Apparatus for making variegated soap base

Abstract

Apparatus for producing striated soap, including a manifold arrangement mounted on a plodder cone and having internal projections extending into the cone for discharging a second soap into a first soap mass being forced through the cone toward an extrusion nozzle.

Description

This invention relates to apparatus for the manufacture of striped soap, and the resultant product, and is particularly directed to the manufacture of composite soap bars wherein a body of a first or main soap has a plurality of surface imbedded bodies of a different soap or soaps presenting a distinct striped appearance.

Apparatus and method for the manufacture of striped soap have been proposed, as for example in the patents to W. A. Kelley et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,268,970; 3,294,692; and 3,398,219.

The present invention distinguishes over known prior art in that incorporation of different soaps into a composite mass embodying the desired surface striping takes place in a region wherein the mass is undergoing uniform radial compression, and this has been found to be advantageous in the production of soap bars of superior appearance and resistance to separation of the different soaps during useful life. The U.S. Pat. to Garvey et al. No. 2,296,842 discloses the extrusion of indicia forming soap streams within a main body of soap being forced through a plodder cone, but this does not produce striped soap.

The invention further includes the advantage that the plastic soaps being incorporated into the composite mass being radially compressed are of substantially the same beta phase content.

Other advantages of the invention are concerned with novel structure for carrying out the foregoing, particularly a novel manifold arrangement mounted on the plodder cone and having internal projections extending into the cone for discharging a second soap or soaps into a first soap column being forced along the cone toward an extrusion nozzle, as well as arrangements for providing substantially uniform soap pressure in the annular manifold space.

FIG. 1 is a mainly diagrammatic view showing the invention according to a preferred embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a section substantially on line 2--2 of FIG. 1 showing the manifold and second soap discharge arrangements;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary section substantially on line 3--3 in FIG. 2 further showing manifold structure;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary section substantially on line 4--4 in FIG. 2 showing further manifold structure;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the nature of the composite soap mass in the cone;

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic cross section of the extruded composite soap log showing the approximate stripe distribution;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary view partly in section showing a further embodiment having a divider plate at the intake to an eccentric manifold;

FIG. 8 is a section substantially on line 8--8 of FIG. 7 showing soap flow control; and

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view in section showing an embodiment wherein the manifold is secured between the end of the plodder barrel and the cone.

FIG. 1 shows mainly diagrammatically a conventional type soap plodder 11 wherein milled soap is compressed and compacted by a rotating worm 12 and forced through a terminal converging cone 13 from which it is discharged through extrusion nozzle 14 as a continuous bar. The extrusion nozzle imparts the desired shape and cross section to the extruding bar, usually rectangular or circular. Except as will appear this plodder construction may be for example similar to that disclosed in Compa et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,485,905.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the cone 13 intermediate its ends is surrounded by a hollow annular manifold member 15 that is fixed to the cone. Member 15 is formed with a circumferentially spaced plurality of radially inwardly extending closed rear and side projections 16 that extend fluid tight through apertures 17 in the wall of cone 13 and are formed with front discharge openings 18 that open toward extrusion nozzle 14. As shown in FIG. 3 the radially outer edges of openings 18 are preferably flush with the smooth inner surface 24 of the cone. Member 15 may be made in two semi-circular parts secured together along a diametral plane.

A second source of soap is indicated at 21 in FIG. 1. This may comprise another plodder assembly or any device wherein soap is worked under controlled pressure and moisture content conditions and discharged as a continuous column through a conduit 22 which (FIG. 2) is connected to discharge into the annular space 23 within manifold 15.

In operation a continuous solid column of the first or main soap in plastic condition is forced by the worm 12 through cone 13. This column flows around the closed rear and side walls of projections 16, thereby effectively forming outwardly open relatively deep longitudinal furrows open outwardly at the periphery of the first soap column. At the same time a plurality of streams of the second soap in plastic condition are continuously discharged downstream through nozzles 18 into those furrows and become embedded in the moving column of the first soap, thereby effectively depositing and imbedding longitudinal stripes of the second soap upon and along the first soap column. The soaps are preferably of different color.

During the time that the second soap streams are being incorporated with the first soap column, the entire composite mass is slidably supported by the smooth conical inner surface 24 of cone 13 and is uniformly radially compressed up to the point it is extruded at 14. FIG. 5 diagrammatically illustrates a cross section of the composite mass moving along the cone downstream of manifold 15. The radially outer surface of each second soap stream slides along the cone wall 24 while the unsupported radially inner surface of each second soap stream seeks the bottom of the furrow in the main soap column.

Since the radially outer surface of each second soap stream is in sliding contact with cone surface 24 the reducing cone diameter results in the second soap streams being positively forced radially deeper into their respective furrows. At the same time the second soap streams are being laterally compressed within the furrow sides or for a time within converging lateral extensions of the manifold openings as will appear in FIGS. 8 and 9. As a result extremely good surface engagement is ensured between the main soap column and the sides and inner ends of each second soap stream while the outer surface of each second soap stream remains in contact with the smooth cone surface at the same level as the adjacent first soap column periphery.

It has therefore been found that by locating the region of incorporation of the stripe forming streams into the main soap column so that both during incorporation and for an appreciable period thereafter the composite mass is subjected to uniform radial compression a better surface bond is attained between the first soap column and the stripe forming streams of the second soap.

The compression brings the stream and furrow surfaces into full surface contact so that there are no voids, and the contacting surfaces are better adhesively bonded.

Preferably the streams of second soap entering the furrows of the first soap move at about the same linear velocity as the first soap column, and the two soaps have about the same plasticity.

It has been found particularly advantageous if the first and second soaps have the same beta phase content, as this combination results in better surface bonding of the stripes with the central soap column.

The radial depth of the longitudinal stripes and their spacing width and shape may be determined by the number, shape and size of projections 16 and openings 18.

It has been noted that where space 23 is of uniform size all around the cone and there is only one second soap inlet as shown in FIG. 1, there may be sufficient drop in pressure in the second soap that the second soap streams exiting from the openings 18 that are more remote from the connection from the space 23 to conduit 22 may not contain the same amount of soap as those closer to conduit 22, thus resulting in some non-uniformity in the striping appearance. This may be advantageous for certain purposes, but for better uniformity a second conduit from source 21 may be connected to space 23, for example about 180.degree. from the point shown in FIG. 1, with the result that there will be a more equal pressure distribution along the second soap in space 23.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrates another mode of combining the soaps at the manifold. Here the manifold 31 is integrally formed upon an intermediate part of cone 13 and, as shown in FIG. 7 has a tubular second soap intake conduit 32 connected to one side thereof while the opposite closed side 33 is eccentric to the cone axis and defines an enlarged manifold space 34 at 180.degree. from the intake. At its juncture with the manifold wall conduit 32 is faired to provide smooth transition surfaces 35 and, between the transition surfaces and at the inner end of conduit 32 is centrally disposed a soap divider plate 48 of teardrop or like streamline contour to oppositely divert opposite sides of the soap column of conduit 32 to flow around opposite sides of the manifold toward space 34. As in the other embodiments conduit 32 is connected to provide a continuous supply of the second, usually colored, soap.

Manifold 31 is formed similarly to the earlier embodiment, with circumferentially spaced hollow projections 36 radially outwardly open to the interior of the manifold as indicated at 37 in FIG. 7 and projecting as nozzles into the cone in the path of the column of the first soap where they are open downstream as indicated at 38 to discharge into the first soap which is passing centrally of the cone and between the nozzles. The combination of the divider plate and the eccentric space 34 aids in providing substantially equal supply of second soap to all nozzles.

Also as shown in FIG. 8 wherein flow of the first soap is indicated in solid line arrows and the second soap flow in dotted line arrows there is preferably provided at the end of cone 13 prior to extrusion an annular internal surface 39 that is concave in the upstream direction and effects a smooth progressive change in the reduction of the composite soap column prior to extrusion. Preferably surface 39 is surrounded by water jackets 41 for cooling the extruding soap surfaces.

Also shown in FIG. 8 the side walls of each of the projections 36 are longitudinally extended interiorly of the cone to form lateral guides and retainers 42 and 43 for the soap streams issuing from openings 38. These guides are disposed on opposite sides of the furrows in the main soap column and may extend almost to surface 39 if desired. Thus each second soap stream emerging from the manifold is for a time positively contained and guided by the lateral extensions 42 and 43 while being free at their upper and lower surfaces to engage the cone wall and the bottom of a furrow in the main soap column respectively.

Following extrusion the soap column 40 issuing from nozzle may be cut into bar sizes and compressed in the direction of the grain of extrusion to final condition.

The manifold through which the second soap streams are introduced into the main soap at the cone may be a separate surrounding member as illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, it may be formed integral with the cone wall as illustrated in FIG. 8, or it may be an intermediate separate part secured between the end of the plodder barrel and the cone as illustrated in FIG. 9.

Referring to FIG. 9 the manifold 15 which is preferably internally similar in structure to the manifold 15 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, is an annular hollow member having opposite side walls removably attached by suitable fastening devices to flanges 44 and 45 on the plodder barrel and cone 13 respectively. The mode of operation in the apparatus of FIG. 1A is essentially the same as described for FIGS. 1-8.

In this embodiment the converging side wall extensions of the projections 16, indicated at 46 and 47 are relatively long, extending substantially the interior length of the cone but terminating sufficiently short of surface 39 to permit the sides of the second soap streams to be compressed tightly in full surface engagement within the main soap column furrows.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

Claims

What is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus for the continuous production of striped soap comprising a terminal cone of a soap plodder having an internal conical passageway and a series of circumferentially spaced apertures in its surface, an extrusion nozzle mounted at the smaller end of said passageway, means for feeding a solid column of a first soap in plastic condition under pressure through said passageway in a direction toward said extrusion nozzle, depositing means in the path of said solid column providing a plurality of circumferentially spaced downstream facing openings for depositing and imbedding streams of a different soap or soaps in plastic condition within and along the periphery of said column to form a slidably moving composite soap mass within said passageway, said depositing means including an annular manifold disposed externally around said cone and having a series of substantially radial projections extending inwardly at said cone apertures, said downstream facing openings being on the inner ends of said projections, said soap mass being substantially uniformly radially compressed during movement along said passageway.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1, wherein said openings are disposed to discharge said streams into sliding contact with the surface of said passage and said column slidably contacts said passage surface between said streams.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 1, wherein said means providing said downstream facing openings in an annular manifold having an inlet for introducing said different soap and a plurality of internal projections that extend into said passage and are formed with said openings within the passage adjacent said passage surface.

4. The apparatus defined in claim 3, wherein said manifold encloses an annular soap distribution space that increases in cross section away from the connection between said inlet and said space.

5. The apparatus defined in claim 3, wherein there is provided in the manifold inlet a divider plate for directing portions of the incoming stream of said different soap to flow around opposite sides of the manifold.

6. The apparatus defined in claim 1, wherein an annular upstream facing concave surface is provided interiorly surrounding the open small end of the cone.

7. The apparatus defined in claim 1, wherein said means providing said downstream facing openings comprises lateral downstream extensions for confining and guiding each of said different soap streams for a predetermined distance.

8. The apparatus defined in claim 7, wherein said lateral extensions are converging plates one at each side of each opening.