WO2005113877A1 - Sewing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A sewing machine, comprising a light fitting (10) having a plurality of LEDs (11) disposed at intervals so as to be linearly formed roughly along the arrangement line of a plurality of linearly arranged sewing needles (9) and a cylindrical lens (14) condensing the light of the LEDs and emitting a linear luminous flux along the arrangement line of needle bars. Also, the light fitting (10) which is installed for each sewing machine head (3) is controlled for each sewing machine head in association with the operating state of the corresponding sewing machine head. Thus, a linear light suitable for illuminating the tips of the plurality of linearly arranged sewing needles can be produced at low cost, and the illumination of the tips of the needles for the plurality of sewing machine heads can be controlled properly.

Description

 Technical field

 The present invention relates to a sewing machine provided with a lighting device for illuminating the vicinity of a needle point immediately below a sewing head.

 Background art

 [0002] Conventionally, a sewing machine provided with a lighting device that illuminates the vicinity of a needle tip of a sewing needle and the surface of a cloth to be sewn so that threading of the sewing needle and a pattern on the cloth to be sewn can be easily performed has been known. Have been. Patent Literature 1 below discloses a multi-needle sewing machine having a plurality of needle bars in a sewing head, and a lighting device for illuminating the periphery of the needle tip of a sewing needle fixed to the lower end of each needle bar and the surface of a cloth to be sewn. Is disclosed. This illuminator is capable of emitting light in a linear shape that almost follows the arrangement line of each needle bar.

A configuration in which (LEDs) are arranged linearly is disclosed. The illuminating device capable of emitting light in a linear manner sufficiently illuminates the periphery of each needle and the needle tip and the surface of the cloth to be sewn, thereby facilitating sewing, threading the needle, and other operations. .

 Patent document 1: JP-A-11-253685

 [0003] On the other hand, there is known a sewing machine that controls the lighting device in conjunction with an operation state of the sewing machine. Patent Document 2 below discloses a method of notifying an abnormality by changing the color of light emitted when an abnormality is detected by abnormality detection means for detecting an abnormality such as an erroneous operation or an accident (thread breakage). A sewing machine is disclosed. Separately from this, Patent Document 3 below discloses that a sewing machine capable of automatic sewing detects the start and end of automatic sewing, turns off a lighting device when the start of automatic sewing is detected, and terminates automatic sewing. A sewing machine is disclosed in which a lighting device is turned on when it is detected, so that a worker does not have to operate a switch of the lighting device to save power consumption.

 Patent Document 2: Patent No. 2900549

 Patent Document 3: JP-A-6-91085

[0004] In recent years, as a lighting device for illuminating the vicinity of the needle tip and the surface of the cloth to be sewn, miniaturization, extension of life, There is a tendency to use LED lamps that are superior in preventing heat. However, since the LED lamp as a single light source has a limited light-emitting (irradiation) range to a narrow spot-like area, this LED lamp illuminates each sewing area of a multi-needle sewing machine and the vicinity of the needle tip. Requires a large number of LED lamps to be arranged linearly without any gaps, which increases costs. In addition, the cost of a multi-head multi-needle sewing machine having a plurality of multi-needle sewing heads increases in proportion to the number of sewing heads.

On the other hand, in a sewing machine such as disclosed in Patent Document 2 or 3, in which a lighting device is controlled in association with the operating state of the sewing machine, one lighting device is linked with the operating state of the sewing machine. It just controls it. For this reason, in a multi-head sewing machine equipped with a plurality of sewing machine heads, it is not only possible to individually control the lighting equipment provided for each sewing machine head, but also to make each lighting equipment work in conjunction with the operation state of each sewing machine head. It could not be controlled separately

Disclosure of the invention

 [0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and is capable of generating, at low cost, linear light suitable for illuminating the periphery of a plurality of sewing needles arranged in a line. The aim is to provide a sewing machine equipped with lighting equipment. Another object of the present invention is to provide a sewing machine capable of appropriately controlling the needlepoint illumination for a plurality of sewing heads.

 [0007] The present invention relates to a sewing machine having a multi-needle sewing head in which a plurality of needle bars are arranged in a straight line or a curved line in one sewing head, and fixed to the lower end of each needle bar. A lighting device for illuminating the vicinity of the needle tip of the sewing needle, wherein the lighting device is provided with a plurality of single pieces arranged at intervals so as to form a linear shape substantially following the arrangement line of the needle bars. A light source, and a lens provided to cover the plurality of single light sources and condensing the light of each single light source to emit a linear light beam following the arrangement line of the needle bar. Characterized by

[0008] According to another aspect of the present invention, with respect to a sewing machine having a plurality of sewing heads, a lighting device provided for each sewing head to illuminate a periphery of a needle point of a sewing needle of each sewing head. And control means for controlling the lighting device of each sewing machine head for each sewing machine head in association with the operating state of the corresponding sewing machine head. [0009] By providing the illumination device having the above-described configuration, light from a plurality of single light sources arranged at intervals can be condensed by a lens and emitted as a linear light beam. Around the needle tip of each sewing needle can be widely and evenly illuminated by the linear light. Accordingly, the periphery of the needle tip of each sewing needle can be widely and evenly illuminated with a small number of single light sources, and the manufacturing cost of the lighting fixture can be suppressed. Further, when the present invention is applied to a multi-head sewing machine having a plurality of sewing heads, the cost reduction effect is synergistic. The use of a chip LED (light emitting diode) as a single light source results in excellent miniaturization, long life, and prevention of heat generation.

 [0010] Furthermore, by controlling the lighting device of each sewing machine head in conjunction with the operation state of the corresponding sewing machine head for each sewing machine head, an optimal needle according to the operating condition of each sewing machine head in a multi-head sewing machine is obtained. Pre-illumination control can be performed independently for each head. For example, when only a part of the plurality of sewing heads is operated and the operation of the remaining sewing heads is stopped, only the illumination device of the operated sewing head can be turned on. Alternatively, when the sewing machine stops due to thread breakage, it is possible to turn on only the illumination device of the sewing machine head where the thread breakage occurs. In this way, easy-to-understand operations can be performed quickly and lean lighting control can be performed with a multi-head machine.

 Brief Description of Drawings

FIG. 1 is an external view of a multi-head, multi-needle type embroidery sewing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

 FIG. 2 is a front view of the sewing head according to the embodiment.

 FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the sewing head.

 FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional view showing an example of the lighting fixture in the embodiment.

 5A is a side sectional view of the lighting device, and FIG. 5B is a side sectional view of a modification of the lighting device.

 FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control device and a control system of a lighting device in the embroidery sewing machine of the embodiment.

 BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an external view of a multi-head / multi-needle type embroidery sewing machine according to one embodiment of the present invention, wherein 1 is a sewing machine frame, and 2 is a table. Multiple (four in the example shown) Sewing machine heads 3 are arranged at regular intervals along the left and right direction of the sewing machine, and a needle plate 4 is arranged at a position directly below each sewing machine head 3 at substantially the same height as the table 2. An embroidery frame 5 is placed on the table 2, and the embroidery frame 5 is driven in the front, rear, left, and right directions by an X drive mechanism and a Y drive mechanism (not shown).

 FIG. 2 shows a front view of the sewing head 3, and FIG. 3 shows a side view (a partial cross section) of the sewing head 3. As is apparent from these drawings, the sewing machine head 3 includes an arm 6 fixed to the sewing machine frame 1 and a needle bar case 7 slidably supported on the front surface of the arm 6. A plurality (9 in the illustrated example) of needle bars 8 are provided in the needle bar case 7 so as to be vertically movable, and a sewing needle 9 is fixed to a lower end of each needle bar 8. The needle bar case 7 is slid by a color changing mechanism (not shown), and an arbitrary needle bar 8 is positioned at a selected position. The selected needle bar 8 is moved by a needle bar driving mechanism (not shown) of the arm 6. Driven up and down. The well-known sewing is performed in cooperation with the needle bar 8 (sewing, needle 9) driven vertically and the shuttle (not shown) provided below the needle plate 4, and the embroidery frame 5 is moved back and forth and right and left. By being driven, embroidery sewing based on embroidery data is performed.

A lighting device 10 is provided below the front part of the needle bar case 7. As shown in the three-dimensional view of FIG. 4 and the side cross-sectional view of FIG. 5A, the lighting fixture 10 has an overall shape (semi-cylindrical shape). The lighting device 10 includes a substrate 12 on which a plurality (four) of chip LEDs 11 are arranged at equal intervals, a base member 13 for fixing the substrate 12, and a lens 14 provided so as to cover the substrate 12. The number of chip LEDs 11 arranged on the substrate 12 is smaller than the number of needle bars 8 arranged in the needle bar case 7, and each chip LED 11 has a linear shape that almost follows the arrangement line of each needle bar 8 (see FIG. They are arranged on the substrate 12 at intervals so as to form a straight line in the illustrated example). The lens 14 is a cylindrical lens (cylindrical lens) capable of converging incident light from a flat surface and emitting linear light with a cylindrical surface force, and is formed of, for example, a transparent acrylic material. is there. The overall length of the lens-shaped lens 14 corresponds to the overall length of the arrangement line of the needle bar 8 arranged in the needle bar case 7 and the shape of the arrangement line of the needle bar 8 (in the illustrated example, a straight line). The shape is similar to that of The lens 14 emits a linear light beam that condenses the light of the plurality of chip LEDs 11 and uniformly illuminates the periphery of the needle of each sewing needle 9. Therefore, the lighting of the small number (4) of chip LEDs 11 of the lighting fixture 10 illuminates the periphery of the needle tip of the larger number (9) of the sewing needles 9 evenly. It will be. In the illustrated example, the arrangement of the needle bars 8 in the needle bar case 7 is linear. The arrangement is not limited to this, and there may be a curved arrangement such as an arc shape. The shape in the direction has a curved shape corresponding to the shape, and accordingly, the arrangement line of the plurality of chip LEDs 11 and the shape in the length direction of the lens 14 are also curved.

As shown in FIG. 6, the lighting device 10 for each sewing machine head 3 (each of the four heads 3 is distinguished by # 1 to # 4) is individually driven to be lit from the sewing machine control device 20 via the driver 21. Control signal is supplied. The lighting device 10 is controlled to be turned on and off in accordance with the operation state of the sewing machine and the operation state of each sewing head 3 under the control of the control device 20. For example, each of the lighting devices 10 is controlled to be turned off when the sewing machine is operating because there is no need to illuminate around the needle tip, and to be turned on when the sewing machine stops. In a multi-head sewing machine, there is a case where only a part of the sewing machine head 3 is operated and the operation of the remaining sewing machine heads 3 is stopped. In such a case, when the sewing machine stops, only the illuminator 10 of the machine head 3 that is in operation is turned on, and the illuminator 10 of the machine head 3 that has been set to rest is not illuminated. Control independently. This has the advantage that the operator can determine at a glance which sewing machine head 3 is in operation, and also turns on the illuminating device 10 of the sewing machine head 3 which is not required to be turned on. There is no waste such as getting lost. In addition, since the illumination is controlled independently for each head, for example, when the sewing machine stops due to a thread break, it is possible to control so that only the illuminator 10 of the sewing machine head 3 having the thread break is turned on. Thus, when the sewing machine stops due to a thread break, the sewing machine head that has broken the thread can be easily identified, and the thread is cut without the need to light the thread, and the lighting device 10 of the sewing head 3 is turned on. There is no waste. In order to perform such lighting control, a necessary computer program may be set up, and the program may be executed by a CPU included in the control device 20 of the sewing machine. In this case, the operation setting information of the operation Z-pause for each sewing machine head 3, the thread breakage detection signal for each sewing machine head 3, the information indicating the current operating state of the sewing machine, and the like are input to the control device of the sewing machine. By referring to the input signal Z information during the execution of the program, the individual illumination control described above for each sewing head 3 is performed. Alternatively, not only program control but also the hardware necessary to perform such lighting control An air circuit may be created and incorporated into the control device 20 of the sewing machine.

FIG. 5 (B) shows a lighting device 15 as another embodiment of the lighting device 10. The illuminator 15 has the same function as the illuminator 10 described above, but the shape of the flat portion of the lens is somewhat different. That is, a groove for locating the chip LED 11 is formed on the flat surface of the glass lens 14 of the lighting device 10 shown in FIG. 5 (A), while the lighting shown in FIG. The entire surface of the flat part of the lens 16 of the fixture 15 is formed flat, and a spacer 17 is interposed between the base member 13 and the lens. The chip 17 is mounted by the presence of the spacer 17. The structure is such that a small space for locating the LED 11 is formed. The lens-shaped lens 14 as shown in FIG. 5 (A) requires the formation of a groove in the plane portion, but the lens-shaped lens 16 as shown in FIG. 5 (B) is simpler than that. .

In the above embodiment, the illuminator 10 (or 15) corresponding to one sewing machine head 3 is a force constituted by one unit. The number of needle bars in one sewing machine head 3 is not limited to this. The lighting means may be constructed by combining a plurality of units of the lighting fixtures 10 (or 15) side by side according to the conditions. For example, a lighting unit approximately half the length of the lighting device 10 shown in FIG. 4 is configured by using two chip LEDs 11, and when the number of needle bars in one sewing head 3 is about 5 or so, this is the case. Only one short lighting unit is installed, but if the number of needle bars in one sewing head 3 is 9, two such short lighting units are installed side by side and combined. be able to. Alternatively, a lighting unit having a length of about 1Z4 of the lighting device 10 shown in FIG. 4 may be configured using only one chip LED 11. In that case, one chip LED 11 is arranged at the center in the length direction of the lens 14 (or 16). Then, depending on the number of needle bars in the sewing machine head 3 to be applied, one or a plurality of such short illuminator units each including one chip LED 11 and the corresponding cylindrical lens 14 (or 16) are arranged side by side. It can be installed in combination with. Of course, various types of lighting fixture units having different lengths may be installed side by side in combination.

The control device 20 can provide various notification functions by setting the lighting mode (the lighting time length, the flashing mode, the switching of the emission color, and the like) of the lighting device 10 in various ways. For example, when turning on the illuminator 10 of the sewing machine head 3 with a broken thread, By turning on the light, it is possible to warn the operator that the thread has been broken. Alternatively, for example, when the sewing machine stops due to an error, all the lighting devices 10 may blink to notify the worker. In this case, return to the normal state after the operator clears the error on the operation panel. Alternatively, a variety of notification functions can be provided by installing chip LEDs of multiple colors and switching their emission colors. The single light source is not limited to the chip LED, and any other light source may be used. The present invention is not limited to an embroidery sewing machine, but can be applied to other types of sewing machines.

 As described above, according to the present embodiment, the light of the plurality of chip LEDs 11 arranged at intervals is condensed by the lens 14 and converted into linear light, and the linear light is linearly formed by the linear light. Since the area around the needle tip of needle 9 is illuminated, a small number of chips LED11 can illuminate the area around the needle point of each sewing needle 9 and the manufacturing cost of lighting fixtures is low. It can be suppressed. In addition, a multi-head, multi-needle type sewing machine can also synergistically suppress an increase in cost. In addition, the lighting device 10 of each sewing machine head 3 is controlled to be turned on or off according to the operation state of each sewing machine head 3, so that only the lighting device 10 of the operating machine head 3 can be turned on. It is possible to turn on only the illuminating device 10 of the sewing machine head 3 where the thread is broken, and it is possible to easily identify the sewing machine head 3 intended by the operator, and to use the unnecessary illuminating device of the sewing machine head 3. 10 will not be lit unnecessarily.

Claims

The scope of the claims  [1] In a sewing machine having a multi-needle sewing machine head in which a plurality of needle bars are arranged in a straight line or a curved line in one sewing machine head,  An illumination device for illuminating the periphery of the needle tip of the sewing needle fixed to the lower end of each needle bar, wherein the illumination device is arranged at intervals so as to form a linear shape substantially following the arrangement line of the needle bars. A plurality of unitary light sources, and a lens provided so as to cover the plurality of unitary light sources, condensing the light of each unitary light source, and emitting a linear light beam following the arrangement line of the needle bar And a sewing machine comprising:  [2] The lens of the illuminator includes one longitudinal cylindrical lens, and the plurality of single light sources are arranged at intervals along the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical lens. The sewing machine according to claim 1.  [3] The illuminator includes an illuminator unit including a cylindrical lens having a predetermined length and at least one unitary light source provided corresponding to the cylindrical lens, and an arrangement of the needle bars. 2. The sewing machine according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the sewing machines are installed side by side along a line.  4. The sewing machine according to claim 1, wherein the single light source is a chip LED. 5. The sewing machine according to claim 1, wherein the number of the single light sources in the lighting fixture is smaller than the number of the needle bars in the one sewing head. 6. The sewing machine according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of the sewing heads provided with the lighting fixture. 7. The sewing machine according to claim 6, further comprising control means for controlling the lighting device of each of the sewing machine heads in association with the operating state of the corresponding sewing machine head to control each of the sewing machine heads.  [8] A sewing machine having a plurality of sewing heads,  A lighting device provided for each sewing head to illuminate the vicinity of the needle tip of the sewing machine;  Control means for controlling the lighting device of each sewing machine head for each sewing machine head in association with the operation state of the corresponding sewing machine head; A sewing machine comprising: [9] The control means controls only a part of the plurality of sewing machine heads to operate and, when suspending the operation of the remaining sewing machine heads, to turn on only the illuminating device of the machine head to be operated. 9. The sewing machine according to claim 7, wherein the sewing machine is used. 10. The sewing machine according to claim 7, wherein the control means controls, when the sewing machine stops due to thread breakage, to turn on only the illumination device of the sewing machine head where the thread breakage has occurred. 11. The sewing machine according to claim 7, wherein the control means controls the lighting device to be turned on in a different lighting mode corresponding to each of a plurality of types of notification functions.