Field of the Invention
5 The present invention mainly relates to a winding
drum adapted to rotate in contact with a package to
frictionally drive the package.
2. Description of the Related Art
10 There is conventionally known a winding device
adapted to rotationally drive a winding drum in contact with
a bobbin or a package to rotate the bobbin or the package
accompanying the rotation of the winding drum and to wind
a yarn. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
15 H07-69533 (Patent Document 1), Japanese Utility Model
Application Laid-open No. H01-88680 (Patent Document 2),
and Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No.
H03-53963 (Patent Document 3) disclose this type of winding
device.
20 A winding device mentioned as a conventional art in
Patent Document 1 is provided with an annular rubber lining
at a substantially center of a peripheral surface of the
winding drum in a slightly protruding manner from the
peripheral surface of the drum to drive a conical package
25 via the lining portion. Patent Document 1 describes that
an object of such a configuration is to fix a point (drive
point) where the winding drum makes contact with the conical
package to drive the package. Since the conical package
has a conical shape, when the drive point is located on a
30 large-diameter side, the package is driven slowly, and when
the drive point is located on a small-diameter side, the
o
package is driven fast. Thus, if a position of the drive
point is unstable, a rotational speed of the package is
varied, causing destabilization in tension of the yarn to
be wound. When the drive point is fixed at a position where
5 an average peripheral speed of a peripheral speed on a
large-diameter side and a peripheral speed on a
small-diameter side of the conical package is obtained, a
difference in the peripheral speed between the
large-diameter side and the small-diameter side is offset
10 to some degree, and a winding tension of a conical package
as a whole can be made uniform.
Patent Document 2 discloses a friction roller as a
winding drum. Since the friction roller in Patent Document
2 rotationally drives a conical package, an annular
15 friction rubber having an appropriate width is provided on
the friction roller. A drive point of the friction rubber
and the conical package can be maintained constant.
Patent Document 3 discloses a friction roller adapted
to rotationally drive a cheese package. A frictional
20 driving section having a large frictional coefficient is
formed at both ends of the frictional roller. The
frictional driving section is formed to make contact with
the package. Patent Document 3 enables high-speed winding
and can achieve downsizing of a winding device by generating
25 a drive frictional force even with a small contact area
between the friction roller and the package.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a
30 winding drum that is capable of preventing a yarn breakage
at the end of the package.
3
When driving a conical package, as Patent Documents
1 and 2, lining or a friction rubber is provided on a winding
drum so as to make contact with a position around a center
of the package to rotate the package having a large-diameter
5 portion and a small-diameter portion at a stable speed.
However, since a difference in the peripheral speed is not
required to be considered when driving a cheese package,
as Patent Document 3, from a standpoint of sufficiently
securing a drive force for driving the package, the
10 frictional driving section is preferably provided to the
friction roller to make contact with both ends of the
package where a yarn is turned and density of the yarn is
high.
However, even in a case where the cheese package is
15 wound by the friction roller as Patent Document 3, a yarn
breakage may occur at an end of the package accompanying
further speeding-up of yarn winding in recent years.
A winding drum adapted to rotate in contact with a
package to frictionally drive the package, the winding drum
20 comprises one or more high-frictional portions each
provided with a frictional surface adapted to form a portion
of an outer peripheral surface of the winding drum, wherein
at least one of a surface shape and a material of the
frictional surface differs from other portion of the outer
25 peripheral surface, wherein a frictional force of the
frictional surface is higher than a frictional force of the
other portion, and wherein the frictional surface is
arranged to make contact with an inner portion of the
package located inward with respect to an end of the
30 package.
A winding device comprises the winding drum; and a
4
traverse guide adapted to traverse a yarn within a stroke
including and larger than an entire width of the frictional
surface formed on the high-frictional portion.
A yarn winding machine comprises the winding device;
5 and a yarn accumulating device arranged upstream of the
winding device in a yarn running direction, and adapted to
absorb variation in tension of the yarn between the yarn
accumulating device and the winding device.
10 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating an overall
structure of a fine spinning machine according to one
embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating a spinning unit;
15 FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a structure of a
winding drum;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a winding
device when seen from a back side;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a winding
20 drum of a first alternative embodiment;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a winding
drum of a second alternative embodiment; and
FIG. 7 is an exploded view illustrating a winding drum
of a third alternative embodiment.
25
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A fine spinning machine 1 according to one embodiment
of the present invention will be described with reference
to the accompanying drawings. In the specification,
30 "upstream" and "downstream" respectively indicate upstream
and downstream in a running direction of a yarn at the time
5
of spinning (at the time of winding the yarn).
The fine spinning machine (a spinning machine, a yarn
winding machine) 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a
plurality of spinning units (winding units) 2 arranged side
5 by side, a yarn joining vehicle 3, a blower box 4, and a
motor box 5.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, each of the spinning
units 2 includes as main components, a draft device 11, a
spinning device (a yarn supplying device) 9, a yarn slack
10 eliminating device (a yarn accumulating device) 12, and a
winding device 7 arranged in this order from upstream
towards downstream. The spinning unit 2 is adapted to spin
a fiber bundle 8 fed from the draft device 11 by the spinning
device 9 to produce a spun yarn (yarn) 10, and to wind the
15 spun yarn 10 by the winding device 7 to form a package 80.
A sliver 15 as a material of the fiber bundle 8 is
supplied to the draft device 11 from a sliver case (not
illustrated) via a sliver guide. The draft device 11
includes a plurality of draft rollers each of which is
20 rotationally driven, and a plurality of opposing rollers
arranged to oppose the draft rollers. The draft device 11
is adapted to stretch (draft) the sliver 15 until a width
thereof becomes a predetermined width to produce the fiber
bundle 8 by sandwiching and transporting the sliver 15
25 between the draft rollers and the opposing rollers.
The spinning device 9 is adapted to apply twists to
the fiber bundle 8 fed from the draft device 11 to produce
the spun yarn 10. Although a detailed structure of the
spinning device 9 is not illustrated, the spinning device
30 9 of the present embodiment is a pneumatic-type adapted to
apply twists to the fiber bundle 8 using whirling airflow.
G
The yarn slack eliminating device 12 is arranged
downstream of the spinning device 9. The yarn slack
eliminating device 12 has a function to apply predetermined
tension to the spun yarn 10 to draw the spun yarn 10 from
5 the spinning device 9, a function to accumulate the spun
yarn 10 fed from the spinning device 9, for example, when
yarn joining operation is performed by the yarn joining
vehicle 3 to prevent the spun yarn 10 from slackening, and
a function to adjust tension such that variation in the
10 tension at downstream does not propagate to the spinning
device 9.
The yarn slack eliminating device 12 includes a slack
eliminating roller 21 and a yarn hooking member 22. The
slack eliminating roller 21 is capable of accumulating the
15 spun yarn 10 by winding a certain amount of the spun yarn
10 around an outer peripheral surface thereof. The slack
eliminating roller 21 is rotationally driven by an electric
motor 25 illustrated in FIG. 2. The yarn hooking member
22 is arranged to be capable of hooking the spun yarn 10
20 thereon and winding the spun yarn 10 around the outer
peripheral surface of the slack eliminating roller 21 by
integrally rotating with the slack eliminating roller 21
while being engaged with the spun yarn 10.
The yarn hooking member 22 and the slack eliminating
25 roller 21 are connected by a resistance applying section
(not illustrated) adapted to apply resistance in an
appropriate manner such as a magnetic or an electric manner.
The resistance applying section applies an appropriate
amount of resistance torque that opposes rotation of the
30 yarn hooking member 22 with respect to the slack eliminating
roller 21. Accordingly, a state in which the yarn hooking
7
member 22 is integrally rotated with the slack eliminating
roller 21 and a state in which the yarn hooking member 22
is independently rotated are appropriately switched in
accordance with tension on the spun yarn 10 hooked on the
5 yarn hooking member 22. Consequently, variation in the
tension of the spun yarn 10 can be absorbed.
A yarn quality measuring device 52 is arranged at a
position between the spinning device 9 and the yarn slack
eliminating device 12. The spun yarn 10 produced by the
10 spinning device 9 passes the yarn quality measuring device
52 before being wound by the yarn slack eliminating device
12. The yarn quality measuring device 52 is adapted to
monitor a thickness of the running spun yarn 10 and to
transmit a yarn defect detection signal to a unit controller
15 (a control section), which is not illustrated, upon
detection of a yarn defect in the spun yarn 10. The yarn
quality measuring device 52 may detect a presence and/or
an absence of a foreign substance in the spun yarn 10 as
a presence and/or an absence of the yarn defect.
20 When receiving the yarn defect detection signal, the
unit controller immediately cuts the spun yarn 10 by a
cutter 57 and stops the draft device 11, the spinning device
9, the winding device 7, and the like. The spun yarn 10
may be cut by stopping spinning of the spinning device 9.
25 The unit controller then transmits a control signal to the
yarn joining vehicle 3 and controls the yarn joining vehicle
3 to run to the relevant spinning unit 2. Subsequently,
the unit controller again drives the draft device 11, the
spinning device 9, the winding device 7, and the like,
30 controls the yarn joining vehicle 3 to perform yarn joining
operation, and restarts winding of the package 80 in the
0
relevant spinning unit 2 (the yarn joining operation
performed by the yarn joining vehicle 3 will be described
later in detail). At this time, after the spinning device
9 has restarted spinning and before the winding device 7
5 starts winding, the yarn slack eliminating device 12
accumulates the spun yarn 10 continuously fed from the
spinning device 9 around the slack eliminating roller 21
to remove a slack of the spun yarn 10.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the yarn joining
10 vehicle 3 includes a splicer (a yarn joining device) 43,
a suction pipe (a first catching and guiding member) 44,
and a suction mouth (a second catching and guiding member)
46. After a yarn breakage or a yarn cut has occurred in
a certain spinning unit 2, the yarn joining vehicle 3 runs
15 on a rail 41 to such a spinning unit 2 and stops. As
illustrated in FIG. 2, the suction pipe 44 swings in an upper
direction with an axis as a center, and sucks and catches
a yarn end fed from the spinning device 9. The suction pipe
44 then swings in a lower direction with the axis as the
20 center and guides the caught yarn end to the splicer 43.
The suction mouth 46 swings in the lower direction with an
axis as a center, and sucks and catches a yarn end from the
package 80. The suction mouth 46 then swings in the upper
direction with the axis as the center and guides the caught
25 yarn end to the splicer 43. The splicer 43 performs yarn
joining of the guided yarn ends.
The winding device 7 includes a cradle (a supporting
section) 71, a- bobbin holder (a holding section) 72, a
winding drum 73, and a traverse device 74.
30 The cradle 71 is formed of a pair of arm members that
are long in a lengthwise direction. The cradle 71 is
9
capable of supporting a bobbin 60 and the package 80.
A pair (two pieces) of the bobbin holders 72 is
attached to the cradle 71. The bobbin holders 72
respectively hold ends of the bobbin 60 and are capable of
5 rotatably supporting the bobbin 60.
The winding drum 73 is a drum-shaped component fixed
to a drive shaft 79 provided to the fine spinning machine
1. Drive force of an appropriate drive source (an electric
motor, for example) is transmitted to the drive shaft 79.
10 The winding drum 73 can frictionally drive the bobbin 60
or the package 80 by being driven while being in contact
with an outer peripheral surface of the bobbin 60 or the
package 80 supported by the cradle 71 (bobbin holders 72) .
The traverse device 74 includes a traverse guide 74a
15 capable of guiding the spun yarn 10 . By driving the winding
drum 73 while reciprocating the traverse guide 74a by a
drive means (not illustrated) , the winding device 7 rotates
the package 80 in contact with the winding drum 73 and winds
the spun yarn 10 while traversing.
20 A base portion of the cradle 71 is arranged swingably
about a support shaft 71a. An actuator (not illustrated)
is coupled to the cradle 71. By driving the actuator, a
state in which the bobbin 60 or the package 80 is in contact
with the winding drum 73 and a state in which the bobbin
25 60 or the package 80 is located away from the winding drum
73 can be switched. The winding device 7 is provided with
a brake mechanism, which is not illustrated, and is capable
of braking rotation of the package 80 located away from the
winding drum 73.
30 Next, a detailed structure of the winding drum 73
provided in the winding device 7 will be described with
10
reference to FIG. 3.
The winding drum 73 of the present embodiment is a
cylindrical component having an outer peripheral surface
that can make contact with the bobbin 60 or the package 80.
5 The winding drum 73 is formed such that an entire length
(an axial length) 73L thereof is longer than a winding width
80W of the package 80. Specifically, the fine spinning
machine 1 of the present embodiment is for so-called 6-inch
winding. A stroke (hereinafter may be referred to as a
10 traverse stroke) of the traverse guide 74a of the traverse
device 74 is set to form the package 80 having the winding
width 80W of 152 millimeters. The entire length 73L of the
winding drum 73 is longer than the winding width 80W (152
millimeters) .
15 The winding drum 73 includes a drum main body 75 and
a high-frictional portion 76.
The drum main body 75 is a cylindrical member forming
a large portion of the winding drum 73. The entire length
73L of the winding drum 73 corresponds to an entire length
20 of the drum main body 75. The drum main body 75 is fixed
to the drive shaft 79. Thus, by driving the drive shaft
79 by an electric motor or the like, for example, the drum
main body 75 can be rotationally driven.
The high-frictional portion 76 is a ring-shaped
25 member formed of elastically deformable rubber. In the
present embodiment, a plurality of (two) high-frictional
portions 76 are arranged around an outer periphery of the
drum main body 75. A frictional surface 77, which is an
outer peripheral surface of the high-f rictional portion 76,
30 forms a portion of an outer peripheral surface of the
winding drum 73.
11
The frictional surface 77 formed on each of the
high-f rictional portions 76 is adapted to slightly protrude
in a radial direction from an outer peripheral surface of
the drum main body 75 . Thus, when bringing the winding drum
5 73 into contact with the bobbin 60 or the package 80, the
frictional surfaces 77 formed on the high-frictional
portions 76 make contact with the bobbin 60 or the package
80 stronger than an outer peripheral surface of a portion
of the drum main body 75 where the high-f rictional portion
10 76 is not arranged (there may be a case in which only the
frictional surfaces 77 of the high-frictional portions 76
make contact with the bobbin 60 or the package 80 depending
on hardness of the package 80, or the like). With this
configuration, the high-frictional portions 76 of the
15 winding drum 73 can further stably make contact with the
package 80.
The frictional surfaces 77 formed on the
high-frictional portions 76 are arranged so as to avoid
making contact with both ends of the package 80 in a winding
20 width direction. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the
high-frictional portions 76 are respectively arranged on
a right side and a left side of the winding drum 73 one by
one. A left end of the frictional surface 77 formed on the
high-f rictional portion 76 on the left side is located at
25 a position closer to a center in the winding width direction
than a left end of the package 80. A right end of the
frictional surface 77 formed on the high-f rictional portion
76 on the right side is located at a position closer to the
center in the winding width direction than a right end of
30 the package 80.
Thus, in a case of the fine spinning machine 1 in which
12
the winding width 80W is set to be 152 millimeters (that
is, a distance between the left end and the right end of
the package 80 is 152 millimeters), an axial distance 76L
from the left end of the high-frictional portion 76 on the
5 left side of the winding drum 73 in FIG. 3 to the right end
of the high-f rictional portion 76 on the right side of the
winding drum 73 is less than 152 millimeters. In other
words, among the frictional surfaces 77 formed on the two
high-f rictional portions 76, the axial distance 76L between
10 a point closest to a left end of the winding drum 73 and
a point closest to a right end of the winding drum 73 is
less than 152 millimeters.
The "winding width" of the package 80 means a winding
width at the time of traversing and winding the spun yarn
15 10 by the winding device 7 . That is, in some cases, a middle
portion of a yarn layer of the package 80 is deformed to
protrude outward due to great winding tension of the spun
yarn 10 after the package 80 has been fully wound and doffed,
but the "winding width" in the present specification means
20 a winding width not considering such a subsequent
deformation.
Next, a structure for attaching the high-frictional
portions 76 to the drum main body 75 will be described. The
high-frictional portions 76 are fixed by being fitted into
25 ring-shaped groove portions 78 formed around the outer
periphery of the drum main body 75.
As illustrated in a cross-sectional portion of FIG.
3, the groove portions 78 are formed in the same width as
the high-frictional portions 76. The groove portions 78
30 are arranged to correspond to the number and attached
positions of the high-frictional portions 76.
13
The high-frictional portions 76 are formed into a
cylinder shape having a certain thickness. Inner
diameters of the high-frictional portions 76 are formed
smaller than an outer diameter of a portion of the drum main
5 body 75, which has become small due to the groove portion
78 being formed. When the high-frictional portions 76
formed of rubber are attached to the groove portions 78
while being elastically deformed outward in a radial
direction, the high-frictional portions 76 are strongly
10 fixed to the groove portions 78 of the drum main body 75
by restoring force that acts inward in the radial direction.
Consequently, without using a fixing means such as an
adhesive or the like, the high-frictional portions 76 and
the drum main body 75 can be integrally rotated without
15 slipping from each other.
The thicknesses of the high-frictional portions 76
are formed slightly larger than depths of the groove
portions 78 of the winding drum 73. Accordingly, the
frictional surfaces 77 formed on the high-frictional
20 portions 76 attached to the groove portions 78 of the drum
main body 75 can be slightly protruded from the outer
peripheral surface of the drum main body 75.
In the present embodiment, the high-frictional
portions 76 are formed of rubber. Knurling processing is
25 performed on the frictional surfaces 77 formed on the
high-frictional portions 76, and a minute concave and a
minute recess are formed to increase a friction coefficient.
In such a manner, the package 80 can be driven with greatly
secured frictional force generated between the
30 high-f rictional portions 76 and the package 80. Thus, when
driving the package 80 by the high-frictional portions 76,
14
even a heavy nearly fully-wound package 80 can be promptly
shifted from a stop state to a high-speed rotation state.
If a period of time from when the package 80 starts
rotating from a stopped state and until when the package
5 80 reaches a predetermined rotational speed can be reduced
in the winding device 7, productivity of the package 80 can
be advantageously improved. In particular, since the fine
spinning machine 1 of the present embodiment interrupts
winding upon detection of a yarn defect by the yarn quality
10 measuring device 52 and restarts the winding after the yarn
defect has been removed and yarn joining operation has been
performed, stop and restart of winding in the winding device
7 may be frequently repeated. Thus, prompt shift from a
rotation stop state to a normal rotational speed is
15 essential to improve productivity.
Reduction in the period of time required until the
package 80 is shifted from the stop state to the high-speed
rotation state is preferable also to reduce straight
winding of the package 80 and to enhance quality of the
20 package 80. The straight winding means that the spun yarn
10 is not traversed and is wound around a same portion. That
is, when the spun yarn 10 is started being wound around an
empty bobbin 60 or when interrupted winding is restarted,
first, rotation of the bobbin 60 or the package 80 is started
25 under a state in which the spun yarn 10 is not hooked on
the traverse guide 74a, and the spun yarn 10 is wound without
being traversed (for example, around a position close to
the center in the winding width of the package 80) . After
a rotational speed of the bobbin 60 or the package 80 has
30 become sufficiently high, traverse of the spun yarn 10 is
started. A reason for delaying start of the traverse of
15
the spun yarn 10 is that since tension of the spun yarn 10
is unstable under a state where the rotational speed of the
bobbin 60 or the package 80 is insufficient, the spun yarn
10 may not be engaged with the traverse guide 74a or winding
5 cannot be performed due to the spun yarn 10 being entangled
with the traverse guide 74a. Thus, the straight winding
is formed while the rotational speed of the bobbin 60 or
the package 80 has not reached the normal rotational speed,
but the straight winding decreases quality of the package
10 80. Since the winding drum 73 of the present embodiment
includes the high-frictional portions 76, the bobbin 60 or
the package 80 can be promptly shifted from the rotation
stop state to a normal rotational state. Consequently, the
package 80 having less straight winding and high quality
15 can be produced.
Next, a layout of the high-f rictional portions 76 in
relation to the traverse stroke of the traverse guide 74a
will be described with reference to FIG. 4.
The traverse guide 74a is driven and reciprocated
20 within a predetermined traverse stroke 74W illustrated in
FIG. 4. The winding device 7 winds the spun yarn 10 around
the outer peripheral surface of the rotating package 80
while traversing the spun yarn 10. As illustrated in FIG.
4, in the winding device 7 of the present embodiment, the
25 traverse stroke 74W of the traverse guide 74a includes and
is larger than a width from an outermost end on one side
to an outermost end on another side in an axial direction
in which the high-frictional portions 76 (the frictional
surfaces 77) of the winding drum 73 are arranged. If
30 description is made with reference to a direction in FIG.
4, an end on a left side of the traverse stroke 74W of the
16
traverse guide 74a is located further to the left of the
left end of the high-frictional portion 76 on the left side
of the winding drum 73, and an end on a right side of the
traverse stroke 74W is located further to the right of the
5 right end of the high-frictional portion 76 on the right
side.
The traverse stroke 74W of the traverse guide 74a
includes and is larger than an entire width (a length
corresponding to the axial distance 76L in FIG. 3) of the
10 frictional surfaces 77 formed on the plurality of
high-frictional portions 76. Accordingly, the spun yarn
10 can be wound around the package 80 while being traversed
so as to pass over contact portions of the high-f rictional
portions 76 of the winding drum 73 and the package 80.
15 The spun yarn 10 is wound in a zig-zag manner while
being turned at both ends of the winding width of the package
80 by being traversed by the traverse guide 74a. As
described in Patent Document 3, in a case where a frictional
driving section is arranged to make contact with both ends
20 of a package, a yarn is turned while receiving strong
friction or restriction between the frictional driving
section and the package. Thus, an assumption is made that
in a configuration of Patent Document 3, when some irregular
force is applied to the yarn around a turning point, a yarn
25 breakage is likely to occur since the force is difficult
to be released from the yarn.
In the winding device 7 of the present embodiment,
a traverse width of the traverse guide 74a is formed to be
larger than a width of a region where the high-frictional
30 portions 76 of the winding drum 73 are arranged. The
high-frictional portions 76 of the winding drum 73 are
17
arranged in relation to the traverse stroke 74W of the
traverse guide 74a such that the high-frictional portions
76 do not make contact with both ends of the package 80.
Accordingly, since the spun yarn 10 around the turning point
5 can be prevented from making contact with the
high-frictional portions 76 of the winding drum 73, even
if irregular force is applied to the spun yarn 10, the force
can be easily deflected by the spun yarn 10 being deformed
or the like as required. Consequently, a yarn breakage of
10 the spun yarn 10 around the ends of the traverse stroke 74W
can be effectively prevented.
Tendency of hardness of the package 80 in an axial
direction thereof will be described. Typically, tension
of the spun yarn 10 when the traverse guide 74a is located
15 at an end of the traverse stroke 74W is greater than when
the traverse guide 74a is located at a center thereof since
a yarn path of the spun yarn 10 is longer. At both ends
of the package 80, density of the spun yarn 10 is high since
the spun yarn 10 is turned. Accordingly, the package 80
20 is harder at the both ends in the axial direction than the
center. Thus, an assumption is made that with a layout in
which the frictional driving section is made into contact
with hardened both ends of the package as disclosed in
Patent Document 3, a package can be strongly rotated.
25 In the present embodiment, the high-frictional
portions 76 are arranged to make contact with not both ends
of the package 80, but positions slightly close to the
center. Since the fine spinning machine 1 of the present
embodiment is provided with the yarn slack eliminating
30 device 12, variation in tension of the spun yarn 10 between
a center and ends of the traverse stroke 74W can be favorably
18
reduced by the yarn slack eliminating device 12.
Consequently, difference in hardness that occurs between
the center and both ends of the winding width of the package
80 can be reduced. Thus, even when the high-frictional
5 portions 76 are made into contact with not both ends of the
package 80, but the portions slightly close to the center
and are driven, favorable drive force can be obtained.
Next, a relation of arrangement of the
high-frictional portions 76 and straight winding will be
10 described while comparing a first alternative embodiment
illustrated in FIG. 5 and a configuration in FIG. 4. In
FIG. 5, illustration of the traverse guide 74a is omitted
for convenience of description. In the following
description of alternative embodiments, the same reference
15 numerals are denoted on the same members as or similar
members with the above-described embodiment, and
description may be omitted.
In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, two
high-frictional portions 76 are provided, but as
20 illustrated in a winding drum 73x of the first alternative
embodiment in FIG. 5, the high-frictional portion 76 may
be further provided to a substantially central position in
the winding width (the traverse stroke 74W) of the package
80. The high-f rictional portion 76 at the central position
25 is arranged at a position that bisects the axial length of
the winding drum 73. In the winding drum 73x having such
a configuration also, a yarn breakage of the spun yarn 10
around the ends of the traverse stroke 74W can be prevented.
In the winding drum 73 in FIG. 4, the high-f rictional
30 portions 76 are arranged so as to avoid a position around
the central position (a position where straight winding is
19
performed) in the winding width of the package 80.
Accordingly, since straight winding is stably performed,
quality of the package 80 can be improved.
As described above, the winding drum 73 of the winding
5 device 7 in the fine spinning machine 1 of the present
embodiment rotates in contact with the package 80 to
frictionally drive the package 80. The winding drum 73
includes the plurality of high-frictional portions 76.
Each of the plurality of high-frictional portions 76 is
10 provided with the f rictional surface 77 that forms a portion
of the outer peripheral surface of the winding drum 73. A
surface shape and a material of the frictional surfaces 77
differ from the drum main body 75 such that the frictional
surfaces 77 have a frictional force higher than other
15 portion (the outer peripheral surface of the drum main body
75) . Both of the high-f rictional portions 76 are arranged
such that the frictional surfaces 77 make contact with inner
portions of the package 80 located inward with respect to
ends of the package 80.
20 Accordingly, even a heavy package 80 can be promptly
shifted from the stop state to the high-speed rotation state
by being strongly driven with the high-frictional portions
76. Furthermore, since the frictional surfaces 77 formed
on the high-frictional portions 76 are arranged to make
25 contact with the inner portions of the package 80 located
inward with respect to the ends of the package 80, even if
irregular force is applied to the spun yarn 10 when the spun
yarn 10 is wound around either end of the package 80, the
force can be easily released. Consequently, a yarn
30 breakage can be effectively prevented from occurring at
both 'ends of the package 80.
20
In the winding drum 73 of the present embodiment,
among the frictional surfaces 77 formed on the plurality
of high-frictional portions 76, the axial distance 76L
between the point closest to one end of the winding drum
5 73 and the point closest to another end of the winding drum
73 is less than 152 millimeters. 152 millimeters is one
example of the winding width 80W of the package 80.
In a case of forming a 6-inch package 80, even if
irregular force is applied to the spun yarn 10 when the
10 package 80 is strongly and frictionally driven by the
high-f rictional portions 76 and the spun yarn 10 is wound
around either end of the package 80, the force can be easily
released. Consequently, a yarn breakage can be effectively
prevented from occurring at both ends of the package 80.
15 The winding drum 73 of the present embodiment has the
axial length of at least 152 millimeters. Accordingly,
when the spun yarn 10 is wound around either end of the 6-inch
package 80, the spun yarn 10 is located on a surface other
than the frictional surfaces 77 of the outer peripheral
20 surface of the winding drum 73. Thus, while preventing a
yarn breakage from occurring at both ends of the package
80, a shape of the package 80 can be stabilized.
In the winding drum 73 of the present embodiment, the
frictional surfaces 77 formed on the high-frictional
25 portions 76 are arranged so as to avoid the position that
bisects the axial length of the winding drum 73. In other
words, the winding drum, along its axial length, has a
central portion (also referred to as center or middle of
the winding drum), and the frictional surface formed on the
30 high-f rictional portion is arranged offset from the central
portion of the winding drum in a direction along the axial
21
length of the winding drum.
Accordingly, the frictional surfaces 77 formed on the
high-frictional portions 76 can be prevented from making
contact with a straight winding portion that is frequently
5 formed around the center of the package 80 in the axial
direction thereof (the straight winding portion generally
makes contact with the center of the winding drum 73 in its
axial direction), and thus the outer peripheral surface of
the package 80 can be prevented from being disarranged.
10 In the winding drum 73 of the present embodiment, the
high-frictional portions 76 are formed of rubber.
Accordingly, the package 80 can be strongly driven
and rotated with a low-cost configuration.
In the winding drum 73 of the present configuration,
15 a concave and a recess are formed on the frictional surfaces
77 formed on the high-frictional portions 76.
Accordingly, since the frictional coefficient of the
frictional surfaces 77 can be increased, the package 80 can
be strongly and frictionally driven.
20 The winding device 7 of the fine spinning machine 1
of the present embodiment includes the winding drum 73 and
the traverse guide 74a. The traverse guide 74a traverses
the spun yarn 10 within a stroke including and larger than
the entire width of the frictional surfaces 77 formed on
25 the (plurality of) high-frictional portions 76.
Even if irregular force is applied to the spun yarn
10 when the spun yarn 10 is guided to a position close to
a traverse end by the traverse guide 74a, the force can be
easily released. Thus, a yarn breakage can be effectively
30 prevented from occurring at both ends of the package 80.
The winding device 7 of the present embodiment
22
includes two bobbin holders 72 and the cradle 71. The
bobbin holders 72 rotatably hold the ends of the bobbin 60
for a cheese package. The cradle 71 supports the bobbin
holders 72. The cheese package means a package formed by
5 a yarn being wound around a cylindrical bobbin (core tube) .
Accordingly, a yarn breakage can be prevented from
occurring at both ends of a cheese package 80, and the
package 80 with high quality can be produced.
The fine spinning machine 1 of the present embodiment
10 includes the winding device 7 and the yarn slack eliminating
device 12 . The yarn slack eliminating device 12 is arranged
upstream of the winding device 7 in a yarn running direction.
The yarn slack eliminating device 12 absorbs variation in
tension of the spun yarn 10 between the yarn slack
15 eliminating device 12 and the winding device 7.
Accordingly, variation in tension accompanying
traverse of the spun yarn 10 can be reduced by the yarn slack
eliminating device 12. Consequently, difference in
hardness between both ends and the central portion of the
20 package 80 in the axial direction can be reduced. Thus,
even when positions where the high-frictional portions 76
make contact are inner portions of the package 80 located
inward with respect to both ends of the package 80, the
package 80 can be strongly and frictionally driven.
25 In the fine spinning machine 1 of the present
embodiment, the high-frictional portions 76 of the winding
drum 73 are arranged so as to avoid the position where the
spun yarn 10 is wound without being traversed by the
traverse guide 74a immediately after start of rotation of
30 the winding drum 73.
Accordingly, since the high-frictional portions 76
23
can be prevented from making contact with a straight winding
portion and disarranging a yarn layer, improvement in
quality of the package 80 can be realized.
The fine spinning machine 1 of the present embodiment
5 includes the spinning device 9, the splicer 43, the suction
pipe 44, and the suction mouth 46. The suction pipe 44
catches the spun yarn 10 from the spinning device 9 and
guides the caught spun yarn 10 to the splicer 43. The
suction mouth 4 6 catches the spun yarn 10 from the package
10 80 and guides the caught spun yarn 10 to the splicer 43.
Accordingly, in the fine spinning machine 1, for
example, after the spun yarn 10 has been cut upon detection
of a yarn defect or after a yarn breakage has occurred, the
spun yarn 10 can be caught and yarn joining can be performed.
15 In the fine spinning machine 1, rotation of the package 80
needs to be stopped in the winding device 7 to perform yarn
joining operation by the splicer 43, and the rotation of
the package 80 needs to be restarted after the yarn joining
operation. With the above-described configuration, since
20 the package 80 can be shifted to the high-speed rotation
state in a short time by the high-frictional portions 76,
production efficiency of the package 80 can be enhanced.
Next, a second alternative embodiment will be
described with reference to FIG. 6. In a winding drum 73y
25 of the second alternative embodiment, merely one
high-f rictional portion 76x is arranged at one end of the
package 80. The high-frictional portion 76x is arranged
between one end and the central portion of the winding width
of the package 80. A width of the high-frictional portion
30 76x is formed larger than the high-frictional portion 76
of the winding drum 73 illustrated in FIG. 4 to strongly
24
drive the package 80. Accordingly, the winding drum 73y
that can prevent a yarn breakage from occurring at both ends
of the package 80 with a small number of components can be
provided. In terms of stably maintaining parallelism
5 between a rotational axis of the winding drum 73 and a
rotational axis of the package 80 and smoothly rotating the
package 80, two high-frictional portions 76 are preferably
arranged in a symmetric manner as illustrated in FIG. 4.
As described above, the winding drum 73y of the
10 present alternative embodiment is adapted to rotate in
contact with the cheese package 80 to frictionally drive
the package 80. The winding drum 73y includes the
high-frictional portion 76x. The high-frictional portion
76x is provided with the frictional surface 77 that forms
15 a portion of an outer peripheral surface of the winding drum
73y. A surface shape and a material of the frictional
surface 77 differ from other portion of the outer peripheral
surface such that a frictional force of the frictional
surface 77 is higher than the other portion. The
20 high-f rictional portion 76x is arranged such that the
frictional surface 77 makes contact with an inner portion
of the package 80 located inward with respect to an end of
the package 80.
Thus, the cheese package 80 can be promptly driven
25 by the high-f rictional portion 76x arranged so as to avoid
both ends of the package 80, and a yarn breakage can be
prevented from occurring at both ends of the package 80.
Next, a third alternative embodiment will be
described with reference to FIG. 7. A winding drum 73z of
30 the third alternative embodiment is formed of a plurality
of components divided in an axial direction thereof.
25
Specifically, the winding drum 73z includes two
high-frictional portions 76y, a first drum body 81, and two
second drum bodies 82.
The high-frictional portions 76y are formed into a
5 short cylindrical shape with a material such as resin and
the like, and knurling processing is performed on the
frictional surfaces 77 that are outer peripheral surfaces
of the high-frictional portions 76y. Both ends of the
high-frictional portions 76y in the axial direction are
10 formed into a saw-teeth shape.
The first drum body 81 is formed into a cylindrical
shape with a material such as resin and the like, and is
arranged to be sandwiched between the high-frictional
portions 76y. Both ends of the first drum body 81 in the
15 axial direction are formed into a saw-teeth shape to
correspond to the saw-teeth-shaped portions of the
high-frictional portions 76y.
The second drum bodies 82 are formed into a
cylindrical shape with the same material as the first drum
20 body 81 and are respectively arranged at positions
corresponding to ends of the winding drum 73z. Ends on
inner sides of the second drum bodies 82 in the axial
direction are formed into a saw-teeth shape to correspond
to the saw-teeth-shaped portions of the high-frictional
25 portions 76y.
With this configuration, the second drum body 82, the
high-frictional portion 76y, the first drum body 81, the
high-frictional portion 76y, and the second drum body 82
are arranged in this order from one end in the axial
30 direction. By engaging a saw-teeth-shaped end of every
member with each other, every member is coupled in a
2C
relatively unrotatable manner. In such a manner, the
winding drum 73z is formed.
The winding drum 73z of the present alternative
embodiment is advantageous in terms of a feature in which
5 the spun yarn 10 is unlikely to enter into grooves formed
in border portions since the border portions between the
high-frictional portions 76y and other portions are a
zigzag shape. A change in the winding width of the package
80 can be easily handled by preparing a plurality of first
10 drum bodies 81 having different lengths and by replacing
them as necessary.
Although preferable embodiment and alternative
embodiments of the present invention have been described,
the above-described configuration may be modified as
15 follows, for example.
The material of the high-f rictional portions 76, 76x,
76y is not limited to rubber and resin, and another material
such as metal or the like may be used. The material of the
high-frictional portions 76, 76x, 76y may be same as a
20 material of another portion of a winding drum (for example,
the drum main body 75, the first drum body 81, or the second
drum body 82). In this case, a frictional force of the
frictional surface 77 may be increased with respect to other
portion, for example, by increasing the frictional
25 coefficient of the frictional surface 77 with unevenness
treatment such as knurling processing or the like that forms
a concave and a recess on the frictional surface 77.
The knurling processing does not necessarily need to
be performed on the frictional surface 77 in particular.
30 The same knurling processing may be performed on both of
the frictional surface 77 and other portion (for example,
27
each outer peripheral surface of the drum main body 75, the
first drum body 81, or the second drum body 82) . In these
cases, a frictional force of the high-frictional portion
76 can be increased with respect to the other portion by
5 respectively forming the drum main body 75 and the
high-frictional portion 76 with resin and rubber.
A method for fixing the high-frictional portions 76,
76x, 76y is not limited to using the groove portion 78 or
a sew-teeth-shaped portion, and an adhesive and/or a screw,
10 for example, may be used.
The present invention is not limited to so-called
6-inch winding, and may be applied to a winding drum for
3-inch winding or 4-inch winding, or a winding drum to form
a package having a large winding width exceeding 6-inch
15 winding. In other words, application of the present
invention is not precluded even to a winding drum and a
winding device to form a package wound with a traverse width
other than 152 millimeters. Even in this case, a
high-frictional portion may be arranged such that a
20 frictional surface formed on the high-frictional portion
makes contact with an inner portion of a package located
inward with respect to an end of the package or an entire
width of the frictional surface is within a stroke of a
traverse guide.
25 The traverse device 74 described in the
above-described embodiment reciprocates the traverse guide
74a at a position where a certain degree of gap is formed
with respect to both of the outer peripheral surface of the
winding drum 73 and the outer peripheral surface of the
30 package 80 to avoid colliding with a component and the like
in proximity. Thus, a distance between a position where
28
the spun yarn 10 is engaged with the traverse guide 74a and
a position where the spun yarn 10 makes contact with the
outer peripheral surface of the winding drum 73 or the
package 80 cannot be zero. In the following description,
5 the distance is referred to as a free length. When the free
length is long, a space where traverse by the traverse guide
74a is absorbed by deformation of the spun yarn 10 is
increased. Thus, even when a traverse stroke is same, a
winding width of the package 80 formed when the free length
10 is long is smaller than a winding width of the package 80
formed when the free length is short. Due to such a
condition of the free length, even when the traverse stroke
is set to 152 millimeters or more, the winding width of the
package 80 may be narrower than 152 millimeters. In this
15 case, the high-frictional portion 76 (76x, 76y) may be
arranged such that the frictional surface 77 makes contact
with a further inner portion of the package 80 with respect
to the winding width narrower than 152 millimeters.
The winding width of the package 80 is not necessarily
20 constant from start of winding of the spun yarn 10 around
the bobbin 60 until the package 80 becomes nearly
fully-wound. For example, under an initial state in which
the spun yarn 10 is started being wound around the bobbin
60, the package 80 is hard due to a thin yarn layer, but
25 when the winding proceeds and the yarn layer becomes thick,
the package 80 may become soft. Then, a point where the
winding drum 73 and the package 80 substantially make
contact with each other is gradually moved upstream or
downstream as winding proceeds, and the free length may be
30 varied accompanying the movement and influence the winding
width. In this manner, the winding width of the package
29
80 may be varied depending on a situation from start of
winding until a fully-wound package is obtained. The
high-frictional portion 76 (76x, 76y) is preferably
arranged to make contact with an inner portion of the
5 package 80 located inward with respect to a width of the
package 80 of when the winding width of the package 80 is
narrowest.
In the above-described embodiment, the spun yarn 10
is drawn from the spinning device 9 by the yarn slack
10 eliminating device 12. However, without being limited
thereto, the spun yarn 10 may be drawn by a delivery roller
and a nip roller arranged downstream of the spinning device
9, and the drawn spun yarn 10 may be accumulated by the yarn
slack eliminating device 12 located downstream.
15 A winding drum and a winding device of the present
invention are not limited to a spinning machine such as a
fine spinning machine or the like, and may be widely applied,
for example, to a yarn winding machine such as an automatic
winder provided with a yarn supplying device in which a yarn
20 supplying bobbin with a yarn wound therearound can be set.
According to a first aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a winding drum having the following
configuration. The winding drum is adapted to rotate in
contact with a package to frictionally drive the package.
25 The winding drum includes a plurality of high-frictional
portions. Each of the plurality of high-frictional
portions is provided with a frictional surface adapted to
form a portion of an outer peripheral surface of the winding
drum. At least one of a surface shape and a material of
30 the frictional surface differs from other portion of the
outer peripheral surface. A frictional force of the
30
frictional surface is higher than the other portion. The
frictional surface is arranged to make contact with an inner
portion of the package located inward with respect to an
end of the package.
5 Accordingly, even a heavy package can be promptly
shifted from a stop state to a high-speed rotation state
by being strongly driven with the high-frictional portion.
Since the frictional surface formed on the high frictional
portion is arranged to make contact with an inner portion
10 of the package located inward with respect to the end of
the package, even if irregular force is applied to the yarn
when the yarn is wound around either end of the package,
the force can be easily released. Consequently, a yarn
breakage can be effectively prevented from occurring at
15 both ends of the package.
According to a second aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a winding drum having the following
configuration. The^winding drum is adapted to rotate in
contact with a cheese package to frictionally drive the
20 package. The winding drum includes a high-frictional
portion. The high-frictional portion is provided with a
frictional surface adapted to form a portion of an outer
peripheral surface of the winding drum. At least one of
a surface shape and a material of the frictional surface
25 differs from other portion of the outer peripheral surface.
A frictional force of the frictional surface is higher than
the other portion. The frictional surface is arranged to
make contact with an inner portion of the package located
inward with respect to an end of the package.
30 Accordingly, the cheese package can be promptly
driven by the high-frictional portion arranged so as to
31
avoid both ends of the package, and a yarn breakage can be
prevented from occurring at both ends of the package.
According to a third aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a winding drum having the following
5 configuration. The winding drum is adapted to rotate in
contact with a package to frictionally drive the package.
The winding drum includes a plurality of high-frictional
portions. Each of the plurality of high-frictional
portions is provided with a frictional surface adapted to
10 form a portion of an outer peripheral surface of the winding
drum. At least one of a surface shape and a material of
the frictional surface differs from other portion of the
outer peripheral surface. A frictional force of the
frictional surface is higher than the other portion. Among
15 the frictional surfaces formed on the plurality of
high-f rictional portions, an axial distance between a point
closest to one end of the winding drum and a point closest
to another end of the winding drum is less than 152
millimeters.
20 Accordingly, for example, in a case of forming a
6-inch package, even if irregular force is applied to a yarn
when the package is strongly and frictionally driven by the
high-f rictional portion and the yarn is wound around either
end of the package, the force can be easily released.
25 Consequently, a yarn breakage can be effectively prevented
from occurring at both ends of the package.
The winding drum preferably has an axial length of
at least 152 millimeters.
Accordingly, for example, in a case of forming a
30 6-inch package, when a yarn is wound around either end of
the package, the yarn is located on a surface other than
32
the frictional surface of the outer peripheral surface of
the winding drum. Thus, while preventing a yarn breakage
from occurring at both ends of the package, a shape of the
package can be stabilized.
5 In the winding drum, the frictional surface formed
on the high-frictional portion is preferably arranged so
as to avoid a position that bisects the axial length of the
winding drum. In other words, the winding drum, along its
axial length, has a central portion (also referred to as
10 center or middle of the winding drum), and the frictional
surface formed on the high-f rictional portion is preferably
arranged offset from the central portion of the winding drum
in a direction along the axial length of the winding drum.
Accordingly, the frictional surface formed on the
15 high-frictional portion can be prevented from making
contact with, for example, a straight winding portion (a
portion where the yarn is wound without being traversed)
that is frequently formed around a center of the package
in an axial direction thereof, and thus an outer peripheral
20 surface of the package can be prevented from being
disarranged.
In the winding drum, the high-frictional portion is
preferably formed of rubber.
Accordingly, the package can be strongly
25 rotationally driven with a low-cost configuration.
In the winding drum, a concave and a recess are
preferably formed on the frictional surface formed on the
high-frictional portion.
Accordingly, since a frictional coefficient of the
30 frictional surface can be increased, the package can be
strongly and frictionally driven.
OJ
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a winding device having the following
configuration. The winding device includes the
above-described winding drum and a traverse guide. The
5 traverse guide is adapted to traverse a spun yarn within
a stroke including and larger than an entire width of the
frictional surface formed on the high-frictional portion.
Accordingly, even if irregular force is applied to
the yarn when the yarn is guided to a position close to a
10 traverse end by the traverse guide, the force can be easily
released. Consequently, a yarn breakage can be effectively
prevented from occurring at both ends of the package.
The winding device preferably includes two bobbin
holding sections and a supporting section. The bobbin
15 holding sections are adapted to rotatably hold ends of a
bobbin for the cheese package. The supporting section is
adapted to support the bobbin holding sections.
Accordingly, a yarn breakage can be prevented from
occurring at both ends of the cheese package, and a package
20 with high quality can be produced.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention,
a yarn winding machine preferably includes the
above-described winding device and a yarn accumulating
device arranged upstream of the winding device in a yarn
25 running direction and adapted to absorb variation in
tension of the yarn between the yarn accumulating device
and the winding device.
Accordingly, variation in the tension accompanying
traverse of the yarn can be reduced by the yarn accumulating
30 device. Consequently, difference in hardness between both
ends and a central portion of the formed package in an axial
34
direction can be reduced. Thus, even when a position where
the high-frictional portion makes contact is an inner
portion of the package located inward with respect to both
ends of the package, the package can be strongly and
5 frictionally driven.
In the yarn winding machine, the high-frictional
portion of the winding drum is preferably arranged so as
to avoid a position where the yarn is wound without being
traversed by a traverse guide immediately after start of
10 rotation of the winding drum.
Accordingly, since the high-frictional portion can
be prevented from making contact with a straight winding
portion and disarranging a yarn layer, a package with higher
quality can be produced.
15 The yarn winding machine preferably includes a yarn
supplying device, a yarn joining device, a first catching
and guiding member, and a second catching and guiding member.
The first catching and guiding member is adapted to catch
the yarn from the yarn supplying device and to guide the
20 caught yarn to the yarn joining device. The second catching
and guiding member is adapted to catch the yarn from a
package and to guide the caught yarn to the yarn joining
device.
Rotation of the package is required to be stopped
25 before performing yarn joining operation by the yarn
joining device, and rotation of the package is required to
be restarted after the yarn joining operation. With the
above-described configuration, since the package can be
shifted to a high-speed rotation state in a short time by
30 the high-frictional portion, production efficiency of the
package can be enhanced.

WE CLAIM:
1. A winding drum adapted to rotate in contact with
a package to frictionally drive the package, the winding
drum comprising:
5 one or more high-frictional portions each provided
with a frictional surface adapted to form a portion of an
outer peripheral surface of the winding drum,
wherein at least one of a surface shape and a material
of the frictional surface differs from other portion of the
10 outer peripheral surface,
wherein a frictional force of the frictional surface
is higher than a frictional force of the other portion, and
wherein the frictional surface is arranged to make
contact with an inner portion of the package located inward
15 with respect to an end of the package.
2. The winding drum according to claim 1,
comprising:
one high-frictional portion;
20 wherein the package is a cheese package.
3. The winding drum according to claim 1,
comprising:
a plurality of high-frictional portions,
25 wherein among the frictional surfaces formed on the
plurality of the high-frictional portions, an axial
distance between a point closest to one end of the winding
drum and a point closest to another end of the winding drum
is less than 152 millimeters.
30
4 . The winding drum according to any one of claim
3G
1 through claim 3, having an axial length of at least 152
millimeters.
5. The winding drum according to any one of claim
5 1 through claim 4, wherein the frictional surface formed
on the high-frictional portion is arranged so as to avoid
a position that bisects an axial length.
6. The winding drum according to any one of claim
10 1 through claim 5, wherein the high-frictional portion is
formed of rubber.
7. The winding drum according to any one of claim
1 through claim 6, wherein a concave and a recess are formed
15 on the frictional surface formed on the high-frictional
portion.
8. A winding device comprising:
the winding drum according to any one of claim 1
20 through claim 7; and
a traverse guide adapted to traverse a yarn within
a stroke including and larger than an entire width of the
frictional surface formed on the high-frictional portion.
25 9. The winding device according to claim 8, further
comprising:
two bobbin holding sections adapted to rotatably hold
ends of a bobbin for the package; and
a supporting section adapted to support the bobbin
30 holding sections.
37
10. A yarn winding machine comprising:
the winding device according to claim 8 or claim 9;
and
a yarn accumulating device arranged upstream of the
winding device in a yarn running direction, and adapted to
absorb variation in tension of the yarn between the yarn
accumulating device and the winding device.
11. The yarn winding machine according to claim 10,
wherein the high frictional portion of the winding drum is
arranged so as to avoid a position where the yarn is wound
without being traversed by a traverse guide immediately
after start of rotation of the winding drum.
12. The yarn winding machine according to claim 10
or claim 11, comprising:
a yarn supplying device;
a yarn joining device;
a first catching and guiding member adapted to catch
the yarn from the yarn supplying device and to guide the
caught yarn to the yarn joining device; and
a second catching and guiding member adapted to catch
the yarn from the package and to guide the caught yarn to
the yarn joining device.