JP2023010199A - Manufacturing method of sheet-like mask - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide technology for preventing occurrence of failures such as a position deviation of components and can stably manufacture a sheet-like mask with high quality.SOLUTION: A manufacturing method of a sheet-like mask includes: a sheet processing step for cutting a belt-like sheet material 30 and manufacturing sheet-like ear hook members 3; and an ear hook member joining step for joining the ear hook members 3 manufactured in the sheet processing step to a mask body continuous body 20 or the components. Static elimination processing is performed on the belt-like sheet material 30, or the mask body continuous body 20 or the ear hook members 3 which are not joined to the components.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a sheet mask.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a mask covering the mouth and nose of a wearer, there has been known a sheet-like mask including a mask main body formed of a sheet-like material such as non-woven fabric and an ear hook member joined thereto. Stretchable materials are sometimes used for the mask body and the ear hooks. A typical manufacturing method for this type of sheet-like mask is to manufacture and transport a mask body continuum in which a plurality of mask bodies are connected in the transport direction, and to the mask body continuum being transported is attached to the mask body continuum. has a step of intermittently arranging and joining a plurality of ear hook members manufactured on another manufacturing line in the conveying direction. In Patent Document 1, as a problem of the manufacturing method of a sheet-shaped mask having such a process, the mask main body and the ear hook members are deformed and deformed due to the elastic properties of the mask body and the ear hook members during transportation during mask manufacturing. The document describes a problem that defects such as distortion and positional deviation occur. As a solution to this problem, Patent Document 1 describes controlling the conveying direction of the mask body and the ear hook member in consideration of the direction of extension of the mask body and the ear hook member during mask manufacturing.

By the way, it is known that when a sheet material such as a nonwoven fabric is processed by cutting, pressing, or the like to manufacture a product, if the sheet material is charged with static electricity, the productivity and product quality are adversely affected. ing. For example, during the production of a product, a plurality of intermediate products produced by cutting a sheet material may unintentionally adhere electrically to each other due to the repulsive or attractive force of static electricity, resulting in defects such as product deformation, distortion, and misalignment. may invite In addition, there may be problems such as shavings generated by cutting the sheet material adhering to the product, or clogging of the shavings inside the device for sucking and removing the shavings.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200000 discloses a method for preventing a plurality of sheets of paper on which toner images are formed from sticking to each other due to electrostatic adsorption force in an image forming apparatus (printer, copier, etc.) using electrophotographic process technology. describes a configuration for removing the charge remaining on the toner layer on the paper using a static elimination means, and the static elimination means includes a static elimination member (for example, a pair of static elimination rollers capable of pinching the paper), A static elimination voltage applying section for applying a static elimination voltage to the static elimination member so that a static elimination current for static elimination of the sheet (current for canceling the charge on the sheet) flows through the sheet.

JP 2012-217651 A JP 2017-111329 A

At the manufacturing sites of sheet-shaped masks, problems caused by static electricity charging of sheet materials have become a problem. For example, in the typical manufacturing method of the sheet-like mask described above, after the ear hook members are joined to the continuous mask body, the ear hook members are turned over by the repulsive force or the attractive force of static electricity while the continuous mask body is being transported. As a result, there is a problem that the transport stability during manufacturing and the rate of non-defective products are lowered. A technique has not yet been provided that can prevent such problems caused by static electricity and stably produce a high-quality sheet-like mask.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of stably manufacturing a high-quality sheet-like mask by preventing the occurrence of defects such as displacement of constituent members.

The present invention is a method of manufacturing a sheet-like mask including a mask body and ear hook members joined to the mask body.
One embodiment of the method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask of the present invention includes a sheet-forming step of cutting a belt-shaped sheet material to manufacture the ear hook member in a sheet, and and an ear hook member joining step of joining the hook member to the mask main body continuous body including the plurality of mask main bodies or its constituent members.
In one embodiment of the method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask of the present invention, the band-shaped sheet material, or the ear hook member that is not yet joined to the mask body continuous body or its constituent members is subjected to a static elimination treatment.
Other features, advantages and embodiments of the invention are described below.

According to the manufacturing method of the sheet-shaped mask of the present invention, it is possible to stably manufacture a good-quality sheet-shaped mask by preventing the occurrence of defects such as misalignment of components such as ear hook members.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of one embodiment of a sheet mask manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing a state in which the mask shown in FIG. 1 is folded in half. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view along the thickness direction of the mask body in the mask shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of one embodiment of the method for manufacturing a sheet-like mask of the present invention, and is a schematic perspective view of the main part of the mask manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic side view of the main part of the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 4, and shows a configuration for subjecting the sheet material forming the ear hook member to static elimination treatment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of operation control of the static eliminator in the static elimination process according to the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on its preferred embodiments with reference to the drawings. In addition, in the following description of the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals are given to the same or similar parts. The drawings are basically schematic, and the ratio of each dimension may differ from the actual one.

First, the sheet-like mask, which is the target product of the manufacturing method of the present invention, will be described below. 1 to 3 show a mask 1, which is one embodiment of a sheet mask. The mask 1 is a sheet-like mask comprising a mask body 2 that covers the wearer's nostrils and mouth when worn, and an ear hook member 3 joined to the mask body 2 . A pair of ear hook members 3 are connected to both left and right ends of the mask body 2 .

The mask body 2 includes a first panel P1 and a second panel P2 formed symmetrically about the folding line 21, and can be folded in two along the folding line 21. As shown in FIG. The fold line 21 extends vertically along the bridge of the nose of the wearer when worn. Before use, as shown in FIG. 2, the mask body 2 is folded in two along the folding lines 21 to overlap the panels P1 and P2, and a pair of ear hooks are placed between the panels P1 and P2. Members 3, 3 are arranged. When using the mask 1, the two panels P1 and P2 of the mask main body 2 folded in two are opened and the pair of ear hook members 3 and 3 are folded outward to obtain the state shown in FIG. When the mask 1 is not in use, the mask main body 2 is folded and flat, but when worn, the mask main body 2 has a three-dimensional shape, and a space is formed between the three-dimensional mask main body 2 and the wearer's mouth. is formed.

A joint portion 22 between the first panel P<b>1 and the second panel P<b>2 is formed along the folding line 21 in the vicinity of the folding line 21 in the mask body 2 . At the joining portion 22, the panels P1 and P2 are joined together by known joining means such as fusion bonding and adhesive. The joint portion 22 includes a nose-side joint portion 221 located on the upper side of the mask body 2 and corresponding to the wearer's nose, and a chin-side joint portion 222 located on the lower side and corresponding to the wearer's chin. Both joint portions 221 and 222 are spaced apart in the vertical direction, and between both joint portions 221 and 222, the first panel P1 and the second panel P2 are not joined.

The ear hook member 3 has a shape elongated in one direction, and is joined to the mask body 2 at an ear hook member joining portion 23 at one end in the longitudinal direction. The ear hooking member 3 has an ear hooking portion 3S, and when the mask 1 is worn, the ear hooking member 3 can be hung on the ear by putting the wearer's ear into the ear hooking portion 3S. The ear hooking portion 3S is formed of a cut line in the illustrated embodiment, but its configuration is not particularly limited, and for example, it may be formed of a through hole penetrating the ear hooking member 3 in the thickness direction.

In this embodiment, the mask main body 2 contains the heating element 4 . As shown in FIG. 3, the mask main body 2 is disposed on the side closer to the wearer's skin than the heat generating element 4 and the heat generating element 4, and forms the inner surface of the mask 1 (the surface facing the wearer's skin). A breathable top sheet 5 and a breathable back sheet 6 forming the outer surface of the mask 1 are arranged on the side farther from the wearer's skin than the heating element 4. - 特許庁A heating element 4 is interposed between the sheets 5 and 6 . Both sheets 5 and 6 have a larger area than the heating element 4 and extend outward from the periphery of the heating element 4 respectively.
The heat-generating element 4 includes a heat-generating composition 43, a non-breathable sheet 41 arranged on the side farther from the wearer's skin than the heat-generating composition 43 (the back sheet 6 side), and and a breathable sheet 42 arranged on the side closer to the skin (the side of the top sheet 5). A heat-generating composition 43 is interposed between the sheets 41 and 42 . The exothermic composition 43 contains an oxidizable metal powder, an electrolyte, water, etc., and generates heat by utilizing an oxidation reaction of the oxidizable metal powder upon contact with air. The water vapor generated inside the heating element 4 by the exothermic reaction of the exothermic composition 43 passes through the air-permeable sheet 42 and the top sheet 5 to the outside of the mask body 2, as indicated by a plurality of upward arrows in FIG. released.

The mask main body 2 may contain a volatile functional material such as a perfume in part or all of the constituent members such as the heating element 4. In this case, the volatile component of the functional material may 1 can migrate to the wearer's skin side.

As the material for each part of the mask 1, any material that can be used for this type of sheet-like mask can be used without particular limitation. The sheet material constituting the mask 1, specifically, for example, the ear hook member 3, the sheets 41 and 42 constituting the heating element 4, the top sheet 5, and the back sheet 6 are mainly made of fibers such as non-woven fabric. A fiber sheet, a resin film, and the like can be mentioned, and a laminate of two or more sheet materials can also be used.

Next, the method for manufacturing the sheet-like mask of the present invention will be described by taking the method for manufacturing the mask 1 described above as an example. FIG. 4 shows a manufacturing apparatus 100 used for carrying out the method for manufacturing the mask 1. As shown in FIG. The manufacturing apparatus 100 includes a first manufacturing section 110 that manufactures the mask continuous body 10 and a second manufacturing section 120 that manufactures the ear hook members 3 that are constituent members of the mask continuous body 10 .
The mask continuous body 10 is a strip-shaped sheet in which a plurality of product units 11 of the mask 1 are continuous in one direction, and by cutting this for each product unit 11, a sheet mask 1 is obtained. The mask body continuum 10 includes a band-like mask body continuum 20 including a heating element continuum 40 and a plurality of ear hook members 3 joined to the mask body continuum 20 .
In the figure, the symbol MD indicates the machine direction of the intermediate product of the mask 1, which is the final product, such as the mask continuous body 10 and the sheet material 30, and the symbol CD indicates the transport orthogonal direction orthogonal to the transport direction MD. (Cross machine direction).

Referring to FIG. 4, in the first production unit 110, first, while conveying the non-air-permeable belt-shaped sheet 41 continuous in one direction in the conveying direction MD parallel to the continuous direction, one surface of the sheet 41 is A heat-generating composition 43 is applied or sprayed on the portion corresponding to the product unit 11 in . In this embodiment, one product unit 11 includes two exothermic compositions 43 corresponding to the panels P1 and P2 of the mask body 2, so that the portion of the non-breathable sheet 41 corresponding to the product unit 11 does not have a transport A pair of exothermic compositions 43, 43 are arranged side by side in the orthogonal direction CD. Next, the surface of the non-air-permeable sheet 41 on which the heat-generating composition 43 is arranged is joined with a strip-shaped breathable sheet 42 continuous in one direction, and the sheet 42 covers the surface of the sheet 41 on which the heat-generating composition 43 is arranged. Covers the entire area. Thus, the strip-shaped heating element continuum 40 is manufactured. The heating element continuum 40 has a configuration in which a plurality of heating elements 4 each having a configuration in which a heat generating composition 43 is interposed between both sheets 41 and 42 are arranged in a row in one direction (conveying direction MD).

Next, in the first manufacturing section 110, the strip-shaped heating element continuum 40 being transported in the transport direction MD is processed into portions corresponding to the product units 11 (a pair of heating elements 4, 4 juxtaposed in the transport orthogonal direction CD). , and sequentially supplied between the strip-shaped top sheet 5 and the strip-shaped back sheet 6 being conveyed in the same direction MD. Thus, a strip-shaped mask body continuum 20 is manufactured. The mask body continuum 20 has a configuration in which a plurality of mask bodies 2 each having a pair of heating elements 4, 4 interposed between the sheets 5, 6 are arranged in one direction (conveyance direction MD). there is A bonding means such as a hot-melt adhesive may be applied in advance to the positions where the heating elements 4 are to be arranged on the top sheet 5 and/or the back sheet 6 . In addition, from the viewpoint of enhancing the integrity of the constituent members of the mask body continuum 20, the mask body continuum 20 may be pressed in the thickness direction using a press roll or the like.

Next, in the first manufacturing department 110, a second manufacturing department The ear hook member 3 manufactured in 120 is arranged, and the mask main body continuous body 20 and the ear hook member 3 are joined by a joining means to form the ear hook member joining portion 23 . As the joining means, known joining means such as thermal embossing, fusion processing using ultrasonic processing, hot-melt adhesives, and the like can be used. The mask continuous body 10 manufactured in this manner has a structure in which a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are fixed to one surface (surface on the side of the top sheet 5) of the mask body 2 in the unfolded state where the folding line 21 is not formed. A plurality of intermediate products of the mask 1 are arranged in one direction (conveyance direction MD).

Next, in the first manufacturing unit 110, the strip-shaped mask continuous body 10 being transported in the transport direction MD. A process (bending process) of folding this in the conveyance orthogonal direction CD (bending process) and a process (bonding process) of forming joint portions 22 in the folded mask continuous body 10 (bonding process) are performed in this order.
In the folding step, the mask continuous body 10 is transported in the transport direction MD along the folding guide provided on the transport path, so that the mask continuous body 10 is folded so that the ear hooking member 3 and the top sheet 5 are inside (the back sheet 6 on the outside) and folded in half in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction CD. A folding line extending in the transport direction MD formed in the mask continuous body 10 by this folding is a folding line 21 of the mask body 2 .
In the joining process, a part of each of the plurality of product units 11 in the mask continuous body 10 folded in two in the folding process is subjected to a fusion process such as thermal embossing or ultrasonic treatment to form a joining part 22 (nose part). A side fold joint 221 and a jaw joint 222) are formed. As a result, each product unit 11 of the mask continuous body 10 has substantially the same configuration as the mask 1 that is the object of manufacture.

In the first manufacturing section 110, the unnecessary portion 10T is removed from the band-shaped mask continuous body 10 thus manufactured, and the mask continuous body 10 is cut into product units 11, and folded in half as shown in FIG. A plurality of masks 1 of are continuously manufactured.

The manufactured mask 1 is then hermetically housed in a packaging material (not shown) (packaging process). The method for producing a sheet-like mask of the present invention may have the packaging step.
When using the mask 1 (package of sheet-shaped mask) manufactured through the packaging process, the sealing of the packaging material is released, and the mask 1 is taken out from the packaging material. As a result, the exothermic composition 43 and oxygen in the air are brought into contact with each other, and the exothermic body 4 starts to generate heat. Also, if the mask main body 2 is provided with a volatile functional material such as perfume, its effect is exhibited.

The ear hook member 3 used for manufacturing the mask continuous body 10 in the first manufacturing department 110 is manufactured in the second manufacturing department 120 . FIG. 5 shows the manufacturing process of the ear hook member 3 carried out in the second manufacturing department 120 . In the second manufacturing section 120, the sheet material 30, which is the main body of the ear hook member 3, is conveyed in the conveying direction MD parallel to the longitudinal direction of the sheet material 30, and subjected to various processes to produce a plurality of sheet material of the ear hook member 3. Manufactured continuously.

The processing applied to the sheet material 30 in the second manufacturing department 120 includes forming processing of the ear hooking portion 3S, cutting processing for cutting out the ear hooking member 3 from the band-shaped sheet material 30, and the like. In the present embodiment, the ear hook member 3 is stretchable in the longitudinal direction, and the ear hook member joint portion 23 (see FIG. 1) of the mask 1 can be used as a fixed end. Therefore, the processing applied to the sheet material 30 in the second manufacturing department 120 includes stretching processing for imparting stretchability to the sheet material 30 . The stretching process is typically performed prior to the process involving cutting of the sheet material 30, such as the process of forming the ear hook portion 3S and the process of cutting the sheet material 30 into the ear hook member 3 in a single sheet.

As shown in FIG. 5, the second manufacturing section 120 includes an expansion processing section 121 that performs expansion processing on the sheet material 30 . In the stretching unit 121, the strip-shaped sheet material 30 continuous in one direction is conveyed so as to pass through the meshing portions of the pair of processing members 121A and 121B that mesh with each other (stretching step ).

In this embodiment, the processing members 121A and 121B are cylindrical tooth groove rolls, respectively, and have teeth (not shown) and grooves (not shown) extending in the axial direction arranged in the circumferential direction of the rolls. alternately along the circumference. The processing members 121A and 121B are arranged so that their axial directions are parallel to each other and the tooth grooves provided on the peripheral surfaces of the rolls are engaged with each other, and they rotate about their axes in opposite directions. It is designed to
In the stretching step, the sheet material 30 introduced between the pair of processing members 121A and 121B is partially bonded between the constituent fibers due to the meshing of one tooth and the other tooth bottom of both processing members 121A and 121B. destroyed. As a result, the sheet material 30 is provided with a margin for elongation, and the sheet material 30 becomes stretchable in the conveying direction MD.

The expansion/contraction processing may be performed over the entire belt-like sheet material 30 in the direction perpendicular to conveyance CD, or may be performed only partially in the direction perpendicular to conveyance CD. For example, if it is desired to impart stretchability only to a desired portion of the ear hook member 3, the latter is adopted.

In the second manufacturing section 120, while conveying the band-shaped sheet material 30 subjected to the expansion and contraction process in the conveying direction MD, the sheet material 30 is cut by a cutting means (not shown) to form the ear hooking portions 3S. The strip-shaped sheet material 30 is cut into portions corresponding to the product units 11 by the cutting unit 122 to continuously manufacture a plurality of single-leaf ear hook members 3 (single-wafer forming step). In the sheet forming process, in addition to separating the band-shaped sheet material 30 into single sheets, an unnecessary portion 30T (see FIG. 4) from the sheet material 30 is also cut. As shown in FIG. 5, the cutting unit 122 includes a cutter roll 122A having a plurality of cutter blades (not shown) on its circumferential surface, and an anvil roll 122B arranged to face the circumferential surface of the cutter roll 122A. Anvil roll 122B is rotatable while vacuuming sheet material 30 .

In the second manufacturing department 120, the plurality of sheeted ear hooking members 3 obtained in the single-wafer forming process are processed into a pair of the ear hooking members 3, 3, which are one product unit, into the first manufacturing department 110. is intermittently supplied to the strip-shaped mask body continuous body 20 being transported. As shown in FIG. 5, the second manufacturing section 120 includes a re-pitch section 123 and a joining section 124 in this order downstream of the cutting section 122 in the transport direction MD. The plurality of ear hook members 3 manufactured by the cutting section 122 are divided into a plurality of units in the joining section 124 by the re-pitch section 123, with a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 juxtaposed in the conveying orthogonal direction CD as one unit. It is supplied intermittently and is joined by the joining processing section 124 to a predetermined position of the continuous mask main body 20 being conveyed through the first manufacturing section 110 to form the ear hook member joining section 23 (ear hook member joining step). . The ear hook member 3 manufactured in the second manufacturing section 120 in this way is supplied to the first manufacturing section 110 and joined to the mask body continuous body 20 to become a part of the mask continuous body 10 .

The joining processing section 124 that performs the ear hook member joining step is a device that joins a plurality of workpieces by fusion, and includes a fusion processing section 125 and a receiving tool 126 arranged opposite thereto. The configuration of the joining processing unit 124 is not particularly limited. For example, the fusion processing unit 125 may apply ultrasonic treatment to the workpiece to melt and soften it, or may perform heat treatment instead of ultrasonic treatment. It may be applied. In the illustrated embodiment, the fusion processing unit 125 is an ultrasonic processing machine having an ultrasonic horn that vibrates ultrasonically, and the receiver 126 is positioned opposite the vibration applying surface at the tip of the ultrasonic horn. Anvil roll in place.

As the sheet material 30 that forms the main body of the ear hook member 3, any material that can be used as a material for this type of sheet-like mask can be used without particular limitation. nonwoven fabric laminates, laminates of resin films and nonwoven fabrics, and the like.
Sheet material 30 may include elastic fibers. As a result, it is possible to impart stretchability and flexibility to the sheet material 30 by the stretching step. As a specific example of a nonwoven fabric containing elastic fibers, a non-elastic fiber layer composed of substantially inelastic fibers (non-elastic fibers) is disposed on at least one surface of an elastic fiber layer containing elastic fibers, and both fiber layers are , and a stretchable nonwoven fabric in which the constituent fibers of the elastic fiber layer are joined by heat fusion while maintaining the fiber form. When the sheet material 30 has elasticity, the sheet material 30 after the stretching process can exhibit stretchability along the stretching direction.
Examples of the elastic fibers include fibers made from thermoplastic elastomers and elastic resins. Examples of the thermoplastic elastomer include polyethylene-based elastomers, styrene-based elastomers, polyolefin-based elastomers, polyester-based elastomers, polyurethane-based elastomers, and the like. Rubber etc. are mentioned as said elastic resin.
Examples of the inelastic fibers include fibers made of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, polyamide, and the like. Examples of polyester include polyethylene terephthalate and polybutylene terephthalate.

A preferred example of the sheet material 30 is a single-layer nonwoven fabric mainly composed of polypropylene synthetic fibers. Examples of the single-layer nonwoven fabrics include air-through nonwoven fabrics, spunbond nonwoven fabrics, meltblown nonwoven fabrics, and spunlace nonwoven fabrics.
Another preferred example of the sheet material 30 is a composite sheet having a three-layer structure in which a polyethylene elastomer film is interposed between two nonwoven fabric layers facing each other. Each of the two nonwoven fabric layers in the composite sheet may be, for example, the single-layer nonwoven fabric.

As described above, the method of manufacturing the mask 1 includes a sheeting step of cutting the belt-shaped sheet material 30 to manufacture the ear hooking member 3 in a single sheet, and the ear hooking member 3 manufactured in the sheeting step. and an ear hook member bonding step of bonding to the mask main body continuous body 20 or its constituent members (top sheet 5, back sheet 6, etc.), and the strip-shaped mask continuous body 10 is manufactured through the ear hook member bonding step. .

In the illustrated embodiment, the ear hook member 3 is joined to the mask body continuum 20 in the ear hook member joining step. It may not be necessary, and may be a constituent member (intermediate product) of the continuous body of mask body 20, for example, a strip-shaped surface sheet 5. In this case, the strip-shaped top sheet 5 to which the ear hook member 3 is joined is joined to other constituent members of the mask body continuous body 20 (the strip-shaped back sheet 6 and the like) to manufacture the mask body continuous body 20 .

In the method of manufacturing the mask 1 described above, there is a concern that the sheet material 30 may be charged with static electricity. Specifically, for example, after the ear hook member joining step, the ear hook member 3 is turned over by the repulsive force or the attractive force of the static electricity while the mask continuous body 10 is being transported, and as a result, the mask continuous body 10 is transported stably. There is a concern that defects such as a decrease in performance and misalignment of the ear hook member 3 may occur, and the rate of non-defective products may decrease.
In particular, in this embodiment, as described above, in order to impart stretchability to the strip-shaped sheet material 30, the strip-shaped sheet material 30 is subjected to a stretching process of introducing it into the meshing portions of the pair of processing members 121A and 121B that mesh with each other. However, since such an expansion/contraction process damages the sheet material 30 to a relatively large degree, the sheet material 30 is likely to be charged with static electricity, and the above-described problems are likely to occur.
Further, when the manufacturing method of the mask 1 includes the packaging process, if the ear hook member 3 is turned up, the ear hook member 3 in the turned up state is removed when the mask 1 is accommodated in the packaging material in the packaging process. is caught in the packaging material, making the accommodation operation difficult.

However, in the present invention, the strip-shaped sheet material 30, that is, the sheet material 30 before being formed into a single sheet, or the mask main body continuous body 20 or the ear hook member 3 that is not joined to the constituent members thereof, is subjected to a static elimination treatment. The static electricity charged to 3 is eliminated, and the above-mentioned concern is dispelled. That is, according to the method of manufacturing a sheet-like mask of the present invention, represented by the method of manufacturing the mask 1, the positional displacement of the ear hook member due to static electricity is eliminated by the static elimination treatment of the ear hook member or the sheet material of which the ear hook member is formed. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of defects such as the above, and to stably manufacture a high-quality sheet-like mask. In addition, the sheet mask can be smoothly accommodated in the packaging material in the packaging process.

In particular, the method for manufacturing the mask 1 of the present embodiment includes the folding step of folding the mask continuous body 10 in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction CD as described above. Since the joined ear hook member 3 is folded and arranged between the constituent members of the mask continuous body 10 facing each other (between the first panel P1 side and the second panel P2 side), the folding It is possible to prevent the ear hook member 3 from being turned up after the process. Therefore, according to the manufacturing method of the mask 1 of the present embodiment, in combination with the effects of the above-described static elimination treatment, problems such as misalignment of the ear hook member 3 can be effectively prevented, and a high-quality sheet-shaped mask can be obtained. can be produced more stably.

Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, when the unnecessary portion 30T (so-called cutting waste) is cut off from the band-shaped sheet material 30 in the single-wafer process (see FIG. 4), the unnecessary portion 30T is charged with static electricity. If this is the case, there are concerns that the unnecessary portion 30T may adhere to the product, or the unnecessary portion 30T may become clogged inside the device for sucking and removing the unnecessary portion 30T. Concern is also dispelled by the above-mentioned static elimination processing.

Examples of the static elimination treatment that can be employed in the present invention include 1) use of a static eliminator (ionizer), 2) adjustment of the humidity of the environment in which the method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask is implemented, and 3) use for implementation of the method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask. 4) applying an antistatic agent to equipment handling the sheet material 30; In the present invention, one type of static elimination treatment may be used alone, or multiple types of static elimination treatments may be used together.
Of the static elimination treatments 1) to 4) above, the use of a static eliminator in 1) above is particularly preferred.

Regarding the static elimination treatment (use of a static eliminator) in 1) above, as the static eliminator, a static eliminator that can be used at the manufacturing site of the sheet-like mask can be used without particular limitation. There are several types of static eliminators depending on the ion generation method. There are a "soft X-ray type" that irradiates weak X-rays, a "radiation type" that irradiates α-rays or β-rays, and an "ultraviolet type" that irradiates ultraviolet rays. Although either method can be used in the present invention, the corona discharge method is preferred from the viewpoint of safety, economy, and the like.
Corona discharge static eliminators are classified into an AC type and a DC type depending on the difference in ion generation method. In the AC method, an AC voltage is applied to a discharge needle to alternately generate positive ions and negative ions. In the DC method, a DC voltage is applied to the discharge needle to generate either positive ions or negative ions. Although either method can be used in the present invention, the AC method is particularly preferable from the viewpoint of ensuring the effects of the static elimination treatment.

A specific example of the static elimination treatment (humidity adjustment) in 2) is a method of increasing the humidity of the environment in which the method for manufacturing a sheet mask is implemented. In general, the higher the humidity of the working environment, the higher the effect of the static elimination treatment. Considering this, the relative humidity of the working environment is preferably 40% or higher, more preferably 60% or higher, and preferably 90% or lower, more preferably 70% or lower. If the material for forming the mask contains a hygroscopic material such as a water-absorbent polymer, the static elimination treatment of 2) above may be avoided in order to prevent the hygroscopic material from absorbing moisture in a high-humidity environment, or It is desirable to review the humidity setting range. From the viewpoint of preventing wetting of the material forming the mask including the sheet material 30, the static elimination treatment of 1) is preferable.

The static elimination treatment (grounding) in 3) aims to prevent the sheet material 30 from being charged with static electricity by letting the static electricity escape to the ground. For example, from the viewpoint of maintaining the static elimination effect even when the sheet material 30 is easily charged with static electricity, such as when the sheet material 30 is conveyed by a metal roll, the static elimination treatment of 1) is preferable.

Regarding the static elimination treatment (application of an antistatic agent) in 4) above, any antistatic agent that can be used for the static elimination treatment can be used without particular limitation. The antistatic agent typically contains a surfactant as a main component, and the portion coated with the antistatic agent has improved hydrophilicity and hygroscopicity, and is less likely to be charged with static electricity. The antistatic agent is applied to a portion of the mask manufacturing apparatus that comes into contact with the sheet material 30 , for example, to the transport rolls used to transport the sheet material 30 . In general, the applied antistatic agent tends to peel off due to friction or the like, so from the viewpoint of preventing this, the static elimination treatment of 1) above is preferable.

In the method of manufacturing the mask 1 of the present embodiment, the static elimination treatment of 1) is adopted. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the second manufacturing section 120 that manufactures the ear hook member 3 includes a static eliminator 130 between the expansion/contraction processing section 121 and the cutting processing section 122. The ionized air is supplied by the static eliminator 130 to the belt-shaped sheet material 30 (target to be statically eliminated) conveyed toward. This neutralizes the static electricity on the sheet material 30 .

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, in the static elimination targeting the ear hook member 3, the belt-shaped sheet material 30 before being formed into a sheet is targeted for static elimination. The ear hook member 3 that has been cut into sheets in the forming process and has not yet been joined to the mask main body continuous body 20 or its constituent members (the top sheet 5, the back sheet 6, etc.) may be subject to static elimination. That is, the present invention includes: 1) a form in which the strip-shaped sheet material 30 before being subjected to the sheet forming step is subjected to a static elimination treatment; A form of subjecting the unjoined ear hook member 3 to an antistatic treatment is also included. In the form 1), since the entire belt-shaped sheet material 30 is subjected to the static elimination treatment, not only the portion used as the ear hook member 3 but also the unnecessary portion 30T (cutting waste) is eliminated. Therefore, the above-mentioned form 1) can effectively prevent the inconvenience caused by the electrification of the cutting waste as described above.

The sheet-shaped mask manufacturing method of the present invention includes a charge amount measuring step of measuring the charge amount of the strip-shaped sheet material 30 subjected to the charge removal treatment or the unjoined ear hook member 3 after the charge removal treatment. You may have The method of manufacturing the mask 1 of the present embodiment includes the charge amount measuring step, and the second manufacturing unit 120, as shown in FIG. A sensor 140 is provided to measure the amount of charge on the material 30 . In the second manufacturing section 120, the belt-shaped sheet material 30 conveyed toward the cutting section 122 through the expansion processing section 121 is subjected to static elimination processing by the static eliminator 130, and then the sheet material 30 is removed by the sensor 140. Measure the amount of charge. In this way, by measuring the charge amount after the static elimination process of the static elimination target, it becomes possible to evaluate the effectiveness of the static elimination process, and the possibility of performing the static elimination process more effectively increases. As the sensor 140, a known measuring device capable of measuring the amount of electrostatic charge can be used without particular limitation.

From the viewpoint of achieving the predetermined effects of the present invention more reliably, it is preferable to carry out the static elimination process based on the charge amount measured in the charge amount measurement step. Specifically, for example, in the form shown in FIG. Optimal static elimination conditions for neutralizing the static electricity charged on the surface 30 are determined, and the operation of the static eliminator 130 is controlled according to the static elimination conditions. implement. The static elimination conditions include, for example, the types of ions (positive ions, negative ions) generated by the static eliminator and the amount of ions generated. By providing the manufacturing apparatus 100 with such a system for feeding back the measurement result of the charge amount after the static elimination process of the static elimination target, the static elimination of the static elimination target can be performed more reliably.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the relationship between the voltage applied to the static eliminator 130 (vertical axis) and time (horizontal axis). Referring to FIG. 6, static eliminator 130 generates positive ions when the applied voltage is positive (+), and negative ions are generated from static eliminator 130 when the applied voltage is negative (-). In time period T1, positive ions and negative ions are alternately generated from static eliminator 130 for a certain period of time. For example, when the static eliminator 130 is of the corona discharge AC type, the operation of the static eliminator 130 during time period T1 is normal operation. On the other hand, in time zone T2, positive ions are generated for a longer period of time and in a larger amount than negative ions. This is because the strip-shaped sheet material 30 to be neutralized was negatively charged in the time period T2, and thus many positive ions were generated in order to electrically neutralize this. By adopting the charge amount measuring step in the sheet-like mask manufacturing method, it becomes possible to control such a static eliminator, and to perform an effective static elimination process efficiently.

As an example of a manufacturing apparatus equipped with the above-described "system for feeding back the measurement result of the charge amount of the target for static elimination", the following manufacturing apparatus can be cited.
That is, a static eliminator 130, a sensor 140 for measuring the static charge amount of the static elimination target (the strip-shaped sheet material 30 or the unjoined ear hook member 3), and a control means ( not shown) and
The control means includes a measurement control unit that measures the charge amount of the target for static elimination by the sensor 140;
a static elimination condition determination unit that determines static elimination conditions (for example, the type and amount of ions generated by the static eliminator 130) based on the measurement results of the measurement control unit;
The manufacturing apparatus includes a static elimination processing unit that operates a static eliminator 130 to perform static elimination processing on the object to be statically protected based on the static elimination condition determined by the static elimination condition determining unit.

In the method for manufacturing a sheet-like mask of the present invention, not only the ear hooking member 3 or the band-shaped sheet material 30 as a forming material thereof, but also the mask body continuous body 20 to which the ear hooking member 3 is not joined or its constituent member (surface sheet) 5, back sheet 6, etc.) may be subjected to a static elimination treatment. As a result, not only the ear hook member 3 but also the mask main body continuous body 20 to which it is joined is subjected to the static elimination treatment, so that the above-described predetermined effects of the present invention are exhibited more reliably.
In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the manufacturing apparatus 100 includes a static eliminator 131 upstream in the conveying direction MD from the bonding processing unit 124 that performs the ear hook member bonding step. The ionized air is supplied by the static eliminator 131 to the strip-shaped mask body continuum 20 (target to be statically eliminated) that is conveyed. As a result, the static electricity charged on the mask body continuum 20 is neutralized.

Although the present invention has been described above based on its preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the scope of the present invention.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the mask 1 has the heating element 4, but the sheet-like mask, which is the manufacturing object of the present invention, does not have to have the heating element. A cooling body may be provided instead of the heating body.
Also, when the mask main body continuous body 20 or its constituent members are subjected to the static elimination treatment, the charge amount measurement step is adopted, and the static elimination process is performed by the static eliminator 131 based on the charge amount measured in the step. good too.

1 mask 2 mask body 3 ear hook member 3S ear hook part 20 mask body continuous body 30 sheet material 100 manufacturing device 124 joining parts 130, 131 static eliminator

Claims (5)

A method for manufacturing a sheet mask, comprising a mask body and an ear hook member joined to the mask body,
A single-wafer forming step of cutting a band-shaped sheet material to manufacture the single-wafer ear hook member;
and an ear hook member joining step of joining the ear hook member manufactured in the single wafer forming step to a mask body continuous body including a plurality of the mask bodies or a constituent member thereof,
A method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask, wherein the band-shaped sheet material, or the ear hook member that is not joined to the mask main body continuous body or its constituent members is subjected to a static elimination treatment. The strip-shaped sheet material is given stretchability by stretch processing,
2. The method of manufacturing a sheet-shaped mask according to claim 1, wherein said stretch processing includes a step of conveying said belt-shaped sheet material so as to pass through meshed portions of a pair of processing members that mesh with each other. 3. The sheet according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a charge amount measuring step of measuring the charge amount of the strip-shaped sheet material or the unjoined ear hook member subjected to the charge removal treatment after the charge removal treatment is performed. How to make a mask. 4. The method for manufacturing a sheet-like mask according to claim 3, wherein the static elimination process is performed based on the charge amount measured in the charge amount measurement step. 5. The method for manufacturing a sheet-like mask according to claim 1, wherein the mask body continuous body or its constituent members to which the ear hook members are not joined is subjected to a static elimination treatment.

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