WO2016166429A1

WO2016166429A1 - Elastic woven fabric including electrically conductive threads

Info

Publication number: WO2016166429A1
Application number: PCT/FR2016/000079
Authority: WO
Inventors: William BIENSTMAN
Original assignee: City Zen Sciences
Priority date: 2015-04-16
Filing date: 2016-04-15
Publication date: 2016-10-20
Also published as: FR3035125A1

Abstract

A woven fabric (1) that is elastic at least in the direction in which electrically conductive threads (3) are inserted, whether in warp or in weft, said fabric having a double-faced structure in which the two faces are separate in localised areas in order to form main sleeves (2), said sleeves receiving said electrically conductive threads (3), characterised in that along said main sleeves (2), the fabric comprises areas in which the two faces work together to form one or more regions forming bonding areas (20,30) narrower than the main sleeves.

Description

ELASTIC WOVEN ETOFFE INCLUDING ELECTRIC CONDUCTIVE YARNS

Technical area

The invention relates to the field of the textile industry, and more specifically to the sector of instrumented clothing. It relates more particularly to a new structure of woven textiles incorporating electrical conductors son to convey signals and electrical energy through a textile. It relates more particularly to textile structures having a certain elasticity, which is not intrinsically the recognized quality of the electric wires.

Background of the invention

Textiles intended to produce the instrumented garments must incorporate electrical conductors son, in order to supply the various sensors from an area where is implanted on the garment a battery constituting the source of electrical energy. Likewise, it is generally necessary for the signals generated by the sensors distributed over the entire garment to be routed to a body ensuring their recording, or else their transmission to a management system.

In general, it is necessary to provide arrangements allowing clothing to expand or more generally to deform, without its son conduct too strongly mechanical pulls. However, in general, the conductor son are based on metallic materials, intrinsically conductive polymers or polymers coated with a conductive material and have poor elasticity properties. It is therefore necessary to provide textile structures that allow the displacement of the conductive wires elongation at the same time as the elongation of the textile support. In addition, the organization of the conductor son in the structure is essential to facilitate assembly operations, electronics or connectors, such as stripping and electrical junction. Document US 2006/0124193 and US 2005/05494 disclose technical solutions for weaving conductive yarns into a three-dimensional textile structure. The conductive yarn is woven in such a way that it has a high level of embalming. In this way, when the textile is stretched, the wire, generally stiffer than the son forming the rest of the textile, deform by adopting a more rectilinear configuration, forcing the surrounding elastic son to deform strongly. The disadvantage of this type of solution lies in the complexity of the three-dimensional weaving to be performed to insert metal son, intrinsically conductive polymers or polymers coated with a conductive material. This complexity makes this technique difficult to use in articles whose cost is critical.

The Applicant has described in patent application FR1450035 not yet published to date a solution consisting in using an elastic electrical wire, consisting of an elastomeric material, typically elastane, on which has been guiped to a conductive wire of electricity, based on a metallic material. This solution consists in providing within the textile woven areas so as to form sheaths within which are inserted several elastic conductive threads, which can elongate at the same time as the textile is deformed. This solution, if it has certain advantages, nevertheless has the disadvantage of requiring the use of a relatively complex conductive elastic wire.

Presentation of the invention

There is therefore a need for the manufacture of stretch fabric incorporating easy-to-fabricate metal-based conductive yarns, allowing a high elongation rate and facilitating assembly processes to an electronics or a connector. To do this, the Applicants have designed a textile fabric elastic at least in the weft direction, which includes in the weft direction a non-elastic electrical conductive wire, this fabric having a double-sided structure in which the two faces are independent in zones localized to form main sleeves extending in the weft direction, these sleeves receiving the son electrical conductors.

According to the invention, this fabric is characterized in that along these main ducts, it comprises zones in which the two faces work together to form one or more regions forming zones of binding of smaller width than the main ducts. .

In other words, the invention consists in making sheaths in which the conductive threads are inserted at the time of weaving (the elastic fabric being woven stretched), these sheaths having binding zones which make it possible to locally confine the electric wires by forming points. by limiting the longitudinal displacement. In other words, the invention combines sheaths of relatively large width, in which the electrical son have at rest a wavy shape, with locking zones of these son. Thus, between two successive blocking zones, the wavy conductive yarns are deployed when the textile is stretched in the weft direction, thus distributing this deformation over the entire length of the sheath. In this way, when the textile retracts, it prevents the said conductive thread from contracting by forming accumulation zones in a particular region of the main sheath.

It is thus possible to use electrical conductors son that have a virtually zero elasticity. Indeed, in this case, each conductor wire segment delimited between two consecutive bonding zones on the same main sleeve, has a width greater than the distance separating these two consecutive sleeves when the fabric is at rest. In other words, the electric wire this deforms by forming undulations between two bonding zones. Thus, it is thus possible to use a relatively simple metal conductor wire, since it does not need to be elastic, but must simply be able to deform between two successive bonding zones.

^■ S

In practice, the conductive son can be defined as metallic, intrinsically conductive polymers or polymers having a conductive treatment covered with an insulating layer, resistant preferences other chemical and mechanical aggression.

, 0

In practice, this configuration has many advantages, and in particular in the case where each bonding zone is crossed by a single electrical conductor wire. In other words, the main sheath can accommodate several electrical conductors, but each of these wires are held by a periodic bonding point. This prevents the conductive son get entangled when the textile retracts.

Different configurations can be envisaged depending on the degree of maintenance of the leads that one wishes to obtain. Thus, to ensure effective maintenance, 0 we will favor a configuration in which the width of each binding point corresponds to a few warp son. In other words, the conducting wires are intimately maintained by their binding points.

In the same way, the binding points may have varying lengths depending on their utilities. If the binding point is mainly intended to provide a blocking zone to allow stripping and / or assembly operations of electronics, or a zone of attachment to distribute the elasticity of this son, a short length of sheath may be sufficient. On the other hand, if it is desired to ensure a firmer blocking of the conducting wires, greater lengths of bonding will be preferred. This can in particular be the ças to realize the areas of connection of electrical wires with external devices (electronic or connectors), and in particular with the sensors mounted on the garment. In this case, it is possible to distribute the connection areas of the different wires of the same main sheath at different levels.

Brief description of the figures

The manner of carrying out the invention as well as the advantages derived therefrom will emerge clearly from the description of the embodiment which follows, in support of the appended figures in which

- Figure 1 is a partial view of a textile made according to the invention, shown in a retracted state;

FIG. 2 is a similar view of the textile of FIG. 1, shown in a stretched state;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are views in section respectively along the planes III-ΙΙΓ and rV-rV 'of FIG.

Way of realizing the invention

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the textile 1 according to the invention comprises, in localized zones, a workwork separated from its two faces, making it possible to define main sleeves 2, in which there are confined three conductor wires 3, in the example of the figures. In this main sheath 2, and as illustrated in FIG. 3, the weft yarns 14 work independently with half of the warp yarns 10, 11, so as to form two distinct faces 15, 16 j delimiting the main sheath 2. inside this main sheath 2, the four conductive wires 3 are held with a capacity to deform strongly when the textile is retracted, as illustrated in FIG.

Additionally, the main sheath 2 also has binding areas 20, 30, formed by working warp yarns with the weft yarns on shorter lengths than for the main sheaths. Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the warp yarns 21 work with the web of weft yarns 14 in the same way as the warp yarn 22 forming the bottom face, with the exception of the zone 25 in which they work with the yarns. Of course, the width of the main sheath 2 can be adapted as desired, and may include at least one shot in a frame to be able to trap a conductive wire 3. Although this is not a preferred solution, it is possible to insert two (or more) son bonding conductors in the same area if necessary _^

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lengths L ₁₅ L ₂ in the weft direction of the tying zones 20, 30 may be distinct. Thus, the tying zones 20 of shorter length are hooked points that block the conductive son 3, preventing slipping inside the textile. Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 2, when the fabric is stretched, the conductive wires 3 adopt a more rectilinear configuration. Of course, the effects shown in the figures may differ from reality, and have been accentuated to facilitate the understanding of the invention.

Longer bonding zones 30 not only ensure hooking of the conductive wires 3, but also allow the individualized location of the lead wires 3 over a greater length. This is particularly useful when it is desired to strip and connect these conductors son to external devices.

It follows from the foregoing that the textile according to the invention has the advantage of ensuring binding points of the conductive son during the traction of the textile. It thus allows the use of conductive yarns not having intrinsic property of elasticity, but simply the ability to deform by creating corrugations within the sheath welcoming.

Claims

1 / woven fabric (1) elastic at least in the direction of introduction of the son (3) electrical conductors that is in weft or warp, said fabric having a double-sided structure in which the two faces are independent in areas localized to form main sleeves (2), said sleeves receiving said electrically conductive wires (3), characterized in that along said main sleeves (2), it comprises areas in which the two faces work together to form one or more regions forming tying zones (20, 30) of lesser width than the main sleeves.

2 / Elastic woven fabric characterized in that it contains different bonding zones (20, 30), some of which serve to distribute the lengths of conductors son in a given interval and others serve to separate the conductive son unitarily to stripping and connection operations.

3 / Elastic woven fabric characterized in that the son (3) electrical conductors have a virtually zero elasticity and in that each segment of conductive wire defined by two bonding zones (20) consecutive on the same main sleeve (2) have a an upper width at a distance separating said consecutive binding zones, when the fabric is at rest.

4 / Elastic woven fabric characterized in that each bonding zone is traversed by one or more son electrical conductors.

51 Elastic woven fabric characterized in that the conductive son are electrical conductors son covered with an insulating layer.

6 / Elastic woven fabric characterized in that the width of each bonding zone corresponds to a weft insertion or a warp yarn.