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(11) | EP 1 195 458 A2 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Shaped foot coverlet and method for its manufacture on circular stocking knitting machines |
| (57) The present invention pertains to a knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking,
having in an integral shape, a pocket (10) that is overlapped by an elastic border
(11) intended to cover the heel of a foot, a tiptoe portion (15) to cover the tiptoe
of the foot, middle zones (12, 13) to cover parts of the foot between the heel and
the tiptoe. These include a middle section (12) of constant width, continuing to the
pocket (10) of the heel and intended to cover the foot at the hollow as well as a
knitted tubular portion (13) between the middle section and tiptoe, intended to cover
a remaining part of the plantar aspect and at least a part of the dorsal aspect of
the foot. The present invention also pertains to a method for manufacturing the article
on a circular stocking knitting machine. |
Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention pertains to a knitted article in the form of a foot coverlet or protective stocking, as well as a method for its complete manufacture on circular stocking knitting machines.
State of the Art
[0002] Various ways of making knitted articles in the form of a foot coverlet or protective stocking have already become known. They are manufactured according to various methods in the current state of the art. For example:
- by means of assembly for stitching pre-cut pieces of fabric and the subsequent addition of an upper elastic border also by means of stitching;
- obtaining the product from suitably cut stockings, removing their leg portion, and finishing manually, adding an upper elastic border by stitching, around the opening for insertion of the foot.
[0003] However, with these methods the elastic, which is inserted by means of stitching, in addition to having a negative effect on the production cost, also poses problems of adaptation to the foot, and thus, of wearability of the manufactured article because the elastic may become bulky, irritating and more or less stretched out.
[0004] The said manufacture of a foot coverlet or protective stocking on a circular stocking knitting machine by means of knitting continuously with alternating rotary motion from one end to the other of the article, so as to form a sole with two opposite pockets and with an elastic border knitted on it, which defines the opening for insertion of a foot, has also been proposed. Even though this method makes it possible to eliminate the insertion of an elastic and the problems connected therewith, it is not, however, without drawbacks and limitations linked with the particular mode of knitting, which does not make it possible to easily shape the manufactured article and also involves:
- poor wearability of the foot coverlet or protective stocking, which has a limited portion of fabric that covers the upper part of the foot and thus tends to fall or slip off;
- difficulty, if not impossibility, of producing a foot coverlet or protective stocking with the dimensions so as to satisfy the requirements of the sizes even for larger people;
- impossibility of adding decorative elements, such as designs or trademarks, which are done directly on the stocking knitting machine; with the prior art up to now, these elements could only be done with an additional, subsequent operation;
- impossibility of producing the protective stocking or foot coverlet in a fabric different from the satin-like knit, e.g., mesh knit or dropped-stitch knit or ribbed knit.
Objects and Summary of the Invention
[0005] One object of the present invention is to find a solution for the drawbacks and the limitations of the prior-art methods mentioned above in the manufacture of a knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking.
[0006] Another object of the present invention is to make a foot coverlet or protective stocking that can be completely obtained on a circular stocking knitting machine, can be easily shaped during its manufacture and can be correctly adapted to the shapes and measurements of the feet for maximum wearability thereof.
[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a foot coverlet or a protective stocking that can also be obtained with differentiated knitted zones in order to improve the covering and the aeration of the foot and for a better aesthetic appearance of the manufactured article when worn.
[0008] Still another object of the present invention is to propose a method for manufacturing a foot coverlet or protective stocking shaped completely directly on a circular stocking knitting machine to give it a maximum degree of wearability.
[0009] These objects and the advantages that derive therefrom are accomplished with a knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking according to claim 1 and with a method for the manufacture of a foot coverlet or protective stocking on a circular stocking knitting machine according to claim 11.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0010] The present invention will be explained below in greater detail with reference to the attached indicative and nonlimiting drawing, in which the sole figure shows an example of a foot coverlet or protective stocking when worn.
Detailed Description of the Invention
[0011] The foot coverlet or protective stocking in question comprises, in succession, from back to front and without an arrangement of continuity:
- a pocket 10 consisting of partial knitted rows starting from a semiannular border 11 and intended to cover the heel of a foot;
- a middle section 12 of constant width, consisting of partial knitted rows and intended to cover a part of the plantar aspect and the sides of the foot at the hollow;
- a tubular knitted portion 13 consisting of complete, i.e., closed, knitted rows, starting from an elastic border 14 and intended to cover a remaining part of the plantar aspect of the foot and at least a part of the dorsal aspect of the foot; and
- a tiptoe portion 15 consisting of partial knitted rows starting from a fore-tiptoe zone 16 and up to a reknitted section 17, which tiptoe portion is intended to cover the tiptoe of the foot.
[0012] The various zones or portions 10, 12, 13 and 15 of the manufactured article may all be made with the same type of stitch, usually a plain stitch or partially at least a terry stitch. However, and more preferably if necessary, the middle section 12 and/or the tubular portion 13, at least in that part which covers the dorsal aspect of the foot, may be made with a different knit, e.g., a ribbed, dropped-stitch or other knit.
[0013] The manufactured article described above is manufactured completely on a circular stocking knitting machine having a needle-carrying cylinder capable either of continuous rotary motion or of alternating rotary motion and provided, usually, with one or more feed and knit formation stations, as well as with means for selectively controlling the needles that must operate or not operate.
[0014] More specifically, the manufactured article is made by initially producing the semiannular border 11, making the cylinder rotate with alternating motion and using the needles only on one section of the cylinder. The border 11 is knitted by introducing an elastic yarn there and with a selection of the operating needles, e.g., 3:1, to give the border proper an appropriate elasticity.
[0015] The number of needles used in this phase may be equal to the needles on half of the cylinder or more of the machine. The use of a number of needles greater than those on half the cylinder may be significant for obtaining a manufactured article that guarantees a suitable covering of the lateral parts of the foot.
[0016] Then the pocket-heel 10 is knitted with alternating motion and with the usual decreases and increases, using the needles on the machine as needed and, at any rate, in the known manner.
[0017] At this point, alternating motion is continued, and the needles on one section of the cylinder are allowed to knit in each knitted row so as to obtain a middle knitted section 12 of constant width and of variable length, with this depending on the number of alternating motion strokes made by the machine. This section 12 may be manufactured by putting the needle-raising and needle-lowering pickers of the machine out of operation with suitable methods and using a machine provided with electromechanical actuators for selecting the needles operating with alternating motion. Once the middle section 12 is finished the needles present on the cylinder that have not been operating up to that point are also put into operation and thus the knitting of the border 14 is started with all of the needles of the cylinder and with the cylinder actuated with continuous rotary motion.
[0018] This border, which may be single or double, may be produced using various knit interweavings, i.e.:
- plain stitch knit,
- 1:1 rib knit or other selections,
- dropped-stitch knit.
[0019] Simultaneously with the manufacture of the knitting, the machine provides, according to a prior art, for the weaving or knitting in of an elastic yarn in the border 14. This elastic yarn may be woven or knitted in either by all the needles of the cylinder or only by some of them with the result of creating an annular elastic strip all around the manufactured article on a level with the border 14 or an elastic strip with partial angular extension.
[0020] The length in the number of rows of the elastic strip or of the border 14 can be easily varied and correlated with the number of knitted rows in which the elastic is knitted.
[0021] Once the border 14 is knitted, the machine is then prepared for the production of the knitted tubular portion 13 also with continuous rotary motion.
[0022] From this point forward, the stocking knitting machine operates exactly as though the article being produced were a normal stocking and, thus, then proceeds with the manufacture of the tubular portion 14 of the fore-tiptoe 16, of the tiptoe 15, as well as, if the machine in question is provided with a LIN-TOE® system, of the reknitted section 17, in this manner bringing about the finished product in the form of a foot coverlet or protective stocking.
[0023] If the machine is not provided with the LIN-TOE® system, a protective stocking or a foot coverlet that is open in the tiptoe, which may be, however, reknitted or stitched with the traditional systems, shall be produced.
[0024] Among the advantages deriving from the present invention, the following can be mentioned:
- the variability of the length of the parts 12 and 13, which thus makes it possible to produce protective stockings or foot coverlets of any length and thus without any size limitation;
- the variability of the length of the parts 12 and 13, which makes it possible, by modifying the relationship between them, to obtain a foot coverlet or protective stocking that fits the foot to a greater or lesser degree and therefore to control the wearability of the manufactured article so that it does not fall or slip off the foot;
- the elastic border 14, which makes possible a perfect adherence of the manufactured article even to the dorsal part of the foot;
- since the part of the manufactured article that covers the foot consists of a tubular knit, it is possible, using the standard features of the stocking knitting machine, to insert therein decorations, trademarks or particular types of knit: mesh, dropped stitch, ribbed. This was not possible with the method of the prior art, with which the entire article was produced by alternating motion and, using this, any trademarks, designs, etc. had to be added with subsequent knitting.
1. A knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking, having in an integral shape, a said
pocket (10) that is overlapped by a said elastic border (11) intended to cover the
heel of a foot, a said tiptoe portion (15) to cover the tiptoe of the foot, said middle
zones (12, 13) to cover the parts of the foot between the heel and tiptoe, characterized in that said middle zones comprise a said middle section (12) of constant width, continuing
to the said pocket (10) of the heel and intended to cover a part of the plantar aspect
and the sides of the foot at the hollow of same, and a said knitted tubular portion
(13) between said middle section and said tiptoe, intended to cover a remaining part
of the plantar aspect and at least a part of the dorsal aspect of the foot.
2. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with claim 1, wherein the said
knitted tubular portion (13) has an initial elastic border (14).
3. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with the claims 1 and 2, wherein
said initial elastic border (14) has an angular width so as to extend on the dorsal
aspect of the foot.
4. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with the claims 1 and 2, wherein
said initial elastic border (14) is annular for extending all around the foot.
5. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with the claims 1 and 2, wherein
said initial elastic border (14) has a limited angular width.
6. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with the claims 1 and 2, wherein
the said pocket of the heel (10), the middle section, the knitted tubular portion
and the tiptoe portion (15) all consist of the same type of knit.
7. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with the claims 1 and 2, wherein
the said middle section (12) and the said knitted tubular portion (13) consist of
a different type of knit from that forming the said pocket of the heel (10) and the
said tiptoe portion (15).
8. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with claim 7, wherein the said
middle section (12) and the said tubular portion (13) are formed with a ribbed knit.
9. Foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance with claim 7, wherein the said
middle section (12) is in ribbed knit and at least a part of the tubular portion that
covers the dorsal aspect of the foot is in dropped-stitch, open or designed knit.
10. Knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking, having in an integral shape, a said
pocket (10) that is overlapped by a said elastic border (11) intended to cover the
heel of a foot, a said tiptoe portion (15) to cover the tiptoe of the foot, said middle
zones (12, 13) to cover the parts of the foot between the heel and tiptoe, characterized in that said middle zones comprise a said middle section (12) of constant width, continuing
to the said pocket (10) of the heel and intended to cover a part of the plantar aspect
and the sides of the foot at the hollow of same, and a said knitted tubular portion
(13) between said middle section and said tiptoe, intended to cover a remaining part
of the plantar aspect and at least a part of the dorsal aspect of the foot, and in that the said knitted tubular portion (13) has an initial elastic border (14) having an
angular width so as to extend at least on the dorsal aspect of the foot.
11. Method for manufacturing a knitted foot coverlet or protective stocking in accordance
with claim 1 on a circular stocking knitting machine having a cylinder with needles
capable either of continuous rotary motion or of alternating rotary motion, characterized by steps of successively manufacturing:
- a said semiannular initial elastic border (11) followed by a said pocket (10) knitted with alternating rotary motion with selectively controlled needles on one section of the circumference of the cylinder;
- a middle section (12) consisting of knitted rows of constant width knitted with alternating rotary motion and with the needles on at least half of the circumference of the cylinder;
- a knitted tubular portion (13) consisting of knitted rows knitted with continuous rotary motion with the needles on the entire circumference of the cylinder, with the inoperative needles on the cylinder during the knitting of the middle section being put into operation at the start of the said tubular portion;
- a closed or open tiptoe portion knitted according to a usual procedure, continuing to the said tubular portion.
12. Method in accordance with claim 11, with which the said knitted tubular portion (13)
is started, after the manufacture of the middle section, with a said elastic border
(14) at least in the part intended to cover the dorsal aspect of the foot.
13. Method in accordance with the claims 11 and 12, whose knitting corresponding to the
middle section and/or the tubular portion is of the same type or a different type
from that forming the pocket of the heel and the tiptoe.