Apparatus for plaiting tow onto a conveyor

DETAILED DESCRIPTION What is claimed is: 1.
An inverting tow plaiter for handling at least one continuous length of tow and for depositing said tow onto a receiving end of a main conveyor, in such orientation as to permit trouble-free removal of said tow from an opposite discharge end of said main conveyor, the combination with said main conveyor comprising (a) means defining an elongated transversely extending upper tow receiving area and an elongated transversely extending lower tow discharge area, said discharge area being substantially contiguous with said main conveyor receiving end; (b) a continuously moving roughened surface defined by a rough belt running on a cylindrical drum and extending along a semi-circular path between said tow receiving area and said tow discharge area; (c) means for laying down tow in said tow receiving area in overlying laps extending back and forth in an axial direction relative to said drum on said roughened surface, said roughened surface having an axial length sufficient to accommodate the tow laps; (d) a generally semi-circular housing having an axis parallel to and generally in the same vertical plane as the axis of said drum, said housing axis being located above the axis of said drum, said housing being spaced from said roughened surface and generally axially coextensive therewith, and extending from at least near said tow receiving area to said tow discharge area, whereby said housing defines with the roughened surface a curved chute of continuously narrowing cross-section having a wider gap in the tow receiving area than in the tow discharge area, the radial gap in the tow discharge area being at least one third the tow average width but sufficiently small to maintain contact of the tow with the roughened surface to said discharge area; (e) said roughened surface having a speed of rotation approximately the same as the main conveyor; (f) said laps inverting in orientation by rotation about a longitudinal marginal edge of said tow in passage in said curved chute between the receiving area and the tow discharge area