U.S. patent application number 13/834151 was filed with the patent office on 2014-09-18 for seep resistant masking material.
The applicant listed for this patent is David J. Gruenwald. Invention is credited to David J. Gruenwald.
Application Number | 20140272321 13/834151 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 51528339 |
Filed Date | 2014-09-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140272321 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Gruenwald; David J. |
September 18, 2014 |
Seep Resistant Masking Material
Abstract
A masking material and method of forming a masking tape that
includes a substrate and an adhesive layer disposed on the
substrate. The adhesive layer is preferably thicker than the
substrate and formed of a material that has a modulus of elasticity
combined with a viscoelastic component that allows the adhesive to
conform to discontinuities associated with a surface to which the
masking material is applied. Preferably, the adhesive is formed in
two rows that are aligned with the lateral edges of the substrate
and which prevent seepage of liquid materials between the masking
material and the surface to which it is applied.
Inventors: |
Gruenwald; David J.;
(Menasha, WI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Gruenwald; David J. |
Menasha |
WI |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
51528339 |
Appl. No.: |
13/834151 |
Filed: |
March 15, 2013 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
428/192 ;
427/177; 428/195.1; 428/332; 428/343; 428/355AC; 428/355N;
428/355R |
Current CPC
Class: |
B32B 43/006 20130101;
Y10T 428/2852 20150115; B32B 7/12 20130101; Y10T 428/2896 20150115;
B32B 27/40 20130101; Y10T 428/31663 20150401; B05B 12/24 20180201;
B32B 38/0004 20130101; Y10T 428/24802 20150115; B32B 25/20
20130101; C09J 175/04 20130101; Y10T 428/31551 20150401; Y10T
428/24777 20150115; Y10T 428/2891 20150115; C09J 2203/31 20130101;
C09D 175/04 20130101; Y10T 156/11 20150115; B32B 27/30 20130101;
C09J 183/16 20130101; B05C 21/005 20130101; Y10T 428/2495 20150115;
Y10T 428/28 20150115; C09J 7/38 20180101; Y10T 428/24959 20150115;
Y10T 428/26 20150115; B32B 37/1292 20130101; B32B 2607/00
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
428/192 ;
428/332; 428/343; 428/195.1; 428/355.N; 428/355.R; 428/355.AC;
427/177 |
International
Class: |
B05C 21/00 20060101
B05C021/00; C09J 7/02 20060101 C09J007/02 |
Claims
1. A masking material comprising: a substrate having a top surface
and a bottom surface, the substrate having two edges that are
defined by a thickness of the substrate and that separate the top
and the bottom surfaces; and an adhesive disposed on the bottom
surface along at least one edge of the substrate, the adhesive
extending in an outward direction from the bottom surface of the
substrate to define a thickness of the adhesive that is greater
than 0.003 inches and is elastically deformable at least more than
1.25 times an at rest thickness of the adhesive.
2. The masking material of claim 1 wherein the adhesive is disposed
on the bottom surface of the substrate along at least both edges
and each of the edges of the substrate are aligned with a
respective outer edge of the adhesive relative to directions
transverse to the thickness of the adhesive.
3. The masking material of claim 2 further comprising an amount of
adhesive disposed between the adhesive associated with the edges of
the substrate.
4. The masking material of claim 3 wherein the adhesive extends
continuously between the edges along the bottom surface of the
substrate.
5. The masking material of claim 1 wherein the substrate and
adhesive are provided in a roll shape wherein the adhesive disposed
on the bottom surface of one layer of the substrate removably
cooperates with the top surface of an adjacent layer of the
substrate without removing the adhesive from the bottom surface of
the substrate.
6. The masking material of claim 1 wherein the adhesive has a
thickness of at least 0.010 inches.
7. The masking material of claim 1 wherein the adhesive is selected
from the group consisting of polyurethane gel adhesive, silicone
gel adhesive, and acrylic gel.
8. A tape assembly comprising: a substrate layer having opposing
faces and opposing edges that each extend a longitudinal length of
the substrate and wherein the opposing faces are oriented
transverse to a thickness of the substrate layer defined by a
length of the opposing edges; and an adhesive layer secured to at
least one of the faces of the substrate layer such that an edge of
the adhesive layer is aligned with at least one of the opposite
edges of the substrate layer and the adhesive layer has a thickness
as defined by a dimension that is aligned with the thickness of the
substrate layer and a width that is defined by a dimension that is
transverse to the direction of the width and wherein a ratio of the
thickness to the width of the adhesive layer is between about 2:1
and about 15:1.
9. The tape assembly of claim 8 wherein the adhesive layer is
further defined as a first row of adhesive that is aligned with the
at least one of the edges of the substrate layer and a second row
of adhesive that is aligned with the other of the opposing edge of
the substrate.
10. The tape assembly of claim 9 further defining a gap between the
first row of adhesive and the second row of adhesive.
11. The tape assembly of claim 10 further comprising a third row of
adhesive secured to the substrate layer and positioned in the gap
between the first row of adhesive and the second row of
adhesive.
12. The tape assembly of claim 9 having a roll shape such that the
first second rows of adhesive of the adhesive layer are captured
between the substrate layer such that the adhesive layer is secured
to one of the opposing faces of the substrate layer and in
removable contact engagement with the other opposing face of the
substrate layer at locations that are longitudinally offset from
one another relative to the roll shape.
13. The tape assembly of claim 8 wherein thickness of the adhesive
layer is at least 0.003 inches.
14. The tape assembly of claim 8 wherein an adhesive of the
adhesive layer is selected from the group consisting of
polyurethane gel adhesive, silicone gel adhesive, and acrylic
gel.
15. The tape assembly of claim 8 wherein the adhesive layer is
formed by an adhesive having a contact tack generated elongation of
at least 25% when engaged with a polycarbonate material.
16. A method of forming a masking tape comprising: applying
multiple rows of adhesive to a backer material; forming an
elongated roll by rolling the backer material onto itself so that
the multiple rows of adhesive are captured between adjacent layers
of backer material; and partitioning the elongate roll into
discrete rolls by cutting the elongate roll at locations that
divide at least one of the multiple rows of adhesive into a first
portion that is associated with an end of a first discrete roll and
a second portion that is associated with an end of a second
discrete roll.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein applying multiple rows of
adhesive is further defined as applying a bead of an adhesive
selected from the group consisting of polyurethane gel adhesive,
silicone gel adhesive, and acrylics to a surface of the backer
material.
18. The method of claim 17 wherein the step of applying multiple
rows of adhesive is further defined as applying the bead of
adhesive at a width that is between about 0.040 inches and about
0.180 inches.
19. The method of claim 17 wherein the step of applying multiple
rows of adhesive is further defined as applying the bead of
adhesive at a thickness that is greater than 0.003 inches.
20. The method of claim 17 wherein the step of applying multiple
rows of adhesive is further defined as applying the bead of
adhesive at a thickness that is greater than 0.010 inches.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to adhesive masking materials,
such as masking tape and more particularly, to a masking material
that can be applied and removed from an underlying surface without
damaging the surface, without leaving adhesive residue on the
surface, and in a manner that prevents seepage of liquids between
the masking material and the surface to which it is applied.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Adhesive tapes are typically comprised of a flexible
substrate, such as paper, plastic, or cloth that has a layer of
adhesive material applied to at least one side of the substrate.
The adhesive layer commonly covers the entire surface of one side
of the substrate or can be disposed along only one longitudinal
edge thereof. Such devices are commonly referred to as masking
tapes suitable for protecting or masking respective portions of a
surface to which liquids, such as paint, is applied wherein it is
desired to generate a clean or crisp edge between the portions
associated with the masking material.
[0003] Such masking tapes commonly include an adhesive that is
applied as a generally very thin uniform layer across one or both
of the faces of the substrate. Some manufacturers also provide
masking materials wherein a respective edge of the masking material
includes an adhesive that is applied to one side of the substrate
and a liquid resistant material or plastic strip that is applied to
the other side of the substrate to prevent contact of the liquid
with the adhesive supporting substrate in an effort to improve
degradation resistance of the substrate material when subjected to
wet liquids. U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,726,744; 1,779,588 2,171,544;
2,510,120 each suggest masking materials wherein relatively thin
layers of adhesive are disposed along at least an edge portion of a
strip of flexible substrate. U.S. Pat. No. 3,032,181 suggests a
narrow band of adhesive on one or more edges of the tape and a
corresponding coating on the back side of the tape to prevent
adhesion and facilitate release of the adhesive from adjacent
layers of the substrate when the masking material is provided as a
roll.
[0004] U.S. Pat. No. 6,828,008 suggests placement of an absorbent
layer on an edge of the substrate to at least substantially prevent
liquids from being absorbed into the substrate and to retard the
curing of liquids that may be applied to masking material. U.S.
Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0318038 A1 teaches a
masking material having a strip of liquid repellant material on a
side of the substrate opposite the adhesive intended to prevent
liquid material from adhering to the masking material.
[0005] Many of the aforementioned patents have been promoted in the
marketplace as having edge sealing ability or edge blocking
technology intended to prevent seepage of the liquid materials to
that portion of the application surface that underlies the masking
material and to maintain the integrity of the masking material to
facilitate efficient removal of the same after the respective
application process. Each of the disclosures referenced above
attempt to resolve the long existing problem of providing a masking
material that can withstand the application of liquid materials to
the edge of the masking material and to do so in a manner that
attempts to prevent seepage of the liquid materials to the portion
of the application surface disposed generally behind the masking
material. Those familiar with such products, and applicants testing
associated with the present invention, clearly demonstrate that the
currently available masking products perform in a manner that
results in a less than desirable finished product.
[0006] The effectiveness of such masking products to prevent
seepage is largely dependent on the roughness of the surface
intended to be masked and when the surface is not smooth to even a
small extent, seepage occurs and a clean sharp edge is not
obtained. The root cause of such seepage is capillary action, or
capillarity, which is the ability of a liquid to flow into very
narrow spaces without the assistance of, and in opposition to
external forces like gravity. The effect can best be seen in the
drawing up of liquids between the hairs of a paint-brush, in a thin
tube such as those used for biological or chemical testing, in
porous materials such as paper, in some non-porous materials such
as liquefied carbon fiber, or in a cell. Such capillary action
occurs because of inter-molecular attractive forces between the
liquid and solid surrounding surfaces. If a leakage path is
sufficiently small, then the combination of surface tension, which
is caused by cohesion within the liquid, and adhesive forces
between the liquid and container act to force the liquid into the
crevice or gap. Such capillary action is inadequately considered in
many masking materials where small voids can be formed between the
masking material and the treatment surface.
[0007] Although many of the masking materials referenced above can
exhibit suitable seepage results when applied on truly planar
surfaces, many if not all surfaces associated with painting
activities are rarely truly planar. Particularly, the proliferation
of textured wall and ceiling surfaces has proven such masking
materials to have only very limited ability to adequately mask the
respective portions of surfaces or adjacent surfaces for painting
applications. The shortcomings of such products to adequately mask
somewhat rough surfaces, such as sand textured, knock-down, orange
peel, stucco or other cosmetic surface treatments is readily
apparent to most users who have attempted to generate a line of
demarcation between alternate liquid materials or colors applied to
such surfaces.
[0008] While many of the companies that produce masking materials
constructed in accordance with the patents cited herein advertise
that their technology prevents paint from seeping under the edge of
the tape, such assertions have shown only very limited authenticity
with respect to surfaces that are not clean and very smooth, such
as those encountered in most structures where the wall surfaces are
"sand" or "textured" to some or even any extent. As demonstrated
below with respect to the description provided with respect to FIG.
7, such assertions are frequently unsuited to replication to real
life applications.
[0009] Therefore, there is a need for a masking material that can
withstand the rigors of being subjected to liquid materials, can be
removed from an underlying treatment surface without degradation or
separation of the respective portions of the masking material, and
can tolerate deformation of the masking material to match the
contour of the underlying treatment surface to reduce or eliminate
seepage behind the masking material while facilitating efficient
removal of the masking material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] The present invention discloses a masking material that
solves one or more of the aforementioned drawbacks. One aspect of
the invention discloses a masking tape and method of forming a
masking tape that includes a substrate and an adhesive layer
secured to the substrate. The adhesive layer is preferably at least
0.003 inches thick and formed of a material that has a modulus of
elasticity with a proportionate amount of tack that allows the
adhesive layer to elongate and deform to match the contour of
discontinuities associated with a surface to which the masking
material is applied. Preferably, the adhesive layer is formed in
two narrow rows that are aligned with the longitudinal edges of the
substrate and which increase the unit pressure on the adhesive when
applying the tape to the masked surface by reducing the effective
area of adhesive in contact with the masked surface thus preventing
seepage of liquid materials between the masking tape and the
surface to which it is applied.
[0011] Another aspect of the invention that is usable with one or
more features of the above aspect discloses a masking tape that
includes a substrate and an adhesive. The substrate includes a top
surface and a bottom surface and two edges that are defined by a
thickness of the substrate and that separate the top and the bottom
surfaces. The adhesive is disposed on the bottom surface along at
least one edge of the substrate. The adhesive extends in an outward
direction from the bottom surface of the substrate to define a
thickness of the adhesive that is greater than 0.003 inches and is
elastically deformable when coming in contact with a surface such
as a painted wall to at least more than 1.25 times an at-rest
thickness of the adhesive.
[0012] Another aspect of the invention that is usable with one of
more of the features or aspects above discloses a tape assembly
that includes a substrate layer and an adhesive layer. The
substrate layer has opposing faces and opposing edges that each
extend a longitudinal length of the substrate such that the
opposing faces are oriented transverse to a thickness of the
substrate layer defined by a length of the opposing edges. The
adhesive layer is secured to at least one of the faces of the
substrate layer such that an edge of the adhesive layer is aligned
with at least one of the opposite edges of the substrate layer and
the adhesive layer has a thickness as defined by a dimension that
is aligned with the thickness of the substrate layer and that is at
least 1.5 times greater than the thickness of the substrate
layer.
[0013] Another aspect of the invention that is usable with one or
more of the above aspects or features discloses a method of forming
a masking tape that includes applying multiple rows of adhesive to
a backer material. The backer material and the multiple rows of
adhesive are formed into an elongated roll by rolling the backer
material onto itself so that the multiple rows of adhesive are
captured between adjacent layers of backer material. The elongate
roll is partitioned into discrete rolls that each have a maximum
diameter that is the same as the elongated roll by cutting the
elongate roll at locations that divide at least one of the multiple
rows of adhesive into a first portion that is associated with an
end of a first discrete roll and a second portion that is
associated with an end of a second discrete roll.
[0014] Other aspects, features, and advantages of the invention
will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following
detailed description and accompanying drawings. It should be
understood, however, that the detailed description and specific
examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the present
invention, are given by way of illustration and not of limitation.
Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the
present invention without departing from the spirit thereof, and
the invention includes all such modifications.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The drawings illustrate the best mode presently contemplated
for carrying out the invention.
[0016] FIG. 1 is a perspective end view of a masking material
according to the present invention;
[0017] FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of a roll of the masking
material shown in FIG. 1;
[0018] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the masking material shown in
FIG. 1 engaged with an exemplary treatment surface;
[0019] FIGS. 4A and 4B show a table that associates the thickness
of the adhesive layer relative to a peak to peak surface roughness
associated with the surface to be treated.
[0020] FIG. 5 is a plan view of an exemplary manufacturing process
associated with producing the masking material shown in FIG. 1;
[0021] FIG. 6 is an elevation view of a splitting process
associated of the masking material shown in FIG. 1 when produced
with the exemplary manufacturing process shown in FIG. 4; and
[0022] FIG. 7 is a elevation view and shows the seepage resistant
results achieved with the masking material shown in FIG. 1 as
compared to various other self asserted seepage proof masking
materials.
[0023] While masking devices or tapes and methods of forming and
using the same are susceptible to various modifications and
alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by
way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail.
It should be understood, however, that the description herein of
specific embodiments and methods is not intended to limit the
invention to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary,
the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and
alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention
as defined by the appended claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0024] FIG. 1 shows an end perspective view of a masking tape or
masking material 20 according the present invention. Masking
material 20 includes a backer material or substrate 22 and an
adhesive 24 disposed thereon. Substrate 22 is generally defined by
a layer having a length 26, a width 28, and a depth or thickness
30. Substrate 22 includes a first side or surface 32 and a second
side or surface 34 whose shape is defined by length 26 and
thickness 30 of substrate 22. Surfaces 32, 34 can generally be
considered the opposite working surfaces of material 20 wherein one
side is directed to face a treatment surface and the other side
faces atmosphere. Substrate 22 includes a first edge 36 and a
second edge 38, or opposite opposing lateral edges or sides,
associated with length 26 and thickness 30. Substrate 22 includes a
terminal end or edge 40 that is defined by width 28 and thickness
30. Preferably, substrate 22 is formed of a flexible material such
as plastic, cloth or paper and such that thickness 30 has an
approximate dimension of between 0.001 inches and 0.005 inches of
total thickness.
[0025] Adhesive 24 is disposed on at least one of side surfaces 32,
34 of substrate 22 proximate at least one of edges 36, 38.
Preferably, adhesive 24 defines alternate beads wherein a
respective bead is positioned proximate each of edges 36, 38 as
explained further below. Adhesive 24 includes a first side or
surface 42 that engages surface 34 of substrate 22 and another
surface 44 that is generally opposite surface 42. Adhesive 24
includes an edge 46 that is generally aligned with a respective
edge 36, 38 of substrate 22.
[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, masking material 20 is provided with a
first row or bead 48 and a second row or bead 50 of adhesive 24
wherein each bead 48, 50 extends along length 26 of substrate 22.
Preferably, material 20 includes a bead 48, 50 that is positioned
proximate each respective edge 36, 38 of substrate 22 such that a
gap 54 is formed between first bead 48 and second bead 50 of
adhesive 24. Although two rows or beads 48, 50 of adhesive 24 are
shown engaged with surface 34 of substrate 22, it is appreciated
that other numbers of rows of beads can be provided and disposed on
surface 34 of substrate 22 or disposed in gap 54. It is further
appreciated that the entirety of surface 34 of substrate 22 could
be covered with adhesive 24 but that doing so would result in an
increased cost without substantial performance improvement for most
applications. Preferably, depending on the dimension of width 28 of
substrate, gap 54 can include one or more rows or interstitial
amounts of adhesive 24 along length 26 to limit deformation of
substrate 22 during use of masking material 20 and to facilitate a
more uniform shape of masking material 20 when provided in a roll
configuration.
[0027] Each bead 48, 50 of adhesive 24 is defined by a length 56, a
width 58 and a depth or thickness 60 associated therewith. As used
herein, it should be appreciated that length 56 of respective beads
48, 50 are oriented in the same direction as length 26 of substrate
22, width 58 of respective beads 48, 50 are oriented in the same
direction as width 28 of substrate 22, and thickness 60 of
perspective beads 48, 50 are oriented in the same direction as
thickness 30 associated with substrate 22. In a preferred
embodiment, each bead 48, 50 of adhesive 24 has a width 58 that can
be between 0.040 and about 0.200 inches and a respective thickness
60 that is preferably greater than about 0.003 inches and is more
preferably between about 0.010 inches and about 0.100 inches. As
used herein the term "about" is intended to incorporate those
values within +/-0.007 of the lowermost adhesive thickness
parameter and within +/-0.050 of the uppermost adhesive thickness
parameter or parameters approximately or nearly, and in the context
of a numerical value or range set forth, .+-.10% of the numerical
value or range recited or claimed. Preferably, width 58 of adhesive
24 is greater than the depth or thickness 60 of adhesive 24.
Preferably, the dimension of width 58 and thickness 60 are related
by a ratio of approximately 3:1. In a preferred embodiment of the
present invention, adhesive 24 is provided in one or more beads
that have a thickness 60 in the range of approximately 0.020-0.040
inches and a width 58 that can be any dimension but is preferably
0.060-0.120 inches. It is however appreciated that other ratios of
the geometry of adhesive 24 are envisioned to satisfy the
requirements related to the adhesion and tack of masking material
20 relative to both itself as well as treatment surfaces as
explained further below.
[0028] FIG. 2 shows a side elevation view of masking material 20 in
a roll configuration as indicated by a core 64 associated with roll
66 of masking material 20. As shown therein, beads 48, 50 of
adhesive 24 are disposed between adjacent layers of substrate 22
such that surface 42 of beads 48, 50 is disposed on surface 34 of
substrate 22 and surface 44 removably cooperates with surface 32 of
substrate 22 associated with an adjacent layer of the respective
roll 66. Masking material 20 is constructed to be dispensed from
roll 66 by peeling or unrolling of substrate 22 and respective
beads 48, 50 of adhesive 24 from underlying layers of substrate 22.
As explained further below, surface 32 of substrate 22 can be
treated to prevent adhesion of adhesive 24 therewith but to
maintain sufficient interaction to maintain the rolled orientation
of material 20. It is further appreciated that material 20 could be
provided in sheet or strip form rather than roll form although most
users are fairly familiar with the roll type configuration of such
masking materials.
[0029] Adhesive 24 associated with beads 48, 50 of masking material
20 is preferably selected from the group that includes at least
polyurethane gel adhesives, silicone gel adhesives, and acrylic gel
adhesives although it is appreciated that other types of adhesives
may be formed and which exhibit the attributes discussed below.
Preferably, substrate 22 and adhesive 24 are selected to satisfy
various parameters associated with the usage of masking material 20
such as preventing a liquid such as paint from contacting a surface
that has irregularities or texture and is located behind or covered
by masking material 20. Surface 32 of substrate 22 may be treated
to facilitate a convenient release of adhesive 24 therefrom, such
as silicone coating, to enable the respective layers of mask
material 20 to be rolled onto itself and easily unrolled from
adjacent layers when provided in a rolled configuration such as
roll 66. Surface 34 of substrate 22 may be prepared for the desired
inseparable adhesion of adhesive 24 to surface 34 of substrate 22.
Preferably, adhesive 24 has an approximate shore hardness on the 00
scale of 20.
[0030] Referring to FIG. 3, adhesive 24 preferably exhibits
viscoelastic properties as explained further below, that allow
adhesive 24 to conform to uneven surfaces associated with a
treatment surface 72 through the action of cold flowing to achieve
the herein described sealing characteristics with a respective
application or treatment surface. FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a
portion of masking material 20 engaged with portion of a treatment
surface 72 that includes a number of peaks 70 that are separated by
adjacent valleys 74 associated with treatment surface 72. Adhesive
24 conforms to the shape of surface 72 to fill voids, cavities, or
valleys 74 between adjacent peaks 70 of a treatment surface 72 that
underlie masking material 20 to form an effective barrier to
leakage or seepage, including seepage caused by capillary action,
between masking material 20 and a treatment surface 72 to which the
masking material 20 is applied. It should be appreciated that the
view shown in FIG. 3 is indicative of a side plan view of a
respective edge 36 of substrate 22 and a corresponding edge 46 of a
respective bead 48, 50 of adhesive 24. Preferably, edges 36, 46 are
coplanar. The viscoelastic properties of adhesive 24 allows
adhesive 24 to comply to the exact contour of treatment surface 72
and in a manner wherein adhesive 24 maintains secure interaction
with substrate 22 for subsequent removal of masking material 20
from treatment surface 72 but can withstand the rigors associated
with painting activities that overlap material 20. Adhesive 24
preferably exhibits a unique combination of physical properties to
eliminate seepage under most conditions and still be removable from
surfaces of drastically differing surface energy as are found in
normal conditions and that is uncommon to most commercially
available adhesives.
[0031] It is appreciated that masking material 20 may be configured
to cooperate with various different treatment materials that have
discrete respective surface roughness profiles. That is, where
"smoother" but none the less non-planar surfaces are to be treated,
adhesive 24 can be provided with beads having lower thicknesses 60
as compared to surfaces having more abrupt or aggressive surface
discontinuities, such as stucco or knock-down texture treatments.
Providing roll 66 in various bead configurations allows the user to
select the masking product having a thickness 60 of adhesive 24
suitable for a given application or intended use. Such a
consideration also allows more judicious and economical use of only
necessary quantities of adhesive 24 for particular tasks.
[0032] Regardless of the application or intended use of masking
material 20, adhesive 24 is preferably provided so as to satisfy
the parameters set forth in the following table and the information
provided in FIGS. 4A and 4B with respect to the tack between
surface 34 of substrate 22 and adhesive 24, the separable tack
between surface 32 of substrate 22 and adhesive 24, and the
separable tack between treatment surface 72 and surface 44 of
adhesive 24:
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Minimum Maximum Masking Adhesive
Specification Units Value Ideal Value 8 mm depth, 1/2'' diameter
probe, 50 mm/sec penetration rate load Grams 1000 2100 3200 Tack
caused elongation on MSE surface (Primer) (% of initial thickness)
% 30 52.5 75 Tack caused elongation on LSE surface (Lexan) (% of
initial thickness) % 25 37.5 50 Tack caused elongation (%) on HSE
surface (Stainless Steel) (% of inital thickness) % 40 70 100 Tack
ratio on MSE surface (Primer) (tack in psi divided by total
elongation %) psi (lbs/sq. in.) 9.5 24.75 40 Tack ratio on LSE
surface (Lexan) (tack in psi divided by total elongation %) psi
(lbs/sq. in.) 9.5 24.75 40 Tack ratio on HSE surface (Stainless
Steel) (tack in psi divided by total elongation %) psi (lbs/sq.
in.) 9 24.5 40 Thickness inch 0.01 0.045 0.08
[0033] FIGS. 4A and 4B include further information indicative of
achieving the desired tack and/or adhesion interaction explained
above and shows a line of demarcation 78 wherein the thickness 60
of adhesive 24 can be manipulated to provide the desired full
contact engagement with a treatment surface as a function of the
peak-to-peak surface roughness associated with various treatment
surfaces as a function of the bead thickness 60 associated with
maintaining continuous contact of adhesive 24 with the underlying
treatment surface thereby reducing or preventing seepage of liquid
materials to those areas that underlie masking material 20.
[0034] Preferably, adhesive 24 is a gel type material or a material
that is sufficiently pliable so as to conform to the
discontinuities associated with treatment surface 72 without
separating from substrate 22 and is yet conveniently wholly
removable from the treatment surface via user manipulation of
substrate 22. Preferably, substrate 22 and adhesive 24 cooperate
with one another in a manner that resists cohesive failure of
adhesive 24 relative to substrate 22 during removal or manipulation
of masking material 20 during use--aside from tearing or cutting
terminal ends or edge 40 of a respective length of material 20. As
used herein, the tack of adhesive 24 is the immediate strength of
the bond of adhesive 24 with a surface and adhesion is a longer
term strength of a respective bond. That is, tack forms immediately
or in seconds whereas adhesion bond strengths increase over time.
Adhesive 24 is preferably selected to provide a desired tack value
with a preferably low adhesion value. During testing, polyurethane
gels displayed desired tack parameters with acceptable adhesion
values even after extended periods of contact of adhesive 24 with
treatment surfaces 72. Preferably, adhesive 24 is selected to
maintain complete contact with treatment surface 72 without
returning to an at rest shape of the adhesive and does so in a
manner that maintains a secure interaction of the adhesive 24 with
surface 34 of substrate 22 for subsequent removal of masking
material 20 without detriment to surface 72 during the removal
process, such as the undesired removal of paint that may have been
previously applied to treatment surface 72.
[0035] During application of material 20, material 20 can be
applied with finger or palm pressure such that adhesive 24
populates valleys 74 and contacts peaks 70 to define a continuous
interaction with surface 72. Although adhesive 24 wants to return
to an original or at rest shape, adhesive 24 is selected to have a
stiffness or modulus (ratio of stress to strain) that is
insufficient to overcome the tack associated with the interaction
of adhesive 24 with surface 72 thereby maintaining contact
engagement with the entirety of demarcation associated with edge
36, 46 and surface 72. Gap 54 (FIG. 1) associated with masking
material 20 allows expedient removal of masking material 20 from
the underlying surface with a fraction of the total force that
would be required to effectuate the same removal were surface 34
fully occupied by adhesive 24. Understandably, allowing adhesive 24
to extend from edge 36 to edge 38 of substrate 22 may be desirable
in other applications but for applications intended to generate
only a single line of demarcation between surface treatments, only
one of edges 36, 38 need include a bead 48, 50 of adhesive 24. It
is further appreciated that providing both edges with beads 48, 50
of adhesive 24 can prove beneficial to forming of a uniform roll
66.
[0036] Various efforts undertaking to assess the merits of various
alternative adhesives included consideration of the contact tack
generate elongation of various adhesives when subjected to various
probes having different degrees of surface porosity. The testing
process included subjecting various adhesives to a primer coated
probe, a brushed stainless steel probe, and a polycarbonate probe.
Once placed in contact with the respective adhesives, the probe was
withdrawn and the elongation of the adhesive was assessed relative
to an at rest configuration of the adhesive. This testing provided
the assessment that adhesives that exhibit at least 25% contact
tack generated elongation when associated with a polycarbonate
material proved to have an effective elongation and tack
association to achieve one or more of the objectives disclosed
herein.
[0037] FIGS. 5 and 6 show schematic representations associated with
generating one or more rolls 66 of masking material 20. Elongated
roll 82 of masking material 20 can be formed by disposing one or
more elongated beads 84, 86 of adhesive 24 along a longitudinal
length, indicated by arrow 88, of roll 82. Beads 84, 86 are
supported by surface 34 of substrate 22 in spaced relation relative
to adjacent beads such that one or more gaps 90 are formed between
adjacent beads 84, 86 of adhesive 24. A die or other reservoir 92
includes an input 94 and a plurality of outputs 96 associated with
communicating adhesive 24 from a bulk source 97 to surface 34 of
substrate 22 in respective beads 84, 86. It is appreciated that
source 97 can be configured to cooperate with a uniform adhesive
material and/or configured to receive the constituent parts
associated with forming adhesive 24.
[0038] Referring to FIG. 6, roll 82 can be subsequently cut or
bifurcated into individual rolls 66 having a desired width via the
passage of the respective layers of substrate 22 and associated
rows or beads of adhesive 24 through a cutting or splitting device
99 associated with cutting of roll 82. Preferably, splitting device
99 cooperates with masking material 20 passed between a first
roller 98 and a second roller 100 so as to cut or otherwise split
roll 82 at locations associated with each of beads 84, 86 so that a
respective portion of each bead 84 is associated with a first roll
102 and a second roll 104 and a respective portion of each bead 86
is also associated with first roll 102 and second roll 104. Said in
another way, each bead 84, 86 is split to form the respective bead
48, 50 associated with the opposite lateral edges of roll 66 of
masking material 20. Operation of splitting device 99 ensures that
each of the alternate edges 36, 38 associated with substrate 22 and
edges 46 associated with respective beads 48, 50 are provided in a
substantially coplanar configuration relative to the respective
edges 36, 38 of each discrete roll 66 and are generally normal or
transverse to surfaces 32, 34 of substrate 22.
[0039] FIG. 7 shows a performance comparison of masking material 20
to various commercially available masking products that are
advertised as having seepage resistance constructions and
performance. As shown in FIG. 7, a treatment surface 108 having a
substantially similar surface finish along the entirety thereof had
various masking materials applied thereto and was subsequently
painted such that the paint was applied over each of the respective
masking products. With respect to masking products 110, 112, 114,
and 116, various degrees of seepage are clearly visible between
painted portions 118 and the unpainted or masked portions 120 of
surface 108 such that each of products 110, 112, 114, and 116 are
associated with varying degrees of less than desirable demarcation
between the masked and unmasked areas of sample surface 108. Many
of the masking materials associated with products 110, 112, 114,
and 116 have adhesive layers that extend the entirety of one
surface of the substrate and have thicknesses that range generally
from 0.0005 inches to 0.001 inches.
[0040] Comparatively, still referring to FIG. 7, masking material
20 was applied at area 122 of surface 108 such that a substantially
crisp or linear area of demarcation 124, 126 are provided at the
alternate lateral edges of associated with the interface between
area 122 and adjacent painted portions 118. Adhesive 24 is provided
at thicknesses that range for 0.003 inches and preferably about
0.010 inches to 0.050 inches or approximately 50 times the
thickness of the adhesive thickness associated with prior masking
materials. Preferably, the adhesive layer secured to at least one
of the faces of the substrate layer such that an edge of the
adhesive layer is aligned with at least one of the opposite edges
of the substrate layer and the adhesive layer has a thickness as
defined by a dimension that is aligned with the thickness of the
substrate layer and a width that is defined by a dimension that is
transverse to the direction of the width such that a ratio of the
width to the thickness of the adhesive layer is between about 2:1
and about 15:1. For example, a 0.010 inch thick bead has a width
that is preferably between about 0.020 inches and 0.150 inches
wide. From a functioning standpoint, the bead should be as narrow
as the slitting or cutting equipment can tolerate while maintaining
continuous edge of the adhesive. Making the bead narrower than
perhaps about 0.060 inches is expected to maintain functionality of
the adhesive without detracting from the cutting process and would
decreasing manufacturing costs. Preferably, the adhesive has a
width and a thickness that is sufficient to maintain about 0.030
inch of sealed interaction with the treatment surface.
[0041] It should further be noted that removal of masking material
20 from area 122 left no residual indication of the presence of
masking material 20 and did not blemish the surface 108 associated
with removal of masking material 20. FIG. 7 clearly shows the
advantages associated with utilization of masking material 20 for
painting applications as compared to other various commercially
available masking materials with respect to the seepage performance
of masking material 20.
[0042] Therefore, masking material 20 provides a masking material
that includes a substrate and an adhesive layer that is disposed on
the substrate and is preferably greater than 0.003 inches thick and
formed of a material that has a modulus of elasticity that allows
the adhesive to conform to discontinuities associated with a
surface to which the masking material is applied. Preferably, the
adhesive is formed in multiple rows wherein at least one of the
rows or beads is aligned with a lateral edge of the substrate to
prevent seepage or capillary action of liquid between the masking
material and the surface to which it is applied. Masking material
20 provides a temporary but secure interaction with the underlying
surface to mitigate seepage in a manner that allows expedient
removal of the entirety of the masking material from the underlying
surface and in a manner that does not mare or otherwise deface the
underlying surface or surface finishes or treatments.
* * * * *