Machines have proved adept at many steps in making clothes, from printing textiles to cutting fabric & folding and packaging finished garments. But sewing has been notoriously difficult to automate, because textiles bunch & stretch as they’re worked with.
This story is part of WIRED's 2021 Resilience Residency.But sewing has been notoriously difficult to automate, because textiles bunch and stretch as they’re worked with. Human hands are adept at keeping fabric organized as it passes through a sewing machine. Robots typically are not deft enough to handle the task.
But no two batches of cotton are exactly alike, often varying from harvest to harvest; variations in the fabric and dyes further complicate matters. Each variation can necessitate recalibrating the system, interrupting operations, and SoftWear has to train its machinery to respond accordingly. “The biggest challenge we have faced getting to a production system is the requirement of being able to operate 24/7 at high speeds and greater than 98 percent quality,” says Rajan.
Sewing has been notoriously difficult to automate because textiles bunch and stretch as they’re worked with. Another company, San Francisco based Sewbo, attacks the folding and bunching problem by temporarily making the fabric not pliable. Polyvinyl alcohol, a water-soluble thickener, is applied to fabric to stiffen it. It can then be handled more easily, like a sheet of plastic or metal. Once the garment is sewn, the thickener is washed off. This process might be ideal for products like denim jeans that are often washed and treated for style reasons.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Paulina Porizkova Has Found the Best Pair of Non-Jean JeansThe 56-year-old model shows off her “jeans” and a cropped T-shirt.
Read more »
Why Spotify can’t afford to lose Joe RoganIt’s always about money
Read more »
Robot performs complex 'keyhole' intestinal surgery on pigs without human aid | EngadgetA robot has successfully performed 'keyhole' intestinal surgery on pigs without any aid from humans..
Read more »
Elon Musk says Tesla is prioritizing development of a robot that can perform human tasksThe robot 'has the potential to be more significant than the vehicle business,' Musk said.
Read more »
A Robot Performed Soft-Tissue Surgery on Pigs. Without Human Help?The Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot successfully performed keyhole surgery on pigs without needing any human help.
Read more »
The 20 Best Songs to Listen to On Repeat When You’re Feeling AnxiousYour go-to playlist for those moments when you can’t quiet your mind.
Read more »