Classification of knitting machines

The machines used for the manufacturing of knit fabrics can be divided into machines with individually driven needles and needle bar machines. The former type of machine incorporates needles which are moved individually by cams acting on the needle butt; they are used for producing weft knits and are subdivided into circular knitting machines and flat-bed knitting machines. The needles used can be latch needles or compound needles.

 The needle bar machines incorporate needles which move simultaneously, since they are all fixed to the same bar; we distinguish fullfashioned knitting machines and circular loopwheel machines for the production of weft knit fabrics, which only use spring-beard needles, and warp knitting machines which use spring-beard needles, latch needles and compound needles.

The Three Main Types of Needle

The needle is the basic element of loop formation. There are three most commonly used types of needle the latch needle (a), the spring-beard needle (b) and the compound needle (c).

Main parts
We can divide a needle into three main parts: A. the hook, which takes and retains the thread to be looped; B. the hook opening and closing device, that allows the hook to alternatively take a new thread and release the previous one; C. a system allowing the needle to move and form the loop.

 During the loop formation the hook must be closed in order to transfer the previous stitch already formed on the new thread; this operation takes place in different ways according to the type of needle used.

 With the latch needle, the latch is hinged at a certain distance from the hook and can revolve: - the anticlockwise rotation, produced by the pressure of the loop, which is originally inside the hook, opens the hook to allow a new thread to be fed -the clockwise rotation, produced by the pressure of the loop on the stem, allows the hook to be closed and subsequently knocked over on the new thread

 In spring-beard needles, the hook is closed by an external device, the presser, which, at a specific time during the stitch formation, comes in contact with it and makes it bend and close. When the presser is pulled away, the hook springs back and opens the needle automatically.

 The compound needle includes (inside the internal groove of the stem) a sliding closing element, which opens and closes the hook through its upward and downward motion

Stitch formation

Tuck stitch

Float/miss

 Co,urse - the row of loops or stitches running across the width of a fabric corresponding to filling of a woven fabric. WaIe - in kdt fabrics, a column of loops running lengthwise the fabric. Course Count.- the number of courses in a knit fabric per unit length measure. For example: courses per inch. Wale Count - the number of wales in a knit fabric per unit length. For example: wales per inch. Knit Loop- a stitch in a fabric the yam is formed into a loop shape by the knitting elements. Knitting meshes or interlocks these loops to form a fabric.

 Face Loop - a knitted loopformed on- thr. cylinder needles on a knitted machine. Back Loop - a knitted loop fomied on the dial needles on a knitted machine. Stitch - in knitting a stitch is the loop geometry of a particular pattem repeat. It may be in the form of a knitted, a tuck or a float loop. Tuck Loop,- a knitted stitch when a needle receives a new yam without losing its old loop. Float Loop - a knitted stitch when a needle holds its old loop and does not receive a new yam. It connects two loops on the same course but not in adjacent wales. AIso calleda miss-loop.

 Cut or Gauge - the number of needles per inch in the circumference of the cylinder or dial of a knitting machine Gaiting - the spacing of the needles in the dial and the cylinder in relation to each other on rib and interlock machines.

Course

Wale

Stitch Density

All stitches are formed by interlooping yarn in same direction