IE930136A1

IE930136A1 - Method and apparatus for garment manufacturing

Info

Publication number: IE930136A1
Application number: IE930136A
Authority: IE
Inventors: Paul Sharma Senior; Michael Sharma; Paul Sharma Junior
Original assignee: Hillhead Clothing Ltd
Priority date: 1993-02-24
Filing date: 1993-02-24
Publication date: 1994-08-24
Also published as: BE1005625A6; GB2275413A; GB9306573D0; IE69657B1; GB2275413B

Abstract

Before assembly to the garment, the waistband 15 is made by feeding discreet lengths of waistband material 22 onto a sheet of backing material 10 and securing the two materials together, as by adhesive thermally set by oven 23, to form a composite. Thereafter the composite is provided with a seamed edge 16 at sewing station 24, is folded at station 25, pressed at station 26 and cut into a number of separate waistbands at station 27. The waistband is then provided with hidden seams at its ends and finally is sewn to a garment with the appropriate edge of the garment aligned with guide line 11. A suitable folding guide is described with reference to Figs, 7 to 15 (not shown). A zip may be sewn to the garment by the use of zip sewing guides described with reference to Figs. 16 to 23 (not shown). The oven 23 is described in greater detail with reference to Fig. 6 (not shown).

Description

Methods and Apparatus for Garment Manufacturing* μ* t L w * ' KThe present invention relates to methods and apparatus for ............-making garments and in particular for making garments of the type incorporating a waistband.

Companies making garments by traditional methods whereby 5 individual garments are sewn up by hand by skilled operators are coming under increasing threat from low cost operations. This is particularly the case in countries such as Ireland where this industry has been severely damaged by competition from abroad. The only way in which manufacturers can compete against such competition is to provide improved methods of manufacture and apparatus such as to overcome the cost disadvantage due to the higher hourly rate of the domestic worker by ensuring that the time input in the making of such garments is substantially less than that in other countries.

Some of the operations are extremely skill intensive and one of the reasons why the clothing industry has not been completely destroyed in this country is that the level of skill of the workers is in many instances far superior to that from other countries. Skilled machinists can produce a higher quality of garment than can be produced in many other countries. Even with this quality advantage, difficulties are being experienced particularly with cheap imports. While the quality is not by any means comparable to the quality of the native or home production, the price advantage of these imports is such as to negate the superior quality of the home manufactured garment.

It is recognised that the only hope for sustaining home production in this industry is to increase the general level of efficiency and to optimise the use of the highly skilled personnel available. -93 0 13 β The present invention is directed towards these objects and in particular to providing improved methods and apparatus for the making of such garments.

According to the invention, there is provided a method of making a garment of the type incorporating a waistband comprising the steps of:stacking cloth in a plurality of layers to form a flat bundle of cloth? laying a pattern on the top of the bundle; cutting out the cloth in accordance with the pattern to produce a plurality of cut-out pieces of cloth; feeding a separate length of waistband forming material onto another sheet of cloth forming a backing sheet, said backing sheet having a guide line and two fold lines, namely, an edge fold line and an inner fold line, each formed by a plurality of pre-cut discrete longitudinal slits; securing the backing sheet and the waistband forming material together to form a composite material; folding the composite material about the fold lines with the backing sheet mating; stitching to secure the fold formed on the edge fold line; cutting the folded length of composite material into a plurality of separate smaller lengths of material each sufficient to form one waistband; »30136forming an open envelope by turning the material inside out adjacent each end and stitching together to form a hidden seam; sewing and partially forming the garment for reception of a waistband; laying an edge of the partially formed garment within the envelope and aligning the edge with the guide line; and sewing the waistband to the partially formed garment.

In one embodiment, an adhesive is used to secure the cloths together to form the composite material.

Preferably, the adhesive is a thermally set adhesive and an additional step of subjecting the sheets to heat sufficient to cause the adhesive to cure is performed. In one embodiment, the mating sheets are subjected to a contact pressure.

In another embodiment, prior to forming the waistband a zip is sewn into a closure opening by carrying out the steps of :opening the zip to form two separate legs; placing one leg of the zip in a zip retaining guide; placing cloth in a cloth retaining guide arranged so that the cloth is folded back on itself and above the leg of the zip; offering the superimposed pieces to a sewing machine; 030136 sewing the leg of the zip to the cloth as they are withdrawn from the guide by the sewing machine; removing the zip and cloth from the respective guides; and repeating the operation for the other leg of the zip.

In one embodiment, there is the additional step of sewing the bottom of the zip to the cloth is performed after the other leg of the zip has been sewn in place.

According to another aspect, the invention provides an apparatus for carrying out the method, the apparatus comprising cloth cutting out, sewing and cloth forming machines generally characterised in that there is additionally provided a cloth waistband forming machine assembly comprising:a reel for supporting a length of the garment material; a reel for the support of a length of the waistband material; an oven for curing adhesive between the two materials to form the composite material; a guide for folding the composite material; and a pressing machine for securing the folds formed in the material.

Preferably, an additional reel for the support of a length of the waistband material is provided.

In one embodiment, the oven comprises:-»30136 a pair of belt conveyors mounted one above the other, with respective belts forming substantially parallel spaced-apart conveying surfaces for transporting the two materials in close contact; and heating elements for the conveyors.

In another embodiment, the guide comprises a pair of nesting spaced-apart members, namely, an outer member and an inner member initially of half frustro-conical shape, forming a guide channel therebetween and then flattening to form a channel having a lower portion communicating with a substantially parallel upper portion, the upper portion terminating in a re-entrant channel formed by turning the members back on themselves.

Preferably, an additional zip sewing guide is provided comprising:a lower zip retaining guide and an upper cloth retaining guide mounted above each other to align zip and cloth.

In this embodiment, the upper cloth retaining guide may be mounted on a swivel arm for pivotal movement away from the lower zip retaining guide.

Preferably, the lower zip retaining guide comprises a pair of opposed channel members joined by a base plate to form an elongated upper slot.

In another embodiment, the upper cloth retaining guide comprising a base plate and a top plate connected by a side plate to form a lower channel, the base plate extending beyond above and back across the top plate to ^®3 Ο 1 J 6, form an upper channel communicating with the lower channel to provide additional cloth folding.

The invention will be more clearly understood from the following description of a method of carrying out the 5 invention and of some embodiments of apparatus used for carrying it out described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:Fig. 1 is a schematic layout of a factory for the carrying out of the method according to the invention; TO Fig. 2 is a plan view of a backing sheet according to the invention used in the formation of a garment waistband; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a waistband formed in accordance with the invention; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view along the lines IV-IV of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of a waistband forming machine assembly forming part of the invention; Fig. 6 is a side schematic view of a curing oven forming part of the assembly of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a side view of a guide used in the assembly; Fig. 8 is a plan view of the guide of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is an end view of the guide of Fig. 7; Fig. 10 is a typical longitudinal cross-sectional view of the guide; 930 η 6 Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XIXI of Fig. 10; Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XIIXII of Fig. 10; Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XIIIXIII of Fig. 10; Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XIVXIV of Fig. 10; Fig. 15 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XV- XV of Fig. 10; Fig. 16 is a perspective view of a first zip sewing guide; Fig. 17 is a plan view of the guide of Fig. 16; Fig. 18 is an end view in the direction of arrow A of Fig. 17; Fig. 19 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XIXXIX of Fig. 17; Fig. 20 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XXXX of Fig. 17; Fig. 21 is a cross-sectional view along the lines XXIXXI of Fig. 17; Fig. 22 is a perspective view of a second zip sewing guide; and 13 β - 8 Fig. 23 is an end view in the direction of the arrow B of Fig. 23 when the guide is in closed position.

Referring to the drawings and initially to Fig. 1 there is illustrated the floor layout of a factory shown in outline comprising a cloth laying up station 1, pattern cutting out station 2, a waistband forming station indicated generally by the reference numeral 3, a zip sewing station 4 and general garment fashioning and sewing stations 5. The various stations incorporate cloth cutting out apparatus, sewing machines and cloth forming machines generally as appropriate. The waistband forming station 3 includes a machine assembly for forming a waistband.

Referring now to Fig. 2 there is illustrated a backing sheet 10 of any suitable material such as veleen coated with a thermally setting adhesive. A plurality of pre-cut discrete longitudinal slits are cut out of the backing sheet 10 and define a guide line 11, an edge fold line 12 and an inner fold line 13.

A waistband 15 is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 in its fully formed position and is indicated generally by the reference numeral 15 and essentially comprises an envelope having a top seamed edge 16 and a lower edge 17. It will be noted that the guide line 11 is exposed. At each end, the waistband 15 is folded in on itself to form a transverse seam.

Referring to Fig. 5 manufacture of the waistband 15 is shown in detail. The waistband 15 is formed at the waistband station 3. The waistband forming machine assembly comprising a reel 20 for a backing sheet 10 feeding a layout table 21 on which can be seen lengths of waistband forming material laid on the backing sheet 10. This material is indicated for convenience by the =- 93 0 13 β reference numeral 22. The backing sheet and material are fed to a curing oven 23 where the adhesive is set, and from then to a sewing station 24 where the seamed edge 16 is formed through a folding guide 25. It is then fed to a pressing station 26 and from thence to a cutting table 27.

The curing oven 23 is illustrated in some more detail schematically in Fig. 6 and comprises a pair of belt conveyors namely an upper belt conveyor and a lower belt conveyor indicated generally by the reference numerals 28 and 29. Each belt conveyor 28 and 29 comprises a head and tail pulley 31 and 32 respectively on which is mounted a conveyor belt 33. A plurality of heaters 34 are mounted within each conveyor 28 and 29 to heat the conveyor belts 33. Each conveyor 28 and 29 is provided with a cleaning roller 35. The upper belt conveyor 28 and the lower belt conveyor 29 are so arranged that the respective conveyor belts 33 are very close together so as to provide a contact pressure between them for the backing sheet 10 and the waistband forming material 22.

The sewing station 24 is of conventional construction and does not require any further description. The folding guide 25 is illustrated in more detail in Figs. 7 to 15 inclusive.

The folding guide 25 comprises a pair of nesting spacedapart members formed from sheets of stainless steel, namely, an inner member 40 and an outer member 41 mounted on a base plate 42.

As can be seen from the sectional drawings of Figs. 10 to 15 the inner and outer members 40 and 41 are initially of half frustro-conical shape and form what is essentially a semi-circular channel 44 therebetween. The inner and outer members 40 and 41 are gradually flattened so that »30136 the channel 44 becomes a channel having a lower portion 45 communicating by an intermediate channel 46 with an upper substantially parallel channel 47 which in turn terminates in a re-entrant channel 48 as illustrated in Fig. 15.

Referring to Figs. 16 to 21 inclusive there is illustrated a first zip sewing guide indicated generally by the reference numeral 50. This first zip sewing guide 50 comprises a base plate 51 on which is mounted a lower zip guide 52 and an upper cloth guide 53. The base plate 51 is used to secure the first zip sewing guide 50 on a sewing machine. The lower zip guide 52 comprises a pair of opposed channel members which form an elongated slot 54. Rearwardly of the lower zip guide 52 is an auxiliary zip and cloth guide 55. The upper cloth guide 53 is mounted by an adjustable arm 56 on the base plate 51 and supported by a swivel arm 57.

The upper cloth retaining guide 53 comprises a base plate 60 and a top plate 61 connected by a side plate 62. The top plate 61 is bent back on itself as is the base plate 60 which projects beyond, above and back across the top plate 61.

A second zip sewing guide indicated generally by the reference numeral 65 is of substantially similar construction as the first zip sewing guide 50 and is illustrated in Figs. 22 and 23 inclusive. There is again provided a base plate 66 out of which projects a lower zip guide 67 of substantially similar construction to the lower zip guide 52 and an upper cloth retaining guide 68 again mounted on a swivel arm 69. In this embodiment the upper cloth retaining guide 68 comprises a base plate 70 and a top plate 71 interconnected by a side plate 72. ^»3 0 13 6 Referring to the drawings and initially to Fig. 1 in an overview the cloth is laid up and the cloth cut into the various patterns at the stations 1 and 2. The waistband forming station 2 allows the production of the waistband 15 while at the same time general garment fashioning, making up, sewing on of buttons etc. is performed at the station 5 where additionally the waistband 15 which has been formed in station 3 is sewn into place as will be described later. Zip sewing is generally carried out at the station 4. There are various other stations which have not been illustrated such as quality control, storage, inspection and so on.

Referring now to the waistband forming station 3 the two materials are fed into the curing oven 23 where they are nipped between the conveyor belts 33 of the upper belt conveyor 28 and the lower belt conveyor 29 and are heated to cause the thermal-setting adhesive to set. The composite material is then fed from the curing oven 23 to the sewing station 24 where the seamed edge 16 is formed in conventional manner. The composite material is then led to the folding guide 25 where it is initially led in straight to the guide and gradually as it progresses through the guide, as can be seen from Fig. 10 to 15 inclusive, it is turned back on itself to form the folds when it is then led to the cutting table 27 where it is cut into discrete lengths to form open envelopes. Then at a conventional sewing table (not shown) the two ends are turned inside out and sewn to form hidden seams at the ends. There is thus formed an envelope with an open mouth.

When it is desired to use the waistband 15 as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the appropriate edge of a partially formed garment is laid within the envelope and aligned with the Α®3 0 1ό6 guide line 11. The waistband 15 can then be sewn in conventional manner in position.

When it is required to sew a zip in an opening the zip is first opened and the zip is offered up to the lower zip guide 52 and the upper cloth guide 53 is swivelled into position and the cloth placed in it. This superimposes the piece of cloth onto the zip and then the two are offered up to a conventional sewing machine to which the base plate 51 has been affixed and the sewing needle will draw the material and zip away from the guide. Before the zip has been fully sewn in position the sewing operation is stopped and the garment and partially fitted zip is sent to a further sewing machine adjacent which is mounted the second zip sewing guide 65. It will be seen from the drawings that in this position the upper cloth guide 68 is so arranged as to ensure that there is a covered cloth over the zip so that the zip is not exposed but is hidden. When the zip is almost fully sewn in? the cloth and zip are removed from the guide and the final sewing is guided by hand so that the bottom of the zip can be sewn in position.

It is envisaged that various modifications may be made to the invention, for example, automatic cutting of the semiformed waistbands into the desired length rather than the length of discrete length of cloth placed on the backing sheet. In this embodiment the waistband is applied in a continuous strip onto the backing material from an additional reel. It is also envisaged that various other methods may be used to finally secure and locate the zip in position.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments hereinbefore described but may be varied in construction and detail.

Claims

1. A method of making a garment of the type incorporating a waistband comprising the steps of:stacking cloth in a plurality of layers to form a flat bundle of cloth; laying a pattern on the top of the bundle; cutting out the cloth in accordance with the pattern to produce a plurality of cut-out pieces of cloth; feeding a separate length of waistband forming material onto another sheet of cloth forming a backing sheet, said backing sheet having a guide line and two fold lines, namely, an edge fold line and an inner fold line, each formed by a plurality of pre-cut discrete longitudinal slits; securing the backing sheet and the waistband forming material together to form a composite material; folding the composite material about the fold lines with the backing sheet mating; stitching to secure the fold formed on the edge fold line; cutting the folded length of composite material into a plurality of separate smaller lengths of material each sufficient to form one waistband; «30136 forming an open envelope by turning the material inside out adjacent each end and stitching together to form a hidden seam; sewing and partially forming the garment for reception of a waistband; laying an edge of the partially formed garment within the envelope and aligning the edge with the guide line; and sewing the waistband to the partially formed garment.

2. A method of making a garment as claimed in claim 1 in which an adhesive is used to secure the cloths together to form the composite material.

3. A method of making a garment as claimed in claim 2 in which the adhesive is a thermally set adhesive and an additional step of subjecting the sheets to heat sufficient to cause the adhesive to cure is performed.

4. A method of making a garment as claimed in claim 3 in which additionally the mating sheets are subjected to a contact pressure.

5. A method of making a garment as claimed in any preceding claim in which prior to forming the waistband a zip is sewn into a closure opening by carrying out the steps of:opening the zip to form two separate legs; placing one leg of the zip in a zip retaining guide; bfi 3 U ι j 6 placing cloth in a cloth retaining guide arranged so that the cloth is folded back on itself and above the leg of the zip; offering the superimposed pieces to a sewing machine; sewing the leg of the zip to the cloth as they are withdrawn from the guide by the sewing machine; removing the zip and cloth from the respective guides; and repeating the operation for the other leg of the zip.

6. A method of making a garment as claimed in claim 5 in which the additional step of sewing the bottom of the zip to the cloth is performed after the other leg of the zip has been sewn in place.

7. Apparatus for carrying out the method as claimed in the preceding claims comprising cloth cutting out, sewing and cloth forming machines generally characterised in that there is additionally provided a cloth waistband forming machine assembly comprising:a reel for supporting a length of the garment material; a reel for the support of a length of the waistband material; an oven for curing adhesive between the two materials to form the composite material; *•«3 0 1 ο 6 a guide for folding the composite material; and a pressing machine for securing the folds formed in the material.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which an additional reel for the support of a length of the waistband material is provided.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8 in which the oven comprises :a pair of belt conveyors mounted one above the other, with respective belts forming substantially parallel spaced-apart conveying surfaces for transporting the two materials in close contact; and heating elements for the conveyors.

10. Apparatus as claimed in any of claims 7 to 9 in which the guide comprises a pair of nesting spaced-apart members, namely, an outer member and an inner member initially of half frustro-conical shape, forming a guide channel therebetween and then flattening to form a channel having a lower portion communicating with a substantially parallel upper portion, the upper portion terminating in a re-entrant channel formed by turning the members back on themselves.

11. Apparatus as claimed in any of claims 7 to 10 in which an additional zip sewing guide is provided comprising:/ ~ 9 3Ο13 6 - 17 a lower zip retaining guide and an upper cloth retaining guide mounted above each other to align zip and cloth.

12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11 in which the 5 upper cloth retaining guide is mounted on a swivel arm for pivotal movement away from the lower zip retaining guide.

13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12 in which the lower zip retaining guide comprises a pair of opposed channel members joined by a base plate to form an 10 elongated upper slot.

14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 in which the upper cloth retaining guide comprising a base plate and a top plate connected by a side plate to form a lower channel, the base plate extending beyond above and back

15. Across the top plate to form an upper channel communicating with the lower channel to provide additional cloth folding.