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US 12,435,454 B2Granted
Method for nonwoven textiles with variable zonal properties
AssigneeNIKE, Inc.
InventorsBalwant S. Atwal, Daniel Morgan, Will Stark, Patrick Williams
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods and systems are provided for a process to generate a nonwoven textile. In one example, the nonwoven textile may have layered, zonal properties resulting from entangling of two or more types of staple fibers through a merging region between the layers of staple fibers while maintaining distinct zones, each zone comprising a type of staple fiber. Furthermore, the process may include embedding a filament layer into the nonwoven textile via a continuous assembly line.
Claims20
A nonwoven textile, comprising:
- a first fiber zone and a second fiber zone, the first fiber zone including-a first staple fibers and the second fiber zone including-a second staple fibers, wherein the first staple fibers of the first zone is are at least partially aligned in orientation with the staple fibers of the second zone along a length and/or width of the textile, the first fiber zone positioned in a depth-wise direction above the second fiber zone, wherein the first staple fiber is a different type of staple fiber than the second staple fiber,
- a continuous filament at least partially aligned in orientation along the length and/or width with some of the first staple fibers and some of the second staple fibers and incorporated as a distinct layer separate from the first fiber zone and the second fiber zone, the distinct layer defined by the continuous filament being disposed and oriented along the length in a sinuous zig-zag pattern across the width, wherein the continuous filament comprises a low melt polymer having a melting point relatively lower than that of the first staple fiber and the second staple fiber.
A nonwoven textile, comprising:
- a first zone of carded, horizontally aligned first staple fibers;
- a second zone of carded, horizontally aligned second staple fibers, wherein the first staple fiber is a different type of staple fiber than the second staple fiber;
- and
- a third zone intermediate the first and second zone, wherein the first, second, and third zone are vertically aligned relative to one another,
- wherein the third zone comprises a horizontally aligned continuous filament as a distinct layer, wherein the horizontal alignment is provided by a pleating along a length of the textile in a sinuous zig-zag pattern across a width of the textile, wherein the continuous filament comprises a low melt polymer having a melting point relatively lower than that of the first staple fiber and the second staple fiber.
2 more elements
A nonwoven textile, comprising:
- a first fiber zone, a second fiber zone, and a continuous filament, the first fiber zone comprising first staple fibers and the second fiber zone comprising second staple fibers,
- wherein the continuous filament is incorporated as a distinct layer between the first fiber zone and the second fiber zone, the distinct layer defined by the continuous filament being disposed and oriented along a length of the textile in a sinuous zig-zag pattern across a width of the textile, wherein the continuous filament comprises a low melt polymer having a melting point relatively lower than that of the first staple fiber and the second staple fiber,
- wherein at least some of the first staple fibers and some of the second staple fibers are at least partially aligned in orientation with the continuous filament, and wherein the first staple fiber is a different type of staple fiber than the second staple fiber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.