Yarn feed mechanism for tufting machine

Claim 1

A yarn feed mechanism for a tufting machine of the type having needles which are reciprocated for inserting loops of yarns through successive portions of a back material fed through the tufting machine, the needles receiving the yarns from a source of yarns adjacent to the tufting machine, the needles being reciprocated in synchronization with the rotation of a main shaft on the machine, said yarn feed mechanism comprising: (a) a support frame disposed adjacent to said tufting machine; (b) a plurality of first feed rolls transversely spaced from each other for rotation about a common first axis; (c) a plurality of second yarn feed rolls transversly spaced from each other for rotation about a second common axis; (d) a plurality of first roll shafts supported by said frame and transversely spaced from each other for rotation about said first common axis; (e) a plurality of second roll shafts supported by said frame and transversely spaced from each other along said second common axis; (f) means for driving said first shafts at one speed of rotation and said second shaft at a different speed of rotation; (g) clutch means mounted on the end portion of each first shaft and on the end portion of each second shaft, said rolls being respectively received over said clutch means, whereby the clutch means of each roll will engage and rotate its associated roll from its shaft when the clutch is engaged, and will permit its associated roll to rotate freely when that clutch means disengages its associated roll; (h) the space between a first roll on one first shaft and an adjacent first roll on the next adjacent first shaft being essentially unobstructed for permitting intermediate portions of yarns between the source of yarns and the needles to be passed partially around said first rolls without unthreading or breaking the yarns; and (i) the space between a second roll on one second shaft and an adjacent second roll on the next adjacent second shaft being essentially unobstructed for permitting the intermediate portion of yarns passed partially around the first roll to also be passed partially around the second roll to provide support for a yarn or yarns on both a first roll and a second roll.