Ray Austin Wood

US Patent:

61488712, Nov 21, 2000

Filed:

Nov 2, 1998

Appl. No.:

9/184487

Inventors:

Stephen Michael Hassell - Charlotte NC
Harold Francis Weber - Rock Hill SC
Ronald Leefate Dunn - Fort Mill SC
Stevenson Christopher Freeman - Rock Hill SC
Ray Austin Wood - Fort Mill SC

Assignee:

Spring Industries, Inc. - Fort Mill SC

International Classification:

D03D 1500

US Classification:

139420A

Abstract:

A textile fabric comprises a plurality of weft yarns extending generally in a weft direction and a plurality of flat film warp yarns extending generally in a warp direction. The warp yarns are interwoven with the weft yarns in a series of identical repeating units of a predetermined weave pattern. The flat film warp yarns, which are preferably between about 10 and 40. mu. m in thickness and 0. 010 and 0. 025 inches in width, are preferably interwoven with the weft yarns such that, in each of the identical repeating units, the weft yarns are interwoven as coupled pairs, such that a first yarn of each of the coupled pairs follows the same interweaving pattern relative to each of the flat film warp yarns as a second yarn of that pair. This configuration, known as a "double-pick" configuration, can produce a fabric that has acceptable appearance and feel, but at a considerably lower cost than typical textile fabrics of comparable weight because of the presence of the flat film warp yarns. The flat film warp yarns can be formed on a slitting apparatus having a plurality of parallel, aligned, spaced apart cutting blades.