IE902281A1 - "Insert intended for use in the clothing industry" - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a breathable and impermeable insert intended for the garment industry. It comprises a microporous layer (1) of polymers. According to the invention, the microporous layer (1) is in the form of a stable foam and the said layer is mechanically reinforced by a textile substrate (2). <IMAGE>

Description

INSERT INTENDED FOR USE IR THE CLOTHING INDUSTRY The invention relates to an insert intended for use in the clothing industry.

Textile products for use in the clothing industry and the processes for their manufacture are developing rapidly. Over the last for years in particular, semi-permeable products have been developed which are impermeable to water but which let carbon dioxide and water vapor through. They are labelled as breathable. These products protect the user from rain and wind while remaining perfectly comfortable to wear.

To this end, products in which a layer or semi-permeable film is directly applied to the cloth are known.

Other products are also known in which an insert constitutes a semipermeable barrier in clothes. This insert is made by assembly, most often by glueing a semi-permeable film to a textile support.

All these techniques are relatively restricting and the presence of a semi-permeable layer makes it difficult to control the appearance, feel and hang of the textile.

Moreover, the semi-permeable film has mechanical properties (elasticity, resistance to traction and shrinkage due to temperature or maintenance) that are different from those of the textile support to which it is generally attached. These differences in behavior directly affect the interface between the textile support and the film and quickly lead to localised tearing of the adhesive and may lead to it becoming completely detached.

In order to remedy these drawbacks, it has been envisaged to directly use a microporous polymer film or layer to make up an insert, nonetheless, such films or layers do not have sufficient mechanical resistance and all attempts in this direction have been abandoned for the moment.

The aim of the invention is to provide an insert which does not have these drawbacks, allowing the production of a textile whose properties can be controlled, pleasing to the touch and to the eye, and which fulfills all the conditions required for the use of textiles in the clothing industry, i.e, sufficient mechanical resistance, resistance to dry cleaning and washing, resistance to abrasion and rubbing which occur when clothes are worn.

The invention thus relates to a breathable and impermeable insert intended for use in the clothing industry comprised of a microporous polymer layer. The microporous layer is in the form of a stable foam and said layer is reinforced by a textile substrate.

The invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings given in the appendices, wherein : , Figure 1 is a cut of an insert according to the invention . Figure 2 is a front view of an insert according to the invention Figure 3 represents a system for carrying out the process of the invention according to a first embodiment of the process Figure 4 represents a system for carrying out the process of the invention according to a second embodiment of the : process Figure 5 represents a system for carrying out the process of the invention according to a third embodiment of the process Figure 6 represents a system for carrying out the process of the invention using two layers of foam.

The invention thus relates to a breathable and impermeable insert intended for use in the clothing industry.

Inserts are currently used by inserting then on the inside of clothes in such a way that the qualities and properties of the cloth itself are modified. They are most often placed between the cloth and the lining.

Inserts can be assembled in flounces, they are then made solid by being surrounded by the cloth or lining. They can also be counterglued to the cloth or lining. In the latter case, glueing in several points is preferable as it leaves the cloth supple and pleasant to the touch.

The insert according to the invention is comprised of a microporous polymer layer 1. These polymers are in the form of a stable foam and this layer is mechanically reinforced by a textile substrate .

The foam used is stable, It remains in this form during its preparation, while setting up the elements of the manufacture process and, after drying, leads to the production of a microporous layer.

The foam is preferably a polyurethane foam obtained by stirring a mixture of polymers and water in equal parts. Such polymers are marketed under the name TUBICOAT MP by the Company CHEMISCHE FABRIK TUBIMGE5 R. R. BEITLICH GmbH". This foam layer is mechanically reinforced by a textile substra+e 2 which it most often completely permeates. It is thus possible, by choosing textile substrate 2, to control the insert's resistance to traction and tearing. For example, when elasticity in the direction of the weft is sought, a textile substrate 2 having the same kind of elasticity is used to reinforce the microporous polymer layer 1.

The textile substrate 2 has a low grammage, for example from 10 to 50 g/m2, preferably between 20 and 80 g/m2. The insert made up in this way then has good mechanical resistance without its grammage becoming too great.

The textile substrate 2 can also be an unwoven, woven or knitted textile. It is preferable that its texture be open to allow and facilitate penetration of the foam during manufacture.

The textile substrate can be a wefted knit as represented in figures 1 and 2.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, two microporous polymer layers 1 in the form of a foam are each applied to one side of the textile substrate 2, thus leading to complete insertion of the textile substrate 2 into the polymer foam.

The textile substrate 2 can also include several components so as to give the insert not elastic properties but a certain amount of resilience, for example, in the direction of the weft.

The properties of the textile substrate 2 also allow the clothing properties of the insert to be determined. It is also possible to limit penetration of the foam into the textile substrate in such a way as to leave one of its sides intact. Scraping or polishing the intact side allows the insert to have the feel of the corresponding cloth and to increase its resistance to abrasion.

Furthermore, the grammage and density of the foam used allow the qualities of impermeability and breathabi1ity of the insert to be varied. In order to make a thermoadhesive insert, a thermoadhesive layer, for example distributed in points, is deposited on one or the other side of the insert.

In order to maintain the properties of the insert (breathability), the thermoadhesive layer is discontinuous and can be sprayed on. Polymers currently used as adhesives in the textile industry can be used here, be they thermoplastics or thermosetting substances (polyethylene, polyester, polyamide, polyurethane...).

In order to manufacture the insert according to the invention, a stable foam is firstly made up from a mixture of polymers and water. A layer of the polymer foam is then contacted with a textile substrate 2. The polymer foam layer is dried and the product obtained is finally passed through a cold calender 3 so as to flatten the structure of the foam in order to improve adhesion of the foam to the textile substrate and to increase the complex’s resistance to abrasion.

Coating of the stable polymer foam will be carried out either directly onto the textile or on a continuous anti-adhesive support 4 and contacted later with the textile substrate 2.

Vhen coating is carried out directly, the textile substrate 2 can be supported on a continuous anti-adhesive support 4.

A continuous support is a closed-loop conveyor belt circulating at a constant rate around rollers 8, 9.

This coating will be carried out using known methods, either by application onto a rotary frame or by scraping with a knife. For example, a rotary frame with a foam scraper can be used 5. This technique allows varying thicknesses of foam to be applied by adjusting the distance between the knife and the support depending on the foam in question. In a first embodiment of the invention, the polymer foam is directly spread onto the textile substrate 2. The set of elements then passes through one or more ovens 6, 7 such that a first drying stage takes place at about 100’C, then a second drying stage at a temperature ranging from 120'C to 130*C so as to consolidate the foam's structure. The microporous structure is then dry and stable. As mentioned above, the complex then passes through a cold calender 3. The pressure exerted on the calender allows the degree of penetration of the textile substrate 2 into the polymer foam to be defined.

Calendering is used to apply pressure to the composite and to make the foam layer penetrate Into the textile substrate 2, This operation can also be carried out by pressing.

In another embodiment of the process, a stable layer of polymer foam is produced on a non-adhesive conveyor belt 4 and the textile substrate 2 is calendered on the foam layer.

This calendering can be carried out on the still-humid stable foam before any drying is carried out or, to the contrary, after the first drying stage at 100‘C, In this last embodiment of the process, represented in figure 5, the microporous layer 1 is contacted with the textile substrate 2 between oven 6 at 100’C and oven 7 at 130*C.

In another embodiment of the process, two foam layer (2a and 2b) are each simultaneously deposited on one side of the textile substrate 2 by a double rotary frame with foam scrapers (5a and 5b).

This substrate is then completely embedded in the foam. In some applications, the fire-proof qualities of the insert are sought. They can be obtained by selecting each of the compounds. The textile substrate is then resistant to fire and a fire-proof additive is incorporated into the foam layer.

The hydrophobic properties of the insert can be improved by passing the composite set through a waterproofing solution before pressing.

The polymer foam can have a density of about 200 g/1. The application of 50 to 100 g of foam per m2 of product thus produces a layer having a thickness ranging from 0.5 to 1 mm.

The use of a textile substrate 2 comprised of a textured knit with insertion of a polyester-based weft having a grammage of 40 g/nr, with an elasticity of 30 % in the direction of the weft, allows an elastic insert in the direction of the weft to be obtained.

Coating can be carried out by using a 14-mesh rotary frame with a coating rate of 40 % of stable foam at 200 g/1.

Vhen setting up the process, the textile substrate 2 is momentarily supported on an anti-adhesive conveyor belt. An insert having a dry grammage of 90 g/m3 and showing the semi-permeable characteristics sought is thus obtained. Drying is carried out in stages from 100*C to 130’C.

The insert thus obtained has an impermeability of over 1000 mm of water, complete impermeability to wind, resistance to water vapor of 60 to 80 millibars per nrVw. It has an elasticity in the direction of the weft of 25 to 30 7..

Claims (14)

1. VBAT IS CLAIBED IS :

1. Breathable and Impermeable Insert intended for use in the clothing industry, comprised of a microporous polymer layer (1), wherein the microporous layer (1) is in the form of a stable foam and said layer is mechanically reinforced by a textile substrate (2).

2. Insert according to claim 1 wherein the textile substrate (2) has a low grammage, for example ranging from 10 to 80 g/nr'.

3. Insert according to any one of claims 1 to 2 wherein the textile substrate (2) is an open-textured knit or weave.

4. Insert according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein it is comprised of two microporous polymer layers (1) in the form of a foam, each located on one side of the textile substrate (2).

5. Insert according to any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein it is coated with a discontinuous thermoadhesive layer.

6. Insert according to any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the polymers contained in the foam are polyurethanes, the foam being produced from a mixture of polyurethanes and water.

7. Process for the manufacture of an insert intended for use in the clothing industry comprised of a microporous polymer layer (1), wherein : - a stable foam is made from a mixture of polymers and water, - a layer of the polymer foam is contacted with a textile substrate (2), - the layer of polymer foam is dried, - the composite obtained is compressed when cold.

8. Manufacture process according to claim 7 wherein the polymer foam is directly deposited onto the textile substrate (2).

9. Manufacture process according to claim 7 wherein the polymer foam is deposited on a non-adhesive conveyor belt (4) such that it forms a layer, then the textile substrate (2) is contacted with the foam layer by calendering.

10. Manufacture process according to claim 9 wherein the foam layer is partially dried before being contacted with the textile substrate (2).

11. Manufacture process according to any one of claims 7 to 10 wherein the textile substrate (2) is simultaneously contacted with two layers of polymer foam, each layer one of its sides. -ίο

12. A process substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings.

13. An insert whenever made by a process as claimed in any of claims 7 to 12.

14. An insert substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings.