Effectiveness of 3D Scanning in Establishing Sideseam Placement for Pattern Design

Abstract

As woven garments are cut from flat pieces of cloth, pattern cutting methods must create flat 2D shapes that are constructed to form 3D garments that fit a particular body shape. The placement of sideseams represents a key division of the pattern where the front and back portions of a garment relating to a particular body measurement are distributed to create a balanced garment. During most pattern creation methods the distribution of the measurement into back and front arcs is proportionally determined by the author, however body scanning provides new opportunities to understand the body and derive these arcs during the measurement process. TC2 measurement software provides the facility to automatically derive arcs based on non-disclosed divisions of the body along a vertical plane. This research tests the automated division of key circumferences into arcs using the TC2 software, against methods guided by practitioner experience and placed using non-automated 3D software. Focusing on circumferences of the bust, waist and hip, analysis of the arcs derived by the scanner from a number of standard female body forms and 10 scans of female subjects, will be tested against those determined by a panel of experts. These methods form the basis for an understanding of how circumference division can be automated and allow for the testing of these methods on a variety of different scans and the comparison of the arcs against those proposed or applied in standard industry practice. It will be possible to see how closely these methods match or contrast with these imposed systems. This exploration provides a clear link to body pattern relationships and provides a foundation from which to advance mass customization utilizing body scanning technology and automated arc definition.

Not All Body Scanning Measurements Are Valid: Perspectives from Pattern Practice

“…This relates better to how the measurement is applied in the pattern [1]. This also brings for consideration the difficulties of side seam placement highlighted by earlier research [24], [25]. A further important consideration is the ISO 8559 [17] determines the bust point as the most anterior projection.…”

“…Here, the measurements defined manually and those defined by the body scanner can be seen to be comparable. Should this arc division not be captured through measurement, it will be imposed within the draft process [24]. However, careful consideration of the suitability waist location in 3D Body Scanning is required to make sure that measurements are comparable and suitable [26].…”

Novel Methods to Drive Pattern Engineering through and for Enhanced Use of 3D Technologies

“…Neither do the texts inform as to how the percentage of division should affect pattern-drafting for body shape. [16], [17] It has been suggested that automated virtual garment design can only be useful to fashion designers when the 3D and 2D CAD environments are driven by artificial neural networks mimicking the nonlinear thinking of humans. [18] For this to be realized, the iterative nature of pattern-drafting and the myriad of heuristic practices umbrellaed under the subjective garment fit label must be thoroughly and mathematically understood.…”

“…Other research has explored side seam placement and customized darting as ways to assess body shape, where body shape is predominantly affected by front-to-back variations. [17] However, the results of such research are infrequently applied in practice. Intelligent Shaping® software, using the Clone Block® method of pattern-engineering, leads us to support a direct body-to-2D pattern relationship.…”

Landmarking and Measuring for Critical Body Shape Analysis Targeting Garment Fit

“…Variations in methods of body segmentation for anthropometric assessment [52,61,62,63,64,65] do not necessarily correlate to logical pattern engineering landmarks. Methods for taking arc (half body) measurements [53,21] produce further inconsistencies due to how side seams are assigned [11,21,66,41]. Traditional pattern drafting methodologies cannot produce a suitable fit on all body shapes [67,68,20,34,22].…”