Selectively embossed surface coverings and processes of manufacture
OwnerDung Dao Viet, Jean-Yves Simoninventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Selectively embossed surface covering prepared by applying on a substrate a plastic layer with a printing ink containing a photoinitiator, applying, gelling and softening a non curable coating and then a curable coating over said plastic layer which had previously been gelled, mechanically embossing the softened curable coating, activating said photoinitiator and curing the curable coating in those areas over said ink, heating to fuse the curable coating and the plastic layer together and activating a curing photoinitiator of the curable coating so as to cure the curable coating in the unprinted areas.
Claims25
A method of making a surface covering which comprises the sequential steps of:
- a. applying a plastic layer over a substrate,
- b. heating the plastic layer to a temperature which gells the plastic layer to form a gelled plastic layer having a surface,
- c. applying to the surface of the gelled plastic layer a first printing ink containing a first photoinitiator in a first pattern or a first design,
- d. applying a first, non-curable coating made from a plastisol or organosol over the gelled plastic layer and first printing inks
- e. applying a second, curable coating over said first coating and optionally drying it,
- f. gelling said second and optionally said first coatings,
- g. mechanically embossing the second, curable coating,
- h. activating said first photoinitiator and curing the surface areas of the second, curable coating disposed over the first printing ink,
- i. heating the second, curable coating, the plastic layer and the substrate, wherein the mechanical embossing in areas that are not disposed over the first printing ink is relaxed,
- j. optionally mechanically embossing the second, curable coating in areas that are not disposed over the first printing ink
- k. curing the second, curable coating.
A surface covering which comprises:
- a. a substrate,
- b. a foamed and chemically embossed plastic layer overlaying the substrate,
- c. an ink containing a photoinitiator printed in a design on said foamed plastic layer,
- d. a non cured coating or a non cured layer overlaying the foamed plastic layer and ink
- e. a cured coating or a cured layer overlaying the non cured coating or a non cured layer wherein the portion of the cured coating or the cured layer disposed over the ink is chemically and/or mechanically embossed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.