arXiv subjects

Kotone Tajiri

Publications and source records attributed to Kotone Tajiri.

2 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Buckling of knitted fabric wrapped around a rigid cylinder

Knitted fabrics exhibit high flexibility due to their periodic loop structures formed by bent yarns. Under compressive loading, they develop three-dimensional (3D) wrinkling patterns that reflect nonlinear interactions between yarn elasticity and local loop deformations, as observed when the sleeves of a sweater are rolled up. Despite their widespread use in garments and medical textiles, the relationship between loop-level geometry and macroscopic buckling remains less understood. Here, we investigate the 3D deformation of knitted fabrics wrapped around a rigid cylinder under uniaxial compression. Circumferential and axial stitch numbers are systematically varied to determine how loop geometry affects the evolution of wrinkle patterns. Samples with a small number of circumferential stitches exhibit sequential wrinkle formation from the compressed end, leading to an accordion-like wrinkle pattern, whereas those with a larger number of stitches form helical wrinkles simultaneously across the surface. Wrinkle morphology changes progressively with stitch geometry, accompanied by systematic variations in compressive force, loop deformation, and helical wrinkle angle. The development of helical wrinkles originates from subtle structural asymmetries introduced during manufacturing processes, including the tension applied during knitting and the direction of sample assembly. These results demonstrate that small variations in local loop deformation can lead to substantial differences in wrinkle morphology, highlighting the sensitivity of macroscopic buckling to microscopic structural features. The study establishes a direct link between loop-level mechanics and global deformation behavior, providing a basis for the predictive design of knitted structures with tailored mechanical responses and complex 3D patterns.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2024

Curling morphology of knitted fabrics: Structure and Mechanics

Knitted fabrics are two-dimensional-like structures formed by stitching one-dimensional yarn into three-dimensional curves. Plain stitch or stockinette stitch, one of the most fundamental knitting stitches, consists of periodic lattices of bent yarns, where three-dimensional (3D) curling behavior naturally emerges at the edges. The elasticity and geometry of knitted fabrics have been studied in previous studies, primarily based on 2D modeling. Still, the relation between 3D geometry and the mechanics of knitted fabrics has not been clarified so far. The curling behavior of knits is intricately related to the forces and moments acting on the yarns, geometry of the unit knitted loops, mechanical properties, and contacts, hence requiring a 3D analysis. Here, we show that the curling of plain knits emerges through the elasticity and geometry of the knitted loops, combining desktop-scale experiments and reduced elasticity-based simulations. We find that by changing the horizontal and vertical knitting numbers, three types of curl shapes emerge: side curl and top/bottom curl shapes, which are curled only horizontally and vertically, and double curl shape, in which both curl shapes appear together. The fundamental mechanism of intricate shape deformation is clarified through the force and moment balance along yarn whose centerline shape is discretized through the B-spline curves where elastic stretching, bending, and contact mechanics are taken into account. We reveal that the 3D structure of the single-knitted loop plays a critical role in the curling behavior. Our results imply that the change in shape per a single knitted loop has the potential to control the 3D natural overall shape of knitted fabrics, and could be applied in predicting or designing more complex 3D shapes made of knitted fabrics.

cond-mat.soft↗