Velcro Industries B.v.

Joseph K Parshley

Christopher M Gallant

Scott M Filion

Keith G Buzzell

Richard John Schmidt

Brian J Vanbenschoten

Alexander J Neeb

Timothy Ray Martin

Heidi S Tremblay

Andrew Cecil Harvey

Stephen C Jens

Howard A Kingsford

Clinton Dowd

Martin I Jacobs

Samuel White Pollard

Gilbert G Fryklund

James W Babineau

Shawn C Banker

A skin-friendly hook component of a hook and loop fastener that reduces or eliminates the occurrence of red-marking and/or irritation if brought into contact with a wearer's skin. In one embodiment, the hook component can have a relatively large top surface area among the hooks with respect to a surface area of the hook backing. In another embodiment, the hook backing is highly flexible, attributable to a flexible resin and/or modified topography. In yet another embodiment, a highly flexible polymer, or polymers, can be used to make individual hooks such that the hooks bend in response to a minimum amount of pressure. Various illustrated hook tapes have features along their edges to enhance skin-friendliness. A skin-friendly hook component results any combination of the disclosed embodiments. The hook component is particularly beneficial when used in absorbent articles.

Skin-friendly hook fastening component

A method for producing a multiplicity of fastener element molding cavities extending from a mold surface, for molding a plastic product having fastener elements integrally molded with and extending from a product base, and a mold so produced. The mold cavities are formed by depositing multiple layers of plating material on a workpiece in a predetermined pattern selected to produce a desired mold cavity shape, or by depositing a thick stratum of plating material over an array of fastener elements and then removing the fastener elements to leave shaped cavities within the plating material. The mold may be in the form of a roll or belt for continuous processing, or in any form for discrete injection molding. Molds having fastener element cavities defined by rigid cast materials are also disclosed.

Forming mold cavities

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Salem, MA, United States of America

Joseph K Parshley