Classifications

• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D04—BRAIDING; LACE-MAKING; KNITTING; TRIMMINGS; NON-WOVEN FABRICS
  • D04B—KNITTING
  • D04B15/00—Details of, or auxiliary devices incorporated in, weft knitting machines, restricted to machines of this kind
  • D04B15/38—Devices for supplying, feeding, or guiding threads to needles
  • D04B15/54—Thread guides
  • D04B15/58—Thread guides for circular knitting machines; Thread-changing devices
  • D04B15/60—Thread guides for circular knitting machines; Thread-changing devices with thread-clamping or -severing devices
  • D04B15/61—Thread guides for circular knitting machines; Thread-changing devices with thread-clamping or -severing devices arranged within needle circle
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D04—BRAIDING; LACE-MAKING; KNITTING; TRIMMINGS; NON-WOVEN FABRICS
  • D04B—KNITTING
  • D04B1/00—Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machines; Fabrics or articles defined by such processes
  • D04B1/22—Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machines; Fabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration
  • D04B1/24—Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machines; Fabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
  • D04B1/243—Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machines; Fabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel upper parts of panties; pants
• • 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
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
  • Y02P70/00—Climate change mitigation technologies in the production process for final industrial or consumer products
  • Y02P70/50—Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
  • Y02P70/62—Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product related technologies for production or treatment of textile or flexible materials or products thereof, including footwear

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the manufacture of knitted brief blanks from which briefs are produced.
• a garment comprising a body portion adapted to cover the lower portion of a wearers trunk from the waist downwards to and beneath the crotch, and having therein two leg openings at respectively opposite sides of the crotch portion which closes the garment at its lower end.
• knitted briefs were manufactured by a process known as cutting and sewing in which a blank of the shape illustrated in Figure 1 of British patent no. 1 485 952 was cut manually from flat knitted fabric. The blank was then side sea ⁇ ie into a brief proper. Clearly this process was time consuming and thus expensive.
• British patent no. 1 485 952 represented a significant step forward in that a brief blank of the required form was produced from a seamless tubular blank on a circular knitting machine. This tubular blank was then slit, flattened and side-seamed.
• European patent no. 0 211 641 provided a further step forward in that it enabled a row of brief blanks to be knitted in the form of a tube which blanks were interconnected in side-by-side relationship.
• Figure 5 of the European patent illustrates an unslit waisted tube having walewise separation positions 22 which, when slit, provides two brief blanks for side seaming into briefs proper.
• the present invention seeks to reduce the amount of yarn wasted in knitting a blank, more especially a brief blank, when knitted as one of a row of blanks as described in European patent no. 0 211 641.
• a method of knitting a plurality of brief blanks in a row in side- by-side relationship in the form of a tube comprises knitting a said tube on an electronically controlled circular knitting machine having full electro-mechanical needle to needle selection and stitch length control, and comprising the steps of shaping by needle selection the tube at positions between brief blanks more especially to form apertures which are to provide leg openings by taking out of action needles which would otherwise knit yarn across said apertures whilst simultaneously cutting and trapping yarn feed to said inoperative needles whereby said apertures are formed between brief blanks with end portions of the latter remaining interconnected, and slitting the tube walewise at positions between said blanks to provide a plurality of separate brief blanks of the required form for brief manufacture.
• One advantage of the present invention is that it enables the amount of yarn wasted by cut loss in the method of European patent number 0 211 641 to be reduced by 15 to 20% dependent upon the number of brief blanks produced in a row.
• a further advantage of the invention is that the shaping of the leg openings is facilitated considerably enabling each blank to be shaped and styled for a particular end use, e.g. fashion, sports or medical applications.
• a sports brief and a fashion brief can be produced in the same row of a tube.
• Figure 1 shows, in diagrammatic form, an unslit waisted tube as taken down from a circular knitting machine
• Figure 2 shows an opened out flat knitted brief blank produced from the knitted tube shown in Figure 1;
• FIG 3 illustrates one of the blanks, shown in Figure 2 folded over into brief form ready for seaming
• Figure 4 illustrates briefs completed from the folded over blank of Figure 3
• Figure 5 illustrates a modified unslit waisted tube of Figure 1 turned through a right angle
• Figures 6 illustrates diagrammatically a method of performing the and 7 invention using a yarn cutter and trapper
• Figure 8 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of Figure 6 and 7 applied in practice to a multi-feed circular knitting machine.
• the waisted tube T shown in Figure 1 is knitted by wholly rotary knitting on an electronically controlled multi-feed circular knitting machine.
• the tube T consists of two overlaid and connected brief blanks BLK and BLK' and is of generally hour glass form after removal from the machine.
• An aperture AP is shown as elongate and generally parallel sided. It will be appreciated that the shape is for ease of illustration only since, in practice, the aperture is wider at its centre than at its ends as may be seen from Figure 5.
• the aperture AP has a "shaping fringe" SF is formed between DS-CS-CS-DS-Dl-Cl-C-D and, at that side provides leg openings LO, LO' respectively one to each blank BLK, BLK'.
• a further aperture AP' having a "shaping fringe" SF' extends between BS-AS-AS-BS-Bl-Al-Al-B and provides a further leg opening LO or LO' to each blank.
• the crotch portion is shown between G and Gl.
• the blanks BLK, BLK' are connected at their ends E-D, DS and F- Dl, DS, and also at El-B, BS and Fl-Bl, BS.
• the portions E-El and F-Fl of the front brief blank BLK will form the waistband B of a brief produced from that blank, the same arrangement applying to the rear brief blank BLK'.
• a number of needles of the machine e.g., three, are omitted at diametrically opposite portions of the tube T as indicated at Z-Z in a known manner.
• Forming of the apertures AP, AP' during knitting avoids the considerable wastage of yarn that would otherwise have been knitted across the apertures AP, AP' and then subsequently removed, as well as dispensing with the removal operation.
• a yarn feeder is indicated at 40 having a feeder arm 41, an upper fixed yarn cutter or knife at 42, a yarn transporter and rotary lower cutter at 44 and a yarn trapping device at 46.
• the cutter 42 is in a fixed position in relation to the rotary cutter 44, it is spring loaded at 48 against the face of the latter at the peripheral teeth 440 for an effective cutting action.
• the cutter 44 is a ring of flat circular saw tooth form and is rotationally fast with the needle cylinder 55 of the machine.
• the teeth 440 are of ratchet or buttress form to each provide a cutting edge 442 for edgewise co-operation with the fixed cutter 42.
• Yarn is designated Yl to the feeder arm 41, at Y2 from the feeder arm 41 to selected needles 50, and at Y3 away from the cutters 42, 44.
• the needle selecting system being known is not shown.
• Figure 7 the yarn Y2 is shown caught by a tooth 440 just prior to being cut and is also shown already initially drawn at Y2 ' into the suction nozzle 460.
• the caught yarn is then scissored by the action of the rotary cutter 44 and the fixed cutter 42.
• This action produces two loose yarn ends, one at and with the end of the group of selected needles at Y3 i.e., away from the cutters 42, 44 and the other Y2 ' from the feeder arm 41.
• This end Y2 ' is retained by the suction action of the trapping device 46 in the nozzle 460 and suction tube 461 of the latter.
• the leading needle of the next selected group of needles 50 reaches the yarn end Y2 ' from the feeder arm 41, it collects the yarn end in the leading needle hook and takes the yarn into a knitting action at the knitting point S2 adjacent the arm 41 by withdrawing the yarn end Y2 ' from the trapping device 46.
• each above-mentioned yarn end Y2 ' is only very momentarily received in the suction trapping device 46.
• the suction device 46 also serves to remove any minor fragments of yarn and fluff in the vicinity of the yarn feeder arm 41 and needles 50, 50'.
• FIG 8 a practical form of the yarn feeding, cutting and trapping arrangement or station on a multi-feed circular knitting machine is shown in which the feeder arm 41, or each such arm of the yarn feeder 40, is raised for yarn take up by a selected group of needles 50 or lowered (as shown) when inoperative needles 50' are passing the feeder arm 41.
• the arm 41 is pivoted in the body 400 of the yarn feeder 40 and operated by a solenoid 45 or other suitable actuator controlled by the electronic system of the machine.
• Yarn Yl is guided at 43 to the feeder arm 41 and also to other arms 41' of the feeder 40, which arms 41' are shown in an inoperative position with their yarn Y4 held by a blade or plate 47 carried by the suction nozzle 460 in readiness for use when required.
• the fixed cutter 42 is shown spring loaded at 48 against the rotary cutter 44 and a pressurised air supply pipe is provided at 49 for blowing away small pieces of yarn and fluff from the cutting area.
• yarn Y2 ' from the feeder arm 41 enters the suction nozzle 460 but is shown extending from the latter to the 7 fixed cutter 42 where it is about to be cut prior to being instantly and fully drawn into the nozzle 460.
• the cut end Y3 ( Figure 7) moves away in engagement with retracted needles 50' as the latter travel away from the fixed cutter 42, which needles follow the end of a previously selected group.
• the two "loose yarn ends” one Y3 following at the end of a selected needle knitting group and the other Y2 ' at the beginning of the next selected needle knitting group produce the "shaping fringe" SF or SFl ( Figures 1, 2 and 5), each yarn end being :.proximately 15mm long.
• the "shaping fringe” is removed during the making up operation and constitutes the only waste material produced.
• Each individual blank BLK or BLK* such as the blank BLK ( Figure 2) is then folded as shown in Figure 3 obverse to obverse and the side seams are made to complete the briefs', shown in Figure 4.
• the briefs are then finalised in bulk and are given finishing treatments as required, i.e. dyeing etc.
• finishing treatments i.e. dyeing etc.
• the individual briefs are then turned obverse out, inspected, folded and packed as required.
• a tubular length of fabric as illustrated in Figure 5 was knitted upon a 13 inch diameter, 28 gauge, 1152 needles, 4 feeds, 150/120 rev/min circular knitting machine.
• the machine had fully programmable unlimited electro-mechanical needle selection and stitch length control.
• a yarn cutting and trapping system was provided at each knitting point.
• the four feeding stations were arranged about the needle cylinder in an equi-spaced manner corresponding to the knitting points.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Knitting Of Fabric (AREA)
• Undergarments, Swaddling Clothes, Handkerchiefs Or Underwear Materials (AREA)
• Knitting Machines (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=10741699

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (11)

Cited By (2)

Families Citing this family (25)

Citations (7)

Family Cites Families (10)

• 1993
  • 1993-09-08 GB GB939318617A patent/GB9318617D0/en active Pending
• 1994
  • 1994-09-07 CA CA002170743A patent/CA2170743A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1994-09-07 JP JP7508530A patent/JPH09501474A/ja active Pending
  • 1994-09-07 US US08/615,325 patent/US5836179A/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1994-09-07 AU AU75428/94A patent/AU686220B2/en not_active Ceased
  • 1994-09-07 WO PCT/GB1994/001938 patent/WO1995007381A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1994-09-07 EP EP94925563A patent/EP0717796A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1994-09-07 CN CN94193960A patent/CN1134176A/zh active Pending
  • 1994-09-07 BR BR9407418A patent/BR9407418A/pt not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1994-09-07 PL PL94313354A patent/PL174745B1/pl unknown
  • 1994-10-19 TW TW083109687A patent/TW261640B/zh active

Patent Citations (7)

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