JP7622993B2 - Method for knitting conductive fabric - Google Patents

Description

Application of Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Act. - Released for sale on the website (Rakuten Shop) on June 29, 2020 (https://www.rakuten.ne.jp/gold/corona-glove/). Similarly, on January 5, 2021, it was made available for sale on the website (BASE https://coronaglobe.thebase.in/), and on February 25, 2021, it was made available for sale on the website (Amazon https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B08WHKY7F9?ref=myi_title_dp, https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B08W21N9V7?ref=myi_title_dp). On September 16, 2020, it sold and made available knitted products made by the conductive knitting method to Inagi Fire Equipment Co., Ltd. and Abi Community Co., Ltd. Similarly, the above knitting products were sold and made public to Ocello Co., Ltd. on December 1, 2020, to Rivast Co., Ltd. on January 19, 2021, and to Ajioka Co., Ltd. on January 25, 2021.

The present invention relates to a method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric that can impart electrical conductivity and antibacterial properties to a knitted fabric knitted by single knitting.

Conventionally, some flat knitting machines equipped with a needle bed on which multiple knitting needles are arranged are equipped with a yarn feeder that is attached to a rail and moves along the rail to supply knitting yarn to the knitting needles on the needle bed. When knitting a fabric with such a flat knitting machine, there is a knitting method in which a double knitting system is provided with two yarn feeders, a first and a second, and the first and second yarn feeders are used as leading and trailing yarn feeders to supply yarn to the yarn feeder, in which the outer fabric is knitted with the knitting yarn supplied through the first feeder and the lining fabric is knitted with the knitting yarn supplied through the second feeder (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In this knitting method, the knitting yarn supplied from the first supply port is a non-conductive knitting yarn such as cotton yarn, and the knitting yarn supplied from the second supply port is a conductive knitting yarn. This allows the outer fabric to be a non-conductive knitted fabric and the lining to be a conductive knitted fabric, giving the knitted fabric the texture of a conventional knitted fabric as well as conductivity.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-266047

However, with the conventional knitting method described above, a knitted fabric is knitted with a non-conductive outer surface and a conductive lining. However, since only the lining is conductive, the outer surface is not conductive, and the knitted fabric as a whole does not have good conductive properties.

The present invention has been made in consideration of these problems, and aims to provide a method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric with good electrical conductivity.

The present invention has been made to solve at least some of the problems described above, and can be realized as the following application examples. Note that the reference symbols and supplementary explanations in parentheses in this section indicate the correspondence with the embodiments described below in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention in any way.

[Application Example 1]
The invention described in Application Example 1 is a knitting machine (1) including a needle bed (10) having a plurality of knitting needles (12) and a yarn feeder (30) attached to a rail (20) parallel to the longitudinal direction of the needle bed (10), reciprocating along the rail (20), and feeding knitting yarn to a needle gap of the needle bed (10),
The method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric includes guiding a non-conductive first knitting yarn (5) and a conductive second knitting yarn (7) that are supplied separately to the yarn feeder (30) into a yarn guide port that introduces the yarn into a single hole, and knitting the fabric while feeding the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7) guided by the yarn guide port (31b) to the yarn feeder port (32a) that is positioned a predetermined distance from the yarn guide port and has a hole for feeding both the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn ( 7) to the yarn feeder port.

In this method of knitting a conductive fabric, the yarn feeder (30) travels back and forth along the rail (20) with the second knitting yarn (7) being fed to the needle gap of the needle bed (10) together with the first knitting yarn (5). When this occurs, a twist occurs in the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7) when reversing from the forward path to the return path. This twist occurs unevenly, resulting in a knitted fabric in which the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7) are knitted in an uneven state.

Here, the first knitting yarn (5) is a non-conductive knitting yarn, and the second knitting yarn (7) is a conductive knitting yarn, so the knitted fabric is a fabric in which the non-conductive knitting yarn and the conductive knitting yarn are knitted unevenly. Therefore, the knitted fabric as a whole has good conductivity.

In addition, depending on the type of the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7), it is possible to adjust the conductivity, texture, feel, etc. of the knitted fabric.

Furthermore, in such a method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric, the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7) are both guided through the holes of the yarn guide (31b) and supplied to the yarn feeder (32a). At this time, since the yarn guide (31b) and the yarn feeder (32a) are separated by a predetermined distance, when the yarn feeder (30) travels, the first knitting yarn (5) and the second knitting yarn (7) tend to be more unevenly twisted between the yarn guide (31b) and the yarn feeder (32a).
As a result, the knitted fabric will have non-conductive knitted fabric portions and conductive knitted fabric portions that are more unevenly distributed, resulting in a knitted fabric with good conductivity as a whole.

[Application Example 2 ]
The method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric described in Application Example 2 is characterized in that, in the method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric described in Application Example 1 , the second knitting yarn (7) is a conductive knitting yarn containing copper.

In this method of knitting a conductive knitted fabric, a conductive knitting yarn containing copper is used as the second knitting yarn (7), which makes it possible to obtain a good conductive back and further to produce a knitted fabric with antibacterial properties.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a flat knitting machine. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a yarn feeder. A photograph of an actual knitted sock is shown below.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment, and various forms may be adopted as long as they fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

(Configuration of flat knitting machine)
The configuration of a flat knitting machine 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram (front view) showing a schematic configuration of the flat knitting machine 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the flat knitting machine 1 includes a pair of needle beds 10, a rail 20, a yarn feeder 30, and a carriage 40. In this embodiment, the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are collectively referred to as the knitting yarns 5, 7, or the twisted yarns are also referred to as the knitting yarns 5, 7.

The needle bed 10 is provided with a plurality of knitting needles 12 arranged in parallel. The knitting needles 12 are driven by a cam system (not shown) mounted on a carriage 40 that reciprocates above the needle bed 10.
The rail 20 is a round bar-shaped member made of a metal such as stainless steel that is suspended parallel to the longitudinal direction of the needle bed 10 between a pair of frames 21, 22 attached to both ends of the flat knitting machine 1.

The yarn feeder 30 runs back and forth along the rail 20 in the longitudinal direction of the flat knitting machine 1, and feeds the knitting yarns 5, 7 to the needle gaps formed between the needle beds 10. It moves (runs) together with the carriage 40 of the rail 20 to knit a fabric with the knitting yarns 5, 7 supplied from the yarn feeder 30.

The yarn feeder 30 is supplied with the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7, which are tensioned appropriately via a top spring device 50 and a tension device (not shown) from a knitting yarn supply section (cone) (not shown) located above the flat knitting machine 1.

The carriage 40 has a built-in cam mechanism called a lock (not shown). When the carriage 40 moves back and forth over the needle bed 10 together with the yarn feeder 30, the lock is activated, causing the knitting needle 12 to move up and down, and guiding the knitting yarns 5, 7 supplied by the yarn feeder 30 to the needle hooks of the knitting needles 12.

(Configuration of yarn feeder)
Next, the configuration of the yarn feeder 30 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the yarn feeder.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the yarn feeder 30 includes a base portion 31 and an extension portion 32 .
The base 31 is a long metal member extending vertically from the position of the rail 20, and is equipped with rollers 31a that radially clamp the round bar-shaped rail 20. This roller 31a supports the entire yarn feeder 30 against the rail 20 and allows the yarn feeder 30 to run longitudinally on the rail 20.

The upper end of the base 31 is also provided with a yarn guide port 31b that simultaneously introduces the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 supplied from a cone (not shown) and supplies them as knitting yarns 5 and 7 to the yarn feeder port 32a, which will be described later.

The extension section 32 is a member fixed to the base section 31 in such a way that it extends further downward from the base section 31, and at its lower end is provided a yarn feeder 32a for guiding the knitting yarns 5 and 7 supplied from the yarn guide 31b to the needle opening.

In this way, the upper end of the base 31 is provided with a yarn guide port 31b that simultaneously introduces the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn, and the lower end of the extension section 32 is provided with a yarn feed port 32a that guides the knitting yarn 5, 7, which is a combination of the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7, to the needle opening. In other words, since the yarn guide port 31b and the yarn feed port 32a are separated by a predetermined distance (approximately 2 cm in this embodiment), the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are unevenly twisted between the yarn guide port 31b and the yarn feed port 32a.

(Other configurations)
In addition to the above-mentioned configuration, the flat knitting machine 1 is equipped with a drive mechanism for driving the yarn feeder 30, a power source for supplying power to the drive mechanism, a tension sensor and a tension adjustment device for adjusting the tension of the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7, and a control device for controlling these and controlling the knitting state. Since all of these have the same configuration and function as conventional devices, their explanations will be omitted.

(knitting yarn)
Next, a description will be given of the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7. The first knitting yarn 5 is a non-conductive knitting yarn, and may be selected from cotton yarn, wool yarn, or the like, depending on the knitted article 3 to be knitted, such as gloves or socks.

The second knitting yarn 7 is a conductive knitting yarn that contains copper. Specifically, the knitting yarn is made of copper thread coated with a conductive resin.

(Formation operation)
The operation of the flatbed knitting machine 1 having the above-mentioned configuration when knitting the knitted fabric 3 using the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 will be described.

A cone for the first knitting yarn 5 and a cone for the second knitting yarn 7 are attached to a knitting yarn supplying section (not shown) of the flat knitting machine 1, and the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are inserted together into the yarn guide port 31b of the base 31 of the yarn feeder 30. Furthermore, the knitting yarns 5 and 7 pulled out from the yarn guide port 31b are both inserted into the yarn feeder port 32a.
In this state, when the yarn feeder 30 travels back and forth on the rail 20, a fabric is knitted by the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7.

At this time, as described above, the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are introduced into the yarn guide port 31b of the yarn feeder 30, and the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are combined and supplied to the yarn feeder 32a. In this state, the yarn feeder 30 travels on the rail 20, so that the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are twisted unevenly between the yarn guide port 31b and the yarn feeder 32a.
In particular, when the yarn feeder 30 travels on the rail 20 and the traveling direction is reversed between the forward and backward directions, a twist occurs in the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 at the yarn feeder 32a.

In this way, the first knitting yarn 5 and the second knitting yarn 7 are twisted as the yarn feeder 30 travels back and forth to knit the knitted fabric 3, so the conductive second knitting yarn 7 is unevenly positioned from the back of the knitted fabric to the front.

Figure 3 shows a photograph of a sock knitted using the knitting method of this embodiment. Figure 3(a) is a photograph of the entire sock, and Figure 3(b) is an enlarged photograph of the knitted fabric of the sock (an enlarged photograph of the part indicated by "A" in Figure 3(a)).

As shown in FIG. 3(a), the sock 3 is knitted with black and white fabric portions. The black portion is the non-conductive fabric portion knitted with the first knitting yarn 5, and the white portion is the portion knitted with the conductive knitting yarn, the second knitting yarn 7.

As shown in Figure 3(b), which is an enlarged view of a portion of Figure 3(a), it can be seen that the black knitted parts and the white knitted parts are knitted unevenly. In other words, it can be seen that the non-conductive parts and the conductive parts are knitted unevenly.

In this way, the conductive second knitting yarn 7 is unevenly arranged from the back surface to the front surface of the knitted fabric, so that a knitted fabric 3 having good conductivity can be knitted. In addition, since the copper component of the second knitting yarn 7 has antibacterial and deodorizing properties, the knitted fabric 3 also has antibacterial and deodorizing properties.

[Other embodiments]
(1) In the above embodiment, as the second knitting yarn 7 having electrical conductivity, a knitting yarn having a nylon yarn with a copper-plated surface or a knitting yarn made by mixing copper powder into a conductive resin and forming it into a thread shape may be used instead of a knitting yarn made of copper yarn coated with a conductive resin.

(2) In the above embodiment, copper was used as the metal for obtaining electrical conductivity for the second knitting yarn, but it is also possible to knit a knitted fabric 3 that is electrically conductive, antibacterial, and odor resistant by using metals other than copper, such as silver or gold.

(3) In the above embodiment, the yarn guide port 31b and the yarn feed port 32a are spaced apart by approximately 2 cm, but this distance may be changed depending on the type of first knitting yarn 5 and second knitting yarn 7 used and the conductivity to be imparted to the knitted fabric 3.

(4) In the above embodiment, the knitting machine was described as a flat knitting machine, but a similarly conductive knitted fabric can also be knitted using a circular knitting machine in which the needle bed 10 is formed in a circular shape, i.e., the knitting needles 12 are arranged on the circumference.

(5) In the above embodiment, one yarn feeder 30 runs on the rail 20, but multiple yarn feeders 30 may run on the rail. In this way, multiple layers of fabric (a front fabric and a back fabric when two yarn feeders are used) can be knitted, and each layer can have a non-uniformly conductive fabric portion, so that a knitted fabric with good conductivity can be knitted even if it is multi-layered.

* If you have any other implementations, please let us know.

1... Flat knitting machine 3... Knitted material (socks) 5... First knitting yarn 7... Second knitting yarn 10... Needle bed 12... Knitting needle 20... Rail 21, 22... Frame 30... Yarn feeder 31... Base 31a... Roller 31b... Yarn guide port 32... Extension section 32a... Yarn feed port 40... Carriage 50... Top spring device.

Claims (2)

A knitting machine including a needle bed having a plurality of knitting needles, and a yarn feeder attached to a rail parallel to a longitudinal direction of the needle bed, reciprocating along the rail, and feeding a knitting yarn to a needle gap of the needle bed,
A method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric, comprising the steps of: guiding a first non-conductive knitting yarn and a second conductive knitting yarn, which are supplied separately from the yarn feeder, to a yarn guide port that introduces the first non-conductive knitting yarn and the second conductive knitting yarn into a single hole; and knitting the fabric while feeding the first knitting yarn and the second knitting yarn guided by the yarn guide port to the yarn guide port from a yarn feed port that is positioned a predetermined distance from the yarn guide port and has a hole that feeds both the first knitting yarn and the second knitting yarn guided by the yarn guide port to the yarn guide port. The method for knitting a conductive knitted fabric according to claim 1 ,
A method for knitting a conductive fabric, wherein the second knitting yarn is a conductive knitting yarn containing copper.