Method and apparatus for producing knit pile fabric

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR MAKING A KNIT PILE FABRIC COMPRISING CARDING MEANS, A PLURALITY OF ROVING FEEDING MEANS FOR FEEDING A PLURALITY OF ROVING INDEPENDENTLY OF ONE ANOTHER INTO SAID CARDING MEANS WHEREBY SAID ROVINGS ARE CARDED IN SAID CARDINGS MEANS, VARIABLE SPEED ELECTRIC DRIVE MEANS, MEANS DRIVINGLY CONNECTED TO ONE OF SAID FEEDING MEANS FOR VARYING THE RATE OF FEED OF ONE OF SAID ROVINGS INTO AND RELATIVE TO THE SPEED OF SAID CARDING MEANS TO THEREBY VARY THE QUANTITY OF FIBERS IN SAID CARDING MEANS DERIVED FROM SAID ONE ROVING AND MEANS FOR KNITTING A BASE FABRIC INCLUDING MEANS FOR REMOVING THE CARDED FIBERS FROM THE CARDING MEANS AND INCORPORATING SAID REMOVED FIBERS INTO THE BASE FABRIC AS IT IS BEING KNITTED.

Claim 2

A METHOD OF MAKING KNIT PILE FABRIC COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: (1) INDEPENDENTLY FEEDING AT LEAST TWO INDIVIDUAL STREAMS OF PILE FIBERS WITH ONE OF SAID STREAMS CONTAINING PILE FIBERS OF A FIRST CHARACTERISTIC AND THE OTHER OF SAID STREAMS CONTAINING FIBERS OF A SECOND CHARACTERISTIC DIFFERING FROM SAID FIRST CHARACTERISTIC, (2) CAUSING SAID STREAMS TO CONVERGE AND AT LEAST PARTIALLY INTERMIX INTO A SINGLE STREAM BY CARDING SAID STREAMS IN A CARDING AREA, (3) DIRECTING SAID SINGLE STREAM OF INTERMIXED PILE FIBERS TOWARD A KNITTING AREA, (4) KNITTING A BASE FABRIC AT A PREDETERMINED SPEED IN SAID KNITTING AREA, (5) COLLECTING AND REMOVING BUNDLES OF PILE FIBERS CONSECUTIVELY FROM SAID SINGLE STREAM OF INTERMIXED FIBERS IN SAID KNITTING AREA, (6) INCORPORATING SAID BUNDLES OF FIBERS AS PILE CONSECUTIVELY COURSEWISE IN THE BASE FABRIC AS IT IS KNIT AND (7) VARYING THE RATE OF FLOW OF SAID FIRST CHARACTERISTIC FIBERS IN SAID ONE STREAM RELATIVE TO THE RATE OF FLOW OF SAID SECOND CHARACTERISTIC FIBERS IN SAID OTHER STREAM PRIOR TO SAID CONVERGENCE OF SAID INDIVIDUAL STREAMS IN A PREDETERMINED MANNER CORRELATED WITH THE SPEED OF KNITTING OF THE BASE FABRIC SO AS TO FORM A CHANGING BLEND PATTERN OF PILE FIBERS IN THE RESULTING KNIT PILE FABRIC.