The present invention relates to guards for a cutting machine and in particular to guards for a fabric cutting machine, especially a machine having a straight reciprocating blade, commonly known as a straight knife.

Fabric cutting machines such as straight knives and machines having a rotatable blade ("band knife") are extremely dangerous. The blades are razor sharp and, when moving the machine to cut fabric sheets, an operator's hands must come into close proximity with the blade, thereby increasing the likelihood of serious injury.

It is known to protect an operator's hands from contact with a fabric cutting blade by means of a pair of gloves formed from chain mail. However, the gloves are far from satisfactory. Firstly, it is possible for an operator's gloved fingers to slip under the end of a reciprocating straight knife. As the blade moves downwards it will slice through or crush the gloved fingers. Secondly, wearing a metal chain mail glove greatly reduces the dexterity of an operator and thereby increases the risk of an accident. Thirdly, as the chain mail gloves are slippery, it is difficult for an operator to grip the handle of the cutting machine or any other objects. Again, this increases the risk of an accident. Another problem is that one size of glove will not fit all operators' hands properly. Whilst it is of course possible to stock a range of chain mail glove sizes, it is expensive.

Whilst operators are required to wear the above gloves when operating fabric cutting machines, in practice they often choose not to do so because the above problems significantly reduce their efficiency. Clearly, the present means of protection for fabric cutting machine operators is

unsatisfactory. However, despite the longstanding problem of serious injury, even to operators wearing the approved chain mail gloves, no practical solution has emerged.

The present invention aims to overcome or substantially mitigate the above and other problems.

According to the invention there is provided a guard for a cutting machine having an elongate blade, which guard comprises: a flexible band adjacent to the elongate blade, the band shielding a cutting edge of the blade, the band being arranged along the side of the blade so as to militate against a hand moving inwards towards the blade from contacting the cutting edge of the blade directly.

Preferably the band is arranged at an oblique angle to the plane of the blade, that is, the horizontal plane of the band is preferably not parallel with the horizontal plane of the blade. First and second edges of the band are spaced apart from the plane of the blade by different distances, with the second edge being farthest from the plane of the blade. Conveniently the band is arranged at an angle of approximately 30 degrees to the plane of the blade.

Advantageously the guard extends from ahead of or adjacent the front edge of the blade, back to the stem against which the blade is mounted. Preferably the guard extends back along the side of the stem.

Advantageously the band is arranged so that, if the band is deflected towards the blade, the band will contact the stem before further deflection causes it to contact the blade. Preferably the band is arranged so that if

it is deflected against the blade it will contact the blade at an angle that is not at right angles to the plane of the blade, that is, the band is angled along the side of the blade, from an angle of 0° to less than 90° to the plane of the blade.

Preferably, the band is mounted in association with the cutting machine under tension. This is advantageous because the tension will bias the band into its undeflected position, adjacent to the blade, in opposition to any force of deflection against the band and towards the blade. Such a deflection force could arise if a hand of an operator or another object slips against the band, that is, moves radially towards the blade. Preferably, the tension of the mounted band can be adjusted. Conveniently the band is mounted in association with the machine by a fitting comprising adjustable screws connected to tension springs.

The flexible band is made from a material which is resistant to the cutting action of the blade. Preferably the flexible band comprises a metal chain. A particularly preferred band is formed from metal and comprises first and second edges made from two chains separated by a plurality of cross-bars. Steel is a preferred material for forming the chains. Such a band cannot be cut by the blade and has the further advantage that one can see through the links in the chain. Hence the chain does not significantly obstruct an operator's view of the cutting edge of the blade which is desirable because such obstruction could make accurate cutting of fabric difficult.

Preferably a first end of the band is fixed to the body of the cutting machine and a second end is fixed to the foot of the guard rod which forms part of a typical fabric cutting machine. The guard rod is arranged for reciprocating movement on the machine to raise and lower the foot as

required for cutting different thicknesses of fabric.

Advantageously the foot of the guard rod has a larger recess than is usual in the prior art machines and the band is fixed to the foot across at least a part of the recess.

Advantageously there is further provided a stabilising hook to link the band to the guard rod to restrict movement of the band.

The guard rod normally falls under gravity into a down position at the front of the blade. Preferably resilient means such as a spring is provided for urging the guard rod into the down position. This is preferred because in use, a build up of dust and dirt can cause the guard rod to stick, leaving the cutting edge dangerously exposed. Provision of resilient means will overcome any sticking force so die guard rod can move to the safer down position.

Preferably the fitting of the band to the cutting machine is releasable so that the band can be removed for easy cleaning of the machine and/or band.

Preferably the flexible band is urged adjacent to the cutting edge of the blade by one or more deflectors. The deflectors conveniently comprise one or more rollers each rotatable about a shaft. Preferably the deflectors are mounted to me cutting machine by means of a releasable bracket.

Whilst the use of a single guard band affords excellent safety, it may be desirable to fit a second band on the opposite side of the blade. This prevents a hand or other object from moving inwards towards the blade from either side of the plane of the blade and from contacting the cutting

edge of the blade directly.

A cutting machine fitted with two bands may find particular utility if the cutting machine is to be used by both right and left-handed operators.

Sometimes, however, even with this guard, the blade is still exposed before the guard operates and at the end of a lay when the fabric passes through the machine.

Some protection is provided by a guard rod which forms part of a typical fabric cutting machine. The guard rod is attached to a foot that rests on the fabric during a cutting operation and is arranged for reciprocating movement on the machine to raise and lower the foot as required for cutting different thicknesses of fabric.

Occasionally, during use, the foot may occasionally be deflected upwards, leaving room for an operator's hand to fit through, which may then potentially come into contact with the exposed cutting blade.

A further time of potential danger occurs at the end of a lay when the fabric has passed through and the blade is exposed before the main guard drops into position.

The invention further provides an auxiliary guard for a cutting machine having an elongate blade, a first guard rod and a main foot located at the base of the first guard rod, which auxiliary guard comprises: a second guard rod and a hopping foot, the hopping foot being located at the base of me second guard rod and in front of the main foot and being mounted for downward movement independent of the main foot.

Advantageously the hopping foot and the second guard rod are arranged to be raised in conjunction with the main foot and the first guard rod.

Advantageously the hopping foot is mounted on the second guard rod by mounting means. The second guard rod may extend below the hopping foot mounting means.

Advantageously the hopping foot extends under the forward end of the main foot.

Preferably the second guard rod is mounted to the cutting machine by brackets attached to the cutting machine and through which the second guard rod may move vertically. Advantageously the brackets are mounted on the body of the cutting machine and on the main foot. The second guard rod may advantageously have non-circular cross-section, for example a square cross-section, to prevent rotation of the guard rod during use.

The hopping foot rides over me fabric along with the main foot but drops independently of the main foot. Thus, if the main foot is deflected upwards the hopping foot remains down and when the end of a lay is reached and the fabric has passed through the machine, the fabric passes from under the hopping foot, which drops down, before it passes from under the main foot. Thus, the second guard rod provides protection from the blade by dropping down before the blade is exposed, thereby ensuring that the blade is not accessible to an operator's hand moving with the fabric.

Advantageously the second guard rod and hopping foot may be used in conjunction with a guard comprising a flexible band adjacent to the

elongate blade, the band shielding a cutting edge of the blade and being arranged along the side of the blade so as to militate against a hand moving inwards towards the blade from contacting the cutting edge of the blade directly.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of non-limiting example in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of a preferred guard of the invention fitted to a straight knife fabric cutting machine; Figure 2a is a partial section on the line X-X' of Figure 1 showing the attitude of the flexible band in relation to the plane of the blade;

Figure 2b shows an alternative arrangement of the hopper foot as shown in Figure 2a;

Figure 3 is a side view of an auxiliary guard of the invention fitted to a straight knife fabric cutting machine;

Figure 4 is a side view of a straight knife cutting machine fitted with a chain guard and an auxiliary guard to the present invention;

Figures 5a and 5b show an alternative arrangement of the hopping foot during operation of the cutting machine and at the end of a lay, respectively; and

Figures 6a and 6b show an alternative arrangement of the hopping foot.

As shown in Figure 1 , a preferred guard of the invention can be fitted to a conventional "straight knife" fabric cutting machine. The conventional straight knife comprises a machine body 1 mounted on a footplate 2 by a leg 3. An elongate blade 4 is mounted for reciprocating movement relative to the leg and has a cutting edge 5.

The conventional straight knife machine further comprises a guard rod 6

(partially shown for clarity) which terminates in a guard rod foot 7 and is mounted for reciprocating movement on the machine so that the foot, which stands on top of the fabric to be cut in use, can be raised or lowered as required to allow different thicknesses of fabric to be pushed against the blade edge and cut.

The preferred guard of the invention is a flexible band 8 comprising a steel chain assembly in the form of two chains 9 separated by a plurality of cross bars 10.

An end of the band is fixed to the foot of the guard rod by linkage retaining brackets 11. The other end of the band is fitted to the body of the machine by means of a bracket arm 12 attached to the machine body 1.

In the preferred embodiment shown, the chain is fastened to the bracket by an intermediate member 13 which is preferably made of a flexible material such as nylon fabric. The intermediate member 13 is conveniently attached to the bracket 12 by one or more screws 14 which are preferably connected to a tension adjuster 15 for adjusting the tension of the flexible band 8. The tension adjuster 15 conveniently comprises one or more tension springs 16 connected to one or more adjustable screws 17 by a tension adjuster plate 18 as shown in Figure 1. Alternatively the attachment and tensioner could comprise a cleat and drawstring arrangement.

The preferred attitude of the band 8 relative to the plane P-P' of me blade 4 is shown in Figure 2a.

Figure 2b shows an alternative arrangement in which the guard rod foot

7 has an enlarged recess 7a. The flexible band 8 extends across the recess 7a. This arrangement allows improved visibility of the cutting operation for the user.

The body 1 of a typical straight knife machine is bulbous and, to ensure that the band shields the cutting edge 5 of the blade 4 over its exposed length, one or more deflectors are arranged to deflect the band 8 close to the blade 4.

As shown in Figure 1, in the preferred embodiment the deflectors 19 comprise two rollers 20 each rotatable on a shaft 19a attached to a bracket which can be fitted releasably to the cutting machine, conveniently by mounting on a conventional blade sharpener 21. Preferably the position of the roller shafts 19a is adjustable to provide a further or alternative means of adjusting the tension of the band. This is preferably achieved by mounting each roller shaft 19a to an arm 22 on the bracket. The arms can be moved apart or brought together to vary the roller positions. The arms can also be moved to allow easy access to the blade sharpener 21 for cleaning.

As shown, a roller 20 is arranged on either side of the band 8. In the preferred embodiment the diameter of the edges 9 of the chain is greater than that of the crossbars so that the cross-section of the chain is substantially H-shaped. The rollers are dimensioned to fit within the opposed open channels of the H-shaped chain 8. This is preferable because it prevents lateral movement of the band relative to the blade.

A stabilising hook (not shown) may be added to link the band 8 to the guard rod 6 to restrict further any movement of the band 8.

OPERATION

In use, the foot 7 of the guard rod 6 is raised to admit fabric sheeting to be cut. The cutting machine is switched on and the blade 4 moves up and down.

An operator holds the handle 23 of the cutting machine with one hand and places the other free hand on the fabric sheeting. The blade 4 is pushed and steered along the desired line to cut the fabric sheeting into a desired shape.

As the cutting machine is quite heavy it is relatively easy for its movement to get out of control and towards the free hand on the fabric.

With a conventional machine, fmgers of the free hand can move radially inwards towards the blade 4 and can fit between the guard rod 6 and the cutting edge 5 of the blade 4. If the fingers contact the cutting edge 5 of the blade they can easily be severed from the hand or be lacerated. However, the arrangement of the band 8 according to the guard of the invention ensures that fmgers of the free hand cannot move radially inwards from one side towards the blade and contact the cutting edge 5 directly. This is because the fmgers of the free hand will first contact the band 8 and, if sufficiently forceful, push the band 8 against the cutting edge, which is harmless, the band 8 acting as a protective barrier to prevent injury. Thus the band 8 will prevent a hand from contacting the cutting edge 5, in normal circumstances.

As mentioned previously, the tension of the band 8 can be increased as desired to increase the force required to push the band against the cutting edge of the blade.

When the cutting machine has cut through a piece of fabric the guard rod 6 normally falls under gravity against the footplate 2 of the cutting machine so that the cutting edge 5 of the blade 4 is not exposed along any of its length. However, the guard rod 6 can stick and to prevent this a return spring (not shown) is preferably provided to resiliently urge the foot of the guard rod against the footplate.

Preferably both sides of the blade 4 are shielded by a guard of the invention. This makes the machine operable interchangeably by right and left-handed operators.

In a preferred further embodiment, a pair of guards of me invention are fitted to the machine with one guard on each side of the blade to prevent hands placed on the fabric to be cut from moving radially inwards towards the cutting edge of the blade.

The guard rod of the invention has a further advantage in that it can provide protection for a range of blade lengths. A new blade, for example, is longer than a blade that has been sharpened several times and in nearing the end of its usable life. In contrast to some prior art devices that are arranged at the front of the blade, the present invention provides protection whatever the extent of the blade.

The flexible band 8 can easily be moved, for example by moving the rollers 20, to allow the blade to be sharpened by conventional shaφening means.

According to a further embodiment of the invention (not shown), a guard is provided for shielding the blade of a band knife cutting machine in which the blade comprises a rotatable band.

A conventional band knife machine may include a guard rod and foot as described for the straight knife machine but the machine has a fixed position. In use, fabric sheeting to be cut is pushed against the cutting edge of the blade.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4 an auxiliary guard of the invention can be fitted to a conventional "straight knife" fabric cutting machine. The conventional straight knife comprises a machine body 1 mounted on a footplate 2 by a leg 3. An elongate blade 4 is mounted for reciprocating movement relative to the leg and has a cutting edge 5.

The conventional straight knife machine further comprises a guard rod 6 (partially shown in Figure 3 for clarity) which teπninates in a main guard rod foot 7 and is mounted for reciprocating movement on the machine so that the foot, which stands on top of the fabric to be cut in use, can be raised or lowered as required to allow different thicknesses of fabric to be pushed against the blade edge and cut.

The auxiliary guard of the invention comprises a second guard rod 108 and a hopping foot 109 arranged in front of the main foot 7 and first guard rod 6, ahead of the cutting blade 5. Advantageously the auxiliary guard is arranged about 5-7cm ahead of the cutting blade 5.

The second guard rod 108 comprises a rigid rod of square cross-section, mounted to the body of the cutting machine 1 and the main foot 7 by brackets 110,111. The brackets allow the rod 108 to move freely in a vertical direction but prevent it from rotating or moving in a lateral direction. The hopping foot 109 extends under the main foot 7. In a conventional cutting machine the first guard rod 6 and the main foot 7 are arranged to be raised by an operator-activated trigger mechanism. In the

present invention, the auxiliary guard has a lifting handle 112 and the conventional trigger mechanism (not shown) is used to raise the second guard rod 108 and hopping foot 109 of the auxiliary guard in conjunction with the first guard rod 6 and the main foot 7.

OPERATION

In use, the hopping foot 109 of guard rod 108 and the main foot 7 of the guard rod 6 are raised to admit fabric sheeting to be cut. The cutting machine is switched on and the blade 4 moves up and down.

An operator holds the handle 113 of the cutting machine with one hand and places the other free hand on the fabric sheeting. The blade 4 is pushed and steered along the desired line to cut the fabric sheeting into a desired shape.

As the cutting machine is quite heavy it is relatively easy for its movement to get out of control and towards the free hand on the fabric.

With a conventional machine, fingers of me free hand can move radially inwards towards the blade 4 and can fit between the guard rod 6 and the cutting edge 5 of die blade 4. If the fingers contact the cutting edge 5 of me blade they can easily be severed from the hand or be lacerated. However, the arrangement of a band 8 as described above ensures mat fmgers of the free hand cannot move radially inwards from one side towards the blade and contact the cutting edge 5 directly. This is because the fingers of the free hand will first contact the band 8 and, if sufficiently forceful, push the band 8 against me cutting edge, which is harmless, the band 8 acting as a protective barrier to prevent injury. Thus the band 8 will prevent a hand from contacting the cutting edge 5, in normal

circumstances.

When the cutting machine has cut through a piece of fabric the guard rod 6 normally falls under gravity against the footplate 2 of the cutting machine so that the cutting edge 5 of the blade 4 is not exposed along any of its length. However, the guard rod 6 can stick leaving the blade 4 exposed.

It is also possible for the main foot 7 to jump up during use.

The hopping foot 109 of the auxiliary guard of the invention is free to move up and down. It is positioned well ahead of the cutting blade 5 and as the fabric passes through the hopping foot 109 drops to the foot plate 2, providing protection in the interval before the main foot 7 drops and, also, provides protection in the event that the main foot 7 sticks in a raised position.

The hopping foot 109 rides loosely on the fabric during cutting so provides protection even if the main foot 7 is raised unexpectedly.

After use, boώ the first and second guard rods 6,108 are raised together by the lifting handle 112.

Figures 5a and 5b show an alternative arrangement of the auxiliary guard of the invention. The hopping foot 109 is mounted to the second guard rod 108 by mounting means 115 at a position above the end of the second guard rod 108. The hopping foot 109 comprises a bent arm 116 and a foot section 117. The foot section 117 rests against a cut out section 118 of the main foot 7. The second guard rod 108 is held slightly higher than the main foot 7 and the hopping foot 109 in use so that it does not drag

on the fabric being cut. This arrangement enables the fabric to be trimmed without the hopping foot 109 dropping down unexpectedly.

Figures 6a and 6b show an alternative arrangement of the auxiliary guard shown in Figures 5a and 5b. In this arrangement a block of aluminium 119 is mounted on the hopping foot 109. A pin 120 on the block 119 locates in a corresponding hole 121 in the bracket arm 111 to hold the hopper foot 109 in position relative to the main foot 7.

The guards of the invention can be provided as part of a cutting machine or can be fitted to existing machines without difficulty. Although particularly suited for use on fabric cutting machines, it will be appreciated that the guards of me invention find utility in guarding the cutting edge of blades on a variety of cutting machines.

Preferred examples of known fabric cutting machines which have utility according to the invention include the straight knife machines sold by the companies Eastman, Lightning of Australia and KM of Japan. These machines have reciprocating blades sizes ranging from 5 to 14 inches (13 to 36 cms).