Manufacturing method of a down-like fiberfill material
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional natural down quilts face issues with non-uniform heat retention, washing resistance, and animal odor due to the movement of down feathers and instability in material quantity, and existing synthetic alternatives fail to replicate the bulkiness, heat insulation, and volume feeling of natural down.
Innovation Solution
A method involving air entangling of polyester axial fibers and floats to create a down-like material with aligned, fluffy ball-like masses, controlling diameter and separation through feed rates, air flow, and pressure, resulting in a cotton-like long fiber with enhanced washing resistance and heat insulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If natural down is used in quilts, then heat-retaining property and volume feeling are improved, but washing resistance deteriorates due to balloon phenomenon and down movement
Solution Approach 1:
The invention creates an artificial down-like material that copies the essential characteristics of natural down (fluffy ball-like masses providing volume feeling and heat retention) while eliminating its drawbacks. The synthetic material replicates the clustered, volumetric structure of natural down clusters without using actual down feathers, thus achieving similar thermal performance without the balloon phenomenon or washing resistance issues.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite construction by combining multiple polyester components (core yarn, filament, and binder yarn) to create a material that mimics natural down. This composite approach allows the synthetic material to achieve the desired heat-retaining property through its structured composition while maintaining washing resistance through the use of washable synthetic fibers that don't suffer from balloon phenomenon.
2Volume of moving object
If natural down is used in quilts, then volume feeling and bulkiness are improved, but stability of material quantity deteriorates due to climatic and environmental factors
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replicates the volumetric characteristics of natural down through artificial structures. The down-like material consists of fluffy ball-like masses formed by entangled polyester fibers that mimic the volume-providing structure of natural down clusters, achieving similar space occupation and insulation properties without being subject to natural variability in down quality due to climate or environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention controls and standardizes the physical parameters of the down-like material through the air entanglement process. By controlling air flow rate, air pressure, and feed rates of the polyester materials, the invention produces consistent volumetric properties and material quantity stability that cannot be achieved with natural down, whose properties vary with climatic and environmental conditions.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional air entangling apparatus is used to produce synthetic stuffing, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but heat insulation property and washing resistance deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs an air entanglement unit that uses controlled air flow to entangle and integrate the polyester core yarn and filament. This pneumatic approach maintains manufacturing simplicity by using air flow rather than complex mechanical entangling mechanisms, while the controlled air entanglement creates a more effective three-dimensional structure that improves heat insulation property compared to conventional mechanical entangling methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention optimizes specific parameters of the air entanglement process (air flow rate, air pressure, gap dimensions, and feed rates) to enhance the structural properties of the entangled material. By carefully controlling these parameters, the invention achieves improved heat insulation property and washing resistance while maintaining the simplicity of the air-based entangling process, overcoming the limitations of conventional entangling apparatus.
4Ease of manufacture
If conventional air entangling is used for long-fiber core yarn and filament, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but bulkiness and washing resistance deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a specifically designed air entanglement unit with controlled air flow to entangle the long-fiber core yarn and filament. This pneumatic method maintains manufacturing simplicity while creating a more volumetric and bulky structure compared to conventional mechanical entangling. The air flow pattern and pressure control enable the formation of fluffy ball-like masses that provide superior bulkiness while remaining washable.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention controls specific parameters of the air entanglement process (air flow rate, air pressure, and the gap between the tip nozzle portion and bowl-like wall surface) to optimize the bulkiness of the entangled material. By adjusting these parameters, the invention achieves a more volumetric structure with improved bulkiness that maintains the manufacturing simplicity of air-based entangling, overcoming the flat and non-bulky result of conventional methods.
5Temperature
If natural down is used in quilts, then heat insulation property is improved, but harmful factors from animals deteriorate quality due to odor
Solution Approach 1:
The invention creates an artificial material that copies the heat insulation properties of natural down through its fluffy ball-like structure made of polyester fibers. This synthetic down-like material provides equivalent thermal insulation performance while completely eliminating animal-derived odors and other harmful factors associated with natural down, as it is made entirely from synthetic polyester materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses synthetic polyester materials that are inherently resistant to odor and degradation from animal sources. The synthetic down-like material can be produced consistently without the variability and harmful contaminants associated with collecting and processing natural down from animals, providing a cleaner, odor-free alternative with comparable thermal performance.
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 method produces a synthetic down-like material that is bulky, resistant to washing, and provides excellent heat retention and volume feeling, eliminating the drawbacks of natural down such as animal odor and instability.
Implementation Method 1
uniting the axial fiber and the float in the air entanglement unit by generating an air flow in the gap between the tip nozzle portion (33) and the bowl-like wall surface (72), the air flow causing the float to be entangled and integrated with the axial fiber
Implementation Method 2
a venturi (71) mounted in the inner cylindrical body (51) and having a bowl-like wall surface portion (72) at one end spaced by a gap from the tip nozzle portion (33) of the yarn and air supplier (31)
Data Source
Figure 1(a)~1(b)
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The present invention provides a novel down-like cotton material which is bulky, light-weight, excellent in washing resistance, heat-retaining property and heat insulation property and provides volume feeling, without odor from animals. The down-like cotton material 1 of the present invention is formed as a cotton-like long fiber, in which filaments of an axial fiber and a float each composed of a polyester raw yarn are united by air entangling in air flow to be entangled, connected and integrated to have a down ball-like mass in an aligned form, and the diameter of the down ball-like mass is 1.0 to 3.5cm and down ball-like masses are continually aligned at an interval of up to about 10cm or less in a length direction of the axial fiber.