Automatic panel cutting and seaming system
AssigneeAtlanta Attachment Company
InventorsWarran Oxley, John S. Chamlee, Van H. Nguyen, Danny V. Murphy
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An automatic panel cutting and edge seaming system includes a series of side edge cutting and seaming assemblies that receive a fabric material and trim and sew seams along the side edges of the fabric material to form a desired width panel. Puller rolls pull the material through the side edge cutting and seaming assemblies and feed the trimmed and seamed fabric material to a cross-cut sewing assembly. After a sufficient length of fabric material has been fed to form a desired size panel, the cross-cut sewing assembly is engaged to cut and seam the end of the panel.
Claims20
A system for cutting and seaming a fabric material to form a series of fabric panels, comprising:
- a pair of side edge cutting and seaming assemblies, each comprising:
- a sewing machine having at least one sewing needle forming a line of stitching adjacent a side edge of the fabric material and at least one top belt feed drive for engaging and pulling the fabric material through said sewing machine;
- and
- an edge trimming blade downstream from said sewing machine and adapted to cut the side edge of the fabric material adjacent the line of stitching formed along the side edge by said sewing machine;
- a puller roll assembly mounted downstream from said side edge sewing assemblies and including a series of puller rolls for engaging and pulling the fabric material through said side edge cutting and seaming assemblies;
- and
- a cross-cut sewing assembly comprising:
- a cross-cut sewing head movable across the fabric panel for cutting and sewing across a width of the fabric material to form downstream and upstream edges of leading and trailing panels, respectively, and including at least two sewing needles, a cutter, and a top belt feed drive mechanism for engaging and pulling the fabric material through said cross-cut sewing head during a leading/trailing edge cutting and seaming operation.
An automatic panel cutting and seaming station for cutting and seaming mattress panels from a supply of a fabric material, comprising:
- a pair of side edge cutting and seaming assemblies mounted on opposite sides of a path of travel of the fabric material, each including a sewing machine forming at least one line of stitching adjacent a side edge of the fabric material, and an edge trimming blade associated with the sewing machine and arranged to trim a side edge of the fabric material adjacent the at least one line of stitching;
- a puller roll assembly downstream from the side edge cutting and seaming assemblies for drawing the fabric material therethrough;
- and
- a cross-cut sewing assembly having a multi-directional cross-cut sewing head pivotally mounted on a carriage so as to be moveable laterally across the fabric material and to be pivotable for reorienting the cross-cut sewing head for cutting and sewing in an opposite direction to form a trailing edge of each panel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.