The present invention relates to an improved fabric structure and, more particularly, to a novel fabric structure which enables a garment or undergarment made thereof to be highly supportive and can lie in close contact with the wearer's skin.
Consumer's requirements and market's demand for the fabric structure of clothes are increasing. The fabric structure as expected should be breathable, effective in heat dissipation, sweat-absorbent, comfortable, and lightweight. Consequently, a variety of weaving methods, fiber materials, and fiber arrangements for the fabric structure of garments were developed.
Take brassieres as an example. It is generally required that a bra provides enough support for the breasts and also won't slip easily. When it comes to bras without shoulder straps, the requirement is much higher for such a bra that should be in close contact with the wearer's skin and must stay where it is supposed to be without slipping; otherwise, the wearer is subject to the embarrassment of having the bra shifted away from its desired position.
However, the fabric structure of the commercially available fabrics (also known as spacer fabrics or sandwich fabrics) fails to meet the aforesaid requirements for the undergarment, such as the bra. Therefore, there is a need for the improved bra with the improved fabric structure to meet the consumer's requirements and the market demands.
To solve the foregoing problems, one object of this invention is to provide a bra with a fabric structure, wherein the lower fabric layer is knitted with the elastic PU (polyurethane) fibers. It thus features superior stretchability, superior resilience, mild stickiness, and slip-proofness.
The present invention provides an improved bra with a fabric structure in which the fabric structure includes an upper fabric layer, a middle fabric layer, and a lower fabric layer sequentially stacked together. The middle fabric layer has a corrugated shape, and one of the upper and lower fabric layers is composed of 100% elastic fibers.
Accordingly, one embodiment of the present invention provides a bra with a fabric structure including an upper fabric layer knitted with a plurality of first PET (polyethylene terephthalate) fibers and a plurality of first PU (polyurethane) fibers; a lower fabric layer 100% knitted with a plurality of second PU fibers; and a central fabric layer interposed between the upper fabric layer and the lower fabric layer, knitted with a plurality of wave-like second PET fibers, wherein crests of the wave-like second PET fibers are intertwined with the upper fabric layer, and wherein troughs of the wave-like second PET fibers are intertwined with the lower fabric layer.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a bra with a fabric structure including an upper fabric layer, a lower fabric layer and a central fabric layer. The upper fabric layer is knitted with a plurality of first PET fibers and a plurality of first PU fibers. The lower fabric layer is knitted with a plurality of second PU fibers and a plurality of third PET fibers, wherein the second PU fibers are knitted into a plurality of first regions, the third PET fibers are knitted into a plurality of second regions, and the first regions and the second regions are arranged alternately and intertwined together. The central fabric layer interposed between the upper fabric layer and the lower fabric layer, is knitted with a plurality of wave-like second PET fibers, wherein crests of the wave-like second PET fibers are intertwined with the upper fabric layer, and troughs of the wave-like second PET fibers are intertwined with the lower fabric layer.
As one of the upper and lower fabric layers of the fabric structure is composed of 100% elastic fibers, the properties of the elastic fibers such as stretchability, elastic recovery, softness, and a slight degree of adhesiveness can render a garment made of the fabric structure highly supportive and capable of lying in close contact with the wearer's skin.
The structure and advantages of the present invention is best understood by referring to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
The bar 2 in
The fabric structure of the present invention may be for the cloth in general as well as the bra. As shown in
When the bra 2 is worn, the corrugated middle fabric layer 16 provides good permeability whereby moisture and air (heat) can pass through the bra 2, as indicated by the arrows in
Moreover, with the lower fabric layer 14 being composed of 100% elastic fibers and in contact with the wearer's skin, the properties of the elastic fibers such as stretchability, elastic recovery, softness, and a small degree of adhesiveness enable the bra 2 formed of the fabric structure 10 to provide sufficient support for the breasts. The slight adhesiveness also allows the bra 2 to attach to the skin without slipping. Thus, the bra 2 is highly supportive and can lie in close contact with the wearer's skin.
Please refer to
As shown in
Refer to
In one embodiment, the upper fabric layer 12 and the lower fabric layer 14 are knitted in a circular knitting method or a warp knitting method. Because of the characteristics of PU material, the lower fabric layer 14, which is 100% knitted with the second PU fibers 142, has stretchability and mild stickiness.
As shown in
In the previous embodiment, the lower fabric layer 14 is 100% knitted with the second PU fibers 142. In another embodiment, the lower fabric layer 14 may be knitted with the second PU fibers 142 plus a plurality of third PET fibers 143. Referring to
In the embodiment shown in
Referring to
In the present invention, the upper fabric layers, central fabric layers, and lower fabric layer of the fabric structure are all fabricated in knitting methods. The lower fabric layer is 100% knitted with the stretchable PU fibers and thus features superior stretchability, superior resilience, mild stickiness, and slip-proofness.
Although the present invention has been described in accordance with the embodiments shown, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that there could be variations to the embodiments and those variations would be within the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, many modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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102216195 | Aug 2013 | TW | national |
This is a divisional application of application Ser. No. 14/723,111, filed on May 27, 2015, which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 14/199,253, filed on Mar. 6, 2014, and which claims priority of Application No. 102216195 filed in Taiwan on Aug. 28, 2013 under 35 U.S.C. 119. The entire contents of all of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14723111 | May 2015 | US |
Child | 16829823 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14199253 | Mar 2014 | US |
Child | 14723111 | US |