Patterning mechanism for knitting machines

Claim 1

IN A CIRCULAR MULTI-FEED KNITTING MACHINE, IN COMBINATION: A CYLINDER; SELECTABLE KNITTING INSTRUMENTALITIES IN SAID CYLINDER; AT LEAST ONE PATTERNING UNIT FOR DETERMINING SELECTIVE ACTUATION OF SAID INSTRUMENTALITIES AT EACH OF A PLURALITY OF FEEDS, SAID PATTERNING UNIT INCLUDING A BANK OF INDIVIDUALLY MOVABLE SELECTOR MEMBERS SELECTIVELY OPERABLE FOR THE PURPOSE OF INFLUENCING SELECTION OF DESIRED INSTURMENTALITIES; AN ASSOCIATED STACK OF ELECTRO-MAGNETIC ACTUATORS FOR SELECTIVELY ACTUATING SAID SELECTOR MEMBERS; A FLEXIBLE CONTROL WEB FOR CONTROLLING THE SAID STACK OF ACTUATORS, SAID WEB BEING MOVABLE AT A SPEED RELATED TO THE ROTARY MOTION OF THE MACHINE AND HAVING FORMED THEREIN DISPOSITIONS OF HOLES PREDETERMINED IN ACCORDANCE WITH A DESIRED PATTERN; SWITCH MEANS WHICH ARE ARRANGED IN ELECTRIC CIRCUITRY INCLUDING THE ELECTRO-MAGNETIC ACTUATORS; MEANS WHICH ARE ADAPTED TO INFLUENCE SAID SWITCHES AND ARE IN TURN INFLUENCED BY THE APERTURED AND UN-APERTURED PORTIONS OF THE MOVABLE CONTROL WEB; AND A COMMON ELEMENT WHICH IS MOVABLE IN TIME WITH EACH SUCCESSIVE SELECTION OF THE SAID SELECTOR MEMBERS OF THE BANK AND IS ADAPTED TO BRING ABOUT A POSITIVE SEPARATION OF THE SELECTED FROM THE UNSELECTED SELECTOR MEMBERS AND TO HOLD THE SELECTED MEMBERS IN OPERATIVE POSITIONS TO WHICH THEY ARE MOVABLE AT APPROPRIATE TIMES, THE SAID COMMON ELEMENT BEING AUTOMATICALLY WITHDRAWN FORM SELECTED MEMBERS AT APPROPRIATE TIMES TO RELEASE THE LATTER FOR RETURN TO THEIR INOPERATIVE POSITIONS.