2. Description of the Prior Art Generally, a perforated hose made of knitted PE fabric, known as a"gunny waterspout hose"is produced as follows: the weaved raw fabric is treated on both sides for coating, cut to a certain width, perforated, sprayed with adhesive along the lengthwise direction of the material, and pressed to form a long cylindrical hose shape.

A perforated hose made of LLDP vinyl, known as a"waterspout hose"is also produced as follows: the raw fabric is cut to a certain width, perforated, sprayed with adhesives along the lengthwise direction of the material, and pressed to form a long cylindrical hose shape.

The demand for various kinds of perforated hoses has sharply increased due to the expanding of green house cultivating area.

As a conventional method of perforating the surface of the hose, a mechanical roller with a plurality of perforating needles is used to press-punch the surface of the hose. However, such a mechanical perforating process has many problems due to the physical impact applied to the hose. The perforations produced by the mechanical process have tiny cracks at the edges of the holes. This can cause the hose to rupture when the pressure of the water supply is suddenly increased.

Because the raw fabric of PE knitted fabric known as"gunny bag"is weaved with horizontal and vertical lines of latitudes and longitudes, the holes perforated by the mechanical method have tiny cracks around the perforations. In particular, if the holes are passed through the intersecting points of longitudes and latitudes, the hose is more easily

ruptured during use.

Korean Patent Publication No. 1991-20177 discloses a perforating method to resolve this kind of problem utilizing a laser beam. According to the cited reference, the laser beam is passed through an interfacing lens using a reflecting mirror and the laser beam being passed through the interfacing lens irradiates to the polygonal reflecting mirror using another reflecting mirror. Then, the laser beam reflected by the polygonal reflecting mirror is concentrated on the hose to create holes.

However, this technology has a limitation that it is only able to perforate one series of holes aligned lengthwise along the surface of the hose. It is preferable that the perforation should be performed not only lengthwise along the hose, but also widthwise across the hose to have various patterns of the perforations, since various patterns of perforated hoses are required depending on the various kinds of cultivated crops and positions of the facilities in a greenhouse.

Furthermore, the conventional method for manufacturing a perforated hose has separate processes of manufacturing a hose and perforating the hose. The conventional facility for manufacturing a perforated hose must be separately equipped with a hose manufacturing and hole punching apparatus. Due to the separate process of manufacturing and perforating, the production process of the perforated hoses is complicated, inconvenient, inefficient, and time consuming with low productivity.

In order to solve the aforementioned problems, the first objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric, preventing a manufacturing defect even though PE knitted fabric is perforated, and forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The second objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric, preventing a manufacturing defect even though PE knitted fabric is perforated and forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The third objective of the present invention is to provide PE knitted perforated hose by

inducing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric and forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The fourth objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam- generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric, preventing a manufacturing defect by avoiding deviations leftward or rightward during the continuous movement of the elastic polymerized material and simultaneously maintaining the proper tension on the moving raw fabric for forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The fifth objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric hose, preventing a manufacturing defect by avoiding deviations leftward or rightward during the continuous movement of the elastic polymerized material and simultaneously maintaining the proper tension on the moving raw fabric for forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The sixth objective of the present invention is to provide the LLDP vinyl perforated hose by inducing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device lengthwise and widthwise along the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric and forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose which comprises: a roller for mounting a raw fabric roll, a printing unit for printing a label on a surface of the raw fabric released from the raw fabric roll, a perforating unit for perforating the printed raw fabric to form a plurality of holes by utilizing a laser beam, a hose forming unit for forming a long cylindrical shaped hose with the perforated and printed raw fabric, a final product reel for winding the final hose product, and a plurality of auxiliary rollers, wherein the perforating unit consists of a front and rear guide roller for

guiding raw fabric to easily carry out the perforating work, a laser generating unit for generating the laser beam, an x-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the lengthwise dimension of the raw fabric for reflecting the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit, a driving motor connected to the rotating x-axis of the reflecting mirror for synchronizing the rotation of the x-axis reflecting mirror with the transporting speed of the raw fabric, a y-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the widthwise dimension of the raw fabric for directing the laser beam reflected from the x-axis reflecting mirror to the surface of the raw fabric, and a step motor connected to the rotating y-axis of the reflecting mirror for step-rotating the y-axis reflecting mirror based on a certain pattern.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose in which the printing unit further comprises an engraved roller and a pressing roller for printing labels on the surface of the raw fabric, a paint retaining container for maintaining the paint or pigment wet on the surface of the engraved roller, and a scraper for scraping out the excess paint on the surface of engraved roller excluding the engraved portion. The perforating unit further comprises a telescope located between the laser beam emitting unit and the x-axis reflecting mirror for controlling the hole size by adjusting the diameter of laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit and a telecentric scan lens located between the y-axis reflecting mirror and the raw fabric for aligning the laser beam emitted from the y-axis reflecting mirror perpendicularly to the surface of the raw fabric. The hose forming unit further comprises a hose-shaped forming roller and a horizontal guide roller coordinated with each other for rolling up both edges of the flat raw fabric to form the long cylindrical shape of the hose, a plurality of auxiliary conical rollers, an adhesive spraying unit for spraying the adhesive material on the overlapping portion of raw fabric to form a hose shape, a sensor for detecting the deviation to the right or left of the raw fabric to form a hose shape, and a pair of pressing rollers for press-forming a hose shape with the raw fabric after applying the adhesives.

An objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose which comprises the steps of : printing labels by a printing unit on a surface of the raw fabric being released from a raw fabric roll, perforating the surface of the label- printed raw fabric to have holes with a certain pattern by inducing a concentrated laser beam being emitted from a laser generating unit and adjusting it lengthwise and widthwise across

the surface of the raw fabric, forming a long cylindrical hose-shape with the perforated raw fabric by a hose forming unit, and winding a final product of hose on the final product roll.

A further objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a PE knitted perforated hose comprising a step of perforating the surface of the PE raw fabric to have holes with a certain pattern by inducing a concentrated laser beam being emitted from a laser generating unit and adjusting it lengthwise and widthwise across the surface of the raw fabric.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose comprising: a roller for rotationally mounting a raw fabric roll, a compensating unit for simultaneously supporting and correcting a deviation of either rightward or leftward motion of the raw fabric being released from the raw fabric roll, a printing unit for printing a label on a surface of the raw fabric being adjusted for deviation by the compensating unit, a perforating unit for perforating the printed raw fabric to form a plurality of holes by utilizing a laser beam, a hose forming unit for forming a hose shape with the perforated and printed raw fabric, a final product roller for winding a final product of hose, and a plurality of auxiliary rollers. The perforating unit consists of a front and rear guide rollers for guiding transportation of the raw fabric to easily carry out the perforating work, a laser generating unit for generating the laser beam, an x-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the lengthwise dimension of the raw fabric for reflecting the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit, a driving motor connected to the rotating x-axis of the reflecting mirror for synchronizing the rotation of the x-axis reflecting mirror with the transporting speed of the raw fabric, a y-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the widthwise dimension of the raw fabric for directing the laser beam reflected from the x-axis reflecting mirror to the surface of the raw fabric, and a step motor connected to the rotating y- axis of the reflecting mirror for step-rotating the y-axis reflecting mirror based on a certain pattern.

Still another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose in which the compensating unit further comprises a frame installed for rotatably supporting the raw fabric roll and at the same time moving linearly perpendicular to the transporting direction of the raw fabric, a first sensor for detecting rightward or leftward deviation of the transporting raw fabric, and a driving unit for

correcting the deviation by moving the frame perpendicular to the transporting direction of the raw fabric. The printing unit further comprises an engraved roller and a pressing roller for printing labels on the surface of the raw fabric, a paint retaining container for maintaining the paint or pigment wet on the surface of the engraved roller, and a scraper for scraping out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller excluding the engraved portion. The perforating unit is further comprised of a telescope located between the laser beam emitting unit and the x-axis reflecting mirror for controlling the hole size by adjusting the diameter of the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit, and a telecentric scan lens located between the y-axis reflecting mirror and the raw fabric for aligning the laser beam emitted from the y-axis reflecting mirror perpendicularly to the surface of the raw fabric. The hose forming unit further comprises a hose-shape forming roller and a horizontal guide roller coordinated with each other for rolling up both edges of the flat raw fabric to form the long cylindrical shape of the hose, a plurality of auxiliary conical rollers, an adhesive spraying unit for spraying the adhesive material on the overlapping portion of the raw fabric to form a hose shape, a sensor for detecting the deviation to the right or left of the raw fabric to form a hose shape and a pair of pressing rollers for press-forming a hose shape with the raw fabric after applying the adhesives.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose comprising: a raw fabric roll, a tension maintaining unit to maintain a certain level of tension on the reeled out raw fabric from the raw fabric roll, a printing unit for printing labels on the surface of the raw fabric being maintained under tension by the tension maintaining unit, a perforating unit for perforating the printed raw fabric to form a plurality of holes by utilizing a laser beam, a hose forming unit for forming a hose shape with the perforated and printed raw fabric, a final product reel for winding a final product of hose, and a plurality of auxiliary rollers. The perforating unit comprises a front and rear guide roller for guiding the transportation of the raw fabric to easily carry out the perforating work, a laser generating unit for generating the laser beam, an x-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the lengthwise dimension of the raw fabric for reflecting the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit, a driving motor connected to the rotating x-axis of the reflecting mirror for synchronizing the rotation of x-axis reflecting mirror with the transporting speed of the raw fabric, a y-axis reflecting mirror rotationally installed along the

widthwise dimension of the raw fabric for directing the laser beam reflected from the x-axis reflecting mirror to the surface of the raw fabric and a step motor connected to the rotating y- axis of reflecting mirror for step-rotating the y-axis reflecting mirror based on a certain pattern.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose in which the tension maintaining unit further comprises a rotation measuring roller driven by the transported raw fabric, a rotation detecting sensor for detecting revolution of the rotation measuring roller and a brake unit for controlling the rotational speed of the raw fabric roll based on information detected by the rotation detecting sensor.

The printing unit (240) further comprises an engraved roller and a pressing roller for printing labels oh the surface of raw fabric, a paint retaining container for maintaining the paint or pigment wet on the surface of the engraved roller, and a scraper for scraping out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller excluding the engraved portion. The perforating unit further comprises a telescope located between the laser beam emitting unit and the x-axis reflecting mirror for controlling the hole size by adjusting the diameter of the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit and a telecentric scan lens located between the y-axis reflecting mirror and the raw fabric for aligning the laser beam emitted from the y-axis reflecting mirror perpendicularly to the surface of the raw fabric. The hose forming unit further comprises a hose-shape forming roller and a horizontal guide roller coordinated with each other for rolling up both edges of the flat raw fabric to form the long cylindrical shape of the hose, a plurality of auxiliary conical rollers, an adhesive spraying unit for spraying the adhesive material on the overlapping portion of the raw fabric to form a hose shape, a sensor for detecting the deviation to the right or left of the raw fabric to form a hose shape and a pair of pressing rollers for press-forming a hose shape with the raw fabric after applying the adhesives.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose which comprises the steps of : monitoring rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric while the raw fabric is reeled out from a raw fabric roll and sequentially passed through a first transporting roller and a first sensor, transmitting a signal to a driving unit when deviation is detected by the first sensor, correcting the detected rightward or leftward deviation of the moving raw fabric by adjusting a base rightward or leftward, which supports

the frame of the raw fabric roll, printing labels by a printing unit on the surface of raw fabric after correcting any deviation through the compensating stage, perforating the surface of the raw fabric to have pierced holes with certain patterns through the use of a concentrated laser beam emitted from a laser generating unit to induce lengthwise and widthwise across the surface of the raw fabric, and forming a long cylindrical hose-shape with the perforated raw fabric by a hose forming unit, and winding a final product of hose on the final product reel.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose which comprises the steps of : detecting the rotational speed of a rotation measuring roller driven by the reeled off raw fabric from a raw fabric roll, sensing the tension magnitude of the reeled off raw fabric from the raw fabric roll, determining whether the tension magnitude of the reeled off raw fabric has varied due to excessive reeled off raw fabric from the raw fabric roll, activating a brake unit to interrupt rotation of the raw fabric roll to adjust the amount of reeled-off raw fabric when the tension of the reeled off raw fabric is detected to be lower than that of normal operation due to excessive reeled off raw fabric, maintaining a certain level of tension in the reeled-off raw fabric from the raw fabric roll after releasing the brake unit when a certain level of tension is recovered, printing labels on the surface of the reeled-off raw fabric from the raw fabric roll by the printing unit while maintaining a certain level of tension, perforating the surface of the raw fabric to have pierced holes with certain patterns by using a concentrated laser beam irradiated from a laser generating unit to induce lengthwise and widthwise across the surface of the raw fabric, and forming a long cylindrical hose-shape with the perforated raw fabric by a hose forming unit, and winding a final product of hose on the final product reel.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a LLDP vinyl perforated hose comprising a step of perforating the surface of LLDP vinyl to have holes with a certain pattern by inducing a concentrated laser beam being emitted from a laser generating unit and adjusting its location lengthwise and widthwise across the surface of the LLDP vinyl.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is an overall structural schematic drawing illustrating an apparatus for

manufacturing a knitted perforated hose according to a first implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an important portion of the major structure illustrating an apparatus for manufacturing a knitted perforated hose according to a first implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 3 illustrates a perforating pattern on the surface of a knitted hose perforated by an apparatus according to a first implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is an overall structural schematic drawing illustrating an apparatus for manufacturing a vinyl perforated hose according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 5 illustrates a first sensor in the compensating unit of an apparatus for manufacturing a vinyl perforated hose according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 6 illustrates a sensor activation of an apparatus for manufacturing a vinyl perforated hose according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is an important portion of the major structure illustrating an apparatus for manufacturing a vinyl perforated hose according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 8 illustrates operation of an adhesives spraying unit of an apparatus for manufacturing a vinyl perforated hose according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

Fig. 9 illustrates a perforating pattern on the surface of a vinyl hose perforated by an apparatus according to a second implementing example of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIEMENT An apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose of the present invention is described in detail accompanied by the drawings as follows: FIRST IMPLEMENTING EXAMPLE : As shown in Fig. 1, an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose of the present invention comprises a raw fabric roll (110), a printing unit (140) for printing labels on the

surface of the raw fabric (101) reeled off from the raw fabric roll (110), a perforating unit (150) for perforating the surface of the raw fabric (101) to form a plurality of holes (lOla) with a certain pattern by inducing laser beams irradiated from a laser generating unit (152) lengthwise and widthwise on the surface of the raw fabric (101), a hose forming unit (160) to form a long cylindrical hose shape (102) with the raw fabric (101) and several auxiliary rollers (171-178).

The printing unit (140) further comprises an engraved roller (141) and a pressing roller (142) for printing labels on the surface of raw fabric (101), a paint retaining container (143) for maintaining the paint or pigment wet on the surface of the engraved roller (141), and a scraper (145) for scraping out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller (141) excluding the engraved portion.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the perforating unit (150) comprises front and rear guide rollers (151) for guiding the transportation of said raw fabric (101) to easily carry out the perforating work, a laser generating unit (152) for generating the laser beam, a telescope (153) for controlling the hole size (lOla), an x-axis reflecting mirror (154) rotationally installed along the lengthwise dimension of the raw fabric (101) for reflecting the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit (152), a driving motor (155) connected to the rotating x-axis of reflecting mirror (154) for synchronizing the rotation of the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) with the transporting speed of the raw fabric (101), a y-axis reflecting mirror (156) rotationally installed along the widthwise dimension of the raw fabric (101) for directing the laser beam reflected from the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) to the surface of the raw fabric (101), a step motor (157) connected to the rotating y-axis of the reflecting mirror (156) for step-rotating the y-axis reflecting mirror based on a certain pattern, and a telecentric scan lens (158) located between y-axis reflecting mirror (156) and raw fabric (101) for aligning the laser beam emitted from the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) perpendicularly to the surface of raw fabric (101).

The telescope (153) located between the laser beam emitting unit (152) and the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) is for controlling the hole size (lOla) by adjusting the diameter of the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit (152).

The x-axis reflecting mirror (154) located on the x-axis rotates along the x-z plane, while the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) located on the y-axis rotates along the y-z plane. Therefore,

the laser beam irradiated on the surface of the raw fabric (101) by reflecting through the x- axis reflecting mirror (154) and the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) and refracted through the telecentric scan lens (158) will perforate the raw fabric (101) with certain patterns to form a plurality of holes (lOla).

In other words, as the raw fabric (101) travels forward for perforating sequential holes (lOla), the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) that is synchronized with the traveling raw fabric (101) rotates along the rotating axis to continuously vary the reflecting angle of the laser beam. Thus, the laser beam is able to continuously irradiate a single spot through a fixed y- axis reflecting mirror (156) by tracking the motion of the raw fabric (101). The y-axis reflecting mirror (156) increases the reflecting angle in a stepwise fashion after every cycle of the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) in order to vary the location of the perforations (10 la) formed on the radial direction of the raw fabric (101). As a result, the perforations (lova) are formed in a spiral pattern instead of a linear pattern along the raw fabric (101).

Herein, it is desirable that the cycle of the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) is matched with the pulse duration of the laser beam.

As explained above regarding the perforating unit (150), it is possible to alter the pattern (101 a) of perforations on the raw fabric (101) by varying the number of step rotations of the y-axis reflecting mirror (156), the rotating angle per rotation, and the traveling speed of the raw fabric (101). As an example shown in Fig. 3, when the number of step rotations is set to four with a certain rotating angle, it is possible to obtain a set of four perforations (lOla) at different locations from each other.

A telecentric scan lens (158) installed between the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) and the raw fabric (101) controls the final incidence angle of the laser beam on the raw fabric (101) according to the variation of the incidence angle between the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) and the y-axis reflecting mirror_ (156). The incidence angle of the laser beam varies depending on the forming location of perforations (lOla) on the raw fabric (101). However, the telecentric scan lens (158) always makes the laser beam incident perpendicular to the surface of the raw fabric (101) regardless of the forming location of perforations (lOla) and enables a consistent size of focus to be obtained on the surface of the raw fabric (101). Thus, it is possible to form a constant size of hole (101 a) regardless of the forming location of the holes (lOla).

Since it is necessary to control the laser pulse, the transporting speed of the raw fabric and a driving motor (155) and a step motor (157) to drive the x-axis and y-axis reflecting mirrors (154,156) depending on the types of perforated hole patterns, it is possible to establish a PC-based control and operation system for easily performing the perforation through a graphical user interface which displays the pattern of perforations.

As shown in Fig. 1, a hose forming unit (160) for forming a long cylindrical hose shape comprises a hose forming roller (161) and a horizontal guide roller (162) coordinated with each other for rolling up both edges of the flat raw fabric to form the long cylindrical hose shape, a plurality of auxiliary conical rollers (163), an adhesive spraying unit (165) for spraying the adhesive material on the overlapping portion of raw fabric to form a hose shape, and a pair of pressing rollers (168) for press-forming a hose shape with the raw fabric after applying the adhesives.

The front-end of the adhesive spraying unit (165) is inserted between the overlapping portions of the raw fabric formed with a hose shape to spray the adhesives. A sensor (167) is for detecting the rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric to form a hose shape.

The sensor (167) is an optical sensor for illuminating both edges of the transporting raw fabric to detect rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric by measuring the shadow and brightness of the transporting raw fabric.

If a deviation of the raw fabric is detected by the sensor (167), a signal is transmitted to the adhesive spraying unit (165) and the front-edge of the adhesive spraying unit for adjusting the position to spray the adhesive on the correct position.

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing a perforated hose will be described in detail according to the first implementing example of this invention as follows: As shown in Fig. l, the raw fabric (101) reeled off from the raw fabric roll (110) is imprinted with labels on the surface as it passes through the printing unit (140). The pigment or paint in the container (143) will be smeared on the rotating engraved roller (141) to print on the surface of the hose. At this stage, a scraper (145) scrapes out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller (141) excluding the engraved portion for printing a clear trademark.

As shown in Fig. 2, a set of perforations is formed on the raw fabric with a constant pattern by the laser beam while the raw fabric travels leftward to rightward underneath the

perforating unit (150).

A laser beam emitted from a laser-generating unit (152) has an optimal diameter as it passes through the telescope (153). The laser beam, having passed through the telescope (153) and been reflected by the x-axis and y-axis reflecting mirrors, (154,156) is condensed upon the surface of the raw fabric of the hose (101) by passing through a condensing lens of the telecentric scan lens (158).

The x-axis reflecting mirror (154) has the function of inducing the laser beam in the direction of travel of the raw fabric (101) through the operation of a driving motor (155). The rotating velocity of the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) is controlled to exactly synchronize with the traveling speed of the raw fabric (101) in order to form a circular shape of the projected laser beam on the surface of the raw fabric (101), instead of an elliptical shape.

Further, the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) is repeatedly paused and rotated a step according to the operation of a step motor (157) to irradiate the laser beam onto the designated locations to generate the proper number of holes across the width of the fabric for each cycle of the pattern.

As explained, when a pulse of the laser beam is emitted from the laser generating unit (152) during the pause of the y-axis reflecting mirror, a laser pulse-ON signal and simultaneously a driving signal to the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) are activated to operate the driving motor (155). Then, the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) starts to rotate and reflects the laser beam processing along the traveling direction of the raw fabric (101) during the period of the laser pulse. Through this process, a pierced hole (lOla) is perforated on the surface of the raw fabric (101).

When the laser beam is no longer emitting, the driving motor (155) starts to rotate in reverse to return the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) to its initial position, and the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) advances one step by operating the step motor (157) to prepare for creating a hole (101a) at the next location.

When it is ready to perforate the next hole (lOla), a pulse of the laser beam emitted from the laser-generating unit (152) is tracked along with the x-axis reflecting mirror (154) to perforate the next hole (lOla) at the next location. This process is continuously repeated during each cycle of the pattern, then the y-axis reflecting mirror (156) is returned to the initial position by operation of the step motor (157) to prepare for the next.

The perforated raw fabric is formed into a hose-shape while it is continuously passing through the hose forming unit (160). The hose forming unit, (160) consisting of a hose forming roller (161) and a horizontal guide roller (162), rolls up both edges of the raw fabric to overlap both edges of the forming hose through the action of multiple conical rollers (133) installed downstream of the raw fabric.

The adhesive is sprayed from the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (165) onto the folded and overlapping portion of the raw fabric. It is desirable to use PE adhesive as the adhesive but the claim ( ?) is not limited to the use of PE adhesives.

When the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (165) is inserted between the overlapping areas of the raw fabric for spraying the adhesive, and if the raw fabric forming a hose has deviated rightward or leftward, it causes a manufacturing defect. Therefore, the hose forming unit (160) is equipped with a sensor (167) for detecting the deviation of the raw fabric rightward or leftward to correctly spray the adhesives on the overlapping areas and avoid the manufacturing defect.

The aforementioned sensor (167) is an optical sensor for illuminating both edges of the transporting raw fabric to detect rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric by measuring the shadow and brightness of the transporting raw fabric. When a deviation of the raw fabric is detected by the sensor (167), a signal is transmitted to the adhesive spraying unit (165) and the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (166) starts to spray the adhesive on the correct position by moving rightward or leftward.

The raw fabric with the adhesive applied on the folded portion passes through a pair of pressing rollers (168) to form a hose shape. The final product of perforated hose is wound on a reel (119) and transported for storage.

As mentioned above, the apparatus and method for manufacturing a perforated hose according to the first implementing example of the present invention produces a PE knitted perforated hose with various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose raw fabric by inducing a laser beam emitted from the laser generating device lengthwise and widthwise the hose raw fabric to concentrate on the surface of the hose raw fabric.

SECOND IMPLEMENTING EXAMPLE: As shown in Fig. 4, the second apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose according to the second implementing example of the present invention comprises: a raw fabric roll

(210), a compensating unit (220) for simultaneously supporting and correcting any rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric being reeled off from the raw fabric roll (210), a tension maintaining unit (230) to maintain a certain level of tension in the reeled-off raw fabric from the raw fabric roll (210), a printing unit (240) for printing labels on the surface of the raw fabric (201) being corrected for deviation by the compensating unit (220) and maintained in tension by the tension maintaining unit (230), a perforating unit (250) for forming a plurality of perforations (201a) on the surface of the printed raw fabric (101) with a certain pattern by inducing a concentrated laser beam being emitted from a laser generating unit (152) and adjusting the beam lengthwise and widthwise along the surface of the raw fabric (101), a hose forming unit (260) for forming a hose shape with said perforated and printed raw fabric (201), a final product reel (219) for winding a final product of hose, and a plurality of auxiliary rollers (271-278).

The compensating unit (220) comprises a frame (223) installed for rotatably supporting said raw fabric roll (210) and at the same time moving linearly perpendicular to the transporting direction of the raw fabric (201), a first sensor (225) for detecting rightward or leftward deviation of the transporting raw fabric (201), and a driving unit (226) for correcting the deviation by moving the frame (223) perpendicular to the transporting direction of the raw fabric (201).

As shown in Fig. 4, a pair of parallel guide rails (222) is installed above the base (221) laid on the floor and transverse to the traveling direction of the raw fabric (201). A frame (223) having multiple wheels (224) and a motor (226) as a driving means is mounted upon the pair of parallel guide rails (222) for traveling. The driving means (226) consists of a motor, a rack and pinion gear set driven by the motor and a hydraulic cylinder. A pair of transporting rollers (227) and multiple auxiliary rollers (271,272, 273) are installed on the frame (223) to assist in transporting the raw fabric (201).

As shown in Fig. 5, the first sensor (225), formed in the shape of a'U'is installed on the base (221) or on a bottom plate. An opening is provided at the center of the first sensor (225) for the transporting raw fabric (201) to pass through. The first sensor (225) is an optical sensor as shown in Fig. 6, for illuminating the light to both edges of the transporting raw fabric to detect rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric by measuring the shadow and brightness of the transporting raw fabric. When a deviation of the raw fabric is

detected by the sensor (225), a signal is transmitted to the driving means (226) for correcting the deviation of the transporting raw fabric by adjusting rightward or leftward the base (221) of the frame (223) supporting the raw fabric roll (210).

As shown in Fig. 4, a tension maintaining unit (230) is further composed of a rotation measuring roller (231) driven by the transported raw fabric (201), a rotation detecting sensor (233) for detecting the revolution of the rotation measuring roller (231) and a brake unit (235) for controlling the rotational speed of the raw fabric roll (210) based on information detected by said rotation detecting sensor (233).

A printing unit (240) as shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 6, is further composed of an engraved roller (241) and a pressing roller (242) for printing labels on the surface of the raw fabric (201), a paint retaining container (243) for maintaining the wet paint or pigment on the surface of the engraved roller (241), and a scraper (245) for scraping out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller (241) excluding the engraved portion.

As shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 7, the perforating unit (250) is composed of a front and rear guide roller (251) for guiding the movement of the raw fabric (201) to easily carry out the perforating work, a laser generating unit (252) for generating the laser beam, a telescope (253) through which the emitted laser beam passes for controlling the diameter of emitted laser beam, an x-axis reflecting mirror (254) rotationally installed along the lengthwise dimension of the raw fabric (201) for reflecting the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit (252), a driving motor (255) connected to the rotating x-axis of the reflecting mirror (254) for synchronizing the rotation of the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) with the transporting speed of the raw fabric (201), a y-axis reflecting mirror (256) rotationally installed along the widthwise dimension of the raw fabric (201) for directing the laser beam reflected from the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) to the surface of the raw fabric (201), a step motor (257) connected to the rotating y-axis of the reflecting mirror (256) for step-rotating the y-axis reflecting mirror based on a certain pattern, a telescope (253) located between the laser beam emitting unit (252) and x-axis reflecting mirror (254) for controlling the hole size (201a) by adjusting the diameter of the laser beam emitted from the laser generating unit (252) and a telecentric scan lens (258) located between the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) and the raw fabric (201) for aligning the laser beam reflected from the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) perpendicularly to the surface of the raw fabric (201).

The telescope (253) is for controlling the diameter of the laser beam, that is, the size of focus, based on the size of the holes (201a) to be created on the raw fabric (201).

The x-axis reflecting mirror (254) located on the x-axis rotates along the x-z plane, while the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) located on the y-axis rotates along the y-z plane.

Therefore, the laser beam irradiated onto the surface of the raw fabric (201) by reflecting through the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) and the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) and refracted through the telecentric scan lens (258) will perforate the raw fabric (201) with a certain pattern to form a plurality of holes (201a). hi other words, as the raw fabric (201) travels forward for perforating sequential holes (201a), the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) that is synchronized with the traveling raw fabric (201) rotates along the rotating axis to continuously vary the reflecting angle of the laser beam. Thus, the laser beam is able to continuously irradiate a single spot through a fixed y- axis reflecting mirror (256) by tracking the motion of the raw fabric (201). The y-axis reflecting mirror (256) increases the reflecting angle in a stepwise fashion after every cycle of the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) in order to vary the location of the perforations_ (201a) formed on the radial direction of the raw fabric (201). As a result, the perforations (201a) are formed in a spiral pattern instead of a linear pattern along the raw fabric (201).

Herein, it is desirable that the cycle of the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) is matched with the pulse duration of the laser beam.

As explained above regarding the perforating unit (250), it is possible to alter the pattern (201 a) of perforations on the raw fabric (201) by varying the number of step rotations of the y-axis reflecting mirror (256), the rotating angle per rotation, and the traveling speed of the raw fabric (201). As an example shown in Fig. 9, when the number of step rotations is set to four with a certain rotating angle, it is possible to obtain a set of four perforations (201a) at different locations from each other.

A telecentric scan lens (258) installed between the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) and the raw fabric (201) controls the final incidence angle of the laser beam on the raw fabric (201) according to the variation of the incidence angle between the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) and the y-axis reflecting mirror (256). The incidence angle of the laser beam varies depending on the forming location of perforations (201a) on the raw fabric (201). However, the telecentric scan lens (258) always makes the laser beam incident perpendicular to the

surface of the raw fabric (201) regardless of the forming location of perforations (201a) and enables a consistent size of focus to be obtained on the surface of the raw fabric (201). Thus, it is possible to form a constant size of hole (201a) regardless of the forming location of perforations (201a).

Since it is necessary to control the laser pulse, the transporting speed of the raw fabric and a driving motor (255) and a step motor (257) to drive the x-axis and y-axis reflecting mirrors (254,256) depending on the types of perforated hole patterns, it is possible to establish a PC-based control and operation system for easily performing the perforation through a graphical user interface which displays the pattern of perforations.

As shown in Fig. 4, a hose forming unit (260) for forming a long cylindrical hose shape comprises a hose forming roller (261) and a horizontal guide roller (262) coordinated with each other for rolling up both edges of the flat raw fabric to form the long cylindrical hose shape, a plurality of auxiliary conical rollers (263), an adhesive spraying unit (265) for spraying the adhesive material on the overlapping portion of raw fabric to form a hose shape, and a pair of pressing rollers (268) for press-forming a hose shape with the raw fabric after applying the adhesives.

As shown in Fig. 8, the front-end of the adhesive spraying unit (265) is inserted between the overlapping portions of the raw fabric formed with a hose shape to spray the adhesives. A second sensor (267) is for detecting the rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric to form a hose shape in the same manner as the first sensor of the compensating unit (220).

The second sensor (267) is an optical sensor for illuminating both edges of the transporting raw fabric to detect rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric by measuring the shadow and brightness of the transporting raw fabric.

If a deviation of the raw fabric is detected by the second sensor (267), a signal is transmitted to the adhesive spraying unit (265) and the front-edge of the adhesive spraying unit (266) for adjusting the position to spray the adhesives on the correct position, as shown in Fig. 8.

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing a perforated hose will be described in detail according to the second implementing example of this invention as follows: Referring to Fig. 4, the raw fabric (201) being released from the raw fabric roll (210) is

monitored as to whether the raw fabric (201) deviates rightward or leftward while it is sequentially passing through a first transporting roller (227) and a first sensor (225). When a deviation is detected by the first sensor, a signal is transmitted to the driving unit (226) to correct the deviation of the transporting raw fabric (201) by adjusting a base (221) of the frame (223) rightward or leftward.

A rotation measuring roller (231) of the tension-maintaining unit (230) is rotated by the transporting raw fabric (201) while the raw fabric (201) is continuously reeled off and passed through the rotation measuring roller (231). If the raw fabric (201) is excessively reeled off from the raw fabric roll (210), the magnitude of the tension of the raw fabric (201) is decreased. In this case, the rotation-measuring roller (231) will lose rotational velocity or slow down. The rotation-detecting sensor (233) detects such a variation and activates a brake unit (235). The brake unit (235) interrupts the rotation of the raw fabric roll (210) to prevent the excessive release of raw fabric (201). When a certain level of required tension is recovered, the brake unit (235) is released to resume the release of raw fabric (201) from the raw fabric roll (210). Through such a process, the required level of tension is maintained for transporting the raw fabric (201).

The raw fabric (101) which is corrected for deviations by the compensation unit (220) and maintained under the required tension by the tension maintaining unit (230) is imprinted with labels on the surface while it is passing through the printing unit (241). The pigment or paint in the container (243) is smeared on the rotating engraved roller (241) to print on the surface of the hose. At this stage, a scraper (245) scrapes out the excess paint on the surface of the engraved roller (241) excluding the engraved portion for printing a clear trademark.

As shown in Fig. 7, a set of perforations is formed on the raw fabric with a constant pattern by the laser beam as the raw fabric travels leftward to rightward underneath the perforating unit (250).

A laser beam emitted from a laser-generating unit (252) has an optimal diameter as it passes through the telescope (253). The laser beam, having passed through the telescope (253) and been reflected by the x-axis and y-axis reflecting mirrors, (254,256) is condensed upon the surface of the raw fabric of the hose (201) by passing through a condensing lens of the telecentric scan lens (258).

The x-axis reflecting mirror (254) has the function of inducing the laser beam in the

direction of travel of the raw fabric (201) through the operation of a driving motor (255). The rotating velocity of the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) is controlled to exactly synchronize with the traveling speed of the raw fabric (201) in order to form a circular shape of the projected laser beam on the surface of the raw fabric (201), instead of an elliptical shape.

Further, y-axis reflecting mirror (256) is repeatedly paused and rotated a step according to the operation of a step motor (257) to irradiate the laser beam onto the designated locations to generate the proper number of holes across the width of the fabric for each cycle of the pattern.

As explained, when a pulse of the laser beam is emitted from the laser generating unit (252) during the pause of the y-axis reflecting mirror, a laser pulse-ON signal and simultaneously a driving signal to the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) are activated to operate the driving motor (255). Then, the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) starts to rotate and reflects the laser beam processing along the-traveling direction of the raw fabric (201) during the period of the laser pulse. Through this process, a pierced hole (201a) is perforated on the surface of the raw fabric (201).

When the laser beam is no longer emitting, the driving motor (255) starts to rotate in reverse to return the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) to its initial position, and the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) advances one step by operating the step motor (257) to prepare for creating a hole (201a) at the next location.

When it is ready to perforate the next hole (201a), a pulse of laser beam emitted from the laser-generating unit (252) is tracked along with the x-axis reflecting mirror (254) to perforate the next hole (201a) at the next location. This process is continuously repeated during each cycle of the pattern, then the y-axis reflecting mirror (256) is returned to the initial position by operation of the step motor (257) to prepare for the next cycle.

As shown in Fig. 4, the perforated raw fabric is formed into a hose-shape while it is continuously passing through the hose forming unit (260). The hose forming unit (260), consisting of a hose-shape forming roller (261) and a horizontal guide roller, (262) rolls up both edges of the raw fabric to overlap both edges of the forming hose through the action of multiple conical rollers (233) installed downstream of the raw fabric.

As shown in Fig. 8, the folded raw fabric is processing from leftward to rightward.

The adhesive is sprayed from the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (265) onto the folded and

overlapping portion of the raw fabric. It is desirable to use PE adhesive as the adhesive but the claim ( ?) is not limited to the use of PE adhesives.

When the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (265) is inserted between overlapping areas of the raw fabric for spraying the adhesive, and if the raw fabric forming a hose has deviated rightward or leftward, it causes a manufacturing defect. Therefore, the hose forming unit (260) is equipped with a second sensor (267) for detecting the deviation of the raw fabric rightward or leftward to correctly spray the adhesive on the overlapping areas and avoid the manufacturing defect in the same manner as the first sensor (225) of the compensating unit (220).

The aforementioned second sensor (267) is an optical sensor for illuminating both edges of the transporting raw fabric to detect rightward or leftward deviation of the raw fabric by measuring the shadow and brightness of the transporting raw fabric. When a deviation of the raw fabric is detected by the second sensor (267), a signal is transmitted to the adhesives spraying unit (265) and the tip of the adhesive spraying unit (266) starts to spray the adhesive on the correct position by moving rightward or leftward as shown by the arrow in Fig. 8.

The raw fabric with the adhesive applied on the folded portion passes through a pair of pressing rollers (268) to form a hose shape. The final product of perforated hose is wound on a reel (219) and transported for storage.

According to the present invention as disclosed above, it is possible to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the surface of the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric, preventing a manufacturing defect even though PE knitted fabric is perforated and forming various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The present invention is also to provide PE knitted perforated hose by inducing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device lengthwise and widthwise along the surface of the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric and forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a perforated hose by utilizing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device, inducing the laser beam lengthwise and widthwise along the surface of the hose to concentrate on the surface of the

raw fabric, preventing a manufacturing defect by avoiding the deviations leftward or rightward during the continuous transport of the elastic polymerized material and simultaneously maintaining the proper tension for the transporting raw fabric material for forming the various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

The present invention is to provide the LLDP vinyl perforated hose by inducing a laser beam emitted from a laser beam-generating device lengthwise and widthwise along the surface of the hose to concentrate on the surface of the raw fabric and forming various patterns of perforations on the surface of the hose.

Accordingly, it is possible to produce the various patterns of perforated hoses by utilizing the laser beam directed by two reflecting mirrors mounted on the two axes and a telecentric scan lens.