Touch fasteners their manufacture and products incorporating them

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face and a back face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of hook-engageable, extended loops along the length of the closure strip;
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements carried on the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops;
• the substrate defining
• a pair of grooves extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip between the band of loops and the band of fastener elements;
• and
• a longitudinal rib integrally molded with and extending from the substrate between the pair of grooves.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face and a back face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of hook-engageable, extended loops along the length of the closure strip, the loop strip having width and a fiber density which is substantially constant across its width, the loop strip being at least partially encapsulated in resin of the substrate across its width, the loop strip having discrete regions which are more encapsulated by resin than other regions thereof;
• and
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements carried on the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops.

A composite touch fastener comprising

• an elongated, sheet-form resin substrate;
• a fibrous loop strip partially encapsulated in resin of the substrate, the loop strip having discrete regions which are substantially more encapsulated by resin than other regions thereof;
• and
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the substrate.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers having a basis weight of less than about 4 ounces per square yard and a substantially constant fiber density throughout, the loop strip forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip, at least some of the fibers of the loop strip being at least partially encapsulated by resin of the substrate;
• and
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops;
• the front face of the substrate defining
• a pair of grooves defined by molded surfaces extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip between the band of loops and the band of fastener elements,
• a longitudinal rib integrally molded with and extending from the front face of the substrate between the band of loops and the band of fastener elements, and
• two longitudinal edge regions void of fastener elements and loops.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip, the loop strip having width defined between two longitudinal edges thereof, at least some of the fibers of the loop strip being affixed to the substrate across said width by being encapsulated by resin of the substrate across said width, the loop strip having a fiber density which is substantially constant across its width, and wherein the loop strip comprises discrete regions which are substantially more encapsulated by resin than other regions thereof;
• and
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip;
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaces apart from the band of loops;
• and
• a barrier layer of a different material than the substrate between the substrate and the loop strip.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip, the loop strip comprising two longitudinal edge regions and a center region between the edge regions, the edge regions having fibers directly encapsulated within resin of the substrate, the closure strip further comprising a binder connecting fibers of the center region of the loop strip to resin of the substrate, the binder being of a different material than the substrate;
• and
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip;
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops;
• and
• a longitudinal rib integrally molded with and extending from the front face of the substrate between the band of loops and the band of fastener elements.

An elongated closure strip comprising:

• a sheet-form resin substrate having a front face;
• a loop strip carried on the front face of the substrate and comprising a non-woven web of fibers forming a discrete band of hook-engageable loops extending along the length of the closure strip;
• an array of loop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with resin of the front face of the substrate and forming a discrete band of fastener elements extending longitudinally along the length of the closure strip and spaced apart from the band of loops;
• and
• an adhesive strip carried on the front face of the substrate between the band of fastener elements and the band of loops, the adhesive strip having an exposed surface arranged to contact the front face of the closure strip when the closure strip is folded to engage the loops with the fastener elements, to retain the closure strip in a folded state.