Method and apparatus for manufacturing paint roller and product produced thereby
AssigneeEZ Painter Corporation
InventorsJaime A. Garcia, Bruce C. Polzin, Kenneth L. Shehow
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The invention consists of applying a thermosetting adhesive in a molten state to an area where a strip of pile fabric is wound onto a plastic tube which is mounted over a rotating roller. The molten thermosetting adhesive is applied by a nozzle connected to a reservoir where the thermosetting adhesive is heated. After application, the adhesive, the strip of pile fabric and the plastic tube are joined together, forming a structurally integral paint roller body.
Claims4
In a continuous method of producing a structurally integrated paint roller, the method comprising the steps of:
- providing a pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core, the plastic paint roller core being pre-fabricated from a plastic selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, polyester, and a mixture of polyethylene and polypropylene,
- rotating the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core,
- presenting a fabric strip to the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core, the fabric strip having a fabric backing,
- providing a supply of thermoplastic adhesive which is compatible with both the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core and the fabric backing, said thermoplastic adhesive being selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, a mixture of polypropylene and polyethylene having a polypropylene:polyethylene ratio of about 80:20, polyamide, polyolefin based compounds, polyester based compounds and polyurethane based compounds,
- heating the supply of adhesive to a temperature at which it becomes a liquid adhesive,
- applying a single application of the liquid adhesive directly to the rotating pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core immediately prior to the placement of the fabric strip on the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core in an amount sufficient to securely bond the fabric strip to the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core so as to yield a structurally integral product, and
- wrapping the fabric strip while the adhesive is a liquid adhesive about the pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core while the fabric strip and pre-fabricated plastic paint roller core are rotating with respect to each other.
In a continuous method of producing a structurally integrated paint roller, the method comprising:
- providing a pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core,
- rotating the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core,
- presenting a thermoplastic fabric strip to the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core, the fabric having a fabric backing,
- providing a supply of thermoplastic adhesive which is compatible with both the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core and the fabric backing,
- heating the thermoplastic adhesive to provide a hot liquid adhesive,
- applying the hot liquid adhesive directly to the rotating pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core immediately prior to the placement of the fabric strip on the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core in an amount sufficient to securely bond the fabric strip to the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core so as to yield a structurally integral product, and
- wrapping the fabric while the thermoplastic adhesive is in hot liquid adhesive condition about the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core while the fabric and the pre-fabricated thermoplastic paint roller core are rotating with respect to each other.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.