BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a spinning
machine and a spinning method.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a conventional spinning machine, a spinning
machine including a draft device adapted to draft a fiber bundle, and a pneumatic spinning device adapted
to twist the fiber bundle drafted by the draft device
by injecting air into a spinning chamber to produce a
yarn is known (see e.g., Japanese Unexamined Patent
15 Publication No. 2006-144136).
In this spinning machine, for example, when a
yarn defect is detected and drafting operation
performed by the draft device is accordingly stopped, a
fiber bundle portion (ear tip) that is not twisted is
20 formed at a yarn end of the yarn.
In the spinning machine described above, for
example, when accumulating the yarn in a yarn
accumulating device that uses a yarn accumulating
roller, the fiber bundle portion may remain on the yarn
2
accumulating roller if the length of the fiber bundle
portion is too long. If the length of the fiber bundle
portion is too short, the yarn end of the yarn may not
be reliably caught from a package in a winding device
5 when carrying out a yarn joining operation.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of one aspect of the present
invention to provide a spinning machine and a spinning
10 method capable of adjusting dimension of a fiber bundle
portion formed at a yarn end of a yarn.
A spinning machine according to one aspect of the
present invention includes: a draft device including a
plurality of rotatable roller pairs and adapted to
15 draft a fiber bundle with the roller pairs; a pneumatic
spinning device adapted to apply twists on the fiber
bundle drafted by the draft device by injecting air to
produce a yarn; a control section adapted to, when
splitting the fiber bundle, change a drafting ratio to
20 a ratio different from a drafting ratio for a first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle and
cause a second drafting operation of drafting the fiber
bundle to be performed in the draft device, and to stop
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
3
after the second drafting operation is performed; and a
calculating section adapted to calculate timing to stop
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
based on a spinning condition, where, when splitting
5 the fiber bundle, the control section stops the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device based
on the timing calculated by the calculating section.
In the spinning machine according to one aspect
of the present invention, the injection of air in the
10 pneumatic spinning device is stopped after the second
drafting operation is performed in the draft device.
The drafting ratio for the first drafting operation is
different from the drafting ratio for the second
drafting operation. Therefore, the state of the fiber
15 bundle drafted by the second drafting operation is
different from that of the fiber bundle drafted by the
first drafting operation. When the ratio is increased
to become higher than the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation and then the second drafting
20 operation is performed, the fiber bundle drafted by the
second drafting operation is stretched more than the
fiber bundle drafted by the first drafting operation.
Consequently, the fiber volume (the volume of fibers in
a cross-sectional area orthogonal to the drafting
4
direction) of the fiber bundle after the second
drafting operation becomes smaller than that of the
fiber bundle after the first drafting operation. When
the ratio is reduced to become lower than the drafting
5 ratio for the first drafting operation and then the
second drafting operation is performed, the fiber
bundle drafted by the second drafting operation becomes
shorter than the fiber bundle drafted by the first
drafting operation. Consequently, the fiber volume of
10 the fiber bundle after the second drafting operation
becomes larger than that of the fiber bundle after the
first drafting operation. Thus, in the present
spinning machine, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
can be adjusted by changing the drafting ratio for the
15 first drafting operation and the drafting ratio of the
second drafting operation. Therefore, in the spinning
machine of the present invention, dimensions (thickness
and/or length) of a fiber bundle portion (portion that
is not twisted appropriately) that is formed at a yarn
20 end of the yarn by the split (hereinafter also referred
to as splitting operation) of the fiber bundle can be
appropriately adjusted. The split of the fiber bundle
can be said as split of a yarn.
The time until the fiber bundle drafted by the
5
second drafting operation flows into the pneumatic
spinning device differs according to the spinning
condition, and the like. For example, when the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device is
5 stopped before the fiber bundle drafted by the second
drafting operation flows into the pneumatic spinning
device, the fiber bundle portion is formed in the fiber
bundle in which the count is not changed. In this case,
the adjustment of the dimension of the fiber bundle
10 portion may not be carried out appropriately.
In the spinning machine according to one aspect
of the present invention, the calculating section
calculates the timing to stop the injection of air in
the pneumatic spinning device based on the spinning
15 condition. The control section stops the injection of
air in the pneumatic spinning device at the same time
as or after at least one part of the fiber bundle
drafted by the second drafting operation flows into the
pneumatic spinning device based on the timing
20 calculated by the calculating section. Thus, in the
spinning machine, the fiber bundle portion is reliably
formed in the fiber bundle drafted by the second
drafting operation. Therefore, in the present spinning
machine, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
6
be automatically and appropriately adjusted according
to the spinning condition.
In one embodiment, the draft device includes at
least three roller pairs arranged along the draft path
5 of the fiber bundle, the control section may cause the
second drafting operation to be performed by changing a
rotation speed of one or plurality of roller pairs
other than a roller pair arranged on a most downstream
side in the draft path, of the at least three roller
10 pairs, and stop the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device at the same time as or after at least
one part of the fiber bundle flows into the pneumatic
spinning device, the fiber bundle being located between
a preceding roller pair which is a roller pair arranged
15 on a most downstream side in the draft path, of the
roller pairs in which the rotation speed is changed,
and a following roller pair which is a roller pair
arranged next to the preceding roller pair on a
downstream side in the draft path, when the second
20 drafting operation is performed (when the second
drafting operation starts), the fiber bundle not being
sandwiched by the following roller pair when the second
drafting operation is performed (when the second
drafting operation starts). In this configuration, the
7
injection of air can be stopped at an appropriate
timing. Thus, in the spinning machine, the twists can
be avoided from being applied to all the fiber bundles
drafted by the second drafting operation, and the fiber
5 bundle portion is formed in the fiber bundle drafted by
the second drafting operation. Therefore, in the
present spinning machine, the dimension of the fiber
bundle portion can be appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the control section may stop
10 the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
when at least one part of the fiber bundle drafted by
the second drafting operation is discharged from the
outlet of the spinning section of the pneumatic
spinning device, based on the timing calculated by the
15 calculating section. In this configuration, the
injection of air can be stopped at an appropriate
timing.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine includes
a yarn detecting device disposed on the downstream side
20 of the travelling path of the yarn with respect to the
pneumatic spinning device and adapted to detect the
yarn defect of the yarn, where the control section may
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device when at least one part of the fiber bundle
8
drafted by the second drafting operation passes the
yarn detecting device, based on the timing calculated
by the calculating section. In this configuration, the
injection of air can be stopped at an appropriate
5 timing.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine includes
a pull-out device disposed on the downstream side of
the travelling path of the yarn with respect to the
spinning device and adapted to pull out the yarn
10 produced in the pneumatic spinning device, where the
control section may stop the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device when at least one part of the
fiber bundle drafted by the second drafting operation
reaches the pull out device, based on the timing
15 calculated by the calculating section. In this
configuration, the injection of air can be stopped at
an appropriate timing.
In one embodiment, a spinning machine includes a
pull-out device adapted to pull out the yarn produced
20 in the pneumatic spinning device, and a yarn detecting
device arranged between the pneumatic spinning device
and the pull-out device in a travelling path of the
yarn and adapted to detect a yarn defect of the yarn,
where the draft device includes at least a first roller
9
pair, a second roller pair, a third roller pair, and a
fourth roller pair in order from the downstream side
toward the upstream side in a draft path of the fiber
bundle; the control section changes a ratio of the
5 drafting ratio of the third roller pair and the fourth
roller pair in the second drafting operation from the
first drafting operation; the calculating section
calculates a time as timing based on a distance in the
draft path between the first roller pair and the second
10 roller pair, a distance in the draft path between the
second roller pair and the third roller pair, a value
obtained by dividing the pull-out speed at which the
pull-out device pulls out the yarn, by the rotation
speed of the second roller pair, a value obtained by
15 dividing the rotation speed of the second roller pair
by the rotation speed of the third roller pair, a value
obtained by dividing the pull-out speed by the rotation
speed of the first roller pair, a distance in the
travelling path of the fiber bundle and the yarn
20 between the pneumatic spinning device and the first
roller pair, a distance in the travelling path of the
fiber bundle and the yarn between the yarn detecting
device and the first roller pair, or a distance in the
travelling path of the fiber bundle and the yarn
10
between the pull-out device and the first roller pair,
and the pull-out speed; and the control section may
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device when the time has elapsed from detection of a
5 yarn defect of the yarn by the yarn detecting device.
In this configuration, the time until the fiber bundle
drafted by the second drafting operation is discharged
from the pneumatic spinning device can be appropriately
calculated. Thus, in the spinning machine, the fiber
10 bundle portion is formed in the fiber bundle drafted by
the second drafting operation without the fiber bundle
portion being formed in the fiber bundle drafted by the
first drafting operation and without the twist being
applied to all the fiber bundles drafted by the second
15 drafting operation. Therefore, in the present spinning
machine, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
be appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the pull-out device may be a
yarn accumulating device adapted to accumulate the yarn
20 while pulling out the yarn. In this configuration, the
yarn can be stably pulled out from the pneumatic
spinning device while removing slack of the yarn Y.
In one embodiment, the control section may
increase the drafting ratio to a ratio higher than the
11
drafting ratio for the first drafting operation and
cause the second drafting operation to be performed in
the draft device. In this configuration, the fiber
bundle drafted by the second drafting operation is
5 stretched more than the fiber bundle drafted by the
first drafting operation. Consequently, the fiber
volume of the fiber bundle after the second drafting
operation becomes smaller than that of the fiber bundle
after the first drafting operation. For example, when
10 producing the yarn of low count (thick yarn), the fiber
volume of the fiber bundle supplied to the pneumatic
spinning device in a unit time is large. In this case,
the fiber bundle may not be appropriately split and a
fiber bundle portion formed at the yarn end of yarn may
15 become thicker and longer. In the present spinning
machine, as the fiber volume of the fiber bundle is
reduced by the second drafting operation when the fiber
bundle is to be split, the fiber bundle portion can be
suppressed from becoming thicker and longer. Therefore,
20 in the spinning machine, dimension of the fiber bundle
portion formed at the yarn end of yarn can be
appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the control section may cause
the draft device to perform the second drafting
12
operation when a count of the yarn produced by the
pneumatic spinning device is lower than or equal to Ne
15. When producing a yarn with a count of lower than
or equal to Ne 15, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
5 is relatively large, where if splitting of the fiber
bundle is performed with such a large volume, the fiber
bundle portion tends to become thicker and longer.
Thus, in the spinning machine, when yarn with a count
of Ne 15 or lower is generated, the second drafting
10 operation is performed, whereby the fiber bundle
portion can be prevented from becoming thicker and
longer, and dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
be adjusted appropriately.
In one embodiment, the control section may reduce
15 the drafting ratio to a ratio lower than the drafting
ratio for the first drafting operation and cause the
second drafting operation to be performed in the draft
device. In this configuration, the fiber volume of the
fiber bundle after the second drafting operation
20 becomes larger than that of the fiber bundle after the
first drafting operation. Therefore, a situation in
which the thickness of the fiber bundle portion becomes
too small when the fiber bundle is split, making it
difficult for a yarn catching device to catch the
13
corresponding yarn end in the following yarn joining
operation can be avoided.
In one embodiment, the control section may cause
the fiber bundle to be drafted in the second drafting
5 operation at a drafting ratio such that a count of the
yarn produced by the pneumatic spinning device falls
within a range higher than or equal to Ne 15 and lower
than or equal to Ne 45. In this manner, the fiber
volume of the fiber bundle of when being split can be
10 adjusted to an appropriate volume by drafting the fiber
bundle into a fiber bundle such that the count of the
yarn falls within the range higher than or equal to Ne
15 and lower than or equal to Ne 45. Thus, in the
spinning machine, the fiber bundle portion can be
15 prevented from becoming too thick, too thin, too long,
or too short. Furthermore, a situation in which fibers
are more likely to fly in the surroundings because the
fiber bundle portion is excessively thick and long can
be avoided, and a situation in which it is difficult
20 for the yarn catching device to catch the corresponding
yarn end because the fiber bundle portion is too thin
can be avoided.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine may
include a plurality of spinning units, where each
14
spinning unit including at least three roller pairs and
a pneumatic spinning device, at least one roller pair
of the at least three roller pairs being arranged to be
independently rotationally drive for each spinning unit,
5 and the control section may cause the second drafting
operation to be performed by changing the rotation
speed of the roller pair that is independently
rotationally driven. According to such a configuration,
the drafting ratio can be changed in the second
10 drafting operation using the roller pair independently
rotationally driven for each spinning unit. Thus, the
second drafting operation can be performed at desired
timing for each spinning unit.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine further
15 includes a winding device adapted to wind the yarn
produced by the pneumatic spinning device around a
bobbin to form a package, where the control section has
an adjustment mode of adjusting a dimension of a fiber
bundle portion formed at a yarn end of the yarn by
20 split of the fiber bundle, implementation/nonimplementation
of the adjustment mode is switchable
between time of full wound in which a defined amount of
yarn is wound into the package by the winding device
and a normal time other than the time of full wound,
15
the fiber bundle is split in the adjustment mode at the
normal time, and the fiber bundle is not split in the
adjustment mode at the time of full wound. The
adjustment mode is a mode of stopping the injection of
5 air in the pneumatic spinning device at the same time
as or after at least one part of the fiber bundle
drafted by the second drafting operation flows into the
pneumatic spinning device based on the timing
calculated by the calculating section.
10 In one embodiment, at the time of full wound, the
control section stops rotation of the back roller pair
which is a roller pair arranged most upstream in a
drafting direction, of the plurality of roller pairs
and continues the injection of air in the pneumatic
15 spinning device until at least a time of a same length
as the timing calculated by the calculating section has
elapsed from when the rotation of the back roller pair
is stopped.
A spinning method according to one aspect of the
20 present invention is a spinning method performed in a
spinning machine including a draft device including a
plurality of rotatable roller pairs and adapted to
draft a fiber bundle with the roller pairs, a pneumatic
spinning device adapted to apply twists on the fiber
16
bundle drafted by the draft device by injecting air to
produce a yarn, and a control section adapted to, when
splitting the fiber bundle, change a drafting ratio to
a ratio different from a drafting ratio for a first
5 drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle and
cause a second drafting operation of drafting the fiber
bundle to be performed in the draft device, and to stop
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
after the second drafting operation is performed, the
10 method including the steps of: calculating timing to
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device based on a spinning condition; and stopping the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device at
the same time as or after at least one part of the
15 fiber bundle drafted by the second drafting operation
flows into the pneumatic spinning device based on the
timing when splitting the fiber bundle.
In the spinning method according to one aspect of
the present invention, the injection of air in the
20 pneumatic spinning device is stopped after the second
drafting operation is performed in the draft device.
The state of the fiber bundle drafted by the second
drafting operation is different from that of the fiber
bundle drafted by the first drafting operation. When
17
the ratio is increased to become higher than the
drafting ratio for the first drafting operation and
then the second drafting operation is performed, the
fiber bundle drafted by the second drafting operation
5 is stretched more than the fiber bundle drafted by the
first drafting operation. Consequently, the fiber
volume (the volume of fibers in a cross-sectional area
orthogonal to the drafting direction) of the fiber
bundle after the second drafting operation becomes
10 smaller than that of the fiber bundle after the first
drafting operation. When the ratio is reduced to
become lower than the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation and then the second drafting
operation is performed, the fiber bundle drafted by the
15 second drafting operation becomes shorter than the
fiber bundle drafted by the first drafting operation.
Consequently, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
after the second drafting operation becomes larger than
that of the fiber bundle after the first drafting
20 operation. In this manner, in the spinning method, the
fiber volume of the fiber bundle can be adjusted by
changing the drafting ratio for the first drafting
operation and the drafting ratio for the second
drafting operation. Therefore, in the spinning method,
18
dimensions (thickness and/or length) of a fiber bundle
portion (portion that is not twisted appropriately)
that is formed in a yarn end of yarn by the splitting
operation can be appropriately adjusted.
5 In the spinning method according to one aspect of
the present invention, the timing to stop the injection
of air in the pneumatic spinning device is calculated
based on the spinning condition, and the injection of
air in the pneumatic spinning device is stopped at the
10 same time as or after at least one part of the fiber
bundle drafted by the second drafting operation flows
into the pneumatic spinning device based on the timing.
Thus, in the spinning method, the fiber bundle portion
is reliably formed in the fiber bundle drafted by the
15 second drafting operation. Therefore, in the spinning
method, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
be appropriately adjusted.
According to one aspect of the present invention,
the dimension of the fiber bundle portion formed at the
20 yarn end of the yarn can be adjusted.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a front view of a spinning machine
according to one embodiment;
19
FIG. 2 is a side view of a spinning unit of the
spinning machine in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of
a pneumatic spinning device of the spinning unit in FIG.
5 2;
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of
the pneumatic spinning device during movement from a
spinning position to a receded position;
FIG. 5 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of
10 the pneumatic spinning device at the receded position;
FIG. 6 is a view according to one embodiment,
illustrating a fiber volume of a yarn and timing to
stop air injection in the pneumatic spinning device;
and
15 FIG. 7 is a view according to an alternative
embodiment, illustrating a timing chart of the
operations of a draft device and the pneumatic spinning
device when the package is fully wound.
20 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Preferred embodiments of the present invention
will be hereinafter described in detail with reference
to the accompanied drawings. The same or corresponding
components are denoted with the same reference numerals
20
in the description of the drawings, and the redundant
description will be omitted.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, a spinning machine 1
includes a plurality of spinning units 2, a yarn
5 joining cart 3, a doffing cart (not illustrated), a
first end frame 4, and a second end frame 5. The
plurality of spinning units 2 are arranged in a row.
Each of the spinning units 2 is adapted to produce a
yarn Y and to wind the yarn Y around a package P. The
10 yarn joining cart 3 is adapted to perform a yarn
joining operation in a spinning unit 2 after the yarn Y
is cut, or is broken for some reason in such a spinning
unit 2. The doffing cart is adapted to doff the
package P and to supply a new bobbin B to the spinning
15 unit 2 when the package P is fully wound in a spinning
unit 2.
The first end frame 4 accommodates, for example,
a collecting device adapted to collect fiber waste,
yarn waste, and the like generated in the spinning
20 units 2. The second end frame 5 accommodates an air
supplying section adapted to adjust air pressure of
compressed air (air) to be supplied to the spinning
machine 1 and to supply the air to each section of the
spinning machine 1, a drive motor adapted to supply
21
power to each section of the spinning unit 2, and the
like. The second end frame 5 is provided with a
machine control device 100, a display screen 102, and
an input key 104. The machine control device 100 is
5 adapted to intensively manage and control each section
of the spinning machine 1. The display screen 102 is
capable of displaying information relating to set
contents and/or status of the spinning unit 2, or the
like. An operator can make the settings of the
10 spinning units 2 by performing appropriate operations
with the input keys 104.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, each spinning
unit 2 includes, in the order from the upstream side in
a travelling direction of the yarn Y, a draft device 6,
15 a pneumatic spinning device 7, a yarn monitoring device
(yarn detecting device) 8, a tension sensor 9, a yarn
accumulating device (pull-out device) 11, a waxing
device 12, and a winding device 13. A unit controller
(control section, calculating section) 10 is provided
20 for every predetermined number of the spinning units 2
and is adapted to control operations of the spinning
units 2. The unit controller 10 may be provided
individually to each spinning unit 2.
The draft device 6 is adapted to draft a fiber
22
bundle (sliver) F. The draft device 6 includes, in the
order from the upstream side in a travelling direction
of the fiber bundle F, a back roller pair (fourth
roller pair) 14, a third roller pair (third roller
5 pair) 15, a middle roller pair (second roller pair) 16,
and a front roller pair (first roller pair) 17. In
other words, in the draft device 6, the four draft
roller pairs 14 to 17 are arranged in the order of the
front roller pair 17, the middle roller pair 16, the
10 third roller pair 15, and the back roller pair 14 from
the downstream side toward the upstream side in a draft
path of the fiber bundle F.
The back roller pair 14 has a top roller 14a and
a bottom roller 14b. The third roller pair 15 has a
15 top roller 15a and a bottom roller 15b. The middle
roller pair 16 has a top roller 16a and a bottom roller
16b. The front roller pair 17 has a top roller 17a and
a bottom roller 17b. The bottom rollers 14b, 15b, 16b,
and 17b are rotationally driven by a drive motor
20 provided on the second end frame 5 or a drive motor
provided on each spinning unit 2. In the present
embodiment, the bottom rollers 14b and 15b are
rotationally driven by a drive motor provided on each
spinning unit 2. The bottom rollers 16b and 17b are
23
rotationally driven by a drive motor provided on the
second end frame 5. An apron belt 18a is wound around
the top roller 16a of the middle roller pair 16. An
apron belt 18b is wound around the bottom roller 16b of
5 the middle roller pair 16.
The pneumatic spinning device 7 is adapted to
twist the fiber bundle F drafted by the draft device 6
with a whirling airflow to produce the yarn Y. As
illustrated in FIG. 3, the pneumatic spinning device 7
10 injects air to the fiber bundle F drafted by the draft
device 6 to apply twists to the fiber bundle and
produce the yarn Y at a spinning position. The
spinning position is a position of the pneumatic
spinning device 7 where the pneumatic spinning device 7
15 is disposed close to the draft device 6 (specifically,
the front roller pair 17) during spinning when the
fiber bundle F is supplied from the draft device 6 to
the pneumatic spinning device 7. The pneumatic
spinning device 7 includes a nozzle block 70 and a
20 hollow guide shaft body 80. The hollow guide shaft
body 80 is inserted into the nozzle block 70 from the
downstream side. An internal space formed by the
nozzle block 70 and the hollow guide shaft body 80 is a
spinning chamber 73.
24
The nozzle block 70 includes a fiber guiding
portion 71 and a whirling flow generating portion 72.
In the fiber guiding portion 71, a guide hole 71a is
provided for guiding the fiber bundle F supplied from
5 the draft device 6 to the spinning chamber 73. The
fiber guiding portion 71 is provided with a needle 75.
A tip 75a of the needle 75 is located in the spinning
chamber 73. The needle 75 has a function of
suppressing a twist from being propagated to the
10 upstream of the spinning chamber 73. In the whirling
flow generating portion 72, a plurality of nozzles 74
communicating with the spinning chamber 73 are formed.
The plurality of nozzles 74 are arranged such that the
whirling flow is generated in the spinning chamber 73
15 when air is injected. In the whirling flow generating
portion 72, a hole portion 72a, into which the hollow
guide shaft body 80 is inserted, is formed. The hole
portion 72a is formed to a shape of truncated cone that
tapers off toward the upstream side, and is
20 communicated with the spinning chamber 73.
The hollow guide shaft body 80 can be inserted
into the hole portion 72a of the whirling flow
generating portion 72. An upper end portion 80a of the
hollow guide shaft body 80 is formed to a shape of
25
truncated cone that tapers off toward the upstream side.
In the hollow guide shaft body 80, a channel 81
extending along the central axis of the hollow guide
shaft body 80 is formed. The upstream side of the
5 channel 81 is communicated with the spinning chamber 73,
and the channel 81 is formed so as to widen toward an
outlet 83 on the downstream side. A collecting portion
77 is communicated with the spinning chamber 73 through
a gap formed between the upper end portion 80a of the
10 hollow guide shaft body 80 and the hole portion 72a of
the whirling flow generating portion 72. In the
present embodiment, the spinning chamber 73 and the
channel 81 are collectively referred to as a spinning
section. The fiber bundle F is changed to the yarn Y
15 in the spinning section. The produced yarn Y is
discharged from the outlet 83 through the channel 81.
Fibers that have not formed the yarn Y are collected in
the collecting portion 77.
The pneumatic spinning device 7 is movably
20 (rotatably) supported by a support shaft (not
illustrated). As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the
pneumatic spinning device 7 is movable to a receded
position, which is more distant from the draft device 6
than the spinning position. The hollow guide shaft
26
body 80 is further movable from the nozzle block 70 at
the receded position. When the pneumatic spinning
device 7 is moved from the spinning position to the
receded position, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the nozzle
5 block 70 and the hollow guide shaft body 80 are
integrally separated from the draft device 6.
Subsequently, as illustrated in FIG. 5, only the nozzle
block 70 is stopped at a predetermined position. The
hollow guide shaft body 80 continues to be moved, and
10 is separated from the nozzle block 70. Subsequently,
the hollow guide shaft body 80 separated from the
nozzle block 70 is stopped at a predetermined position.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the yarn
monitoring device 8 monitors information on a
15 travelling yarn Y at between the pneumatic spinning
device 7 and the yarn accumulating device 11 to detect
the presence or absence of a yarn defect on the basis
of the monitored information. When detecting the yarn
defect, the yarn monitoring device 8 transmits a yarn
20 defect detection signal to the unit controller 10. The
yarn monitoring device 8 detects a thickness
abnormality of the yarn Y and/or a foreign substance
included in the yarn Y, for example, as the yarn defect.
The yarn monitoring device 8 also detects yarn breakage
27
or the like. The tension sensor 9 is adapted to
measure tension of the travelling yarn Y between the
pneumatic spinning device 7 and the yarn accumulating
device 11, and to transmit a tension measurement signal
5 to the unit controller 10. When the unit controller 10
determines presence of an abnormality based on a
detection result of the yarn monitoring device 8 and/or
the tension sensor 9, the yarn Y is cut (split) in the
spinning unit 2.
10 The waxing device 12 is adapted to apply wax to
the yarn Y between the yarn accumulating device 11 and
the winding device 13.
The yarn accumulating device 11 is adapted to
accumulate the yarn Y between the pneumatic spinning
15 device 7 and the winding device 13. The yarn
accumulating device 11 has a function of stably pulling
out the yarn Y from the pneumatic spinning device 7, a
function of preventing the yarn Y from slackening by
accumulating the yarn Y fed from the pneumatic spinning
20 device 7 at the time of the yarn joining operation or
the like by the yarn joining cart 3, and a function of
preventing variation in the tension of the yarn Y on
the downstream side of the yarn accumulating device 11
from being propagated to the pneumatic spinning device
28
7.
The winding device 13 is adapted to wind the yarn
Y around a bobbin B to form a package P. The winding
device 13 includes a cradle arm 21, a winding drum 22,
5 and a traverse guide 23. The cradle arm 21 rotatably
supports the bobbin B.
After the yarn Y is cut, or is broken for some
reason in a spinning unit 2, the yarn joining cart 3
travels to such a spinning unit 2 to perform the yarn
10 joining operation. The yarn joining cart 3 includes a
yarn joining device 26, a suction pipe (yarn catching
device) 27, and a suction mouth (yarn catching device)
28. The suction pipe 27 is swingably supported by a
support shaft 31, and is adapted to catch the yarn Y
15 from the pneumatic spinning device 7 and to guide the
caught yarn Y to the yarn joining device 26. When
having caught the yarn end of the yarn Y, the suction
pipe 27 cuts off the fiber bundle portion Y1 formed at
the yarn end, and guides the yarn end of the yarn Y,
20 from which the fiber bundle portion Y1 has been cut off,
to the yarn joining device 26. The suction mouth 28 is
swingably supported by a support shaft 32, and is
adapted to catch the yarn Y from the winding device 13
and to guide the caught yarn Y to the yarn joining
29
device 26. When having caught the yarn end of the yarn
Y, the suction mouth 28 cuts off the fiber bundle
portion Y1 formed at the yarn end, and guides the yarn
end of the yarn Y, from which the fiber bundle portion
5 Y1 has been cut off, to the yarn joining device 26.
The yarn joining device 26 is adapted to join the
guided yarns Y together. The yarn joining device 26 is
a splicer using the compressed air, a knotter adapted
to join the yarns Y together in a mechanical manner, or
10 the like. When the yarn joining cart 3 performs the
yarn joining operation, the package P is rotated in an
unwinding direction (reversely rotated).
The operation (spinning method) related to
adjusting the length of the fiber bundle portion Y1
15 formed at the yarn end of yarn Y will now be described.
The fiber bundle portion Y1 refers to a region where
twist is not applied at the yarn end of yarn Y
continuing to the package P, as illustrated in FIG. 5.
The operation of forming the fiber bundle portion Y1 is
20 performed, for example, when a yarn defect is detected
and spinning is stopped accordingly, or when the
package P is in a fully wound state and the spinning is
terminated accordingly.
When splitting the fiber bundle F, the unit
30
controller 10 changes a drafting ratio to a ratio
different from the drafting ratio for a first drafting
operation of drafting the fiber bundle F so as to
achieve a count of the yarn Y produced by the pneumatic
5 spinning device 7 and causes a second drafting
operation of drafting the fiber bundle F to be
performed in the draft device 6, and furthermore,
causes the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device 7 to be stopped after the second drafting
10 operation is performed.
The unit controller 10 calculates timing to stop
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device 7
based on a spinning condition. The spinning condition
may include spinning speed, drafting ratio, draft gauge,
15 and the like. When splitting the fiber bundle F, the
unit controller 10 stops the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 at the same time as or
after at least one part of the fiber bundle F drafted
by the second drafting operation flows into the
20 pneumatic spinning device 7 based on the timing
described above.
In the present embodiment, the unit controller 10
changes the rotation speed of the back roller pair 14
and causes the second drafting operation to be
31
performed. In other words, the unit controller 10
changes the rotation speed of the draft roller pair
other than the front roller pair 17 and causes the
second drafting operation to be performed. The unit
5 controller 10 stops the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 after at least one part of
“the fiber bundle F located between a preceding roller
pair, which is the roller pair arranged on the most
downstream side in the draft path of the roller pair
10 (one or a plurality of roller pairs 14, 15, 16) in
which the rotation speed is changed, and a following
roller pair, which is the roller pair (one of the
roller pairs 14, 16, 17) arranged one roller pair
downstream of the preceding roller pair at the time
15 point the second drafting operation is performed (at
the time point the second drafting operation starts),
the fiber bundle F not having been sandwiched by the
following roller pair” at the time point the second
drafting operation is performed (at the time point the
20 second drafting operation starts) flows into the
pneumatic spinning device 7. For example, when the
roller pair in which the rotation speed is changed is
the back roller pair 14, the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 is stopped after at least
32
one part of the fiber bundle F that is located between
the back roller pair 14 and the third roller pair 15
and that has not been sandwiched by the third roller
pair 15 at the time point the second drafting operation
5 starts flows into the pneumatic spinning device 7.
The unit controller 10 calculates a time T from
when receiving the yarn defect detection signal
transmitted from the yarn monitoring device 8 until
stopping the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
10 device 7 as the timing to stop the injection of air in
the pneumatic spinning device 7. In the present
embodiment, a case of changing the rotation speed of
the back roller pair 14 (bottom roller 14b) will be
described for the second drafting operation. In this
15 case, the unit controller 10 calculates the time
T[msec] based on the following equation (1).
T = {(D1 x M x I/Fe) + (D2 x M/Fe) + D3}/(S/60) +
c ...(1)
D1[mm] is a distance in the draft path between the
20 third roller pair 15 and the middle roller pair 16
(distance between centers of the third roller pair 15
and the middle roller pair 16). D1 is also referred to
as a draft gauge of the third roller pair 15 and the
middle roller pair 16.
33
M is a main drafting ratio. M is a value
(spinning speed/middle roller rotation speed) obtained
by dividing the spinning speed [m/min] by the rotation
speed [m/min] of the middle roller pair 16. In the
5 present embodiment, the spinning speed corresponds to
the pull-out speed at which the yarn accumulating
device 11 pulls out the yarn Y.
I is an intermediate drafting ratio. I is a
value (middle roller rotation speed/third roller
10 rotation speed) obtained by dividing the rotation speed
[m/min] of the middle roller pair 16 by the rotation
speed [m/min] of the third roller pair 15.
Fe is a feed ratio. Fe is a value (spinning
speed/front roller rotation speed) obtained by dividing
15 the spinning speed [m/min] by the rotation speed
[m/min] of the front roller pair 17.
D2[mm] is a distance in the draft path between
the middle roller pair 16 and the front roller pair 17
(distance between centers of the middle roller pair 16
20 and the front roller pair 17). D2 is also referred to
as a draft gauge of the middle roller pair 16 and the
front roller pair 17.
D3[mm] is a distance in the travelling path of
the fiber bundle F and the yarn Y between the outlet 83
34
of the hollow guide shaft body 80 and the front roller
pair 17.
S[m/min] is a spinning speed.
c is a constant set based on an environment of
5 the spinning machine 1. c is, for example, a constant
set in view of the communication environment (signal
delay) between the yarn monitoring device 8 and the
unit controller 10, deaerating delay in the pneumatic
spinning device 7, and the like. c is, for example, “-
10 10”. “60” is a numerical value for converting the unit
of the time T to [msec].
The time T corresponds to a time (first time)
from when the yarn defect is detected in the yarn
monitoring device 8 (when the yarn defect signal is
15 received by the unit controller 10) until one part
(head) of the fiber bundle F (fiber bundle F drafted by
the second drafting operation) between the back roller
pair 14 and the third roller pair 15 is discharged from
the outlet 83 of the pneumatic spinning device 7.
20 The unit controller 10 calculates the time T
based on the information (spinning condition, etc.) set
in advance in a storage section (not illustrated).
Specifically, in the case where the spinning condition
(production lot) is input with the input keys 104 of
35
the machine control device 100, the unit controller 10
calculates the time T based on the spinning condition.
In the present embodiment, a method of adjusting
the length of the fiber bundle portion Y1 when spinning
5 the yarn Y with a low count (e.g., lower than Ne 15),
will be described with reference to FIG. 6. In Fig.6,
a chain dashed line indicates a fiber volume of the
yarn Y, and a solid line indicates the timing of
control of the draft device 6 and the pneumatic
10 spinning device 7 by the unit controller 10. A
vertical axis of FIG. 6 indicates increase and decrease
of the fiber volume of the yarn Y. A horizontal axis
of FIG. 6 indicates elapse of time.
When a yarn defect is detected by the yarn
15 monitoring device 8 during spinning, the yarn defect
detection signal is transmitted to the unit controller
10. In FIG. 6, a portion indicated by surrounding the
chain dashed line with a chain line indicates that the
yarn defect (thickness abnormality of the yarn Y)
20 occurs. When having received the yarn defect detection
signal, the unit controller 10 controls the operation
of the draft device 6. Specifically, when having
received the yarn defect detection signal at the time
point of time T1, the unit controller 10 increases the
36
drafting ratio to a ratio higher than the drafting
ratio for the first drafting operation of drafting the
fiber bundle F to achieve the count of the yarn Y to be
produced by the pneumatic spinning device 7, and causes
5 the second drafting operation of drafting the fiber
bundle F to be performed. In other words, when having
received the yarn defect detection signal, the unit
controller 10 changes a total drafting ratio of the
draft device 6.
10 Specifically, the unit controller 10 changes the
total drafting ratio of the draft device 6 such that
the count becomes finer than the count of the yarn Y
that is currently being spun. Specifically, the unit
controller 10 changes the drafting ratio (brake
15 drafting ratio) between the back roller pair 14 and the
third roller pair 15. For example, when spinning the
yarn Y with a count of Ne 10, the unit controller 10
changes the drafting ratio to a drafting ratio for
spinning the yarn Y with a count of Ne 35.
20 Specifically, the unit controller 10 changes the
rotation speed (increases the rotation speed) of the
back roller pair 14 and maintains the rotation speed of
the draft roller pairs 15, 16, 17 other than the back
roller pair 14 (maintains the rotation speed of at
37
least the front roller pair 17) to change the brake
drafting ratio, thus having the total drafting ratio to,
for example, 3.5 times the yarn Y with the count of Ne
10. The total drafting ratio in the draft device 6 is
5 thereby changed, and the fiber bundle F is drafted into
a fiber bundle F for spinning the yarn Y with a count
of Ne 35.
The unit controller 10 sets a drafting ratio for
performing the second drafting operation in the draft
10 device 6 based on information that is set in advance in
the storage section. The storage section stores
therein yarn counts and drafting ratios for the second
drafting operation corresponding to the respective
counts. The drafting ratio for the second drafting
15 operation is set such that the count of the yarn Y
produced by the pneumatic spinning device 7 falls
within a range higher than or equal to Ne 15 and lower
than or equal to Ne 45. In other words, in the second
drafting operation, the unit controller 10 causes the
20 fiber bundle F to be drafted at a drafting ratio such
that the count of the yarn Y produced by the pneumatic
spinning device 7 falls within the range higher than or
equal to Ne 15 and lower than or equal to Ne 45. The
count of the yarn Y is more preferably set to fall
38
within a range higher than or equal to Ne 30 and lower
than or equal to Ne 40. For example, in the case where
the spinning condition is input with the input keys 104,
the unit controller 10 acquires from the storage
5 section a drafting ratio for the second drafting
operation corresponding to the count of the yarn Y
(count of the yarn Y to produce) input as one of the
spinning conditions. The drafting ratio for the second
drafting operation may be set by, for example,
10 operator's input with the input keys 104.
Then, after changing the total drafting ratio,
the unit controller 10 causes the draft device 6 to
draft the fiber bundle F for a predetermined time
(perform the second drafting operation), and then
15 controls the draft device 6 such that rotation of the
back roller pair 14 stops (perform the splitting
operation). The predetermined time is the time T
described above from when the yarn defect detection
signal transmitted from the yarn monitoring device 8 is
20 received until when the fiber bundle F of finer count
is discharged from the pneumatic spinning device 7. In
other words, after the fiber bundle F of finer count
flows into the pneumatic spinning device 7 and then is
discharged from the pneumatic spinning device 7, the
39
unit controller 10 controls the draft device 6 such
that rotation of the back roller pair 14 stops.
Because the front roller pair 17 is connected to the
drive source different from that of the back roller
5 pair 14, the front roller pair 17 continues to be
driven. Consequently, the fiber bundle F is split
between the back roller pair 14 and the front roller
pair 17.
Furthermore, the unit controller 10 controls the
10 pneumatic spinning device 7 to stop the injection of
air from the plurality of nozzles 74. Specifically,
the unit controller 10 stops the injection of air by
the plurality of nozzles 74 on the basis of the time T
calculated based on the equation (1) described above.
15 That is, the unit controller 10 stops the injection of
air by the plurality of nozzles 74 so that twists are
not applied to all the fiber bundles F subjected to the
second drafting operation. Specifically, as
illustrated in FIG. 6, when having received the yarn
20 defect detection signal at time T1, the unit controller
10 stops the injection of air by the plurality of
nozzles 74 at time T2 after elapse of time T. Thus, as
illustrated in FIG. 6, the air is not injected to all
the fiber bundles F, in which the fiber volume has
40
reduced by the second drafting operation, whereby the
twists can be prevented from being applied to all the
fiber bundles F by the second drafting operation.
The unit controller 10 then controls the
5 pneumatic spinning device 7 so as to cause the
pneumatic spinning device 7 to start moving from the
spinning position to the receded position. According
to such operations, the yarn Y is split, and the fiber
bundle portion Y1 is formed at the yarn end of the yarn
10 Y.
A case of interrupting the spinning when the yarn
defect is detected by the yarn monitoring device 8 has
been described above, but similar operations are also
performed in a case of terminating the spinning when
15 determined that a package P is in a fully wound state.
In this case, the length of the fiber bundle portion Y1
is preferably reduced to prevent a knot from breaking
when the package P is hung on a warper in the next step.
As described above, the spinning machine 1
20 according to the present embodiment causes the second
drafting operation to be performed in the draft device
6, and then stops the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device 7 The fiber bundle F drafted by the
second drafting operation is stretched more than the
41
fiber bundle F drafted by the first drafting operation.
Thus, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle F after the
second drafting operation becomes smaller than that of
the fiber bundle F after the first drafting operation.
5 For example, when producing the yarn Y with low count
(coarse count yarn), the fiber volume of the fiber
bundle F to be supplied to the pneumatic spinning
device 7 is large. In this case, the fiber bundle F
may not be appropriately split when the fiber bundle F
10 is split, and the fiber bundle portion (portion that
has not been appropriately applied with twists) Y1
formed at the yarn end of the yarn Y may become longer.
In the spinning machine 1, as the fiber volume of the
fiber bundle F is reduced by the second drafting
15 operation when the fiber bundle F is to be split, the
fiber bundle portion Y1 can be suppressed from becoming
longer when the fiber bundle F is split. Thus, in the
spinning machine 1, the length of the fiber bundle
portion Y1 formed at the yarn end of the yarn Y can be
20 adjusted appropriately.
Furthermore, as the fiber bundle portion Y1 can
be prevented from becoming longer, fibers can be
reduced from flying in the surroundings of the front
roller pair 17, and attaching to the front roller pair
42
17, and the like.
The time until the fiber bundle F drafted by the
second drafting operation flows into the pneumatic
spinning device 7 differs according to the spinning
5 condition and the like. For example, when the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device 7 is
stopped before the fiber bundle F drafted by the second
drafting operation flows into the pneumatic spinning
device 7, the fiber bundle portion Y1 is formed in the
10 fiber bundle F in which the count is not changed. In
this case, the adjustment of the dimension of the fiber
bundle portion Y1 may not be carried out appropriately.
In the spinning machine 1 according to the
present embodiment, the unit controller 10 calculates
15 the timing to stop the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 based on the spinning
condition. The unit controller 10 stops the injection
of air in the pneumatic spinning device 7 after at
least one part of the fiber bundle F drafted by the
20 second drafting operation flows into the pneumatic
spinning device 7 based on the calculated timing. Thus,
in the spinning machine 1, the fiber bundle portion Y1
is reliably formed in the fiber bundle F drafted by the
second drafting operation. Thus, in the spinning
43
machine 1, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion Y1
can be appropriately adjusted.
The spinning machine 1 according to the present
embodiment includes the yarn accumulating device 11
5 adapted to pull out the yarn produced in the pneumatic
spinning device 7, and the yarn monitoring device 8
arranged between the pneumatic spinning device 7 and
the yarn accumulating device 11 in the travelling path
of the yarn Y to detect the yarn defect of the yarn Y.
10 The draft device 6 includes the front roller pair 17,
the middle roller pair 16, the third roller pair 15,
and the back roller pair 14 in this order from the
downstream side toward the upstream side in the draft
path of the fiber bundle F.
15 In the spinning machine 1 according to the
present embodiment, the unit controller 10 calculates a
time from when receiving the yarn defect detection
signal transmitted from the yarn monitoring device 8
until when stopping the injection of air in the
20 pneumatic spinning device 7. In the present embodiment,
the unit controller 10 calculates the time T from the
equation (1) mentioned above. In this configuration,
the time until the fiber bundle F drafted by the second
drafting operation is discharged from the pneumatic
44
spinning device 7 can be appropriately calculated.
Therefore, in the spinning machine 1, the fiber bundle
portion Y1 is formed in the fiber bundle F drafted by
the second drafting operation without the fiber bundle
5 portion Y1 being formed in the fiber bundle F drafted
by the first drafting operation and without twists
being applied to all the fiber bundles F drafted by the
second drafting operation. Thus, in the spinning
machine 1, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion Y1
10 can be appropriately adjusted.
In the spinning machine 1 according to the
present embodiment, the unit controller 10 causes the
fiber bundle F to be drafted in the second drafting
operation at a drafting ratio such that the count of
15 the yarn Y produced by the pneumatic spinning device 7
falls within a range higher than or equal to Ne 15 and
lower than or equal to Ne 45. In this manner, the
fiber volume of the fiber bundle F when being split can
be adjusted to an appropriate volume by drafting the
20 fiber bundle F into a fiber bundle such that the count
of the yarn Y falls within the range higher than or
equal to Ne 15 and lower than or equal to Ne 45.
Therefore, in the spinning machine 1, the fiber bundle
portion Y1 can be prevented from becoming too thick,
45
too thin, too long, or too short. Furthermore, a
situation in which fibers are more likely to fly in the
surroundings because the fiber bundle portion Y1 is
excessively thick and long can be avoided, and a
5 situation in which it is difficult for the suction type
catching device such as the suction pipe 27 and the
suction mouth 28 to catch the corresponding yarn end
because the fiber bundle portion Y1 is too thin can be
avoided.
10 In the spinning machine 1 according to the
present embodiment, the unit controller 10 causes the
draft device 6 to perform the second drafting operation
when the count of the yarn Y produced by the pneumatic
spinning device 7 is lower than Ne 15. When producing
15 the yarn Y with a count lower than Ne 15, the fiber
volume of the fiber bundle F is relatively large. Thus,
in the spinning machine 1, the fiber bundle portion Y1
can be prevented from becoming longer, and the length
of the fiber bundle portion Y1 can be appropriately
20 adjusted by causing the second drafting operation to be
performed when producing the yarn Y with a count lower
than Ne 15.
An embodiment of the present invention has been
described, but the present invention is not necessarily
46
limited to the above-described embodiment, and various
changes can be made within a scope not deviating from
the gist of the invention.
In the embodiment described above, a mode in
5 which, in the spinning machine 1, the total drafting
ratio of the draft device 6 is changed such that the
count becomes finer than the count of the yarn Y that
is currently being spun has been described as by way of
example. However, in the spinning machine, the total
10 drafting ratio of the draft device 6 may be changed
such that the count becomes coarser than the count of
the yarn Y that is currently being spun. Specifically,
the unit controller 10 reduces the drafting ratio to a
ratio lower than the drafting ratio for the first
15 drafting operation and causes the second drafting
operation to be performed in the draft device 6, and
then causes the splitting operations to be performed.
Thus, the unit controller 10 of the present
invention has an adjustment mode (yarn end control
20 mode) of “changing the drafting ratio to a ratio
different from the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle F to
achieve the count of the yarn Y to be produced in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 and causing the second
47
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle F to be
performed in the draft device 6, calculating stop
timing of the injection so that the injection of air in
the pneumatic spinning device 7 can be stopped at the
5 same time as or after at least one part of the fiber
bundle F drafted by the second drafting operation flows
into the pneumatic spinning device 7, and stopping the
injection based on the calculated stop timing”.
The drafting ratio for the first drafting
10 operation is different from the drafting ratio for the
second drafting operation. Therefore, the state of the
fiber bundle F drafted by the second drafting operation
is different from that of the fiber bundle F drafted by
the first drafting operation. When the drafting ratio
15 is increased to become higher than the drafting ratio
for the first drafting operation and then the second
drafting operation is performed, the fiber bundle F
drafted by the second drafting operation is stretched
more than the fiber bundle F drafted by the first
20 drafting operation. Thus, the fiber volume of the
fiber bundle F after the second drafting operation
becomes smaller than that of the fiber bundle F after
the first drafting operation. When the ratio is
reduced to become lower than the drafting ratio for the
48
first drafting operation and then the second drafting
operation is performed, the fiber bundle F drafted by
the second drafting operation becomes shorter than the
fiber bundle F drafted by the first drafting operation.
5 Consequently, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle F
after the second drafting operation becomes larger than
that of the fiber bundle F after the first drafting
operation. In this manner, in the spinning machine 1,
the fiber volume of the fiber bundle F can be adjusted
10 by changing the drafting ratio for the first drafting
operation and the drafting ratio for the second
drafting operation.
Therefore, the spinning machine 1 can
appropriately adjust the dimension of the fiber bundle
15 portion Y1 formed at the yarn end of the yarn Y by the
adjustment mode. Thus, in the spinning machine 1, even
when yarn Y is produced at a count not desirable for
the split of the fiber bundle F, this adjustment
enables the yarn to be split in an appropriate count in
20 the splitting operation.
The count of the yarn Y that can be produced with
the drafting ratio for the second drafting operation,
that is, the count of the yarn Y that is preferable for
splitting can be set based on the quality and the
49
operating performance. The quality herein is the
amount of fly waste in the fiber bundle portion Y1.
The operating performance herein is the ratio of
successful yarn end finding in the yarn joining cart 3.
5 The quality above tends to deteriorate as the count
decreases (as yarn Y becomes thicker), and tends to
improve as the count increases (yarn Y becomes thinner).
In other words, the amount of fly waste increases as
the count decreases, and decreases as the count
10 increases. The operating performance above tends to
become higher as the count decreases, and tends to
become lower as the count increases. In other words,
the ratio of successful yarn end finding becomes higher
as the count decreases, and becomes lower as the count
15 increases. From the viewpoint of balance between the
quality and the operating performance, the count is
preferably 15 to 45, for example. However, the count
is not limited to 15 to 45.
The count above may be freely set by a user,
20 depending on which of the quality and the operating
performance to emphasize. The user may set in advance
a predetermined count range (e.g., other than a range
of "Ne to Ne ", more specifically, other than Ne 15
to Ne 45, for example) when performing the yarn end
50
control described above and a target splitting count
(e.g., Ne , more specifically, Ne 30, for example) to
be achieved by the second drafting operation by
operating an operation unit (e.g., input keys 104,
5 touch panel to be described later, etc.). When the
yarn defect is detected, for example, during spinning
in the predetermined count range, the unit controller
10 may cause the second drafting operation to be
performed at a drafting ratio corresponding to the
10 target splitting count, and then may cause the
splitting operation to be performed.
In the embodiment described above, a mode in
which the bottom rollers 14b and 15b are rotationally
driven by the drive motor provided to each spinning
15 unit 2, and the bottom rollers 16b and 17b are
rotationally driven by the drive motor provided to the
second end frame 5 has been described by way of example.
In such configuration, a mode of performing the second
drafting operation by changing the drafting ratio of
20 the back roller pair 14 and the third roller pair 15 of
the draft device 6 has been described by way of example.
However, the bottom rollers 14b, 15b, 16b, and 17b may
be configured to be rotationally driven by a drive
motor provided to each spinning unit 2. In this
51
configuration, the second drafting operation may be
performed by changing the drafting ratio of any roller
pair among the back roller pair 14, the third roller
pair 15, and the middle roller pair 16. In other words,
5 the second drafting operation is preferably performed
by changing the rotation speed of the draft roller pair
independently rotationally driven for every spinning
unit 2.
Specifically, for example, the unit controller 10
10 changes the drafting ratio of the third roller pair 15
and the middle roller pair 16. Specifically, the unit
controller 10 changes the rotation speed of the third
roller pair 15, and changes the intermediate drafting
ratio (drafting ratio between the third roller pair 15
15 and the middle roller pair 16) to change the total
drafting ratio. In such a configuration, the unit
controller 10 calculates the time T[msec] based on the
following equation (2).
T = {(D2 xM/Fe} + D3}/(S/60) + c ...(2)
20 Furthermore, for example, the unit controller 10
changes the drafting ratio of the middle roller pair 16
and the front roller pair 17. Specifically, the unit
controller 10 changes the rotation speed of the middle
roller pair 16, and changes the drafting ratio
52
(drafting ratio between the middle roller pair 16 and
the front roller pair 17) to change the total drafting
ratio. In such a configuration, the unit controller 10
calculates the time T[msec] based on the following
5 equation ( 3 ).
T = D3/(S/60) + c ...(3)
Therefore, in the unit controller 10, the time
until the fiber bundle F drafted by the second drafting
operation is discharged from the pneumatic spinning
10 device 7 can be appropriately calculated. Therefore,
in the spinning machine 1, the twists can be avoided
from being applied to all the fiber bundles F drafted
by the second drafting operation, and thus the fiber
bundle portion Y1 is formed in the fiber bundle F
15 drafted by the second drafting operation. Thus, in the
spinning machine 1, the dimension of the fiber bundle
portion can be appropriately adjusted.
Furthermore, in the equations (1), (2), and (3)
described above, D3 may be “a distance in the
20 travelling path of the fiber bundle F and the yarn Y
between the inlet of the spinning chamber 73 (inlet of
the spinning section) and the front roller pair 17”
instead of “a distance in the travelling path of the
fiber bundle F and the yarn Y between the outlet 83 of
53
the hollow guide shaft body 80 (outlet of the spinning
section) and the front roller pair 17”. In this case,
the time until the fiber bundle F drafted by the second
drafting operation flows into the pneumatic spinning
5 device 7 can be appropriately calculated in the unit
controller 10. Therefore, the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 can be stopped at the same
time that at least one part (head portion) of the fiber
bundle drafted by the second drafting operation flows
10 into the pneumatic spinning device 7. In this case as
well, in the spinning machine 1, the twists can be
avoided from being applied to all the fiber bundles F
drafted by the second drafting operation, and thus the
fiber bundle portion Y1 is formed in the fiber bundle F
15 drafted by the second drafting operation. Thus, in the
spinning machine 1, the dimension of the fiber bundle
portion can be appropriately adjusted. D3 may be “a
distance in the travelling path of the fiber bundle F
and the yarn Y between the pneumatic spinning device 7
20 (arbitrary position in the pneumatic spinning device 7)
and the front roller pair 17”. The arbitrary position
in the pneumatic spinning device 7 is not limited to
the inlet and the outlet of the spinning section
described above, and may be an intermediate point of
54
the spinning section, for example, a changing point
where the fiber bundle F changes to yarn Y.
Furthermore, in the equations ( 1 ) , (2), and (3),
D3 may be “a distance in the travelling path of the
5 fiber bundle F and the yarn Y between the yarn
monitoring device 8 and the front roller pair 17”. In
this case, a time (second time) until the fiber bundle
F drafted by the second drafting operation passes the
yarn monitoring device 8 can be appropriately
10 calculated in the unit controller 10. Therefore, the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device 7 can
be stopped at the same time that at least one part
(head portion) of the fiber bundle drafted by the
second drafting operation passes the yarn monitoring
15 device 8 or before the at least one part of the fiber
bundle passes the yarn monitoring device 8. In this
case as well, in the spinning machine 1, the twists can
be avoided from being applied to all the fiber bundles
F drafted by the second drafting operation, and thus
20 the fiber bundle portion Y1 is formed in the fiber
bundle F drafted by the second drafting operation.
Thus, in the spinning machine 1, the dimension of the
fiber bundle portion can be appropriately adjusted.
Furthermore, in the equations ( 1 ) , (2), and (3),
55
D3 may be “a distance in the travelling path of the
fiber bundle F and the yarn Y between the yarn
accumulating device 11 and the front roller pair 17”.
In this case, a time (third time) until the fiber
5 bundle F drafted by the second drafting operation
reaches the yarn accumulating device 11 can be
appropriately calculated in the unit controller 10.
Therefore, the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device 7 can be stopped before at least one
10 part (head portion) of the fiber bundle drafted by the
second drafting operation reaches the yarn accumulating
device 11. In this case as well, in the spinning
machine 1, the twists can be avoided from being applied
to all the fiber bundles F drafted by the second
15 drafting operation, and thus the fiber bundle portion
Y1 is formed in the fiber bundle F drafted by the
second drafting operation. Thus, in the spinning
machine 1, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion
can be appropriately adjusted.
20 In the embodiment described above, the unit
controller 10 calculates a time (length of time from a
certain time point to another time point) T based on
the equations (1), (2), and (3) as the timing (time
point) of stopping the injection of air in the
56
pneumatic spinning device 7. In the embodiment
described above, an example in which a starting time
point of the time T is a time point when the unit
controller 10 received the yarn defect detection signal
5 has been described. However, the starting time point
(starting point) of the time T is not limited to the
time point when the unit controller 10 received the
yarn defect detection signal, and may be a time point
other than the time point when the unit controller 10
10 received the yarn defect detection signal. For example,
the starting time point of the time T may be a time
point when the unit controller 10 transmitted a command
to the draft device 6 to perform the second drafting
operation. For example, the starting time point of the
15 time T may be a time point when the second drafting
operation started in the draft device 6. The starting
time point of the second drafting operation can be
detected by a sensor, for example, a rotation speed
sensor. The starting time point of the time T can be
20 changed by, for example, adjusting the value of the
constant c in the equations ( 1 ) , ( 2 ) , and (3).
In the embodiment described above, a mode in
which the draft device 6 includes the back roller pair
14, the third roller pair 15, the middle roller pair 16,
57
and the front roller pair 17 has been described by way
of example. However, the draft device merely needs to
include at least three roller pairs. In this
configuration, the unit controller 10 changes the
5 rotation speed of one or a plurality of roller pairs of
the at least three roller pairs other than the roller
pair arranged on the most downstream side in the draft
path and causes the second drafting operation to be
performed.
10 In the embodiment described above, an example in
which the operator performs appropriate operations such
as making settings with the input keys 104 has been
described, but using the display screen 102 as a touch
panel display, the operator may operate the touch panel
15 in place of the input keys 104 or in addition to the
input keys 104.
In addition to the embodiments described above,
the spinning machine 1 may further include an injection
device and a suction device. The injection device
20 injects air to a region between the draft device 6 and
the pneumatic spinning device 7 after the pneumatic
spinning device 7 starts moving from the spinning
position to the receded position. The injection device
is disposed to inject air so as to traverse a fiber
58
passage (path through which the fiber bundle F travels)
in the region. The injection device is preferably
disposed so as to inject air along a direction
perpendicular to the fiber passage. The injection
5 device is controlled by the unit controller 10 so as to
inject air at a desired timing. The suction device is
disposed so as to be opposed to the injection device
with the region therebetween, and sucks fibers
remaining in the region and its vicinity. For example,
10 the injection device is located on the top roller 17a
side with respect to the region, and the suction device
is located on the bottom roller 17b side with respect
to the region. The positions of the injection device
and the suction device may be interchanged.
15 In the embodiment described above, the count of
the yarn Y is expressed in Number English (Ne: English
count), but the count of the yarn Y may be expressed in
other units.
In the embodiment described above, a mode in
20 which the unit controller 10 functions as the control
section and the calculating section has been described
by way of example. However, each of the control
section and the calculating section may be configured
with an independent device.
59
The control section may be referred to as a
command section.
The following can be said when each of the
control section and the calculating section is
5 configured with an independent device. In other words,
the control section may be configured to have a first
control section including the command section and a
second control section including the calculating
section. The first control section may be, for example,
10 the unit controller 10, and the second control section
may be, for example, the machine control device 100.
Furthermore, in the Claims, description is made
with respect to the control section and the calculating
section that the control section changes, when
15 splitting the fiber bundle, the drafting ratio to a
ratio different from the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle and
causes the second drafting operation of drafting the
fiber bundle to be performed in the draft device, and
20 stops the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device after causing the second drafting operation to
be performed.
The calculating section has been described as
being configured to calculate the timing to stop the
60
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device based
on the spinning condition, and the control section has
been described as being configured to, when splitting
the fiber bundle, stop the injection of air in the
5 pneumatic spinning device based on the timing
calculated by the calculating section.
The description of the Claim can be said as below.
The spinning machine includes the control section
(command section) and the calculating section.
10 The calculating section calculates the timing to
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device when splitting the fiber bundle based on the
spinning condition.
The control section (command section) changes,
15 when splitting the fiber bundle, the drafting ratio to
a ratio different from the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle (first
drafting operation, which is the drafting operation for
spinning the yarn, the first drafting operation, which
20 is the current drafting operation) and causes the draft
device to perform the second drafting operation of
drafting the fiber bundle, and causes the pneumatic
spinning device to stop the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device after the second drafting
61
operation is performed based on the timing calculated
by the calculating section.
The yarn joining device 26 may be a piecer using
a seed yarn.
5 The pneumatic spinning device 7 may prevent the
twists of the fiber bundle from being transmitted to
the upstream side of the pneumatic spinning device by a
downstream end of the fiber guiding portion, in place
of the needle 75. Instead of the configuration
10 described above, the pneumatic spinning device may
include a pair of air-jet nozzles adapted to apply
twists on the fiber bundle in directions opposite to
each other. The spinning machine may be an open-end
spinning machine.
15 In each spinning unit 2, the yarn accumulating
device 11 has a function of pulling out the yarn Y from
the pneumatic spinning device 7, but the yarn Y may be
pulled out from the pneumatic spinning device 7 by a
delivery roller and a nip roller. When pulling out the
20 yarn Y from the pneumatic spinning device 7 by the
delivery roller and the nip roller, a slack tube or a
mechanical compensator, for example, adapted to absorb
slack of the yarn Y using suction airflow may be
provided instead of the yarn accumulating device 11.
62
In the spinning machine 1, the respective devices
are disposed such that yarn Y supplied from the upper
side is wound on the lower side in the height direction.
However, the respective devices may be disposed such
5 that yarn supplied from the lower side is wound on the
upper side.
In the spinning machine 1, at least one of the
bottom rollers in the draft device 6, and the traverse
guide 23 are driven by power from the second end frame
10 5 (that is, in common with the plurality of spinning
units 2 ) . However, the respective sections (e.g.,
draft device, pneumatic spinning device, winding device,
etc.) of each spinning unit 2 may be independently
driven for every spinning unit 2.
15 In the travelling direction of the yarn Y, the
tension sensor 9 may be arranged on the upstream side
of the yarn monitoring device 8. The unit controller
10 may be provided for every spinning unit 2. In the
spinning unit 2, the waxing device 12, the tension
20 sensor 9, and the yarn monitoring device 8 may be
omitted.
In FIG. 1, the spinning machine 1 is illustrated
to wind a cheese-shaped package P, but may wind a coneshaped
package. In the case of the cone-shaped package,
63
slack of yarn is generated by traversing the yarn, but
this slack can be absorbed by the yarn accumulating
device 11. The materials and shapes of the respective
components are not limited to those described above,
5 and various materials and shapes may be adopted.
In the embodiment described above, description
has been made that the adjustment mode is performed to
appropriately adjust the dimension of the fiber bundle
portion Y1 formed at the yarn end of the yarn Y even at
10 the time of full wound. However, the adjustment mode
may not be performed at the time of full wound.
In other words, the unit controller 10 has an
adjustment mode of, when splitting the fiber bundle F,
controlling the operations of the draft device 6 and
15 the pneumatic spinning device 7, and adjusting the
dimension of the fiber bundle portion Y1 formed at the
yarn end of the yarn Y by the split of the fiber bundle
F. The details of the adjustment mode are the same as
the content of the embodiment described above. In the
20 present alternative embodiment, the unit controller 10
can switch between implementation/non-implementation of
the adjustment mode at the time of full wound in which
a defined amount of yarn Y is wound into the package P
by the winding device 13 and the normal time other than
64
the time of full wound. The unit controller 10 splits
the fiber bundle F in the adjustment mode at the normal
time. The unit controller 10 does not split the fiber
bundle F in the adjustment mode at the time of full
5 wound. The time of full wound can also be referred to
as time of doffing.
At the normal time, the unit controller 10
selects “implementation” of performing the adjustment
mode, and splits the fiber bundle F in the adjustment
10 mode. The normal time is, for example, when the yarn
defect is detected and the spinning is to be stopped.
The unit controller 10 splits the fiber bundle F in the
adjustment mode as the normal time when the yarn
monitoring device 8 detects the yarn defect.
15 Furthermore, the normal time may be, for example, the
time when the tension sensor 9 detects abnormality in
the tension. When the tension sensor 9 detects
abnormality in the tension, the unit controller 10 may
splits the fiber bundle F in the adjustment mode as the
20 normal time.
The operation of adjusting the length of the
fiber bundle portion Y1 in the adjustment mode is
preferably differed according to the count (thickness)
of the yarn Y to be spun. For example, the adjustment
65
content of the adjustment mode is preferably differed
among the case that the count of the yarn to be spun is
a low count (e.g., lower than Ne15), the case that the
count of the yarn to be spun is a middle count (e.g.,
5 higher than or equal to Ne15 and lower than or equal to
Ne45), and the case that the count of the yarn to be
spun is a high count (e.g., higher than Ne45). In the
case of low count, the adjustment mode of carrying out
the second drafting operation in which the total
10 drafting ratio is greater than the first drafting
operation is preferably performed. In the case of high
count, the adjustment mode of carrying out the second
drafting operation in which the total drafting ratio is
smaller than the first drafting operation is preferably
15 performed. In the case of the middle count, the second
drafting operation may not be performed.
Next, a description will be made on the operation
at the time of full wound. In other words, an
operation in which the unit controller 10 selects “non-
20 implementation” of performing the adjustment mode and
does not split the fiber bundle F in the adjustment
mode will be described with reference to FIG. 7.
When the package P formed in the winding device
13 is fully wound, the unit controller 10 controls the
66
operation of the draft device 6. The unit controller
10 determines that the package P is fully wound (full
tube) based on the length of the yarn Y wound into the
package P. When determining that the package P is
5 fully wound, the unit controller 10 stops the rotation
of the back roller pair 14 of the draft device 6
(drafting operation by the draft device 6) to split the
fiber bundle F and continues the injection of air in
the pneumatic spinning device 7 until at least one part
10 of the split fiber bundle F flows into the pneumatic
spinning device 7 while the drafting operation (first
drafting operation) of drafting the fiber bundle F to
achieve the count of the yarn Y produced by the
pneumatic spinning device 7 is being performed. As the
15 front roller pair 17 is connected to a drive source
(drive source shared with the front roller pair 17 of
the other spinning units 2) different from that of the
back roller pair 14, the front roller pair 17 continues
to be driven. Consequently, the fiber bundle F is
20 split between the back roller pair 14 and the front
roller pair 17.
The unit controller 10 controls the pneumatic
spinning device 7 such that injection of air from the
plurality of nozzles 74 is stopped. Specifically, the
67
unit controller 10 calculates the time T until at least
one part of the split fiber bundle F flows into the
pneumatic spinning device 7, and stops the injection of
air in the pneumatic spinning device 7 based on the
5 time T. The time T is a time calculated based on the
equation (1) described above. The unit controller 10
continues the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device 7 until at least the time T has elapsed
from when the rotation (drafting operation by the draft
10 device 6) of the back roller pair 14 is stopped. In
FIG. 7, the time T corresponds to a time between the
timing K of stopping the drafting operation by the
draft device 6 and first timing L of stopping the
injection of air.
15 Thereafter, the unit controller 10 controls the
pneumatic spinning device 7 so as to cause the
pneumatic spinning device 7 to start moving from the
spinning position to the receded position. Timing N in
FIG. 7 is timing (second timing) to cause the pneumatic
20 spinning device 7 to start moving from the spinning
position to the receded position.
According to the above operations, the fiber bundle F
is split without forming the fiber bundle portion Y1 at
the yarn end of the yarn Y.
68
In the spinning machine 1 according to the
present alternative embodiment, the unit controller 10
has an adjustment mode of adjusting the dimension of
the fiber bundle portion Y1 formed at the yarn end of
5 the yarn Y by the split of the fiber bundle F.
Therefore, in the spinning machine 1, the dimension of
the fiber bundle portion Y1 can be appropriately
adjusted. Furthermore, in the spinning machine 1, the
unit controller 10 does not split the fiber bundle F in
10 the adjustment mode at the time of full wound. In
other words, in the spinning machine 1, the operation
of adjusting the dimension of the fiber bundle portion
Y1 is not carried out when the package P is fully wound.
Therefore, as the unnecessary operation is not carried
15 out in the spinning machine 1, lowering in the
operation efficiency can be reduced.
Moreover, the unit controller 10 uses the timing
(time) T calculated to stop the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 at the same time as or
20 after at least one part of the fiber bundle F drafted
by the second drafting operation flows into the
pneumatic spinning device 7 in the adjustment mode of
normal time, and continues the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device 7 until at least the time T
69
of the same length as the timing (time) T has elapsed
from when the drafting operation is stopped at the time
of full wound. Thus, the fiber bundle portion Y1 can
be reliably formed at the normal time, and the fiber
5 bundle portion Y1 is not formed at the time of full
wound.
An aspect of “having implementation/nonimplementation
of the adjustment mode of adjusting the
dimension of the fiber bundle portion switchable
10 between the time of full wound and the other times
(normal time, e.g., time of yarn defect detection, time
of tension abnormality detection)” described above as
an alternative embodiment is a second aspect of the
present invention.
15 A spinning machine according to a second aspect
of the present invention includes: a draft device that
includes a plurality of rotatable roller pairs and
adapted to draft a fiber bundle with the roller pairs;
a pneumatic spinning device adapted to apply twists on
20 the fiber bundle drafted by the draft device by
injecting air to produce a yarn; a winding device
adapted to wind the yarn produced by the pneumatic
spinning device around a bobbin to form a package; and
a control section adapted to control operations of the
70
draft device and the pneumatic spinning device, where
the control section has an adjustment mode of, when
splitting the fiber bundle, controlling the operations
of the draft device and the pneumatic spinning device
5 to adjust a dimension of a fiber bundle portion formed
at a yarn end of a yarn by the split of the fiber
bundle, the implementation/non-implementation of the
adjustment mode can be switched between a time of full
wound in which a defined amount of yarn is wound into
10 the package by the winding device and a normal time
other than the time of full wound, and the fiber bundle
is split in the adjustment mode in the normal time and
the fiber bundle is not split in the adjustment mode at
the time of full wound.
15 In the spinning machine according to the second
aspect of the present invention, the control section
has the adjustment mode of adjusting the dimension of
the fiber bundle portion formed at the yarn end of the
yarn by the split of the fiber bundle. Therefore, in
20 the present spinning machine, the dimension of the
fiber bundle portion can be appropriately adjusted.
Furthermore, in the present spinning machine, the
control section does not split the fiber bundle in the
adjustment mode at the time of full wound. In other
71
words, in the spinning machine, the operation of
adjusting the dimension of the fiber bundle portion is
not carried out when the package is fully wound. When
the package is fully wound (state in which the defined
5 amount of yarn is wound), the yarn end does not need to
be caught from the package, and thus the adjustment of
the dimension of the fiber bundle portion does not need
to be carried out. Thus, if the operation of adjusting
the dimension of the fiber bundle portion is carried
10 out even when the package is fully wound, the operation
efficiency may lower. Therefore, in the present
spinning machine, the unnecessary operation is not
carried out, and hence the lowering in the operation
efficiency can be reduced.
15 According to the second aspect of the present
invention, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion
formed at the yarn end of the yarn can be adjusted, and
the lowering in the operation efficiency can be reduced.
The spinning machine according to the second
20 aspect of the present invention may be further
configured as each embodiment described below. Each
embodiment described below can be appropriately
combined with each embodiment described above.
In one embodiment, a yarn detecting device
72
adapted to detect the yarn defect of the yarn may be
arranged, and the control section may split the fiber
bundle in the adjustment mode as the normal time when
the yarn defect is detected by the yarn detecting
5 device. In this configuration, the fiber bundle
portion can be formed at the yarn end of the yarn when
splitting the fiber bundle due to the yarn defect.
In one embodiment, a tension sensor adapted to
detect the tension of the yarn may be arranged, and the
10 control section may split the fiber bundle in the
adjustment mode as the normal time when the abnormality
of the tension is detected by the tension sensor. In
this configuration, the fiber bundle portion can be
formed at the yarn end of the yarn when splitting the
15 fiber bundle due to the tension abnormality
In one embodiment, the pneumatic spinning device
is arranged to be movable to the spinning position of
when producing the yarn and the receded position
farther from the draft device than the spinning
20 position, and, in the adjustment mode, the control
section changes the drafting ratio to a ratio different
from the drafting ratio for the first drafting
operation of drafting the fiber bundle and causes the
second drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle
73
to be performed in the draft device, and then may
perform at least one splitting operation of stopping
the rotation of at least one roller pair, stopping the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device, and
5 moving the pneumatic spinning device from the spinning
position to the receded position.
In this configuration, the splitting operation is
performed after the second drafting operation is
performed in the draft device in the adjustment mode.
10 The drafting ratio for the first drafting operation is
different from the drafting ratio for the second
drafting operation. Therefore, the state of the fiber
bundle drafted by the second drafting operation is
different from that of the fiber bundle drafted by the
15 first drafting operation. When the ratio is increased
to become higher than the drafting ratio for the first
drafting operation and then the second drafting
operation is performed, the fiber bundle drafted by the
second drafting operation is stretched more than the
20 fiber bundle drafted by the first drafting operation.
Consequently, the fiber volume (the volume of fibers in
a cross-sectional area orthogonal to the drafting
direction) of the fiber bundle after the second
drafting operation becomes smaller than that of the
74
fiber bundle after the first drafting operation. When
the ratio is reduced to become lower than the drafting
ratio for the first drafting operation and then the
second drafting operation is performed, the fiber
5 bundle drafted by the second drafting operation becomes
shorter than the fiber bundle drafted by the first
drafting operation. Consequently, the fiber volume of
the fiber bundle after the second drafting operation
becomes larger than that of the fiber bundle after the
10 first drafting operation. Thus, in the present
spinning machine, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
can be adjusted by changing the drafting ratio for the
first drafting operation and the drafting ratio of the
second drafting operation. Therefore, in the present
15 spinning machine, the dimension of the fiber bundle
portion can be appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the control section may stop
the rotation of at least one roller pair to split the
fiber bundle while the first drafting operation is
20 being performed at the time of full wound, and continue
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
until at least one part of the split fiber bundle flows
into the pneumatic spinning device. In this
configuration, the twists are applied to the split
75
fiber bundle, and thus the fiber bundle portion is not
formed.
In one embodiment, a calculating section adapted
to calculate the timing to stop the injection of air in
5 the adjustment mode based on the spinning condition is
arranged, and the control section may stop the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device at
the same time as or after at least one part of the
fiber bundle drafted by the second drafting operation
10 flows into the pneumatic spinning device based on the
timing calculated by the calculating section in the
adjustment mode at the normal time, and continue the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device until
at least the time of the same length as the timing
15 calculated by the calculating section has elapsed at
the time of full wound. In this configuration, the
fiber bundle portion can be reliably formed at the
normal time and the fiber bundle portion is not formed
at the time of full wound.
20 In one embodiment, the draft device includes at
least three roller pairs arranged along the draft path
of the fiber bundle, the control section may cause the
second drafting operation to be performed by changing a
rotation speed of one or plurality of roller pairs
76
other than a roller pair arranged on a most downstream
side in the draft path, of the at least three roller
pairs, and stop the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device at the same time as or after at least
5 one part of the fiber bundle flows into the pneumatic
spinning device, the fiber bundle being located between
a preceding roller pair which is a roller pair arranged
on a most downstream side in the draft path, of the
roller pairs in which the rotation speed is changed,
10 and a following roller pair which is a roller pair
arranged next to the preceding roller pair on a
downstream side in the draft path, when the second
drafting operation is performed (when the second
drafting operation starts), the fiber bundle not being
15 sandwiched by the following roller pair when the second
drafting operation is performed (when the second
drafting operation starts).
In this configuration, the injection of air can
be stopped at an appropriate timing. Thus, in the
20 spinning machine, the twists can be avoided from being
applied to all the fiber bundles drafted by the second
drafting operation, and the fiber bundle portion is
formed in the fiber bundle drafted by the second
drafting operation. Therefore, in the present spinning
77
machine, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
be appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the control section may stop
the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device
5 when at least one part of the fiber bundle drafted by
the second drafting operation is discharged from the
outlet of the spinning section of the pneumatic
spinning device, based on the timing calculated by the
calculating section. In this configuration, the
10 injection of air can be stopped at an appropriate
timing.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine includes
a yarn detecting device disposed on the downstream side
of the travelling path of the yarn with respect to the
15 pneumatic spinning device and adapted to detect the
yarn defect of the yarn, where the control section may
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device when at least one part of the fiber bundle
drafted by the second drafting operation passes the
20 yarn detecting device, based on the timing calculated
by the calculating section. In this configuration, the
injection of air can be stopped at an appropriate
timing.
In one embodiment, the spinning machine includes
78
a pull-out device disposed on the downstream side of
the travelling path of the yarn with respect to the
spinning device and adapted to pull out the yarn
produced in the pneumatic spinning device, where the
5 control section may stop the injection of air in the
pneumatic spinning device when at least one part of the
fiber bundle drafted by the second drafting operation
reached the pull out device based on the timing
calculated by the calculating section. In this
10 configuration, the injection of air can be stopped at
an appropriate timing.
In one embodiment, a spinning machine includes a
pull-out device adapted to pull out the yarn produced
in the pneumatic spinning device, and a yarn detecting
15 device arranged between the pneumatic spinning device
and the pull-out device in a travelling path of the
yarn and adapted to detect a yarn defect of the yarn,
where the draft device includes at least a first roller
pair, a second roller pair, a third roller pair, and a
20 fourth roller pair in order from the downstream side
toward the upstream side in a draft path of the fiber
bundle, the control section changes a ratio of the
drafting ratio of the third roller pair and the fourth
roller pair in the second drafting operation from the
79
first drafting operation, the calculating section
calculates a time as timing based on a distance in the
draft path between the first roller pair and the second
roller pair, a distance in the draft path between the
5 second roller pair and the third roller pair, a value
obtained by dividing the pull-out speed at which the
pull-out device pulls out the yarn, by the rotation
speed of the second roller pair, a value obtained by
dividing the rotation speed of the second roller pair
10 by the rotation speed of the third roller pair, a value
obtained by dividing the pull-out speed by the rotation
speed of the first roller pair, a distance in the
travelling path of the fiber bundle and the yarn
between the pneumatic spinning device and the first
15 roller pair, a distance in the travelling path of the
fiber bundle and the yarn between the yarn detecting
device and the first roller pair, or a distance in the
travelling path of the fiber bundle and the yarn
between the pull-out device and the first roller pair,
20 and the pull-out speed, and the control section may
stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device when the time has elapsed from detection of a
yarn defect of the yarn by the yarn detecting device.
In this configuration, the time until the fiber bundle
80
drafted by the second drafting operation is discharged
from the pneumatic spinning device can be appropriately
calculated. Thus, in the spinning machine, the fiber
bundle portion is formed in the fiber bundle drafted by
5 the second drafting operation without the fiber bundle
portion being formed in the fiber bundle drafted by the
first drafting operation and without the twist being
applied to all the fiber bundles drafted by the second
drafting operation. Therefore, in the present spinning
10 machine, the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
be appropriately adjusted.
In one embodiment, the control section may
increase the drafting ratio to a ratio higher than the
drafting ratio for the first drafting operation and
15 cause the second drafting operation to be performed in
the draft device.
In this configuration, the fiber bundle drafted by the
second drafting operation is stretched more than the
fiber bundle drafted by the first drafting operation.
20 Consequently, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
after the second drafting operation becomes smaller
than that of the fiber bundle after the first drafting
operation. For example, when producing the yarn of low
count (thick yarn), the fiber volume of the fiber
81
bundle supplied to the pneumatic spinning device in a
unit time is large. In this case, when the fiber
bundle is split in the splitting operation, the fiber
bundle may not be appropriately split and a fiber
5 bundle portion formed at the yarn end of yarn may
become thicker and longer. In the spinning machine, as
the fiber volume of the fiber bundle is reduced by the
second drafting operation when the fiber bundle is to
be split, the fiber bundle portion can be suppressed
10 from becoming thicker and longer when the fiber bundle
is split in the splitting operation. Therefore, in the
spinning machine, dimension of the fiber bundle portion
formed at the yarn end of yarn can be appropriately
adjusted.
15 In one embodiment, the control section may cause
the draft device to perform the second drafting
operation when a count of the yarn produced by the
pneumatic spinning device is lower than or equal to Ne
15. When producing a yarn with a count of lower than
20 or equal to Ne 15, the fiber volume of the fiber bundle
is relatively large, where if splitting of the fiber
bundle is performed with such a large volume, the fiber
bundle portion tends to become thicker and longer.
Thus, in the spinning machine, when yarn with a count
82
of Ne 15 or lower is generated, the second drafting
operation is performed, whereby the fiber bundle
portion can be prevented from becoming thicker and
longer, and dimension of the fiber bundle portion can
5 be adjusted appropriately.
In one embodiment, the control section may reduce
the drafting ratio to a ratio lower than the drafting
ratio for the first drafting operation and cause the
second drafting operation to be performed in the draft
10 device. In this configuration, the fiber volume of the
fiber bundle after the second drafting operation
becomes larger than that of the fiber bundle after the
first drafting operation. Therefore, a situation in
which the thickness of the fiber bundle portion becomes
15 too small when the fiber bundle is split in the
splitting operation, making it difficult for a yarn
catching device to catch the corresponding yarn end in
the following yarn joining operation can be avoided.
In one embodiment, the control section may cause
20 the fiber bundle to be drafted in the second drafting
operation at a drafting ratio such that a count of the
yarn produced by the pneumatic spinning device falls
within a range higher than or equal to Ne 15 and lower
than or equal to Ne 45. In this manner, the fiber
83
volume of the fiber bundle of when being split can be
adjusted to an appropriate volume by drafting the fiber
bundle into a fiber bundle such that the count of the
yarn falls within the range higher than or equal to Ne
5 15 and lower than or equal to Ne 45. Thus, in the
spinning machine, the fiber bundle portion can be
prevented from becoming too thick, too thin, too long,
or too short. Furthermore, a situation in which fibers
are more likely to fly in the surroundings because the
10 fiber bundle portion is excessively thick and long can
be avoided, and a situation in which it is difficult
for the yarn catching device to catch the corresponding
yarn end because the fiber bundle portion is too thin
can be avoided.
15 In one embodiment, the spinning machine may
include a plurality of spinning units, where each
spinning unit including at least three roller pairs and
a pneumatic spinning device, at least one roller pair
of the at least three roller pairs being arranged to be
20 independently rotationally drive for each spinning unit,
and the control section may cause the second drafting
operation to be performed by changing the rotation
speed of the roller pair that is independently
rotationally driven. According to such a configuration,
84
the drafting ratio can be changed in the second
drafting operation using the roller pair independently
rotationally driven for each spinning unit. Thus, the
second drafting operation can be performed at desired
5 timing for each spinning unit.
A spinning method according to a second aspect of
the present invention performed in a spinning machine
including a draft device that includes a roller pair
and that is adapted to draft a fiber bundle with the
10 roller pair, a pneumatic spinning device adapted to
apply twists to the fiber bundle drafted by the draft
device by injecting air to produce a yarn, a winding
device adapted to wind the yarn produced by the
pneumatic spinning device around a bobbin to form a
15 package, and a control section adapted to control
operations of the draft device and the pneumatic
spinning device, where the control section has an
adjustment mode of controlling, when splitting the
fiber bundle, the operations of the draft device and
20 the pneumatic spinning device to adjust dimension of a
fiber bundle portion formed at a yarn end of the yarn
by the split of the fiber bundle, switches
implementation/non-implementation of the adjustment
mode between time of full wound in which a defined
85
amount of yarn is wound into the package by the winding
device and a normal time other than the time of full
wound, and splits the fiber bundle in the adjustment
mode at the normal time and not split the fiber bundle
5 in the adjustment mode at the time of full wound.
In the spinning method according to the second
aspect of the present invention, the adjustment mode of
adjusting the dimension of the fiber bundle portion
formed at the yarn end of the yarn when the yarn is
10 split is provided. Therefore, in the spinning method,
the dimension of the fiber bundle portion can be
appropriately adjusted. Furthermore, in the spinning
method, the fiber bundle is not split in the adjustment
mode at the time of full wound. In other words, in the
15 spinning method, the operation of adjusting the
dimension of the fiber bundle portion is not carried
out when the package is fully wound. Therefore, in the
present spinning method, unnecessary operation is not
carried out, and hence the lowering in the operation
20 efficiency can be reduced.

We Claim:
1. A spinning machine (1) comprising:
a draft device (6) including a plurality of
5 rotatable roller pairs (14, 15, 16, 17) and adapted to
draft a fiber bundle (F) with the roller pairs (14, 15,
16, 17);
a pneumatic spinning device (7) adapted to apply
twists on the fiber bundle (F) drafted by the draft
10 device (6) by injecting air to produce a yarn (Y);
a control section (10) adapted to, when splitting
the fiber bundle (F), change a drafting ratio to a
ratio different from a drafting ratio for a first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle (F) and
15 cause a second drafting operation of drafting the fiber
bundle (F) to be performed in the draft device (6), and
to stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device (7) after the second drafting operation is
performed; and
20 a calculating section (10) adapted to calculate
timing to stop the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device (7) based on a spinning condition,
wherein, when splitting the fiber bundle (F), the
control section (10) stops injection of air in the
87
pneumatic spinning device (7) at the same time as or
after at least one part of the fiber bundle (F) drafted
by the second drafting operation flows into the
pneumatic spinning device (7) based on the timing (T)
5 calculated by the calculating section (10).
2. The spinning machine (1) according to claim 1,
wherein
the draft device (6) includes at least three
10 roller pairs (14, 15, 16, 17) arranged along a draft
path of the fiber bundle (F), and
the control section (10)
causes the second drafting operation to be
performed by changing a rotation speed of one or a
15 plurality of roller pairs (14, 15, 16) other than a
roller pair (17) arranged on a most downstream side in
the draft path, of the at least three roller pairs (14,
15, 16, 17), and
stops the injection of air in the pneumatic
20 spinning device (7) at the same time as or after at
least one part of the fiber bundle (F) flows into the
pneumatic spinning device (7), the fiber bundle being
located between a preceding roller pair (14, 15, 16)
which is a roller pair arranged on a most downstream
88
side in the draft path, of the roller pair (14, 15, 16)
in which the rotation speed is changed, and a following
roller pair (15, 16, 17) which is a roller pair
arranged next to the preceding roller pair (14, 15, 16)
5 on a downstream side in the draft path, when the second
drafting operation is performed, the fiber bundle (F)
not being sandwiched by the following roller pair (15,
16, 17) when the second drafting operation is performed.
10 3. The spinning machine according to claim 1 or
2, wherein the control section (10) stops the injection
of air in the pneumatic spinning device (7) when at
least one part of the fiber bundle (F) drafted by the
second drafting operation is discharged from an outlet
15 (83) of a spinning section of the pneumatic spinning
device (7), based on the timing calculated by the
calculating section (10).
4. The spinning machine (1) according to claim 1
20 or 2, further comprising a yarn detecting device (8)
disposed on a downstream side of a travelling path of
the yarn (Y) with respect to the pneumatic spinning
device (7) and adapted to detect a yarn defect of the
yarn ( Y ),
89
wherein the control section (10) stops the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device (7)
when at least one part of the fiber bundle (F) drafted
by the second drafting operation passes the yarn
5 detecting device (8), based on the timing calculated by
the calculating section (10).
5. The spinning machine (1) according to claim 1
or 2, further comprising a pull-out device (11)
10 disposed on a downstream side of a travelling path of
the yarn (Y) with respect to the pneumatic spinning
device (7) and adapted to pull out the yarn (Y)
produced in the pneumatic spinning device (7),
wherein the control section (10) stops the
15 injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device (7)
when at least one part of the fiber bundle (F) drafted
by the second drafting operation reaches the pull-out
device (11), based on the timing calculated by the
calculating section (10).
20
6. The spinning machine (1) according to any one
of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:
a pull-out device (11) adapted to pull out the
yarn (Y) produced in the pneumatic spinning device (7);
90
and
a yarn detecting device (8) arranged between the
pneumatic spinning device (7) and the pull-out device
(11) in a travelling path of the yarn (Y) and adapted
5 to detect a yarn defect of the yarn (Y),
wherein
the draft device (6) includes at least a first
roller pair (17), a second roller pair (16), a third
roller pair (15), and a fourth roller pair (14) in
10 order from downstream side toward upstream side in a
draft path of the fiber bundle (F),
the control section (10) changes a ratio of the
drafting ratios of the third roller pair (15) and the
fourth roller pair (14) for the second drafting
15 operation from the ratio for the first drafting
operation,
the calculating section (10) calculates a time
(T) as the timing based on,
a distance (D2) in the draft path between
20 the first roller pair (17) and the second roller pair
(16),
a distance (D1) in the draft path between the second
roller pair (16) and the third roller pair (15),
a value (M) obtained by dividing a pull-out
91
speed (S) at which the pull-out device (11) pulls out
the yarn (Y), by a rotation speed of the second roller
pair (16),
a value (I) obtained by dividing the
5 rotation speed of the second roller pair (16) by a
rotation speed of the third roller pair (15),
a value (Fe) obtained by dividing the pullout
speed (S) by a rotation speed of the first roller
pair (17),
10 a distance (D3) in the travelling path of
the fiber bundle (F) and the yarn (Y) between the
pneumatic spinning device (7) and the first roller pair
(17), a distance (D3) in the travelling path of the
fiber bundle (F) and the yarn (Y) between the yarn
15 detecting device (8) and the first roller pair (17), or
a distance (D3) in the travelling path of the fiber
bundle (F) and the yarn (Y) between the pull-out device
(11) and the first roller pair (17), and
the pull-out speed ( S ) , and
20 the control section (10) stops the injection of
air in the pneumatic spinning device (7) when the time
(T) has elapsed from detection of a yarn defect of the
yarn (Y) by the yarn detecting device (8).
92
7. The spinning machine (1) according to claim 5
or 6, wherein the pull-out device (11) is a yarn
accumulating device (11) adapted to accumulate the yarn
while pulling out the yarn (Y).
5
8. The spinning machine (1) according to any one
of claims 1 to 7, wherein the control section (10)
increases the drafting ratio to a ratio higher than the
drafting ratio for the first drafting operation and
10 causes the second drafting operation to be performed in
the draft device (6).
9. The spinning machine (1) according to claim 8,
wherein the control section (10) is adapted to cause
15 the draft device to perform the second drafting
operation when a count of the yarn (Y) produced by the
pneumatic spinning device (7) is lower than or equal to
Ne 15.
20 10. The spinning machine (1) according to any
one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the control section (10)
is adapted to reduce the drafting ratio to a ratio
lower than the drafting ratio for the first drafting
operation and cause the second drafting operation to be
93
performed in the draft device (6).
11. The spinning machine (1) according to any
one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the control section (10)
5 causes the fiber bundle (F) to be drafted in the second
drafting operation at a drafting ratio such that a
count of the yarn (Y) produced by the pneumatic
spinning device (7) falls within a range higher than or
equal to Ne 15 and lower than or equal to Ne 45.
10
12. The spinning machine according to any one of
claims 1 to 11, further comprising a plurality of
spinning units ( 2 ),
wherein
15 each of the spinning units (2) includes at least
three roller pairs (14, 15, 16, 17) and the pneumatic
spinning device (7), at least one (14, 15) of the at
least three roller pairs (14, 15, 16, 17) being
arranged to be independently rotationally driven for
20 each spinning unit ( 2 ) , and
the control section (10) causes the second
drafting operation to be performed by changing a
rotation speed of the roller pair (14, 15) that is
independently rotationally driven.
94
13. The spinning machine (1) according to any
one of claims 1 to 12, further comprising a winding
device (13) adapted to wind the yarn (Y) produced by
5 the pneumatic spinning device (7) around a bobbin (B)
to form a package (P),
wherein
the control section (10) has an adjustment mode
of adjusting a dimension of a fiber bundle portion
10 formed at a yarn end of the yarn (Y) by split of the
fiber bundle ( F ),
the adjustment mode is a mode of stopping the
injection of air in the pneumatic spinning device (7)
at the same time as or after at least one part of the
15 fiber bundle (F) drafted by the second drafting
operation flows into the pneumatic spinning device (7)
based on the timing calculated by the calculating
section (10),
implementation/non-implementation of the
20 adjustment mode is switchable between time of full
wound in which a defined amount of yarn (Y) is wound
into the package (P) by the winding device (13) and a
normal time other than the time of full wound,
the fiber bundle (F) is split in the adjustment
95
mode at the normal time, and
the fiber bundle (F) is not split in the
adjustment mode at the time of full wound.
5 14. The spinning machine (1) according to claim
13, wherein, at the time of full wound, the control
section (10) stops rotation of the back roller pair
(14) which is a roller pair arranged most upstream in a
drafting direction, of the plurality of roller pairs
10 (14, 15, 16, 17) and continues the injection of air in
the pneumatic spinning device (7) until at least a time
(T) of a same length as the timing calculated by the
calculating section (10) has elapsed from when the
rotation of the back roller pair (14) is stopped.
15
15. A spinning method performed in a spinning
machine (1) including a draft device (6) including a
plurality of rotatable roller pairs (14, 15, 16, 17)
and adapted to draft a fiber bundle (F) with the roller
20 pairs (14, 15, 16,17), a pneumatic spinning device (7)
adapted to apply twists on the fiber bundle (F) drafted
by the draft device (6) by injecting air to produce a
yarn (Y), and a control section (10) adapted to, when
splitting the fiber bundle (F), change a drafting ratio
96
to a ratio different from a drafting ratio for a first
drafting operation of drafting the fiber bundle (F) and
cause a second drafting operation of drafting the fiber
bundle (F) to be performed in the draft device (6), and
5 to stop the injection of air in the pneumatic spinning
device (7) after the second drafting operation is
performed, the method comprising the steps of:
calculating timing to stop the injection of air
in the pneumatic spinning device (7) based on a
10 spinning condition; and
stopping the injection of air in the pneumatic
spinning device (7) at the same time as or after at
least one part of the fiber bundle (F) drafted by the
second drafting operation flows into the pneumatic
15 spinning device (7) based on the timing when splitting
the fiber bundle (F).