JP4919600B2 - Blister cloth with internal connection elements - Google Patents

Description

(Cross-reference of related applications)
This application is a continuation-in-part of Application No. 10 / 298,476, filed Nov. 15, 2002, titled Boyd et al., “Blister Fabric with Internal Connection Elements”.

  The present invention relates to a fabric having interconnecting elements or fibers that help to stabilize the fabric structure.

  A number of methods and procedures have been used to stabilize the structure of knitted or woven fabrics. The coating has been applied to prevent the yarns from moving relative to each other. However, the coating alone cannot provide further desired properties within the fabric.

  Recently, a process known as hydroentanglement has been used to stabilize woven fabrics. Hydroentanglement uses a fluid jet to force a fiber extending from the main body of a yarn to entangle with a fiber extending from the main body of another yarn.

  However, hydroentanglement sometimes has an undesirable effect on the aesthetics of the fabric due to the large number of free fibers required to create the entanglement with the fluid jet. There is a need for fabrics stabilized by other methods or procedures.

(Detailed explanation)
Referring now to the drawings (particularly FIGS. 1-2), a blister fabric 10 illustrating one embodiment of the present invention is shown. The blister cloth 10 has alternating bands of blister bands 100 and base bands 200. The blister strip 100 has a first material lower base layer 110 that is independent of a second material upper blister layer 120. The base band 200 is an integrated layer of material.

  As illustrated, the blister fabric 10 is formed from a base yarn 11 and a blister yarn 12. In one embodiment, the blister fabric 10 is formed from yarn having a size up to about 600 denier. In another embodiment, the blister fabric 10 is formed from a yarn having a size of at least about 15 denier. In one preferred embodiment, the fibers forming the base yarn 11 and the blister yarn 12 may both comprise a filament yarn. As used herein, filament yarn includes multifilament yarn. In another embodiment, both base yarn 11 and blister yarn 12 may comprise spun yarn. In yet another embodiment, the base yarn 11 can comprise a filament yarn and the blister yarn 12 can comprise a spun yarn. In yet another embodiment, the base yarn 11 can comprise a spun yarn and the blister yarn 12 can comprise a filament yarn. It is also contemplated that the present invention be practiced with yarns combining filament fibers and staple fibers. Yarns combining filament fibers and staple fibers can be used in the base yarn 11 and / or blister yarn 12 as a substitute for either filament yarn and / or spun yarn in the combination. The filament yarns and / or spun yarn fibers in the present invention may be formed from natural or man-made materials. For example, natural materials can include materials of animal, plant, or mineral origin that are used as fibers. Artificial materials can include polymers synthesized from compounds, modified or altered natural polymers and minerals.

Still referring to FIGS. 1-2, as illustrated, the lower base layer 110 of the blister fabric 10 is a jersey knitted base yarn 11 and the upper blister layer 120 of the blister fabric 10 is Jersey knitting. As also illustrated, the base yarn 11 forms an integrated double layer jersey knitted fabric in the base band 200 and the blister yarn 12 is sandwiched between the integrated double layer jersey knitted fabric of the base yarn 11 in the base band 200. It is. Although the blister fabric 10 is illustrated as an all knitted fabric, it is contemplated that the blister fabric can be a woven fabric or a combination of a knitted fabric and a woven fabric. Further, although the integrated base band 200 is illustrated as a portion knitted together, it is contemplated that the integrated base band can be formed by processing (eg, weaving, stitching, bonding, etc.).

Now referring to FIG. 2, an enlarged cross-sectional area of the blister fabric 10 is shown. As illustrated, the blister band connection 130 is one layer of the blister band 100 that passes from yarns in one layer of the blister band 100 into and / or between the yarns of the other layers of the blister band 110. It is formed between the lower base layer 110 and the upper blister layer 120 by the portion of the fiber derived from the middle yarn. Lower base layer connections 131, from the yarns in the lower base layer 110, passing between and / or within the yarn of the upper blister layer 120 by portions of the fibers from the yarns in the lower base layer 110, the lower base layer 110 And the upper blister layer 120. The upper blister layer connection 132 is formed by the portion of the fiber from the yarn in the upper blister layer 120 that passes from the yarn in the upper blister layer 120 into and / or between the yarns in the lower base layer 110. Formed between layer 120 and lower base layer 110. The lower base layer connection 131 and the upper blister layer connection 132 provide a securing tie between the lower base layer 110 and the upper blister layer 120.

Still referring to FIG. 2, the fibers forming one of the lower base layer connections 131 originate from the threads in the lower base layer 110 and then protrude into the upper blister layer 120. The fibers derived from the lower base layer 110 forming the lower base layer connecting portion 131 are fixed by fibers or filaments in the main body of the yarn in the upper blister layer 120. The portion of the fiber that forms the lower base layer connection 131 is fixed between the fibers in the main body of the yarn in the upper blister layer 120. The main body is a group of fibers oriented in substantially the same direction as the yarn itself. Another portion of the fibers forming the lower base layer connection 131 is secured between the yarns in the upper blister layer 120 by the fibers in the main body of those yarns. The fibers forming one of the upper blister layer connections 132 originate from the yarn in the upper blister layer 120 and then protrude into the lower base layer 110. The fibers derived from the upper blister layer 120 forming the upper layer connecting portion 132 are fixed by the fibers or filaments in the main body of the yarn in the lower base layer 110. The portion of the fiber that forms the upper blister layer connection 132 is secured between the fibers within the yarn body in the lower base layer 110. The main body is a group of fibers oriented in substantially the same direction as the yarn itself. Another portion of the fibers forming the upper blister layer connection 132 is secured between the threads of the lower base layer 110 by the fibers in the main body of those threads. These types of connections are generally from one yarn to the outside, and at least partially radially extending from one yarn to the outside, as experienced in many hydroentanglement methods for treating fabrics. Contrast with the connection formed between the yarn and the layer by entanglement with the fibers extending in the direction of and at least partially in the radial direction.

Many lower base layer connections 131 and upper blister layer connections 132 are loops of fibers from each source layer that insert into the corresponding receiving layer. The fiber loop makes two connections, each connection being half of the loop originating in the same yarn and then protruding into the same receiving layer. In some examples, the upper blister layer connection 132 and / or the lower base layer connection 131 may be formed by portions of fibers that bind to each origin yarn at only one end. In some further examples, the fibers forming the upper blister layer connection 132 or the lower base layer connection 131 joined at only one end are hooked, bent or looped at the free end. And can be further secured with a corresponding layer of fibers with which the connection is entangled.

In one embodiment, the fabric blister strip incorporated into the present invention secures the lower base layer to the upper blister layer, depending on the required stability and fabric structure, for a total of at least about 275 per square inch. Total connections (ie, the sum of both connections originating from a particular layer and connections received in that particular layer), with a maximum of about 520,000 total connections per square inch. In one embodiment of the knitted fabric, the blister strip has a total of about 350 total connections per square inch to about 1,050 total connections per square inch. In addition, other embodiments of the knitted fabric may have about 750 total connections per square inch.

It is useful to understand the total number of connections per yarn distance since the origin of the connections originates within the yarn and the connections also secure the yarn. In addition, here, the sum of the connection portion derived from the specific yarn and the connection portion received by the specific yarn is also described as the connection portion “terminal” or connection point. For example, in one embodiment, such as in a knitted fabric, the yarn forming the upper blister layer or upper blister layer in the blister strip of the fabric incorporated in the present invention secures the yarn at a minimum of at least about 1. One total connection (or connection end), with a maximum of about 1,650 total connections per inch of yarn. In one preferred embodiment, the yarns forming the lower base layer or upper blister layer of the fabric blister strip incorporated in the present invention are about 1.4 total connections per inch of yarn or about 4 per inch of yarn. 2 total connections, more preferably about 2.8 total connections per inch of thread.

  Since yarn fibers are the origin of a connection, different yarns have different demands on the use of fibers for the connection and the amount of connection based on the fiber content of the yarn. The measured filament distance is the length of the yarn having the filament multiplied by the number of filaments in the yarn bundle. Therefore, understanding the total number of connections per filament distance of the yarn (the sum of both the connections originating from the particular yarn and the connections received on that particular yarn) for the portion of the fabric incorporated into the present invention Is beneficial.

  In the examples given below, the fabric was needle punched from both sides. However, other embodiments of the present invention may use a method of needle punching from only one side of the fabric.

  Referring also to FIG. 2, the base band 200 has a lower base layer portion 210, an upper base layer portion 220, and a single thread 230 that passes between the upper base layer portion 210 and the upper base layer portion 220. The knitted fabric which is one structure is shown. In the illustrated embodiment, the lower base layer portion 210 and the upper base layer portion 220 are formed by the base yarn 11 and the blister yarn 12 forms a capture yarn 230 between the two layers. As illustrated, the base layer connection 240 is formed between the lower base layer portion 210 and the upper base layer portion 220. Further, the catch yarn connecting portion 250 is formed between the lower base layer 210 and the catch yarn 230 and between the upper base layer portion 220 and the catch yarn portion 230.

  Still referring to FIG. 2, similar to the blister band connection 230, the base layer connection 240 of the base band 200 passes from yarns in one layer of the base band 200 through the other layers of the base band 200. Formed between the lower base layer 210 and the upper base layer 220 by the portion of the fiber from the yarn in one layer. The lower base layer connection 241 is formed by fibers derived from yarns in the lower base layer 210 and then protrudes into and / or between the yarns of the upper base layer 220. The fibers derived from the lower base layer 210 forming the lower base layer connection portion 241 are fixed by fibers or filaments in the main body of the yarn in the upper base layer 220. The portion of the fiber forming the lower base layer connection 241 is fixed between the fibers in the main body of the yarn in the upper base layer 220. The main body is a group of fibers oriented in substantially the same direction as the yarn itself. Another portion of the fibers forming the lower base layer connection 241 is secured between the threads of the upper base layer 220 by the fibers in the main body of those threads. The upper base layer connection 242 is formed by fibers derived from yarns in the upper base layer 220 and then projects into the lower base layer 210. The fibers derived from the upper base layer 220 forming the upper base layer connecting portion 242 are fixed by fibers or filaments in the main body of the yarn in the lower base layer 210. The portion of the fiber forming the upper base layer connection 242 is fixed between the fibers in the main body of the yarn in the lower base layer 210. The main body is a group of fibers oriented in substantially the same direction as the yarn itself. Another portion of the fibers forming the upper base layer connection 242 is secured between the threads of the lower base layer 210 by the fibers in the main body of those threads. The lower base layer connection portion 241 and the upper base layer connection portion 242 provide a fixed body between the lower base layer 210 and the upper base layer 220.

Like the lower base layer connection 131 and the upper blister layer connection 132, many lower base layer connections 241 and upper base layer connections 242 are loops of fibers in each origin yarn that insert into the corresponding receiving layer. It is. In some examples, the lower base layer connection 241 and / or the upper blister layer connection 242 may be formed by portions of fibers that are bonded to each origin yarn at only one end. In some further examples, fibers forming a lower base layer connection 241 or an upper base layer connection 242 joined at only one end are hooked, bent or looped at the free end. And can be further secured with corresponding receiving layer fibers that are entangled with the connection. The base layer connection 240 provides a fixed body between the lower base layer 210 and the upper base layer 220, thereby making the base band 200 a more stabilized wear resistant fabric.

  In one embodiment, the fabric base band incorporated in the present invention secures the lower base layer to the upper base layer, depending on the required stability and fabric structure, for a total of at least about 57 per square inch. Total connections (total of both connections originating from a particular layer and connections received in that particular layer), up to about 109,110 total connections per square inch, more preferably 1 About 150 total connections per square inch. In one embodiment, the yarn forming the lower base layer of the upper base region of the fabric base band incorporated in the present invention has a minimum of at least about 0.6 total connections per inch of yarn that secure the yarn; Up to about 11.61 total connections per inch, and more preferably about 1.6 total connections per inch of thread. In one embodiment, the yarn forming the connection has from about 28.8 connections per inch of filament to about 557 connections per inch of filament.

  Still referring to FIG. 2, the capture yarn connection 250 is by a portion of the fiber from the capture yarn 230 that passes through and / or between the main body of the yarn in the lower base layer 210 or the upper base layer 220 and / Alternatively, fibers from the yarn in the lower base layer 210 or the upper base layer 200 passing through the catch yarn 230, between the catch yarn 230 and the lower base layer 210 and between the catch yarn 230 and the upper base layer 220. It is formed. The lower base catch yarn connecting portion 251 passes from the yarn in the lower base layer 210 through the main body of the catch yarn 230, by the portion of the fiber derived from the yarn in the lower base layer 210, and from the catch yarn 230 to the lower base layer 210. Is formed between the capture yarn 230 and the lower base layer 210 by fibers from the capture yarn that pass through and / or between the main body of the yarn. Upper base catch yarn connection 252 passes from the yarn in upper base layer 220 through the main body of catch yarn 230 and by the portion of the fiber from yarn in upper base layer 220 and from catch yarn 230 to upper base layer 220. Is formed between the capture yarn 230 and the upper base layer 220 by fibers from the capture yarn 230 that pass through and / or between the main body of the yarn.

  Similar to the lower base layer connection 241 and the upper base layer connection 242, many lower base catch yarn connections 251 and upper base catch yarn connections 252 have a respective receiving yarn or each origin yarn that is inserted into the layer. It is a loop of fiber inside. In some examples, the lower base catch yarn connection 251 and / or the upper base catch yarn connection 252 may be formed by a portion of fibers that are bonded to each origin yarn at only one end. In some further examples, the fibers forming the lower base capture thread connection 251 or the upper base capture thread connection 252 bonded to only one end are hooked, bent or looped at the free end. And can be further secured with corresponding receiving yarns or layers of fibers in which the connections are entangled.

  The catch yarn connection 250 provides a fixed body between the catch yarn 230 and the lower base layer 210 and between the catch yarn 230 and the upper base layer 220, thereby making the base band 200 more stable in wear resistance. Use cloth. In one embodiment, the yarns forming the fabric baseband capture yarns incorporated into the present invention have a minimum of at least about 0.6 total connections per inch of yarn, and a maximum of 1 inch of yarn, securing the yarn. About 11.61 total connections per inch, more preferably about 1.6 total connections per inch of yarn. In one embodiment, the capture yarn has about 28.8 connections per inch of filament to about 557 connections per inch of filament.

In one embodiment, the needled blister fabric 10 also includes a backside coating disposed on the backside of the lower blister layer 110 and the lower base layer 210. It has been found that the back coating further improves the abrasion resistance on the opposite side of the needled blister fabric 10. The back coating can be any polymeric material (eg, latex, polyvinyl acetate, etc.). The back coating can be applied to a knitted, woven, or other substrate and can be applied at about 0.25 oz / yd ² to about 5 oz / yd ² . In general, the back coating can be used on knitted fabrics, woven fabrics, or any other fabric type used in the practice of the present invention.

  Referring now to FIG. 3, an enlarged cross-section of a fabric composite 20 showing another embodiment of the present invention is shown. The cloth composite 20 is a multilayer cloth (for example, a double cloth, a triple cloth, etc.). The fabric comprises at least a first layer 21 and a second layer 22. At least one of the first layer 21 and the second layer is a knitted fabric. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the first layer 21 is formed from the first layer yarn 23 and the second layer 22 is formed from the second layer yarn 24. In one embodiment, the first layer yarn 23 and / or the second layer yarn 24 has a yarn size of up to about 600 denier. In another embodiment, the first layer yarn 23 and / or the second layer yarn 24 has a yarn size of at least about 15 denier. In a preferred embodiment, both the first layer yarn 23 and the second layer yarn 24 comprise filaments. In another embodiment, the first layer yarn 23 is a filament yarn and the second layer yarn 24 is a spun yarn. In yet another embodiment, both the first layer yarn 23 and the second layer yarn 24 are spun yarns. Further, it is contemplated that the first layer yarn 23 and / or the second layer yarn 24 may include a yarn formed from a combination of filament fibers and staple fibers.

  The connecting portion 25 is formed between the first layer 21 and the second layer 22 by filaments of yarn in the two layers. The first layer connection portion 26 is formed by a fiber portion in the first layer 21 protruding into the second layer 22. The first layer connecting portion 25 is fixed by the main fiber of the second layer yarn 24. The second layer connecting portion 27 is formed by the portion of the fiber in the second layer 22 that protrudes into the first layer 21. The second layer connecting portion 27 is fixed by the main fiber of the first layer yarn 23. It is contemplated that the connection 25 of the present invention may be formed across the entire composite fabric 20 or in a discontinuous zone.

  Many first layer connections 26 and second layer connections 27 are loops of fibers from each origin layer that insert into the corresponding receiving layer. The fiber loop makes two connections, each connection being half of the loop originating from the same yarn and then protruding into the same receiving layer. In some examples, the first layer connection 26 and / or the second layer connection 27 may be formed by portions of fibers that bind to each origin yarn at only one end. In some further examples, the fibers forming the first layer connection 26 or the second layer connection 27 bonded at only one end are hooked, bent or looped at the free end. And can be further secured with a corresponding layer of fibers with which the connection is entangled.

  In one embodiment, the composite fabric or the strip of composite fabric incorporated in the present invention secures the first layer to the second layer, depending on the required stability and fabric structure, totaling at least 1 square inch. There are about 275 total connections per round (the sum of both connections originating from and received by a particular layer), with a maximum of about 520,000 total connections per square inch. In a preferred embodiment, there are about 350 total connections per square inch to about 1,050 total connections per square inch, more preferably about 750 total connections per square inch. Exists.

  In yet another embodiment, the yarns forming the first or second layer of the composite fabric incorporated in the present invention have a minimum of at least about 1.1 total connections per inch of yarn that secure the yarn, Up to about 1,650 total connections per inch of yarn. In one embodiment using a knitted fabric, these yarns are about 1.4 total connections per inch of yarn to about 4.2 total connections per inch of yarn, more preferably per inch of yarn. There are about 2.8 total connections.

  In one embodiment, the yarns forming the first or second layer of composite fabric incorporated in the present invention have at least about 0.02 total connections per inch of filament, up to about 6.2 per inch of filament. It has 4 total connections. In one preferred embodiment, these yarns have about 0.022 total connections per inch of filament to about 0.07 total connections per inch of filament, more preferably about 0 per inch of filament. .04 total connections.

(Knitted fabric)
In one embodiment of the invention which is a knitted fabric, the yarn forming the lower blister layer (or the lower blister layer in the blister band) has at least about 0.02 total connections per inch of filament, up to filament 1 There are about 6.4 total connections per inch. In yet another embodiment, the yarn forming the upper or lower blister layer of the blister strip has about 0.022 total connections per inch filament to about 0.07 total connections per inch filament. In other examples, there are about 0.04 total connections per inch of filament.

(Woven fabric)
In yet another embodiment of the present invention which is a woven fabric, the yarns forming the (total) bilayer fabric in the blister band are at least about 9,000 total connections (connections) per square inch of woven fabric. End) and up to about 65,000 connecting ends.

In yet another embodiment, the woven fabric includes about 4 × 10 ⁴ first and second connecting fiber ends per square inch of fabric. Another embodiment includes about 24,000 first and second connected fiber ends per square inch of woven fabric.

Other applications result in a woven fabric having a two-part blister layer. Here, the overall two-part blister layer generally provides more than about 100 connected fiber ends per inch of yarn. In other applications, the number of connecting fiber ends per inch of yarn in the fabric is at least about 4 × 10 ² . In some embodiments, the number of connecting fiber ends per inch of filament is at least about 0.3.

(More detailed explanation)
In one manufacturing method of the present invention, a fabric to be further processed is formed and then subjected to a needling process. In one embodiment, the fabric may be a blister fabric formed by standard knitting or weaving techniques of filament yarn. The blister fabric includes a region having two separate layers of knitted material and a region of double layer jersey knitting having a yarn from one of the two separate layers sandwiched between layers of double layer jersey knitted fabric . In another embodiment, the fabric to be processed is two layers to be joined in a subsequent processing. At least one layer in the multilayer fabric to be processed is a knitted fabric and both layers may be a knitted fabric. In a preferred embodiment, the yarn forming the fabric being processed is a filament yarn. However, it is contemplated that the yarns can include staple fibers or can be spun fiber yarns with or without filaments.

  The formed fabric to be processed is sent to a needling machine that stitches the fabric with a needle by inserting the needle bed into the fabric. Typically, a needling machine inserts a needle into the fabric and pulls out the needle in a direction generally perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. A backing plate (not shown) provides openings to the fabric on the opposite side of the needle bed and has an opening that allows the needle to pass completely through the fabric. The needle can be inserted and withdrawn on either side of the fabric or on both sides of the fabric. By inserting the needle from only one side, the connection occurs only on the side where the needle of the fabric to be processed is inserted. If more needle insertions are required per square area than can be provided by a single insertion of the needle bed, the needle bed can be inserted more than once into a particular area of the fabric, or multiple A needle bed can be used and inserted into the same area.

  In one embodiment, the needling machine provides a relative motion between the needle bed and the cloth in the linear direction (machine direction) as the cloth moves through, through and out of the machine. A needle is inserted into the fabric so that it does not occur or does not occur. The lack of relative linear motion between the needle bed and the fabric can be achieved by moving the needle bed in the direction in which the fabric is carried as the needle is inserted into and removed from the fabric. After the fabric is sewn with a needle, the backside coating can be applied to the fabric by various known methods, such as knife coating, foam coating, lamination, spray coating, or other similar methods.

  Referring now to FIG. 4, a partially enlarged view of one embodiment of a needle 400 used in the present invention is shown. Needle 400 has a sharp end 410 and a notch 420 along the length of needle 400. The sharp end 410 of the needle 400 allows the needle 400 to pass through the thread and fabric layers. The notch 420 of the needle 400 picks up or “hooks” the yarn fibers as the needle 400 passes through the yarn and fabric layers. As the needle 400 continues to pass through the adjacent yarn and / or fabric layer, the fibers previously hooked by the notch 420 of the needle 400 are moved into the main body and / or fabric layer of the adjacent yarn. The movement of the fiber by the needle 400 stretches or pulls the fiber from the originating thread. For fibers having a free end near the needle 400, the fiber is in the adjacent yarn and / or fabric layer until the free end of the fiber passes through the notch 420 or the needle 400 reaches the end of its movement. Go about the notch 420 of the needle 400 until it is in position. For other fibres, the fibres pass through adjacent yarns and / or layers until the needle 400 reaches the end of its movement, or the tension in the fibres frees the fibres from the notches 420, or the fibres tear. Pass through. The portion of the fiber that follows the needle and becomes free or tears away from the needle places that portion of the fiber in the adjacent yarn and / or layer.

  With regard to fabric needle punching, other applications of the present invention may use different needles than those shown in FIG. For example, a needle that includes a cross-section that is non-triangular (eg, a “teardrop-shaped” or “pinch blade” -shaped cross-section, or other cross-sectional shapes) may be used. Many cross-sectional shapes are known, used in the application of needles to fabrics, and can be used in certain applications of the present invention. Further, the notch 420 as seen in FIG. 4 can be a different configuration. Here, a notch (or barb) is given all notches or barbs along one edge of a triangular needle, or any other that would prove feasible for a given substrate fabric Given as a notch / edge combination. Thus, the number and configuration of notches (barbs) on the needle can be varied to suit a particular application. The present invention is not limited to the use of any particular needle or needling procedure.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 6, the top view of the woven fabric 701 is shown. Woven fabric 701 includes a warp direction 725 (also known as the machine direction) and a fill direction 730 (also known as the transverse direction) located vertically. Woven fabric 701 includes a plurality of interconnected base bands. These are shown, for example, as base bands 702, 703, and 704 in FIG. In FIG. 6, these base bands 702-704 extend from the bottom of FIG. 6 to the top of FIG. 6 and form a relatively narrow band between blister bands 710 and 711. In the particular embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the blister strip (710, 711) has a length indicated along the lower end of FIG. 6 and an area indicated by “W” on the lower left portion of FIG. Have. Thus, FIG. 6 contains about 4 blister bands from top to bottom and a total of about 3 blister bands from left to right as shown in FIG. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, these blister bands include a grid of base bands interconnected therein. Accordingly, the blister bands 710 and 711 are arranged in an interconnected grid. In FIG. 6, the warp direction 725 is oriented generally perpendicular to the weft direction (or fill direction) 730, and the base bands 702, 703, and 704 extend along the warp direction and the weft direction. The base bands connect to each other in the grid and the blister bands 710 and 711 are arranged in the grid.

  The specific woven fabric 701 shown in FIG. 6 is a fabric having two plies or layers. These two plies or layers can be shown in FIG. FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of a portion of the woven fabric 701 as indicated by the section 7-7 shown in FIG. In FIG. 7, the woven fabric 701 is shown in an enlarged view. Here, the blister band 711 is shown in the center of the figure. This particular embodiment includes two layers, a lower base layer 715 and an upper blister layer 716 that make up or comprise a blister strip 711. Upper blister layer 716 comprises yarn 718 and lower base layer 715 comprises yarn 717. In addition, a relatively large number of connecting fibers 720 can be seen extending from the lower base layer 715 to the upper blister layer 716. In this particular embodiment, the woven fabric 701 is sewn with needles from both sides, so the connecting fibers 720 have moved from the upper blister layer 716 and extended down to the lower base layer 715; It moved from the lower base layer 715 and extended upward to the upper blister layer 716. Other embodiments of the invention may include needle punching from only one side of the woven fabric 701.

  FIG. 8 also shows a further enlarged view of the woven fabric 701 showing the inset 740 shown on the left side of FIG. This inset 740 shows an enlarged cross-sectional view of the woven fabric 701 and represents a detailed view of the base band 704 lying adjacent to the blister band 711. Further, the cut end of the warp 722 is shown in the center of FIG. The cut end of the warp yarn 721 in the blister strip 711 is shown in FIG. In addition, interconnecting fibers 741 are shown in FIG. 8, each of which includes a first end 742 and a second end 743. In FIG. 8, the first end 742 is placed or disposed within the lower base layer 715, while the second end 743 is disposed within the upper blister layer 716.

  Another fiber 746 is shown near the left side of FIG. This includes connecting ends 745a and b as shown in the figure. In general, the use of interconnect fibers 741 and 746 allows the fabric to be reinforced against wear and the stringency required for the use of such textile products in a variety of applications including, for example, automotive seating applications. It helps to strengthen the overall woven fabric 701 so that it can be more likely to pass the standard.

  In some applications of the invention in which the substrate fabric is woven, or when using so-called “pocket” woven or blister fabrics, several different types of weaving machines can be used. For example, Example 2 uses a Jacquard type loom to form two plies together in a pocket woven or blister fabric material. In other applications of the present invention, other types of looms (eg, dobby type looms) or any other loom that can achieve pocket weave, blister type weaving fabrics can be used. The present invention is not limited to any particular loom type or weaving procedure.

  With respect to the type of yarn that can be used in the present invention, a package dyed filament yarn as shown in Example 2 could be used. On the other hand, it may be appropriate to use spun yarns in other applications. Example 1 below uses package dyed yarn. In some applications, piece dyed yarn could be used. Here, the yarn is dyed after the fabric has been woven. In the package dyed yarn example, the yarn is pre-dyed before weaving. Furthermore, solution dyed yarn can be used. Here the yarn is dyed before weaving.

  With regard to the chemical composition of the yarn used, polyester, rayon, cotton, wool, or any other composition or substrate in the yarn state used in the manufacture of yarn in the industry could be used.

  In some applications of the present invention, it may be appropriate to use other means for forming interconnects (or connections) between adjacent layers. Essentially any mechanical or hydraulic means can be used that moves the fibers from one layer and places them in adjacent layers.

  The results achieved by needle punching of the multi-layer fabric of the present invention are representative of direct positive movement or movement from one layer of fibers or filament portions of a particular yarn into the main yarn or adjacent fabric layer. Thus, such fibers or filaments can subsequently create anchors directly in the body or fabric layer of the adjacent yarn. The fibers or filaments that have moved in adjacent yarns form a connection between the fabric layers or yarns of the fabric layers.

(Counting procedure)
The following interconnect or connection count evaluation procedure was used to evaluate the number of fiber connection ends formed by needling the fabric in accordance with the practice of the present invention. First, note that it may be impractical and even impossible to provide an actual counted number of interconnects in a given square section of the fabric using presently known techniques. obtain. However, it is convenient to measure the desired effect from the needling of the fabric by using the following evaluation method that provides an evaluation of the real number of interconnects (or connection ends) that occupy such a predetermined space. It turned out to be.

  Fabrics manufactured and needle punched according to the present invention can be cut, for example, in the weft direction. After cutting, the needle punched woven fabric is examined under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) with the appropriate magnification (sometimes found between about 20x and 40x). The real number then consists of a connection along the one straight edge of the fabric along the cut (fiber ends are moved into the subsequent layers). In some cases it has been found convenient to count such fiber connections resulting from movement from the first layer to the second layer along a linear length of about 20-25 mm.

  In general, equations that can be used in evaluation methods to determine square units and the number of interconnects in a region are as follows:

[Example 1]
(Knitted fabric)
The invention can be better understood with reference to the following examples. The fabric is a blister fabric formed from two 1/200/48 yarns of different colors for the base yarn and 2/150/50 yarns for the yarn used in the blister area of the fabric. The fabric with the blister is formed with a two-bed rotary knitting machine having a knitting pattern as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. On the back side of the fabric, two different colors are produced using two base yarns, knitted into alternating courses. Each yarn has 18 courses per inch (combined to about 36 courses per inch) and about 13 wales per inch (combined to about 26 wales per inch). Blister yarn is not knitted on the back of the fabric. On the surface of the fabric in the blister band, the blister yarn forms a jersey knitted fabric having about 32 courses per inch and about 28 wales per inch. Also on the surface, but in the base region, the two base yarns are knitted into alternating courses. Each yarn has about 18.25 courses per inch (combined to give about 36.5 courses per inch) and about 14 wales per inch (combined to about 28 wales per inch) .

Subsequently, the blister cloth was needling processed to form connection portions in the cloth. Using a Dilo Hyperpunch Double Needle Loom (Dilo Manufacturing Co.), the fabric was needled with a needling motion with little or no machine direction relative motion between the fabric and the needle bed. The needle bed contained a Groz-Beckert F222 needle, a triangular needle with 6 notches (2 per corner corner of the needle). The needle bed was inserted into the fabric for a time sufficient to allow about 900 needle insertions per square centimeter of fabric. This needling process has been found to result in about 350 connections per square inch of fabric in the blister band. This was about 1.4 connections per inch of yarn and about 0.022 connections per inch of filament. The needled fabric was then back coated with about 3 oz / yd ² latex.

  For samples that were not sewn with needles and needled samples, the surface of the fabric was subjected to a Taber fray test according to SAE J948 for 200 cycles using an H-18 wheel having a 1000 gram weight. For fabrics that were not sewn with a needle, the surface of the fabric received a rating of 3.0. For needled fabric, the fabric surface scored 3.5.

[Example 2]
(Woven fabric)
This further embodiment can be understood with reference to the following description. In this embodiment, the fabric is woven and not knitted. Fabric is a warp and fill yarns or we formed blister fabric are both 2/300/136. In this embodiment, the warp and fill yarns are the same, but in other embodiments, the yarns may not be the same. In general, the present invention is not limited to any particular configuration or identity of yarns. In this particular embodiment, both the warp and fill yarns consist of two plies and have 300 denier per ply. There were 136 filaments provided in each ply. Filament yarn was used. This was a package dyed yarn which means yarn dyed before weaving. The fabric was woven on a jacquard type weaving machine.

  There were about 38 picks per inch and about 60 ends per inch in the fabric. In the blister area for the fabric, the two remaining layers essentially separate after weaving (in the pocket area). The two layers were tightly woven together in the base band or peripheral area (also known as the “bound” area).

A “pocket weave” fabric was needled. Now pierce the needle into the blister band and partially replace the fibers and move such fibers to a position where they extend between two layers of woven fabric or bridge the two layers by and forms the shape of the interconnects. Using a Dilo Hyperpunch double needle loom (Dilo Manufacturing Company), the woven fabric was sewed with a needle motion with little or no machine direction relative motion between the fabric and the needle bed.

  In this particular type of needling method, the needle moves in an elliptical motion so that the needle moves with the fabric for a period of time while the needle is entangled in the fabric. This allows for faster operating speeds in fabric manufacture.

  The needle bed contained F222 needles manufactured and distributed by the Groz-Beckert Company. This included a triangular needle with about 6 notches (2 per corner edge of the needle). For this particular example, the needle bed was inserted into the woven fabric for a time sufficient to allow about 300 insertions per square centimeter of fabric.

  By using the counting procedure detailed in this specification, in this example (under SEM magnification of about 40 ×), the needling process is performed in a woven fabric within a blister band (also known as a pocket weave band). It was found that about 40,854 connections / square inch were produced. Under a magnification of only about 22 ×, the count was an evaluation of about 27,530 connections per square inch. This number is somewhat less than the count achieved at higher magnifications, and thus will be less, depending on the poor ability to observe the actual interconnect fibers under the lower magnifications. . Thus, the counts obtained under higher magnification are considered more accurate.

  Obviously, in this example using a pocket woven fabric, the needling procedure may appear to yield a significant amount of more connections per square unit. And in this Example, the connection part per square unit exceeding 100 times (or more) than the knitted fabric seen, for example in Example 1 was produced.

  In this example, the yarn was evaluated and the number of connections per inch of thread in the fabric formed in the fabric (connection end) and the number of connections per inch of filament formed in the fabric. (Connecting end) was evaluated. In this particular example, there were about 60 warp ends per inch of woven fabric and about 38 picks per inch, resulting in a total of about 98 yarn ends per square inch of finished fabric. Can be noted. Thus, in this particular example, 272 filaments were used for each single yarn strand, resulting in a total rating of approximately 26,656 filament connected ends / fabric square inch.

  Then, in this particular example, the number of connections per inch of filament was estimated to be about 1.53. In addition, there were approximately 417 connections per inch of yarn in the finished fabric.

  For samples that were not sewn with a needle and samples that were sewn with a needle, the surface of the finished fabric was subjected to a Taber fray test according to the SAE J948 test procedure at 1000 cycles using an H-18 wheel having a 1000 gram weight. . For fabrics that were not sewn with a needle, the surface of the fabric received a rating of only about 3.0. For fabrics sewn with needles according to the examples and methods of the present invention, the fabric surface scored about 6.0. The higher score is believed to be due, at least in part, to the formation of fiber ends in adjacent layers that help stabilize and strengthen the overall fabric against abrasion forces.

FIG. 1 is a top view of a blister fabric illustrating one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the blister cloth of FIG. 1 cut along cutting line 2-2. FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of another embodiment of the present invention using a composite of two separate layers of fabric. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of the needle used in the present invention. FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating stitches used in one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5B is a diagram illustrating stitches used in one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a plan view of a blister woven fabric. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the blister fabric of FIG. 6 taken along line 7-7 of FIG. FIG. 8 shows a further partial cross-sectional view of the blister woven fabric of FIGS.

Claims (13)

(A) a plurality of interconnected base bands having a single layer and (b) at least the following two layers located between the base bands:
i) a lower base layer comprising a yarn comprising a plurality of fiber bundles;
ii) an upper blister layer comprising a yarn comprising a plurality of fiber bundles, wherein the base layer and the blister layer are independent layers and connected by connecting fibers cloth Ri name and a blister band, the base band and the blister band, which structures are different from each other.   The warp direction further includes a warp direction and a weft direction, the warp direction is oriented substantially perpendicular to the weft direction, the base band extends longitudinally along the warp direction and the weft direction, and the base band is in a grid shape The fabric of claim 1, wherein the fabrics are connected and the blister strip is located within the grid. (A) a base band having at least two interconnected woven monolayers;
(B) At least the following two layers located between the base bands:
(I) a lower base layer comprising a woven yarn comprising a first plurality of fibers;
(Ii) an upper blister layer comprising a second yarn comprising a plurality of fibers, wherein the base layer and the blister layer are independent layers and opposite the first end A plurality of blister strips having a second end on the side, the first end being located in the lower base layer, the second end being connected by connecting fibers located in the upper blister layer; comprise-than, the base band and the blister band has structure different from each other woven.   The fabric consists essentially of a two-ply fabric, the two plies comprising the lower base layer and the upper blister layer, the fabric being about 9,000 and about 65 per square inch of fabric. 4. A woven fabric according to claim 3, which provides between 1,000 and first and second connecting fiber ends.   The woven fabric according to claim 4, wherein the woven fabric provides about 24,000 first and second connected fiber ends per square inch of woven fabric. 6. The woven fabric according to claim 5, wherein the fabric provides about 4 × 10 ⁴ first and second connected fiber ends per square inch of fabric.   5. The woven fabric according to claim 4, wherein the woven fabric can achieve a Taber fray test rating of more than 3 according to SAE J948.   4. The fabric of claim 3, wherein the number of connecting fiber ends per inch of yarn is greater than about 100. The number of connections fiber ends of the yarn per inch in said fabric is at least about 4 × 10 ² pieces, cloth of claim 8.   4. The fabric of claim 3, wherein the number of connected fiber ends per inch of filament in the fabric is at least about 0.3. A method for manufacturing a needled woven fabric,
(A) providing a plurality of interconnected base bands having a woven monolayer;
(B) located between the base bands, further (i) a lower base layer comprising a first woven yarn having a first plurality of fibers;
(Ii) providing a plurality of blister bands comprising an upper blister layer comprising a second woven yarn having a second plurality of fibers;
(C) piercing a needle through the blister strip of the woven fabric;
(D) replacing the fiber from one of the layers with another layer. A method for producing a multilayer fabric that provides a blister strip on the fabric,
(A) providing a plurality of base bands having a single layer, at least partially interconnected;
(B) located between the base bands,
i) a lower base layer comprising a first yarn comprising a plurality of fiber bundles;
ii) providing at least one blister strip comprising an upper blister layer comprising a second yarn comprising a plurality of fiber bundles;
(C) applying a needle to the blister strip;
(D) replacing a fiber from one of the lower base layer or upper blister layer with another layer, wherein the replaced fiber is defined as a connecting fiber having a first end and a second end; Process,
(E) forming a fabric partially comprising the connecting fibers, the connecting fibers being held at the first end in the lower base layer and the second end in the upper blister layer A method comprising the steps of:   During the manufacture of the fabric, the fabric is moved in the machine direction and during the application step (c) the needle is moved to the machine so that the relative movement of the needle relative to the fabric is minimized while the needle is entangled with the fabric. 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the method moves in a direction.

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