Textiles: knitting – Fabrics or articles – Articles
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-05
2001-01-30
Worrell, Danny (Department: 3741)
Textiles: knitting
Fabrics or articles
Articles
C066S187000, C002S239000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06178785
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to socks, particularly to socks characterized in structure of a heel part thereof and a knitting method therefor.
b. Description of the Prior Art
While socks, such as sports socks, are used daily or when some sport is played, the heel part is liable to slip down when a wearing person moves violently or in a like case. The slipping down knit fabric accumulates at the foot part and deteriorates the wearing feeling, and with such socks as ankle socks, it sometimes deteriorates also the appearance.
Further, the knit fabric at a portion around the heel sometimes gives some tightened feeling to the wearing person and deteriorates the feeling of use of the socks, and this gives rise to pulling down of the knit fabric at the heel part during use and results in accumulation of the fabric at the sole part.
Therefore, ankle socks have been proposed wherein a projection like a dingdong in the form of a ball is provided at an upper edge of a heel part such that, when a person puts on the socks and then puts on shoes, the projections may engage with upper portions of the heel parts of the shoes to prevent the socks from slipping down into the shoes during walking. However, where this structure is employed, time and labor are required to attach the projections by sewing after the socks are knitted. Further, when slipping down of socks itself occurs during walking and the fabric at the heel part is pulled down and slips down, an upper edge of the heel part of the sock comes to be exposed just outside the shoe due to the projection, which deteriorates the wearing feeling very much, and it is difficult to prevent slipping down of the knit fabric during walking.
The knit fabric of a portion which surrounds the heel, that is, the heel part of socks, is knitted next to knitting of a leg part which is knitted circumferentially into a tubular form. However, upon knitting of the heel part, circumferential knitting of the leg portion is stopped, and knitting is performed by reciprocating rotations over one half circumference. Besides, at each of end portions of the reciprocating motions, the number of needles for knitting is decreased by one for each one reciprocating motion. As a result, a knit fabric of a trapezoidal shape is produced. After a predetermined number of reciprocating motions, now a stitch is increased for each one reciprocating motion conversely while loops at end portions which form inclined sides of the trapezoidal knit fabric knitted already as described above are knitted. Then, when the original knitting width is reached, the knitting of the heel part is stopped and circumferential knitting is started to start knitting of the foot part, thereby to make a swell of the heel part.
By the knitting described above, two symmetrical trapezoidal knit fabrics wherein the opposite side edges formed as inclined sides are connected to each other are produced, and this part serves as the heel part of the socks. Connected portions of the two trapezoidal knit fabrics appear linearly and are called gore line. When it is considered that even the swell of the heel part is not sufficient, also socks wherein a linear gore line is bifurcated at a lower end portion thereof such that it may have an inverted Y-shape and socks wherein a gore line has a shape of overlapping Y-shapes such that it looks like a bone of a fish have been proposed.
However, even if only an end of a gore line is bifurcated into a Y-shape to increase the heel part of the knit fabric, the knit fabric of the heel part is knitted from the beginning to the ending of reciprocating knitting over a half circumference described above, and cannot be formed as a knit fabric which embraces the heel portion of a foot over a wide range.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Taking the foregoing into consideration, it is an object of the present invention to provide socks wherein a heel part is produced from a knit fabric, which have a surplus sufficient to embrace the heel portion of a foot, to prevent slipping down of the knit fabric at the heel part and slackening at the sole part during use and, even where the socks are ankle socks, the top-lines of them do not enter shoes.
A sock of the present invention has a rib top part, a leg part, a heel part, a foot part and a toe part which are knitted in order. A tubular portion having first gore lines extending obliquely downwardly from upper portions of the heel part to rear portions of the heel part is formed on the heel part next to the leg part from first and second trapezoidal knit fabrics whose top sides are common to each other. At portions of the tubular portion rather near to the toe part, a swelling portion including second gore lines positioned nearer to the foot part than the first gore lines and extending obliquely downwardly from upper front portions of the heel part to central portions of the heel part is formed from a third trapezoidal knit fabric having a top side whose length is equal to the length of a bottom side of the second trapezoidal knit fabric and having inclined sides connected by knitting to the last course of the leg part and a fourth trapezoidal knit fabric having a top side contiguous to a mid portion of a bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric.
The socks are constructed such that the first gore lines are formed by knitting together opposing loops of opposing inclined faces of the first trapezoidal knit fabric and the second trapezoidal knit fabric, and the second gore lines are formed by knitting together opposing loops to close at end portions of a course which forms the bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric and on the inclined sides of the fourth trapezoidal knit fabric which oppose to the bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric.
The socks may be constructed such that opposing loops at end portions of a course which forms the bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric and on the inclined sides of the fourth trapezoidal knit fabric which oppose to the bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric are connected by knitting, and surplus loops among the loops on the inclined sides are connected by knitting to the loops of the last course of the leg part to form second gore lines of another embodiment.
The socks of the present invention having a rib top part, a leg part, a heel part, a foot part and a toe part which are knitted in order is formed such that inclined sides of a first trapezoidal knit fabric having a bottom side knitted next to the leg part and a second trapezoidal knit fabric having a top side common to that of the first trapezoidal knit fabric are connected by knitting to form a tubular portion having first gore lines extending obliquely downwardly from upper portions of the heel part to rear portions of the heel part, and a third trapezoidal knit fabric having a top side whose length is equal to the length of a bottom side of the second trapezoidal knit fabric is knitted next to the second trapezoidal knit fabric such that inclined sides thereof are connected, by knitting, to the last course of the leg part and then a fourth trapezoidal knit fabric having a top side which is a mid portion of a bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric is knitted contiguously to the third trapezoidal knit fabric such that inclined sides of the fourth trapezoidal knit fabric are connected by knitting to wales at end portions of a course of a bottom side of the third trapezoidal knit fabric to form a swelling portion having second gore lines and. If surplus portions appear at the inclined sides of the fourth trapezoidal knit fabric upon connecting by knitting of the inclined sides of the fourth trapezoidal knit fabric, loops at end portions of the surplus portions are successively connected by knitting to loops of the last course of the leg part, thereby to form a swelling portion having second gore lines of another embodiment which bend in an L-shape. The second gore lines extend obliquely downwardly from upper front portions of the heel part to cen
Armstrong, Westerman Hattori, McLeland & Naughton
Naigai Co., Ltd.
Worrell Danny
LandOfFree
Socks and knitting method therefor does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Socks and knitting method therefor, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Socks and knitting method therefor will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2513322