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DESIGN NEWS TATM Pursues New Directions in Design Students Experience Innovative Knitting Technology The Art and Technology of Jacquard Woven Pictures at NCSU

EDUCATION NEWS NC State College of Textiles Open House - 2003 Creative Textile Education for Non-Textile Graduate Students Internships: An Investment in the Future Teaching Nonwovens: New Short courses Visual Display: Fundamentals and Principles of Visual Merchandise Display Summer Program: STEP Graduate Research: 2002 Conference of the International Foundation of Fashion Technology Institutes TECS Graduate Program

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Students Experience Innovative Knitting Technology
Traci May-Plumlee, Nancy Powell, and Trevor J. Little

Summer 2002, the Department of Textiles and Apparel, Technology and Management (TATM) installed two innovative knitting systems in the Digital Design Center. The computerized knitting machines, made by Shima Seiki, include a full fashion knitting machine and a WholeGarment knitting machine.

The full fashion machine is designed knit shaped garment parts and to support the creation of complex knitted-in patterns. The Shima Seiki WholeGarment knitting machine allows knitting of a 3-Dimensional finished garment in a single knitting operation. Both machines are driven by files created in the accompanying CAD system. The WholeGarment machine offers a truly revolutionary opportunity for simultaneous creation of complex knitted-in designs and complete apparel products. Cutting and stitching operations are eliminated from the garment production process with the WholeGarment technology, and garments come off the machine virtually ready to wear. The technology allows the integration of textile and end product design to a degree unmatched by any other technology.

This technology is being used in a boutique in Japan to knit one of a kind sweaters on demand! The company website showcases a sample of the variety of designs that can be produced using the CAD software and the WholeGarment knitting machine.

Students are eagerly pursuing opportunities to learn technology and utilize this technology in a variety of ways. This Fall, advanced undergraduate students in a knit design class began studying the CAD component of the WholeGarment knitting system in preparation for knitting future projects. Graduate students are exploring the technology for research applications. Carol Gonzalez, a Master of Science student in TATM, is experimenting with the WholeGarment technology for her thesis work. In Carol's words, "My thesis research includes the study of three dimensional knitted structures, and the Shima Seiki Wholegarment technology bridges the gap between versatile (yet labor intensive) hand knitting technology, and the mass production possibilities inherent in knitting machinery and the knitting industry. Because the equipment is basically a V-bed knitting machine with CAD software interface, users familiar with either technology are able to draw on their experiences to exploit the almost limitless possibilities of V-bed knitting technology."

The possibilities are truly endless. Though currently promoted for apparel applications, the practical and creative possibilities afforded by 3-D knitting technology may have applications in home furnishings, transportation textiles and even medical applications. The technology may even lend itself to use in creating knitted 3-D artwork. The creative

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