US 12,442,114 B2
Circular machine for hosiery and knitwear and process for closing an end of a tubular manufactured article directly on a circular machine
Renato Micheli, Brescia (IT)
Assigned to SGM Automazioni S.R.L., Brescia (IT)
Appl. No. 18/834,804
Filed by SGM AUTOMAZIONI S.R.L., Brescia (IT)
PCT Filed Feb. 1, 2023, PCT No. PCT/IB2023/050882
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jul. 31, 2024,
PCT Pub. No. WO2023/152605, PCT Pub. Date Aug. 17, 2023.
Claims priority of application No. 102022000002327 (IT), filed on Feb. 9, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2025/0154697 A1, May 15, 2025
Int. Cl. D04B 15/88 (2006.01); D04B 9/56 (2006.01)
CPC D04B 15/88 (2013.01) [D04B 9/56 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A circular machine for producing tubular manufactured articles comprising a plurality of consecutive courses, each in turn comprising a plurality of stitches, wherein the circular machine comprises:
a head,
at least one cylinder housing a plurality of needles that are vertically arranged within the at least one cylinder, the plurality of needles are further arranged side by side to form a first semicircle and a second semicircle,
one or more feeding stations that are configured to feed at least one yarn to the needles, wherein the needles are moveable in upward and downward movements to form the plurality of stitches of the at least one yarn, the tubular manufactured article during production being kept inside the at least one cylinder,
a turner arranged above and axially aligned with the at least one cylinder, the turner being configured to extract the tubular manufactured article from the at least one cylinder and turn the tubular manufactured article inside out while bringing and keeping the tubular manufactured article above the at least one cylinder, and
a transferring apparatus configured for;
collecting, from at least one first half of consecutive needles of the needles, the respective stitches of at least one half of a last course of the plurality of consecutive courses of the tubular manufactured article, and,
arranging, with the tubular manufactured article turned inside out, on each of the needles of a half of the needles two stitches that are joined by processing at least one yarn through at least the half of the needles, the turner being configured to reposition the tubular manufactured article within the cylinder, after pairs of stitches of the last course of the tubular manufactured article have been positioned on half of the needles.