Albany International Corporation

Henry M Cooke

Lawrence G Miller

Robin Lotti-Fassnacht

James G Donovan

Bodil Jonasson

A Leon Collette

Methods for closing a seam in a paper processing belt having a coating of polymeric resin material require the covering of the seam on the uncoated side of the belt with an encapsulating material, so that the seam will have compression properties substantially identical to those of use of the remainder of the belt. In one method, a viscous paste obtained by mixing a polymeric resin material with a blowing agent is used. Following installation of the fabric, or belt, on a paper machine by closing its pin seam with a pintle, the seam region on the non-paper side of the fabric or belt is impregnated with the viscous paste. The seam region is then heated to a temperature to activate the blowing agent and to create a foam from the paste. The foam fills voids in the seam region, and may pass out through the slit in the coating over the seam. Raising the temperature further cures the foam and may glue the slit closed. In other methods, a pre-foamed polymeric resin may be used to impregnate the seam region, or the seam region may be covered with a solid foam strip of a polymeric resin or a fibrous strip of fibrous batt material, either of which may be secured to the seam region by an adhesive. In each case, the belt so seamed may be used as a transfer belt or long nip press (LNP) belt, or in other paper processing applications.

Method of seam closure for sheet transfer and other paper processing

A method for manufacturing a papermaker's fabric by spirally winding a woven fabric strip, narrower than the intended width of the fabric, and the papermaker's fabric manufactured in accordance with the method, are disclosed. The fabric strip includes lengthwise and crosswise yarns, and has a lateral fringe along at least one lateral edge thereof, the lateral fringe being unbound ends of the crosswise yarns extending beyond the lateral edge. During the spiral winding of the fringed strip, the lateral fringe of a turn overlies or underlies an adjacent turn of the strip. The lateral edges of adjacent turns abut against one another. The spirally continuous seam so obtained is closed by ultrasonically welding or bonding the overlying or underlying lateral fringe to the fabric strip in an adjacent turn.

Ultrasonic seaming of abutting strips for paper machine clothing

A method for closing a seam in a paper processing belt having a coating of polymeric resin material requires the use of a viscous paste obtained by mixing a polymeric resin material with a blowing agent. Following installation of the fabric, or belt, on a paper machine by closing its pin seam with a pintle, the seam region on the non-paper side of the fabric or belt is impregnated with the viscous paste. The seam region is then heated to a temperature to activate the blowing agent and to create a foam from the paste. The foam fills voids in the seam region, and may pass out through the slit in the coating over the seam. Raising the temperature further cures the foam and may glue the slit closed. The belt so seamed may be used as a transfer belt or long nip press (LNP) belt, or in other paper processing applications.

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Randolph, MA, United States of America

Henry M Cooke