The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 14, 2001
Filed:
May. 28, 1999
Robert B. Rau, Allison Park, PA (US);
PPG Industries Ohio, Inc., Cleveland, OH (US);
Abstract
One aspect of the present invention is a film applicator for applying a coating to at least a portion of a surface of fibers, comprising: an enclosure having a reservoir to store a coating composition; a roller having a generally cylindrical surface positioned within the enclosure such that a first portion of the roller surface is immersed in the coating composition and a second portion of the roller surface extends through an opening in the enclosure to contact fibers; a drive to rotate the roller within the enclosure such that the surface of the roller can be coated with a film formed from the coating composition; and a bar positioned at least in close proximity to the roller surface, the bar having a contoured surface that provides a desired film thickness on the roller surface. In one particular embodiment of the invention, the bar includes a rod with a tightly wound wire, such that the wire forms the contoured surface along the length of the rod, and further includes a mounting arrangement to maintain the contoured surface of the bar in direct contact with the surface of the roller.