GB2179741A - Measuring frame - Google Patents

Abstract

A measuring frame for textile goods comprises two planar transparent polymer sheets 1a and 1b fixed parallel to one another with the intermediary of vertical spine member 2 from either side of which protrude a plurality of rack members 3 on which can be adjustably positioned a right-hand and a left-hand adjustment leaf 4 and 5 respectively also made of transparent polymer. Measuring scales extend down the front and back of the spine at 18 and down the side of each leaf at 19. Measuring scales also extend along the racks as at 21 and 22. When the equipment shown in exploded form is assembled, it permits the leaves 4 and 5 to be positioned on the racks to give a known girth dimension measured horizontally around the whole assembly. A garment can be draped over the top surface 12 of the leaves and pulled down to a measured amount by application of a known force such as by weights attached to a lower portion of the garment whereby measurements of garment dimension can be made at the known girth. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Measuring frame This invention relates to a measuring frame for textiles or textile piece goods.

The frame of the invention facilitates measurement either as a quality and uniformity control upon the articles as originally produced, or as a control upon the quality or properties of the article after predetermined conditions of use, more especially washing and wear conditions.

It is well known to carry out in a generalised manner measurements before and after washing of garments so as to test for shrinkage. This of course suffers from the disadvantage that it is not easy to particularise or standardise the conditions either of treatment or measurement, so that the results are of limited usefulness.

Attempts have therefore been made in the past to provide various measuring device or frames on which articles can be supported and measured before and after various conditions of treatment and use. One such article is described in U.S. Patent 4 058 874, and consists of a frame for holding a tee shirt or like garment under conditions of tension which are measured by an angularly moveable pointer arm against a scale. However, such a device is restricted in use to tee shirts or similar tubular knit devices of equivalent shape, and is restricted moreover to the stretch qualities of such garments.

The present invention is concerned with a measuring frame of more general purpose construction, with which tubular fabric garments with arms, sleeves, legs or leg-openings in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials can be tested for agreement with manufacturing specification, or for agreement with washing and handling dimensional-change performance specifications generally.

In one aspect the invention consists of a generally planar measuring frame for textile goods, symmetrical about a vertical axis and comprising side restraint edges and top restraint edges for the textile goods, together with at least one measurement scale extending from an upper datum level parallel to the vertical axis and at least one other measurement scale transverse to the vertical axis in which frame (a) the side restraint edges are displaceable towards or away from the vertical axis and immobilisable to give a known transverse fabric dimension measurable on the transverse measurement scale and (b) the top restraint edges support the fabric to give a vertical dimension, to a predetermined lower part of the fabric structure, measurable from the upper datum level, whereby measurements of the vertical dimension may be taken at a fixed transverse dimension of the textile goods before, during or after application of a known downward force.

Preferably, such a frame comprises a pair of generally coplanar vertically mounted rectangular leaves mutually relatively displaceable in predetermined graduated increments in the plane at right angles to their length, being thereby of selectively variable and known total circumference or girth when measured in a horizontal plane.

Preferably moreover the leaves are located for displacement in the gap within two parallel sheets, preferably transparent, forming a static part of the frame and holding incrementally configured support means for the leaves.

It is usual to have at least one measuring scale extending vertically down the centre line of the frame to be visible at or through a forward face and/or at or through a rearward face, and/or to have at least one measuring scales extending vertically down the edge of each leaf. It is additionally valuable to have measuring scales along the configured support means, which can for example be rack-like elements extending horizontally across between the spaced sheets to support the leaves equidistantly from a centre line.

The equipment as defined above is typically used with attachable weights, connected at or near a lower edge of the textile goods by a form of jaws preferably extending along substantially the whole length of the said lower edge.

Generally speaking the arrangement is such that a garment with a tubular portion will be pulled down to extend circumferentially around the frame as adjusted to a predetermined size.

Thus, the circumference or girth of the garment is fixed at each calibrated position. The garment can be held to this specified girth throughout the remainder of the measuring procedure.

Conveniently, the spaced sheets are made of transparent materials, such as rigid polymeric material for example that known under the Trademark "Perspex" (polymethylmethacrylate). The adjustable leaves moreover may also be made of transparent polymer as may the support rack members. It has been found preferable to have at least two such rack members whereby upper and lower portions of the leaf can be fixed; in practice we utilise three for additional stability.

A further advantage of the use of transparent polymer is that the measuring scales can be located within the polymer so that they do not become worn or obscured in use.

The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an exploded view of the assembled measuring frame, showing the interrelationship of the major components, Figure 2 is a horizontal section through an upper part of one half of the measuring frame, Figure 3 shows in a scrap view the configu ration of the rack used in the measuring frame, and Figure 4 shows diagrammaticaly the assembled measuring frame in use.

It will be appreciated that Fig. 1 is diagrammatic, and that the proportions or relative sizes of the different features may be shown in an exaggerated form for clarity of diagrammatic illustration.

The measuring frame consists in general terms of two opposed sheets of "perspex" (RTM for polymethylmethacrylate), referenced 1 a and 1 b enclosing both a longitudinal vertical spine member 2 and a plurality of rack members 3 on which can be adjustably positioned a right-hand and left-hand adjustment leaf 4 and 5 respectively, also made of "per sped.

The opposed transparent sheets 1a and ib are essentially identical and are arranged symmetrically. They each have a substantially vertical face portion 6 and an integral foot portion 7 bent at right angles to the face portion 6. They are assembled together primarily by four major fixing bolts 8. passing through spacers such as 9, and held by nuts at 10, the heads of the bolts, and the nuts, being conveniently recessed into countersunk portions of the sheet. This assembly of the two sheets can either be free standing or can if desired be attached at foot portions 7 to a single base for further rigidity.

The spine member 2 is also located between the assembled sheets, and should therefore have the same thickness as the length of spacers 9. It extends from the top to a location near the bottom of the vertical part 6 of the sheets, and can be attached to one or both sheets 1a, 1b by suitable screws or bolts fixing its relative position.

Each rack is in the form of an elongate rectangle again of "perspex" with shaped teeth along an upper edge. Each rack can be fixed to the nearer polymer sheet (as shown below in more detail in Fig. 2) by suitably positioned screws or bolts and/or can be fixed to the spine itself as an integral unit. As shown in the drawing, there are conveniently six such racks, arranged at three levels with the teeth 11 so formed as to face away from the spine in each instance.

The right-hand adjustment leaf 4 consists of a planar sheet of "perspex" material provided at its top edge 12 and at its side or long edge 13 with a strip of white polymeric. Perspex sheet 4 is additionally provided with an inwardly extending gap or recess 14, and with three pairs of protruding pins 15, 16 and 17 as shown.

The left-hand adjustment leaf 5 is similarly equipped and is accordingly not described in detail. Only part of it is shown.

The static part of the assembly of Fig. 1 consists therefore of the two upright sheets 1a and 1b, the spine 2 and the racks 3, all fixed in place. The adjustable parts consist of the two adjustment leaves 4 and 5, each of which can be variously located so that the pins 15, 16 and 17 sit, between teeth 11 of threee extending racks 3, at any desired position. We have found the use of three racks to give advantageous stability.

The assembly is provided with front and back measuring scales 18 each starting from a datum position at the top of the spine 2: two similar measuring scales 19 on the outer faces of the edge pieces 13, and measuring scales 20, 21 and 22 upon successive racks of the structure. The use of these measuring scales will be described in more detail below.

Fig. 2 shows a detail of the assembly of Fig. 1. It will be seen that the spine member 2 has measuring scales 18 on its front and rear faces protected behind the transparent polymer layer and that the fixing of the rack 20 (for example) to the sheet 1 a leaves a space adequate to accommodate the perspex 4a of the adjustable member 4. Moreover, the front and rear edges 23, 24 respectively of the edge piece 13 project slightly from the outer faces of the assembly, for easy handling. Also, the recess 14 accommodates the upper spacer 9. The leaves are preferably short enough to miss the lower spacers 9 anyway.

Fig. 3 shows the top edge of the rack accommodating pins 15, from which the somewhat angled orientation of teeth 11 can be clearly shown.

Fig. 4 shows diagrammatically the device in use for measuring dimension-change characteristics, under controlled conditions, of a singlet 24 shown in dotted lines. To carry out the desired measurement each side pieces 13 is gripped, (by its edges 23, 24) and placed by hand so that the pins 15, 16 and 17 are held by the various teeth 11 in the three successive racks. Both adjustment leaves are similarly positioned, and the values on the measuring scales 20, 21 and 22 are noted.

(These measuring scales can give merely an indication of the separation of the edges of the side pieces 4 and 5, or may indicate di rectly a reading equivalent to the total girth of the assembly as shown by the quantity G in Fig. 4).

Once the frame has been set up to a de sired girth in this fashion, a singlet or other desired article of clothing is eased over the frame. As shown by way of example, it finally arrives at a position in which the shoulder straps or portions are supported across the top of the frame (typically, over the portions 12) and in which the lower edge of the gar ment is isolated somewhat down the frame.

This can be achieved under a known load, for example, a set of four 0.5-kilogram weights each attached to a "bulldog" type of clip with sufficiently lengthy jaws that enough of the hem on the forward and rear faces is in volved.

The measurements of the garment, both at the front and back faces and to each side, can be taken at the lower garment edge.

There is thus an accurate and reproducible reading of the length of the front and back LB,LF, and of the left and right-hand side LR, LL at a known girth (G). A similar reading can be taken after washing or wear, to see to what extent the dimensions have altered and also to see whether the dimensions have altered uniformly as between the front and back or as between the two sides.

The device is thus a simple and robust form of quality control and product measurement in the field of soft textile goods. It can be utilised not only for singlets as shown, but for any articles which can be restrained at an upper edge of a measuring frame and held at a desired girth by two outwardly displaceable outer edges.

Claims (9)

1. A generally planar measuring frame for textile goods, symmetrical about a vertical axis and comprising side restraint edges for the textile goods, together with at least one measurement scale extending from an upper datum level parallel to the vertical axis and at least one other measurement scale transverse to the vertical axis in which frame (a) the side restraint edges are displaceable towards or away from the vertical axis and immobilisable to give a known transverse fabric dimension measurable upon the transverse measurement scale, and (b) the top restraint edges support the fabric to give a vertical dimension, to a predetermined lower part of a fabric structure, measurable from the upper datum level, whereby measurement of the vertical dimension may be taken at a fixed transverse dimension on the textile goods before, during or after application of a known downward force.

2. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 1 which comprises a pair of generally coplanar vertically mounted rectangular leaves mutually relatively displaceable in predetermined graduated increments in the common plane and at right angles to their length, being thereby of selectively variabie and known total circumference or girth when measured in a horizontal plane.

3. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 2 in which the leaves are located for displacement in the gap within two parallel sheets forming a static part of the frame and holding incrementally configured support means for the leaves.

4. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 3 in which the two parallel sheets are transparent.

5. A generally planar measuring grame as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 in which at least one measuring scale extends vertically down the centre line of the frame to be visible at or through a forward face and/or at or through a rearward face.

6. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4 which has at least one measuring scale extending vertically down the edge of each leaf.

7. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 3 which comprises at least one measuring scale along the configured support means.

8. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 3 or 7 in which the configured support means are rack-like elements extending horizontally across between the spaced sheets to support the leaves equidistantly from the vertical line.

9. A generally planar measuring frame as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 in further combination with attachable weights for connection in use at or near a lower edge of the textile goods by a form of jaws.