Lagenbilderstellung für Rapportstoffe

A new algorithm for the solution of the marker making problem for patterned fabrics is presented. Marker making is an essential step in the process chain of cloth production. The main aim in the cutting process of fabrics is the minimization of waste. In the apparel industry cutting of patterned fabrics should be done under consideration of several constraints. An image processing system collects all necessary information about the repetition of the pattern on the fabric. This information is passed to the algorithm and a marker with acceptable yield for a given set of pattern parts is generated within a few minutes. There is no need for providing allowances, as they are used in the manual process of marker making. The new algorithm is based on the Nofit Polygon concept and a special raster representation of the configuration space. Main advantage of this raster representation is the simplification of geometrical calculations. The relevant topological properties of the configuration space are shown and their implications for the search of a solution are discussed.