Cooled Die Land for Matte Polymer Wire Coating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wire and cable coatings with glossy surfaces fail to meet cosmetic requirements for electronic products, and attempts to achieve a matte finish through the use of organic or inorganic additives complicate the manufacturing process and affect other coating properties.
Innovation Solution
A die assembly with a cooled die land is used to extrude a molten polymeric composition onto a wire, where the die land is cooled below the bulk temperature of the polymer, allowing for a matte finish to be achieved without altering the coating formulation or adding additives, by controlling the temperature and line speed to promote faster solidification and surface roughness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If organic or inorganic additives are added to the coating formulation to reduce gloss, then the surface finish becomes matte, but the manufacturing process complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes additives from the coating formulation and instead achieves matte finish by extracting heat through the cooled die land, transferring the gloss control function from chemical additives to thermal processing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the chemical mechanism (additives affecting surface properties) with a thermal mechanism (controlled cooling through die land to achieve desired surface finish
2Shape
If organic or inorganic additives are added to the coating formulation to reduce gloss, then the surface finish becomes matte, but the coating properties such as flexibility and tensile strength are adversely affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes additives that compromise mechanical properties and achieves matte finish solely through controlled thermal processing in the die land, preserving coating integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the thermal parameter (die land temperature) to control surface finish, avoiding the need to alter coating formulation and preserving mechanical properties
3Shape
If additives are added to achieve matte finish, then the surface gloss is reduced, but the manufacturing time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the time-consuming additive migration process by achieving matte finish directly during extrusion through controlled cooling in the die land
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs the gloss control action during the extrusion process itself through pre-cooling in the die land, rather than requiring subsequent processing steps after extrusion
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This process effectively produces wire and cable coatings with a matte finish across various polymer formulations and extrusion conditions, maintaining the existing coating formulations and avoiding the complexities and costs associated with additive use, while ensuring excellent surface characteristics.
Implementation Method 1
the die land having a temperature below the bulk temperature of the molten polymeric composition
Implementation Method 2
A radiator positioned about and in contact with the exterior surface of the die land of the die body head
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~6
AI summary
A process of extruding a molten polymeric composition onto a long, thin, continuous object such that the extruded composition forms on the object a coating with a matte finish on its surface, the process comprising the step of extruding from a die assembly the molten polymeric composition, the molten polymeric composition having a bulk temperature, onto the object, with the proviso that after the molten polymeric composition is applied to the object and before it exits the die assembly, the molten polymeric composition passes over and in contact with a die land of the die assembly, the die land having a temperature below the bulk temperature of the molten polymeric composition.