CONGRATULATIONS! That's great to hear your campaign was a success. I'm really looking forward to the day when the machines will be available in Australia. In the meantime I shall enjoy wearing my scarf and dreaming/designing all the items that I'll create when I have my machine.
I'd love to have the black and white scarf and please let me know when you'd like shipping details.
@Creator - Deletion of my comments on the 24th April and 25th April: did you ask Kickstarter to remove these comments? Or did Kickstarter delete these of their own volition? Am trying to establish whether there was any collusion.
Hi @Khalid Adil, the software will come with templates with standard sizes as you mention, from baby to adult sizes. From there, you’ll be able to knit them as they are or adjust them to your needs before.
Hi @Rom and @dane, as you mention this is information in the public domain and we have taken the time to reply to those concerns throughout this section and our website.
My questions are about the various incarnations of the project. Openknit, Knitterbot and Kniterate: all similar names, same idea and same people.
Here is a summary:
1. Openknit seems to have been an Open Source project which was then incorporated into a commercial company called Knitterbots in London.
2. Knitterbot (www.knitterbot.com) was launched in 2015 after raising investment, prestigious advisers, cooperation with London University, and received praise from the founder of Makerbot and others.
3. Then, suddenly, the founder, director and largest shareholder quits Knitterbots and starts another company, Kniterate, for the same idea and with the same team, and simply gives the explanation that the previous company 'didn't work out'.
All of the above information is in the public domain. If something looks like a Phoenix Company, acts like a Phoenix Company....it probably is a Phoenix Company - a company 'that rises from the ashes of a previous company with same individuals, same business, under a different name'. Such companies are started by individuals who usually (not always) have done something questionable.
@dane, I couldn't agree with you more. I also love the Kniterate vision, but, I can't understand the story of the team. You eloquently capture the conflict between Kickstarter's 'buyer beware' policy and its desire to make money:
"So if caveat emptor is the modus operandi of KickStarter...."
"But, when KickStarter took away the only protection a backer has (asking hard questions), it makes me wonder if their priority to make money now outweighs any other concern--especially to the backers."
Deleting legitimate questions by Kickstarter opens up a potential financial liability for Kickstarter Corp for this project (and other projects). So, backers could, in principle, launch a class action lawsuit against Kickstarter for all monies pledged to this campaign (lets say $650K), if this campaign fails to deliver on its promise, and so can backers of all other failed Kickstarter projects, resulting in $millions of potential financial liabilities to Kickstarter.
I will repost my concerns of this project again (in next post), and hope that Kickstarter does not delete this and my new post.
Will the kniterate design software include templates for different size garments (i.e. a standard sizing for S/M/L/XL men's and women's shirts/socks and other knitwear). A machine like this is amazing for more custom measurements, but I know some customers would much rather prefer to tick a box rather than get measured.
@Rom, I am also both confused and concerned that KickStarter policing would remove your valid questions. It was because of their actions that I didn't pledge for the actual Kniterate machine, but opt to wait until it's in full successful production before even considering to buy one. I really do think the Kniterate is a very cool piece of tech and would love to try my hand at having a small online knitting store; scarfs and beanies, etc. But, instead of letting the creator answer some important albeit perhaps uncomfortable questions, KickStarter intervened and removed your questions which leaves us to wonder why. It is KickStarter's policy not to protect the monetary investment of the backers, and if a campaign fails it is the sole responsibility of the creator to explain why, and reimburse any money to the backers...which seldom happens. So, if caveat emptor is the modus operandi of KickStarter then it is up to the backers to ask the hard questions from the creators, that if they can't be answered to appropriate satisfaction, might risk the funding of a campaign and KickStarter's subsequent percentage of the money. Since KickStarter states emphatically that they are not a store, and refuses to share the risk when a campaign fails, then they should stop looking at campaigns that have reached their funding goal as an investment and prevent backers from asking questions that might impact their earnings once the funding period ends. I have lost backer money to campaigns that have been very successful only to have the creators fail to produce the product. Some creators such as "MITO" are very honest and forthright about their difficulties in bring the product to market, while others such as "Jackfish" and "The Best Workout Shirt Ever Made" simply take the money and disappear. Now, I am a Super Backer and have backed over 100 campaigns so that shows my support for the whole crowd funding movement and the KickStarter platform. But, when KickStarter took away the only protection a backer has (asking hard questions), it makes me wonder if their priority to make money now outweighs any other concern--especially to the backers.
I am puzzled why my questions were deleted by Kickstarter, but, glad another member picked them up @Fredrik Karl Österlin. I was asking very valid questions about the track-record of the Team. Are you trying to hide sometime? Why would you delete very valid comments/questions?
Hi @Tia Butler, thanks for your interest.
The process is quite straight forward. Make the design in your favorite design tool having in mind a couple of things:
1. one pixel equals to one stitch
2. use flat colors (no anti-aliasing)
Export the image to PNG and open it with our custom software. There you have to decide which color is used in every feeder and some parameters like speed, stitch density, take-down roller rotation, etc. Then the software will turn the image into machine instructions ready to be fed to the machine.
Thanks.
Can you guys make a video about the process of using something like photoshop to create a design that can be converted into readable Kniterate machine code? Basically the same process used for the Kniterate sweater and the Degen collaboration.
As a small designer like Degen, I feel like this is how I would use the machine the most.
Thank you! We can’t wait to deliver our product to Australia given the incredible response from our community there. At the moment we are a small company, that’s slowly growing, and before getting into a new market we need to learn more about it. At the moment delivering Kniterate and providing support to our customers in North America and Europe will be our focus.
Join our newsletter to be on the know of when we get into new markets Kniterate!
Thanks @Fredrik Karl Österlin!
1. We have tested this feature with a couple of samples in a row and it works nicely. We will fully implement it, so many pieces can be created at one go.
2. Yes it’s possible to add a text or picture to a beanie but it has to be knitted flat, with the edges sewn afterwards. The design app will come with a template so you can easily design it.
3. Gerard Rubio resigned his position as a director there in September 21, 2015. He offered in good faith to return all of his shares, free of charge, but the company has yet to file its paperwork.
4. We don’t know, but there doesn’t seem to be any further product development.
Kniterate was developed with our partner in China. They have over 30 years of experience building industrial knitting machines. The success of this Kickstarter proves that we are the first to create something new in this product space, with quality knitwear samples and exciting content.
HAX teams have not failed to deliver. We have an outstanding reputation behind us with partners, mentors and other teams that have consistently executed on their Kickstarter promises. Here you can see the successes that precedes us: https://www.kickstarter.com/pages/hax (yes! It’s amazing!)
@Gerard Rubio
Thanks for the six color sample on the update - very cool!
Can't wait for it to be delivered. I've been following your work since the OpenKnit days, so it's very cool to see this project go live. Can't wait to see it in person, but I'm hoping to catch the Live Stream. Congratulations again!
Hi Kniterate!
Congratulations to your awesome machine! I got some questions..
# Is it possible to make the Kniterate machine produce more then one garment in a row? That would be a BIG advantage. Then it could produce a couple of beanies during the night for example.
# Is it possible to add text/picture to a beanie? Or only bigger garments?
# Also I wonder why you are the largest shareholder of another company pursuing the same goal as Kniterate?
We describe approximate costs in the tab "Shipping" of our FAQ: http://bit.ly/2mV47BY
This is based on information provided by DHL, our experienced shipping partner. We will work hard to minimize those costs as much as we can during the next months.
Thank you @Ella Talbot!
You are right about a missing sample with six colors! We are working on it and we will upload it to the page soon. We will let you know. Thanks!
Hi, Kniterators!
Congratulations on your project - it's super cool. I am a textile designer and I'm really excited about your machine. It will be great for making intricate patterns and for experimenting. One thing: you say you can use six colours per row, but I haven't seen any examples of this - sorry if I'm mistaken! Would you be able to show us an example of this? It would be helpful to see it in action.
Thanks & congratulations again!
Hi @Rom! Yes, there have been cases of Kickstarter campaigns that didn’t go as expected, but this has not been the case with SOSV investments and HAX accelerated companies.
We have worked relentlessly and there is plenty of documentary evidence to support our journey. Since we started our adventures at HAX earlier last year to living in the industrial knitting machine factory. You can read all of it here: medium.com/@Kniterate
An hour ago we were even featured on a Fast Company article which describes how far back our history goes with this platform: https://www.fastcompany.com/40407874/kickstarter-wants-to-be-more-than-an-electronics-store We have also been working since our inception with advisors that trust us. With this project we have put our reputation at stake, and it carries our names everywhere. Journalists have visited us and seen the machine working. We even had a launch party where almost 60 people interacted with Kniterate.
OpenKnit was never a commercial project, it’s part of the public domain, for everyone to use. Kniterate learned from its past experiences and partnered with an industrial knitting machine manufacturer in China. We see that as an incredible success!
We’ve kept an open door to our company and our personal lives and that’s why this community has trusted us with their money. We get phone calls and emails every day of people who care about what we are doing. Their support has been immense and all the work we are doing is to deliver Kniterate to them.
You will get your Kniterate machine, we wouldn’t have it any differently!
I read history of your project. Openknit, Knitterbot and Kniterate: all similar names, same idea and same people. If I’m backing Kniterate why would it work out this time? Will Kickstarter give me an assurance that I will get my money back, if it doesn’t work out?
Hey @Rom! I only work for Kniterate. You can read more about my all my previous work at: http://www.kniterate.com/index.php/about/ Kniterate is the direct result of work stemming from my project OpenKnit, started in 2013 and supported by our investor SOSV. Much of the content on the website you have shared is erroneous, misleading and easily disproved. If you want to know more get in touch! info@kniterate.com Thank you.
Hello everyone,
Your feedback has helped us realize that there wasn’t enough documentation showing the machine in action. We have updated the campaign page and the FAQ with more details. Please keep pointing us to content that needs improvement. If there is something you want us to try and/or you want to see in a video please let us know, we will do our best to do it within the available time.
Hi @KRS, uploaded a video of the full process of making the reward scarf as requested.
Hi @dane, the beanie we are showing in the video is made in one go. Video uploaded that shows the entire process. A beanie with more than one color could be done in one go as well but with some pattern limitations to short floats, if you want total pattern freedom or different types of stitches it would require to be knitted flat, with the edges sewn afterwards.
Hi @Rom, our machine can make some small garments ready to be used, like the beanie I just mentioned. Shima Seiki machines are great and can do a larger variety of pieces ready to be used, although, as you point out, those machine can be to 20 times more expensive than a Kniterate machine (at the price of the campaign).
Thank you, Is the invention closer to the wholegarments machines from Shimaseeki? Which looks more expensive than your machine. http://www.shimaseiki.com/wholegarment/
Hi @Khalid Adil, designing a sweater requires 5 pieces: front, back, sleeves and collar (image in the project page). The software can prepare the files and the machine can knit them entirely, but it can’t assemble them. There are several ways to do this: by hand, which will take several hours and requires some skill; with a linker, which is faster but could still take an hour or so; and with an overlocker (similar to a sewing machine), which is faster but will not produce a high quality finish as with the other two methods. Another option is to take it to a seamstress to do it for you. If you own a small business selling sweaters or other multi-part garments then a linking machine or overlocker will pay for itself by increasing your productivity.
We will publish an extended guide and Youtube tutorials with all these possibilities so you can do this successfully for the first time. None of this work is difficult but it can be time-consuming.
Some previous posts have mentioned lots of "post processing" that needs to be done to get a garment ready-to-wear after the knitting process is complete. How much of this would be required to produce durable, quality goods?
How hard would you say creating a sweater would be for someone with little to no experience working with fabric (no real sewing or knitting experience)?
Thanks @Rom.
The main difference between a Kniterate machine and a domestic one (like the SilverReed SK 840) is that all the processes are automated and that it has six yarn feeders. We’ve finally come up with a flawless integration between a computer and a desktop knitting machine and we’ve added a bunch of mechanisms to automate all the process, from casting on and casting/binding off, to shaping and making many types of stitches.
This edge comes mainly from an element that domestic machines lack: transfer needles, combined with the ability to individually control every single needle of both needle beds and other automated mechanisms like racking or a roller. It suddenly opens an amazing range of possibilities!
Congratulations on the invention! How does your machine compare with SilverReed SK 840 Knitting machine (http://www.silverreed.com/silver_machines.php)? I assume yours is more modern and can also knit both sides?
I am going to be using the Kniterate in the capacity of having FUN.
I computer geek and a machine knitter. Haven't timed myself,
perhaps on a good day I could do a solid colored scarf in a John
Henry versus the Machine I could do a scarf in < 3 hours. Throwing
cabling or including an image or pattern, 3 hours might be a good
estimate of the amount of time I'm going to be swearing and undoing
mistakes, if I'm lucky.
Does it make economic sense? Haven't open a spreadsheet to figure
that out. Pretty sure I never will.
In 1985 the Commodore Amiga 1000 came out with a base price of
$1295, which in $2969 in today's dollars. Throw in a CRT and some
other accessories and we are probably getting close to the price
of the Kniterate for me as a backer. The economic benefits that
machine and other similarly expensive home computers had to my
career far out weight the cost. And, quite frankly, they have been
a source of much personal enjoyment.
Besides scarves, sweaters, knit hats, at some point I'm going to
venture into machine-knitting-compiler territory with the machine.
@dane
This is a geat request. Kniterate is also interested in listening to what our backers have to say about how they are going to use the machine and their current lead times.
Kniterate's weight and speed are inversely correlated. This is because of the stability required if all the moving mechanisms are to act with precision. Our aim is to optimize both and find the ideal balance between speed and weight for our backers.
@Bryant D
Thanks for the details abot how you will use Kniterate and your confidence in our team.
@All
Co-founder Tom Catling is updating the K-Code. This means you will be able to comment on the newest version available.
Hello Dane
its a matter of perspective on the speed of the machine
my wife and her friends who have a small online store for hand knitted goods
that they produce themselves takes countless hours for some items. the hand knitted items tend be be from a lot larger yarns to keep the stitch count down. its more off a hobby than a money making venture . in using on of these machines the actual knitting time will be reduced greatly as the potential for larger profits is a lot greater . but the ability to design and essentially test your patterns within a short time frame is a valuable asset as well. the people who sell their designs through there own store or depending on the market created by kniterate
have potential for even more profits
the size of the machine may also play into the speed it is a desktop unit essentially
the rapid traverse of smaller machines can cause it to lose stabilty very easily if the gantry is large (have seen it first hand on large cnc router wieghing in at 8500 lbs )
the kniterate machine could very well run very fast but i would probably be noisy and running equipment very fast requires more risk in long term maintenance and wear parts
im sure Gerrard and his crew have looked at this from many angles
i would assume they have there reasons for designing the machine the way they did
if we poke and prod enough they might even tell us
you have also look at the history of mechanical knitting which has been around since 1863
the same basic ideas are being used here as most of the machines produced now
the large commercial machine are probably bolted to the floor, levelled ,commisioned ,
and very expensive the point is that a machine at this price point and size will most likely not be able to run at super fast velocities but if they can put together the right parts and pieces
it could run at a nice steady pace fora long time in a box that wieghs in at 300 lbs and sits on your table /desk and costs less the spindle for one of my cnc routers
im a backer and have been happy of what ive seen so far
i would like to see some closeups of the mechanics the kniterate carrage and bedways etc
I really think the Kniterate is an awesome piece of tech and really want to back it, but at $5000 (including shipping) I think it is simply too slow at the current max speed of 25mm/s to be productive enough for a small online apparel shop. I know the Kniterate is not for large production, and the Kniterate team has a goal of increasing the speed to 40mm/s or more, but that's not a guarantee. The production time I've seen on the videos for the Kniterate are: 3hrs for a scarf, 2hrs for one shoe upper, 8hrs for a jumper, 5hrs for dress. So, to all the KS backers that pledged for the Kniterate knitting machine please tell me in what capacity you're going to use it, and if the production times are actually ok. Thanks
Hi @KRS, I already had in mind to add some close-up images with different stitch densities. I'll work on that as well during the next days. I'll keep you posted. Thanks!
Hi @ Gerard Rubio, thank you, that would be great. Could you also provide some closer-up images of the knitted samples in order to see accuracy of the knitting? Thank you!
Hi @KRS, thanks for your suggestion. This makes us think we might not have been quite clear with the message. ALL the knitted pieces we are showing in the campaign, pictures and videos, are made with the machine we are showcasing here. I'll try to do the clock thing you ask for during the next days. On the meantime, you can see a time-lapse of a scarf we did last September https://www.youtube.com/watch…
Hi Kniterate, amazing! That's an awesome machine. So far it looks quite promising. But could you provide more speed-up film material of the full scarf knitting process. It's not quite clear yet if the machine you are showing is actually knitting the scarf. Please document the full process with an iPhone clock next to the machine for displaying the amount of time spend on knitting. Thank you.
Thanks to all of you for your questions and for waiting.
We believe the best way to reply to these questions is by having them in the FAQ, so that other backers can find them in an easy and orderly way. This should also help put the question in the wider Kniterate context for everyone.
Sounds good?
We are replying to each of your questions by pointing out in which tab of the spreadsheet we have replied. Thanks for helping us to constantly improve it!
@Umut
We have replied to your questions in the Software tab of our FAQ.
Sorry for the delay publishing information about the K-code, we'll do it during the next 24h.
@TGCS
We have replied to (1) in the Hardware tab and (2) in the Knitting tab.
Knitting is great indeed!
@Contafils
We have replied to your question in the tab Yarns. Tests coming soon. We are excited about how non-traditional yarns can be used in different industries with Kniterate!
Hi, Kniterates! I am a textile designer and I am very excited about your project! I have a question, would it be possible to use metallic yarns on your machine? I mean a yarn made out of stainless steel. The one I have is meant to be used in knitting machines and I already did some samples in one of the old machines we have at the uni but I was wondering if it would be possible to do something similar with Kniterate? Many thanks and congratulations for such an amazing project!
Utiliza este espacio para comunicarte con el creador, y para comunicarte con otros patrocinadores.
¿Tienes alguna pregunta?
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Mostrar comentarios anteriorescathy May 8
Hello Kniterate Team,
CONGRATULATIONS! That's great to hear your campaign was a success. I'm really looking forward to the day when the machines will be available in Australia. In the meantime I shall enjoy wearing my scarf and dreaming/designing all the items that I'll create when I have my machine.
I'd love to have the black and white scarf and please let me know when you'd like shipping details.
Cheers and well done,
Cathy Yeoman
Giulia Maria Beretta May 8
Looking forward to start knitting! We are very excited about it and hope everything will work by schedule! Good work!
Ros Garland May 8
Congratulations!!! Well done everyone, can't wait to see the machine it sounds great :-)
Timothy L Allen May 8
Congrats!!! Wish you much success and prosperity.. Can't wait to purchase my own machine and start creating. #love #RAREACCESS
Rom May 8
@Creator - Deletion of my comments on the 24th April and 25th April: did you ask Kickstarter to remove these comments? Or did Kickstarter delete these of their own volition? Am trying to establish whether there was any collusion.
Kniterate Creador May 7
Hi @Khalid Adil, the software will come with templates with standard sizes as you mention, from baby to adult sizes. From there, you’ll be able to knit them as they are or adjust them to your needs before.
Hi @Rom and @dane, as you mention this is information in the public domain and we have taken the time to reply to those concerns throughout this section and our website.
Thank you!
Rom May 7
My questions are about the various incarnations of the project. Openknit, Knitterbot and Kniterate: all similar names, same idea and same people.
Here is a summary:
1. Openknit seems to have been an Open Source project which was then incorporated into a commercial company called Knitterbots in London.
2. Knitterbot (www.knitterbot.com) was launched in 2015 after raising investment, prestigious advisers, cooperation with London University, and received praise from the founder of Makerbot and others.
3. Then, suddenly, the founder, director and largest shareholder quits Knitterbots and starts another company, Kniterate, for the same idea and with the same team, and simply gives the explanation that the previous company 'didn't work out'.
All of the above information is in the public domain. If something looks like a Phoenix Company, acts like a Phoenix Company....it probably is a Phoenix Company - a company 'that rises from the ashes of a previous company with same individuals, same business, under a different name'. Such companies are started by individuals who usually (not always) have done something questionable.
Rom May 7
@dane, I couldn't agree with you more. I also love the Kniterate vision, but, I can't understand the story of the team. You eloquently capture the conflict between Kickstarter's 'buyer beware' policy and its desire to make money:
"So if caveat emptor is the modus operandi of KickStarter...."
"But, when KickStarter took away the only protection a backer has (asking hard questions), it makes me wonder if their priority to make money now outweighs any other concern--especially to the backers."
Deleting legitimate questions by Kickstarter opens up a potential financial liability for Kickstarter Corp for this project (and other projects). So, backers could, in principle, launch a class action lawsuit against Kickstarter for all monies pledged to this campaign (lets say $650K), if this campaign fails to deliver on its promise, and so can backers of all other failed Kickstarter projects, resulting in $millions of potential financial liabilities to Kickstarter.
I will repost my concerns of this project again (in next post), and hope that Kickstarter does not delete this and my new post.
Khalid Adil May 7
Will the kniterate design software include templates for different size garments (i.e. a standard sizing for S/M/L/XL men's and women's shirts/socks and other knitwear). A machine like this is amazing for more custom measurements, but I know some customers would much rather prefer to tick a box rather than get measured.
dane
Superbacker
May 6
@Rom, I am also both confused and concerned that KickStarter policing would remove your valid questions. It was because of their actions that I didn't pledge for the actual Kniterate machine, but opt to wait until it's in full successful production before even considering to buy one. I really do think the Kniterate is a very cool piece of tech and would love to try my hand at having a small online knitting store; scarfs and beanies, etc. But, instead of letting the creator answer some important albeit perhaps uncomfortable questions, KickStarter intervened and removed your questions which leaves us to wonder why. It is KickStarter's policy not to protect the monetary investment of the backers, and if a campaign fails it is the sole responsibility of the creator to explain why, and reimburse any money to the backers...which seldom happens. So, if caveat emptor is the modus operandi of KickStarter then it is up to the backers to ask the hard questions from the creators, that if they can't be answered to appropriate satisfaction, might risk the funding of a campaign and KickStarter's subsequent percentage of the money. Since KickStarter states emphatically that they are not a store, and refuses to share the risk when a campaign fails, then they should stop looking at campaigns that have reached their funding goal as an investment and prevent backers from asking questions that might impact their earnings once the funding period ends. I have lost backer money to campaigns that have been very successful only to have the creators fail to produce the product. Some creators such as "MITO" are very honest and forthright about their difficulties in bring the product to market, while others such as "Jackfish" and "The Best Workout Shirt Ever Made" simply take the money and disappear. Now, I am a Super Backer and have backed over 100 campaigns so that shows my support for the whole crowd funding movement and the KickStarter platform. But, when KickStarter took away the only protection a backer has (asking hard questions), it makes me wonder if their priority to make money now outweighs any other concern--especially to the backers.
Rom May 6
I am puzzled why my questions were deleted by Kickstarter, but, glad another member picked them up @Fredrik Karl Österlin. I was asking very valid questions about the track-record of the Team. Are you trying to hide sometime? Why would you delete very valid comments/questions?
Kniterate Creador May 6
Hi @Tia Butler, thanks for your interest.
The process is quite straight forward. Make the design in your favorite design tool having in mind a couple of things:
1. one pixel equals to one stitch
2. use flat colors (no anti-aliasing)
Export the image to PNG and open it with our custom software. There you have to decide which color is used in every feeder and some parameters like speed, stitch density, take-down roller rotation, etc. Then the software will turn the image into machine instructions ready to be fed to the machine.
Thanks.
Tia Butler May 4
Can you guys make a video about the process of using something like photoshop to create a design that can be converted into readable Kniterate machine code? Basically the same process used for the Kniterate sweater and the Degen collaboration.
As a small designer like Degen, I feel like this is how I would use the machine the most.
Kniterate Creador April 27
Hi @LSPI. Yes, the design app will be able to do that.
Thanks!
LSPI April 26
Hi,
will your app be able to convert a photograph into a stitch pattern, as Designa Kit does?
Triambak Saxena Colaborador April 26
Hi @cathy!
Thank you! We can’t wait to deliver our product to Australia given the incredible response from our community there. At the moment we are a small company, that’s slowly growing, and before getting into a new market we need to learn more about it. At the moment delivering Kniterate and providing support to our customers in North America and Europe will be our focus.
Join our newsletter to be on the know of when we get into new markets Kniterate!
Kniterate Creador April 26
Thanks @Fredrik Karl Österlin!
1. We have tested this feature with a couple of samples in a row and it works nicely. We will fully implement it, so many pieces can be created at one go.
2. Yes it’s possible to add a text or picture to a beanie but it has to be knitted flat, with the edges sewn afterwards. The design app will come with a template so you can easily design it.
3. Gerard Rubio resigned his position as a director there in September 21, 2015. He offered in good faith to return all of his shares, free of charge, but the company has yet to file its paperwork.
4. We don’t know, but there doesn’t seem to be any further product development.
Kniterate was developed with our partner in China. They have over 30 years of experience building industrial knitting machines. The success of this Kickstarter proves that we are the first to create something new in this product space, with quality knitwear samples and exciting content.
HAX teams have not failed to deliver. We have an outstanding reputation behind us with partners, mentors and other teams that have consistently executed on their Kickstarter promises. Here you can see the successes that precedes us: https://www.kickstarter.com/pages/hax (yes! It’s amazing!)
If you have any other questions feel free to write to us at info@kniterate.com or contact our investors: https://sosv.com/
cathy April 26
Hi guys,
Just wondering when do you envisage having machines ready for shipping to Australia? Really interested in your product.
Cheers Cathy
Ella Talbot April 25
@Gerard Rubio
Thanks for the six color sample on the update - very cool!
Can't wait for it to be delivered. I've been following your work since the OpenKnit days, so it's very cool to see this project go live. Can't wait to see it in person, but I'm hoping to catch the Live Stream. Congratulations again!
Fredrik Karl Österlin April 25
Hi Kniterate!
Congratulations to your awesome machine! I got some questions..
# Is it possible to make the Kniterate machine produce more then one garment in a row? That would be a BIG advantage. Then it could produce a couple of beanies during the night for example.
# Is it possible to add text/picture to a beanie? Or only bigger garments?
# Also I wonder why you are the largest shareholder of another company pursuing the same goal as Kniterate?
# Why does Knitterbot still exist?
Best Regards
//Fredrik
Rom April 24
This comment has been removed by Kickstarter.
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 24
Hi @Ella Talbot, we added a six color sample on the campaign page as requested.
Hi @Ericka Otterman, the Kniterate machine can knit in the round. The beanie for example, is done using this technique https://www.youtube.com/watch… More information in our FAQ (http://bit.ly/2mV47BY)
Thanks!
Ericka Otterman April 24
Are there any plans in the future to design a machine that could knit in the round?
Rom April 23
This comment has been removed by Kickstarter.
Kniterate Creador April 23
Hi @DIGITALLI and thanks for your support!
We describe approximate costs in the tab "Shipping" of our FAQ: http://bit.ly/2mV47BY
This is based on information provided by DHL, our experienced shipping partner. We will work hard to minimize those costs as much as we can during the next months.
Thank you!
DIGITALLI
Superbacker
April 23
What will be the shipping costs to the Netherlands? In you Faqs you didnt any cost of it. I want to know before it funded. Thx.
Kniterate Creador April 20
Thank you @Ella Talbot!
You are right about a missing sample with six colors! We are working on it and we will upload it to the page soon. We will let you know. Thanks!
Ella Talbot April 20
Hi, Kniterators!
Congratulations on your project - it's super cool. I am a textile designer and I'm really excited about your machine. It will be great for making intricate patterns and for experimenting. One thing: you say you can use six colours per row, but I haven't seen any examples of this - sorry if I'm mistaken! Would you be able to show us an example of this? It would be helpful to see it in action.
Thanks & congratulations again!
Kniterate Creador April 18
Hi @Rom! Yes, there have been cases of Kickstarter campaigns that didn’t go as expected, but this has not been the case with SOSV investments and HAX accelerated companies.
We have worked relentlessly and there is plenty of documentary evidence to support our journey. Since we started our adventures at HAX earlier last year to living in the industrial knitting machine factory. You can read all of it here: medium.com/@Kniterate
An hour ago we were even featured on a Fast Company article which describes how far back our history goes with this platform: https://www.fastcompany.com/40407874/kickstarter-wants-to-be-more-than-an-electronics-store
We have also been working since our inception with advisors that trust us. With this project we have put our reputation at stake, and it carries our names everywhere. Journalists have visited us and seen the machine working. We even had a launch party where almost 60 people interacted with Kniterate.
OpenKnit was never a commercial project, it’s part of the public domain, for everyone to use. Kniterate learned from its past experiences and partnered with an industrial knitting machine manufacturer in China. We see that as an incredible success!
We’ve kept an open door to our company and our personal lives and that’s why this community has trusted us with their money. We get phone calls and emails every day of people who care about what we are doing. Their support has been immense and all the work we are doing is to deliver Kniterate to them.
You will get your Kniterate machine, we wouldn’t have it any differently!
Rom April 18
$4,700 is a lot of money for me, but, I really want your machine – hope you understand I want make sure its not project like these: https://www.thrillist.com/gear/kickstarter-frauds-worst-crooks-in-crowdfunding
I read history of your project. Openknit, Knitterbot and Kniterate: all similar names, same idea and same people. If I’m backing Kniterate why would it work out this time? Will Kickstarter give me an assurance that I will get my money back, if it doesn’t work out?
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 16
Hey @Rom! I only work for Kniterate. You can read more about my all my previous work at: http://www.kniterate.com/index.php/about/ Kniterate is the direct result of work stemming from my project OpenKnit, started in 2013 and supported by our investor SOSV. Much of the content on the website you have shared is erroneous, misleading and easily disproved. If you want to know more get in touch! info@kniterate.com Thank you.
Rom April 16
Thank you. Will machine from your other company KnitterBots, be the same price? http://www.knitterbot.com
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 14
Hello everyone,
Your feedback has helped us realize that there wasn’t enough documentation showing the machine in action. We have updated the campaign page and the FAQ with more details. Please keep pointing us to content that needs improvement. If there is something you want us to try and/or you want to see in a video please let us know, we will do our best to do it within the available time.
Hi @KRS, uploaded a video of the full process of making the reward scarf as requested.
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
Hi @dane, the beanie we are showing in the video is made in one go. Video uploaded that shows the entire process. A beanie with more than one color could be done in one go as well but with some pattern limitations to short floats, if you want total pattern freedom or different types of stitches it would require to be knitted flat, with the edges sewn afterwards.
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
Hi @Rom, our machine can make some small garments ready to be used, like the beanie I just mentioned. Shima Seiki machines are great and can do a larger variety of pieces ready to be used, although, as you point out, those machine can be to 20 times more expensive than a Kniterate machine (at the price of the campaign).
Thank you.
Rom April 13
Thank you, Is the invention closer to the wholegarments machines from Shimaseeki? Which looks more expensive than your machine. http://www.shimaseiki.com/wholegarment/
dane
Superbacker
April 12
Is the knitting of a beanie in one complete step like a scarf, or are there pieces that need to be assembled?
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 11
Hi @Khalid Adil, designing a sweater requires 5 pieces: front, back, sleeves and collar (image in the project page). The software can prepare the files and the machine can knit them entirely, but it can’t assemble them. There are several ways to do this: by hand, which will take several hours and requires some skill; with a linker, which is faster but could still take an hour or so; and with an overlocker (similar to a sewing machine), which is faster but will not produce a high quality finish as with the other two methods. Another option is to take it to a seamstress to do it for you. If you own a small business selling sweaters or other multi-part garments then a linking machine or overlocker will pay for itself by increasing your productivity.
We will publish an extended guide and Youtube tutorials with all these possibilities so you can do this successfully for the first time. None of this work is difficult but it can be time-consuming.
Cheers
Khalid Adil April 10
Some previous posts have mentioned lots of "post processing" that needs to be done to get a garment ready-to-wear after the knitting process is complete. How much of this would be required to produce durable, quality goods?
Khalid Adil April 10
How hard would you say creating a sweater would be for someone with little to no experience working with fabric (no real sewing or knitting experience)?
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 9
Thanks @Rom.
The main difference between a Kniterate machine and a domestic one (like the SilverReed SK 840) is that all the processes are automated and that it has six yarn feeders. We’ve finally come up with a flawless integration between a computer and a desktop knitting machine and we’ve added a bunch of mechanisms to automate all the process, from casting on and casting/binding off, to shaping and making many types of stitches.
This edge comes mainly from an element that domestic machines lack: transfer needles, combined with the ability to individually control every single needle of both needle beds and other automated mechanisms like racking or a roller. It suddenly opens an amazing range of possibilities!
Rom April 9
Congratulations on the invention! How does your machine compare with SilverReed SK 840 Knitting machine (http://www.silverreed.com/silver_machines.php)? I assume yours is more modern and can also knit both sides?
Mark
Superbacker
April 3
@dane, backer here, responding to your query.
I am going to be using the Kniterate in the capacity of having FUN.
I computer geek and a machine knitter. Haven't timed myself,
perhaps on a good day I could do a solid colored scarf in a John
Henry versus the Machine I could do a scarf in < 3 hours. Throwing
cabling or including an image or pattern, 3 hours might be a good
estimate of the amount of time I'm going to be swearing and undoing
mistakes, if I'm lucky.
Does it make economic sense? Haven't open a spreadsheet to figure
that out. Pretty sure I never will.
In 1985 the Commodore Amiga 1000 came out with a base price of
$1295, which in $2969 in today's dollars. Throw in a CRT and some
other accessories and we are probably getting close to the price
of the Kniterate for me as a backer. The economic benefits that
machine and other similarly expensive home computers had to my
career far out weight the cost. And, quite frankly, they have been
a source of much personal enjoyment.
Besides scarves, sweaters, knit hats, at some point I'm going to
venture into machine-knitting-compiler territory with the machine.
https://www.disneyresearch.com/publication/machine-knitting-compiler/
Why, because, well, it's damn FUN.
(Honest guys, not till out of warranty, I swear)
Why not spend more and get a bigger, faster machine? Cause I want
it in my home office next to my other toys.
Kniterate Creador April 3
Hi to everyone from London.
@dane
This is a geat request. Kniterate is also interested in listening to what our backers have to say about how they are going to use the machine and their current lead times.
Kniterate's weight and speed are inversely correlated. This is because of the stability required if all the moving mechanisms are to act with precision. Our aim is to optimize both and find the ideal balance between speed and weight for our backers.
@Bryant D
Thanks for the details abot how you will use Kniterate and your confidence in our team.
@All
Co-founder Tom Catling is updating the K-Code. This means you will be able to comment on the newest version available.
Thanks
Bryant D April 3
Hello Dane
its a matter of perspective on the speed of the machine
my wife and her friends who have a small online store for hand knitted goods
that they produce themselves takes countless hours for some items. the hand knitted items tend be be from a lot larger yarns to keep the stitch count down. its more off a hobby than a money making venture . in using on of these machines the actual knitting time will be reduced greatly as the potential for larger profits is a lot greater . but the ability to design and essentially test your patterns within a short time frame is a valuable asset as well. the people who sell their designs through there own store or depending on the market created by kniterate
have potential for even more profits
the size of the machine may also play into the speed it is a desktop unit essentially
the rapid traverse of smaller machines can cause it to lose stabilty very easily if the gantry is large (have seen it first hand on large cnc router wieghing in at 8500 lbs )
the kniterate machine could very well run very fast but i would probably be noisy and running equipment very fast requires more risk in long term maintenance and wear parts
im sure Gerrard and his crew have looked at this from many angles
i would assume they have there reasons for designing the machine the way they did
if we poke and prod enough they might even tell us
you have also look at the history of mechanical knitting which has been around since 1863
the same basic ideas are being used here as most of the machines produced now
the large commercial machine are probably bolted to the floor, levelled ,commisioned ,
and very expensive the point is that a machine at this price point and size will most likely not be able to run at super fast velocities but if they can put together the right parts and pieces
it could run at a nice steady pace fora long time in a box that wieghs in at 300 lbs and sits on your table /desk and costs less the spindle for one of my cnc routers
im a backer and have been happy of what ive seen so far
i would like to see some closeups of the mechanics the kniterate carrage and bedways etc
dane
Superbacker
April 3
I really think the Kniterate is an awesome piece of tech and really want to back it, but at $5000 (including shipping) I think it is simply too slow at the current max speed of 25mm/s to be productive enough for a small online apparel shop. I know the Kniterate is not for large production, and the Kniterate team has a goal of increasing the speed to 40mm/s or more, but that's not a guarantee. The production time I've seen on the videos for the Kniterate are: 3hrs for a scarf, 2hrs for one shoe upper, 8hrs for a jumper, 5hrs for dress. So, to all the KS backers that pledged for the Kniterate knitting machine please tell me in what capacity you're going to use it, and if the production times are actually ok. Thanks
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 2
Hi @KRS, I already had in mind to add some close-up images with different stitch densities. I'll work on that as well during the next days. I'll keep you posted. Thanks!
KRS April 2
Hi @ Gerard Rubio, thank you, that would be great. Could you also provide some closer-up images of the knitted samples in order to see accuracy of the knitting? Thank you!
Gerard Rubio Colaborador April 1
Hi @KRS, thanks for your suggestion. This makes us think we might not have been quite clear with the message. ALL the knitted pieces we are showing in the campaign, pictures and videos, are made with the machine we are showcasing here. I'll try to do the clock thing you ask for during the next days. On the meantime, you can see a time-lapse of a scarf we did last September https://www.youtube.com/watch…
KRS March 31
Hi Kniterate, amazing! That's an awesome machine. So far it looks quite promising. But could you provide more speed-up film material of the full scarf knitting process. It's not quite clear yet if the machine you are showing is actually knitting the scarf. Please document the full process with an iPhone clock next to the machine for displaying the amount of time spend on knitting. Thank you.
Kniterate Creador March 31
Thanks to all of you for your questions and for waiting.
We believe the best way to reply to these questions is by having them in the FAQ, so that other backers can find them in an easy and orderly way. This should also help put the question in the wider Kniterate context for everyone.
Sounds good?
We are replying to each of your questions by pointing out in which tab of the spreadsheet we have replied. Thanks for helping us to constantly improve it!
Find the FAQ here: http://bit.ly/2mV47BY
@Umut
We have replied to your questions in the Software tab of our FAQ.
Sorry for the delay publishing information about the K-code, we'll do it during the next 24h.
@TGCS
We have replied to (1) in the Hardware tab and (2) in the Knitting tab.
Knitting is great indeed!
@Contafils
We have replied to your question in the tab Yarns. Tests coming soon. We are excited about how non-traditional yarns can be used in different industries with Kniterate!
Thank you!
The Kniterate Team
contafils March 31
Hi, Kniterates! I am a textile designer and I am very excited about your project! I have a question, would it be possible to use metallic yarns on your machine? I mean a yarn made out of stainless steel. The one I have is meant to be used in knitting machines and I already did some samples in one of the old machines we have at the uni but I was wondering if it would be possible to do something similar with Kniterate? Many thanks and congratulations for such an amazing project!