Combing Machine

Abstract

The invention relates to a combing machine for spinning preparation, having a frame in which a plurality of combing heads (11) are arranged in a row, and the combing machine has a main drive motor (12) for driving the combing heads (11). According to the invention, a first group of combing heads (11) is operatively connected to the main drive motor (12) by means of a first drive connection (13) and can be driven in a first phase (α1), and at least one second group of combing heads (11) is operatively connected to the main drive motor (12) by means of a second drive connection (14) and can be driven in a second phase (α2), wherein the combing heads (11) that can be operated in the first phase (α1) and the combing heads (11) that can be operated in the second phase (α2) are arranged alternately and / or symmetrically from the middle of the row of combing heads (11), so that when the main drive motor (12) is running, the combing cycles of the first group and at least the second group of combing heads (11) are operated with staggered phases.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a combing machine having a frame for spinning preparation process, in which a plurality of combing heads are arranged in a row, and the combing machine has a main drive motor for driving the combing heads. Background Art

[0002] For example, DE102012011030A1 discloses a combing head for a combing machine used in a spinning preparation process, and the combing head has a drive input shaft as a main structural component, which drives a nipper transmission mechanism, wherein the nipper transmission mechanism is used to drive the nipper mechanism. In addition, the transmission unit has a separation cylinder, and the separation cylinder is arranged on the transmission output end of the planetary gear transmission mechanism. Through the crank rocker arm and the cam transmission, the rotational movement of the central shaft is coupled with the nipper shaft, so that the latter performs an oscillating movement, and the central shaft also drives the planetary gear transmission mechanism for the separation cylinder at the same time, wherein the central shaft is connected to the drive input shaft through a transmission stage.

[0003] Thus, the combing head has a shaft and working cylinders coupled to the shaft that act in different ways, which perform an oscillating motion and the separating cylinders in particular perform a so-called pilgrimage motion. There are also shafts and such working cylinders that perform a continuous rotational motion. For example, a circular comb shaft with a circular comb roller mounted thereon also performs a continuous motion, as does a brush roller for cleaning the circular comb roller, whereby a discontinuous power consumption for the main drive motor results from the drive of the transmission or the shaft that accommodates the working cylinders, which otherwise rotate discontinuously, with acceleration and deceleration phases during the combing cycle.

[0004] Modern combing machines have, for example, eight combing heads which are arranged in a row adjacent to each other in or on a frame. The combing heads are operated synchronously with one another so that some shafts, in particular shafts which are operated discontinuously, can be coupled together so that these shafts are constructed continuously in a specific manner so that a plurality of combing heads share a common shaft. This reduces the structural costs and ensures the synchronous operation of the combing heads. The same can also be provided for the separating cylinder.

[0005] For example, EP 2 397 584 B1 shows a combing head with separating cylinders which are each driven by two synchronously operated electric motors. This increases the power in the discontinuous rotational movement of the separating cylinders, and there is a transmission on each side of the separating cylinder, by which the corresponding electric motor is operatively connected to the separating cylinder in a driving manner.

[0006] The power consumption of the main drive motor is characterized by a discontinuous curve due to the pilger movement, the oscillating movement of the separator cylinder and the nipper shaft, which, however, repeats in the same way for each combing cycle. In particular, the deceleration and acceleration of the individual shafts and the working cylinders, which are usually named here, and which are mounted on these shafts and act differently, result in a characteristic curve, in which power consumption is required not only to generate the torque in the first direction of rotation of the motor, but also to generate the torque in the opposite direction of rotation of the motor. The result is an overall high power consumption and a high energy requirement for operating the combing machine, in particular a combing machine with a plurality of combing heads. The poor power balance may also be caused by the fact that the main drive motor cannot be operated in an optimal state in terms of speed and torque, because the output torque changes periodically and repeatedly within each combing cycle. Summary of the invention

[0007] The object of the invention is to optimize the operation of a combing machine and to minimize the power consumption. Here, a plurality of combing heads should be arranged side by side and operated without increasing the structural complexity for coupling these combing heads. In addition, the combing machine should have a quiet operation with low vibration and low swing in operation.

[0008] This object is achieved by a combing machine according to the preamble together with the characterizing features of claim 1. Advantageous developments of the invention are specified in the dependent claims.

[0009] In order to achieve this task, the present invention stipulates that a first group of combing heads is operatively connected to a main drive motor by means of a first drive connection and can be driven in a first phase, and at least one second group of combing heads is operatively connected to the main drive motor by means of a second drive connection and can be driven in a second phase, wherein the combing heads that can operate in the first phase and the combing heads that can operate in the second phase are alternately arranged and / or symmetrically arranged with respect to each other from the middle of the row of combing heads, so that when the main drive motor is running, the combing cycles of the combing heads of the first group and at least the second group operate with staggered phases.

[0010] The core idea of ​​the invention is that at least two combing heads are phase-shifted in the combing cycle, or the combing cycle of the first group of combing heads is phase-shifted with the combing cycle of the second group of combing heads, so that a power flow can be obtained by the effective connection of the groups to each other, and the groups can at least partially compensate for each other. The acceleration phase and the part of the power consumption for accelerating the first combing head or the first group of combing heads can be partially provided by a torque, which is generated by the deceleration phase of the combing cycle of the second combing head or the second group of combing heads. As a result, a smooth part of the power curve is obtained, so that the total power requirement for the operation of the combing machine is reduced and the main drive motor can be operated in an optimal operating state or close to an optimal operating state.

[0011] In addition to reducing the power, the staggered phase offset of adjacent combing heads during operation of the combing machine enables particularly smooth operation of the combing machine during operation. The first group of combing heads is staggered with the second group of combing heads in such a way that adjacent combing heads are entirely or mostly phase offset with respect to one another, so that the combing cycles of adjacent combing heads are operated out of phase with one another. However, in the case of a bilaterally symmetrical design, as an exception, the two middle combing heads can be operated with their combing cycles being in phase with one another.

[0012] Here, the phase stagger is set alternately in a simple manner in the rows of combing heads in the frame, wherein, as already mentioned above, there is also the possibility that in the case of an even number of combing heads usually present in the combing machine, the combing heads are run alternately and phase-staggered from the center of symmetry. Thus, two combing heads arranged laterally to the center of symmetry of the combing heads in a row can be run in phase, and each other adjacent combing head can be run in phase staggered. Here, it is also not necessary to have only two phases of the combing cycle of the combing heads, and more than two phases can also be provided, which are particularly set so that the dynamic forces in the operation of the combing machine are compensated by the generated symmetry, respectively, which is comparable to a reciprocating piston engine with a higher number of cylinders, which naturally has a smoother operation than a reciprocating piston engine with a smaller number of cylinders. When the combing machine has, for example, eight to sixteen combing heads, each combing head can be run in phase with another combing head. Or two combing heads per group may be operated in phase staggered relation to another four or eight groups of combing heads. In a combing machine with eight combing heads, a combing head group may consist of a single combing head, two or four combing heads in the extreme case. In a combing machine with a maximum of 16 combing heads, a combing head group may consist of a single combing head, two, four or eight combing heads, which are respectively operated in phase staggered relation.

[0013] In this respect, the drive connection between the main drive motor and the combing head group can realize two different or multiple phases. Here, the drive connection can be configured in different ways for each individual combing head and two possibilities for the arrangement of the drive connection between the combing head group and the main drive motor are explained subsequently.

[0014] A first possible configuration of the drive connection is achieved by a common control shaft and an associated phase shifting device, and a second possible configuration of the drive connection is illustrated by the use of two rotating or oscillating drive shafts, which connect the respective combing head group to the drive motor.

[0015] In a first possible construction of the drive connection, it is provided that the first group of combing heads and the second group of combing heads are driven via a common control shaft, wherein the first drive connection is arranged between the control shaft and the combing heads of the first group and the second drive connection is arranged between the control shaft and the combing heads of the second group, whereby, when the main drive motor is running, the combing cycle of the combing heads of the first group runs in phase with the combing cycle of the combing heads of the second group.

[0016] The common control shaft can extend parallel to the row of combing heads, or be laterally adjacent to the combing heads, or the common control shaft can extend through the combing heads and this enables a corresponding tapping of the control movement of the control shaft by corresponding tapping means, which are formed by corresponding first and second drive connections.

[0017] According to a first embodiment, the drive connection can be provided, for example, by a cam. In this respect, it is provided, by way of example, that the cam is provided for driving the functions of the combing head that are important for the combing cycle, wherein the first drive connection has a cam that is operatively connected to the control shaft in a first phase for driving the functions of the combing head, and the second drive connection has a cam that is operatively connected to the control shaft in a second phase and is likewise provided for driving the functions of the combing head. The cam can, for example, drive a nipper mechanism that has at least one nipper shaft that moves in an oscillating manner, via which the upper nipper and the lower nipper are in turn driven.

[0018] It is also conceivable that the circular comb or at least one separating roller is effectively connected to the corresponding cam on each combing head or to another cam on each combing head in an oscillatingly driven manner. In this regard, which functional shaft or functional roller of the combing head is driven by the cam by means of a common control shaft is of secondary importance for the present invention, but it is not unimportant. However, the phase stagger of at least one main function of the combing head should be selected so that optimal energy saving can be achieved. However, in particular, the main input shaft of the combing head can be driven accordingly by the cam, so that the corresponding phase of each individual functional shaft of the combing head in the combing cycle can be adjusted by means of another transmission connection of the functional shaft. Here, the drive does not have to be realized directly by the cam, but the cam can introduce an oscillating motion, for example, into the nipper shaft, or into the separating roller by superimposed oscillating motion, without the cam itself being arranged in the power system to drive the combing head. As an alternative to the cam, of course, a cam disk or a slip ring guide device can also be provided.

[0019] According to a second embodiment, the structure of the drive connection between the main drive motor and the combing head group can be realized by a drive shaft. In this regard, it is provided that the first group of combing heads is connected to the main drive motor in a driving manner by means of a drive shaft that rotates or oscillates in a first phase, and the second group of combing heads is connected to the main drive motor in a driving manner by means of a drive shaft that rotates or oscillates in a second phase. Thereby, when the main drive motor is running, the combing cycle of the combing heads of the first group and the combing cycle of the combing heads of the second group are run in a staggered phase. According to this embodiment, a central control shaft that is common to all combing heads and can only occupy one phase is not provided, but two drive shafts are provided, and these two drive shafts can run in their respective phases. In the sense of the present invention, more than two drive shafts can also be provided, so that a combing head group that occupies more than two different phases in the combing cycle can also be formed.

[0020] The first drive shaft and the second drive shaft can be arranged to extend parallel to each other or be arranged concentrically. In order to drive the combing head, corresponding functional shafts can be provided, which are particularly configured to extend parallel to the drive shaft. Here, the functional shaft is obviously configured to be shorter than the drive shaft, and each combing head is associated with a functional shaft that can realize the direct tapping of the corresponding drive shaft. Here, the respective functional shafts of adjacent combing heads are connected to the drive shafts that run in a corresponding phase offset. Thus, the functional shafts connected to the first drive shaft are not arranged adjacently, and other functional shafts connected to the second drive shaft exist between the functional shafts.

[0021] The functional axis can form the main function of the combing head, for example it is advantageous if the functional axis of the combing head forms the nipper axis or is operatively connected to a circular comb or a separating roller.

[0022] The drive shaft can extend along the combing head row and / or be connected to the main drive motor by means of a corresponding or a common transmission mechanism. Alternatively, each drive shaft can be associated with its own transmission mechanism, so that the first transmission mechanism is arranged to drive the first drive shaft and the second transmission mechanism is arranged to drive the second drive shaft.

[0023] The functional axes of the combing heads can preferably be aligned with one another. In particular, coupling elements can be provided, by means of which the functional axes of the combing heads are operatively connected to the drive shafts. The functional axes can also form intermediate axes, which in turn are connected to the respective main functional axes of the combing heads via at least one simply constructed transmission connection, such as a gear stage or a coupling rod. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Further measures that improve the invention are explained in more detail below together with the description of preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawings.

[0025] In the figure:

[0026] Figure 1 A perspective view showing the transmission unit and the combing machine,

[0027] Therein, only the main components of the transmission unit forming the combing head are indicated by numbers;

[0028] Figure 2 A schematic diagram showing the parts of a nipper mechanism which can be driven by means of a cam;

[0029] Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing two drive shafts which can be operated in a phase-staggered manner and are connected to respective functional shafts, and

[0030] Figure 4 The power consumption of the individual groups of combing heads of the main drive motor during operation of a combing machine designed according to the invention is shown in a graph over time. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Figure 1 The combing heads 11 are driven by the main drive motor 12 via the drive input shaft 31, and the connection between the drive input shaft 31 and the main drive motor 12 is realized by means of drive connections 13, 14, which can be constructed in various ways so that the phases of the adjacent running combing heads 11 are staggered.

[0032] The combing head 11 has a further central shaft 32, which is driven by a drive input shaft 31 via a gear stage. The drive input shaft 31 is here continuously in rotation. On the central shaft 32 there is a nipper drive 26, to which the nipper shaft 23 driven by a crank arm 33 is connected, which ultimately drives an upper nipper drive 30. By means of the upper nipper drive 30, the upper nipper can be driven via the nipper driven shaft 29 and the lower nipper of the nipper mechanism of the combing head 11 can be driven on the nipper shaft 23.

[0033] Further drive shafts of the auxiliary drive 27 are connected to the drive input shaft 31, by means of which further shafts or rollers can be driven, in particular for transporting the fiber fleece after the combing process. For example, table pressing rollers, delivery rollers and the like can be driven by the auxiliary drive 27, so that the drive power of the main drive motor 12 can also be used for this purpose. In addition, the rotational moment of inertia is increased, thereby making the drive run smoother, in particular, the dynamics of the oscillating masses can be better compensated by the central drive.

[0034] The combing head 11 also has a planetary gear 28, via which the detaching rollers 19 are driven in a Pilgerschritt motion.

[0035] Figure 2The nipper mechanism 17 of a combing head is shown schematically, and in order to generate an oscillating movement in the nipper mechanism 17, a cam 16 is connected to the control shaft 15, which cam is designed with a curved path that deviates from a circular contour. Depending on the rotational position of the control shaft 15 and the cam 16, the tapping element 38 can introduce a movement into the lower nipper 35 of the nipper mechanism 17, from which a movement on the upper nipper 34 can be derived via a coupling rod 37 and an eccentric 36. For this purpose, the lower nipper 35 is firstly supported by the joint 25, wherein the circular comb 18 is simultaneously arranged with the joint 25 shown on the left.

[0036] The control shaft 15 connected to the cam 16 can form a drive connection 13, 14 in a manner not shown in detail, which is arranged between the main drive motor 12 and each combing head 11. Here, the drive connections 13 and 14 are constructed differently from each other due to the rotational position of the cam 16, so that adjacent combing heads and, for example, the nipper mechanism 17 that is also adjacent are phase-shifted. Here, the phases of the next combing head 11 are the same as each other. Therefore, when the combing machine is running, for example, two or more phases alternately dominate, wherein the same number of combing heads can be respectively operated in the same phase. The phases can be staggered in groups, for example, when the combing machine has eight combing heads and each, two or four combing heads are in a group, each group is staggered with other combing head groups. When the combing machine has, for example, ten combing heads, the combing head groups can be composed of one, two or five combing heads, which are respectively operated in groups with phases staggered. In principle, the combing head groups that operate in different phases do not have to be of the same size. In the case of a ten-head comber, the combing head groups can consist of two groups of two combing heads each and two groups of three combing heads each, which are arranged symmetrically, for example (2, 3, 3, 2 or 2, 3, 2, 3 or 3, 2, 2, 3). In a comber with, for example, twelve combing heads, the combing head groups can consist of one, two, three, four or six combing heads, which are each operated in groups with a phase stagger. By staggering the phases during the operation of the combing heads, an operation of the comber with particularly low swings and particularly low vibrations is produced.

[0037] Figure 3An alternative design for forming a drive connection 13, 14 by means of rotationally or oscillating drive shafts 20 and 21 is shown, which are connected to the main drive motor in a phase-staggered manner by means of a common or respective transmission. Thus, the first drive shaft 20 shown forms, for example, a first drive connection 13 for driving a first group of combing heads and the drive shaft 21 forms a second drive connection 14 for driving a second group of combing heads. Here, the rotation arrows indicate that the drive shafts 20 and 21 run in different phases α1 and α2. Depending on the number of drive shafts, the different phases αn can be increased to the number of combing heads, i.e. preferably eight, ten, twelve or sixteen phases.

[0038] The drive shafts 20, 21 are connected to the functional shafts 22 via coupling elements 24, wherein these connections are designed such that adjacent functional shafts 22 are respectively connected to other drive shafts 20, 21. The functional shaft 22 can be a shaft or axle of a combing head, for example, the functional shaft 22 of the combing head 11 can form a nipper shaft 23 or be operatively connected to a circular comb 18 or a detaching roller 19.

[0039] at last, Figure 4 The power consumption P of the main drive motor 12 is shown as an example over the time t. In this case, the graph shows two power consumptions P1 and P2, and the power consumption P1 corresponds to the first group of combing heads 11 and the power consumption P2 corresponds to the second group of combing heads 11. As described above, there can be a maximum of n power consumptions Pn, wherein n can be equal to the number of combing heads or a portion thereof at most. In this case, all power consumptions Pn are operated in phase with respect to the time t.

[0040] As shown by the course of the power consumptions P1 and P2, they compensate each other above and below the zero line, so that, for example, the acceleration phase (acceleration phase) of the first group of combing heads 11 can compensate for the deceleration phase (deceleration phase) of the second group of combing heads 11. As a result, the overall power consumption is significantly saved, since the movement phases of the combing heads can compensate each other with regard to their power requirements (including not only the power consumption but also the power output, i.e. acceleration and deceleration).

[0041] The invention is not limited to the preferred exemplary embodiments given above in its implementation. Rather, a number of variants are conceivable, which also use the solution described in principle in different types of embodiments. All features and / or advantages, including structural details or spatial arrangements, derived from the claims, the description or the drawings are essential to the invention both per se and in various combinations.

[0042] Reference numerals list

[0043] 11 Combed head

[0044] 12 Main drive motor

[0045] 13 First drive connection

[0046] 14 Second drive connection

[0047] 15 Control axis

[0048] 16 Cam

[0049] 17 Clamp mechanism

[0050] 18. Round Comb

[0051] 19 Separation roller

[0052] 20 Drive shaft

[0053] 21 Drive shaft

[0054] 22 Function axis

[0055] 23 Clamp shaft

[0056] 24 Coupling elements

[0057] 25 hinge

[0058] 26 Nipper plate transmission mechanism

[0059] 27 Auxiliary transmission mechanism

[0060] 28 Planetary gear transmission mechanism

[0061] 29 Clamp driven shaft

[0062] 30 Upper clamp plate transmission mechanism

[0063] 31 Drive input shaft

[0064] 32 Center axis

[0065] 33 Crank rocker arm

[0066] 34 Upper clamp

[0067] 35 Lower clamp

[0068] 36 Eccentric wheel

[0069] 37 Coupling rod

[0070] 38 tapping element

[0071] α1 First phase

[0072] α2 Second phase

[0073] αnnth phase

[0074] Power Consumption

[0075] P1 Power consumption of the first combing head group

[0076] P2 Power consumption of the second combing head group

[0077] Pn Power consumption of the nth group of combing heads

[0078] t time

Claims

1. A combing machine for a spinning preparation process, comprising a frame in which a plurality of combing heads (11) are arranged in a row, and the combing machine comprises a main drive motor (12) for driving the combing heads (11), in, The first group of combing heads (11) is operatively connected to the main drive motor (12) by means of a first drive connection (13) and can be driven in a first phase (α1), and At least one second group of combing heads (11) is operatively connected to the main drive motor (12) by means of a second drive connection (14) and can be driven in a second phase (α2), wherein the combing heads (11) operable in the first phase (α1) and the combing heads (11) operable in the second phase (α2) are arranged alternately and / or symmetrically from the middle of the row of combing heads (11), Thus, when the main drive motor (12) is in operation, the combing cycles of the first group of combing heads (11) and at least the second group of combing heads (11) are operated in phase staggered manner, characterized in that the first group of combing heads (11) and the second group of combing heads (11) are driven by a common control shaft (15), wherein a first drive connection (13) is arranged between the control shaft (15) and the combing heads (11) of the first group and a second drive connection (14) is arranged between the control shaft (15) and the combing heads (11) of the second group, thereby, when the main drive motor (12) is in operation, the combing cycle of the first group of combing heads (11) is staggered in phase. The invention relates to a combing machine which runs in phase with the combing cycle of the second group of combing heads (11) and is provided with a cam (16) for driving the combing heads (11) having functions important for the combing cycle, wherein the first drive connection (13) has a cam (16) which is effectively connected to the control shaft (15) in the first phase (α1) and is used to drive the combing heads (11), and the second drive connection (14) has a cam (16) which is effectively connected to the control shaft (15) in the second phase (α2), wherein the clamp mechanism (17) is connected to the cam (16) in a manner that allows it to be driven in an oscillating manner.

2. The combing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that The number of phases (αn) is equal to the number of combing heads (11) or a fraction of the number of combing heads (11).

3. Combing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The circular comb (18) and / or at least one detaching roller (19) are operatively connected to a cam on each combing head (11) or to another cam on each combing head (11) in such a way that they can be driven in an oscillating manner.

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