Textile component production systems and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11293124-B2
Application number	US-201916426706-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 30, 2019
Priority date	May 30, 2018
Publication date	Apr 5, 2022
Grant date	Apr 5, 2022

Abstract

Systems and methods for manufacturing a garment, include: (a) receiving garment design input data for a garment design including data representing a first textile structural unit at a first location in the garment design and data representing a second textile structural unit at a second location in the garment design; (b) generating a textile production machine instruction data set based on the garment design input data; (c) forming a first garment using a first textile production machine to include the first textile structural unit at a first location in the first garment and the second textile structural unit at a second location in the first garment; (d) creating revised garment design input data for the garment design based on the first garment created in the forming step; (e) generating revised textile production machine instruction data set based on the revised garment design input data; and (f) forming a second garment using a textile production machine and the revised garment design input data including the changes to the garment design.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of manufacturing a garment, comprising:
creating garment design input data for a garment design, wherein creating the garment design input data includes modifying an initial generic design based at least in part on body map data, and wherein the garment design input data includes data representing a first textile structural unit at a first location in the garment design and data representing a second textile structural unit at a second location in the garment design, wherein a structure of the first textile structural unit differs from a structure of the second textile structural unit based on the body map data;
generating a textile production machine instruction data set based on the garment design input data;
transmitting the textile production machine instruction data set to a first textile production machine;
forming a first garment using the first textile production machine, wherein during the forming step, operation of the first textile production machine is controlled using the textile production machine instruction data set to create the first textile structural unit at a first location in the first garment and to create the second textile structural unit at a second location in the first garment;
receiving additional body map data relating to the first garment, wherein the additional body map data provides information specific to the first textile structural unit and information specific to the second textile structural unit;
creating revised garment design input data for the garment design, wherein the revised garment design input data includes changes based on the additional body map data, and wherein the changes include at least one of: a size of the first textile structural unit in the garment design, a position of the first textile structural unit in the garment design, a size of the second textile structural unit in the garment design, a position of the second textile structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the first textile structural unit with respect to the second textile structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the first textile structural unit with respect to another textile structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the second textile structural unit with respect to another textile structural unit in the garment design, and a total number of textile structural units in the garment design;
generating revised textile production machine instruction data set based on the revised garment design input data;
transmitting the revised textile production machine instruction data set to at least one of the first textile production machine or a second textile production machine; and
forming a second garment using at least one of the first textile production machine or the second textile production machine, wherein during the step of forming the second garment, operation of the first textile production machine and/or the second textile production machine is controlled using the revised textile production machine instruction data set to create the second garment corresponding to the revised garment design input data including the changes.

2. A method of manufacturing a garment, comprising:
creating garment design input data for a garment design, wherein the garment design input data is created at least in part from body map data, and wherein the garment design input data includes data representing a first knit structural unit at a first location in the garment design and data representing a second knit structural unit at a second location in the garment design, wherein a structure of the first knit structural unit differs from a structure of the second knit structural unit based on the body map data;
generating a knitting machine instruction data set based on the garment design input data;
transmitting the knitting machine instruction data set to a first knitting machine;
knitting a first garment using the first knitting machine, wherein during the knitting step, operation of the first knitting machine is controlled using the knitting machine instruction data set to create the first knit structural unit at a first location in the first garment and to create the second knit structural unit at a second location in the first garment;
receiving an evaluation of the first garment, wherein the evaluation includes at least one of: input relating to the first knit structural unit or input relating to the second knit structural unit,
based on the evaluation of the first garment, creating revised garment design input data for the garment design based on the first garment created in the knitting step, wherein the revised garment design input data includes changes based on the evaluation, and wherein the changes include at least one of: a size of the first knit structural unit in the garment design, a position of the first knit structural unit in the garment design, a size of the second knit structural unit in the garment design, a position of the second knit structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the first knit structural unit with respect to the second knit structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the first knit structural unit with respect to another knit structural unit in the garment design, a relative positioning of the second knit structural unit with respect to another knit structural unit in the garment design, and a total number of knit structural units in the garment design;
generating revised knitting machine instruction data set based on the revised garment design input data;
transmitting the revised knitting machine instruction data set to at least one of the first knitting machine or a second knitting machine; and
knitting a second garment using at least one of the first knitting machine or the second knitting machine, wherein during the step of knitting the second garment, operation of the first knitting machine and/or the second knitting machine is controlled using the revised knitting machine instruction data set to create the second garment corresponding to the revised garment design input data including the changes.

3. The method according to claim 2 , further comprising:
scanning at least a portion of a human body to generate the body map data.

4. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first knit structural unit and the second knit structural unit corresponds to a hole to be created in a garment during a knitting operation.

5. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first knit structural unit and the second knit structural unit corresponds to a pleat to be created in a garment during a knitting operation.

6. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first knit structural unit and the second knit structural unit corresponds to a rib structure to be created in a garment during a knitting operation.

7. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first knit structural unit and the second knit structural unit corresponds to a region of increased thermal insulativity or increased thermal conductivity to be created in a garment during a knitting operation.

8. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the garment design input data includes a first bitmap, wherein a first dimension of the first bitmap corresponds to a number of knitting needles in a row of needles of the first knitting machine, and wherein a second dimension of the first bitmap corresponds to a number of courses to be knitted to form the first garment.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein individual bits of the first bitmap correspond to an action to be performed by an individual needle of the first knitting mac

Assignees

• Nike Inc

Inventors

• Morgan Daniel
• Gazit Merav
• Mcknelly Carrie
• Clarkson Brad N
• Davidson Travis
• Fasois Vasilios
• Granatir Orion
• Horne Michael T
• Wilson Jack

Classifications

• G05B2219/45194

  Lace, braid, knitting · CPC title

• G05B19/4097 Primary

  characterised by using design data to control NC machines, e.g. CAD/CAM (G05B19/4093 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G06F30/12

  characterised by design entry means specially adapted for CAD, e.g. graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for CAD · CPC title

• G06F30/20

  Design optimisation, verification or simulation (optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30) · CPC title

• D04B1/24 Primary

  wearing apparel · CPC title