Automation of tying task on tie-dyeing of traditional craft by robots

Abstract

There is a serious problem of aging of the craftsmen who have tie-dyeing technique of Japanese traditional craft "Shibori". In substitution for "tying" process by thread on tiedyeing, this paper proposes usage of elastic cap with different thickness at the both ends. A cloth is pushed into the cap by a needle of 1 mm diameter attached on the robot hand. It was confirmed that the cloth was tightened at the both ends of the elastic cap and the effect of the tie-dyeing was valid. The usage of the elastic plastic cap realizes the tie-dyeing pattern similar to the conventional method using thread. Moreover, these elastic caps are reusable. To improve the work efficiency, a cap cartridge and a sub robot attached on the robot hand were examined. The high efficiency of the work was achieved and an increase in the speed of robot was also effective. In regard to polyester cloth, its elasticity increases with projections that are created when the wet heat treatment is applied with the caps on. In this case, the stretch properties are also effective.

Finite element modeling of fabric-tying based on Arimatsu Narumi Shibori Robot

“…We have previously prototyped a tie-dyeing robot by using a multistage cylinder as a tying tool. 5 In the tying process, a metal rod is inserted into the multistage cylinder, which is formed of silicone rubber. A fabric is sandwiched between the cylinder and metal rod and then pushed into the cylinder.…”

“…A cap-tying is proposed to simplify the traditional tie, for the robots to operate. 5 Figure 6 shows the cap structure and cap-tying process, which replaces the traditional thread-tying process. The cap is cylindrical, with a height H of 8 mm.…”