Multiple full bobbins simultaneously doffed from group to group from textile machines such as draw-twisters are automatically accommodated within a bobbin storing cage in prescribed arrangements without any undesirable mutual contact of the bobbins and the apparatus carrying the cage travels intermittently along the row of spindles in order to carry out the group doffing.
An automatic doffing and donning apparatus is disclosed for replacing a plurality of full bobbins which are mounted on winding spindles disposed parallel to each other on a yarn processing machine with a plurality of empty bobbins which are mounted on a bobbin reservoir plate disposed along and in front of the winding spindles. The apparatus comprises: a movable frame which is horizontally movable along both the yarn processing machine and the bobbin reservoir plates; a full bobbin doffing device mounted on the movable frame for doffing the full bobbins formed on the winding spindles and transferring them to the bobbin reservoir plate, and; an empty bobbin donning device mounted on the movable frame. The empty bobbin donning device is provided with: an empty bobbin transfer mechanism which moves the empty bobbins on the bobbin reservoir plates to a stand-by position located vertically outside of the operating space of the full bobbin doffing device, so that the empty bobbins do not disturb the operation of the full bobbin doffing device, and; a bobbin insert mechanism which receives the empty bobbins from the empty bobbin transfer mechanism located at the stand-by position and which inserts them on the winding spindles after the full bobbins are doffed from the winding spindles by the full bobbin doffing device.
An apparatus for gripping tubes of yarn packages in a textile machine includes a pressurized fluid drive member. The pressurized fluid drive member is fixedly mounted to a support frame and, in one aspect of the invention, extends interiorly of a generally cylindrical fixed component having a pair of diametrically opposed projections formed on its outer surface. A movable component comprising a tube receiving housing for receiving a yarn package tube therein has a pair of detents compatibly configured with the projections on the fixed component for releasably securing the tube receiving housing to the fixed component. In the event of a collision between the tube gripping apparatus and another object, the movable component is non-destructively released from its normal operating position, thereby minimizing the risk that potentially damaging forces will be transmitted to the pressurized fluid member.
