Patent GB-1355189-A (GB)
Title: Apparatus for attaching fusible backing pieces to textile pieces
IPC: A41H43/04
Filed: 1970-09-14
Abstract: 1355189 Laminating apparatus and method RELIANT TOOLING CO Ltd 25 Aug 1971 [14 Sept 1970] 43873/70 Heading B5N [Also in Division H5] An apparatus for use in attaching a textile backing piece having a fusible thermoplastic material on at least one of its two faces to a piece of textile material, comprises conveying means for conveying superimposed textile and backing pieces from an entrace end to an exit end of the conveying means, the conveying means comprising two endless conveyer belts 20a and 20b, means e.g. rollers 16a and 16b driving the conveyer belts so that they are brought together to follow a common conveying path from the entrance end to the exit end of the conveying means and so that they follow different paths from the exit end of the conveying means to the entrance end thereof, the conveyer belts at a location on the common path passing between the nip of two co-operating pressure rollers which are biased towards each other, heating means being disposed along the common path upstream of the pressure rollers, the heating means comprising a plurailty of elongated heatable elements extending along parallel axes transverse to the common path, the elements being spaced apart along the conveying path and alternate elements being on opposite sides of the conveying path, the elements being disposed so that the conveyer belts are deflected by each element along the conveying path to ensure effective contact of the belts with the elements. The elongated elements are preferably individually heated and may be arranged in a plurality of groups along the conveying path, the elements of the last group being heated to a higher temperature than those of the first group. In the embodiment in Fig. 1, the components to be bonded are passed through the apparatus from table 12 to table 14, the conveyer belts 20a and 20b respectively running between the rollers 18a and 18b to driven rollers 16a and 16b, tension being maintained by tensioning rollers 24a and 24b each rotatably mounted on a pivotally connected arm 26, the end of each arm 26 remote from the roller being connected by a tensioning spring 30 to arm 28, the two arms 28 being interconnected but being spaced apart angularly about the axis of the respective roller 18a or 18b and pivoted at different distances from the axes of the rollers 24a and 24b, the heating elements 32a, 32b and 32c being in the form of parallel rollers arranged alternately above and below the conveying path, the bottoms of the upper rollers being slightly below the tops of the lower rollers, the rollers being hollow and containing heating elements with associated control means. The pressure rollers 34a and 34b are solid, the upper pressure roller 34a being journalled at opposite ends in the ends of arms 36, the other ends of which are pivotally supported in the side frames 10, the arms 36 being rigidly connected and having integral with one of the arms, an upwardly extending extension 38 welded at its upper end to an intermediate point in a horizontal counterpoise bar 40, a counter weight 42 being slidable over the bar 40 or removable therefrom, the dimensions of the arms 36, extension 38 and bar 40 being such that with the counterweight removed the roller 34a presses on the belts 20a and 20b and the roller 34b with a force equal to its own weight and with the counterweight 42 at the extreme right hand end of the bar 40, the roller 34a exerts no downward pressure. Cooling rollers 44 adapted for passing water therethrough are arranged similarly to heating elements 32 to ensure deflection of the belts. In the embodiment of Fig. 2 the cooling rollers are dispensed with and the rollers 32a, 32b and 32c are replaced by fixed units 132 each comprising a hollow beam of uniform pentagonal cross-section, the majority of which are each provided with an electrical heating element, lower roller 16b being equipped with a solenoid or an electrically controlled pneumatic cylinder to bias it upwardly against roller 16a