FR2530684A1 - METHOD AND MACHINE FOR TREATING A TABLECLOTH BY LONGITUNAL COMPRESSION - Google Patents

Abstract

THE INVENTION RELATES TO A LONGITUDINAL COMPRESSION TREATMENT OF A TABLECLOTH 16, USING A SHEET-SHAPED PIECE 40. THE WORKING SURFACE OF THE DELAYING PART IS MADE UP OF A SET OF DELAYING EDGES 46 DISTRIBUTED WITH A CERTAIN GAP ON THE WIDTH OF THE PART OF THE TABLECLOTH WHICH MUST BE DELAYED TO PRODUCE MICRO-CREPAGE THEREOF. EACH ARETE EXERCISES A COMPONENT OF DELAYING FORCE WHICH OPPOSES THE ADVANCE OF THE TABLECLOTH AND A COMPONENT OF DEVIATION FORCE WHICH DEVIES AT LEAST TEMPORARILY THE PATH OF THE TABLECLOTH TOWARDS A DIRECTION MAKING AN ACUTE ANGLE IN RELATION TO THE MANAGEMENT OF ORIGIN OF THE MOVEMENT OF THE TABLECLOTH.

Description

Method and machine for treating a sheet material by compression

  The present invention relates to the treatment by longitudinal compression of flexible sheet materials such as woven and knitted textile products, papers, plastic sheets and so-called "non-woven" products, the latter consisting of a substance

  natural or synthetic to which we have given a configu-

  slick ration, for example by air deposition of fibers or

wet.

  The laboratory behind the invention

  has devoted many years to the development of the

  plies, in which compressive forces lon-

  gitudinal are applied in the plane of the fle-

  xible in tablecloth These works have led to a certain number of inventions, among which the micro-creping machine with blade of US Patents 3,260,778 and 3,426,405, and the micro-creping machine without blade of US Patents 3 810,280, 3,869,768 and 3,975,806 In the aforementioned patents, the untreated web is driven longitudinally using a low friction surface to press the web against a rotating drive roller, after which retarding forces are applied to the moving tablecloth a short distance after the training point The opposition between the driving and delaying forces, while

  matter remains trapped, produces a physical change

  as desirable in the sheet material, for example a

  increase in its bulk, thickness and elasticity

  ticity. In the case of textile and textile-like materials, the tablecloth can be compressed longitudinally in its own plane, without folding the tablecloth on itself or forming a pancake, but with crimping on the spot of very small individual fibers ( "micro-creping" of the fibers) which constitute the threads or yarns of the fabric. In the case of thin sheets formed in one piece, such as sheets of paper or plastic, the longitudinal compression treatment may form

  barely noticeable ripples or pancakes in the material

  re in tablecloth considered as a whole ("micro-creping" of the tablecloth), and the overall appearance of the faces of the tablecloth remains a smooth appearance, without the presence of folds or a crepe

  coarse on the surface However, if you want a coarse pancake

  sier, it can be obtained by appropriately enlarging

the treatment cavity.

  In many cases, the desirable qualities produced by longitudinal processing remain in the

  tablecloth after some or even all of the compress

  The length of the web was removed by stretching.

  In particular examples, the treatment can increase the softness or flexibility of a sheet material, it can increase its covering effect and its opacity, it can make the texture of the surface of the sheet more aesthetic, it can make the sheet non-shrink, it can apply decorative effects to the tablecloth, or make the constituents of the tablecloth more closely intertwined,

  in a way that is useful.

  Applying the treatment to leaves

  paper can make them extensible and increase their resistance

tear tear.

  In the case of sheets of synthetic polymers, the effects of the compression treatment have been made permanent

  longitudinal by heating the sheet up to the time range

  thermal fixing temperature which has been used in the

  industry to fix other treatments of tablecloths or fibers. The longitudinal compression treatment of plies resulting from the applicant's previous work has been satisfactory in certain commercial applications, but in a certain number of these cases, an important qualification of the operator was necessary to cope with the changes in conditions. The processing has often been limited to low speeds or only to one

  limited range of starting materials and end products.

  There remained a large number of cases, in particular

  bind in the field of thin sheets, in which the com-

  marketing has not been possible so far, because

  Difficulty developing or accepting treatment

  ter variations during operation.

  For these reasons, it has long been necessary to have a better apparatus and a better method for the treatment of longitudinal compression of

flexible sheets.

  To explain the limitations of prior techniques

  It should be noted that there are a large number of conditions.

  Variable manufacturing conditions which can affect the opposing driving and retarding forces of the longitudinal compression treatment and contribute to the difficulties of initial development and prolonged operation. Among the phenomena likely to occur, mention may be made of

  example: a change in the characteristics of addiction

  chage of the web by the drive roller, for example because of the wear of the surface of the drive roller or the presence of foreign bodies or because of a change in the speed of the roller; variations in the pressure of the ply against the drive roller, due for example to a variation in the thickness of the untreated ply or

  forces that press the containment surface and the water table

  be the drive roller, or wear or a change in the geometrical configuration of the confinement surfaces; a variation in the voltage which is applied to the untreated web as it enters the treatment region; a change in the stiffness or smoothness of the untreated web which may occur due to a change in the humidity or temperature of the original untreated web; a change in the depth of the delay passage through which the sheet passes; a change in

  other properties of the delay device, due for example to

  ple at a change in size or speed; and a change-

  ment of the ease with which the tablecloth can be delayed,

  for example due to a change in the properties of

  tion of the sheet to be treated, and so on.

  In practice, several variable conditions change

  often simultaneously, which results in more

plex.

  In the cases in which the sheets undergo their longitudinal compression while they are confined under a surface with low friction, when a variable changes, the point of treatment of the material (ie the point "O" in the case of blade-less micro-creping, shown in FIG. 1 of US Pat. No. 3,810,280) tends to move forward or backward in the treatment region, which

  affects the quality of treatment even more.

  The operator's work consisted in taking into account all the conditions when establishing the

  initial operating settings for treatment, then

  during operation, to observe changes in the

  conditions at the time they occur and to act to tend-

  ter to oppose these changes by compensating adjustments

station.

  Given the many difficulties which have been mentioned, an important object of the invention is to provide

  new techniques for long compression treatment

  gitudinal layers that reduce or eliminate such

  need for adjustment and make it possible to obtain a con-

  remaining in a uniform and high quality treated web for a wide range of web materials. Other objects of the invention are to achieve an increase in manufacturing speeds, better energy efficiency, and treatment procedures. specific and original for

sheet materials.

  These goals generally apply to a large number of

  variety of means for longitudinal processing.

  In addition, a specific object of the invention is to improve the treatment of micro-creping of the "blade-less" type. In micro-creping "without blade", a fixed retardation surface extends beyond the surface. containment

  so as to be located above the driven roller, forming

  mant with it a delay passade in which retaining forces are applied to the face of the sheet In

  in the past, this delay surface was rough or semi-

  blable with an abrasive, and inextensible in the direction of the

  The nature of this retardation surface has sometimes produced pits and a lack of uniformity in the sheet, and it has not made it possible to use the micro-creping treatment of the bladeless type on certain materials. as a specific example, baby diaper envelopes which consist of an extremely thin nonwoven sheet, which is typically a tablecloth

  disoriented continuous monofilaments, of a characteristic thickness

  only around 0.075 mm We want to make this tablecloth soft and supple, while the tablecloth is relatively rough and stiff

when it leaves manufacturing.

  Manufacturers have generally considered that the use of the blade-free treatment on textiles such as a polyester knitted fabric requires, during treatment, a sheet which is greatly softened by heat, and speeds limited to 4.5 to 9 m. / In While subjected to the compressive forces of the treatment, the surfaces of such a heat-softened sheet have an icy appearance, and

  when the web is then stretched and cooled, these surfaces

  these have a sharply defined profile which gives a sensa-

  rough handling by hand Cleaning and other treatments

  subsequent steps were necessary to give such tablecloths acceptable texture, hand and softness for

  industrial use Occasional results are obtained

  laboratory nudes, however, suggested that it would be possible to

  ble to directly obtain a very soft fabric, with

  swollen fibers and the desired level of puff increase

  fant, by a longitudinal compression treatment, without

  that it is necessary to carry out a cleaning later

  yage or a similar operation However, we did not have

  reliable means to guarantee these results in con-

  industrial manufacturing editions and with the permanence necessary to withstand a standardized series of washing tests In addition) defects or pits, produced for example by broken fibers, and other surface imperfections, appeared when sheets were treated of

this way.

  The invention relates to a method of treating a longitudinal compression of a ply, in which the ply is pressed against a driven fastening surface, in a drive zone, to drive the ply in a forward direction in a longitudinal direction, and we delay the web in a delay zone so that the material

  previously compressed opposes the progression of the material

  re untreated and entrained, so that the untreated material compresses longitudinally against the previously compressed material. According to the invention, the method comprises the operation which consists in bringing the face of the sheet to be delayed into contact with a set of retarding edges.

  distributed over the width of the tablecloth The edges are available

  located at an acute angle to the longitudinal direction

  nal and have initial parts arranged so as to appli-

  quer forces of resistance to the corresponding parts of the tablecloth which arrive at their level The force of resistance

  of each edge has a delay force component

  ce and a deflection force component The retarding force component has the effect of delaying the back part

  of the tablecloth to oppose its movement

  lead, and the deflection force component has

  effect of deflecting the path of travel at least temporarily

  from the corresponding part of the tablecloth towards a direction

  tion which makes an acute angle with respect to the longi-

tudinal.

  In another preferred embodiment, the pro-

  yielded includes the operation of bringing the face into contact with edges which are close to each other, with the width of the grooves between the edges greater than the width of the highest point of the edges, so that the retarding forces are spread over the entire width

of the tablecloth.

  In a preferred embodiment, the method.

  includes the operation, performed in a second retardation region, which consists in bringing the face of the retarded sheet in the first region into contact with a second

  set of retarding edges distributed over the entire width

  layer thickness The edges located in the second retardation region are arranged at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the movement of the layer and are arranged at an obtuse angle with respect to the arrangement of the

edges in the first region.

  Another aspect of the invention relates to a machine

  not intended for the treatment of a sheet in accordance with the above process. According to this aspect of the invention, the delaying means comprise a sheet-like delaying piece having a working surface which is arranged so as to

  come into contact with the face of a sheet The work surface

  vail consists of a set of mutual retarding edges-

  spaced apart and distributed over the entire width of the part of the web to be delayed The edges are arranged at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal direction and they comprise initial parts arranged so as to apply resistance forces to the corresponding parts of

  the tablecloth arriving at the edges Here again, the strength of resistance

  tance of each edge has a delayed force component

  datrix and a component of deflection force The composan-

  delaying force is able to delay the game

  corresponding arrival of the aquifer and the component of formation

  this deflection has the effect of temporarily deflecting the che-

  min of displacement of the part of the sheet, the combined effect of all the retarding edges being to subject

  a sheet in contact with a notable retarding action.

  In a preferred embodiment of this aspect of the invention, the delaying means comprise a large number of edges arranged parallel, side by side, oriented relative to the longitudinal direction at an angle in the range between 10 and 600 about; the edges are approximately 0.25 mm high; the edges have a width of the order of 0.25 mm and the grooves between the edges are of the order of 0.25 mm in depth and of the order of 1.0 mm in width; and the edges have surfaces

  planes arranged so as to come into contact with the sheet.

  The edges preferably have horizontal surfaces and

front and back edges.

  In other embodiments, the edges have front edges and inclined surfaces with a sawtooth profile, the surfaces extending from an edge at an angle to the planar extent of the

  retarding piece, towards the base corresponding to the next edge

  front, or else the edges are formed by the intersection of

  parts inclined in opposite directions.

  In certain embodiments of the invention,

  the grooves between the edges can diverge gradually-

  lie relative to each other, with the edges between the

  grooves oriented at angles that differ gradually-

  In this configuration, the grooves preferably diverge progressively relative to one another at

  from the central axis of the retarding part.

  In all of these embodiments, the web can

  be wrapped around an axis such as the receiving direction

  tion of the tablecloth corresponds to the direction of advance longi-

  tudinal, or around an axis such as the direction of reception

  tion make an angle to the longitudinal direction

of the machine.

  In another embodiment, the machine is of the bladeless type and it comprises a driven roller and a fixed part on the opposite side of the ply, which defines both the pressure surface and the retardation surface Le

  method consists in subjecting the sheet to a delayed action

  while subjecting it to the action of the moving surface

  of the roller which slides forward under the tablecloth.

  In yet another embodiment, the machine

  does not have a blade and includes a driven roller, a fixed piece on the opposite side of the web which defines a pressure piece, and a fixed blade located next to the surface of the roll and designed to deflect the web

  of the pressure piece defines a flexible retarding piece

  ble, one face of which carries a set of mutually spaced retarding edges, The method consists in subjecting the sheet to a notable delaying action while deflecting the

  ply relative to the surface of the roller by means of the blade.

  Yet another aspect of the invention relates to a delay piece intended to be used in accordance with

above process.

  The invention will be better understood on reading the

  description which follows of embodiments, given at

  title of nonlimiting examples The rest of the description

  refers to the accompanying drawings in which Figure t is a schematic representation in

  side view of large elements of a configuration mode

  implementation of the advanced micro-creping machine

  me to the invention; FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic section on a larger scale of the compression processing cavity of the machine of FIG. I FIG. 3 is a representation of even more

  large scale of an essential part of the processing cavity

Figure 2

  Figure 4 is a schematic plan view

  tick from the region shown in Figure 3, showing the

  movement of the sheet material in the milking cavity

  is lying; FIG. 4 a is a somewhat enlarged plan representation of the original retarding element of this embodiment, comprising parallel resistance edges which act on the face of the material to retard it by a deflection effect; Figure 5 is a representation similar to that of Figure 4 a, on a smaller scale, on which we also see the shape of the path of the fabric which passes at the retarder element; Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the retarder of Figure 5; Figures 7 and 7a are views similar to

  that of FIG. 6 which relate to other embodiments

the delay element;

  Figure 8 is a schematic plan view

  tick of the passage of a tablecloth through the machine of the previous figures, the tablecloth shown consisting of a knitted fabric Figure 9 is a representation similar to Figure 8, illustrating the treatment of a nonwoven web, Figure 9 a is section similar to Figure 3, relating to

  a machine employing a primary part with a toothed edge

  lé, and Figure 9 b is an enlarged representation of part of the web of Figure 9, on a larger scale Figure 10 is a representation similar to Figure 8 relating to another output configuration, the web consisting in this case in a fabric which is wound on the take-up roller in the direction of the bias Figure 11 is a representation similar to the

  figure 9 which illustrates the processing of a paper to produce

  re a micro-pancake effect, while figure 11a is a

  representation similar to figure 3 which illustrates the use

  sation of a primary part of constant thickness with a straight rear edge; Figure 12 is a similar perspective view

  in Figures 6, 7 and 7 a, relating to another delayed element

  tor according to the invention, which uses relative surfaces

  broadly; Figure 13 is a plan view similar to Figure 11 which shows the effects of the retarder in Figure 12; Figure 14 is a similar perspective view

  in FIG. 12, concerning another embodiment previously

  of the retarding element; FIG. 15 shows the fabric treated with the retarding element of FIG. 14 to produce a pleated effect. FIG. 16 is a perspective view of yet another embodiment of the retarding element, and in this case the resistance edges located on both sides of the material extend convergently towards the axis; FIG. 17 is a view similar to FIG. 5, with the use of the retarding element of FIG. 16, in a case in which the sheet is compressed at the same time

  in the longitudinal direction and in the transverse direction

  dirty, as it crosses the machine in a straight line Figure 18 is a view similar to Figure 17,

  on which the position of the delay element is reversed

  sé, which has the effect of producing a compression of the sheet in the longitudinal direction and a stretching in the transverse direction;

  Figure -19 is a view of a micro- machine

  blade creping which uses the retarding element of the invention

  tion; and Figure 20 is a view similar to Figure 4a, showing the passage of the web through the machine of the

  Figure 19, while Figure 21 is a section through the element

  retarder along line 21-21 of figure 19.

  Considering FIG. 1, there is seen a micro-creping machine, M, which is designed so as to apply a longitudinal compression treatment to a ply 16 A driven roller 14 having a hooking surface 12 drives the ply in the direction of arrow S (called direction of the machine) The ply 16 is pressed against the surface 12 by a primary part 18 (blue steel sheet with a characteristic thickness of 0.25 to 0.50 mm), which is pressed against the roller by the pressure piece 24 The drive action of the roller 14 pulls the ply 16 from the supply roller 28, which maintains a predetermined tension in the ply, by the action of the roller

  crazy 30 A take-up roller 32 pulls the treated tablecloth

  shot from the micro-creping machine The speed of the take-up roller 32 is regulated relative to the speed of the roll

  14 by the control device 34.

  -30 In region 20, near the rear edge of

  primary part 18, the sheet passes through a processing cavity

  compression By considering figure 2, as well as

  Figure 3 which is on a large scale, we see that this cavi-

  tee is formed by a number of elements in the form of sheets which extend above the roller The primary part

  18 defines a series of steps A, B, C near its extremi-

  tee 19 These steps gradually increase the space for the sheet and allow the treatment to be carried out under the primary part, when desired. The original retarding part 40, also in sheet form, extends downstream in the direction of the machine, beyond the end 19 of the primary part 18 A buttress part 42, in the form of a sheet, extends above the retarding part 40, and over the entire extent of the latter. region which precedes the end 19 of the primary part 18, an upstream part of the retarding part 40 is trapped above the primary part 18 and below the buttress part 42 and it is thus held in position The downstream part of the buttress piece 42 has a slight downward curvature, approaching the curvature of the roller 40, and bends the

  delay piece 40 in a circular configuration.

  This maintains a value which is generally uniform

  for the depth of the delay passage, towards its end.

  Considering Figures 3, 4, 4 a, 5 and 6, we

  sees that the delay piece 40 has a special surface

  ciale, coming into contact with the ply, which comprises a series of retardation edges 46, relatively close together, which are separated by passages or grooves 48 In the most preferred embodiments, the edges are

  consisting of a hard, smooth, polished substance, e.g.

  full of hardened spring steel, on which the material

  tablecloth can slide easily The front edges EL of these edges

  your doing the essential work.

  In the embodiment shown, the configuration of ridges and grooves is formed by successive grinding of the face of a blue steel sheet with a narrow diamond wheel. The edges and grooves extend at an angle a with respect to at the direction of the machine S, the angle a having a value which varies from about 100 to about 600 (it

  is often preferably between 300, which is pre-

  fable for stiff layers, and 450, which is preferred

  ble for soft and flexible sheets), depending on the nature of the material to be treated and the properties desired

  obtain by treatment In the embodiment shown

  felt in Figures 3-6, the angle a is 45. Considering FIGS. 4 a and 6, it is noted that the blue steel sheet at a thickness t of 0.50 mm The grooves are formed to a depth, d, sufficient for the

  front edge EL of each edge 46 is sharp, and this depth

  deur d is typically 0.25 mm In the embodiment shown, the grooves 48 have widths W of 1.0 mm These grooves are formed with a center distance of 1.25 mm, which gives a width of edge 0.25 mm W The edges 46 and the grooves 48 extend over the entire width of the ply 16 and have a density, in this embodiment, which is sufficient to produce a treatment

  uniform of a wide variety of mat materials.

  As shown in FIGS. 4, 4 a, 5 and 8, the ply passes under the primary part 18 in the direction of the machine, S, it is deflected towards the direction R when it passes under the retarding part 40, it is extracted from the machine from a position under the retarder, in the direction of the machine, S, as shown in solid lines in Figures 5 and 8, and it is wound on the roller 32 In another

  embodiment, as suggested by the dotted lines in FIG. c, the tablecloth can be extracted under a

  angle S 'with respect to the direction of the machine, i.e.

  say an angle that corresponds to the direction of the edges, or at a lower angle to the direction of the

  machine, depending on the nature of the desired treatment.

  The front edge EL of each of the edges 46 faces the incoming material and its initial part Pl applies a retarding force to the sheet Considering FIGS. 4 and 4 a, it can be seen that at the time when any segment of the sheet is

  reaches an edge before EL, it encounters a force of resistance

  this FR normal to the direction in which the resistance edge EL extends. This force FR can be broken down into a component of force FS which opposes the advance of the material in the direction of the machine, and into a component of

  deflection force FD which acts in a direction perpendicular to

  machine direction area The FD component tends to

  deflect the tablecloth from direction S towards direction R, orien-

  angle angle has ridges and grooves This interaction

  tion of the ply and the edges of resistance EL is repeated at each 1.25 mm increment across the width of the material, and the overall result is that the entire ply passes in a movement in the direction of the machine, S, in a movement in the temporary direction R, oriented under

angle a.

  The limited degree of permanent offset applied to the web seems to be related to the fact that the main work accomplished on the part P of the web moving in the direction of the machine, S, is accomplished by the edge section EL which comes into contact. first with the sheet It also appears, as shown in FIG. 4a, that the resistance force FR has a decreasing effect on the sheet when the latter comes into contact with the edge EL further from the point Pi, perhaps at because of the combined effect of

  all edges E, on the tablecloth that arrives.

  Because these are usually the front edges

  EL of the delaying part which carry out the main work

* cipal (and not the second edge, or inactive edge, on the other

  side of the ridge), one can easily appreciate that it is possible

  ble to use other forms of a retarding surface.

  For example, considering FIG. 7, it can be seen that the retarder edges EL can be machined in a plate so as to form a sawtooth profile, according to which the surface of the retarder piece is inclined at 43, from each edge EL, at an angle b relative to the plane in which the delay piece 40 'extends. The inclined surface ends at the level of the shoulder surface h which rises to form the following delay edge EL, and this is repeats over the entire surface of the retarding piece FIG. 7 a shows a scalloped profile, with the resistance edges EL formed by the intersection of adjacent surfaces 45 having a

concave curvature.

  Operation of the embodiment of Figures 1-6 As shown in Figure 2, the web 16 advances from the supply roller 28 at the speed S of the driven roller 14 Initially, to start the action, the web is passed under the primary part 18 and the retarding part 40, in the untreated position, and are pressed towards

  bottom the pressure piece 24, to press the primary piece

  re 18 against the ply 16 This causes the roller 14 to drive the ply forward The retarding action exerted on the ply, intended to cause the backward accumulation of a column of tablecloth treated by compression, is triggered by the action of the primary part 18 and the retarding part 40 on the sheet, or by the operator, by hand, or by the mechanism which presses the retarding piece relatively strongly against the sheet 16, on the roller 14 The condition in Figure 3 is thus obtained during start-up The operator quickly releases the temporary pressure and the delaying part can then

  perform its retarding function without requiring a pres-

  greater than that exerted by the buttress piece 42.

  When the untreated sheet 16 (FIG. 3) reaches the spaces

  these more and more open which are established by the steps A, B and C, it reaches a point O to which it slides by

  relation to the roll 14 Each element of the ply 16 is supported

  brought to a forward driving force Ff which is due to the action of the roller, and to a retarding force Fb which is directed backwards At this point an initial compression treatment occurs and the treated tablecloth slides on the roller 14 In the case of thin tablecloths subject to creping, such as tissue paper or non-woven products, an initial micro-crepe is formed, extremely fine, which may be only a few hundredths of a millimeter thick In the case of textiles, compression is accompanied by micro-creping of the fibers which constitute

  the textile, without creping the fabric as a whole.

  When the driven roller continues to rotate, this extremely fine treated ply moves to the right, in FIG. 3, until it reaches the end 19 of the primary part 18 At this point, the ply is free to swell (as with textiles) or to crepe (as with paper) to form a coarser pancake In either case, the material enters the grooves 48, and the edges 46, or at all minus their front edges EL, penetrate into the surface of the micro-creped material and apply the retarding forces indicated in FIG. 4 a The set of deflection forces FD at the front edges EL of all the edges has the combined effect of deflect the tablecloth so that it moves in the direction of

  grooves, R, in the form of a column of material

  mée, advancing at a lower speed than the roller

  14 The surface of the roller slides under the treated material.

  The driving forces of the roller before point 0, as well as certain retaining effects of the roller sliding under the treated ply, in the region beyond point 0, cause the ply to advance in the grooves 48, until that it is released from the retarder 40 At this point, as shown in FIG. 5 in solid lines, as well as in FIG. 8, the treated ply is wound up by the roller 32 which pulls the ply in the direction S , along a path that is offset by a distance D, as shown

  Figure 8, because of the deviated movement of the web.

  Considering Figure 8, which shows the process-

  of a thin polyester knit about 0.4 mm thick

  sor, we see that the tablecloth goes through a certain number of stages represented on the drawing, namely the training,

  processing, delaying, fixation and winding.

  When knitting arrives, it has rows of stitches K which extend parallel to each other and perpendicular to the direction of the machine, S As the lines on the web indicate at other positions, these

  K ranks never rotate Even in the region of retard-

  they remain parallel in the transverse direction

  When the belt is driven forward, it undergoes a compression treatment under the stands, as it is

  shown in Figure 3 The compressed web swells easily-

  due to the fact that it is supple and flexible, and it fills the furrows 48 Because of the smooth surface of the furrows and the edges, the sheet remains uniform, without pitting It is

  extracted by traction in direction S, as indicated above

  ceded, and passes through cooling region 60.

  The compression treatment swells the polyester fibers and makes the knit softer to the touch and more flexible, while the cooling region fixes

this treatment.

  A similar effect is obtained with regard to nonwoven products, as shown in FIGS. 9, 9 a and 9 b. In this case, the primary part 18 ′ has a uniform thickness until its end 19 f, but the edge back of the primary part has a serrated configuration, as suggested in Figure 9 The edge is typically serrated with a pitch of 1.6 mm and with a height of 0.8 mm between a ridge and a trough This configuration, which is applicable in a similar way to the other sheet materials envisaged here, allows the sheet to come out gradually, with an action which facilitates the coming into progressive contact with the

delay edges 46.

  At the transition point indicated in the drawings (Figures 9 and 9 b), in addition to the micro-creping that occurs, the web is subjected to a shearing effect due to the applied moment, which results from the difference between the direction of the forces drive and direction of the resistance forces FR This shearing effect, in the plane of the sheet, is very different from the effects encountered in the micro-creping of the prior art Its result is, to a certain extent, to disturb advantageously the connections between fibers in the nonwoven product, by breaking these connections enough to give the sheet a texture

  soft, while preserving ample resistance

  health of groundwater connections to maintain its integrity.

  So when a non-woven product which is relatively rough and stiff is introduced into the machine, it becomes soft and flexible in a way that was hitherto impossible.

  to obtain at least for certain tablecloths.

  You can get the same softening effect with

  other webs formed on paper machines, including

  of paper qualities corresponding to foam paper-

  line, padding paper, towel paper

and wrapping paper.

  FIG. 10 shows the treatment of a woven ply In the entry region 70, the ply advances in the direction S, the warp threads extending in the direction S while the weft threads extend in the direction perpendicular As before, the tablecloth is deflected in

  direction R by the delay piece 40, the work wires

  me remaining perpendicular to the direction S, while the warp threads are deflected towards the direction R In this case, the ply is shown wound on a roll 32 'aligned with the direction R, so that this roll receives

  a tablecloth that has been shrunk to some extent and pre-

  feel bias effects These effects can be useful in certain cases, for example to avoid fraying during subsequent uses, and to communicate to the tablecloth a certain shrinkage and the ability to extend

2.530684

  in the width direction (You can use before-

  gustingly in some cases the same bias effect with

  various other tablecloths mentioned here).

  Considering Figure 11, we see that the

  ment of a paper takes place as in the other embodiments The paper is driven in the direction S, it

  is deflected towards direction R by the action of the delayed part

  datrix 40, and it is recovered, either in the direction S,

  either from a certain angle, as described above.

  Considering figure lla, we note that there is

  advantageous, especially when forming a micro texture

  crepe which is not very thin, use a primary piece 18 "of constant thickness, for example a thickness of 0.25 mm, ending with a flat edge 19", as shown In this case, even if the retarding piece 40 is pressed down with great force by the pressing piece 24, its edges and grooves may extend upstream of the end 19 "of the primary piece 18", without these

  edges have a detrimental effect on the primary part, due to

  se of the relative thickness of the latter This characteristic

  ristique allows simple assembly in many cases.

  (Note that when using the main part

  mayor 18 of FIG. 3 with the multiple steps A, B and C, that is to say the multipurpose cavity, the downstream end 19 of the

  primary part 18 may have a thickness of 0.08 to 0.10 mm.

  We can protect this thin element by making sure that

  the edges and grooves of the delay piece do not start

  cent at the end of the main part and extend downstream, as shown In the case where the entire surface of the retarding part has ridges and grooves, the grooves can be filled, for example

  with epoxy, to avoid the presence of sensitive edges

  to deform the thin primary part, or else we can

  take other precautions, such as inter-

  place an additional sheet metal part between the part

  this retarder and the primary part, to protect the outline of the multipurpose cavity In this way, the multipurpose cavity can be used with the delay and surface deflection action of the invention, to obtain the advantages of a micro- extremely fine crepe for paper or non-woven products, or for the treatment of textiles,

  fully consistent with the description given here)

  In the embodiment of FIGS. 12 and 13, relatively wide edges are used, that is to say that the retarding piece 40 "has a groove width Wg of 1.0 mm, and the grooves 48 'have a spacing C of 2.5 mm, which gives an edge width Wr of 1.5 mm It can be seen that

  when using such a retarder in the processing

  With certain qualities of paper, such as paper for napkins, the lines of micro-crepe which are formed in the web are continuous; however, they are oriented at different angles in the edge and groove regions, as shown in Figure 13 In the groove regions, the micro-crepe lines make an angle by

  relative to the transverse direction of the machine (perpendicular

  wedge to direction S), the part which meets the EL resistance edges being more delayed than the part which is exposed to the inactive edges Ez The part of the micro-crepe lines of the towel paper, relatively stiff, which corresponds to the edges 46 is oriented parallel to the transverse direction of the machine, perhaps because of the uniform retaining effect of the extended planar faces of the

delay edges 46 '.

  The resulting configuration produced in a certain

  taine measures stretch in more than one direction

  tion and increases the potential usefulness of paper, such as towel paper, which is less likely to

tear during use.

  In the embodiment of FIGS. 14 and 15,

  very wide grooves are used and the 46 "'edges defi

  end the usual delaying passage with a

  appreciable date In this case, the 46 "inclined edges may

  may have an additional delay effect attributable

  friction of flat, non-inclined surfaces of edges

  tes The depth of the grooves can be large enough so that corresponding parts of the tablecloth form bubbles and are not permanently micro-creped. It is thus possible to obtain a differential treatment over the width of the tablecloth. For example, at the time of drawing outside the machine after the creation of the pleated effect shown in FIG. 15, assuming that the pleated is not thermally fixed in the material, the parts located in the

  middle region of grooves will not retain compression

  permanent, while the nearby parts

edges will keep it.

  The above suggests the possibility of carrying out various treatments over a wide range, depending on the width of the furrows and edges, relative spacings, the depth of the furrows and the choice of the material which

intervenes.

  Yet another variant of the invention is related

  There is also the possibility of varying the direction of the edges and grooves from one section of the retarding part to another. Considering Figures 16 and 17, we see that blanks this embodiment of the grooves of constant width

  are oriented at angles which gradually differ.

  In the central region, there is a space G between the two

  sections of the retarder, and the grooves and edges

  tes in a section are inclined in a direction with respect to the axis A, while the furrows and edges

  located on the other side are tilted in the opposite direction

  As shown in Figure 17, this produces a configu-

  converging ration of edges and grooves In this embodiment, the ply is introduced in the direction S and at the level of the retarding part 40 a it is deflected in the plane of its faces, in accordance with the principles described above. The space G between the two halves of the retarding piece, in which there are no grooves or edges, pi = u: rela place necessary so that the treated sheet emerges from

  furrows in this region without opposition.

  In the embodiment of FIG. 17, the

  tablecloth is compressed longitudinally in accordance with the principles

  previously considered, while being tightened laterally

  to some extent, and it emerges in the

direction S to be rolled up.

  FIG. 18 illustrates an original variant of the use of this delaying piece. In this case, the direction of the delaying piece 40a is reversed with respect to the direction of movement of the sheet. The sheet is compressed in the direction of the machine in accordance with to the principles described, but the effect of ridges and grooves

  divergent is to stretch the tablecloth in the transverse direction

  dirty For certain tablecloths which are extensible by nature,

  this can have the desirable effect of producing a softener.

  ment In fact, it is possible to make follow the treatment represented on figure 17 by the treatment of figure 18

  to maximize the softening effects on a tablecloth.

  The principles of the deflection of plies in the plane of their faces in the compression treatment can be used each time that a fixed retarding element comes into contact with the treated ply. In Figures 19-21, which

  represent the micro-creping machine known as a blade of bre-

  vets US 3,260,778 or 3,426,405, the surface of a flexible retarder element -30 40b has edges and grooves oriented at an angle relative to the direction of the machine S, as explained above The retarder blade 56 which is used in the micro-creping machine remains used to apply a significant retarding effect to the web, but this retarding effect is assisted by the action of

  deflection edges 46 c Additional delaying effects

  the edges 46 c may allow the relaxation of the forces which tend to cause the retarding part 56 to penetrate into the cavity, or may make it possible to reduce the angle of its working surface 57 relative to the roller, in a manner

  re which can have beneficial effects in some cases.

  As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 20, the sheet can be subjected to a treatment with a second retarding piece which has edges and

  grooves oriented at an angle opposite the angle of the edges

  tes of the first retarding part This double treatment, which leads to a material which can be extended in four ways, is applicable in a similar manner to a micro-creping without a blade and

  to the other embodiments envisaged above.

  It will also be noted that other variants can be used in the use of the invention. The edges and the sanns can be curved instead of being straight and can even form to some extent re-entrant curves in S or in zigzag, all this to achieve the goals indicated above With regard to the variations in treatment over the width of the ply, it should be noted that in certain materials, and with appropriate configurations of the retarding edges, the degree of compression most can be obtained in a position immediately adjacent to the EL retarding edge, while in a wide groove adjacent to this edge, a region distant from the EL retarding edge (for example located next to the inactive edge in Figure 4) can receive a pressure of less compression and less permanent compression effects The resulting web can have a treatment varying gradually, when desired Treatment with very wide edges is another example in which one can perform a different kind of treatment In many cases, the web is subjected to torsional and shearing effects in its own plane, in a very unusual way, which leads to

  greater flexibility and other improved effects.

  It goes without saying that many modifications can

  can be made to the process and device described and

  shown, without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (1)

CLAIMS 1 Method for treating longitudinal compression of a ply (16) in which the ply is compressed against a driven fastening surface (12), in a drive zone, to drive the ply forward in in a longitudinal direction, and the web is delayed in a delay zone so that the previously compressed material opposes the advance of the untreated and entrained material, so that the untreated material is longitudinally confined against the treated material, characterized in that it comprises the operation, accomplished in the delaying zone, which consists in bringing the face of the sheet to be retarded in contact with a set of retarding edges including a large number of retarding edges (46, Figures 4, ô; 46 ', Figure 12; 46 ", Figure 14) which are distributed over the width of the ply; and in that the edges of the set of edges are arranged at an acute angle to the longitudinal direction e, the edges have initial parts (EL) which are arranged so as to apply resistance forces (FR) to the corresponding parts of the sheet which arrive at these initial parts, the resistance force of each edge comprises a retarding force component (F) and a deflection force component (FD), the retarding force component has the effect of delaying the corresponding arriving part of the sheet to oppose its movement forward, and the deflection force component has the effect of deflecting at least temporarily the path of movement of said corresponding part of the ply, towards a direction (R) which makes an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal direction. 2 Method according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises the operation, accomplished in a second delay zone, which consists in bringing the face of the delayed sheet in the first zone in contact with a second set of delay edges (Figure 20) distributed over the width of the sheet; and in that the edges situated in the second retardation zone are oriented at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the movement of the web and are arranged at an obtuse angle with respect to the arrangement of the edges in the first region. 3 Method according to any one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the face is brought into contact with edges which are close to each other, and the width of the grooves which separate the edges is greater at the width of the highest point of the edges (FIGS. 6, 7, 7 a, 16, 17, 18, 21), so that the retarding forces are distributed uniformly over the ply. 4 Machine for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising means for pressing the web against a driven fastening surface (12), in a drive zone, to drive the ply forward in the longitudinal direction, and retarding means intended to retard the ply in a delay zone so that the previously compressed material opposes the advance of the untreated and entrained material, so that the untreated material compresses longitudinally against the treated material; characterized in that the delaying means comprises a sheet-like delay piece (40) having a working surface arranged so as to come into contact with the face of a sheet; and in that the working surface defines a set of retarding edges comprising a large number of mutually spaced edges (46), with the edges distributed over the width of the part of the sheet to be delayed, the edges of the set edges are oriented at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal direction, the edges comprise initial parts (EL) which are arranged so as to apply resistance forces (FR) to the corresponding parts of the sheet which arrives at the level edges, the resistance force of each edge has a retarding force component (Fs) and a deflection force component (FD), the retarding force component (F) is capable of delaying the corresponding incoming part of the ply, the deflection force component (FD) temporarily deflects the path of movement of this part of the ply, and the combined effect of the set of retarding edges is to subject a ply in contact. t a significant delaying action. 5 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the delaymxent means comprise a large number of parallel edges (46) arranged side-by-side and oriented relative to the longitudinal direction of the web at an acute angle (a) which is in the range of approximately 100 to 600. 6 Machine according to any one of claims 4 or 5, characterized in that the edges are approximately 0.25 mm in height. 7 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the edges (46) are of the order of 0.25 mm in width and the grooves (48) between the edges are of the order of 0.25 mm height and about 1.0 mm in width. 8 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the edges have planar surfaces arranged so as to come into contact with the web. 9 Machine according to claim 7, characterized in that the edges have horizontal surfaces and have front edges (EL) and rear. Machine according to claim 7, characterized in that the edges have front edges (EL) and inclined surfaces (43, Figure 7) with a sawtooth profile, these surfaces extending from an edge towards the base associated with the next edge, at an angle (b) relative to the plane in which the delay piece extends. 11 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the edges are formed by the intersection of parts inclined in opposite directions. 12 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the grooves diverge gradually from each other and the edges located between these grooves are oriented at angles which gradually differ. 13 Machine according to claim 11, characterized in that the grooves gradually diverge from each other from the central longitudinal axis (A) of the retarding part. 14 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the web which leaves the machine is wound around an axis (32, Figure 8) and the direction in which the web leaves the machine corresponds to the direction of forward this longitudinal. Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the strip which leaves the machine is wound around an axis (32 ', figure 10) and the direction in which the web leaves the machine makes an angle with respect to the direction longitudinal of the machine (S). 16 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that this machine (M, Figure 1) comprises a driven roller (14) and a fixed part (18) on the opposite side of the ply (16) which defines both the surface of pressure and the retarding surface, and the web is subjected to retardation while it is in contact with the moving surface of the roller which slides under it in the forward direction. 17 Machine according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises a blade (56, Figure 19), and comprises a driven roller (14 '); a fixed part (40 b) on the opposite side of the ply, which defines a pressing piece, and a fixed blade (56) placed near the surface of the roll and designed so as to deflect the ply, while an extension of the pressure piece defines a flexible retarding piece, one face of which carries a set of mutually spaced retarding edges, in order to subject the sheet to a notable retarding action.   1 l Labeling piece (40) intended to be used   read in accordance with the process of any of   claims 1 or 2, this part being designed so as to   to be held above a drive roller (14) and to be pressed against it by pressure means   (24), to drive forward in a longi-   tudinal a ply (16) which passes between this piece and the surface (12) of the drive roller, characterized in that it comprises a working surface which is constituted by a set of retarding edges (46) mutually spaced and spread across the width of the part of the   tablecloth to delay; and in that the edges (46) are oriented   tees at an acute angle to the longitudinal direction   dinal, the edges have initial parts (EL)   which are arranged to apply resistive forces   tance (FR) to the corresponding parts of the sheet which arrives   wind at the edges, the resistance force (FR) of each edge includes a retarding force component   (Fs) and a deflection force component (FD), the com-   delaying force is capable of delaying the corresponding arriving part of the web, the deflection force component has the effect of temporarily deflecting the path of movement of this part of the web, and the combined effect of the set of delaying heads is to subject a tablecloth in contact to a delaying action notable.