EP1607502A1

EP1607502A1 - Method for making fabric cut portions

Info

Publication number: EP1607502A1
Application number: EP04013930A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Marco Calzolai
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-06-15
Filing date: 2004-06-15
Publication date: 2005-12-21
Anticipated expiration: 2024-06-15
Also published as: EP1607502B1; ATE397109T1; WO2005123998A1; PL1607502T3; PT1607502E; DE602004014118D1; ES2309420T3

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for making fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect thereon comprising the steps of: creating, by means of a photo editing program, a mask comprising a background (20) and a plurality of geometric figures (10) superimposed on said background (20), each geometric figure corresponding to a fabric cut portion, said cut portions being arranged in order to be eventually woven on the fabric in full scale; pasting graphic elements (4) on said mask in a predetermined way for each cut portion; creating an image file of said mask with said graphic elements pasted thereon; transforming said image file into a readable format file by the control system of the loom, by means of a setting program; acquisition of said readable format file by the loom control system, said loom being ready to weave weft and/or warp yarns in a plurality of colours; weaving said yarns by said loom according to said image file obtaining a woven fabric (1) according to said background (20) and to said images (4) pasted in said geometric figures (10).

Description

Field of the invention.

The present invention relates to the industrial production of fabrics, in particular for making garments, lining of furniture, etc.
More precisely, the invention relates to the production of fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect thereon and suitable for being sewn together forming such garments, lining, etc.

Description of the prior art.

Many methods are known to make fabrics with ornamental and fancy patterns thereon, obtained directly by weaving.
As well known, normally a fabric is made by a plurality of yarns arranged parallel in a longitudinal direction, so called "warp", combined with one or more yarns woven with the first in a transversal direction so called "weft". The result is a roll, of the same width as the width of the loom, and length normally very long or continue the same as the length of the warp yarns.
When weaving with many different colours yarns are used of various colour that are woven in order to leave visible on the front side of the fabric only a portion of colour corresponding to the desired pattern. This way on the fabric figures can be made, isolated or repeated, according to that desired fancy pattern.
The industrial arrangements to carry out this method provides interfacing the loom with a computerized control unit, which receives as input a file with the ornamental pattern data and transmits weaving instructions to the loom, which makes the fabric with that desired pattern.
In the production of garments or lining of furniture, moreover, a template is superimposed on said roll that reproduces a model in order to cut a component of desired shape.
A limitation to this method is the difficulty to put in place in a repeatable way the model on the roll with the same ornamental pattern exactly in the same position for each garment of the same size.
Another limitation is the impossibility of reproducing a same figure on garments of different size, using the same fabric, because the proportions between ornamental pattern on the fabric and model do not coincide.

Summary of the invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for making fabric cut portions that allows to put in place in a repeatable way an ornamental pattern on all the garments obtained with said cut portions of a same model and size.
Another object of the invention is to reproduce in a proportioned scale a same ornamental pattern on garments with different size, in order to repeat a same ornamental effect on each corresponding cut portion.
Further object of the invention is to allow a continuity of an ornamental pattern when it is shared by adjacent parts to sew together.
Still another object of the invention is to allow a rational arrangement of the cut portions on each roll of fabric, in order to assist the cutting operations and to reduce the amount of fabric to use.
These and other objects are achieved by a method for making fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect thereon comprising the steps of:

creating, by a photo editing program, a mask comprising a background and a plurality of geometric figures superimposed on said background, each geometric figure corresponding to a fabric cut portion;
pasting graphic elements on said mask in a predetermined way for each cut portion;
creating an image file of said mask with said graphic elements pasted thereon;
transforming said image file into a readable format file by the loom control system, by means of a setting program;
acquisition of said readable format file by the loom control system, said loom being capable of weaving weft and/or warp yarns in at least two different colours;
weaving said yarns by said loom under said readable format file obtaining a woven fabric according to said background and said graphic elements contained in said geometric figures.

Advantageously, said weft yarns are of a plurality of colours, and in particular they are of basic colours as red, green, yellow, blue with white or raw/neutral and black, and the warp yarns are of plain colour, selected from the group of raw/neutral, black, white, or yellow/ochre.
Preferably, said graphic elements to paste on said mask are selected from the group of pictures, drawings, computer graphics.
Preferably said mask has a plain background or a fancy background but in any case visibly distinct from the colours of the figures present in the mask for clearly distinguishing the contour of the parts to cut.
Advantageously, when said graphic elements are superimposed on said mask, they are automatically trimmed not to fall outside the contours of said geometric figures that are present in the mask and can be arranged in a predetermined position with respect to the contours.
Advantageously, said method can be used to provide garments, furniture lining such as sofa and armchair lining, and in any application where figures and ornamental pattern are to be placed on a fabric with precision and repeatability as well as with customized placements.
With the method according to the invention it is possible to make, on request of an user, fancy patterns completely customized concerning colours, decorations and graphic effects applicable to a desired product.

Brief description of the drawings.

The invention will be made clearer with the following description of an embodiment thereof, exemplifying but not limitative, with reference to the attached drawings wherein:

figure 1 shows an example of fabric worked in different colours, as known in the art;
figures 2 and 3 show respectively two cut portions of different size made on a same type of roll, as known in the art;
figure 4 shows an example of a mask ready for receiving graphic elements;
figure 5 shows an example of an image file ready to be sent to the control unit of a loom;
figure 6 shows a flow-sheet that describes the succession of operations that describe the method.
figure 7 shows a roll comprising the parts making up the lining of an armchair.

Description of a preferred exemplary embodiment

Figure 1 shows an example of roll of fabric 1 executed with traditional methods, with various ornamental and fancy patterns 4, obtained directly by weaving. The fabric comprises a plurality of warp yarns 3 arranged parallel to one another in longitudinal direction, of a plain colour selected from the group of raw/neutral, black, white or yellow/ochre and many weft yarns 2, woven with the warp yarns in a transversal direction, in a plurality of colours in particular red, green, yellow, blue with white or raw/neutral and black.
In figures 2 and 3 two examples are shown of arrangement of models, respectively 9 and 10, on a same type of roll 1, for eventually cutting some parts making up a pair of trousers. In particular in figure 2 a model is shown of larger size 9 and in figure 3 a model is shown of smaller size 10. Obviously, being the models of different size and using the same type of roll, it is impossible that the arrangement of graphic elements is the same.
Figure 4 shows, according to the invention, an example of a mask 30 comprising a background 20, and a plurality of geometric figures 11 superimposed on said background 20, each geometric figure corresponding to a fabric cut portion, said cut portions being arranged in order to appear on the fabric in full scale.
Figure 5 represents an example of woven fabric 1, comprising the parts 10 making up a pair of trousers; said parts are eventually cut following their respective contours. The contours are definitely distinct from the background 20 and within them graphic components 4 are pasted, which had been previously inserted in the mask in image file format.
According to figures 4 and 5, the method according to the invention provides the following steps:

at first, by a photo editing program, the mask 30 of figure 4 is created comprising a background 20 and a plurality of geometric figures 11, superimposed on said background,, each geometric figure corresponding to a fabric cut portion. Said cut portions are arranged in order to be eventually reproduced on the fabric in full scale;
then, as shown in figure 5 and 7, graphic elements 4 are chosen, to be reproduced on the fabric, which are pasted in geometric figures 11 of the mask 30 in a predetermined way for each cut portion;
then an image file of said mask is made comprising said graphic elements, as shown in figure 5;
the image file, as fixed by a photo editing program, is acquired by the control system of the loom, which is ready to execute the weaving steps of the weft yarns in a plurality of colours and the warp yarns in plain colour, after that a set up program has made it readable by the loom control system.
then, finally, the weaving is effected under said readable format file obtaining a woven fabric that has a background colour distinct from the colours of the geometric figures and that contains geometric figures of the parts making up the product, reproducing said images.

It is apparent that, in addition to an easy cut of the many components on the fabric, owing to the clear difference between the neutral background and the contour of the cut portions, the graphic elements are certainly centred on the component of fabric cut portion, with high precision of the final product.
A flow-sheet that describes the succession of the operations of the method for making fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect thereon is shown in figure 6. The operations start with the creation of a mask comprising the contours of the parts of the product. This mask is an image file obtained with a photo editing commercial program. Then, the images to paste are chosen, taken from an image archive. The images chosen, then, are pasted in the mask on desired parts of fabric. The resulting image file is saved and translated into in a file of data that are sent to the loom. Then, the loom carries out the weaving steps obtaining a fabric roll with portions ready to be cut having thereon the chosen graphic elements arranged in the desired way.
Another application of the method for making fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect thereon is shown in figure 7, illustrating a roll 1 comprising the parts 10 making up the lining of an armchair that are cut from the fabric following the contours of such parts. The figure shows the graphic elements 4 that, as in the case of a pair of trousers, have been obtained directly by means of weaving according to the present method.
The foregoing description of a specific embodiment will so fully reveal the invention according to the conceptual point of view, so that others, by applying current knowledge, will be able to modify and/or adapt for various applications such an embodiment without further research and without parting from the invention, and it is therefore to be understood that such adaptations and modifications will have to be considered as equivalent to the specific embodiment. The means and the materials to realise the different functions described herein could have a different nature without, for this reason, departing from the field of the invention. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

Claims

Method for making fabric cut portions with an ornamental effect comprising the steps of:

creating, by a photo editing program, a mask comprising a background and a plurality of geometric figures superimposed on said background, each geometric figure corresponding to a fabric cut portion;

pasting graphic elements on said mask in a predetermined way for each cut portion;

creating an image file of said mask with said graphic elements pasted thereon;

transforming said image file into a readable format file by the control system of the loom, by means of a setting program;

acquisition of said readable format file by the loom control system, said loom being ready to weave weft and/or warp yarns in at least two colours;

weaving said yarns by said loom according to said image file obtaining a woven fabric according to said background and to said images pasted on said geometric figures.
Method for making fabric cut portions, according to claim 1, wherein said weft yarns are of a plurality of basic colours selected from the group of red, green, yellow, blue with white or raw/neutral and black, and the warp yarns are of plain colour, selected from the group of raw/neutral, black, white, or yellow/ochre.
Method for making fabric cut portions, according to claim 1, wherein said graphic elements to paste on said mask are selected from the group of pictures, drawings, electronic graphic creations.
Method for making fabric cut portions, according to claim 1, wherein said mask has a plain background or a fancy background but in any case visibly distinct from the colours of the figures present in the mask, for clearly distinguishing the contour of the parts to cut.
Method for making fabric cut portions, according to claim 1, wherein when pasting said graphic elements on said mask, they are automatically trimmed not to fall outside the contour of said geometric figures that are present in the mask, and can be arranged in a predetermined position with respect to said contour.
Garments, furniture lining, sofa or armchair lining and similar applications, having figures and ornamental patterns located in a predetermined way, characterised by being carried out under the method according to the previous claims.