Sewing – Special machines – Quilting
Reexamination Certificate
2001-10-31
2003-09-09
Izaguirre, Ismael (Department: 3765)
Sewing
Special machines
Quilting
Reexamination Certificate
active
06615756
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to quilting devices and, more particularly, to novel apparatus and methods for quilting using sewing machines having an arbitrary throat depths, wherein the sewing machine is supportably positioned on a movable frame having a quilt engageably positioned in relation thereto.
2. The Background Art
Throughout American history, quilting has been a popular pastime. The craft today has experienced a resurgence in popularity and enjoys immense participation by hobbyists in quilting shows, magazines, newsletters, clubs, societies, and the like. Although traditional quilt making may be at the root of this resurgence, the development of modern textiles, machinery, and labor-saving sewing devices may be contributing to this resurgence, as many activities compete for the time of the average hobbyist or craftsperson.
Quilting typically involves stitching together multiple layers of fabric to form, in a manner of speaking, a new fabric. In some instances, quilting may include sewing together a myriad of smaller pieces of fabric to form a single composition fabric or material. A quilt typically includes an upper and lower layer of fabric having a layer of batting introduced therebetween for thickness, padding and/or warmth. As appreciated, quilts may be created in various shapes and sizes, such as for example, from small and ornamental, to those that cover large beds, or those that are mounted to decorate walls.
Designs or patterns are usually sewn or stitched into a quilt by hand or with a sewing machine, thereby adding an artistic element to the craft of quilt making. Some designs or patterns may be very elaborate, thus requiring a high degree of skill and dexterity on the part of the craftsperson or hobbyist. In some cases, sewing machines may be equipped with preprogrammed stitching patterns to assist in performing these tasks more accurately and with a greater degree of intricateness than quilting by hand. More importantly, extravagant quilting generally incorporates elaborate designs that may require many hours of work even by the most skilled craftsperson.
Due to the extensive time commitment realized by atypical quilter using hand-sewing methods to produce a quilt for a bed or for a decorative wall hanging, those skilled in the art developed industrial quilting assemblies for use in producing quilts in high quantities. These types of industrial quilting assemblies typically include heavy duty, bulky sewing machines disposed in a stationary position wherein the subject quilt, mounted on a quilting frame, is moved relative to the head of the sewing machine. A significant disadvantage with these types of prior art industrial quilting assemblies is the elaborate work area required to move and position the quilting frame supporting the layers of quilting material relative to the stationary head of the sewing machine. In particular, a very wide and long work space is generally required since the movement of the quilting frame relative to the head of the sewing machine may encompass twice the width and length of the support frame itself.
Household sewing machines have resulted in both tremendous time-savings and quality improvements over traditional hand-sewing methods. Nevertheless, manipulating large quilts with respect to stationary sewing machines is typically a cumbersome and laborious process. “Long arm” quilting machines were developed by those skilled in the art, in part, to address the problems associated with manipulating large quilts when stitching the multiple layers of the quilt together. In particular, instead of moving a quilting frame supporting a quilt with respect to a sewing machine, the quilting frame may be maintained stationary and the sewing machine may then be moved with respect to the width of the quilt. In order to accomplish this task successfully, a support frame is generally needed to maintain the quilt in a substantially planar configuration, and a carriage system may be needed to move the sewing machine with respect to the length and width of the quilt.
Unfortunately, “long arm” sewing machines of the prior art are usually complex in configuration, bulky, heavy, inflexible, and usually unaffordable to the typical consuming hobbyist or quilting craftsperson. As appreciated by those skilled in the art, commercial “long arm” sewing machines may cost upwards of several thousand dollars, making them generally out of reach and impractical to many quilting hobbyists. Moreover, specially designed “long arm” sewing machines and fixed frame assemblies are typically required to provide means for quilting using prior art quilting assemblies, thereby making a hobbyist's household sewing machine practically unusable in the task. In addition, many of the prior art quilting assemblies cannot perform desired stitching or sewing since the maneuverability of the head of the sewing machine is affected by its own mechanical and structural restrictions.
Conventional household sewing machines, which are generally intended to remain stationary when being used for sewing, typically include many of the stitching functions necessary for quilting, but may simply lack the wherewithal to be accurately movable with respect to the dimensional length and width of a quilt so as to accomplish the appropriate stitching and/or creative stitching designs desired by the user. In addition, quilting assemblies of the prior art require special tables or frames to support a sewing machine in relation thereto and to provide the appropriate tracking mechanisms necessary to manipulate the sewing machine in relation to the layers of material forming the quilt, thereby increasing the expense and bulkiness of these prior art systems and making ordinary tables unworkable in connection therewith.
In addition to the foregoing, work space is typically an issue to the average hobbyist or quilting craftsperson. Particularly, bulky “long arm” sewing machines usually require large work areas and may be unsightly and awkward if located in areas of an individual's home, such as a family room, den, dining room, bedroom, or living room. Moreover, finding sufficient space to store conventional prior art “long arm” sewing machines and quilting assemblies between uses typically poses a significant storage problem to the average hobbyist or craftsperson.
As appreciated, since quilts may take on a wide variety of dimensional sizes and shapes depending upon the use for which the quilt is being made, the fixed-size quilting assemblies of the prior art typically prove to be too large, bulky, and generally awkward for use with smaller quilts, while not being sufficiently expandable nor adjustable in order to accommodate a larger or, in the alternative, a smaller quilting project. Accordingly, the fixed-size quilting assemblies of the prior art are typically structurally fitted to support a particular sized quilt by means of a fixed length quilting support frame.
Space limitations that are imposed by a family room, den, dining room, bedroom or living room may further require a quilting assembly to be sufficiently adjustable to accommodate the dimensions of the available work space. Thus, fixed-size quilting assemblies of the prior art that are mounted to a support frame or structure (e.g., working surface or table having a fixed length and width) may be too cumbersome for the available workspace and thereby restrict the working area required for quilting.
The working components of prior art quilting assemblies have also been found be heavy, bulky in size, and generally awkward for the average hobbyist or craftsperson to handle or move. Therefore, a quilting apparatus having a functional and structural design that is adjustable in terms of size and configuration, collapsible for storage, sufficiently lightweight for easy portability, and which provides ease of handling are important features and characteristics to users of such quilting systems. Such a quilting apparatus and methods for using the same of which the above-referenced disadvantages of the prior
Izaguirre Ismael
Madson & Metcalf
LandOfFree
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