Laminate Composite Fabric Heating Elements for Laundry Durability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flexible textile structures with heating elements face compatibility issues with conventional textiles, leading to difficulties in fabric forming processes and poor laundry durability, especially when elastic recovery and flexibility are desired.
Innovation Solution
A laminate structure with outer layers of fabric, paper, or film, incorporating a heating element and an adhesive composition for bonding, along with an optional stretch and recovery element, allowing for a flat or puckered appearance and improved laundry durability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If heating elements (wires, small cables) are incorporated into fabric structures through weaving or knitting, then the structure can provide heat or warmth, but the structure suffers from poor compatibility with conventional textiles, fragility issues, and difficulties in fabric forming processes
Solution Approach 1:
The heating element is divided into discrete segments or zones rather than continuous wires. Individual heating segments can be independently secured to the fabric substrate using adhesive compositions, allowing each segment to be treated separately and reducing stress concentration that would compromise overall reliability during laundering.
Solution Approach 2:
An adhesive composition serves as an intermediary between the heating element and the fabric substrate. This adhesive layer absorbs and distributes mechanical stresses during fabric deformation and laundering, protecting the fragile heating elements while maintaining secure attachment, thus resolving the contradiction between heating functionality and laundry durability.
2Temperature
If wires and small cables are knitted into textile structures, then heating function is achieved, but the structure loses flexibility and elastic recovery due to poor compatibility with textile fibers
Solution Approach 1:
The heating elements are configured as flexible, thin structures that can conform to the fabric substrate without rigid support. The adhesive composition bonds these flexible heating elements to the fabric in a manner that allows the overall structure to bend, stretch, and recover elastically like conventional textiles, maintaining adaptability while providing heating function.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating element structure is designed to be dynamic rather than rigid, allowing it to adapt its shape and position in response to fabric movement and body contours. The adhesive bonding method enables the heating elements to move flexibly with the fabric during wear and laundering, preserving elastic recovery and flexibility.
3Adaptability or versatility
If functional yarns are knitted simultaneously with all other components into tubular knit fabric, then heating and measurement functions are integrated, but the manufacturing process becomes complex and difficult
Solution Approach 1:
Heating elements are pre-positioned and secured to the fabric substrate before final assembly steps. This preliminary action allows the heating elements to be placed in optimal positions and bonded securely, simplifying the overall manufacturing process compared to simultaneous multi-component knitting, while still achieving integrated functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating element incorporation process is extracted from the main fabric forming operation. Instead of knitting heating elements simultaneously with the fabric structure, the heating elements are separately prepared and then attached using adhesive compositions, decoupling the complexity of heating element integration from the fabric manufacturing process.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The laminate provides robust, laundry-durable, and adaptable heating solutions that maintain performance after multiple wash cycles while conforming to three-dimensional body shapes, ensuring effective heat generation and flexibility.
Implementation Method 1
an adhesive composition for bonding the heating element between the outer layers
Implementation Method 2
The heating element may be an electrical resistance heating element that is adaptable to being connected to a source of electrical power
Implementation Method 3
at least one stretch and recovery element bonded between the outer layers. With such stretch and recovery element, a laminate with a substantially puckered appearance results when the stretch and recovery element is in a relaxed or unstretched state
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a laminate composite fabric which is robust, laundry-durable, and a method for forming such fabric. The laminate fabric is provided with at least one element that provides heat or warmth (heating element). Generally, the laminate fabric with heating element(s) is sufficiently robust for incorporation into garments or warming textile structures (pads and blankets). The laminate fabric may include one or more stretch and recovery elements to cause the laminate to be more adaptable for securing about any three dimensional body.