A novel method for weft and warp yarn segmentation in multicolour yarn‐dyed fabric images

This paper proposes a novel method for segmentation of weft and warp yarns in multicolour yarn‐dyed fabric images. A multicolour yarn‐dyed fabric is cross‐woven by weft and warp yarns with different colours. When a multispectral imaging system is used to measure the colour of a multicolour yarn‐dyed fabric image, its weft and warp yarns need to be detected before analysing their colours. Detection of interstices between weft and warp yarns is firstly conducted. A modified K‐means clustering approach is then utilised to separate weft and warp yarns. The number of clusters is fixed to 2. The metric to measure the distance between a pixel and the mean of a cluster is the CIELAB colour difference. The initial means are determined by the expected values of fitted Gaussian distributions to CIExyY colour histograms. Experimental results show that the proposed method is promising for the segmentation of weft and warp yarns in multicolour yarn‐dyed fabrics, with an improved segmentation accuracy and much faster processing speed than K‐means clustering in CIEXYZ and CIELAB spaces.     

An unsupervised method for dominant colour region segmentation in yarn‐dyed fabrics

This paper presents a novel unsupervised approach to detect dominant colour regions standing out conspicuously in yarn‐dyed fabric images. For a dominant colour region of a yarn‐dyed fabric, measured by an imaging system, its individual yarn has an irregular three‐dimensional shape resulting in significant colour difference among pixels of the yarn. This difference leads to difficulty in segmenting yarns into dominant colour regions. A probabilistic model is proposed in this study to associate the colour of a dominant colour region with the colours of its yarns. Based on this model, the colour histograms of a dominant colour region are first estimated from those of yarns in a yarn‐dyed fabric image. Then, a hierarchical segmentation structure is devised to detect dominant colour regions in the image. Experimental results show that the proposed approach achieves satisfactory performance for dominant colour region segmentation in yarn‐dyed fabric images, with high computational efficiency.     

Automatic detection of layout of color yarns of yarn‐dyed fabric. Part 3: Double‐system‐Mélange color fabrics

Automat layout detection of color yarns is necessary for weaving and producing processes of yarn‐dyed fabrics. This study presents a novel approach to inspect the layout of color yarns of double‐system‐mélange color fabrics automatically, which is Part III of the series of studies to develop a computer vision‐based system for automatic inspection of color yarn layout for yarn‐dyed fabrics. The inspection of single‐system‐mélange color fabrics has been realized in Part I of the series of studies. Integrating the projection‐based region segmentation method proposed in Part I and the FCM‐based stepwise classification method proposed in Part II, the proposed approach is composed of three steps: (1) fabric region segmentation, (2) fabric region selection, and (3) layout of color yarns recognition. In the first step, the fabric regions are segmented by the projection‐based region segmentation method. In the second step, the reasonable fabric regions are selected by analyzing their color histograms and comparing their weft color's frequency. In the third step, the layout of color yarn is recognized by the FCM‐based stepwise classification method, and the precise layouts of color warps and wefts are produced. The experimental analysis proved that the proposed method can recognize the layout of color yarns of double‐system‐mélange color fabrics correctly by testing four different color fabrics and three pieces of same yarn‐dyed fabrics. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 42, 250–260, 2017     

Measuring linear density of threads in single‐system‐mélange color fabrics with FCM algorithm

According to the color yarns in the fabric, the fabrics can be divided into three categories: solid color fabrics, single‐system‐mélange color fabrics, and double‐system‐mélange color fabrics. The density of solid fabrics can be inspected with gray‐projection method or Fourier analysis method. But the methods cannot be applied to yarn‐dyed fabrics directly. A method for detecting the density of single‐system‐mélange color fabrics will be discussed in this article. By analyzing the pattern and color characters of single‐system‐mélange color fabrics, fuzzy C‐means algorithm is proposed to classify the colors in the fabric image based on CIELAB color space first. With the color segmentation results, the fabric can be divided into different blocks. The yarns can be located in different blocks with different average gray‐levels, and then the number of yarns can be counted in each block. The linear density of threads can be obtained by counting the yarns in a unit length finally. The experiment proved that the algorithm proposed in this study can inspect the density of single‐system‐mélange color fabric successfully. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 38, 456–462, 2013     

Color pattern recognition for yarn‐dyed fabrics

In the process of designing and analyzing the yarn‐dyed fabric, the yarn color pattern has an important effect on the appearance of the fabric. An automatic color pattern recognition method for yarn‐dyed fabric is proposed in this study. The proposed method uses the fabric images obtained from a high‐resolution digital camera image acquisition system. The local statistical texture features are used for yarn texture segmentation. The yarn color classification problem is then formulated in a research framework of multiregion fuzzy segmentation, which can be added auxiliary variables and solved efficiently by the fast dual projection algorithm. The color values of the yarn crossing points are calculated by the yarn color classification results. The locations of the yarn crossing points are detected by a lightness gradient projection method. Different kinds of fabrics are tested in the experiments. Experiments on 14 actual fabrics show that the approach proposed in this study is effective for classifying yarn color and extracting the yarn color pattern in yarn‐dyed fabric.     

Automatic detection of layout of color yarns of yarn‐dyed fabric. Part 1: Single‐system‐mélange color fabrics

To recognize the layout of color yarns of single‐system‐mélange color fabric automatically, a novel FCM‐based stepwise classification method is proposed in this article. This method consists of three main steps: (1) warp yarn segmentation, (2) weft color recognition, and (3) the layout of color warps recognition. In the first step, the yarn segmentation method based on mathematical statistics of subimages is adopted to localize warp yarns preliminarily; and then the segmentation results of warp yarn are corrected by misrecognized‐boundary remove and missing‐boundary interpolation. In the second step, the weft color is extracted based on RGB color histograms of whole fabric image. In the third step, the pixels in each warp yarn are classified into two clusters by fuzzy C‐means clustering (FCM) algorithm in CIELAB color model separately, and the preliminary recognized layout of color warps is obtained. All warp colors are clustered by FCM algorithm in CIELAB color model again and the precise layout of color warps is output. The experimental and theoretical analysis proved that the proposed method can recognize the layout of color yarns of single‐system‐ mélange color fabrics with satisfactory accuracy and good robustness. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 40, 626–636, 2015     

Preparation and properties of Fe(II)‐ion‐sensitive colour‐changing fabric

Textile fabrics were dyed with complexometric indicators (ionochromic dyes) to develop Fe(II) ionochromic fabric. Three kinds of ionochromic dye were used to dye silk fabric, and they were evaluated for colour changes triggered by Fe(II) solution. The K/S values and photos of the fabrics were then recorded. It was found that 1,10‐phenanthroline was the most suitable ionochromic dye in these dyes. Colour change from white to red could be clearly seen when 1,10‐phenanthroline‐dyed silk fabric was triggered by Fe(II) solution, but it showed no colour change when triggered by Cu(II), Mg(II), or Ca(II) solution. Moreover, 1,10‐phenanthroline‐dyed nylon, polyester, and cotton fabrics showed no obvious colour changes after triggering by Fe(II) solution. Ion concentration, pH value, and reaction time could affect the colour changes. When triggered by 8 mg l^?1 of Fe(II) solution at neutral pH for about 15 min, the ionochromic fabric showed a clear colour change. In addition, three coloured fabrics in green, blue, and yellow were also dyed with 1,10‐phenanthroline. It was found that they could also show clear colour changes when triggered by Fe(II) solution. These ionochromic fabrics may find broad application in many fields, such as Fe(II) detection, magic toys, anticounterfeiting materials, and bionic silk flowers.     

Improving the colour fastness of dyed nylon‐6 fabric by graft copolymerisation and curing of acrylic acid

The influence of grafting and grafting–curing of acrylic acid on the colour fastness of nylon‐6 fabric dyed with an acid dye of low wash fastness was investigated. The variables involved in grafting were initially optimised for pristine nylon‐6 fabric prior to grafting the same monomer onto the dyed fabrics. The highest graft yield achieved for the pristine and dyed nylon‐6 fabrics was 44 and 14% respectively. Grey scale testing and colorimetric analysis revealed that the highest colour fastness and the smallest drop in colour strength belonged to the dyed–grafted–cured nylon‐6 fabric. The colour components were measured, and the total colour difference of each sample after five washing cycles was computed. The specific colour difference showed that the implementation of either grafting or grafting–curing processes will alter the reference colour of the dyed fabric. The tensile strength of the grafted and grafted–cured fabrics was respectively 2.7 and 6.3% lower than that of dyed nylon‐6.     

The quasi‐yarn‐dyed effect: triple dyeing of woven polyester/cationic dyeable polyester/viscose rayon blend fabrics by chemical treatments in the laboratory and on a pilot and an industrial scale

The aim of this study was to carry out triple dyeing of woven polyester/cationic dyeable polyester/viscose rayon blend fabrics with the required colour fastness and physical properties. The feel and final appearance of the fabric were achieved by partial removal of the viscose rayon moiety of the fabric through optimised causticisation treatments. The results of the triple dyeings obtained from laboratory and small‐scale experiments were successfully scaled up in authentic processing equipment. The final product, which has a yarn‐dyed effect, readily satisfied the requirements related to the colour fastness and physical properties.     

An investigation of how the texture surface of a fabric influences its instrumental color

In this article, the influence of texture surface of a fabric on its instrumental color is investigated. While former studies have found it is difficult to establish a quantitative relationships between texture of fabric and its instrumental color (color difference and color attributes, such as lightness, chroma, and hue), this article investigates from a theoretical and empirical perspective the interaction between texture and color. Eighty four knitted cotton yarn dyed fabric samples in four color centers and 21 texture structures were used in this study. It is revealed that fabric samples with different texture surfaces define a set of lines with identical direction in the reflectance space, and thus the normalized reflectance curves of these samples are identical. In the CIEXYZ space, tristimulus values of these fabric samples define a line, and thus their chromaticity coordinates are constant. In the CIELAB space, however, linearity is lost due to the non‐linear transformation from the CIEXYZ space to the CIELAB space. The finding of this article has the potential to discount the influence of texture of a fabric on its color. Experiments show that the influence of texture on color for samples in the four color centers can be reduced by 79, 55, 71, and 57%, respectively comparing to the real measured color difference. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 40, 472–482, 2015     

Electrostatic self‐assembly dyeing of cotton fabrics

A new approach to the dyeing of cotton fabrics using an electrostatic self‐assembly method was evaluated. Cotton fabrics were pretreated with 2,3‐epoxypropyltrimethylammonuium chloride and cationic charges were produced on the fabric surfaces. For the dyeing of cotton fabric, reactive and acid dyes were used. Oppositely charged anionic reactive/acid dyes and cationic poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) were alternately deposited on the surface of cationised cotton fabrics. Ten multilayer films of dye/poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) were deposited on the cotton fabric surfaces using a padder. The build‐up of the multilayer films and the level of colour strength (K/S) achieved are discussed. Samples of cotton fabrics were also dyed with the same dyes, but using the exhaust method, and both types of dyed samples were compared. The washing, rubbing and light fastness properties were evaluated for the dyed fabrics.     

Comparative study of colour yield of cotton knitted fabric made by torque‐free ring‐spun yarns

Torque‐free ring spinning is a new spinning technology that has produced yarns with low twist and balanced torque. In this study, a commercially torque‐free ring‐spun yarn, namely Estex yarn, with three types of cotton fibre, i.e. Pima, upland and organic cotton, were used. Cotton fabric samples were knitted with Estex yarns and conventional ring‐spun yarns. The fabric samples were then dyed with two reactive dyes, Remazol Black B and Remazol Brilliant Blue R Spec., and the fabric dyeability was measured in terms of reflectance and colour yield. Finally, the results were analysed using the statistical software package SPSS and the results revealed that fabric samples manufactured by Estex yarns could achieve a better colour yield than conventional ring‐spun fabric samples. In addition, the Pima cotton gave the best colour yield, followed by upland cotton and organic cotton.     

The study of colour fastness of commercial microencapsulated photoresponsive dye applied on cotton,cotton/polyester and polyester fabric using a pad‐dry‐cure process

Commercial microencapsulated photoresponsive dye was applied on cotton, polyester/cotton and polyester fabric using a pad‐dry‐cure process. Colour fastness of the photoresponsive fabrics to washing, wet cleaning, dry cleaning, rubbing and light was investigated. The CIELAB colour values of the fabrics before and after testing were measured using a reflectance spectrophotometer, and the colour differences were calculated to evaluate the fastness properties. The fabrics had better colour fastness to wet cleaning and washing than to dry cleaning. The fabrics showed higher colour fastness to wet than to dry rubbing. The photoresponsiveness of the fabrics decreased with prolonged exposure time to artificial light due to low photostability of the microcapsules.     

Shade darkening effect of polyorganosiloxane modified with amino and hydroxy groups on dyed polyester microfiber fabric

The novel polyorganosiloxane material S‐101 modified with amino and hydroxy groups is synthesized. Shade darkening effect of modified polyorganosiloxane on dyed polyester microfiber fabric is investigated by reflectance spectrum, color yield (K/S), and the color differences (ΔE). The colorimetric data of CIELAB is discussed. The results show that the novel material of silicone polymer modified with amino and hydroxy groups has excellent shade darkening effect on dyed polyester microfiber fabric. The rates of the color yield increase (I%) of all dyed fabric with four dyes (Disperse Yellow S‐4RL, Red GS, Blue 2BLN, and Black SF‐R) exceed 10%. The shapes of the reflectance spectra curves of the dyed fabrics before and after treated with S‐101 are not noticeable change. The dyed fabrics with the polymer have not significant effect on the wash fastness and wet rubbing fastness. The low reflectance thin film on dyed fabrics is formed. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Use of a predictive colour model for managing the colour appearance of two‐colour woven fabrics

The aim of this study was to implement a two‐dimensional colour appearance model for prediction of the colour values of weft threads when the optical mixing of a two‐colour woven structure had to match the colour appearance of a single‐colour reference woven fabric. Five single‐colour woven fabrics were woven from five threads of similar hue. One of the samples was chosen as a reference, for which the colour appearance was the goal to be achieved in the two‐colour woven fabrics prepared with the other available warp threads and newly dyed weft threads. The colour values of dyed weft threads were predicted by a two‐dimensional colour appearance model. With dyed weft threads, managing the colour appearance of the two‐colour woven fabric was enabled to achieve the colour values of the reference. In the results, colour deviations between the predicted and measured colour values of weft threads revealed some limitations to the colour appearance model and performance of the dyeing process. After the production of the two‐colour woven fabric, the colour appearance matched the appearance of the reference, resulting in deviations of ΔE_CMC(2:1) = 1.2‐7.8. Moreover, the differences between theoretically predicted and measured colour values of the two‐colour woven fabric were evaluated as small, ranging from ΔE_CMC(2:1) = 1.5‐1.9. The results demonstrated the efficiency of implementing the colour appearance model and the dyeing process of weft threads as an approach to achieve the defined colour appearance of two‐colour woven fabrics, which with small colour deviations matches the colour of a single‐colour reference.     

A multispectral imaging approach to colour measurement and colour matching of single yarns without winding

This paper investigates a multispectral imaging approach to colour measurement and colour matching of single yarns. The small size of a single yarn makes it impossible for spectrophotometers directly to acquire its spectral reflectance. Multispectral imaging systems, on the other hand, have the potential to measure the reflectance of single yarns as they can record both the spectral and the spatial information of a sample. A multispectral imaging system, namely imaging colour measurement, has been developed to conduct colour measurement of single yarns. A single yarn is first detected from backgrounds by a modified K‐means clustering method. The reflectance of the single yarn is then specified by an averaging method. Comparative experiments based on 100 pairs of single yarns and corresponding yarn windings show that the reflectance magnitude of a single yarn acquired by imaging colour measurement is smaller than that of corresponding yarn winding measured by a Datacolor 650 spectrophotometer. Experiments on 16 single yarns show that the repeatability and spatial reproducibility of the imaging colour measurement system in measuring a single yarn colour are 0.1185 and 0.2827 CMC(2:1) units. A colour matching comparison experiment (pass or fail), using 24 pairs of single yarns and corresponding pairs of solid‐colour yarn dyed fabrics, shows that single yarns measured by imaging colour measurement can achieve similar colour matching results to solid‐colour yarn dyed fabrics measured by the Datacolor 650 spectrophotometer, with degrees of similarity of 87.5 and 83.3% when the CMC(2:1) and CIE2000(2:1:1) colour difference formulas are employed.     

One‐step dyeing of polyethylene terephthalate fabric,combining pretreatment and dyeing using alkali‐stable disperse dyes

In the conventional dyeing process, polyester and its blended fabrics are usually dyed in a weak acidic medium. In order to reduce cost and improve production efficiency, a new dyeing method – one‐step dyeing of polyethylene terephthalate fabrics, combining pretreatment and dyeing in alkali conditions – was investigated. The alkali‐stable disperse dyes Red 900, Red 902, Yellow BROB and Blue 825 were used to dye polyethylene terephthalate fabrics. The dyeing properties of polyethylene terephthalate fabrics in the case of one‐step dyeing at various pH values or sodium hydroxide concentrations were discussed in terms of colour yield, colour parameters and fastness. The performance of one‐step dyeing using alkali‐stable disperse dyes was excellent. The dyed fabric had good fastness. Wet processing could be combined and shortened. One‐step dyeing of polyethylene terephthalate fabrics could reduce the consumption of water and energy and improve production efficiency. One‐step dyeing of polyethylene terephthalate has potential application in cleaner textile production.     

Optimal yarn colour combination for full‐colour fabric design and mixed‐colour chromaticity coordinates based on CIE chromaticity diagram analysis

It is challenging for textile designers to achieve full‐colour effects in woven fabric using a limited set of coloured yarns. The common problems encountered during full‐colour fabric design include an insufficient number of colours and a failure to match the fabric colour with the desired colour. Using the theories of primary colours and optical colour mixing, we examine the mixed‐colour distribution of primary colour yarns on the basis of the CIE 1976 chromaticity diagram (CIE u′v′). In our experiment, dope‐dyed polyester filament yarns were selected as raw materials. Eight kinds of gradually varied weave structures and four types of primary colour combination were adopted in order to make different types of full‐colour fabric colour chart. Spectrophotometer and DigiEye colour measurement systems were selected to measure the reflectance and colour value of the fabric samples. By comparing the colour distribution of mixed fabrics in the CIE u′v′ diagram, the relationship between the primary colour combinations and the colour distribution of mixed fabrics is discussed. Of RGB, CMY, NCS, and RGBCMY combinations, only RGBCMY resulted in a relatively complete and large colour gamut. Moreover, the colour positions of mixed fabrics in the CIE u′v′ diagram were almost all distributed on or near the connecting line of the primary colour coordinates. The specific colour position of mixed fabrics in the CIE u′v′ diagram were mainly determined by the proportion of primary colours on the fabric surface. In this way, a new method for computing colour position in the CIE u′v′ diagram is introduced.     

Investigation into the effect of a plant‐derived stabiliser on the light and wash fastness of sulphur‐dyed cotton and nylon fabrics

In this study, cotton fabric and nylon fabric were dyed with a range of commercial sulphur dyes and the light and wash fastness of the coloured fabrics was investigated. The effect of after‐treating the coloured cotton and nylon fabrics with a tannin‐based commercial product, Bayprotect Cl, in the presence or absence of sodium sulphate in the treatment bath, was found to significantly improve the light fastness of the sulphur‐dyed cotton, and the photoprotective effect was partially stable to ISO 105‐C06 washing. In addition, the tannin‐based after‐treatment also improved the colour stability of the dyed fabrics to the perborate‐based ISO 105‐C06 washing. The possible mechanisms for the improved fastness properties are also discussed. The application of sulphur dyes to nylon is potentially commercially useful but has been limited because of the reported poor light fastness of the dyeings. The photoprotective effect of the tannin‐based after‐treatment was investigated with a view to providing the necessary commercial performance. However, it was established that on this fibre, the light fastness improvement was marginal, and the associated wash fastness to oxidative bleach‐based ISO 105‐C06 washing was limited.     

Atmospheric pressure plasma‐induced decolorisation of cotton knitted fabric dyed with reactive dye

The aim of this study was to investigate the decolorisation effect of atmospheric pressure plasma treatment on knitted fabrics dyed with reactive dyes under different processing parameters, ie, air concentration, treatment duration and water content. The fabrics were dyed with reactive dye of a blue colour, and the colour depths were 0.5%, 1.5% and 3.0% on weight of fabric. The colour properties of untreated and plasma‐treated fabric samples were evaluated by means of reflectance, K/S and relative unlevelness index. The colour properties were evaluated instrumentally and quantitatively in order to study the decolorisation effect induced by atmospheric pressure plasma treatment. Experimental results revealed that the desired decolorisation effect was heavily influenced by the atmospheric pressure plasma treatment processing parameters. Although the desired decolorisation effect could be obtained by controlling the processing parameters of the atmospheric pressure plasma treatment, the treatment did not provide any significant reduction in the bursting strength of the fabric.