Classifications

• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D02—YARNS; MECHANICAL FINISHING OF YARNS OR ROPES; WARPING OR BEAMING
  • D02G—CRIMPING OR CURLING FIBRES, FILAMENTS, THREADS, OR YARNS; YARNS OR THREADS
  • D02G3/00—Yarns or threads, e.g. fancy yarns; Processes or apparatus for the production thereof, not otherwise provided for
  • D02G3/22—Yarns or threads characterised by constructional features, e.g. blending, filament/fibre
  • D02G3/40—Yarns in which fibres are united by adhesives; Impregnated yarns or threads
  • D02G3/402—Yarns in which fibres are united by adhesives; Impregnated yarns or threads the adhesive being one component of the yarn, i.e. thermoplastic yarn
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D02—YARNS; MECHANICAL FINISHING OF YARNS OR ROPES; WARPING OR BEAMING
  • D02G—CRIMPING OR CURLING FIBRES, FILAMENTS, THREADS, OR YARNS; YARNS OR THREADS
  • D02G3/00—Yarns or threads, e.g. fancy yarns; Processes or apparatus for the production thereof, not otherwise provided for
  • D02G3/22—Yarns or threads characterised by constructional features, e.g. blending, filament/fibre
  • D02G3/34—Yarns or threads having slubs, knops, spirals, loops, tufts, or other irregular or decorative effects, i.e. effect yarns
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T428/00—Stock material or miscellaneous articles
  • Y10T428/29—Coated or structually defined flake, particle, cell, strand, strand portion, rod, filament, macroscopic fiber or mass thereof

Definitions

• the field of the subject matter herein is modified fiber and yarn materials, fiber bundles, fiber products, yarn products, textile products and carpet products, methods of manufacture and uses thereof.
• Fibers for consumer use especially fibers that are incorporated into carpet products, fabrics/textiles, woven and upholstery products are constantly being evaluated for improvements with respect to the consumer's sensory perception. These improvements may relate to texture, quality, softness and luster.
• Fibers and yarns which are used in the production of carpet products, such as wall-to-wall carpet, rugs and mats, upholstery/textile products and woven products are modified and in some instances improved to provide a certain fiber texture, overall texture when the fibers are incorporated into a fiber product and to provide a desired “look” for the space or application where the fiber product is being used. Additional issues that arise in the design of fiber material and fiber products are short-term and long-term durability.
• Denier or fiber denier
• a direct yarn numbering measurement it is the weight in grams of 9,000 meters of yarn. Therefore, the higher the denier, the larger the yarn.
• Typical nylon carpet fiber has 6-18 denier. This thickness of a fiber can be regulated by the size of the openings of the spinneret.” (see www.fabrica.com: Glossary of Fabric and Rug Terms).
• Stubs or nubs are small, short length staple fibers that can be incorporated into a fiber or yarn bundle to add another level of texture to the yarn and/or finished product despite the choices made with respect to denier and luster.
• Slubs or nubs previously inserted into a staple spun yarn cannot effectively be locked or bound into the parent yarn. Any insertion process relied on the twist of the yarn to hold the stub or nub in the yarn bundle. This reliance on the twist of the yarn results in a high probability that the slub or nub can be removed from the parent yarn bundle.
• U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,144,702, 4,144,703 and 4,218,868 disclose methods and apparatus used to produce an “open end spun stub yarn”. Specifically, an open end spun yarn is directed through a spinning machine to a yarn take up roll.
• U.S. Pat. No. 4,010,523 (the '523 patent), which is assigned to Akzona Incorporated, discloses novelty yarns and processes for production thereof.
• the yarns produced by methods and fibers in the '523 patent are base or core yarns or fibers with fancy threads, which could be slubs and/or nubs, entangled around the yarn or fiber.
• the slubs and/or nubs are entangled using a combination of suction with a low jet pressure and a high jet pressure.
• U.S. Pat. No. 4,010,601 (the '601 patent), which is assigned to Toyo Boseki Kabushiki Kaisha, discloses “pre-slubbed” fancy yarns and processes for production thereof.
• the fancy fibers produced by methods in the '601 patent are wrapped around a core fiber, wherein some of the fancy fiber is wrapped as a slub, heated and then unwound—leaving the “slub” formed in the fancy fiber. When the fancy fiber is then combined with other fibers or yarns, the slub is already in place.
• a fiber bundle and/or yarn that comprises slubs and/or nubs that can be set into the fiber bundle and/or yarn, such that the nub and/or slubs are effectively locked or bound into the parent fiber bundle or yarn. It may also be desirable in some embodiments to pre-dye the slubs or nubs before they are set into the fiber bundle and/or yarn or post-dye the slubs or nubs after they are set into the fiber bundle and/or yarn.
• a fiber material and/or yarn includes: a) at least one staple fiber component; b) at least one base fiber component, wherein the at least one staple fiber component is at least about 50% shorter in length than the at least one base fiber component and wherein each of the at least one staple fiber component and the at least one base fiber component has at least one melting point.
• Methods include: a) providing at least one staple fiber component having at least one melting point; b) providing at least one base fiber component having at least one melting point, wherein at least one of the melting points of the staple fiber component is lower than at least one of the melting points of the base fiber component; c) mixing the at least one staple fiber component with the base fiber component to form a blend material; d) processing the blend material to form a fiber bundle or a yarn bundle; and e) applying a thermal energy source to the fiber bundle or yarn bundle to form the modified fiber bundle and/or yarn bundle.
• a modified fiber and/or yarn bundle includes: a) at least one staple fiber component; b) at least one base fiber component, wherein the at least one staple fiber component is at least about 50% shorter in length than the at least one base fiber component and wherein each of the at least one staple fiber component and the at least one base fiber component has at least one melting point.
• Contemplated modified fiber and/or yarn bundles comprise at least one staple fiber component and at least one base fiber component.
• the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component may comprise any suitable fiber material, as long as the staple fiber component comprises at least one melting point that is lower than the at least one melting point of the base fiber component.
• the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component comprise materials previously disclosed in European Patent No. 324,773 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,624, which are both commonly-owned and incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
• the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component may comprise natural or synthetic materials, including a polyamide-based compound, including nylon-6 and nylon-6,6, a polyester-based compound or copolymer, wool, cotton, PET, PTT, polyolefins, such as polyethylene or polypropylene, or combinations thereof.
• a staple fiber component is contemplated and may comprise any suitable fiber material depending on the needs of the product, customer and/or the vendor.
• Amides are an important group of nitrogenous compounds and monomers that are used as intermediates and/or building blocks in the production of polymers, textiles, plastics and adhesives.
• Amide monomers are generally represented by the following formula: wherein R is an alkyl group, an aryl group, a cyclic alkyl group, an alkenyl group, an arylalkylene group, or any other appropriate group that can be utilized to be a part of an amide compound.
• the term “monomer” generally refers to any chemical compound that is capable of forming a covalent bond with itself or a chemically different compound in a repetitive manner.
• the repetitive bond formation between monomers may lead to a linear, branched, super-branched, or three-dimensional product.
• monomers may themselves comprise repetitive building blocks, and when polymerized the polymers formed from such monomers are then termed “blockpolymers”.
• the weight-average molecular weight of monomers may vary greatly between about 40 Dalton and 20000 Dalton. However, especially when monomers comprise repetitive building blocks, monomers may have even higher molecular weights.
• Monomers may also include additional groups, such as groups used for crosslinking, radiolabeling, and/or chemical or environmental protecting.
• alkyl is used herein to mean a branched or a straight-chain saturated hydrocarbon group or substituent of 1 to 24 carbon atoms, such as methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, isopropyl, n-butyl, isobutyl, t-butyl, octyl, decyl, tetradecyl, hexadecyl, eicosyl, tetracosyl and the like. In some embodiments, contemplated alkyl groups contain 1 to 12 carbon atoms.
• cyclic alkyl means an alkyl compound whose structure is characterized by one or more closed rings.
• the cyclic alkyl may be mono-, bi-, tri- or polycyclic depending on the number of rings present in the compound.
• aryl is used herein to mean a monocyclic aromatic species of 5 to 7 carbon atoms or a compound that is built with monocyclic aromatic species of 5 to 7 carbon atoms and is typically phenyl, naphthalyl, phenanthryl, anthracyl etc.
• these groups are substituted with one to four, more preferably one to two alkyl, alkoxy, hydroxy, and/or nitro substituents.
• alkenyl is used herein to mean a branched or a straight-chain hydrocarbon chain containing from 2 to 24 carbon atoms and at least one double bond. Preferred alkenyl groups herein contain 1 to 12 carbon atoms.
• alkoxy is used herein to mean an alkyl group bound through a single, terminal ether linkage; that is, an alkoxy group may be defined as —OR wherein R is an alkyl group, as defined above.
• arylalkylene is used herein to mean moieties containing both alkylene and monocyclic aryl species, typically containing less than about 12 carbon atoms in the alkylene portion, and wherein the aryl substituent is bonded to the structure of interest through an alkylene linking group.
• exemplary arylalkylene groups have the structure —(CH 2 ) j —Ar wherein “j” is an integer in the range of 1 to 6 and wherein “Ar” is an aryl species.
• olefin is used herein to describe a class of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having one or more double bonds.
• ⁇ -Caprolactam also known as aminocaproic lactam and 2-oxohexamethyleneimine, is a compound that is produced in flake and molten forms and is used primarily in the manufacture of nylon-6, nylon-6,6 and nylon-12 products such as those products contemplated herein or other synthetic fibers, plastics, bristles, films, coatings, synthetic leathers, plasticizers and paint vehicles.
• Caprolactam can also be used as a cross-linking agent for polyurethanes and in the synthesis of the amino acid lysine.
• Amides such as caprolactam
• a ketone with hydroxylamine to make an oxime
• an acid catalyzed rearrangement of the oxime(s) conventionally called the Beckmann rearrangement
• Merchant quality caprolactam can be produced by methods described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/251,335 filed on Sep. 21, 2002, which is commonly owned and herein incorporated in its entirety.
• the staple fiber component is at least about 50% shorter than the base fiber component.
• the staple fiber component comprises slubs or nubs that are intended to provide a level of texture to the fiber and/or yarn bundle.
• the staple fiber component is at least 70% shorter than the base fiber component.
• the staple fiber component is at least 90% shorter than the base fiber component.
• the term “component” means the collective plurality of staple fibers and/or base fibers.
• this length is considered to be the average and/or mean length of the plurality of staple fibers and/or base fibers, which can be calculated using methods known by one of ordinary skill in the art of fiber production.
• the staple fiber component also comprises at least one melting point that is less than the melting point of the base fiber component.
• melting point means the temperature at which a substance changes from a solid to a liquid. For a polymeric material, it is the temperature when the solid polymer changes to a liquid melt flow. Melting points can be determined by any available and conventional method, including but not limited to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) or a Fisher-Johns melting point apparatus consisting of a compact hot plate, a magnifying glass, and a thermometer from which the hot plate temperature can be read when the solid substance being observed begins a melt flow. (A. M. James and M. P.
• a pressurized energy source produces a lower melting point for melting the staple fibers than an atmospheric forced air energy source.
• the other energy sources may or may not produce different melting point ratios between base and other staple fibers.
• the staple fiber component is referred to as a “low melt” component or fiber.
• the lower melting point of the staple fiber component contributes to the physical stability of the modified fiber bundle and/or yarn bundle by enabling the staple fiber component to bond to or couple with at least part of the base fiber component.
• the staple fibers can be thermally activated to a point where they at least begin to melt, thus physically locking the staple fibers in place in relation to the binder fiber through a chemical, physical or attractive bond.
• at least part of the staple fibers and the base fibers may be heated to the point where both begin to melt.
• activating the fiber components comprises forming chemical, such as covalent, ionic or hydrogen and/or physical, such as adhesion, bonds between at least some of the plurality of staple fibers and at least one of the base fiber component.
• the at least one staple fiber component has one melting point and the at least one base fiber component has one melting point.
• the melting point of the at least one staple fiber component is lower than the melting point of the at least one base fiber component.
• one of the at least one staple fiber component or the at least one base fiber component comprises a composite fiber material where there are at least two constituents forming the composite fiber material.
• the fiber component that comprises a composite fiber material will also comprise at least two melting points—one melting point for each constituent.
• both of the at least one staple fiber component and the at least one base fiber component comprises a composite fiber material where there are at least two constituents forming each of the composite fiber materials.
• each of the fiber components comprising composite fiber materials also comprise at least two melting points—one melting point for each composite constituent.
• a couple of provisions should be understood at this point with respect to the melting points and composition of each of the fiber components and/or the composite constituents.
• the at least one staple fiber component should comprise at least one low melting point material as compared to the melting point(s) of the at least one base fiber components.
• the at least one low melting point material should be adherably compatible with at least part of the at least one base fiber component—meaning that the at least one low melting point material should be able to adhere with at least part of the at least one base fiber component when the melting point of the at least one low melting point material is approached or reached.
• at least one of the base fiber components or staple fiber components may comprise a core material sheath surrounded or coated by another material.
• at least one of the base fiber components or staple fiber components may comprise two materials that are “blended”.
• the staple fiber component and the base fiber component may comprise any suitable denier.
• denier or fiber denier is a physical property of a particular fiber and can be defined as: “A direct yarn numbering measurement, it is the weight in grams of 9,000 meters of yarn. Therefore, the higher the denier, the larger the yarn.
• typical nylon carpet fiber has 6-18 denier. This thickness of a fiber can be regulated by the size of the openings of the spinneret.” (see www.fabrica.com: Glossary of Fabric and Rug Terms).
• a modified fiber bundle and/or yarn product may be produced that includes: a) providing at least one staple fiber component having at least one melting point; b) providing at least one base fiber component having at least one melting point, wherein at least one of the melting points of the staple fiber component is lower than at least one of the melting points of the base fiber component; c) mixing the at least one staple fiber component with the base fiber component to form a blend material; d) processing the blend material to form a fiber bundle or a yarn bundle; and e) applying a thermal energy source to the fiber bundle or yarn bundle to form the modified fiber bundle and/or yarn bundle.
• At least one of the staple fiber component or the base fiber component may be dyed—alone or in combination—using any conventional dying methods (such as solution dyed) and/or colorants, such as those that are currently being used in the carpet and textile industries.
• the at least one of the staple fiber component, the base fiber component, the fiber material, the yarn product or the carpet/textile product may be produced in a “non-dyed” form in order to send to customers for dying treatments.
• the fiber components may be pre-dyed or dyed by using any suitable dying material or pigment.
• the term “pigment” means any substance, usually in the form of a dry powder, that imparts color to another substance or mixture or that has a positive colorant value.
• Pigments may comprise any suitable inorganic or organic material, such as metal oxides, metal powder suspensions, earth colors, lead chromates, carbon black, animal pigments and vegetable pigments.
• the staple fiber component may be dyed one color or a plurality of colors. Additionally, the staple fiber component may be dyed the same color as the base fiber component or may be a different color than one another in order to impart a color texture to the finished product or bundle.
• the dying process for the fibers comprises “stock dying”.
• the at least one staple component may be dyed and then combined with the at least one base component. The resulting fiber material may then be thermally activated and the entire fiber material dyed.
• the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component may be provided by any suitable method, including a) buying the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component from a supplier or textile mill; b) preparing or producing the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component in house using chemicals provided by another source and/or c) preparing or producing staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component in house using chemicals also produced or provided in house or at the location. It is contemplated that the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component are made of any suitable material, such as those materials already described herein.
• the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component can be mixed once both the components are provided.
• Mixing the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component to form a blend material can be done using any suitable, conventional and/or readily available mixing method. It is contemplated that the staple fiber component and/or the base fiber component can be mixed together at the same time or can be mixed together sequentially—meaning that, in some contemplated embodiments, the staple fiber component can be mixed first (if there are a plurality of different staple fiber components) before the at least one base fiber components and vice versa.
• a thermal energy may be applied to the materials and/or products, wherein the thermal energy comprises a temperature that is at or above the melting point of the base fiber and/or other heat-active components.
• the thermal energy is applied to reach the melting point(s) of at least part of the at least one staple fiber component and/or at least part of the at least one base fiber component.
• at least part of the staple fibers and the base fibers may be heated to the point where both begin to melt.
• activating the fiber components comprises forming chemical, such as covalent, ionic or hydrogen and/or physical, such as adhesion, bonds between at least some of the plurality of staple fibers and at least one of the base fiber component.
• the thermal energy may come from any suitable source, including extended/non-point sources, such as a UV-VIS source, an infra-red source, a heat source, both radiative and convective, or a microwave source; or electron sources, such as electron guns or plasma sources.
• suitable energy sources include electron beams, and radiative devices at non-IR wavelengths including x-ray, and gamma ray.
• Still other suitable energy sources include vibrational sources such as microwave transmitters.
• the energy source is an extended source.
• the energy source is a heat source, such as an atmospheric pressure forced air machine, which can be followed by a steam purge, or a pressurized twist-setting machine.
• An example of an atmospheric pressure forced air machine is the Suessen® Twist-Setting Machine, which can reach temperatures ranging from about 195° C. to about 200° C.
• Examples of pressurized twist-setting machines are those of the autoclave-type and those manufactured by Superba®, which can reach temperatures ranging from about 105° C. to about 138° C.
• the thermal energy may be applied consistently or in short bursts. It is also contemplated that the thermal energy may be gradually and continuously applied over a temperature range until the thermal energy is at or above the melting point of the heat-active and/or low melt components.
• the fiber material and/or yarn may be heated by an atmospheric pressure forced air machine at a temperature of about 195° C. for a residence time of about 60 seconds, before the treated fiber material and/or yarn product is tufted.
• the thermal energy may also be immediately applied at or above the melting point of the binder fiber and/or other heat-active components without any ramp time.
• fiber materials contemplated and described herein may be used alone or in combination with other materials and/or products to form any suitable product, including yarn products, upholstery products and carpet products.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Yarns And Mechanical Finishing Of Yarns Or Ropes (AREA)

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Citations (18)

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• 2004
  • 2004-11-01 US US10/977,933 patent/US20050095423A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-11-02 CA CA002486470A patent/CA2486470A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-11-04 EP EP04256832A patent/EP1529860A3/de not_active Withdrawn

Patent Citations (18)

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