Method of making a thick article

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12157279-B2
Application number	US-202017630797-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 28, 2020
Priority date	Aug 5, 2019
Publication date	Dec 3, 2024
Grant date	Dec 3, 2024

Abstract

Method of making a shaped article ( 5 ) comprising at least two parts ( 10, 15 ) wherein the first part comprises at least one projection ( 20 ) and the second part comprises at least one recess ( 22 ) by preparing said first part and said second part in a moulding process and joining the prepared first and second part together by engaging the at least one projection with the at least one recess to form said shaped article.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of making a shaped article in the form of a radiofrequency product comprising at least two parts which are joined, the method comprising: creating a design of said shaped article and defining a split line on said design, wherein said split line divides the shaped article to provide at least a first part and a second part; wherein said first part comprises a plurality of projections and at least one recess between projections; wherein said second part comprises a plurality of projections and at least one recess between projections;
preparing said first part and said second part in a moulding process; and joining the prepared first part and the prepared second part together by engaging projections with recesses in a tessellated fit to form said shaped article.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the moulding process is an injection moulding process.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the split line is a single continuous line.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least a first part and a second part are polymer compositions comprising a polymer.

5. The method according to claim 4 wherein the polymer compositions are filled with a filler material.

6. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the polymer is selected from polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), Polyoxymethylene (POM), Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), Cyclic Olefin Copolymer (COC), Cyclic Olefin Polymer (COP), Ethylene Methacrylate (EMA), Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE), Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), Fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), Polycarbonate (PC), Liquid Crystal Polymer (LCP), Polyamide (PA), Polyaryletherketone (PAEK), polyamide-imide (PAI), Polybutylene succinate (PBS), Polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polyether ether ketone (PEEK), Polyethylenimine (PEI), Polyetherketone (PEK), Polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), Polysulphone (PSU), Polyimide (PI), Poly(lactic acid) (PLA), polymethylpentene (PMP), Polyphenylene Ether (PPE), Polyphenylene sulphide (PPS), Polystyrene (PS), Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), Styrene acrylonitrile (SAN), Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), epoxies, silicones, phenolics, or polyesters.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the design is a computer aided design (CAD) drawing.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one projection possesses a tip with a matching radius with that of the recess to which it is to be engaged.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein neither of the at least two parts has a section thickness greater than about 4 mm.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least two prepared parts are joined by ultrasonic or vibrational welding.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a locking feature is present on the at least one projection and a locking feature is present on the at least one recess and the locking features are engaged in a snap fit arrangement to join the at least two prepared parts.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least two prepared parts are joined in a method which comprises: assembling the at least two prepared parts in a cavity of a tool to form an assembly of the at least two parts, wherein said cavity is adapted to receive the assembly of at least two parts in the form of the shaped article; sealing the cavity of the tool; and melting the assembly of at least two parts to chemically bond the at least two parts together to form the shaped article.

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the shaped article is in the form of a lens or part of a lens.

14. A shaped article in the form of a radiofrequency product comprising at least two parts which are joined, the shaped article comprising: at least a first part and a second part;
wherein said first part comprises a plurality of projections and at least one recess between projections; wherein said second part comprises a plurality of projections and at least one recess between projections; and wherein the first part and the second part are joined together by engaging projections with recesses in a tessellated fit.

Assignees

• Qinetiq Ltd

Inventors

• Spooner Christopher Douglas James

Classifications

• B29L2011/0016

  Lenses · CPC title

• B29C45/0001

  characterised by the choice of material · CPC title

• B29C45/006

  Joining parts moulded in separate cavities · CPC title

• B29C65/565

  involving interference fits, e.g. force-fits or press-fits (B29C65/66 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B29C66/225

  being castellated, e.g. in the form of a square wave or of a rectangular wave (B29C66/2276 takes precedence) · CPC title