BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a configuration of a yarn splicing device arranged
in a yarn winding machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
[0002] In a yarn winding machine, when a yarn being wound is disconnected for some reason,
an operation of joining the yarn with a yarn splicing device is carried out. A pneumatic
yarn splicing device for twisting yarn ends by whirling airflow is known for the yarn
splicing device.
[0003] The yarn splicing operation by the pneumatic yarn splicing device will be briefly
described below. First, the yarn splicing device acts airflow on yarn ends to be joined
to untwist the yarn ends. The yarn splicing device then brings the untwisted yarn
ends closer. The whirling airflow is acted on the yarn ends that are brought close
to twist and join the yarn ends.
[0004] In this type of yarn splicing device, short fibers or the like contained in the yarn
separate and get blown away by the airflow when untwisting the yarn with the airflow.
If the short fibers or the like (hereinafter, collectively referred to as yarn wastes)
that got blown away scatter around the device, maintenance such as cleaning becomes
troublesome to perform. Furthermore, if the scattered yarn wastes attaches to a package,
quality of the package may be lowered.
[0005] In this regards, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
2009-190853 discloses a yarn splicing device including a dedicated dust collector for collecting
the yarn wastes generated at the time of untwisting. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication
No.
2009-190853 thus improves the operating environment and the package quality, and also alleviates
the maintenance operation. The dust collector described in Japanese Unexamined Patent
Publication No.
2009-190853 is configured to suck the yarn wastes collected by the dust collector with a suction
pipe, and discharge the same.
[0006] However, through intensive researches, the inventors of the present application have
found that the yarn wastes collected by the dust collector can be more efficiently
and reliably sucked than the yarn splicing device described in Japanese
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a main
object of the present invention is to provide a yarn splicing device equipped with
a dust collector capable of reliably sucking and discharging the collected yarn wastes.
[0008] The problems to be solved by the present invention are as described above, and the
means for solving the problems as well as the effects thereof will now be described.
[0009] According to an aspect of the present invention, a yarn splicing device having the
following configuration is provided. In other words, the yarn splicing device includes
an untwisting pipe for acting airflow on a yarn end to untwist the yarn end, and a
dedicated dust collector for collecting yarn wastes generated by the untwisting. The
dust collector includes a dust collecting chamber for temporarily accommodating the
collected yarn wastes. The dust collecting chamber is formed with a yarn waste introducing
port opened towards the untwisting pipe, a yarn waste discharge opening for sucking
and discharging the yarn wastes in the dust collecting chamber to the outside, and
an air conducting portion arranged at a position facing the yarn waste discharge opening.
[0010] By arranging the air conducting portion to face the yarn waste discharge opening
as described above, the airflow flowing from the air conducting portion to the yarn
waste discharge opening can be generated in the dust collecting chamber when a negative
pressure is acted on the yarn waste discharge opening. Therefore, the yarn wastes
in the dust collecting chamber can be reliably discharged by this airflow.
[0011] In the above yarn splicing device, the air conducting portion is preferably an air
vent filter.
[0012] Accordingly, the airflow at the time of untwisting can be discharged to the outside
of the dust collecting chamber from the air vent filter while reliably collecting
the yarn wastes generated by the untwisting.
[0013] The above yarn splicing device is preferably configured as follows. In other words,
the dust collecting chamber is formed as a circular truncated or circular cylinder
body shaped space. The yarn waste introducing port is formed at the circumferential
wall of the dust collecting chamber. The dust collector is arranged such that the
axis line of the dust collecting chamber is deviated from the airflow ejecting direction
of the untwisting pipe.
[0014] Accordingly, the air ejected from the untwisting pipe can be blown into the yarn
waste introducing port. The air that flowed into the dust collecting chamber from
the untwisting pipe thus flows in the peripheral direction of the dust collecting
chamber along the peripheral wall of the dust collecting chamber. As a result, whirling
airflow can be generated in the dust collecting chamber, so that the yarn wastes contained
in the airflow from the untwisting pipe can be separated by the cyclone principle.
[0015] In the above yarn splicing device, the yarn waste discharge opening and the air conducting
portion are preferably arranged to face each other in the axis line direction of the
dust collecting chamber.
[0016] Accordingly, suction flow for discharging the yarn wastes can be suitably applied
on the yarn wastes gathered by the cyclone flow.
[0017] In the above yarn splicing device, the yarn waste discharge opening and the air conducting
portion are preferably formed in a circle having the axis line of the dust collecting
chamber as a center.
[0018] Accordingly, the airflow can be acted on the yarn wastes gathered at the position
close to the middle of the dust collecting chamber in the radial direction, whereby
the yarn wastes can be reliably removed.
[0019] In the above yarn splicing device, the air conducting portion is preferably arranged
at an end in an axial direction of the dust collecting chamber, and a diameter of
the dust collecting chamber at the end is preferably greater than a diameter of the
air conducting portion.
[0020] Accordingly, the airflow circling along the circumferential wall of the dust collecting
chamber does not escape from the air conducting portion, and hence a strong cyclone
flow can be generated while suppressing lowering in speed.
[0021] The above yarn splicing device is preferably configured as follows. In other words,
the yarn splicing device further includes a yarn waste guiding path extending from
the yarn waste introducing port of the dust collecting chamber towards the untwisting
pipe. An opening on the untwisting pipe side of the yarn waste guiding path and the
untwisting pipe are spaced apart.
[0022] Accordingly, even if the airflow injected from the untwisting pipe is reflected at
the opening on the untwisting pipe side when the dust collector is clogged, the untwisting
of the yarn at the untwisting pipe is not adversely affected.
[0023] In the above yarn splicing device, the flow path cross-sectional area on the untwisting
pipe side of the yarn waste guiding path is preferably greater than the flow path
cross-sectional area on the dust collecting chamber side of the yarn waste guiding
path.
[0024] By making the yarn waste guiding path wide on the untwisting pipe side as described
above, the yarn waste and the airflow from the untwisting pipe can be appropriately
guided into the dust collecting chamber even if the type or direction of the untwisting
pipe is changed.
[0025] In the above yarn splicing device, the end face of the opening on the untwisting
pipe side of the yarn waste guiding path is preferably inclined with respect to the
airflow ejecting direction from the untwisting pipe.
[0026] Accordingly, even if the airflow injected from the untwisting pipe is reflected at
the opening on the untwisting pipe side of the yarn waste guiding path when the dust
collector is clogged, the reflected airflow is not directed towards the untwisting
pipe and hence does not adversely affect the untwisting pipe.
[0027] In the above yarn splicing device, the dust collector is preferably removably attached
with respect to a main body of the yarn splicing device.
[0028] Accordingly, the dust collector can be detached to easily carry out maintenance.
[0029] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a yarn winding machine
includes a plurality of winding units, each including the yarn splicing device and
a winding section for winding a yarn to form a package.
[0030] The yarn winding machine is equipped with the yarn splicing device including the
dust collector, and thus the yarn wastes are not scattered in the yarn splicing operation
and maintenance such as cleaning is facilitated. Moreover, since the yarn wastes are
not scattered and attached to the package, a high quality package can be formed.
[0031] In the above yarn winding machine, each of the winding units preferably includes
a suction flow generation device for causing the yarn waste discharge opening to generate
the suction flow by a negative pressure.
[0032] By acting the negative pressure on the yarn waste discharge opening as described
above, the yarn waste discharge opening is caused to generate the suction flow so
that the yarn wastes collected in the dust collecting chamber can be sucked and discharged.
[0033] The above yarn winding machine is preferably configured as follows. In other words,
each of the winding units includes a control section for controlling the yarn splicing
device and the suction flow generation device. The control section executes a yarn
splicing operation by the yarn splicing device and a suction operation by the suction
flow generation device in cooperation.
[0034] In other words, in the yarn splicing device, the yarn wastes are generated in the
yarn splicing operation, and such yarn wastes are collected by the dust collector.
The yarn splicing operation and the suction operation are thus carried out cooperatively
so that the sucking and discharging of the yarn wastes collected by the dust collector
can be carried out at an appropriate timing.
[0035] In the above yarn winding machine, the control section preferably alternately executes
the yarn splicing operation by the yarn splicing device and the suction operation
by the suction flow generation device.
[0036] Accordingly, the suction operation is carried out after the yarn splicing operation
and before the next yarn splicing operation, so that the amount of yarn wastes accumulated
in the dust collector becomes a minimum and the dust collector is less likely to get
clogged. Furthermore, by not carrying out the yarn splicing operation and the suction
operation simultaneously, the suction flow can be prevented from adversely affecting
the untwisting of the yarn end by the untwisting pipe.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0037] Fig. 1 is a side view illustrating an overall configuration of a winder unit arranged
in an automatic winder according to one embodiment of the present invention;
[0038] Fig. 2 is a perspective view of an outer appearance of a yarn splicing device;
[0039] Fig. 3 is a view illustrating a state in which a dust collector is detached from
the main body of the yarn splicing device;
[0040] Fig. 4 is a perspective view of an outer appearance of the dust collector;
[0041] Fig. 5 is a plan view of the dust collector;
[0042] Fig. 6 is a bottom view of the dust collector;
[0043] Fig. 7 is a plan cross-sectional view of the dust collector;
[0044] Fig. 8 is a side cross-sectional view of the dust collector;
[0045] Fig. 9 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which an upper yarn
and a lower yarn are set in the yarn splicing device;
[0046] Fig. 10 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the yarn splicing
device untwists the yarn end;
[0047] Fig. 11 is a plan cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which cyclone flow
is generated in the dust collecting chamber;
[0048] Fig. 12 is a plan cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the cyclone
flow in the dust collecting chamber is weakened;
[0049] Fig. 13 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the yarn splicing
device applies twist on the yarn ends and performs yarn splicing; and
[0050] Fig. 14 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state of discharging the yarn
wastes in the dust collector.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0051] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference
to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a side view of a winder unit (winding unit) 10 including
a yarn splicing device 14 according to one embodiment of the present invention. An
automatic winder (yarn winding machine) according to the present embodiment includes
a plurality of winder units 10 arranged in line, a machine control device (not illustrated)
arranged at one end in the arranged direction, and a blower box (not illustrated)
arranged at the other end.
[0052] As illustrated in Fig. 1, the winder unit 10 mainly includes a yarn feeding section
7 and a winding section 8. The winder unit 10 is configured to unwind a yarn 20 of
a yarn feeding bobbin 21 supported at the yarn feeding section 7, and wind the yarn
20 into a package 30. Fig. 1 illustrates a state of the winder unit 10 at the time
of normal winding. In the present specification, "at the time of normal winding" is
a state in which the yarn is in a continuous state between the yarn feeding bobbin
21 and the package 30, and the yarn is unwound from the yarn feeding bobbin 21 and
wound into the package 30.
[0053] The yarn feeding section 7 is configured to be able to hold the yarn feeding bobbin
21 for supplying yarn in a substantially upright state. Furthermore, the yarn feeding
section 7 is configured to be able to discharge the empty yarn feeding bobbin 21.
The winding section 8 includes a cradle 23 configured to be able to attach a winding
bobbin 22, and a winding drum 24 for traversing the yarn 20 and driving the winding
bobbin 22.
[0054] The winding drum 24 is arranged facing the winding bobbin 22, where the winding bobbin
22 is passively rotated when the winding drum 24 is rotatably driven. The yarn 20
unwound from the yarn feeding bobbin 21 thus can be wound around the winding bobbin
22. A traverse groove (not illustrated) is formed on the outer peripheral surface
of the winding drum 24, and such a traverse groove enables the yarn 20 to be traversed
at a predetermined width. According to the above configuration, the yarn 20 can be
wound around the winding bobbin 22 while being traversed, thus forming the package
30 of a predetermined shape with a predetermined length. In the following description,
"upstream" and "downstream" respectively refers to upstream and downstream when viewed
in a traveling direction of the yarn.
[0055] Each winder unit 10 includes a control section 11. The control section 11 is configured
by hardware such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (which are not illustrated), and software
such as a control program stored in the RAM. The hardware and the software cooperatively
operate to control each configuration of the winder unit 10. The control section 11
arranged in each winder unit 10 is configured to be communicable with a machine management
device. The operations of the plurality of winder units 10 arranged in the automatic
winder thus can be managed in a concentrated manner by the machine management device.
[0056] The winder unit 10 includes various types of devices on a yarn traveling path between
the yarn feeding section 7 and the winding section 8. Specifically describing, an
unwinding assisting device 12, a tension applying device 13, the yarn splicing device
14, and a yarn quality measuring instrument 15 are arranged in order from the yarn
feeding section 7 side towards the winding section 8 side on the yarn traveling path.
[0057] The unwinding assisting device 12 makes a regulating member 40 contact with a portion
(balloon) where the yarn 20 unwound from the yarn feeding bobbin 21 is swung by a
centrifugal force and bulged to the outer side, and applies an appropriate tension
on the balloon to assist the unwinding of the yarn 20.
[0058] The tension applying device 13 applies a predetermined tension on the traveling yarn
20. For example, a gate type in which a movable comb tooth is arranged with respect
to a fixed comb tooth may be used for the tension applying device 13. The comb tooth
on the movable side is configured to be turnable by a rotary type solenoid so that
the comb teeth are in a geared state or a released state. By having the comb teeth
in the geared state and passing the yarn between the comb teeth while bending, an
appropriate tension can be applied on the yarn to improve the quality of the package
30. The tension applying device 13 may be a disc type other than the gate type.
[0059] The yarn splicing device 14 splices a yarn (lower yarn) from the yarn feeding bobbin
21 and a yarn (upper yarn) from the package 30 when the yarn 20 is disconnected between
the yarn feeding bobbin 21 and the package 30, after the yarn quality measuring instrument
15 detects the yarn defect and cuts the yarn, after yarn cut of the yarn unwound from
the yarn feeding bobbin 21, or the like. The operation of the yarn splicing device
14 is controlled by the control section 11. The yarn splicing device 14 includes a
dust collector 80. The detailed configuration of the yarn splicing device 14 will
be described later.
[0060] The yarn quality measuring instrument 15 includes a sensor (not illustrated) for
detecting the thickness of the yarn 20. The yarn quality measuring instrument 15 is
configured to monitor a yarn thickness signal from the sensor, and detect abnormality
in the yarn thickness. The yarn quality measuring instrument 15 transmits a thickness
abnormality detection signal with respect to the control section 11 when detecting
abnormality in the yarn thickness. A cutter (not illustrated) for the control section
11 to immediately cut the yarn 20 when the thickness abnormality is detected is arranged
in proximity to the yarn quality measuring instrument 15.
[0061] A lower yarn guiding pipe 25 for catching and guiding the lower yarn from the yarn
feeding bobbin 21 and an upper yarn guiding pipe 26 for catching and guiding the upper
yarn from the package 30 are respectively arranged on the lower side and the upper
side of the yarn splicing device 14. The lower yarn guiding pipe 25 and the upper
yarn guiding pipe 26 are configured to be swingable with a shaft 33, 35 as the center,
respectively. A suction hole 32 is formed at the tip end of the lower yarn guiding
pipe 25 and a suction mouth 34 is arranged at the tip end of the upper yarn guiding
pipe 26. The lower yarn guiding pipe 25 and the upper yarn guiding pipe 26 are respectively
connected to an appropriate negative pressure source to cause the suction hole 32
and the suction mouth 34 to generate suction flow. The operations of the lower yarn
guiding pipe 25 and the upper yarn guiding pipe 26 are controlled by the control section
11.
[0062] A magazine type bobbin supply device 28 is arranged on the front side of the winder
unit 10. The bobbin supply device 28 includes a rotary magazine can 27. The magazine
can 27 is configured to be able to hold a plurality of spare yarn feeding bobbins
21. The bobbin supply device 28 is configured to rotatably drive the magazine can
27 intermittently to supply a new yarn feeding bobbin 21 to the yarn feeding section
7.
[0063] The yarn splicing device 14 will now be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig.
2 is a perspective view of an outer appearance of the yarn splicing device 14 according
to the present embodiment.
[0064] The yarn splicing device 14 includes, as a main configuration, a yarn splicing nozzle
94, a yarn gathering lever 96, a clamp 97, a yarn holding lever 98, cutters 92, 93,
an untwisting pipe 82, and the dust collector 80.
[0065] The yarn splicing nozzle 94 is arranged on the front side of the main body of the
yarn splicing device 14, where a yarn splicing hole 90 is formed in the yarn splicing
nozzle 94. An ejection port (not illustrated) for ejecting compressed air is formed
on the inner side of the yarn splicing hole 90, so that whirling airflow is generated
inside the yarn splicing hole 90 by the compressed air.
[0066] The yarn gathering lever 96, the clamp 97, and the yarn holding lever 98 are all
arranged in a pair on the upper side and the lower side of the yarn splicing nozzle
94. The yarn gathering lever 96 is configured to gather the lower yarn guided by the
lower yarn guiding pipe 25 and the upper yarn guided by the upper yarn guiding pipe
26 to the yarn splicing nozzle 94. The clamp 97 is configured to be able to clamp
predetermined locations of the upper yarn and the lower yarn in a state guided to
the yarn splicing nozzle 94. The yarn holding lever 98 is configured to be able to
hold down and fix the upper yarn and the lower yarn at the time of splicing in the
yarn splicing nozzle 94.
[0067] The yarn splicing device 14 includes an untwisting pipe 82 for the upper yarn end
and the lower yarn end. The two untwisting pipes 82 are formed in an elongate cylindrical
shape, and are arranged parallel to each other with the respective longitudinal direction
in the front and back direction of the yarn splicing device 14. The two untwisting
pipes 82 are arranged one above the other, where each has one end opened to the front
surface of the yarn splicing device 14. The opened end of the untwisting pipe 82 for
the upper yarn end is arranged on the lower side of the yarn splicing nozzle 94, and
the opened end of the untwisting pipe 82 for the lower yarn end is arranged on the
upper side of the yarn splicing nozzle 94. In the following description, the end on
the front side of the device of the untwisting pipe 82 is referred to as the front
end, and the end on the opposite side is referred to as the back end.
[0068] The configuration of the dust collector 80 is illustrated in Fig. 4 to Fig. 8. The
dust collector 80 is configured to collect the yarn wastes generated by the yarn splicing
operation of the yarn splicing device 14 through a cyclonic (powder separator) method.
The yarn wastes generated by the yarn splicing operation thus can be prevented from
scattering around.
[0069] The yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment includes a metal attachment
bracket 70 for attaching the dust collector 80. The dust collector 80 includes an
attachment lug 71 that can be fitted with respect to the attachment bracket 70. The
dust collector 80 can be removably attached to the main body of the yarn splicing
device 14 by fitting the attachment lug 71 to the attachment bracket 70. As illustrated
in Fig. 3, maintenance such as cleaning of the dust collector 80 can be easily carried
out since the dust collector 80 can be detached from the yarn splicing device 14.
[0070] As illustrated in Fig. 4, the dust collector 80 includes a housing 41 made of resin,
where a dust collecting chamber 42 for collecting and temporarily accommodating the
yarn wastes is formed inside the housing 41. In Fig. 4, the state of the dust collecting
chamber 42 in the housing 41 is shown transparently with a dotted line. The dust collecting
chamber 42 is formed as a rotating body shaped space so that a cyclone flow (whirling
airflow) can be generated inside. More specifically, the dust collecting chamber 42
is formed in a circular cylinder shape in the present embodiment, as illustrated in
Fig. 4.
[0071] Static electricity easily occurs in the dust collecting chamber 42 as a result of
the yarn wastes circling by the cyclone flow. The housing 41 of the present embodiment
is thus formed by a conductive resin. In this case, the attachment lug 71 and the
attachment bracket 70 also serve as the earth.
[0072] As illustrated in Fig. 7, a yarn waste introducing port 42a opened towards the untwisting
pipe 82 side is formed at the peripheral wall of the dust collecting chamber 42. A
yarn waste guiding path 43 is formed in the housing 41. An end on one side of the
yarn waste guiding path is an untwisting pipe side opening 44 opened towards the back
end of the untwisting pipe 82. As illustrated in Fig. 7, an end on the other side
of the yarn waste guiding path 43 is connected to the yarn waste introducing port
42a of the dust collecting chamber 42. With such a configuration, the airflow blown
out from the untwisting pipe 82 can be guided inside the dust collecting chamber 42.
The yarn waste guiding path 43 is formed to guide the airflow blown from the untwisting
pipe side opening 44 in a direction along the tangent direction of the circumferential
wall of the dust collecting chamber 42. More specifically, in the cross-section (Fig.
7) by a plane orthogonal to the axis line of the dust collecting chamber 42, one of
the left or right wall surfaces on the inner side of the yarn waste guiding path 43
(wall surface on left side in the case of Fig. 7) is formed to smoothly connect to
the circumferential wall surface of the dust collecting chamber 42.
[0073] According to the above configuration, when the airflow is blown from the untwisting
pipe side opening 44 towards the inner side of the yarn waste guiding path 43, such
airflow is guided into the dust collecting chamber 42 by the yarn waste guiding path
43. In this case, the airflow is guided along the tangent direction of the peripheral
wall of the dust collecting chamber 42, and hence the airflow blown into the dust
collecting chamber 42 flows along the circumferential wall of the dust collecting
chamber 42 thus generating a so-called cyclone flow.
[0074] If the axis line of the dust collecting chamber 42 and the air ejecting direction
of the untwisting pipe 82 coincide, the air ejected from the untwisting pipe 82 cannot
be introduced to the yarn waste introducing port 42a. Furthermore, if the axis line
of the dust collecting chamber 42 and the air ejecting direction of the untwisting
pipe 82 coincide, the air ejected from the untwisting pipe 82 does not have the speed
(speed within a plane orthogonal to the axis line of the dust collecting chamber)
of flowing through the dust collecting chamber 42 in the peripheral direction, and
hence the whirling airflow cannot be generated in the dust collecting chamber 42.
The dust collector 80 is thus arranged such that the axis line of the dust collecting
chamber 42 is deviated from the air ejecting direction of the untwisting pipe 82.
More specifically, it is arranged such that the axis line of the dust collecting chamber
42 and the air ejecting direction of the untwisting pipe 82 are orthogonal in side
view (e.g., Fig. 9).
[0075] The housing 41 of the dust collector 80 is formed with an end on one side in the
axis line direction of the dust collecting chamber 42 (end on lower side of dust collecting
chamber 42 in Fig. 8) as an open end. As illustrated in Fig. 6 and Fig. 8, the open
end is blocked by a metal filter bracket 46 formed with an air vent filter 45. An
air conducting portion (air vent filter 45) is thus arranged at the lower end in the
axis line direction of the dust collecting chamber 42. The air vent filter 45 is configured
as a filter having a rough texture of an extent capable of discharging the air while
catching and collecting the yarn wastes. For example, in the present embodiment, the
air vent filter 45 is configured as a fine textured metallic mesh. In the present
embodiment, the filter bracket 46 is integrally formed with the attachment lug 71.
[0076] A yarn waste discharge opening 47 is formed at an end on the other side in the axis
line direction of the dust collecting chamber 42 (end on upper side of dust collecting
chamber 42 in Fig. 8). The yarn waste discharge opening 47 communicates with the exterior
of the housing 41. As illustrated in Fig. 2, Fig. 9, and the like, a suction pipe
95 is connected to the yarn waste discharge opening 47. As illustrated in Fig. 1,
each winder unit 10 includes a shutter mechanism 99, and the suction pipe 95 is connected
to a negative pressure source (not illustrated) through the shutter mechanism 99.
[0077] The shutter mechanism 99 is configured to switch between an "opened" state in which
the negative pressure source and the suction pipe 95 are communicated, and a "closed"
state in which the negative pressure source and the suction pipe 95 are shielded in
accordance with a control signal from the control section 11. According to such a
configuration, if the shutter mechanism 99 is "opened", the negative pressure can
be supplied to the yarn waste discharge opening 47 to generate a suction flow, so
that the yarn wastes collected in the dust collecting chamber 42 can be sucked and
discharged to the outside. The shutter mechanism 99 is "closed" if the above suction
operation is not carried out. As the suction flow can be generated by controlling
the shutter mechanism 99 in the above manner, the shutter mechanism 99 may also be
recognized as a suction flow generation device.
[0078] The operation at the time of yarn splicing of the yarn splicing device 14 will now
be described. The yarn splicing is carried out when there is a need to join the lower
yarn from the yarn feeding bobbin 21 and the upper yarn from the package 30 such as
when the yarn of the yarn feeding bobbin 21 has run out and a new bobbin is supplied,
or when the yarn quality measuring instrument 15 detects a yarn defect and cuts the
yarn with the cutter to remove the yarn defect.
[0079] The control section 11 first raises the cradle 23 by a lift up mechanism (not illustrated)
to move the package 30 away from the winding drum 24. At the same time, a package
brake mechanism (not illustrated) stops the rotation of the package 30 gripped by
the cradle 23. The winding of the yarn 20 by the winding section 8 is thereby interrupted.
[0080] The control section 11 then reversely rotates the package 30 by a drum drive motor
(not illustrated), and swings the upper yarn guiding pipe 26 to the upper side with
the shaft 35 as the center. The yarn is thus pulled out from the package 30 and caught
by the suction mouth 34. The control section 11 then swings the upper yarn guiding
pipe 26 to the lower side with the shaft 35 as the center. The yarn (upper yarn) from
the package is thereby guided to the yarn splicing device 14. After the upper yarn
is guided to the yarn splicing device 14, the control section 11 stops the reverse
rotation of the package 30. Before or after this, the control section 11 also causes
the suction port 32 of the lower yarn guiding pipe 25 to catch the yarn (lower yarn)
from the yarn feeding bobbin and swings the lower yarn guiding pipe 25 to the upper
side with the shaft 33 as the center. The lower yarn is then guided to the yarn splicing
device 14.
[0081] When the upper yarn and the lower yarn are guided to the yarn splicing device 14,
the control section 11 activates the yarn splicing device 14 to perform the yarn splicing
operation. This will be specifically described below. First, the upper yarn and the
lower yarn guided to the yarn splicing device 14 are gathered by the yarn gathering
lever 96, and inserted to the yarn splicing hole 90 of the yarn splicing nozzle 94,
as illustrated in Fig. 9. In this case, the upper yarn and the lower yarn are respectively
clamped by the clamp 97, and the lower yarn is introduced to a lower yarn cutter 92
and the upper yarn is introduced to an upper yarn cutter 93. In the figures after
Fig. 9, the lower yarn is drawn with a broken line so as to illustrate the lower yarn
and the upper yarn to be easily distinguished from each other.
[0082] The upper yarn and the lower yarn are cut to a predetermined length by the cutters
92, 93 to form yarn ends. The remaining portion of the cut yarn is sucked by the suction
port 32 and the suction mouth 34 to be removed.
[0083] At substantially the same time as the yarn cut, the compressed air is ejected from
a compressed air passage 73 towards the inside of the untwisting pipe 82. Such compressed
air is ejected towards the back end of the untwisting pipe 82. The suction flow is
thus generated on the front end side of the untwisting pipe 82. Then, as illustrated
in Fig. 10, the yarn end formed by yarn cut is sucked inside the untwisting pipe 82.
The upper yarn and the lower yarn are untwisted by having the twist of the fibers
of the yarn end untwisted by the airflow inside the untwisting pipe 82. In this case,
fine yarn wastes are generated, which are blown by the airflow flowing through the
untwisting pipe 82 towards the back end.
[0084] The airflow containing the yarn wastes is ejected from the back end of the untwisting
pipe 82, and blown into the yarn waste guiding path 43 from the untwisting pipe side
opening 44 opened at the tip of the untwisting pipe 82. The airflow blown into the
untwisting pipe side opening 44 is blown into the dust collecting chamber 42 while
being guided to lie along the tangent direction of the circumferential wall of the
dust collecting chamber 42 by the yarn waste guiding path 43.
[0085] As illustrated in Fig. 11, the airflow blown into the dust collecting chamber 42
whirls along the circumferential wall of the dust collecting chamber 42 to generate
a cyclone flow. The yarn wastes contained in the airflow thus circles so as to be
pushed against the circumferential wall of the dust collecting chamber 42 when subjected
to a centrifugal force. Thereafter, the airflow flowing along the circumferential
wall has one part discharged to the outside from the air vent filter 45 and the remaining
one part whirling in the dust collecting chamber 42 while lowering the speed. In this
case, the remaining airflow whirling in the dust collecting chamber 42 flows towards
the central part in the radial direction of the dust collecting chamber 42 while reducing
the whirling radius so as to whirl, as illustrated with a thick lined arrow in Fig.
11.
[0086] Therefore, the yarn wastes and the airflow are separated by the theory of cyclone,
where the separated yarn wastes remains in the dust collecting chamber 42 and the
airflow is discharged to the outside of the dust collecting chamber 42 from the air
vent filter 45. Accordingly, the yarn wastes generated at the time of untwisting of
the yarn splicing operation can be collected in the dust collecting chamber 42.
[0087] After the untwisting of the yarn is finished, the ejection of the compressed air
into the untwisting pipe 82 is terminated. The ejection of the airflow from the untwisting
pipe 82 is thereby terminated, but the air in the dust collecting chamber 42 continues
to whirl for a while and flows towards the central part in the radial direction of
the dust collecting chamber 42. When the airflow from the untwisting pipe 82 is stopped,
the cyclone flow in the dust collecting chamber 42 rapidly lowers the force, so that
the yarn wastes are no longer pushed against the circumferential wall of the dust
collecting chamber 42 by the centrifugal force as a result. Consequently, the yarn
wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42 is flowed along with the airflow whirling
in the dust collecting chamber, and collected to the central part in the radial direction
of the dust collecting chamber 42 (Fig. 12 and Fig. 13).
[0088] After the untwisting of the yarn end is finished, both yarn ends of the upper yarn
and the lower yarn are pulled out from the untwisting pipe 82, as illustrated in Fig.
13, by the yarn gathering operation of the yarn gathering lever 96 and the yarn holding
operation of the yarn holding lever 98, and set in a state of overlapping each other
in the yarn splicing hole 90 of the yarn splicing nozzle 94. In this state, the whirling
flow of the compressed air is generated by ejecting the compressed air from the ejection
hole 72 into the yarn splicing hole 90, and twist is applied to the fibers of the
upper yarn and the lower yarn. The yarn end of the upper yarn and the yarn end of
the lower yarn are thereby connected. Lastly, the operation of each lever 96, 98 is
released and the clamping of the yarn by the clamp 97 is released. The yarn splicing
operation by the yarn splicing device is then terminated. The control section 11 then
resumes the winding of the yarn.
[0089] After the yarn splicing operation is finished, the control section 11 sets the shutter
mechanism 99 to the "opened" state and acts a negative pressure to the yarn waste
discharge opening 47. The yarn wastes collected in the dust collecting chamber 42
is thereby sucked by the suction pipe 95 and discharged to the outside of the dust
collecting chamber 42. Thus, a great amount of yarn wastes can be prevented from accumulating
in the dust collecting chamber 42 by performing the suction operation every time the
yarn splicing operation is finished. If the suction operation is executed during the
yarn splicing operation, a negative pressure is generated at the untwisting pipe side
opening 44 of the yarn waste guiding path 43, and hence may influence the airflow
to be generated at the untwisting pipe 82 and adversely affect the untwisting of the
yarn end by the untwisting pipe 82. In this regards, the yarn splicing operation and
the suction operation are cooperated and alternately executed so that the suction
operation does not adversely affect the untwisting.
[0090] When a predetermined time has elapsed after the shutter mechanism 99 is set to the
"opened" state, the control section 11 sets the shutter mechanism 99 to the "closed"
state. The negative pressure is prevented from being uselessly consumed by terminating
the suction operation after sucking and discharging the yarn wastes in the dust collecting
chamber 42.
[0091] The dust collector 80 will be further described in detail.
[0092] As illustrated in Fig. 8, or the like, in the dust collector 80 of the present embodiment,
the air vent filter 45 and the yarn waste discharge opening 47 are arranged facing
each other in the axial direction of the dust collecting chamber 42. With such a configuration,
when a negative pressure is acted on the yarn waste discharge opening 47, the outside
air flows into the dust collecting chamber 42 through the air vent filter 45. The
air that flowed in through the air vent filter 45 is flowed along the axial direction
of the dust collecting chamber 42, and sucked by the yarn waste discharge opening
47. In other words, if the air vent filter 45 and the yarn waste discharge opening
47 are arranged facing each other as in the present embodiment, the suction flow that
flows in a straight line from the air vent filter 45 towards the yarn waste discharge
opening 47 can be formed when the yarn waste discharge opening 47 is caused to generate
the negative pressure.
[0093] In the present embodiment, the air vent filter 45 is arranged at the lower end of
the dust collecting chamber 42, as described above. Therefore, the yarn wastes collected
by the dust collecting chamber 42 drops onto the air vent filter 45 by gravity. In
this regards, the suction flow that flows upward in a straight line from the air vent
filter 45 towards the yarn waste discharge opening 47 can be generated with the above
configuration, so that the yarn wastes on the air vent filter 45 can be transported
up to the yarn waste discharge opening 47 by the suction flow.
[0094] The dust collector of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
2009-190853 cannot generate a linear suction flow since the yarn waste discharge opening and
the air vent filter are arranged on the same side in the axis line direction of the
dust collecting chamber. Therefore, in the configuration of Japanese Unexamined Patent
Publication No.
2009-190853, it is difficult to transport by the suction flow the yarn wastes in the dust collecting
chamber to the yarn waste discharge opening and the yarn wastes may remain in the
dust collecting chamber. In this regards, by forming a linear suction flow as described
above, the yarn wastes can be smoothly transported by the suction flow to the yarn
waste discharge opening 47 in the present embodiment, so that the yarn wastes in the
dust collecting chamber 42 can be reliably discharged without any remains.
[0095] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the yarn waste discharge opening 47 is formed
in a circle having the axis line of the circular cylinder shaped dust collecting chamber
42 as the center, as illustrated in Fig. 5. Similarly, as illustrated in Fig. 6, the
air vent filter 45 is formed in a circle having the axis line of the circular cylinder
shaped dust collecting chamber 42 as the center. Therefore, the linear suction flow
generated when the negative pressure is acted on the yarn waste discharge opening
47 at least passes through the center axis line of the circular cylinder shaped dust
collecting chamber 42. The yarn wastes collected by the dust collecting chamber 42
is gathered at the position close to the middle of the dust collecting chamber 42
in the radial direction, as described above. Therefore, according to the above configuration,
the suction flow can directly hit the yarn wastes collected in the dust collecting
chamber 42, so that the yarn wastes can be reliably discharged to the outside.
[0096] In Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
2009-190853, a rod-shaped member is arranged at the central part of the dust collecting chamber
so that the yarns do not form a lump by being gathered at the middle of the dust collecting
chamber. However, if the rod-shaped member is arranged as in Japanese Unexamined Patent
Publication No.
2009-190853, a different problem arises in that the yarn wastes may get entangled around the
rod-shaped member and may not be discharged. The dust collector 80 of the present
embodiment has a different concept from the dust collector of Japanese Unexamined
Patent Publication No.
2009-190853, and is configured to intentionally gather the yarn wastes at the central portion
of the dust collecting chamber 42, and directly act the suction flow with respect
to the gathered yarn wastes to suck and discharge the same. Thus, the rod-shaped member
is omitted in the present embodiment. Therefore, the yarn wastes will not get entangled
around the rod-shaped member, and the yarn wastes can be reliably discharged. The
present embodiment relates to a configuration of sucking and discharging the yarn
wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42 for every yarn splicing operation, and hence
the amount of yarn wastes temporarily accommodated in the dust collecting chamber
42 is very small. Therefore, the technical problem of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication
No.
2009-190853 to prevent the yarn wastes from getting entangled and forming a large ball-like lump
when the deposited amount of yarn wastes is large does not need to be taken into consideration,
and the rod-shaped member can be omitted as described above.
[0097] As illustrated in Fig. 8, in the present embodiment, a diameter R1 of the circular
air vent filter 45 (more specifically, diameter of the portion where the air vent
filter 45 conducts air) is smaller than a diameter R2 of the circumferential wall.
As the air vent filter 45 is not formed at the portion along the circumferential wall
of the dust collecting chamber 42, the airflow (cyclone flow) flowing along the wall
surface of the circumferential wall does not escape to the outside of the dust collecting
chamber 42 through the air vent filter 45. According to the above configuration, the
separating performance of the yarn wastes can be enhanced since the yarn wastes can
be flowed while maintaining the force of the cyclone flow.
[0098] As described above, in the dust collector 80 of the present embodiment, the possibility
that the air vent filter 45 will get clogged by the yarn wastes is low since the yarn
wastes are separated from the airflow by the cyclone principle. However, if the air
vent filter 45 does get clogged by the yarn wastes by any possibility, the air is
not discharged from the dust collecting chamber 42, and as a result, the air injected
from the untwisting pipe 82 may be reflected at the untwisting pipe side opening 44
of the yarn waste guiding path 43. When the airflow reflected in such a manner hits
the untwisting pipe 82, the untwisting of the yarn end in the untwisting pipe may
be adversely affected.
[0099] As illustrated in Fig. 7, Fig. 9, and the like, in the present embodiment, the untwisting
pipe side opening 44 of the yarn waste guiding path 43 and the back end of the untwisting
pipe 82 are arranged spaced apart from each other. Thus, even if the airflow ejected
from the untwisting pipe 82 is reflected at the untwisting pipe side opening 44, the
influence of the reflected airflow on the untwisting pipe 82 can be reduced.
[0100] As the untwisting pipe side opening 44 of the yarn waste guiding path 43 and the
untwisting pipe 82 are spaced apart, the opening area of the untwisting pipe side
opening 44 is formed large so that the yarn wastes ejected from the untwisting pipe
82 with the airflow reliably enters the untwisting pipe side opening 44. More specifically,
the flow path cross-sectional area on the untwisting pipe 82 side of the yarn waste
guiding path 43 is formed wider than the flow path cross-sectional area on the dust
collecting chamber 42 side. Therefore, the yarn waste guiding path 43 is formed to
spread towards the untwisting pipe 82. Furthermore, the yarn wastes ejected from the
untwisting pipe 82 can reliably enter the untwisting pipe side opening 44 even if
the position or the angle of the untwisting pipe 82 is changed to some degree by forming
the untwisting pipe side opening 44 wide. Therefore, even if the position or the angle
of the untwisting pipe 82 is changed by design change or the like of the yarn splicing
device 14, the shape of the dust collector 80 does not need to be changed.
[0101] Furthermore, if the yarn wastes get clogged at the yarn waste discharge opening 47,
and the interior of the dust collector 80 is filled with yarn wastes up to the untwisting
pipe side opening 44, the air ejected from the untwisting pipe 82 is reflected by
the yarn wastes filled up to the untwisting pipe side opening 44. Therefore, in the
present embodiment, the untwisting pipe side opening 44 is formed inclined with respect
to the air injecting direction of the untwisting pipe 82, as illustrated in Fig. 7.
More specifically, the end face of the untwisting pipe side opening 44 is formed inclined
by an angle α with respect to a plane orthogonal to the air ejecting direction of
the untwisting pipe 82. Thus, even if the airflow ejected from the untwisting pipe
82 is reflected by the yarn wastes filled up to the untwisting pipe side opening 44,
such reflected airflow is directed in a direction different from the untwisting pipe
82. Thus, the influence of the reflected airflow on the untwisting pipe 82 can be
reduced.
[0102] As described above, the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment includes
the untwisting pipe 82 for untwisting a yarn end by acting airflow on the yarn end,
and the dedicated dust collector 80 for collecting the yarn wastes generated by the
untwisting. The dust collector 80 includes the dust collecting chamber 42 for temporarily
accommodating the collected yarn wastes. The dust collecting chamber 42 is formed
with the yarn waste introducing port 42a opened towards the untwisting pipe 82, the
yarn waste discharge opening 47 for sucking and discharging the yarn wastes in the
dust collecting chamber 42 to the outside, and the air vent filter 45 arranged at
the position facing the yarn waste discharge opening 47.
[0103] Therefore, by arranging the air vent filter 45 so as to face the yarn waste discharge
opening 47, the airflow flowing from the air vent filter 45 towards the yarn waste
discharge opening 47 can be generated inside the dust collecting chamber 42 when a
negative pressure is acted on the yarn waste discharge opening 47. Thus, the yarn
wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42 can be reliably discharged by the airflow.
[0104] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, by arranging the air vent
filter 45 in the dust collecting chamber 42, the airflow at the time of untwisting
can be discharged to the outside of the dust collecting chamber 42 from the air vent
filter 45 while reliably collecting the yarn wastes generated by the untwisting.
[0105] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the dust collecting chamber
42 is formed as a circular cylinder body shaped space. The yarn waste introducing
port 42a is formed at the circumferential wall of the dust collecting chamber 42.
The dust collector 80 is arranged such that the axis line of the dust collecting chamber
42 is deviated from the air ejecting direction of the untwisting pipe 82.
[0106] Therefore, the air to be ejected from the untwisting pipe 82 can be blown into the
yarn waste introducing port 42a. Accordingly, the air flowed into the dust collecting
chamber 42 from the untwisting pipe 82 flows in the peripheral direction of the dust
collecting chamber 42 along the peripheral wall of the dust collecting chamber 42.
As a result, the whirling airflow (cyclone flow) can be generated in the dust collecting
chamber 42, so that the yarn wastes contained in the airflow from the untwisting pipe
82 can be separated by the cyclone principle.
[0107] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the yarn waste discharge
opening 47 and the air vent filter 45 are arranged to face each other in the axis
line direction of the dust collecting chamber 42.
[0108] Thus, the suction flow for discharging the yarn wastes can be suitably applied on
the yarn wastes gathered by the cyclone flow.
[0109] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the yarn waste discharge
opening 47 and the air vent filter 45 are formed in a circle having the axis line
of the dust collecting chamber 42 as a center.
[0110] Thus, the airflow can be acted on the yarn wastes gathered at the position close
to the middle of the dust collecting chamber 42 in the radial direction, whereby the
yarn wastes can be reliably removed.
[0111] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the air vent filter 45
is arranged at the end in the axial direction of the dust collecting chamber 42, where
the diameter R2 of the dust collecting chamber 42 at the relevant end is greater than
the diameter R1 of the air vent filter 45.
[0112] Thus, the airflow circling along the circumferential wall of the dust collecting
chamber 42 does not escape from the air vent filter, and hence a strong cyclone flow
can be generated while suppressing the lowering in speed.
[0113] The yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment further includes the yarn waste
guiding path 43 extending from the yarn waste introducing port 42a of the dust collecting
chamber 42 towards the untwisting pipe 82. The untwisting pipe side opening 44 of
the yarn waste guiding path 43 and the untwisting pipe 82 are spaced apart.
[0114] Thus, even if the airflow injected from the untwisting pipe 82 is reflected at the
untwisting pipe side opening 44 when the dust collector 80 is clogged, the untwisting
of the yarn at the untwisting pipe 82 is not adversely affected.
[0115] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the flow path cross-sectional
area on the untwisting pipe 82 side of the yarn waste guiding path 43 is greater than
the flow path cross-sectional area on the dust collecting chamber 42 side of the yarn
waste guiding path 43.
[0116] By making the yarn waste guiding path 43 wider on the untwisting pipe 82 side as
described above, the yarn wastes and the airflow from the untwisting pipe 82 can be
appropriately guided into the dust collecting chamber 42 even if the type or direction
of the untwisting pipe 82 is changed.
[0117] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the end face of the untwisting
pipe side opening 44 of the yarn waste guiding path 43 is inclined with respect to
the airflow ejecting direction from the untwisting pipe 82.
[0118] Therefore, even if the airflow injected from the untwisting pipe 82 is reflected
at the untwisting pipe side opening 44 when the dust collector 80 is clogged, the
reflected airflow is not directed towards the untwisting pipe 82 and hence does not
adversely affect the untwisting pipe 82.
[0119] In the yarn splicing device 14 of the present embodiment, the dust collector 80 is
removably attached with respect to a main body of the yarn splicing device 14.
[0120] The dust collector 80 thus can be detached to easily carry out maintenance.
[0121] The automatic winder of the present embodiment includes a plurality of winder units
10, each including the yarn splicing device 14 and the winding section 8 for winding
the yarn 20 to form the package 30.
[0122] The automatic winder is equipped with the yarn splicing device 14 including the dust
collector 80, and thus the yarn wastes does not scatter in the yarn splicing operation
and maintenance such as cleaning is facilitated. Moreover, since the yarn wastes do
not scatter and attach to the package 30, a high quality package 30 can be formed.
[0123] In the automatic winder of the present embodiment, each of the winder units 10 includes
the shutter mechanism 99 for causing the yarn waste discharge opening 47 to generate
the suction flow by the negative pressure.
[0124] By acting negative pressure on the yarn waste discharge opening 47 as described above,
the yarn waste discharge opening 47 is caused to generate the suction flow so that
the yarn wastes collected in the dust collecting chamber 42 can be sucked and discharged.
[0125] The automatic winder of the present embodiment is configured as follows. In other
words, each of the winder units includes the control section 11 for controlling the
yarn splicing device 14 and the shutter mechanism 99. The control section 11 executes
the yarn splicing operation by the yarn splicing device 14 and the suction operation
by the shutter mechanism 99 in cooperation.
[0126] In other words, in the yarn splicing device 14, the yarn wastes are generated in
the yarn splicing operation, and such yarn wastes are collected by the dust collector
80. The yarn splicing operation and the suction operation are thus carried out cooperatively
so that the sucking and discharging of the yarn wastes collected by the dust collector
80 can be carried out at an appropriate timing.
[0127] In the automatic winder of the present embodiment, the control section 11 alternately
executes the yarn splicing operation by the yarn splicing device 14 and the suction
operation by the shutter mechanism 99.
[0128] Accordingly, the suction operation is carried out after the yarn splicing operation
and before the next yarn splicing operation, so that the amount of yarn wastes accumulated
in the dust collector 80 becomes a minimum and the dust collector 80 is less likely
to get clogged. Furthermore, by not carrying out the yarn splicing operation and the
suction operation simultaneously, the suction flow can be prevented from adversely
affecting the untwisting of the yarn end by the untwisting pipe 82.
[0129] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but
the above configuration can be modified as follows.
[0130] The shape of the dust collecting chamber 42 is not limited to a circular cylinder
shape, and may be an appropriate shape as long as it is a shape (rotating body shape)
capable of generating the cyclone flow inside. For example, the dust collecting chamber
may be formed in a circular truncated cone shape or a dome shape.
[0131] In the embodiment described above, the air vent filter 45 is arranged on the lower
end side of the dust collecting chamber 42 and the yarn waste discharge opening 47
is arranged on the upper end side of the dust collecting chamber 42, but the present
invention is not limited thereto. For example, the air vent filter 45 may be arranged
on the upper end side of the dust collecting chamber 42 and the yarn waste discharge
opening 47 may be arranged on the lower end side of the dust collecting chamber 42
so that the yarn wastes are sucked from the lower side.
[0132] Not limited to the examples described above, the shape of the dust collector can
be appropriately changed.
[0133] In the embodiments described above, the air vent filter is a metallic mesh, but the
present invention is not limited thereto, and an appropriate filter may be used as
long as it is a filter capable of catching yarn wastes. For example, the air vent
filter may be configured from a punching metal.
[0134] In the embodiments described above, the suction operation is carried out every time
of the yarn splicing operation is carried out, but the present invention is not limited
thereto, and the suction operation may be carried out after the yarn splicing operation
is carried out a few times. The yarn wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42 merely
need to be discharged outside before the yarn wastes of an amount not being able to
pass through the yarn waste discharge opening 47 accumulate in the dust collecting
chamber 42.
[0135] In the embodiment described above, the control section 11 controls the shutter mechanism
99 to automatically carry out the suction operation, but the present invention is
not limited thereto. For example, the yarn wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42
may be manually sucked when the worker visually checks the yarn wastes in the dust
collecting chamber 42 and determines that the yarn wastes are accumulating. In this
case, the housing 41 of the dust collector 80 is suitably configured by transparent
resin so that the amount of yarn wastes in the dust collecting chamber 42 can be visually
checked.
[0136] The automatic winder has been described in the above embodiment, but the yarn splicing
device 14 may be applied to other types of yarn winding machine such as a spinning
machine.
1. A yarn splicing device (14) comprising:
an untwisting pipe (82) for acting airflow on a yarn end to untwist the yarn end;
and
a dedicated dust collector (80) for collecting yarn wastes generated by the untwisting;
characterized in that
the dust collector (80) includes a dust collecting chamber (42) for temporarily accommodating
the collected yarn wastes; and
the dust collecting chamber (42) is formed with a yarn waste introducing port (42a)
opened towards the untwisting pipe (82), a yarn waste discharge opening (47) for sucking
and discharging the yarn wastes in the dust collecting chamber (42) to outside, and
an air conducting portion (45) arranged at a position facing the yarn waste discharge
opening (47).
2. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 1, characterized in that the air conducting portion (45) is an air vent filter.
3. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the dust collecting chamber (42) is formed as a circular truncated or circular cylinder
body shaped space;
the yarn waste introducing port (42a) is formed at a circumferential wall of the dust
collecting chamber (42); and
the dust collector (80) is arranged such that an axis line of the dust collecting
chamber (42) is deviated from an air ejecting direction of the untwisting pipe (82).
4. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 3, characterized in that the yarn waste discharge opening (47) and the air conducting portion (45) are arranged
to face each other in an axis line direction of the dust collecting chamber (42).
5. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the yarn waste discharge opening (47) and the air conducting portion (45) are preferably
formed in a circle having the axis line of the dust collecting chamber (42) as a center.
6. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 5, characterized in that
the air conducting portion (45) is arranged at an end in an axial direction of the
dust collecting chamber (42); and
a diameter of the dust collecting chamber (42) at the end is greater than a diameter
of the air conducting portion (45).
7. The yarn splicing device (14) according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
characterized by further comprising:
a yarn waste guiding path (43) extending from the yarn waste introducing port (42a)
of the dust collecting chamber (42) towards the untwisting pipe (82); wherein
an opening on the untwisting pipe (82) side of the yarn waste guiding path (43) and
the untwisting pipe (82) are spaced apart.
8. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 7, characterized in that a flow path cross-sectional area on the untwisting pipe (82) side of the yarn waste
guiding path (43) is greater than a flow path cross-sectional area on the dust collecting
chamber (42) side of the yarn waste guiding path (43).
9. The yarn splicing device (14) according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that an end face of the opening on the untwisting pipe (82) side of the yarn waste guiding
path (43) is inclined with respect to an airflow ejecting direction from the untwisting
pipe (82).
10. The yarn splicing device (14) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the dust collector (80) is removably attached with respect to a main body of the
yarn splicing device (14).
11. A yarn winding machine characterized by comprising a plurality of winding units (10), each including the yarn splicing device
(14) according to any one of claims 1 to 10 and a winding section (8) for winding
a yarn to form a package.
12. The yarn winding machine according to claim 11, characterized in that each of the winding units (10) includes a suction flow generation device (99) for
causing the yarn waste discharge opening (47) to generate a suction flow by a negative
pressure.
13. The yarn winding machine according to claim 12, characterized in that each of the winding units (10) includes a control section (11) for controlling the
yarn splicing device (14) and the suction flow generation device (99); and
the control section (11) executes a yarn splicing operation by the yarn splicing device
(14) and a suction operation by the suction flow generation device (99) in cooperation.
14. The yarn winding machine according to claim 13, characterized in that the control section (11) alternately executes the yarn splicing operation by the
yarn splicing device (14) and the suction operation by the suction flow generation
device (99).
15. A method of removing yarn waste from a yarn splicing device (14) comprising:
an untwisting pipe (82) for acting airflow on a yarn end to untwist the yarn end,
characterized by the following steps
- blowing the yarn waste from the untwisting pipe (82) by the untwisting airflow into
a yarn waste guiding path (43) of a dedicated dust collector (80) during the untwisting
operation for collecting the yarn waste generated by the untwisting operation in the
dedicated dust collector (80); blowing the yarn waste through a yarn waste introducing
part (42a) into a dust collecting chamber (42) of the dust collector (80)
- temporarily accommodating the yarn waste in the dust collecting chamber (42) during
the untwisting operation and
- sucking and discharging the yarn waste from the collecting chamber (42) after finishing
the untwisting operation through a yarn waste discharge opening (47) to outside while
the sucking air enters the collecting chamber (42) through an air conducting portion
(45) in the collecting chamber (42) arranged at a position facing the yarn waste discharge
opening (47).
16. Method according to claim 15,
characterized by
guiding the airflow blowing the yarn waste from the untwisting pipe (82) into the
dust collecting chamber (42) to run along a tangent direction of a circumferential
wall of the dust collecting chamber (42) by correspondingly arranging a yarn waste
guiding path (43).
17. Method according to claim 16,
characterized by
generating a cyclone flow by whirling the airflow blown into the dust collecting chamber
(42) along a circumferential wall of the dust collecting chamber (42), thereby pushing
the yarn waste against the circumferential wall of the dust collecting chamber (42)
due to centrifugal force.
18. Method according to claim 17,
characterized by
discharging a part of the airflow to the outside via the air conducting portion (45)
in the collecting chamber (42) while lowering the whirling speed of the remaining
part of the airflow.