Patent ID: 6112774
Filing Date: 2000-09-05
Classification: D21F,Y10S,Y10T

Abstract:
A papermakers' forming fabric, said fabric having a top machine side and opposing bottom paper side and comprising machine direction yarns and cross machine direction yarns interwoven in a repeating pattern of multiple repeating units, wherein a repeating unit of said pattern comprises:a first preselected number of paper side cross-machine direction yarns forming said paper side of said fabric;a second preselected number of machine side cross-machine direction yarns forming said machine side of said fabric, said first preselected number being at least twice as large as said second preselected number, and each of said machine side cross machine direction yarns being positioned below a paper side cross machine direction yarn;a third preselected number of machine direction yarns, each of said machine direction yarns being interwoven with both said paper side cross machine direction yarns and said machine side cross machine direction yarns, said machine direction yarns comprising first and second sets of machine direction yarns, said first and second sets of machine direction yarns being arranged in an alternating pattern, with each machine direction yarn of said first set being positioned between two machine direction yarns of said second set, and each machine direction yarn of said second set being positioned between two machine direction yarns of said first set;wherein, within said repeating unit, each of said machine direction yarns of said first set passes above four paper side cross machine direction yarns to form first, second, third and fourth paper side knuckles, said first and second paper side knuckles being separated from one another by at least two paper side cross machine direction yarns, and said third and fourth paper side knuckles being separated by at least two paper side cross machine direction yarns;wherein each of said machine direction yarns of said second set passes above four paper side cross machine direction yarns to form fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth paper side knuckles, said fifth and sixth paper side knuckles being separated from one another by at least two paper side cross machine direction yarns, and said seventh and eighth paper side knuckles being separated by at least two paper side cross machine direction yarns;each of said machine direction yarns of said first set passes below four machine side cross machine direction yarns to form first, second, third and fourth machine side knuckles, and each of said machine direction yarns of said second set passes below three machine side cross machine direction yarns to form fifth, sixth and seventh paper side knuckles;and wherein each of said machine side first, second, third and fourth knuckles formed by one machine direction yarn of said first set passing under respective machine side cross machine direction yarns has a corresponding one of said first, second, third and fourth knuckles on an adjacent machine direction yarn of said first set formed under the same machine side cross machine direction yarn;and wherein each of two of said fifth, sixth and seventh machine side knuckles formed by one machine direction yarn of said second set under respective machine side cross machine direction yarns has a corresponding one of said fifth, sixth and seventh knuckles on an adjacent machine direction yarn of said second set formed under the same machine side cross direction yarn, and wherein the other one of said fifth, sixth and seventh knuckles of said one machine direction yarn of said second set has no corresponding fifth, sixth or seventh knuckle on an adjacent machine direction yarn of said second set formed under the same machine side cross machine direction yarn.