Fusion interlocking bristle strip and method of manufacturing the same
OwnerFook Yuen LEEinventor
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a brush with fusion interlocking bristle strip and a method of manufacturing the same. The brush includes carrier strips and knotted bristle strips bonded together by ultrasonic welding and interlocking.
Claims18
A brush with fusion interlocked bristle strip, the brush comprising:
- a knitted strip (300) having a plurality of bristles (310) arranged in parallel with two looped ends to form a body portion to assemble with multiple profiles, and having at least one row of stitching (330) across the body portion towards one end;
- and
- a carrier strip (810) configured to accommodate the knitted strip (300) of fibers wherein the strip (810) includes a slot for accommodating the knitted strip (300);
- wherein the stitching (330) of the knitted strip (300) is interlocked to the carrier strip (810) by fusion bonding including ultrasonic welding.
The method according to claim 5 wherein the ultrasonic welding further comprises the steps of:
- holding one side of the carrier strip (810) with a metal support base (860);
- sandwiching the bristles (310) inside the slot (820) of the carrier strip (810);
- pressing the carrier strip (810) from opposite sides with an ultrasonic horn;
- generating a high frequency vibration by an ultrasonic machine and transferring the energy produced from the vibration through the horn into the carrier strip (810);
- and melted the wall of the carrier in contact with the bristles and the molten flows through the interstices to form the interlocking bond
- bonding the carrier strips due to generation of high heat.
A method of manufacturing a brush with fusion interlocking bristle strip, the method comprising:
- arranging a plurality of bristle fibers (310) to form a knitting strip (300) configured to be assembled with multiple profiles;
- producing by injection molding, at least one strip (810) having a slot (820) to accommodate the knitted strip (300);
- interlocking to bond the knitted strip (300) with at lease one carrier strip (810) by fusion bonding using ultrasonic welding.
The method according to claim 8 wherein the plurality of bristle fibers (310) of the knitted strip (300) is arranged in parallel with two looped ends to form a body portion.
The method according to claim 6, wherein the fibers includes a combination of electrically conductive and electrically non-conductive fibers.
The method according to claim 6, wherein the ultrasonic operating frequency for manufacturing the brush is 15 kHz-30 kHz.
The method as claimed in claim 6 wherein the knitted strip (330) includes interstices (720a) that form critical pathways allowing a molten carrier strip to flow through and form interlock bonds.
The method as claimed in 10 wherein the carrier strip (810) is bonded by the ultrasonic bonding process at the interstices created by the knitted strip (300) wherein the interlock feature (710a) is created as the primary mechanism for locking the bristle strips in place.
The method as claimed in 11 wherein the ultrasonic bonding process preserves strength of the bristles (310) by maintaining its structure wherein the molten carrier encloses the bristles.
The method as claimed in claim 6 wherein the carrier strip (810) is formed from extrusion or compression moulding and the polymer carrier strip is a single piece or a multi-piece polymer strip.
The method as claimed in 15 wherein the bulbous configuration acts as a catch or stopper to prevent the knitted strip (300) from sliding out wherein a larger diameter warp yarn prevents the bristles (310) from sliding out from the carrier strips (810).
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.