Adhesive seam and method and apparatus for its manufacture

Abstract

A garment seam is formed between two fabric panels by abutting the edges of at least two panels and placing a strip of material carrying adhesive on the abutted edges to form the seam. The fabric panels have opposing major surfaces, the edges of the fabric panels being minor surfaces. The strip of material is applied on at least one major surface of the abutted fabric panels, but is optionally applied to both major surfaces of the abutted fabric panels. The strip of material is preferably thinner than the fabric panels. In some embodiments, the adhesive is a thermosetting adhesive that is applied on the strip of material in liquid form. A seam manufactured according to the present invention is less detectable through clothing than conventional multi-ply seams. Also the adhesive seam enables the manufacturer to tailor the garment to provide support or shape in a particular area (i.e. the area of the seam) in addition to providing the desirable smooth appearance. For example, when used in a brassiere (bra) cup, the seam allows the garment to be designed to provide optimal comfort, shape and support to the wearer.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 717,679, filed on Sep. 16, 2005, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to seams for garments and their manufacture. More particularly, the seams of the present provide greater comfort to the wearer and are less bulky than conventional seams, which are formed from multiple plys (e.g., layers) of material. The seams of the present invention find particular advantage in foundation garments (i.e. garments worn under other garments) especially those over which shear or clingy outer garments are worn and through which bulky seams are clearly (and undesirably) visible. [0003] In a typical garment, a sewn seam is formed between two fabric panels. Seams are sewn or otherwise formed in a variety of different ways, depending upon the material, the...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009] The present invention is applicable to seams for many types of garments. However, it is particularly advantageous in the manufacture of foundation garments, active wear, shape wear and the like type of garments (i.e. garments that are configured for fit, support and / or control). The seams of the present invention present a smooth surface, compared to prior art multi-ply seams. The smooth seams are not visually detectable when in a foundation garment over which close fitting or shear garments are worn. However, unlike prior art alternatives to multi-ply seams, the seams of the present invention permit the manufacturer to tailor the garment to provide support, comfort or shape in addition to providing the highly desirable smooth appearance. In the context of bras, the present invention provides particular advantage over the molded bra cup solution, since the present invention allows for tailoring the bra cup for fit, comfort and support whereas a molded bra cup cannot be so tailored. Also, again compared with multi-ply seams, the seams of the present invention are less likely to irritate or chafe skin in contact with the seam.

Problems solved by technology

Also, in foundation garments that provide shaping and / or support the ridge can cause discomfort, chafing etc., especially where support and / or shaping are provided.

The bra is a complicated garment from a manufacturing perspective because it is a garment with cups that define a vaulted three dimensional shape.

However, the sewn seam has fallen from favor from use in foundation garments and shape wear for purely aesthetic reasons.

Specifically, the visibly detectable seam ridge is extremely undesirable from a fashion point of view.

While these solutions do address the problem of a highly visible seam, they are deficient from a support / shaping perspective.

This single panel construction offers virtually no support and cannot be used by a large segment of the female population (typically those women who require a large cup bra also require a bra that provides at least some degree of support).

However, manufacture of the molded cup is labor intensive, since it requires molding the cup to a particular configuration.

Also, the process of molding the fabric (typically a heat treatment that removes the stretch from an elastic material such as spandex) is time consuming.

The molded cup also makes very inefficient use of fabric, since rather large areas of fabric for the cup and the strap / stay portion of garment must be reserved for clamping the cups to the strap / stay portion.

These clamped portions are subsequently removed and discarded, which wastes fabric.

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