This invention relates to false twist machines. Such machines produce texturised yarns of rather fine titres, e.g. ranging from 15 to 300 dtex, at speeds in the ränge of 800 metres per inute and higher.

It is thus known from practice that, on one hand, handling of threads of fine titres on a false twist machine reguires high Standards of care by the Operator and, on the other hand,that thread breakages during the production process cannot be com- pletely avoided so that the following operative requirements are to be coordinated in the design of false twist machines:

(a) Easy to operate exchange of the creel bobbins without interrupting the production ethod, and good accessibil- ity for piecing the thread end of the creeled bobbin to the thread front end on the füll creel bobbin placed in reserve.

(b) Good accessibility for transferring the thread from the creeled bobbin and threading in the thread on all fur- ther elements to the winding device without interruption, i.e. with a Single suction gun ^' sucking in the thread without interruption until the thread is transferred to the winding device.

(c) Easy to operate exchange of fully wound bobbin packages for empty bobbin tubes without impairing the accessibil ity to the other element required for the production method.

(d) Operating of as any false twist units, or texturising units so the case may be, by a Single Operator.

False twist machines are known, on which the creels, the winding devices, the supply devices and the false twist device are arranged substantially at a high level operable from an operating alley.

For example, O . K. Specification No. 1,199,071, describes a false twist machine in which the bobbin creel is arranged below the winding device on one side of an operating alley. A first and a second supply device and a false twist device and a cooling zone arranged between the supply devices, as well as a first heat treatment zone arranged vertically in between are provided on the other side of the operating alle In this known arrangement, the thread path from the bobbin creel to the first supply device is located below a walking floor arranged in the operating alley. The thread is trans- ported from the second supply device through the second heat treatment zone, which forms an upper connection between the two operating sides, to the third supply device, and from there to the correspönding winding device.

A substantial disadvantage of this known arrangement is that the false twist device and the cooling zone are arranged above the first heat treatment zone. Furthermore, operating the winding device in the upper region of the operating zone is not sufficiently easy. Moreover, the Operator is required to turn around twice and to perform overhead Operation during the threading in of the thread.

Another false twist machine, is described in U.S.A. Patent Specification No. 4,051,650. In this machine, the bobbin creel, and the winding device are arranged on opposite sides of an operating alley. The second heat treatment zone is arranged behind the winding device, as seen from the operat¬ ing alley. The second and third supply arrangements are respectively located above and below the second heat treat¬ ment zone. The first supply device is arranged above the operating alley, and the first heat treatment zone is arrang- ed above the bobbin creel, extending under at an angle from top to bottom towards the centre. The thread path forms two deflections between the bobbin creel and the false twist device located above the winding device. The first deflection is formed in the first supply device, and the second deflect- ion is formed using ai J-shaped supply tube in the first heat treatment zone.

Disadvantages of this arrangement lie essentially in the fact that the thread path changes direction several times between the bobbin creel and the false twist device as the heat treat¬ ment zone is arranged behind the winding device, and in the difficult Operation due to the high location of the first and second supply devices and due to the arrangement of the false twist device and of the cooling zone above the first heat treatment zone.

U.K. Patent Specification No. 1,497,245 describes a false twist machine in which the bobbin creel and a multiple-tiered winding device are arranged back to back. The operating side of the winding device is arranged at a distance, forming an operating alley, from the cooling zone, as well as the false twist device and the second supply device arranged below it. The first and the third supply device are arranged above the operating alley but below a horizontal plane deter ined by the upper side of the bobbin creel. Above this plane and ^*

above the cooling zone the two heat treatment zones are pro¬ vided. The thread path extends from the operating side of the bobbin creel via deflecting rollers and via the upper side of the bobbin creel into the first supply device and on via the first heat treatment zone, and subsequently downward through the cooling zone, into the false twist device and into the second supply device, and from there upward through the second heat treatment zone and then downward into the third supply device, and finally, across the operating alley, into the winding device.

Substantial disadvantages of this false twist machine are that for threading the thread into the first supply device, the thread has to be guided from the operating side of the bobbin creel above the bobbin creel and the winding device into the region above the operating alley, which prevents the thread from being brought by a Single Operator in the operat¬ ing alley and in one Operation into the first supply device. This detour has to be overcome either by using a relatively complicated, automatic device, or by Performance of at least two operating Steps by one and the same Operator. Furthermore the first and the third supply device must be located rela¬ tively high up, if the operating alley is to be of sufficient height, and the Operator is therefore required to thread in the thread into the supply devices in a so-called overhead working position.

Furthermore, an arrangement of this type implies that the fully wound bobbins are carried off through a relatively narrow operating alley, which is rather impracticable and requires adequate care and time.

It is thus an object of the present invention to create a false twist machine, which makes possible threading in of the thread in a Single Operation, the thread being taken from the

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bobbin creel in a simple manner and at co fortable operating . height and being brought to the winding device via the textur¬ ing elements mentioned.

It is a further object of the invention to arrange as large a number of bobbins within a height from the machine floor in which Operation is comiörtable, in such manner that an exchange of the individual bobbins can be effected without interruption of the production process.

It also is an object of the invention that the fully wound bobbin packages can be taken from the machine and be carried away without impeding the operating processes required for the texturing process and that the empty tubes can be brought into a reserve position in a simple manner.

According tq the present invention there is provided a false twist machine for t xtile threads or yarns comprising a creel for creel bobbins,a first supply device for taking in a thread from the creel, a second supply device for taking the thread from the first supply device through a first heat treatment zone located above the first supply device and through a cool¬ ing zone as well as through a false twist device, and a third supply device for taking the thread from the second supply device through a second heat treatment zone arranged adjacent to the first heat treatment zone and for suppl ing the thread to a winding device, the two heat treatment zones, the supply devices, the cooling zone and the false twist device forming a texturising position wherein the said supply devices, as well as the false twist device and the cooling zone are con- tained in a texturing part of the false twist machine, which part comprises an operating side and a back, the heat treat¬ ment zones being arranged directly above the said texturing part,the bobbin creel being arranged at the back and the operating side of the winding device facing the operating

side of the texturing part spacing forming an operating alley and a thread transfer device being provided in the texturing part, and being arranged to guide the thread Coming from the creel into inmediate vicinity of the first supply device.

The creel arrangement is movable to the texturing part and permits the side-by-side arrangement of the creel bobbins. In this manner also, the creel bobbins located next to the tex¬ turing part can be exchanged in their bobbin change position without interruption of the production process.

A saving of space and ease of Operation of the bobbin creel, may be obtained by arranging that a pair of creel bobbins is always adjacent a texturing unit. With four superimposed pair of creel bobbins, four texturing units can be supplied and th operating height for the bobbin exchange being comfortable. The width of the bobbin creel may correspond substantially to four ti es the distance from texturing position to texturing reaction so that four texturing units can be supplied. This arrangement is particularly space-saving.

The thread transfer device may advantageously be part of the bobbin -creel. In this manner, the thread ends can be clamped in the correspönding clamping means as bobbins are supplied to the bobbin creel, and when the bobbin creel is in the bobbin exchange position. Moreover, these thread ends pro- trude into the texturing unit when the bobbin creel is in its working position and are thus presented to the Operator in an easy to operate position for taking them off and threading them in into the elements of the texturing unit.

It is advantageous that the thread is taken through the tex¬ turing part in a very short path.

The winding apparatus may be arranged to transfer fully wound

and relatively heavy bobbin packages in a direction away from the operating side away from the winding apparatus so that the wound bobbin reaches the outer side of the machine in the shortest way without requiring manual transport. Furthermore, empty bobbin tubes can be moved from outside the machine into the readiness or serve position within the machine.

So e embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a simplified and semi-schematic cross-section of a false twist machine,

Fig. 2 is a simplified top view, along the line I-I of the false twist machine according to Fig lj

Fig. 3 illustrates a bobbin creel of the false twist machine according to Fig. 1 viewed from line II-II;

Fig. 4 illustrates details of the false twist machine accord¬ ing to Fig. 1 shown partially in cross-sectional view;

Fig. 5 illustrates the details according to Fig. 4 in a top view;

Fig. 6 illustrates an alternative embodiment of a part of the false twist machine according to Fig. 1.

Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2 a false twist machine, com- prises a bobbin creel 1, a texturing part 2, and a multi- tiered winding apparatus 4 above which are heat treatment zones 3. The bobbin creel 1, the texturing part 2 and the winding device 4 all are arranged on the same ground floor 5. An operating alley 6 with a walking passage 7 is provided between the texturing part 2 and the winding apparatus 4.

The texturing part 2, as an unit separate in itself, comprise a plurality of texturing units arranged side by side. Each texturing unit comprises a first supply device 8, a first hea treatment zone 9 provided as a part of the heat treatment zon

5 3, a cooling zone 10, a false twist device 11, a second suppl device 12, a further second heat treatment zone 13 provided a part of the heat treatment zone 3 and of a third supply devic 14. A thread deflecting device 15, and 15a respectively, is provided at the upper end of the heat treatment zone 9, and

10 13 respectively.

The texturing part 2 has an operating side 16 facing the operating alley 6 and an opposite back 17.

15 A thread transfer device 18 protrudes from the back 17 into the texturing part 2 (Figs. 1 to 5) at about mid-length of th texturing part 2. This thread transfer device 18 comprises a rail 19 (Figs. 5 and 6) mounted on the bobbin creel 1 (indic- ated symbolically in Figs. 4 and 5) and thread clamping means

20 20 therein (Figs. 1 to 5) . The clamping means 20 may, as show in Figs. 4 and 5, comprise a knob 21 on which is mounted a threaded bolt 23 which is guided in a bore 22 of the rail 19, a limiting nut 24 and a helical spring 25 on the threaded bol 23 and tensioned between the limiting nut 24 and the rail 19.

25

However, the thread transfer device 18, may also be mounted on the back 17 of the texturing part 2, rather than on the bobbin creel 1 (not shown) . This arrangement may, for example be chosen, if another type of bobbin creel is used, such as a

30 bobbin creel arranged in a plane above the texturing part.

The first supply device 8 is arranged in the texturing part 2 above, the false twist device 11. The second supply device 12 and the third supply device 14 are however, arranged below 35 the thread transfer device 18 in such a manner, in the

sequence mentioned, from the top down and from the back to the front, i.e. arranged staggered from the back 17 toward the ^• operating side 16 in such a manner that a thread portion 26a guided through the cooling zone 10 arranged between the first 5 heat treatment zone 9 and the false twist device 11 is located in front of the first supply device 8, and that a thread portion 26b, guided from the second supply device 12 into the second heat treatment zone 13 is located in front of said thread portion 26a, and the cooling zone 10 respectively, and

10 that a thread portion 26c guided from the second heat treat¬ ment zone 13 to the third supply device 14 is located in front of the last mentioned thread portion 26b.

The heat treatment zones 9 and 13 respectively, may have a

15 device, as äiown and described in our co-pending Swiss Patent Application No. 13.581/76, for threading in and placing a thermoplastic thread on heating devices (not shown) on textile machines, such as they are provided in the heat treatment zones 9 and 13 respectively. Using a device of this type it is

^" 20 possible to transfer a thread to be placed into a heat treat¬ ment zone to a mobile thread guide at the lower end of the zone, which mobile thread guide places the thread onto the heating device of the heat treatment zone as it lifts the thread.

25

The heat treatment zones 9 and 13 respectively, and the supply devices 8, 12 and 14 respectively, comprising, for example, a shaft/apron arrangement, correspond to the type of elements generally used for such purposes and are not therefore des-

30 cribed in ore detail herein. The false twist device 11 may, for example, commence to the false twist device described in our co-pending West-German Patent No. 2,609,808 and comprise a number of friction discs arranged on a shaft, thread guide elements being provided between the friction discs. Further-

35 ore, it is known, that on texturing machines processing an

undrawn or a partially drawn thread, the drawing process is . also integrated into the whole processing sequence. In such arrangements simultaneous and sequential drawing are distinct processing possibilities. For the texturing process itself, a well as for the simultaneous drawing process a shaft/apron arrangement 8a is sufficient as a supply device 8, whereas in sequential draw-texturing as shown in Fig. 1, the first suppl device 8 comprises the two shaft/apron arrangements 8a and 8b (indicated with dash-dotted lines) as drawing device.

Furthermore, the heat treatment after passage through the false twist device 11 can be dispensed with, if some types of thread are processed. In an alternative machine of this type, the heat treatment zone 13 and the supply device 14 are dis- pensed with, and the thread, as indicated with the thread portion 26d, is transferred directly from the supply device 1 to a thread deflecting device 27 of a type known as.such.

Furthermore, the winding apparatus 4 may comprise a superim- posed arrangement of winding devices 4a of a type known as suc on which the fully wound bobbin packages, as indicated in the lowest winding device tier (also called winder bank) , are moved to the outside of the winding device 4, opposite the operating alley 6. For each winder bank, a trough 37 extend- ing along the machine (parallel to the operating alley 6) , merging at the front of the machine, is provided for taking up the empty bobbin tubes 38. The empty bobbin tubes 38 are inserted from the front of the machine.

The thread 26, transported through the whole texturing unit, is taken in by the third supply device 14 and subsequently is guided via the thread deflecting device 27, which is located below the supply device 14 and lower than the walking passage 7, and is further guided through an oil application device 28 of a type known as such, arranged in the winding device 4

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substantially at the same height as the deflecting device 27, and subseguently is guided into the correspönding winding device 4a of the winding arrangement.

Instead of the thread deflecting device 27 arranged after the supply device 12, or 14 respectively, a thread Controlling and cutting device (not shown) of a type known as such, and in¬ stead of the oil application device a device correspönding to the thread deflecting device 27 may be used.

The. bobbin creel 1 comprises a base plate 30 moveable on the ground floor 5 in a direction at right angles to the texturing part 2 on wheels 29 mounted to the base plate 30, with two support members 31 and 32 respectively, arranged vertically on the base plate 30 and provided with four bobbin holders 33 each (Figs. 1 and 2) arranged at the same height. The bobbin holders 33 are arranged in such a manner that the rotational axes of the creel bobbins 34 extend substantially at right angles to the direction of movement F of the bobbin creel. Two adjacent bobbins placed on the bobbin holders 33 of the same height always form a pair of creel bobbins. In this arrange¬ ment, the tail end of the creel bobbin package to be unwound is connected in a known manner to the Start thread end of the reserve creel bobbin package (not shown) . The thread 26 to be unwound, i.e. four threads per bobbin creel, is taken off via a device to be described in the following, for continuously taking off a thread alternatingly from two creel bobbins ar¬ ranged parallel side by side in a creel, and is guided first upward through a thread guide 36 common for both bobbins and subseguently via deflecting means of a type known as such (not shown) is guided into a correspönding pig-tail 35 provided on the side of the bobbin creel 1 facing the texturing part (Figs. 4 and 5) , (indicated symbolically with a circle in Figs. 1 and 2) , and subsequently is guided into the thread clamping means 20 arranged opposite where the leading end of

the thread 26 is clamped and held.

The above mentioned device for continuously taking off a thread alternatingly from two creel bobbins arranged parallel in a bobbin creel substantially consists in that, seen in the thread take-off direction, in the extension of the bobbin axes in ^' front of each of the two bobbins a thread take-off opening and for both bobbins the common thread guide 36 are provided. The leading thread end of the bobbin to be unwound is guided through the coordinated thread take-off opening and then through the thread guide 36 via the deflecting elements men¬ tioned, and _, is guided through the correspönding pig-tail 35 to the thread clamping means 20, where it is held clamped until it is taken in into the texturing unit. The leading end of the creel bobbin held in reserve is guided on one hand through the thread take-off opening coordinated to this_ bobbin and on the other hand is guided, in the direction towards the bobbin, through the thread take-off opening of the bobbin to be un¬ wound, and is tied to the thread tail end of this bobbin. As the bobbin package is unwound completely, the loop formed by the ^' two tied thread ends glides through the thread take-off opening and the unwinding of the bobbin package held in re¬ serve thus far begins. This sequehce repeats itself alternat¬ ingly.

Furthermore the bobbin creels 1 are moved into a bobbin change position indicated in Figs. 1 and 2 with dash-dotted lines for supplying the bobbin creels 1 with bobbin packages 34 and for guiding the threads 26 to the thread transfer device 18.

The same process is effected if during Operation of the tex¬ turing machine one or a plurality of empty bobbins are to be replaced in a bobbin creel 1. The movement of the bobbin creel 1 is effected, for avoiding undue changes in thread tension between the bobbin 34 and the first supply device 8, at a

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correspondingly adapted speed.

For starting up the texturing machine the bobbin creels 1 are moved into their working position after all four threads 26 are clamped and held in the thread transfer device 18, in such a manner that the thread transfer device 18 is brought into its position, mentioned earlier, below the first supply device 8.

The width B (Fig. 3) of the "bobbin creel 1 corresponds sub¬ stantially to four times the gauge "t" (Fig. 2) . The gauge t. in turn corresponds to the distance between two texturing units. On the other hand, four winding devices 4a arranged side by side corre.spond substantially to twelve gauges t .

In Fig. 6 an illustration is given, that the staggered arran¬ gement of the thread paths 26a to 26c in front of the thread path between the first supply device and the first heat treat¬ ment zone can be achieved also, in analoguous manner, if the heat treatment zones are arranged side by side (in longitudin¬ al direction along the machine) which is often used in prac- tical application. In this arrangement the thread deflecting means 27a provided below the heat treatment zones 3a also are arranged side by side (not shown) in longitudinal direction along the machine. All other elements correspond to the ele¬ ments shown in Fig . and are therefore not designated again. The transporting belts 39 for taking up the füll bobbins, form an exception, as they are applied instead of the take-up grids 40 (Fig. 1) of the embodiment according to Fig. 1. If the transporting belts 39 are used, it is possible to dis- pense with a walking alley for carrying off the füll bobbin.