Abstract:
A method for automatically generating custom garment specific measurement charts is disclosed. The method derives charts from an individual&#39;s anthropomorphic body measurements plus ease amounts that are proportional to those measurements and which vary based on the type of garment to be made, the intended fit preference, and the stretch amount of fabric to be used.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This non-provisional utility patent application claims the benefit of the filing date of copending U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/575,897 filed Aug. 30, 2011 under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) and priority under 35 U.S.C. §120. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates generally to the computer-aided design of custom fit sewing patterns and the manufacturing of custom apparel. More particularly, this invention provides an apparatus for the automated generation of the garment and fabric specific measurements needed to manufacture custom apparel. These garment specific measurements are developed from the subject&#39;s specific actual body measurements to which ease (additional fabric in a garment to provide for comfortable body movement) is added, proportional to those measurements and varying based on the garment type, fit type preferred, and stretch of the fabric to be used. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The garment making industry has historically used a number of standard body measurement charts to produce garments. Various industry and governmental institutions such as the American National Standards Institute or ANSI have developed these standardized body measurement charts over time. At this time, there are several hundred such standard charts available for different body types (e.g. child, girl, misses, woman, and woman over 55). But, these charts have never fully represented the broad diversity of actual body types. They all assume an average height between 5′5″-5″6″ for all women in the world, for instance. Nor do these standard charts keep up with the changing shape of the average body as it varies with the evolving health, diet, and exercise habits of our populace. The challenge for the “average” clothing buyer to find clothes that actually fit well has become more and more difficult, resulting in trends towards poorer fit with fewer options available for the short, the tall, the skinny, and the wider clothing buyers. 
     With the advent of three-dimensional body scanners (commercial as well as home based), it has become possible to generate accurate anthropometric representation of the scanned human body. Those measurements provide an accurate representation of the surface of the human body, but do not include the requisite ease required for different garment types and uses. An overcoat needs to be looser than a leotard, for instance. In the past, ease has generally been provided in fixed amounts for each garment type, sometimes varied based on body somototypes (general body shapes). These fixed amounts of ease were appropriate for mass-produced clothing, based on standard sizes. But, with the availability of measurements that more accurately reflect the specific human body the garment is being manufactured for, ease that is proportional to that individual&#39;s actual body measurements will produce better fitting garments. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Described below is a process to automatically generate “custom” garment specific measurement charts derived from an individual&#39;s actual anthropometric body measurements plus ease amounts that are proportional to those measurements and which vary based on the intended type of garment to be made, the desired fit of that garment, and the stretchiness of the fabric to be used to manufacture the garment. The amount of ease needed at front and back bust, front and back waist, abdomen, hip, shoulder extension, bicep, wrist, and armhole depth can all be determined from the subject&#39;s actual body dimensions, but the ease amounts used must vary based on the type of garment being manufactured (from underwear to outerwear). The percentage ease amounts also must vary based on the desired type of fit—form fit, close fit, standard fit, casual fit, comfort fit, loose fit, or unfitted, for instance. 
     The ease percentages also need to vary to account for the specific fabric properties for woven and/or stretch fabric to be used to make the custom-fit garment. Non-stretch fabrics need no ease adjustment to accommodate fabric stretch. But, any stretchable fabric should have the ease amounts reduced slightly to allow the fabric to provide some of the movement ease required. The amount of the adjustment varies based on the type of fabric, amount of stretch, hand, recovery, memory, weight, and general style intent of the fabric being used. 
     Once final ease percentages have been determined for those parts of the garment that require it, a garment specific measurement chart can be created from the subject&#39;s body measurement chart, with each amount to be increased or decreased by the appropriate ease percentage. That final chart can then be used to produce computer generated, digital sewing patterns from commercially available automated sewing pattern software. Those digital patterns would then be used for either hand sewn or automated manufacture of the desired custom-fit, custom-designed garment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a process chart showing the complete process of obtaining accurate bodily measurements of an individual by any of several different methods, adding garment ease to these measurements, then using the resulting garment dimensions to manufacture custom fit apparel. 
         FIG. 2  is a process chart for this invention, showing the specific steps to convert bodily dimensions into garment measurements. 
         FIG. 3  is a sample measurement chart for manufacturing garments. It is produced by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and distributed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The chart includes a description of how each measurement is normally obtained. A custom chart including each of these measurements specific to the individual customer must be either obtained by hand measuring, body scanning, photo analysis, or any other method. 
         FIG. 4  shows example proportional ease percentages that can be used for different upper body garment types with different fit preferences. 
         FIG. 5  shows example proportional ease percentages that can be used for pants and skirts with different fit preferences. 
         FIG. 6  shows example adjustment to the ease required by several sample fabrics to be used to manufacture the custom garment. The amount of ease required for different fabrics varies based on that fabric&#39;s stretch, hand, recovery, memory, weight, and general style intent. There are many other fabrics, of course, which would have similar ease adjustment amounts. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     1. An accurate representation of the subject&#39;s actual body measurements is obtained and referred to herein as the “Custom Measurement Chart”. The ASTM charts provide one example of the list of body measurements required to manufacture custom apparel (refer to  FIG. 3 ). This chart represents the actual body dimensions. Garments manufactured to these measures will be form-fitted or skin-tight. As shown in Step S 100  in  FIG. 2 , this chart can be obtained by a variety of methods, including but not limited to:
         a. Subject takes their own measurements with help from a family member, friend, tailor, seamstress, or body measuring professional or service.   b. Measurements are obtained from any of the commercial body scanners.   c. Measurements are obtained from a home-based body scanning device.       

     2. With some body types, a better fit can be obtained by separately measuring front and back waist, front and back bust, and by also separately measuring the abdomen or ab measurement at the point of largest girth below the waist, but above the hips. Ease amounts used for these more refined measurements are provided. For total girth waist or bust measurements, the average of front and back ease amounts should be used. 
     3. The “Custom Measurement Chart” will be converted to garment specific measurements by adding ease. The ease amounts required include:
         a. Design ease—added room required based on the nature of the garment type (underwear to outerwear).   b. Wear ease—the room to move based on the preference of the customer. Wear ease includes the difference between the range from stretch-to-fit (gym wear), form-fit (no wear ease), standard fit (some wear ease), casual fit (more room for non-dressy situations), comfort fit (loose fit for lounging at home) and unfitted (hide the form, overalls, baggy over-clothing, etc.).   c. Fabric ease. For those fabrics that have some stretch to them, the ease used for the garment&#39;s manufacture should be reduced somewhat as the fabric itself can provide some of the ease required as it stretches to accommodate movement.       

     4. As shown in Step S 102  in  FIG. 2 , the customer must provide information about the garment to be made. To determine what ease percentages are required, you must know the type of garment desired (pants, skirt, dress, blouse, shirt, jacket, etc.), the type of fit preferred (form-fit, standard, casual, comfort, unfitted, etc.) and the type of fabric to be used to manufacture it. 
     5. As shown in Step S 104  in  FIG. 2 , use the table in  FIG. 4  (for pants and skirts only, use Table 5) to look up the ease percentage amounts to be used for the selected garment and preferred fit type. Note that there are different horizontal and vertical ease amounts for some garment types like swimsuits. 
     6. As shown in Step S 106  in  FIG. 2 , use the table in  FIG. 6  to adjust each ease amount obtained in step 4 above, by multiplying it by the appropriate fabric stretch adjustment. 
     7. As shown in Step S 108  in  FIG. 2 , the values in the “Custom Measurement Chart” that are associated with the ease amounts from step 6 (the name of the ease amount determines which body measurement it applies to) will be multiplied by those amounts to produce a “Garment Measurement Chart” that is based on the subject&#39;s actual body measurements increased by the amount of ease required for the chosen garment, in the desired fit style, made with the selected fabric. 
     8. As shown in Step S 112  in  FIG. 2 , the resultant “Garment Measurement Chart” is suitable to manufacture custom apparel. 
     Example 
     For the purposes of this example, we will postulate a female customer whose measurements (those that need to be adjusted for design, wear, and fabric ease) are: 
     Front Bust: 20″ 
     Back Bust: 16″ 
     Front Waist: 17″ 
     Back Waist: 13″ 
     Abdomen: 36″ 
     Hip: 38″ 
     Shoulder Length: 4.5″ 
     Armscye: 15″ 
     Upper Arm: 11″ 
     Wrist: 6″ 
     Step S 102  of  FIG. 2 : This customer wishes to purchase a close fit blouse made with a cotton blend interlock knit fabric. 
     Step S 104  in  FIG. 2 : We first look in the Design and Wear Ease Table of  FIG. 4  and find that the relevant ease amounts are: 
     Front Bust: 2.5% 
     Back Bust: 2.5% 
     Front Waist: 5% 
     Back Waist: 5% 
     Abdomen: 3.5% 
     Hip: 5% 
     Women&#39;s Shoulder Extension: 5% 
     Armscye: 20% 
     Upper Arm: 25% 
     Wrist: 10% 
     Step S 106  in  FIG. 2 : Next, we look up the fabric stretch adjustment amount from  FIG. 6 . A blouse made with a cotton blend interlock knit fabric should have ease adjustments of −1.8%, so each of the ease amounts obtained in Step 1 is reduced by this adjustment. The resulting ease for these measurements becomes: 
     Front Bust: 0.7% 
     Back Bust: 0.7% 
     Front Waist: 3.2% 
     Back Waist: 3.2% 
     Abdomen: 1.7% 
     Hip: 3.2% 
     Women&#39;s Shoulder Extension: 3.2% 
     Armscye: 18.2% 
     Upper Arm: 23.2% 
     Wrist: 8.2% 
     Steps S 108 -S 110  in  FIG. 2 : With these ease amounts, we now increase each of the relevant body measurements by the percentage specified. For “Front Bust”, we multiply the original 20″ amount by 1.007 (0.7% greater) to get a new “Front Bust” measurement of 20.14″. That particular adjustment was pretty trivial as it involved a close fit knit. Other garments and fabric combinations produce more significant ease amounts. The final values for each of these measurements becomes: 
     Front Bust: 20.14″ 
     Back Bust: 16.112″ 
     Front Waist: 17.544″ 
     Back Waist: 13.416″ 
     Abdomen: 36.612″ 
     Hip: 39.216″ 
     Shoulder Length: 4.644″ 
     Armscye: 17.73″ 
     Upper Arm: 13.552″ 
     Wrist: 6.492″ 
     Step  112  in  FIG. 2 : If the cotton interlock knit blouse is manufactured using these measurements, it should be as close fitting as possible while still comfortably providing room for unrestricted movement.