Provided are a systems and methods for continuously providing a metal wire to a welding torch for manufacturing objects by solid freeform fabrication to provide continuous deposition of metal to the freeform object, especially objects made with titanium or titanium alloy wire.

Provided are a systems and methods for continuously providing a metal wire to a welding torch for manufacturing objects by solid freeform fabrication to provide continuous deposition of metal to the freeform object, especially objects made with titanium or titanium alloy wire.

A filament accumulator assembly is provided containing a filament inlet for receiving a continuous filament from the filament source and a filament outlet for receiving the continuous filament from the filament inlet, the continuous filament forming a filament loop between the filament exiting the filament inlet and entering the filament outlet. The filament accumulator assembly further comprises a filament track defining at least part of an inner boundary and an outer boundary of a circuitous filament route between the filament inlet and the filament outlet, and the filament loop is bound by the filament track. The filament loop has a diameter that varies across a range of potential diameters within the filament track.

An automated unspooling mechanism capable of dispensing of knitting material strands in a dynamically-controlled tension on a knitting machine. An unspooling device is configured to sense the tension of a strand fed to the knitting machine, and responsively adjust the strand deployment speed to avoid too little or too much strand dispensing without interrupting the knitting process. The unspooling device includes a variable motor drive that can rotate the strand package in various speeds, and a spring arm trigger that can sense the current tension of the dispensed material. The spring arm trigger can vary its arm position based on the sensed tension. The arm position is then processed and converted to a signal to vary the motor speed. Therefore, the deployment speed of the strands can be dynamically controlled based on a sensed tension of feeding the strand.

A sensing apparatus for yarn feeder may comprise a yarn feeder and a tension controller. The tension controller has an elongated sensing block installed therein, and a horizontal extending board is connected to the sensing block. An operating rod is mounted on a middle upper surface of the extending board at one end and upwardly sticks out of the tension controller to pivotally connect to a tension pulley at the other end. A yarn wound on a winding wheel of the yarn feeder is configured to couple with the tension pulley. At least an impedance sensing piece is attached on a surface of the sensing block, and a deformable hole horizontally penetrates through the sensing block. When the sensing block is pressed or pulled, the tension controller can obtain the tension value of the yarn and further calculate the torsion value of the yarn feeder.

The present invention provides a wire electrode supply apparatus for suppressing wire electrode driving vibration for wire electrodes having a wide range of diameters and formed of various materials, thereby improving processed surface roughness. The wire electrode supply apparatus includes a back tension adjustment unit that adjusts a back tension of the wire electrode drawn from a source bobbin, a tension applying unit, and a constant pressure ejecting unit that ejects the wire electrode with constant pressure and rate after the transference via the tension applying unit and an electrical discharge machining unit. The tension applying unit includes a low tension applying unit that applies a tension to the wire electrode, and a high tension applying unit that can supply a higher tension. After the high tension applying unit supplies a tension, the low tension applying unit supplies a tension. Otherwise, only the low tension applying unit supplies a tension.

A power paying-off cradle consisting of power paying-off component and framework. In the framework is a cavity with an upper opening; a wire tension balance mechanism is installed in the cavity; a displacement wheel is installed on the wire tension balance mechanism, and a position detector of the displacement wheel is installed on the inner side wall of the framework; a turning wheel is installed on the front top of the framework; a thread hole is installed in the front of the framework; wire on the paying-off spool enwinds the turning wheel and the displacement wheel successively and passes through the thread hole. The wire tension balance mechanism has damping effect on the displacement wheel. When the tension of the displacement wheel is greater than or less than the damping force, the displacement wheel moves in order to ensure consistency of the tension or the strain of wire.

Systems and methods for winding wire are disclosed. A system includes a wire take-up unit and a wire tensioning unit. The take-up unit includes a rotating mandrel and a wire directing device, the wire directing device arranged to cause the wire to be wound in a figure-eight configuration on the rotating mandrel to form a coil having many layers of wire. The wire tensioning unit applies tension to said wire as it is wound, and applies a first amount of tension to a predetermined amount of wire constituting at least a first two layers of the coil, and a second amount of tension to the wire beyond the predetermined amount. In one embodiment, the wire tensioning unit includes digital self-relieving air regulator pneumatically coupled to and controlling a pressure in said pressurized chamber of a pre-lubricating cylinder that is coupled to the wire being wound.

A method for winding can include positioning a multi-sided object on a winding component in a first position. The method can include dereeling a wire from a dereeler and winding onto the multi-sided object in the first position. The method can include rotating the winding component to position the multi-sided object in a second position without removing the multi-sided object from the winding component. The method can include dereeling the wire from the dereeler and winding onto the multi-sided object in the second position.

A yarn feeder may comprise a driver and a winding wheel. The driver has a front cover, a rear cover, a stator disc and a rotor disc, and the front cover and the rear cover are configured to fit together to form a housing therebetween which accommodates the stator disc and the rotor disc therein. The stator disc has a first through hole, and a plurality of teeth are formed around the first through hole to enable a couple of coils to be wound thereon. The rotor disc has a connecting hole, and a plurality of magnetic members are formed around the connecting hole. A connecting base extended from a first end of the winding wheel is engaged with the connecting hole, and the driver is connected to a tension controller to detect the tension of yarn and further to control the rotational speed of the driver.