JP2021502510A - Artificial lawn mat and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a woven fabric lining and an artificial turf mat comprising a large number of artificial turf blades connected to the woven fabric lining. The woven fabric lining comprises a entwined weave of warp and weft, and at least a portion of the warp and / or a portion of the weft is formed by molten yarn. Artificial turf blades are woven into the woven lining. Each molten yarn may comprise a heat resistant yarn core and a meltable coating covering the yarn core. The present invention further relates to a method of making an artificial lawn mat by weaving a lining and connecting a large number of artificial turf blades to the lining, the lining being woven by weaving a large number of warp and weft threads by entanglement weaving, at least. Some of the woven threads are formed by melting the threads and artificial turf blades are woven into the woven fabric lining.

Description

The present invention relates to an artificial turf mat comprising a woven fabric lining and many artificial turf blades connected to the woven fabric lining. Such artificial lawn mats are known in various forms.

Known artificial turf mats are formed by weaving at a fairly high density, from which artificial turf blades project one side. These artificial turf blades are attached to the lining by tufting or weaving. The surface of the lining away from the protruding blades is usually stabilized by a layer of latex or another coating. This additional layer also serves to secure the artificial turf blade to the lining.

Known artificial lawn mats have the disadvantage that the underside is completely sealed by a layer of latex or other coating, which adversely affects the drainage of the artificial lawn field.

Patent Document 1 describes an artificial lawn mat having a flexible base layer in which long blades and short blades extend. Short blades help support long blades, which allows them to have better shock absorption properties.

Patent Document 2 describes the surface of a hybrid glass having a basesheet with a hole through which grassroots protrudes and a grouped filament connected to the basesheet by tufting.

Patent Document 3 describes an artificial lawn mat formed by binding a large number of filaments to a strip to each other and then weaving a mat from which other filaments form pile yarns.

US Publication No. 2016/265170 European Publication No. 3029198 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005/015972 International Publication No. 2010/120174

An object of the present invention is to provide an artificial lawn mat of the type described above, which does not have, or at least less so, this drawback.

According to the present invention, this is such that the woven fabric lining comprises a leno-weave of warp and weft yarns, at least some of the yarns are formed by molten yarns and the artificial turf blade is woven into the woven fabric lining. Achieved with a nice mat. By utilizing a woven weave that forms a much stronger connection than traditional weaves in that the warp threads are twisted together in pairs around the weft, and here an additional bond. By applying molten yarn for, a woven fabric lining with sufficient intrinsic stability that can be used basically without latex or other coatings is formed, and each woven artificial turf blade Very well combined. In this way, an artificial lawn mat with a very open structure and good drainage properties can be formed.

Since artificial turf fibers are woven into the lining, for example, as warp or weft yarns forming pile yarns, artificial turf blades can be formed by locally cutting these fibers or pile yarns. For example, it is possible to already cut the fibers during weaving by a method as described in Patent Document 4. In Patent Document 4, it can be assumed that the artificial turf fiber is cut so that the artificial turf blade formed by the artificial turf fiber has a sharp shape similar to the shape of the natural blade of grass.

If the artificial turf blades project from both sides of the lining, for example, a double-sided artificial turf mat that can be placed vertically to act as a screen or partition is obtained.

At least some of the warp threads may be further formed by melting the threads and / or at least some of the weft threads may be formed by melting the threads. It is preferred that the warp and / or weft have a substantially round cross section so that the warp can be properly twisted around the weft to form a woven weave.

In order to combine good bonding and sufficient strength, each molten yarn preferably comprises a heat resistant yarn core and a meltable coating covering the yarn core. In the present application, the molten yarn may be one that is welded to a nearby yarn by melting the coating.

For this purpose, the yarn core may comprise a plastic having a relatively high melting temperature, especially polypropylene, while the coating may comprise a plastic having a relatively low melting temperature, particularly polyethylene.

To further enhance the stability of the weave, at least a portion of the warp and / or weft can be formed by shrinking the yarn. By shrinking the yarns after weaving, for example by heating them, the surrounding yarns are more firmly fixed.

In addition to, or instead of this, at least some warp and / or weft threads may be formed of spiral threads. Therefore, by curling the yarn after weaving, the surrounding yarn can be further fixed.

If at least a portion of the warp and / or weft is biodegradable, an open space can be formed in the artificial lawn mat through which natural grass can grow. Therefore, a hybrid turf mat can be formed.

At least some artificial turf blades can be made from biodegradable materials. Therefore, the artificial turf blade may first support the natural turf blade that grows through the artificial turf mat. By the time this support is no longer needed, the biodegradable artificial turf blades will collapse, leaving only the non-degradable artificial turf blades and the natural turf, which together form a hybrid field.

By weaving only a part of the lining with entwined weave, an artificial lawn mat that is easy to manufacture can be obtained. For stability, it is often sufficient to locally fix the conventional weave area with a entwined weave area.

Therefore, more warp threads woven as before can be placed between the two pairs of entwined warp threads.

To increase the stability of the artificial lawn mat, it may be provided with at least one secondary lining connected to the woven lining. This secondary lining can also be woven.

Here, at least one secondary lining can be made from natural fiber materials, especially jute or viscose. This natural fiber material can collapse because the ground surface ensures stability when an artificial lawn mat is laid.

Artificial lawn mats may have multiple secondary linings made from different materials. The outer secondary lining here primarily serves to protect the other layers as it heats the artificial lawn mat to melt the molten yarn.

The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing an artificial lawn mat. The conventional method involves weaving a lining and connecting a large number of artificial turf blades to it.

In the method according to the present invention, unlike the conventional method, at least a part of the lining is woven by weaving a large number of warp threads and weft threads by entwining weaving, and at least a part of the woven threads is formed by melting. Threads and artificial turf blades are woven into the woven fabric lining.

Preferred applicable variations of the method according to the invention are described in Dependent Claims 18-28.

The present invention will then be described based on some embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It is a perspective view on the ground surface of the artificial turf mat according to the 1st Embodiment of this invention, and a part of the blade of the artificial turf is omitted. It is the schematic top view of the entwined weave applied to the lining of the artificial lawn mat by this invention. It is sectional drawing of the molten yarn applied to the artificial lawn mat by this invention. It is a side view of the weft yarn embodied as the molten yarn of the entwined weave, and two warp yarns before and after melting of the molten yarn. It is a cross section of a weft yarn and two warp yarns embodied as a entangled weave molten yarn before and after melting of the molten yarn. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the connection between the weft yarn and two warp yarns embodied as the shrinkage yarn of the entwined weave before and after heating of the shrinkage yarn. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the connection between the weft yarn and two warp yarns embodied as the shrinkage yarn of the entwined weave before and after heating of the shrinkage yarn. It is a schematic perspective view of a weft of entwined weave and two warp threads twisted around the weft, and a large number of threads are embodied as spiral threads. It is a flow chart which includes the most important step of the method by this invention. It is a schematic bottom view of the lining of the artificial lawn mat according to the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

The artificial turf mat 1 (FIG. 1) includes a woven fabric lining 2 and a large number of artificial turf blades 3 connected to the woven fabric lining 2 and projecting from one side of the lining 2 (the side forming the upper T during use). The lining 2, like the artificial turf blade 3, is woven with a twisted or thread that can be made from plastic. In order to form a very stable lining 2 without the need to use a coating or a layer of latex for stability, at least part of the lining 2 weave in the present invention is a entangled weave. In such a entwined weave, the warp threads 7a and 7b are arranged twisted in pairs around a pair of weft threads 8 (FIG. 2). This pair of twists of the warp threads 7a, 7b causes the weft threads 8 to be firmly gripped between them, which prevents the threads from slipping against each other and provides a stronger bond than is possible with conventional weaving techniques in weaving. Achieved.

In order to further stabilize the lining 2, the warp threads 7a, 7b and / or the weft threads 8 are in any case partially formed by molten threads. By melting these threads after weaving, the weave is actually "welded", which further strengthens it. Therefore, the weave of the lining 2 is fairly stable and can be used without a latex coating or stabilizing layer, so the lining 2 is lighter and easier to handle than a conventional coated lining, and in addition, the final artificial lawn mat. Has an open structure due to the absence of a latex coating or layer, and is therefore, for example, air permeable and water permeable.

Each molten yarn can be formed by a heat resistant yarn core 9 and a meltable coating 10 covering the yarn core 9 (FIG. 3). The meltable coating 10 provides a bond, but the yarn core 9 does not melt, thus ensuring the strength and stability of the weave. A plastic having a relatively high melting temperature, such as polypropylene, is suitable as a material for the thread core 9, for example. For example, a plastic with a relatively low melting temperature, such as polyethylene, may be selected for coating 10. The difference in melting temperature between the yarn core 9 and the coating 10 is exceptionally large as long as it is sufficient to ensure that the mechanical properties of the yarn core 9 are unaffected or almost unaffected. It does not have to be. As shown, when the lining 2 is heated to the extent that the coating 10 of the molten yarn melts, the molten yarn of the present application has a circular cross section, which simplifies the entwined weave. For other cross sections, especially flat cross sections, the twisting of the warp threads 7a, 7b around the weft thread 8 results in deformation, which results in an irregular weave.

Any desired heating technique, such as heating by irradiation with infrared light, can be used for the purpose of heating the molten yarn. It is also possible to assume that the weave is guided along the heated rollers, thereby heating the molten yarn. In that case, it may be advantageous to protect the lining 2 on the side facing the heating roller with an additional lining made from a non-heating material, such as a natural fiber material or a biodegradable material.

As can be seen by comparing FIGS. 4A and 4B, in the case of the embodiment in which the weft 8 is a molten yarn, when the coating 10 of the weft 8 is melted, the warp 7a and 7b are slightly attached to the coating 10 of the weft 8. It sinks and securely accommodates the thread core 9. The material of the meltable coating 10 flows around the warp threads 7a, 7b in the present application, and the warp threads 7a, 7b are completely or partially embedded in the material of the meltable coating 10. Then, when the temperature drops again and the meltable coating 10'solidifies again, a very strong weld connection (shown by the dashed line) is created between the weft 8 and the warp 7a, 7b.

In this example, the weft 8 is embodied as a molten yarn, but in addition to or instead of the weft 8, one of the warp 7a, 7b, or even both of the warp 7a, 7b is assumed similarly. It is possible. It is embodied as a melting thread.

Additional or alternative, it is possible to achieve a particularly strong connection between the warp and wefts 7, 8 when some of these yarns are formed by the shrink yarns. For example, when the warp threads 7a and 7b are formed by shrinkage threads, the warp threads 7a and 7b can first be twisted and woven with the weft threads 8 to form a woven weave (FIG. 5A), and then heated to form the warp threads 7a, 7b contracts, which causes the warp threads 7a, 7b to be pulled more strongly around the weft thread 8 (FIG. 5B). Here, in the case of the embodiment in which the weft yarn 8 is a molten yarn again, a stronger connection is formed.

Another method of further strengthening the entanglement is shown in FIG. Here, the weft thread 8 and the warp threads 7a and 7b are all the embodiments in which they are spiral threads. The spiral shape of the warp and / or wefts 7 and 8 hooks the spiral threads together, which allows the warp and / or weft threads to engage with each other more tightly than if they were smooth threads. In addition, this prevents the threads from slipping against each other.

The lining 2 in the embodiment formed as a entwined weave and in which the warp and / or wefts 7 and 8 are molten yarns can be applied for the purpose of forming an artificial turf mat 1. The artificial turf blade 3 is woven into the lining 2 for this purpose. A portion of the warp or weft threads 7 and 8 is looped out of the main plane of the woven fabric lining 2 to form a blade of artificial turf. The loops are optionally cut and each loop can form two individual artificial turf blades 3. As described in Patent Document 4, this cutting may have already been performed during weaving. The combination of entwined weaving and the use of molten yarn provides a very stable lining 2 woven with the artificial turf blade 3, so a relatively large mesh width weave can be selected. In this way, a relatively open structure is formed, which is very water permeable, thus resulting in an artificial lawn field with good drainage properties. This structure is also breathable and is suitable for ventilation and heating of artificial turf.

Since the artificial turf blade 3 is very tightly enclosed or gripped by the shrink yarn, it may be useful to make a entwined weave of the lining 2 based on the shrink yarn. In this case, it may be more useful to apply the secondary lining 4 (FIG. 1) in order to prevent the primary lining 2 from being deformed when the shrink yarn contracts. The secondary lining 4 can ensure that the primary lining 2 remains flat. The secondary lining 4 can be made from natural fiber materials such as jute or viscose. As mentioned above, additional secondary linings (not shown here) may be additionally provided that mainly help protect the primary lining 2 and the secondary lining 4 from overheating during heating of the molten yarn. ..

Since the artificial lawn mat 1 already has sufficient strength and stability without a coating, latex layer or secondary lining, it is also suitable to hang vertically, for example to form a screen or partition. There is. In this case, the pile yarn can be pulled out from the main plane of the weave and cut on both sides, resulting in the formation of artificial turf blades 3 protruding on both sides of the lining 2. As a result, the double-sided artificial lawn mat is actually formed.

As can be seen from FIG. 8, it is not necessary to carry out the entire lining 2 as a entwined weave, and some zones 12 formed by the entangled weave are sufficient, whereby the conventional woven zone 13 is fixed and stable. Be made. In the illustrated example, the lining is formed by a conventional woven strip 13, both sides of which strip is finished with one or more pairs of warp threads 7a, 7b, with the warp threads 7a, 7b being localized. It is twisted and woven with the weft 8 so as to form the entwined weave 12. These locally entwined weaves 12 hold the warp threads of the conventional weave 13 placed between them in place. Alternatively, in this example, it is the strip 14 that is formed between the woven strips 12, 13 and there are no warp threads, so that the weft thread 8 lies loosely. In this way, a very open lining 2 is generated.

Different steps of the method of making an artificial lawn mat according to the present invention are shown in FIG. This method begins with a step of providing the warp 7 (step 100) and a step of providing the weft 8 (step 101). The warp (7) and / or the weft 8, or at least some of these yarns, can be implemented as molten yarns herein. Also, warp and weft threads 7, 8 or some of these threads can be implemented as shrink threads and / or spiral threads.

In the next step 102, the warp threads and the weft threads 7 and 8 are woven by using a entwined weaving technique, and the warp threads 7 are woven together. Next, in step 103, the artificial turf blade 3 may be connected to the woven fabric lining 2. Since the artificial turf blade 3 is here connected to the lining 2 by weaving, steps 102 and 103 are actually performed simultaneously, as schematically indicated by the dotted block 102a.

After the artificial turf blade 3 is woven into the lining 2, the secondary lining 4 can optionally be connected to the entwined lining 2 (step 104). This step is optional and can be skipped. The secondary lining 4 may be adhered to the primary lining 2, but it can be envisioned that these linings 2, 4 are connected to each other, for example by double weaving or other types of connection techniques. As mentioned above, in addition to the secondary lining 4 that can be made from natural fiber materials, another additional lining can be placed, eg, a lining that acts as a protective layer during heating and can be made from biodegradable materials. This lining can be connected to other linings in various ways.

In the next step 105, the artificial lawn mat 1 formed in the above step is fixed by heating. Here, the molten yarn is partially melted, thereby forming a welded connection with the surrounding yarn, including the pile yarn forming the artificial turf blade 3. The heating can be carried out, for example, by radiation such as infrared radiation, or by guiding the artificial lawn mat 1 onto a heating roller. In the latter case, additional lining is especially important.

Finally, the artificial lawn mat 1 is rolled up on a roll (step 106) and ready to be transported to the place where the artificial lawn field 11 must be installed.

The artificial lawn field 11 formed by using the artificial lawn mat 1 described above is a ground surface 5 on which the lining 2 (in the illustrated example having the secondary lining 4 under the secondary lining 4) is arranged by a conventional method. To be equipped. The artificial turf blade 3 projects to the upper T of the lining 2. The space between the artificial turf blades 3 may be filled with a filler material or a "filler" 6. This ensures that the artificial turf blade is supported and in addition useful for elasticity and damping. Rubber particles, cork, and other materials, usually combined with sand, are suitable as filler material 6. If the lining 2 and / or the artificial turf blade 3 is partially manufactured from a biodegradable material and therefore the artificial turf mat 1 is intended to form a hybrid field, before laying the artificial turf mat 1. , Grass seeds (not shown here) can be sown on the ground surface 5. If the layer of the filler material 6 comprises a natural material on which the grass can grow, then grass seeds sown in the layer of the filler material 6 can be envisioned.

Therefore, the present invention provides an artificial lawn mat that is lighter, cheaper, and easier to handle than existing artificial lawn mats. The artificial lawn mat according to the present invention further has significantly improved mechanical properties and also allows for better drainage and ventilation than existing artificial lawn mats.

Although the present invention has been described above with reference to some embodiments, it will be clear that the present invention is not limited thereto and can be modified in many ways. Thus, the warp and weft threads 7, 8 may have cross-sectional shapes other than those shown herein, for example. Materials other than those described herein can also be applied to both synthetic and natural fibers. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined only by the claims.

1 Artificial turf mat 2 Woven lining 3 Artificial turf blade 4 Secondary lining 5 Ground surface 6 Filler material 7 Warp 8 Weft 9 Thread core 10 Coating 11 Artificial turf field 12 Tangle weave, Zone 13 Conventional weave, Zone 14 Strip

Claims (28)

An artificial lawn mat comprising a woven fabric lining and a number of artificial turf blades connected to the woven fabric lining, wherein the woven fabric lining comprises a entwined weave of warp and weft of the warp and weft. An artificial lawn mat characterized in that at least some threads are formed of molten threads and the artificial turf blade is woven into the woven fabric lining. The artificial turf mat according to claim 1, wherein the artificial turf blade projects from both sides of the woven fabric lining. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least some of the warp threads are formed of molten threads. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least some of the weft threads are formed by molten threads. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein each molten yarn comprises a heat-resistant yarn core and a meltable coating that covers the yarn core. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 5, wherein the thread core comprises a plastic having a relatively high melting temperature, particularly polypropylene. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the coating comprises a plastic having a relatively low melting temperature, particularly polyethylene. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein at least some of the warp threads and / or the weft threads are formed by contracting the threads. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein at least some of the warp threads and / or the weft threads are formed of spiral threads. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein at least some of the warp threads and / or the weft threads are biodegradable. The artificial turf mat according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein at least some of the artificial turf blades are manufactured from a biodegradable material. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein only a part of the woven fabric lining is woven as an entwined weave. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 12, wherein a large number of conventionally woven warp threads are arranged between two pairs of entwined warp threads. The artificial lawn mat according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein at least one secondary lining is connected to the woven fabric lining. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 14, wherein the at least one secondary lining is made from a natural fiber material, particularly jute or viscose. The artificial lawn mat according to claim 14 or 15, characterized by a plurality of secondary linings made from different materials. A method of manufacturing an artificial lawn mat by weaving a lining and connecting a large number of artificial turf blades to the lining. At least a part of the lining is woven by weaving a large number of warp threads and weft threads by entanglement weaving. A method characterized in that at least some of the woven and woven threads are formed by melting the threads and the artificial turf blade is woven into a woven fabric lining. 17. The method of claim 17, wherein the artificial turf fibers are woven into the backing material and locally cut to form the artificial turf blade. The method according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the artificial turf blade is woven into the lining so as to project from both sides of the lining. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 19, wherein the molten yarn is woven with a weft yarn embodied as a warp yarn by entanglement weaving. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 20, wherein the warp yarn is woven with a weft yarn embodied as a molten yarn by entanglement weaving. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 21, wherein the shrink yarn is woven with a warp yarn and / or a weft yarn rather than a entangled weave. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 22, wherein the spiral yarn is woven with warp and / or weft by entanglement weaving. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 23, wherein at least some of the artificial turf blades are manufactured from a biodegradable material. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 24, wherein more warp threads are woven with the weft threads in a conventional manner between two pairs of entwined warp threads. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 25, wherein at least one secondary lining is connected to the woven fabric lining. 26. The method of claim 26, wherein the at least one secondary lining is made from a natural fiber material, particularly jute or viscose. The method of claim 26 or 27, wherein the plurality of secondary linings are connected to the woven fabric lining and the plurality of secondary linings are manufactured from different materials.

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