Adhesive medical and surgical dressings

Claim 1

IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ADHESIVE MEDICAL AND SURGICAL DRESSINGS OF THE TYPE SET FORTH, THE METHOD OF APPLYING A SOLVENT-THINNED PRESSURE SENSITIVE RUBBER BASED ADHESIVE TO THE POROUS BACKING WHICH UTILISES AS A CARRIER FOR THE PATTERNED MASS A SLOWLY TURNING MAIN ROLLER THE CYLINDRICAL CURVED SURFACE OF WHICH HAS CUT THEREON SHALLOW GROOVES IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PATTERN, TO WHICH GROOVES, WHILE THE ROLLER IS TURNING, THE ADHESIVE MASS, AT ROOM TEMPERATURE AND IN A WET STATE OF LOW COHESIVENESS IS FED AT ONE ZONE, THE CHARGED GROOVES THEN PASSING THROUGH THE MAJOR PORTION OF ROTARY MOVEMENT OF SAID ROLLER TO A TRANSFER POSITION SPACED A SUFFICIENT ANGULAR DISTANCE AWAY FROM SAID ADHESIVE FEEDING ZONE, TO ALLOW, BY EVAPORATION OF SOME OF THE SOLVENT THEREIN, THE GREATER PART OF THE THICKNESS OF THE ADHESIVE MASS IN THE GROOVES TO CHANGE FROM THE WET STATE TO A READILY ADHESIVE STIFFER AND MORE COHESIVE CONDITION BUT STILL TO LEAVE A RESIDUE OF SAID MASS IN THE WET STATE AT THE BASE OF THE GROOVES TO READILY PERMIT DISPLACEMENT OF SAID STIFFER PORTION OF SAID ADHESIVE FROM SAID GROOVES, THE TRANSFER OF THE PATTERNED ADHESIVE MASS TO THE POROUS BACKING BEING EFFECTED BY A TRANSFER ROLLER HAVING THE SAME PERIPHERAL SPEED AS BUT ROTATING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION TO THE MAIN GROOVED ROLLER, THE BACKING MOVING WITH AND PASSING AROUND THE SAID TRANSFER ROLLER AND BEING PRESSED THEREBY AGAINST THE GROOVED SURFACE OF THE MAIN ROLLER TO CONTACT WITH THE EXPOSED ADHESIVE SURFACE OF THE PATTERNED ADHESIVE AND COHESIVE MASS IN THE OUTER PART OF THE GROOVES, TO CAUSE SUCH MASS TO ADHERE TO THE SURFACE OF THE BACKING AND EFFECT BY THE CONTINUED TURNING MOVEMENT OF THE ROLLERS THE TRANSFER OF THE PATTERNED ADHESIVE MASS FROM THE GROOVES TO THE BACKING BY THE EASY SEPARATION OF THE STIFFENED PORTION OF THE ADHESIVE MASS OF HIGH COHESIVENESS IN SAID GROOVES FROM THE STILL-WET RESIDUE OF THE ADHESIVE MASS AT THE BASE OF THE GROOVES.