Patent ID: 7222504

Claim:
A knitted fabric joining method using a flat knitting machine comprising at least a pair of front and back needle beds, which extend in a longitudinal direction and are located in opposed positions in a cross direction and at least either of which is capable of being racked in the longitudinal direction, wherein at least two tubular knitted fabrics, each comprising a front knitted fabric part and a back knitted fabric part, are knitted in succession in a direction of course and overlapped with each other at their joining region at which gores of different sizes between the front knitted fabric part and the back knitted fabric part are formed, thereby being joined together, said method comprising steps of: holding in joining regions of the front and back knitted fabric parts, which are held on the opposed needle beds, loops in the joining region of a small gore and loops in the joining region of a large gore in a manner that the loops of both ends of the joining region of a first one of the small or large gore are held substantially opposite to the loops of both ends of the joining region of a second one of the small or large gore, wherein both joining regions contain needles in equal number, with at least an empty needle being contained in at least one of the joining regions; forming a gore at joining portions of the tubular fabrics by joining together loops of one tubular knitted fabric which are situated in the joining region and located at a lateral end thereof and loops of another tubular knitted fabric which are situated in the joining region and located at a lateral end thereof starting from a loop located adjacent to a boundary between the front knitted fabric part and the back knitted fabric part, such that the loops being joined are overlapped with each other in such a manner that the loops located at a same position with respect to the boundary are overlapped with each other and then are subjected to a bind-off process; and knitting a single tubular knitted fabric.