JP2961038B2 - Method and apparatus for filling and compressing fibrous cushion member - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a filling compression method for compression molding raw material fibers as a cushion member and an apparatus therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a cushion material, a foamed synthetic resin such as urethane foam is generally used, which is injected into a predetermined mold, foamed and molded. However, this foamed synthetic resin cushion member has a drawback of generating toxic gas when incinerated, and has poor elasticity, and not only causes so-called "sagging" in long-term use, but also has other breathability, moisture permeability, There are problems such as poor hygroscopicity and the necessity of chlorofluorocarbon gas during cushion molding.

For this reason, recently, Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-18183
The production of a cushion member using the fibrous material disclosed in the above-mentioned publication as a raw material has been attempted. This is a method in which a fiber melted by heating and a non-molten fiber are mixed and compression-molded into a predetermined shape, and by heating this, the molten fiber becomes a binding material to form a cushion member having a predetermined shape. It has characteristics excellent in breathability, moisture permeability, and moisture absorption.

[0004]

However, conventionally, two or more types of short fibers for cushioning material are formed by folding and laminating a web obtained by carding in a certain direction by a carding machine in a conventional spinning process. Even if it is compressed as it is, the density becomes non-uniform and sufficient elasticity cannot be obtained. In addition, depending on the manufacturing method, the direction of the fibers is aligned in the horizontal front-rear and left-right directions (X and Y directions). In addition, there are few fibers oriented in the vertical direction (Z direction) required for elasticity, and hence the elasticity is poor, and there is a problem in that the elasticity is lost during long-term use, and so-called "sagging" occurs.

In view of the above, the present invention efficiently mixes the supplied short fibers in the front-rear and left-right directions (X and Y directions) as well as in the up-down direction (Z direction) and at the corners. And to form a cushion member having excellent restoring force.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of filling and compressing a fibrous cushion member for achieving the above object, wherein at least two types of mixed and opened raw material fibers are conveyed by an air stream and compressed. The material is alternately supplied to the mechanism from the left and right, and is accumulated in a random manner in the fiber direction in the storage frame of the mechanism. When the compressed material reaches a predetermined weight, the receiving container filled with the raw material fibers is heated in the next step. It is intended to be carried out to the device.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the storage frame has a rectangular cross section, and the raw material fibers are alternately supplied from above and to the left and right by an air flow. Is performed in a preset order,
By changing the discharge direction, turbulence is generated inside the storage frame,
This is to impart a uniform diffusing action to the feed fiber.

[0008] A third invention relates to an apparatus for carrying out the above method, comprising an opening mechanism for opening and mixing at least two types of mixed raw fibers, a feeding mechanism for conveying the opened raw fibers, and The compression mechanism comprises a compression mechanism for receiving and compressing the raw material fibers and filling the raw material fibers into the receiving container.The compression mechanism includes a rectangular raw fiber storage frame and a pressurizing cylinder for compressing the stored raw fibers in the frame. The frame has a porous structure that allows the outflow of the conveying air flow but prevents the discharge of the raw fibers, and forms a pair of left and right raw fiber supply ports above the frame,
A lower part is opened and a receiving container is provided opposite to the lower part. At least two kinds of mixed raw fibers are opened and mixed by an opening mechanism, which is conveyed together with an air flow by a supply mechanism, and supplied from left and right supply ports. The fibers are alternately supplied into the frame to randomly accumulate the fiber direction, and are filled in the receiving container by the pressurizing cylinder, and when the predetermined weight is repeatedly reached, the receiving container is carried out to the next step. It is.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the left and right material fiber supply ports provided above the storage frame of the compression mechanism are connected to a supply mechanism of the opened material fiber, and the supply mechanism is provided with the opened material fiber. A suction blower for sucking out and sending out, a distal end comprising a branch duct connected to each of the receiving ports, and a distribution mechanism provided therebetween, the distribution mechanism having a base end connected to the suction blower and a distal end connected to each branch. It comprises a distribution pipe facing the duct and a driving mechanism for the distribution pipe, and the distribution pipe is rotated so that the raw fibers are alternately supplied to each branch duct.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the outer periphery of the raw material fiber storage frame is covered with a cover, each cover is connected to a branch discharge duct, and each discharge duct is opened to the outside air through a rotary on-off valve mechanism. By the rotation of the rotary on / off valve mechanism, pulsation is given to the exhaust airflow for each exhaust duct,
A turbulent flow is applied to the storage frame, and a uniform diffusing action is applied to the feed fiber in the frame.

[0011]

When the raw fibers are conveyed by an air flow, the fiber directions are randomized, and the fibers in the vertical direction are mixed together with the front, rear, left and right directions. Therefore, when the fiber cushion member obtained by this is compressed, it can be made into a cushion material having elasticity.

[0012]

FIG. 1 is a block circuit diagram of an apparatus for filling and compressing a fibrous cushion member according to the present invention. This device 1
The mixture was mixed at a predetermined ratio by a cotton mixing means (not shown) such as a cotton mixing machine for mixing two or more types of raw fibers by an appropriate means, and was transferred by an air flow through a main feeder (not shown). An opening mechanism 2 for receiving and opening the raw fibers, and a conveying mechanism 3 including a suction blower 4 for conveying the raw fibers opened by the opening mechanism 2 again by an air flow.
And a compression mechanism 5 for separating and accumulating the conveyed raw fibers from the conveyed air flow and compressing and filling the receiving container A.

The opening mechanism 2 includes a reserve tank 10 for receiving raw fibers supplied together with the airflow from the cotton mixing means.
And a feed roller 11 and a beater 12 provided at a lower outlet of the tank 10 and a nip roller 13 opposed to the beater. Reference numeral 14 denotes an under casing made of a guide wall or a grid bar for the beater 12, reference numeral 15 denotes a receiving duct for the opened raw fiber, reference numeral 16 denotes a suction port for outside air, and the opened fiber supplied to the receiving duct 15 is The suction blower 4 of the transport mechanism 3 sucks and transfers the external air to the transport mechanism 3 via the main duct 17. 1
Reference numeral 8 denotes a beater driving motor.

The transport mechanism 3 has a distribution mechanism 20 on the discharge side of the suction blower 4. The distribution mechanism 20 includes a distribution pipe 22 connected to two branch ducts 21a and 21b,
The distribution member 24 is provided between the blower 4 and the distribution pipe 22. The blower 4 is a cotton-type blower that does not cause snagging or the like when the fiber is sucked. The distribution pipe 22 has a V-shape at the center and forms branch pipes 23a and 23b on the left and right sides. Branch duct 21a, 21
b, and the lower part is connected to the distribution member 24. The distributing member 24 includes a rotatable curved tube 25, the lower portion of which is located on the axis of rotation, the upper portion of which is displaced and coincides with one axis of the branch pipe, and a driving motor via a gear member 26. The lower portion is always held on the same axis as the outlet of the blower 4, while the upper portion is alternately opposed to both branch pipes 23a and 23b. As a result, the raw fibers that are opened intermittently with the carrier airflow are alternately distributed and supplied to the branch ducts 21a and 21b via the branch pipes 23a and 23b.

The compression mechanism 5 includes a housing 30, a frame 31 housed in the housing 30, a pressurizing cylinder 32 provided in an upper part of the housing 30, and a raw material mounted on both upper sides of the housing 31. Fiber supply ports 33a and 33b are provided. The supply ports 33a and 33b are connected to the branch duct 21 respectively.
a, 21b, and the receiving container A is placed on the advance / retreat rail B below. The frame 31 is made of a porous material such as a porous material such as punched metal or a wire mesh for four rounds, and covers 34a, 34b, 3
Each cover is connected to a rotary on-off valve 36 such as a rotary butterfly valve via branch discharge pipes 35a, 35b, 35c and 35d, respectively. The rotation of the rotary on-off valve 36 causes the branch discharge pipes to be sequentially connected to the main discharge pipe 37 in a preset order. Further, a pulsation imparting means 50 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 may be provided instead of the rotary on-off valve 36. The pulsation imparting means 50 is configured to block the flow of the exhaust air at regular intervals. The pulsation imparting means 50 joins the branch discharge pipes 35a, 35b, 35c, and 35d to the discharge pipe 51, and the outer pipe 52 And a support shaft 53 rotatably mounted on the outer cylinder 52, a butterfly valve 54 mounted on the support shaft 53, and a valve seat 55 located in the outer cylinder and opposed to the butterfly valve 54. The magnitude of the pulsation can be adjusted by changing the length of the arc portion of the valve seat 55.

The frame 31 may have a uniform mesh (mesh) on each surface. Preferably, the mesh ma at the corner of each surface is coarser than the mesh mb at the center to reduce air flow resistance. I do. This allows the supplied raw fibers to be evenly distributed to the corners.

In the figure, reference numeral 40 denotes a member for preventing the raw fibers compressed in the receiving container A from rising, provided below the frame 31 and inserted into the upper part of the compressed raw fibers.
And a cylinder 42 for moving the needle member 41 forward and backward. The needle member 41 is moved forward and backward in association with the elevation of the pressurizing cylinder 32. When the pressurizing cylinder 32 rises, the compressed raw fiber in the receiving container A rises. Is to be prevented. Further, the side surface of the receiving container A may be made of the same porous material as the frame body 31.

In the above construction, two or more kinds of raw fibers mixed by appropriate means (for example, one of them is a low melting point ester thermoplastic fiber and the other is a high bulky ester thermoplastic fiber) are mixed. Then, it is supplied to the opening mechanism 2 by an air flow. The fiber opening mechanism 2 is opened by the beater 12 and transferred to the transport mechanism 3 via the main duct 15 by the suction action of the suction blower 4 of the transport mechanism 3. The raw fibers supplied to the transport mechanism 3 are bent at a curved pipe 25 of the distribution member 24.
Are supplied alternately to the branch ducts 21a and 21b by the rotation of the, and are alternately supplied to the supply ports 33a and 33b of the compression mechanism 5.

The compression mechanism 5 has a structure in which the four circumferential surfaces of the frame 31 are made of a porous material, and covers 34a to 34
The branch discharge pipes 35 a to 35 d connected to “d” are sequentially exhausted through the main discharge pipe 37 by the rotation of the rotary on-off valve 36. Along with this, the material fibers alternately supplied from the left and right supply ports 33a, 33b move to the side direction, for example, the cover 34a side communicating with the main discharge pipe 37, and the material fibers and the conveying air are separated by the frame 31 and conveyed. The air is discharged, and the raw fibers are sequentially and uniformly filled from the bottom of the receiving container A.

In this case, since the supply of the raw fibers is alternately supplied from the left and right supply ports 33a and 33b, a turbulent flow is generated in the frame 31, and the directing directions of the single fibers of the raw fibers are horizontal front, rear, left and right. It is directed not only in the direction but also in the vertical direction. Furthermore, since the mesh at the corners is made larger than the mesh at the center to reduce the air flow resistance on each surface of the frame, the raw fibers are uniformly supplied to the corners. Then, the exhaust direction is switched, and when a certain amount is accumulated in the frame body 31 beyond the receiving container A, it is detected by a suitable means such as a photoelectric tube or the like, and the supply by the blower 4 is stopped. 31
The pressurizing cylinder 32 is lifted, and when the pressurizing cylinder 32 exceeds the position of the lifting prevention member 40, the cylinder 42 is advanced. Prevents fiber from rising. After the pressurizing cylinder 32 returns to the upper end position, the supply by the blower 4 is restarted and the above operation is repeated. When the weight reaches a predetermined value, the receiving container A is pulled out and transferred to the heating means (not shown) in the next step.

[0021]

As described above, according to the present invention, since at least two kinds of mixed raw fibers are opened and transported to the compression mechanism by an air flow, the direction of the unit fibers can be changed in the front, rear, left and right directions. It becomes a random mixture of fibers in the vertical direction, and therefore, by compressing it, a cushion material having a sufficient elasticity can be obtained. Also, at this time, the raw material fibers are alternately supplied to the storage frame from the left and right by the air flow, so that the supply into the container can be made uniform. The storage frame has a rectangular cross-section, and the raw material fibers are alternately supplied from the left and right by the air flow, and when the carrier airflow is discharged from the air vents provided on each side, the corners are formed with respect to the storage frame. Raw material fibers can be accumulated evenly up to this point. In addition, each side air vent is connected to a branch discharge duct, and when each discharge duct is sequentially opened to the outside by an on-off valve mechanism, turbulence can be generated in the storage frame body. When pulsating is connected to the pulsation applying means, pulsation can be applied to the exhaust airflow, whereby a uniform diffusing action can be applied to the feed fiber in the storage frame.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view of an apparatus for filling and compressing a fibrous cushion member according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view of a fiber opening mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a transport mechanism.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the distribution mechanism in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a compression mechanism.

6 is a longitudinal sectional view of the compression mechanism in a direction perpendicular to FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a transverse sectional view taken along line XX in FIG.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram related to a branch discharge pipe and a rotary on-off valve.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram related to a branch discharge pipe and a pulsation imparting means.

FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory view of a pulsation imparting means.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Filling compression molding apparatus 2 Spreading mechanism 3 Transport mechanism 5 Compression mechanism 31 Frame 32 Pressurizing cylinder 33a Raw fiber supply port 33b Raw fiber supply port A Receiving container

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Kahide Aoyama 2-21-7 Kaminocho, Sakai-shi, Osaka (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) B32B 5/08 D04H 1/10

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] At least two kinds of mixed and opened raw material fibers are conveyed by an air flow and alternately supplied to a compression mechanism from right and left to accumulate in a storage frame of the mechanism in a random manner in a fiber direction. And a method of filling and compressing the fibrous cushion member, wherein when the compressed material reaches a predetermined weight, the receiving container filled with the raw material fibers is carried out to a heating device in the next step. 2. The storage frame body has a rectangular cross section, the raw material fibers are alternately supplied from above and to the left and right by an air flow, and the side surface of the frame body has a porous structure. 2. The filling compression of a fibrous cushion member according to claim 1, wherein a turbulent flow is generated in the storage frame by changing the discharge direction, and a uniform diffusing action is given to the raw material fibers. Method. 3. An opening mechanism for opening and mixing at least two types of mixed raw fibers, a supply mechanism for conveying the opened raw fibers, receiving the raw fibers and compressing them.
The compression mechanism comprises a compression mechanism for filling the receiving container, the compression mechanism includes a rectangular raw material fiber storage frame, and a pressurizing cylinder for compressing the stored raw material fibers in the frame. It has a porous structure that allows the discharge of raw fiber, but also forms a pair of raw fiber supply ports on the upper and lower sides of the frame, opens the lower part, and has a receiving container opposed to it.
At least two types of mixed raw fibers are opened and mixed by an opening mechanism, conveyed together with an air flow by a supply mechanism, and alternately supplied into the frame from left and right supply ports to randomly accumulate fiber directions. A filling and compressing device for a fibrous cushion member, characterized in that the receiving container is filled by a pressurizing cylinder and the receiving container is carried out to the next step when the weight reaches a predetermined weight repeatedly. 4. The left and right material fiber supply ports provided above the storage frame of the compression mechanism are connected to a supply mechanism of the opened material fiber, and the supply mechanism sucks and sends out the opened material fiber. A suction blower, the distal end of which comprises a branch duct connected to each of the receiving ports, and a distribution mechanism provided therebetween, the distribution mechanism having a proximal end connected to the suction blower,
4. The fibrous shape according to claim 3, wherein the distal end comprises a distribution pipe facing each branch duct and a drive mechanism for said distribution pipe, and rotates the distribution pipe to alternately supply raw material fibers to each branch duct. A filling and compressing device for cushion members. 5. A four-circle periphery of the raw fiber storage frame is covered by a cover, each cover is connected to a branch discharge duct, and each discharge duct is opened to the outside air via a rotary open / close valve mechanism. 4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: applying a pulsation to the exhaust airflow to each of the exhaust ducts by the rotation of the exhaust pipe, imparting a turbulent flow to the storage frame, and imparting a uniform diffusing action to the feed fiber in the frame. Or a filling compression device for a fibrous cushion member according to 4.