Texture retention after fabric-to-fabric abrasion

Changes in appearance brought about by mechanical abrasion may be evaluated with respect to changes in image texture properties, e.g., periodicity. This paper discusses the application of gray-scale image analysis to texture periodicity measurements in fabrics. The techniques described are appropriate for "ordered" textures with relatively well defined features such as the Miratec® class of fabrics. Our samples consist of three sets, a woven twill, a Miratec (nonwoven) twill, and a loosely bonded herringbone hydroentangled nonwoven. In general, our data show that mechanical wear may result in a decrease in texture definition and a tendency toward randomness. The Miratec fabric shows that at the same level of wear, the structure retains its appearance and exhibits no loss of texture.