US2910852A - Knitted hosiery - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 3, 1959 c. N. HERBERT TAL 2,910,852

KNITTED HOSIERY Filed June 3, 1957 2 Sheets-$heet 1 United States Patent O KNITTED HOSIERY Charles N. Herbert, Narberth, and Theodore W. Herbert, Paoli, Pa.

Application June s, l1957, senat N6. 663,260 z claims. (ci. 6618o The present invention relates generally to the art of knitting and more particularly to improvements in the ornamentation of knitted articles Vof apparel, such as hosiery and the like, whereby design configurations which simulate cable stitching are incorporated therein.

A popular type of distinctive and appealing ornamentation for mittens, gloves, scarves, sweaters, hosiery, and the like is so-called cable stitching, but heretofore this type of ornamentation could only be produced practically by hand knitting. Of necessity, such production is both slow and expensive.

Accordingly, the present invention provides for the expeditious and inexpensive commercial production of mock cable stitch ornamented knitted articles of manufacture by machine, wherein the design areas are embossed and are distinctive in appearance.

It is an object of the invention to provide hosiery or the like having spaced walewise extending ridges or rolls of fabric joined together at spaced points to form mock cable ornamentation' therefor.

It is a further object of the invention to provide hosiery or the like having a plurality of spaced wrap yarn plated panels of adjoining wales to provide raised fabric panels which are secured together at spaced points to form mock cable ornamentation for the hosiery. The spaced panels are separated by at least one intervening panel of wales which may `remain unplated for one design effect and which may also be warp yarn plated for other design effects, in the mock cableornamentation.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide hosiery or the like having the structure above set forth and in which the spaced wrap plated panels may be joined together outwardly of the general hose fabric to embodying the present invention with the mock cable design incorporated in the side portions thereof;

Figure 2 is a-side View of a portion of the hosiery fabric showing the same inits original knitted condition preparatory to producing the finished articleshown in Figure l;

Figure 3 is a front view of a portion of the leg of the hosiery shown in Figure l, as viewed along the lines 3-3` of Figure l, showing the embossed or raised mock cable stitch formation on both sides of the leg;

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the hosiery leg as taken along the lines 4-4 of Figures l and 2, as well as along the line 4-4 of Figure 7, the stitches being diagrammatically illustrated;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 taken along the fabric showing the same in its original knitted condition preparatory to producing the finished article shown in Figure 6;

Figure 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the hosiery leg taken along the line 8-8 of Figure 6, the stitches being diagrammatically illustrated;

Figure 9 is a View similar to Figure 8, taken along the line 9-9 of Figure 6, at a point where the raised spaced wales are joined together;

` Figure l0 is a view similar to Figure 9, showing a modied form of the mock cable construction;

Figure ll is a view similar to Figure 4, showing a modified form thereof; and

Figure l2 is a View similar to Figure 4, showing a second modified form thereof.

The article of hosiery illustrated in the drawings is of the seamless circular knit construction, as produced upon circular knitted machinery capable of forming a plurality of generally similar wrap yarn plated panels of fabric, each of said panels containing a plurality of wales. Each wrap yarn is plated on the body yarn on a number of needles, generally during eaclrcourse of knitting and extends as a coursewise oat at the rear face of the fabric from course to course. The effect of such wrap yarn plating action and associated short floats is to cause the plated fabric wales to project outwardly from the front face of the fabric to form a walewise extending raised panel or ridge of fabric.

` In Figure l,`the article of hosiery, designated generally by the reference numeral 20, is of normal configuration having the usual top, leg, and foot portions, of which the leg portion 22E is ornamented with a mock cable stitch construction as indicated by the reference numeral 22. While the ornamentation 22 is shown centrally disposed on each side of the leg, it will be understood that more than a single mock cable stitch arrangement v22 may be Vplaced upon each side of the stocking and that their walewise extent may vary, even extending into the instep and foot portion of the hose, if so desired.

The leg fabric 2l of the hose 2t) is shown in Figure 2 as it comes from the` machine, and is provided with a spaced pair or" generally similar wrap plated raised panels 23 and 24 extending walewise ofthe fabric and disposed centrally on each side of the leg. The panels may be of solid colors or may have color changes therein, and the colors may be the same as or in contrast with the body yarn color. In the present instance a plurality of cornplementary color changes are preferably made in the plating yarns at uniformly spaced points in each of the panels, so as to provide each panel with alternating walewise extending sections 25 and 2.6 formed of yarns of respectively different color or structure. Thus, as shown in Figures l and 2, the walewise spaced sections 25 of the panel 23 are respectively disposed inlaterally disposed registry with the correspondingly spaced contrasting sections 26 of the panel 24.

As is also shown in Figures l and 2, the panels 23 and 24 are spaced apart coursewise of the knitted fabric to provide an intervening unplated panel 27 formed of body` yarn stitches only, which intervening panel may be formed of any desired number of wales to vary its width i as desired.

line 5-5 of Figure l, at a point where the raised spaced Figure`7 is a side view off a portion of the hosiery An enlarged cross section of the leg portion 21 is diagrammatically shown in Figure 4, wherein the body yarn stitches are indicated at 28, the wrap yarn plated stitches of the panels at 29, and the floats of the wrap yarns at 30. There is a coursewise oat 30 on the inside of the leg to the rear of each panel for each course of wrap plating knitting. While the wrap yarns may be plated over any'desired number of wales, whichnumber may yary from course to course, in the embodiment of Figure l'jthe wrap yarns are plated on the same three wales Vof wrap yarns individual to each of these wales.

throughout the leg portion 21, and similarly, three wales are left unplated in the panel 27.

The panels 23 and 24 are thereafter joined together, laterally or coursewise, by any suitable means, preferably in face to face relation, at walewise spaced points, such as 31 (Figure l), where the plated yarn changes in color structure occur, to provide the mock cable construction for the article of hosiery. ln the embodiment of Figure 5, the panels 23 and 24 are secured together upon the outer' side of thehosiery fabric so that the oats 30 and the body stitches 28 of one panel 23 are in face to face contacting relation with those of the adjoining panel 24, the panels 23 and 24 being joined by machine or hand thread tacking 32. The plain intermediate panel 27 is thus forced outwardly from the panels 23-24, in the immediate regions of the racking points 31, as appears in Figure 3, while the intervening unsecured portlons of 'che panel 27 remain generally in the same plane as the other unplated portions of the leg fabric, as in Figure 4.

It is within the scope of the present invention to secure the panels 23 and 24 upon the inside of the hosiery fabric, as appears in Fig. 10, wherein, at the joining points 31, the plated stitches 29 of the two panels 23-24 are in face to face contacting relation. This will force the panel 27, at the joining points 31, to project inwardly of the hose, in which casethe intervening unsecured portions of the panel 27 will be disposed in a plane spaced inwardly from the plane of the other unplated portions of the leg fabric, as will be more fully described in connection with the embodiment of Figure 6.

While the central panel 27 has heretofore been described as being formed of unplated body yarn stitches, it is within the scope of the invention to provide that any one or more of the wales thereof may be plated with wrap yarns. As shown in Figure ll, the body yarn stitches 28 forming the central Wale or wales of each central panel 27 are plated with wrap yarn stitches 33 As shown in Figure l2, all the wales of each of the central panels 27 may be wrap yarn plated, similarly to the formation of the panels 23 and 24, to provide plated stitches 34 on body yarn stitches 28 and the coursewise contacting floats 35. In this event the panels 23, 24 and 27 are similarly formed in juxtaposition on each side of the hose to provide three raised panels or ridges which may be joined together as described in connection with Figures 5 and l0. The resulting mock cable constructions are generally the same as heretofore described with the exception that the central panel 27, being wrap yarn plated and raised, assumes a more prominent appearance in the overall mock cable effect.

LOnce the panels 23 and 24 of the constructions heretofore described'are joined or tacked together at the wale- -wise spaced points 31, the several walewise spaced sections 25 of the panel 23 merge with those of the panel 24 while the sections 26 of the panel 23 merge with those of the panel 24 to provide what appears to be a cross-over relation of the two raised wrapy yarn plated panels in simulation of cable stitching. Thus, as` appears in Figure l, the sections 25 of the panels 23 and 24 appear as a continuous stripe extending simuously along the length of the hose and in alternating crossed relation with respect to what similarly appears as a continuously extending simuous stripe formed of the sections 26 of the panels 23 and 24. l

Another form of the invention provides an article of hosiery having the leg portions 36 shown in Figure 6, ornamented with a mock cable construction 37, the eX- tent and the placing of which may be similar to that described in connection with Figure l. The fabric appears in Figure 7 as it comes from the machine with a pair of raised spaced sectional-formed wrap yarn plated panels 38-39 on each side of an intervening non-raised uplated panel of fabric 40. The panels 38-39, instead of being continuous as in Figure l, are in this instance interrupted at spaced courses by a course or two of unplated fabric, as at 41. It will be noted that the wrap plating outline of each section of the sectional panels 38-39 is not parallel to the wales throughout, as in Figure 2, but extends at an angle to the wales at the upper and lower outer portions thereof as shown at 42-42, and is stepped at the upper and lower inward portions thereof, as shown at 43-43. The outline design of each of the wrap sections 38-39 may vary as desired to provide varying individual mock cable ornarnentations.

In cross section along the line 4-4 of Figure 7, the 'leg portion 36 will appear generally similar in loop structure to the modification shown in Figure 4. The panels 38-39 may be formed of yarns of any desired contrasting color or structure, as explained in connection with kFigure l, o-r they may be otherwise treated to provide for a predetermined pattern or design thereof, the selection of yarns of different color or structure for the Wrap plated panels being a matter of choice for the designer. i

The panels 38-,39 are also joined together by tacking in face to face relation at spaced points 44-44, these points being in the immediate regions of the unplated courses 41 of the panels, so that consequently there is less bulk lin the joined fabric areas. As shown in the cross section of Figure 9, the panels 38-39 are secured together upon the inside face of the hosiery fabric with the outer sides of the courses 41 in face to face contact and held in position by tacking 45-45. At these points the panel 40 is on the inside of the hose, similarly to the construction shown in Figure 10. It will be understood that the panels 3839 may be joined together upon the outside face of the hosiery fabric, if so desired, after the manner shown in Figure 5. When the panels 38-39 are joined or tacked together at the inside of the hose, the plane of the unplated fabric panel 40 is caused to be somewhat depressed relative to the normal plane of the other unplated fabric areas, as appears in Figure 8, thus adding to the raised elfect of the adjoining panels 38-39.

It should be noted that the change in outline of the panels 38-39 at the points 42-43 is such as to contribute to the overall design effect created when the panels themselves are joined together at points 44 above the intervening unplated panel 40. The end tapering of the sections ofthe sectional panels 38-39 blends into the curved shapes of the ridges formed by the joining together of the raised panels.

The stitches of at least the ornamented portions of the hosiery of the present invention are preferably all plain stitches, as distinguished from rib stitches, and are all drawn in the same direction during the knitting thereof. However, in lieu of plain knitted stitches for the basic fabric, they may be of any special form, such as mesh, tuck or other fancy stitches known in the art, all of which in the ornamented areas may be wrap yarn plated in accordance with the present invention. While the central panels of the ornamentation, that is panels 27 and 40, are not shown as being included in the tacking operation, they may be so included if desired. f

If desired, instead of forming the raised panels or ridges of fabric by true wrap yarn plating of the loops or stitches Within the areas of said panels, such loops or stitches may be plated to provide the same general external effect by so-called mock wrap yarn plating, in Which case the wrap yarn does not appear as a float eX- tending across the rear of the plated panel but rather extends as a float between the laterally-spaced plated panels. In the case of such mock wrap yarn plating, the interior floats may be trimmed from the fabric, particularly when such floats are of any considerable length. It will be understood that other changes and modifications of the invention may be made from time to time without departing from the general principles or real spirit thereof, and it is accordingly intended to claim the same broadly, as well as specifically, as indicated by the appended claims-v f areas being laterally joined at walewise spaced gathering 10 2,705,878

points exteriorly of said tubular portion to form a mock cable design for said hosiery which is characterised by inward projection of the unplated fabric between said raised panel areas at said gathering points.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,427,891 Wirtz Sept. 23, 1947 2,573,118 Thurston Oct. 30, 1951 Thurston Apr. 12, 1955

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