Support Guide for Sewing Decorative Topstitch on Slide Fastener
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Solution Overview
Problem
Combining decorative topstitching with slide fasteners in sewing, particularly in automobile seat covers, is challenging due to the close proximity of the slide fastener to the seam, making it difficult to move the seam through a sewing machine effectively.
Innovation Solution
A support guide system for sewing machines that includes a first and second top surface spaced apart to accommodate the slide fastener, allowing for the alignment and sewing of a decorative topstitch on a seam with a slide fastener, enabling the concealment of the fastener behind the seam.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a slide fastener is placed close to the seam for decorative purposes, then the appearance and functionality of the seat cover is improved, but it becomes difficult to move the seam through the sewing machine
Solution Approach 1:
A support guide is introduced as an intermediary device between the sewing machine and the fabric-seam assembly. The support guide includes a groove that receives and stabilizes the slide fastener, allowing the seam to be fed through the sewing machine without the slide fastener interfering with the needle or presser foot. This mediator enables the combination of decorative close-placement fasteners with machine sewing.
2Manufacturing precision
If decorative topstitching is applied close to the slide fastener, then the aesthetic appearance is improved, but the sewing process becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The support guide acts as a mediator that holds the slide fastener in a fixed groove, providing a stable reference for aligning the decorative topstitching. The groove in the support guide ensures the slide fastener remains in the correct position, allowing the operator to easily align and sew the topstitching close to the fastener without worrying about shifting or misalignment.
Solution Approach 2:
While not directly related to the support guide function, the patent mentions using thread color combinations to highlight or camouflage the stitching, which complements the precise alignment enabled by the support guide. This allows the decorative topstitching to be both precisely placed and aesthetically integrated with the overall design.
Data Source
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AI summary
Disclosed is a support guide for sewing a decorative topstitch on a seam with a slide fastener, the support guide including a first top surface; and a second top surface, the first top surface coplanar with the second top surface and spaced apart from the second top surface by a distance sized to accept the slide fastener.