Moulded Infant Product

Abstract

A moulded article 104 comprises a surface, particularly a child-safe product suitable for babies or infants, the article comprises first 110 and second 120 volumes of material compression moulded toge

Description

Background It is common to provide young children (babies and infants) with toys to aid in their mental and physical development. At a certain age, as their motor skills develop, babies and infants explore the world around them by putting any objects they can get hold of in their mouth. It is therefore important that the toys given to young children are child safe . In particular, the toys must be able to withstand the rigours of their intended use in the hands of a baby or infant, must be formed of a material that does not abrade when handled, and must provide a sterile exterior surface to avoid the accumulation and growth of bacteria and other disease agents. Furthermore, the component parts of the toy must not separate or come apart in any way, in order to avoid the risk of any part being swallowed or presenting a choking hazard. One desirable characteristic of toys for young children is that they should also look attractive and draw a child's attention, as well as fuelling their imagination. To this end, it is often desirable to provide a surface decoration to the toy. However, there is a risk that paint or ink applied to the surface of the toy for decoration may become worn away overtime and ingested by the baby or infant when they put the moulded article in their mouth. Summary of the Present Invention The present invention has been made in view of the realisation and recognition by the inventors of the aforementioned problems which may arise in prior art designs. The present invention seeks to alleviate or solve one or more of these problems. According to the present invention, there is provided a method of moulding an article, wherein the article is a child-safe product suitable for babies or infants, the method comprising: moulding a first component by selectively depositing a first volume of material onto an inner surface of a first mould; subsequently compression moulding a second volume of material in the first mould together with the first volume of material to form a moulded surface of the product against the inner surface, wherein the moulded surface exhibits a first area where the first volume of material was selectively deposited onto the inner surface of the first mould and a second area where the second volume of material was compression moulded against the inner surface of the first mould around the first volume, wherein the first volume of material has a first colour and the second volume of material has a second colour different from the first colour, and wherein the first volume of material is selectively deposited in the first mould by drip moulding or by a three-dimensional printing process; thereafter, placing the first component in a second mould with an outwardly facing surface of the first component against an inner surface of the second mould and with an internal surface of the first component facing into the second mould, placing a third volume of material in the mould and pressing the third volume of material against the internal surface of the first component to form a co-extensive internal bonding surface between the first component and the third volume; and moulding the third volume of material in the second mould to form a second component having the third volume co-moulded with the first component, the second component having an outer moulded surface of the third volume adjacent the outwardly facing surface of the first component. Optional and preferred features are mentioned in the detailed description below and recited in the dependent claims. Brief Description of the Drawings To enable a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 shows a front view of an embodiment of a moulded article according to the present invention; Figure 2 shows a front view of an embodiment of a component part of a moulded article according to the present invention, which is itself a moulded article according to the present invention; Figure 3 shows a rear view of the component part shown in Figure 2; Figure 4 shows an enlarged view of a portion of a mould for forming the component part shown in Figures 2 and 3; Figure 5 shows an automated machine for drip moulding material of a first colour into the mould cavities of the mould shown in Figure 4; Figure 6 shows a second mouldable material being introduced into the mould of Figures 4 and 5 in order to form the component part shown in Figures 2 and 3 by compression moulding; Figure 7 shows a sheet containing multiple moulded component parts of the form shown in Figures 2 and 3 that have been moulded in the mould shown in Figure 6; Figure 8 shows a mould for moulding the moulded article shown Figure 1, and containing a component as shown in Figures 2 and 3 in each cavity of the mould; Figure 9 shows the same mould as shown in Figure 8, with mouldable material introduced into each cavity for forming the main body of the moulded article shown in Figure 1; Figure 10 shows the moulded articles formed from the mouldable material of Figure 9 after being compression moulded in the cavities of the mould of Figure 8, the moulded articles being placed on a baking tray ready for introduction into an over for baking and curing. Detailed Description The invention will now be described with reference to specific embodiments. It is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are provided in order to demonstrate one or more ways of putting the invention into effect and that they are in no way to be considered as being limiting on the scope of protection, which is defined solely by the appended claims. Throughout the figures, like reference numerals are used to refer to like components. Figure 1 shows a front view of a moulded article 100 in the form of a baby teething product. The moulded article includes a main body 102 and a face component 104. The face component incudes an area 110 of a first colour, representing the eyes, nose and mouth of the face, as well as a surrounding area 120 of a second colour, here corresponding to the primary (skin) colour of the face. In this embodiment, the main body 102 is formed from material of a third colour that is different from the first and second colours of the face component, providing a desired contrast between the face component 104 and the main body 102. Although described as separate components, it will be appreciated from the following that the face component 104 is integrally formed with the main body 102. In this embodiment, the components are co-moulded and present a continuous external moulded surface at the joint between the face component 104 and the main body 102. The face component 104 may also be formed in whole or in part in relief and / or detent with respect to the main body 102, but the moulded article 100 should nevertheless maintain a continuous external moulded surface at the joint between the face component 104 and the main body 102. The moulded article 100 shown in Figure 1 is intended for use as a child's teething product, and has a shape generally reflecting the form of a monkey. The arms of the monkey are formed so as to provide suitable handles for a baby or infant to grip, whilst the head, feet and arms all provide a variety of shapes for a child to explore with their gums and emergent teeth. In order to be classified as a child-safe product, the moulded article 100 must be able to withstand the rigours of its intended use in the hands of a baby or infant. In particular, the material must not abrade when held, pulled and / or chewed, and must provide a sterile exterior surface to avoid the accumulation and growth of bacteria and other disease agents. Furthermore, the component parts of the moulded article must not separate or come apart in any way, in order to avoid the risk of any part being swallowed or of choking a young child. In order to meet the foregoing requirements, the moulded article 100 is formed as a unitary product, with all component parts being integrally moulded as one piece. The main body 102 and face component 104 are both made entirely from food grade silicone compliant with the European Food Contact Regulations 1935 / 2004 / EC, or equivalent, which provides the desired texture and rigidity whilst being nontoxic. Furthermore, the silicone is loaded with antimicrobial silver powder which acts as a biocide, for example an antimicrobial additive used in plastics and polymers known as BioCote®, available from BioCote Ltd, with product code B65003, in order to assist in maintaining the moulded article as a sterile object. In order to provide colour differentiation between the component parts of the moulded article, the silicone rubber from which the parts are moulded is merely coloured with appropriate pigments. The silicone rubber or other material used for forming the component parts is otherwise substantially the same material throughout the moulded article . Historically, moulded articles with colour differentiation between the component parts, e.g. the main body 102 and face component 104, would be formed from separate parts and subsequently attached together, for example by adhesive. However, such a construction runs the risk that the component parts may become detached from one another. A similar concern arises for the decorative coloured features of the area 110 of the first colour forming, in this example, the facial features of the monkey, such as the eyes, nose and mouth. In the past, these would have been painted or printed onto the face component 104 after it had been moulded. With such a surface decoration, there is a risk that the paint or ink that is applied to the surface of the moulded article will be worn away overtime and ingested by the baby or infant when they chew on the moulded article (which in this case is a teething product which is intended to be chewed). The present embodiment avoids these potential drawbacks by ensuring that all components of the moulded article are integrally formed as a unitary co-moulded object. To this end, the areas 110 of the first colour that define the facial features, such as the eyes, nose and mouth, are integrally moulded together with the primary (skin) colour material of the face component 104. The face component can be seen as a separate component (itself a moulded article) in Figures 2 and 3, with Figure 2 showing the front face 130 of the face component 104 and Figure 3 showing the rear face 140 of the face component 104. In the complete moulded article 100, the rear face 140 of the face component 104 presents an internal surface to which the material of the main body 102 is co-moulded. As will be appreciated from Figure 3, the rear surface 140 of the face component 104 is formed to be concave across the majority of its lateral and vertical extent, and is also provided with surface undulations 142 extending across the concave surface. The concave shape of the rear surface 140 increases the surface area of the bonding surface between the material of the main body 102 and the material of the face component 104 as compared with a flat rear surface. A rear surface with a convex shape could be used with similar or equivalent effect. Similarly, the undulations provide an increased contact surface area between the material of the main body 102 and the material of the face component 104 as compared with a flat rear surface. This improves the bond strength between the co-moulded components and prevents separation of the face component 104 from the main body 102. As can be seen, the undulations on the internal surface 140 of the face component 104 are provided as a series of ridges formed on the internal surface. As shown, these are provided as an intersecting pattern of vertical ridges 146 and lateral ridges 144. Of course, the undulations 142 may be provided in a variety of forms with similar or equivalent effect. For example, grooves indented into the rear surface 140 could be used instead of or in addition to the ridges 144 formed on 5 it. Other forms of indentations and protrusions will also provide a similar function, such as bumps or divots with square, circular or other-shaped cross-sections. Likewise, the pattern of grooves and / or ridges need not be one of intersecting lateral and vertical lines but could instead 10 simply be one of parallel lines of grooves and / or ridges running in one direction or in concentric circles, while the distribution pattern of bumps and / or divots is largely unrestricted. 15 The combination of a concave rear face 140 together with a pattern of intersecting ridges has proven effective for receiving the material of the main body 102 into the concave cavity of the face 140, and into the recesses formed between the ridges 144 and 146, when the material of the main body 20 102 is compression moulded together with the face component 104 as described below. This results in a reliable and secure interface between the material of the main body 102 and that of the face component 104 over the co-extensive bonding surface 140. 25 The areas 110 and 120 of respective first and second different colours of the face component 104 are also formed from respective volumes of moulded material that are integrally formed and co-moulded. In this case, the first 30 areas 110 of the first colour, representing the eyes, nose and mouth of the face, are formed by selectively depositing the first coloured material in the mould in the desired locations on the inner surface of the mould for the face component 104, before filling the mould with the second 35 coloured material so as to surround the selectively deposited first coloured material both at the surface of the mould (to form the moulded surface 130 of the face component with areas 110 of the first colour within the area 120 of the second colour, and also to encompass the selectively deposited first coloured material within the body second coloured material as it fills the mould. The first coloured material can be selectively deposited on the inner surface of the mould by a process known as drip printing, whereby the first coloured material (in this instance silicone rubber) is deposited on the mould inner surface from a nozzle. The first coloured material might alternatively be deposited in the desired places on the inner surface of the mould by a three-dimensional printing process or by manual application of the material to the mould inner surface . The second coloured material is then compression moulded in the mould for the face component 104 together with the first coloured material so as to form an integral co-moulded face component 104 having a moulded surface on the front face 130 that exhibits one or more areas 110 of the first colour and within the area 120 of the second colour. In this embodiment, the area 120 of the second colour entirely surrounds each of the areas 110 of the first colour to form the facial features of the monkey. In other moulded articles, the areas 110 of the first colour need not be entirely surrounded by the area 120 of the second colour, and it is also possible for the area 110 of the first colour to surround the area 120 of the second colour at the moulded surface of the article. Similarly, the pattern formed on the moulded surface by the areas 110 and 120 of first and second colours is not restricted to facial features, and any design, such as an image, text or symbol, may be represented. Equally, the design is not restricted to the use of only two colours, and material of two or more different colours may be selectively deposited on the inner surface of the mould to form multiple areas of different colours at the moulded surface of the article when subsequently encompassed within the compression-moulded second coloured material. The process for forming the face component 104 is explained in more detail with reference to Figures 4 to 7. Figure 4 shows an enlarged portion of one half of a mould 200 for forming face components 104. The mould 200 includes multiple mould cavities 202, each corresponding to a moulded face component. It can further be seen that each cavity 202 is provided with recessed areas in the inner surface of the mould corresponding to the locations of the first coloured areas 110 on the moulded surface. By providing the recesses in the inner surface of the mould, the first coloured material can more easily and accurately be dripped into the mould in the desired areas for selectively depositing the first coloured material. The recesses 204 in the inner surface of the mould cavities 202 will of course result in the first areas 110 being formed in relief with respect to the surrounding second area 120 of the moulded surface, which can desirably add texture and visual detail to the moulded surface of the face component 104. By instead forming protrusions on the inner surface of the mould 200 in these areas of the inner surface of each cavity 202, the first areas would be recessed with respect to the surrounding second area 120, which may also be desirable depending on the article being moulded and the design to be depicted on the moulded surface. These alternatives can of course be combined. As one example, the first area 110 corresponding to the monkey's mouth could be recessed while the first area 110 corresponding to the monkey's nose could be formed protruding. It will be appreciated that in any event the recesses or protrusions so formed will represent a smooth and gradual deviation of the shape of the moulded surface so as to avoid any sharp changes in profile where a stress concentration or separation point may initiate, or where dirt or bacteria may gather. As shown in Figure 5, an automated drip moulder 250 can be employed to selectively deposit the first coloured material into the mould cavities 202 of the mould 200. In the present embodiment, the first coloured material is dripped into the recessed portions 204 of the mould inner surfaces by the drip moulder 250. The recessed portions 204 serve to receive the first coloured material and also help to constrain the material within the desired first areas 110 of the moulded surface so that it is not displaced or spread across the moulded surface when the second coloured material is introduced into the mould. Figure 6 illustrates how strips of the second coloured material are placed into the mould 200 so as to align with mould cavities 202. The mould 200 is then closed to force the second coloured material into the mould cavities 202 and into compressive engagement with the first coloured material that has been selectively deposited in the mould cavities. The mould will then be held under heat and pressure to fully or partially cure the material of the face component 104. Preferably, the seond coloured material is heated under pressure in the mould 200 for a period of 200 ± 10 seconds at a temperature of 225 ± 10 degrees Celcius. In some instances, in may be desirable to heat the mould 200 prior to and / or during the drip moulding process. The mould being heated allows the first coloured material to flow more easily into the recesses 204 formed in the inner surface of the mould cavities 202 in order to clearly define the pattern formed in the moulded surface of the moulded article 100. Figure 7 shows a sheet of moulded face components 104 as produced by the moulding process described above. The individual face components are easily cut out from the web of excess mould material and trimmed to form a smooth edge. In figure 7, one face component 104 has been cut out from the bottom-right corner of the web (as illustrated). In this way, the face components 104 are formed with the first 110 and second 120 differently coloured areas of the moulded front faces 130 formed from separate volumes of material, but integrally formed by being co-moulded. As the first and second volumes of material are made from the same bulk material (here, food grade silicone), the co-moulding process creates a strong and reliable bond between the material volumes and provides a smooth and continuous decorated front face 130 that is safe and hygienic. The process for integrating the face component 104 together with the main body 102 to form a moulded article 100 is explained in more detail with reference to Figures 8 to 10. Figure 8 shows a mould 300 in which a plurality of mould cavities 302 are formed, the cavities 302 defining the shapes of the front portions of the moulded articles 100 to be moulded in the mould cavities 302. As shown in Figure 8, a face component 104 is placed in each mould cavity 302 in the location corresponding to the front of the head portion of the main body 102. The face component 104 is placed in the mould cavity 302 with the front face 130 placed against the inner surface of the mould cavity 302, and with the rear face 140 facing internally into the interior of the mould cavity 302. As shown in Figure 9, a volume of material of a third colour (in this embodiment the third colour being different from the colour of the first areas 110 and the second area 120 of the face component 104) is placed in each mould cavity 302. It is noted that the colour of the volume of material placed in each mould cavity 302 to form the main body 102 of each moulded article 100 need not be a different colour from the material of the first areas 110 and second area 120 of the face component 104, but in this embodiment it is selected to be a contrasting different colour for decorative purposes. Obtaining a colour differentiation between the face component 104 and the main body 102 is a technical objective to be obtained by the methods disclosed herein and to be realised in the moulded article 100. The mould 300 is preferably preheated before introducing the face components 104 and the volume of mould material for the main body 102 into the mould cavities. Heating the mould 300 assists in rendering the mouldable material compliant and ensuring that it will be distributed uniformly throughout each mould cavity 302. Although not shown, an upper mould is clamped onto the lower mould 300 in order to press the mouldable material of the main body into each mould cavity 302, in a similar manner as shown above for the moulding of the face component 104, and in order to compression mould the main body 102 integrally with the face component 104 in each mould cavity 302. The mouldable material is held in the mould 300 and heated for a predetermined time period in order to bake the moulded article under the influence of pressure and temperature. Preferably, the moulded articles 100 are heated under pressure in the mould 300 for a period of 360 to 760 seconds at a temperature of 165 ± 5 degrees Celcius. Subsequently, as shown in Figure 10, the compression moulded articles 100 are placed on trays and baked in an oven to fully cure the moulded article. The baking process is preferably conducted for a period equal to or around 4 hours at a temperature equal to or around 200 degrees Celcius, in order to fully cure the moulded material, which in this embodiment is silicone rubber. It will be appreciated that, in the process of moulding the main body 102 in the cavities 302 of the mould 300, the heat applied to the mould 300 softens the mouldable material of 5 the main body 102 rendering it compliant and able to flow into the internal volumes of the cavities as well as into the concave shape and undulations on the back face 140 of the face component 104. Notably, the process of heating the mould 300 does not soften the silicone of the face component 104, 10 as this has already been fully or partially cured in the preceding moulding process which produced the face component 104. The face component 104 will therefore maintain its predefined moulded shape, during the process of being comoulded with the main body 102. 15 It will further be clear thar the process outlined above can be applied not only to moulding teething products for young children, but also to a range of other child-safe products. For example, bath toys which float in water may be formed in 20 a similar manner, although in such cases it may be preferable to use PVC as the mouldable material, since this has a greater buoyancy. It may also be desirable to add additional antimicrobial agents into mouldable material composition, to resist any increased tendency for bacterial growth due to the 25 increased moisture levels typically encountered by bath toys. Other child-safe products which can be manufactured in a corresponding fashion might include mealtime products, such as plates, bowls and placemats, as well as cutlery. In the 30 case of cutlery (e.g. a fork and spoon), it may also be desirable to add a strengthening core within the interior of the main body 102 in order to support and strengthen the article in use. In this case, a nylon core may be placed into the mould cavity, encompassed within the mouldable material 35 (e.g. silicone rubber) in order to provide an increased rigidity to the moulded article. It will also be appreciated that the face component 104 is itself a moulded article, which may be applied, via comoulding or any other means, to a wider range of articles, either as a decorative item or as a brand identifier. In any 5 such application, the face component constitutes a moulded article, and is child-safe for the reasons explained above.

Claims

1. A method of moulding an article, wherein the article is a child-safe product suitable for babies or infants, the method comprising:moulding a first component by selectively depositing a first volume of material onto an inner surface of a first mould;subsequently compression moulding a second volume of material in the first mould together with the first volume of material to form a moulded surface of the product against the inner surface, wherein the moulded surface exhibits a first area where the first volume of material was selectively deposited onto the inner surface of the first mould and a second area where the second volume of material was compression moulded against the inner surface of the first mould around the first volume, wherein the first volume of material has a first colour and the second volume of material has a second colour different from the first colour, and wherein the first volume of material is selectively deposited in the first mould by drip moulding or by a three-dimensional printing process;thereafter, placing the first component in a second mould with an outwardly facing surface of the first component against an inner surface of the second mould and with an internal surface of the first component facing into the second mould,placing a third volume of material in the mould and pressing the third volume of material against the internal surface of the first component to form a co-extensive internal bonding surface between the first component and the third volume; andmoulding the third volume of material in the second mould to form a second component having the third volume comoulded with the first component, the second component havingan outer moulded surface of the third volume adjacent the outwardly facing surface of the first component.

2. The method of Claim 1, wherein the first area is entirely within the second area.

3. The method of any one of Claim 1 or 2, wherein the first area includes two or more separate first areas.

4. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein a portion of the inner surface of the mould corresponding to the first area is at least partially recessed or protruding such that the first area of the moulded surface is correspondingly formed at least partially in relief and / or detent with respect to the second area of the moulded surface.

5. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein each volume of material is made of substantially the same material with different pigments added to provide different colours.

6. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the material is silicone, preferably food grade silicone, and further preferably containing anti-viral silver powder and / or another biocide.

7. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 6, wherein the moulded article is in the form of a toy, utensil and / or decorative item.

8. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 7, wherein the method further comprises pre-heating the first and / or second mould prior to depositing material in the mould, preferably to a temperature of 225 degrees Celcius.

9. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 8, wherein the method further comprises heating the first and / or second mould with the material in the mould at a temperature of 5 215 to 235 degrees Celcius for 190 to 210 seconds.

10. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 9, wherein the method further comprises heating the first and / or second mould with the material in the mould at a temperature of 10 160 to 170 degrees Celcius for 360 to 760 seconds.

11. The method of any one of Claims 1 to 10, wherein the method further comprises heating the moulded article in an oven at a temperature of 180 to 220 degrees Celsius 15 for 3.5 to 4.5 hours.

Images