Method of and apparatus for looping tape around tampons

Claim 3

In an apparatus for looping a double-thickness withdrawal tape around an absorbent cotton fleece used particularly for the manufacture of tampons for feminine hygiene, for looping the open end through the closed end and for drawing the withdrawal tape taut until the absorbent cotton fleece is closely encircled by the loop formed having an endless flexible member movable continuously in a vertical plane, on which a thread-puller is attached, said endless flexible member enclosing a withdrawal tape receiver device adaptable to axially guide the absorbent cotton fleece transversely to the plane of rotation of the thread-puller, and a loop ejector device, the thread puller being provided with a control device which is adjustable by control cams against the action of restoring springs, the improvement which comprises a clamping and cutting device comprising two hammers, which, under cam control, are axially adjustable inside of a rotatable clamping sleeve to clamp a thread alternately against the end face of said sleeve and are coupled in the direction of rotation to a clamping sleeve coaxial with the axis of a reversing wheel for said endless flexible carrier member for the thread-puller, and are in each case equipped with co-operating cutters, said apparatus having inside the cylindrical entraining means means adapted to project from the thread puller and widen conically outwards forming a guide groove for a withdrawal tape, a cam-operated hook-pin held by a front spring in an inoperative position and cooperatively associated with a control cam, a cam-operated ejector mushroom associated with and located parallel to and at a distance from the hook pin, a thread guide leaver adapted to pivot upwards and downwards in a vertical plane of rotation of said thread-puller the pivot point of said thread guide puller being located between a withdrawal tape receiver device and the clamping and cutting device at the height and in the vicinity of the ladder, the free end of the long lever arm of the thread guide lever being directed away from the clamping and cutting device and constituting a thread guide, a brake clamp secured on each of the two ends of two further substantially shorter lever arms of the thread guide lever, the receiver device for the withdrawal tape comprising an inlet passage for the fleece strip.

Claim 4

In an apparatus for looping a double-thickness withdrawal tape around an absorbent cotton fleece used particularly for the manufacture of tampons for feminine hygiene, for looping the open end through the closed end and for drawing the withdrawal tape taut until the absorbent cotton fleece is closely encircled by the loop formed having an endless flexible member movable continuously in a vertical plane, on which a thread-puller is attached, said endless flexible member enclosing a withdrawal tape receiver device adaptable to axially guide the absorbent cotton fleece transversely to the plane of rotation of the thread-puller, and a loop ejector device, the thread puller being provided with a control device which is adjustable by control cams against the action of restoring springs, the improvement which comprises a clamping and cutting device comprising two hammers, which, under cam control, are axially adjustable inside of a rotatable clamping sleeve to clamp a thread alternately against the end face of said sleeve and are coupled in the direction of rotation to a clamping sleeve coaxial with the axis of a reversing wheel for said endless flexible carrier member for the thread-puller, and are in each case equipped with co-operating cutters, said apparatus having inside the cylindrical entraining means means adapted to project from the thread puller and widen conically outwards forming a guide groove for a withdrawal tape, a cam-operated hook-pin held by a front spring in an inoperative position and cooperatively associated with a control cam, a cam-operated ejector mushroom associated with and located parallel to and at a distance from the hook pin, a thread guide leaver adapted to pivot upwards and downwards in a vertical plane of rotation of said thread-puller the pivot point of said thread guide puller being located between a withdrawal tape receiver device and the clamping and cutting device at the height and in the vicinity of the ladder, the free end of the long lever arm of the thread guide lever being directed away from the clamping and cutting device and constituting a thread guide, a brake clamp secured on each of the two ends of two further substantially shorter lever arms of the thread guide lever, the receiver device for the withdrawal tape comprising an inlet passage for the fleece strip.

Claim 5

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said apparatus has a thread guide pin having an obliquely downwardly directed nose extending beyond its periphery, a thread guide hook extending on the underside thereof at an acute angle to the axis of the pin-member toWards the side which faces the centre of gravity of the three-armed thread guide lever, its front end being bent upwards to approximately the longitudinal centre of the thread guide nose to form a free gap and a thread guide chamber.

Claim 6

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the apparatus further comprises two shorter lever arms on said thread guide lever which are directed in each case upwards and downwards symetrically with respect to a long lever arm of said thread guide puller, each forming therewith an angle of over 90*, an upper brake clamp adaptable to engage beneath withdrawal tape before said tape is gripped by a thread guide and while a lower brake clam, which is adaptable to engage beneath the end of a withdrawal tape engages the same before a thread-puller has reached its starting point.

Claim 7

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the apparatus comprises an upper brake clamp and a lower brake clamp one on each short lever on of a thread guide lever, each comprising a pin-member which at its outer end is widened into a plate which has, on its rear side which is towards the lever arm, a thread guide chamber which extends so that a withdrawal tape, according to the different angular positions during gripping, finds a free space and a cross section of which is smaller than that of the double withdrawal tape, a plate disc displaceable on the pin-member bearing on the back of the plate under the thrust of a spring which adaptable to engage around the pin-member, its other end being braced on the lever arm of the thread guide lever.

Claim 8

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein a disc is mounted on an intermediate shaft having an eccentric stud projecting from its end face and engaging into a bore in a coupling piece, into another bore which engges a pin-member located eccentrically on the axis of a three-armed thread guide lever, whereby upon a rotation of the intermediate shaft, the three-armed thread guide lever can be caused by the pin-member to perform an upwardly and downwardly directed pivoting movement.

Claim 9

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein in an apparatus further comprises angled cutters associated with each hammer, and with a countercutter mounted on said hammer at an acute angle, therefrom each of which is held on by means of a spring against the cutting surface of the other cutter on the other hammer, being maintained non-rotatable by means of a guide pin.

Claim 10

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein there is a cylindrical entraining means projecting from the thread-puller which is widened conically outwardly, forming a guide groove for a withdrawal tape, the outside of the hook-pin which is mounted in the entraining means and held in an inoperative position by means of a thrust spring being approximately flush with the outside face of the entraining means, while the rearward end of the stud in the hook-pin co-operates with a control cam.

Claim 11

An apparatus according to claim 8 wherein said association comprises two small grooves in the entraining means flanking the hook on both sides, the grooves extending from both sides into the free cross-section of the hook of said hook-pin, which is directed in the direction of rotation of the thread-puller.

Claim 12

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the plate-shaped ejector mushroom engages into a cut-out which, breaking through the guide groove for the withdrawal tape, extends into the entraining means, to a location close to the hook-pin, the outer face of the mushroom, when this latter in its inoperative position, being approximately in the plane formed by the base line of the guide groove.

Claim 13

An apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the mushroom is screwed into a guide sleeve, on a rear annular shoulder of which is braced one end of a thrust spring, the other end of which bears on an inner annular shoulder in the thread-puller, a stud at the rear of the guide sleeve co-operating with a fixed control cam.

Claim 14

An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the houSing of the thread-puller is a constituent part of said endless flexible member.

Claim 15

An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the inlet psssage in the receiver device corresponds in cross-section to the nominal width of the fleece, the mouthpiece of the inlet passage consisting of a thin-walled steel nozzle, through which the fleece can be pulled said nozzle having a smaller width than the inlet passage.

Claim 16

An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein an annular pusher is provided which is axially displaceable on a fixed mouthpiece slightly beyond said mouthpiece.