Abstract:
A method produces gloves and boots having a liquid inner coating that does not interfere with the seams. Initially, a first plastic web, which could be plastic like polyethylene or plastic laminated with an outer surface such as a cloth, is treated by electroshock to make it receptive to lotion. The web then mergers with a paper backer and lotion is applied by a silk screen station within the glove or boot but not in the seam area. A second plastic web then mergers with the first plastic web and proceeds to a welding unit which produces seams in the form of the glove or boot but outside of the lotion area. Excess plastic webbing is then removed, the paper backer is cut to length, and the final product is formed.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims the priority of provisional U.S. application Ser. No. 60/632,298 filed on Dec. 1, 2004 and entitled “Description of Method Process for Producing Liquid Inner Coating of Plastic Gloves and Boots, et al.” by John J. Brogan, the entire contents and substance of which are hereby incorporated in total by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The invention relates to a method and apparatus for producing gloves or boots having an inner surface pre-coated with materials beneficial to the human skin.  
         [0004]     2. Background of the Invention  
         [0005]     There are two known ways of applying lotion to the hand or foot through the use of a glove or boot. The first method is to put the lotion inside the glove or boot after the glove or boot is formed. This is a messy and inefficient solution. The second method is to spread lotion or medication or the like over the entire width of a webbing and then to form seams with a second webbing in the shape of a glove or boot. This second approach is not only wasteful of lotion and/or medication, but also may produce poor edge seams resulting in breaking, etc.  
         [0006]     It was in the context of the foregoing prior art that the present invention arose.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     Briefly described the invention comprises a method and apparatus for producing gloves or boots having lotion and/or medication on the inside. Initially a first web of plastic material is drawn off a roll and proceeds under a unit that exposes it to an electrical shock in the neighborhood of 90 dynes. This treatment allows the surface of the plastic to accept a serum coating such as lotion or medication. The first, or bottom, web is then merged with a paper backing and introduced into a silk screen chemical application unit. The silk screen unit applies the lotion or medication to the glove but just inside the area where the seams would be formed. The first, or bottom, web with the paper backing, then proceeds to a merge station where it is combined with a top, or second, plastic web and, from there, advances to the welding unit. In the welding unit hot seams are produced using a die heated to approximately 290° C. which produces the outline of the glove or boot. There is a definable gap between the lotion coated portion of the first, or bottom, web and the seams. The sandwiched materials then advance out of the seam welding unit and the excess webbing from the first and second plastic webs are removed and the sections cut up so that the only thing remaining is the plastic glove, with lotion inside, still attached to a paper backer.  
         [0008]     The invention may be more fully understood by reference to the following drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]      FIG. 1A  is a top plan view of the preferred embodiment of the invention showing a two-ply plastic glove, having lotion or medication on the inside, attached to a piece of backing paper.  
         [0010]      FIG. 1B  is a cross-sectional view of the glove shown in  FIG. 1A  from perspective  1 B- 1 B and illustrating the manner in which the medication or lotion is deposited on the inside of the glove.  
         [0011]      FIG. 2A  is a top plan view of a plastic boot, having lotion or medication on the inside, produced by the method of the preferred embodiment of the invention.  
         [0012]      FIG. 2B  is a cross-sectional view of the boot shown in  FIG. 2A  from perspective  2 B- 2 B and also illustrating the manner in which lotion or medication is deposited on the inside of the boot.  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  illustrates the preferred method and apparatus for forming a medicated glove.  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  illustrates the preferred method and apparatus for forming a boot having medication on the inside thereof.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0015]     During the course of this description like numbers will be used to identify like elements according to the different views that illustrate the invention.  
         [0016]     A glove  10 , manufactured according to the preferred embodiment of the invention, is illustrated in  FIG. 1A . Glove  10  is shown attached to a section of paper backing web  12 . Opening  14  permits the user to insert his or her hand into the glove  10  and then pull it off of the backing paper  12 . Glove  10  is releasable attached to backing paper  12  at seams  16 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 1B  is a cross-sectional detail of the glove  10  illustrated in  FIG. 1A  as seen from perspective  1 B- 1 B. Glove  10  comprises a bottom, or first plastic web  20 , attached by seams  16  to a top, or second plastic web  18 . Lotion, or medication  22  is located on the top surface of the bottom, or first plastic web layer  20 , and separated by a gap  24  from the seams  16 . It is evident from  FIG. 1B  that the lotion  22  is pre-applied to the bottom layer  20  in such a fashion that it does not interfere with the hot-melt seams  16 . The glove  10  illustrated in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  is manufactured according to the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in  FIG. 3 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 2A  illustrates a boot  30 , having a structure similar to that of glove  10  illustrated in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  above, but manufactured according to the preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . Boot  30  is releasable carried on backing paper  32  and includes an opening  34  into which a foot can be inserted. A seam  36  defines the outer periphery of the boot  30 . Boot  30  includes a bottom, or first plastic web layer  40 , and a top, or second, plastic web layer  38  connected to the bottom layer of 40 by seam  36 .  
         [0019]      FIG. 2B  is a cross-sectional detail of the boot  30  shown in  FIG. 2A  from the perspective  2 B- 2 B. Like glove  10 , the boot  30 , comprises a sandwich of materials including the backing paper layer  32 , the first, or bottom layer  40 , seam  36  and top, or second layer  38 . Shown inside the cavity of the boot  30  is a layer of lotion or medication  42  which is deposited on the first, or bottom layer  40 . A gap  44  exists between the layer of lotion  42  and the side seams  36 . Gap  44  guarantees that the lotion  42  does not get into the hot melt seams  36  and also insures that only the right amount of lotion  42  is applied and none is wasted.  
         [0020]      FIG. 3  illustrates the preferred method  50  for forming a glove  10  such as illustrated in  FIGS. 1A and 1B . The steps of the method are generally as follows. A first or bottom web of plastic film material  20  is dispensed from a roller and passes under an electrical shock device  52  that exposes the surface of the bottom sheet  20  to a shock of 90 dynes. This treatment allows the surface of the plastic  20  to accept the lotion or serum coating  22 . The pre-treated bottom layer  20  is then merged with the paper backing stock  12  at roller  62  and introduced into the chemical application unit  54 . Chemical application unit  54  comprises a common silk screen unit. The silk screen unit  54  applies lotion or medicated material  22  in the shape of glove  10  but in a size that is smaller than the space between the seams  16 . The bottom layer  20  and the paper backer  12  then advance in registration out of the chemical application unit  54  and are merged at roller  56  with the top, or second plastic layer  18  and from there advances into the welding unit  58 . The welding unit  58  is in exact registration with the chemical application unit  54  so that when a conventional heated dye comes down it creates a seam  16  that leaves a gap  24  between the seam  16  and the interior lotion layer  22 . The heat seal also releaseably attaches the first or bottom layer  20  to the paper backing  12 . The gap  24  insures that the lotion  22  does not interfere with the heat seam  16  and that only the precise amount of lotion  22  is applied inside the glove  10 . This technique is also superior to the prior art technique of putting lotion into a glove after the glove is formed because it provides a much more uniform surface area with minimal waste. After the gloves  10  have been heat sealed, they advance out of the weld unit  58  and the excess  60  of the unusable web material  18  and  20  is removed. The paper web  12  between the gloves  10  is then cut or slit so that the remaining item  10  looks like the product shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B .  
         [0021]     In use, an individual places his or her hand in opening  14  which in turn applies the lotion or medication  22  onto that person&#39;s hand. Gloves  10  can be made in right and left hand so as to permit the user to place his hand upside down or right or left in order to coat either the top or bottom of the hand.  
         [0022]      FIG. 4  illustrates a method  100 , similar to the method  50  shown in  FIG. 3  for manufacturing a glove  10 , by which a boot  30  is manufactured. According to method  100 , the bottom web layer or film  20  passes through the electric shock station  52  which pre-treats the top surface of layer  20  to accept the lotion  42  applied at silkscreen chemical application unit  54 . Bottom layer  20  merges with the paper carrier layer  12  at the roller  62  and advances into the silk screen chemical application unit  54  where a layer of lotion  42  is laid down in the shape of the boot  30  but having a periphery slightly smaller than the boot  30 . The web then advances from the silk screen chemical application unit  54  and merges with the second or top film  18  at roller  56  and from there advances into the hot weld unit  58 . A hot dye, in the form of boot  30 , creates a hot melt seam  36  around the lotion or medication  54  but separated by a gap  44  therefrom so that no lotion or medication  42  gets into the hot melt seam  36 . Clearly weld unit  58  has to keep in careful registration with the silk screen chemical application unit  54  so that the seam  36  is formed exactly over the lotion or medication area  42  but with sufficient room  44  to insure separation. The sandwich comprising back up paper  12 , bottom film layer  20 , lotion  42  and top layer  18  then advances out of the hot weld unit  18  where the excess plastic material  102 , comprising the top and bottom film layers  18  and  20 , respectively, is removed leaving just the boot  30  on the paper backer  12 . The paper backing web  12  is then cut or sliced so as to leave an individual boot  30  on an individual piece of backing paper  32 .  
         [0023]     According to the preferred embodiment of the invention, the plastic film web  18  and  20  preferably comprises Polyethylene mixture with Metalazine, manufactured by Favorite Plastic in the U.S. and Interplastico in Mexico, but could also comprise 1) Polyethylene with Ethyl Malate mixture Acrolite or, 2) Non-woven fabric laminated to Polyethylene film. Likewise, the backing paper  12  comprises 50# white bleached paper 90 Bright, manufactured by International Paper Company, but could also comprise 40# or 60# paper. The lotion layers  22  and  42  could comprise any standard hand lotion, serum, or medication such as hand moisturizer, hand sanitizer, diabetic serum, or the like. The electric shock pre-treating station  52  is manufactured by J&amp;K Company in West Germany. While an electroshock in the neighborhood of 90 dynes is preferable, the acceptable range is from 80 dynes to 95 dynes. The silk screen chemical application unit  54  is manufactured by Systematic Automation in Farmingdale, Conn., Model Number P101. Lastly, the hot weld unit  58  is Model 500S, manufactured by J&amp;K Company in West Germany. While gloves  10  and boots  30  are described for use on human extremities, like hands or feet, it is possible that covers could be made for other parts of the body such as the ears, head (e.g. bonnet), face mask, etc.  
         [0024]     While the invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art and modifications can be made to the structure and method steps of the invention without department from the spirit and scope of the invention as a whole.