Papermaker's felt having multi-layered base fabric and method of making the same

Abstract: A papermakers fabric having improved void volume con­ trol and abrasion resistance and a method for manufacturing the felt are disclosed. The woven felt has cross machine direc­ tion yarn floats the length of at least two machine direction yarns and surfaces which are predominated by the cross machine direction yarns. In an alternative embodiment, there is provided a fabric having removable yarns to further increase the void volume control of the felt.

Description: This invention relates to papermaker's fabrics and in particular to fabrics used on the wet press section of a papermaking machine. Papermaker's wet felts are designed to transport an aqueous web of paper through the press rollers of a papermaking machine and to assist in the de-watering thereof. In one form, a papermaker's wet felt is constructed from a woven base fabric having batts needed to one or both sides. The amount of void volume within the base fabric of a wet felt is directly related to the amount of water which can be handled internally to the felt while in the nip. The ability to control abrasion and void volume of the felt is of particular value in the wet press section of a papermaking machine in that it directly contributes to fabric life and controlling the amount of rewetting which takes place after the fabric has passed through the press rollers in the wet press section of the papermaking machine. In other words, felts which can run with a "dry nip" (no water puddling behind the nip) are less likely to result in crushing or other hydraulic phenomena. It has been recognized in the art that it is possible to maintain a desired controlled void volume within the fabric construction by employing multi-layered base fabrics. One example of such a felt is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,356,225 which comprises the disclosure referred to in the prior art portions of claims 1 and 6. The prior art for some time has recognized the need to produce long wearing felts having predictable void volume which are able to maintain the weave structure and void volume under pressure and to withstand other compression related phenomena which can reduce the designed level of retained void volume. One such prior art papermaking fabric may be seen in U.S. Patent 4,119,753. This patent discloses a papermaker's felt having interwoven warp and filling yarns on its face side and bulky rib forming yarns on its machine side to define water conveying channels between the rib yarns, there is a batt surface on the face side of the fabric needed through the warp and filling yarns and into the rib forming yarns. The rib forming yarns are impregnated, after needling, with a resin which renders them essentially incompressible. The rib forming yarns are initially attached to the warp yarns of the face side fabric by light holding yarns. If the holding yarns are to be removed, they are preferably formed from fibers which will dissolve. Another prior art attempt is seen in U.S. Patent 4,187,618. This patent discloses a papermaker's felt having drainage channel yarns disposed along the bottom surface thereof secured thereto by binder yarns. The construction of this fabric is similar to that described in connection with the above identified patent. Another prior art attempt is exemplified by U.S. Patent 4,283,454. This patent discloses a papermaker's wet felt with ribbed and smooth surfaces much in the manner of the above identified patents. However, the method of making the disclosed papermaker's felt consists of independently weaving the lower and intermediate cloths and then needling the upper batt thereto in order to secure the fabric components as a unit. U.S. Patent 4,141,388 discloses a duplex base, multi-layered flat woven composite fabric for a papermachine dryer. U.S. Patent 4,151,323 discloses a papermaker's belt. This patent relates to a multi-layered belt which comprises a fibrous base layer the fibers of which are resin encapsulated, and a substantially resin free fibrous surface layer in which portions of the fibers in contact with the fibers of the base layer are also substantially entirely encapsulated with resin. The disclosure does not deal with the problems of producing extended fabric life and controlling stable void volumes in the fabric. U.S. Patent 4,259,394 discloses a papermaking fabric with enhanced dimensional stability. The fabric is composed of a base having a fibrous batt needed to one surface thereof, the base being formed of interwoven core wrapped yarns, comprising core yarns which are effectively heat infusible and wrapping yarns which are effectively heat fusible, the fibrous batt being either heat fusible or heat infusible, wrapping yarns of the interwoven base being heat fused to each other at their points of contact with each other on the side of the interwoven base opposite the fibrous batt. UK Patent Specification 801,440 is of interest in that it teaches the use of thermoplastic fibers to secure a batt to a fabric. The specification notes that the thermoplastic fibers may be woven into the fabric or introduced as a surface layer of fibers not woven into the fabric but attached thereto by conventional needling operations. There is no disclosure with respect to weave structure or control of void volume. UK Patent Specification 963,212 discloses the use of solvents to cause swelling and/or near solvent action on synthetic yarns to produce a binder. The yarns are not dissolved by the solvents and the solvent is removed from the fabric through washing. There is no teaching with respect to weave structure or void volume control. The surfaces of the base fabric of such conventional fabrics are predominantly defined by the top and bottom layers of machine direction yarns. The cross machine direction yarns which inter-weave the multiple layers of machine direction yarns of such fabrics protrude beyond the surfaces of the base fabric with sharp infrequent knuckles. It has been discovered that under the intense pressure of the nip, water removal can be impaired by the extremes of high and low pressure caused by the cross-machine direction yarn knuckles on the paperbearing side of the fabric. Also, on the other side of the fabric, the knuckles represent high pressure points which result in accelerated wear of the fabric. Summary and Object of the Invention The present invention provides a papermaker's wet felt for use in the wet press section of a papermaker's machine. The disclosed invention is particularly adapted to control void volume and to increase fabric stability when used in the wet press section of a papermaking machine. One of the disclosed papermaker's felt comprises a multi-layered base fabric having the features of claim 1 The disclosed alternative felt comprises two independent fabrics and a batt which are united in a single felt. A construction for weaving the independent fabrics in a single loom and for constructing the unified felt is disclosed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a papermaker's wet felt comprising a multi-layered base fabric having both a smooth pressing surface and a roll side surface resistant to wear. It is a further object of the invention to provide a papermaker's wet felt having improved abrasion resistance controlled void volume and increased fabric stability. In particular, it is an object of the invention to provide a system of cross-machine direction yarns which interweave multiple layers of machine direction yarns without creating sharp knuckles on either surface of the base fabric of the wet felt. These objects are met by the fabric and method of the present invention as characterised respectively in claims 1 and 6. The present invention will become further apparent from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate presently preferred embodiments of the invention. Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a paper-maker's wet felt according to the teachings of the present invention; Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the weave of an alternate embodiment of a base fabric according to the teachings of the present invention; Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the weave of a second alternate embodiment for the base fabric; Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the weave of a third alternative embodiment for the base fabric; Figure 5 is a section cut through in an illustrative base fabric according to an alternative embodiment of the invention utilizing the same weave construction as depicted in Figure 2; Figure 6 is a section cut through the illustrative base fabric of Figure 5 with a fibrous batt needled thereto; Figure 7 is a section cut through the illustrative base fabric of Figure 5 depicting a completed felt. Referring to Figure 1, there is illustrated a papermaker's wet felt comprised of a three-ply base fabric (yarns 1-23) and a pair of batts 26, 28 (only partially shown) needled to the top and bottom of the base fabric. The base fabric is comprised of three-plies or layers of machine direction yarns and a system of cross-machine direction (or CMD) yarns interwoven with the machine direction layers in a repeat pattern of 8 yarns. The top layer of the fabric is defined by machine direction yarns 1-6; the middle layer by yarns 7-12; and the bottom layer by yarns 13-18. These layers 1-6, 7-12, 13-18 of machine direction yarns are maintained vertically aligned as they are interwoven by the CMD yarn system. The CMD system is interwoven in a repeat of eight yarns such that the CMD yarns predominate and thereby define the surfaces of the base fabric. For clarity only the first, second, third and fifth yarns 20, 21, 22, 23 respectively, of the eight yarn repeat are illustrated in Figure 1. However, the interweavings of all eight CMD yarns of the repeat are described below to enable those skilled in the art to weave the instant fabric. The first CMD yarn 20 of the repeat weaves over yarn 1 of the top layer drops below yarn 8 of the middle layer, above the top layer in a float across yarns 3, 4 and 5, and drops below yarn 12 of the middle layer before it again rises above the top layer in a float extending for three machine direction yarns. The second CMD yarn weaves below bottom layer yarn 13, rises above middle layer yarn 8, drops below the bottom layer in a float below yarns 15, 16 and 17, and rises above yarn 12 of the middle layer from where it again drops below the bottom layer of machine direction yarns in a float extending for three yarns. The third CMD yarn 22 of the repeat weaves above top layer yarns 1 and 2, drops below middle layer yarn 9, and rises above the top layer in a float extending across yarns 4, 5 and 6 from where it again drops below the middle layer to interweave with one yarn thereof. The fourth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves below bottom layer yarns 13 and 14, rises above middle layer yarn 9, and drops below the bottom layer in a float extending across yarns 16, 17 and 18 from where it again rises above the middle layer to interweave with one yarn thereof. The fifth CMD yarn 23 of the repeat weaves below middle layer yarn 7, rises above top layer yarns 2, 3 and 4, drops below middle layer yarn 11, and rises above top layer yarn 6 in a float extending across three top layer yarns. The sixth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves above middle layer yarn 7, drops below the bottom layer in a float extending across yarns 14, 15 and 16, rises above middle layer yarn 11 and drops below bottom layer yarn 18 in a float below three bottom layer yarns. The seventh CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves above top layer yarns 1, 2 and 3, drops below middle layer yarn 10, rises above top layer yarns 5 and 6 in a float extending across three top layer yarns. The eight CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves below bottom layer yarns 13, 14 and 15, rises above middle layer yarn 10, drops below layer yarns 17 and 18 in a float extending below three bottom layer yarns. As described above, each CMD yarn of the cross-machine direction yarn system interweaves with two layers of machine-direction yarns. The interweavings of each CMD yarn which weave with the top machine direction layer are comprised of floats extending above three top layer yarns. Likewise, the interweavings of each CMD yarn which weave with the bottom machine direction layer are comprised of floats extending below the bottom layer yarns. Accordingly, the yarns do not form infrequent knuckles in the surface of the base fabric; rather the CMD yarns predominate, and define the smooth upper and lower surfaces of the base fabric. In the preferred embodiment, the base fabric is woven almost exclusively of continuous mono-filament or multi-filament yarns. Also, a batt 26 is needled to the paper-bearing side of the base fabric to facilitate de-watering of the felt at suction boxes before reentering the nip. In some applications, where roll side wear is especially acute, a fairly light second batt 28 is needled to the other side of the base fabric to help absorb abrasive wear. Although batts are employed with conventional base fabrics, the problems created by the sharp infrequent CMD yarn knuckles inherent with those fabrics exist when the fabric passes through the extreme high pressures found in the nip of a papermaking machine. The present invention eliminates th sharp infrequent knuckles of the CMD yarns on both sides of the base fabric. Both the top and bottom surfaces of the base fabric are defined with a predominance of CMD yarns which interweave the multiple layers of the base fabric. The composite fabric employing the disclosed base fabric, accordingly, has improved wear and non-marking characteristics over conventional fabrics. The alternative embodiment of the invention may be woven in any of the construction set forth herein. Generally, the fabric is woven to achieve the long float length achievable with construction having floats which extend across at least the length of two machine direction yarns. The construction of Figure 2 is well suited for the purpose of illustrating the alternative embodiment. Referring now to Figure 2, there is shown an alternate embodiment of a base fabric made in accordance with the teachings of the invention. This base fabric, a double four harness sateen, is also comprised of three layers of machine direction yarns interwoven in the same manner with a cross-machine direction yarn system having a repeat of eight yarns. The top layer of machine-direction yarns is formed by yarns 30-35, the middle layer by yarns 36-40, and the bottom layer by yarns 41-46. However, the fabric is woven with fewer machine direction yarns per inch such that the interweavings of the CMD yarn system causes the middle layer of the machine direction yarns to be offset and the void volume of the base fabric to be reduced accordingly. For clarity, only the first, second, third, and fifth yarns of the cross-machine direction yarn system's repeat are illustrated in Figure 2. However, the interweavings of each CMD yarn of the repeat pattern are described below. The first yarn 47 of the CMD system repeat originates above top layer yarn 30, drops between yarns 31 and 36 to pass under yarn 37 of the middle layer, rises above the top layer in a float extending across yarns 32, 33 and 34, and drops between yarns 35 and 40 to again weave below one yarn of the middle layer. The second CMD yarn 48 of the repeat originates below bottom layer yarn 41, rises between yarns 42 and 36 to pass above 37 of the middle layer, drops below the bottom layer in a float extending below yarns 43, 44 and 45, and rises between yarns 46 and 40 to again weave above one yarn of the middle layer. The third CMD yarn 49 weaves above top layer yarns 30, 31, drops between yarns 32 and 37 to pass under yarn 38 of the middle layer, rises above the top layer in a float extending across yarns 33, 34 and 35, from where it again weaves below one yarn of the middle layer. The fourth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers of machine direction yarns such that it is symmetric with the third CMD yarn 49 (i.e. weaves about middle layer yarn 38). The fifth CMD yarn 50 of the repeat weaves under yarn 36 of the middle layer, rises above the top layer in a float extending across yarns 31, 32 and 33, and drops between yarns 34 and 39 to weave below yarn 40 of the middle layer from where it rises above top layer yarn 35 in a float extending over three top layer yarns. The sixth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the fifth CMD yarn 50 (i.e. weaving about middle layer yarns 36 and 40). The seventh CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat floats over top layer yarns 30, 31 and 32, drops between yarns 33 and 38 to pass under yarn 39 of the middle layer, and rises above top layer yarn 34 in a float extending over three top layer yarns. The eight CMD yarn of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the seventh yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaving about middley layer yarn 39). Since the middle layer 32-40 of machine direction yarns is offset with respect to the top and bottom machine direction yarn layers, the inter-weaving of the cross-machine direction yarns produce a base fabric which is somewhat thinner than the "stacked" configuration depicted in Figure 1. Accordingly, this base fabric (Figure 2) may be employed when a lower void volume is desired. However, the cross-machine direction yarns predominate the surfaces of both embodiments of the base fabric. A second alternative embodiment of the base fabric is shown in Figure 3. This fabric is comprised of three layers of machine direction yarn system having a repeat of six CMD yarns. The top layer of the base fabric is formed by machine direction yarns 51-55, the middle layer by yarns 55-60, and the bottom layer by yarns 61 through 65. These three layers are vertically aligned during weaving and are maintained in their stacked relationship by the CMD yarn system. For clarity, only the first, second and third yarns 66, 67, 68 of the six yarn CMD system repeat are shown in Figure 3. However, the interweavings of each of the six yarns of the repeat are described in detail below. The first CMD yarn 66 of the six yarn repeat originates above top layer yarn 51, drops below middle layer yarn 57, rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 53 and 54, and drops below middle layer yarn 60 from where it again rises above the top layer in a float over two top layer yarns. The second CMD yarn 67 of the repeat originates below bottom layer yarn 61, rises above middle layer yarn 57, drops below the bottom layer in a float under yarns 63 and 64, and rises above middle layer yarn 60 from where it again drops below the bottom layer in a float under two bottom layer yarns. The third CMD yarn 68 of the repeat weaves below middle layer yarn 56, rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 52 and 53, and drops below middle layer yarn 59 from where it rises above the top layer in a float over two top layer yarns. The fourth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the third yarn 68 of the repeat (i.e. weaving about middle layer yarns 56 and 59). The fifth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat floats over top layer yarns 51 and 52, drops below middle layer yarn 58, and rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 54 and 55. The sixth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the fifth yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaving about middle layer yarn 58). This base fabric also is characterized by a predominance of CMD yarns on both its top and bottom surfaces. This predominance is attributable to the floats of the CMD yarns which extend over the top layer 51-55 of machine direction yarns and under the bottom layer 61-65 machine direction yarns. In this embodiment, the predominance of CMD yarns in the surfaces of the base fabric is somewhat less than the predominance of CMD yarns in the base fabric depicted in Figure 1. Referring now to Figure 4, a third alternate embodiment of the base fabric is illustrated. This base fabric is comprised of three layers of machine direction yarns which are interwoven with a cross-machine direction yarn system having a repeat of ten CMD yarns. The top layer is formed by machine direction yarns 70-76, the middle layer through yarns 77-83, and the bottom layer by yarns 84-90. The three layers are vertically aligned during weaving and the cross-machine direction yarn system maintains their vertical alignment in the woven base fabric. For clarity, only the first, second, third, fifth and seventh yarns of the 10 yarn cross-machine system repeat are illustrated in Figure 4. However, each yarn of the repeat is described in detail below. The first CMD yarn 91 of the ten yarn repeat originates above top layer yarn 70, drops below middle layer yarn 78, rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 72, 73, 74 and 75, and drops below middle layer yarn 83 from where it again rises above the top layer in a float over four top layer yarns. The second CMD yarn 92 of the repeat weaves with bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the first yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaving about middle layer yarns 78 and 83). The third CMD yarn 93 of the repeat floats over top layer yarns 70, 71, 72 and 73, drops below middle layer yarn 81 and rises above the top layer in float over four top layer yarns. The fourth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that is symmetric with the third of the repeat (i.e. weaves about middle layer yarn 81). The fifth CMD yarn 94 of the repeat weaves above top layer yarns 70 and 71, drops below middle layer yarn 79, and rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 73, 74, 75 and 76, from where it again drops below the middle layer to interweave with one yarn thereof. The sixth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that is symmetric with the fifth yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaves about the middle layer yarn 79). The seventh CMD yarn 95 of the repeat weaves below middle layer yarn 77, rises above the top layer in a float over yarns 71, 72, 73 and 74, and drops below middle layer yarn 82 from where it again rises above the top layer in a float over four top layer yarns. The eighth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the seventh yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaves about middle layer yarns 77 and 82). The ninth CMD yarn (not shown) of the repeat floats over top layer yarns 70, 71 and 72, drops below middle layer yarn 80, and rises above the top layer in a float over four top layer yarns. The tenth CMD yarns (not shown) of the repeat weaves with the bottom and middle layers such that it is symmetric with the ninth yarn of the repeat (i.e. weaves about middle layer yarn 80). The respective top and bottom surfaces of this base fabric (Figure 4) are predominated by the CMD yarns which extend over the top layer of machine direction yarns and those which extend under the bottom layer of machine direction yarns. Due to the length of the floats (4 yarns) in the weave, the predominance of the cross-machine direction yarns in the surfaces of this base fabric is greater than the predominance of cross-machine direction yarns in the surfaces of the base fabric illustrated in Figure 1. Again, this base fabric (Figure 4) provides the advantages associated with having both sides of the base fabric predominated by the CMD yarns as described above. With reference to Figures 5 and 7, there will be described a further improvement according to the invention utilizing the previously described weave construction of Figure 2 and soluble or meltable yarns, generally referred to as removable, it is possible to achieve still further improved void volume control in addition to improved abrasion resistance and increased fabric stability. Preferably, the base fabric is woven endless, however, those skilled in the art will recognize that the fabric may be flat woven and seamed to produce what is effectively an endless belt. In order to facilitate an understanding, the yarn systems will again be referred to in accordance with their position on the papermaking machine, namely, machine direction and cross machine direction yarns. Machine direction yarns extend in the direction of travel on the machine and cross machine direction yarns extend transverse to the direction of travel. With reference now to Figure 5, there is shown in illustrative base fabric 102 which is woven as a double four harness sateen. Figure 5 illustrates the same weave as Figure 2 for eight yarns instead of the four yarns shown in Figure 2. The term double four harness sateen will be familiar to those skilled in the art and need not be further explained herein. Yarns 120, 122, 126 and 132 of Figure 5 correspond to yarns 50, 47, 49 and 48 respectively of Figure 2. The base fabric 102 is comprised of a first machine direction yarn system 104, a second machine direction yarn system 110 and a third machine direction yarn system 114 which are interwoven with a first cross machine direction yarn system 118 and a second cross machine direction yarn system 128. First machine direction yarn system 104 is comprised of a plurality of machine direction monofilament yarns 106. A second cross machine direction yarn system 110 is comprised of a plurality of removable yarns 112. In the preferred embodiment, the removable yarns 112 are dissolving yarns, such as Solvron two-ply which is available under this Registered Trade Mark from Hickory Throwing Company located in Hickory, North Carolina. The third machine direction yarn system 114 is comprised of a plurality of machine direction monofilament yarns 116. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art, that light or cabled yarns may be used in place of the monofilament yarns and the actual load bearing machine direction yarns may be varied in accordance with the end use considerations of the final felt. The yarns of cross machine direction yarn systems 118 and 128, in the preferred embodiment, are single monofilament yarns. However, once again, the yarns may be varied in accordance with the end use of the final felt. With reference to Figure 5, it will be noted that yarns 112 of the second cross machine direction yarn system 110 are positioned so as to be staggered with respect to the yarns comprising first machine direction yarn system 104 and third machine direction yarn system 114, however, the yarns could be vertically aligned as in Figure 1. Cross machine direction yarn system 118 is interwoven with machine direction yarn systems 104 and 110 so as to produce a float length of three machine direction yarns adjacent to the plane defined by machine direction yarn system 104. Thus, yarns 120, 122, 124 and 126 extend across three adjacent machine direction yarn 106 and then extend inwardly beneath the next adjacent machine direction yarn 106 around the next available machine direction yarn 112 and outwardly to the surface. Each of the yarns 120, 122, 124 and 126 repeats on a total of four machine direction yarns 106. Cross machine direction yarn system 128 is comprised of cross machine direction yarns 130, 132, 134 and 136. The yarns of cross machine direction yarn system 128 are interwoven with the yarns of machine direction yarn system 114 and machine direction yarn system 110 and may be generally considered as the mirror image of the interwoven yarns of cross machine direction yarn system 118. Thus, yarns 130, 132, 134 and 136 extend beneath three adjacent machine direction yarns. Such a weave structure provides a relatively long float on the face of the structure to enhance pressing uniformity while providing a relatively long float on the opposite side for wear or abrasion resistance. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, weave construction and yarn count contribute to the void volume characteristics of the final fabric and, therefore, the construction and count should be selected in accordance with the end product application. With reference to Figure 6, a batt 138 is needled to the base fabric 102 of Figure 5. Batt 138, as will be known to those skilled in the art, may be made of different materials and density according to end product application. The batt 138 is needled to the base fabric using techniques known in the art. If desired, a second batt may be needled to the fabric of Figure 5 opposite batt 138. Thus, the fabric may be constructed with a batt on one or both faces of the fabric. With reference to Figure 7, it can be seen that the construction of felt 140 as illustrated, does not include the second machine direction yarns 112 which comprised second machine direction yarn system 110. As noted previously, second machine direction yarns 112 were dissolvable yarns. In the preferred embodiment, the dissolvable yarns are removed from the fabric, after the batt 138 has been needed thereto, by washing the fabric of Figure 6 in a suitable solvent at a temperature of approximately 160°F. It will be understood that soluble yarns other than the example previously given are available from various manufacturers and that information and data with respect to dissolving the yarns is available from the respective manufacturers. It should be noted at this point, that the technology for weaving multi-layered fabrics for felt bases was begun primarily to increase void volume under pressure. With integral multi-layered fabrics, it has been noted that weave collapse and other compression related phenomenon can cause the designed level of retained void volume to be reduced. With separate fabrics, it can be observed that one fabric cannot be pushed through the other and thereby reduce the void base area. However, manufacturing two separate fabric belts poses difficult processing problems which can result in lower fabric quality and higher rejection rates. In addition to manufacturing difficulties associated with handling separate fabrics, it is also difficult to predict the void volume characteristics of two separately manufactured fabrics which are later joined or processed. The herein disclosed embodiment for producing a multi-layer felt takes advantage of both multi-layered fabric weaving technology and separate fabric design. The present invention allows for two fabrics to be processed as a single unit and thereby gains the advantage of the separate fabric concept while utilizing the technology of multi-layer weaving. As a result, the fabric according to the alternative embodiment of the present invention has increased abrasion resistance void volume, improved void volume retention, ease of manufacturing and the desirable characteristics of two separate fabrics. Thus, with reference to Figure 7, it can be seen that a first fabric will result from the interweaving of machine direction yarn system 104 and cross machine direction yarn system 118 and that a second fabric results from the interweaving of machine direction yarn system 114 and cross machine direction yarn system 118. The two separate fabrics, as seen in Figure 7, do not have any shared or common yarn systems and are retained in the felt 140 as a result of the needling process used to incorporate the batt, 138 of Figure 6, into the felt. With reference to Figure 7, it can be seen that the yarns of cross machine direction yarn system 118 are interwoven with the yarns of machine direction yarn system 104 only in the plane of machine direction yarns 104 and that the cross machine direction yarns 120, 122, 124 and 126 extend freely into a second plane which was previously identified as the plane containing removable yarns 112. Likewise, it can be seen that the yarns of cross machine direction yarn system 128 only interweave with the yarns of machine direction yarn system 114 in a single plane and that the yarns 130, 132, 134 and 136 extend freely into the second plane previously occupied by the removable yarns 112. In the preferred embodiment, the yarns of cross machine direction yarn systems 118 and 128 alternate in the intermediate plane and extend beyond each other by a distance substantially equal to the diameter of the removable yarns 112, as shown in Figure 6. It will be recognized by those skilled in the art that the yarns of cross machine direction yarn systems 118 and 128 will be interspersed within the intermediate plane according to the weave pattern selected and that they will not necessarily be interspersed in an alternating arrangement as is shown in the illustrative embodiment. It can be seen that as a result of the weave pattern and the absence of removable yarns 112, that a series of voids 50 are formed in the intermediate plane and are defined by the freely extending yarn portion of cross machine direction yarns systems 118 and 128. The voids 150 defined by the interspersing of yarns from cross machine direction yarn systems 118 and 128 will be generally coplanar and will extend parallel to the machine direction yarn system. In general, the diameter of removable yarns 112 is approximately equal to the diameter of the remaining machine direction yarns in yarn systems 14 and 114. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art, that the diameter of removable yarns 112 can be varied according to the yarns available, the weaving loom and the desired voids 150. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that as a result of the needling operation some of the needled fibers will extend into the void spaces previously occupied by machine direction yarns 112, however, the voids created by dissolving machine direction yarns 112 are maintained. In addition, through testing of laboratory samples, it has been found that felt 140 may be sheared or pulled apart by applying opposing forces to the fabrics and that the fabrics will behave independently and that the retention as a unit is primarily determined by the needling of the batt 138 thereto. In a further alternative embodiment of the invention, fusible yarns are used in place of the soluble yarns in the weaving of the base fabric 102. Thus, with reference to Figure 5, the yarns 112 of machine direction yarn system 110 would be fusible yarns, such as fusible Wonder Thread monofilament nylon which is available from the Shakespeare Company in Columbia, South Carolina. The fabric all other regards, is constructed in accordance with the description set out hereinabove with respect to Figure 5. In the alternative embodiment, the batt 138 is needled to the base fabric 102 as shown in Figure 6. The final construction of the alternative embodiment is substantially the same as that illustrated in Figure 7. With the use of fusible or meltable yarns the felt after the needling of batt 138 thereto is subjected to the yarn manufacturers suggested temperature and pressure in order to melt or remove the fusible yarns 112. As a result of the melting operation, the fusible yarns will be dispersed throughout the felt and voids in the felt structure will be created as is shown in Figure 7. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the use of fusible or meltable yarns will produce some additional fabric retention, however, it should be emphasized at this point that the voids created in the machine direction yarn system 110 are substantially as depicted in Figure 7. Furthermore, it has been observed that the felt will, as previously described, behave as two separate fabrics. However, depending upon the amount of needling undertaken to secure the batt 138 to the fabric 102, an increase resistance to shear may be observed as a result of the meltable yarn. In some applications, the use of meltable yarns may be preferred because of the improved batt retention which results.

Claims: A controlled void volume, multi-layered papermaker's fabric having top (104), intermediate (110) and bottom (114) layers of machine direction yarns and a system of cross machine directions yarns (118, 128) for interweaving therewith, wherein each cross machine direction yarn (120-126 and 130-136) is woven in a repeat pattern having interlacings with machine direction yarns in the intermediate and one or other of said top and bottom layers characterized in that each said cross machine direction yarn (120-126) interwoven with said top layer (104) comprises floats which extend over at least two top layer yarns (106) so that the cross machine direction yarns predominate the surface which they define with said top layer; that each said cross machine direction yarn (130-136) interwoven with said bottom layer (114) comprises floats which extend under at least two bottom layer machine direction yarns (116) so that said cross machine direction yarns (130-136) predominate the surface which they define with said bottom layer, and that each said cross-machine direction yarn interwoven with said intermediate layer (110) comprises interweavings, each with just a single machine direction yarn of said intermediate layer (110). A papermakers fabric according to claim 1, further characterised in that at least one batt (138) is needled thereto. A papermakers fabric according to claim 2, further characterised in that a second batt is needed thereto. A papermakers fabric according to claim 1, 2 or 3, further characterised in that said intermediate layer (110) of machine direction yarns (112) is comprised of removable yarns. A papermakers fabric according to claim 4, further characterised in that said removable yarns (112) are soluble yarns. A method of making a controlled void volume multi-layered papermakers fabric according to claim 1, characterised in that yarns (120-126) are selected from said cross machine direction system to form a first sub-system of yarns and said first sub-system is interwoven with the yarns (106 and 112) of said top layer (104) and intermediate layer (110) of machine direction yarns so that the first sub-system yarns form floats which extend over at least two top layer yarns so that the first sub-system yarns predominate the surface which they define with said top layer, and in that the remaining yarns (130-136) forming a second sub-system of said cross machine direction yarns are interwoven with the yarns (112 and 116) of said intermediate layer (110) and said bottom layer (114) of machine direction yarns so that the second sub-system yarns form floats which pass beneath at least two bottom layer yarns so that the second sub-system yarns predominate the surface which they define with said bottom layer, whereby each said cross-machine direction yarn interwoven with said intermediate layer (110) comprises interweavings, each with just a single machine direction yarn of said intermediate layer (110). A method according to claim 6, further characterised by needling at least one batt (138) adjacent to a surface of the fabric. A method according to claim 7, further characterised by needling a second batt adjacent to a surface of the fabric. A method according to claim 6, 7 and 8, further characterised in that the yarns (112) of said intermediate layer (110) of machine direction yarns are removable yarns. A method according to claim 9, further characterised in that said removable yarns (112) are soluble yarns.

Inventors: BOOTH IAN K, CUNNANE III FRANCIS J, BOOTH, IAN K., CUNNANE, III, FRANCIS J.
Applicants: ASCOE FELTS INC, ASCOE FELTS, INC.
Application year: 1984
Main classification: D03D1
IPC codes: D03D11, D04H13, D21F7