Patent Application
20210071329
The present invention is directed towards knitted garments, such as socks, and, more particularly, towards garments knitted with silicone yarns to increase the garment's slip resistance.
Garments with slip resistant properties, such as socks, are commonly used for many reasons. For example, some users desire socks that include slip resistant properties on the bottoms of the socks to prevent the user from slipping on floor surfaces, such as tile and hardwood floors. Such socks are also commonly used in healthcare facilities to mitigate the risk of patient slips and falls. Some users also desire slip resistant properties on the inside of the sock to prevent the sock from slipping and sliding with respect to the user's skin such as when wearing a shoe. This is of particular importance to athletes who desire performance socks that do not slip in the athlete's shoe or slip down from the desired height of the sock.
Prior art socks including slip resistant properties typically include appliques, such as silicone appliques, that are applied to the sock after the sock has been knitted on a typical knitting machine. Such appliques are adhered to the sock via known means such as adhesives and heat seals. The appliques may be added in various shapes and patterns on the bottom of the sock and/or inside the sock. For example, in footie-style socks and sock liners, the appliques may be added to the inside of the sock in the heel area to prevent the footie from sliding down on the user's ankle and foot.
While such post-knitting appliques increase the slip-resistance of the garment, particularly in the case of socks, such appliques are not an organic part of the of sock construction and can interfere with the natural silhouette of the sock. Additionally, such post-knitted appliques may eventually wear off after a number of launderings because they are not a part of the construction of the socks. Also, if the sock has an applique on the inside and outside of the sock in the same area, the thickness of the sock could be substantially different in some portions of the sock versus others, thereby resulting in the sock not having a uniform thickness and not feeling natural to the user.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need in the art for a slip-resistant garment, such as a sock, that incorporates slip-resistant properties into the knitted construction of the sock. However, silicone yarns, which are known for their slip resistance and tackiness, are nearly impossible to knit into the sock on a knitting machine because the silicone yarn sticks to the metal components of the knitting machine. Thus, there is also a need in the art for a method of knitting a garment on a knitting machine with a tacky yarn, such as silicone yarns.
A sock garment and method of manufacturing the same including the steps of knitting the sock on a knitting machine with a first yarn such as a cotton yarn and/or polyester yarn, and a second yarn including a silicone yarn wrapped with at least one poly vinyl acetate (PVA) yarn. After being knitted, the sock is bathed in hot water to dissolve (melt) the PVA yarn and expose the silicone yarn. The temperature of the hot water bath is about 130° F. to about 150° F. The second yarn is strategically knitted in the sock to form defined areas or patterns of silicone yarns within the sock, such as in the toe and heel areas of the sock. The second yarn includes two PVA yarns wrapped around the silicone yarn, the first PVA yarn being wrapped around the silicone yarn in an “S” twist pattern and the second PVA yarn being wrapped around the silicone yarn in a “Z” twist pattern such that the silicone yarn is substantially fully encapsulated within the first and second PVA yarns.
The present invention will be further apparent from the following detailed description of the invention, when taken together with the accompanying specification, and figures, in which:
The accompanying figures and the description which follows set forth this invention in its preferred embodiments. However, it is contemplated that persons generally familiar with knitting garments will be able to apply the novel characteristics of the structures illustrated and described herein in other contexts by modification of certain details. Accordingly, the figures and description are not to be taken as restrictive on the scope of this invention, but are to be understood as broad and general teachings.
Unlike prior art garments that may include appliques adhered to the garment after construction to increase slip resistance, the garment of the present invention, such as sock 10 shown in the figures, is knitted with slip-resistant yarns, such as silicone yarns. Additionally, the method of making the garment 10 of the present invention enables the slip-resistant yarns to be knitted into the garment without sticking to the knitting machine.
More particularly, the garment 10 of the present invention is made with silicone yarn wrapped with a poly vinyl acetate (PVA) yarn. The PVA yarn is wrapped around the silicone yarn to serve as a delivery method for the silicone yarn. The PVA yarn is double covered around the silicone yarn, meaning the silicone yarn is wrapped by two separate PVA yarns, one with a “S” twist and one with a “Z” twist, leaving the silicone yarn fully encapsulated within the PVA yarn. Encapsulating the silicone yarn within the PVA yarn serves to inhibit the silicone yarn from coming in contact with, and sticking to, the knitting machine during knitting of the garment 10.
The manufacturer of the garment 10 can design it to strategically include the silicone yarns in certain areas and in certain patterns 12A on the garment, as shown in the figures. For example, the silicone yarns can be knitted into the sock garment 10 in the toe 14 and/or heel 16 areas of the sock, whereas the other portions of the sock may be knitted with traditional yarns such as cotton and/or polyester. The present invention is not limited to the particular zones or patterns of silicone yarns as shown in the figures.
After the garment 10 is knitted on the machine with the PVA wrapped silicone yarn and other traditional yarns, the garment 10 is bathed in hot water at a temperature of about 130° F. to about 150° F. The PVA yarn dissolves (melts) when it comes in contact with hot water, so the resulting garment (post-bath) includes the exposed silicone yarn in the areas 12A where it is knitted.
By knitting the silicone into the garment, such as a sock 10, the exposed silicone areas 12A provide slip-resistance on both the inside and outside of the sock without affecting the thickness of the sock or natural form or fit of the sock. Thus, for example, the sock 10 can grip the user's foot as well as whatever surface the outside of the sock 10 touches, such as the user's shoe or the surface on which the user walks. Socks 10 with knitted-in silicone yarns as described herein are ideal for athletes desiring performance socks because the built-in grip improves control by reducing the slippery interaction between the sock 10 and the shoe that occurs with prior art socks. Additionally, unlike socks with prior art slip resistant appliques that are adhered to the sock post-knitting, socks 10 with the knitted in silicone better align to the shape of the user's foot and do not have the concern of the appliques coming off after numerous launderings.
While preferred embodiments of the invention have been described using specific terms, such description is for present illustrative purposes only, and it is to be understood that changes and variations to such embodiments, including but not limited to the substitution of equivalent features or parts, and the reversal of various features thereof, may be practiced by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/897,574 filed on Sep. 9, 2019.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62897574 | Sep 2019 | US |
