Segmented Sock Toe Area with Vertical Borderlines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sock manufacturing techniques limit the complexity and customization of toe and heel areas, restricting the ability to create differentiated sub-areas with varying properties such as elasticity, strength, and moisture absorption, which can enhance comfort and protection.
Innovation Solution
A sock design featuring toe and heel areas divided into sub-areas with vertical or parallel borderlines, formed during the knitting process using a three-dimensional needle selection method, allowing for integrally formed regions with distinct properties like yarn composition and knitting types.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional circular knitting machines are used to manufacture socks, then the manufacturing process is simple and efficient, but the complexity and structure of patterns are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The sock is divided into multiple sub-areas (toe sub-areas, heel sub-areas, instep sub-areas) with different knitting patterns and properties. Each sub-area can be knitted with different yarn types, densities, and stitch patterns to address specific functional requirements, thereby increasing pattern complexity without requiring entirely new manufacturing equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the sock are assigned different knitting characteristics - the toe area uses one knitting pattern for flexibility, the heel area uses another for reinforcement, and the instep area uses a third for comfort. This local differentiation allows a single knitting machine to produce multiple patterns by varying needle selection and yarn feeding mechanisms.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the toe area is divided into multiple sub-areas with different properties, then customization and comfort are improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The knitting machine is pre-programmed with the specific pattern sequences for each sub-area before the sock is knitted. The needle selection mechanism is pre-configured to switch between different knitting patterns at predetermined locations, ensuring that borderlines between sub-areas are formed with high precision without requiring post-manufacturing adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
Manual or mechanical pattern switching is replaced with an automated needle selection system that electronically controls which needles are active at each knitting stage. This substitution of mechanical control with automated selection mechanisms maintains high manufacturing precision while enabling complex multi-pattern designs.
3Ease of manufacture
If three-dimensional needle selection is used to form sub-areas, then the sock can be integrally formed with distinct properties, but the manufacturing process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
A single knitting machine is designed to perform multiple functions - it can knit different patterns, use different yarn types, and create various sub-area configurations by varying the needle selection program. This multi-functional capability allows the same device to produce different sock designs without requiring separate specialized equipment for each pattern type.
Solution Approach 2:
The needle selection system is made dynamic and adaptable, allowing real-time changes in which needles are active during the knitting process. This dynamic control enables the formation of complex three-dimensional structures and varied sub-area properties while maintaining a relatively simple base machine design that can be reconfigured through software or control mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided herein, a sock comprising a toe and/or a heel area, wherein said toe area is divided to at least two sub-areas, wherein a borderline between at least two adjacent sub-areas is essentially vertical. There is also provided, a method for manufacturing a sock comprising forming a toe and/or a heel area divided to at least two sub-areas, wherein a borderline between at least two adjacent sub-areas is essentially vertical.