Sewing Machine Automatic Embroidery Pattern Combination

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional sewing machines require significant labor to select and combine multiple embroidery patterns for creating complex designs, as users need to manually select and align each pattern, making the process time-consuming and inefficient.

Innovation Solution

A sewing machine equipped with a processor and memory that stores embroidery data and instructions, allowing for the automatic extraction and combination of compatible embroidery patterns, enabling seamless integration and alignment of multiple patterns for creating composite designs.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If multiple embroidery patterns are manually selected and combined, then decorative embroidery designs can be created, but the labor required and time consumption increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to create combined embroidery designsVSAvoidlabor required for pattern selection

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The sewing machine automatically extracts compatible embroidery patterns and determines their sewing positions without user intervention. The control unit autonomously processes the selected pattern information, retrieves compatible patterns from storage, and generates the combined embroidery data, allowing the system to serve itself rather than requiring manual pattern combination by the user.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The sewing machine pre-stores compatibility information between different embroidery patterns in advance. When a user selects one pattern, the system can immediately retrieve and extract compatible patterns from the pre-stored data, eliminating the need for real-time compatibility analysis and reducing the time required for pattern combination.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If multiple embroidery patterns are manually selected and combined, then decorative embroidery designs can be created, but the time required for pattern selection and alignment increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to create combined embroidery designsVSAvoidtime for pattern selection and alignment

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The sewing machine automatically extracts compatible embroidery patterns and determines their sewing positions without user intervention. The control unit autonomously processes the selected pattern information, retrieves compatible patterns from storage, and generates the combined embroidery data, allowing the system to serve itself rather than requiring manual pattern combination by the user.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The sewing machine pre-stores compatibility information between different embroidery patterns in advance. When a user selects one pattern, the system can immediately retrieve and extract compatible patterns from the pre-stored data, eliminating the need for real-time compatibility analysis and reducing the time required for pattern combination.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Productivity

If automatic extraction of compatible embroidery patterns is implemented, then labor and time are reduced, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvespeed of creating combined embroideryVSAvoidcomplexity of pattern extraction system

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The control unit serves multiple functions: it controls the sewing mechanism, stores compatibility information between patterns, extracts compatible patterns based on user selection, determines sewing positions, and generates combined embroidery data. By consolidating these diverse functions into a single multi-functional control unit, the system achieves automatic pattern combination without proportionally increasing overall device complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses data copies and representations of embroidery patterns and their compatibility relationships stored in memory. Instead of requiring complex real-time analysis of pattern geometries and compatibility, the control unit works with pre-prepared data copies that encode compatibility information, simplifying the extraction process while maintaining productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Data Source

PatentUS9290873B2Sewing machine, information processing apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium

Publication Date: 2016.03.22 BROTHER KOGYO KK

AI summary

A sewing machine includes a processor and a memory. The memory stores a plurality of embroidery data which respectively corresponds to a plurality of embroidery patterns and computer-readable instructions. The instructions instruct the sewing machine to execute steps of selecting one of the plurality of embroidery data and sewing the embroidery pattern corresponding to the selected embroidery data. The instructions further instruct the sewing machine to execute steps of extracting, from the plurality of embroidery data, specific embroidery data, wherein the specific embroidery data is usable in combination with the selected embroidery data, and sewing the specific embroidery pattern based on the extracted specific embroidery data.