U.S. patent application number 11/637868 was filed with the patent office on 2007-08-23 for method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball.
This patent application is currently assigned to LONG WAY ENTERPRISE CO., LTD.. Invention is credited to Mei Sun Lin.
Application Number | 20070197317 11/637868 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 38428946 |
Filed Date | 2007-08-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070197317 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lin; Mei Sun |
August 23, 2007 |
Method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball
Abstract
In a method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball, a TPU
film having a pattern printed on a reverse side thereof is
positioned in a mold for suction molding and trimming to form a
panel of ball, which is then positioned in another mold for bonding
to an injection molded TPU foam, and the bonded TPU film and TPU
foam are allowed to cool to complete a three-dimensional panel of
ball. Panels of ball so manufactured are then sewed together to
form a ball. The TPU film protects the pattern behind it against
abrasion and wear, so that the pattern is always fresh and complete
to give the ball a distinguishable appearance. The injection molded
TPU foam layer gives the panel of ball a high stability in shape to
prevent surface folds. The whole process is simplified to reduce
the manufacturing cost.
Inventors: |
Lin; Mei Sun; (Hsin Tien
City, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
TROXELL LAW OFFICE PLLC
SUITE 1404, 5205 LEESBURG PIKE
FALLS CHURCH
VA
22041
US
|
Assignee: |
LONG WAY ENTERPRISE CO.,
LTD.
|
Family ID: |
38428946 |
Appl. No.: |
11/637868 |
Filed: |
December 13, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/569 ;
473/598 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B32B 2307/734 20130101;
A63B 41/08 20130101; B32B 27/065 20130101; B29L 2031/54 20130101;
B32B 2266/0278 20130101; B32B 27/40 20130101; B29C 44/145 20130101;
B32B 2307/75 20130101; B32B 27/08 20130101; B32B 5/20 20130101;
B32B 37/00 20130101; B32B 2307/4023 20130101; B29C 44/146 20130101;
B32B 2307/554 20130101; B32B 1/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/569 ;
473/598 |
International
Class: |
A63B 43/00 20060101
A63B043/00; A63B 39/08 20060101 A63B039/08 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Feb 17, 2006 |
KR |
95105424 |
Claims
1. A method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball,
comprising the steps of: (a) Printing a pattern on a reverse side
of a thermoplastic polyurethane film (TPU film), drying the printed
TPU film, and applying a layer of gold size to a surface of the
pattern; (b) Positioning the TPU film prepared in the above step
(a) in a mold for suction molding, and trimming the molded TPU
film; (c) Positioning the trimmed TPU film in a mold for forming
panel of ball; and (d) Injecting an amount of TPU foam into the
panel-forming mold for the TPU foam to bond to the TPU film, and
allowing the bonded TPU film and TPU foam to cool and form a
finished product of three-dimensional panel of ball.
2. The method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball as
claimed in claim 1, wherein said TPU film has a thickness of 0.3
mm.
3. The method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball as
claimed in claim 1, wherein the TPU foam being injection molded in
the step (d) has a thickness of 4 mm.
4. The method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball as
claimed in claim 1, wherein a predetermined amount of nitrogen is
injected along with the TPU foam in the step (d).
5. The method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball as
claimed in claim 1, wherein the TPU foam being injection molded in
the step (d) is replaceable with other equivalent materials.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing
wear-resistant panel of ball, and more particularly to a method of
manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball in which a TPU film
having a pattern printed on a reverse side thereof is molded and
trimmed to form a panel of ball, which is then bonded to injection
molded TPU foam in a mold to form a three-dimensional panel of ball
having good shape stability and fresh pattern protected by the TPU
film against abrasion and wear.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In a currently available method of manufacturing a ball for
sporting purpose, multiple pieces of identical panels of ball are
cut and then glued or sewn together to form a ball. A conventional
method of manufacturing the panels of ball generally includes the
following procedures: using a layer of foamed polyurethane about
1.2 mm in thickness, which normally includes a layer of 0.4 mm
thick PU and a layer of 0.8 mm thick foamed PU, together with a
layer of EPDM, which maybe propylene rubber or foamed rubber sheet,
as a major material for making the panel of ball; and subjecting
the major material to a serial of complicate processing, including
pressing, printing, applying protective paint, backing, sizing at a
bottom side, baking, adding the EPDM, pressing, sizing, bonding PU
to EPDM, hot pressing the bonded PU and EPDM in a mold to form a
U-shaped piece, sizing along the edge of the U-shaped piece,
baking, forming a flat panel of ball, and positioning the flat
panel of ball in a mold with an inner container for steaming to
form a three-dimensional spherical piece.
[0003] In the above-mentioned process, a pattern is printed on a
surface of the finally molded plastic panel of ball, and a layer of
clear protective paint about 0.01 mm to 0.02 mm in thickness is
then applied over the printed pattern to protect the latter.
[0004] When the ball formed with the panels of ball manufactured in
the above conventional method has been used over a prolonged time,
the clear protective paint applied on the surface of the panels of
ball are gradually worn off to expose the printed pattern to
external environment. The exposed pattern is subjected to direct
frequent abrasion and becomes damaged and smudgy, and is eventually
undistinguishable.
[0005] As can be seen from the above description, the conventional
method for manufacturing the panel of ball includes complicate
procedures. The panel of ball tends to be bent and present surface
folds in the course of processing. A panel of ball with surface
folds is no longer usable. Therefore, the bad yield is very high,
the production efficiency is very low, and the quality is
uncontrollable in the above conventional method. The ball formed
with the panels of ball produced in the above conventional method
is easily deformed under long term of compression, and has poor
resistance to wear. The pattern printed on the ball surface is
easily abraded off to become smudgy. The panel of ball so formed
also has low tear strength to indirectly shorten the life of the
ball. Therefore, the conventional method of manufacturing panel of
ball requires improvement to eliminate the existing drawbacks.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] A primary object of the present invention is to provide a
method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball, in which a
TPU film is printed at a reverse side with a pattern before being
bonded to an injection molded layer of TPU foam to form a
three-dimensional panel of ball, so that the pattern is protected
by the TPU film against wear and always keeps fresh and complete
even when the panels of ball is subjected to abrasion to its
front.
[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball, in which TPU
foam is injected by way of super critical fluid (SCF) fine foam
injection molding to enable a molded panel of ball to have high
shape stability and sufficient resilience and toughness to avoid
surface folds.
[0008] To achieve the above and other objects, the method of
manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball according to the present
invention includes the steps of: [0009] (a) Printing a pattern on a
reverse side of a thermoplastic polyurethane film (TPU film),
drying the printed TPU film, and applying a layer of gold size to a
surface of the design; [0010] (b) Positioning the TPU film prepared
in the above step (a) in a mold for suction molding, and trimming
the molded TPU film; [0011] (c) Positioning the trimmed TPU film in
a mold for forming a panel of ball; and [0012] (d) Injecting an
amount of TPU foam into the panel-forming mold for the injection
molded TPU foam to bond to the TPU film, and allowing the bonded
TPU film and TPU foam to cool to form a finished product of
three-dimensional panel of ball.
[0013] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an
amount of nitrogen is injected along with the TPU foam to give the
panel of ball an improved softness and resilience.
[0014] More particularly, in the method of the present invention,
the TPU film is first printed at a reverse side with a pattern, and
then positioned in a mold for suction molding and trimming to form
a panel of ball. The molded and trimmed TPU film is then positioned
in another mold for molding a panel of ball, and an amount of TPU
foam is injected into the mold by way of super critical fluid (SCF)
fine foam injection molding to bond to the TPU film, so that the
bonded and cooled TPU film and TPU foam form a three-dimensional
panel of ball for sewing into a ball.
[0015] On the completed ball, since the pattern is located behind
and protected by the TPU film, the pattern is not subjected to
direct abrasion and wear when the ball rolls and the panels of ball
are abraded. That is, the pattern is wear-resistant and always in a
fresh and complete state.
[0016] Moreover, with the injection molded layer of TPU foam in the
method of the present invention, the molded panel of ball has high
shape stability without surface folds. And, since the panel of ball
is directly molded into a three-dimensional shape by injection
molding the TPU foam, the process for forming the panel of ball is
largely simplified to increase the productivity and quality while
reduce the manufacturing cost.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] The structure and the technical means adopted by the present
invention to achieve the above and other objects can be best
understood by referring to the following detailed description of
the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings,
wherein
[0018] FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the steps included in the
method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball according to
the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates the process of forming a pattern on a TPU
film according to the present invention;
[0020] FIG. 3 illustrates the process of suction molding the TPU
film in the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 4 shows the process of suction molding of FIG. 3 is
completed;
[0022] FIG. 5 illustrates the positioning of a suction molded TPU
film in a mold for forming a panel of ball; and
[0023] FIG. 6 shows the finished product of a three-dimensional
panel of ball manufactured in the method of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0024] In a method of manufacturing wear-resistant panel of ball
according to the present invention, the following steps are
included: [0025] (a) Printing a pattern on a reverse side of a
thermoplastic polyurethane film (TPU film), drying the printed TPU
film, and applying a layer of gold size to a surface of the design;
[0026] (b) Positioning the TPU film prepared in the above step (a)
in a mold for suction molding, and trimming the molded TPU film;
[0027] (c) Positioning the trimmed TPU film in a mold for forming
panel of ball; and [0028] (d) Injecting an amount of TPU foam into
the panel-forming mold for the injection molded TPU foam to bond to
the TPU film, and allowing the bonded TPU film and TPU foam to cool
to form a finished product of three-dimensional panel of ball.
[0029] The method of the present invention for manufacturing a
wear-resistant panel of ball according to the present invention is
now described in more details as follows.
[0030] Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2. In the step (a), a
pre-designed pattern 2 is printed on a reverse side of a clear TPU
film 1. When the printed pattern 2 is dried, a layer of
polyurethane (PU) gold size 3 is applied to a surface of the
printed pattern 2. The PU gold size 3 creates a brilliant and
colorful effect on the surface of the printed pattern 2.
[0031] Wherein, the TPU film 1 used in the process has a thickness
of 0.3 mm.
[0032] Please refer to FIGS. 3 and 4. In the step (b), the TPU film
1 having the pattern 2 printed on a reverse side thereof is
positioned in a mold 5. And, a molding apparatus 4 is used to
proceed with the process of suction molding and trimming, so that
the TPU film 1 is molded and trimmed to form a three-dimensional
panel of ball.
[0033] Please now refer to FIGS. 5 and 6. In the step (c), the
molded and trimmed TPU film 1 is positioned in a panel-forming mold
6 with the printed pattern 2 facing upward, so that the TPU film 1
is ready for the subsequent injection molding process.
[0034] In the step (d), the TPU foam 7 is injected into the mold 6
via an injecting orifice, so that the TPU foam 7 and the TPU film 1
are bonded together under high temperature. When the bonded TPU
foam 7 and TPU film 1 are cooled, the finish product of a
three-dimensional panel of ball is formed.
[0035] In an ideal embodiment of the present invention, the
injection molded TPU foam 7 in the step (d) has a thickness of 4
mm.
[0036] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the
step (d) of injection molding the TPU foam 7, a predetermined
amount of Nitrogen is injected at the same time to give the
finished panel of ball an improved softness and resilience.
[0037] It is noted the TPU foam 7 being injection molded in the
step (d) may be replaced with other suitable materials.
[0038] The finished three-dimensional panels of ball are then sewn
together manually or using a seamless process to complete a
ball.
[0039] On the completed ball, since the pattern 2 is printed on the
reverse side of the TPU film 1 before injection molding each panel
of ball, the pattern 2 is located behind the TPU film 1 when the
panel of ball is molded. When the ball rolls and is subjected to
abrasion of a front surface thereof, the pattern 2 is protected by
the TPU film 1 against direct abrasion and can therefore keep its
freshness and integrity.
[0040] With the method of manufacturing a panel of ball by
injection molding a layer of TPU foam 7 behind the TPU film 1, the
molded panel of ball has a high stability in shape without showing
surface folds, and has good resilience and sufficient toughness.
Since the panel of ball is directly formed into the
three-dimensional shape by injection molding, the manufacturing
process is simplified, compared to the method of prior art. The
problem of surface folds presented on the panel of ball due to
being bent in the process can therefore be avoided. The simplified
manufacture process not only upgrades the quality of the produced
panel of ball and reduces the manufacturing time, but also largely
reduces the costs for manufacturing apparatus and material
preparation.
[0041] The wear-resistant panel of ball manufactured in the method
of the present invention does not involve complicate processing
procedures and has improved foam resilience and wear-resistance.
The simplified manufacturing process also reduces the bad yield of
the panel of ball to upgrade the productivity and quality thereof.
The ball produced with the panels of ball manufactured in the
method of the present invention does not easily deform under long
term of compression, has excellent bending strength, and reduces
the possibility of causing injury to people being hit by the ball.
Moreover, since the TPU film has good wear-resistance, tear
strength, and tensile property, it advantageously extends the life
of the ball made using the method of the present invention.
[0042] The present invention has been described with some preferred
embodiments thereof and it is understood that many changes and
modifications in the described embodiments can be carried out
without departing from the scope and the spirit of the invention
that is intended to be limited only by the appended claims.
* * * * *