Fixture, system, and method for coating plastic glove

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10966475-B2
Application number	US-201815965400-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 27, 2018
Priority date	Apr 27, 2017
Publication date	Apr 6, 2021
Grant date	Apr 6, 2021

Abstract

A fixture, system, and method for coating a glove with a coating material are described. A fixture includes a support member and a clamping member movable relative to the support member to a closed position. The clamping member is configured to be at least partially received in a cuff of the glove. In the closed position, the cuff is captured between the clamping member and the support member. In this configuration, a majority of an external surface of the glove is exposed for being coated. A glove-coating system can include one or more fixtures on a conveyor that move the fixture around various processing stages of the glove-coating system. In certain methods of coating a glove, coating material is applied to the glove while the glove is suspended from the fixture. The coated glove can be removed from the fixture without being everted.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A glove-coating fixture for mounting a glove in a glove-coating system, the glove-coating fixture comprising:
a support member having a proximal end portion and a distal end portion spaced apart along an axis, the distal end portion defining a distal end of the support member, the distal end portion includes a distally facing end surface at the distal end of the support member; and
a clamping assembly including a clamping member defining a proximally facing engagement surface shaped and arranged for being received in a cuff portion of the glove to suspend the glove from the clamping member, the clamping member including a radially extending lip located at the distal end portion of the clamping member, the lip defining the engagement surface, the clamping member being movable with respect to the support member between an open position and a closed position, wherein in the open position the engagement surface is spaced apart distally from the end surface of the support member and the engagement surface is in an opposed facing relation with the end surface, and wherein in the closed position the engagement surface is closer to the end surface of the support member whereby the cuff portion of the glove suspended from the clamping member is captured between the engagement surface and the end surface to mount the glove on the fixture.

2. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein the clamping member has a proximal end portion defining a side surface extending proximally from the lip.

3. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 2 wherein the side surface has a conical shape and is disposed radially inward of the engagement surface.

4. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 3 wherein the support member has a side wall extending proximally from the end surface and defining an interior chamber configured to receive the proximal end portion of the clamping member therein when the fixture is closed.

5. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 4 wherein the distal end portion of the support member defines an internal chamfer sloped at an angle corresponding to the side surface of the proximal end portion of the clamping member.

6. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 2 wherein the support member has a side wall extending proximally from the rim end surface and defining an interior chamber configured to receive the proximal end portion of the clamping member therein when the fixture is closed.

7. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 2 wherein the side surface extends from the engagement surface.

8. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein the engagement surface is oriented substantially perpendicular to the axis and the end surface is oriented substantially perpendicular to the axis.

9. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein the support member and the clamping member are configured to sealingly engage the cuff portion of the glove in the closed position.

10. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein the clamping member defines an inflation passage in fluid communication with an interior of the glove when the cuff portion of the glove receives the clamping member and the fixture is in the closed position.

11. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 10 wherein the support member has an interior and the inflation passage is configured to provide fluid communication between the interior of the support member and the interior of the glove.

12. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 11 further comprising an inflation fitting configured to be fluidly coupled to a source of inflation fluid whereby the inflation fitting provides fluid communication between the source of inflation fluid and the interior of the support member.

13. The glove coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein the clamping member is movable with respect to the support member along the axis and the lip projects from a remainder of the clamping member in a direction perpendicular to the motion axis.

14. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 wherein in the closed position the engagement surface is in an opposed facing relation with the end surface.

15. A glove-coating system comprising a sprayer and the glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 1 .

16. The glove-coating system as set forth in claim 15 further comprising a plurality of additional glove-coating fixtures as set forth in claim 1 .

17. The glove-coating system as set forth in claim 16 wherein the support member of each of said glove-coating fixture and said plurality of additional glove coating fixtures is connected to a conveyor for moving the glove-coating fixture through a glove-coating process loop.

18. A glove-coating fixture for mounting a glove in a glove-coating system, the glove-coating fixture comprising:
a support member having a proximal end portion and a distal end portion spaced apart along a central axis; and
a clamping assembly including a clamping member defining a proximally facing engagement surface shaped and arranged for being received in a cuff portion of the glove to suspend the glove from the clamping member, the clamping member being movable with respect to the support member between an open position in which the engagement surface is spaced apart distally from the distal end portion of the support member and a closed position in which the engagement surface is closer to the distal end portion of the support member whereby the cuff portion of the glove suspended from the clamping member is captured between the engagement surface of the support member and the clamping member to mount the glove on the fixture, the clamping assembly including first and second guide shafts disposed about the central axis, the first and second guide shafts slidably received in and in sealing engagement with bearing holes in the support member.

19. The glove-coating fixture as set forth in claim 18 wherein the support member includes an inflation fitting disposed co-axially with the central axis.

Assignees

• Inteplast Group Corp

Inventors

• Tseng Ben
• Hsu Chih Jen
• Hsieh Wenchao
• Li Jyh-Yao Raphael
• Yang Kelvin

Classifications

• B29L2031/4864

  Gloves · CPC title

• B29C41/08

  Coating a former, core or other substrate by spraying or fluidisation, e.g. spraying powder {(spray-up of reinforcing fibres B29C70/305)} · CPC title

• B05C13/02

  for particular articles · CPC title

• A41D19/0082

  Details · CPC title

• A41D19/02

  Arrangements for cutting-out, or shapes of, glove blanks · CPC title