Washing tow bundles of synthetic fibers

Claim 1

APPARATUS OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED AND FOR THE PURPOSES INDICATED COMPRISING A PAN FOR CONTAINING AN ELONGATE BATH OF BENEFICIAL TREATING LIQUID FOR TEXTILE FIBRES, TOW-ADVANCING MEANS FOR LONGITUDINALLY PASSING A TOW BUNDLE OF TEXTILE FIBERS IN AND THROUGH SAID BATH, PUMP MEANS FOR ADMITTING FRESH TREATING LIQUID AT ONE END OF SAID BATH AND CIRCULATING IT THERETHROUGH IN A PATH OF FLOW GENERALLY COUNTERCURRENT TO SAID TOW BUNDLE, A SEQUENTIAL SPACED PLURALITY OF LIQUID-CONFINING CHAMBERS FORMED IN AND PHYSICALLY DIVIDING SAID PAN WITH ADJACENT OPEN SECTIONS THEREBETWEEN AND AT THE TOW-INTRODUCING END OF SAID BATH, EACH OF SAID CHAMBERS HAVING A PAIR OF APERTURES FORMED ONE IN EACH OF THEIR SIDES THAT EXTENDS ACROSS SAID PAN, EACH OF SAID APERTURES IN SAID CHAMBERS BEING IN LIQUID-TRANSMITTING COMMUNICATION WITH THE ADJACENT OPEN SECTIONS OF SAID BATH-CONTAINING PAN BETWEEN SAID CHAMBERS AND BEING FURTHER ADAPTED TO LONGITUDINALLY ACCOMMODATE AND TRANSMIT SAID TOW BUNDLE IN SUBMERSION IN SAID BATH WHEN IT IS BEING PASSED THERETHROUGH, A PLURALITY OF CONDUIT MEANS, EACH OF SAID CONDUIT MEANS LEADING FROM ONE OF SAID CHAMBERS INTO THE BOTTOM OF THE ADJACENT OPEN SECTION IN SAID BATH-CONTAINING PAN TOWARD THE TOW-INTRODUCING END OF SAID BATH, EACH OF SAID CONDUIT MEANS BEING ADAPTED TO PASS LIQUID FROM EACH OF SAID OPEN SECTIONS TO EACH OF SAID CHAMBERS ADJACENT THERETO IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS THE GENERAL PATH OF CIRCULATION OF SAID LIQUID THROUGH SAID BATH, A PUMP IN EACH CONDUIT FOR TRANSMITTING LIQUID IN THE INDICATED DIRECTION IN EACH OF SAID CONDUITS, AND A WIER-LIKE SPILLWAY AT ABOUT THE POINT OF COMMUNICATION OF EACH OF SAID CONDUIT MEANS WITH EACH OF SAID OPEN SECTIONS FOR WITHDRAWING LIQUID FROM EACH OF SAID OPEN SECTIONS INTO EACH OF SAID CONDUITS.