DE4308264A1 - Pleating apparatus and process for making pleats without interleaving paper or stencils - Google Patents

Abstract

Published without abstract.

Description

The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for Manufacture of standing and / or lying pleats in fabrics for clothing purposes or other foldable materials in any composition, without that tracking paper or stencils are required, the respective material in individual fold edges for fixing immediately a damping and / or heat (such Cooling treatment) is subjected, which is not be to wrinkle formation necessary material is shielded from the fixing process by means of sliders, which makes known Process problems, such as Bolderungen, gloss or imprints avoided, or are at least largely reduced.

The production of pleats in fabrics or filter materials has long been known the same applies to the devices used for this.

All previously known devices or machines only use pleated cardboard stencils or Tracking paper (s), whereby various production problems can arise, which cannot be avoided with conventional methods.

Pleated stencils are two superimposed and folded buckled "cardboard sheets. The fabric to be pleated is inserted between the two sheets and together with the cardboard in the predetermined by the existing breaking edges of the cardboard Wrinkles pushed. Then this template is rolled up, or summarized and in a second step in a "steamer" or hung, or flat in a so-called steaming molding table. In both cases, fixation treatment is carried out using Pressure, steam and heat.

In the case of pleated machines, a fabric (or filter material) is usually together with one or two tracking papers required for transport and stability mechanically and wrinkled under the action of heat and pressure and then using a other paper in roll form. Here too i. d. R. a fixing process in followed by a second step in a steaming cabinet.

The disadvantages of these traditional methods are process-related problems, such as:

• a) "Bolderungen" that is, corrugation of all or part of the goods different reactions of the goods, which are usually to different elongation values the threads or fibers are returned in the warp and weft directions.
• b) "Imprints" so pressure points through the fold fold edges in goods parts, which should actually stay smooth.
• c) So-called "bacon gloss", ie undesirable gloss caused by the pleating process whole goods, or parts thereof.  
• d) "wages" for pleated blinds, since the stencil production and the insertion process in Done by hand.
• e) "Material costs" for the manufacture or purchase of pleated screens that only have a limited lifespan, i.e. have reusability, or for machines papers that can only be used once.
• f) "Increase in transport costs" for machine pleated blind, since the fabric with paper for further processing work is spent. The papers are often a multiple in square meters of the pleated fabric square meter.
• g) "Labor costs" in the further processing of machine pleated blind, since the fabric is made up beforehand the "paper rolls" must be removed manually.
• h) "Disposal costs" for pleated screens that have become unusable or, and above all but for the pleated machine paper "mountains".
• i) "Environmental pollution" from "waste" mentioned above (h)
• k) "Paper problems" with machine pleated blind. First, the different Wrinkle types, as well as the different fabrics only produce with specific papers, which are often only determined by lengthy trials in the run-up to production can and accordingly a high level of storage of the different types of paper require. On the other hand, it can make matters worse that, despite their Designation as "pleated machine paper" are unsuitable for the production process, because they either don't harmonize with the machines and are so unusable because they are not suitable for creating even folds or because the paper is tar or contains PE inclusions, which are under the influence of pressure and temperature transferred to the fabrics and thus lead to complaints.

Functional description of the process and the "pleating apparatus"

The basic function of the method for producing parallel folds is described below following text and the drawing sketch (appendix).

• A) The "pair of grippers" ( 1 ) is at the beginning of each new pleating process outside (shown here on the left) of the apparatus housing; the two grippers are open so that a material to be pleated (as straight as possible - / - thread path) can be inserted into the gap between them; the material "beginning" protrudes somewhat above the gripper "tip"; close the grippers.
• B) The pair of grippers transports the beginning of the material to the "pair of rollers" ( 2 ); with an opposite movement of the rollers, the material is drawn between the rollers and held.
  The grippers open and move back by a certain amount A + X; this amount A + X is made up of the dimensions A = "roller contact point" to "device center point" (= sword attachment point on the material in the working process) plus X = material away in the working process from the "gripper tips" to the "sword tip" in the position of the fixing process, i.e. fully extended position. This "new" position of the pair of grippers corresponds to its starting position for the subsequent fold formation processes of the inserted material part.
  The material remains smooth under a slight tension by a "brake" or "clamping device" upstream of the "pair of grippers". This pre-storage of the "Bremsvor direction" (eg: a device consisting of two "brush strips" whose "tips" lie against each other - not outlined here) can prevent undesirable "loop formation" of the material and thus increase the transport speed.
• C) The pair of rollers simultaneously pulls the material by the amount Y + Z through further opposite movement. Y is the measure of material path from "sword tip" in Fixing position up to "roller contact point". Z is the measure of the respective folding break distance corresponds; for a so-called "all-round pleating" Z would correspond in the first transport step = 0 in order to keep the material loss as low as possible.
• D) The gripper closes.
  Now the "sword" ( 3 ) (a or b, depending on the direction of the broken edge) moves towards the fabric; From the "point of contact", the pair of grippers and the pair of rollers begin to track the further material path evenly, so that the fabric always remains uniformly tensioned and cannot slip up to the end of the sword travel path = the fold formation point.
• E) The corresponding “slide pair” ( 7 ) (a or b) then closes in order to shield the fabric from the process operation apart from the actual wrinkling process and thus to protect it from undesired reactions.
• F) To initiate the fixing process, the as yet untreated fold break edge is dampened by means of a "nozzle" ( 4 ), if necessary; The amount of steam and steaming time are variably adjustable.
• G) After the steaming process, the "heater pair" ( 5 a) (aI or aII) moves out of its "heat protection housing" ( 5 b), its "flaps" ( 5 c) opening. The heaters, the temperature of which can be adjusted as required, now move up to the fabric and exert an even, variably adjustable pressure on the material to be fixed on both sides; this heat treatment time is also variably adjustable.
• H) After heat setting, as described under G), the pair of heaters moves in Thermal protection housing back.  
• I) By means of the "cooling nozzle" ( 6 ), the fold fold is now cooled down with compressed air to the extent that the best possible permanence of the fold fold remains.
• K) The "protection slide" ( 7 ) open again.
• L) The sword then moves back to its starting position, whereby that too The gripper and the roller pair come into operation again and the material released can easily lead back excited.
• M) Moved back to the starting position for another "wrinkle formation", the "pair of grippers" ( 1 ) opens again. The "pair of rollers" ( 2 ) now pulls in further material by the variably definable amount "Z", ie the dimension until the next fold break.
• N) The procedure is then repeated as described under D) to M), where the respective desired fold directions a) or b) can be determined.
• O) After the pleating process of a piece of material has ended, the end of which can also be determined, for example, by "piece length specification" or by "sensor measurement", the "pair of grippers" ( 1 ) moves back to the "material insertion position", as in point A) we wrote back. After inserting a further piece of material (also about meters), another pleating process can be started.

Functions not apparent from the drawing:

• P) After the pleating process, the material is removed from the machine behind the pair of rollers led out; this can be done by arranging a "sloping plate" or other "Promotion" take place.
• Q) The production of standing folds is carried out by uniform distances of each "Break" and "counter break edge". The production of lying or so-called mad folds follows by different distances between the respective "fold break" and "counter Fold edge ".
• R) The working width of the "pleating apparatus" is variable.  
• S) The spatial arrangement of individual components, such as steam and cooling nozzles or the Heaters can be changed.
• T) To create fold folds other than straight lines, other than straight folds linear sword edges used.
• U) By a parallel shift of the gripper and roller pairs and the swords warp pattern effects are achieved.
• V) By jointly (preferably in the center) rotatable mounting of the pair of grippers and rollers in their plane to each other and from their parallel position to the sword in a changeable angular position to the sword, conical folds in the material pieces can also be achieved (see small sketch); however, the pair of grippers and the rollers remain parallel to one another.
  If, after resetting the pairs of grippers in a parallel position to the swords and further transport, the next folding takes place in the "opposite angle", as is customary with conical pleated stencils, then straight material cuts can be worked in accordingly "conical pleated blinds".
  The extent of possible conical folds depends on the distance of the gripper and roller pair from the sword; with the increasing size of this distance, the more conical folds can be produced, however, this also increases the non-machinable material start and end part.

Advantages of the procedure

The advantages of the method and the "pleating apparatus" are that

• a) Neither pleated templates nor tracking papers are required to fold pleats manufacture; the acquisition costs of stencils or paper, the subsequent costs of the having to unpack the goods from the machine paper, the quality problems with the Paper and disposal costs are therefore completely eliminated.  
• b) the quality problems mentioned above in the known pleating devices, such as "Bolderungen", "imprints" and "gloss spots" in the inventive method and "Pleating device" either up to the area of the actual fold break edge be minimized, or even completely eliminated, or at least optically no longer true are acceptable.
• c) the folding and subsequent fixing process directly one after the other be switched; the previously required, likewise cost-causing, is thus eliminated Intermediate transport of previously known devices.
• d) with the "pleating apparatus" both standing and lying folds, also in combination nation can be produced with each other, what with previously known pleating machines not possible; these are either only standing or just pleats producers.
• e) in the method and “pleating apparatus” according to the invention there is the option of also creating conical folds by expanding the process technology, namely by arranging a rotatable mounting of the pair of grippers and the rollers. Until now, conical folds could only be produced with pleated templates without any problems in terms of production technology.
  As described above (point U), distortion pattern effects can also be achieved by laterally displacing grippers on the one hand and swords on the other.
• f) by using other than straight sword edges further optical changes of the Wrinkle formation can be accomplished.
• g) the "pleating apparatus" is cheaper, at least in the area of larger and larger folds than the previously known methods; (This does not have to be the case with small folds).

The advantages in summary is the inventive method and the inventive appropriate "pleating apparatus" compared to the previously known pleating production  methods cheaper in a wide range; many well-known pleated production Problems are minimized or avoided entirely; it can be done with a procedure the majority of the pleat pallet or apparatus, so far several machines types and the stencil process were necessary.

Claims (16)

1. Pleating process and device, characterized in that the fold break positioning and the fixing process of any materials is carried out in one process. 2. Pleating device (hereinafter called the pleating apparatus) according to claim 1, characterized in that with two positioning swords ( 3 ), between which a foldable (pleated) material by means of a pair of grippers and a roller ( 1 + 2 ), or by means of a Combination of several such units by variable amounts can be transported back and forth and cooperatively positioned single fold breaks fixed by means of pressure, temperature and, if necessary, water or water vapor, characterized in that for positioning the individual fold breaks the swords, the gripper and / or roller pairs and the heating - / Printing components ( 5 ) can be operated variably by means of a control / regulation, neither tracking paper nor other shaping auxiliary materials being required. 3. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 and 2, characterized in that the material to be pleated by means of the pair of grippers between the rollers of the Roll pair can be fed. 4. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 3, characterized in that one or the other positioning sword in connection with the gripper and / or roller pairs and the associated humidification or damping ( 4 ), the pressure / heating - And the cooling unit ( 6 ) generate a fold direction. 5. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 4, characterized in that the required fixing moisture by means of direct steam supply or by water application and  whose evaporation can take place through the heating unit. 6. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 5, characterized in that the positioning of the individual fold and counterfold breaks by means of the gripper and / or pairs of rollers and the respective associated sword. 7. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 6, characterized in that the gripper pads and / or roller pairs can be provided with a coating. 8. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 7, characterized in that after positioning the material to be folded before the respective fixation, the material located away from the actual fixing zone is shielded from the fixing process by means of sliders ( 7 ) and so largely remains unaffected. 9. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 8, characterized in that the fixing process is initiated by an adjustable water or steam application. 10. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 9, characterized in that after the necessary moistening to the fold edge of a temperature-controlled system on both sides, with uniform, variable pressure Heating unit for a variable exposure time and then retracted. 11. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 10, characterized in that the wrinkle fracture after steaming / heating with air to a lower "stable" Temperature can be cooled. 12. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 11, characterized in that the device part between the actual fixing areas is cooled by air can be.   13. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 12, characterized in that the device by rotatable mounting of the pair of positioning grippers and rollers in the plane in which they lie to each other and a controllable swivel movement from their parallel position to the swords in a changeable degree of angle can perform position to these, which also makes the creation conical to each other running folds is possible. 14. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 13, characterized in that through changeable lateral shifting of swords on the one hand and gripper and roller pair on the other hand, namely after the positioning, but before distortion pattern effects can be achieved in the fixing process. 15. pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 14, characterized in that by using other than straight sword edges other than straight folds breaklines can be created. 16. Pleating apparatus according to claim 1 to 15, characterized in that depending on the type of material to be pleated, more than one material layer can be pleated at the same time one above the other and thus by moving the an "endless run" can also be carried out for each piece of material beginning.