GB2565525B

GB2565525B - Expandable knitted fabric

Info

Publication number: GB2565525B
Application number: GB1709175.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Zhang Tingting
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-06-08
Filing date: 2017-06-08
Publication date: 2019-11-06
Anticipated expiration: 2037-06-08
Also published as: CN108716053B; GB2565525A; CN108716053A; GB201709175D0

Description

EXPANDABLE KNITTED FABRIC

Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a knitted fabric, in which strips of the fabric are knitted using a jacquard technique, that can contract and be expanded.

Background A jacquard knit is created through a loom process, which is programmed to raise each warp yam independently of other yams so that the raised yam is used in a stitch in the resultant fabric. Use of different coloured yarns enables a two-dimensional design to be incorporated into the fabric since the different coloured yarns can be raised selectively. Printing or dyeing techniques are not required.

Computer-controlled looms are available to control production of a jacquard fabric. Computer software is available using which a loom can be controlled to create a particular design.

Fabrics made using a jacquard technique do not pleat well, and yet fabrics made according to a jacquard technique and having a pleated aspect would be useful since the jacquard technique is commonly used to made fabrics with designs knitted in them. It is an object of the present invention to address this.

Summary of the Invention

The inventor noticed that sheets of jacquard fabric have curled edges. This led the inventor to consider characteristics of such fabric that cause such curling and subsequently the first aspect of the present invention.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a knitted fabric, comprising: first strips knitted according to a jacquard technique to have a display side, wherein each strip is configured to have transverse curvature and the display side of each strip is on a same side of the knitted fabric; and flexible, knitted second strips knitted according to another knitting technique and joined to the first strips along respective longitudinal sides thereof in an alternating manner.

This results in a knitted fabric that can contract and be expanded. When in a contracted state, the first strips may be obscured, such that a design on the display side of the first strips cannot be seen. When in an expanded state, the first strips can be seen.

Each first strip may have back material and front material. In this case, the transverse curvature is at least partially caused by the back material comprising a greater amount of yam than the front material.

The first strips may each comprise a plurality of yams. There may be three, four, five yams or a greater number of yams.

At least one of the plurality of yams may be elasticated. Preferably, at least one yam is elasticated, of which a majority thereof is located in the front material. All of the yams maybe elasticated. Use of elasticated yarns causes transverse curling of the first strips.

At least one yarn may not be elasticated, of which a majority thereof is located in the back material. In particular, use of elasticated yam in the front material and inelastic in the back material results in curling of the first strips due to relative tensions.

Each second strip may be knitted in a double jersey structure.

Each second strip may have a plurality of holes therein. This prevents or reduces creasing of the second strips caused by tension in the fabric.

There may be provided a product comprising the knitted fabric described above, wherein the product is one of: an item of clothing; a hat; a bag; shoe. Such a bag may be expandable in use. The knitted fabric may form an upper of the shoe.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method comprising: operating a computer to control a loom to knit the knitted fabric of the first aspect.

There may also be provided a hat comprising: a piece of concertinaed fabric, preferably rectangular, wherein a first portion thereof is partially expanded to form a peak portion, and a second portion thereof expands in use to cover a top of a wearer’s head; means for maintaining the shape of the first portion; and retaining means arranged so that the second portion locates and is retained on the head of the wearer.

The maintaining means may comprise: wire means, and an outer edge of the first portion is adapted to retain the wire means; and means attaching the first portion to the second portion so that the first portion is maintained partially expanded in use.

At least four holes may be located through the fabric, and the retaining means may comprise a line. In this case, the line may form a loop extending through the holes thereby to attach to the knitted fabric, wherein the loop is sized to extend around an upper portion of a wearer’s head. The line may be of adjustable length.

The piece of concertinaed fabric may be substantially rectangular. The concertinaed fabric may be a knitted fabric in accordance with this first aspect.

There may also be provided a method of making a hat from a piece of concertinaed fabric, wherein the piece has an edge portion, comprising: attaching wire means along the edge portion; attaching ends of the edge portion to a second portion of the fabric, to partially expand a first portion of the fabric that includes the edge portion and form a peak portion, wherein the second portion expands in use to cover a top of a wearer’s head; locating a line through holes in the second portion in a loop, wherein the second portion with the looped line is locatable on a top of a wearer’s head.

Brief Description of the Figures

For better understanding of the present invention, embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying Figures in which:

Figure 1 is front view of a knitted fabric in accordance with embodiments of the invention, where the fabric is expanded;

Figure 2 is front view of the knitted fabric, where the fabric is in a compacted state;

Figure 3 is perspective side view of the knitted fabric;

Figure 4 is a side view of a cap in accordance with an embodiment;

Figure 5 is a top, perspective view of the cap during a process of its manufacture;

Figure 6 is a view of a portion of the cap at a rear thereof, showing an attachment mechanism.

Detailed Description of Embodiments

Like reference numerals are used to denote like parts throughout.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, embodiments of the invention relate to a knitted fabric comprising first strips 10 and second strips 12, which are alternately arranged. The knitted fabric is knitted as a single piece of fabric. The first strips 10 are made using a jacquard knitting technique. The second strips 12 are made using double jersey knit structure. The first strips and the second strips 12 are flexible. The first strips 10 each has an inherent curvature or curl, such that a display surface of each first strip 10 is concave when the first strip 10 are not subject to any external force.

Each longitudinal edge of each second strip 12 is joined to a respective longitudinal edge of an adjacent first strip 10. The first and second strips 10, 12 together result in the knitted fabric being ridged or concertinaed, such that the fabric can be expanded and compacted.

The first strips 10 have front material 18 and back material 16. The first strips 10 are formed of at least three yarns; three, four, five or a greater number may be used. The yams of the back material are selectively raised to be part of the front material, so that the front material is knitted in accordance with a wanted design. The amount of yam in the back material is greater than in the front material. This partially causes curling of the first strips 10.

The greater the number of yams results in a greater amount of yarn is in the back material relative to the front material. A greater number of yams enables the fabric to be stretched more, since there is less resistance to stretching in the back material 16. One or more yams may not be used in the front material 18 and may only be used in the back material 16. For example, where five yarns are used, three may appear in the front material 18, whereas all five are included in the back material 16.

Typically, the yarns using in the first strips 10 include at least one yam that is a different colour to the other yarns. The different coloured yams are selectively raised into the front material so that the front material has the wanted design. The design of the first strips 10 is not visible when the fabric is compacted. The first strips 10 may collectively have a desired design, which is not visible when the fabric is compacted and is visible when the fabric is expanded. However, it is not essential to the invention that the yarns are different colours.

In the embodiment shown, all of the yarns are elasticated. This results in greater transverse curling of the first strips 10. In variant embodiments, fewer than all the yarns are elasticated. In such variant embodiments, one or more yams may be elasticated, and preferably such one or more yams are used in the front material.

Although not essential to the invention, the second strips 12 include a plurality of holes 14. As indicated in the Figures, the holes 14 may be in the form of parallel, transverse lines of holes extending across the second strips 12, although this is not essential to the invention. The holes 14 may be pointelle holes. The elasticity of the yarns would cause transverse creases in the second strips 12 - the holes prevent or reduce this. The holes may be distributed in any manner to prevent or reduce creasing.

The fabric is knitted using a knitting machine configured to receive the yarns and to knit using the Jacquard technique and also to create a double jersey structure. A design of the fabric can be created using a computer. In the first strips 10, one pixel on a computer screen may, for example, correspond to one stitch produced by the knitting machine. The design can be processed to create instructions for the knitting machine, which the knitting machine can execute to knit the fabric. Suitable knitting machines are currently available under the brand name “Stoll”. For example a suitable machine is the Stoll CMS 822. This machine can be configured to knit the fabric using a gauge of 7.2 and an average tension of 10. Alternatively, the fabric can be knitted by hand. The tension may be changes depending on, for example, the number of yams and their elasticity.

The jacquard fabric is knitted according to a birds-eye jacquard knit, which is understood to also be known as a “twill back” jacquard knit. The birds-eye jacquard knit is known to be a heavy type of jacquard knit due to a high amount of back material 16 that results in comparison to other techniques. However, in embodiments of the invention this is advantageous as the difference in amount of front material compared to back material encouraged curving, particularly where more or more yarns are elasticated. In variant embodiments, other types of jacquard knit may be used in the first strips.

Also, the second strips 12 need not be made using a double jersey knit structure. The second strips 12 can be alternatively made using another kind of knit structure.

The knitted fabric can be used in many different types of product. The knitted fabric may be used in hats and bags for examples. Usefully, the concertinaed nature of the fabric results in a bag being expandable. The knitted fabric may also be used in clothing such as dresses. Since the fabric naturally draws to a compacted state, clothing may be made with the fabric in which the fabric reduces to match with contours of a wearer’s body. The knitted fabric may also be used as the upper of a shoe. A hat, in the style of a cap, made using the knitted fabric described above is shown in Figures 4 to 6. The cap has a peak 20 having a front edge 22, a wire (not visible in Figure), a top piece 24 and a rope 26. The peak 20 extends from the top piece 24. The wire runs through the front edge 22 so that the peak 20 retains its shape. The rope 26 extends through the holes 14 and a loop is formed to sit on a wearer’s head above the wearer’s ears.

Use of the fabric will now be described in making of the cap from a rectangular piece of the fabric with reference to Figures 4 to 6. First, a portion of the rectangular piece at a shorter edge thereof is rolled or folded over itself to form a tube in which the wire can be located, thereby to form the front edge 22 of the peak 20. Embodiments of the invention are not limited to use of a wire; another suitably shaped or resiliently flexible elongate member may be used in forming of the peak 22.

The folded portion is then sewn so as to remain folded, although a means of attachment means other than a sewing operation may be used in variant embodiments. The wire can be inserted into the tube through an end thereof, or can be suitably located before the sewing operation is performed so as to be located in the tube after the sewing operation.

As indicated in Figure 5, comers of the fabric at ends of the short edge along which the wire is attached are then attached to the top piece 26 of the hat in another sewing operation, for example with a few stitches, so that the first portion 20 is held partially expanded in use. The corners may be otherwise attached. In attaching the comers, the wire may be flexed, and thus curved, to have the shape indicated in Figure 5.

The rope 26 is then located through some of the holes 14 in the top piece 24 that are suitably located to form a loop sized to fit and be retained on the wearer’s head. The loop extends in sections along the back material 16 of the knitted fabric, and is thus not visible in use of the cap. The at least one yarn used in the second strips 12 is sufficiently flexible that the rope can easily be located thought the holes 14; where such yam is elasticated, locating of the rope is further facilitated. The rope 26 may be in the form of any kind of line in variant embodiments.

As indicated in Figure 6, a fastening system 28 is provided to allow the length of the loop to be adjustably sized. The rope can be tightened in accordance with the size of a wearer’s head and then fastened. Variant fastening systems may be used, or the rope can be tied.

The flexibility of the knitted fabric and its ability to expand, together with the inherent nature of the fabric to draw to a compacted state enables the making of such a cap.

The hat need not be made with the knitted fabric described above. The hat could instead be made with any concertinaed, ridged, or pleated fabric, knitted or otherwise, in the same manner. In variant embodiments in which the hat is not made using the knitted fabric described above with the holes 14, the fabric is configured to have at least four holes therein, for receiving the rope therethrough, and located so that the rope extends in a loop to aid locating of the hat on a wearer’s head and retaining of the hat.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that various modifications are possible to the embodiments.

The applicant hereby discloses in isolation each individual feature or step described herein and any combination of two or more such features, to the extent that such features or steps or combinations of features and/or steps are capable of being carried out based on the present specification as a whole in the light of the common general knowledge of a person skilled in the art, irrespective of whether such features or steps or combinations of features and/or steps solve any problems disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A knitted fabric, comprising: first strips knitted according to a jacquard technique to have a display side, wherein each strip is configured to have transverse curvature and the display side of each strip is on a same side of the knitted fabric; and flexible, knitted second strips knitted according to another knitting technique and joined to the first strips along respective longitudinal sides thereof in an alternating manner.

2. The knitted fabric of claim 1, wherein each first strip has back material and front material, wherein the transverse curvature is at least partially caused by the back material comprising a greater amount of yarn than the front material.

3. The knitted fabric of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first strips each comprise a plurality of yams.

4. The knitted fabric of claim 4, wherein the plurality of yams comprises: three, four, or five yams.

5. The knitted fabric of claim 3 or claim 4, wherein at least one of the plurality of yams is elasticated.

6. The knitted fabric of claim 5, wherein at least one yam is elasticated, of which a majority thereof is located in the front material.

7. The knitted fabric of any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein all of the yams are elasticated.

8. The knitted fabric of claim 5, wherein at least one yam is not elasticated, of which a majority thereof is located in the back material.

9. The knitted fabric of any one of the preceding claims, wherein each second strip is knitted in a double jersey structure.

10. The knitted fabric of claim 9, wherein each second strip has a plurality of holes therein.

11. A product comprising the knitted fabric described above, wherein the product is one of: an item of clothing; a hat; a bag; shoe.

12. A method of making the knitted fabric of any one of claims 1 to 10, comprising: operating a computer to control a loom to knit the knitted fabric.