Device for moulding fibrous material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9809911-B2
Application number	US-201214117490-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 8, 2012
Priority date	May 19, 2011
Publication date	Nov 7, 2017
Grant date	Nov 7, 2017

Abstract

A device for producing a 3 dimensional shaped consolidated product. The device includes a rotary drum, defined as a rotary conveyor with a peripheral surface extending in circumferential direction with at least one product shaping area in the form of a cavity on said peripheral surface, the peripheral surface is pervious to air at least in the product shaping area, at least one material feed device to feed a base material into the at least one cavity, a vacuum device designed to generate a negative pressure at least in the at least one cavity, whereby the generated suction is directed towards the interior of the rotary conveyor, and whereby downstream of the material feed device at least one consolidating device is located such that at least a part of the filled cavity is subjected to a consolidating treatment whereby the base material at least partly will adhere to neighboring material.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A device for producing a three-dimensional shaped consolidated fibrous product from a fibrous base material, comprising:
a rotary drum, defined as a rotary conveyor with a peripheral surface extending in a circumferential direction, with at least one product shaping area in the form of at least one cavity being formed on said peripheral surface, the peripheral surface is pervious to air at least in the product shaping area;
at least one fiber feed device to feed the fibrous base material into the at least one cavity, the fiber feed device arranged to feed the fibrous base material substantially as single fibers or particles;
a vacuum device designed to generate a negative pressure at least in the at least one cavity, thereby generating suction directed towards an interior of the rotary conveyor;
at least one consolidating device that comprises at least one heating device configured to provide thermal energy to the at least one cavity and fibrous base material contained in the at least one cavity, the at least one consolidating device being located downstream of the fiber feed device and heat-sets the fibrous base material by subjecting it to a consolidating treatment whereby the fibers in the fibrous base material in the cavity are at least partially adhered; and
wherein the rotary drum is defined by a first zone and a second zone, and wherein the at least one heating device is configured to provide a heat of a first temperature to the first zone and heat of a second temperature to the second zone.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the thermal energy is delivered to the fibrous base material by at least one of heat radiation and convective heat transfer, and wherein the heating device does not provide contact heating.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one consolidation device defines a consolidating zone that is divided into different treatment zones in direction of rotation.

4. The device according to claim 3 , further comprising a demolding device, located after the consolidating zone, for demolding and transferring the consolidated fibrous product to a stationary area.

5. The device according to claim 4 , further comprising a cooling device located between the consolidating zone and the demolding zone for providing a cooling zone that cools the consolidated fibrous product, the cooling device generating airflow that has a temperature less than that of ambient air.

6. The device according to claim 5 , wherein the cooling zone comprises at least one cooling device that generates an airflow that is directed towards an axis of rotation of the rotary drum.

7. The device according to claim 4 , wherein the fiber feed device, the at least one consolidating device, and the demolding device are all stationary located around the peripheral surface of the rotary drum, whereby the fiber feed device, the at least one consolidating device, and the demolding device cover at least the maximum width of the cavity.

8. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the vacuum device is regulated to change the negative pressure in the cavity depending on the location of the cavity during rotation.

9. The device according to claim 3 , wherein the consolidating zone is divided into different treatment zones with different air flows.

10. The device according to claim 3 , wherein after the consolidating zone, a consolidated product is demolded and transferred to a conveying device.

11. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the fiber feed device comprises one or more transport rollers.

12. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the fiber feed device uses an air-laid method.

13. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the fiber feed device is a carding roller.

14. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the negative pressure is comprised of a first negative pressure and a second negative pressure, the first negative pressure and the second negative pressure being different.

15. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the vacuum device is configured to provide a first negative pressure to the first zone and a second negative pressure to the second zone, and wherein the consolidating device comprises the at least one heating device.

16. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one cavity is lined with an air pervious material selected from a group consisting of metal mesh and wire cloth.

17. The device according to claim 16 , wherein the air pervious material has a first portion that provides a first air resistance and a second portion that provides a second air resistance.

18. A device for producing a three-dimensional shaped consolidated fibrous product from a fibrous base material, comprising:
a rotary drum, defined as a rotary conveyor with a peripheral surface extending in a circumferential direction, with at least one product shaping area in the form of at least one cavity being formed on said peripheral surface, the peripheral surface is pervious to air at least in the product shaping area;
at least one fiber feed device to feed the fibrous base material into the at least one cavity, the fiber feed device arranged to feed the fibrous base material substantially as single fibers or particles;
a vacuum device designed to generate a negative pressure at least in the at least one cavity, thereby generating suction directed towards an interior of the rotary conveyor;
at least one consolidating device that comprises at least one heating device configured to provide thermal energy to the at least one cavity and fibrous base material contained in the at least one cavity, the at least one consolidating device being located downstream of the fiber feed device and heat-sets the fibrous base material by subjecting it to a consolidating treatment whereby the fibers in the fibrous base material in the cavity are at least partially adhered; and
wherein the at least one consolidating device defines a consolidating zone that is divided into a first treatment zone that exposes the fibrous base material to at least a first temperature and a second treatment zone that exposes the fibrous base material from the first treatment zone to at least one of a second temperature.

Assignees

• Peroz Jacky
• Autoneum Man Ag

Inventors

• Peroz Jacky

Classifications

• D04H1/60

  the bonding agent being applied in dry state, e.g. thermo-activatable agents in solid or molten state, and heat being applied subsequently · CPC title

• D04H1/558 Primary

  in combination with mechanical or physical treatments other than embossing · CPC title

• D04H1/732

  by fluid current, e.g. air-lay · CPC title

• A61F2013/15943

  by air-laid technique · CPC title

• D04H1/76 Primary

  otherwise than in a plane, e.g. in a tubular way · CPC title