US3827397A

US3827397A - Apparatus for coating moving filamentary strands

Info

Publication number: US3827397A
Application number: US00157823A
Authority: US
Inventors: L Uhl; F Hebberling
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1971-06-29
Filing date: 1971-06-29
Publication date: 1974-08-06
Anticipated expiration: 1991-08-06

Abstract

Apparatus for coating continuous moving filamentary strands with a binder material that has a walled binder material supply chamber and a walled sump chamber, said chambers having a nonrotatable applicator shoe with an exteriorly exposed surface and interposed in spaced relationship between the chamber walls. Binder material under low pressure flows in a sheet-like film from the supply chamber to the sump chamber by wall attachment over the exposed surface of the applicator shoe. The filamentary strands in contact with and moving through the sheet-like binder material are thereby continuously coated with the binder material.

Description

APPARATUS FOR COATING MOVING FILAMENTARY STRANDS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to apparatus for coating continuous moving filamentary strands with a binder material and more particularly to such apparatus for coating manmade fiber strands such as fiberglass.

2. Description of the Prior Art In the manufacture of man-made continuous fibers, various types of applicator apparatus have been used to apply sizing or binder material to the strands. Roll and belt applicator apparatus are two types most commonly used heretofore. In fiberglass making particularly, both types of applicator apparatus have the disadvantage of occasionally drawing broken filaments and similar foreign particles in the applicator apparatus where the particles and filaments contaminate the binder material and, as a consequence, frequently cause interruption of the coating process. Part of the problem with the prior applicator apparatus is that they have moving parts which tend to become fouled with an accumulation of broken strands or other foreign particles.

The desirability of providing a trouble-free applicator apparatus has been well-recognized for years. The less contamination and the less chance of clogging or fouling the applicator appratus the more economical the filamentary strand coating operation is because there is less need to shut down the operation to correct the difficulty.

By my invention, there is provided an improved applicator apparatus that has no moving parts and is constructed such that broken filamentary strands or other particles are unlikely to contaminate the binder material. Consequently, the use of my applicator apparatus minimizes interruptions in the filamentary strand coating operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with this invention, there is provided apparatus for coating continuous moving filamentary strands with a binder material that includes a walled binder material supply chamber and an underlying walled sump chamber. Interposed between and spaced from the walls of both the supply chamber and sump chamber is a non-rotatably adjustably movable applicator shoe having an exteriorly exposed surface. When binder material in the supply chamber is placed under low pressure the material will flow through the space bween the wall of the supply chamber and the applicator shoe onto the exposed surface of the applicator shoe. By wall attachment the binder material flows around the exposed surface of the applicator shoe through the space between the applicator shoe and sump chamber and into the underlying sump chamber. By directing filamentary strands across and in contact with the binder material flowing over the applicator shoe the strands are coated with the binder material.

It is the object of this invention to provide an improved binder material applicator apparatus.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a binder material applicator apparatus that has no moving parts.

It is also another object of this invention to provide a binder material applicator apparatus that has no moving parts and is constructed such that broken filament strands and other foreign particles are unlikely to contaminate the binder material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of my applicator apparatus with a broken-away portion showing the interior of the supply chamber and sump chamber.

FIG. 2 is an end elevation view in partial section showing my applicator apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawing, there is illustrated an applicator apparatus generally shown at 10 and including a housing 11; The housing 11 is illustrated as a cylindrical housing made from metal or other suitable material and divided horizontally into two separate chambers. The upper chamber is a supply chamber 12 and the lower chamber is a sump chamber 13, which chambers are separated by a common dividing partition 14. The rear of the dividing partition 14 is secured to the inside of housing 11 by any suitable means, such as an elastomeric compound 17, so that it acts as a hinge to permit some movement of the partition 14 yet provide a fluid seal between the supply chamber 12 and sump chamber 13. The opposite or forward portion of the dividing partition 14 is retained in its proper position by two pairs of opposing set screws 18 at each end of the partition 14. Each set screw of each pair is adjustable against opposite surfaces (top and bottom) of the dividing partition so that the forward portion of the dividing partition 14 may be raised and lowered as desired by adjusting the set screws while the rear of the dividing partition is movably hinged to the housing 11 by the elastomeric compound 17 to allow such movement. In effect, each chamber is a walled half cylinder with partition 14 a common dividing member. Interposed between the supply chamber 12 and sump chamber 13 is applicator shoe 15 that has an exteriorly exposed surface 16 that projects outwardly of the exterior surface of both the supply chamber and sump chamber. Preferably the exterior surface is convexly curved but other shapes may be used. As shown in the drawing the applicator shoe 15 is a cylindrical bar. The applicator shoe 15 may be made from any suitable guide material, such as ceramic or graphite, and will be sealed to the edge of the chamber dividing partition 14 to prevent binder material from flowing between the shoe l5 and partition 14 from the supply chamber 12 to the sump chamber 13. Again, an elastomeric compound may be used for this sealing purpose and a channel 19 in the leading edge of partition 14 may be provided to hold the elastomeric compound in place. The applicator shoe is elongated and extends longitudinally along the entire length of the walls of the supply and sump chamber. The applicator shoe 15 is spaced from the wall of the supply chamber and also from the sump chamber so that a slit opening 20 is provided between the applicator shoe l5 and the supply chamber wall 21 and also a slit opening 22 is provided similarly, but slightly wider, between the applicator shoe l5 and the sump chamber wall 23. To hold the applicator shoe 15 in its proper position and also seal the two chambers from each other side plates 5 and 6 may be utilized and held in place by bolt 24 which attaches sideplate 6 to the as sembly and another similar bolt on the opposite end (not shown) for securing sideplate 5 in place. The inner face of each sideplate may have a gasket (not shown) to seal the supply chamber 12 from the sump chamber 13. Each sideplate has a recess 26 that is slightly larger in diameter and of the same shape as the applicator shoe in lateral cross-section. These recesses are receiving the respective opposite ends of the applicator shoe and retaining the shoe in its proper position relative to supply chamber wall 21 to provide the desired slit opening 20. By this arrangement the applicator shoe 15 can be easily and quickly replaced, if necessary, by simply taking off one or both of the sideplates for access to the applicator shoe 15. Moreover, the applicator shoe 15 may be movably adjustable to vary the space between the applicator shoe and the wall of the supply chamber (slit opening 20) by loosening bolts 24 and rotating sideplates 5 and 6 that carry applicator shoe 15.

The above-described applicator apparatus is secured to a base 25, as by welding, with the base 25 having a vertical slot 34. Movably adjustable in that slot is a gathering shoe 35, which is in the shape of a spool. The gathering shoe 35 may be moved vertically within the slot dimensions and secured in the desired position by tightening nut 36.

Leading from sump chamber 13 is a pipe or conduit 30, threadly secured to the sump chamber portion of housing 11 through which binder material may flow for recirculation to a pump (not shown). The binder material fr'om the pump is introduced back into the supply chamber under low pressure through conduit 41 threadly secured to the supply chamber portion of housing 11.

Filamentary strands 40, being fed from a source, such as a bushing or spinerette, are moved at rather high velocity vertically downward (as shown by arrows) past the applicator apparatus and contact the binder material flowing over the exteriorly exposed convexly curved surface of the applicator shoe and are coated thereby with binder material. The coated threads are then fed into gathering shoe 35 and subsequently collected on a winder (not shown).

Binder material, normally a viscous fluid consisting of an emulsion of various types of starch and fat combined with other ingredients to produce characteristics and properties desired by the manufacturer, flows into the supply chamber 12 by inlet conduit 41 from the pump. The supply chamber is normally filled with the binder material, however, a dam 42 perpendicular to the partition 14 may be utilized to assure even distribution of the binder material along the length of the supply chamber.

The above-described applicator apparatus operates as follows: The binder material 43 is being supplied by a pump under low pressure, in the order of l to 10 psi, to the supply chamber 12 so that the supply chamber is constantly full. The binder material then emerges through the narrow slit opening between the applicator shoe 15 and the supply chamber wall 21 to the outside of the supply chamber where it flows by wall attachment in a thin sheet-like film around the exteriorly exposed convexly curved surface of the applicator shoe, and finally the binder material flows through the slit 22 between the applicator shoe l5 and the wall 23 of the sump chamber and into the sump chamber. In the sump chamber the binder material is collected and flows down through conduit 30 and back to the pressure source which again pumps the binder material back into the supply chamber 12 via conduit 41. The flow path of the binder material 43 is shown by arrows in FIG. 2.

To guide the binder material around the applicator shoe the well-known wall attachment effect is utilized. As a jet of fluid or sheet-like film emerges from a supply chamber under low pressure the energy latent in the pressurized fluid is translated into velocity. Since the emerging sheet-like film touches a solid surface on only one boundry, the applicator shoe exposed surface, this side of the sheet-like film is subject to considerable viscous drag, thus causing the sheet-like film to assume a curved path leading around the applicator shoe exposed surface until most of the energy is consumed then the fluid will leave the surface of the applicator shoe under the influence of gravity. in some instances a curve up to degrees has been observed.

In operating the applicator apparatus described above the filamentary strands 40 are moved at high velocity vertically downward in contact with the sheetlike film of binder material flowing over the exteriorly exposed surface of the applicator shoe. The individual filamentary strands are coated with the binder material and subsequently joined together by the gathering shoe 35.

It will be noted from the construction of my applicator apparatus that there are no moving parts that can become fouled by broken strands or other foreign particles and that such broken strands or particles are unlikely to be drawn into the supply chamber to contaminate the binder material.

The foregoing is a description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, and variations may be made to the applicator apparatus without departing from the spirit of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

I claim;

1. Applicator apparatus for coating movable filamentary strands with a binder material comprising an enclosed applicator head including a tubular housing member having an axially extending peripheral slot therein,

a generally transversely positioned, axially extending partition member interiorly dividing the housing into a walled supply chamber and a walled sump chamber and having a convexly curved applicator surface at one end thereof extending through and externally of said slot in said housing member,

said housing and said partition member providing a flow path for binder material introduced into said supply chamber and flowing by wall attachment around the curved applicator surface to the sump chamber through an axially extending exit slit formed between one side of the partition member and one edge of said housing slot and into an axially extending entrance slit formed between the other side of the partition member and the other edge of said housing slot into said sump chamber,

and adjusting means accessible exteriorly of said housing for movably adjusting the position of said partition member interiorly of the housing to simultaneously vary in a controlled manner the width of said exit slit and said entrance slit. 2. Applicator apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said adjusting means affects the width of said exit slit inversely to the width of said entrance slit.

binder material along the length of the said supply chamber.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the width of the entrance slit to the sump chamber is wider than the exit slit from the supply chamber.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein there is means to recirculate the binder material from the sump chamber back to the supply chamber under low pressure.

Claims

1. Applicator apparatus for coating movable filamentary strands with a binder material comprising an enclosed applicator head including a tubular housing member having an axially extending peripheral slot therein, a generally transversely positioned, axially extending partition member interiorly dividing the housing into a walled supply chamber and a walled sump chamber and having a convexly curved applicator surface at one end thereof extending through and externally of said slot in said housing member, said housing and said partition member providing a flow path for binder material introduced into said supply chamber and flowing by wall attachment around the curved applicator surface to the sump chamber through an axially extending exit slit formed between one side of the partition member and one edge of said housing slot and into an axially extending entrance slit formed between the other side of the partition member and the other edge of said housing slot into said sump chamber, and adjusting means accessible exteriorly of said housing for movably adjusting the position of said partition member interiorly of the housing to simultaneously vary in a controlled manner the width of said exit slit and said entrance slit.

2. Applicator apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said adjusting means affects the width of said exit slit inversely to the width of said entrance slit.

3. Applicator apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said adjusting means includes a pair of adjusting screws accessible exteriourly of and received in said housing and bearing on opposite sides of said partition member adjacent the curved applicator end thereof.

4. Applicator apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said applicator head includes an axially extending baffle dam on one side of said partition member within said housing for uniform distribution of the binder material along the length of the said supply chamber.