"Axial opener"

[001] The present invention relates to an axial opener for the treatment of fibres in tufts.

[002] As is known, to obtain a textile yarn from a fibre, multiple processing treatments of the fibre are required to free it of impurities and dirt, align the fibres and draw them. Such treatments produce a fibre web, subsequently processed, for example on a drawing machine, to obtain a yarn.

[003] The treatments are performed on different machines, in that, to obtain best results, they need to be repeated a number of times in an increasingly thorough manner.

[004] In particular, on an exemplary fibre processing line, the fibres are picked from bales by a picker, so as to obtain tufts transported by currents of air.

[005] The fibre in tufts is subsequently treated in a device for removing impurities, such as stones or non- ferrous materials mixed with the tufts, before passing to an axial opener, where the tufts undergo a first opening of the fibre and a first separation from the impurities.

[006] Subsequently, the fibres undergo further cleaning, alignment and drawing operations on horizontal openers and carding machines to obtain the fibre web.

[007] Currently, the need is strongly felt to make a fibre processing line able to process increasingly large quantities of fibre.

[008] However, to increase the quantities of fibre which can be processed it is not efficient to design new machines of a proportionally greater size in terms of working width, diameter or length of the opening beaters, or to increase the number of machines since this would lead to considerable technological and construction difficulties in the construction of the same, in lay-out as a consequence of their size and to drawbacks in the quality of the tuft processed.

[009] The design of the axial opener proves particularly important in that it is the first machine on the processing line, where the fibre in tufts is opened and liberated of its coarser impurities.

[0010] The condition in which the fibre in tufts leaves the axial opener significantly influences the efficacy of the treatments performed downline of said opener.

[0011] In particular, it has been observed how if large quantities of fibre are fed to the opener the outgoing fibre tufts still contain impurities and are very entangled, in an unsatisfactory condition for good results from the further treatments downline. It has been observed, at the same time, that the outgoing tufts do not have homogeneous physical characteristics when large quantities are used.

[0012] Vice versa, it has been seen that smaller quantities of fibres in the openers gives better quality of the tufts processed, which ^' also have homogeneous characteristics.

[0013] The purpose of the present invention is to make an axial opener for a fibre processing line able to overcome the drawbacks of the known art and to satisfy the above requirements, especially to process large quantities of fibre while maintaining high quality and homogeneous characteristics of the processed tufts.

[0014] Such purpose is achieved by an opener made according to claim 1 below. The dependent claims describe embodiment variations.

[0015] The characteristics and advantages of the opener according to the invention will be evident from the description below, made by way of a non-limiting example according to the attached figures, wherein:

[0016] - figure 1 shows a longitudinal, lateral cross section of an opener according to one embodiment variation of the present invention;

[0017] - figure 2a shows a view from above of the opener in figure 1;

[0018] - figure 2b shows a view from above of the opener according to the present invention, according to one embodiment variation;

[0019] - figure 3 shows a transversal cross section of the opener in figure 1, along the section line III-III in figure 2;

[0020] - figure 4 shows a transversal cross section of the opener in figure 1, along the section line IV-V in figure

2;

[0021] - figure 5 shows a longitudinal lateral cross section of an opener according to a further embodiment variation of the present invention;

[0022] - figure 6 shows a transversal cross section of the opener in figure 5, along the section line VI-VII in figure 5; and

[0023] - figure 7 shows a longitudinal lateral cross section of an opener according to a further embodiment variation of the present invention.

[0024] With reference to the attached drawings, reference numeral 1 globally denotes an assembly for the treatment of fibres in tufts, constituting a part of a fibre processing line.

[0025] The assembly shown comprises a feed pipe 2 for the transport of the fibre F to be processed, for example coming from a picker.

[0026] According to one embodiment variation, the assembly 1 comprises two separate feed pipes 2a, 2b (figure 2b) . [0027] The assembly comprises a feed device 4 suitable for separating the dusty air from the fibre. For example, the fibre F to be processed is transported by the device 4 through a suction effect exerted by a fan 5 housed in said device 4. An air expulsion pipe 6 protrudes from the device 4 for the release of the dusty air A sucked in.

[0028] According to one embodiment variation, the fan is housed externally to the device 4.

[0029] Furthermore, the assembly 1 comprises an axial opener 8, positioned downline of the feed device 4, ^' comprising an input pipe 10 which connects it to said feed device 4.

[0030] The input pipe 10 extends mainly along an input axis X, positioned substantially vertical to a ground plane T which the opener lies on.

[0031] Preferably, the opener 8 comprises a box-like casing 12, towards which the input pipe 10 transports the fibre to be processed.

[0032] According to a preferred embodiment, the input pipe 10 comprises an initial section 14 of decreasing cross- section, for example linearly upline to downline, in other words, in the assembly shown, from the feed device 4 towards the casing 12 of the opener.

[0033] The opener comprises a first opener roller 16, housed in a first compartment 18, motorised and rotatable around a first rotation axis Y.

[0034] The first roller 16 is provided with first opening means distributed along its lateral surface, suitable for entangling the tufts to open them when pulled.

[0035] For example, said opening means comprise a plurality of pegs 20, projecting from the lateral surface of the roller, in a rectilinear, broken or ramified direction to have multiple points.

[0036] Preferably, the pegs 20 are positioned along an imaginary helicoidal line traced around the lateral surface of the roller.

[0037] The opener 8 comprises, in addition, a second opener roller 22, housed in a second compartment 24, motorised and rotatable around a substantially parallel second rotation axis Z and, for example, coplanar to a horizontal plane (in relation to the ground plane T) passing through the rotation axis Y of the first roller 16.

[0038] The second roller 22 is provided with second opening means distributed along its lateral surface, for example structurally and functionally similar to the opening means described above.

[0039] The input pipe 10 feeds the fibre to be processed F to the first 18 and second compartment 24, contemporaneously. [0040] Downline of the two opener rollers 16, 22, the two compartments 18, 24 join or feed a communal, intermediate compartment .

[0041] In addition, the opener 8 comprises a single exit pipe 30, which extends from where the two compartments 18, 24 join or from the communal intermediate compartment .

[0042] Preferably, in addition, the assembly 1 comprises a fan to which the exit pipe 30 is connected, to suck the fibre being processed through the compartments 18, 24, from the input pipe 10 towards the exit pipe 30.

[0043] The opener 8 comprises, in addition, separating means, partially positioned upline of the cleaner rollers, suitable for separating the flow of fibres to be processed F and direct it towards the first compartment 18 and towards the second compartment 24 of the opener 8.

[0044] For example, the separating means comprise a separation wall 42, having a free side facing or in the input pipe 10, on the incoming side of the fibre to be processed and separated so as to form two separate passages of the fibre towards the two compartments 18, 24 of the opener 8.

[0045] According to one embodiment variation, the separation wall 42 extends partially into the input pipe 10, to separate the fibre before this reaches the compartments 18, 24 where the opener rollers 16, 22 are housed.

[0046] The separation wall 42, in addition, extends along the rotation axis Y, Z of the rollers 16, 22, so as to keep the first compartment 18 separate from the second compartment 24. The fibre to be processed F is thereby separated into two flows to be processed, separately processed by the first roller 16 and by the second roller 22, without mutual interference.

[0047] The processed fibre is reunited downline of the two opener rollers and is sent for subsequent processing through the exit pipe 30.

[0048] In yet other terms, according to said embodiment, the separation wall 42 comprises two portions:

[0049] - a longitudinal portion 42a which extends along the rotation axis Y, Z of the rollers 16, 22, to separate the first compartment 18 from the second compartment 24; and [0050] - an axial portion 42b which goes back along the input pipe 10, that is in the direction of the incoming fibre F, to separate the two flows before they reach the opener rollers.

[0051] According to a further embodiment variation (figure 7), the separation wall 42 extends solely downline of the input pipe, without penetrating it; in other words, according to said embodiment, the side of the separation wall 42 is positioned at the end of the input pipe 10.

[0052] In yet other terms, in said embodiment variation, the separation wall 42 comprises solely the longitudinal portion 42a, without any bosses going back up the input pipe 10 in the direction of the incoming fibre F.

[0053] According to yet a further embodiment variation

(figure 5), the separation wall 42 extends with its axial portion 42b all along the input pipe 10, even protruding out of it, on the side connected to the feed device 4; in other words, according to such embodiment, the side of the separation wall 42 extends as far as the roller of the feed device 4.

[0054] According to a further embodiment variation, the separating means comprise a blower device 46 suitable for blowing air to deviate the incoming flow of tufts towards the first and the second compartment.

[0055] Preferably, the blower device 46 has air exit holes positioned along the side facing the incoming flow of fibres.

[0056] For example, in the embodiment with an axial portion 42b of the separation wall 42, the holes are positioned along the free side of the axial portion, facing the incoming flow of fibre.

[0057] According to a preferred embodiment, the opener 8 comprises cleaning means suitable to cooperate with a respective roller 16, 22 to separate impurities from the fibres being processed.

[0058] For example, the cleaning means comprise a grid 50 which extends in an arch around its respective cleaning roller 16, 22 along said rotation axis Y, Z, in the area below this in the direction of the force of gravity.

[0059] In other words, the grids 50 are positioned under the rollers 16, 22, so that by centrifugal force and reciprocal collision of the fibres, impurities such as husks are separated from the tufts being processed.

[0060] Preferably, the grids 50 are adjustable, so as to enable adjustment according to the type and degree of dirt of the fibre to be processed.

[0061] The impurities separated from the fibre are removed from the opener by appropriate conveyance and transport devices of the accumulated impurities.

[0062] During normal functioning of the fibre processing line, the fibre to be processed F, in other words the fibre in tufts still considerably dirty and mixed with impurities, is transported, for example aspirated, towards the feed device 4, where the small impurities and dust are separated by collision

[0063] The fibre to be processed F is then sent to the input pipe 10 which contemporaneously feeds the two compartments 18, 24, separating the flow of fibre into two flows, each processed by an opener roller.

[0064] Specifically, the flow of fibre is divided between the two compartments by deviator means, for example functioning with a jet of air.

[0065] The separation, which is performed downline of the separator device, takes place in fact in a section in which the fibre is already evenly spread over the width of the feed pipe to the rollers and in which the speed of the flow is low, helped by the force of gravity.

[0066] Advantageously this makes the separation less influenced by agents such as the high speed of the flow or different suction powers, which might otherwise cause one compartment to fill more or less than the other, as happens in T or Y separators positioned along the feed pipes to the machines.

[0067] This way, each opener roller processes about half of the total fibres being treated on the processing line, advantageously minimising the quantity of fibre processed in the individual compartments and the differences in the degree of processing of the two flows of fibre, with excellent quality results of the processing performed and of the homogeneity of the tufts.

[0068] It has, in fact, been observed that the tufts processed are opened better as well as cleaned of impurities better when they do not submerge the opener roller.

[0069] In the compartments, the tufts entangled on the pegs of the opening means tend to pass from one peg to another, progressively moving towards the exit, for example by air suction, undergoing a sort of unravelling which opens the tufts.

[0070] In addition, the tufts dragged in rotation collide against the grid 50, so as to cause the separation of further impurities such as husks.

[0071] The effect of the grids too is more effective, both because performed on tufts opened better by the rollers, and because the grids find themselves processing substantially similar quantities of tufts without being submerged or having to process quantities which are too small .

[0072] Only downline of the rollers do the two flows of processed tufts F ¹ join up again, mixing together.

[0073] The tufts coming from the two opener rollers, opened better than if they had been processed by a single roller, mix better downline of the opener, just as the subsequent cleaning operations, more intense than those performed in the axial opener, prove more effective.

[0074] Innovatively, the opener according to the present invention resolves the drawbacks of the known art inasmuch as it renders unnecessary the design of openers for large quantities of fibre difficult to construct and unacceptably large while also enabling high quality, uniformly processed fibre tufts to be obtained.

[0075] At the same time, the opener according to the present invention makes it possible to reduce construction costs compared to constructing two independent fibre processing lines.

[0076] In fact, the opener according to the present invention makes it possible to concentrate in a single machine the salient treatments, high technological and important for the quality of the fibre, dividing the flow of fibre to achieve high quality, while the transport of the fibre between the various machines occurs for the entire flow of fibre in a single pipe.

[0077] A person skilled in the art may make numerous variations and modifications to the opener described above so as to satisfy contingent and specific requirements, while remaining within the sphere of protection as defined by the appended claims.