Abstract:
A quilting machine is provided having a quilting station and a printing station located upstream of the quilting station, with a conveyor extending through each of the stations to convey a web of quilting material through the machine. At the printing station a top layer is printed with a multi-colored design under the control of a programmed controller, which may vary the design from section to section of the web so that individual or small quantities of panel sections of the web may be decorated with a different pattern. The conveyor maintains precise longitudinal position information of the location of the printed pattern and conveys the top patterned layer web through a drying station. Then, after combining the top layer web with webs of filler and backing material, it conveys the multi-layered web to the quilting station where a quilted pattern is caused by the controller to be sewn on the printed pattern bearing material in registration with the printed pattern. A cutoff station separates the web panels bearing composite printed and quilted patterns under control of the programmed controller.
Abstract:
A process for producing a painted, cord-bordered design on a comforter, includes the steps of superimposing a facing sheet of material on a layer of batting material which is on a backing sheet, positioning a cording material on the facing sheet in a predetermined pattern by use of a quilting machine, stitching the cording material immediately after positioning, the stitching going through all the layers of the comforter, removing the work piece from the quilting machine and painting those areas of the desired design which are bordered by the cording material.
Abstract:
The present invention provides a pressure adjustable platform system including a plurality of bladders, a base plate, and a connection plate, such as, for instance, a gasket plate. A plurality of fluid channels are incorporated into the base plate, and the fluid channels interconnect the bladders to a sensor such as a pressure or force sensor that may be present in the pressure adjustable platform system or present in an external fluid sensing and distributing apparatus. The pressure adjustable platform system may be operably connected to a fluid sensing and distributing apparatus. The base plate may contain one or more channels, tubes or conduits transmitting a fluid into or removing a fluid from a bladder. The connection plate such as a gasket plate may operably connect the fluid sensing and distributing apparatus to the pressure adjustable platform system.
Abstract:
Printhead-to-panel spacing is controllable to maintain a predetermined constant distance from the printing element to the surface of the panel where the ink is to be applied. Each of a plurality of printheads may be independently moveable to control the spacing of the printheads from the substrate surface. Sensors on the printhead carriage measure the shape, or vertical position of, the printhead's distance from the printhead carriage to the surface of the substrate being printed. The position or focal length of the UV light curing head may be varied to maintain focus of the UV light on the ink on a contoured surface of the substrate. UV curing heads may be located on the printhead carriage, one on each side of the printheads, and activated alternately as the carriage reciprocates, to spot cure ink immediately after being deposited on the substrate. Cold UV sources may be used to prevent heat deformation of flat or contoured substrates during printing, thereby making spot curing on heat-sensitive substrates such as foamboard possible.
Abstract:
An ink jet printing is provided on large area such as wide textile webs, having such pores or other opening therethrough such that, when ink is jetted from a print head onto the web, some of the ink jets through the opening to a side of the web opposite the print head. At the printing station, maintaining a space between the web and the surface such that the web is out of contact with the surface at the printing station so that when ink jetted through the web and onto the surface it does not contaminate the web.
Abstract:
Ink jet printing is provided onto rigid panels such as office partitions, which have surfaces that are contoured, textured or made of another three-dimensional material, or are otherwise differently spaced from the plane of the panel such that the distance between a printing element and the point on the surface on which ink is to be deposited is not always the same or exactly predictable. Preferably, three dimensional covered panels are printed using ink jet printing, preferably using ultraviolet (UV) light curable ink, which is first, at least partially cured with UV light and then subjected to heating to more completely cure and dry the ink to remove, by evaporation, further curing or otherwise, the uncured monomers. The panel surface may be contoured by quilting or molding processes. Print head to panel spacing is adjustable to maintain a predetermined constant distance from the printing element to the surface of the panel where the ink is to be applied. Each of a plurality of print heads is provided and independently moveable to control the spacing of the print heads from the substrate surface. Sensors on the print head carriage measure the shape, or vertical position of the print heads. The position or focal length of the UV light curing head may also be varied to maintain focus of the UV light on the ink on a contoured surface of the substrate.
Abstract:
A quilting machine (10,100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600) is provided with a printing station (20, 125, 225, 325, 425, 525, 611, 626, 631) and a quilting station (44, 127, 227, 327, 427, 527, 627, 632). A master batch controller (90, 135, 235, 335, 435, 535) assures that the proper combinations of printed and quilted patterns are combined to allow small quantities of different quilted products to be produced automatically along a material web. Ticking is preprinted with a plurality of different patterns, organized and communicated by the computer so that a print head can scan the material and print different patterns of different panels (32) across the width of a web. Identifying data (40) for matching the panels of a mattress product can be provided in data files printed on the fabric.
Abstract:
Ink jet printing is provided onto fabric using ultraviolet (UV) light curable ink. The ink is first cured with UV light to about a 90-97% cure, and then is subjected to heating to more completely cure the ink and to remove by evaporation or otherwise, the uncured monomers and producing a printed image of ink having less than 100 PPM of uncured monomers, and as low as 10 PPM of uncured monomers. The printing is provided in a quilting machine having a quilting station and a printing station located upstream of the quilting station. Preferably, at the printing station, only a top layer of fabric is printed with a multicolored design under the control of a programmed controller. UV curable ink is jetted at a dot density of about 180×254 dots or more per inch per color, each dot of about 80 picoliters. A conveyor moves the printed fabric from the printing station through a UV curing station where a UV curing light head moves either with the print head or independent of the print head to expose the deposited drops of UV ink with a beam of about 300 watts per linear inch of energy, at a rate that applies about 1 joule per square centimeter. The conveyor then conveys the fabric through a heated drying station or oven where the fabric is heated to about 300° F. for from about 30 seconds up to about three minutes. Forced hot air is preferably used to apply the heat in the oven, but other heating methods such as infrared or other radiant heaters may be used. Before, or preferably after, the heat curing, the fabric is combined with other material layers and a quilted pattern is applied in program controlled coordination with the printed pattern.
Abstract:
A quilting machine is provided having a quilting station and a printing station located upstream of the quilting station, with a conveyor extending through each of the stations to convey a web of quilting material through the machine. At the printing station a top layer is printed with a multi-colored design under the control of a programmed controller, which may vary the design from section to section of the web so that individual or small quantities of panel sections of the web may be decorated with a different pattern. The conveyor preferably moves the quilting material relative to stationary heads, but the conveyor may alternatively stop at various stations and the printing or quilting heads moved relative to the stationary web on the conveyor. Precise longitudinal position information is maintained of the location of the printed pattern. The conveyor then conveys the top patterned layer web through a drying station. After bringing the top layer web together with webs of filler and backing material, the conveyor conveys the multi-layered web to the quilting station where a quilted pattern is caused by the controller to be sewn on the printed pattern bearing material in registration with the printed pattern. Preferably, printing is applied before the quilting, but quilting before printing can be accomplished according to certain aspects of the invention. A cutoff station separates the web panels bearing composite printed and quilted patterns under control of the programmed controller. For mattress cover manufacture, border panels can be quilted and printed in coordination with the top and bottom mattress panels, as part of the same webs of material from which they are then severed in a separate synchronously controlled border making section.