US1879144A - Woven fabric - Google Patents

Description

P 27, 1932- LE ROY F. EMERY 1,879,144

WOVEN FABRI 0 Filed April 28. 1930 QQQQ INVFNTOR I ATTORNEY.

Patented Sept. 27, 1932 UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE LE ROY F. EMERY, OF BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO HAMILTON-WADE COMPANY, OF BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS WOVEN FABRIC Application filed April 28,

This invention relates to woven fabrics of leather or the like particularly adapted for shoe uppers, and to the method of producing the same.

Such a woven fabric, to be suitable and desirable for the purpose of shoe uppers and like uses, must meet several requirements. Among these may be mentioned pleasing appearance or design, flexibility and strength. Another quality which is very desirable in the fabric, particularly when secured without impairing the strength of the fabric, is a capacity for ventilation. By means of my improved method disclosed herein, I am enabled to produce such a fabric of very pleasing design having a flexibility greater than.

the body portion of the fabric per se and of great strength whether or not the fabric is provided with ventilating openings. The provision of such an improved method and fabric comprises the object of my invention.

In the accompanying drawing, I have illustrated certain specific embodiments of and uses for my invention but it will be understood that the invention can be otherwise embodied and that the drawing is not to be construed as defining or limiting the scope of the invention, the claims appended hereto being relied upon for that purpose.

Referring to the figures of the drawing, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a shoe having portions of its upper constructed of my improved fabric;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the toe portion of a shoe upper being constructed in accord-.

ance with my invention;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view illustrating the fabric elements perforated for ventilating purposes; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view through the fabric shown in Fig. 3.

In the drawing, I have illustrated a shoe 10 in which a portion 11 of the quarter is constructed of my improved woven fabric. This fabric and the method of making the same are illustrated in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawing.

In Fig. 2, I have illustrated a body portion 13 of leather or other sheet material cut out to pattern to form the vamp of a shoe. In

1930. Serial No. 447,924.

producing a woven upper fabric in accordance with my invention, I slit the body portion 13 in relatively spaced lines 14, these lines in the accompanying drawing being ilor lustrated as parallel and inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the vamp. It will be noted that each slit line, as illustrated in Fig. 2, is discontinuous, i. e., each comprises a plurality of relatively short dis- 13 and the strips 16. In the form of my in vention illustrated in the drawing, the lines 14 are equally spaced andthe slits-15 thereof are each of a length substantially equal to the distance between the lines, also the adjacent ends of the slits are brought so close together that the edges of the adjacent strips extending therethrough are in close proximity to each other whereby to produce a checkered pattern of squares of which the strips 16 and the upper body 13 form the alternate squares in close proximity to each other. The pattern may be varied to produce different effects by employing strips of different colors. The slitting of the body portion 13 makes the fabric very flexible and at the same time it retains its strength since the slits are discontinuous in a manner leaving the slitted body closely connected all along the slit lines. As herein shown, the parallel slit lines are disposed at substantially an angle of 45 to the axis of the vamp 1 2 and the parallel strips 16 are disposed at'substantia'lly right angles thereto so that the individual checks of the weave are located obliquely or diagonally in the shoe. While this arrangement produces a pleasing design, the angle of the slit lines may be varied to suit the taste.

Shoes with uppers of woven fabric of this general nature have many desirable qualities. Among these may be mentioned great flexibility, comfortable fit and pleasing appearance. Another feature, however, which is desirable, particularly in warm weather, is the quality of ventilation and, while the woven fabric shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is sufliciently loose as to provide considerable ventilation in a shoe, it may be desirable to make further provision in this respect. In Figs. 3 and 4, I have shown a novel manner in which this may be accomplished without in any manner impairing the strength of the fabric.

The fabric body portion 2lmay be slitted at 20 in like manner as the body portion 13 and, in addition thereto, I provide holes or perforations 22 of any desired size in the body between each two slits. I also provide cooperating holes 23 in the strips 24, these holes preferably being so spaced as to register with the holes 22 when woven in the body to form the fabric. The holes 22 and 28 will ordinarily be formed at equally spaced intervals and register with each other but it will be understood that it is not essential that the holes should always form through perforations at each check in the fabric. It will be clear that these holes provide additional ventilation into and through the fabric without in any manner causing a weakening thereof.

It is believed that the construction and advantages of my invention will now be clear without further description herein. While I have illustrated my invention as embodied in the fabric of a shoe upper, it will be apparent that it may be usefully applied to the ornamentation of sheet material of any description.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A shoe upper having its body portion slitted in relatively spaced lines, and strips of sheet material woven alternately through the slits in a manner producing a checkered pattern, certain of the overlapping portions of the body portion and strips having registering ventilation openings.

2. A shoe upper having its body portion slitted in relatively spaced lines, and strips of sheet material woven alternately through the slits in a manner producing 'a checkered pattern, the strips and body portion having regularly spaced perforations therethrough which form ventilation openings in the woven fabric. 1

3. A shoe upper having its body portion discontinuously slitted in relatively spaced lines each comprising a plurality of relatively short distinct slits, and strips of leather or the like woven through the slits, certain of the overlapping parts of thebody portion 5. The method of making" a ventilating v woven fabric of leather or the like, consisting of discontinuously slitting a body fabric in relatively spaced lines, perforating the body fabricbetween the lines, and weaving perforated strips through the slits.

LE ROY F. EMERY.

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