No abstract

Weft knitting offers the highest potential concerning the patterning possibilities and 3D shaping. Among them, cables design are unique architectures of the weft knitted fabrics, formed by using the stitch transfer, one of the fundamental technique of modern knitting. In fact, nearly all the patterns presented in current samples range contain a certain number of transferred stitches. The basic concept of cables consists in producing a series of plain stitch columns on a purl-stitch base. After a number of rows, some of the stitches, corresponding to half the stitch columns in question, are transferred on other stitch columns, while the stitches of the latter are transferred to the previous stitch columns. The stitches are thus crossed over and produce the cable effect. The students enrolled at Faculty of Textiles, Leather and Industrial Management from Iasi, following the knitwear and apparel technology study program, are provided with the relevant skills for the development of various knitted patterns by using professional software, programming, setting the knitting parameters and manufacturing the fabrics. The classical learning method of cables involves the study based on graphic knitting schemes, accompanied by long explanatory texts. Within the knitting lab, specialized teachers have developed new multimedia based learning methods. Thus, videos have been produced to demonstrate the stages of achieving a cable design effect. Also, html interactive knitting schemes have been developed that show and explain sequentially the work phases to make automated knitting programs. Students are using specialized Computer Aided Design programs to develop and test new programs for knitting cable designs, on computerized flat knitting machines. The paper presents the applications of such type, which are available for the students from knitting specialization, in html format, on the Faculty Moodle platform: http://www.moodle.tex.tuiasi.ro.

Within the new concept of Industry 4.0, digitalization and sustainability are the latest trends in the knitting industry. Digitization, known as "the use of digital technologies to transform a business model and create new revenue and value opportunities," is emerging as a means to not only achieve sustainability in terms of planet, profit, and human engagement, but also to reduce inventory, increase supply chain visibility, and adapt production. Sustainable knitwear will be part of the knitting technology curriculum at the Faculty of Industrial Design and Business Management of ''Gheorghe Asachi'' Technical University of Iasi, Romania, taking into account not only fashion but also environmental aspects, especially resource consumption through waste-free manufacturing, reuse when possible, and recycling when necessary. The focus of this paper is to present the technological features of the complete garment production on the electronic weft flat knitting machines. The paper describes the design of a complete outerwear product, as a basis for the further programming phase. M1plus(R) Pattern Software from Stoll by Karl Mayer, Germany, is one of the most effective CAD systems for creating patterns for a highly optimized knitting process. The pattern software can be used for complete fashions as well as for knitting and wearing patterns. M1plus offers a rich Module Explorer Database, with numerous ready-made pattern elements. The learning module is supported by examples of knitting programs developed for finished products with different applications, such as: Caps, masks or shoes and is available at the web address: bibliodoc.ro/advancedknitting. The remarkable advantages of complete knitting refer to a shorter production process, lower finishing costs, no side seams, lower labor costs, fewer machines involved in production, lower energy consumption and time savings in production.

The fully fashion knitting is an actual solution for producing two-dimensional shapes, appropriate to the desired finished garment structure, with minimal or no cutting, being one of the most efficient technology. The knitting programs can be processed using the automatic specialized software, developed worldwide by various machine builders. Among them, the M1plus(R) software from Stoll GmbH Germany, offers programs for creating completely new shapes or available libraries for customizing the existing shapes. The paper focuses on the presentation of the opportunities offered by the Shape Sizer program, as interactive package for designing and tailoring the shapes for online or offline training. The user can exploit the flexible features of this package, concerning the type of the knitwear product, with all structural and shape particularities. There are a variety of different shapes available, from the pullover to the single shapes, cardigans or slip overs. The programmer accesses the library choosing the knitting technology type, fully fashion or knit and wear, and then all the details regarding the panel sizes, stitch densities, narrowing or widening steps, are set-up. The program allows the grading of the panels in all dimensions, facilitating thus the further manufacturing steps. The high quality of the final product is ensured by the shaping details on the linking between the constituent parts and the binding off in the sleeves. Working with software existing libraries is a significant simplification of the programming process, as the user does no need to build all the base patterns every time a new design or machine type is required. More, for the personal training and self assessment, the off line versions are extremely useful, allowing the learner to study in his personal rhythm and environment.

A wide range of precision applications requires video measuring systems that achieve a large number of successive measurements and deliver fast results. Their efficiency is essentially given by the technical performances of the used equipment and by the measurement technique on which they operate. In order to enhance the reliability of such a system, the paper presents a new method of measuring the distance with a single video camera intended to assess the distance at which the object of interest to the camera is located. The technique makes use of a least squares-based sharpness cost function and determines the distance between the camera and the object of interest by minimizing the least squares deviation of the current sharpness values from the sharpness values obtained by calibration. It involves the current sharpness calculation phase, the normalization phase, the phase of calculating the deviations of the current sharpness from the dependencies obtained by calibration and the phase of determining the minimum deviation index.