Yarn coating assembly and applicator
AssigneeGillette Canada Inc.
InventorLarry J. Oliphant
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for applying coatings to yarns, particularly yarns to be utilized as dental floss. In a preferred arrangement, an array of parallel spaced yarns are continuously fed while being intermittently deflected by a cam or deflector. As the yarns are deflected, they enter a grooved liquid applicator, with the grooves maintaining a predetermined amount of liquid therein by capillary action. A predetermined amount of liquid is thus applied at intermittent or spaced locations along the length of the yarn. The method and apparatus is particularly suitable for providing dye at spaced locations along a continuous length of floss, thereby demarcating lengths suitable for individual use. Various aspects are also applicable to a variety of yarn coating and/or dyeing applications.
Claims15
A coating applicator for applying a coating material to yarn comprising a container wherein the container has at least one open-ended slot, said at least one slot having a base and an open end for receiving a section of yarn, and said at least one slot being defined by a pair of spaced apart, substantially parallel sides, extending from the base and spaced sufficiently closely to each other to support a predetermined amount of a coating material by capillary action, wherein the container has an upstream and a downstream face, at least the upstream face of the container being inclined inwardly towards the open end.
A yarn coating assembly for applying a coating material to a length of yarn comprising a container means for holding a quantity of the coating material, said container means defining an open ended slot having a width sufficient to accommodate the thickness of the yarn and said slot being dimensioned to support the predetermined amount of coating material by capillary action, a drive means for moving the length of yarn past the container means, and displacement means for intermittently displacing at least a portion of the yarn toward the container means to intermittently bring a section of the yarn into contact with the coating material.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.