Tufting machine

Abstract

A tufting machine of novel structure which can produce a pile fabric mixing both a cut pile and a loop pile through a simple arrangement. Means for displacing a finger plate in the piercing direction of a needle through a foundation are provided so that the capturing state of a loop formed on the surface of the foundation by a looper can be released by displacing the finger plate to the surface side of the foundation. A loop captured by the loop is cut into a cut pile by means of a knife, and the released loop is not cut but becomes a loop pile.

1 . A tufting machine in which a foundation fed in one direction by reel-out rollers is supported from a front side by a finger plate while a needle threaded with a pile yarn is punched through a foundation from a back side so that the pile yarn is punched through the foundation; using a looper whose free end faces opposite the feed direction of the foundation and adapted to undergo oscillating displacement alternately closer to and further away from the needle, the pile which has been punched through the foundation is captured to form a loop; and the loop which has been captured by the looper is then cut by a knife adapted to undergo relative displacement with respect to the looper, the tufting machine comprising:
 displacing means for displacing the finger plate in a piercing direction of the needle through the foundation; and the loop is releaseable from the captured state by the looper as the finger plate undergoes displacement by the displacing means to allow displacement thereof towards the front side of the foundation.   
   
   
       2 . The tufting machine according to  claim 1 , wherein the displacing means comprises a rotational mechanism enabling oscillating rotational displacement of the finger plate about a rotation axis extending in the width direction at the front side of the foundation, and a rotation amount adjustment mechanism adapted to adjust the amount of oscillating rotational displacement of the finger plate by the rotational mechanism. 
   
   
       3 . The tufting machine according to  claim 2 , wherein the rotational mechanism comprises a hinge mechanism and the rotation amount adjustment mechanism comprises a cylinder mechanism. 
   
   
       4 . The tufting machine according to  claim 1 , wherein the finger plate is split in a width direction of the foundation, with the split finger plates being individually furnished with the displacing means so that the individual finger plates independently undergo displacement in the piercing direction of the needle. 
   
   
       5 . The tufting machine according to  claim 1  further comprising a yarn delivery apparatus that includes a plurality of rolls rotated at mutually different speeds, idle wheel units provided as a pair with the rolls and including an idle wheel adapted to alternately contact and separate from the roll while reeling out the pile yarn between the roll and the unit, and a control unit adapted to alternately move the idle wheel units closer to and away from the rolls.