Method of and apparatus for forming strands of filaments

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR FORMING CONTINUOUS FILAMENTS FROM HEAT-SOFTENED MINERAL MATERIAL INCLUDING, IN COMBINATION, A FEEDER ADAPTED TO CONTAIN A SUPPLY OF THE HEAT-SOFTENED MINERAL MATERIAL, SAID FEEDER BEING OF ELONGATED RECTANGULAR SHAPE AND HAVING A BOTTOM WALL PROVIDED WITH GROUPS OF ROWS OF DEPENDING PROJECTIONS, THE SAID PROJECTIONS BEING FORMED WITH ORIFICES OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM SIZE THROUGH WHICH FLOW STREAMS OF THE MATERIAL, EACH GROUP COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF ROWS OF THE DEPENDING PROJECTIONS EXTENDING LENGTHWISE OF THE FEEDER WHEREIN THE ROWS OF THE GROUPS ARE ARRANGED IN CLOSELY ADJACENT RELATION WHEREBY TO MINIMIZE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENTIALS IN THE MINERAL MATERIAL OF THE STREAMS, SAID GROUPS OF ROWS OF PROJECTIONS BEING DISPOSED AT EACH SIDE OF A MEDIAN PLANE LENGTHWISE OF THE FEEDER, THE TRANSVERSE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE INNERMOST ROWS OF EACH GROUP BEING SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN THE TRANSVERSE DISTANCE BETWEEN ADJACENT ROWS OF PROJECTIONS OF EACH GROUP, A PAIR OF ROTATABLE COLLECTING SURFACES UPON WHICH STRANDS OF FILAMENTS FORMED FROM THE RESPECTIVE GROUPS OF STREAMS ARE SIMULTANEOUSLY WOUND TO ATTENUATE THE STREAMS TO FILAMENTS WHEREBY TO FORM TWO PACKAGES OF STRANDS HAVING THE SAME YARDAGE IN EACH PACKAGE, GUIDE MEANS INDIVIDUAL TO EACH GROUPS OF FILAMENTS FOR CONVERGING EACH GROUP OF FILAMENTS INTO A STRAND WHEREIN THE CONVERGING FILAMENTS OF THE GROUPS ARE ARRANGED IN OVERLAPPING RELATION TRANSVERSELY OF THE FEEDER, AND A PAIR OF FILAMENT COATING APPLICATORS ARRANGED IN SPACED RELATION LENGTHWISE OF THE FEEDER AND ADAPTED TO BE ENGAGED RESPECTIVELY BY THE INDIVIDUAL FILAMENTS OF EACH GROUP PRIOR TO THEIR CONVERGENCE INTO STRANDS WHEREBY EACH FILAMENT RECEIVES A COATING OF MATERIAL.