US20210189608A1

US20210189608A1 - Synthetic fiber blend fabric and clothes

Info

Publication number: US20210189608A1
Application number: US17/270,392
Authority: US
Inventors: Toru Itoi
Original assignee: Itoi LSR Co Ltd
Current assignee: Itoi LSR Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-08-24
Filing date: 2019-08-23
Publication date: 2021-06-24
Also published as: CN112639191A; JP2020029638A; JP6581703B1; WO2020040303A1

Abstract

A synthetic fiber blend fabric is disclosed. The synthetic fiber blend fabric is a woven fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric mainly consisting of the blended yarns. Each of the blended yarns contains the three or more kinds of fibers blended therein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blended yarn. The blended yarn has a total content of the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100 mass % or less. The acrylic fibers have a fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less.

Description

This application is the U.S. National Phase of PCT/JP2019/033105, filed Aug. 23, 2019, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-157838, filed Aug. 24, 2018. Both of those applications are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a fabric (hereinafter, referred to as a “synthetic fiber blend fabric”) containing synthetic fibers, and clothes obtained using the synthetic fiber blend fabric as a clothing fabric.

BACKGROUND ART

One hundred-mass-percent-wool clothing fabrics have good texture and deep color impression as appearance, give sensation of elegance, and have stereoscopic effect and depth impression while having smooth expression of the fabric. Therefore, men's clothing fabrics or women's clothing fabrics configured to include a 100-mass %-wool clothing fabric are recognized as high-class items with a high commercial value. Clothing fabrics that include hard twist yarns containing fine wool fibers further have a sense of higher class and are recognized as having a higher commercial value.
Generally, the good texture of the men's clothing fabrics and the like refers to having a good drape property, good repulsive feeling, and unique touch. The drape property is a property of the clothing fabric to smoothly wrap an object or a body to be wrapped, along the shape thereof. The repulsive feeling is a property of the fabric to spring back into an original shape when lightly held so as to be wrapped in the palm of hand and then released by opening the hand. The unique touch is touch that is non-sticky, dry, and comfortable while giving silky sensation specific to wool. Thus, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics have a sense of high class in terms of making affective appeals such as good texture and deep color impression and are recognized as having a high commercial value.
A clothing fabric is, when worn, subjected to external force, resulting in flexural deformation and deformation such as tensile deformation or shear deformation. The good drape property can be obtained when the clothing fabric has, in addition to an appropriate initial flexural rigidity, a low initial tensile rigidity (corresponding to Young's modulus) and a low initial shear rigidity. Further, the good repulsive feeling can be obtained when the clothing fabric has good elastic recovery from each of initial flexural deformation, initial tensile deformation, and initial shear deformation. This fact can be more understandable, for example, by comparing the clothing fabric and paper that have the same flexural rigidity.
Meanwhile, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics have a problem of easily generating wrinkles when left wet with water and dried or when washed with a domestic washing machine and dried. In addition, since the raw material wool is more expensive than synthetic fibers, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics are expensive. Therefore, men's clothing fabrics and the like have been attempted to be produced using blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and synthetic fibers. The mix spinning is performing spinning while blending fibers that have different kinds of raw materials. The blended yarns are yarns each obtained by spinning of blended different kinds of fibers. The problems involving washability and wrinkles generated after the fabric is wet are often solved by use of the blended yarns.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric made from conventional blended yarns, however, has a problem of impairing the high-class texture specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics due to blending of synthetic fibers in the blended yarns. The synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and polyester fibers often has a defect in repulsive feeling. The synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and acrylic fibers is easily deteriorated in stiffness or anti-drape stiffness by a finishing step during production or by washing with a domestic washing machine because the acrylic fibers are easily plastically deformed by heat or external force. A clothing fabric that includes hard twist yarns containing fine wool fibers has a problem of generating a change in dimension or surface appearance caused by being wet with water or by high humidity (for example, vapor or ironing during sewing).
Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Application Publication No. S59-137930 describes a synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric that is made from blended yarns of three kinds of fibers, i.e., wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers. Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Application Publication No. S59-137930, however, neither refers to nor suggests a possibility of obtaining the high-class texture specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics by using these blended yarns.
In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a synthetic fiber blend fabric that has texture with a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products, that is less likely to generate wrinkles even when dried after being wet with water or washed with a domestic washing machine, and that is less likely to be deteriorated in stiffness or anti-drape stiffness even when steamed, and to provide clothes obtained using this fabric as a clothing fabric.
In order to attain the above object, a synthetic fiber blend fabric according to an aspect of the present invention is a woven fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric including mainly the blended yarns, each of the blended yarns containing the three or more kinds of fibers blended therein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blended yarn, the blended yarn having a total content of the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100 mass % or less, and the acrylic fibers having a fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less.
In the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to another aspect of the present invention, each of the blended yarns can have a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, and a content of the acrylic fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % or less.
In the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to another aspect of the present invention, each of the blended yarns can be a two ply yarn and have a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140.
Alternatively, in the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to another aspect of the present invention, each of the blended yarns can be a two ply yarn, have a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140, have a first twist coefficient (defined by T/√N in which T represents a first twist number and N represents a metric count) of 80 or more and 120 or less, have a final twist number of 80% or more and 130% or less of the first twist number, and have a same direction of final twists as a direction of first twists.
Clothes according to an aspect of the present invention include a fabric, the fabric being formed of the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention or including the synthetic fiber blend fabric.
Through the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention, provided is a fabric having texture with a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products because the fabric is produced using blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers and acrylic fibers that have an average fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less and are extra-fine. This synthetic fiber blend fabric that contains not only the wool fibers but also the polyester fibers and the acrylic fibers is less likely to generate wrinkles even when dried after being wet with water or washed with a domestic washing machine. This synthetic fiber blend fabric is a woven fabric obtained using the blended yarns in each of which the polyester fibers and the extra-fine (micro) acrylic fibers are blended, and is therefore a fabric having good repulsive feeling. The acrylic fibers that are easily plastically deformed by heat or external force are configured to be extra-fine, and therefore hardly affects stiffness and anti-drape stiffness of the synthetic fiber blend fabric even when affected by heat or external force.
That is, the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention makes it possible to achieve both realization of a high-value adding property involving affectiveness such as texture and depth of color that are specific to wool clothing fabrics and stabilization of functional properties (aspect of physical properties) (being less likely to generate wrinkles even when dried after being wet with water or washed with a domestic washing machine). In addition, regular wool fibers are usable without use of fine wool fibers, leading to reduction in production costs, and the fabric having a sense of high class can be provided at low costs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 shows a weave diagram of one exemplary woven fabric used as a synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A synthetic fiber blend fabric (hereinafter, also referred to as “the present fabric”) according to the present invention is a woven fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric configured to include mainly the blended yarns. The present fabric is used for production of mainly clothes and the like. In the present fabric, the phrase “include mainly” means that the present fabric has a content of the blended yarns of 70 mass % or more. In the present fabric or the blended yarns, the word “content” means, for example, when each of the blended yarns contains two or more kinds of polyester fibers, the total content of the two or more kinds of polyester fibers. The values of the content described in the present specification correspond to values of the mixing ratio based on corrected weight that are obtained in conformity with JIS L 1030-2: 2012. The fineness described in the present specification represents average fineness when the measured values are varied. The twist number described in the present specification means a twist number per 1 m unless otherwise specified.
Examples of the polyester fibers used in the present fabric include polyethylene terephthalate fibers, polybutylene terephthalate fibers, and copolymerized polyester fibers.
Examples of the acrylic fibers used in the present fabric include general acrylic fibers containing polyacrylonitrile. Alternatively, the acrylic fibers can be, for example, a copolymerized polymer of acrylonitrile, and vinyl chloride or vinylidene chloride. In this copolymerized polymer, the mass of the constitutional unit derived from the acrylonitrile accounts for, for example, 35 mass % or more and 85 mass % or less. The acrylic fibers used in the present fabric is acrylic fibers (hereinafter, referred to as “extra-fine AC fibers”) having a fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less. If the acrylic fibers have a fineness of less than 0.5 dtex, trouble is easily generated in a spinning step of the production process due to the excessively small fiber diameter. If the acrylic fibers have a fineness of more than 1.4 dtex, it is difficult for the clothing fabric to obtain a good elastic recovery property when recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation, due to the excessively large fiber diameter of the acrylic fibers or some other reason, and a fabric having good texture cannot thus be obtained.
The configuration of the present fabric described above can give a clothing fabric having good texture as, for example, a men's clothing fabric or a women's clothing fabric. In the present fabric that is made from blended yarns (hereinafter, also referred to as “the present blended yarns)” each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and extra-fine AC fibers, or that is configured to include mainly the present blended yarns, a reason why the good texture can be obtained is not clear, but is presumed as follows.
A polyester fiber is a fiber singly having by itself a good elastic recovery property from flexural deformation. A fabric made using blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and polyester fibers is generally improved in stiffness and is thus sometimes washable with a domestic washing machine, but is inferior to 100-mass %-wool fabrics in repulsive feeling (elastic recovery property from deformation such as flexural deformation). A reason for this fact is considered to be that the fabric is not a single fiber, but a fiber assembly to make polyester fibers have a large friction therebetween when the fabric recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation, and the polyester fibers in the fabric are thus prevented from elastically recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation. In the present fabric, however, extra-fine AC fibers are interposed between polyester fibers blended in the present blended yarns, and therefore the friction between polyester fibers is considered to be reduced by these extra-fine AC fibers. Thus, it is considered that the present fabric is less likely to be prevented from elastically recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation and can obtain a good elastic recovery property when recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation.
Further, in general production of a 100-mass %-wool fabric, wool fibers are considered to be swollen to increase the diameter thereof during a finishing process, and reduce the fiber diameter without changing the disposition of the fibers to generate gaps between wool fibers when dried in the following drying step. Therefore, the 100-mass %-wool fabric is assumed to reduce the friction between wool fibers when recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation, and to thus reduce the degree of being prevented from elastically recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation. Here, the extra-fine AC fibers blended in the present blended yarns of the present fabric are presumed to have the same action as the gaps between fibers in the 100-mass %-wool fabric. Meanwhile, the acrylic fibers having a fineness of more than 1.4 dtex make the fabric less likely to obtain a good elastic recovery property when recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation, due to difficulty exhibiting the action of reducing the friction between polyester fibers or some other reason. That is, the inventor of the present application has formulated a hypothesis that even a woven fabric containing synthetic fibers as the present fabric can exhibit, by use of the present blended yarns containing the extra-fine AC fibers blended therein, an action similar to the formation of gaps attained through swelling and drying that is described above regarding the 100-mass %-wool fabric.
On the basis of the hypothesis, the inventor of the present application made samples of the present blended yarns in which wool fibers, extra-fine AC fibers, and polyester fibers originally having an excellent elastic recovery property as a material are blended at an appropriate blending ratio, and has completed the present invention. Blending the polyester fibers in the present blended yarns allows the present fabric to solve the problem that the clothing fabric generates noticeable wrinkles when dried after being wet by rain or the like, and to make the clothing fabric washable with a domestic washing machine. The present invention has made it possible to achieve, even without using expensive fine wool fibers but using regular wool fibers, both realization of a high-value adding property involving affectiveness such as texture and depth of color that are specific to 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics and stabilization of functional properties (aspect of physical properties) (washing resistance and wrinkle resistance), and therefore the present invention also leads to reduction of raw material costs.
After a great deal of earnest consideration using the present blended yarns, the inventor of the present application has found that from the view point of making the high-value adding property highly realizable, it is preferred to use, in the present fabric, the present blended yarns twisted harder than conventional yarns and further preferred to use, as the hard twisted present blended yarns (hard twist yarns), two ply yarns final-twisted in the same direction as the direction of first twists. While, a clothing fabric that includes hard twist yarns containing fine wool fibers has a problem of generating a change in dimension or surface appearance caused by high humidity (for example, vapor or ironing during sewing). In addition, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics that include hard twist yarns make it possible to achieve both appropriate silky sensation and dry sensation to some degree but cannot avoid coarse roughness sensation on the surface of the clothing fabrics. In contrast, the present fabric that includes the present blended yarns hard-twisted as described above can obtain good texture without giving coarse roughness sensation on the surface of the fabric while achieving both appropriate silky sensation and dry sensation.
The extra-fine AC fibers are extra-fine and have a small flexural stiffness, and makes therefore a small contribution to the flexural rigidity in the entire present fabric. Therefore, even when deformed in a finishing step of the production of the present fabric or in washing of the present fabric, the extra-fine AC fibers have a small influence on the flexural rigidity and the repulsive feeling in the entire present fabric. In addition to this reason, the present fabric is not a knitted fabric but a woven fabric and therefore easily maintains good repulsive feeling and anti-drape stiffness.
When having a content of the present blended yarns of 70 mass % or more and less than 100 mass %, the present fabric can be a woven fabric configured to include, together with the present blended yarns, other yarns in a content within the range of more than 0 mass % and 30 mass % or less, as long as the object of the present invention is contradicted. Examples of fibers constituting the other yarns include synthetic fibers, regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers, animal fibers, and plant fibers. Examples of the synthetic fibers include polyamide-based fibers such as nylon fibers, polyolefin-based fibers such as polypropylene fibers, and polyvinyl-based fibers. Examples of the regenerated fibers include rayon fibers. Examples of the animal fibers include wool fibers, fur fibers, and silk fibers. Examples of the plant fibers include cotton fibers and hemp fibers. The other yarns can be, for example, filament yarns each of which is made from one or more kinds of fibers selected from the group consisting of synthetic fibers, regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers, and silk fibers. The other yarns can also be other blended yarns each formed by mix spinning of two or more kinds of fibers selected from the fibers listed here without blending the extra-fine AC fibers.
From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to have a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products and making the present fabric further less likely to generate wrinkles after washed and dried, the present fabric has a content of the present blended yarns of preferably 90 mass % or more, further preferably 95 mass % or more, further more preferably 100 mass %.
When each of the present blended yarns has an excessively small content of the wool fibers, exploring the conditions of steps such as a finishing process for obtaining good texture could require substantial time and effort. From the viewpoint of avoiding this burden, the present blended yarn has a content of the wool fibers of preferably 30 mass % or more. In view of the fabric that has washing resistance and is less likely to be affected by humidity such as being wet, the present blended yarn has a content of the wool fibers of preferably 70 mass % or less, further preferably 50 mass % or less. The raw material costs of the present fabric can be reduced as the present blended yarn has a smaller content of the wool fibers. Therefore, from the viewpoint of achieving both reduction of the raw material costs and realization of the texture specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, the present blended yarn further preferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less.
Each of the present blended yarns has a content of the polyester fibers of preferably 20 mass % or more from the viewpoint of imparting a sufficient anti-wrinkle property to the present fabric, and preferably 50 mass % or less from the viewpoint of imparting sufficient repulsive feeling to the present fabric. Each of the present blended yarns has a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of preferably 10 mass % or more from the viewpoint of easily improving the repulsive feeling of the present fabric, and preferably 30 mass % or less from the viewpoint of easily imparting appropriate stiffness to the present fabric. As described above, from the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easily realize the texture specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, reducing the raw material costs, improving the repulsive feeling, and easily imparting appropriate stiffness, the present blended yarn further more preferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, and a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % or less.
The polyester fibers in the present blended yarns have a fineness of preferably 1.6 dtex or more from the viewpoint of imparting, to the present fabric, rigidity sufficient enough as a clothing fabric, and preferably 3.3 dtex or less from the viewpoint of avoiding making the present fabric excessively firm as a clothing fabric. That is, from the viewpoint imparting appropriate firmness (stiffness) as a clothing fabric, the polyester fibers in the present blended yarns further preferably have a fineness of 1.6 dtex or more and 3.3 dtex or less.
Either of the polyester fibers and the acrylic fibers in the present blended yarns can be composite fibers. By being formed as the composite fibers, the polyester fibers and the acrylic fibers can have a property of easily fitting into the characteristics of the wool fibers.
The present blended yarns can have other fibers blended therein together with the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the extra-fine AC fibers, as long as the object of the present invention is contradicted. In this case, each of the present blended yarns has a content of the other fibers of 10 mass % or less. For example, the present blended yarn preferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more and less than 70 mass %, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % or less, and a content of the other fibers of more than 0 mass % and 10 mass % or less. Examples of the fibers include synthetic fibers, regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers, animal fibers other than wool fibers, and plant fibers. Thus, use of the present blended yarns containing the other fibers blended therein is not prevented in the present fabric.
From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to realize texture with a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products, the three or more kinds of fibers (wool fibers, polyester fibers, extra-fine AC fibers, and other fibers as necessary) are subjected to mix spinning so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the present blended yarn to make the present blended yarn. When the mix spinning is performed according to a usual method without operation of clearly changing the blending ratio during the mix spinning, the three or more kinds of fibers are blended so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at the prescribed blending ratio along the longitudinal direction of the present blended yarn. While, even when the mix spinning is performed according to a usual method, the present blended yarn obtained can unintentionally generate slight blending unevenness. The phrase “approximately uniformly” in the present blended yarn means that even when generated, the slight blending unevenness is not contradictory to the contents and the nature of the present invention and is thus tolerated. For example, when three or more kinds of fibers having different colors are subjected to mix spinning according to a usual method to give a blended yarn and when the blended yarn has the entire appearance thereof simply looked at with the naked eye in a short time and cannot be perceived as “clearly generating a change in color hue along the longitudinal direction of the blended yarn” in objective view of, for example, a general consumer, the three or more kinds of fibers are blended so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along the longitudinal direction of the blended yarn. Even when three or more kinds of fibers having substantially the same color are subjected to mix spinning to give a blended yarn, the mix spinning can be performed in the same manner according to the usual method. Further, a spun yarn for weaving a woven fabric is made using the present blended yarn. From the viewpoint of easy spinning, selection is preferably made such that the spun yarn (single yarn) here has a sectional average number of fibers of 30 or more.
With the twist number of the present blended yarn (single yarn) defined as T (unit “T/m”) and the metric count as N, the twist coefficient is defined by T/√N. From the viewpoint of easily imparting strength to the single yarn and easily imparting sufficient stiffness to the present fabric, the present blended yarn (single yarn) is preferably twisted so as to have a twist coefficient of 80 or more. In addition, from the viewpoint of avoiding deterioration of texture as a result of coarseness on the surface of the present fabric, the present blended yarn (single yarn) is preferably twisted so as to have a twist coefficient of 120 or less. The direction of twists of the single yarn can be either a Z-twist or an S-twist.
The single yarn is preferably doubled and further twisted. The present blended yarn (two ply yarn) obtained has a count indication (metric count) of further preferably 2/36 to 2/140, further more preferably 2/70 to 2/100 (here, the number “2” represents a two ply yarn) from the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easily satisfy a sensuous sense of high class, i.e., a fine clothing fabric being abundant in the sense of high class. A yarn having a finer count than described above is likely to be very expensive due to, for example, constraints of wool raw materials. The present blended yarn (two ply yarn) can be a yarn obtained by putting together two single yarns having different count indications and further twisting the two single yarns, as long as the present blended yarn has a count indication within these ranges.
From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easily give dry sensation on the surface thereof, the present blended yarn (two ply yarn) preferably has a same direction of final twists as a direction of first twists (Z-Z twists or S-S twists). In this case, the final twist number is preferably 80% or more of the first twist number. While, when the final twist number is lower than 80% of the first twist number, the appearance sometimes has color impression insufficient in stereoscopic effect and depth impression. Meanwhile, from the viewpoint of avoiding losing appropriate silky sensation as a result of having remarkable roughness on the surface of the fabric to become coarse, the final twist number is preferably 130% or less of the first twist number. Regarding the present blended yarn (two ply yarn) obtained by putting together two single yarns having different count indications and twisting the two single yarns, the average value of the twist numbers of the single yarns is regarded as the first twist number of the blended yarn (two ply yarn). In the twist configuration described above, when the direction of first twists is different from the direction of final twists, the twists (first twists) of the single yarns are got back by the final twists to weaken tightness of the yarn. When the direction of first twists is the same as the direction of final twists, the tightness of the yarn is enhanced compared to the state of the single yarn. In the present invention, this tightness in the two ply yarn structure has been found to be preferable in combination with the two ply yarn structure to obtain dry and good texture.
In the present fabric, use of the present blended yarns each obtained by hard twisting with the twist number set in the range described above can give a woven fabric that is dry, gives appropriate silky sensation without sticky sensation, and has further good texture and depth of color that are specific to wool clothing fabrics. This depth of color is considered to be obtained by the hard twists described above and the use of the extra-fine AC fibers. In addition, the present fabric hardly has a problem of generating a change in dimension or surface appearance caused by moistness or high humidity (for example, vapor or ironing during sewing).
The present fabric is preferably a woven fabric that is woven using the present blended yarns (two ply yarns) obtained by hard twisting in the aspect described above. The weave of the woven fabric can be selected from three foundation weaves and derivative weaves thereof. That is, the weave is selected from the group consisting of general three foundation weaves, i.e., a plain weave, a twill weave, and a sateen weave, or selected from any derivative weaves to obtain an appropriate weave according to, for example, application of the final product (such as clothes). A cover factor K of a woven fabric is represented by the following mathematical formula. The present fabric preferably has a cover factor K represented by the following mathematical formula of 6 or more and 13 or less, from the viewpoint of easy impartation of appropriate firmness (stiffness) as a clothing fabric and an excellent weaving property.
K=(K ₁ +K ₂)/2 [Mathematical 1]

- K₁: weave density of warp (yarns/2.54 cm)/√metric count of warp (inverse of linear density of yarn (g/m))
- K₂: weave density of weft (yarns/2.54 cm)/√metric count of weft (inverse of linear density of yarn (g/m))

The present fabric is preferably used as a men's clothing fabric or a women's clothing fabric, from the viewpoint of having texture with a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products regardless of the fact that the raw material costs of the present fabric are suppressed lower than those of the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. The present fabric is preferably used as a clothing fabric for clothes used mainly in spring or summer, from the viewpoint of having dry touch.

Clothes according to the present invention can be obtained using the present fabric described above. That is, the clothes according to the present invention are clothes configured to include the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention. The clothes are Wester clothes (fabric to be worn). Examples of the clothes include a top, trousers, a skirt, a dress, a business suit, a uniform, and outerwear.
Additionally, the present invention can be implemented in aspects with various modifications, corrections, or transformations made on the basis of knowledge of a person skilled in the art in the range not departing from the spirit of the present invention. Further, the present invention can be implemented in a form of replacing any of the matters specifying the invention with another technique in the range generating an identical action or effect.

EXAMPLES

In each of Examples 1 and 2 and Comparative Example 1 described below, the following spinning step was performed to produce a blended yarn (two ply yarn). Regarding wool fibers and polyester fibers, dyed tops thereof each produced by a usual method were used. Regarding extra-fine AC fibers, a tow was formed into a sliver with a converter and thereafter made into a top, which was subjected to top dyeing to give a dyed top, and the dyed top thus obtained was used. Thereafter, these three kinds of dyed tops were subjected to mix spinning (mixing and fine spinning by a usual worsted spinning step) to give a blended yarn (single yarn), and this blended yarn (single yarn) was doubled and subjected to twisting to give a blended yarn (two ply yarn). The spinning step described here is, in every procedure, performed by a usual method and is therefore not described.

Example 1

As the wool fibers, fibers having a grade with a fiber diameter of 18.5 μm were prepared. As the polyester fibers, polyethylene terephthalate staple fibers having a fineness of 2.2 dtex were prepared. As the extra-fine AC fibers, an acrylic-fiber tow having a fineness of 1.1 dtex was prepared. With these kinds of fibers used as raw materials, the spinning step described above was performed for mix spinning at a blending ratio of a content of the wool fibers of 35 mass %, a content of the polyester fibers of 40 mass %, and a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of 25 mass %, to give a blended yarn (single yarn) having a metric count of 1/80 and a Z-twist number of 1,000 T/m. This single yarn was doubled and was further subjected to Z-twisting of 1,100 twists per 1 m (final Z-twist number of 1,100 T/m) to give a blended yarn (two ply yarn). Using this blended yarn (two ply yarn), weaving was performed according to a weave diagram illustrated in FIG. 1 and a finishing process was performed on the woven fabric by a usual method to give a fabric according to Example 1. The fabric according to Example 1 had a basis weight of 211 g/m², a warp density of 91 yarns/2.54 cm, and a weft density of 77 yarns/2.54 cm.

Example 2

The mix spinning was performed with the same material and at the same blending ratio (the same content of each kind of fibers in blended yarn) as in Example 1 to give a blended yarn (single yarn) having a metric count of 1/80 (first S-twist number of 1,000 T/m). This blended yarn (single yarn) was doubled and was subjected to S-twisting of 1,100 twists per 1 m (final S-twist number of 1,100 T/m). Using the obtained blended yarn (two ply yarn), a fabric was woven in the same manner as in Example 1 to give a fabric according to Example 2.
The fabric obtained in each of Examples 1 and 2 had good repulsive feeling and good texture equivalent to 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. In addition, these fabrics had non-sticky, dry, and comfortable touch while having, as in the touch specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, the specific silky sensation on the surface thereof, and had depth of color equivalent to the depth of color specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. Therefore, the fabric obtained in each of Examples 1 and 2 was suitable as a spring or summer men's or women's clothing fabric. These fabrics had no problem of generating a change in dimension or surface appearance caused by vapor or ironing during sewing.

Comparative Example 1

The same wool fibers and polyester fibers were used as in Example 1, but an acrylic fiber tow having a fineness of 2.2 dtex was used in place of the extra-fine AC fiber tow used in Example 1. These kinds of fibers were subjected to mix spinning at the same ratio as in Example 1 to give a two ply yarn having the same yarn count and twist configuration as in Example 1. Using this two ply yarn, weaving was performed in accordance with Example 1 to give a fabric according to Comparative Example 1.
The fabric according to Comparative Example 1 was inferior in repulsive feeling to the fabrics in Examples 1 and 2. In addition, the fabric according to Comparative Example 1 did not have the touch specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, the specific silky sensation, and the non-sticky, dry, and comfortable touch. The fabric according to Comparative Example 1 also did not obtain depth of color equivalent to the depth of color specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. The inventor of the present application found, from these test results, the usefulness of the present blended yarn containing the extra-fine AC fibers blended therein as acrylic fibers.
The present fabric is not only used as a material for clothes, but is also usable as a material for high-value adding fashion using a high-grade clothing fabric.

Claims

1. A synthetic fiber blend fabric being a woven fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, or being a woven fabric mainly consisting of the blended yarns,

each of the blended yarns containing the three or more kinds of fibers blended therein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blended yarn, and the blended yarn having a total content of the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100 mass % or less, and

the acrylic fibers having a fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less.

2. The synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1, wherein

each of the blended yarns has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, and a content of the acrylic fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % or less.

3. The synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1, wherein

each of the blended yarns is a two ply yarn, and

each of the blended yarns has a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140.

4. The synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1, wherein

each of the blended yarns is a two ply yarn,

each of the blended yarns has a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140,

each of the blended yarns has a first twist coefficient of 80 or more and 120 or less, the first twist coefficient being defined by T/√N in which T represents a first twist number and N represents a metric count,

each of the blended yarns has a final twist number of 80% or more and 130% or less of the first twist number, and

each of the blended yarns has a same direction of final twists as a direction of first twists.

5. Clothes comprising a fabric,

the fabric being formed of the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1, or including the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1.