KNITTED STRUCTURE AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF

The present disclosure provides for a knitted structure, comprising a base material and a fused knitted part. The fused knitted part comprising a first fiber, wherein the first fiber extends in a loop form through the base material to bond to the base material, and at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion.

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Description
BACKGROUND 1. Field of the Disclosure

The present disclosure relates to a knitted structure and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly to a knitted structure which can be utilized for manufacturing shoes, and a method for manufacturing the knitted structure.

2. Description of the Related Art

“Knit shoes” are currently popular in the market. An upper of these knit shoes may be formed entirely by a single fiber through knitting. Such knitted upper has the advantages of softness and good stretchability, but its strength is relatively low. Hence, the knitted upper deforms easily. Besides, it is difficult to form a large scale three-dimensional structure on the surface of the knitted upper.

In addition, the strength and elasticity of such knitted upper are generally distributed uniformly. That is, it is difficult to provide supporting and locking effects at specific locations of the knitted upper. If the supporting and locking effects at specific locations are necessary, the material of the fiber at these locations must be changed, or the weaving process must be repeated at these locations to thicken portions of the upper at the specific locations. However, the supporting and locking effects achieved by the aforementioned methods still cannot meet the needs of high-intensity exercise.

SUMMARY

Hence, the present disclosure provides for a knitted structure, of which the distribution of strength and elasticity can be precisely adjusted.

The present disclosure provides for a knitted structure, comprising a base material and a fused knitted part. The fused knitted part comprising a first fiber, wherein the first fiber extends in a loop form through the base material to bond to the base material, and at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion.

The present disclosure further provides for a method for manufacturing the aforementioned knitted structure, comprising: (a) providing the base material; (b) providing the first fiber, and forming the first fiber in the loop form extending through the base material to bond to the base material; and (c) heating the first fiber, such that the portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to form the fused knitted part.

The present disclosure further provides for a shoe structure comprising the aforementioned knitted structure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure provides for knitted structure, comprising:

a base material; and

a fused knitted part comprising a first fiber, wherein the first fiber extends in a loop form through the base material to bond to the base material, and at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion.

For example, the knitted structure of the present disclosure can be clothing, shoes, hats, accessories, etc., or its raw materials or semi-finished products. Alternatively, the knitted structure may be a craft, or may be used for other purposes, which is not limited in the present disclosure. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the knitted structure may be a part of a shoe structure, such as an entire upper, or a portion of an upper of the shoe structure.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the base material can be any kind of fabric, such as a woven fabric (or interlaced fabric), or a non-woven fabric. Furthermore, the base material may be a substantially continuous film, such as a plastic film. In an embodiment, the base material may be a woven fabric to provide better structural strength and dimensional stability. For example, the base material may include an interlaced second fiber. Preferably, the interlaced second fibers are made of at least one material selected from the group consisting of polyamidoamine, polyparaphenylene terephthalamide, polyolefin, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polyacrylonitrile (PAN), and mixtures thereof.

Hereinafter in the present disclosure, the “fiber” has a length greater than a thousand times a width thereof. Preferably, the interlaced second fiber is a filament fiber (or so-called filament), which is a fiber with a continuous length. For example, a length-to-width ratio of the filament fiber is greater than 108.

Hereinafter in the present disclosure, the term “interlacing/interlaced” may refer to interlacing one or more fibers in a weaving, knitting, crocheting, or braiding manner, by hand or by using a machine. For example, the fibers may be interlaced by forming warp and weft yarns which alternatively cross each other. Alternatively, the fibers may form one or more yarns, and the yarn(s) may form loops which are continuously stacked and entangled with each other.

In the knitted structure of the present disclosure, the fused knitted part bonds to the base material and includes the first fiber. The first fiber is preferably a filament fiber. The first fiber may be a thermoplastic fiber, such that the first fiber can be easily fused and bonded to the fiber portion. The “thermoplastic fiber” may refer to a fiber including a thermoplastic material or made of the thermoplastic material. The thermoplastic material is exposed on a surface of the thermoplastic fiber, such that the thermoplastic fiber can be fused by heat and/or pressure.

Preferably, a material of the first fiber includes thermoplastic elastomer, which may include, but is not limited to, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), thermoplastic polyester elastomer (TPEE) or thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO). The TPU, for example, includes polyester-based TPUs, which are mainly derived from adipic acid esters; and polyether-based TPUs, which are mainly based on tetrahydrofuran ethers. The TPEE, for example, includes polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polybutylene terephthalate (PBT). The TPO, for example, includes polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

The first fiber extends in a loop form through the base material to bond to the base material. For example, the base material may include opposite first and second surfaces. The first fiber may extend through the first and second surfaces of the base material in an embroidery-like manner, thus the first fiber can bond to the base material. As such, the first fiber may form patterns on the first surface of the base material. In some embodiments, the first fiber may also form patterns on the second surface of the base material. In addition, in some embodiments, the knitted structure may further include an auxiliary fiber for fixing the position of the first fiber. A material of the auxiliary fiber may be the same as or different from a material of the first fiber. For example, the first fiber may be substantially located on the first surface of the base material, and the auxiliary fiber may be substantially located on the second surface of the base material. The auxiliary fiber may be tangled with the first fiber, so as to fix the position of the first fiber.

In the fused knitted part, at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion. The term “fuse/fused” may refer to a portion of the first fiber which is melted by heat (or by heat and pressure), and is partially attached to and/or covers a fiber portion, thus is bonded to or joined with the fiber portion after cooling. It is noteworthy that the term “fuse/fused” does not require that the fiber portion also be melted by heat and/or pressure. For example, said “at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion” may refer to both the portion of the first fiber and the fiber portion are melted and thus are bonded or joined together; or may refer to only the portion of the first fiber is melted to attach to and/or cover the fiber portion which is not melted, thus the portion of the first fiber is bonded to the fiber portion.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the fiber portion may be another portion of the first fiber. In other words, the fiber portion fused with the portion of the first fiber is also located at the first fiber. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the fiber portion may be a portion of another fiber, such as a portion of the interlaced second fiber or a portion of the aforementioned auxiliary fiber.

In the knitted structure of the present disclosure, since the first fiber forms the fused knitted part on the base material, distribution of strength and elasticity of the knitted structure may be adjusted by arranging the position of the fused knitted part. Hence, different positions of the knitted structure can be provided with different strength and elasticity, thus the applicability of the knitted structure can be improved. For example, the knitted structure can be used as an upper of shoes. Due to the arrangement of the fused knitted part, the strength and elasticity at instep and ankle can be adjusted separately to achieve the effects of supporting and locking.

Besides, relative positions of the portion of the first fiber and the fiber portion can be fixed since they are fused and bonded together. Hence, the elasticity of the knitted structure can be decreased at the fused position, and the structural strength can be increased. That is, by adjusting fusing condition of the knitted part (e.g., fusing ratio at each position), the distribution of strength and elasticity of the knitted structured can be further refined. Hence, the distribution of strength and elasticity can be precisely adjusted, thus providing favorable supporting and locking effects.

In an embodiments, the fused knitted part can be formed by heating (or heating and pressing) the portion of the first fiber (and the fiber portion). During such process, a release paper having a specific three-dimensional pattern may be stacked on the fused knitted part, so that the pattern of the release paper can be transferred to the surface of the fused knitted part. Hence, the fused knitted part can have a special three-dimensional pattern, and special color and visual effects.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the fused knitted part may further include a fused region and a non-fused region. That is, the first fiber may extend through the fused region and the non-fused region. The first fiber may be fused and bonded to the fiber portion in the fused region, and may be not fused in the non-fused region. By arranging positions of the fused region and the non-fused region, a pattern may be formed in the fused knitted part, and the strength and elasticity may be adjusted in each region.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the fused knitted part may cover the entire base material, or may cover only a portion of the base material. Alternatively, the knitted structure may include a plurality of the fused knitted parts each covering a portion of the base material. These fused knitted parts may respectively include fibers with different materials or properties, and the fused ratio and range may be different among them.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first fiber may be a single-component fiber. That is, the first fiber is merely made of the thermoplastic material. Alternatively, the first fiber may be a multi-component fiber, such as including a first component and a second component. The first component may be the aforementioned thermoplastic material, and the second component may be another fiber material which is not thermoplastic. For example, the first fiber may be a sheath-core composite fiber, a side-by-side composite fiber or a segmented-pie composite fiber, etc., which is not limited in the present disclosure.

The knitted structure of the present disclosure may further include an auxiliary layer which is disposed on a surface of the base material. The first fiber extends in the loop form through the base material and the auxiliary layer to bond at least a portion of the auxiliary layer to the base material. For example, the auxiliary layer may be disposed on the first surface of the base material, and the first fiber may cover at least a portion of the auxiliary layer. For example, the auxiliary layer may be a stabilizer or lining for embroidery. The first fiber may completely cover the auxiliary layer. Therefore, the auxiliary layer may hardly be seen from the first surface of the substrate. Alternatively, the first fiber may be bonded to the base material in a manner similar to applique embroidery. That is, the first fiber may only cover and extend through a peripheral region of the auxiliary layer, while the central region of the auxiliary layer is not covered.

With the use of the auxiliary layer, the structural strength and thickness of the covered area thereof can be further adjusted, and the fused knitted part can be significantly protrude from the surface of the base material, thus increasing the three-dimensional impression of the knitted structure. In addition, the material of the auxiliary layer may be different from the material of the base material, which may provide air blocking, abrasion resistance, supporting, and locking effects. The auxiliary layer may prevent the first fiber from sliding during formation of the fused knitted part, thus improving positioning accuracy of the fused knitted part. In addition, in another embodiment, the auxiliary layer may be disposed on the second surface of the base material, without being exposed on the first surface of the base material.

The knitted structure of the present disclosure may further include a cushion layer disposed between the base material and the auxiliary layer. For example, the cushion layer may be disposed on the first surface of the base material, and the auxiliary layer may be disposed on and cover the cushion layer. A size of the auxiliary layer may be generally larger than a size of the cushion layer. As described above, the first fiber may only cover the peripheral region of the auxiliary layer, while the central region of the auxiliary layer is not covered. The cushion layer may be disposed at the central region of the auxiliary layer, such that the first fiber may not extend through the cushion layer. In an embodiment, the cushion layer may be a rigid material, so that the knitted structure of the present disclosure may be provided with the functions of preventing collision and impact. In another embodiment, the cushion layer may be a soft and elastic material, thus providing favorable cushioning effect and thick feel of the knitted structure.

In an embodiment, the knitted structure of the present disclosure may further include a cover layer covering the fused knitted part and bonded to the fused knitted part. That is, the cover layer may be bonded to the base material by the fused knitted part. A material of the cover layer may be different from the material of the base material, thus providing the knitted structure with various surface properties.

The present disclosure further provides for a method for manufacturing the aforementioned knitted structure, comprising:

(a) providing the base material;

(b) providing the first fiber, and forming the first fiber in the loop form extending through the base material to bond to the base material; and

(c) heating the first fiber, such that the portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to form the fused knitted part.

In step (a), the base material may be the same as that described above, such as including the interlaced second fiber. In step (b), with the aid of, for example, a plateless digital design, the first fiber may extend through specific positions of the base material in an embroidery-like manner, so as to form a pattern at the specific positions on the surface of the base material.

Then, in step (c), the first fiber may be heated and pressed simultaneously. A release paper may be stacked on the fused knitted part, so as to transfer a surface pattern of the release paper to the fused knitted part in step (c). In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the heating temperature and/or the pressing pressure may be adjusted in step (c), such that the fusing condition of the fused knitted part may be adjusted, and the strength and elasticity of the fused knitted part may thus be adjusted. Besides, the heating and/or pressing area can be adjusted, thus the fused knitted part may have different properties among different regions thereof.

The present disclosure further provides for a shoe structure comprising the aforementioned knitted structure. For example, the knitted structure may be an entire upper, or a portion of an upper of the shoe structure. That is, the knitted structure can be combined with the sole and other components to form the shoe structure.

While the present disclosure has been described and illustrated with reference to specific embodiments thereof, these descriptions and illustrations are not limiting. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The illustrations may not be necessarily drawn to scale. There may be distinctions between the artistic renditions in the present disclosure and the actual apparatus due to manufacturing processes and tolerances. There may be other embodiments of the present disclosure which are not specifically illustrated. The specification and drawings are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation, material, composition of matter, method, or process to the objective, spirit and scope of the present disclosure. All such modifications are intended to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto. While the methods disclosed herein have been described with reference to particular operations performed in a particular order, it will be understood that these operations may be combined, sub-divided, or re-ordered to form an equivalent method without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure. Accordingly, unless specifically indicated herein, the order and grouping of the operations are not limitations of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A knitted structure, comprising:

a base material; and
a fused knitted part comprising a first fiber, wherein the first fiber extends in a loop form through the base material to bond to the base material, and at least a portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to a fiber portion.

2. The knitted structure of claim 1, wherein the base material comprises an interlaced second fiber.

3. The knitted structure of claim 1, wherein a material of the first fiber includes thermoplastic elastomer.

4. The knitted structure of claim 1, wherein the first fiber is a sheath-core composite fiber, a side-by-side composite fiber or a segmented-pie composite fiber.

5. The knitted structure of claim 1, wherein the first fiber includes a first component and a second component, the first component is fused, and the second component is not fused.

6. The knitted structure of claim 1, wherein the fiber portion fused with the portion of the first fiber is another portion of the first fiber.

7. The knitted structure of claim 1, further comprising an auxiliary layer disposed on a surface of the base material, the first fiber extends in the loop form through the base material and the auxiliary layer to bond at least a portion of the auxiliary layer to the base material.

8. The knitted structure of claim 7, further comprising a cushion layer disposed between the base material and the auxiliary layer.

9. The knitted structure of claim 1, further comprising a cover layer covering the fused knitted part and bonded to the fused knitted part.

10. A method for manufacturing the knitted structure of claim 1, comprising:

(a) providing the base material;
(b) providing the first fiber, and forming the first fiber in the loop form extending through the base material to bond to the base material; and
(c) heating the first fiber, such that the portion of the first fiber is fused and bonded to form the fused knitted part.

11. A shoe structure comprising the knitted structure of claim 1.

12. The shoe structure of claim 11, wherein the base material comprises an interlaced second fiber.

13. The shoe structure of claim 11, wherein a material of the first fiber includes thermoplastic elastomer.

14. The shoe structure of claim 11, wherein the first fiber is a sheath-core composite fiber, a side-by-side composite fiber or a segmented-pie composite fiber.

15. The shoe structure of claim 11, wherein the first fiber includes a first component and a second component, the first component is fused, and the second component is not fused.

16. The shoe structure e of claim 11, wherein the fiber portion fused with the portion of the first fiber is another portion of the first fiber.

17. The shoe structure of claim 11, further comprising an auxiliary layer disposed on a surface of the base material, the first fiber extends in the loop form through the base material and the auxiliary layer to bond at least a portion of the auxiliary layer to the base material.

18. The shoe structure e of claim 17, further comprising a cushion layer disposed between the base material and the auxiliary layer.

19. The shoe structure of claim 11, further comprising a cover layer covering the fused knitted part and bonded to the fused knitted part.

Patent History
Publication number: 20200315283
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 3, 2020
Publication Date: Oct 8, 2020
Inventors: CHUNG-CHIH FENG (KAOHSIUNG CITY), PAI-HSIANG WU (KAOHSIUNG CITY), TSUNG-YU TSAI (KAOHSIUNG CITY), CHIEH LEE (KAOHSIUNG CITY), WEI-LING CHEN (KAOHSIUNG CITY)
Application Number: 16/839,656
Classifications
International Classification: A43B 1/04 (20060101); D04B 1/16 (20060101);