RU2694282C2 - Batting from fiber balls and articles containing such batting - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: textile.

SUBSTANCE: invention provides for batting, containing a nonwoven fabric containing said mixture of fibers, in which nonwoven fabric contains: from 50 wt. % to 95 wt. % of multiple fiber balls, having average diameter from 3.0 mm to 8.0 mm; and from 5 wt. % to 50 wt. % multiple parts of nonwoven fabric, which are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls or any part thereof. Batting has specific density of 2 kg/m³ up to 12 kg/m³.

EFFECT: articles containing batting and methods for making batting are also provided.

23 cl, 2 dwg

Description

Cross references to related applications

This application claims the priority of provisional application US number 62 / 093,293, filed December 17, 2014, the full contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The technical field to which the invention relates.

The present invention, in General, relates to a batting containing fiber balls and consisting of synthetic fibers and binder fibers, and this batting is suitable for use as, for example, insulation. The invention also relates to articles containing batting, and to methods for producing batting.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Fiber balls are known for a specific time. Although fiber balls were often viewed as an undesirable manufacturing defect, for example, in carding, in the manufacture of various continuous nonwoven materials, in other applications, for example, to create "air" products, the suitability of using fiber balls was confirmed.

In the patent US 4,618,531 described one such invention relating to the "air" fiber balls. More specifically: US Pat. No. 4,618,531 discloses a fibrous filler of polyester fibers with a spiral crimp, randomly arranged and entangled in the form of "air" fiber balls. It is said that fiber balls can be easily transported, for example, by air flow.

In the patent US 4,794,038 disclosed fiber balls of fibrous filler, formed from entangled fibers with spiral crimps and binder fibers, which also preferably have a spiral crimps. It is said that fiber balls can be easily transported, for example, by air flow, and they can be subsequently pressed and fastened together. The links provide explanations that state that mixtures of binder fibers are used on a large scale in upholstered furniture, mattresses and similar products, where a large load-bearing capacity is desired. However, they are rarely used as the only filler in these products, for example, in upholstered furniture seats, where, according to common practice, fibrous filler mats are used as a “shell” for the inner foam filler, probably because to achieve the desired elasticity and efficacy cushions made from 100% sole filler, it would be necessary to provide a relatively high density that would not be feasible or prohibitively expensive and which cannot be achieved to achieve the desired efficacy. In US patent 4,794,038 proposed solution, namely, that the "air" fiber balls can be compressed / molded and fastened to form products that provide greater bearing capacity, as an alternative to layered structures for use in upholstered furniture, mattresses and the like products. According to this goal, the reference discloses strong, relatively dense (from 20 to 50 kg / m ³ ), bonded structures, where the most dense (50 kg / m ³ ) structures have the greatest elasticity and carrying capacity.

In the patent US 4,940,502 disclosed bonded structure, manufactured in the form of blocks, molded from fiber balls manufactured in the process, including the step of pressing. The resulting blocks formed from fiber balls are relatively dense (with a density generally ranging from about 20 to 80 kg / m ³ ), have increased elasticity, durability and adaptability, and can be used, for example, in mattresses.

Although previous efforts related to the creation of filler materials from fibers, were directed, for example, to the formation of ordinary mats, "air" fiber balls and dense elastic, bonded structures containing fiber balls, there is still a need for improved filler materials.

Although some aspects of conventional technologies have been considered to facilitate disclosure of the invention, the authors do not in any way reject these technical aspects and believe that the claimed invention may cover one or more of the usual technical aspects discussed in this document.

In this technical description, in which reference is made to a document, act or knowledge section or it is discussed, these references or discussions are not an assumption that the document, act or knowledge section, or any combination thereof was, as of the priority date, publicly available the public, were part of the ordinary general knowledge, or otherwise represented the prior art in this area with appropriate legislation; or it was known that they were significant factors in an attempt to solve any problem that is affected by this technical description.

Summary of Invention

In short, the present invention satisfies the need for improved filler materials. The present invention can solve one or more problems and overcome the drawbacks of the current level of technology in the field discussed above. However, it is believed that the invention may be useful in solving other problems and disadvantages in a number of technical areas. Thus, the claimed invention should not be necessarily interpreted as being limited to solving any specific problems or overcoming the deficiencies discussed in this document.

Some embodiments of the objects disclosed herein: batting, articles containing batting, and methods of forming batting have several distinctive features, none of which are individually responsible for their desired properties. The most important distinctive features of wadding, products and methods defined in the attached claims, without limiting the scope of their characteristics, are briefly discussed below. After reviewing this review, and especially after reading the section of this technical description entitled "Detailed Description of the Invention", it can be understood how the distinctive features of the various embodiments disclosed herein provide a number of advantages in comparison with the current state of the art in this field.

According to one aspect of the invention, a batting comprising a non-woven fabric containing a mixture of fibers, comprising:

- from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of 0.5 denier (1 denier = 0.11 tex) to 7.0 denier and a length of 18 to 51 mm; and

- from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 71 mm, where said binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers.

Structurally nonwoven fabric contains:

- from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 to 8.0 mm; and

- from 5 to 50 wt.% of the plurality of parts of the non-woven fabric, which are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part thereof.

Batting has a specific gravity of 2 to 12 kg / m ³ .

According to the second aspect of the invention, an article is created comprising a batting according to the invention. Non-limiting examples of such products include, for example: outerwear (for example, outerwear, such as jackets, etc.), uniforms, sleeping bags, bedding (for example, quilts), etc.

According to a third aspect of the invention, a method for manufacturing a batting according to the invention is provided, wherein said method comprises:

mixing fibers containing:

- from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of from 0.5 to 7.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 51 mm; and

- from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of 18 to 71 mm, where said binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers, and forming, thus fiber blends;

forming a plurality of fiber balls from a mixture of fibers;

forming a nonwoven fabric from a mixture of fibers, where said nonwoven fabric contains:

- from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 to 8.0 mm; and

- from 5 to 50 wt.% many parts of the non-woven fabric, which are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part thereof; and

heating the non-woven fabric to the temperature of the connection or to a temperature higher than the temperature of the connection of the binder fibers, thus forming a batting.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent after reading the subsequent detailed description of various aspects of the invention, in conjunction with the attached claims and the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The present invention is described below in conjunction with references to the following illustrations, in which identical reference numbers designate similar elements and on which are presented:

figure 1 is a top view (photograph) of a variant of the proposed in the invention of batting;

FIG. 2 is a side view (photograph) of one embodiment of batting proposed in the invention.

Detailed Description of the Invention

Aspects of the present invention and some of their distinctive features, advantages and details are explained more fully below with reference to the non-limiting embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Description of well-known materials, manufacturing tools, manufacturing techniques, etc. omitted, since there is no need to clutter up the description of the invention with details. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and the specific (e) example (s), although they define embodiments of the invention, are given only as illustrations and not as limitations. Various substitutions, modifications, additions and / or locations within the essence and / or scope of the concepts embodied in the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art after reviewing this description.

According to one aspect of the invention, a batting comprising a non-woven fabric containing a mixture of fibers, comprising:

- from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of from 0.5 to 7.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 51 mm; and

- from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 71 mm, where said binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers.

Structurally nonwoven fabric contains:

- from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 to 8.0 mm; and

- from 5 to 50 wt.% of many parts of the nonwoven fabric, which are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part of them.

A plurality of fiber balls and a plurality of nonwoven web parts that are located adjacent to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part thereof, also necessarily contain a mixture of nonwoven fabric fibers.

The wadding of the invention is usually heat treated to melt all or part of the binder fibers, thus forming a bonded wadding of the web type. Accordingly, specialists of ordinary skill in the art can understand that in such embodiments, although “binder fibers” are indicated in the fiber blend composition, said fibers are fibers that are fully or partially melted, as opposed to binder fibers in their original state before heat treatment. However, the characteristics used in this document: tonin (in denier) and length (in mm) refer to the binder fibers before they are heat treated for bonding.

FIG. 1 is a top view (photograph) of one embodiment of a batting 100 proposed in the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a batting contains a plurality of fiber balls 12 and a plurality of pieces 14 of a nonwoven web disposed adjacent to one or more fiber balls, but they are they themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls or any part of them, which also necessarily contain a mixture of fibers of a nonwoven fabric (for ease of description, parts of a nonwoven fabric can be described as “spaces”). The invention differs from previously known glued materials formed from "air" fiber balls (for example, disclosed in US patent 4,794,038), because, for example, when gluing "air" fiber balls to each other using extrusion and heat treatment, as described in the technical documentation, as a result, there was a shortage of spaces 14, which are present in the material according to the present invention, through the use of a nonwoven web formed before heat treatment. FIG. 2 is a side view (photograph) of one embodiment of the wadding 200 proposed in the invention, which also contains fiber balls 12 and spaces 14.

The advantage of the present invention with respect to the prior art includes the possibility of manufacturing the batting proposed in the invention in the form of roll goods. Although the “air” fiber balls that were produced earlier were fastened, but the bond was usually made only after the fiber balls were brought to their final destination (for example, in a pillow). On the other hand, the wadding proposed in the invention is made to form a nonwoven web (usually in the form of a soft, plastic sheet), which can subsequently be subjected to heat treatment to melt the binder fibers and form the wadding proposed in the invention outside the finished product. The batting proposed in the invention can (not necessarily) be rolled up into a roll, and can be transported for use as a roll product. For example, batting rolls can later be cut into pieces of the required size, depending on the intended application, and then they can be used as a filler and / or insulation in the product.

The mixture of fibers of wadding contains from 40 to 95 wt.% Synthetic fibers, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the batting may comprise: 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59 , 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84 , 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94 or 95 wt.% Of synthetic fibers, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 75 to 90 wt.%).

Many types of synthetic fibers are known in the art, and any synthetic fibers required can be used in the subject invention. Indeed, different fibers have different properties and have preferential applications in various fields. This information is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Although a large array of synthetic fibers can be used according to the invention, in some embodiments, synthetic fibers are selected from the group consisting of: polyamide, polyester, acrylic, acetate, polyolefin, nylon, viscose, lyocell, aramid fibers, spandex, viscose, and modified viscose fibers, and combinations thereof.

In specific embodiments, the implementation of synthetic fibers contain polyester fibers. In some embodiments, the implementation of such polyester fibers contain one or more types of fibers made of polyethylene terephthalate, polyhexahydro-p-xylenterephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, poly-1,4-cyclohexelindimethylene (PCDT) and terephthalate copolyesters, in which at least 85% of the cyclic polyester in the polyethylene terephthalate (PCDT) and terephthalate copolyesters, in which at least 85% of the cyclo-esters are polymeric; are ethylene terephthalate or hexahydro-p-xylene terephthalate groups. In a specific embodiment, the synthetic fibers are polyethylene terephthalate fibers.

Denier is a unit of measurement, defined as the mass in grams of 9000 meters of fiber or filament. This unit of measurement is common to accurately determine the mass (or fineness) of a fiber or filament. For example, polyester fibers with a fineness of 1.0 denier typically have a diameter of approximately 10 micrometers (µm). Fiber fineness microdenie are fibers that have a fineness of 1.0 denier or less, while fineness fibers of a macrodienne are fibers that have fineness greater than 1.0 denier.

Synthetic fibers can have a fineness from 0.5 to 7.0 denier, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the implementation of the fineness of the fibers may be: 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4 , 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2 , 7, 2.8, 2.9, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9 4,0, 4,1, 4,2, 4,3, 4,4, 4,5, 4,6, 4,7, 4,8, 4,9, 5,0, 5,1, 5 , 2, 5,3, 5,4, 5,5, 5,6, 5,7, 5,8, 5,9, 6,0, 6,1, 6,2, 6,3, 6,4 , 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9 or 7.0 denier, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 1.0 to 4.0 denier; from 1.0 to 2.0 denier, etc.).

Synthetic fibers can have a length of 18 to 51 mm, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the implementation of the fiber length can be: 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 , 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50 or 51 mm, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 20 to 30 mm).

In some embodiments, the synthetic fibers are siliconized. The term "siliconize" means to coat a fiber with a composition containing silicone (for example, siloxane). Siliconization techniques are well known in the art and are described, for example, in US patent 3,454,422. The composition containing silicone may be applied by using any method known in the art, for example, by spraying, mixing, perching, packing, etc. A composition containing silicone (eg, siloxane), which may contain organosiloxane or polysiloxane, is attached to the outside of the fiber. In some embodiments, the implementation of the silicone coating is a coating of polysiloxane, for example, methylhydrogenpolysiloxane, modified methylhydrogenepolylosiloxane, polydimethylsiloxane or aminomodifitsirovannym dimethylpolysiloxane. As is known in the art, a composition containing silicone may be applied directly to the fiber or may be diluted with a solvent to form a solution or emulsion, for example, a polysiloxane aqueous emulsion, prior to use. After processing, the coating may be subjected to drying and / or heat-setting. As is known in the art, a catalyst can be used to accelerate the curing of a composition containing silicone (for example, polysiloxane containing Si-H bonds) and, for convenience, can be added to the composition containing silicone emulsion with the resulting combination used to process synthetic fiber. Suitable catalysts include: iron, cobalt, manganese, lead, zinc, and carboxylic acid tin salts, for example, acetates, octanoates, naphthenates, and oleates. In some embodiments, implementation, after siliconization, the fiber may be dried to remove residual solvent, and then (not necessarily) subjected to heating to a temperature of from 65 ° C to 200 ° C for heat-setting.

In some embodiments, synthetic fibers are processed to make them slipable using another substance to give slip ability, for example, segmented copolymers of polyalkylene oxide and other polymers, such as polyester or polyethylene, or polyalkylene, as mentioned in US 6,492,020 B1.

Binder fibers are well known in the art, and an array of binder fibers is commercially available. The binder fibers used according to the present invention may be conventional binder fibers (for example, low melting point polyester binder fibers) or other binder fibers, which provide an effect on which any binder fiber is designed: the binder fiber has a melting point at which bonding of fibers is provided, below the softening temperature of synthetic fibers. Binder fibers are presented, for example, in US patent 4,794,038, and general protocols for some embodiments of binder fibers are presented in US patents 4,281,042 and 4,304,817. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers are monocomponent fibers. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers are multicomponent fibers (for example, bicomponent fibers, for example, fibers with a sheath-core structure, where the core contains a component with a higher melting point than the sheath). In some embodiments, the binder fibers comprise mixtures of one or more different types of binder fibers.

The mixture of fibers of wadding contains from 5 to 40 wt.% Binder fibers, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the batting comprises: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 , 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 or 40 wt.% Of binder fibers, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits (for example, 10 to 25 wt.%).

Binder fibers may have a fineness of from 1.0 denier to 5.0 denier, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the fineness of the fibers may be: 1.0; 1.1; 1.2; 1.3; 1.4; 1.5; 1.6; 1.7; 1.8; 1.9; 2.0; 2.1; 2.2; 2.3; 2.4; 2.5; 2.6; 2.7; 2.8; 2.9; 3.0; 3.1; 3.2; 3.3; 3.4; 3.5; 3.6; 3.7; 3.8; 3.9; 4.0; 4.1; 4.2; 4.3; 4.4; 4.5; 4.6; 4.7; 4.8; 4.9 or 5.0 denier, including any ranges / subranges within the specified limits (eg, 1.5 to 3.5 denier; 1.9 to 2.5 denier, etc.).

Binder fibers may have a length of from 18 to 71 mm, including any ranges / subranges within the specified limits (for example, in some embodiments, the length may be: 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62.63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70 or 71 mm, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits ( for example, from 18 to 51 mm; from 40 to 60 mm; etc.).

As indicated above, the binder fibers have a melting point at which the bonding of the fibers is provided, below the softening temperature of the synthetic fibers. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers have a temperature connection, which is below or equal to 200 ° C. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers have a connection temperature from 50 ° C to 200 ° C, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers have a connection temperature of from 80 to 150 ° C. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers have a connection temperature of from 100 to 125 ° C.

In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers have a melting point, which is 15-170 ° C below the melting point of synthetic fibers. For example, in some embodiments, the binder fibers have a melting point that is 15-170 ° C below the melting point of synthetic fibers (for example, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 below , 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50 , 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100 , 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 , 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150 , 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165 , 166, 167, 168, 169 or 170 ° C, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified ranges. For example, in some embodiments, the synthetic fibers are polyester fibers having a melting point of about 250 ° C, and the binder fibers have a melting point 80 to 180 ° C (for example, about 110 ° C).

In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers contain polyester fibers having a low melting point.

In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers are bicomponent fibers containing the sheath and the core, in which the sheath contains a material having a lower melting point than the core. In some embodiments, the implementation of the binder fibers are bicomponent fibers with the composition of the polyethylene / polypropylene.

In some embodiments, synthetic fibers and / or binder fibers are crimped fibers. Various types of crimps are known in the art, including spiral and standard crimps. Fibers can usually have any crimpiness. However, in some embodiments, the fibers are non-helically crimped fibers. In some embodiments, the synthetic and / or binder fibers are not crimped.

In some embodiments, the implementation of the mixture of fibers additionally contains one or more types of natural fibers in addition to synthetic fibers and binder fibers. For example, in some embodiments, the implementation of the mixture of fibers additionally contains one or more components selected from: wool, cotton, artificial viscose Tencel fibers, flax fibers, animal hair, silk and fluff.

Non-woven fabric contains from 50 to 90 wt.% Fiber balls, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits; and from 10 to 50 wt.% spaces, including any and all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. For example, in some embodiments, the batting / non-woven fabric contains: 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, or 90 wt.% Fiber balls, including any and all ranges / subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 70 wt.% to 90 wt.%). In some embodiments, the batting / non-woven fabric contains: 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 or 50 mass% of spaces, including ranges / subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 10 wt.% to 30 wt.%).

Fiber balls have an average diameter of from 3.0 to 8.0 mm (for example, 3.0; 3.1; 3.2; 3.3; 3.4; 3.5; 3.6; 3.7; 3 , 8; 3,9; 4,0; 4,1; 4,2; 4,3; 4,4; 4,5; 4,6; 4,7; 4,8; 4,9; 5,0 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.1, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 5.3 , 3; 6.4; 6.5; 6.6; 6.7; 6.8; 6.9; 7.0; 7.1; 7.2; 7.3; 7.4; 7.5 ; 7.6; 7.7; 7.8; 7.9 or 8.0 mm), including any and all ranges / subranges within the specified limits (for example, from 4 to 6 mm; from 5 to 6 mm, and t .d.)

In some embodiments, the batting has a thickness less than or equal to 40 mm, for example, from 5 to 40 mm (for example: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 or 40 mm), including all ranges and subranges within specified limits.

Batting has a specific density of 2 kg / m ³ to 12 kg / m ³ (for example: 2.04; 2.1; 2.2; 2.3; 2.4; 2.5; 2.6; 2.7 ; 2.8; 2.9; 3.0; 3.1; 3.2; 3.3; 3.4; 3.5; 3.6; 3.7; 3.8; 3.9; 4 , 0; 4,1; 4,2; 4,3; 4,4; 4,5; 4,6; 4,7; 4,8; 4,9; 5,0; 5,1; 5,2 5,3; 5,4; 5,5; 5,6; 5,7; 5,8; 5,9; 6,0; 6,1; 6,2; 6,3; 6,4; 6 , 5; 6,6; 6,7; 6,8; 6,9; 7,0; 7,1; 7,2; 7,3; 7,4; 7,5; 7,6; 7,7 ; 7.8; 7.9; 8.0; 8.1; 8.2; 8.3; 8.4; 8.5; 8.6; 8.7; 8.8; 8.9; 9 , 0; 9.1; 9.2; 9.3; 9.4; 9.5; 9.6; 9.7; 9.8; 9.9; 10.0; 10.1; 10.2 10.3; 10.4; 10.5; 10.6; 10.7; 10.8; 10.9; 11.0; 11.1; 11.2; 11.3; 11.4; 11 , 5; 11.6; 11.7; 11.8; 11.9 or 12.0 kg / m ³ ), including all ranges and subranges within the specified limits. The specific density of the batting is thus relatively low compared to known materials of this type, which use compactly assembled fiber balls. Indeed, in embodiments, the batting proposed in the invention, in contrast to the previously known solutions in the art, is a fluffy, soft and ductile insulating material. Despite the usual ideas existing in this field, according to which it is assumed that the batting proposed in the invention, having a specific density ranging from 2 to 12 kg / m ³ , may not have sufficient structural integrity so that it remains intact after manipulations and after its use (and, thus, is not suitable for use as insulation), and does not have sufficient insulation properties, and / or cannot be easily produced, the applicant has established that eniya surprisingly confirm the possibility of achieving all of these goals. The batting proposed in the invention comprises a first surface and a second surface, where the second surface is parallel to the first surface. In some embodiments, the first surface and / or the second surface of the batting comprises a cross-linked resin. This is the case when, for example, a cross-linking solution containing a cross-linking compound has been applied to the first and / or second surface. The resin is a crosslinked (for example, by heat treatment) version of the solution causing crosslinking. In some embodiments, the implementation of the cross-linked resin contains a compound that causes the formation of cross-links, which is a cross-linked (co) polymer of acrylate. In some embodiments, the implementation through a solution that causes the formation of cross-links, and / or compounds that cause the formation of cross-links, provide softness and hydrophobicity. In some embodiments, the implementation of the compound that causes the formation of cross-links, has a glass transition temperature (Tg), less than 0 ° C.

In some embodiments, at least one of the surfaces (the first surface or the second surface) comprises a mesh layer. The mesh is well known in the art. The use of a mesh can help reduce fiber migration in the batting proposed by the invention (for example, during product handling).

As mentioned above, the wadding proposed in the invention contains a non-woven fabric containing a mixture of fibers. In some embodiments, the implementation of non-woven fabric consists of a mixture of fibers.

In some embodiments, the batting comprises one nonwoven web. In other embodiments, the batting comprises a plurality of layers of nonwoven web, where one or more of the above layers are nonwoven web according to the invention (i.e., contains a mixture of fibers and said fractional composition of fiber balls and spaces). In some embodiments, the batting comprises a plurality of nonwoven webs, which (all) are nonwoven webs according to the invention.

According to the second aspect of the invention, a product comprising a batting according to the invention is created. Non-limiting examples of such products include, for example, outerwear (for example, articles of clothing, for example, jackets, etc.); outfit; sleeping bags; bedding (for example, quilts), etc.

According to a third aspect of the invention, a method for manufacturing a batting according to the invention is provided, wherein said method includes:

mixing fibers containing:

- from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of from 0.5 to 7.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 51 mm; and

- from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of 18 to 71 mm, where said binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers, and forming, thus fiber blends;

forming a plurality of fiber balls from a mixture of fibers;

forming a nonwoven fabric from a mixture of fibers, where said nonwoven fabric contains:

- from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 mm to 8.0 mm; and

- from 5 to 50 wt.% many parts of the non-woven fabric, which are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part thereof; and

heating the nonwoven fabric to a temperature equal to or higher than the temperature of the bonding fibers connection, and thus forming a batting.

Methods for forming fiber balls are well known in the art, and any known method for forming fiber balls suitable for forming fiber balls from a mixture of fibers (this knowledge is readily available to those skilled in the art) can be used. Methods of forming fiber balls are described, for example, in US patents 4,794,038 and 6,613,431. Although any technology for forming fiber balls can be used, in some embodiments, fiber balls are formed by repeating the air flow of short stretches of synthetic and binder fibers onto the vessel wall to seal fiber lumps and make them more rounded and form fiber balls in this way. In other embodiments, a machine is used to form fiber balls to form fiber balls. In some embodiments, fiber balls are formed using a carding machine to form fiber balls (i.e., a carding machine modified to make fiber balls).

In some embodiments, the implementation, before the formation of fiber balls, synthetic fibers and / or binder fibers are loosened. As is well known in the art, loosening causes the fibers to separate from each other to some extent (for example, through the use of a ripper, for example, an aggregator for loosening bales) before further processing.

For the formation of a nonwoven fabric from a mixture of fibers, any suitable technology for forming a fabric (for example, an aerodynamic system or a carding machine) can be used. For example, in some embodiments, the implementation of a mixture of fibers (namely: in the form of fiber balls, which were formed from the mixture) is exposed to air flow to form a nonwoven fabric. In such cases, the implementation of the space can be formed, for example, from the "drop-down" fibers separated from the mixture of fiber balls formed during the action of the aerodynamic system.

In some embodiments, the implementation of the process of forming a nonwoven fabric includes the deposition of a mixture of fibers (for example, formed fiber balls and any free fibers remaining after the formation of fiber balls) on the grid conveyor for forming the flooring. In some embodiments, this can be done using a vacuum system (for example, a vacuum system located under the net conveyor to form the flooring). In specific embodiments, the implementation of the free fiber balls served in the aerodynamic system of formation. With the help of an aerodynamic formation system, fiber balls are meteredly released by means of an air stream and a flooring of a given width and thickness is formed.

After the formation of a nonwoven fabric, it is heated to a temperature equal to or higher than the temperature of the connection by the binder fibers, thus forming the batting proposed in the invention. For example, after forming a nonwoven web of fiber balls through the use of an aerodynamic forming system, it can be transported on a conveyor belt to a thermal bonding chamber, where the binder fibers are activated by heating, and thus bonded batting is obtained.

Before thermal bonding (heating the nonwoven fabric to a temperature equal to or higher than the bonding fiber bonding temperature), the intermediate nonwoven fabric may (not necessarily) be machined (for example, rolling in shafts) to provide a certain degree of web integrity, if required (ensured, of course, in such a way that such machining does not result in a batting, which would have a specific density exceeding 12 kg / m ³ ).

The nonwoven web may serve as a batting or it may be provided with one or more additional layers (according to the invention or in some other way) to form a layered batting.

Examples

The invention is illustrated below, without limitation, by reference to the specific embodiment described in the following examples.

A batting sample was made according to the method described above. The mixture of fibers for the sample consisted of: 90% polyester fiber with a denier of 1.4 denier and a length of 28 mm, and 10% of low-melting bicomponent polyester / polyester binder fibers. The mixture of fibers was processed on a carding machine to produce a nonwoven web in the form of a batting semi-finished product, which was heated to 110 ° C to form the embodiment of the batting proposed in the invention. The structure of the finished wadding consisted of: 80% fiber balls having a diameter of 6 mm; and 20% of the plurality of nonwoven web parts that were located adjacent to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves did not contain one or more fiber balls or any part thereof. The batting had: a surface density of 175 g / m ² , a thickness of 17.5 mm and a specific density of 10 kg / m ³ .

The terminology used in this document is intended only to describe specific embodiments and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. When used in this document, the forms in the singular it is assumed that they also include forms in the plural, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In addition, it should be clear that the terms: "contain" (and any form of the word "contain", for example, "contains" and "containing"); “Have” (and any form of the word “have”, for example, “has” and “having”); "Include" (and any form of the word "include", for example, "includes" and "including"); “Contain” (and any form of the word “contain”, for example, “contains” and “containing”); and any other grammatical variants of these words are verb-bundles with open endings. As a result, a method or product that "comprises", "has", "includes" or "contains" one or more steps or elements, contains these one or more steps or elements, but they are not limited to only these one or more the number of stages or elements. Similarly, the step of a method or element of a product that "contains", "has", "includes" or "contains" one or more distinctive features contains these one or more distinctive features, but it is not limited to only these one or more number of distinctive features.

When used in this document, the terms: "containing", "having", "including", "containing" and other grammatical variants of these terms, they encompass the concepts: "consisting of" and "consisting essentially of".

The phrase "consisting essentially of" or grammatical variants of this phrase, when used in this document, should be understood as encompassing: the specified distinctive features, whole objects, steps or components, but not preventing the addition of one or more additional distinctive features, whole objects , stages, components or their groups, but only if additional distinctive features, whole objects, stages, components or their groups do not significantly change the basic and new characteristics of the application ennyh compositions or methods.

All publications cited in this technical specification are incorporated herein by reference, if each individual publication has been specifically and individually determined to be incorporated by reference in this document, as if it were presented in full.

The subject of the discussion, incorporated by reference, is not considered as an alternative to any limitation of the claim, unless explicitly stated otherwise.

If one or more ranges are specified in the entire technical description, it is assumed that each range is a short format for presenting information, where it is understood that the range covers every discrete point within the range, as if it were presented in full in this document .

Although several aspects and embodiments of the present invention have been described and illustrated herein, alternative aspects and embodiments may be suggested by those skilled in the art for the same purposes. Accordingly, this specification and the appended claims are intended to cover all such additional and alternative aspects and embodiments that are subject to the real characteristics of the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (41)

1. Wadding containing non-woven fabric containing a mixture of fibers, consisting of: - from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of from 0.5 to 6.5 denier and a length of from 18 to 51 mm; and - from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 71 mm, where said binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers; while structurally mentioned non-woven fabric contains: - from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 to 8.0 mm; and - from 5 to 50% by weight of a plurality of non-woven web parts that are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls or any part thereof; and at the same time batting has a specific density from 2 to 12 kg / m ³ . 2. Wadding according to claim 1, in which the synthetic fibers contain polyester fibers. 3. Batting according to claim 1, in which the synthetic fibers have a fineness of from 1.0 to 2.0 denier. 4. Wadding according to claim 1, in which the synthetic fibers have a length of from 20 to 30 mm. 5. The batting according to claim 1, wherein the fiber balls have an average diameter of from 4.0 to 6.0 mm. 6. Wadding according to claim 5, in which the fiber balls have an average diameter of from 5.0 to 6.0 mm. 7. Batting according to claim 1, in which the binder fibers have a fineness of from 1.5 to 3.5 denier. 8. Wadding according to claim 7, in which the binder fibers have a fineness of from 1.9 to 2.5 denier. 9. Batting according to claim 1, in which the binder fibers have a length of from 18 to 51 mm. 10. Wadding according to claim 1, in which the binder fibers have a compound temperature less than or equal to 200 ° C. 11. Wadding of claim 10, in which the binder fibers have a connection temperature of from 80 to 150 ° C. 12. Batting according to claim 11, in which the binder fibers have a compound temperature of from 100 to 125 ° C. 13. Wadding according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, in which the mixture of fibers contains: - from 75 to 90 wt.% synthetic fibers and - from 10 to 25 wt.% binder fibers. 14. Batting according to claim 13, in which the nonwoven fabric contains: - from 70 to 90% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls and - from 10 to 30% by weight of a plurality of parts of a non-woven fabric that are located near one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls or any part thereof. 15. The batting according to any one of claims 1 to 12, in which the synthetic fibers are siliconized. 16. The batting according to any one of claims 1 to 12, in which the synthetic fibers are crimped fibers. 17. Batting according to claim 16, in which the crimped fibers have a spiral crimp or standard crimp. 18. Wadding according to any one of claims 1 to 12, in which the wadding does not contain a fiber with a spiral crimp. 19. Batting according to any one of claims 1 to 12, in which the binder fibers are bicomponent fibers comprising a sheath and a core, where the sheath contains a material having a lower melting point than the core. 20. A product containing a batting according to any one of claims 1 to 12. 21. The product according to claim 20, selected from the group consisting of: outerwear, uniforms, sleeping bags, bedding. 22. A method of manufacturing a batting according to any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising: mixing fibers including: - from 40 to 95 wt.% synthetic fibers having a fineness of from 0.5 to 6.5 denier and a length of from 18 to 51 mm; and - from 5 to 40 wt.% binder fibers having a fineness of from 1.0 to 5.0 denier and a length of from 18 to 71 mm, and the above-mentioned binder fibers have a compound temperature that is lower than the softening temperature of synthetic fibers, and the formation, thus fiber blends; forming a plurality of fiber balls from a mixture of fibers; forming a nonwoven fabric from a mixture of fibers, where said nonwoven fabric contains: - from 50 to 95% by weight of a plurality of fiber balls having an average diameter of from 3.0 mm to 8.0 mm; and - from 5 to 50% by weight of a plurality of parts of a non-woven fabric that are located next to one or more fiber balls, but which themselves do not contain one or more fiber balls, or any part thereof; and heating the nonwoven fabric to a temperature equal to or higher than the temperature of the bonding fibers connection, and thus forming a batting. 23. The method according to p. 22, according to which the nonwoven fabric is made using an aerodynamic formation system.

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