Polyester-based fabric surface fastener and method for producing the same

Abstract

In a polyester fabric hook-and-loop fastener according to the present invention, in which Tb as defined in the description is no more than 0.94 times Ts, a selvage region having a constant width and present on both ends of the hook-and-loop fastener is present in a continuous linear manner in the warp direction without deviating in the weft direction. As a result, when sewing the polyester fabric hook-and-loop fastener onto clothing, etc., a sewn product with an excellent appearance can be obtained due to the thread sewn in the selvage area being sewn in a straight line without meandering.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a fabric surface fastener made of polyester fibers and having hook-shaped engaging elements and / or loop-shaped engaging elements, and uses heat-sealable fibers as weft yarns to fuse the heat-sealable fibers to fix the yarns for engaging elements to the fabric base fabric of the surface fastener, which is a fabric-based surface fastener.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as a surface fastener having a fabric base fabric, there is a so-called fabric hook surface fastener having a large number of hook-shaped engaging elements made of monofilament yarns on the surface of the fabric base fabric, and a loop-shaped engaging element made of multifilament yarns that can engage with the hook-shaped engaging element. A combination with a so-called fabric loop surface fastener having a large number on the surface of the fabric base fabric is known. Fabric hook surface fasteners and fabric loop surface fasteners are widely used in application fields such as clothing and daily sundries because they do not damage the engaging elements and have little reduction in the engaging force even when the engagement / disengagement is repeated.

[0003] In addition, a so-called hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener having a large number of both the hook-shaped engaging elements and the loop-shaped engaging elements on the surface of the fabric base fabric is also widely used because it combines the functions of both the hook surface fastener and the loop surface fastener in one type of surface fastener.

[0004] In the case of such a fabric surface fastener, in order to prevent the yarns for engaging elements woven into the fabric base fabric composed of warp and weft yarns from being pulled out of the fabric base fabric by the tension during engagement and disengagement, usually, a urethane-based or acrylic-based resin agent called a backcoat adhesive is applied to the back surface of the fabric base fabric.

[0005] However, in the hook-and-loop fastener provided with the conventional back coat adhesive layer, the flexibility of the fabric base fabric is lost due to the back coat adhesive layer existing on the back surface, making it prone to becoming rigid, and there is a drawback that the texture deteriorates. Also, during use as a hook-and-loop fastener, the adhesive is prone to deterioration, the fixing force of the yarn for the engaging element gradually decreases, and there is also a drawback that the engaging function of the hook-and-loop fastener deteriorates. Furthermore, due to the back coat adhesive layer existing on the back surface of the fabric base fabric, there is also a drawback that the breathability of the hook-and-loop fastener decreases.

[0006] Furthermore, in the fabric hook-and-loop fastener with the back coat adhesive applied to the back surface of the fabric base fabric, due to the back coat adhesive layer, the dye liquor cannot penetrate the fabric base fabric, and it cannot be dyed uniformly and darkly. Therefore, it is necessary to perform the dyeing before applying the back coat adhesive. Before applying the back coat adhesive, since the yarn for the engaging element etc. is not fixed to the fabric base fabric, the yarns constituting the fabric base fabric move during the dyeing process, resulting in displacement etc., and the arrangement of the engaging elements is disrupted. In the case of the hook-shaped engaging element, when the arrangement of the engaging elements is disrupted, when cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element to form the hook-shaped engaging element, it becomes difficult to surely cut only one leg, and it often happens that both legs are cut or neither leg is cut.

[0007] As a hook-and-loop fastener that solves the problems of the hook-and-loop fastener with such a back coat adhesive applied to the back surface, Patent Document 1 describes a hook-and-loop fastener in which polyester-based heat-shrinkable yarns are used as the warp, weft, and yarn for the engaging element, and heat-fusible fibers are further used as the yarns constituting the weft, and the yarn for the engaging element is fixed to the fabric base fabric by the fusion of the heat-fusible fibers and the heat shrinkage of the yarns constituting the hook-and-loop fastener.

[0008] Also, Patent Document 2 also describes a self-fusing loop hook-and-loop fastener in which a large number of loop-shaped engaging elements formed from polyester-based loop-shaped yarns for the engaging element woven in parallel with the warp stand up on one side of a fabric base fabric formed from polyester-based warp and polyester-based weft, and the base of the loop-shaped engaging element is fixed to the fabric base fabric by the fusion of the heat-fusible fibers used as the weft and the heat shrinkage of the above-mentioned yarns constituting the hook-and-loop fastener.

[0009] Generally, ears without engaging elements are provided at both ends of the fabric surface fastener, and using these ears, the fabric surface fastener is attached to daily sundries such as clothing, gloves, shoes, and bags by sewing. As a method of manufacturing such a fabric surface fastener having ears, when weaving the base fabric for the surface fastener, a method of weaving the surface fastener base fabric is used such that ear regions without engaging elements continuously exist in the warp direction at both ends parallel to the warp on the surface side of the base fabric.

[0010] In the case of the fabric surface fastener described in the above patent document, certainly, since there is no back coat adhesive layer, the drawbacks of the conventional surface fastener provided with a back coat adhesive layer can be eliminated. However, on the other hand, when fixing the base of the engaging element yarn to the fabric base fabric by heat fusion of the weft yarn, heat shrinkage is likely to be uneven, and as a result, the warp is likely to shift in the weft direction. When a shift occurs, the ear region will also shift in the weft direction, and as a result, the width of the ear region will become uneven or the ear region will bend in the warp direction. When the width of the ear is uneven or bent, when attaching to clothing etc. by sewing, it gives the impression that the sewing thread sewn to the ear is meandering, and the commercial value of clothing etc. decreases.

[0011] Particularly in the case of a fabric surface fastener, it is preferable from the viewpoint of productivity to weave a wide-width base fabric for the surface fastener and slit this wide-width base fabric for the surface fastener in the warp direction to simultaneously manufacture a plurality of long surface fasteners. In the case of such a manufacturing method, it is necessary to provide one or a plurality of rows of ear forming regions without engaging elements continuous in the warp direction at intervals in the weft direction at the slitting portion so that the regions where the engaging element loops exist are divided into a plurality by this ear forming region.

[0012] However, when the warp threads are displaced in the weft direction, the ear-forming region is also displaced in the weft direction. In particular, when the ear-forming region is displaced in the weft direction, it is difficult to accurately slit the central portion of the ear-forming region. As a result, it becomes extremely difficult to obtain a long fabric surface fastener having an ear region of a certain width. When the width of the ear region becomes non-uniform, as described above, when sewing to clothing or the like by sewing, the sewing thread sewn to the ear region gives an impression that it meanders, and the commercial value of clothing or the like decreases.

[0013] As described above, the hook-shaped engaging element is manufactured by weaving the engaging element yarn parallel to the warp threads into the fabric base fabric, causing it to rise in a loop shape from the fabric base fabric at various places to form an engaging element loop, and cutting one leg of this engaging element loop. When the warp threads are displaced in the weft direction, accordingly, the engaging element loop is also displaced in the weft direction, and it is difficult to accurately and reliably cut only one leg of the loop. Therefore, those with both legs cut, those with neither leg cut, those with the cutting position displaced, etc. will be mixed, and the commercial value as a surface fastener will decrease.

[0014] In Patent Document 1, it is described that no wrinkles or deformations were found in the obtained fabric surface fastener, but there is no description regarding the displacement of the warp threads in the weft direction. In Patent Document 2, since a fabric surface fastener having a width of 1 inch with ears at both ends from the beginning is woven, it is described that a fabric surface fastener can be obtained without slitting in the warp direction. However, in the case of such a small width, even if displacement occurs, it is slight. Therefore, in the technology of Patent Document 2, the problem that the ear width becomes non-uniform due to the displacement of the ear region in the weft direction hardly occurs.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0015]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0016] The present invention relates to a technique for obtaining a fabric surface fastener having ear regions continuous in the warp direction at both ends, and aims to provide a long fabric surface fastener in which the ear regions are hardly displaced in the weft direction, and as a result, a constant-width ear region exists along the warp direction at both ends. In particular, there is a region (ear formation region) where there is no engaging element continuous in the warp direction between the ear regions continuously existing in the warp direction at both ends of the fabric surface fastener. The present invention relates to a technique for simultaneously obtaining a plurality of long fabric surface fasteners with ears by slitting the ear formation region in the warp direction, and aims to provide a technique for simultaneously obtaining a plurality of long fabric surface fasteners having uniform-width ear regions by slitting the middle in the width direction of the ear formation region in the warp direction. Furthermore, it aims to obtain a fabric surface fastener that is efficiently and uniformly dyed, and in which the ear regions are aligned in a straight line and have a uniform width in the warp direction without displacement even after dyeing.

[0017] Also, it aims to provide a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener having a hook-shaped engaging element in which only one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is accurately and surely cut.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0018] That is, the present invention a fabric base fabric composed of warp and weft, a yarn for engaging element woven in parallel with the warp of the base fabric, and formed from the yarn for engaging element, and consisting of loop-shaped engaging elements, hook-shaped engaging elements or both rising from the surface of the base fabric, wherein the warp, the weft and the yarn for engaging element are all polyester-based fibers, the weft contains heat-sealing fibers, Provided is a polyester woven surface fastener in which the base of the engaging element is fused to the heat-fusible fiber and fixed to the base fabric, and which satisfies the following requirements (1) and (2). (1) The warp floats and sinks above and below the weft, and the thickness Tb in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the warp sinks the most on the back side of the base fabric is 0.94 times or less of the thickness Ts in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the warp rises the most on the front side of the base fabric. (2) Ear regions where no engaging element exists continuously exist in the warp direction at both ends parallel to the warp on the front side of the base fabric.

[0019] Preferably, Tb is 0.92 times or less of Ts, and more preferably, Tb is 0.7 to 0.88 times of Ts.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment of the polyester woven surface fastener, an ear formation region where no engaging element exists continuously exists in the warp direction between two ear regions existing at both ends parallel to the warp on the front side of the base fabric, and the region where the engaging element exists is divided into a plurality of regions parallel to the warp by the ear formation region.

[0021] In another preferred embodiment of the polyester woven surface fastener, the ear formation region is slit parallel to the warp at the center in the width direction, and at least one of the ear regions existing at both ends is an ear region derived from the ear formation region, providing a woven surface fastener.

[0022] In another preferred embodiment of the polyester woven surface fastener, there is no adhesive layer for fixing the engaging element to the base fabric on the back side of the base fabric.

[0023] In another preferred embodiment of the polyester woven surface fastener, the polyester woven surface fastener is dyed with a disperse dye.

[0024] Furthermore, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a polyester woven surface fastener, which performs the following steps 1 to 3 in this order. Step 1: A woven base fabric composed of warp and weft threads, Threads for engaging elements woven parallel to the warp threads of the base fabric, and Ear regions that exist at both ends of the surface of the base fabric and are continuously present parallel to the warp direction without engaging elements comprising, The threads for engaging elements form a number of hook-shaped engaging element loops, loop engaging element loops, or both, rising from the surface of the base fabric, wherein the warp threads, the weft threads, and the threads for engaging elements are all polyester-based fibers, and the weft threads contain heat-fusible fibers a step of weaving a fabric for a hook-and-loop fastener, Step 2: A heat treatment step of heating the fabric for a hook-and-loop fastener in a heat treatment furnace to a temperature equal to or higher than the melting temperature of the heat-fusible fibers, thermally shrinking the threads constituting the fabric for a hook-and-loop fastener, and firmly fixing the threads for engaging elements to the base fabric, Step 3: A step of taking out the heat-treated fabric for a hook-and-loop fastener from the heat treatment furnace and pressing the back surface of the base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface in a state where the heat-fusible fibers are melted.

[0025] In the above manufacturing method, preferably, Steps 1 to 3 are continuously performed without winding in the middle.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Step 3 is performed without pressing the surface side of the base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface.

[0027] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, when including hook-shaped engaging element loops, the following Step 4 is performed after Step 3, and Steps 1 to 4 are continuously performed without winding in the middle. Step 4: A step of cutting one leg of the hook-shaped engaging element loop to form a hook-shaped engaging element.

[0028] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, in step 1, an ear-forming region where no engaging element is present is continuously formed in parallel with the warp direction between the ear regions, and a woven fabric for a hook-and-loop fastener is woven in which the region where the engaging element is present is divided into a plurality of regions parallel to the warp by the ear-forming region. When performing step 5 after step 3 or when performing step 4, step 5 described below is performed after step 4. Step 5: A step of slitting the base fabric in parallel with the warp direction in the ear region sandwiched between the regions where the engaging element is present,

[0029] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, when performing the above step 4, after the completion of step 4, or when not performing step 4, after the completion of the above step 3, the obtained long polyester-based hook-and-loop fastener is wound up, immersed in a dyeing solution containing a disperse dye in the wound state to dye the hook-and-loop fastener, and then step 5 is performed when performing step 5.

Advantages of the Invention

[0030] In the present invention, after heating the fabric base fabric to a temperature equal to or higher than the melting temperature of the heat-fusible fiber to thermally contract the yarns constituting the fabric base fabric, while maintaining the state where the heat-fusible fiber is melted, an operation of pressing the back surface of the fabric base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface is performed. By this operation, the deviation in the weft direction of the ear regions existing at both ends is corrected. When there is an ear-forming region, the deviation in the weft direction of the ear-forming region is corrected. As a result, a long woven fabric hook-and-loop fastener in which ear regions of a certain width continuously exist linearly in the warp direction is obtained at both ends. When there is an ear-forming region, a long woven fabric hook-and-loop fastener in which ear regions of a certain width exist linearly is obtained by slitting the center in the width direction of the ear-forming region in the warp direction. The center in the width direction of the ear-forming region can be accurately slit in the warp direction, whereby a plurality of long woven fabric hook-and-loop fasteners having ear regions of uniform width can be obtained simultaneously.

[0031] Further, by pressing the back surface of the fabric base material against the fixed surface or the roll surface, the deviation of the engaging element yarn in the weft direction is similarly corrected, and a hook fabric surface fastener having a hook-shaped engaging element in which only one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is accurately and surely cut is obtained.

[0032] In the present invention, after melting the heat-fusible fiber used as the weft yarn and thermally shrinking the yarns constituting the base fabric, an operation of pressing the back surface of the base fabric against the fixed surface or the roll surface is performed while the heat-fusible fiber remains in a molten state. By this operation, the thickness in the base fabric thickness direction of the warp yarns that float and sink above and below the weft yarn is 0.94 times or less of the same thickness at the location where it bulges most on the front surface side at the location where it sinks most on the back surface side. By satisfying such a warp yarn thickness relationship, the above-described effects can be obtained.

[0033] Furthermore, the fabric surface fastener having an ear-forming region is wound up in a wide state before slitting. By putting this wide-wound fabric surface fastener into a dyeing kettle, immersing it in a dyeing solution, and circulating the dyeing solution, the dyeing solution can uniformly penetrate into the surface fastener, and a wide fabric surface fastener dyed without dyeing spots can be obtained. By slitting the central portion in the width direction of the ear-forming region of the dyed wide fabric surface fastener in the warp direction, a plurality of dyed fabric surface fasteners can be efficiently obtained at once.

[0034] By performing the operation of pressing the back surface of the base fabric against the fixed surface or the roll surface while the heat-fusible fiber remains in a molten state, the thickness of the warp yarns in the base fabric thickness direction satisfies the above-described relationship, and compared with the case where it is not satisfied, local strains of the warp yarns and the weft yarns are corrected, and in particular, the deviation of the warp yarns and the engaging element yarns in the weft direction is corrected.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0035]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0036] Next, the polyester woven fabric surface fastener of the present invention and its manufacturing method will be described in detail. The polyester woven fabric surface fastener of the present invention may be any of a hook woven fabric surface fastener having a large number of hook-shaped engaging elements on the surface of a woven fabric base, a loop woven fabric surface fastener having a large number of loop-shaped engaging elements on the surface of a woven fabric base, and a hook / loop coexisting type woven fabric surface fastener having both a large number of hook-shaped engaging elements and a large number of loop-shaped engaging elements on the surface of a woven fabric base.

[0037] The hook woven fabric surface fastener is mainly formed from a monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements, warp, and weft. On the other hand, the loop woven fabric surface fastener that engages with the hook woven fabric surface fastener is mainly formed from a multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements, warp, and weft. Further, the hook / loop coexisting type woven fabric surface fastener in which hook-shaped engaging elements and loop-shaped engaging elements coexist on the same surface is mainly formed from a monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements, a multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements, warp, and weft. These woven fabric surface fasteners may have other yarns woven therein as necessary.

[0038] The warp yarn, weft yarn, and yarn for engaging elements should all be substantially composed of polyester-based polymers because they do not cause undulation (a state where the base fabric surface of the fabric surface fastener rises and falls irregularly and does not become a flat surface) due to heat, water absorption, or moisture absorption, and because the yarns are firmly joined together by heat fusion.

[0039] A polyester-based polymer is a polyester mainly composed of ethylene terephthalate units or a polyester mainly composed of butylene terephthalate units, and is a polyester obtained mainly by the polycondensation reaction of terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol or the polycondensation reaction of terephthalic acid and butanediol. A small amount of polymerization units other than terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol, or other than terephthalic acid and butanediol, may be added. Further, a small amount of other polymers may be added to the above polyester.

[0040] The warp yarn and the yarn for engaging elements are preferably mainly formed from polyethylene terephthalate-based homopolymers or polybutylene terephthalate-based homopolymers. It is preferable that the main component forming the yarn is a polyethylene terephthalate-based polyester or a polybutylene terephthalate-based polyester having a melting point that does not melt at the heat treatment temperature for melting the sheath component of the core-sheath type heat-fusible fiber forming the weft yarn described later. Further, other fibers may be blended, mixed, or aligned in the above polyester-based fibers as necessary.

[0041] The warp yarn is preferably a multifilament yarn, more preferably a multifilament yarn composed of 20 to 60 filaments with a total decitex of 100 to 300 decitex, and even more preferably a multifilament yarn composed of 24 to 48 filaments with a total decitex of 150 to 280 decitex.

[0042] Also, the warp yarns that cause heat shrinkage under the conditions for fusing the heat-sealable fibers of the weft yarns are preferable in terms of the fixing effect of the engaging elements, and the dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C is preferably 4 to 20%. The melting point is preferably 140 to 330°C in terms of controlling the fusing state of the heat-sealable fibers of the weft yarns and controlling the pressing state of the warp yarns. Polyester fiber manufacturers sell various products with different dry heat shrinkage rates, and appropriate yarns with the desired dry heat shrinkage rate can be selected and used from them. Also, by appropriately heat-treating commercially available polyester multifilament yarns, those with the desired dry heat shrinkage rate can be obtained.

[0043] As the weft yarns, multifilament yarns are preferable, and multifilament yarns of heat-sealable fibers are more preferable. The weft yarns are more preferably multifilament yarns composed of 10 to 72 filaments with a total decitex of 80 to 300 decitex, and even more preferably multifilament yarns composed of 18 to 56 filaments with a total decitex of 90 to 260 decitex. Also, the dry heat shrinkage rate of the weft yarns at 180°C is preferably 10 to 30%.

[0044] The weft yarns must contain heat-sealable fibers. Representative examples of heat-sealable fibers include core-sheath type heat-sealable fibers with a sheath component as the heat-fusing component. Since the weft yarns contain heat-sealable fibers, it becomes possible to firmly fix the yarns for engaging elements to the fabric base fabric, eliminating the need to apply polyurethane-based or acrylic-based backcoat adhesives to the back surface of the fabric surface fastener base fabric to prevent the yarns for engaging elements from being pulled out from the fabric base fabric as in conventional fabric surface fasteners.

[0045] It is also possible to fix the yarn for the engaging element to the base fabric by using heat-fusible fibers for the warp instead of the weft. However, since the yarn for the engaging element is driven into the base fabric parallel to the warp, the number of intersections between the warp and the yarn for the engaging element is much smaller than that between the weft and the yarn for the engaging element. Therefore, when heat-fusible fibers are used only for the warp, it is difficult to firmly fix the yarn for the engaging element to the base fabric. When the warp contains heat-fusible fibers, it is difficult to keep the tension applied to the running base fabric constant, and it is likely to be difficult to stably and continuously produce a fabric surface fastener of a certain quality.

[0046] As the above-mentioned core-sheath type heat-fusible fibers, fibers made of a polyester-based resin that can firmly fix the base of the hook-shaped engaging element monofilament yarn or loop-shaped engaging element multifilament yarn that is in contact with or located beside the heat-fusible fiber by melting the sheath component to the base fabric are preferred. For example, polyester-based fibers having a core-sheath type cross-section in which the core component does not melt under heat treatment conditions but the sheath component melts can be mentioned.

[0047] Specifically, a copolymerized polyethylene terephthalate in which polyethylene terephthalate is used as the core component and a large amount of copolymerized components represented by isophthalic acid, adipic acid, etc., for example, copolymerized at 20 to 30 mol%, so that the melting point or softening point is greatly lowered, or a core-sheath type polyester fiber in which isophthalic acid, sodium sulfoisophthalate, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, etc. are copolymerized at 15 to 30 mol% is used as the sheath component can be mentioned as a typical example. The melting point or softening point of the sheath component is preferably 120 to 210 °C and 20 to 120 °C lower than the melting points of the warp, the core component, the hook-shaped engaging element monofilament yarn, or the loop-shaped engaging element multifilament yarn. The cross-sectional shape of the core-sheath type heat-sealable fiber may be a concentric core-sheath, an eccentric core-sheath, or an eccentric core-sheath that appears to have a bimetal-like bonded shape at first glance. Further, it may be a single-core core-sheath or a multi-core core-sheath. In particular, a multifilament yarn composed of filaments having a cross-sectional shape of a single-core core-sheath is preferable, and a multifilament yarn composed of 10 to 72 filaments with a total decitex of 80 to 300 decitex is more preferable, and a multifilament yarn composed of 18 to 56 filaments with a total decitex of 90 to 260 decitex is even more preferable. Also, the dry heat shrinkage rate of the weft yarn at 180 °C is preferably 10 to 30%.

[0048] In particular, it is preferable that all of the weft yarns are substantially formed of core-sheath type heat-sealable fibers, that is, the weft yarn is a multifilament yarn composed of core-sheath type heat-sealable filaments, because both the hook-shaped engaging element yarn and the loop-shaped engaging element yarn will be firmly fixed to the base fabric. When the fibers constituting the weft yarn are not composite fibers or mixed fibers with a core-sheath cross-sectional shape, but all of the fiber cross-sections are formed of a heat-sealable polymer alone, the heat-sealable polymer that has melted and solidified again is brittle and easily cracked. Therefore, when sewing, etc., the base fabric is easily torn from the sewing thread portion. Therefore, the heat-sealable fiber preferably contains a resin that is not heat-sealed, and particularly preferably has a cross-sectional shape of a core-sheath. The weight ratio of the core component to the sheath component is preferably in the range of 85:15 to 40:60, particularly preferably in the range of 80:20 to 60:40.

[0049] Furthermore, in order to firmly fix both the hook-shaped engaging element yarn and the loop-shaped engaging element yarn to the base fabric, it is preferable that the heat-sealable fiber heat-seals and the heat-sealable fiber heat-shrinks to clamp the roots of the hook-shaped engaging element and the loop-shaped engaging element from both sides. For that purpose, it is preferable that the heat-sealable fiber causes a large heat shrinkage under heat treatment conditions, and the dry heat shrinkage rate at 180 °C is preferably 8 to 30%, and more preferably 10 to 25%.

[0050] The hook-shaped engaging elements that constitute a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener are required to have rigidity such that the hook shape is not extended by a light force and so-called hook shape retention, i.e., when the hook shape is extended and the force is removed, it immediately returns to the original hook shape. For this purpose, a thick and hard monofilament yarn made of synthetic fiber is used. In the present invention, as this monofilament yarn, a monofilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate-based polyester or polybutylene terephthalate-based polyester, which is excellent in rigidity and hook shape retention and does not melt at the temperature at which the above heat-fusible fiber is heat-fused, is used. In particular, a monofilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate homopolymer or polybutylene terephthalate homopolymer is preferable.

[0051] The diameter of the monofilament yarn for the hook-shaped engaging element is preferably 0.12 to 0.23 mm from the viewpoints of the above-described hook shape retention and rigidity, and more preferably 0.14 to 0.21 mm. In order to increase the engagement force, the cross-sectional shape of the monofilament may be an irregular cross-sectional shape represented by a polygon such as a triangle or a square. Such a monofilament yarn for a hook-shaped engaging element preferably thermally shrinks under the conditions of heat-fusing the heat-fusible fiber, similar to the warp yarn, from the viewpoint of the fixing effect of the engaging element, and preferably has a dry heat shrinkage rate of 10 to 25% at 180°C.

[0052] The thread for the loop engaging element that constitutes the loop fabric surface fastener or the hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener preferably has both cut resistance against the tensile force when peeling the engagement with the hook engaging element and so-called loop shape retention, in which the widened loop shape immediately returns to the original widened loop shape as soon as the force is removed even when the widened loop shape is stretched by the engagement. Therefore, similar to the thread for the hook engaging element, a multifilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate-based polyester or polybutylene terephthalate-based polyester, which does not melt at the temperature when the above heat-fusible fiber is heat-fused and has a melting point of 195 to 270°C, is preferred, and a multifilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate homopolymer or polybutylene terephthalate homopolymer is more preferred.

[0053] The thread for the loop engaging element is preferably a multifilament yarn composed of 5 to 15 filaments with a total decitex of 150 to 500 decitex in terms of loop shape retention and cut resistance, and more preferably a multifilament yarn composed of 6 to 12 filaments with a total decitex of 200 to 400 decitex. Also, since the initial engagement strength and texture are further improved, it is also preferable to use a multifilament yarn composed of 40 to 180 filaments with a total decitex of 200 to 600 decitex. Such a multifilament yarn for the loop engaging element preferably causes heat shrinkage under the conditions of heat-fusing the above heat-fusible fiber, similar to the warp, from the viewpoint of the fixing effect of the loop engaging element, and preferably has a dry heat shrinkage rate of 10 to 25% at 180°C.

[0054] In Step 1, first, a fabric for the surface fastener is woven from the warp, weft, monofilament yarn for the hook engaging element, and multifilament yarn for the loop engaging element described above. As the weave structure, plain weave with the monofilament yarn for the hook engaging element and the multifilament yarn for the loop engaging element as part of the warp is preferred. These threads for the engaging elements are woven in parallel with the warp. In the case of a hook fabric surface fastener, it is preferable to weave in such a way that, starting from the surface of the fabric base fabric in the middle, while forming a loop, it jumps over 1 to 3 warp threads and weaves so as to penetrate between the warp threads, because it is easy to efficiently cut one leg of the loop for the hook engaging element.

[0055] On the other hand, in the case of a loop fabric surface fastener, it is preferable to weave in such a way that a loop is formed without straddling the warp threads and the loop exists parallel to the warp threads, because the loop-shaped engaging element is likely to face in a direction in which it easily engages with the hook-shaped engaging element. Furthermore, in the case of a hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener, it is preferable to weave the thread for the hook-shaped engaging element in such a way that, while forming a loop, it jumps over 1 to 3 warp threads and weaves so as to penetrate between the warp threads, and to weave the thread for the loop-shaped engaging element in such a way that, while forming a loop, it jumps over 1 warp thread and weaves so as to penetrate between the warp threads, because one leg side part of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element can be efficiently cut, and furthermore, the hook-shaped engaging element and the loop-shaped engaging element can easily engage with each other.

[0056] The weaving density of the warp threads is preferably 35 to 80 threads / cm in terms of the weaving density after heat treatment, and the weaving density of the weft threads is preferably 12 to 30 threads / cm in terms of the weaving density after heat treatment, because the base of the engaging element can be firmly fixed to the base fabric. The weight ratio of the weft threads is preferably 15 to 40% with respect to the total weight of the thread for the hook-shaped engaging element or the loop-shaped engaging element, the warp threads, and the weft threads that constitute the fabric surface fastener, for the same reason as above.

[0057] The number of driving-in of the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements and the multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements is preferably about 2 to 8 for each 20 warp yarns (including the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements or the multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements) from the viewpoint of engaging force. In the case of a hook / loop juxtaposed type fabric surface fastener, it is preferably that the total of the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements and the multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements is 2 to 8 for each 20 warp yarns (including the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements and the multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements) for the same reason, and it is preferably that the ratio of the number of the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements to the number of the multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements is 40:60 to 60:40 for the same reason.

[0058] In one aspect of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, a fabric for a surface fastener is woven in which ear regions (2a) extending parallel to the warp direction (Wa) and having no loops for engaging elements are formed at both ends of an engaging element region (1) having loops for engaging elements. In the present invention, the deviation of the ear regions in the weft direction is corrected.

[0059] In another aspect of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, between two ear regions (2a), ear forming regions (2b) having no loops for engaging elements are provided in one row or a plurality of rows parallel to the warp direction (Wa). The region where the engaging elements are present is divided into a plurality of regions by the ear forming regions (2b). By accurately slitting the middle part of the ear forming regions (2b) in the warp direction, a plurality of fabric surface fasteners having ears of uniform width at both ends can be obtained simultaneously with high productivity, so that the effects of the present invention can be further exerted.

[0060] That is, two ear regions (2a) and one or a plurality of rows of ear-forming regions (2b) are present on the surface of the base fabric at intervals in the weft direction (We) (in FIG. 2, there are two ear regions and three ear-forming regions), and the engaging element region (1) is preferably continuous in the warp direction (Wa) by the ear-forming regions (2b) but divided into a plurality of regions in the weft direction (We) (in FIG. 2, four engaging element regions).

[0061] The width (after heat shrinkage) of the ear region (2a) in the weft direction (We) is preferably 0.5 to 10.0 mm, more preferably 1 to 8 mm, and the width (after heat shrinkage) of the ear-forming region (2b) in the weft direction (We) is preferably 1 to 8 mm, more preferably 2 to 6 mm. The engaging element region (1) is preferably divided into a plurality of regions with a width of 7 to 50 mm in the weft direction (We) by the ear-forming regions (2b). In particular, it is preferable that the engaging element region (1) is divided into a plurality of regions with a width of 15 to 30 mm.

[0062] The total width of the fabric in the weft direction (We) before slitting the ear-forming regions (2b) is preferably in the range of 80 to 300 mm from the viewpoint of productivity. Therefore, it is preferable that the engaging element region (1) is divided into 2 to 12 regions by the ear-forming regions (2b). It is preferable that no engaging element yarn is woven into the ear-forming regions (2b) from the viewpoint of the flexibility of the fabric surface fastener.

[0063] In Step 2, as shown in FIG. 5, the surface fastener fabric (6) thus obtained is heat-treated by continuously running it through the heat treatment furnace (7) in a long strip state, preferably without winding it up halfway. By this heat treatment, only the sheath component of the core-sheath type heat-fusible fiber constituting the weft is melted, and at the same time, the warp, the engaging element yarn, and the weft are heat-shrunk to firmly fix the engaging element yarn to the fabric base fabric. It is preferable that the long strip surface fastener fabric (6) running through the heat treatment furnace is allowed to run freely in the heat treatment furnace without applying too much tension so that it can shrink sufficiently and without the upper and lower surfaces of the long strip surface fastener fabric touching anything.

[0064] By this heat treatment, the yarn for the engaging element is fixed to the fabric base cloth, eliminating the need for the application and drying processes of the backcoat adhesive liquid used in conventional fabric surface fasteners, and preventing problems in the manufacturing process caused by the use of the backcoat adhesive and performance problems such as the flexibility, air permeability, and liquid permeability of the fabric surface fastener from being impaired. Further, in the case of a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener, the shape of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is fixed by the heat during this heat treatment. Even after the single leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is cut later to form a hook-shaped engaging element, the hook shape is maintained and sufficient engaging strength is obtained. Also, in the case of a loop-shaped engaging element, the loop shape becomes a uniform shape with a natural spread.

[0065] The heat treatment temperature is generally 150 to 250°C, which is a temperature at which the heat-fusible fibers constituting the weft yarn melt or soften but the other yarns do not melt, and at which the monofilament yarn for the hook-shaped engaging element is fixed in a loop shape and the multifilament yarn for the loop-shaped engaging element is fixed in a loop shape with a natural spread. More preferably, it is in the range of 175 to 230°C, and even more preferably, it is in the range of 190 to 220°C. Such heat treatment is usually carried out, as shown in FIG. 5, by running the fabric for the surface fastener through the heat treatment furnace (7) without touching objects such as rollers and guides, that is, in a non-contact state. If it touches rollers, guides, etc. in the heat treatment furnace (7), heat shrinkage will be suppressed halfway and partial distortion will occur, which is not preferable. Preferably, the heat treatment is completed by running the fabric for the surface fastener (6) through the heat treatment furnace at a speed of 0.30 to 1.30 m / min for 20 to 120 seconds. In FIG. 5, L represents the loop for the engaging element.

[0066] In Step 3, immediately after the woven fabric for hook-and-loop fasteners that has undergone such heat treatment exits the heat treatment furnace (7), as shown in Fig. 5, an operation is performed to press the back surface of the woven fabric base fabric against the fixed surface or the roll surface (8) while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state. In Fig. 5, immediately after exiting the heat treatment furnace (7), an operation is being performed to press the back surface of the woven fabric for hook-and-loop fasteners against the fixed surface (8). In order to press only the back surface against the fixed surface or the roll surface (8), it is necessary to bring the back surface into contact with the fixed surface or the roll surface (8) while tension is applied to the woven fabric base fabric. This is considered to be the cause of correcting local distortion and warp displacement.

[0067] By performing the above operation, local non-uniform distortion of the woven fabric for hook-and-loop fasteners due to heat shrinkage occurring in the heat treatment furnace (7) is corrected, and the displacement in the weft direction in the ear region and the displacement in the weft direction in the ear-forming region are corrected. As a result, a long woven fabric hook-and-loop fastener in which ear regions of a certain width continuously exist linearly in the warp direction at both ends is obtained. Also, the middle part of the ear-forming region can be accurately slit in the warp direction, and thereby a plurality of woven fabric hook-and-loop fasteners having ear regions of uniform width at both ends can be efficiently obtained simultaneously.

[0068] It is preferable that neither the front surface nor the back surface of the woven fabric for hook-and-loop fasteners touches any solid objects such as rollers or guides from the time it enters the heat treatment furnace until it is pressed against the fixed surface or the roll surface with the back surface fixed, and it touches the fixed surface or the roll surface with the back surface fixed for the first time immediately after exiting the heat treatment furnace.

[0069] In the present invention, it is preferable to set the fixed surface or the roll surface that presses the back surface of the woven fabric base fabric while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state so that the contact length with the back surface of the woven fabric base fabric is 20 to 100 mm and the contact time is 2 to 10 seconds. For example, fixed surfaces or roll surfaces made of metal, ceramics, or heat-resistant resin are mentioned as suitable materials. The surface of the fixed surface or the roll surface may be in a mirror state, a matte state, or may have some irregularities as long as it can hold down the back surface of the base fabric.

[0070] When using a fixed surface, as shown in Fig. 5, it is particularly effective and preferable that the fabric base fabric has a shape that changes the running direction along the fixed surface (8) of the back surface. In Fig. 5, the fabric for the surface fastener (6) changes the running direction by 90° along the fixed surface (8). Note that the fixed surface and the roll surface are preferably heated to a temperature 80 to 210°C lower than the heat treatment temperature in order to enhance the contact effect. Usually, the surface of the fixed surface and the roll surface (8) may be adjusted so that it is warmed by the residual heat of the heat-treated fabric for the surface fastener (6) coming out of the heat treatment furnace. The surface pressing against the back surface of the fabric base fabric may be either the surface where the surface is fixed, the roll surface where the contact surface rotates according to the running of the fabric for the surface fastener, or the driven roll surface that actively pulls the fabric for the surface fastener. Further, it may be a narrow guide-shaped surface.

[0071] In the present invention, as shown in Fig. 5, the fabric for the surface fastener (6) passes through the heat treatment furnace (7), and the warp and weft yarns in the loop passing through the heat treatment furnace (7) contract as described above. Immediately after coming out of the heat treatment furnace (7), it is preferable to continue running on the fixed surface or the roll surface (8). Therefore, when being pressure-bonded to the fixed surface or the roll surface (8), the fabric for the surface fastener (6) is in a state where tension is applied in the warp direction. The tension applied to the fabric for the surface fastener immediately after passing through the fixed surface or the roll surface (8) is preferably about 50 to 600 g / cm. Therefore, it is preferable to apply as little tension as possible to the fabric for the surface fastener before passing through the fixed surface or the roll surface (8), and to apply the above-mentioned tension to the fabric for the surface fastener immediately after passing through the fixed surface or the roll surface (8). In the case of the fabric surface fastener of the present invention, the warp floats and sinks above and below the weft, and therefore the back surface of the fabric base fabric is covered with the warp. Thus, the weft containing the heat-fusible fiber hardly comes into direct contact with the fixed surface or the roll surface. Therefore, the melt of the heat-fusible fiber does not directly adhere to the surface of the fixed surface or the roll surface, and no trouble occurs due to this.

[0072] Particularly when manufacturing a fabric surface fastener having a hook-shaped engaging element, by pressing the back surface of the fabric for surface fastener (6) against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) in a state where the heat-fusible fibers are melted, the deviation of the warp and the weft of the thread for the engaging element in the weft direction is corrected. Further, in the operation of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element performed thereafter to form the hook-shaped engaging element, since only one leg can be accurately cut, a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener having a hook-shaped engaging element in which only one leg is accurately and surely cut can be obtained.

[0073] The operation of pressing the back surface of the fabric for surface fastener (6) against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) in a state where the heat-fusible fibers used as the weft are melted is preferably performed using the residual heat during the heat treatment without cooling the heat-treated fabric for surface fastener as shown in FIG. 5, continuously following the heat treatment in the heat treatment furnace (7) from the viewpoint of productivity. Further, after cooling the fabric for surface fastener taken out from the heat treatment furnace (7), it may be reheated to a state where the heat-fusible fibers are melted, and the operation of pressing it against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) in this state may be performed.

[0074] By performing the operation of pressing the back surface of the fabric for surface fastener (6) against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) in a state where the heat-fusible fibers are melted, as shown in FIG. 3, the thickness Tb in the base fabric thickness direction (K) at the location where it sinks the most on the back surface side of the warp that floats and sinks above and below across the weft is 0.94 times or less of the thickness Ts in the base fabric thickness direction (K) at the location where it rises the most on the front surface side of the warp. Preferably, Tb is 0.92 times or less of Ts, and more preferably, Tb is 0.88 times or less of Ts.

[0075] However, when Tb is too small compared to Ts, the back surface of the fabric base becomes densified and flattened by heat fusion, and the flexibility, texture, breathability, and liquid permeability, which are the merits of the fabric, are impaired, which is not preferable. Therefore, Tb is preferably 0.7 times or more of Ts, and more preferably 0.75 times or more of Ts.

[0076] Figure 3 schematically shows a cross-section of a fabric hook-and-loop fastener demonstrating the effect of the present invention obtained by pressing the back surface of the hook-and-loop fastener fabric (6) against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state. On the other hand, Figure 4 is a diagram schematically showing a cross-section of a fabric hook-and-loop fastener when the operation of pressing the back surface of the hook-and-loop fastener fabric (6) against a fixed surface or a roll surface (8) is not performed while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state. In this case, Tb is approximately the same value as Ts and does not satisfy the Tb / Ts ratio defined in the present invention.

[0077] Note that even when the operation of pressing the back surface of the fabric base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface is not performed while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state, the value of Tb may decrease from the value of Ts due to the self-weight of the hook-and-loop fastener fabric during the manufacturing process, but the decrease is extremely small and Tb will not be less than 0.96 times Ts. Only when Tb is less than or equal to 0.94 times Ts can the effect of the present invention of correcting the deviation of the warp and the weft of the yarn for the engaging element in the weft direction be obtained for the first time.

[0078] Next, the method for measuring Tb and Ts of the warp that floats and sinks above and below the weft will be described. First, in the region where the engaging elements exist on the surface of the fabric surface fastener and at a location less affected by the engaging elements, the warp threads were cut parallel to the warp threads between the warp threads using a safety razor blade for beard shaving. A photograph of the cross-section of the obtained cut portion magnified 200 times was taken. Fig. 3 schematically shows the cross-sectional photograph of the obtained cut portion. From this photograph, three locations where the warp threads sink most on the back side were arbitrarily selected in order, and three locations where the warp threads rise most on the front side were arbitrarily selected in order, and the thickness in the base fabric thickness direction of each was measured. The same measurement was performed at 10 arbitrary locations on the fabric surface fastener. From the 30 measured values of the thickness in the base fabric thickness direction at the locations where the warp threads sink most on the back side and the 30 measured values of the thickness in the base fabric thickness direction at the locations where the warp threads rise most on the front side, the five largest measured values were removed in order from the largest, and the five smallest measured values were removed in order from the smallest, and the average value of the remaining 20 measured values was obtained. The obtained average values are the warp thread thickness Tb in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where the warp threads sink most on the back side and the warp thread thickness Ts in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where the warp threads rise most on the front side.

[0079] Note that even when the fabric surface fastener fabric is pressed against the surface or roll surface where the thermally fusible resin is kept in a molten state, not all of the locations where the warp threads on the back side of the fabric surface fastener sink most on the back side are pressed against the fixed surface or roll surface. Therefore, there may be some locations where Tb is almost the same as Ts without being pressed against the fixed surface or roll surface. In the present invention, such locations are also included in the arbitrarily selected locations. Therefore, the Tb / Ts ratio defined in the present invention is the average value including these locations.

[0080] Figure 4 shows the case where the hook-and-loop fabric is not pressed against the fixed surface or the roll surface as described above. As shown in Figure 4, when Tb and Ts are approximately the same value, the deviation of the warp and the weft of the yarn for the engaging element in the weft direction caused by the shrinkage during the heat treatment is not corrected. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately slit the middle part of the ear-forming region, and it is also difficult to obtain a hook fabric hook-and-loop fastener or a hook / loop coexisting type fabric hook-and-loop fastener having a hook-shaped engaging element in which only one leg is accurately and surely cut.

[0081] In the present invention, the Tb / Ts ratio is mainly determined by the strength when pressing the fabric base fabric against the fixed surface or the roll surface. Therefore, the fabric base fabric is run on the fixed surface or the roll surface under tension, and as shown in Figure 5, by changing the running direction along the fixed surface or the roll surface, the Tb / Ts ratio can be freely changed.

[0082] In the present invention, when pressing the back surface of the fabric base fabric against the fixed surface or the roll surface while the heat-fusible fiber is in a molten state, it is preferable not to press the surface side of the fabric base fabric where the loop for the engaging element exists against the fixed surface or the roll surface. For example, when the hook-and-loop fabric is sandwiched between rolls and an operation of pressing the hook-and-loop fabric from above and below is performed, the loop for the engaging element standing upright on the surface of the fabric base fabric is pushed down and fixed to the surface of the fabric base fabric in that state. Therefore, the engaging ability of the fabric hook-and-loop fastener decreases and the appearance of the fabric hook-and-loop fastener also deteriorates. Further, when both the front and back surfaces of the hook-and-loop fabric are pressed against the fixed surface or the roll surface, Tb and Ts become substantially equal, and the Tb / Ts ratio defined in the present invention cannot be satisfied.

[0083] When manufacturing a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop co-existing type fabric surface fastener, as described above, after heat-treating and pressing the back surface of the fabric base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface while the heat-fusible fibers are in a molten state to obtain a fabric for a surface fastener and then cooling it, one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element protruding from its surface is cut to form a hook-shaped engaging element (Step 4).

[0084] As a cutting device used for cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, a cutting device having a structure in which one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is cut by the reciprocating motion of a movable cutting blade disposed between two fixed blades is preferable. It is preferable because when the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element is formed at a location where the warp threads are crossed as described above, only one leg of the loop can be accurately and reliably cut using the above cutting device.

[0085] In the present invention, when manufacturing a loop fabric surface fastener, from the weaving step (Step 1) to the heat treatment step (Step 2) and then the step of pressing against a fixed surface or a roll surface (Step 3), the loop fabric surface fastener can be manufactured with good productivity by continuously running without winding it up in the middle in a roll shape. Also, when manufacturing a hook fabric surface fastener or a hook / loop co-existing type fabric surface fastener, from the weaving step (Step 1) to the heat treatment step (Step 2), the step of pressing against a fixed surface or a roll surface (Step 3), and further the step of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element to form a hook-shaped engaging element (Step 4) can be carried out at the same speed. Therefore, the fabric surface fastener can be manufactured with good productivity by continuously running without winding it up in the middle.

[0086] On the other hand, when manufacturing a fabric surface fastener by applying a conventional backcoat adhesive to the back surface, even if the process of weaving the fabric for the surface fastener can be carried out promptly, it takes time to apply the adhesive liquid to the back surface of the fabric base and evaporate the solvent of the adhesive to dry it. Therefore, each process cannot be carried out at the same speed. As a result, after weaving the fabric for the surface fastener, it is necessary to wind it up once, and then unwind the wound fabric for the surface fastener to perform the next backcoat adhesive application and drying processes, and the productivity is extremely poor. The present invention is excellent also in this regard.

[0087] Moreover, the polyester-based yarn forming the fabric surface fastener of the present invention is stiffer than the nylon-based yarn and polyolefin-based yarn generally used for conventional fabric surface fasteners. Therefore, the resulting fabric surface fastener is also stiff and has been considered unsuitable for daily sundries fields such as clothing, shoes, and gloves that require flexibility. However, in the present invention, since it is not necessary to apply a backcoat adhesive, the stiffening of the fabric surface fastener due to the application of the backcoat adhesive is prevented. As a result, despite being a polyester-based yarn, the fabric surface fastener of the present invention has flexibility and can be used in clothing and daily sundries fields that require flexibility.

[0088] Furthermore, in the case of a conventional fabric surface fastener with a backcoat adhesive applied to the back surface, the backcoat adhesive layer on the back surface reduces the liquid permeability of the fabric surface fastener, so the dyeing liquid cannot penetrate the fabric surface fastener, and the dyeability is poor. To avoid this, it was necessary to dye the fabric before applying the backcoat adhesive, that is, in a state where the yarns constituting the fabric surface fastener were not fixed to the base fabric. Dyeing in a state where it is not fixed to the base fabric has a problem that the yarns constituting the fabric surface fastener move due to the flow of the dyeing liquid during the dyeing process, and as a result, the arrangement of the engaging elements is disordered. In the present invention, the yarns constituting the fabric surface fastener are fixed to the fabric base by heat treatment, and furthermore, the fabric surface fastener has liquid permeability even after heat treatment. Therefore, it can be dyed after heat treatment, and problems such as those of the prior art do not occur.

[0089] In the present invention, when performing Step 4 of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element to form the hook-shaped engaging element, it is preferable to first wind up the obtained long polyester-based woven fabric surface fastener immediately after the end of Step 4. When Step 4 is not performed, it is preferable to first wind up the long polyester-based woven fabric surface fastener immediately after the end of Step 3 of pressing against the fixed back surface or the roll surface. Dyeing with a dyeing solution containing a disperse dye in this wound state is preferable because the yarn for the engaging element does not shift in the weft direction during the dyeing process, and the fabric can be dyed all at once in a wide and non-distorted state, which is preferable in terms of productivity and can obtain more uniform dyeing. When performing Step 5, it is preferably performed after dyeing.

[0090] The dyeing process is preferably performed as follows. Put the wide woven fabric for the surface fastener before slitting, which has been wound up, into a cylindrical container having a height slightly higher than the width of the woven fabric for the surface fastener and having liquid permeability, and stack these containers in a dyeing kettle. In this state, put a dyeing solution containing a disperse dye into the dyeing kettle, and circulate the dyeing solution into the woven fabric for the surface fastener from the upper, lower, side, and central parts of the container at a temperature of 110 to 145°C and a pressure of 2 to 5 MPa for dyeing. By this dyeing process, a wide woven fabric surface fastener before slitting that is efficiently and evenly dyed without dyeing spots can be obtained at once. Of course, if the dyeing process is not necessary, there is no need to perform the above dyeing process.

[0091] When the obtained woven fabric surface fastener has an ear forming area, slit the center in the width direction of the ear forming area in the warp direction. As a result, a plurality of long woven fabric surface fasteners are manufactured simultaneously. In particular, for the woven fabric surface fastener of the present invention, since the ear area and the ear forming area hardly shift in the weft direction even after dyeing, it is easy to accurately slit along the warp direction at the center in the width direction of the ear forming area, and a woven fabric surface fastener having ears of the same width can be easily obtained. When performing post-treatments such as flame retardant treatment or water repellent treatment on the woven fabric surface fastener, it is preferable to perform them prior to slitting in terms of productivity.

[0092] Whether the fabric surface fastener is dyed before slitting can be easily determined by examining the dyeing state of the slit surface. If it is dyed before slitting, the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-section at the slit part is the same as that of the fiber cross-section of other parts. However, if it is dyed after slitting, the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-section at the slit part becomes higher than that of other parts.

[0093] In the fabric surface fastener of the present invention, the height of the hook-shaped engaging element is preferably 1.2 to 2.1 mm from the fabric base cloth surface, and the height of the loop-shaped engaging element is preferably 1.9 to 3.0 mm from the fabric base cloth surface in terms of the engaging force and the resistance to falling of the engaging element. Further, the density of the hook-shaped engaging element in the hook fabric surface fastener, the density of the loop-shaped engaging element in the loop fabric surface fastener, and the total density of the hook-shaped engaging element and the loop-shaped engaging element in the hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener are respectively 30 to 70 pieces / cm 2 、35 to 140 pieces / cm 2 、35 to 70 pieces / cm 2 are preferred. In the hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener, the ratio of the number of hook-shaped engaging elements to the number of loop-shaped engaging elements is preferably in the range of 40:60 to 60:40.

[0094] The hook fabric surface fastener, loop fabric surface fastener, and hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener of the present invention can be used in the application fields where conventional general fabric surface fasteners are used. For example, in addition to shoes, bags, hats, gloves, etc., it can be used in a wide range of fields such as clothing, sphygmomanometers, supporters, tying bands for packing, binding tapes, various toys, fixing of civil engineering building sheets, fixing of various panels and wall materials, fixing of electrical components, storage boxes and packing cases that can be assembled / disassembled freely, small items, curtains, etc. It is particularly suitable for application fields where the fabric surface fastener is attached to fabrics or sheets by sewing, such as fields of clothing, shoes, bags, hats, gloves, supporters, etc.

Examples

[0095] The present invention will be specifically described below. In the examples, the engaging force of the fabric surface fastener was measured in accordance with JIS L 3416. When the fabric surface fasteners in the examples and comparative examples were loop fabric surface fasteners, hook fabric surface fastener A8693Y (manufactured by Kuraray Fastening Co., Ltd.) was used as the engaging partner. When the fabric surface fasteners in the examples and comparative examples were hook fabric surface fasteners, loop fabric surface fastener B2790Y (manufactured by Kuraray Fastening Co., Ltd.) was used as the engaging partner. When the fabric surface fasteners in the examples and comparative examples were hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fasteners, the same hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener was used.

[0096] Example 1: Loop fabric surface fastener The following yarns were used as the warp yarn, weft yarn, and multi-filament yarn for the loop-shaped engaging element that constitute the loop fabric surface fastener. Warp yarn · Multi-filament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate with a melting point of 260°C · Total decitex and number of filaments: 167 dtex and 30 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 16%

[0097] Weft yarn: Multi-filament yarn made of heat-sealable core-sheath type fiber · Core component: Polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 260°C) · Sheath component: 25 mol% isophthalic acid copolymerized polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 190°C) · Core-sheath ratio (weight ratio): 70:30 · Total decitex and number of filaments: 120 dtex and 24 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 15%

[0098] Multi-filament for loop-shaped engaging element · Polybutylene terephthalate fiber (melting point: 220°C) · Total decitex and number of filaments: 305 dtex and 8 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 14%

[0099] Using the above warp, weft, and multi-filament yarn for loop engaging elements, a woven fabric for a loop fabric surface fastener (sometimes simply referred to as "woven fabric for surface fastener") with a plain weave structure was woven as follows. The warp and weft were beaten in such a way that the fabric density after heat shrinkage treatment became 55 warps / cm and 21 wefts / cm. The multi-filament yarn for loop engaging elements was beaten in parallel to the warp at a ratio of 1 in every 4 warps, without straddling the warp, and after floating and sinking 5 wefts, loops were formed on the fabric base fabric. The obtained woven fabric for surface fastener had the following regions from one end parallel to the warp direction towards the other end. An ear region with a width of 7.0 mm existing at one end, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear region with a width of 7.0 mm existing at the other end.

[0100] The obtained woven fabric for surface fastener with a width of 12.2 cm was heat-treated by running it for 60 seconds in a heat treatment furnace at 195°C, which is a temperature at which only the sheath component of the weft melts and the warp, multi-filament yarn for loop engaging elements, and core component of the weft do not melt, without touching solid objects and with almost no tension applied, thereby shrinking the weft, warp, and multi-filament yarn for loop engaging elements. As a result, the woven fabric for surface fastener shrank by 10% in the weft direction, and the sheath component melted and fused to the adjacent yarns. Next, with the heat-fusible fibers (sheath component) still in a molten state, as shown in FIG. 5, the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener was run for 5 seconds while pressing it against a fixed surface made of stainless steel with a matte surface installed immediately after the outlet of the heat treatment furnace (contact length of 5 cm with the back surface), and then run while applying a tension of 200 g / cm. After cooling, the obtained loop fabric hook-and-loop fastener was wound up. Note that from Step 1 of weaving the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener to Step 2 of heat treatment and further to Step 3 of pressing the back surface against the fixed surface, the operations were carried out continuously without winding up in the middle.

[0101] The density of the loop-shaped engaging elements of the obtained loop fabric hook-and-loop fastener was 44 pieces / cm 2 and the height of the loop-shaped engaging elements from the fabric base fabric surface was 2.1 mm. The obtained loop fabric hook-and-loop fastener in a wound-up state was inserted into a liquid-permeable cylindrical container. This container was placed in a dyeing kettle, and the inside of the kettle was filled with a dyeing solution containing a blue disperse dye. The dyeing solution was passed through and circulated inside the fabric hook-and-loop fastener under heating and pressurization at 135 °C and 3.5 MPa for dyeing. The center in the width direction of the ear-forming region sandwiched between the engaging element regions of the obtained loop fabric hook-and-loop fastener dyed blue was slit parallel to the warp threads, and four long loop fabric hook-and-loop fasteners with ears, each having a width of 25 mm, having ear regions with a width of 2 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm where loop-shaped engaging elements were present in the portion sandwiched between the ear regions, were obtained. All four of the obtained long loop fabric hook-and-loop fasteners had no dyeing spots, and all four were dyed to the same concentration. Furthermore, the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-section at the slit portion was the same as that of the fiber cross-sections in other portions.

[0102] Compared with a loop fabric surface fastener made of conventional nylon-based yarn and coated with a backcoat adhesive, the obtained loop fabric surface fastener with ears is excellent in flexibility, the width of the ear area (including the ear area obtained by slitting the ear-forming area) is always a constant 2 mm, and there is no deviation of the warp yarns in the weft direction. Therefore, the problem that the cut ends of the warp yarns cut due to the deviation of the ear area protrude from the end of the ear area and the appearance of the loop fabric surface fastener deteriorates did not occur. When measuring the warp thickness Tb in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where it sinks the most on the back side and the warp thickness Ts in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where it protrudes the most on the front side, as described in Figure 3, Tb was 0.089 mm, Ts was 0.104 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.86. When measuring the engaging force of the obtained loop fabric surface fastener, the initial shear strength was 14.9 N / cm 2 , the initial peel strength was 1.15 N / cm, the shear strength after 1000 engagements / peels was 13.6 N / cm 2 and the peel strength was 1.05 N / cm, indicating that it has excellent engaging force as a fabric surface fastener.

[0103] When the obtained loop fabric surface fastener was used as a surface fastener for opening and closing the cuffs of a windbreaker and sewn onto the cuffs of the windbreaker, it was flexible and the ear width was always constant, so it could be attached neatly without the sewing thread meandering.

[0104] Example 2: Hook fabric surface fastener

[0105] The following yarns were used as the warp yarns, weft yarns, and monofilament yarns for hook-shaped engaging elements that make up the hook fabric surface fastener. Warp yarns · Multifilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate with a melting point of 260 °C · Total decitex and number of filaments: 167 dtex and 30 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180 °C: 16%

[0106] Weft: Multifilament yarn made of heat-fusible core-sheath type fiber · Core component: Polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 260 °C) · Sheath component: 25 mol% copolymerized polyethylene terephthalate of isophthalic acid (melting point: 190 °C) · Core-sheath ratio (weight ratio): 70:30 · Total decitex and number of filaments: 99 dtex and 24 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180 °C: 15%

[0107] Monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging element · Polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 260 °C) · Fineness: 370 dtex (diameter: 0.19 mm) · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180 °C: 18%

[0108] Using the above warp, weft, and monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging element, a fabric for hook fabric surface fastener (sometimes simply referred to as "fabric for surface fastener") with a plain weave structure was woven as follows. The warp and weft were beaten in so that the woven density after heat shrinkage treatment was 55 warps / cm and 19 wefts / cm, and the monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging element was beaten in parallel to the warp at a ratio of 1 in every 4 warps. The monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging element straddled 3 warps after floating and sinking 5 wefts, and loops were formed at the straddled positions.

[0109] The obtained fabric for surface fastener had the following regions from one end parallel to the warp direction toward the other end. Ear region with a width of 7.0 mm existing at one end, Engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm Ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, Engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm Ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, Engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm Ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, Engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm The ear region with a width of 7.0 mm present at the end of the other side.

[0110] The obtained woven fabric for surface fasteners was run through a heat treatment furnace at 210 °C, a temperature at which only the sheath component of the weft yarn melts and the warp yarns, the monofilament yarns for hook engaging elements, and the core components of the weft yarns do not melt, for 55 seconds without touching solids and with almost no tension applied, to heat-treat and shrink the weft yarns, the weft yarns, and the monofilament yarns for hook engaging elements. As a result, the woven fabric for surface fasteners shrank by 11% in the weft direction, and the sheath components melted and fused to the adjacent yarns. Next, with the heat-fusible fibers (sheath components) still in a molten state, as shown in FIG. 5, the woven fabric for surface fasteners was run for 5 seconds while being pressed against a fixed surface having a stainless-steel satin finish (contact length of 5 cm with the back surface) installed immediately after the exit of the heat treatment furnace, and then run with a tension of 200 g / cm applied. After cooling, one leg portion of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element was cut to form the hook-shaped engaging element. Then, the obtained hook woven fabric surface fastener was wound up and dyed with a deep red disperse dye solution in the same manner as in Example 1 in the wound-up state.

[0111] The density of the hook-shaped engaging elements of the obtained hook woven fabric surface fastener was 42 pieces / cm 2 and the height of the hook-shaped engaging elements from the base fabric surface was 1.5 mm. From the process 1 of weaving the woven fabric for surface fasteners, through the process 2 of heat treatment, the process 3 of pressing against the fixed surface of the back surface, and further to the process of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, the operations were continuously carried out without winding up in the middle. After cutting one leg portion of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, the hook woven fabric surface fastener was wound up for the first time. The widthwise center of the ear-forming region sandwiched between the engaging element regions of the obtained hook fabric surface fastener was slit parallel to the warp threads, resulting in a 25-mm-wide long hook fabric surface fastener with ears having ear regions 2.0 mm wide at both ends and a 21-mm-wide engaging element region with hook-shaped engaging elements present in the portion sandwiched between the ear regions. Four such fasteners were obtained. All four of the obtained long hook fabric surface fasteners had no dyeing stains and were dyed to the same concentration. As a result of observing the dyed material, it was confirmed that the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-sections in the slit portion was the same as that of the other fiber cross-sections.

[0112] Compared with a hook fabric surface fastener made of a conventional nylon-based thread and coated with a backcoat adhesive, the obtained hook fabric surface fastener with ears was excellent in flexibility, the width of the ear region (including the ear region obtained by slitting the ear-forming region) was always a constant 2.0 mm, and there was no deviation of the warp threads in the weft direction. Therefore, the problem that the cut ends of the warp threads cut due to the deviation of the ear region protruded from the ends of the ear region, deteriorating the appearance of the hook fabric surface fastener, did not occur. Also, when the engaging element surface of the hook fabric surface fastener was observed in detail, it was found that for the loops for the hook-shaped engaging elements, only one leg was surely cut at the same height position in all cases, and no loops with both legs cut, loops with neither leg cut, or loops with cuts only partway were observed at all.

[0113] When measuring the warp thread thickness Tb in the base fabric thickness direction at the location on the back side of the obtained hook fabric surface fastener that sank the most and the warp thread thickness Ts in the base fabric thickness direction at the location on the front side that protruded the most, as shown in Figure 3, Tb was 0.084 mm, Ts was 0.100 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.84. When measuring the engaging force of the obtained hook fabric surface fastener, the initial shear strength was 14.9 N / cm 2 , the initial peel strength was 1.15 N / cm, the shear strength after 1000 engagements / peels was 13.6 N / cm 2 , and the peel strength was 1.05 N / cm, indicating that it had excellent engaging force as a fabric surface fastener.

[0114] When the obtained hook fabric surface fastener was sewn and attached to the upper tightening band as a fixture for tightening the upper of infant shoes, it was flexible and the width of the ear part was always constant. Therefore, the sewing thread ran parallel to the ear part and could be attached beautifully.

[0115] Example 3: Hook / Loop Coexisting Type Fabric Surface Fastener The following yarns were used as the warp yarn, weft yarn, multifilament yarn for loop-shaped engaging elements, and monofilament yarn for hook-shaped engaging elements to form the hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener. Warp Yarn · Multifilament yarn made of polyethylene terephthalate with a melting point of 260°C · Total decitex and number of filaments: 167 dtex and 30 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 16%

[0116] Weft Yarn: Multifilament yarn made of heat-sealable core-sheath type fiber · Core component: Polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 260°C) · Sheath component: 25 mol% isophthalic acid copolymerized polybutylene terephthalate (melting point: 185°C) · Core-sheath ratio (weight ratio): 70:30 · Total decitex and number of filaments: 110 dtex and 24 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 15%

[0117] Multifilament Yarn for Loop-Shaped Engaging Elements · Polybutylene terephthalate fiber (melting point: 220°C) · Total decitex and number of filaments: 305 dtex and 8 filaments · Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 14%

[0118] Monofilament Yarn for Hook-Shaped Engaging Elements · Polyethylene terephthalate (melting point: 260°C) · Fineness: 370 dtex (diameter: 0.19 mm) ·Dry heat shrinkage rate at 180°C: 18%

[0119] Using the above warp yarns, weft yarns, multifilament yarns for loop-shaped engaging elements, and monofilament yarns for hook-shaped engaging elements, a fabric for hook fabric surface fasteners (sometimes simply referred to as "fabric for surface fasteners") with a plain weave structure was woven as follows. The warp yarns and weft yarns were beaten in such a way that the fabric density after heat shrinkage treatment became 55 warp yarns / cm and 19 weft yarns / cm. The multifilament yarns for loop-shaped engaging elements were beaten in at a ratio of 1 in every 4 warp yarns. After floating and sinking 3 weft yarns, they were passed over 1 warp yarn and beaten in parallel to the warp yarns so as to form loops on the fabric base fabric at the crossed positions. The monofilament yarns for hook-shaped engaging elements were beaten in at a ratio of 1 in every 4 warp yarns. After floating and sinking 3 weft yarns, they were passed over 3 warp yarns and beaten in parallel to the warp yarns so as to form loops on the fabric base fabric at the crossed positions. The multifilament yarns for loop-shaped engaging elements and the monofilament yarns for hook-shaped engaging elements were alternately woven so that they continuously existed in units of 2 each.

[0120] The obtained fabric for surface fasteners had the following regions from one end parallel to the warp direction toward the other end. An ear region with a width of 7.0 mm existing at one end, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear forming region with a width of 6.0 mm, An engaging element region with a width of 22.5 mm, An ear region with a width of 7.0 mm existing at the other end.

[0121] The obtained fabric for surface fasteners with a width of 12.2 cm was heat-treated by running it in a heat treatment furnace at 205°C for 60 seconds with almost no tension applied, where only the sheath component of the weft yarn was heat-melted and the warp yarn, the yarn for engagement elements, and the core component of the weft yarn were not heat-melted, thereby shrinking the warp yarn, weft yarn, and yarn for engagement elements. As a result, the fabric for surface fasteners shrank by 11% in the weft direction, and the sheath component was melted and fused to the adjacent yarns. Next, with the heat-fusible fiber (sheath component) still in a molten state, in the same manner as in Example 1, the fabric for surface fasteners was run for 5 seconds while being pressed against a fixed surface made of stainless steel with a matte surface installed immediately after the outlet of the heat treatment furnace (the contact length with the back surface was 5 cm), and then run with a tension of 200 g / cm applied. After cooling, one leg portion of the loop for the hook-shaped engagement element was cut to form the hook-shaped engagement element. Then, the obtained hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener was wound up and dyed with a deep red disperse dye solution in the same manner as in Example 2 while being in a wound-up state.

[0122] The density of the hook-shaped engagement elements of the obtained hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener was 30 pieces / cm 2 and the density of the loop-shaped engagement elements was 30 pieces / cm 2 The height of the hook-shaped engagement elements from the base fabric surface was 1.6 mm, and the height of the loop-shaped engagement elements from the base fabric was 2.0 mm. From the process 1 of weaving the fabric, through the process 2 of heat treatment, further to the process 3 of pressing the back surface against the fixed surface, and further to the process of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engagement element, all were carried out continuously without winding up in the middle.

[0123] The widthwise center of the ear-forming region sandwiched between the engaging element regions of the obtained fabric for hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener was slit parallel to the warp threads to obtain four 25-mm-wide long hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fasteners with ear portions having ear regions with a width of 2.0 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm having hook-shaped engaging elements and loop-shaped engaging elements in the portion sandwiched between the ear regions. All of the four obtained long hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fasteners had no dyeing spots and were dyed at the same concentration. As a result of observing the dyed product, it was confirmed that, as in the case of Examples 1 and 2, the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-section at the slit portion was the same as that of the fiber cross-sections of the other portions.

[0124] Compared with a hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener made of a conventional nylon-based yarn and coated with a back coat adhesive, the obtained hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener with ear portions is excellent in flexibility, the width of the ear region (including the ear region obtained by slitting the ear-forming region) is always a constant 2.0 mm, there is no deviation of the warp threads in the weft direction, and there is no problem that the cut ends of the warp threads cut due to the deviation of the ear region protrude from the end of the ear region and the appearance of the fabric surface fastener deteriorates. Further, when the hook-shaped engaging elements of the hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener were observed in detail, in all of them, only one leg was completely cut at the same height position, and none of the ones with both legs cut, the ones with neither leg cut, and the ones with cuts only halfway were observed at all.

[0125] When the warp thread thickness Tb in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where the obtained hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener sinks the most on the back side and the warp thread thickness Ts in the base fabric thickness direction at the location where it rises the most on the front side were measured, Tb was 0.087 mm, Ts was 0.102 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.85.

[0126] When the engaging force of the obtained hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener was measured, the initial shear strength was 11.1 N / cm 2, the initial peel strength is 1.05 N / cm, and the shear strength after 1000 engagements / peels is 10.0 N / cm 2 , the peel strength was 0.96 N / cm, and it was found to have excellent engaging force as a hook / loop coexistent type fabric surface fastener. When this obtained hook / loop coexistent type fabric surface fastener was used as a tightening tape for the supporter and sewn onto the supporter, it was flexible and the ear width was always constant, so it could be attached neatly without the seam meandering. By passing the supporter through a cylinder and folding back one end to engage the hook / loop engaging element surfaces with each other, it was found that the tightening force was also sufficient.

[0127] Comparative Example 1 In Example 1, without performing Step 3, after cooling the heat-treated fabric for surface fasteners obtained in Step 2 and then taking it up with a roller, in the same manner as in Example 1, four long loop fabric surface fasteners with ears having an ear region with a width of 2.0 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm in the portion sandwiched by the ear regions and a width of 25 mm were obtained. The four obtained long loop fabric surface fasteners had slight dyeing spots in the length direction. In particular, in the two obtained by slitting the ear formation regions near both ends, dyeing spots were seen here and there.

[0128] In the ear region obtained by slitting the ear formation region of the loop fabric surface fastener with ears, around the ear width of 2.0 mm, there were portions where the ear width was wide and narrow at a cycle of 0.6 cm in the warp direction. Furthermore, the cut ends of the warp threads cut from the ends of the ear region protruded, looking like fraying, and the appearance of the fabric surface fastener was poor. Also, the ear region that existed before slitting was displaced in the weft direction, and as a result, the ear width was non-uniform. When Tb and Ts were measured, as shown in Figure 4, Tb was 0.101 mm, Ts was 0.104 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.97.

[0129] When the engaging force of this loop fabric surface fastener was measured, the initial shear strength was 14.2 N / cm 2, the initial peeling strength is 1.09 N / cm, and the shearing strength after 1000 times of engagement / peeling is 12.9 N / cm 2 , the peeling strength is 0.99 N / cm, and it was found that it has a fairly good engaging force as a fabric surface fastener. When the ear region of this loop fabric surface fastener with ears was attached to the fabric by sewing, the sewing thread seemed to meander, and it was inferior to Example 1 in terms of appearance.

[0130] Comparative Example 2 In Example 2, without performing Step 3, after cooling the heat-treated fabric for surface fasteners obtained in Step 2 and then taking it up with a roller, in the same manner as in Example 2, four long hook fabric surface fasteners with ears having an ear region with a width of 2.0 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm in the portion sandwiched by the ear regions and a width of 25 mm were obtained. The four obtained long hook fabric surface fasteners, similar to Comparative Example 1, had slight dyeing spots in the length direction, and particularly in the two obtained by slitting the ear formation regions near both ends, dyeing spots were seen here and there.

[0131] In the ear region obtained by slitting the ear formation region of this hook fabric surface fastener with ears, there were places where the ear width was wide and places where it was narrow with the ear width centered on 2.0 mm. Furthermore, the cut ends of the warp threads cut from the ends of the ear region protruded, and it seemed that fraying occurred, and the appearance of the fabric surface fastener was poor. Furthermore, when the hook-shaped engaging elements existing on the surface of the hook fabric surface fastener were observed magnified, it was found that there were slightly loops with one leg not cut, loops with both legs cut, loops cut at a position near the base, and loops cut at a position away from the base. Also, the ear region that existed before slitting was displaced in the weft direction, and as a result, the ear width was non-uniform.

[0132] When Tb and Ts were measured, as described in Figure 4, Tb was 0.098 mm, Ts was 0.100 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.98.

[0133] When measuring the engaging force of this hook fabric surface fastener, the initial shear strength was 13.4 N / cm 2 , the initial peel strength was 1.04 N / cm, and the shear strength after 1000 engagements / peels was 12.2 N / cm 2 , and the peel strength was 0.94 N / cm. It was found that the engaging force was inferior compared to the hook fabric surface fastener of Example 2. When the ear region of this hook fabric surface fastener with ears was attached to the fabric by sewing in the same manner as in Comparative Example 1, the sewing thread seemed to meander, and it was inferior to Example 2 in terms of appearance.

[0134] Comparative Example 3 In the above Example 3, without performing Step 3, after cooling, the fabric for the surface fastener was taken up by the guide on the fixed surface, and then, in the same manner as in Example 3 except that one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element was cut, four long hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fasteners with ears having an ear region with a width of 2.0 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm in the portion sandwiched by the ear regions and a width of 25 mm were obtained. The four obtained long hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fasteners had slight dyeing spots in the warp direction, similar to Comparative Examples 1 and 2. In particular, in the two obtained by slitting the ear formation region near both ends, dyeing spots were seen here and there.

[0135] In the ear region obtained by slitting the ear formation region of this hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener with ears, there were coexisting portions with a wide ear width and a narrow ear width. Furthermore, the cut ends of the warp threads cut from the end of the ear region protruded, and it seemed that fraying occurred, and the appearance of the fabric surface fastener was poor. Also, the ear region that existed before slitting was displaced in the weft direction. As a result, the ear width was non-uniform. When the hook-shaped engaging elements existing on the surface of the hook / loop coexisting fabric surface fastener were observed magnified, similar to Comparative Example 2, there were slightly loops where neither leg was cut, loops where both legs were cut, loops where the cutting position was close to the base, and loops cut at a position away from the base.

[0136] When Tb and Ts were measured, as described in Fig. 4, Tb was 0.099 mm, Ts was 0.102 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.97.

[0137] When the engaging force of this hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener was measured, the initial shear strength was 10.0 N / cm2, the initial peel strength was 0.95 N / cm, the shear strength after 1000 times of engagement / peel was 9.0 N / cm2, and the peel strength was 0.86 N / cm. It was found that it was inferior to the engaging force of the hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener of Example 3. When the ear region of this hook / loop coexisting type fabric surface fastener with ears was attached to the fabric by sewing in the same manner as in Comparative Examples 1 and 2, the sewing thread seemed to meander in the warp direction and was inferior to Example 3 in terms of appearance.

[0138] Example 4 In the same manner as in Example 2, except that the fixed surface having the stainless steel embossed surface used in Step 3 of Example 2 was replaced with a stainless steel mirror-finished roll surface, four long hook fabric surface fasteners with ears having an ear region with a width of 2.0 mm at both ends and an engaging element region with a width of 21 mm having hook-shaped engaging elements in the portion sandwiched by the ear regions and a width of 25 mm were manufactured. The above roll surface rotates in accordance with the running speed of the fabric for the surface fastener that contacts and runs. The contact time between the back surface of the fabric base and the roll surface was 5 seconds, and it was pressed against the roll surface in a state where the heat-fusible fiber (sheath component) was kept in a molten state. After passing through the roll surface, a tension of 250 g / cm was applied to the fabric base.

[0139] None of the four obtained long hook fabric surface fasteners had dyeing spots, and all four were dyed at the same concentration. As a result of observing the dyed product, it was confirmed that, as in Examples 1 to 3, the dyeing concentration of the fiber cross-section of the slit portion was the same as that of the fiber cross-sections of other portions.

[0140] The obtained hook fabric surface fastener with ears was excellent in flexibility as in Example 2, compared with a fabric surface fastener made of a conventional nylon-based yarn and coated with a back coat adhesive. Also, both the ear region obtained by slitting the ear formation region and the ear region that existed before slitting had a constant ear width of 2.0 mm. There was no deviation of the warp in the weft direction, and the cut ends of the warp cut due to deviation were not found at the end of the ear region. Further, when the engaging element surface of the hook fabric surface fastener was observed in detail, as in Example 2, in each loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, only one leg was accurately cut at a location with a constant height.

[0141] When Tb and Ts were measured, as shown in FIG. 4, Tb was 0.091 mm, Ts was 0.100 mm, and Tb / Ts was 0.91.

[0142] When the engaging force of this hook fabric surface fastener was measured, the initial shear strength was 14.8 N / cm 2 , the initial peel strength was 1.10 N / cm, the shear strength after 1000 engagements / disengagements was 13.5 N / cm 2 , and the peel strength was 1.00 N / cm, indicating that it had excellent engaging force as a hook fabric surface fastener. When the obtained hook fabric surface fastener was attached by sewing as a fixture for tightening the cuffs of sports gloves, it had flexibility to bend according to the movement of the hand, and since the ear width was always constant, the sewing thread ran parallel to the ear, and it could be attached neatly.

Explanation of Symbols

[0143] 1: Engaging element region 2a: Ear region 2b: Ear formation region (middle ear region) 3: Warp 4: Weft 5: Engaging element L: Loop for engaging element K: Base fabric thickness direction 6: Fabric for surface fastener 7: Heat treatment furnace 8: Fixed surface or roll surface Wa: Warp direction We: Weft direction Tb: Warp thickness in the warp thickness direction at the location where it sinks most on the back side Ts: Warp thickness in the warp thickness direction at the location where it rises most on the front side

Claims

1. A woven base fabric composed of warp and weft threads, and a thread for engaging elements woven in parallel with the warp threads of the base fabric comprising: the thread for engaging elements forms a large number of loop-shaped engaging elements, hook-shaped engaging elements, or both, rising from the surface of the base fabric, the warp threads, the weft threads, and the thread for engaging elements are all polyester-based fibers that thermally shrink, on the back surface of the base fabric, there is no adhesive layer for fixing the engaging elements to the base fabric, the weft threads contain heat-fusible fibers, a polyester-based woven fabric fastener in which the base of the engaging element is fused to the heat-fusible fibers and fixed to the base fabric, satisfying the following requirements (1) and (2). (1) The warp threads float and sink above and below the weft threads, and the thickness Tb in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the warp threads sink the most on the back surface side of the base fabric is 0.92 times or less of the thickness Ts in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the warp threads rise the most on the surface side of the base fabric. (2) At both ends parallel to the warp threads on the surface side of the base fabric, there are ear regions where no engaging elements exist, continuously present in the warp direction.

2. The polyester-based woven fabric fastener according to Claim 1, wherein Tb is in the range of 0.7 to 0.88 times of Ts.

3. Between the ear regions at both ends, there is an ear-forming region where no engaging elements exist, continuously present in the warp direction, and the region where the engaging elements exist is divided into a plurality of regions parallel to the warp direction by the ear-forming region. The polyester-based woven fabric fastener according to Claim 1 or 2.

4. The polyester-based woven fabric fastener according to Claim 3, wherein the ear-forming region is slit in the warp direction at the center in its width direction to form an ear region.

5. The polyester-based woven fabric fastener according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, dyed with a disperse dye.

6. A method for manufacturing a polyester-based woven fabric fastener, performing the following steps 1 to 3 in this order. Step 1: A woven base fabric composed of warp and weft threads, a thread for engaging elements woven in parallel with the warp threads of the base fabric, and ear regions existing at both ends of the surface of the base fabric, continuously present in the warp direction, where no engaging elements exist comprising: the thread for engaging elements forms a large number of loops for hook-shaped engaging elements, loops for loop-shaped engaging elements, or both, rising from the surface of the base fabric, the warp threads, the weft threads, and the thread for engaging elements are all polyester-based fibers, the weft threads contain heat-fusible fibers, There is no adhesive layer for fixing the engaging element to the base fabric on the back surface of the base fabric. The step of weaving the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener. Step 2: The step of heat-treating the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener in a heat treatment furnace at a temperature equal to or higher than the melting temperature of the heat-fusible fiber, heat-shrinking the yarns constituting the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener, and firmly fixing the yarn for the engaging element to the base fabric. Step 3: Taking out the heat-treated fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener from the heat treatment furnace, pressing the back surface of the base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface in a state where the heat-fusible fiber is melted, causing the warp yarns to float and sink above and below the weft yarns, and making the thickness Tb in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the warp yarns sink most on the back surface side of the base fabric be 0.92 times or less of the thickness Ts in the thickness direction of the base fabric at the location where the base fabric floats most on the surface side of the base fabric.

7. The manufacturing method according to claim 6, wherein the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener obtained in step 1 has an ear-forming region where there is no engaging element continuously formed in the warp direction between the ear regions, and the region where the engaging element exists is divided into a plurality of regions parallel to the warp direction by the ear-forming region.

8. The manufacturing method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein steps 1 to 3 are continuously performed without winding in the middle.

9. The manufacturing method according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein step 3 is performed without pressing the surface side of the base fabric against a fixed surface or a roll surface.

10. The manufacturing method according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein the yarn for the engaging element is both a loop for a hook-shaped engaging element or a loop for a hook-shaped engaging element and a loop for a loop engaging element, step 4 below is performed after step 3, and steps 1 to 4 are continuously performed without winding in the middle. Step 4: The step of cutting one leg of the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element to form a hook-shaped engaging element.

11. The manufacturing method according to any one of claims 7 to 10, wherein when the fabric for the hook-and-loop fastener has an ear-forming region and the yarn for the engaging element is a loop for a loop engaging element, after the end of step 3, or when the yarn for the engaging element is both a loop for a hook-shaped engaging element or a loop for a hook-shaped engaging element and a loop for a loop engaging element, after the end of step 4, step 5 below is performed. Step 5: The step of slitting the center in the width direction of the ear-forming region parallel to the warp direction.

12. In the case where the thread for the engaging element is the loop for the loop engaging element, after the completion of Step 3, or in the case where the thread for the engaging element is the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, or both the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element and the loop for the loop engaging element, after the completion of Step 4, the obtained polyester woven fabric surface fastener is wound up and immersed in a dyeing solution containing a disperse dye in the wound-up state for dyeing. The manufacturing method according to any one of claims 6 and 8 to 10.

13. In the case where the thread for the engaging element is the loop for the loop engaging element, after the completion of Step 3, or in the case where the thread for the engaging element is the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element, or both the loop for the hook-shaped engaging element and the loop for the loop engaging element, after the completion of Step 4, the obtained polyester woven fabric surface fastener having a region for forming ears is wound up and immersed in a dyeing solution containing a disperse dye in the wound-up state for dyeing. The manufacturing method according to any one of claims 7 to 10.

14. The manufacturing method according to claim 13, wherein the following Step 5 is performed after the dyeing. Step 5: A step of slitting the center in the width direction of the region for forming ears parallel to the warp direction.

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