Improvements in the Manufacture of Elastic Fabrics.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 27th June, 1894-Accepted, 1st Sept., 1894
Communicated from abroad by ALEXANDER STRAUS, of Newton Upper Falls,
Massachusetts, United States of America, Manufacturer.]
Improvements in the Manufacture of Elastic Fabrics.
I, DAVID YOUNG, Patent Agent, of the Firm of D. Young & Co., of 11 and
12 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of fabrics composed
of textile material and india-rubber and known generally as elastic fabrics. The
object of the said invention is to produce a fabric of this character which will yield
or stretch in one direction only, and will yet possess the strength necessary to resist
tearing or bursting under any pressure or strain to which it is likely to be exposed
in practical use. Such fabrics are useful for many purposes, as in articles of
wearing apparel, hose or pneumatic tires for vehicles, but the subject of the present
invention is the process for producing the fabric, and the fabric as an article of
manufacture without reference to its application or use.
In the manufacture of fabrics of this nature, it has been customary to combine
and unite by various processes a woven fabric and india-rubber in layers; a sheet
of fabric between two sheets or layers of rubber or conversely, and in various other
ways. To produce fabrics which should have a greater yield in one direction than
in the other, it has also been usual to lay the fabric so that the threads would run
obliquely to the lines of strain, or in other words, on the bias, and to arrange the
series of threads at different angles to such lines, it being obvious that the capability
of yield along any given line will be greater or less according as one of the series
of threads is farther from or nearer to parallelism with such line. It is, however,
impossible by such means to prevent all stretch in one direction without limiting
the elasticity in a direction at right angles, but by my improved process
accomplish this in a very perfect manner.
I take any fabric such as is commonly used for this purpose and composed of
interwoven threads crossing each other at right angles. This fabric I then
associate with india-rubber in any of the ways followed in making elastic fabrics,
for example, to one or to both sides of such fabric I apply a coating of india-.
rubber, either by the frictioning or any other process. The compound sheet I then
stretch in either of the directions which tend to draw the threads of the fabric into
parallelism and until the threads limit the yield, or nearly to such point. While in
this condition I vulcanize or cure the rubber, which destroys the tendency to return
to its original shape.
Thus I have a material composed of rubber and a fabric which is stretched in
one direction and hence incapable of further or material yield in that direction, but
capable of a very great amount of stretch or yield in a direction at right angles.
It will be understood that the stretching of the fabric, merely changes the angles
between its threads and that it has little tendency of itself to return to its normal
coudition, and that it is fixed in such extended condition by the rubber. It is
further obvious that the fabric may be united with the unvulcanized rubber either
before or after stretching, or that it may be stretched and then united by cement
or similar means to a sheet of vulcanized rubber. The essential feature, in any
case, being that the fabric is stretched in one diagonal direction and held in such
condition and with a tendency to return thereto by the elastic body of rubber with
which it is associated.

page_text: In practice the compound fabric is made in strips of greater length than width,
and for this purpose the fabric is cut in diagonal strips or on the bias, and then
stretched lengthwise either before or after association with the rubber. Such
strips it will be seen are practically non-extensible longitudinally, but laterally they
may be stretched to an extent that will bring the threads of the fabric into the
same relative positions but in a direction at right angles to that in which they are
normally held.
In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated the invention in the several
views which are hereinafter described in their order.
Figure 1 shows a strip of fabric A, cut on the bias and in its normal or
unstretched condition.
Figure 2 represents the same when longitudinally stretched and united with a
rubber backing B.
Figure 3 is a view showing a modified form of the invention, portions of the
several layers being shown.
Figure 4 is a view of a portion of the fabric used in the material of Figure 3.
Sometimes a fabric A like that in Figure 4 is made and which differs from the
ordinary fabrics in having practically no warp-threads, or only sufficient D, to give
it the semblance of a fabric. When such a fabric is used in making my improved
material, it is necessary to use two layers of the same A and E, and in such case
the two layers are united by a sheet of rubber B which is then stretched
longitudinally and vulcanized while in such condition.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
:-
1. The method or process herein described of making an elastic fabric, which
consists in stretching a woven fabric diagonally in one direction, and fixing the
same in such condition by a vulcanized sheet or layer of india-rubber, secured or
incorporated therewith.
2. The method or process herein described of making an elastic fabric, which
consists in uniting in one or more layers, india-rubber and woven fabric cut on the
hias, stretching the same to the limit of yield of the fabric in one direction and then
vulcanizing the rubber, as set forth.
3. The material herein described composed of a woven fabric cut on the bias, and
stretched or extended in one direction, and a body or layer of vulcanized rubber
united or incorporated with the fabric as set forth.
4. The material herein described composed of a woven fabric cut on the bias and
extended to its limit of yield in one directio and a body or layer of vulcanized
rubber united or incorporated with the fabric as set forth.
Dated this 27th day of June 1894
D. YOUNG & Co.,
11 & 12, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.