The Development of Cotton-yarn-quality Predicting System

Ying Xiao1 Shulin Zhao2

Tianjin Polytechnic University, School of Textiles Tianjin Polytechnic University, School of Textiles
Tianjin, China Tianjin, China
yingxiao_sun@tom.com

Abstract: A new cotton-yarn-quality predicting system was

developed by using the merging programming technique of
VB and Matlab in the paper. Using this system, the tenacity
and evenness CV% of the cotton-yarn processing by
conventional spinning at standard temperature and
humidity can be predicted through inputting some fiber
properties into the system, such as the percentage of
impurities, the principal length, the percentage of short
fiber, the degree of maturity, fiber strength and the value of
Micronaire. And also it was verified that the system did the
good job for predicting yarn tenacity and evenness CV%
exactly with the relative error of less than 4% after the
model being trained. The accuracy can meet the demand of
spinning factories and so the predicting results would be
useful for guiding the spinning practice.
Figure1.The Overall System structure
Key words: BP network; network model; yarn quality
prediction; merging programming of VB and Matlab
The system mainly consisted of the neural network
I. INTRODUCTION building module, network training module, yarn-quality
predicating module, the model database and other
The quality of yarns is mainly determined by fiber
modules. Each module could operate coordinately under
properties, spinning processing, spinning equipments and
the domination and regulation of main control program of
the temperature and humidity of workshops, and so on. In
VB and realize many functions, such as data document
these factors, fiber properties are the most important one
read and writing, network modeling, network model
for the yarn quality. In order to predict the yarn quality
training, retention, call, and yarn quality prediction.
through digital simulation, it is essential to analyze the
relationship between fiber properties and yarn quality III. BP NEURAL NETWORK MODEL DEVELOPMENT
under any other conditions unchanged, such as processing
temperature and humidity. In this paper, a BP neural 1. The Introduction of BP Neural Network
network model was set up and based on the model, a new The BP Neural Network ( short for BP network), also
yarn-quality predicting system was developed by which known as back propagation network, is a multiple layer
the tenacity and evenness CV %of cotton yarns by ring feed-forward network, which generally includes an input
spinning process at the standard temperature and humidity layer, an output layer and one or several hidden layers,
could be predicted through inputting six fiber properties with its operation mainly consisting of two processes: the
into the system. Furthermore, it was validated that the feed-forward transmission of the information and the
system model did a good job for predicting both the yarn reverse transmission of the error[1]. In the former process,
tenacity and the evenness CV% exactly with the relative the information was calculated from the input layer to
error of less than 4%. output layer, layer by layer via hidden layer ,with the
neural unit state of each layer only affecting the next
II. THE DESIGN OF THE OVERALL STRUCTURE one's ;and in output layer, the system would turn to back
A system was developed by using the merging propagation if the desired results were not achieved when
programming technology of VB and Matlab and the compared with the target value. Then the error was
system integrated the user-friendly interface of VB and transferred from the output layer to input layer with the
the powerful function for data processing of Matlab. The network algorithmically adjudging its own weights and
overall system structure was shown in Figure 1. thresholds and the adjusting process was repeated till it
reached the desired results.
2. Neural Network Model Development
Aiming at the above issue, the strength and evenness
CV % of the yarns was predicted when the 3 layers and 4
layers BP networks were developed with neural network

978-1-4577-0860-2/11/$26.00 ©2011 IEEE

toolbox in Matlab environment and trained [2-3]; viewed
from the training effect, not only the training time of
3-layer-network was shorter than the 4-layer-network, the
prediction precision was also higher. Therefore, 3-layer
network model network structure was chosen in this
yarn-quality predicting system, which consisted of an
input layer, a hidden layer and an output layer.
A. Neurons Number in Input Layer
This system was mainly used to predict the yarn
tenacity and its evenness CV% under any other conditions
unchanged, such as processing, temperature and humidity.
To reach the above objective, the yarns quality was
predicted through inputting six indicators of fiber quality
such as impurity rate, the principal length, the percentage
of short fiber, the degree of maturity, fiber strength and
Micronaire [4].Firstly, the 11 fiber quality indicators the
spinning plants often measured were statistically analyzed
and then the experts' opinions were gotten in this field,
finally six neurons were taken in this layer to meet the
requirement that the network neurons number should
correspond to the fiber index number.
B. Neurons Number in Hidden Layer
There was no effective principle to follow to
determine the neurons numbers in this layer, so the
optional one was mainly determined by training and
contrast on different neurons numbers. It was revealed that
the network predicting accuracy was highest when the
neurons number in this layer was 16 through training and
contrast in the course of modeling the network. However,
this was only for the training data used by the author, if
the training sample changed, the optional number of
neurons would have a corresponding change, therefore the
neurons number in hidden layer could be set to a variables
with a recommended value 16 in the quality predicting
system, and the best suited hidden nodes number for
samples could be determined by the system operator
through training and contrast.
C. Neurons Number in Output Layer
The yarn tenacity and evenness CV % were chosen for
the predicting output items in this system. As a result, the
corresponding output layer neurons number in the network
was taken as 2.
D. Activation Function of Each Layer
The common hyperbolic tangent function
−2 n −2 n
f (n) = (1 − e ) (1 + e ) in BP network was adopted
as activation function in the hidden layer. This function
could compress each input to a value between -1 and 1;
while the linear function f (n) = w×n +bcould be adopted
as the activation function in the output layer [5].
E. Network Training Algorithm
Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm was adopted to train
the network model in the system to overcome the
disadvantages of criteria BP algorithm, such as long
training time and vulnerability to local optimum. It has
been proved that the improved algorithm could markedly
reduce the time for network training. Meanwhile, the
network model structure was not too complicated and the
problems were relatively simple in the quality predicting
system, the actual total memory consumption was not too
much when the network was trained by this method.
The network model has been built completely after the
above design, according to which the topology map could
be drawn in Figure 2. The BP network could be divided
into three layers: the input layer, the hidden layer, and the
output layer. There were 6 nodes in the input layer, an
adjustable number in the intermediate hidden layer, and 2
in the output layer.
Figure2. The BP Net Structure
IV. SYSTEM DEVELOPMENTS
1. The Neural Network Construction Module
Developments
According to the requirements of network mode
mentioned above, this part was developed by Matlab
neural network toolbox, in which the Newcf. Function was
called to design the BP network; finally the designed
network was packaged into the same function file named
net.m together with the data pre-designed program and the
network training program. During the construction and
training process, the network was activated by transferring
the external data information and the design of the
network nodes of hidden layer into the internal of function
file through a call to this function file, after that the
network training was completed.
2. The Modules Developments on Network
Training and Yarn Quality Prediction
These two parts were developed with the technique of
VB and Matlab merging programming, the running of
Matlab application program was controlled by the master
control program of VB and the data transfer was carried
out between the environments of VB and Matlab.
A. The Realization Base of VB and Matlab
Merging Programming
ActiveX Automation protocol is a protocol that allows
one application program (the control side) to control
another (the server side). As VB could supports the
ActiveX automation control side protocol and Matlab was
able to support automated server-side protocol, therefore
when the ActiveX connection established between them.
The Matlab command could be called directly in VB
environment, and then the realization of data transfer
between the two programs followed.
B. The Network Training Module Developments
The function this module require to be achieved was
completing the network training and the retention of the
trained model on the basis of transferring the input
messages from the network training interface in VB
environment to the network models in Matlab
environment as well as making them activated. The
realization processes were as follows: First, a Matlab.
application object named MT was created in the VB
environment so that the ActiveX connection could be
achieved between VB and Matlab ; then the activation and
training of the network could be realized on the basement
of transferring the input messages from the network
training interface in VB environment to Matlab
environment by MT.Putfullmatrix method, the call for
Matlab by MT.Execute method to implement the net.m
function files and the transfer of data information and the
setting to the network hidden layer nodes to the network
through function parameters latter ; After training, the
trained network model was saved into model base, which
was available to be called by yarn quality prediction
module through a call for Matlab program to implement
the "SAVE" order by MT.Execute method [6].
C. The Yarn Quality Predicting Module
The function this module to be realized was
transferring the fiber quality index value from the
quality-predicting interface in VB environment to the
trained network model that loaded in Matlab environment
to realize the prediction and not only returning the
prediction results to VB environment but also displaying
them on quality prediction interface, the above functions
was realized as follows: after the Matlab application
object named MT being created in the VB environment,
the trained network model the user specified was loaded to
Matlab environment through a call for Matlab to
implement the "LOAD" command by MT.Execute
method;Then fiber index value was transferred into
Matlab environment from the VB environment by
MT.Putfullmatrix method and passed to the loaded
network mode after being pre-processed, then the yarn
quality was predicted through a call for the neural network
emulation function "SIM". Finally the predicting results
obtained were processed, transmitted in the VB
environment by MT.Getfullmatrix method and displayed
on the quality-predicting interface [7].
V. MODEL LIBRARY CONSTRUCTING
Cotton yarns with different count were collected from
several cotton mills within a year, along with the
corresponding raw cotton information indicators. After
being analyzed and processed, the data could be used to
train the network models constructed by this system, and
then all the trained models were saved in model database
for the yarn quality prediction.
VI. THE INSTANCE AND ANALYSIS
The model"JC18.2T" was called from the model
library to predict the quality of the JC18.2T yarn produced
by a factory. The properties of the raw cotton the yarn
used were summarized in Table 1, while both the
predictive values and the measured values were shown in
Table 2; As it could be seen in Table 2, the yarn tenacity
and its evenness CV％were predicted with the relative
error of less than 4% by the trained model. Since the
predicting accuracy was in an acceptable range, the
predicting results would be useful for guiding yarn
-spinning practice.

TABLE I. THE PROPERTIES OF COTTON FIBER

Group Impurity Principle Length Short Fiber Content Strength

Maturity Micronaire
Number (%) (mm) (%) (cN)
1 1.34 30.03 9.75 1.44 4.5940 3.84
2 1.06 30.18 9.46 1.40 4.4523 3.84
3 1.22 30.18 11.00 1.39 4.4113 3.84
4 1.17 30.21 10.53 1.40 4.4021 3.79
5 0.98 30.10 9.50 1.38 4.5115 3.73

TABLE II. THE TABLE OF COMPARISON BETWEEN PREDICTING VALUE AND MEASURING VALUE

Predictive Value Measured Value Relative Error

Group
Number Strength CV % Strength CV % Strength CV %
(cN·tex-1) (%) (cN·tex-1) (%) (%) (%)

1 15.7 12.6 15.5 12.5 ＋1.29 ＋0.80

2 15.3 12.6 14.9 13.0 ＋2.61 －3.08
3 14.3 12.8 14.8 12.9 －3.38 ＋0.78
4 14.5 12.7 14.8 13.0 －2.03 －2.31
5 14.6 12.9 14.1 12.8 ＋3.55 －0.78
 VII. CALCULATIONS
In order to predict the yarn quality through digital
simulation, it is essential to predict the yarn quality with
higher accuracy in the spinning process. In this paper, a
further exploration was made to this part and artificial
neural network model was built to predict yarn strength
and evenness. And also it was verified that the system
did the good job for predicting yarn tenacity and
evenness CV% exactly with the relative error of less
than 4% after the model being trained. The accuracy can
meet the demand of spinning factories and so the
predicting results would be useful for guiding the
spinning practice.
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