Patent ID: 7220372

Claim:
A method for molding earplugs that each includes a body of resilient soft foam material and a stiffener in said body, comprising: establishing foamable material of said body in a body cavity of a body mold, and allowing the foamable material to expand in the body cavity to form at least a major portion of said body; establishing a majority of a quantity of flowable but solidifiable elastomeric stiffener material that is more than twice as stiff as said foamable material of said body when both materials solidify, in a stiffener cavity to form at least a major portion of said stiffener in said stiffener cavity, including establishing at least a front portion of the stiffener in said body cavity and allowing said materials of said body and stiffener to solidify and bond to one another, all without removing said body from the body cavity, and without removing said stiffer major portion from said stiffener cavity, whereby to minimize handling of parts.