Systems and methods for manufacturing knitted shoe uppers. An article of fully finished three-dimensionally weft knitted footwear is manufactured through a knitting process which can be performed by an automated V-bed flat knitting machine. During the knitting process, a plurality of knitted members are knitted into shape sequentially and connected to one another through knitted live hinges, each member being a ply, a layer, a layer portion or an appendage. The knitting machine manipulates the knitted members into their destined places as in the final product without cutting and sewing, thereby forming a seamless unitary textile construction. The process creates a seamless, full gauge, dimensionally stable footwear upper, as a unitary textile construction with an integrated anatomically appropriate heel. The entire upper, including the closure element of the upper, may be completed exclusively by the knitting machine, ready for the following shoe making process.
D04B 1/24 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
A43B 1/04 - Footwear characterised by the material made of fibres or fabrics made therefrom braided, knotted, knitted or crocheted
Systems and methods for manufacturing knitted shoe uppers. An article of fully finished three-dimensionally weft knitted footwear is manufactured through a knitting process which can be performed by an automated V-bed flat knitting machine. The knitting process includes manipulating one or more double-knit stitch types and joining the stitches exclusively in the knitting process to create a seamless upper to fit a foot. A resulting upper advantageously has no sewn seams and requires no manual post process to cut or sew the upper to create the dimensional shape. The process creates a seamless, full gauge, dimensionally stable footwear upper, as a unitary textile construction with an integrated anatomically appropriate heel. The entire upper, including the closure element of the upper, may be completed exclusively by the knitting machine, ready for the following shoe making process.
D04B 1/24 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
A43B 1/14 - Footwear characterised by the material made of plastics
System and method of manufacturing a unitary construction of a weft knit article with one or more warp insert in an integrated knitting process by using a weft knit machine. The unitary construction comprises one or more yarn materials which are incorporated into one or more weft and warp stitch structures. The knitting machine is equipped with a warp feeder assembly, including a weft knit warp feeder, a warp knitting guide needle block operable to hold a plurality of warp strands, a strand guide bar configured to guide the plurality of warp strands to the weft knit warp feeder, and a cam box. The cam box includes at least a weft stitch cam, a weft guard cam, a warp stitch cam, and a warp guard cam.
Systems and methods for manufacturing knitted shoe uppers. An article of fully finished three-dimensionally weft knitted footwear is manufactured through a knitting process which can be performed by an automated V-bed flat knitting machine. During the knitting process, a plurality of knitted members are knitted into shape sequentially and connected to one another through knitted live hinges, each member being a ply, a layer, a layer portion or an appendage. The knitting machine manipulates the knitted members into their destined places as in the final product without cutting and sewing, thereby forming a seamless unitary textile construction. The process creates a seamless, full gauge, dimensionally stable footwear upper, as a unitary textile construction with an integrated anatomically appropriate heel. The entire upper, including the closure element of the upper, may be completed exclusively by the knitting machine, ready for the following shoe making process.
D04B 1/24 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
A43B 1/04 - Footwear characterised by the material made of fibres or fabrics made therefrom braided, knotted, knitted or crocheted
An automated unspooling mechanism capable of dispensing of knitting material strands in a dynamically-controlled tension on a knitting machine. An unspooling device is configured to sense the tension of a strand fed to the knitting machine, and responsively adjust the strand deployment speed to avoid too little or too much strand dispensing without interrupting the knitting process. The unspooling device includes a variable motor drive that can rotate the strand package in various speeds, and a spring arm trigger that can sense the current tension of the dispensed material. The spring arm trigger can vary its arm position based on the sensed tension. The arm position is then processed and converted to a signal to vary the motor speed. Therefore, the deployment speed of the strands can be dynamically controlled based on a sensed tension of feeding the strand.
B65H 59/02 - Adjusting or controlling tension in filamentary material, e.g. for preventing snarlingApplications of tension indicators by regulating delivery of material from supply package
D04B 15/44 - Tensioning devices for individual threads
D04B 15/99 - Driving-gear not otherwise provided for electrically controlled
B65H 59/04 - Adjusting or controlling tension in filamentary material, e.g. for preventing snarlingApplications of tension indicators by regulating delivery of material from supply package by devices acting on package or support
B65H 59/38 - Adjusting or controlling tension in filamentary material, e.g. for preventing snarlingApplications of tension indicators by regulating speed of driving mechanism of unwinding, paying-out, forwarding, winding, or depositing devices, e.g. automatically in response to variations in tension
D04B 15/46 - Tensioning devices for individual threads for elastic threads
6.
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR KNITTING COMPOSITE PANEL STRUCTURES
A knitting mechanism for knitting a polymer reinforcing structure to a shape as predefine in the final product. Stiff materials in the form of knitting yarns are knitted on a V-bed weft knitting machine to create a polymer reinforcing panel structure and any additional knitted textile elements with completely finished the edges. The resulting three-dimensional textile element is a unitary construction completed entirely by the knitting machine in the knitting process, and is ready for a subsequent polymer resin application and/or a molding process.
B29B 11/16 - Making preforms characterised by structure or composition comprising fillers or reinforcements
D04B 1/22 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration
D04B 7/30 - Flat-bed knitting machines with independently-movable needles specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration
7.
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR KNITTING A POLYMER REINFORCING FIBER FOOTWEAR UPPER
Systems and methods for manufacturing knitted shoe uppers. An article of fully finished three-dimensionally weft knitted footwear is manufactured through a knitting process which can be performed by an automated V-bed flat knitting machine. The knitting process includes manipulating one or more double-knit stitch types and joining the stitches exclusively in the knitting process to create a seamless upper to fit a foot. The process creates a seamless, full gauge, dimensionally stable footwear upper, as a unitary textile construction with an integrated anatomically appropriate heel. The entire upper, including the closure element of the upper, may be completed exclusively by the knitting machine, ready for the following shoe making process. The knitting process includes knitting one or more reinforcement knitting yarns into one or more portions of the upper. These portions are then transformed into fiber-reinforced polymer composite fabric sections of the upper in a post process.
A43B 1/04 - Footwear characterised by the material made of fibres or fabrics made therefrom braided, knotted, knitted or crocheted
A43B 13/38 - Built-in insoles joined to uppers during the manufacturing process, e.g. structural insolesInsoles glued to shoes during the manufacturing process
B32B 5/10 - Layered products characterised by the non-homogeneity or physical structure of a layer characterised by structural features of a layer comprising fibres or filaments characterised by a fibrous layer reinforced with filaments
B32B 5/02 - Layered products characterised by the non-homogeneity or physical structure of a layer characterised by structural features of a layer comprising fibres or filaments
Systems and methods for manufacturing knitted shoe uppers. An article of fully finished three-dimensionally weft knitted footwear is manufactured through a knitting process which can be performed by an automated V-bed flat knitting machine. The knitting process includes manipulating one or more double-knit stitch types and joining the stitches exclusively in the knitting process to create a seamless upper to fit a foot. A resulting upper advantageously has no sewn seams and requires no manual post process to cut or sew the upper to create the dimensional shape. The process creates a seamless, full gauge, dimensionally stable footwear upper, as a unitary textile construction with an integrated anatomically appropriate heel. The entire upper, including the closure element of the upper, may be completed exclusively by the knitting machine, ready for the following shoe making process.
D04B 1/24 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
A43B 1/14 - Footwear characterised by the material made of plastics
Systems and methods are provided for feeding thread at a knitting machine. One embodiment is a thread feeding device which includes a spool that supplies thread to a knitting device through a thread path and a motor that drives the spool. The device and further includes a mobile guide in the thread path that changes position due to changes in thread tension as the knitting device draws thread through the mobile guide. The thread feeding device also includes a sensor that measures a change in position of the mobile guide, and a controller that determines an amount of tension applied to the thread by the knitting device based on the change in position, and adjusts a speed of a motor that drives the spool based on the amount of tension.
B65H 59/38 - Adjusting or controlling tension in filamentary material, e.g. for preventing snarlingApplications of tension indicators by regulating speed of driving mechanism of unwinding, paying-out, forwarding, winding, or depositing devices, e.g. automatically in response to variations in tension
B65H 59/04 - Adjusting or controlling tension in filamentary material, e.g. for preventing snarlingApplications of tension indicators by regulating delivery of material from supply package by devices acting on package or support
D04B 15/44 - Tensioning devices for individual threads
An article includes a knitted component of unitary knit construction. The knitted component has a first edge and a second edge. The knitted component has a length that is measured between the first edge and the second edge. The length is substantially fixed. The knitted component also includes a base structure and an adjustment member that is integrally knit to the base structure. The adjustment member includes a bunched region that is configured to slide along the base structure between a first position on the knitted component and a second position on the knitted component.
A43B 1/04 - Footwear characterised by the material made of fibres or fabrics made therefrom braided, knotted, knitted or crocheted
D04B 1/24 - Weft knitting processes for the production of fabrics or articles not dependent on the use of particular machinesFabrics or articles defined by such processes specially adapted for knitting goods of particular configuration wearing apparel
A41F 9/00 - Belts, girdles, or waistbands for trousers or skirts
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