GB1588152A

GB1588152A - Curtain heading tape

Info

Publication number: GB1588152A
Application number: GB22322/77A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: French & Sons Thomas
Current assignee: French & Sons Thomas
Priority date: 1977-05-26
Filing date: 1977-05-26
Publication date: 1981-04-15
Also published as: SE7805756L; BE867450A; NZ187373A; ES244271U; DK232378A; DE2822741A1; NO781799L; FR2392148A1; AU3654678A; ES244271Y; ZA782887B; AU518267B2

Description

(54) CURTAIN HEADING TAPE (71) We, THOMAS FRENCH & SONS LIMITED a British Company of Sharston Road, Wythenshawe, Manchester M22 4TH, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: This invention concerns curtain heading tape.

Curtain heading tape is well known and is produced in many forms, some such tape is relatively narrow and is provided with suspension hook receiving pockets on both faces while in other forms the tape is somewhat wider and is provided with pockets on one or both faces. In the wider tapes there may be a single row of pockets on each face, the pockets being located at one side of the longitudinal centre line of the tape, whereas in other forms of such tape the pockets may be on one face only of the tape. In other forms of the wider tape there may be multiple rows of pockets on one face, the pockets of one row being staggered relative to those of an adjacent row or rows or in a still further form there may be a single row of spaced pockets on one face of the tape, these pockets extending across substantially the whole width of the tape.It is also possible to produce the pockets continuously along the length of the tape, that is to say the pockets can be in sideby-side juxtaposition, or to produce spacedapart pockets or groups of pockets along the length of the tape.

Tapes of the kinds generally referred to by way of example above may be used to produce, in a curtain to which they are attached, a ruched appearance, or in fact a regular array of pleats in the form of the so called pencil pleats or fan pleats. In some forms of tape the latter when pleated will provide closely juxtaposed pleats along the whole length of the tape whereas in other tapes single pleats or groups of pleats may be formed at spaced positions along the length of the tape, there being unpleated regions between the pleats or groups of pleats.

Tapes are also known which are particularly designed to be affixed to curtain lining material, one such tape having a bifurcated edge region between the arms of which the lining material is sewn, and also having a row of eyelets in a single ply section of the tape by means of which the tape, and thus the curtain lining can be removably attached to the curtain suspension hooks.

When producing curtain heading tapes several design criteria in addition to that of the positioning of the pockets, have to be met. For example, the tape should have flexibility in the longitudinal direction in order that the curtain can 'stack back', (that is fold), neatly and easily into a relatively small overall length while at the same time, particularly in the case of tapes in which spaced pleats are formed, it should have a longitudinal stiffness such that in the drawn condition the curtain will have well defined flat unpleated regions between the pleats.

It is also desirable to have a degree of transverse stiffness in the tape so that the head of the curtain can be supported betweendethe suspension hooks to prevent unsightly sagging of the curtain.

In the past it has been known to produce the longitudinal flexibility of the tape by using soft warp yarn, such as spun natural fibre yarn and somewhat to increase the longitudinal stiffness by providing a group or groups of warp yarns of a resilient nature such as monofilament yarn. In some instances the stiffness of the tape has been gradually increased from one side of the tape to the other by incrementally increasing the density of the resilient yarn from a position intermediate the longitudinal edges of the tape towards one of those edges.

To produce transverse stiffness it is known to produce a tape in which the weft density is high, or to use a resilient weft, such as a synthetic monofilament yarn or a composite yarn such as a core yarn (that is a yarn having a synthetic monofilament or multifilament core enwrapped with a soft yarn or yarns).

Whilst it is possible to produce curtain heading tapes which are capable of meeting the design criteria successfully it has been found that certain disadvantages in manufacture are experienced. For example, the particular design of the tape may result in the fact that it can only be woven relatively slowly due to its dense nature. Alternatively and/or additionally it may be found that to achieve the desired result the tape has to be woven in multiply configuration, or that a multiplicity of shuttles or weft inserters have to be used, or in fact the yarn cost may be high.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a curtain heading tape that will meet the desired design criteria and at the same time will eliminate or at least appreciably mitigate the disadvantages outlined briefly above.

Thus according to the present invention a curtain heading tape is characterised in that a part at least of the fabric thereof consists of an initially tape-like stabilsised polymeric yarn which in the finished heading tape is in longitudinally folded form. Conveniently the polymeric yarn is in the form of a split film.

In one form of the curtain heading tape is of woven construction; alternatively the curtain heading tape may be of knitted, crotcheted or of other non-woven configuration.

Conveniently the tape when of woven construction is provided with formations, which may be in the form of pockets or apertures for receiving curtain suspension devices. Alternatively the curtain heading tape when of non-woven construction is provided with formations, in the form of slits or apertures for this purpose.

Preferably the curtain heading tape is provided with at least one draw cord.

The invention also comprises the method of producing a curtain heading tape in which part at least of the fabric thereof, consists of an initially tapc-like stabilised polymeric yarn which in the finished heading tape is in longitudinally folded form, which is characterised by the steps of feeding the said stabilised polymeric yarn, while in a flat tape-like condition, in a weftwise direction and interengaging it with yarns of a sheet of warpwise-oriented yarns thereby to create a fabric and causing the polymeric yarn to become folded longitudinally when located in the weftwise direction and lying across the width of the sheet of warpwise-oriented yarns thereby to produce a degree of resilience in the weftwise-oriented folded yarn which exceeds that of the yarn when in its flat tape-like condition.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example only, with reference to several practical forms thereof.

Thus to produce a woven curtain heading tape having a single longitudinal row of curtain suspension hook-recieving pockets disposed at one side of the longitudinal centre line of the tape there is provided a warp of spun yarn and a weft of split or fibrillated film yarn.

Such a tape is woven on a loom employing two shuttles, one of which weaves the body of the tape while the other weaves the pockets.

In the particular tape being described pockets are formed at spaced intervals along the tape there being a space between each pocket which is substantially the same width as the pockets themselves. Conveniently the body and the pockets are woven 1 and 1 plain weave.

During weaving it is found, surprisingly, that the fibrillated film yarn, which is initially wound Ort? the shuttle in flat form tends to fold over upon itself, and thus the yarn, (which when in the flat condition is of relatively low resilience), effectively increases in resilience, due to becoming folded, substantially without twisting, to a degree sufficiently to ensure that the tape will be self-supporting and when attached to a curtain will serve to prevent sagging of the head of the curtain. The folding of the weft yarn is thought to be achieved primarily on beat-up.

By using the same type of weft yarn in the pockets the stiffness of the tape in the pocket region is found to be somewhat higher than in the unpocketed region of the tape due to the two-ply form of the curtain heading tape at the pockets. In order to reduce the usage of pocket weft the latter is woven only with a small number of warp yarns between the pockets (for example the pocket weft may weave with two warp yarns only between the pockets). If desired the weft yarn of the pockets may be of spun yarn as opposed to fibrillated film yarn.

Since the folded fibrillated weft yarn has a relatively high coefficient of friction the tape when woven is stable, that is the warp and weft do not tend to slip relative to each other.

In a second form of tape, in which a degree of longitudinal stiffness is required, for example in a space pleat form of tape, there is provided a warp which comprises primarily spun yarn and also includes fibrillated film yarn. To provide transverse stiffness the weft is again of fibrillated film yarn. By correctly choosing the form of heald the initially flat fibrillated film yarn is folded upon itself as it passes through the heald eye thus to produce an increase in stiffness comparable to that achieved in the weft yarn during beat up. Thus if the fibrillated film warp yarns are grouped together a longitudinally disposed band of stiffening is produced in the body of the tape.This band will serve, when the tape is in use, to maintain the unpleated regions of the tape in a flat condition when the curtain is drawn but will not adversely affect the ability of the curtain to 'stack back' in a pleasing manner. The degree of longitudinal stiffness can be adjusted to meet the users requirements by varying the amount of fibrillated film used in the warp.

Variation of the degree of resilience in the weftwise direction is achieved by variation of the weft density, the resilience of the tape being increased by increasing the number of picks per inch in the tape.

While reference has been made to the weaving of a curtain heading tape using a loom employing shuttles for weft insertion it is of course possible to use a loom employing weft inserters (that is a needleloom) if desired.

It is also possible to produce curtain heading tapes of other forms than that referred to above, for example curtain heading tapes having a multiplicity of rows of pockets can be woven. It is also possible to produce a tape usable as a lining tape or to produce a tape in which pockets extending across substantially the whole width of the - body are present and of course to produce reversible tapes (that is tapes having pockets on both faces).

Whatever form of the tape is woven it is possible to incorporate a draw cord or a plurality of draw cords and if desired the tape may be woven with a longitudinal tunnel or tunnels formed therein to carry the cord or cords between positions at which it is desired to form pleats, the cord or cords being positioned to lie on one face of the tape at the pleat locations. In such a tape when it is to be longitudinally stiffened, it is convenient to employ the fibrillated film warp yarn to produce the tunnels or to locate the fibrillated film warp yarns adjacent those tunnels.

The invention is not restricted to the details set out above. For example a curtain heading tape of warp knitted construction can be produced using spun yarn for the production of, for example, longitudinally disposed chains of stitches and by using fibrillated film yarn for transversely laid-in courses. In such a fabric slits are formed during the knitting process for the reception of curtain suspension means, and, if desired, draw cords may be incorporated. Crotcheted fabric can also be produced including the fibrillated film yarn for the laid-in courses.

While reference has been made to the use of a particular form of tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn, namely split or fibrillated film yarn, it is possible to use other forms of tapelike stabilised polymeric yarn, an example oi such a yarn being flat film polypropylene yarn.

One advantage of using tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn when producing curtain heading tapes on a shuttle loom lies in the fact that it can be wound onto the shuttle pin easily, as opposed to some forms oi synthetic monofilament yarn which tend to spring away from the shuttle pin due to their high resilience, and thus a sufficient length ol yarn can be wound onto the shuttle pin to enable the loom to operate, without shuttle change, for a greater period of time than is possible when using high resilience monofilament yarn.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS 1. A curtain heading tape characterised in that a part at least of the fabric thereof consists of an initially tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn, which in the finished heading tape is in longitudinally folded form.

2. A curtain heading tape as claimed in CLAIM 1 in which the polymeric yarn is in the form of split or fibrillated film.

3. A curtain heading tape as claimed in CLAIM 1 in which the polymeric yarn is flat film polypropylene.

4. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the tape is of woven construction, the polymeric yarn being used at least as weft.

5. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of CLAIMS 1 to 3 in which the tape is of knitted, crotcheted or other nonwoven configuration, the polymeric yarn being used at least to provide transverse resilience.

6. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of CLAIMS 1 to 4 in which formations are produced in the tape in the form of apertures for receiving curtain suspension devices.

7. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of CLAIMS 1 to 4 in which formations are produced in the form of open-ended pockets, on one face, at least, of the tape for receiving curtain suspension devices.

8. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of CLAIMS 1 to 3 or 5 in which formations are produced in the tape in the form of slits or apertures for receiving curtain suspension devices.

9. A curtain heading tape as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which at least one draw cord is provided longitudinally in the tape.

10. A curtain heading tape as claimed in CLAIM 9 in which the draw cord is, or draw cords are, at selected position or positions along the tape contained within a or respective longitudinally disposed tubular formations.

11. A curtain heading tape as claimed in Claim 1 and substantially as hereinbefore

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. up. Thus if the fibrillated film warp yarns are grouped together a longitudinally disposed band of stiffening is produced in the body of the tape. This band will serve, when the tape is in use, to maintain the unpleated regions of the tape in a flat condition when the curtain is drawn but will not adversely affect the ability of the curtain to 'stack back' in a pleasing manner. The degree of longitudinal stiffness can be adjusted to meet the users requirements by varying the amount of fibrillated film used in the warp. Variation of the degree of resilience in the weftwise direction is achieved by variation of the weft density, the resilience of the tape being increased by increasing the number of picks per inch in the tape. While reference has been made to the weaving of a curtain heading tape using a loom employing shuttles for weft insertion it is of course possible to use a loom employing weft inserters (that is a needleloom) if desired. It is also possible to produce curtain heading tapes of other forms than that referred to above, for example curtain heading tapes having a multiplicity of rows of pockets can be woven. It is also possible to produce a tape usable as a lining tape or to produce a tape in which pockets extending across substantially the whole width of the - body are present and of course to produce reversible tapes (that is tapes having pockets on both faces). Whatever form of the tape is woven it is possible to incorporate a draw cord or a plurality of draw cords and if desired the tape may be woven with a longitudinal tunnel or tunnels formed therein to carry the cord or cords between positions at which it is desired to form pleats, the cord or cords being positioned to lie on one face of the tape at the pleat locations. In such a tape when it is to be longitudinally stiffened, it is convenient to employ the fibrillated film warp yarn to produce the tunnels or to locate the fibrillated film warp yarns adjacent those tunnels. The invention is not restricted to the details set out above. For example a curtain heading tape of warp knitted construction can be produced using spun yarn for the production of, for example, longitudinally disposed chains of stitches and by using fibrillated film yarn for transversely laid-in courses. In such a fabric slits are formed during the knitting process for the reception of curtain suspension means, and, if desired, draw cords may be incorporated. Crotcheted fabric can also be produced including the fibrillated film yarn for the laid-in courses. While reference has been made to the use of a particular form of tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn, namely split or fibrillated film yarn, it is possible to use other forms of tapelike stabilised polymeric yarn, an example oi such a yarn being flat film polypropylene yarn. One advantage of using tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn when producing curtain heading tapes on a shuttle loom lies in the fact that it can be wound onto the shuttle pin easily, as opposed to some forms oi synthetic monofilament yarn which tend to spring away from the shuttle pin due to their high resilience, and thus a sufficient length ol yarn can be wound onto the shuttle pin to enable the loom to operate, without shuttle change, for a greater period of time than is possible when using high resilience monofilament yarn. WHAT WE CLAIM IS

1. A curtain heading tape characterised in that a part at least of the fabric thereof consists of an initially tape-like stabilised polymeric yarn, which in the finished heading tape is in longitudinally folded form.

described with reference to the foregoing examples.

12. The method of producing a curtain heading tape in which part at least of the fabric thereof consists of an initially tapelike stabilised polymeric yarn which in the finished heading tape is in longitudinally folded form characterised by the steps of feeding the said stabilised yarn, while in a flat tape-like condition, in a weftwise direction an interengaging it with yarns of a sheet of warpwise-oriented yarns thereby to create a fabric and causing the polymeric yarn to become folded longitudinally when located in the weftwise direction and lying across the width of the sheet of warpwiseoriented yarns thereby to produce a degree of resilience in the weftwise-oriented folded yarn which exceeds that of the yarn when in its flat tape-like condition.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12 in which the stabilised polymeric yarn is inserted as weft through a warp shed to produce a woven fabric.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12 or claim 13 in which the stabilised polymeric yarn is inserted as weft by means of a shuttle.

15. The method as claimed in claim 12 or claim 13 in which the stabilised polymeric yarn is inserted as weft by means of a weft inserted in a needleloom.

16. The method as claimed in claim 12 in which the stabilised polymeric yarn is inserted as laid-in yarn across part at least of a plurality of warpwise-oreinted rows of chains of knitted yarn to produce a knitted fabric.

17. A curtain heading tape when produced by the method claimed in any one of claims 12 to 16 and substantially as hereinbefore described.