Patent Description:
During production of a fabric, e.g. a carpet or a rug, the edges need to be finished in order to prevent fraying thereof. In general, edging of a fabric may be done by binding or serging. Binding implies that a piece of binding material, e.g. (artificial) leather, is folded over the edge of the fabric and stitched on with a binding machine that is similar to a commercial sewing machine. On the other hand, a serged edge is a continuous wrap of yarn around the edge of a rug. A machine similar to an overlock sewing machine is used to create loops of sewing thread, being substantially perpendicular to the edge of the carpet. A series of thread loops next to each other along the edge covers the whole edge of the rug. Serging is an easy way to finish fabrics as it goes on quickly and only requires some yarn as edging material. In some regions, like e.g. the US, the majority of sold carpets comprises serged edges.

In a production environment, an automated sewing machine is used for sequentially serging individual edges of consecutive carpets. , the short side of a first carpet is edged, next the short side of a second carpet is edged, etc. This is usually done in a continuous process, whereby the sewing machine is not stopped in between two carpets. A start/stop-process would unnecessarily shorten the lifetime of the sewing machine and reduce the production capacity. Therefore, after serging, two sequential carpets are still connected by a thread of edging material, which needs to be cut to separate the carpets. After cutting, loose ends of cut edging material are obtained, which need to be fixed in order to prevent fraying of the serged edge. Moreover, as a serged edge comprises loops of edging material, being stitched only with one end to the fabric, such loops may tend to pivot during use of the carpet, thereby revealing bald spots in the edge. This is especially a risk at a corner of the carpet, where a loop of edging material may tend to change direction by pivoting around the corner.

Consequently, there is a general need for a solution allowing for a durable serged edge, preventing wearing due to fraying or displacements of edging material.

Various solutions are known in the prior art for finishing an edged carpet. For example, after separation from the neighbouring edged carpet, a manual finishing may be done to fix the loose ends of edging material. In this manual process, a worker heats up the fibres in the corners or at the edges of the carpet by means of a lighter or other heating source, and subsequently presses the fibres together using his fingers. This method requires a lot of manpower and therefore involves a large labour cost. Moreover, the obtained quality may vary, and the manipulation of heat sources involves a risk of fire and burns.

In <CIT> an ultrasonic welding apparatus is used for cutting the threads between sequentially edged carpets, and for fixing the obtained loose ends of edging material. In this solution, loose material is welded together, resulting in a straight welding seam at the side of the carpet edge. The welded seam may be sharp, and as the welding seam is visible from above, the edge doesn't look nice when the carpet is put on the ground. The visual view is even more deteriorated if the straight weld is angled relative to the edge, e.g. caused by non-accurate positioning of the carpet during welding. Finally, the loops of edging material themselves are not being fixed, which may result in early wear of the carpet edge. Also the solution presented in <CIT> uses a welding head, preferably an ultrasonic welding head. The latter is used to weld loose ends of thread against the carpet, thereby fixing them to the bottom side of the carpet.

In <CIT> a device is presented for fixing an edge of a carpet, comprising two parts movable with respect to one another. The two parts are pushed together, with the corner of a carpet in between them. At the same time, the two parts are heated, causing the yarn on top and bottom of the carpet to melt. Because of the contact heat and pressing force, the structure of the fabric is changed, causing an unwanted visual difference with the rest of the carpet, especially at the top side. Moreover, to avoid the molten fibres from getting stuck to the contact surfaces, the surfaces need to be provided with a specific coating, resulting in an additional cost. Finally, the positioning of the carpet corner in the device, as well as the positioning of the loose ends of edging material is not automated and may result in a bad fixing of the loose ends and unsatisfactory visual results.

It is an objective of the present invention to disclose a method and device for finishing an edged fabric, that resolves one or more of the above described shortcomings of prior art solutions. More particularly, it is an objective to present an automated solution that allows to finish a serged edge in a visually satisfactory way and that results in an enduring quality of the fabric edge.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, the above identified objectives are realized by a method for finishing an edged fabric, the method comprising:.

wherein fixing of the loose ends comprises successively performing:.

Thus, the invention concerns a method for finishing an edged fabric. A fabric may e.g. be a rug or a carpet, e.g. a tufted or woven carpet, a wall to wall carpet, a carpet runner, etc. An edged fabric implies that some processing step has been done to edge the fabric, i.e. for treating the edge of the fabric in order to prevent fraying thereof. In an embodiment, edging may refer to serging. Serging implies that a continuous wrap of yarn is provided around the edge of a rug. , a machine similar to an overlock sewing machine is used to create loops of sewing thread, being substantially perpendicular to the edge of the carpet. A series of thread loops next to each other along the edge typically covers the whole edge of the rug. The edging material may be e.g. yarn of Polyamide, Polypropylene, etc. In another embodiment, edging may refer to binding. Binding implies that a piece of binding material, e.g. a strip of Polypropylene or artificial leather, is folded over the edge of the fabric and stitched on.

An automated sewing machine may be used for sequentially edging consecutive carpets. , the short side of a first carpet is edged, next the short side of a second carpet is edged, etc. This is typically done in a continuous process, whereby the sewing machine is not stopped in between two carpets. Therefore, after edging, two sequential carpets are still connected by a thread of edging material, which is cut to separate the carpets. After cutting, loose ends of cut edging material are obtained. In an embodiment, loose ends of edging material may refer to loose ends of e.g. Polyamide or Polypropylene which was used to form the loops along the edge of the fabric during serging. In another embodiment, loose ends of edging material may refer to loose ends of sewing thread or loose ends of binding material, e.g. artificial leather or Polypropylene, where the sewing thread and/or binding material were used for binding the edge of a fabric. Finishing the edged carpet implies that some processing is done to further treat the loose ends of edging material, e.g. to fix them in order to prevent fraying.

The method comprises a heating step, comprising heating the bottom side of the fabric, resulting in a molten structure. Heating may be done by any heating source, e.g. a burner or a device blowing hot air. The heating is done in such a way that fibres of the fabric are molten, without burning them. In a preferred embodiment, no direct contact between the heating source and the fabric occurs, to prevent that molten material sticks to the material of the heating source. The heating is done at the bottom side of the fabric. The bottom side is defined as the non-visible side of a carpet or a rug, when being in use. The heating results in a zone of molten fibres at the bottom side of the fabric, without changing the fibres at the top side of the fabric. Typically, the bottom side is heated close to the corner of the fabric, but in other embodiments, heating may be done at a more central position along the edge.

The method comprises a swiping step, comprising sliding a swiping element and the bottom side of the fabric over each other. This implies that a sliding movement between the swiping element and the bottom side of the fabric is established, being a movement during which contact is made between a surface of the swiping element, and part of the surface of the bottom side of the fabric. In an embodiment, the bottom side of the fabric may be slid over the swiping element, while the swiping element does not move. In another embodiment, the swiping element may be slid over the bottom side of the fabric, while the fabric does not move. In yet another embodiment, both the swiping element and the fabric may move during the sliding movement.

The sliding movement is such that the loose ends of edging material are rubbed into the molten structure by the swiping element. Thus, due to the sliding movement the loose ends are pressed into the molten fibres, such that they stick in the molten structure and are fixed to the bottom side of the fabric after hardening of the molten fibres. The swiping element may be any element being adapted for rubbing the loose ends into the molten structure. For example, it may be a strip of material having an elongated form, with a width according to the size of the molten zone and where the sliding movement occurs following the length direction of the swiping element. In a preferred embodiment, the material of the contact surface of the swiping element is chosen such that the molten fibres of the fabric do not stick to the surface of the swiping element.

The use of a swiping element during the sliding movement implies that the loose ends of edging material are not rubbed into the molten structure using one's fingers, but that a specific element is used for this. In an embodiment, the sliding movement between the fabric and the swiping element may be established in a manual way. In a preferred embodiment, a driving element is provided, which is adapted to establish the sliding movement between the swiping element and the fabric in an automated way.

The first aspect of the invention is advantageous compared to solutions known in the prior art, because of various aspects. Firstly, the use of a swiping element for rubbing the loose ends into the molten structure avoids a direct contact of one's fingers with the molten structure, thereby lowering the risk of burns and preventing that a varying quality is obtained due to manual rubbing. Moreover, the swiping element allows to spread out the molten fibres of the fabric, such that a larger zone of molten material is obtained in which the loose ends of edging material may be fixed along their whole length. This results in a better quality, where all the loose ends are strongly fixed, thereby preventing fraying of the fabric edge. Furthermore, as the heating step involves the melting of a whole zone at the bottom side of the fabric, not only fibres of the fabric itself are melted, but also some edging material may be melted. This implies that, considering a serged edge, some loops, in particular close to the corner of the fabric, may be fixed due to melting and hardening. As such, pivoting of those loops during use of the fabric is prevented, thereby contributing to a long-lasting edge of high quality.

Another advantage is that a visually attractive result is obtained. Indeed, as only fibres at the bottom side of the fabric are molten, and the loose ends are fixed to the bottom side, the top side remains unaffected and no seam occurs at the side of the fabric. Therefore, the finishing process does not affect the part of the fabric being visible for the user. Moreover, an inaccurate positioning of the fabric while doing the finishing does not affect the visual result for the user, as a non-straight fixing is only visible at the bottom side of the fabric.

Another advantage is that the heating step and the swiping step are two distinctive steps. Therefore, the heating element may be chosen in function of the heating function, e.g. heating the bottom side in an indirect way, while the swiping element may be chosen in function of the rubbing function, e.g. preventing sticking of the molten fibres to the surface of the swiping element. Therefore, the swiping element may be a simple element in a common material, e.g. a rubber or silicone strip. As such, no special coatings, provided on a heated metal to prevent sticking of the molten fibres to the metal serving as heating source, are required. This contributes to a simple and cheap solution.

Finally, the method comprising a heating step and a swiping step may be automated, e.g. by providing a driving element causing the sliding movement in the swiping step. This has the advantage that less manpower is needed, thereby reducing the labour cost.

Optionally, the method further comprises a preparation step preceding the swiping step, the preparation step comprising sliding the swiping element and the edge of the fabric over each other, thereby moving the loose ends towards the bottom side of the fabric. This implies that the swiping element is not only used during the swiping step, but also in a preparation step, preceding the swiping step. During the preparation step, the swiping element and the edge of the fabric are slid over each other. In an embodiment, the swiping element may be slid over the edge of the fabric, while the fabric does not move. In another embodiment, the edge of the fabric may be slid over the swiping element, while the swiping element does not move. In yet another embodiment, both the fabric and the swiping element may be moved during the preparation step.

The sliding of the swiping element and the edge of the fabric is such that the loose ends of edging material are moved towards the bottom side of the fabric. For example, during this movement, the swiping element may touch the edge of the fabric while being in a position substantially perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. This has the advantage that loose ends, originally situated at the side of the edge, are brought to the bottom side of the fabric, where they are rubbed into the molten zone during the subsequent swiping step. This contributes to a better quality of the finishing, as all loose ends are fixed and they are first well positioned before being fixed. Moreover, the same simple swiping element may be used both in the preparation step and the swiping step, contributing to cheaper solution. Finally, the preparation step may be automated by driving the movement between the swiping element and the edge of the fabric. This contributes to a reduced manpower and lower labour cost.

Optionally, the method further comprises an initial preparation step preceding the preparation step, the initial preparation step comprising sliding the swiping element and the top side of the fabric over each other, thereby moving the loose ends lying at the top side towards the edge of said carpet. This implies that the swiping element is not only used during the preparation step and the swiping step, but also in an initial preparation step, preceding the preparation step. During the initial preparation step, the swiping element and the top side of the fabric are slid over each other. In an embodiment, the swiping element may be slid over the top side of the fabric, while the fabric does not move. In another embodiment, the top side of the fabric may be slid over the swiping element, while the swiping element does not move. In yet another embodiment, both the fabric and the swiping element may be moved during the initial preparation step.

The sliding of the swiping element and the top side of the fabric is such that the loose ends of edging material lying at the top side of the fabric are moved towards the edge of said carpet. For example, the swiping element is slid over the top side of the fabric, starting at a more central position on the top side of the fabric, and moving towards the edge of the fabric. This has the advantage that loose ends originally situated at the top side of the fabric are brought to the edge side of the fabric, where they may be taken towards the bottom side during the subsequent preparation step. This contributes to a better quality of the finishing, as all loose ends are fixed and they are first well positioned before being fixed. Moreover, the same simple swiping element may be used in the initial preparation step, the preparations step and the swiping step, contributing to cheaper solution. Finally, it may allow for a further automation, where the movement during the initial preparation step is driven, resulting in a lower labour cost.

Optionally, the method comprises moving the swiping element towards a position adapted for the swiping step, while doing the initial preparation step and the preparation step. This implies that during the initial preparation step and the preparation step, the swiping element is moved such that it is first being slid over the top side of the fabric, and next over the edge of the fabric. The movement ends in a position being adapted for the swiping step, e.g. a position in which the swiping element is hold during the swiping step, or a position from which a movement of the swiping element during the swiping step starts. This has the advantage that all loose ends are brought to the bottom side to be fixed, and that they are well positioned before being fixed, contributing to a better resulting quality. Moreover, this is done during a continuous movement of the swiping element, resulting in an efficient process. Furthermore, the movement of the swiping element may be automated, resulting in a lower labour cost.

Optionally, the swiping element changes from an extended condition during the initial preparation step, next to a bent condition during the preparation step, next to a folded condition during the swiping step. For example, the swiping element has an elongated form, and it is in an extended, non-folded, condition while being slid over the top side of the fabric during the initial preparation step. Next, the swiping element may e.g. be bent over the edge of the fabric to bring the loose ends towards the bottom side of the fabric during the preparation step. In this bent condition, the swiping element e.g. has a curved shape. Next, the swiping element may be folded while moving it to rub the molten structure at the bottom of the fabric. The bent and folded condition may involve an elastic deformation, such that the swiping element can be brought in its original elongated form again. For example, a flexible material is used for the swiping element, to allow for such a elastic deformation.

Optionally, the method further comprises a pressing step, comprising pressing the molten structure onto the swiping element. This implies that after the swiping step, another step is executed, in which the fabric is pressed to the swiping element. For example, some stamping device is used, which is pushed onto the fabric in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. In an embodiment, during the pressing step, the swiping element and the fabric may be in the position as was reached at the end of the swiping step. They may both be hold in that position during the pressing step. Pressing the molten structure onto the swiping element has the advantage that the loose ends of edging material are additionally pressed into the molten fibres, such that a better fixing of the loose ends is obtained. Moreover, also the molten edging material is pressed, such that neighbouring loops may stick together. This contributes to a better quality and durability of the obtained edge.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, one or more of the above identified objectives are realized by a device for finishing an edged fabric, the edged fabric being obtained after edging through serging or binding, and comprising one or more loose ends of cut edging material, the edging material being thread that was used for serging or binding respectively, the device comprising:.

Thus, the second aspect of the invention concerns a device for finishing an edged fabric comprising one or more loose ends of edging material. An edged fabric may e.g. be a rug or a carpet, being edged through serging or binding, as defined above. After cutting the edging material between two fabrics being sequentially edged, an edged fabric comprises one or more loose ends of edging material, as defined above. Finishing the edged carpet implies that some processing is done to further treat the loose ends of edging material, e.g. to fix them in order to prevent fraying.

The device comprises a heating element adapted to heat the bottom side of the fabric, resulting in a molten structure. The heating element may be any heating source, e.g. a burner or a device blowing hot air. The heating element is adapted to provide heat such that fibres of the fabric are molten, without burning them. In a preferred embodiment, no direct contact between the heating element and the fabric occurs, to prevent that molten material sticks to the material of the heating element. The heating is done at the bottom side of the fabric. The bottom side is defined as the non-visible side of a carpet or a rug, when being in use. The heating results in a zone of molten fibres at the bottom side of the fabric, without changing the fibres at the top side of the fabric. Typically, the bottom side is heated close to the corner of the fabric, but in other embodiments, heating may be done at a more central position along the edge.

The device comprises a swiping element and a driving element. The driving element is adapted to establish a sliding movement of the swiping element and the bottom side of the fabric over each other. The sliding movement is a movement in which contact is made between a surface of the swiping element, and part of the surface of the bottom side of the fabric. In an embodiment, the driving element may cause the bottom side of the fabric may to be slid over the swiping element, while the swiping element does not move. In another embodiment, the driving element may cause the swiping element to be slid over the bottom side of the fabric, while the fabric does not move. In yet another embodiment, the driving element may cause both the swiping element and the fabric to move during the sliding movement. The driving element may be any element being adapted to establish the respective movement(s). For example, it may comprise an electrically driven conveyor that displaces the fabric, a linear actuator with stepper motor for making the device travelling along a rail, a pneumatic driven system, etc..

The swiping element is adapted to rub the loose ends of edging material into the molten structure during the sliding movement. Thus, due to the sliding movement the loose ends are pressed into the molten fibres, such that they stick in the molten structure and are fixed to the bottom side of the fabric after hardening of the molten fibres. The availability of a swiping element implies that the loose ends of edging material are not rubbed into the molten structure using one's fingers, but that a specific element is provided for this. The swiping element may be any element being adapted for rubbing the loose ends into the molten structure. For example, it may be a strip of material having an elongated form, with a width according to the size of the molten zone and where the sliding movement occurs following the length direction of the swiping element. In a preferred embodiment, the material of the contact surface of the swiping element is chosen such that the molten fibres of the fabric do not stick to the surface of the swiping element.

The second aspect of the invention is advantageous compared to solutions known in the prior art, because of various aspects. Firstly, the swiping element allows to rub the loose ends into the molten structure without direct contact of one's fingers with the molten structure. This lowers the risk of burns and prevents that a varying quality is obtained due to manual rubbing. Moreover, the swiping element allows to spread out the molten fibres of the fabric, such that a larger zone of molten material is obtained in which the loose ends of edging material may be fixed along their whole length. This results in a better quality, where all the loose ends are strongly fixed, thereby preventing fraying of the fabric edge. Furthermore, as the heating element is adapted to melt a whole zone at the bottom side of the fabric, not only fibres of the fabric itself are melted, but also some edging material may be melted. This implies that, considering a serged edge, some loops, in particular close to the corner of the fabric, may be fixed due to melting and hardening. As such, pivoting of those loops during use of the fabric is prevented, thereby contributing to a long-lasting edge of high quality.

Another advantage is that the device allows to obtain a visually attractive result. Indeed, as during use of the device only fibres at the bottom side of the fabric are molten, and the loose ends are fixed to the bottom side, the top side remains unaffected and no seam occurs at the side of the fabric. Therefore, the device does not affect the part of the fabric being visible for the user. Moreover, an inaccurate positioning of the fabric while doing the finishing with the device does not affect the visual result for the user, as a non-straight fixing is only visible at the bottom side of the fabric.

Another advantage is that the heating element and the swiping element are two distinctive elements. Therefore, the heating element may be chosen in function of the heating function, e.g. heating the bottom side in an indirect way, while the swiping element may be chosen in function of the rubbing function, e.g. preventing sticking of the molten fibres to the surface of the swiping element. Therefore, the swiping element may be a simple element in a common material, e.g. a rubber or silicone strip. As such, no special coatings, provided on a heated metal to prevent sticking of the molten fibres to the metal serving as heating source, are required. This contributes to a simple and cheap solution.

Finally, the driving element allows for an automatic establishment of the sliding movement. Such an automation contributes to a reduced labour cost as less manpower is needed.

Optionally, the device comprises a positioning element, the swiping element being attached to the positioning element, and the positioning element being adapted to move the swiping element such that it is slid over the top side and the edge of the fabric, while bringing the swiping element to a position adapted for the sliding movement. Thus, the swiping element is attached to a positioning element. The positioning element is driven such that it may be moved, thereby also moving the sliding element being attached to it. During that movement, the swiping element may be first slid over the top side of the fabric, and next over the edge of the fabric. The movement ends in a position being adapted for the sliding movement between the swiping element and the bottom side of the fabric. Sliding the swiping element over the top side and the edge of the fabric has the advantage that loose ends lying on top of the fabric or being situated at the side of the fabric are brought to the bottom side of the fabric before the sliding movement for fixing the loose ends starts. This contributes to a better resulting quality. Moreover, the positioning element allows to establish a continuous movement of the swiping element, resulting in an efficient process.

Optionally, the swiping element comprises a strip of flexible material. A flexible material is defined as a material that allows for an elastic deformation. This implies that after deformation of the swiping element, it returns back to its initial form again when a load is removed. Moreover, in a preferred embodiment, the flexible material is durable, in the sense that it does not break after multiple deformations. Examples of flexible material are rubber, silicone, elastic and other stretchy materials, foam, spring steel, a leaf spring, etc. The use of a flexible material for the swiping element allows that the form of the swiping element can easily be changed, e.g. from an extend to a bent or folded condition, during operation of the device. For example, the swiping element may first be slid over the top side of the fabric in extended condition, and next be bent around the edge for bringing loose ends of material towards the bottom side of the fabric. Therefore, a single element may be used for different actions, contributing to a cheaper solution and allowing to obtain a qualitative result.

Optionally, the swiping element comprises a material adapted to prevent adhering of the molten structure to the swiping element. This implies that the whole swiping element is provided in a specific material, or that only part of the swiping element, e.g. only the contact surface, is provided in a specific material. This specific material is chosen such that the molten fibres do not stick to the swiping element during the sliding movement between the swiping element and the bottom side of the fabric. Moreover, the material used in the swiping element needs to resist the heat, i.e. its structure may not be affected by the heat present in the molten zone at the bottom side of the fabric. For example, the swiping element is made of silicone, rubber, foam, etc., or it comprises a top layer in e.g. teflon or another coating.

Optionally, the swiping element comprises one or more of the following materials: rubber, silicone, foam, teflon, an anti-adhesive coating.

Optionally, the device further comprises a pressing element adapted to press the molten structure onto the swiping element, the swiping element being positioned on a supporting element, whereby the supporting element is comprised in the positioning element. The pressing element may e.g. be a stamp, which is pushed onto the fabric in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. The pressing element may be used to, after the sliding movement has finished, press the fabric onto the swiping element. This has the advantage that the loose ends of edging material are additionally pressed into the molten fibres, such that a better fixing of the loose ends is obtained. Moreover, also the molten edging material is pressed, such that adjacent loops may stick together. This contributes to a better quality and durability of the obtained edge.

During the pressing by the pressing element, the swiping element is positioned on a supporting element. The supporting element is comprised in the positioning element. This implies that the positoning element is not only used to bring the swiping element to the position adapted for the sliding movement, but it also has a component serving as supporting element. The supporting element may e.g. be a flat surface comprised in the positioning element. During pressing with the pressing element, the swiping element rests on that flat surface. This implies that during the movement of the positioning element, the supporting element is automatically brought in the right position for pressing. This contributes to a reduced complexity of the device, and an efficient process.

Optionally, the heating element is movable. this implies that some actuator is available to move the heating element. This allows the heating element to be brought close to the bottom side of the fabric during heating, while during other steps of the process, the heating element may be retracted. This removes the risk that the fabric would catch fire, e.g. when the fabric is not timely removed form the device or the heating element erroneously keeps providing heat.

Optionally, the device comprises a pair of heating elements and a pair of positioning elements, each of them being installed symmetrically to a vertical axis perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. Thus, the device has two heating elements, e.g. both heating elements installed at an inclined direction relative to the surface of the fabric, and being each other's mirror image relative to the vertical axis perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. Similarly, the device has two positioning elements, e.g. both positioning elements installed at an inclined direction relative to the surface of the fabric, and being each other's mirror image relative to the vertical axis perpendicular to the surface of the fabric. Such a pair of heating elements and a pair of positioning elements allows to use the first heating resp. positioning element for finishing the end corner of the edge of a first carpet, while the second heating resp. positioning element are used for finishing the start of the edge of a subsequent carpet. This contributes to an efficient process, where time is saved because the angle of the heating resp. positioning element does not need to be changed in between two fabrics.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, one or more of the above identified objectives are realized by an apparatus for finishing an edged fabric, the apparatus comprising:.

A feeding system e.g. comprises a conveyor or driven belts to transport the fabric towards the device. A detection system is for example a camera, one or more sensors, etc. The detection system allows to detect how the edge or corner of the fabric is positioned relative to the device. Next, a displacement system may be used to adapt the position of the fabric or the position of the device in longitudinal and/or in transverse direction. For example, a conveyor system may be used to move the fabric in longitudinal direction, or the device may be moved in longitudinal and/or transverse direction using an electric motor and actuator. This has the advantage that the edge or corner of the fabric is accurately positioned relatively to the device before starting the finishing process, thereby contributing to a better obtained quality.

<FIG> gives a conceptual figure of an edged fabric <NUM>. The fabric <NUM> may e.g. be a rug or a carpet, e.g. a tufted or woven carpet, a wall to wall carpet, a carpet runner, etc. In order to prevent fraying of the edges <NUM>, the fabric <NUM> has been edged. In the case of <FIG>, serging was used as edging method. <FIG> show that a continuous wrap of yarn, e.g. Polyamide or Polypropylene, is provided around the edge <NUM>, comprising a series of loops <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates how two fabrics <NUM>, <NUM> are sequentially edged in a continuous process. First the short edge <NUM> of the first fabric <NUM> is edged, next the short edge <NUM> of the second fabric <NUM> is edged. Due to the continuous edging process, the two fabrics are connected by threads of edging material <NUM>. After serging, the threads of edging material <NUM> are cut, as is indicated by <NUM> in <FIG>.

<FIG> shows how after cutting the threads of edging material <NUM>, loose ends of edging material <NUM> are obtained. The loose ends <NUM> may comprise one or more individual threads of edging material. The loose ends <NUM> need to be fixed, in order to prevent fraying of the edging material. <FIG> illustrates how, before finishing the edged fabric using the invented device or method, some loops of edging material <NUM> may tend to pivot around the corner of the fabric <NUM>, see <NUM>. Using the method according to the invention allows to fix both the loose ends of edging material <NUM> as the loops <NUM> tending to pivot around the corner of the fabric.

In another embodiment, another edging method, e.g. binding, stitching,. , may be used instead of serging. The loose ends of edging material <NUM> may then refer to loose ends of sewing thread or loose ends of binding material, where the sewing thread and/or binding material were used for binding the edge of a fabric.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrate the consecutive steps in a method according to an embodiment of the invention, for finishing an edged fabric <NUM>. In order not to overload the figures, the loose ends of edging material <NUM> are not drawn. The figures show that a swiping element <NUM> and a positioning element <NUM> are provided. In the shown embodiment, the swiping element <NUM> is a strip of flexible material, e.g. a strip of silicone or rubber. The swiping element <NUM> is on one side attached to the positioning element <NUM>. As shown in the first step of the figure, the swiping element may tend to sag a bit under its own weight, due to the use of flexible material. In an embodiment the stiffness of the swiping element may be increased by using e.g. a leaf spring.

During the heating step <NUM>, a heating element <NUM> is used to heat a zone at the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>. The heating element <NUM> may e.g. be a device blowing hot air, where the heat is created with electrical resistances. Due to the heat, a zone of molten fibres is obtained at the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>.

Next, during the initial preparation step <NUM>, the positioning element <NUM> is moved downwards. Due to the downward movement of the positioning element <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> is slid over the top side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>, thereby bringing loose ends <NUM> initially lying at the top side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM> towards the edge <NUM>. During the initial preparation step <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> is in an extended condition, meaning that it has an elongated shape. Next, during the preparation step <NUM>, loose ends <NUM> at the side of the fabric <NUM> are moved towards the bottom side <NUM>, as the swiping element <NUM> is slid over the edge <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>. During the preparation step <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> is in a bent condition.

During the following step, the swiping step <NUM>, the fabric <NUM> is shifted to the right side on <FIG>. Doing so, the fabric <NUM> brings the swiping element <NUM> in a folded condition, and the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM> is slid over the swiping element <NUM>. Consequently, the swiping element <NUM> spreads out the molten fibres and rubs the loose ends <NUM> of edging material into the molten zone. After hardening of the molten material, the loose ends <NUM> are securely fixed to the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric. Moreover, as also part of the loops <NUM> of edging material are molten in the heating step <NUM>, they remain fixed after hardening, preventing the pivoting <NUM> as shown in <FIG>. As the molten structure is situated at the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>, the parts of the fabric <NUM> being visible for users remain unaffected.

Next, during the pressing step <NUM>, <NUM>, a pressing element <NUM>, e.g. a stamp, is used to press the fabric <NUM> onto the swiping element <NUM>. During the pressing step <NUM>, <NUM> the pressing element <NUM> moves downwards, while the swiping element <NUM> and the fabric <NUM> remain in the position as was reached at the end of the swiping step <NUM>. The pressing step <NUM>, <NUM> allows to additionally press the loose ends <NUM> of edging material into the molten zone at the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>, thereby contributing to a better adhesion.

In <FIG>, another embodiment of a swiping step <NUM> is illustrated, where the positioning element <NUM> and the swiping element <NUM> are shifted while the fabric <NUM> does not move. In this embodiment, the swiping element <NUM> slides over the molten structure at the bottom side <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>, thereby rubbing the loose ends <NUM> into the molten zone.

In other embodiments of the method, no initial preparation step <NUM> and/or preparation step <NUM> and/or pressing step <NUM>, <NUM> may occur, or they may be executed in another way. Moreover, in other embodiments no positioning element <NUM> may be used, or the positioning and/or sliding of the swiping element <NUM> may be established in another way than illustrated in <FIG> and <FIG>.

<FIG>, <FIG> and <FIG> show respectively a three-dimensional view, a front view and a side view of a device <NUM> according to an embodiment of the invention, where the device <NUM> is in an initial state. The device <NUM> is adapted to finish the edge corner <NUM> of a first fabric <NUM> and the edge corner <NUM> of a second fabric <NUM>. For this purpose, the device <NUM> comprises a pair of positioning elements <NUM>, <NUM>, a pair of heating elements <NUM>, <NUM>, swiping elements <NUM>, <NUM>, and a single pressing element <NUM>. The heating elements <NUM>, <NUM> and positioning elements <NUM>, <NUM> are adapted to move following an inclined direction relative to the surface of the fabric <NUM>, <NUM>. For finishing the edge corner <NUM>, the steps of <FIG> are executed using the heating element <NUM>, the positioning element <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> and the pressing element <NUM>. For finishing the edge corner <NUM>, the steps of <FIG> are executed using the heating element <NUM>, the positioning element <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> and the pressing element <NUM>. The availability of a pair of positioning elements <NUM>, <NUM> and a pair of heating elements <NUM>, <NUM> allows to consecutively finish the corners <NUM> and <NUM>, without intermediately having to change the angle of the heating element and positioning element.

<FIG> gives a close view of the positioning elements <NUM>, <NUM>. The positioning element <NUM> comprises a supporting element <NUM>, and a swiping element <NUM> is attached to the positioning element <NUM>. A telescopic system <NUM> is adapted to move the positioning element <NUM> and the swiping element <NUM> towards the table <NUM>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the swiping element <NUM> comprises a strip of flexible material, e.g. a strip of rubber or silicone. Possibly, a leaf spring may be used to enhance the stiffness of the swiping element <NUM>. In the initial state, the swiping element <NUM> is in an extended condition <NUM>, i.e. it has an elongated shape. In <FIG>, the representation of swiping elements <NUM>, <NUM> is merely schematic; in a practical embodiment the swiping element <NUM>, <NUM> may tend to sag a bit under its own weight due to the flexible material it is made of. As such, its shape may be somewhat curved instead of the straight shape shown in <FIG>.

<FIG> shows that a telescopic arm <NUM> is available, which allows to move the positioning element <NUM> and the telescopic system <NUM> forward or backward. A similar telescopic arm is provided for the positioning element <NUM> and the telescopic system <NUM>. <FIG> shows that in the initial state both systems <NUM> and <NUM> are aligned, while <FIG> shows that during finishing of the edge corner <NUM>, the system <NUM> is in a more backward position relative to the system <NUM>. This configuration is kept during the heating step, (initial) preparation step, swiping step and pressing step for the edge corner <NUM>. Next, during finishing of the edge corner <NUM> the configuration is changed, where the system <NUM> is in the more backward position.

The three-dimensional view of <FIG> shows the table <NUM> on which the fabric corners <NUM>, <NUM> are positioned during finishing. In particular, the figure shows that the table <NUM> has a hole <NUM>. The hole <NUM> allows that the positioning element <NUM> moves to a position underneath the surface of the fabric <NUM>, as is shown in <FIG> and will further be described underneath.

<FIG> and <FIG> show the device <NUM> in a state according to the heating step <NUM>. <FIG> shows that the heating element <NUM> is pushed upwards, towards the corner <NUM> of the fabric <NUM>, by a telescopic piston <NUM>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the heating element <NUM> blows hot air when being in the upward position, the air being heated using electrical resistors. In another embodiment, another type of heating element may be used, e.g. UV heating, a heated stamp, etc. The provided heat results in a zone of molten fibres at the bottom side of the fabric <NUM>. After the heating step <NUM>, the heating element <NUM> is moved back again to its original position, as is clear from <FIG>.

<FIG> shows how the telescopic system <NUM> is used to move the positioning element <NUM> downwards, towards the fabric <NUM>, throughout the hole <NUM>. This movement is done during the initial preparation step <NUM> and subsequent preparation step <NUM>. By moving the positioning element <NUM>, also the thereto attached swiping element <NUM> is moved. This causes the swiping element <NUM> to slide over the top surface of the fabric <NUM> during the initial preparation step <NUM>, not visible on <FIG>. During the initial preparation step <NUM>, the swiping element <NUM> is still in an extended condition <NUM>. Next, the swiping element <NUM> slides along the edge of the fabric <NUM> during the preparation step <NUM>, thereby being brought in a bent condition as is indicated by <NUM> in <FIG>.

<FIG> and <FIG> respectively show a front view of the device <NUM>, in a state corresponding to the swiping step <NUM>. Compared to the representation of <FIG>, the fabric <NUM> has been shifted to the right side. This movement is established by means of a driving element, in the shown embodiment provided as a driven belt system <NUM>, <NUM> and servomotor <NUM>. <FIG> and <FIG> show how a driven belt system <NUM>, <NUM> allows to displace the fabric <NUM> in longitudinal direction, the latter being indicated as the X-direction on <FIG> a. Moreover, the device <NUM> may be displaced in longitudinal direction along a rail <NUM> using a servomotor <NUM>. At the time of the swiping step <NUM>, the fabric <NUM> moves faster than the device <NUM>, thereby bringing the swiping element <NUM> in a folded condition <NUM>.

In the folded condition <NUM> of the swiping element <NUM>, part of it slides over the molten zone at the bottom side of the fabric <NUM>. The folded condition <NUM> is further made clear from de detailed cross section of <FIG> shows that the swiping element <NUM>, being a flexible strip, is folded around the block <NUM> of the positioning element <NUM>. The end of the flexible strip is positioned on the supporting element <NUM>. The supporting element <NUM> is a flat surface comprised in the positioning element <NUM>. In the state of <FIG>, the supporting element <NUM> is substantially parallel to the surface of the fabric <NUM>. <FIG> also shows that during the sliding movement of the swiping step <NUM>, contact is being made between the bottom side of the fabric <NUM> and the part of the swiping element <NUM> being positioned on the supporting element <NUM>. As such, the swiping element <NUM> rubs the loose ends <NUM> of edging material into the molten zone at the bottom side of the fabric. In the shown embodiment, the swiping element <NUM> is made of rubber or silicone, such that its contact surface, making contact with the molten zone, does not sticks to the molten fibres.

<FIG> shows a front view of the device <NUM> in a state corresponding to the pressing step <NUM>, <NUM>. A pressing element <NUM>, e.g. a stamp, is moved downwards by means of a telescopic system <NUM>. The swiping element <NUM> is still in the folded condition 1100of <FIG>, where the end part is positioned on the supporting element <NUM>. The pressing element <NUM> is pushed onto the fabric <NUM>, such that the molten zone at the bottom side is pressed onto the swiping element <NUM> resting on the supporting element <NUM>. This results in an additional fixation of the loose ends of edging material <NUM> in the molten zone. After having completed the pressing step <NUM>, <NUM>, the pressing element is brought back in its initial state again, using the telescopic system <NUM>. Similarly, the positioning element <NUM> is brought back in its initial state again, using the telescopic system <NUM>. Afterwards, a next cycle may start, in which the edge corner <NUM> is finished.

<FIG> and <FIG> show respectively a three-dimensional view and a front view of an apparatus <NUM>, comprising the device <NUM>. The longitudinal direction is indicated as 'X' on <FIG> and the transverse direction as 'Y'. A feeding system, comprising a driven belt system <NUM> above and a driven belt system <NUM> underneath, allows to feed fabrics to the device <NUM> in longitudinal direction. The fabrics may be partly rolled up, where the roll is positioned in a delineated space <NUM>, while the unrolled part, including the edge corner to be finished is positioned in the area of the device <NUM>.

The device <NUM> may be linearly displaced along a rail <NUM>, using a servomotor motor <NUM> and linear actuator. The device <NUM> may travel along the rail <NUM> to move towards the edges between two consecutive fabrics. As described above, during the swiping step <NUM>, the fabric <NUM> moves faster in longitudinal direction than the device <NUM>, thereby bringing the swiping element <NUM> in the folded condition <NUM>.

Optionally, the apparatus <NUM> may comprise a detection system, e.g. a camera which allows to visually detect the edge or corner of the fabric. In function of the detected edge or corner, the relative position of the fabric <NUM> may be adapted in longitudinal and/or transverse direction, using a displacement system. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the fabric <NUM> may be displaced in transverse direction in function of the detected edge or corner, by means of an electric motor <NUM> and spindle <NUM>. Moreover, in longitudinal direction either the position of the fabric may be adapted using the belt system <NUM>, <NUM>, or the position of the device <NUM> may be adapted in longitudinal direction by means of the servomotor <NUM> and rail <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A method for finishing an edged fabric (<NUM>), said method comprising:
- providing an edged fabric (<NUM>), said edged fabric (<NUM>) being obtained after edging through serging or binding, and comprising one or more loose ends (<NUM>) of cut edging material, said edging material being thread that was used for serging or binding respectively;
- fixing said loose ends (<NUM>) to the bottom side (<NUM>) of said fabric (<NUM>),
CHARACTERIZED IN THAT:
- said fixing of said loose ends (<NUM>) comprises successively performing:
∘ a heating step (<NUM>), comprising heating said bottom side (<NUM>) of said fabric (<NUM>), resulting in a molten structure;
∘ a swiping step (<NUM>), comprising sliding a swiping element (<NUM>) and said bottom side (<NUM>) of said fabric (<NUM>) over each other, thereby rubbing said loose ends (<NUM>) into said molten structure by said swiping element (<NUM>), such that said loose ends (<NUM>) are fixed to the bottom side (<NUM>) of said fabric (<NUM>) after hardening of said molten structure.