Loop pile hook module for use in a tufting machine, the module has a body member including a plurality of tufting machine hooks therein in side-by-side relationship, the hooks being formed from cylindrical, or other profile, pins which protrude from the body member to form a beak of the hooks.

A multi-needle quilting machine used, for example, to sew mattress ticking, filler such as foam, and backing together, the top having a desired sewn pattern thereon. The ticking/filler/backing are pulled straight through the quilter. A front needle bar and parallel rear needle bar spaced therefrom, the bars having needles at preselected locations, are moved left and right, with respect to the movement of the ticking/filler/backing, to create the desired pattern. The front and rear needle bars are operated in an out of phase relationship, that is, when the front needle bars are moving down, the rear needle bars are moving up. Also, movements of the needle bar cranks can be set such that the cranks for the front needle bars rotate in one direction and cranks for the rear needle bars rotate in the opposite direction. In sewing, loopers are moved left and right and, also, rocked front and back to create an oblong path. A spreader rotating shaft has a looper rotating shaft transverse thereto. Transverse gears on both shafts engage so that the rotation of the spreader shaft rotates the transverse shaft. A looper crank on each end of the spreader shaft, the looper cranks having off-set bores therein, is used to create the left and right movement of the loopers. Eccentrics are used to rock the loopers front and back.

A walking needle chain stitch sewing machine having multi sewing heads laterally spaced apart from one-another, that includes upper primary drive shaft and secondary lower first and second drive shafts and mechanisms thereof for driving first and second needle-drive mechanisms, and that further includes other secondary lower third and fourth drive shafts and mechanisms thereof for driving first and second feed-dogs and mechanisms thereof, with the first and second drive shafts being connected to the primary drive shaft by respectively spaced-apart drive-belts each mounted between driving and driven gears, and with the third and fourth drive shafts likewise being connected to the primary drive shaft by respectively spaced-apart other drive-belts each mounted between other driving and driven gears. Each of the sewing heads additionally includes reciprocatable sewing needle(s) reciprocatable in each of upwardly-downwardly movement directions and forwardly-rearwardly movement directions, and forwardly-rearwardly reciprocatable feed-dog(s), and synchonizing structures and mechanisms thereof. Each of the needle mechanisms and each of the feed-dog structures and mechanisms thereof are connected to its respective secondary drive shaft through and driven by a synchronizer structure and mechanism thereof that has its own separate solenoid lock therefor separately activateable and deactivatable for and during intermittently locking against revolving movement during synchronization of needle reciprocation with feed-dog reciprocation. Also there is an alarm mechanism activating a sensory-detectable alarm whenever one or more locks associated with the synchronizing mechanism(s) fails to engage.

An electronically controlled multi-needle quilting machine including linking cylinder arranged between an eccentric integral with a rotating spindle and a lever, to drive in an oscillating motion a number of loopers which, in combination with a number of corresponding needles, perform stiching operations by double chain stitches on a layered material interposed between said members, said linking cylinder comprising a pneumatic cylinder controlled to change the extension of its rod during the various operational steps, whereby the link length is changed and the loopers may reach a position in which, by being provided with a blade they perform a cutting operation on thread of respective needle.