ES2714674T3 - Process and machine to treat a fabric with natural fiber hair - Google Patents

Abstract

Process for treating a fabric with natural fiber hair, comprising the steps of: - preparing a fabric (100) comprising a support (101) at least partially coated with hair (102) of natural fibers; - providing a roller (2), which rotates around a rotation axis (X) and that has at least one longitudinal recess (7) that has a bottom wall (7b) and a comb (8) that has a plurality of teeth (8b) disposed within said recess (7) in a stable position and with their teeth (8b) oriented in the opposite direction to said axis (X); and - actuating said comb (8) in a continuous rotation around said axis of rotation (X); characterized in that said teeth (8b) have a height, when measured in elevation from said bottom wall (7b) of the recess (7), less than a depth (P) of said recess (7) and that the process also It comprises the step of: - keeping the fabric (100) pressed against the roller (2) and pushed against the comb (8), during the rotation of said comb (8), by a thrust that allows the teeth (8b) to enter in contact with the hair (102) of said fabric (100), so that the hair (102) enters the recess (7) until reaching said plurality of teeth (8b) and avoiding contact between the teeth (8b) and the support (101) of the fabric (100).

Description

DESCRIPTION

Process and machine to treat a fabric with natural fiber hair

Technical field of the invention

The object of the present invention is a process and a machine for manufacturing a fabric with natural fiber hair and, in particular, for ironing and polishing the hair of the fabrics with wool hair.

The term "fabric with natural fiber hair" means a fabric consisting of a sturdy support (woven fabric) in which natural fiber hair such as wool, camel hair, angora, alpaca hair and the like is applied. As an example, an application of a fabric with natural fiber hair occurs in the fur industry.

Prior art

It is known that ironing and polishing of fabrics that have natural fiber hair is done using machines equipped with cylindrical metal rollers that are rotated and brought into contact with the hair to be processed. The friction of the external surface of the roller on the hair produces a luster action that improves the appearance of the tissue produced.

Machines such as those disclosed in US-A-2405032, US-A-1 874273, US-A-1 776 114 and US-A-1 913 114 perform such treatment.

Unfavorably, the rollers used in the machines known to date do not provide an action sufficiently appropriate to obtain a quality product. In particular, it has been found, above all, that the fabric manufactured with the previous machines has a tendency in use to lose a significant amount of hair, being therefore irreparably damaged.

Moreover, the brightness and softness of the hair of the treated fabric are insufficient to satisfy a typical standard of medium-high quality, for example, in the fur trade.

It is also known to avoid said hair shedding, applying in advance on the resistant support glues or adhesives that retain the hair on it with more force. However, this approach increases the complexity of manufacturing as well as involving chemical contamination of the manufactured fabric.

Moreover, a poor hair luster is sometimes improved by further treating the hair with suitable chemical agents, such as silicone-based products. This, on the other hand, is the cause of additional chemical contamination of the manufactured fabric.

Disclosure of the invention

In this context, the technical work on which the present invention is based consists in proposing a process and a machine capable of overcoming the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.

In particular, an objective of the present invention is to provide a process and a machine for treating a fabric with natural fiber hair that allows obtaining a fabric that has optimum softness and brightness and that is capable of meeting medium quality standards. -high.

A further objective of the present invention is to provide a process and a machine for treating a fabric with natural fiber hair that allows the tissue to be obtained in a very simple manner.

It is also an objective of the present invention to propose a process and a machine for treating a fabric that has natural fiber hair that allows the obtaining of a fabric that has a low, or almost nonexistent, chemical contamination. The indicated technical task and the specified objects are obtained substantially by means of a process and a machine for treating a fabric with natural fiber hair that comprise, respectively, the technical characteristics established in the attached claims 1 and 5 and / or in one or more of the claims that depend on it.

The features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly appreciated from the embodiment, indicative and therefore not limiting, preferred, but not exclusive to a process and a machine for making a fabric with natural fiber hair, with reference to what is illustrated in the attached drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a portion of the machine according to the present invention; and Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a machine component according to the present invention.

With reference to Fig. 1, the number 1 indicates together a workstation for treating the fabric having natural fiber hair according to the present invention.

Workstation 1 is implemented in a machine that also comprises a station to supply the tissue to be treated, a station for the exit of treated hair and one or more intermediate collection stations to assume any variation of the result of the workstation 1 The supply, exit and collection stations are substantially known and, therefore, are not shown in the figures.

In more detail and referring to Fig. 1, the work station 1 comprises a metal roller 2 that rotates around its longitudinal axis "X" and which is preferably driven by a motor.

A knitted type fabric 100 that has a sturdy support 101 and which is coated on one side with hair, especially natural fiber hair, is partially wound on the roller 2. The fabric 100 is fed as a continuous belt that develops along the preset path between the supply station and the machine exit station, by means of a plurality of rollers possibly driven by an engine and transmission rollers (not shown since they are known).

The fabric 100 is wound on the roller 2 to allow the latter to come into contact with the hair 102 and is advanced along a feeding direction indicated by the "A" in Fig. 1.

The workstation 1 also comprises a reinforcing band 3 that is advanced along a closed path determined by a plurality of transmission rollers 4 (of which at least one is driven by a motor).

The reinforcement band 3 has a plurality of branches 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, each of which extends between two consecutive transmission rollers 4 and is arranged to have one of said branches, the branch 3a, located in the vicinity of the roller 2 and oriented towards the same roller 2.

Said branch 3a oriented towards the roller 2 is arranged at a sufficient distance from the roller 2 to allow the interposition of the fabric 100 between the branch 3a and the roller 2, in order to make the branch 3a keep the fabric 100 pressed against the roller 2 .

Advantageously, it is also possible to provide the use of suitable pushing means 5 acting on the fabric 100 to keep it pressed against the roller 2. In the embodiment shown, the pushing means 5 is pneumatic and comprises a supply mouth 6 in communication with a source of pressurized air to receive a pressurized air flow oriented towards the branch 3a and the roller 2 in order to direct the air flow against the branch 3a. In this way, the thrust exerted by the flow of pressurized air against the branch 3a of the reinforcement band 3 generates a thrust that presses the branch 3a itself and, therefore, the fabric 100 resting thereon, against the roller 2. In a preferred embodiment, the thrust means 5 may comprise a pneumatically or hydraulically operated cylinder and piston system.

The piston is oriented so that it is in contact with the same branch 3a of the reinforcement band 3 thereby pressing it, together with the fabric 100 resting thereon, against the roller 2.

The reinforcement band 3 and the pushing means 5 together define compensation means operatively associated with the roller 2 and acting on the fabric 100 wound on the roller 2 to keep the fabric 100 firmly pressed, with a preset force , against the same roller 2.

According to embodiments not shown, the pushing means 5 can be constructed differently, for example, they can comprise elastic means and / or hydraulic or pneumatic pushing systems. Preferably, in addition, roller 2 is provided inside heating means (not shown) such as electric resistors, capable of raising the temperature of roller 2. These heating means are housed within suitable cavities in roller 2 and they are operated by a control device such as an inverter, for example.

Fig. 2 shows roller 2 in detail.

Advantageously, the electric resistors can be powered electrically in different ways, depending on their position in the roller.

For example, in a particular embodiment, it is provided that the resistances at the two ends of the roller 2 have a higher power than those arranged in the middle.

The roller 2 comprises a cylindrical body that has an external cylindrical surface 2a and at least one recess 7 that has a predominantly longitudinally developed direction with respect to the axis of rotation "X" of the roller 2.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the recess 7 may have a predominantly spiral development direction with respect to the outer surface 2a of the roller 2.

The recess 7 is developed on a preponderant portion of the roller 2 and, in particular, along the entire portion of the roller 2 intended to come into contact with the fabric 100.

The recess 7 is delimited by a side wall defined by a stop, and is formed, for example, with a milling operation in the cylindrical body and by a bottom wall 7b. As a result, the recess 7 is sunk with respect to the external profile of the cylindrical body of the roller 2.

Firmly housed within the recess 7 is a comb 8 comprising a base 8a in which one is constituted a plurality of projections or teeth 8b oriented in the opposite direction to it. Preferably, the comb 8 is completely made from a metal.

The base 8a has a suitable way to be inserted and fixed inside the recess 7, and is arranged so that the teeth 8b are oriented in the opposite direction to the axis of the roller 2, that is, in such a way that the teeth 8b are oriented towards the 100 fabric rolled on roller 2.

The teeth 8b are formed on a base surface 8c 8a which defines, when the comb assembly 8 is completed, said bottom wall 7b of the recess 7.

This surface 8c is preferably flat.

Each tooth 8b may have an inverted cone shape, which is tapered so as to be oriented in the opposite direction to said surface 8c of the base 8a defining said bottom wall 7b.

In a preferred embodiment, the teeth 8b may have a prismatic configuration with a rhomboid, hexagonal, pentagonal or octagonal base.

Moreover, the teeth 8b have a height, measured in a direction in the opposite direction to the surface 8c, less than the depth of the recess 7 and, preferably, less than a minimum depth of the recess 7 (measured in correspondence with said side wall 7a ).

The teeth 8b are also arranged along one or more rows in the roller 2, each row presenting a plurality of teeth 8b.

According to the illustrated embodiment, the roller 2 is provided with three separate recesses 7 equidistant through the angular development of the roller 2, and each comb 8 has five rows of teeth 8b, the rows being advantageously parallel to each other.

According to a first additional preferred embodiment of the invention, the roller 2 has a dimension, measured along the "X" axis, equal to 180 cm; the diameter of the roller is 94 cm; the minimum depth "P" of the recess, measured in correspondence with the side wall 7a, is 14 mm; the height of the teeth 8b is 2 mm for tissues whose hair height is less than 25 mm, and 4-5 mm for tissues whose hair height exceeds 25 mm.

According to a second preferred embodiment of the invention, the roller 2 has a dimension, measured along the "X" axis, equal to 240 cm; the diameter of the roller is 95 cm; the minimum depth "P" of the recess, measured in correspondence with the side wall 7a, is 14 mm; the height of the teeth 8b is 2.8 mm for tissues whose hair height is less than 25 mm, and 4-5 mm for tissues whose hair height exceeds 25 mm.

In use, the fabric 100 is partially wound on the roller 2 so that the hair 102 comes into contact with the outer cylindrical surface 2a of the roller 2, while the support 101 is intended to come into contact with the branch 3a of the band reinforcement 3.

The fabric 100 is advanced along the feed direction "A" and the roller 2 is driven in a continuous rotation, according to a direction of rotation that is either concordant or discordant, depending on the type of finish that it is desired to obtain, with respect to the advance of the fabric 100.

The reinforcement band 3 is also operated so that the branch 3a in contact with the fabric 100 has the same direction of movement as that of the fabric 100 and, preferably, the same tangential velocity.

The pushing means 5 is then activated to exert a push towards the branch 3a of the reinforcement band 3, which is thereby pushed towards the roller 2 by pressing the fabric 100 against the same roller 2.

Advantageously, the thrust generated by the thrust means 5, whether piston-cylinder type or by compressed air supply, is such that it allows the hair 102 of the fabric 100 to fit inside the recesses 7 and come into contact with the teeth 8b of the combs 8. In these circumstances, the thrust is able to prevent any contact between the teeth 8b and the support 101 of the tissue 100.

During the stage in which the fabric 100 is working, the roller 2 is heated until it reaches a preset surface temperature in each of the portions of the same roller 2.

Preferably, however, the surface temperature of the roller 2 should not exceed 250-270 ° C in the case of a fabric 100 with wool hair.

The present invention achieves the proposed objectives overcoming the drawbacks of the prior art.

The presence of teeth within the recess makes it possible to obtain a combing effect of the hair of the fabric, which is thus uniformly oriented in a single direction imposed by the direction of the roller orientation. The effectiveness of the combing action is improved by the arrangement of the teeth in rows parallel to the axis of rotation of the roller.

In addition, the action of the comb removes at once those hairs that are insufficiently anchored to the tissue support, thus eliminating the irritating loss of strands of hair during tissue use.

Moreover, the guaranteed absence of contact between the teeth and the resistant support avoids both the risk of the same support being damaged and the risk of tearing substantial strands of hair, causing irreparable damage to the treated tissue.

The heating of the roller, in addition, significantly improves the shine of the hair, making it suitable for its introduction into a commercial sector of medium high standards such as the fur trade.

Finally, in all the operative stages of the process, according to the invention, no chemical substance is required, neither to comb the hair nor to obtain the desired brightness, with obvious advantages in terms of low chemical contamination, if any, of the worked tissue.

Claims (9)

1. Process to treat a fabric with natural fiber hair, which comprises the stages of: - preparing a fabric (100) comprising a support (101) at least partially coated with hair (102) of natural fibers; - providing a roller (2), which rotates around a rotation axis (X) and that has at least one longitudinal recess (7) that has a bottom wall (7b) and a comb (8) that has a plurality of teeth (8b) disposed within said recess (7) in a stable position and with their teeth (8b) oriented in the opposite direction to said axis (X); and - actuating said comb (8) in a continuous rotation around said axis of rotation (X); characterized in that said teeth (8b) have a height, when measured in elevation from said bottom wall (7b) of the recess (7), less than a depth (P) of said recess (7) and that the process also It includes the stage of: - keeping the fabric (100) pressed against the roller (2) and pushed against the comb (8), during the rotation of said comb (8), by a thrust that allows the teeth (8b) to come into contact with the hair (102) of said fabric (100), so that the hair (102) enters the recess (7) until reaching said plurality of teeth (8b) and avoiding contact between the teeth (8b) and the support (101) of the fabric (100). 2. Process according to 1, r ceairvaicntedriiczaadcoió pnor comprising a step of heating said roller (2) while said roller (2) is rotating around the axis (X) and the fabric (100) is pressed against the roller (two). 3. Process according to the 1st or 2nd, iv qiuned cicoamcpiróennde: advancing a reinforcement band (3) along a closed path determined by a plurality of transmission rollers (4) where at least one is driven by a motor, the reinforcement band (3) presenting a plurality of branches (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d), each of which extends between two consecutive transmission rollers (4), disposing a branch (3a) of the reinforcement band (3) facing the roller (2) at a sufficient distance from said roller (2) to allow the interposition of the fabric (100) between the branch (3a) and the roller (2 ) to make the branch (3a) keep the fabric (100) pressed against the roller (2), and generating a thrust that presses said branch (3a) against the comb (8) so that the hair (102) enters the recess (7) until reaching said plurality of teeth (8b). 4. Process according to 3, e rnei dvoinnddeic ealc eimópnuje is exerted by a pressurized air flow directed against said branch (3a) oriented towards the roller (2). 5. Machine for treating a fabric with natural fiber hair, comprising: - a roller (2) that rotates around a rotation axis (X) and that can be partially wrapped in a fabric (100) at least partially covered with hair (102) of natural fibers; Y - compensation means (3, 5), operatively associated with the roller (2) and acting on the fabric (100) partially wound on the roller (2) to keep the fabric (100) pressed against said roller (2) ; said roller (2) having at least one longitudinal recess (7) having a bottom wall (7b) with a comb (7) having a plurality of teeth (8b) capable of combing the hair (102) of the fabric (100) ); said compensation means (3, 5) being able to keep the tissue (100) pressed towards said recess (7), characterized in that said compensation means (3, 5) comprise a reinforcing band (3), movable along a closed path and having a branch (3a) arranged near the roller (2) and capable of coming into contact with the fabric (100) to keep the tissue (100) pressed against said roller (2), further comprising said compensation means (3, 5) active pushing means (5) on said branch (3a) of the reinforcement band (3) to produce a push on said branch (3a) to allow the hair (102) of the tissue (100) enters the recess (7), because said teeth (8b) have a height, when measured in elevation from said bottom (7b) of the recess (7), less than a depth (P) of said recess ( 7) and why the thrust generated by the thrust means (5) is able to avoid any contact between the teeth (8b) and the tissue support (101) (100) 6. Machine according to 5, recaivraincdteircizaacdiaón because said thrust means (5) comprise a cylinder and piston system oriented towards said branch (3a) of the reinforcement band (3) to produce a pneumatic thrust on said branch (3a) capable of keeping said branch (3a) pressed on the roller (2). 7. Machine according to one or more of the preceding claims 5 or 6, characterized in that said teeth (8b) are arranged according to one or more rows aligned with each other. Machine according to one or more of the preceding claims 5 to 7, characterized in that it comprises heating means housed inside said roller (2) to generate a temperature increase of said roller (2). 9. Machine according to r 5e, iv cyanardacyccytearizad because said thrust means (5) are pneumatic type comprising a supply mouth (6) in communication with a source of pressurized air to receive a pressurized air flow oriented towards said branch (3a) and said roller (2) to direct the air flow against the branch (3a).