Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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WO 93/22487 lPCT/EP93/01086
Tex~ile ma~erial
The invention refers to a textile ma~erial and a process f~r manufacturing it.
In the processing of textile materials, especially in the case of woven
fabrics, war~knitted and weft-lcnitted fabrics, etc., semi-finished waste
material is produced which--unless i~ can be used in relatively small
quantities f~r hobby purposes--must be ei~her discarded or reduced back to
fibers. Such fibers can only be spun into relatively coarse yarn. The resulting
fibers can never be remilled as well as the original material.
No longer millable textile wastes are used in the paper industry for
manufacturing felt board, or used in the layers of corrugated cardboard. Their
former use in the manufacture of cleaning cloths and scrub rags has sharply
declined, on the one hand because of the cons~antly growing demands, on the
other han~tiecause conventional scrub rags are being replaced by formed
fabrics and special paper qualities. For those reasons, a large percentage of
textile waste must be disposed ;n dumps today.
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S~callecl "r~g rugs", made c)f textile ~astesJ are known. For t~ese,
p~rticlllatly strips of w~ste m~terial ~re bo~md intc~ a kind of yarn and woven
as weft b~rs into such r~t~.
Al~o known is the prc~duc~ion of nrnat~ quilt blankets, in which llsed
textiles or f~bric remn~nts ar~ sewn in ornate arrangement~ onto a base.
U~ually the fabric ~emnan~; ~re carefully selecte~ d ma~che~" ~nd t~elr
margins are ~pplie~ to the b~se.
Objective of the presen~ invention is to provide a textil~ material in
which pieces of an alread~ proc~sse~ textile fabric are assembled in a ~imple
fashion into a new material.
Thîs obiective is ~chieved by me~n~ of ~he in~trention as described in
claim l. The proce~ for producin~ the fla~ textile struc~ure i~ de~cribed in
claim 11. The subclaims cc~nstitu~e adv~nt~geous further developments.
As ~ result of ~he desi~n of the tex~ile matelial accor~ing to thQ
invention in such a way th~t at leas~ one pieced layer m~3de of processed
textile material i~ ~onnected o~rer its entire surface with ~ carri~r by means o~
needlin~ or ~onding, a new textile materi~l is ~re~ted which is suitable for
further processing techniques, espec~ y for making new ~tems of clothin~,
et~. The textile mater;al ac~ordin~ to the in~renti~n i~ parti~ larly sultable as a
linln~ material, for ex~mple for rain-proof items of clothing.
l~e materi~l has fa~orable service characteri~tics such as a relatively
high longitudinal and lateral tensile strength. The textile n~erial according
to ~he inven~i~n also altows the economic utillzation of textile wastes. 1~ also
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represen~s a product, which, ap~rt from the properties of the textile fabrfc~ :
~rom w~ich the pieces ~o be proce~ed oliginate~ char~cteriz~s ~he n~aterial as
~c~n~mic?~lly pri~ed in co~lp~rison with conventional textile m~teAals of this
kinà.
In accordance with an adv~nta~eous eml~odiment, it is provi~ed ~h~t
pie~ed layer is arrAn~ed on bo~h sic~es of the carrier. This resu~ts in ~ textile
material whose appe~nce ~an be e;ther ~he same o~ quite different on both
çides, and whose bs~th sides cover th~ el-~re surface.
Advanta~eously, pieces for the ~extile material ~t~cor~ing to the
invention can be produced by stamping or cutting. In the case of ~h~dless
stamping, sh~pe~ are preferred which )e~d to an even ~tructure nf de~ired
thickness. The pieces can be from several millime~ers to several ~en~m~ter~
in width and length. The cheapest and most ~dvan~ageous pro~ucti~n of
pieces is by cutting them into strip~, with the strips havln~ ~ wid~h of 1 to 6
mm and a len~th of 30 to ~0 mm. Ln these size~, the required pieces can ~e
particularly well integrated ?~nd evenly distributed over the carrier; they ~l~ohave a uniform look after tile manufacturin~ process is con~pleted.
If the indlvidual p;ece~ consist vf different textile fabrics, ~i~h the ma-
ter;als differin~ not only in coTnposition but also in color, the ex~ernal ap~ar-
ance of ~he procluced textile material can be appropriately manipulated. If the
pieces are stamped or cut out to form uniform structure~, ~nd if they are of ``
u~ rm size and shape (heart-shaped, fringed, smootllly ~ut, etc.3, the pr~
ducecl tex~ile mater;al is particularly ~ell sui~ed for making f~r~her products.
In an adv~nfageous embodiment according to cl~im 7, ~he ~arrier
consis~s of ~ wo~en, warp-knitted or formed fabric, of foil c)r mesh material,
such as polypropy~ene ribbons, or of mon~ or multifilament~ It is
advant~geous if the
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charac~teristics of the'seIec~ed ~rrier cvrrespond ~c) the clesiled me~hanical
c~aracteristics of ~he finished prs~duct, especially in term~ of longi~udinal ~nd
lateral tensile sttengtll.
The desired ~haracteristics of the finished produc~s c~n aLso be
specifically influenc~d because of the speafic arrangement of the text~le pleces~n the c~rrier, ~g~ irregular, par~llel, or sandwiched.
As ~n embodiment it is int~nded tha~ either ~he carrier is provlcled
with an adhesive layer applied to one Dr two ~ides, or tha~ the textile ple~es
are providecl with an aclhesi~:e l~yer or are impregn~e~l wi~ an ~dhesive,
and tha~ ~he carrier as well as the ~ex~ile pieces or bi~; are provid~d wi~h ~
?~dhesive. This is of impc~rt~nce especially when, ~ indicated above, sever~l
pie~ed layers are to be applied.
The textile struchlre made ~ith ~he process accordiT~g to the invent~on
is particullarly easy t~ sew and to cut. It can be use~ ~s raw m~eri~ r
number of other products; the textile s~ruch~re m~de with the protess
accordin~ ~o the inven~ion is particularly well s~lited as material for l~ning
fabric, insulation màterial, ~iping cloths, decorations, w~ll coverings, or ~ ~ninterlining fabric.
. The proces~ for nnakin~ the ~extile material according to the inven~ion
is carried c>ut ~n s~ch a way th~ the pieces originating from a proeessed textile
ma~eri~l are first }aid fla-t on a carrier, co~rering its entire surface, ~nd then
connected with ~ame by means of needlin% or bc)nding.
ln cas~of~eedling, the pieces ?~re only pa~ively pene~rated by the fib~rs
of the fiber l~yer laid on the pieced layer, and in case ~f several layers they ~re
csnnected with each other and in any case connected to the carrier. For this
purpose, prior to needlin~, ffbers are applied ~o ~he needlin~ slde of th~ pleces,
for example in the form of a light fiber fleece. If the ~hreads are very loosely
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connected, and if the pieces are of appropriate size and the needles are of an
appropriate type, ~he embodiment according to claim 13 allows that threads or
fibers can be pulled out of the pieces and used for active needling. With this
type of manufacturing, additional fibèrs or an additional flber fleece may, at
least sometimes, become unnecessary. In the case of very coarse weft-knit~ed
fabrics, such as hand-knitted sweaters, many individual fibers can even be
taken up by the needles and used to loop the pieces with each other and wit~
the carrier. The needling proce~s is performed in particular wi~h needle
felting machines, with needles of appropria~e type and size arranged on
needle boards or needle bars. In the case of very dense and s~iff pieces, for
example with pieces of jeans ma~erial, s~rong needles are required which can
easily penetrate the pieces with the fibers in accordance with the needling
speed and needling force. In extreme cases, finely threaded pieces can be laid
in no more than one or two layers onto a loosely bondecl fleece material and
needled from the back with these fibers. ~ that way it is possible to produce
interesting light textile materials.
Unproblema~ic is the needling of pieces made from warp-knitted
fabrics, for example tricot fabrics such as cot~on T shirts, track suit materiat,
etc., which are relatively easy to penetrate with needles and binding fibers.
The same applies to coarse sweater-like pieces which--if a carrier of warp-
knitted fabric is used--can be made into a textile fabric for the garment
industry. Other e~amples for the utilization of textile fabrics according to theinvention are uses for technical purposes such as loops made with pieces of
raw fabrics such as cretonne, madapollam, etc.
The bonding of bits laid on the carrier is accomplished with increased
temperature and increased pressure In an advantageous embodiment, high
temperature and pressure can be applied by means of a hot-rolling process.
For that purpose, the carrier with the bi~s applied to it may for example run
through a pair of rollers. The carrier may also be provided with an adhesive
layer which can already bond at room temperature. In that case, a carrier with
the layer of bits arranged on it mus~ only be subjected to pressure, such as in a
cold-rolling process. When the pieces are arranged on the carrier layer in a
specific manner, the desired characteristics of ~he finished product can be
influenced. Other materials may be bonded at the same time. When laying
the pieces or bits in several layers, care must be taken that even ~e l~yer
farthest removed from ~he carrier is bonded with ~he carrier. This can be
achieved either by making the adhesive lay~r on the carrier thicker or by
providing the bits themselves, which are containe~ for example in ~he second
layer, with an adhesive layer or by impregnaling them with adhesive. In a
special form, only parts of the carrier can be covered with bits, which will
result in some bare surfaces and thus in a novel kind of pattern.
In an advantageous embo~iment, the process provides that after the
textile pieces or bits are laid on the carrier, they are aligned at first in such a
way that they are at a prese~ angle in relation to ~he carrier and are then
bonded together with the same. The result is that the bits are given a certain
alignment which they retain. They are bonded to the carrier only along their
"bearing edge or contact edge". Flat structures made in this fashion are
characterized by a voluminous appearance. Furthermore, a particularly
advantageous surface coverage can be achieved with this process step. If a
very good adhesive sheet is used as the carrier, it is possible to arrange the bits
in imbricated or terry cloth fashion.
The finished textile material can be additionally streng~hened, for
example by spraying, impregnating or coa~ing it with adhesive, or by applying
a synthetic r~sin dispersion. That is practica1 if the finished product must
have greater durability, strength, density, etc.
The pieces ~r bits can also be mixed with thermoplastically bonding
fibers or pieces such as fiber balls This leads to stronger bonding and
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increases the durability of the product to be made. If further effects are to beachieved, such as glitter effects or color points, Tnetallized pieces of foil,
tex~iles, etc. can also be added.
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An embodiment of the invention is described below wi~ reference to
the drawings, showing the following:
Fig. 1: A schematic view of a layout to produce textile material according to
the invention.
Fig. 2: A s~ematic view of a bonded ~extile material with aligned
textile bits.
E~ig. 3: A schematic view of a section through a textile material prior to
needling.
Pig. 4: A schematic view of a section through a textile material after
needling.
A layout for implementing the process is provided with a delivery
arrangement 1, a conveyance arrangement 2, and a roller pair 3. The pieces or
bits 5 of the processed textile material delivered by delivery arrangement 1 arelaid on carrier 4. Bonding of pieces 5 with carrier 4 can already be done when
the same are laid up~n the carrier; ~his is the case when carrier 4 must be
provided with an adhesive layer that already bonds at room temperature.
The bonded connection is subsequently strengthened under pressure when it
runs througl~ rollers 3. The bonded connection between carrier 4 and bits 5
can also be made under the influence of tempera~ure and pressure, for
example in a hot-rolling process. At the end of the manufacturing process,
~he pieces or bits not bonded are removed with a brush.
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l~ig. 2 shows a textile material which is provided with bits 5 arranged
and aligned OIl a carrier 4. The bits 5 are connec~ed wi~h carrier 4 only along
their bottom contact edge 7.
The textile material 7 shown in Fig. 3 is provided with a carrier 8, a first ~-tex~ile pieced layer 10 and a second textile pieced layer 9. Pieced layer 10,
which is situated on the bottom side of carrier 8, consists of pieces lOat 10b -:
which have a very loose fiber bond, so that during a needling process,
needling is done with the fibers pulled out of pieces lOa, 1~b. In the case s)f
pieced layer 9, needling is done with needling fibers taken from a light fiber
fleece 11 arranged on pieced layer 9. The individual pieces lOa, 1ûb, 9a, 9b arerigidly connected by means of needling in textile material 7 with carrier 8. In
a needling process, needling is first done from the ~op (pieced layer 93, and
fibers 12 are needled through textile layers 9,10 and carrier 8. The fibers of
layer 10 can be needled from below into layer 1~, carrier 8 and partly into layer
9 immediately following the needling process of layer 9, or in a second process
from the top after reversing the flat textile structure.
Of course, another possibility of the flat textile structure according to
the invention is an embodiment which is provided with only one pieced
layer (layer 9 or 10).
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