The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.

James F Mueller

Stephen L Bellio

Donald C Fyler

Mark J Condon

Edward Bernardon

Mitchell L Hansberry

Tommy W Lee

Robert S Flory

An automatic sheet printing and alignment system includes a holding table; a transport system for moving the table through a plurality of stations; a first station for positioning a sheet on the table; a second station for printing features on the sheet positioned on the table; a third station for receiving the printed sheet from its position on the table to compile a stack of sheets with their printed features in predetermined alignment; and a control system for sequentially moving the table through the stations for repeatedly printing and stacking each sheet aligned with prior printed and stacked sheets received, transported and printed by the same table.

Automatic sheet printing and alignment system

Method and apparatus for nondestructively removing a cut segment of predetermined shape from a limp material sheet workpiece and transporting the cut workpiece segment to a staging area for further processing. The cut segment is picked up by a picker which may comprise an array of carding strips, each strip having a plurality of needle-like elements, arranged such that each strip can be displaced relative to its adjacent strips and the needle-like elements of each strip are angularly offset with respect to the needle-like elements of the adjacent strips. Such removal and transporting having is accomplished without distorting the shape of the cut segment.

Method and apparatus for automated handling of cut material

A method and apparatus for the automated assembly of sleeves onto the body of the garment. In the present invention, the garment body is placed on a first fixture resembling a mannequin. The sleeves are placed inside facing out on a second conical fixture. Automatically, each sleeve is positioned and sewn onto the garment body and the finished garment is removed from the first fixture. Through the use of sensors, each sleeve is precisely and consistently sewn to the garment body. The result is a high quality garment produced at a lower cost.

Method and apparatus for assembling garments

An automatic edge sewing system and method for sewing together the edge of a plurality of parts in which the parts to be sewn are clamped together in a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle; the parts are mounted for rotation about a first rotational axis through the pans and for linear translation along a linear axis between the first rotational axis and the axis of the needle. The pans are steered about a second rotational axis parallel to the needle axis for adjusting the angular position of the linear axis about the needle axis. The parts are fed through the needle axis and the position of the edge of the parts proximate the needle axis is sensed; the steering and the feeding of the parts through the needle axis is controlled in response to the sensing of the edge position while the pans passively float about the first rotational axis and along the linear axis to enable the parts to be sewn accurately, automatically proximate the edges.

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North Reading, MA, United States of America

James F Mueller