Durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based military combat uniform garment

Abstract

The present invention is directed to the design and manufacture of a durable, fire resistant, comfortable and economical nonwoven composite fabric based garment, which meets the stringent requirements of military combat uniform clothing. The nonwoven based garment is designed to replace the traditional woven textile fabric used in the military and outdoor sporting garments today. The novel garment of the current invention is constructed using a unique nonwoven composite fabric that exhibits mechanical, physical, durability and comfort characteristics similar to or better than that of the current woven military uniform fabric. In particular, the present invention contemplates the nonwoven composite fabric used to make the garment is prepared by combining at least two separate fire resistant nonwoven webs forming the inside and outside layers of the garment. An optional rip-stop element such as a loosely knitted fabric may be sandwiched between the two nonwoven webs to improve the tear resistance of the entire garment. Hydroentangling or needle-punching processes and subsequent thermal calendering/embossing techniques combine the individual nonwoven webs of the garment before dyeing, printing and finishing with traditional textile chemicals to form a composite fabric for stitching to make the garment.

1 . A durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel, the composite fabric of the garment comprising; 
 a fire resistant, nonwoven web, outer layer bonded to a fire resistant, nonwoven web, inner layer, the fire resistant, nonwoven web, outer and inner layers bonded together by entangling fibers from each layer intimately with fibers of other layer to obtain complete fiber bonding at an interface between the layers, thereby preventing delamination of the individual layers.    
   
   
       2 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , further including a middle rip-stop layer of loosely knitted flexible fabric sandwiched between the outer and inner layers, the rip-stop layer providing enhanced tear resistance for the entire garment without affecting other textile qualities of the garment.  
   
   
       3 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , wherein bonding the outer and inner layers together is achieved by subjecting the layers to a process selected from the group consisting of high pressure water jets and needle punching.  
   
   
       4 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 3 , wherein bonding the outer and inner layers together is achieved by high pressure water jets operating with a minimum water pressure of 800 lbs/in 2  for prewetting the nonwoven layers and a minimum water pressure of 3000 lbs/in 2  for bonding the outer and inner layers by hydroentanglement thereof, using a machine with a plurality of manifolds of at least 5 jets each, the manifold jets working on both the outer and inner layers of the nonwoven composite fabric for intimate bonding of the layers.  
   
   
       5 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 3 , wherein bonding the outer and inner layers together is achieved by needle punching using a minimum  1000  strokes per minute with a minimum of 3000 needles per linear yard of working width using a machine with double beds of needles working on both the outer and inner layers of the nonwoven composite fabric for intimate bonding of the layers.  
   
   
       6 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , wherein the outer and inner nonwoven layers of the garment are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant spunlaid webs with continuous filaments, fire resistant carded webs with staple length fibers and combinations thereof.  
   
   
       7 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments are produced by extrusion of higher melting engineering polymers selected from the group consisting of polyesters, nylons, and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       8 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 7 , wherein the spunlaid web includes bicomponent continuous filaments comprising polyethylene terephthalate at 50-80% by weight and nylon 6/PBT/PTT at 20-50% by weight.  
   
   
       9 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 8 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments have a cross section selected from the group consisting of uniformly round, bicomponent polymer splittable configuration with segments of polyethylene terephthalate and segments of nylon 6/PBT/PTT, and core/sheath configuration with polyethylene terephthalate forming the core and nylon 6/PBT/PTT forming the sheath.  
   
   
       10 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments have a denier per filament (dpf) between about 0.5 dpf and about 5 dpf, and a basis weight of the spunlaid web is between about 0.5 oz./yd 2  and about 10 oz./yd 2 .  
   
   
       11 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments are extruded with about 5% to about 25% by weight of melt blendable flame retardant additive concentrate incorporated therein.  
   
   
       12 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the outer layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyesters, nylons and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       13 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the outer layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyester (PET) fibers only, nylon 66 fibers only, and 50-80% by weight of fire resistant polyester/nylon 66 fibers with 20-50% by weight of PBT/PTT/nylon 6 fibers.  
   
   
       14 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the inner layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyester blended with fire resistant viscose rayon and nylon 66 blended with fire resistant viscose rayon.  
   
   
       15 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 6 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the inner layer are selected from the group consisting of 50-90% fire resistant polyester (PET) fibers blended with 10-50% fire resistant viscose rayon fibers and 50-90% fire resistant nylon 66 fibers blended with 10-50% fire resistant viscose rayon fibers.  
   
   
       16 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 2 , wherein the middle rip-stop layer comprises a loosely knitted, non-elastic fabric, with a maximum opening area of 0.04 square inches, the loosely knitted fabric composed of yarns selected from the group consisting of polyester and nylon yarns and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       17 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 16 , wherein the middle rip-stop layer of loosely knitted, non-elastic fabric has a basis weight from about 0.25 oz/yd 2  to about 5 oz/yd 2 , and a thickness of less than 25 mils and a minimum burst strength of 25 psi.  
   
   
       18 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , further including bonding/embossing the outer and inner layers, using heated calendering rolls, with an embossing pattern to provide woven textile fabric like appearance to the nonwoven composite fabric, thereby binding loose surface fibers to the bulk of the fabric and enhancing the abrasion resistance thereof, and simultaneously reducing the thickness of the layers of the garment.  
   
   
       19 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , wherein the fire resistant outer nonwoven layer is printed with a camouflage design selected from the group consisting of woodland green and desert beige.  
   
   
       20 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , further including an additional finishing chemical applied to the nowoven layers of the garment, the finishing chemical selected from the group consisting of abrasion resistance material, water repellent material and fire retardant material, the additional finishing chemical maintaining the textile drape, mechanical properties and air permeability/breathability of the garment.  
   
   
       21 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 1 , wherein the durable and fire resistant nonwoven fabric garment is assembled by a stitching method selected from the group consisting of needle and thread stitching, ultrasonic stitching and laser weld stitching.  
   
   
       22 . A durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel, the composite fabric of the garment comprising; 
 a fire resistant, nonwoven web, outer layer and a fire resistant, nonwoven web, inner layer, a middle rip-stop layer of loosely knitted flexible fabric sandwiched between the outer and inner layers, the rip-stop layer providing enhanced tear resistance for the entire garment without affecting other textile qualities of the garment;    the fire resistant, nonwoven web, outer layer, middle layer and inner layer bonded together by entangling fibers from each layer intimately with fibers of other layers to obtain complete fiber bonding at an interface between the layers, thereby preventing delamination of the individual layers.    
   
   
       23 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , wherein bonding the outer, middle and inner layers together is achieved by subjecting the layers to a process selected from the group consisting of high pressure water jets and needle punching.  
   
   
       24 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 23 , wherein bonding the outer, middle and inner layers together is achieved by high pressure water jets operating with a minimum water pressure of 800 lbs/in 2  for prewetting the nonwoven layers and a minimum water pressure of 3000 lbs/in 2  for bonding the outer and inner layers by hydroentanglement thereof, using a machine with a plurality of manifolds of at least 5 jets each, the manifold jets working on both the outer and inner layers of the nonwoven composite fabric for intimate bonding of the layers.  
   
   
       25 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 23 , wherein bonding the outer, middle and inner layers together is achieved by needle punching using a minimum  1000  strokes per minute with a minimum of 3000 needles per linear yard using a machine with double beds of needles working on both the outer and inner layers of the nonwoven composite fabric for intimate bonding of the layers.  
   
   
       26 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , wherein the outer and inner nonwoven layers of the garment are selected from the group consisting of a fire resistant spunlaid web with continuous filaments, a fire resistant carded web with staple length fibers and a combination thereof.  
   
   
       27 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments are produced by extrusion of higher melting engineering polymers selected from the group consisting of polyesters, nylons, and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       28 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 27 , wherein the spunlaid web includes bicomponent continuous filaments comprising polyethylene terephthalate at 50-80% by weight and nylon 6/PBT/PTT at 20-50% by weight.  
   
   
       29 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 28 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments have a cross section selected from the group consisting of uniformly round, bicomponent polymer splittable configuration with segments of polyethylene terephthalate and segments of nylon 6/PBT/PTT, and core/sheath configuration with polyethylene terephthalate forming the core and nylon 6/PBT/PTT forming the sheath.  
   
   
       30 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments have a denier per filament (dpf) between about 0.5 dpf and about 5 dpf, and a basis weight of the spunlaid web is between about 0.5 oz./yd 2  and about 10 oz./yd 2 .  
   
   
       31 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the spunlaid web continuous filaments are extruded with about 5% to about 25% by weight of melt blendable flame retardant additive concentrate incorporated therein.  
   
   
       32 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the outer layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyesters, nylons, and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       33 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the outer layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyester (PET) fibers only, nylon 66 fibers only, and 50-80% by weight of fire resistant polyester/nylon 66 fibers with 20-50% by weight of PBT/PTT/nylon 6 fibers.  
   
   
       34 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the inner layer are selected from the group consisting of fire resistant polyester blended with fire resistant viscose rayon and nylon 66 blended with fire resistant viscose rayon.  
   
   
       35 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the staple length fibers of the carded web of the inner are selected from the group consisting of 50-90% fire resistant polyester (PET) fibers blended with 10-50% fire resistant viscose rayon fibers and 50-90% fire resistant nylon 66 fibers blended with 10-50% fire resistant viscose rayon fibers  
   
   
       36 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 26 , wherein the middle rip-stop layer comprises a loosely knitted, non-elastic fabric, with a maximum opening area of 0.04 square inches, the loosely knitted fabric composed of yarns selected from the group consisting of polyester and nylon yarns and blends in various proportions thereof.  
   
   
       37 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 36 , wherein the middle rip-stop layer of loosely knitted, non-elastic fabric has a basis weight from about 0.25 oz./yd 2  to about 5 oz/yd 2 , and a thickness of less than 25 mils and a minimum burst strength of 25 psi.  
   
   
       38 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , further including bonding/embossing the outer and inner layers, using heated calendering rolls, with an embossing pattern to provide woven textile fabric like appearance to the nonwoven composite fabric, thereby binding loose surface fibers to the bulk of the fabric and enhancing the abrasion resistance thereof, and simultaneously reducing the thickness of the layers of the garment.  
   
   
       39 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , wherein the fire resistant outer nonwoven layer is printed with a camouflage design selected from the group consisting of woodland green and desert beige.  
   
   
       40 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , further including an additional finishing chemical applied to the outer layer of the garment, the finishing chemical selected from the group consisting of abrasion resistance material, water repellent material and fire retardant material, the additional finishing chemical maintaining the textile drape, mechanical properties and air permeability/breathability of the garment.  
   
   
       41 . The durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel of  claim 22 , wherein the durable and fire resistant nonwoven fabric garment is assembled by a stitching method selected from the group consisting of needle and thread stitching, ultrasonic stitching and laser weld stitching.  
   
   
       42 . A durable and fire resistant nonwoven composite fabric based garment adapted for military uniforms and outdoor sporting apparel, the composite fabric of the garment comprising; 
 a fire resistant, nonwoven carded web, outer layer, a fire resistant, nonwoven carded web, inner layer, a middle rip-stop layer of loosely knitted flexible fabric sandwiched between the outer and inner layers, the outer layer carded web comprising staple fibers of fire resistant polyester and nylon, the inner layer carded web comprising staple fibers of fire resistant polyester, nylon and viscose rayon, the rip-stop middle layer comprising a loosely knitted, non-elastic fabric composed of yarns of polyester and nylon, the rip-stop middle layer providing enhanced tear resistance for the entire garment without affecting other textile qualities of the garment;    the fire resistant, nonwoven web, outer layer, middle layer and inner layer bonded together by entangling fibers from each layer intimately with fibers of other layers by high pressure water jets operating with a minimum water pressure of 800 lbs/in 2  for prewetting the layers and a minimum water pressure of 3000 lbs/in 2  for bonding the outer and inner layers by hydroentanglement thereof, using a machine with a plurality of manifolds of at least 5 jets each, the manifold jets working on both the outer and inner layers of the nonwoven composite fabric to obtain complete fiber bonding at an interface between the layers, thereby preventing delamination of the individual layers;    the fire resistant outer nonwoven layer printed with a camouflage design and bonded/embossed using heated calender rolls, with an embossing pattern providing a woven textile fabric-like appearance to the outer layer, thereby binding loose surface fibers to the bulk of the fabric and enhancing the abrasion resistance thereof.