阅读说明：本技术 热塑性布及以此热塑性布制成的制品 (Thermoplastic cloth and product made of the same ) 是由 黄谦智 刘子炜 张祎骏 翁翎翔 罗格朗·吉耶梅特·波琳·马里昂 特谢尔·卡蜜儿·珍妮 于 2018-03-29 设计创作，主要内容包括：在此公开具有不同热性质的布,其具有高熔点温度区及低熔点温度区,这些不同熔点的温度区分别是由高熔点及低熔点的纱线织成,通过使用高、低熔点纱线,使得高熔点温度区及低熔点温度区的熔点之间相差约30℃至150℃,且高熔点温度区的布在热活化后仍维持柔软,而低熔点温度区的布在热活化后则会硬化。(Disclosed herein is a cloth having different thermal properties, which has a high melting point temperature zone and a low melting point temperature zone, the temperature zones having different melting points are woven from high melting point and low melting point yarns, respectively, by using the high and low melting point yarns, the difference between the melting points of the high melting point temperature zone and the low melting point temperature zone is about 30 ℃ to 150 ℃, and the cloth of the high melting point temperature zone maintains softness after thermal activation, while the cloth of the low melting point temperature zone hardens after thermal activation.)

1. A thermoplastic cloth comprising:

a high melting point temperature zone and a low melting point temperature zone, each consisting of a yarn having a high melting point and a low melting point,

wherein the melting points of the high melting point temperature region and the low melting point temperature region are different from each other by about 30 ℃ to 150 ℃, the cloth of the low melting point temperature region can be hardened after thermal activation, and the cloth of the high melting point temperature region can still keep soft after thermal activation.

2. The thermoplastic fabric as in claim 1, wherein each yarn is composed of a plurality of fibers, each of the fibers being made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), low-melting copolyester, or a combination thereof.

3. The thermoplastic cloth of claim 2, wherein the low melting copolyester is a copolymer of terephthalic acid (PTA), Ethylene Glycol (EG), and an aliphatic monomer selected from the group consisting of glutamic acid, adipic acid, pimelic acid, suberic acid, sebacic acid, neopentyl glycol, and butanediol.

4. The thermoplastic cloth of claim 3, wherein the low-melting copolyester is a copolymer consisting of terephthalic acid (PTA), Ethylene Glycol (EG), and sebacic acid.

5. The thermoplastic cloth of claim 1, wherein the low melting point temperature zone is formed by embroidering a yarn having a low melting point on the cloth of the high melting point temperature zone.

6. The thermoplastic cloth of claim 1, wherein the high melting point temperature region and the low melting point temperature region are formed by knitting or weaving yarns having a high melting point and a low melting point, respectively.

7. The thermoplastic cloth of claim 1, wherein the thermal activation comprises heating the thermoplastic cloth until a temperature reaches the melting point temperature of the low melting point temperature zone but does not exceed the melting point temperature of the high melting point temperature zone.

8. A product produced by thermally activating the thermoplastic fabric of claim 1 and then directly forming the shape of the product on the thermoplastic fabric.

9. The article of claim 8, wherein the shape of the article is formed by heating the thermoplastic cloth of claim 1 until the temperature reaches the melting point temperature of the low melting point temperature zone but does not exceed the melting point temperature of the high melting point temperature zone.

10. The article of claim 9, wherein the shape of the article is formed using a mold in combination with the heat activation process.

1. Field of the invention

The present disclosure relates to textile technology, and more particularly, to cloths having different thermal properties and 3D articles made with the cloths.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Traditionally, in the textile industry, thermoplastic fibers are often used to form moldable multi-layer structures, which are woven layers (e.g., non-woven fabrics) laminated from multiple layers of thermoplastic fibers. However, no attempt has been made to produce a fabric with thermoplastic properties by directly knitting (Knit) or weaving (weaves) thermoplastic fibers into a fabric.

The inventors of the present disclosure have surprisingly invented an intelligent fabric, which is a fabric woven from yarns having high and low melting points by knitting, tatting, embroidering, etc., so that the fabric fibers have thermoplastic properties, and when the fabric is thermally activated, a 3D product can be directly formed on the fabric.

Background

Disclosure of Invention

The following summary is provided to provide a simplified focus of the disclosure so that the reader can obtain a basic understanding of the disclosure. This simplified focus is not a complete description of the disclosure and is not intended to identify key/critical elements of embodiments of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below.

Generally, the present disclosure relates to forming economically efficient textile articles (e.g., shoulder pads, buckle buckles, pockets, etc.) directly from thermoplastic cloth.

Based on the foregoing, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide cloths with different thermal properties. The cloth structurally comprises a high-melting-point temperature area and a low-melting-point temperature area which are respectively composed of yarns with high melting points and low melting points, wherein the difference between the melting points of the high-melting-point temperature area and the low-melting-point temperature area is about 30-150 ℃, the cloth of the low-melting-point temperature area can be hardened after thermal activation, and the cloth of the high-melting-point area can still keep soft after thermal activation.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, each yarn is composed of a plurality of fibers, each of the fibers being composed of Polyester (PES), including, but not limited to, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), low melting copolyesters, and combinations thereof.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the low melting point copolymer is a copolymer composed of terephthalic acid (PTA), Ethylene Glycol (EG), and an aliphatic monomer. The aliphatic monomer may be any one of glutamic acid (glutamic acid), adipic acid (adipic acid), pimelic acid (pimelic acid), suberic acid (suberic acid), sebacic acid (sebasic acid), neopentyl glycol (neopentylglycol) or butanediol (butylene glycol), and the aliphatic monomer may be present in an amount of about 1 to 20 wt% based on the total weight of the copolymer. Preferably, the low melting copolyester of the present disclosure is a copolymer consisting of PTA, EG, and sebacic acid (sebacic acid).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the low melting temperature zone is formed by embroidering a yarn having a low melting point on a cloth on the high melting temperature zone.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the high and low melting temperature zones are formed by knitting or weaving yarns having a high melting point and a low melting point, respectively, into a thermoplastic cloth.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the thermal activation is achieved by heating the thermoplastic cloth until the temperature reaches the melting point temperature of the low melting point temperature zone, but does not exceed the melting point temperature of the high melting point temperature zone.

Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a product, which is formed into a specific shape by thermally activating the thermoplastic cloth, and then directly producing the product on the thermoplastic cloth.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the shape of the article is formed by heating the thermoplastic cloth as described above until the temperature reaches the melting point temperature of the low melting point temperature zone, but does not exceed the melting point temperature of the high melting point temperature zone.

In particular embodiments of the present disclosure, the shape of the article is formed in conjunction with the use of a mold during the thermal activation process.

Various features and advantages of the present disclosure will be appreciated from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

The invention at least comprises a color drawing, and the application specification containing the color drawing can be applied to a competent authority for payment.

The present application can be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A is a schematic view of a yarn made of core-sheath composite fibers according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the yarn depicted in FIG. 1A taken along line 1-1';

FIG. 2A is a schematic view of a yarn made of blended fibers according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the yarn as depicted in FIG. 2A along line 2-2';

FIG. 3A is a schematic view of a yarn made of twisted fibers according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the yarn as depicted in FIG. 3A taken along the 3-3' line;

fig. 4A is a schematic view of a yarn composed of hollow core fibers according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the yarn as depicted in FIG. 4A taken along line 4-4';

fig. 5 is an actual photographic view of a cloth on which a 2D lattice pattern is embroidered by a six-head embroidering machine according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a photograph showing a heat-activated pattern embroidered by a machine having a rope embroidering apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is an actual photograph of a thermoplastic article formed by embroidering a patterned cloth using a six-headed embroidery machine according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 8A is a photograph showing an actual thermoplastic cloth according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8B is a photograph of the thermoplastic cloth of FIG. 8A after being thermally activated in accordance with the present application;

fig. 9 is a photograph showing an actual photograph of a rectangular product made of a thermoplastic cloth according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a photograph showing an example of a buckle made of thermoplastic cloth according to the present application.

FIG. 11 is a photograph of an actual 3D rectangular shape formed by thermally activating a thermoplastic cloth produced by double-side jacquard knitting, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 12 is a photograph of two sides of a thermoplastic fabric produced by a double-side jacquard knitting process, wherein the front side of the fabric is represented in blue and the back side of the fabric is represented in white, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

In accordance with common practice, the various described features or components are not intended to define the scope, but rather are intended to describe the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention. Further, the same symbols or names in different drawings are used to describe the same components or parts.

Detailed Description

The following description is directed to embodiments of the present application and is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and should not be considered as a single embodiment. Moreover, although specific functions and sequences of steps have been described herein for purposes of constructing and executing an embodiment, the same or equivalent functions or steps may be accomplished by other embodiments.

The words "a" and "an" as well as "the" or "the" as used herein are to be construed as including the plural unless the content is specifically stated.

Generally, the present disclosure relates to a method of forming textile articles (e.g., shoulder pads, buttons, pockets, etc.) directly from a thermoplastic cloth in an economically efficient manner.

To achieve this, polymeric fibers or filaments (e.g., low melting copolyester or polyethylene terephthalate fibers) are combined to form a yarn, which may then be embroidered (embroider), knitted (knit), and/or woven (woven) into a fabric by a programmed arrangement to produce the desired thermoplastic fabric having high and low melting temperature regions thereon. After exposure to heat, a portion of the cloth having the low melting temperature region will melt and eventually harden, and a portion of the cloth having the high melting temperature region will remain unmelted and have softness, whereby a specific three-dimensional (3D) shaped article (e.g., a pocket) may be formed directly on the cloth, and further, the cloth having hard and soft regions may be selectively folded in a desired manner to form a 3D article.

1. Silk thread

The terms "filaments" and "fibers" are used interchangeably herein to refer to a continuous strand of material. In the present disclosure, the desired filaments or fibers are made from Polyester (PES), which may be polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or a low melting polyester; preferably, it can be made of recycled materials to reduce the carbon footprint of the final fabricated article.

As used herein, "low-melting copolyester" refers to a modified polyester, such as a copolymer of terephthalic acid (PTA), Ethylene Glycol (EG), and an aliphatic monomer. The aliphatic monomer may be any one of glutamic acid (glutamic acid), adipic acid (adipic acid), pimelic acid (pimelic acid), suberic acid (suberic acid), sebacic acid (sebasic acid), neopentyl glycol (neopentylglycol), and butylene glycol (butylene glycol). The monomers of polyethylene terephthalate are terephthalic acid (PTA) and Ethylene Glycol (EG), respectively. During polymerization, terephthalic acid (PTA) and Ethylene Glycol (EG) are polymerized to form polyethylene terephthalate. However, if an aliphatic monomer is present, it is also possible to form a block copolymer between the aliphatic monomer and terephthalic acid (PTA) or Ethylene Glycol (EG) in addition to the polyethylene terephthalate segments, based on which a modified polyethylene terephthalate is formed which comprises the block structure of the polyethylene terephthalate/aliphatic monomer copolymer. The crystalline nature of the modified polyethylene terephthalate or copolyester is different from that of unmodified polyethylene terephthalate (i.e., polyethylene terephthalate without added aliphatic monomer), which has a much lower melting point than unmodified polyethylene terephthalate. The melting point of polyethylene terephthalate is decreased inversely proportionally to the amount of the aliphatic monomer in the copolymer, i.e., the lower the melting point, the higher the amount of the aliphatic monomer in the copolymer. Preferably, the weight percent of the fatty group monomer in the copolyester is from about 1 to about 20% (wt%).

According to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, the low melting point copolymer is a copolymer of terephthalic acid (PTA), Ethylene Glycol (EG), and sebacic acid (sebasic acid). In the present disclosure, the melting point of the low-melting copolyester is between 110-230 ℃, and the melting point of the polyethylene terephthalate is about 250-260 ℃. Based on the foregoing, yarns formed from polyethylene terephthalate fibers have a much higher melting point than yarns formed from low-melting copolyester fibers. The low melting copolyesters suitable for use in the present disclosure are also commercially available, e.g., SRPX^TMSilk (wisdom research & development, taibei, taiwan).

Polymeric filaments suitable for use in the present disclosure can be made by conventional techniques, such as spinning. In some embodiments, the polymeric thread is structurally of a core-sheath composite fiber, comprising a core and an outer sheath, wherein the outer sheath is disposed about the core. Preferably, the core and the sheath are made of polymeric materials having different melting points, thereby imparting different thermal properties to the fiber. Alternatively, the polymeric wire may comprise a lumen or hollow core.

2. Yarn

Several different yarns are made and used in this disclosure. Generally, the yarns described above can be made in a conventional manner, except for yarns made from fibers formed from recycled materials and/or from combined materials comprising virgin materials and recycled materials. Yarns having a variety of structures and shapes can be formed according to different production techniques. Therefore, the cross-sectional shape of the yarn can have various forms such as a round shape, a trilobal shape, a multilobal shape, an orange-shaped shape, and the like.

The "high temperature yarn" as referred to in the present disclosure means a yarn composed of filaments having a high melting temperature, for example, a yarn composed of polyethylene terephthalate filaments. By "low temperature yarn" is meant a yarn composed of filaments having a low melting temperature, e.g., low melting polyester filaments (e.g., SRPX)^TMYarn consisting of silk threads (minwisdom research and development, taibei, taiwan)).

2.1 yarns consisting of core-sheath composite fibers

Referring to fig. 1A and 1B together, fig. 1A is a schematic view of a yarn 10, and fig. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the yarn 10 along the line 1-1'. As shown in fig. 1A, yarn 10 is comprised of a plurality of polymeric filaments 11. The cross-section of yarn 10 along line 1-1' shows that each of the polymeric filaments 11 is a core-sheath composite fiber, wherein each fiber comprises a core 11C and an outer sheath 11S. The core and sheath may each be made of low melting copolyester and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or vice versa. In one embodiment of the disclosure, the core is composed of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and the sheath is composed of a low melting copolyester. In another embodiment, the core is composed of a low melting copolyester and the sheath is composed of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

2.2 yarns consisting of composite fibers

Referring to fig. 2A and 2B, fig. 2A is a schematic perspective view of the yarn 20; figure 2B is a cross-sectional view of yarn 20 taken along line 2-2'. In the present embodiment, the yarn 20 is composed of a plurality of intermingled first and second polymeric threads 21, 22. The first and second polymeric threads 21, 22 are respectively constituted by a single component fibre of a low-melting copolyester and of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and vice versa. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first polymeric filaments 21 are made of a low-melting copolyester, and the second polymeric filaments 22 are made of PET.

2.3 twisted yarn (twisting yarns)

Referring to fig. 3A and fig. 3B together, fig. 3A is a schematic view of a single-covered yarn 30. Figure 3B is a cross-sectional view of yarn 30 taken along line 3-3'. In the present embodiment, the yarn 30 is composed of a plurality of first and second polymeric threads 31, 32, which are used as core fiber and twisted fiber, respectively, wherein during the manufacturing process, the direction of the second polymeric thread 32 (or twisted fiber) is twisted and turned along the first polymeric thread 31, so that the two polymeric threads can be tightly closed, thereby making the structure of the yarn 30 more compact. Twisting is a common technique in the textile industry, and helps fibers adhere tightly to each other, thereby enhancing yarn strength. The direction and number of yarn twists will help determine the appearance, effect, and durability of the yarn and the subsequently produced articles and fabrics.

When making twisted fibers, the core fiber may be a high melting filament (e.g., PET) and the twisted fibers may be a low melting filament (e.g., a low melting copolyester). Alternatively, both the core fiber and the twisted fiber are core-sheath composite fibers, wherein the core is made of a relatively high melting material (e.g., PET) and the sheath is made of a relatively low melting material (e.g., a low melting copolyester).

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the single-covered yarn comprises a core fiber and a twisted fiber, each made of a low-melting copolyester. In other embodiments, a double-covered yarn may also be made, in which case the core fiber is made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and the twisted fiber is made of a low-melting copolyester. In other embodiments, a cable doubled yarn (cable doubled ply) or cable doubled yarn (cable doubled ply) composed of a core-sheath composite fiber, in which the core is made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and the sheath is made of low-melting-point copolyester, may be manufactured.

2.4 yarns consisting of hollow-core fibres

Referring to fig. 4A and 4B together, wherein fig. 4A is a schematic view of a yarn 40; figure 4B is a cross-sectional view of yarn 40 taken along line 4-4'. In the present embodiment, the yarn 40 is formed by a plurality of polymeric filaments 41, which are hollow fibers, wherein each fiber has a lumen or hollow core. In this embodiment, the hollow core fibers are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), for example, recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

3. Thermoplastic cloth and product thereof

To produce a fabric with thermoplastic properties, it is planned to embroider, knit or shuttle a yarn consisting of high melting temperature or low melting temperature threads into a fabric so that the fabric has a desired temperature distribution area or region, thereby allowing the fabric to be shaped by heating.

Preferably, the thermoplastic cloth should include high and low temperature regions, wherein the difference between the melting point temperature of the high temperature yarn and the melting point temperature of the low temperature yarn is 30 ℃ to 150 ℃, such as 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 118, 122, 125, 124, 125, 126, 124, 129, 126, 131. 132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150 ℃. Those skilled in the art can select appropriate high and low temperature yarns without undue experimentation to produce a fabric having the desired thermoplastic properties.

3.1 obtaining thermoplastic cloth by embroidery technique and products thereof

In some preferred embodiments, the low temperature yarns are embroidered onto a base fabric that is made from high temperature yarns and formed into a specific pattern (as shown in FIG. 6). Alternatively, multiple layers of default patterns formed from low temperature yarns may be embroidered onto a base fabric (as shown in FIG. 5) to enhance the mechanical strength of articles intended to be made from the yarns. In this case, the embroidered pattern is composed primarily of low temperature yarns (e.g., core-sheath composite fibers made from low melting copolyesters) and the base fabric is composed of high temperature yarns (e.g., PET). Thus, when the temperature of the cloth is raised above the melting point of the low temperature yarns, the yarns in these areas will melt and harden after the temperature is lowered; at the same time, the areas with the high temperature yarns remain soft, it being understood that the yarns in these areas do not melt. Referring to fig. 7, fig. 7 is a product obtained by the above-mentioned method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will be able to select a blend of high and low temperature yarns and produce the desired pattern by any embroidery technique deemed appropriate so that the embroidered pattern can ultimately be converted into the desired shaped article.

3.2 obtaining thermoplastic cloth by knitting technology and products thereof

In some preferred embodiments, high and low temperature yarns are woven on a schedule into a single fabric, thereby creating regions of differing thermal properties on the fabric. Any conventional knitting technique may be used to knit the yarns of the present disclosure to form a fabric, examples of knitting methods including, but not limited to, Seamless (Seamless), Jacquard (Jacquard), double Jacquard (double Jacquard), quilted double Jacquard (quilted double Jacquard), bird's eye Jacquard (bird Jacquard), Single Jacquard (Single Jacquard), warp knit (warp knit), Cross tube (Cross Tubular), Jersey (Jersey), Rib (Rib), double knit (Interlock), and the like.

Referring to fig. 8A, a fabric is produced by jacquard knitting high and low temperature yarns, according to a specific embodiment of the present disclosure. The portions of the lines and strands defining the prismatic shapes are composed of high temperature yarns (e.g., PET) and the other regions are composed of low temperature yarns (e.g., low melting copolyester), thereby creating regions of different thermal properties in the fabric. Depending on the size and/or shape of the article intended to be made from the fabric, the intended area can then be heated sufficiently so that the yarns in the low temperature zone (i.e., the prism-shaped areas) are melted and, when the temperature is reduced, will subsequently harden, while the line portions remain soft during heating (as shown in fig. 8B). Based on the foregoing, the cloth can be bent into the desired 3D shape without using conventional Cutting, Quilting, and Molding techniques.

Referring again to fig. 9 and 10, fig. 9 and 10 are actual photographs of two products formed of cloth produced by jacquard knitting, respectively. Also, fig. 11 and 12 are actual photographic views of cloth manufactured by a double jacquard knitting method, respectively, by a similar technique, and the cloth can be shaped by heating similarly to the jacquard knitting, wherein fig. 11 depicts that the thermoplastic cloth manufactured by the double jacquard knitting method is formed into a 3D rectangular shape by thermal activation.

3.3 thermoplastic cloth obtained by tatting and products thereof

In other embodiments, the high and low temperature yarns are woven into the fabric in a programmed manner, thereby forming regions of different thermal properties in the fabric. Any conventional weaving technique may be applied to weave the yarns of the present disclosure to make a cloth. Examples of suitable yarns for weaving the present disclosure include, but are not limited to, double side woven (double side woven), Jacquard woven (Jacquard), cut line (Fil Coup é), and the like.

Similar to the cloth produced by the aforementioned embroidery or knitting techniques, the cloth produced by the weaving technique also has thermoplastic properties because high and low temperature yarns are woven in the weaving process.

The present invention will be described in more detail by the following examples, which are provided for the purpose of illustrating the present invention, but the scope of the present invention should not be limited to these examples.