FR2650577A1 - Method and machine for packaging upper-body garments or undergarments, and packaged garments - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of packaging upper-body garments or undergarments, such as tee shirts, slipovers, short-sleeved shirts, etc. This method consists in folding the garment, in superimposed layers, in a format close to a square or a rectangle with the neck arranged symmetrically in the top part of the front face, in positioning, along the top edge of the folded garment, a hanger possessing a central hook in the region of the neck and a transverse element extending along this top edge with means for gripping the layers of superimposed fabric, and in locally fixing, on either side of the neck, the said thicknesses of fabric with the aid of the gripping means so as to hold the said layers in place and to fix them to the hanger. The garments thus packaged may be stored hung in a vertical position against each other.

Description

METHOD AND MACHINE FOR PACKAGING GARMENTS
OR BODY UNDERWEAR, PACKAGED CLOTHING
The invention relates to a method of packaging garments or underwear for the upper body such as T-shirts, tank tops, short-sleeved shirts; it applies equally to clothes or underwear with sleeves (t-shirts for example) as sleeveless clothes with simple armholes (tank tops for example). Subsequently, the term “garment” will designate the garments or undergarments of the upper body concerned. The invention extends to a packaging assistance machine for carrying out the process and to the conditioned garments obtained.

 Currently, the garments or undergarments of the upper body are stored either in folded form in plastic boxes or sachets, or hung vertically on hangers which are introduced in their neckline at the time of storage (for example shirts). The storage in boxes or sachets has the disadvantage of requiring a lot of space and making the products of access inconvenient; in addition, plastic bags are difficult to stack in large quantities. Vertical storage has the advantage of allowing a high density of product over a given length, while ensuring easy access to each of them, with direct vision of the labels generally located in the neckline or in its vicinity. this storage occupies a large front surface corresponding to that of the garment, and this frontal space constitutes a notable embarrassment in practice, all the more since it prohibits carrying out the storage with most of the existing displays; moreover, the fitting of the hangers which are threaded into the neck of the garments so that the latter rest on the hangers by their shoulder line is a manual operation which it does not seem possible to automate so simple moreover, the garment remains floating on the hanger and cannot be transported in the state, so it must be previously conditioned by the manufacturer (box, bag) and again handled by the distributor or retailer to put the hangers during storage: this way of doing things is heavy in necessary labor.

 The present invention proposes to overcome the shortcomings of existing packaging methods and to provide a new method of packaging upper garments or undergarments, called garments, which allows vertical storage directly from the garment packaged by the manufacturer, thus making it possible to benefit from the advantages of this type of storage (high longitudinal density, possibility of storage over great lengths, ease of access) without having the disadvantages (front space requirement, handling, etc.).

To this end, the packaging method according to the invention consists
- folding the garment, on the one hand, along two vertical lines symmetrical with respect to the neck, on the other hand, the length of at least one horizontal line intermediate between the neck and the bottom edge of the garment , so as to fold said garment-in superimposed layers of a format close to a square or a rectangle of height and width between 22 and 35 cm approximately, the neckline being arranged symmetrically in the upper part of a face of the folded garment, called the front face,
- To position the lonq of the upper border of the folded garment, a hanger having a central hook at the neckline and a transverse element extending along said upper border, said transverse element protruding on either side of the neckline without protruding from the folded garment,
- to fix locally, on either side of the neck, the thicknesses of fabric of the folded garment, on the parts of the hanger protruding from the neck, so as to maintain the layers superimposed on each other and to attach to the hanger.

Thus, in the invention, the hanger has the double function, on the one hand of keeping the garment in the folded state thanks to the fixing of the thicknesses of fabrics on either side of the neck, on the other hand , to allow the folded garment to be hung vertically in order to ensure its storage. The hanger goes outside the garment and is
preferably positions so that its transverse element is located on the back of the garment in the vicinity of the shoulder line, that its hook protrudes above said shoulder line substantially in the axis of the neck, and that, on each side of the neck, the fabric thicknesses are pinched between a first tab located on the back of the garment and a second tab located on the front face of said garment.

This installation of the hanger which can be carried out by the manufacturer is an easy and rapid operation which can be automated at least partially. In particular, it is possible to use a molded hanger made of synthetic material having at the two ends of its transverse element two tongues facing each other, one of a block, the other elastic, capable of ensuring that the thicknesses of fabric are pinched together by play. the elasticity of the elastic strap. After folding, the garments can be sent to a semi-automatic station for positioning the hangers and fixing the garments thereon, a post where the following operations are carried out
- positioning of each hanger on a holding plate having two guide fingers which care t arranged under the hanger locking tabs,
presentation of a garment folded opposite the support plate and introduction of the shoulder line thereof under the guide fingers of said plate,
- on each side of the neck, local folding of the layers of fabric of the garment around the guide fingers and insertion of these thicknesses between the locking tongue and the elastic tongue,
- extraction of the hanger and folded garment hanging on it.

 It should be noted that the fixing of the thicknesses of fabric of the garment on the ends of the transverse element of the hanger is preferably carried out by pinching because of the ease of implementation of this operation, but can if necessary be carried out by d '' other means: stapling, stitching ...

 The method of the invention brings together a large number of advantages compared with known methods, in particular: high storage density, good accessibility, low frontal space storage (compatible with existing shirt display stands), possibility of automation at less partial, use of very simple and very inexpensive hangers, folding achievable on standard machines; the garments thus packaged can if necessary be stacked and inserted into boxes for transport, these boxes being stackable without difficulty.

For storage, the folded garments, fixed on hangers, are extracted from said boxes and directly suspended from conventional supports by hanger hooks in order to store them vertically against each other.

 The invention extends, as such, to the garment or undergarment of the upper body conditioned by the above-mentioned process for its vertical storage. This garment is characterized in that it comes in the folded state in a square or rectangular format, with a hanger extending outwardly along the shoulder line, said hanger now locally, on either side of the neckline, the overlapping layers of fabric.

 Finally, the invention extends to a packaging aid station, comprising a hanger supply store where these are stacked one above the other, a member for removing the upper hanger from the store, a plate holding a hanger with two guide fingers for local folding of the fabric layers, means for moving the removal member towards the holding plate, and means for centering the hanger on said holding plate.

The invention. exposed above is illustrated by the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings which show an exemplary embodiment thereof; on these drawings which form an integral part of the present description
FIG. 1 shows a T-shirt being folded for packaging by the method of the invention,
- Figure 2 shows the folded T-shirt before fixing the hanger,
FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a post for installing and fixing the hangers,
FIG. 4 is a cross section through a plane A of this station,
FIG. 5 is a partial view from above,
FIG. 6 is a detail section on B of the hanger supply store,
FIGS. 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d illustrate the method of supplying a hanger,
- Figures 8, 9 and 10 illustrate the attachment of a T-shirt to a hanger,
- Figures 11a and 11b show the conditioned t-shirt,
- Figure 12 illustrates the storage of said T-shirts.

 The packaging method according to the invention consists, in a first operation, in folding the T-shirts to be packaged, firstly, along two vertical lines V1 and V2 symmetrical with respect to the neck E of the T-shirt and located on either side of it. During this folding, the sleeves M of the T-shirt are folded as shown in Figure 1. The lines V1 and V2 are in the example distant from each other by about 28 to 29 cm, the folding towards the back of the T-shirt.

 The t-shirt is then folded along a first low horizontal line H1, then along a second horizontal line H2 (the terms "horizontal" and "vertical" being understood in a conventional manner, the t-shirt being assumed to be located in a vertical plane).

 The horizontal line H2 is located at an equal distance between the shoulder line of the T-shirt and the low horizontal line H1, this distance being equal to approximately 28 to 29 cm.

 This produces a folded T-shirt with a substantially square format, approximately 28 to 29 cm square (Figure 2). The neckline appears on the front. The shoulder line has several superimposed layers corresponding to the different folds.

 It should be noted that the above-mentioned folding can be carried out automatically on standard machines.

 The folded T-shirts are sent to a packaging aid station, for example in stacks as shown in Figure 3.

 This post includes a work table 1 which is notched at its front part. A supply magazine 2 is arranged in an inclined position under the table. This store includes a slide 3 (Figure 6) which guides a stack of hangers. A jack 4 makes it possible to push the hangers back towards a withdrawal member 5 situated under the notch of the tahle.

 The withdrawal member 5 which can be seen in top view in FIG. 5 comprises two suction fingers 5a and 5b which are connected to suction means (not shown). Between these fingers is disposed a hanger presence detector 5c, of the diode detector type. This assembly is carried by an arm 6 which is fixed to the axis of a motor 7. These means are positioned so as to allow the picking member 5 to be moved by rotation from a delayed waiting position of the magazine. hangers (Figures 4, 7a, 7b) to a final transfer position on top of the table (Figure 7d).

 Furthermore, a plate 8 for holding a hanger is removably fixed in an inclined position, above the notch of the table, on the central part of its front edge. This plate includes a front fixing plate 8a (FIG. 4) which is fixed against the table frame by a screw, the operating button of which can be seen at 9 in FIGS. 4 and 5.

 The retaining plate 8 is inclined upwards as shown in FIG. 4, from about 20 to 300, and carries two guide fingers 10 and 11 which extend rearward and are intended to allow local folding of the layers of T-shirt fabric on each side of the neckline.

 In addition, on both sides, two centering cylinders 12 and 13 are secured to the plate 8 to ensure centering of each hanger once in place.

 FIGS. 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d illustrate the steps for transferring and placing a hanger on the holding plate 8.

 At the start of the cycle, the jack 4 is actuated to pass from its retracted state (FIG. 7a) to its deployed state (FIG. 7b), pushing the hangers C from the store towards the removal member. When the upper hanger comes into contact with this member (by its solid area Cp located at the base of the hook), the presence detector 5c starts the suction and the hanger sticks against the suction fingers 5a, 5b. The motor 7 is then started (FIG. 7c) and performs a rotation of approximately 1500, bringing the hanger C onto the holding plate 8 as illustrated in FIGS. 7d and 8.

 Each hanger C comprises a hook Cr, the full area Cp already mentioned located at the base of its hook, a transverse bar Ct and, at the ends of this bar, a locking tab Cb and an elastic tongue Ce. These hangers are molded in synthetic material, the elasticity of the tongue Ce being obtained by an appropriate choice of dimensions and of the curved shape of this tongue.

 At the end of the rotation of the removal member, the centering cylinders 12 and 13 are actuated and come to center the hanger by pressing on its elastic tabs Ce. The holding plate 8 has a central notch 8a at which the hook Cr and the base Cp of the hanger are positioned; the locking tabs Cb are then located above the guide fingers 10 and II of the plate 8.

 The hanger thus being immobilized on the support plate, an operator grasps a folded T-shirt on the stack and presents it opposite the support plate, below the guide fingers 10 and 11, the back of the T-shirt being oriented upwards (figure 8). He introduces the shoulder line (with all the layers of fabric superimposed) under the guide fingers, folds locally on each side of the neck, the layers of fabric around said guide fingers and inserts the layers between the locking tab and the elastic tongue, making use of the elasticity of the latter.

 The garment is then attached to the hanger without risk of unfolding since all the layers are pinched in two areas of the shoulder line.

 The centering cylinders are then retracted to release the conditioned T-shirt and a new cycle can begin.

 Figures 11a and 11b show the conditioned t-shirt obtained. It comes in a substantially square format, its fabric layers being blocked at the shoulder line. The transverse bar of the hanger is located on the back of the T-shirt near its shoulder line; the hook Cr protrudes above the shoulder line, substantially in the axis of the neck. On each side of the neck, the fabric thicknesses are pinched between the aforementioned tabs yes keep the T-shirt in the folded state without risk of unfolding.

 For transport, the T-shirts thus conditioned can be stacked in boxes, from where they will be extracted to store them in an upright position as illustrated in Figure 12.

Claims (13)

 1 / - Process for packaging clothing or underwear for the upper body such as T-shirts, tank tops, short-sleeved shirts, with a view to authorizing their vertical storage, characterized in that it consists:  - folding the garment, on the one hand, along two vertical lines (V1, V2) symmetrical with respect to the neck (E), on the other hand, along at least one horizontal line (H1, H2) intermediate between the neckline and the lower border of the garment, so as to fold the said garment into superimposed layers of a format close to a square or a rectangle of height and width comprised between approximately 22 and 35 cm, the neck being arranged symmetrically in the upper part of one side of the folded garment, called the front face,  - Positioning along the upper edge of the folded garment a hanger (C) having a central hook (Cr) at the neckline and a transverse element (Ct) extending along the length of said upper border, said transverse element protruding on either side of the neck without protruding from the folded garment,  - to fix locally, on either side of the neckline, the fabric thicknesses of the folded garment, on the parts of the hanger protruding from the neckline, so as to maintain the layers superimposed on each other and to attach to the hanger.  2 / - Packaging method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fixing of the thicknesses of fabric of the folded garment on the hanger is carried out by pinching said thicknesses between tabs (Cb, Ce) provided on the parts of the hanger protruding from the 'neck.  3 / - A packaging method according to claim 2, characterized in that the hanger is positioned so that its transverse element (Ct) is located on the back of the garment in the vicinity of the shoulder line, that its hook (Cr ) protrudes above said shoulder line substantially in the axis of the neck, and that, on each side of the neck, the fabric thicknesses are pinched between a first strap (Cb) located on the back of the garment and a second tab (Ce) located on the front face of said garment.  4 / - A packaging method according to one of claims 2 or 3, in which a molded plastic hanger is used having at the two ends of its transverse element (Ct) two tongues facing each other, one of blocking (cob) , the other elastic (Ce), capable of pinching the thicknesses of fabric together by the play of the elasticity of the elastic tongue.  5 / - Packaging method according to claim 4, characterized in that, after folding, the clothes are directed to a post for fixing the hangers, where the following operations are carried out  - positioning of each hanger (C) on a holding plate (8) having two guide fingers (10, 11) which are arranged under the locking tabs (Cb) of the hanger,  - presentation of a garment folded opposite the support plate and introduction of the shoulder line thereof under the guide fingers (10, 11) of said plate,  - on each side of the neck (E), local folding of the layers of fabric of the garment around the guIdage fingers and. insertion of these thicknesses between the locking tongue (Cb) and the elastic tongue (Ce),  - extraction of the hanger and folded garment hanging on it.  6 / - A packaging method according to claim 5, characterized in that the hangers (C) are placed on the holding plate (8) from a stack by unitary removal by means of a member (5) with suction effect, displacement of said member towards the holding plate and centering on said plate by means of centering cylinders (12, 13).  7 / - A packaging method according to one of the preceding claims, in which the folding of the garment to the center fold the length of the two vertical lines (V1, V2) symmetrical with respect to the neck (E), then to the fold back along a first low horizontal line (H1), finally fold it along a second horizontal line (H2) located substantially equidistant from the shoulder line and the first horizontal line.  8 / - Method according to one of the preceding claims for the packaging of clothes or undergarments having sleeves, in which, during folding, the sleeves are folded along the two vertical lines (V1, v2) symmetrical with respect to neck.  9 / - Method of packaging according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the folding of the garment is carried out so as to give it a substantially square format of 28 to 29 cm on the side.  10 / - Method of packaging according to one of the preceding claims, in which the garments attached to the hangers are superimposed in boxes for transport, then extracted and suspended from supports by hanger hooks for storage vertically against each other.  11 / - Garment or undergarment of upper body conditioned for its vertical storage, characterized in that it is in the folded state in a square or rectangular format, with a hanger (C) extending externally along the shoulder line, said hanger holding locally, on either side of the neck, the layers of fabric superimposed.  12 / - Aid station for packaging for the implementation of the method according to claim 5, characterized in that it comprises a store (2) for supplying hangers where they are stacked one at a time. above the others, a member (5) for removing the upper hanger from the magazine, a plate for holding a hanger (8) provided with two guide fingers (10, 11) for the local folding of the layers of fabric, means (7) for moving the removal member towards the holding plate, and means (12, 13) for centering the hanger on said holding plate.  13 / - Machine according to claim 12, characterized in that the sampling member (5) is of the suction effect type, associated with suction means.