Velcro Industries B.v.

Velcro Industties B.v.

Keith G Buzzell

George A Provost

Scott M Filion

Clinton Dowd

Andrew Cecil Harvey

Christopher M Gallant

Richard G Maydra

Joseph K Parshley

Stephen C Jens

Richard John Schmidt

Brian J Vanbenschoten

Alexander J Neeb

Samuel White Pollard

Gilbert G Fryklund

Timothy Ray Martin

Heidi S Tremblay

Shawn C Banker

William P Clune

Howard A Kingsford

Kevin Edward Keough

Martin I Jacobs

James W Babineau

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 running length of fastener product is formed of longitudinally pre-oriented synthetic resin. The product is characterized by a base web and an array of discrete fastener elements protruding from at least one side of the web, the web being in a laterally stretched molecular oriented condition. After forming a preform having discrete fastener elements integral with a base web in a stretchable state, the preform is stretched in a manner that substantially increases the fastener element spacing and reduces the thickness of the base web. A machine is shown that is capable of lengthwise orienting before forming and widthwise stretching after forming, which employs controlled heating to render the product widthwise stretchable while preserving or achieving a desired shape of the fastener elements. There are shown fastener products that include products that are laterally stretched to between two and ten times the width of the original preform fastener products, having lateral rip resistance due to molecular orientation of film form webs produced by stretching, applied to complex or extensive surfaces. Also shown are laminated products formed by joining an added material to the stretched web, and methods for laminating.

Stretched fasteners

A method and apparatus of producing a fastener product having a multiplicity of fastening members with stems integrally molded with a strip-form base, along with a product and a preform product so produced. Molten resin is applied to a rotating mold roll having an outer surface for forming one side of the base, and a multiplicity of cavities extending inward from the outer surface for molding the stems. A preform product is stripped from the mold roll having a multiplicity of upstanding, preform stems extending from a side of the base. The preform product is passed through a post-forming nip between a heading roll and a backing member to form overhanging heads at the distal ends of the upstanding stems. The heading roll has a multiplicity of cavities about its periphery for forming the heads. Various means are disclosed for aligning the preform stems and the heading roll cavities. In another embodiment, a dimpled, heated heading roll is employed to post-form the stems to form fastener elements that extend in random directions.

Post- forming heads on fastener elements

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

An injection mold and a method for ejecting, from the mold, a molded product having an array of integrally molded fastener elements extending from a base are provided. In some embodiments, the mold includes a series of ejector pins which progressively eject the product. In other embodiments, the mold includes moveable parts which pull fastener elements out of mold cavities without the use of ejector pins.

Injection molding parts with fastener elements

A method for producing a multiplicity of miniature cavities extending from a mold surface for molding a plastic product having features 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. The mold may be in the form of a roll or belt for continuous processing, or in any form for discrete injection molding. The invention is particularly applicable to the production of touch fastener products, such as those with arrays of miniature hooks.

Injection molding fastener element products employing a series of laterally moveable mold plates that define, in part, mold cavities for fastener elements. The laterally moveable mold plates move into open spaces provided by mold plates that retract or project in a direction normal to the base of the fastener product. This at least partially opens the fastener cavities to release the fastener elements.

Injection molding fastener products

A method and apparatus for forming a fastener product are disclosed. The method comprises molding a preform member in a mold cavity defined by first and second parts of a mold, removing the first part of the mold to expose an array of preform elements of the preform member while the member remains within the second part of the mold, and, while holding the member by the second part of the mold, performing a subsequent forming operation on the preform elements. The apparatus deforms the preform elements, preferably with a heated mold plate, to form fastener elements while holding the member by the second part of the mold. In a preferred embodiment the resulting elements are mushroom-shaped and the preform is held in the second part of the mold by another fastening feature. Both reciprocating and rotary-type machines are disclosed.

Growing community of inventors

North Waterboro, ME, United States of America

Keith G Buzzell