Page 142 - Industrial Cutting of Textile Materials

Automated cutting of textile materials 129

The width of the work zone is adjustable and depends on the size of the cut com-
ponents – a smaller work zone is being used for articles with smaller components and
vice versa. The cutting control software controls the starting and stopping of a job, the
pausing and moving of the cutter on the table, and its restarting at any point.

9.3.6.4 Cutting speed
Cutting speed is one of the parameters influencing work process efficiency. It is de-
pendent on many different factors, and the most important are the following:
The properties of the material being cut: thickness, density, porosity, elasticity, and others.
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The number of material plies being cut: higher speeds are achieved in single-low play cut-
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ting. High-ply cutting is performed in lower speeds.
The cutting tools being used: in knife cutting, the highest cutting speed can be achieved
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using a drag knife.
Shapes being cut: the cutter can use maximal speed only when cutting straight lines. To
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maintain cutting accuracy, it has to slow down on curves and corners.
Marker tools being used: marking speeds with ballpoint pens and markers are normally
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lower than cutting speeds.
The width of the nesting gaps: cutting speed is reduced in areas where components are close
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to each other.
9.3.6.5 Cutting process control features
On the control panel (see Section 9.3.5. and Fig. 9.15) the operator sets the main
parameters of the cutting process such as the cutting speed, the oscillation frequency
of the knife, the knife sharpening frequency, and the vacuum level before starting the
process. To reduce setup time and eliminate the risk of errors, the operator can use also
a barcode reader. In this case, the cut file and preset parameters are obtained scanning
the job barcode. Using the most advanced cutters, the operator sets up only properties
of the fabric, while the cutter automatically determines all needed cutting parameters.
During the work process, the processed marker is visible on the screen of the control
panel. The operator can distinguish the components that have already been cut (marked
in different colours from those as yet uncut) or see the current work zone of the marker
(showed in the marker with different colour background) and the location of the cutting
device at any given moment of the cutting process (showed as a moving dot/cross).

9.3.7 Cut component marking
Different marking tools are used to identify cut components for subsequent processing
such as to mark attachment points, size, bundle/kit ID, order/serial numbers, dates,
and barcodes and also for more complex details such as instructions, safety warnings,
and logos.

9.3.7.1 Pen marking
A pen holder for marking is a standard tool at all automated cutters. Some cutters use
to be configured with a pen plotter toolhead to operate also as a large-format plotter