Autoconer 338 Winding Technology. Multi-Optionality, Know-how, Internationality.

Yarn package winding Key Technology in the textile production process.

Yarn package winding is the completion of the yarn forming process and the starting point for various subsequent processes, from weaving or knitting to textile finishing. This interface function of winding is what makes the winding process so important. In winding, the course is set for high cost-effectiveness in the following stages of the textile production chain. At the same time, care is taken that the quality of the yarn wound will meet the demands placed on it by the finished articles. Schlafhorst specialist of yarn winding machines in the world market for over 50 years concerns itself intensely with these manifold requirements and develops innovative winding technology to meet them. Decisive for the universal acceptance of the Autoconer is the fact, that Schlafhorst in its work places the focus not narrowly on winding, but, considering winding as an important part and integral stage of the entire textile production chain, consistently develops and advances winding technology with the requirements of, and benefits for, the entire textile production in mind. Textiletechnological know-how crucial in this context is elaborated in cooperation with world-leading partners in textile machine engineering. Typical features of the Schlafhorst performance are: extensive textile- technological expertise, consequent market and customer orientation, early recognition of changes in market conditions and requirements, and excellent customer advice and training service all over the world. These have contributed to the world-wide success of the Autoconer, from the first to the present generation. Translating this know-how into intelligent winding machine technology has made Schlafhorst for decades the innovation leader in the international arena. This is true of the Autoconer yarn splicing technology with the modular-design splicer system and of the quality of the Autoconer yarn packages due to the innovative FX- series with its efficient modules Autotense FX, Propack FX, Variopack FX and Ecopack FX. Thanks to its ingenious modular concept, the Autoconer offers a convincing universality which enables the machine to produce yarn packages optimally suited for any of the textile production processes downstream of winding.

Materials wound on the Autoconer 338.

Cotton Wool Polyester Viscose PAN Linen Blends Kevlar Special fibres Natural fibre yarns Manmade fibre yarns Short-staple yarns Long-staple yarns Ring yarns Compact yarns SiroSpun yarns Hard and soft Core yarns High-twist yarns Plied yarns Fancy (Effect) yarns OE-Rotor yarns Mule yarns Repco yarns

Autoconer yarn packages for the downstream production processes.

Dyeing Assembly winding / Twisting Beam warping Sectional warping Weaving Warp Knitting Weft Knitting

Autoconer yarn packages for dyeing.

In yarn package dyeing, it is important that dye penetration is uniform and level dyeing is ensured throughout the package. Success in package dyeing depends on many factors including material of the yarn, dyes used, method of dyeing, dyeing apparatus or dyeing liquor pump. What determines the result, however, is the even build and structure of the crosswound package to be dyed. Thanks to the intelligent control and regulation systems and winding components of the Autoconer 338, yarn packages can made to suit the requirements of package dyeing exactly. The known dyer's adage saying "Well wound is half dyed" is a measure of the importance of wellstructured yarn packages for dyeing, and of the enormous worth of the Schlafhorst winding technology and contribution in this field. The required yarn density of dye-packages varies according to dyeing machine, method of dyeing and material. Package density in winding is directly influenced by the parameter yarn tension. Thanks to Autotense FX, the desired package density can be obtained with precision, as the yarn tension is set at the Informator as an absolute value. The constant level of yarn tension ensured by Autotense FX and the elimination of critical pattern winds on the package through Propack FX are a guarantee for the production of Autoconer packages with an extremely uniform yarn structure and yarn density. Reproducible uniformity of the package density from package to package is ensured by centralised setting of the winding parameters at the Informator. A further factor contributing to the optimisation of the structure of dye packages is the lateral yarn layer displacement on the package, achieved by traverse motion of the yarn-guide drum. The regulation of the yarn tension by Autotense FX has the additional advantage of increasing the average winding speed, which means higher productivity in the winding of dye packages on the Autoconer 338. Whirling the yarn ends for fibre entangling in the splicing process to achieve spliced joints that are similar to the yarn is also beneficial for ensuring that in yarn dyeing the short spliced joints have the same dyeing property as the yarn, so that visible off-shade spots in the fabric are avoided.

Specially for package dyeing of elastic Core yarns and other elastic yarns, where homogeneous dyeing is critical because of bulging-out package flanks or uncontrollable breakdown of the package structure, Schlafhorst offers as a practicable solution the closed-loop control system Variopack FX. This system coordinates the parameters yarn tension and package contact pressure throughout the build-up of the package, so that well-structured packages with good dimensional stability are produced. Yarn packages produced on the Autoconer 338 are dyed with excellent results, colouring throughout the package and from package to package is absolutely even and the results are reproducible. Thanks to the optimal package structure achieved with Propack FX an essential factor for cost-effective processing in the production stages downstream of winding rewinding of the packages after dyeing for use in subsequent production processes can be dispensed with and, depending on the material of the yarn, the Autoconer packages can be used directly for the warp or the weft.

Even package density.

20 winding positions.
+1.0% +0.5% + 0% 0.5% 1.0%

Package density

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Batch

Yarn count Material Yarn guide drum, package format Yarn tension Autotense FX Setpoint length

42 tex (Ne 14, Nm 24) PES/CV (50/50); 892 T/m 2-pitch asym. 420 15cN (with Autospeed 50%) 45,000 m

Greatest evenness of package density.

Dye package density as a function of yarn tension.

Package density [g/cm3] Package contact pressure Autotense FX [cN] Autospeed Winding speed [m/min] Average winding speed [m/min] Material Yarn count Drum type Package format Wound with 100% CO, carded 20 tex (Ne 30, Nm 50) 2-pitch sym. 6 cylindrical (220 mm) , lateral yarn layer displacement 0.30 S 8 75% 1,200 890 0.33 S 14 60% 1,400 1,100 0.36 S 21 60% 1,400 1,220 0.38 S 25 60% 1,400 1,275 0.40 S 30 without 1,400 1,380

Targeted generation of the package density by yarn tension adjustment.

Autoconer packages for Twisting and Assembly Winding.

The Twisting, process places extremely high and quite specific demands on the unwinding properties of the cross-wound yarn packages. This is true of the twisting process itself and of assembly winding, a process which in certain cases precedes twisting. In both processes, 2 yarn packages are used for feeding the machines and have to be unwound with equal yarn tension.

Thanks to the Autotense FX Yarn Tension Regulating System, the Autoconer 338 produces yarn packages with extremely uniform structure and density. Central setting of the winding parameters ensures reproducibility of the winding parameters for all packages. There are no variations in yarn tension when the packages are unwound in twisting or assembly winding. The plied yarns have an absolutely even structure. >1

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The Length Measuring and Full Diameter Computation System of the Autoconer 338 ensures that the length of the yarn in the packages produced is exactly measured and the length is the same in all packages or the packages are all of the same diameter. This is a further precondition for the economical production of high-quality plied yarns. High-precision yarn length measuring is possible with the Ecopack FX system (optional extra).

Whether for direct feeding to twisting machines or for feeding to assembly winders, the Autoconer yarn packages offer ideal conditions for cost efficient processing and top-quality results in the textile production chain.

Not infrequently, plied yarns have to be produced of wool or elastic single yarns. Up to now, yarn packages of such yarns could not be fed directly to two-for-one twisting machines, as placing the packages on top of one another in the supply creel was impossible because of the bulge-out of the package flanks. This problem has been solved with the integrated Variopack FX system on the Schlafhorst Autoconer. Bulging-out of he package flanks is reduced to a minimum. Yarn packages produced with Variopack FX can without problem be directly fed to two-for-one twisting machines.

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The Autoconer 338 produces packages with all the formats used in twisting, with a yarn-guide traverse from 4" to 6". Regular and orderly laying of the yarn onto the package is ensured by the various types of yarn guide drums. For winding wool or wool blend yarns intended for twisting, the use of the Thermosplicer is recommended.
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Autoconer packages for Warping and Weaving.

In sectional and beam warping as well as weaving, good unwinding performance of the packages for smooth unwinding of the yarn is decisive for the achievement of high quality and cost-efficiency. Packages must allow highest weft insertion speeds and cope with the enormous alternating stresses due to changing acceleration on the weaving machine. Processing a multitude of packages simultaneously in sectional and beam warping requires extreme uniformity of the yarn lengths in the packages from which the yarn is taken. Stoppages due to yarn breaks or entangled yarns or yarn layers, or other faults disturbing the warping or weaving process, cause enormous production losses. This is why the packages for use in the production phases downstream of winding are required to satisfy the following criteria: absolutely uniform structure and density with large package diameters, orderly laying of the yarn, safe yarn-like spliced joints and precisely measured equal length of the yarn on all packages used in a process. Thanks to the expertise in winding technology of Schlafhorst, the Autoconer 338 is optimally equipped for the production of packages satisfying all these requirements. The Autotense FX Yarn Tension Regulating System ensures a constant level of yarn tension, and hence, uniform package structure and density. The Propack FX Package Cradle Anti-patterning System improves the package structure still further by eliminating critical patterning zones. Even at the highest weft insertion speeds, as on air-jet weaving machines, there is no sloughing-off of yarn layers. Thanks to Propack FX, the package diameters are not limited by critical patterning zones on the package. The yarn is safely and orderly laid onto the package, even when yarns with critical, smooth structures are wound, due to the smooth start-up and acceleration of the package and precise guiding of the yarn through the yarn-guide drum grooves. The modular splicer system of the Autoconer 338 offers splicing options for efficiently splicing all types of materials and producing spliced joints that

safely withstand the alternating stresses to which the yarn is subjected on the weaving machine. In the doffing process, the doffer places the yarn bottom reserve onto the package tube and lays the tip tail onto the package, so that the transfer of the yarn from one package to the next in weaving presents no problem. The operators can fasten the yarn ends of the packages together easily and safely. Highest-precision yarn length measuring with the Ecopack system guarantees that in warping all the packages on the warping creel run out at the same time, thus reducing the amount of waste yarn significantly. In warping and in weaving, these performance characteristics of the Autoconer 338 are a guarantee for highest levels of cost-efficiency and productivity.

Autoconer packages for Knitting.

In the knitting process, due to the heavy deflection of the yarn by the needles within a narrow space, the yarn is subjected to exceptionally high stresses. Optimal waxing of the yarn in winding minimises friction of the yarn on the needles and deflecting elements. The stress on yarn and needles in loop formation is significantly reduced. The profound textile-technological know-how of Schlafhorst is also evident in the field of yarn waxing. Extensive tests prove that there is a close interrelation between yarn tension and the amount of wax rubbed off the wax roll. The intensity of waxing must be optimised for every type of yarn material. Each material has its specific optimal low friction value only within a narrow zone of the waxing curve. As it is possible on the Autoconer 338 with its automatic yarn tension regulating system to enter the yarn tension centrally at the Informator as an absolute value, the optimal yarn tension can be specified for whatever yarn is wound. The amount of yarn taken off the wax roll and applied to the yarn is small. Underwaxing and overwaxing is thus avoided. Yet another important advantage of Autotense FX is, that the amount of wax applied to the yarn is even throughout the formation of the yarn package, due to the fact that Autotense FX holds the yarn tension constant within the spinning bobbin unwound and from spinning bobbin to spinning bobbin. The wax roll monitoring feature integrated into the waxing device ensures that no unwaxed yarn can be placed on the cross-wound package. A signal calls the attention of the operator well in time before the wax roll runs out. >1

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For knitters, Autoconer yarn packages offer the added advantage of excellent unwinding performance on the knitting machines: tapered packages with up to 557 taper, if required with increasing taper to 11, and with large diameters. The bottom yarn reserve and the tip tail of the package, formed by the package doffer, are essential for easy handling and safe yarn transfer at the package change on the knitting machine. The yarn-like spliced joints produced by the Autoconer are resistant to fibre shifting at the deflection points in the knitting machine. Trouble-free work with the Autoconer packages in the textile production processes translates into high efficiency rates of the equipment and superior quality of the knitted fabrics.

Interrelation of Yarn Tension [cN] and Yarn Friction Coefficient .

0.25

0.20 Yarn friction coefficient

Minimum quantity of wax rubbed off the wax roll 0.96g wax/kg yarn.

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Yarn material Winding speed Type of wax Yarn tension

20 cN 25 cN 30 cN 35 cN 40 cN 45 cN

20tex (Nm 50/1; Ne 30/1) 100% CO, carded 1,200 m/min Reseda Binder green see diagram

Yarn tension [cN]

Targeted yarn waxing through yarn tension variation.

Up-to-date yarn structures Optimal winding on the Autoconer 338.

Compact yarns. In the winding of Compact Yarns, the main requirements placed on the winding process are maintaining the specific properties and quality of the yarn, also in yarn splicing, and the production of optimally-structured cross-wound packages for trouble-free unwinding and careful handling of the yarn in the production processes subsequent to winding. The focus of the adapted winding technology is also on maximised resource utilisation and online process and quality monitoring. The unique upper-yarn sensor and the suction system with controlled operating vacuum of the Autoconer 338 ensure gentle treatment of the yarn in package winding. Careful handling of the package surfaces and a minimum amount of yarn waste are ensured by the low vacuum level, which can be set to suit the specific characteristics of the yarn wound, and the short upper-yarn search and suck-up times. There is no roughening-up of the yarn by excessive intensity of the sucking action.
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central Conerpilot data acquisition system supports online quality monitoring. The modular architecture of the Autoconer winding technology for adaptation to any application allows efficient, cost-effective winding of all shortstaple and long-staple Compact Yarns spun in the market. Elastic Core yarns. The specific structure and great diversity of the material of which elastic Core yarns are made places very high demands on yarn winding, in particular on the splicing technology, structure and build of the yarn packages and process reliability. For the winding of elastic Core yarns, Schlafhorst offers an optimised winding process specially adapted to the requirements of elastic Core yarn winding. The package format is optimized by Autotense FX, Propack FX and, in particular measure, by Variopack FX. To reduce bulging-out of the package flanks to a minimum, Variopack FX coordinates yarn tension and package contact pressure throughout the build-up of the package in such a way that dimensional stability of the package is ensured. >2 For the splicing of elastic Core yarns, Schlafhorst offers the Elastosplicer, which, through its specially adapted yarn geometry, additional braking elements and precisely timed operating cycles, produces Core-yarn spliced joints of convincing quality. The splices stand out by their excellent visual appearance, great strength and high resistance to alternating stresses. >3 >4 Software and sensor technology in the Autoconer 338 guarantee reliable, well-coordinated control sequences. The winding process can be optimised in such a way that the very best conditions are created, whatever the specific properties of the yarn wound are. This is one of the strong points of the Autoconer 338 in the continuation of the Autoconer success story.

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Autotense FX and Propack FX ensure uniform structure of the packages with the least possible stress on the yarn. Their action is supported by the package lift-off motion at a yarn break or clearer cut, yarn guide drum and package being braked to a standstill separately from one another, and by the direct, sensor-monitored yarn path with only slight deviations. As required for the application, the Autoconer can splice Compact Yarns either with the Standardsplicer or the Injectionsplicer. The Thermosplicer is available for the splicing of Compact Yarns of wool. With these options, the highest demands on strength and appearance of the spliced joints can be efficiently met. The Ring Spindle Identification System in Autoconer-RSM linked installations extends online quality control on the Autoconer right back to the ring spinning machine. Yarn faults originating in the ring spindles can be pinpointed and eliminated at a very early stage. Constant and consistently high yarn quality is thus ensured. The optional

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Schlafhorst Zweigniederlassung der Saurer GmbH & Co. KG Blumenberger Str. 143-145 D-41061 Mnchengladbach Phone +49 2161 28 0 Fax +49 2161 28 26 45 info@schlafhorst.de www.schlafhorst.de