US2008073047A1PendingUtilityA1

Non-woven through air dryer and transfer fabrics for tissue making

56
Individually held — no corporate assignee on recordPriority: Dec 19, 2002Filed: Oct 1, 2007Published: Mar 27, 2008
Est. expiryDec 19, 2022(expired)· nominal 20-yr term from priority
Inventors:Andrew Peter BakkenMark Alan BurazinJeffrey Dean Lindsay
D21F 11/006Y10S162/903D21F 1/0054Y10S162/904D21F 11/145D21F 11/14Y10S162/90Y10T428/192Y10T428/24612Y10T428/24479D21F 1/00D21F 11/00Y10T428/2495
56
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Claims

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention is an endless non-woven tissue making fabric having a three-dimensional texture suitable for use as a fabric for producing three-dimensional fibrous webs. The endless non-woven tissue making fabric comprises a plurality of substantially parallel adjoining sections of non-woven material. Each section of non-woven material has a width substantially less than the width of the non-woven tissue making fabric. Each section of non-woven material may be joined to at least one other adjoining section of non-woven material. The non-woven tissue making fabric has a machine direction, a cross-machine direction, a tissue contacting surface and a tissue machine contacting surface. The tissue contacting surface comprises solid matter at a plurality of heights such that the tissue contacting surface of the non-woven tissue making fabric has an Overall Surface Depth of at least 0.2 mm in regions of solid matter on the tissue contacting surface.

Claims

exact text as granted — not AI-modified
1 . A method of making an endless non-woven tissue making fabric having a three-dimensional texture suitable for use as a fabric for producing three-dimensional fibrous webs comprising: 
 a. providing an endless non-woven tissue making fabric having a tissue contacting surface and a tissue machine contacting surface;    b. passing heated air through a molding device;    c. passing the endless non-woven tissue making fabric over a surface of the molding device, wherein the surface of the molding device includes a textured molding surface; and,    d. conforming at least a portion of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric to the textured molding surface of the molding device,    thereby forming a three-dimensional texture on the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the molding device further comprises a suction roll.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the suction roll provides a zone of vacuum.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing a cooling device to cool the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the molding device comprises raised molding elements.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the molding device comprises molding elements having a shape selected from the group consisting of: sine wave-shaped; triangle-shaped; square wave-shaped; irregular-shaped; and, any combination thereof.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the heated air is provided by an air knife.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the molding device comprises porous molding elements.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the molding elements are comprised of material selected from the group consisting of: sintered metal; finely drilled metal; finely drilled plastic; sintered ceramic; ceramic foam; and, any combination thereof.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising contacting the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric with the surface of the molding device.  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein at least a portion of the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric conforms with the surface of the molding device.  
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising contacting the tissue machine contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric with the surface of the molding device.  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the three-dimensional texture comprises a repeating pattern.  
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the repeating pattern includes a series of raised elements and depressed elements defining a repeating unit cell.  
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the repeating unit cell of the repeating pattern includes a width of about 3 mm or greater in the cross-machine direction of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.  
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the repeating unit cell of the repeating pattern includes a length of about 3 mm or greater in the machine direction of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.  
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the repeating unit cell of the repeating pattern includes a percentage value in the machine direction length of the endless non-woven making fabric of about 1% or greater.  
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric is differently textured than the tissue machine contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.  
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric is substantially textured the same as the tissue machine contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric.  
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the endless non-woven tissue making fabric comprises multi-component binder materials.  
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the multi-component binder material includes at least a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion has a lower melting point that the second portion.  
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the multi-component binder material is selected from the group consisting of: bi-component concentric sheath-core; bi-component asymmetric sheath-core; bi-component side-by-side; and, any combination thereof.  
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the endless non-woven tissue making fabric is formed on a carrier fabric.  
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the endless non-woven tissue making fabric is attached to the carrier fabric.  
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the endless non-woven tissue making fabric is comprised of fibers or filaments selected from the group consisting of: spunbond fibers; melt blown fibers; and, combinations thereof.  
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing a gas pervious roll having a surface wherein a nip is formed between the surface of the gas pervious roll and the surface of the molding device.  
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 26 , wherein the surface of the gas pervious roll includes molding elements.  
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the surface of the gas pervious roll including the molding elements is a textured sleeve.  
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the molding elements of the gas pervious roll are raised elements.  
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the surface of the gas pervious roll including the raised elements is a textured sleeve.  
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the molding elements of the gas pervious roll mesh with raised molding elements of the molding device.  
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric includes a three-dimensional texture and the tissue machine contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric includes a three-dimensional texture.  
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the tissue contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric includes a three-dimensional texture and the tissue machine contacting surface of the endless non-woven tissue making fabric includes a three-dimensional texture.  
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven tissue making fabric does not comprise a woven element.

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