Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
126q935
MEASURING FRAME
This invention relates to a measuring frame for textiles
or textile piece goods.
The frame of the invention facilitates measurement
either as a quality and uniformity control upon the
articles as originally produced. or as a control upon
the quality or properties of the article after
predetermined conditions of use, more especially washing
and wear conditions.
It is well known to carry out in a generalised manner
measurements before and after washing of garments so as
to test for shrinkage. This of course suffers from the
disadvantage that it is not easy to earticularise or
standardise the conditions either of treatment or
measurement, so that the results are of limited
usefulness.
Attempts have therefore been made in the past to provide
various measuring device or frames on which articles can
be supported and measured before and after various
conditions of treatment and use. One such article is
described in U.S. Patent 4 058 874, and consists of a
1260~93S
frame for holding a tee shirt or like garment under
conditions of tension which are measured by an angularly
moveable pointer arm against a scale. However, such a
device is restricted in use to tee shirts or similar
tubular knit devices of equivalent shape, and is
restricted moreover to the stretch qualities of such
garments.
The present invention is concerned with a measuring
frame of more general purpose construction, with which
tubular fabric garments with arms, sleeves, legs or
leg-openings in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials
can be tested for agreement with manufacturing
specification, or for agreement with washing and
handling dimensional-change performance specifications
generally.
In one aspect the invention consists of a generally
planar measuring frame for textile goods, ~ymmetrical
about a vertical axis and comprising side restraint
edges and top restraint edges for the textile goods,
together with at least one measurement scale extending
from an upper datum level parallel to the vertical axis
and at least one other measurement scale transverse to
the vertical axis in which frame (a) the side restraint
edges are displaceable towards or away from the vertical
axis and immobilisable to give a known transverse fabric
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dimension measurable on the transverse measurement scale
and (b) the top restraint edges support the fabric to
give a vertical dimension, to a predetermined lower part
of the fabric structure. measurable from the upper datum
level,
whereby measurements of the veLtical dimension may be
taken at a fixed transverse dimension of the textile
goods before, during or after application of a known
downward force.
Preferably, such a frame comprises a pair of generally
coplanar vertically mounted rectangular leaves mutually
rela~ively displaceable in predetermined graduated
increments in the plane at right angles to their length,
being thereby of selectively variable and known total
circumference or girth when measured in a horizontal
plane.
Preferably moreover the leaves are located for
displacement in the gap within two parallel sheets,
preferably transparent, forming a static part of the
frame and holding incrementally configured support means
for the leaves.
It is usual to have at least one measuring scale
extending vertically down the centre line of the frame
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to be visible at or through a forward face and/or at or
through a rearward face, and/or to have at least one
measuring scales extending vertically down the edge of
each leaf. It is additionally valuable to have measuring
scales along the configured support means, which can for
example be rack-like elements extending horizontally
across between the spaced sheets to support the leaves
equidistantly from a centre line.
The equipment as defined above is typically u~ed with
attachable weights, connected at or near a lower edge of
the textile goods by a form of jaws preferably extending
along substantially the whole length of the said lower
edge.
Generally speaking the arrangement is such that a
garment with a tubular portion will be pulled down to
extend circumferentially around the frame as adjusted to
a predetermined size. Thus, the circumference or girth
of the garment is fixed at each calibrated position. The
garment can be held to this specified girth throughout
the remainder of the measuring procedure.
Conveniently, the spaced sheets are made of transparent
materials, such as rigid polymeric material for example
that known under the Trademark "Perspex"
(polymethylmethacrylate). The adjustable leaves moreover
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may also be made of transparent polymer as may the
support rack members. It has been found preferable to
have at least two such rack members whereby upper and
lower portions of the leaf can be fixed; in practice we
S utilise three for additional stability.
A further advantage of the use of transparent polymer is
that the measuring scales can be located within the
polymer so that they do not become worn or obscured in
use.
The invention will be further described with reference
to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure l is an exploded view of the assembled measuringframe, showing the interrelationship of the major
components,
Figure 2 is a horizontal section through an upper part
of one half of the measuring frame,
Figure 3 shows in a scrap view the configuration of the
rack used in the measuring frame. and
Figure 4 shows diagrammaticaly the assembled measuring
frame in use.
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It will be appreciated that Figure 1 is diagrammatic,
and that the proportions or relative sizes of the different
features may be shown in an exaggerated form for clarity of
diagrammatic illustration.
The measuring frame consists in general terms of two
opposed sheets of "Perspex" (a registered trademark for
polymethylmethacrylate), referenced la and lb enclosing both a
longitudinal vertical spine member 2 and a plurality o~ rack
members 3 on which can be ad~ustably positioned a rlght-hand and
lU left-hand ad~ustment leaf 4 and 5 respectively, also made of
" Perspex " .
The opposed transparent sheets la and lb are
essentially identical and are arranged symmetrically. They each
have a substantially vertical face portion 6 and an integral foot
portion 7 bent at right angles to the face portion 6. They are
asse~bled together primarily by four ma~or fixing bolts 8,
passing through spacers such as 9, and held by nuts at lO, the
heads of the bolts, and the nuts, being conveniently recessed
into countersunk portions of the sheet. This assembly of the two
sheets can either be free standing or can if deslred be attached
at foot portions 7 to a single base for further rigidity.
The spine member 2 is also located between the
assembled
.
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sheets, and should therefore have the same thickness as the
length of spacers 9. It extends from the top to a location near
the bottom of the vertical part 6 of the sheets, and can be att-
ached to one or both sheets la,lb by suitable screws or bolts
fixing its relative position.
Each rack is in the form of an elongate rectangle again
of "Perspex" with shaped teeth along an upper edge. Each rack
can be fixed to the nearer polymer sheet las shown below in more
detail in Figure 2) by suitably positioned screws or bolts and/or
can be fixed to the spine itself as an integral unit. As shown
in the drawing, there are conveniently six such racks, arranged
at three levels with the teeth 11 so formed as to face away from
the spine in each instance.
The right-hand adjustment leaf 4 consists of a planar
sheet of "Perspex" material provided at its top edge 12 and at
its side or long edge 13 with a strip of white polymeric. The
top edges 12 are top restraint edges for the textile goods and
the side edges 13 are side restraint edges. Perspex sheet 4 is
additionally provided with an inwardly extending gap or recess
14, and with three pairs of protruding pins 15,16 and 17 as
shown.
The left-hand adjustment leaf 5 is similarly equipped
and is accordingly not described in detail. Only part of it is
shown.
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~ e
The static part of the assembly of~ re 1 consists
therefore of the two upright sheets la and lb, the
spine 2 and the racks 3, all fixed in place. The
adjustable parts consist of the two adjustment leaves 4
S and 5, each of which can be variously located so that
the pins 15, 16 and 17 sit, between teeth 11 of threee
extending racks 3, at any desired position. We have
found the use of three racks to give advantageous
stability.
The assembly is provided with front and back measuring
scales 18 each s~arting from a datum position at the top
of the spine 2; two similar measuring scales 19 on the
outer faces of the edge pieces 13, and measuring scales
20, 21 and 22 upon successive racks of the structure.
The use of these measuring scales will be described in
more detail below.
Figure 2 shows a detail of the assembly of Figure 1. It
will be seen that the spine member 2 has measuring
scales 18 on its front and rear faces protec~ed behind
the transparent polymer layer and that the fixing of the
rack 20 (for example) to the sheet la leaves a space
~ persp~
adequate to accommodate the per~pcl~ leaf 4a of the
adjustable member 4. Moreover, the front and rear edges
23, 24 respectively of the edge piece 13 project
Zs slightly from the outer faces of the assembly, for easy
~264935
handling. Also, the recess 14 accommodates the upper
spacer 9. The leaves are preferably short enough to miss
the lower s~acers 9 anyway.
Figure 3 shows the toe edge of the rack accommodating
pins 15, from which the somewhat angled orientation of
teeth 11 can be clearly shown.
Figure 4 shows diagrammatically the device in use for
measu~ing dimension-change characteristics, under
controlled conditions, of a singlet 24 shown in dotted
lines. To carry out the desired measurement each side
piece 13 is gripped, (by its edges 23, 24) and placed
by hand so that the pins 15, 16 and 17 are held by the
various teeth 11 in the three successive racks. Both
adjustment leaves are similarly positioned,and the
values on the measuring scales 20, 21 and 22 are noted.
(These measuring scales can give merely an indication of
the separation of the edges of the side pieces 4 and 5,
or may indicate directly a reading equivalent to the
total girth of the assembly as shown by ~he quantity G
in Figure 4).
Once the frame has been set up to a desired girth in
this fashion, a singlet or other desired article of
clothing is eased over the frame. As shown by way of
example, it finally arrives at a position in which the
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shoulder straps or portions are supported across the top
of the frame ~typically, over the portions 12) and in
which the lower edge of the garment is isolated somewhat
down the frame. This can be achieved under a known load,
for example, a set of four 0.5-kilogram weights each
attached to a "bulldog" type of clip with sufficiently
lengthy jaws that enough of the hem on the forward and
rear faces is involved.
The measurements of the garment, both at the front and
back faces and to each side,can be taken at the lower
garment edge. There is thus an accurate and reproducible
reading of the length of the front and back LB,LF,
and of the left and right-hand side LR, LL at a
known girth (G). A similar reading can be taken after
washing or wear, to see to what extent the dimensions
have altered and also to see whether the dimensions have
altered uniformly as between the front and back or as
between the two sides.
The device is thus a simple and robust form of quality
control and pcoduct measurement in the field of soft
textile goods. It can be utilised not only for singlets
as shown, but for any articles which can be restrained
at an upper edge of a measuring frame and held at a
desired girth by two outwardly displaceable outer edges.
