Circular knit two-layer upholstery fabric and method

A circular knit two-layer fabric having stability and limited stretchability in both coursewise and walewise directions and being particularly adapted for use as upholstery and the like, said fabric comprising

• a first layer knit of thermoplastic base yarn of a particular size and being heat settable at a predetermined temperature, said base yarn forming stitch loops in wales of successive courses to provide a technical face side of said fabric, and
• a second layer formed of lay-in yarn of between two to 10 times larger than said base yarn and extending generally coursewise and in a sinuous manner along the juncture of the stitch loops of courses of said first layer, and providing a technical back side constituting the exposed wear surface of the fabric, said lay-in yarn alternately forming tuck floats and welt floats extending across pairs of adjacent wales and along the juncture of the stitch loops of successive courses of said first layer, said tuck floats and said welt floats in adjacent pairs of courses being staggered relative to the corresponding tuck floats and welt floats in adjacent pairs of courses, and said larger lay-in yarn being unaffected in the heat temperature range at which said base yarn is heat settable whereby said fabric is heat stabilized and permanently set to limit the stretchability of said first layer while maintaining the tactile characteristics and hand of said lay-in yarn constituting the exposed wear surface of the fabric.

A method of producing a circular knit two-layer fabric having stability and limited stretchability in both coursewise, and walewise directions and being particularly adapted for use as upholstery and the like, said method comprising the steps of

• knitting a first layer of thermoplastic base yarn while forming stitch loops in wales of successive courses to provide a technical face side of the fabric,
• while forming a second layer formed of lay-in yarn being in the range of two to ten times larger than said base yarn and extending generally coursewise and in a sinuous manner along the juncture of the stitch loops of certain course of the first layer to provide a technical back side constituting the exposed wear surface of the fabric, and
• slitting the fabric into open width form and impaling the slit edges on the pins of a tentering frame at relaxed fabric width with minimal fabric overfeed,
• drawing the open width knit fabric to predetermined dimensions in both walewise and coursewise directions and applying heat to the extended fabric by passing the fabric through successive ovens set to progressively higher temperatures to heat set and stabilize said first layer in the extended condition.