Method and apparatus for manufacturing textile or leather goods

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for producing textile or leather articles, in particular padded articles, comprising: automatically sewing the overlapped fabrics (20d) with an embroidery machine (3) according to a stored template including a pattern of reference sewing lines (S1-S5); applying a plurality of markings in the form of respective additional stitches according to the arrangement of corresponding reference markings (M1-M4) provided in the stored template; - optically capturing (5) the sewn portion of the fabric and determining the displacement of the applied markings relative to the location of the reference markings (M1-M4); determining, by interpolation, the actual sewing line pattern present on the sewn fabric (20d) based on the displacements, the relative arrangement of the reference markings (M1-M4) and the stored sewing line patterns (S1-S5); (53) automatically cutting along a sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the above interpolation; Includes.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for producing textile or leather goods, in particular stuffed goods, for example with goose down. [Background technology]

[0002] An automatic quilting method is known in which a continuous, padded fabric is advanced first by a sewing head and then by a cutting head. In this method, a perforated conveyor belt is used, by means of which the fabric is held without any slippage by air suction. A method of this kind is described in US Pat. No. 5,649,492.

[0003] A drawback of the method in which the seam is a closed line and cutting is performed around the seam is the precision with which the cutting line must be spaced from the previously applied stitching line.

[0004] Another drawback is that the semi-finished products obtained at the end of cutting are indistinguishable to the operator and, as a result, sorting can be difficult without slowing down the entire production line.

[0005] Also, using the above known sewing and cutting methods can involve several problems in production lines, especially in lines where continuous manual labor is required to perform certain steps. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] West German Patent Application Publication No. 3801820 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] The aim of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing textile or leather articles, and a corresponding apparatus, which is able to improve upon the prior art in one or more of the above mentioned aspects.

[0008] Within this spirit, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing textile or leather articles and a corresponding device that makes it possible to obtain semi-finished products that are sewn and cut precisely along the seams.

[0009] Another object is to provide a method and corresponding device for manufacturing textile or leather articles, which allows the use of a plurality of different templates.

[0010] Another object of the present invention is to provide a method and a corresponding device for manufacturing textile or leather goods, which obtains easily and quickly identifiable semi-finished products for subsequent processes such as stuffing and / or garment tailoring.

[0011] Another object is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing textile or leather articles that can also be used in garment production lines.

[0012] Furthermore, one of the aims of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art in an alternative way to all existing solutions.

[0013] Finally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus that is highly reliable, relatively easy to provide, and cost competitive. [Means for solving the problem]

[0014] This object and these and other objects that will become more apparent hereinafter are achieved by a method for producing textile or leather goods, in particular padded goods, which method comprises: feeding at least two overlapping layers of fabric into an embroidery machine; advancing the superposed fabric incrementally along a substantially straight direction; automatically sewing the at least two pieces of fabric with the embroidery machine along a sewing line according to a stored template, the template including a reference sewing line pattern; A method comprising: during said automatically sewing step, applying a plurality of markings in the form of respective additional stitches, said markings being two-dimensionally distributed on the exposed surface of the superposed fabric according to corresponding arrangements of reference markings provided in the stored template; after the automatic sewing step, feeding the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric to a station for the automatic cutting step; optically capturing the sewn portion and determining the displacement of markings on the overlapping fabric relative to the placement of reference markings stored in the template; determining, by interpolation, an actual pattern of stitching lines present on the sewn portion of the fabric based on the displacements and the relative positions of the reference markings and the relative positions of the stitching line patterns provided in the stored template; automatically cutting the sewn portion, the cutting being performed substantially along the sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation in order to automatically adapt the cutting to looseness and / or wrinkles in the fabric after the sewing step; The method is characterized by comprising:

[0015] Optionally, the method may comprise one or more of the features recited in the dependent claims.

[0016] The objects and aims of the present invention are also achieved by an apparatus for producing textile or leather goods, in particular padded goods, adapted to carry out the above method, said apparatus comprising: a plurality of fabric feeders configured to unwind the fabric from respective rolls in a forward direction and overlap each other; a storage means including a stored template, the stored template including a pattern of reference sewing lines and a plurality of reference markings, the plurality of reference markings being associated with the pattern and positioned in accordance with the placement of the references; an embroidery machine including at least one sewing head and at least one frame, the at least one frame adapted to tension and temporarily hold overlapping fabrics during sewing, the embroidery machine associated with control means configured to automatically sew the overlapping fabrics using relative movement between the at least one sewing head and the frame along a sewing line corresponding to a pattern of a stored template; the embroidery machine is adapted to two-dimensionally apply a plurality of markings in the form of stitches on the superimposed fabric, the plurality of markings being applied at positions corresponding to the placement of references stored in the template; The apparatus further comprises: a means for optically capturing the fabric sewn by the embroidery machine downstream of the embroidery machine in the forward direction, and a machine for automatically cutting the sewn fabric; and control means including stored instructions, the stored instructions comprising: Detecting the position of the marking on the sewn fabric by optical capturing means; determining a displacement of said marking relative to a reference location stored in said template; determining by interpolation an actual pattern of stitching lines present on the sewn fabric based on the displacements, the relative positions of the reference markings, and the stitching line pattern provided in the stored template, in order to automatically adapt the cutting step to slacks and / or wrinkles in the sewn fabric after releasing the sewn fabric by the frame of the embroidery machine; It is an order for The automatic cutting machine is a device adapted to automatically cut fabric substantially along a sewing line based on an actual pattern obtained by interpolation.

[0017] Optionally, such a device may comprise the features set out in the dependent claims.

[0018] Further features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of preferred, but not exclusive, embodiments of the device according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, in which: [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of an apparatus according to the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device of FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a partial detailed view of a fabric tensioning frame in the embroidery machine of the apparatus of FIGS. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram of an embodiment of a stored template for use in the apparatus of FIGS. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] With reference to the drawings, the apparatus according to the present invention, generally designated by the reference numeral 1, comprises a supply device 2 for a plurality of rolls of dough. The supply device 2 comprises a plurality of unwinding units 2a, 2b, 2c with horizontal unwinding shafts. These units are arranged so that dough 20a, 20b, 20c can be unwound from respective rolls 21a, 21b, 21c and fed to a downstream machine in a mutually overlapping manner and along a substantially straight forward direction D in order to form a multi-layer sheet 20d having a number of layers corresponding to the number of dough 20a, 20b, 20c fed.

[0021] Optionally, but not necessarily, the fabrics 20a, 20b, 20c may have substantially the same width in a direction perpendicular to the forward direction D, so that they can be superimposed in substantially the correct relative position at the outlet of the feeder 2.

[0022] In the illustrated embodiment, the superimposed fabrics are three, two fabrics 20a-20b adapted to form a bag for the down in a subsequent filling step, and a third fabric 20c adapted to form the outer layer of a garment stuffed with down and to be tailored downstream of the device 1.

[0023] Alternatively, the supply device 2 can interpose a preformed bag for the down between the at least two fabrics during the overlapping step, as described for example in Italian patent application no. 102016000111981, which is incorporated herein by reference, and according to a predefined arrangement.

[0024] The materials used in the fabric of the present invention are those commonly used in the textile and / or upholstery industry, in particular for producing padded articles, such as garments filled with goose down.

[0025] In particular, the fabrics used may be made of textiles (this term is intended to mean knitted fabrics, meshes, nonwovens, padding sheets or polyester sheets for padding, synthetic sheets in general) and / or leather (including imitation leather). However, sheets of plastic film or other materials may also be added to associate them with textile and / or leather fabrics, always preferably unwound from a roll.

[0026] The apparatus 1 comprises an embroidery machine 3 downstream of the feeder device 2. The embroidery machine 3 comprises at least one sewing head, and more preferably a plurality of sewing heads 31 a-31 f, for example six (not all of which are shown in the figures for space reasons), aligned along the advance direction D. The sewing heads 31 a-31 f may be mounted on a common longitudinal member 30 parallel to the advance direction D.

[0027] Furthermore, the embroidery machine 3 includes at least one embroidery frame 32 adapted to taut and temporarily hold the superposed fabric 20d during sewing, in a manner known per se, and to move according to a stored embroidery program.

[0028] Embroidery machines with a fixed sewing head and a substrate embroidery frame which moves according to a stored embroidery program are known per se and are described, for example, in DE 197 22 616 A1.

[0029] In the illustrated embodiment, the embroidery frame 32 includes longitudinal claws 33 and transverse claws 34. The longitudinal claws 33 and transverse claws 34 are actuated in response to commands during the step of sewing the overlapped fabric 20d input and fed into the embroidery machine 3 to hold and tension the overlapped fabric 20d along two mutually perpendicular directions.

[0030] The device 1 further comprises storage means, for example within the embroidery machine 3 itself, for storing and storing at least one template comprising a drawing or pattern of reference sewing lines S1, S2, S3, S4, S5 and a plurality of reference markings M1, M2, M3, M4 associated with said pattern and distributed according to the placement of the references.

[0031] The stored template corresponds to a digital pattern, for example in the form of a vector file. The stored template further includes a plurality of substantially closed reference lines S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, which correspond to the actual sewing lines of a particular layout within the rectangular area A. The actual sewing lines must be provided by one of the sewing heads 31a-31f. In the illustrated example, the layout is formed by a plurality of semi-finished products (or items) P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, which are obtained by cutting and then processed to form, for example, a padded coat or jacket.

[0032] The embroidery machine 3 is associated with control means, such as a computer numerical control (CNC) of the entire apparatus 1. The control means are configured to cause relative movement between the sewing heads 31a-31f and the embroidery frame 32 based on stored templates in order to automatically sew the superimposed fabric 20d along stitching lines corresponding to the patterns of the stored templates and, according to a particular embodiment of the invention, to obtain additional stitches according to the arrangement of the marking fiducials. As a result, the markings M1-M4 of the stored patterns are advantageously replicated on the superimposed fabric 20d in the form of corresponding additional stitches.

[0033] One advantage of the present invention is that the markings each consist of a stitch, for example in the shape of a circle. These stitches are obtained using the same sewing heads 31a-31f that reproduce the patterns S1-S5 stored in the template in the form of stitches. Thus, during the sewing step, the markings are also simultaneously applied to the superimposed fabric 20d in the form of additional stitches. The markings are positioned in the same way as the stored template in relation to the stitch lines applied to the fabric 20d.

[0034] Since the sewing heads of known embroidery machines are capable of applying threads of different colors, it is possible to associate the markings with threads different from those used for sewing lines S1-S5, for example threads that have a high contrast with the color of the exposed surface of the overlapped fabric 20d, to facilitate automatic recognition at subsequent stations.

[0035] The embroidery machine 3 is adapted to move the frame 32 relative to the sewing heads 31a-31f and to actuate the sewing heads to place stitches on the overlapped fabric 20d that correspond (either in a one-to-one ratio or according to a known scale factor) to the fiducial placement of the reference lines S1-S5 and markings M1-M4.

[0036] Because the overlapping fabric 20d is kept taut by the embroidery frame 32, the working area of ​​each sewing head 31a-31f is a planar rectangular area that corresponds, either one-to-one or with a known scale factor, to the rectangular area A of the stored template or digital pattern. Thus, each of the actual stitching lines laid by each of the sewing heads 31a-31f corresponds exactly (except for the known scale factor) to each of the stored reference stitching lines S1-S5.

[0037] The reference sewing line S1-S5 optionally includes interruptions along one or more portions O1, O2, O3, O4, and O5, such that the sewing heads 31a-31f do not sew the overlapped fabric 20d at these portions O1-O5. This provides corresponding openings for accessing the inner pockets formed between the fabrics 20-20b-20c and separated by stitches at these portions O1-O5 at the end of the sewing step. Filling material (e.g., goose down) can be inserted through these openings at a filling station (not shown), which may be located downstream of the embroidery machine 3 in the forward direction D. In the illustrated embodiment, the filling station is located downstream of the entire apparatus 1 in the direction D.

[0038] To obtain multiple pockets within a given closed sewing line S1-S5, the reference sewing line S1-S5 may further include one or more chords T1, T2, T3, T4, and T5. The chords connect two points on each of the closed sewing lines S1-S5. Sewing is performed along the chords T1-T5 by the same sewing heads 31a-31f that perform the sewing corresponding to the lines S1-S5. Advantageously, portions O1-O5, which do not have seams and are arranged side by side along the closed line, are separated by one side of one of the chords T1-T5. As a result, each pocket to be filled later is separated by at least one of the chords T1-T5.

[0039] The fiducial arrangement of the markings M1-M4 in the stored template is two-dimensional (i.e., not only along one axis but also on the entire XY Cartesian plane) and is preferably such that the fiducial markings M1-M4 are arranged outside the closed lines S1-S5 of the pattern. In particular, the peripheral fiducial markings M1, M2 are arranged along the peripheral area of ​​the rectangular area A, for example, close to all of the vertices of the rectangle A. Meanwhile, at least one other fiducial marking M3-M4 is arranged further inside the area A than the peripheral markings M1-M2. More precisely, at least one other fiducial marking M3-M4 is arranged near each curved portion (S1', S2', etc.) of the sewing lines S1-S5 of the pattern, and preferably facing the direction of the radius of curvature of the curved portion.

[0040] The device 1 may include a draw-out station 4 downstream of the embroidery machine 3 for drawing out the sewn fabric (which corresponds to the superposed fabric 20d after sewing). The draw-out station 4 makes it possible to unwind the individual fabrics 20a-20c from the upstream rolls 21a-21c, respectively, to advance the superposed fabric 20d stepwise along the advance direction D, and to feed the sewn portions of the fabric 20d towards downstream stations, as will be described below.

[0041] The advancement step of the overlapped fabric 20d between the feeder 2 and the withdrawal station 4 is substantially equal to the length of the embroidery frame 32 in the direction D. This is to supply the embroidery machine 3 with a portion of the overlapped fabric 20d whose length is such that the stored template can be simultaneously replicated onto multiple adjacent rectangular areas of the overlapped fabric 20d by operating the sewing heads 31a-31f in parallel. The length of the embroidery frame 32 in the direction D is substantially a multiple of the length of one of the rectangular areas in the advancement direction D.

[0042] Throughout the sewing step, upstream of the withdrawal station 4, the advancement of the superposed fabric is stopped.

[0043] Advantageously, the withdrawal station 4 includes a buffer unit for temporarily storing the sewn portions of the superposed fabric 20d emerging from the embroidery machine 3.

[0044] The buffer unit includes sets of deflector rollers 42-43. The deflector rollers 42-43 have horizontal axes and are movable toward and away from each other (e.g., in a direction substantially perpendicular to the forward direction D). Furthermore, the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric 20d (also referred to herein as the "sewn fabric") is guided into a curved path between the deflector rollers 42-43. One set of deflector rollers 42 may be arranged on a movable support 41, while the other set of deflector rollers 43 may be provided in a fixed position, for example branched off from the deflector rollers 42.

[0045] By moving the roller sets 42-43 closer / farther apart from each other, the buffer unit of the withdrawal station 4 can respectively store larger / smaller amounts of sewn fabric produced upstream by the embroidery machine 3 without clogging the downstream processing stations.

[0046] The downstream station includes a machine 53 for automatically cutting the sewn fabric, which is associated with means 5 for optically capturing the fabric 20d sewn by the embroidery machine according to the stored template. The optical capturing means 5 may include one or more video cameras 52. The video cameras 52 are arranged on a mounting frame 51 located above the automatic cutting machine 53 and are aimed at the automatic cutting machine 53. In this way, it is possible to capture the entire rectangular area (substantially corresponding to area A of the stored template), including all markings applied to that area by the embroidery machine 3, in particular by the sewing heads 31a-31f that performed sewing on that area.

[0047] According to an alternative embodiment, not shown, the optical capturing means may be located upstream of the cutting machine 53 and downstream of the embroidery machine 3 and / or the withdrawal station 4.

[0048] The automatic cutting machine 53 may include a conveyor belt 56. Segments of the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric 20d are laid on the conveyor belt 56 and are advanced intermittently, with the belt 56 stopping only during the cutting step.

[0049] Above the belt there is a support, for example of the orthogonal type, which comprises a cutting head 54 mounted so that it can move along a beam 55. The cutting head 54 is in turn movable in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the beam 55. The cutting tool can be of any type, for example a razor or a blade.

[0050] The control means of the device 1 is programmed to move the movable beam 55 of the cutting machine 53 to a position that does not interfere with the optical capture step by the video camera 52 .

[0051] In the illustrated embodiment, the cutting machine 53 is configured to cut one layout P1-P5 at a time, within a predetermined time T1, along the sewing line of the portion of the sewn fabric corresponding to a single rectangular area A of the stored template.

[0052] The preset cutting time T1 is related to a preset embroidery time T2 used by the embroidery machine 3. This embroidery time T2 is used to completely replicate the stored template onto multiple adjacent rectangular areas of the overlapped fabric 20d in parallel using each of the sewing heads 31a-31f. In this case, T2 = n x T1, where "n" is the number of sewing heads of the embroidery machine. The buffer unit of the draw-out station 4 is adapted to compensate for this speed difference between the embroidery machine 3 and the automatic cutting machine 53.

[0053] By disengaging the embroidery frame 32 at the end of the sewing step, the sewn portions of the overlapped fabric 20d fed downstream are no longer tensioned in two perpendicular directions and are therefore subject to sagging and wrinkling, which can distort the stitching lines and stitch placement relative to the stored template or cause them to become smaller in size.

[0054] The invention therefore provides that the means for controlling the device 1 include and store instructions, which instructions include: Detecting the position of markings applied on the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric 20d output from the embroidery machine 3, i.e., applied on the sewn fabric, by optically capturing the markings with the video camera 52; determining a displacement, i.e. a different arrangement, of the applied markings relative to the reference arrangements M1-M4 stored in the template; and determining by interpolation with the capturing means 5 the actual pattern of stitching lines present in the sewn portion of the fabric 20d based on the displacements and the relative positioning of the reference markings M1-M4 with respect to the pattern of stitching lines S1-S5 provided in the stored template, and operating the cutting machine 53 accordingly. In this way, it is possible to automatically adapt the cutting to slacks and / or wrinkles in the sewn portion of the fabric 20d as a result of releasing said portion by the embroidery frame 32 of the embroidery machine 3.

[0055] Therefore, the automatic cutting machine 53 is suitable for automatically cutting the sewn portions of the overlapped fabric 20d according to the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation, in particular around the stitching lines formed by the embroidery machine 3 and at a substantially fixed distance (e.g., less than 1 cm) from the stitching lines. This automatic cutting allows for the production of semi-finished products P1-P5 in the original layout. These semi-finished products P1-P5, completely separated from each other as a result of the cutting, can then be stuffed with down and / or joined to form a finished article, such as a garment.

[0056] Downstream of the cutting machine 53, a labeling station 6 can be provided. The labeling station 6 comprises an orthogonal applicator 61 suitable for applying a respective automatically readable label (for example a label with a QR code or a barcode) onto each of the semi-finished products P1-P5 obtained in the automatic cutting step.

[0057] The labeling station 6 is also configured to complete its work within a preset time, which is preferably equal to the time T1 of the cutting station 53.

[0058] A further table (not shown) can be provided downstream of the device 1 for receiving batches of semi-finished products P1-P5 for associated picking and supplying to a subsequent processing station, such as a filling station (with down) and / or a garment production station. If manual picking of semi-finished products is performed at the receiving table, a confirmation button can be provided on the receiving table, which is connected to the means for controlling the device 1 and is pressed manually by the operator each time he has finished picking up all semi-finished products P1-P5 from the receiving table. If the button is not pressed within a predetermined time corresponding to T1 (i.e. the working time of the cutting machine 53), the control means will stop the device 1.

[0059] The operation and corresponding method according to the present invention are apparent from the structure of the device described above.

[0060] In fact, it has been found that the present invention accomplishes its intended aims and objectives.

[0061] The invention thus created is susceptible to numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept. Furthermore, all the details may be substituted by other technically equivalent elements.

[0062] In practice, the materials used may be any according to the requirements and state of the art, as well as the shape and dimensions are not fixed.

[0063] The disclosure of Italian Patent Application No. 102021000000398, from which this application claims priority, is incorporated herein by reference.

[0064] In any claim of this application, if reference signs are used after the described technical features, these reference signs are used only for the purpose of enhancing the clarity of the claims, and therefore such reference signs have no effect of limiting the interpretation of each element identified by illustration using such reference signs. The present disclosure also includes the following aspects. [Aspect 1] 1. A method for producing textile or leather articles, in particular padded articles, comprising the steps of: A step of supplying at least two overlapping fabrics (20a-20c) to an embroidery machine (3); advancing the overlapped fabrics (20a-20c, 20d) stepwise along a substantially straight direction (D); automatically sewing at least two pieces of the fabric (20a-20c) along sewing lines according to a stored template including patterns of reference sewing lines (S1-S5) by the embroidery machine (3); A method comprising: during said automatically sewing step, applying a plurality of markings in the form of respective additional stitches, said markings being two-dimensionally distributed on the exposed surface of said fabric (20d) according to the arrangement of corresponding reference markings (M1-M4) provided in said stored template; after the automatic sewing step, feeding the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric (20d) to a station (53) for an automatic cutting step; optically capturing the sewn part and determining the displacement of the markings applied to the fabric (20d) relative to the locations of the reference markings (M1-M4) stored in the template; determining, by interpolation, the actual pattern of the sewing lines present on the sewn portion of the fabric (20d) based on the displacements and the relative positions of the reference markings (M1-M4) and the relative positions of the patterns of the sewing lines (S1-S5) provided in the stored template; automatically cutting the sewn portion, the cutting being performed substantially along the sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation in order to automatically adapt the cutting to sagging and / or wrinkles in the fabric (20d) after the sewing step; A method comprising: [Aspect 2] 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the thread used to obtain each of the applied markings preferably has a color that is optically distinguishable from the color scheme of the area of ​​the surface to which each of the markings is applied. Aspect 3 3. The method according to one or more of aspects 1 or 2, wherein the arrangement of reference markings (M1-M4) provided in the stored template includes a plurality of peripheral reference markings (M1, M2) and at least one inner reference marking (M3, M4), the at least one inner reference marking (M3, M4) preferably being arranged externally adjacent to each of the curved portions (S1', S2') of one of the sewing lines (S1-S5) of the pattern. Aspect 4 In the automatic sewing step, the overlapped fabrics are kept tensioned to form at least one substantially rectangular and planar sewing area (A), and the sewing area (A) is adapted to make the sewing lines and the markings applied by the embroidery machine (3) correspond to the stored arrangements (M1-M4) of the patterns and references, respectively; and a side of the rectangle in the direction (D) of fabric advancement is substantially equal to the advancing step or a submultiple of the advancing step. Aspect 5 A method according to aspect 4, wherein the automatically sewing step includes a step of simultaneously and equally reproducing the sewing lines (S1-S5) according to the pattern on a plurality of the rectangular areas arranged side by side along the direction (D), which is substantially a straight line, using respective sewing heads, and the advancing step is preferably substantially equal to the number of the rectangular areas multiplied by the length of the sides. Aspect 6 Aspect 6. The method of any one or more of aspects 1 to 5, further comprising: a step of temporarily accumulating the fabric between the sewing step and the cutting step to compensate for the speed difference between the two steps; and an optional step of labeling the semi-finished product after the cutting step. Aspect 7 Aspect 7. The method of any one or more of aspects 1 to 6, wherein at least one of the sewing lines (S1-S5) of the pattern is a substantially closed line on the outside of which the reference markings (M1-M4) are located, and wherein the sewing is interrupted along one or more portions (O1-O5) of the substantially closed line, the portions (O1-O5) adapted to define corresponding entrances for accessing each of the pockets formed between the overlapping fabrics by the sewing step, and the method further comprises the optional step of inserting down inside the pockets. Aspect 8 An apparatus (1) for producing textile or leather goods, in particular padded goods, adapted to carry out the method according to any one or more of aspects 1 to 7, said apparatus comprising: a feeder (2) for a plurality of fabrics (20a-20c), the feeder (2) being configured to unwind the fabrics (20a-20c) from their respective rolls (21a-21c) in a forward direction (D) and to overlap them with one another; a storage means containing a stored template, said stored template including a pattern of reference sewing lines (S1-S5) and a plurality of reference markings (M1-M4), said plurality of reference markings (M1-M4) being associated with said pattern and positioned in accordance with the placement of the references; an embroidery machine (3) including at least one sewing head (31 a-31 f) and at least one frame (32), the at least one frame (32) adapted to tension and temporarily hold the overlapped fabric (20 d) during sewing, the embroidery machine (3) being associated with a control means configured to automatically sew the overlapped fabric (20 d) using relative movement between the at least one sewing head (31 a-31 f) and the frame (32) along sewing lines (S1-S5) corresponding to the pattern of the stored template; the embroidery machine (3) is adapted to apply a plurality of markings in the form of stitches two-dimensionally on the superposed fabric (20d), the plurality of markings being applied at positions corresponding to the arrangements (M1-M4) of references stored in the template; The apparatus further comprises: downstream of the embroidery machine in the advancing direction (D), means (52) for optically capturing the fabric sewn by the embroidery machine (3), and a machine (53) for automatically cutting the sewn fabric; and control means including stored instructions, said stored instructions comprising: Detecting the position of the marking on the sewn fabric by the optical capturing means (52); determining the displacement of the applied markings relative to the arrangements (M1-M4) of references stored in the template; and determining by interpolation the actual pattern of the sewing lines present on the sewn fabric based on the displacements and the relative arrangement of the reference markings (M1-M4) and the pattern of the sewing lines provided in the stored template, so as to automatically adapt the cutting step to slacks and / or wrinkles in the sewn fabric after releasing the sewn fabric by the frame (32) of the embroidery machine; The automatic cutting machine (53) is adapted to automatically cut the fabric substantially along the sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation. Aspect 9 the embroidery machine includes a plurality of the sewing heads (31a-31f), the sewing heads (31a-31f) being arranged side by side along the direction of advance (D) and adapted to replicate the sewing lines (S1-S5) in parallel on a plurality of rectangular areas arranged side by side along the direction of advance (D) according to the stored pattern; The apparatus according to aspect 8, further comprising: the device (1) including a buffer (4) for temporarily storing the sewn fabric output from the embroidery machine (3); the buffer (4) being downstream of the embroidery machine (3) and upstream of the machine (53) that automatically cuts the fabric; and the buffer (4) being configured to compensate for the speed difference between the machines upstream and downstream of the buffer (4). Aspect 10 The capturing means (52) is disposed on the automatic cutting machine (53), and the automatic cutting machine (53) an advancing belt (56) adapted to receive the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric (20d) laid thereon after it leaves the embroidery machine (3); 10. The device according to one or more of aspects 8 or 9, comprising a support (54) that can move on command along the belt according to a plurality of axes and that is provided with at least one cutting tool, and wherein the means for capturing (52) is preferably mounted in a fixed position above the belt (56) that is advanced so as to capture the entire rectangular area including all of the markings made according to the arrangement of datums (M1-M4).

Claims

1. 1. A method for producing a textile or leather article, comprising: feeding at least two overlapping fabrics (20a-20c) to an embroidery machine (3); advancing the overlapped fabrics (20a-20c, 20d) stepwise along a substantially straight direction (D); automatically sewing at least two of the fabrics (20a-20c) along sewing lines according to a stored template including patterns of reference sewing lines (S1-S5) with the embroidery machine (3); A method comprising: during said automatically sewing step, applying a plurality of markings in the form of respective additional stitches, said markings being two-dimensionally distributed on the exposed surface of said fabric (20d) according to an arrangement of corresponding reference markings (M1-M4) provided in said stored template, said arrangement of said reference markings (M1-M4) including a plurality of peripheral reference markings (M1, M2) and at least one inner reference marking (M3, M4); after the automatic sewing step, feeding the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric (20d) to a station (53) for an automatic cutting step; optically capturing the sewn part and determining the displacement of the markings applied to the fabric (20d) relative to the arrangement of the reference markings (M1-M4) stored in the template; determining, by interpolation, the actual pattern of the sewing lines present on the sewn portion of the fabric (20d) based on the displacements and the relative arrangement of the reference markings (M1-M4) and the relative arrangement of the patterns of the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) provided in the stored template; automatically cutting the sewn portion, the automatic cutting being performed substantially along the sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation in order to automatically adapt the automatic cutting to sagging and / or wrinkles of the fabric (20d) after the automatic sewing step; A method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the thread used to obtain each applied marking has a color that is optically distinguishable from the coloration of the area of ​​the surface on which each of the markings is applied.

3. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one inner reference marking (M3, M4) is arranged adjacent to the outside of each of the curved portions (S1', S2') of one of the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) of the pattern.

4. In the automatic sewing step, the overlapped fabrics are kept tensioned to form at least one substantially rectangular and planar sewing area (A), and the sewing area (A) is adapted to make the sewing lines and the markings applied by the embroidery machine (3) correspond to the stored arrangements (M1-M4) of the patterns and references, respectively; 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the side of the rectangle in the direction of advancement (D) of the fabric is substantially equal to the length of the advancement step or is a submultiple of the length of the advancement step.

5. 5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the automatically sewing step includes a step of using each sewing head to equally reproduce the reference sewing line (S1-S5) according to the pattern in parallel on a plurality of the sewing areas (A) arranged side by side along the direction (D) which is a substantially straight line, and the length of the advancing step is substantially equal to the number of the sewing areas (A) multiplied by the length of the side.

6. 6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: a step of temporarily accumulating the fabric between the automatic sewing step and the automatic cutting step to compensate for the speed difference between these two steps; and a step of labeling the semi-finished product after the automatic cutting step.

7. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) of the pattern is a substantially closed line on the outside of which the reference markings (M1-M4) are arranged, and wherein sewing is interrupted along one or more portions (O1-O5) of the substantially closed line, the portions (O1-O5) being adapted to define, by the automatic sewing step, corresponding entrances for accessing each of the pockets formed between the overlapping fabrics, and the method further comprises the step of inserting down inside the pockets.

8. 8. An apparatus (1) for manufacturing textile or leather goods, adapted to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, said apparatus comprising: a supply device (2) for a plurality of fabrics (20a-20c), the supply device (2) being configured to unwind the fabrics (20a-20c) from their respective rolls (21a-21c) in a forward direction (D) and to overlap them with one another; a storage means containing a stored template, said stored template including a pattern of reference sewing lines (S1-S5) and a plurality of reference markings (M1-M4), said plurality of reference markings (M1-M4) being associated with said pattern and arranged according to a reference arrangement, said arrangement of said reference markings (M1-M4) including a plurality of peripheral reference markings (M1, M2) and at least one inner reference marking (M3, M4); an embroidery machine (3) including at least one sewing head (31a-31f) and at least one frame (32), the at least one frame (32) adapted to tension and temporarily hold the overlapped fabric (20d) during automatic sewing, the embroidery machine (3) being associated with a control means, the control means configured to automatically sew the overlapped fabric (20d) using relative movement between the at least one sewing head (31a-31f) and the frame (32) along the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) corresponding to the pattern of the stored template; the embroidery machine (3) is adapted to apply a plurality of markings in the form of stitches two-dimensionally on the superposed fabric (20d), the plurality of markings being applied at positions corresponding to the arrangements (M1-M4) of references stored in the template; The apparatus further comprises: downstream of the embroidery machine in the direction of advance (D), means (52) for optically capturing the fabric sewn by the embroidery machine (3), and a machine (53) for automatically cutting the sewn fabric; and control means including stored instructions, said stored instructions comprising: Detecting the position of the marking on the sewn fabric by the optical capturing means (52); determining the displacement of the applied markings relative to the arrangement (M1-M4) of references stored in the template; determining by interpolation the actual pattern of the sewing lines present on the sewn fabric based on the displacements and the mutual arrangement of the reference markings (M1-M4) and the pattern of the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) provided in the stored template, in order to automatically adapt the automatic cutting step to slack and / or wrinkles in the sewn fabric after release of the sewn fabric by the frame (32) of the embroidery machine; The automatic cutting machine (53) is adapted to automatically cut the fabric substantially along the sewing line based on the actual pattern obtained by the interpolation.

9. the embroidery machine includes a plurality of the sewing heads (31a-31f), the sewing heads (31a-31f) being arranged side by side along the direction of advance (D) and adapted to replicate the reference sewing lines (S1-S5) in parallel on a plurality of rectangular areas arranged side by side along the direction of advance (D) in accordance with the stored pattern; 9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the apparatus (1) includes a buffer (4) for temporarily storing the sewn fabric output from the embroidery machine (3), the buffer (4) being downstream of the embroidery machine (3) and upstream of the machine (53) for automatic cutting, and the buffer (4) is for compensating for a speed difference between the machines upstream and downstream of the buffer (4).

10. The capturing means (52) is disposed on the automatic cutting machine (53), and the automatic cutting machine (53) an advancing belt (56) adapted to receive and lay on it the sewn portion of the overlapped fabric (20d) emerging from the embroidery machine (3); 10. Apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, comprising a support (54) which can move on command along the belt according to several axes and which is provided with at least one cutting tool, and wherein the means for capturing (52) is mounted in a fixed position above the belt (56) which it advances in order to capture the entire rectangular area including all of the markings made according to the arrangement (M1-M4) of datums.

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