US1882641A - Method of producing stockings and socks - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 1l, 1932. T. H. y.JONES METHOD OF PRODUCING STOCKINGS AND SOCKS Filed March 28, 1930 tto m96 ThomasLZ. Jones, by

Patented Oct. 11, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE METHOD F PRODUCING STOCKINGS AND SOCKS Application illed larch 28,- 1930, SerialNo. 439,789, and in Great Britain March 28, 1929.,

This invention relates to stockings and socks and has for one of its objects to provide an improved method of manufacturing same, which method is particularlyadvantageous when producing stockings or socks having paltterned legs and foot uppers and plain so e.

Broadly the invention consists in forming on a circular knitting machine a stocking il@ in one continuous piece comprising a leg portion of tubular fabric, a iiat selvedged ex tension constituting the foot upper, a pocket A shaped toe portion, a second flat selvedged part constituting the foot sole and a second `'5* pocket forming the heel.-

By making a stocking as above it will be appreciated that the leg and foot upper can be atterned as desired, while the sole which is ormed as an integral part of the whole,

2119 is maintained plain.

Another important object of the invention is to enable a greater range or variation of patterns or pattern effects to be produced by change-over or reverse` plating in stockings and socks made on a circular-knitting machine. Heretofore in order to obtain a plain sole the plated pattern continued on to the foot upper from the leg has of necessity been confined to not more than two colours, the 39 reason for this being that when the foot upper and sole are simultaneouslyr knitted as a tubular part and one of the threads employed in the pattern of the-upper provides the colour of the sole., any thread or threads retained out of knitting position will float across the sole; this being also the case Where entirely separate yarn is introduced foriknitting the sole.

Another feature of the invention therefore i 40 resides in providing a stocking or sock having a foot upper in more than two colours produced by change-over or reverse plating, a plain (one-colour) sole, no transverse floating threads across the foot, and said sole constituting an integral part of the stocking.

For the purpose of more fully describing the nature of this invention reference will now be made to the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 illustrates in an extended forni the knitted piece which when seamed up constitutes the stocking.

Figure 2 shows the stocking as it' appears when taken from the machine and prior to seeming.

Figure 3 shows the completed foot portion.

In one method of carrying out the invention aplain or ribbed :top or welt of a stocking orisock is first produced and subsequently on the same or a separate machine a tubular o0 leg portion 1 is knitted. n completion of the leg, the rotaryl motionof the machine is discontinued and reciprocatioii commenced on approximately half of the needles to produce a lat'selvedged portion 2 constituting,r 65

the instep or foot upper the remaining needles being moved up out of operation and still retaining their stitches, and when a sufficient length of said `dat is knitted a pocket or bag-like piece 3 is produced constituting 7o the toe.

f From this toe is knitted by continued reciprocation a further flat selvedged extension 4 which is to form the foot sole, said sole 4 terminating in a second pocket portion 5 75 constituting the heel.

After knitting the pocket heel 5 the displaced needles with stitches thereon may be brought down and full rotary motion of the machine is advantageously proceeded with to produce'a few full circular courses 6 on all needles, (Figure 2), thus knitting the heel to the lower end of the leg at each ankle, after which the fabric is removed from the machine.

In this way an article is knitted comprising a tubular leg from the one half of which at its lower end extends a flat part with two ocket portions, the extension being folded back on itself at the toe pocket, and prefer- 9o ably being definitely joined at the ankles by knitting the aforesaid limited .number of full circular courses all as shown in Figure 2.v After removal of the articles so formed from the machine, the two side openings 7 in the 95 foot are seamed up'or linked, the final hal'r'-l circular course at the top of the heel being also linked or seamed up to the final halfcircular course at the rear of the leg to 'provide a joint extending from ankle to ankle acrossy ythe rear of the stocking above the heel. The final full courses 6 constitute ravelling courses which may be produced from cheaper yarn and facilitate the linking process, such courses rendering unnecessary the careful handling of the stocking after removal from the machine and before the linkgli desired, however, these ravelling courses may be omitted, in which case the article may be cast off from the machinel after knitting the pocket heel, the cast off edge of said heel being subsequently seamed up to the half-circular lower ed e of the leg.

It willfbe seen that in a stoc 'ing according to this invention no seam or joint occurs across-the toe.

A stocking as above can be produced by reverse plating, and as the'sole is knitted at a different time from the upper, it will be understood that two or more colours can be yincorporated in the leg and foot upper while providing aplain'sole Without loose floating threads. For instance, during the knitting lof the tubular leg and selvedged upper, two pairs of pivotally displaceable thread 'feeders may be employed, said pairs being remaining needles a selvedged foot upper portion, a pocket toe, a selved ed foot sole and a pocket heel, subsequent y returning the said ino erative needles to the operative positionand) producing by rotary motion a number of full circular ravellingcourses, and finally lafter removal of the garment from the machine seeming together the foot upper and sole along the foot sides and the rear lower end of the leg to the heel.

2. The method of producing a stocking or sock on a circular knitting machine which consists in first knitting by rotary motion a tubular leg portion, then moving a number less than one half of the total number of needles in the circular row to an inoperative osition with the previously formed stitch oops retained thereon and proceeding-by reciprocation to knit on the remaining needles a selvedged foot upper portion,"a pocket toe, a selvedged foot sole and a pocket heel, the said foot upper and sole being of smaller diameter than the tubular leg portion, subseuently returning the said inoperative neeles to the operative position and roducing by rotary motion a number of full circular ravelling courses, and finally after removal of the garment from the machine seaming together the foot upper and sole along the foot sides and the rear lower end of the leg to the heel.

THOMAS HENRY JONES.

caused to appear continuously on the face of o said sole. In this'latter case a splicing yarn may also be introduced during the production of the sole.

When a different yarn is employed for the sole, the change-over plating guides are automatically bluffed at the commencement of the pocket toe, and one additional guide brought into use. f

The toe and heel pocket portions are producedby displacing needles upwardly with stitches thereonat each side edge of the flat piece so as gradually to narrow said piece I until only a small number of needles are in action and then gradually bringing said dis-y placed needles down again until the full width is reached, thus formin two oppositely tapering pieces which are ]oined together at their tapering edges.

It is to be understood that the sizeof the foot may be reduced by moving more than one half of the machine needles into an u per or inoperative position during the knittin thereof.

claim z- 1.v The method of producing a stocking or sock on a circular knitting machine which consists in first knitting by rotary motion a tubular leg portion, then moving approximately one half of the circular row of needles to an inoperative position with the previous- 1y formed stitch loops retained thereon and 5 proceeding by reciprocation to knit on the

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