With the emergence of Industry 4.0 and the advent of Industry 4.0, the clothing industry is witnessing the emergence of new sewing processes. These advancements are changing the image of garment manufacturers from being manual-based to being digitally and tech-driven. Alongside helping to reduce the time from production to delivery, these developments have brought competition to a whole new level that will be essential to survive in the near future.
Texprocess, along with CISM, are two of the occasions that highlight the latest developments in technology for the garment manufacturing, threatening the traditional methods of manufacturing. Team StitchWorld provides its readers with the top ten trends in technology in sewing that are set to alter the concept of making clothes very soon.
Vision sewing
Decorative stitching requires precise feeding of the fabric into the machine, which results in precise sewing. It is the operator and his ability to manipulate the direction of the fabric to sew curves and other forms of patches to be stitched.
Due to the scarcity of highly skilled craftsmen, the vision sewing system is emerging as a more efficient method to get perfect decorative stitches. The system is able to be incorporated with standard single needle chainstitch, lockstitch or electronically machine-programmable design sewing machines.
The vision sewing system, which is integrated with an industrial look (capture image), can process the image in a fraction of a second. It also guides mechanical actions by sending them to an electronic sewing machine that can be programmed.
The entire process does not require special skills, but it takes much less time. The main benefits of the vision systems are a consistent sewing speed for multi-patch sewing, automatic stitching of patterns, enhanced or less handling of fabric or garments and the lack of sewing operator skills.
Brother Vision Sewing System pioneered the system, and many other players are expected to follow in the near future.
Sewing without a pedal
Foot pedals in a sewing machine are one of the areas where sewing machine operators invest the majority of their time trying to gain control of complex stitches, as well as the crucial components. Industrial sewing machines are progressively coming up with the idea of pedalless sewing machines, allowing the control of stitches electronically.
Xi’an Typical recently won Texprocess Innovation Award 2017 for their “Vetron Trace,” which is the first technology based on sensors that gives full control over industrial sewing machines with no pedals. The natural movement of users is recorded as if they were controlled by an invisible hand, and the information collected is used to initiate the new process.
Jack is another maker of sewing machines and offers the option of pedalless sewing. With its C4 overlocker, it has three operation modes: full intelligent mode, semi-intelligent mode, and computerised mode. In full-intelligent mode, it can operate completely without requiring a foot.
Automatic Bobbin Changer
A single needle locktitch that is operating at maximum effectiveness comes to a complete stop when the thread of the bobbin has been completely consumed and demands replacement of the thread. The majority of the time, this process takes up additional time, resulting in a decrease in efficiency.
To ensure uninterrupted sewing, automated bobbin changers are essential. Kinoshita has successfully commercialised the use of automated bobbin changers that have eight bobbins on the exchange plate. They can be integrated into SNLS machines.
Embroidery machines, on the other hand, are discovering greater value in automated bobbin changers, while Industrial sewing machines, on the other hand, are relatively new to this. The Tajima Smart Bobbin Changer (SBC) takes just six seconds to change the heads with bobbins and reduces downtime for the machine as a result of replacing bobbins.
Another embroidery machine manufacturer, Aura Technologies, also employs the pneumatic bobbin changer on their embroidery equipment. Recently, Jack announced the auto bobbin changer for their single-needle lockstitch models.
Monitoring in real-time on sewing machines
The fashion industry is shifting rapidly toward Industry 4.0 Digitalisation, and digitisation is a key result of this. With the discrete gonotrophic location of garment units, it is becoming increasingly impossible to manage and monitor the condition of production. Real-time monitoring is how the industry of apparel industry is leveraging the most from the shopfloor.
The intelligent sewing machines are linked to the server, which is accessible via tablets or smartphones or a laptop from any place around the globe. The machine network that is intelligent lets you monitor the state of a complete production line, or even a single machine, in real-time. This live status not only aids in finding potential obstructions during production but also highlights the potential for productivity improvements.
Juki has been playing around in the realm of Intelligent Sewing System (ISS) for a long time. Digital Process Analysis (DPA) Software developed by Pegasus also provides real-time monitoring of the sewing line. Brother’s 7300A has similar capabilities, and, more recently, Duerkopp Adler entered the fray with Qondac Networks that digitises the sewing process and grants users the ability to remotely manage it.
Convertibility of sewing machines
Convertibility of feed type and stitch types is a long-standing need in sewing machines. Juki, as well as Brother’s double needle locktitch machine, was used to allow switching from needle feed and drop feed over a long period of time. Bed types were usually custom transformed from raised to flat type when overlock was required for seams that were long. But some manufacturers provide a submerged bed that can be raised for the eyelet buttonhole machines.
Bar convertibility of sewing from tack to button is yet another new product offered by sewing manufacturers. By simply altering the foot of the presser or changing the settings of the software built in, the bar tack device can function as a button sewing machine, without modifying the components within the machine. The two models, Typical or Siruba (BT290), have these models.
Modular sewing machines
Sewing machines have gone from their rigid structures where the sewing machine was built to serve a specific purpose, and does not allow for the changing of components to fulfil a different purpose. In addition, investing in the purchase of a new machine isn’t an option.
The breakthrough in this area will lead to the development of modular machines, where components can be swapped and equipped with a brand new part to meet future requirements. This option does not require the purchase of a new machine, which increases the versatility of the current sewing machine. Repairing would also mean replacement of the machine with a brand new one, thereby avoiding delays and bottlenecks in production.
Vetron from Xi’an is the first sewing machine that has put every component of a sewing machine into “technology modules”, which can be swapped anytime. The company has enabled to convert of a flatbed into a longarm machine, and the reverse.
Machine settings for sewing via mobile phones
The settings of a sewing machine must be adjusted at regular intervals, depending on the style of the item the user is working on. The settings must be consistent for each sewing machine; however, manually altering the settings for each machine can be difficult and time-consuming.
The latest trend is to alter the settings on a sewing machine by using an Android tablet running in contactless mode, via Wi-Fi, or even a mobile phone. The settings, once modified on the machine, could then be transferred to the entire production line in only one click to the tablet.
This feature can help you save a lot of time, as well as provide an easy check of uniform settings and confirmation of the conditions of the sewing machines within the sewing line, thus aiding in setting up adjustments. Juki DDL-9000C and Brother S-7300A provide such functions. Pfaff presented the same tablet for Android monitoring features in CISMA 2013.
Digital feed system for sewing machines
The improvement of productivity in a shop is just as crucial as the prompt delivery of the goods to customers. Even the smallest growth indicates a significant increase in efficiency. Due to the rising costs of labour and the increasing cost of labour, advanced sewing machines are the requirement of the moment to cut down on the time spent on other activities that are not worth the money. There are many sewing machine makers available to boost productivity by using their automated feed sewing machines.
Integrating digital feed into sewing machines means that you separate the motion of the feed pet from its main shaft, which can be controlled with a motor servo. Stepper motors are brought into the machine and are driving this feed dog. A separate stepper motor permits precise reverse feeding design stitching, as well as simultaneously backtack and condensed across the seam.
A few of them are Brother’s S-7300A Juki DDL-9000C, TYPICAL the GC6930A, as well as Duma DM1969M.
USB port on sewing machine
Every time a brand new design is introduced into a line of production, sewing machine settings must be adjusted on each machine. This increases the time to changeover, which slows down production.
The sewing machines are equipped with a USB port, which is designed to allow the copying of settings such as the length of stitches and speed of sewing to other sewing machines. In addition, the simple copying of patterns and upgrading of software may also be done via USB drives. USB drive.
USB ports have become increasingly popular with sewing professionals since they can also serve as convenient mobile charging points or some USB-powered personal desk fans in the summer.
Sewing machines with voice guidance
When a sewing machine malfunctions, the operator is informed by the supervisor of the line, and the mechanic will be advised to fix the problem. A lot of times that operators don’t know the reasons behind why an item ceases to function.
The market has a variety of sewing equipment on the market with a voice guide function, which means that every button on the control panel is accompanied by a voice that informs the user of technical issues like breakdown of the machine and oil leakage/level.
Jack provides a semi-dry computerised lockstitch machine as well as a C4 fully automated overlock machine that is integrated with the voice-over function. The system also informs the user of any errors and details how the problem is able to be fixed.