Woven fabrics and method of manufacture

Abstract

The towel of the present invention is formed of a fabric having a front face and an opposite rear face. The fabric has a first section that has a flat weave construction on both the front and rear faces and an adjacent second section that has a terry weave construction on both the front and rear faces.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A towel comprising:
 a fabric having a front face and an opposite rear face, the fabric having a first section that has a flat weave construction on both the front and rear faces and an adjacent second section that has a terry weave construction on both the front and rear faces.   
     
     
         2 . The towel of  claim 1 , wherein the fabric has a defined length (L) and a defined width (W) which is less than the length (L), the first and second sections being arranged in a side-by-side manner with each of the first and second sections extending completely across width (W) of the towel. 
     
     
         3 . The towel of  claim 1 , wherein the fabric has a defined length (L) and a defined width (W) which is less than the length (L), the first and second sections being arranged in a side-by-side manner with each of the first and second sections extending completely along the entire length (L) of the towel. 
     
     
         4 . The towel of  claim 1 , wherein the towel includes two or more first sections and two or more second sections. 
     
     
         5 . The towel of  claim 4 , wherein the two or more first sections and the two or more second sections are arranged in a checker board pattern. 
     
     
         6 . The towel of  claim 1 , further including a single first section, a single second section and a third section that is adjacent the second section and has a terry weave construction on both the front and rear faces, wherein the terry weave constructions of the second and third sections are different from one another. 
     
     
         7 . The towel of  claim 6 , wherein a length of a pile loop of the second section is different than a length of a pile loop of the third section. 
     
     
         8 . The towel of  claim 7 , wherein the third section is spaced from the first section with the second section being disposed between the first and third sections, the length of the pile loop of the third section being greater than the length of the pile loop of the second section. 
     
     
         9 . The towel of  claim 1 , wherein a seamless transition exists between the first section and the second section. 
     
     
         10 . A method for manufacturing a towel comprising the steps of:
 weaving a first section of fabric from weft yarns and ground warp yarns so as to form a flat weave construction on both front and rear faces of the first section of fabric; and   weaving a second section of fabric from weft yarns and ground warp yarns and interlacing pile yarns with the weft and ground warp yarns to form terry loops on opposing front and rear faces of the fabric in the second section thereof, wherein the second section is adjacent the first section and is integral thereto.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the step of weaving the first section of fabric comprises the step of using a first weave that is configured to form the flat weave and the step of weaving the second section of fabric comprises the step of switching the first weave with a second weave that is configured to form the terry loops. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , further including the step of weaving a third section of fabric from weft yarns and ground warp yarns and interlacing pile yarns with the weft and ground warp yarns to form terry loops on opposing front and rear faces of the fabric in the second section thereof, wherein the second section is adjacent the second section and is integral thereto and the terry loops in the second section have a length that is different than the length of the terry loops in the third section. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the towel has a defined length (L) and a defined width (W) which is less than the length (L), the first and second sections being arranged in a side-by-side manner with each of the first and second sections extending completely across width (W) of the towel. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the towel has a defined length (L) and a defined width (W) which is less than the length (L), the first and second sections being arranged in a side-by-side manner with each of the first and second sections extending completely along the entire length (L) of the towel. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the towel includes a plurality of first sections and a plurality of second sections, the plurality of first and second sections being arranged in a checker board pattern.