Liquid dispenser having individualized process air control

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10155241-B2
Application number	US-201514719615-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 22, 2015
Priority date	Apr 30, 2004
Publication date	Dec 18, 2018
Grant date	Dec 18, 2018

Abstract

A dispenser for dispensing liquid material while attenuating the liquid material and controlling the pattern of the liquid material with process air has a manifold with a plurality of process air passages for providing the process air to one or more liquid dispensing modules. The pressure of process air to one or more of the modules may be separately controlled to be different from the pressure provided to other modules on the dispenser. Accordingly, the air pressure provided to each module can be optimized to accommodate a particular dispensing die.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A liquid adhesive material dispenser, comprising:
a plurality of heated manifold segments coupled in a side-by-side arrangement, said plurality of heated manifold segments including a first group comprising more than one heated manifold segment and a second group comprising at least one heated manifold segment;
each of said heated manifold segments includes a first passage for transferring liquid adhesive material and a second passage for transferring heated process air;
said first passages of all of said heated manifold segments are coupled in fluid communication;
said second passages of said first group of said heated manifold segments are coupled in fluid communication with one another and are not in fluid communication with said heated manifold segments of said second group;
said second passages of said second group of said heated manifold segments are coupled in fluid communication with one another and are not in fluid communication with said heated manifold segments of said first group;
a plurality of liquid adhesive dispensing modules positioned in a side-by-side arrangement across a width of said plurality of heated manifold segments, each of said liquid adhesive dispensing modules having a liquid adhesive discharge outlet coupled in fluid communication with said first passage of a respective one of said heated manifold segments, and each of said liquid adhesive dispensing modules dispenses the liquid adhesive as a filament, and each of said liquid adhesive dispensing modules having a heated process air discharge outlet coupled in fluid communication with said second passage of a respective one of said heated manifold segments and arranged to direct heated process air to impinge upon the liquid adhesive filament as the liquid adhesive filament is dispensed from said liquid adhesive discharge outlet and thereby attenuate and control the liquid adhesive filament; and
a control operative to independently adjust, as a group, the pressure of the heated process air dispensed by all of said liquid adhesive dispensing modules coupled to said first group of heated manifold segments relative to the pressure of the heated process air dispensed by all of said liquid adhesive dispensing modules coupled to said second group of heated manifold segments, so that the pressure of the heated process air dispensed by said liquid adhesive dispensing modules coupled with said first group of heated manifold segments is different than the pressure of the heated process air dispensed by said liquid adhesive dispensing modules coupled with said second group of heated manifold segments.

2. The dispenser of claim 1 , further comprising:
a plate disposed between said first group of heated manifold segments and said second group of heated manifold segments, said plate preventing the transfer of heated process air between said first group of heated manifold segments and said second group of heated manifold segments.

3. The dispenser of claim 1 , comprising at least two second manifold segments, with at least one second manifold segment located at each of the respectively opposite outboard ends of said centrally-located first manifold segments.

4. The dispenser of claim 3 , further comprising a first plate disposed between a first group of said plurality of centrally-located first manifold segments and a second group of said plurality of centrally-located first manifold segments, said first plate supplying process air to said plurality of centrally-located first manifold segments.

5. The dispenser of claim 4 , further comprising a second plate operatively coupled to said at least one second manifold segment, said second plate supplying process air to said at least one second manifold segment.

6. A manifold segment for a liquid dispensing system, the manifold segment comprising:
a manifold segment body having oppositely disposed first and second faces and oppositely disposed front and rear faces, wherein each of the first and second faces extends from the front face to the rear face and is adapted for coupling the manifold segment to adjacent manifold segments in a side-by-side arrangement;
a liquid passage for transferring liquid material to a dispensing module when the module is coupled to the manifold segment, wherein the liquid passage is in fluid communication with a liquid channel of each of the adjacent manifold segments;
a process air inlet port defined by the rear face;
a process air outlet passage defined by the front face for supplying process air to the dispensing module when the module is coupled to the manifold segment; and
a channel formed on said first face and spaced in an entirety from the second face, wherein the channel provides fluid communication between said process air inlet port and said process air outlet passage.

7. A liquid material dispenser, comprising:
a plurality of manifold segments, each of said manifold segments, comprising:
a manifold segment body having oppositely disposed first and second faces adapted for coupling the manifold segment to adjacent manifold segments in a side-by-side arrangement,
a liquid passage for transferring liquid material to a liquid dispensing module when the module is coupled to the manifold segment,
a process air inlet port,
a process air outlet passage for supplying process air to the liquid dispensing module when the module is coupled to the manifold segment, and
a channel formed on said first face and providing fluid communication between said process air inlet port and said process air outlet passage;

at least two of said plurality of manifold segments coupled in a side-by-side arrangement such that said channel of one of said manifold segments is sealed off by abutment with an adjacent manifold segment;
a plurality of liquid dispensing modules positioned in a side-by-side arrangement across a width of said plurality of manifold segments, each of said liquid dispensing modules having a liquid discharge outlet coupled in fluid communication with said liquid passage of a respective one of said manifold segments, and each of said liquid dispensing modules having an air discharge outlet coupled in fluid communication with said process air outlet passage of a respective one of said manifold segments, each said process air outlet passage arranged to direct process air to impinge upon the liquid material as the liquid material is dispensed from said liquid discharge outlet and thereby attenuate and control the liquid material as the liquid material is dispensed from said liquid discharge outlet; and
a control operative to independently adjust the pressure of process air dispensed by at least one of said plurality of liquid dispensing modules relative to the pressure of process air dispensed by at least one other one of said plurality liquid dispensing modules.

8. The dispenser of claim 7 , further comprising:
a plate disposed between a first group of said plurality of manifold segments and at least one second manifold segment, said plate preventing the transfer of process air between said first group of said manifold segments and said at least one second manifold segment.

9. A liquid material dispenser, comprising:
a manifold comprising a plurality of manifold segments coupled together in side-by-side relation, each manifold segment comprising:
a manifold segment body having oppositely disposed first and second faces and oppositely disposed front and rear faces, wherein each of the first and second faces extends from the front face to the rear face and is adapted for coupling the manifold segment to adjacent manifold segments;
a liquid passage for transferring liquid material;
a process air inlet port defined by the rear face;
a process air outlet passage

Assignees

• Nordson Corp

Inventors

• Harris Michael W
• Klaus Rick J

Classifications

• B05C5/027 Primary

  Coating heads with several outlets, e.g. aligned transversally to the moving direction of a web to be coated (B05C5/0254 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B05B7/2491

  characterised by the means for producing or supplying the atomising fluid, e.g. air hoses, air pumps, gas containers, compressors, fans, ventilators, their drives · CPC title

• B05B7/2486

  with means for supplying liquid or other fluent material to several discharge devices · CPC title

• B05C5/001

  incorporating means for heating or cooling the liquid or other fluent material (B05C11/1042 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F17D1/005

  for a two-phase gas-liquid flow · CPC title