Industrial machine

• 1 The basic part of the industrial machine is called the “bit” or frame and is the housing that characterizes the machine. The bit is made of cast iron on a computer numerical control (CNC) machine that creates the casting with the appropriate holes for inserting components. Manufacture of the bit requires steel castings, forging using bar steel, heat-treating, grinding, and polishing to finish the frame to the specifications needed to house the components.
• 2 Motors are usually not supplied by the manufacturer but are added by a supplier. International differences in voltage and other mechanical and electrical standards make this approach more practical.
• 3 Pneumatic or electronic components may be produced by the manufacturer or supplied by vendors. For industrial machines, these are typically made of metal rather than plastic parts. Electronic components are not necessary in most industrial machines because of their single, specialized functions.

Unlike the industrial machine, the home sewing machine is prized for its versatility, flexibility, and portability. Lightweight housings are important, and most home machines have casings made of plastics and polymers that are light, easy to mold, easy to clean, and resistant to chipping and cracking.

Home sewing machine

Parts production in the factory may include a number of precisely made components of the sewing machine.

How a sewing machine works.

• 4 Gears are made of injection-molded synthetics or may be specially tooled to suit the machine.
• 5 Drive shafts made of metal are hardened, ground, and tested for accuracy; some parts are plated with metals and alloys for specific uses or to provide suitable surfaces.
• 6 The presser feet are made for particular sewing applications and can be interchangeable on the machine. Appropriate grooves, bevels, and holes are machined into the feet for their application. The finished presser foot is hand polished and plated with nickel.
• 7 The frame for the home sewing machine / is made of injection-molded aluminum. High-speed cutting tools equipped with ceramic, carbide, or diamond-edged blades are used to drill holes and to mill cuts and recesses to house features of the machine.
• 8 Covers for the machines are manufactured from high-impact synthetics. They are also precision-molded to fit around and protect the machine’s components. Small, single parts are preassembled into modules, whenever possible.
• 9 The electronic circuit boards that control the machine’s many operations are produced by high-speed robotics; they are then subjected to a burn-in period that is several hours long and are tested individually before being assembled in the machines.
• 10 All of the parts that are preassembled I; join a main assembly line. Robots move the frames from operation to operation, and teams of assemblers fit the modules and components into the machine until it is complete. The assembly teams take pride in their product and are responsible for purchasing the components, assembling them, and making quality control checks until the machines are completed. As a final quality check, every machine is tested for safety and various sewing procedures.
• 11 The home sewing machines are sent to packing where they are separately assembled by power control units that are foot-operated. A variety of accessories and instruction manuals are packed with the individual machines. The packaged products are shipped to local distribution centers.

The quality control department inspects all raw materials and all components furnished by suppliers when they arrive at the factory. These items are matched with plans and specifications. The parts are again checked along every step of manufacture by the makers, receivers, or persons who add the components along the assembly line. Independent quality control inspectors examine the product at various stages of assembly and when it is finished.

No byproducts result from sewing machine manufacture, although a number of specialized machines or models may be produced at one plant. Waste is also minimized. Steel, brass, and other metals are salvaged and melted down for precision castings whenever possible. Remaining metal waste is sold to a salvage dealer.

The merging of the capabilities of the electronic sewing machine and the software industry is creating an ever-widening range of creative features for this versatile machine. Efforts have been made to develop threadless machines that inject thermal fluids that harden with heat to finish seams, but these may fall outside the definition of “sewing.” Large embroideries can be machine-produced based on designs developed onscreen using AUTOCAD or other design software. The software allows the designer to shrink, enlarge, rotate, mirror designs, and select colors and types of stitches that can then be embroidered on materials ranging from satin to leather to make products like baseball caps and jackets. The speed of the process lets products celebrating today’s victories hit the street by tomorrow’s business day. Because such features are add-ons, the home sewer can buy a basic home sewing machine and enhance it over the years with only those features most frequently used or of interest. Sewing machines become individual crafting devices and, therefore, seem to have a future as promising as the imagination of the operator.

Books

Finniston, Monty, ed. Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia of Invention and Technology. Oxford University Press, 1992.

Travers, Bridget, ed. World of Invention. Gale Research, 1994.

Periodicals

Allen, 0. “The power of patents.” American Heritage, September/October 1990, p. 46.

Foote, Timothy. “1846.” Smithsonian, April. 1996, p. 38.

Schwarz, Frederic D. “1846.” American Heritage, September 1996, p. 101

— Gillian S. Holmes

Copy from Internet