The present specification relates generally to devices for configuring pliable articles and more specifically to a device for rolling fabric articles for storage and related method. The device for rolling fabric articles for storage and the related method may facilitate the storage of a greater number of fabric articles within a given space, without rendering the stored articles inaccessible. The fabric rolling device comprises a housing; a pair of substantially parallel rods each having a first end, the pair of substantially parallel rods connected to each other at the first ends and extending horizontally through the housing; a rotational mechanism in communication with the connected first ends of the pair of substantially parallel rods; and at least one supporting mechanism, disposed within the housing proximate one of a free end of each of the pair of substantially parallel rods and the connected first ends of the pair of substantially parallel rods.

A platen conveyance device includes a first conveyance path, a platen supporter, a second conveyance path, and a positioner. The first conveyance path is configured to convey a platen to a pretreatment device. The platen supporter is configured to support the platen conveyed by the first conveyance path. The second conveyance path is provided with the platen supporter. The second conveyance path is configured to convey the platen supporter to a printer. The positioner is configured to position the platen supported by the platen supporter at a prescribed printing position in a first direction in a horizontal direction.

Apparatus for picking a garment having a front and a back and placing the garment over a pallet such that the front and the back of the garment are on the front and the back sides respectively of the pallet. The apparatus comprises a picking arm to approach the garment and then withdraw towards the pallet; and one or more adherence locations on the picking arm, the adherence location being smaller than the first side, the adherence location for contacting the garment using sticky material and causing adherence of the garment via the sticky material at the contact location, thereby causing the picking arm to pull the front of the garment over the front of the pallet, the back of the garment sliding under the first side onto the back of the pallet.

A textile feed for a stepped operation digital textile printer, comprises a textile feeding mechanism, and a tension storage mechanism. The textile feeding mechanism feeds the textile in a forward direction onto the printer, but is at the same time mechanically connected to a tension storage mechanism which is tensioned by the forward feeding. At the end of the feed step, the tension storage mechanism releases respectively stored tension to cause the feed mechanism to briefly reverse feed, thereby to pull the textile taut and take up any slack caused by the feeding step. The textile is thus kept taut, to allow effective digital printing by the printer.

A cloth clamping device includes a clamping mechanism that comes into contact with a cloth and an up-and-down movement mechanism that moves the clamping mechanism up and down. The clamping mechanism includes a support portion, a leg portion, a foot portion, and a clamping portion. The clamping portion has a leading end portion facing the foot portion in a sideway direction and a base end portion being pivotally supported by the support portion. When the leg portion is lowered with respect to the support portion, the leading end portion pivots downward and is positioned in a sideway direction with respect to the foot portion, and when the leg portion is raised with respect to the support portion, the clamping portion comes into contact with the upper surface of the cloth and the leading end portion is positioned above the foot portion, and the clamping mechanism draw up the cloth.

Aspects hereof relate to a multi-frame manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing articles from non-rigid materials and methods for manufacturing articles utilizing a multi-frame manufacturing apparatus. The multi-frame manufacturing apparatus includes a plurality of discrete frames, each frame including a movement mechanism that enables it to move between sequentially arranged processing stations. Each movement mechanism permits substantially horizontal movement forward and backward. The movement mechanism for at least one of the frames permits substantially vertical movement both up and down. Actuation of the movement mechanisms for at least two frames may permit the frames to switch their relative positions. Each frame additionally includes at least one gripping mechanism for temporarily securing non-rigid material in place on the framed for processing.

A gripper arrangement for lifting a flexible semi-finished product from a support, wherein the gripper arrangement comprises a flexible semi-finished product resting on a support and at least one pair of grippers with a suction gripper or needle gripper and with at least one clamping gripper, wherein the suction or needle gripper is pivotable around an axis between a pick-up position for picking up an edge of the flexible semi-finished product and a transfer position for transferring the edge of the flexible semi-finished product to the clamping gripper. Furthermore, a corresponding method is described.

The present disclosure relates to a device for automatically binding two or more printed textile panels along a lateral edge of said panels and/or binding a printed textile panel or panels with a flexible material strip along a lateral edge of said panel or panels, said device comprising a sewing head, a puller for pulling the printed textile panel or panels into the sewing head, and a gripper holding system comprising a plurality of grippers for gripping a portion of a lateral edge of the printed textile panel or panels to maintain alignment as the printed textile panel or panels are pulled into said puller.

An improved fabric tension control apparatus and method consisting of a fabric handler with a feed roller, an idler roller and a take up roller and where fabric on the feed roller is transferred from the feed roller past the idler roller to the take up roller. A feed roller motor is connected with the feed roller and a take up roller motor is connected with the take up roller. A motion sensor tracks speed of rotation of the idler roller. A feed roller driver is connected with the feed roller motor and a take up roller driver is connected with the take up roller motor. A controller is connected with the feed roller driver, the take up roller driver and the motion sensor where the controller receives the speed of rotation of the idler roller from the motion sensor and where the controller sends speed adjustment instructions to the take up roller driver and the feed roller driver and where the speed adjustment instructions are sent to the feed roller motor and the take up roller motor such that the speed of the take up roller and the feed roller are adjusted such that the speed of the idler roller is constant so as to maintain a desired tension on the fabric as it is transferred.

Aspects of automated fabric picking are described. In one embodiment, a system includes a textile cutter including a tabletop upon which textile panels can be cut out from a textile sheet, a textile panel picker, and a computing device. The textile panel picker includes a flexible transport tube, a transport tube transfer arm to position the flexible transport tube over the tabletop and the textile panels, a textile hopper to collect the textile panels, and a pneumatic pump assembly to evacuate air from the textile hopper and through the flexible transport tube. The computing device identifies and tracks the textile panels on the tabletop, directs the transport tube transfer arm to position the flexible transport tube over the textile panels, and directs the pneumatic pump assembly to generate suction to pull the textile panels through the flexible transport tube and into the textile hopper.