Knitted Tensile Structures with Integrated Float Courses
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing knit components for apparel and footwear lack effective integration of tensile materials to achieve high stretch resistance, breathability, and visibility while maintaining structural integrity.
Innovation Solution
The development of knit components with knit-in tensile areas that incorporate courses of tensile material with a float length of at least three needles, integrated via knit stitches, to enhance stretch resistance and visibility while maintaining breathability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If courses of tensile material are integrally knitted with float lengths of at least three needles, then stretch resistance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The knit component is divided into distinct functional zones: knit-in tensile areas with integrated tensile material courses provide stretch resistance, while non-tensile areas maintain breathability and flexibility. This segmentation allows each zone to optimize its specific function without compromising the overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Tensile material courses are strategically positioned in specific regions where stretch resistance is needed, rather than uniformly throughout the entire component. The float length of at least three needles creates localized reinforcement zones that provide mechanical support exactly where required, reducing overall complexity.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If openings are created in the knit-in tensile area, then breathability is improved, but strength deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The courses of tensile material act as flexible reinforcing elements that span across openings without rigidly closing them. These thin, integrated courses maintain structural integrity while allowing air and light to pass through the openings, achieving both strength and breathability.
Solution Approach 2:
The knit component combines different material properties within a single integrated structure: tensile material courses provide strength and stretch resistance, while the knit fabric with openings provides breathability and flexibility. This composite approach allows both functions to coexist.
3Stability of the object's composition
If tensile material courses are integrated via knit stitches, then structural integrity is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The manufacturing process merges multiple functions into a single knitting operation. The tensile material courses are integrated directly into the knit fabric during the knitting process itself, rather than being added as separate components afterward. This combining of operations simplifies manufacturing despite the increased structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The tensile material courses are prepared and positioned during the knitting process before the final fabric structure is completed. This preliminary integration ensures proper alignment and connection of the tensile material to the knit fabric, maintaining structural integrity while streamlining the manufacturing process.
Data Source
AI summary
An article of footwear may include a knit component that may include a tensile area, a first intersecting portion and a second intersecting portion that at least partially bound an opening of the tensile area, and a course of tensile material that is integrally knit within the knit component. The course of tensile material may comprise a float that extends from the first intersecting portion, across the opening, and to the second intersecting portion, and having a float that is at least three needles long across the opening.