Apparatus for controlling bristle deflection

Claim 2

In a mold apparatus for use in molding a bristled product in a manner to control the configuration of bristles of said product, said mold apparatus including a chase part and a backing part defining, when closed, a mold cavity for molding a backing portion of said product, said chase part having at least one bore therein communicating with said mold cavity, a pin having a close fit with said bore and having at least one longitudinally extending flute on its side surface communicating with said mold cavity for molding a bristle integral with said backing portion of said product, the end of said flute remote from said mold cavity being closed when said pin is in an operating position in said bore, at least one of said pin and chase and backing parts being movable, the improvement wherein said flute as a crosssectional shape controlled to produce a desired degree of deflection or nondeflection of said bristle, and said mold apparatus has fluid flow passage means therein for conducting cooling fluid, with said passage means being located sufficiently close to said pin and said bore and having a cooling fluid flow rate therein to control the temperature of a bristle or bristles during cooling thereof after molding in a manner wherein the cross-sectional shape of said flute and the rates of heat flow through said pin and said chase part respectively produce a desired degree of deflection or nondeflection of said bristle when said bristle shrinks incident to molDing thereof.

Claim 3

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said flute is bounded on one side by a continuous surface of said chase part which is longer transversely of said flute than any other continuous surface bounding said flute, thereby tending to produce deflection of the corresponding bristle toward said longer surface.

Claim 4

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 2 in which said longer surface of said chase part is curved.

Claim 5

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said backing part has a projection extending therefrom into said mold cavity opposite said pin and spaced from the end of said pin a distance less than the thickness of said cavity adjacent said projection for inhibiting undesired distortion of a bristle or bristles.

Claim 6

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 4 in which said projection is also spaced from a projecting side portion of said bore a distance less than said thickness of said cavity also for inhibiting distortion of said bristle or bristles.

Claim 7

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 4 in which said projection is a movable member.

Claim 8

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 4 in which said projection has an undercut tip to aid in stripping said bristled product.

Claim 9

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said flute is bounded by continuous surfaces of said pin at least one of which is longer transversely of said flute than the surface of said chase part bounding said flute, thereby tending to produce deflection of the corresponding bristle toward said longer surface or surfaces.

Claim 10

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said flute is bounded by a plurality of surfaces which are substantially equal in length measured transversely of said flute, thereby tending to inhibit deflection of said bristle.

Claim 11

In a mold apparatus for use in molding a bristled product in a manner to control the configuration of bristles of said product, said mold apparatus including a chase part and a backing part defining, when closed, a mold cavity for molding a backing portion of said product, said chase part having at least one opening in the same communicating with said mold cavity, a pin having a close fit with said opening and having a plurality of longitudinally extending flutes on its side surface communicating at one end with said mold cavity for molding bristles integral with said backing portion of said product, the ends of the flutes remote from said mold cavity being closed when said pin is in said opening, and means to relatively move said pin and said chase and backing parts to strip a molded product after molding thereof, the improvement wherein said flutes have a cross-sectional shape controlled to produce a desired degree of deflection or nondeflection of said bristles, and said mold apparatus has fluid flow passage means therein for conducting cooling fluid, with said passage means being located sufficiently close to said pin and said opening and have a cooling fluid flow rate therein to control the temperature of the bristles as they are cooling in response to fluid flow in said passage means and in a manner wherein the cross-sectional shapes of the flutes and the rates of heat exchange through said pin and through said chase part produce a desired degree of deflection and/or nondeflection of said bristles when said bristles shrink incident to molding thereof.

Claim 12

In a mold apparatus for use in molding a bristled product in a manner to control the configuration of bristles of said product, said mold apparatus including a chase part and a backing part defining, when closed, a mold cavity for molding a backing portion of said product, said chase part having at least one opening in the same communicating with said mold cavity, a pin having a close fit with said opening and having a plurality of longitudinally extending flutes on its side surface communicating at one end with said mold cavity for molding bristles integral with said backing portion of said product, the ends of the flutes remote from said mold cavity being closed when said pin is in said opening, and means to relatively move said pin and said chase and backing parts to strip a molded product after molding thereof, the improvement wherein said flutes have a cross-sectional shape controlled to produce a desired degree of deflection or nondeflection of said bristles, and said mold apparatus has fluid flow passage means therein for conducting cooling fluid, with said passage means being located sufficiently close to said pin and said opening and have a cooling fluid flow rate therein to control the temperature of the bristles as they are cooling in response to fluid flow in said passage means and in a manner wherein the cross-sectional shapes of the flutes and the rates of heat exchange through said pin and through said chase part produce a desired degree of deflection and/or nondeflection of said bristles when said bristles shrink incident to molding thereof.

Claim 13

The mold apparatus of claim 10 in which at least one of said flutes is shaped to produce deflection of bristles molded therein in one direction, at least one other of said flutes is shaped to produce deflection of a bristle molded therein in another direction, and at least one other of said flutes is shaped to inhibit deflection of a bristle molded therein.

Claim 14

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 10 in which said backing part has a projection extending therefrom into said mold cavity opposite said pin and spaced from the end of said pin a distance less than the thickness of said cavity adjacent said projection for inhibiting distortion of a bristle or bristles.

Claim 15

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 12 in which said projection is also spaced from a projecting side portion of said opening a distance less than said thickness of said cavity also for inhibiting distortion of said bristles.

Claim 16

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 13 in which said projection is a movable member.

Claim 17

The mold apparatus as claimed in claim 14 in which said movable member has an undercut tip to aid in stripping said bristled product when said mold apparatus is opened.