AU2016222303B2

AU2016222303B2 - Foam product

Info

Publication number: AU2016222303B2
Application number: AU2016222303A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Yeh TZONG IN
Original assignee: Agit Global IP Holdings LLC
Current assignee: Agit Global IP Holdings LLC
Priority date: 2016-08-29
Filing date: 2016-08-29
Publication date: 2021-04-22
Anticipated expiration: 2036-08-29
Also published as: AU2019219745A1; AU2016222303A1; AU2019219745B2

Abstract

A foam product includes a foam core and a soft shell. The foam core includes a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads. Each of the expanded beads is made of a pre-expanded bead. The foam core defines in its top 5 surface a recess. The recess has an inner wall on which some outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and protruded. The soft shell is disposed within the recess of the foam core and has an outer wall attached to the inner wall of the recess. In particular, the soft shell has at its outer wall a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, 10 outermost beads in the recess of the foam core. 17 wit1 C CII cm

Description

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FOAM PRODUCT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a foam product, and more particularly

to a closed-cell foam product.

2. Description of the Related Art

Nowadays, if a foam product is too wide to be carried under the arm,

such as a standup paddle board, it may employ a recessed grip handle

structure so that a user may have the fingers of a hand be inserted into the

grip handle structure to carry the paddle board under the arm.

One type of standup paddle board is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No.

9,120,218. In this paddle board, the grip handle structure is constructed from

a rigid plastic material, such as Nylon.RTM. fiber and installed flush into the

deck of the paddle board at the center of gravity of the board to provide the

proper balance when the board is carried using the grip handle. More

specifically, the grip handle structure is glued to the foam core of the paddle

board using an epoxy resin glue.

Another type of standup paddle board is illustrated in U.S. Patent Pub.

No. 2014/0315453. In this paddle board, a recess is defined in a top surface

of the foam core of the paddle board, and an upper foam skin covers the top

surface of the foam core. In particular, a portion of the upper foam skin

extends along the profile of the recess in the foam core to form a grip handle

structure for carrying the paddle board.

In this specification where reference has been made to patent specifications, other external documents, or other sources of information, this is generally for the purpose of providing a context for discussing the features of the invention. Unless specifically stated otherwise, reference to such external documents is not to be construed as an admission that such documents, or such sources of information, in any jurisdiction, are prior art, or form part of the common general knowledge in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention provides a new foam product with a different structure

as compared to the conventional foam product.

In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, a foam product

comprises a foam core and a soft shell. The foam core includes a tightly

packed cluster of expanded beads. Each of the expanded beads is made of a

pre-expanded bead. The foam core defines in its top surface a recess. The

recess has an inner wall on which some outermost beads of the expanded

beads are exposed and protruded. The soft shell is disposed within the recess

of the foam core and has an outer wall attached to the inner wall of the

recess. In particular, the soft shell has at its outer wall a plurality of cavities

sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads in

the recess of the foam core.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, a foam product

comprises a foam core and a foam skin. The foam core includes a tightly

packed cluster of expanded beads. Each of the expanded beads is made of a

pre-expanded bead. The foam core has an outer surface on which some

outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and protruded. The foam

skin has an inner surface attached to the outer surface of the foam core. In particular, the foam skin has at its inner surface a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads on the outer surface of the foam core.

In accordance with a third aspect of the invention, a foam product

comprises a foam core, an upper foam skin, a lower foam skin, a non-foam

plastic film and a non-foam plastic plate. The foam core includes a tightly

packed cluster of expanded beads, each of the expanded beads being made

of a pre-expanded bead. The foam core has a top surface on which some

outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and protruded. The

upper foam skin has a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the foam

core. The upper foam skin has at its bottom surface a plurality of cavities

sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads on

the top surface of the foam core. The lower foam skin has a top surface

bonded to a bottom surface of the foam core. The non-foam plastic film has

a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the upper foam skin. The

non-foam plastic plate has a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the

lower foam skin.

The term 'comprising' as used in this specification and claims means

'consisting at least in part of. When interpreting statements in this

specification and claims which include the term 'comprising', other features

besides the features prefaced by this term in each statement can also be

present. Related terms such as 'comprise' and 'comprised' are to be

interpreted in a similar manner.

The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the

invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a foam product in accordance with a

first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates that the foam product shown in FIG. 1 is carried by

a user;

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the foam product shown in

FIG. 1, showing that fingers of a hand are inserted into a recessed grip

handle structure of the foam product;

FIG. 3A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the foam product shown in FIG. 1

taken along the line IV-IV;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a foam core and a soft shell of the

foam product shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 6A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a foam product in accordance with a

second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a foam core and a soft shell of the

foam product shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 9A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the foam product shown in FIG. 7 taken along the line X-X;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the foam product shown in FIG. 7

taken along the line XI-XI;

FIG. 11A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 11;

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a foam product in accordance

with a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 12;

FIG. 13 is another cross-sectional view of the foam product shown in

FIG. 12;

FIG. 13A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 13;

FIG. 13B is another enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG.

13;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a foam product in accordance

with a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14A is an enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG. 14;

FIG. 14B is another enlarged view of the foam product shown in FIG.

14;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a foam core and a soft shell of a foam

product in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a partial cross-sectional view of a foam product in

accordance with a sixth embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a foam core and a soft shell of the

foam product shown in FIG. 16.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 1-6, there is shown a first embodiment of the foam

product 100 according to the invention. The foam product 100 is a standup

paddle board with a grip handle structure 6. A user can easily hold the foam

product 100 using the grip handle structure 6 under the arm for transporting

the foam product 100 in a comfortable and secure manner, as depicted in

FIGS. 2 and 3.

As shown in FIG. 4, the foam product 100 further includes a foam

core 1, an upper foam skin 2 and a lower foam skin 3. In this embodiment,

the upper foam skin 2 is shaped like a half-shell and has a bottom surface

glued to a top surface as well as side surfaces of the foam core 1. The lower

foam skin 3 has a top surface glued to a bottom surface of the foam core 1.

The foam core 1 is made of expanded polystyrene (EPS). The upper foam

skin 2 and the lower foam skin 3 are both made of a relative softer material,

such as expanded polyethylene (EPE) and each has a thickness of about 4

mm to 5 mm. The foam product 100 further includes a non-foam plastic film

4 and a non-foam plastic plate 5 for protection. The non-foam plastic film 4

has a bottom surface directly heat-laminated to the top surface of the upper

foam skin 2. The non-foam plastic film 4 may be colored or include a pattern

visible from the outside of the film 4. On the other hand, the non-foam

plastic plate 5 is directly heat-laminated to the bottom surface of the lower

foam skin 3. And, the non-foam plastic plate 5 is made of a wear-resistant

material, such as polyethylene (PE). Referring back to FIG. 3, the grip

handle structure 6 includes a soft shell 61 and an opening 62 extending

through the upper foam skin 2 and the non-foam plastic film 4. The soft shell

61 is preferably made of an irradiated cross-linked polyethylene foam, with a thickness of about 2 mm to 3 mm.

FIG. 5 illustrates the foam core 1 with a recess 10 in which the soft

shell 61 is disposed. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 6A, the foam core 1 includes

a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads 11. Each of the expanded beads

11 is made of a pre-expanded polystyrene bead. The foam core 1 defines the

recess 10 in its top surface. The recess 10 has an upper space 101 and a

lower, enlarged space 102. The soft shell 61 is suited in the recess 10 of the

foam core 1 and has an upper space (not numbered) configured in size to

receive four fingers of a human hand, and a lower, enlarged space (not

numbered) to permit bending of the fingers, as shown in FIG. 3, as well.

It is noted that, some outermost beads 11 of the expanded beads 11

are exposed and protruded on the inner wall of the recess 10 of the foam

core 1. The soft shell 61 has its outer wall attached to the inner wall of the

recess 10 of the foam core 1. More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3A and

6A, the soft shell 61 has a plurality of cavities 610 at its outer wall. The

cavities 610 of the soft shell 61 are sized and shaped to respectively receive

the protruded, outermost beads 11in the recess 10 of the foam core 1. In

contrast, the inner wall of the soft shell 61 is relatively more flat than the

outer wall of the soft shell 61. In other words, the cavities 610 are defined

only in the outer wall of the soft shell 61, not the inner wall of the soft shell

61. The soft shell 61 and the foam core 1 are firmly bonded together due to

the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces between the soft shell 61 and

the foam core 1. Besides, it should be noted that the soft shell 61 and the

foam core 1 may be directly heat bonded to each other with similar materials.

Alternatively, an adhesive may be employed in between the soft shell 61 and the foam core 1 to further enhance the bonding between the two.

Referring to FIGS. 7-11, there is shown a second embodiment of the

foam product 200 according to the invention. The foam product 200 of the

second embodiment is generally identical to the foam product 100 of the first

embodiment in appearance, and has a grip handle structure 6 for being

grasped. However, the foam product 200 is slightly different from the foam

product 100 in the interior structure. For example, the foam core 1 of the

foam product 100 is made of a single foam body with the same material;

however, the foam product 200 is a combination of two foam bodies with

different materials and densities.

FIG. 8 illustrates a perspective view of the foam core 1 and the soft

shell 61 of the foam product 200. As shown, the foam core 1 includes a first

foam body la and a second foam body lb embedded in the first foam body

la. Specifically, the second foam body lb is more rigid than the first foam

body la. The recess 10 is defined in the second foam body lb of the foam

core 1. The first foam body la is made of expanded polystyrene, and the

second foam body lb is made of a copolymer of expanded polystyrene and

expanded polyethylene. As best seen in FIG. 9, the recess 10 has an upper

space 101 and a lower, enlarged space 102. The soft shell 61 is suited in the

recess 10 of the second foam body lb of the foam core 1, and has an upper

space (not numbered) configured in size to receive four fingers of a human

hand, and a lower, enlarged space (not numbered) to permit bending of the

fingers, as shown in FIG. 9.

As shown in FIG. 10, the foam product 200 further includes an upper

foam skin 2 and a lower foam skin 3. The upper foam skin 2 is shaped like a half-shell and has a bottom surface glued to a top surface as well as side surfaces of the foam core 1. The lower foam skin 3 has a top surface glued to a bottom surface of the foam core 1. The upper foam skin 2 and the lower foam skin 3 are both made of a relative softer material, such as expanded polyethylene (EPE) and each has a thickness of about 4 mm to 5 mm. The foam product 200 further includes a non-foam plastic film 4 and a non-foam plastic plate 5 for protection. The non-foam plastic film 4 has a bottom surface directly heat-laminated to the top surface of the upper foam skin 2.

And, the non-foam plastic film 4 may be colored or include a pattern visible

from the outside of the film 4. The non-foam plastic plate 5 is directly

heat-laminated to the bottom surface of the lower foam skin 3. And, the

non-foam plastic plate 5 is made of a wear-resistant material, such as

polyethylene (PE). As shown in FIG. 11, the grip handle structure 6 includes

a soft shell 61 and an opening 62 extending through the upper foam skin 2

and the non-foam plastic film 4. The soft shell 61 is preferably made of an

irradiated cross-linked polyethylene foam, with a thickness of about 2 mm to

3 mm.

Referring back to FIGS. 9 and 9A, the second foam body lb of the

foam core 1 includes a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads 11. Each of

the expanded beads 11 is made of a pre-expanded bead. Similarly, the first

foam body la of the foam core 1 is made of a tightly packed cluster of

expanded beads 11, not shown, but with a different material. As shown in

FIGS. 11 and 11A, some outermost beads 11 of the expanded beads 11 are

exposed and protruded on the inner wall of the recess 10 of the second foam

body lb. The soft shell 61 has its outer wall attached to the inner wall of the recess 10 of the foam core 1. More specifically, the soft shell 61 has a plurality of cavities 610 at its outer wall. The cavities 610 of the soft shell 61 are sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads

11 in the recess 10 of the second foam body lb. In contrast, the inner wall of

the soft shell 61 is relatively more flat than the outer wall of the soft shell 61.

In this manner, the soft shell 61 and the second foam body lb are firmly

bonded together due to the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces

between the soft shell 61 and the second foam body lb. It should be noted

that the soft shell 61 and the second foam body lb may be directly heat

bonded to each other with similar materials. Alternatively, an adhesive may

further be employed to further enhance the bonding of the soft shell 61 and

the second foam body lb.

Referring to FIGS. 12-13, there is shown a third embodiment of the

foam product 300 according to the invention. The foam product 300 of the

third embodiment is generally identical to the foam product 200 of the

second embodiment in appearance and in structure. For example, the foam

core 1 of the foam product 300 also includes a first foam body la and a

second foam body lb. However, the foam core 1 and the upper foam skin 2

of the foam product 300 are bonded in a different manner.

As shown in FIGS. 12 and 12A, some outermost beads 11 of the

expanded beads are exposed and protruded on the top surface of the first

foam body la of the foam core 1. Referring to FIG. 13, the upper foam skin

2 has at its bottom surface a plurality of cavities 20 sized and shaped to

respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads 11 on the top surface of

the first foam body la, except that a small area of the bottom surface of the upper foam skin 2 is adhered to the top surface of the second foam body lb.

In other words, the upper foam skin 2 is partly bonded to the second foam

body lb via adhesives, and is mostly bonded to the first foam body la via

the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces, as shown in FIG. 13A.

Likewise, the soft shell 61 is bonded to the second foam body lb via the

inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces, as shown in FIG. 13B.

Referring to FIGS. 14, 14A and 14B, there is shown a fourth

embodiment of the foam product 400 according to the invention. The foam

product 400 of the fourth embodiment is generally identical to the foam

product 300 of the third embodiment. For example, the foam core 1 of the

foam product 400 includes a first foam body la and a second foam body (not

shown); and the upper foam skin 2 is bonded to the first foam body la via

the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces, as shown in FIG. 14B.

However, as shown in FIG. 14A, the foam core 1 and the lower foam skin 3

of the foam product 400 are bonded in a different manner.

As shown in FIG. 14A, some outermost beads 11 of the expanded

beads are exposed and protruded on the bottom surface of the first foam

body la of the foam core 1. The lower foam skin 3 has at its top surface a

plurality of cavities 30 sized and shaped to respectively receive the

protruded, outermost beads 11 on the bottom surface of the first foam body

la. As such, the lower foam skin 3 is firmly bonded to the first foam body la

via the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces as well.

Referring to FIG. 15, there is shown a fifth embodiment of the foam

product 500 according to the invention. The foam product 500 of the fifth

embodiment is generally identical to the foam product 300 of the third embodiment. For example, the foam core 1 of the foam product 500 includes a first foam body la and a second foam body Ib; and the upper foam skin 1 is bonded to the first foam body la via the inter-engaged convex and concave surfaces. However, the soft shell 61 of the foam product 500 is slightly different from that of the foam product 300.

As shown in FIG. 15, the soft shell 61 includes a shell body 611 and a

pair of extensions 612 extending from opposite sides of the shell body 611.

Each of the extensions 612 has two sheets (not numbered) attached to each

other. The recess 10 of the second foam body lb of the foam core 1 is sized

and shaped to receive the whole soft shell 61, namely both the shell body

611 and the extensions 612.

Referring to FIGS. 16 and 17, there is shown a sixth embodiment of

the foam product 600 according to the invention. The foam product 600 of

the sixth embodiment is generally identical to the foam product 300 of the

third embodiment. For example, the foam core 1 of the foam product 600

includes a first foam body la and a second foam body lb; and the upper

foam skin 1 is bonded to the first foam body l a via the inter-engaged convex

and concave surfaces. However, the soft shell 61 of the foam product 600 is

slightly different from that of the foam product 300.

As shown in FIG. 16 or 17, the soft shell 61 includes a shell body 611

and a flange 613 extending from a top edge of the shell body 611. The recess

10 of the second foam body lb of the foam core 1 is sized and shaped to

receive the whole soft shell 61, namely both the shell body 611 and the

flange 613.

As described above, the present invention provides a foam product in which the soft shell and/or the foam skin may be firmly bonded to the foam core using the characteristic of the expanded beads of the foam core. The foam product may be one of a stand up paddle board, sit on top kayak, small sail boat, a windsurf board, a snow board, a skiing board, and other craft boards that are too wide to be carried under the arm. It is noted that the foam product is not limited to be shaped like a board or plate. Instead, the foam product would be non-flattened with a different shape.

It should be evident that this disclosure is by way of example and that

various changes may be made by adding, modifying or eliminating details

without departing from the fair scope of the teaching contained in this

disclosure.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A foam product comprising:

a foam core including a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads,

each of the expanded beads being made of a pre-expanded bead, the foam

core defining in its top surface a recess, the recess having an inner wall on

which some outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and

protruded; and

a soft shell disposed within the recess of the foam core and having an

outer wall attached to the inner wall of the recess, wherein the soft shell has

at its outer wall a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively

receive the protruded, outermost beads in the recess of the foam core.

2. A foam product as recited in claim 1, further comprising an upper

foam skin with a bottom surface bonded to a top surface of the foam core,

wherein some outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and

protruded on the top surface of the foam core, and the upper foam skin has at

its bottom surface a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively

receive the protruded, outermost beads on the top surface of the foam core.

3. A foam product as recited in claim 2, further comprising a lower

foam skin with a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the foam core,

wherein some outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and

protruded on the bottom surface of the foam core, and the lower foam skin

has at its top surface a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively

receive the protruded, outermost beads on the bottom surface of the foam

core.

4. A foam product as recited in claim 1, further comprising: an upper foam skin with a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the foam core; a lower foam skin with a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the foam core; a non-foam plastic film with a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the upper foam skin; and a non-foam plastic plate with a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the lower foam skin.

5. A foam product as recited in claim 1, wherein the foam core

include a first foam body and a second foam body disposed in the first foam

body; the second foam body is more rigid than the first foam body; and the

recess is defined in the second foam body of the foam core.

6. A foam product as recited in claim 5, wherein the first foam body

of the foam core comprises expanded polystyrene, and the second foam body

of the foam core comprises a copolymer of expanded polystyrene and

expanded polyethylene.

7. A foam product as recited in claim 6, wherein the soft shell

comprises a cross-linked polyethylene foam.

8. A foam product as recited in claim 7, wherein the cross-linked

polyethylene foam of the soft shell is an irradiated cross-linked polyethylene

foam.

9. A foam product as recited in claim 7, wherein the soft shell has a

thickness of about 2 mm to 3 mm.

10. A foam product as recited in claim 1, wherein the soft shell has an

upper space configured in size to receive at least one finger of a human hand, and a lower, enlarged space to permit bending of the finger.

11. A foam product as recited in claim 1, wherein the soft shell

includes a shell body and a pair of extensions extending from opposite sides

of the shell body, each of the extensions has two sheets attached to each

other, and the recess of the foam core is sized and shaped to receive the soft

shell.

12. A foam product as recited in claim 1, wherein the soft shell

includes a shell body and a flange extending from a top edge of the shell

body, and the recess of the foam core is sized and shaped to receive the soft

shell.

13. The foam product as described in claim 1, wherein the foam

product is one of a stand up paddle board, sit on top kayak, small sail boat,

windsurf board, a snow board, and a skiing board.

14. A foam product comprising:

a foam core including a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads,

each of the expanded beads being made of a pre-expanded bead, the foam

core having an outer surface on which some outermost beads of the

expanded beads are exposed and protruded; and

a foam skin having an inner surface attached to the outer surface of

the foam core, wherein the foam skin has at its inner surface a plurality of

cavities sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost

beads on the outer surface of the foam core.

15. A foam product comprising:

a foam core including a tightly packed cluster of expanded beads,

each of the expanded beads being made of a pre-expanded bead, the foam core having a top surface on which some outermost beads of the expanded beads are exposed and protruded; an upper foam skin with a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the foam core, wherein the upper foam skin has at its bottom surface a plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded, outermost beads on the top surface of the foam core; a lower foam skin with a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the foam core; a non-foam plastic film with a bottom surface bonded to the top surface of the upper foam skin; and a non-foam plastic plate with a top surface bonded to a bottom surface of the lower foam skin.

16. A foam product as recited in claim 15, wherein some outermost

beads of the expanded beads are exposed and protruded on the bottom

surface of the foam core; and the lower foam skin has at its top surface a

plurality of cavities sized and shaped to respectively receive the protruded,

outermost beads on the bottom surface of the foam core.

17. The foam product as described in claim 15, wherein the foam

product is one of a stand up paddle board, sit on top kayak, small sail boat,

windsurf board, a snow board, and a skiing board.