Abstract:
A method for cutting a graphic into a graphic material is disclosed. The method includes automatically controlling a cutting device to cut a desired graphic shape into a graphic material and automatically adjusting the cutting depth of the cutting device between at least a shallower cutting depth and a deeper cutting depth substantially contemporaneously with the cutting the desired graphic shape into the material.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to visual graphics, and more particularly to graphics such as numbers, letters, licensed characters, figures, and other images, that are applied to garments and other textiles. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Graphics, such as letters, numbers, licensed characters, figures, and other images are commonly attached to garments and other textiles. Some graphics are adhered to garments using various methods, including heat transfer techniques. These adhesion-type graphics are commonly manufactured commercially from a blank “sheet” of material, many times stored in and retrieved from large rolls of material. The “sheet” material is typically comprised of a graphic layer, which may be cotton, plastic, film, polyester or some other material, and a carrier layer or backing substrate, commonly made from Mylar or plastic.  FIG. 1  illustrates a roll  10  of known graphic/carrier material  11 , which includes an upper graphic material  12  and an underlying carrier material  14 . The graphic layer  12  is usually releasably adhered to the carrier layer  14 . The graphic layer  12  comprises the layer of material from which the desired graphics will be cut, and the carrier layer  14  is used to maintain the shape of the graphic and/or the tackiness of the back side of the graphic at all times until the graphic is applied to a garment, i.e., during transport and all other forms of handling. The blank graphic/carrier material  11  is usually automatically unrolled into an automated machine that cuts graphics into the continuous roll of material and then cuts the continuous roll of material into “sheets” that can more easily be sold, transported and handled. 
     Various commercially-viable techniques exist for cutting graphics into blank graphic/carrier material. One such exemplary system is illustrated in  FIG. 2 . System  20  includes an electronic controller  22  and an automated cutting machine  24 . The system  20  may also include input/output devices  28  and a display device  26  connected to the controller  22 . The electronic controller  22  may be a known electronic controller, such as a central processing unit of a computer, for example. Automated cutting machine  24  typically includes an apparatus, such as a bracket arm  23 , for storing the roll  10  of graphic/carrier material  11  and allowing the material to be pulled through the cutting machine  24 . The cutting machine  24  includes a cutting device  29 , such as a laser. The cutting device may also be a knife blade or other similar device capable of cutting material. The cutting device  29  may be configured to be moved laterally across the material  11  to cut a graphic  25 , e.g., “O”, into the material  11  as it is pulled longitudinally through the machine  24 . The controller  22  is programmed to cause the cutting device  29  to cut the desired graphic shapes into the graphic layer  12  without cutting the carrier layer  14 . To effectively cut the outline of the graphic  25  into the graphic material  12  without cutting the underlying carrier material  14 , the cutting device  29  must be precisely positioned and controlled to a constant cutting force and/or energy level. 
     The inventors hereof have recognized an aspect of this type of process that results in inefficiency with respect to certain letters, such as “A”, “B”, “D”, “O”, “Q”, and “R”, for example, and other letters, numbers and graphics that have a fully-enclosed open void area within the graphic. The inefficiency results from the fact that waste graphic material filling the area of the graphic intended to be a fully-enclosed open void area remains in place on the carrier material after the graphic has been cut into the graphic material. As a result, it is common for commercial manufacturers of these types of graphics to manually “weed” the waste graphic material filling the fully-enclosed open void area from the carrier material. For example, a worker may use tweezers to manually remove the already-cut waste graphic material from the carrier material.  FIG. 3A  illustrates a graphic “O” cut into a graphic material  11  prior to “weeding.” The waste graphic material  34  of the void area is still in place on the carrier material  14 .  FIG. 3B  illustrates the graphic “O” from  FIG. 3A  after the “weeding” process, where the waste graphic material  34  has been removed and the carrier material  14  shows through the void area. The manual “weeding” process is time consuming, and, as a result, costly. 
     The inventors hereof have devised a method and system for creating graphics from a graphic material having an underlying carrier material that reduces the need for post-cutting manual “weeding” of graphics that have a fully-enclosed open void area, and, as a result, is more efficient and cost-effective. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary roll of graphic/carrier material, including a graphic layer and a carrier layer. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary automated cutting system. 
         FIG. 3A  illustrates a graphic that has been cut into the graphic material prior to a manual “weeding” process. 
         FIG. 3B  illustrates the graphic of  FIG. 3A  after the manual “weeding” process to eliminate the graphic material in the void area. 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart setting forth exemplary steps to carrier out an exemplary improved process for cutting graphics. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a resulting graphic created employing the exemplary improved method described herein. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A method is described herein to cut graphics from a graphic material attached to an underlying carrier material such that any fully-enclosed open void areas of the graphic are automatically cut and removed from the graphic, which reduces the need for post-cutting manual “weeding” of waste graphic material filling the void area of the graphic. The system variably controls the automated cutting device, e.g., laser or knife blade, to multiple pressures and/or cutting energies such that the cutting pressure/energy is sufficient to cut the upper graphic material but not the underlying carrier material when the automated cutting device outlines the outer perimeter of the graphic and such that the cutting pressure/energy is sufficient to cut both the upper graphic material and the underlying carrier material when the cutting device outlines the perimeter of the void area. 
     Known automated graphic cutting systems, like that shown in  FIG. 2  may be (but does not have to be) used to implement the inventive method described herein by modifying the manner in which the automated cutting device is controlled. The pressure and/or cutting energy of the automated cutting device may be controlled in hardware and/or software. 
     An exemplary method  38  of cutting graphics is described in the flowchart of  FIG. 4 . Starting at step  40 , data associated with the parameters of a graphic image to be cut are communicated to electronic controller  22  ( FIG. 2 ). Those parameters are generally known to those skilled in the art and include parameters sufficient to define the shape, size, and configuration of the graphic to be cut from the graphic material. At step  42 , the cutting pressure/energy is obtained for each location along the cutting path for the desired graphic. The desired cutting pressure/energy can be obtained by storing such data as part of the graphic parameters and communicating it to the controller  22  or alternatively by the controller  22  calculating and determining the desired cutting pressure/energy for each location based on the other graphic parameters communicated to the controller  22 . In most applications, there will be two desired cutting pressures/energies. The first will be a lower pressure/energy, sufficient to cut the top graphic material but not cut the underlying carrier material. The second will be a higher pressure/energy, sufficient to cut deeper through both the graphic material and the carrier material. At step  44 , the controller  22  uses the graphic parameters to position and control the cutting path of the automated cutting devices so as to cut the graphic material in the shape of the graphic. At step  46 , which is generally performed substantially contemporaneously with step  44 , the controller  22  automatically adjusts the cutting depth of the cutting device. In one embodiment, the controller causes the automated cutting device to apply the lower cutting pressure/energy when tracing the outer perimeter of the graphic and to apply the higher cutting pressure/energy when tracing the perimeter of the fully-enclosed void area of the graphic. 
     Implementing the above-described method will result in elimination of both the upper graphic material and the underlying carrier material from the fully-enclosed void area of the graphic during the automated manufacturing process.  FIG. 5  illustrates a graphic “O” created with the described process. As shown, the outer perimeter of the “O” is cut into the upper graphic material  12  but not through the underlying carrier material  14 . The perimeter of the interior void area has been cut all the way through both the upper graphic material  12  and the underlying carrier material  14 . Thus, both the graphic material  12  and the carrier material  14  are eliminated from the void area of the graphic. As a result, there will be a reduced need for subsequent manual “weeding” of the sheets of graphics. 
     The preceding description has been presented only to illustrate and describe exemplary embodiments of the methods and systems. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to any precise form disclosed. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the claims. The invention may be practiced otherwise than is specifically explained and illustrated without departing from its spirit or scope. The scope of the invention is limited solely by the following claims.