vat, it is essential that an even number of stations where the cloth is being wound onto a roll, such as stations 20 and 24, be provided. Otherwise, if an odd number of winding stations is used, the lengths of cloth will be reversed, end for end, and therefore the first end of each section to enter the vat'will be the last end to leave it.

Various modifications may be made to this arrangement without departing from the scope of thepresent invention. For example, a different type of winding apparatus may be used without departing from the basic concept of the invention. Moreover, as described in the preceding paragraph, a different number of winding and unwinding stations may be used, if desired.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention and although specific terms have been employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for subjecting a plurality of sheets of cloth material to the action of a treating fluid comprismg:

(a) a vat for holding said fluid;

(b) a plurality of parallel winding rolls mounted atop said vat and extending between the sides thereof;

(0) means for winding one sheet of material onto one of said rolls positioned at a first or front winding station of said apparatus;

(d) means for simultaneously unwinding a second sheet from another roll located at a second station adjacent the first and onto a roll in the third station;

(e) means for simultaneously unwinding a third sheet from the roll positioned at the rear station of said apparatus for subsequent treatment; and

(f) a means for advancing the positions of all of said rolls to the next station,.when the rolls at the first and third stations become full and the rolls at the second and rear stations become empty.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means recited in paragraph (f) comprises a pair of conveyors, each conveyor extending in a longitudinal direction around the extremities of one side of said vat, said rollers being attached to said conveyor at positions spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between said winding stations above said vat.

3.- The apparatus according to claim 2 wherein each of said conveyors extends along the top of one side of said vat, down around the ends and, back underneath the same side, forming a continuous loop around each side of said vat, each of said conveyors being supported by a plurality of sprockets at each corner of its path, and a means for turning said sprockets a number of revolutions corresponding to the distance required to advance a roll from one winding station to the next.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said vat is elevated from the floor, and said conveyors extend between the under surface of said vat and the floor of the room in which the vat is located.

5. The apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said cloth is surface wound onto said rolls.

6. The apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said rolls are so positioned, that when said vat is filled with said fluid, at least a portion of the peripheries of each of said rolls is immersed in said fluid.

7. An apparatus for subjecting a plurality of sheets of material to the action of a liquid treating bath comprising:

(a) an elongated rectangular vat having a front and rear end;

(b) a framework positioned adjacent to and substantially congruous with eachside of said vat;

(c) said vat and said framework resting on a pair of base members and being spaced above the floor;

.(d) a sprocket located adjacent the corner of each side of said vat and spaced slightly forwardly from the front corners and slightly rearwardlyfrom the rear corners;

(e) an endless conveyor chain on each side of said vat carried by and extending around said sprockets;

(f) a motor actuating means connected to and selectively activating one of said sprockets, whereupon when said motor actuating means is activated, each endless conveyor is set in motion around said sprockets;

(g) a series of beams journaled between and equally spaced around said conveyors and extending across the width of said vat;

(h) said beams having a portion of their peripheries positioned below the top edge of said vat;

(i) the distance between adjacent beams being equal to the distance between adjacent winding and unwinding stations along the top of the vat;

.6) means for winding a length of sheet material onto the first of saidbeams located adjacent the front of said vat;

(k) means for winding a length of sheet material onto successive, alternate beams from the beams immedi ately preceding each of said successive beams;

(1) a take off means located rearwardly of the last of said beams adjacent the rear of said vat for removing the sheet material from said last beam in preparation for subsequent processing.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7 wherein said means for winding a length of sheet material onto said 10 WILLIAM 1. PRICE,

front and succeeding alternate beams comprises a surface winding apparatus.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Primary Examiner US. 01. X.R. 242-58, 64; 68-9

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